This was not the first time Serie had experienced rejection. On the contrary, in her long life, she had been turned down quite a number of times.
So she merely furrowed her brow for a moment before smoothing it out again.
"You don't have to decide so quickly. You can take more time to think it over."
However, what she hadn't expected was for Fíliya's second refusal to come so swiftly and decisively.
"This is something that requires no consideration. Because, if I become your disciple, I might quickly become one of the world's preeminent powerhouses; but at the same time, I would lose any possibility of defeating you."
For Fíliya, uttering such a wild, unrealistic boast wasn't entirely about harvesting more emotion points from the living god; it also contained her true feelings.
From the bottom of her heart, she wanted to challenge this god of magic.
Whether it was the hero of legend or the living god, both were targets her soaring ambition sought to surpass.
Her expression was exceptionally solemn; even as the System notified her that she had gained another million points, her face remained unchanged.
As for Serie, all she wanted to do right now was laugh.
She just wanted to let out a few wild laughs.
Now she understood.
This young girl before her had no concept of what power was, nor had she ever witnessed true strength.
That's why she would say such mad things.
It made sense, she supposed. Despite being a prodigy, she was currently just a human girl who had recently come of age, a Second-Class Mage who had never truly seen the world.
That must be the source of this blind courage.
So, if I were to effortlessly crush that which she takes pride in... would she perhaps change her mind?
With this thought, Serie mused aloud.
"Cast the magic you're most confident in, Fíliya. I want to see it."
Fíliya knew exactly what Serie was planning.
This god of magic from the Elf race truly didn't understand human emotions, to have misunderstood things in such a way.
Fíliya couldn't help but smile, but she was more than happy to play along with the living god for a bit.
After all... every point she could earn was a point earned.
And so, she said.
"Mm, I do have a magic I'm very proud of... but my own mana is insufficient to support it. Therefore, I may need to steal some of your mana, Lady Serie. Could I ask you not to resist? If you resist, I'll be helpless."
"I understand. I will lower all of my resistances."
Serie said casually, and seeing Lernen's somewhat worried expression, she preemptively stopped her disciple.
...And so Fíliya began to channel her mana. She could finally witness for the first time this magic, into which she had poured all her heart and soul.
In the blink of an eye, the mana overflowing from Fíliya enveloped the entire room, swiftly reshaping everything around them.
To an ordinary person ignorant of the ways of magic, it would have seemed as if the scene had suddenly changed.
The other two instantly understood what Fíliya was doing.
This was, simply put, a barrier-type magic.
Although for a mana-deficient Second-Class Mage like Fíliya, creating a barrier with such a large area of effect was already a remarkable feat... compared to the big talk she had spouted earlier, this level of performance was still somewhat disappointing.
At least, that was what Serie thought.
She looked at her own body. From it, faint, velvety, thread-like substances were dissipating, flowing in Fíliya's direction.
The same was happening to Lernen.
This indicated that the barrier didn't just affect a single target, but every subject enveloped within it.
"A barrier magic created to compensate for her own lack of mana, then? Its effect is to continuously drain the mana of those who enter, siphoning others' mana for her own use... It's a decent concept, and the formula's framework is very stable. As a barrier magic, it's quite excellent, but that's all there is to it."
Serie casually evaluated Fíliya's masterpiece.
Fíliya, however, remained silent. No one knew her barrier better than she did. She was well aware that its true purpose was not for combat at all; draining others' mana was merely a bonus effect.
Lady Serie will realize this soon, she thought.
As time passed, after a few breaths, the entire barrier began to undergo subtle, gradual changes.
"No... this is full of flaws. Why is it constructed this way? It's completely self-contradictory."
Serie suddenly frowned. It was precisely because of her supreme understanding of all magic that she couldn't comprehend why this young mage she held in high regard would set up a barrier like this.
If the main goal was to absorb the opponent's mana, then everything within the barrier should be kept minimalistic. To take it to an extreme, the interior of the barrier should be nothing but a void, so as not to waste a single shred of mana.
But the barrier before her was clearly too... extravagant.
This sea of flowers before her, and the gentle breeze that caressed her face.
The moisture diffused in the air, the warm sunlight, and the slightly earthy scent.
Her many senses were clearly telling Serie.
She was in a real sea of flowers.
Despite drawing a vast amount of mana from her, it wasn't being used for combat at all. Instead, all the mana was being used to make this world more real... It was an application that was extravagant to the extreme, and just as extremely pointless.
This was the reason for her 'self-contradictory' evaluation.
Then, just as Lady Serie was about to question her, she suddenly saw a figure that made her pupils tremble.
Small, lively and cute, with a familiar smile on her face, as if time had flowed backward.
"Fíliya... why is that thing in this barrier."
Lady Serie's tone was like she was gritting her teeth.
Fíliya was overjoyed. Her ultimate move was clearly effective, proven by the constantly rising emotion points.
So she said with a light chuckle.
"I don't quite understand what you mean. This barrier is supposed to recreate the person you cherish and care for the most. Aren't you happy?"
"Of course not... I don't feel happy at all. Get rid of this barrier, now."
Lady Serie said urgently, but this only made Fíliya more curious.
With Lady Serie's power, she could clearly shatter this flimsy barrier of hers with a flick of her wrist. Why would she ask her to 'get rid of it'?
It couldn't be that... she can't bear to, could it?
Fíliya quickly covered her mouth, lest she couldn't stop herself from saying something inappropriate again.
And that figure had evidently noticed them.
The small figure ran over with a look of pleasant surprise, stumbling along, making one worry she might fall.
Fortunately, such a heart-wrenching scene did not occur, and the small figure soon arrived before Serie.
She strained to stand on her tiptoes, holding up a bouquet of flowers with both hands, looking at Serie with delight.
"Master, flowers for you."
Serie's pupils remained wide, and she still said nothing.
And so, the little girl, somewhat puzzled, opened her arms and hugged her teacher.
"Master, what's wrong? Why are you ignoring me... And who are this old man and this big sister?"
Noticing that there were strangers present, the small figure shyly hid behind her master.
At this scene, aside from Lady Serie who was already in a slight daze, Old Man Lernen couldn't help but widen his eyes as well.
He, of course, knew what this meant.
In his life, Lernen had witnessed countless types of illusionary magic. However... no matter how exquisite an illusion, it always had flaws.
He had seen a type of Monster called a Phantom Dragon. This Monster could read a target's memories and disguise itself as the person they cherished most... Lady Fíliya's magic must have been inspired by this Monster.
A Phantom Dragon could perfectly replicate the appearance, physique, expression, and even personality of its disguise, but such an illusion wasn't considered particularly advanced. This was because the Phantom Dragon itself wasn't a very powerful Monster; even if it crafted a perfect exterior, a mage could easily distinguish it by perceiving the difference in mana.
Not to mention, a Phantom Dragon's creation couldn't simulate that aura belonging to a living person, unable to shape what could be called a 'sense of life'.
Besides this, he had also seen a Monster capable of perfectly replicating a target's every ability, every habit, and even their intuition and combat experience. In fact, such a Monster was sealed within a large labyrinth near the City of Magic, and its name was the Water-Mirror Demon.
But that Monster could only copy a crude, doll-like appearance that would be seen as fake at a glance. At the same time, the things it created lacked even the most basic linguistic ability, let alone a mind.
But this little girl before them was different... A simulation of this level couldn't be explained away as a mere 'illusion'.
Whether it was her exterior, her interior, or even the most subtle 'feeling' and the most profound 'aura,' she was no different from a living person.
Fíliya. The illusion created by this young Second-Class Mage could truly be called—
[Life]
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