A slip up

“How long until we get to camp…? My body hurts from all the walking. I want to sleep so badly… “ I sulked.

“Varieka, me and Marieka can’t really like… You know? Carry you…? If we can then we would’ve but, if we do that then we’re gonna be wasting so much energy.” Annaliese responded.

“I know I know… Teleporting would be easier,” I quietly muttered.

Walking through the vast forest with never-ending trees in sight, It’s hard to keep track of the time.

I don’t have a sun dial, they didn’t bring any either. So I’ll have to use magic for this.

I stopped and held out my hand, a magic circle was summoned in front of me. They turned around and haltedーglaring at me. Both of them tilted their heads, confused as to what I was doing.

Marieka hopped towards me and placed her face close to the magic circle, staring for a little while before looking back at me. “What's this Varieka? What are you doing right now?”

“I’m checking the clock, we didn’t bring a sun dial… Right now, it should be…”

I looked at the sun, then the horizon, calculating the sun’s position. Since we’re in the northeast, and the sun is pointing just above us, and the shadows are… Ah!! It's three o’clock, so nine hours till we set camp.

“Perfect, let’s continue onwards. By ten o'clock we would be forty percent on the way to port Kalyiar. If you’re both hungry we can always hunt for fishes or animals.”

“....Huh? So what’s the time…?”

I removed the magic circle and turned to Marieka, holding three fingers. Marieka perked up and nodded aggressively.

Next will be to use location magic. Because we don’t have a map, and I’ve only been relying on my memory so far. I’m afraid traversing will be different due to the fact that I’ve never stepped foot here.

“Let’s see… Maybe I’ll use that magic…?” I raised a finger.

A surge of mana encircled me, the air began to move violently. Trees swayed at the gusts of wind that circled around me.

“Weis.” I skipped its chant by muscle memory, and a blue light rippled on the ground, spreading across the forest before it began to fade away from the distance.

I froze for a second before scratching my neck, confused.

Hmm, that’s weird. Wasn’t it only supposed to cover me? And not ripple around the forest? Did I do something wrong…?

I blinked, and realized that both of them were staring at me, their faces filled with horror. I froze awkwardly, still clueless before it came to me…

D… DID I JUST SKIP A CHANT IN FRONT OF ANNALIESE?! Not only that… A location magic that large is not something an average mage could do… I messed up, It’s all over…

Annaliese was left speechless. “V… varieka, did you…?”

“LET’S KEEP MOVING!” I quickened my steps, passing by Annaliese.

I didn’t look back, I could only close my eyes and hold my breath from the embarrassment. Realistically, there was no way I could’ve summoned my magic circle to limit my usage… Unfortunately my muscle memory got the best of me.

I should’ve manually suppressed it!!! What am I doing!!!!

I held my head with both of my hands, trying to shake it off my mind.

On the upside, now I know which direction is the port, and the whole geographical location of this area… BUT IT’S NOT A GOOD TRADE. Exposing my identity in front of Annaliese… I’m confident she heard me skip the incantation.

Then I heard Marieka’s steps coming closer, she caught up to me and stopped in front. Leaning forward and holding her staff behind her. “....That was so cool.”

“MARIEKA NOW’S NOT THE TIME TO COMPLIMENT!!!”

“I’m sure Annaliese wouldn’t know!! …I think, let’s say uhm… She did, what would happen?”

“Then my identity is at risk. Especially since she’s from Brynheint.”
I continued forward, leaving Marieka as she tried to follow while Annaliese stayed behind the entire time as we continued through the forest.

⇔ ⇔ ⇔ ⇔

Seven hours later, the sun had setーThe day and night splitting in the sky as we set up our camp in a shaded area. Marieka continued to jump in excitement, excited to finally test out the staff.

She approached the stacked branchesーholding the staff using both hands and began to cast.

“Vuelies Araglia.” And the branches instantly lit on fire, turning into our light source.

Marieka hopped in succession, she buried her face to her staffーhugging it as she swayed her body left and right. “The staff makes aiming WAY easier. And it can naturally amplify my magic without using a circle… I can see why staff are the royal mages' lifeline!”

Scoffing, I slouched. Marieka really likes the staff I brought her. It makes me very happy~~.

She approached me who was sitting on a carpet and squatted to meet my eye level. “Thank you Varieka!! I want to give you the next hint!”

“....And which is?”

Pausing before revealing it in a ‘surprising’ way. “BAAHH!! Honey!!”

“ーAnother dry hint… Fine fine. So far you gave me; Transformation and now honey…? Great, this will lead to nowhere… I wonder what’s next.” I exhaled in disbelief.

Annaliese, who was sitting in the far corner, laid her sword to the ground and looked at Marieka, raising her brow. “Vuelies Araglia? I’ve seen that from a few Mages, and they always do long incantations… But you chanted without it?”

Marieka stood up, turned around and raised a finger below her eye level. “Simply put, those are called variations! Offensive magic has different branches; Short chants require less mana, and long chants require high mana. The difference is that short chants are faster, but weaker. Longer chants are slower, but more destructive.”

“Woah…?! Marieka you actually… Studied…?” I gasped jokingly.

She turned to me and pouted. “Are you saying I’m dumb…?!”

Annaliese placed a hand on her chin.

“So… Long chants are the most powerful, and short chants are more convenient and require less mana. I see… There’s different variations, yes? Do you have to say the exact same line? And if you go off track, will the chant be cancelled?”

“Mhm!! You can’t say anything more, and only the exact line! That’s why mages are always vulnerable when in the frontlines and always fight in the back.”

“....I see, then… How about skipping chants?” She tilted her head.
I felt a cold shiver down my spine. This is really bad, please don’t tell me she suspects…!?

Marieka began sweating, her voice raspy. “S… skipping chants? Uhm… I actually don't know how that works… Yet…”

“Really? Is it common for some mages to do that…?”

“Aaa…..?! Uhm… That’s…”

“In Brynheint... Before I got here, I heard a few saying there’s only two people in the world who can use magic without incantations. And by skipping it… Mistress Nixie and Mistress Eilise.”

“T… That’s…” Marieka’s legs were shaking, she must’ve realized it by now, hence why Annaliese asked the question.

I wasn’t prepared for this outcome…

Annaliese turned her head to look at me, her brows furrowed. “So… Varieka, are you perhaps…?”

I exhaled… Eyes narrowing.

“ーAre you sure, Annaliese…?” My tone hardened.

“Well… It’s just my instincts, and maybe I was kind of sure after seeing what you did earlier…”

Pausing, I decided that there wasn’t any way I could hide the truth any longer. I might as well show off while I can…

Finally, I stood up and removed my cloak, revealing the purplish robes that possessed a gold seal embedded on itーSummoning my witch hat on top of my head before a massive magic circle appeared above me, illuminating the entire forest.

Both of their eyes were wide open, their faces turning pale as they stared.

I changed my tone and narrowed my eyes. “As the Pointed hat of The Kingdom of Ryven, I ask you to keep this to yourself by your own volition.”