The practice field was rather wide.

Seiji was unable to see every part of it clearly due to various facilities on it, but even the visible part was in no way smaller than a basketball court. There were at least 20 meters between the ceiling and the floor.

There was such a huge s.p.a.ce underground, so how was it created? When was it built?

Seiji had several questions in his mind.

But none of them were really important or necessary to ask.

"You looked over the information I gave you last night, right?"

"I did."

"Can you understand it?" Natsuya blinked curiously.

"Mostly…" Seiji thought back to what he'd learned last night.

The p.o.r.nography book… cough, the [Body-strengthening Technique] manual was easy to understand. In fact, for an otaku like Seiji, who possessed a wealth of knowledge regarding various mystical 2-D elements that were far more complex, detailed, and mysterious, this was akin to a beginner’s textbook.

Well, this was indeed a manual for beginners after all.

"In order to use the Body-strengthening Technique, you must first perceive the Mana within your body, before progressing to feel the Mana outside your body."

"After that, you must start the flow of your internal Mana and force it to interact with the external Mana through specialized breathing techniques, in order to combine your internal and external Mana into a flow that will become a spiritual cycle both within and outside of your body."

"Finally, a spell which stimulates this cycle in order to strengthen your body’s physical capabilities must be cast."

Seiji explained his own understanding of what he had read.

"That’s fairly accurate." Natsuya nodded. "Did you attempt to feel the Mana, then?"

Seiji scratched his face awkwardly. "I did, but I didn’t really feel much." 

Last night, he tried several times to follow the instructions detailed in the manual to no avail.

"This is normal, since your Spiritual Power and Mana are still rather low." Natsuya turned to the right. "You need a.s.sistance, so come with me."

She started walking forwards.

Seiji followed after her.

A large Yin-Yang diagram with a diameter of approximately two meters was inscribed on the right corner of the practice field. Intertwining lines and runes—which Seiji a.s.sumed was some kind of spell—ran throughout the diagram, and there were also six silver mirrors surrounding the diagram. All the mirrors were pointed towards the diagram’s center.

"This is a Mana gathering formation. As its name implies, it can gather high concentrations of Mana." Natsuya looked at Seiji. "Go inside the diagram, and try feeling the Mana. It should be easier to perceive it inside there."

Seiji walked to the center of the Yin-Yang diagram.

"I’m guessing I should stand right here?"

"That’s right. Are you ready?"

"I’m ready." Seiji took a deep breath and closed his eyes.

The president then muttered something, and he felt an invisible force gathering around him.

'Take steady breaths; relax my breathing; spread out my mental awareness; deepen my consciousness…'

Seiji followed the instructions on the manual one more time and made a wholehearted attempt to perceive the Mana.

Everything was dark.

But after a while, he caught a faint glimpse of light.

Within his own body.

He tried to ‘see’ things more clearly and attempted to control the flow.

However, it didn’t work.

Seiji remained patient and continued attempting to ‘see’ and ‘control the flow.’

The invisible energy dissipated.

Seiji opened his eyes.

"One hour has pa.s.sed already, Haruta-kun," Natsuya said when he saw him stir.

"Eh?"

‘Was it that quick?' he thought. 'What happened to time?’

"How are you feeling?"

"Things didn’t go too well…" Seiji explained what he had felt.

"It’s actually pretty good already…" Natsuya praised. "With your current Mana level, being able to do this much with the Mana gathering formation’s a.s.sistance isn’t shabby at all."

"Oh…"

"Following this, you should continue your attempts to perceive the Mana and try your best to control its flow… No need to rush; it’s not important, even if you haven’t learned it by the time of the duel. I told you before: as long as you have the spirits’ a.s.sistance, you’ll naturally be able to use some spells."

Seiji blinked in curiosity. "President, can you teach me in more detail?" he asked sincerely. "I followed the manual’s instructions, but I keep feeling like there’s something I’m missing." 

Currently before his eyes was his system menu that only he could see.

[Read and fully comprehend a beginner-level body-strengthening technique manual or its equivalent—100% completed.]

[Accept training from someone who understands the [Beginner-level Body-strengthening Spell] or above and completely comprehend their tutelage—current progress 15.7%.]

He already finished his first task last night.

As for his second task… he believed that it would progress further if the president told him more information!

"I suppose I could, but I don’t know what more to tell you… I think that the manual’s quite detailed already, and you understood it clearly." Natsuya tilted her head in confusion.

"Then what did you do during your first time, President?"

"As for me…"

With Seiji asking many questions, Natsuya slowly began telling him about the finer details.

The progress level in his system rapidly increased.

After a while, Seiji felt that it was difficult to continue this topic for any longer, so he ended his questions appropriately.

"Are you going to continue practicing here, or are you going to back and Visualize again?"

"I’ll go and Visualize for now; that seems to be really important."

"Alright. I’ll keep the practice field unlocked, so you can come here at any time you wish to. It’s really easy to activate the Mana gathering formation: all you have to do is say the incantation…"

*Ding!* Seiji learned the incantation to activate the Mana gathering formation.

It was actually quite simple.

The two of them then walked together to the elevator.

Right when they reached it, the elevator door suddenly opened.

Hitaka, clad in her retainer combat clothes, strode out of the elevator.

"Milady… Haruta-kun…"

The red-haired girl greeted Natsuya as usual, but when she noticed Seiji, her expression froze over and her cheeks flushed red.

"Good… good morning!"

She averted her gaze awkwardly, and her "good morning" sounded rather stiff.

Without even waiting for their reply, Hitaka immediately walked away at a brisk pace.

Natsuya and Seiji were speechless at the situation.

"Haruta-kun…" Natsuya glared at the boy beside her and narrowed her eyes.

"President…" When Seiji turned to face her, he caught sight of an ominous light in her eyes.

"Please explain the situation! What’s going on?" Natsuya’s manner took a sudden imposing turn.

Her current expression bore some resemblance to a large, angry lioness.

Seiji smiled wryly. "I can explain; please allow me to do so," he said honestly.

The duo walked into the elevator together.

After the elevator reached its destination, the pair walked out and stopped a few paces from the elevator door.

Natsuya had a helpless expression on her face after she listened to Seiji’s explanation.

"My apologies, Haruta-kun." She ended up sighing. "I should have… reminded her."

"President…"

"Hitaka, she—for lack of any better words—is not too good at getting along with others… No, she’s not even at the level of not good—she’s just rather clumsy. She’s already clumsy with girls, and it’s even worse with boys… This is a huge problem for any ordinary person, but she’s no ordinary person."

"She’s my Spirit-branded Retainer as well as my good friend. She’s willing to serve me for her whole life, and I also intend on being together with her for my entire life."

"That’s why even though I think it’s not too good for her to lack communication skills, I never thought of it as a serious problem as long as I was taking care of her."

"Of course, I’ve thought about helping her to change as well, but I’m…" Natsuya sighed. "If I tell her to change herself, she’ll most likely interpret it as an order that she absolutely must carry out, and she’ll try too hard. That’s definitely something I don’t wish to see."

Seiji remained silent.

In addition to being Natsuya's subordinate, Hitaka was Natsuya’s friend… This type of true devotion resulted in a slightly complicated situation whereby Hitaka lacked basic communication skills.

At this time, the optimal solution would be…

"Haruta-kun… I think that perhaps this is an opportunity." Natsuya unfolded her arms and faced the boy as an indescribable light flashed through her eyes.

Seiji looked at Natsuya, his lips twitching violently.

‘Alright, we’re probably thinking the same thing, Prez.’