In the backyard of Fairy Tail.
Ur stood silently in place, one hand resting on the sheath at his hip, the other lightly gripping the hilt. His eyes were closed, his posture still and composed. A light breeze brushed past, lifting the ends of his hair, which had grown nearly to his shoulders.
He had held this stance for almost half an hour, waiting, and waiting, for that fleeting instant when the wind in the air stopped.
Whoosh!
A sudden gust swept through, then quickly dissipated. And for the briefest moment, the air itself seemed to fall completely still.
Shing!
Ur's eyes snapped open.
Steel flashed.
In one clean motion, his blade left its scabbard. A single streak of cold light passed through the straw dummy before him.
Three seconds later, the wind stirred again.
A breeze brushed against the dummy, and a diagonal cut slowly appeared across its body before it collapsed apart.
❖≔﴾═══════ﺤ
"Whew."
Sensing the dummy split cleanly in two, Ur exhaled and slid the sword back into its sheath.
He had been training in seclusion for over a month. During that time, he spent every day on training; he hadn't taken a single job.
After all, the next lottery draw required a full ten million. Even B-Class missions barely paid half a million at most. If he relied on quests alone, who knew how many lifetimes it would take to save that much?
So for now, Ur wasn't in any rush to advance to B-Class.
For an entire month, he'd either been training or preparing to train.
And he wasn't focusing on one discipline, either. He was training everything at once.
Messy as that might sound, his gains were incredible thanks to the system.
Especially in swordsmanship. Over the past month, he'd spent the least time on sword training, yet it had advanced the fastest.
Just now, he'd finally managed to cut cleanly through a target in the instant the wind stilled—so precisely that the strike itself couldn't be perceived.
He had finally stepped through the threshold of proper swordsmanship, and all of it was thanks to Way of the Wanderer.
The sword talent it granted him was absurd. He felt as if he'd been born for the blade. At one point, he had even felt the urge to abandon magic entirely and devote himself to the sword.
His only complaint?
Despite the name Way of the Wanderer, the weapon he was most attuned to was a katana, not a sword.
Aside from swordsmanship, the majority of his time was spent on refining magic. His A-Class magic affinity drastically sped up his training, whether it was earth magic or fire magic. Not only that, he'd exchanged for a more advanced meditation method from the guild, one focused on strengthening the mind.
After a month, his status panel had changed dramatically.
Invincible Passive System
Host: Wei Yi (Ur)
Passive Abilities: Void Hunger, Behemoth's Power, Evil Equilibrium, Lava Body, Perseverance, Way of the Wanderer
Health: 25
Magic Power: 175
Mental Strength: 30
Magic Resistance: 1%
Armor: 2%
On paper, his magic power seemed to be growing faster than his mental strength. But in truth, his mental strength had grown far more.
To a normal mage, the ratio of magic power to mental strength was roughly 10:1. This means that with his current magic power, Ur would need only 18 points of mental strength to cast magic normally.
But Ur had no intention of being a "normal" mage.
Even with the same magic power, spells cast with higher mental strength had vastly different power. Still, even he hadn't expected his mental strength to grow this fast.
He suspected it was due to his sword training: controlling intent and sharpening the will were already inherent parts of swordsmanship. As for his Health, it had increased because Lava Body had broken through his first bodily limiter, unlocking his physical potential.
❖≔﴾═══════ﺤ
"Ur, take a break."
Just as Ur was staring at his status window in a daze, Levy approached with a tray of refreshments.
"Thanks."
Ur sat down in the rest area and began eating without hesitation. Throughout this month of closed-door training, Levy had practically been taking care of him. He'd never noticed before, but for someone who looked like a mischievous little gremlin, she had surprisingly domestic qualities.
"Here, today's issue of the Kingdom Times."
"Thanks." While sipping tea, Ur accepted the newspaper and started reading.
Information in this world was nowhere near as convenient as in his previous life; newspapers remained the main source of news. With limited pages, they never printed trivial matters.
Today's headline occupied almost the entire front page—a matter significant enough to shake the entire continent.
[One of the Ten Wizard Saints, Fuwa Krob — Has Retired!]
Though he had barely survived the battle against Devil's Fang, his life was hanging by a thread. He no longer had the strength to maintain the position.
After all, while the Wizard Saints weren't chosen solely by strength, you still needed power to hold the title.
"I didn't expect Grandpa Fuwa to retire this soon… I saw him just a few years ago," Levy murmured.
Fairy Tail had always had a good relationship with Angel's Wing. Fuwa Krob had even visited the guild under the excuse of "official business," so many members knew him.
"He's already past one hundred and twenty. It's about time," Ur said with a small laugh, setting the paper aside.
He wasn't particularly invested in Fuwa stepping down—he'd never met the old man, after all.
What interested him more was: Who would take the vacant seat among the Ten Wizard Saints?
Jura or Jellal? No, it's too early. The original story won't start for another four years. They shouldn't be that strong yet.
The two obvious candidates were quickly dismissed. They were still too young.
So who else on the continent is qualified…?
Ur sank into thought.
Levy glanced at him, opened her mouth as if about to speak… then hesitated, unsure.
And at that moment, a deep, resounding bell echoed across Magnolia.
Dong!
Dong!
Dong!