Chapter 54. Little Show-off
It was a sunny day, the sun bright red, and the flowers colorful.
Elrose lay languidly in bed, slowly opening her eyes.
“Eh, what time is it now?” Elrose stretched her neck and glanced at the wall clock. “It’s only eleven…”
Wrapping herself in the blanket, Elrose turned over and closed her eyes again.
But the next moment.
Hmm?
Eleven o’clock?
It’s already eleven o’clock!!!
Elrose shot up from her bed.
“Damn it, damn it, damn it…” Elrose hurriedly dressed in her maid outfit and rushed out the door.
The Nightmoon Tavern’s operating hours were from eight in the morning to eight in the evening, and at this time, she had completely missed her normal working hours.
Elrose skipped down the escalator and quickly reached the first floor.
However, to her surprise, the entire front hall on the first floor was empty. The tavern’s doors weren’t even open.
“Eh? Where is everyone?” Elrose paused, then headed towards the kitchen.
The kitchen was still empty, but there was a soft piece of bread placed in a very conspicuous spot, with a note underneath it.
Elrose went up, took the note, and read it.
【Little Belle, today is a day off, no need to work. I saw you sleeping so soundly that I didn’t wake you. The bread on the table is what was left from this morning; eat it if you’re hungry. Everyone has something going on today, and it’s just you and me left at home. When you wake up, come to the third floor and find me so we can discuss how to deal with lunch.———–Luna.】
“A day off? No need to work?” Elrose was slightly taken aback.
Today, a holiday, the tavern, no one.
Elrose held the note and looked around.
Wait, does this mean there are no customers in the tavern today?!
In other words, for the entire day, no one would be nagging her about magical girls or Shadie.
This…
Elrose bit her lip, suddenly feeling a wave of emotion: “Great, I can finally enjoy some peace and quiet today.”
The quiet tavern, the warm sunlight, the gentle spring breeze.
An elegant girl, savoring milk and bread all alone.
No rough men, no rude howling.
And no torment, no punishment, and no Shadie.
Elrose’s face was full of contentment: “Ah, this leisurely feeling is just fantastic.”
After filling her stomach, Elrose slowly made her way up the stairs to the third floor, the top floor of the Nightmoon Tavern.
The third floor was usually locked, so Elrose had no idea what was inside.
She gently pushed open the door and quietly walked in.
What greeted her was an open space; the third floor of Nightmoon Tavern was not divided into separate rooms but was completely connected.
This is… the Arcane Testing Grounds?!
Elrose surveyed the decorations on the third floor; both the floor and the walls were made of materials highly resistant to magic, and there was even a slightly decent mana absorption magic formation laid out.
With such a setup, it probably wouldn’t be easy to destroy this place from the inside without magic above level one hundred.
At that moment, Luna was lying in the center of the room, carefully writing the magic core of a spell with her magic wand covered in mana dust, completely unaware of Elrose’s arrival.
Elrose observed the magic formation beneath Luna’s feet; it was a fire-type magic that condensed energy for a sudden explosion. It was definitely an explosive spell.
Elrose did not disturb her but quietly stood aside, waiting for her to finish writing the core of the magic formation.
Time passed little by little, and finally, Luna completed the magic formation.
She picked up her wand, slowly stood up, and focused her mind, seriously chanting the ancient incantation.
【Blacker than black, darker than darkness, I entrust my true crimson light here! The arrival of awakening, the fallacy of the absurd church, manifest as an invisible distortion! This is the eternal pride of the ancient crimson magic clan, its name is——–Dragon Flame Explosion】
“Boom!”
The magic formation beneath Luna’s feet suddenly rose with a deep red light, mana coalescing and gradually transforming into a giant deep red flame ball before her wand.
Flame Dragon Explosion, Tier-V explosive magic. For a sixteen-year-old, to wield magic of this level at such an age was indeed worthy of the title “genius.”
If an ordinary person stood here, their eyes would probably be filled with immense admiration.
Unfortunately, Elrose was unmoved; she calmly stood aside, even feeling a bit sleepy.
Because that magic was just too simple.
Moreover, she could see at a glance that Luna’s magic was going to fail.
The next moment, a bright flash of lightning flickered, and the magic formation beneath Luna’s feet suddenly lost its glow. The deep red flame ball that hadn’t fully formed in front of her wand also vanished instantly.
The spell failed, and Luna’s body went limp as she sat on the ground, staring blankly at the magic formation beneath her, her face full of disappointment.
“Failed again, why did I fail again?” Luna sighed deeply, then picked up the magic book again, comparing it with the magic formation beneath her feet, pondering for a long time. “What exactly is wrong? I’m clearly following the book exactly.”
“Could it be that my talent is really that poor?” Luna gritted her teeth, and the heavy book in her hand crumpled from her forceful grip. “If I can’t even manage this level of magic, how can I enter the Obsidian Tower and take revenge on my father and mother?”
“Your mana dust is too little.”
Just as Luna was in distress, a melodious voice suddenly came from behind her. She quickly turned her head to see the silver-haired girl in a maid outfit slowly walking towards her.
“Little Belle, how come you…” Luna was momentarily distracted, even forgetting that she had left a note for her to find her on the third floor after waking up.
“Your magic is failing because you’re using too little mana dust.” Elrose calmly looked at Luna and repeated her earlier statement.
She hadn’t intended to meddle, but for some reason, when she saw the dejection on Luna’s face, her mouth moved involuntarily.
“Eh?” Hearing Elrose’s words, Luna was slightly taken aback, and doubtfully asked, “Little Belle, do you understand magic?”
“Somewhat.” Elrose smiled slightly, then took Luna’s wand, which was covered in mana dust, and applied more to a particular corner of the magic formation: “There, that should do it. Try again; this time you’ll definitely succeed.”
Luna took the wand, hesitating: “Is this really enough? Little Belle, you’re not joking with me, are you?”
“Do I look like that kind of person?” Elrose lightly said, then she turned to the door, waiting for Luna’s next performance.
Luna was a bit skeptical, not because she didn’t trust Elrose, but because Kendrick had already sent someone to evaluate her when Elrose arrived. She truly had no mana within her.
How could someone without any mana understand magic, especially such complex explosive magic?
Come to think of it, no one would believe that.
But Elrose didn’t seem like someone who would lie, so Luna chose to trust her.
Raising the magic formation, focusing her mind, and trying again.
【Blacker than black, darker than darkness, I entrust my true crimson light here! The arrival of awakening, the fallacy of the absurd church, manifest as an invisible distortion! This is the eternal pride of the ancient crimson magic clan, its name is——–Dragon Flame Explosion】
Deep red flames erupted once more.
One second passed, two seconds passed, three seconds passed…
One minute passed.
“Roar!”
Countless flames arose, enveloping the flame ball and transforming it into a massive dragon head.
【Flame Dragon Explosion】 perfectly formed.
“Finally, finally…” Luna’s eyes sparkled with joy, but the experiment was not over yet; she couldn’t let her guard down completely.
In the next moment, a huge light screen suddenly rose from the ground. Luna’s magic surged as she took a deep breath: “Go!”
“Boom!”
The enormous dragon head slammed into the light screen, instantly causing an explosion as massive clouds of smoke rushed forth, accompanied by a terrifying shockwave.
Elrose was startled and quickly hid behind the door, which was made of special materials with shockwave-absorbing properties.
As the explosion ended and the smoke cleared, Elrose slowly peeked out from behind the door, only to see Luna standing dumbly in front of the previous light screen, seemingly lost in thought.
Elrose stepped forward slowly and suddenly noticed several words had appeared on the light screen.
【Tier-V explosive magic, damage value: 2341】
【Congratulations, spell cast successfully.】
Seeing this, Elrose couldn’t help but scoff internally: “After chanting for so long, it’s only over two thousand damage, how pathetic.”
But as she thought this.
“Success, success…” Luna repeatedly voiced her shaky excitement. She slowly turned her head, her eyes filled with tears.
The next moment, Luna moved and suddenly jumped onto Elrose, who fell to the ground in surprise.
“Hey, Luna, Luna, what are you doing? Let go!” Elrose used all her strength in an attempt to push Luna off her.
“Hehe, I won’t.” Luna sat on Elrose, giving her a tight embrace, her face filled with a radiant smile. “Little Belle, you’re just amazing, I love you!”
