Pfuuu!

Liria closed her eyes and breathed slowly, feeling the mana gathering in her heart.

Following the mana circuit inside her body, she held onto the constantly swirling mana and then released it.

Pop.

Like a bubble bursting, a clump of mana materialized in the air.

Just bringing out the floating mana clump into the air would have already made a good impression.

Now for the next step.

It’s about gently rolling the mana clump to form the shapes of the dotted lines drawn on the wall.

‘…I have to be careful because even a slight disturbance in energy will scatter the mana clump.’

Concentrating hard, beads of sweat formed on Liria’s round forehead.

Circle, square, star, butterfly, flower, and even a tree.

She managed to create all the shapes while holding her breath. Finally, Liria shaped a blue key as big as her palm with mana, imbuing it with her wish.

‘Please come to me.’

Slowly.

Liria reached out her small hand towards the mana key.

Just as she was about to grasp it.

The various shapes Liria had created in the mana room disappeared like bubbles.

Bang! With the sound of fireworks exploding, powder scattered in the air. At the same time, a transportation portal appeared in front of Liria.

“…Phew. Did I pass the first gate?”

Liria muttered after exhaling the breath she had been holding for concentration. As she stepped onto the transportation portal, she instantly returned to where she had started. Seeing that the light had suddenly gone out, it seemed this portal would no longer work. Now it was time for the second gate. Liria naturally climbed the stairs towards the next floor. This time, without needing to detect mana, the second transportation portal was already open, emitting a blue light. There was an inscription on the stone tablet next to the portal.

「Find the Golden Compass. Time limit: 1 hour.」

“Yikes, only 1 hour? That’s way too short!”

As Liria blinked and muttered, a magical hourglass appeared in the air and flipped over.

It seemed time had already started ticking.

“W-w-wait! Before starting, I need to choose these first.”

Various tools were placed next to the stone tablet. There were items like a broom, a net, a slingshot, a fishing rod, and beef jerky.

According to the guide, entering that portal would transport her to the Spirit Forest.

It was said to be a peaceful place where various spirits lived.

Additionally, there was this hint written:

「※ The Golden Compass is closer to being caught than found.」

“Not finding but catching? Then what should I choose?”

Tilting her head, Liria pondered and then chose the broom and beef jerky. The other tools were ones Liria couldn’t handle.

The beef jerky could be eaten if she got hungry, or used as bait if necessary.

And the broom, though not often used now, was a classic mode of transportation for wizards.

‘I’ve never ridden one before… but it can also be used for swinging.’

Reading the back of the guide, she learned that the final part of the aptitude test was to manifest magical attributes using this Golden Compass.

Therefore, if she couldn’t obtain it, there would be no chance for the third test.

“Ugh, I’m a bit nervous. Let’s go, Liria!”

Liria packed the guide and beef jerky into her bag and bravely stepped onto the portal.

***

Meanwhile, at that time in the test supervision room.

The youngest woman among the aptitude test supervisors watching Liria through the installed image orbs spoke in an interested tone.

“…Isn’t this the shortest record? It took less than 15 minutes to reach the second gate.”

A man wearing glasses retorted with his arms crossed in a skeptical tone.

“…Well, she must have been lucky. Even if she finds the Golden Compass, it’s all for nothing if she can’t manifest magic.”

“Still, among the children who have taken the test recently, doesn’t she seem to have the best mana control, senior? Despite being so small.”

“Nonsense. If she can’t manifest magic, there’s no need to handle mana at all.”

The two were magic teachers in charge of basic classes for the successor children.

The woman with black hair and pink eyes was Ilina from the collateral Ellinor Count family, and the gray-haired man wearing glasses was Fabian from the Xylvaren family.

Suleiman, who had been silently listening to their conversation from the head seat, opened his mouth.

“Wouldn’t it be better to watch the results until the end? That child might accomplish something.”

“Oh my, really?”

“…D-Did you just take the side of the applicant, Lord Suleiman?”

Fabian looked inwardly surprised, as this had never happened before.

“Who said I’m taking sides? Ahem. Let’s all watch quietly.”

“Understood.”

Suleiman and the other supervisors focused again on the small child reflected in the image orb.

“But that child’s gaze—what exactly is she staring at?”

At Ilina’s words, Suleiman suppressed his rising doubts.

‘Could that child see the spirits in the forest? No, that’s impossible…’

If she could see spirits, it would mean she was one of the chosen ones.

***

“…It feels like I’ve come to another world.”

Liria, who had entered the Spirit Forest, blankly marveled.

Silver tall trees in the dark forest. Blue glowing flowers and butterflies.

It was a place where even the gentle breeze and sweet air made one feel excited.

While diligently looking around, what caught her attention the most were the colorful clusters of light.

“…Fireflies?”

The round lights that were floating leisurely through the forest flew to Liria and surrounded her.

Some stuck to the top of Liria’s head, while others tickled her cheeks.

When Liria shook her head to get them off, they flew away like dandelion seeds in the wind.

“Ah… Come to think of it, there was something written about spirits in the guide.”

Liria, who had been watching the distant lights, took out the guide from her bag and opened it.

「The Spirit Forest is a place where the energy of all things gathers.

Everything that exists contains a specific energy.

Fire, Water, Wind, Earth.

These four are the basic 4 elements.

Lightning, Ice, Plant, Metal, Darkness, Light.

These six are higher elements, and elements are also referred to as attributes.

Each human strongly holds a specific attribute in their mana heart, and this aptitude test is about drawing out that inherent power.

If one manifests an attribute, one can become a magician who wields the power of elements as magic, depending on their learning.」

There was definitely more content related to spirits. Liria hurriedly turned to the next page.

「Elements are the very essence of spirit energy. Therefore, only spirit users who can fully use the power of elements can receive the choice of spirits and see their true form.

The moment a contract is made with a spirit, the spirit user’s mana heart connects with the spirit’s soul, allowing it to borrow its power infinitely.

Did you encounter a special being in the Spirit Forest?

If so, you have the aptitude to be a spirit user.」

“I wonder if those lights from earlier were real spirits?”

As she muttered and reached out, the lights gathered snugly on Liria’s small hand, which was like a maple leaf.

Perhaps thanks to the lights illuminating the way.

After walking for a while, when she looked up, she could see a winding path leading into the forest.

The magical hourglass following behind Liria continued to drop sand with a soft sound. The amount of sand remaining seemed to be about two-thirds, with about 40 minutes left.

As she put away the guide and tightened her bag securely, Liria said, “There’s no time. I need to go find the compass.”

Feeling rushed, Liria turned her attention back to the magic broom she had been using as a staff.

‘If I could just ride this, I could find it quickly.’

Liria grabbed the broom and drew mana to her heart.