Mushoku Tensei: Sword, Magic Hats, and the Romance System [129]

Between Rudeus and Eris, leaves danced and whirled in their open palms.

The reactions among the group varied.

Rudeus stared down at his hand, his mind filled with memories of Allen’s steady, tireless encouragement over the past two years.

Through his correspondence with Roxy, he had gradually come to understand just how advanced his magical abilities were in this world. He had even managed to shake off the frustration of constantly being outshined by Allen, a native whose talent felt unfairly overwhelming.

I’m not weak. In fact, in terms of magic, everyone around me agrees I’m a genius.

It’s just… Allen was brilliant in everything.

Nothing to be ashamed of.

And right now—

He knew exactly what Sylphy and Allen were doing. They’d set the stage with their words and actions just so he could step in and showcase the appeal of magic—hoping to finally persuade the young lady to give it an honest try.

So he composed himself.

Adopting the air of an authoritative tutor. That would make the lesson more convincing.

As for why he deliberately avoided looking at Eris directly—

He wasn’t sure if, upon seeing her usual defiant or arrogant expression, he’d lose control of his own face, provoke her temper, and spark another argument that would ruin all the groundwork Sylphy and Allen had laid.

Beside him, Allen and Sylphy both had wide eyes locked on the “swimming fish” in his hand, expressions filled with anticipation.

From the corners of their eyes, they watched Eris closely.

Up to this point, between Sylphy’s gentle guidance, Allen’s performance, and Rudeus’s well-timed entrance with the Blow spell, they had done everything they could.

Would Eris finally take an interest in magic?

They waited with bated breath.

And Eris—furrowing her brows—was indeed watching Rudeus…

But her attention wasn’t on the spell in his hand.

Instead, she narrowed her eyes.

Raised her arm.

And smack!

She brought her palm down hard on Rudeus’s head.

He staggered on the spot.

The magic in his hand evaporated instantly, and in that moment, his temper flared. He couldn’t stop himself from snapping, his face contorting with frustration.

“What was that for?!”

“Tch.”

Arms crossed, Eris glanced ever so subtly at Allen and Sylphy—then turned on her heel and walked away.

Allen and Sylphy both froze.

But off to the side, Ghislaine—who’d been silently watching the entire time—let a small smile tug at the corner of her lips.

Rudeus took a deep breath.

He realized he hadn’t quite stuck the landing with the final step of this “guided lesson.” But strangely, the urge to chase after Eris and argue wasn’t there this time. He simply stood frozen, mouth half-open, looking helplessly toward Allen and Sylphy.

The two met his gaze and sighed in unison, returning his look with wry, knowing smiles.

And then—

A sharp, confident voice rang out, full of vigor.

It was the young lady, once again full of energy, shouting out the chant:

“May the great blessing of water descend where it is sought—let the cool stream reveal itself—"

"[Water Ball]!!”

Still, no water formed in her palm.

Eris pursed her lips, then suddenly whipped around and glared at the stunned trio. Her eyes scanned them briefly, finally locking onto Rudeus—the designated “magic instructor”—as she shouted, clearly annoyed:

“Hey, you! Didn’t you say you were gonna teach me magic?!”

Rudeus blinked.

Even though her voice still carried its usual brashness, for some reason… she didn’t seem nearly as unlikeable anymore.

In a flash, his frustration vanished. The disappointment he’d just felt at having the final step fall through dissipated, and he felt a new surge of motivation as he hurried over and examined Eris’s arm.

“You’re still in swordfighting mode when you cast. You need to disengage from that state. Magic flows naturally through incantation—try channeling your mana without tensing your body.”

“Huh? Speak normally, would you?!”

Rudeus rubbed his chin, studying the tension in her arm. Then suddenly his eyes lit up.

“Got it! Just imagine you’re not in class right now—you’re eating, or just relaxing. Your body’s too stiff. You need to ease up—”

As he spoke, Eris gave a quick glance at Allen and Sylphy, who had now walked over and were watching her closely.

“Relax…? I-I can’t do that!”

Allen paused at Rudeus’s words—then spoke up.

“Eris. Close your eyes.”

“Huh? Okay!”

“Focus completely on your senses. Call forth your battle aura like you do in training. Let it surge through your body, like you’re gripping a sword.”

As soon as she heard that, her expression relaxed.

Her brows unfurled.

Thanks to her natural talent, she didn’t need to force it—her body instinctively responded. Her frame tensed just slightly, and in her mind’s eye, the wind slithered along her arms…

Her fingers curled subtly.

The air in her hand became a sword hilt.

Then Allen’s voice, soft and even, came again:

“Good. That’s good. Hold that. Don’t open your eyes, Eris.”

“Mhm!”

“I’m going to count down from five. Then I want you to ‘let go’ of the sword in your hand and repeat after me. Okay?”

Eris squeezed her imaginary sword tightly.

“Okay!”

“Five.”

“Four.”

“Three.”

“Two.”

“One.”

“Let go… of the sword.”

Eris echoed back in a murmur.

“Let go… of the sword.”

At that moment, her hand relaxed.

Her whole body loosened as she emerged from her sword-training mindset.

“Now open your hand.”

“Open my hand…”

She opened her palm.

“May the great blessing of water descend where it is sought…”

Eris’s eyelashes fluttered slightly as she repeated the words after Allen.

“May the great blessing of water descend where it is sought…”

“Let the cool stream reveal itself—”

“Let the cool stream reveal itself—”

And without being prompted, she whispered the final words:

“[Water Ball].”

As the last word left her lips, she felt something—like flowing water—rush through her limbs and into her palm.

It was similar to the sensation of battle aura coursing through her…

But somehow completely different.

Gloop.

Eris’s eyes snapped open.

A clear orb of water, about the size of a fist, shimmered in the air before her hand—rippling with waves of light.

She stared wide-eyed at it, then turned her head.

Allen, Sylphy, Rudeus, and Ghislaine were all smiling at her.

“I… I did it…”

But before she could finish—

The water orb slipped from her hand, dropped to the grass, and splashed into a puddle.

Eris’s face fell, and she quickly looked down.

But before she could fully register the spilled water—

Rudeus shouted in her ear.

“You did it!”

She turned to him, dazed.

There was no trace of mockery in his face. He was genuinely elated.

“That was the first step! Now all you have to do is maintain the mana output to set the spell’s speed and size, and it’ll fire properly!”

“That’s [Water Ball]!”

“You succeeded!”

Eris blinked, stunned.

And then, a smile slowly spread across her face.

“I… I really did it?!”

“Yes!”

“I did it!”

“You sure did!”

“Hmph! Wasn’t even that hard.” (｡•̀ᴗ-)✧

“Exactly! You’ve got it!”

“May the great blessing of water descend where it is sought! Let the cool stream reveal itself!"

"[Water Ball]!”

Splat. Water orb hit the ground.

“May the great blessing of water descend where it is sought! Let the cool stream reveal itself!"

"[Water Ball]!”

Splat. Another puddle.

Beside the red-haired wild pup—

Allen shook his head with a faint smile, watching Eris gleefully spam her still-unstable [Water Ball], while Rudeus hyped her up with unending enthusiasm.

He turned and exchanged a glance with Sylphy.

They both smiled.

The three of them—together—had rekindled Eris’s interest in magic.

And just then, it clicked for Allen.

He finally understood why Eris had smacked Rudeus earlier.

It was because, in the face of all their expectant stares…

The wild pup got embarrassed.

She was blunt, rough around the edges, fiercely proud. Deep down, she craved recognition. Her instincts were sharp—some might even say sensitive.

That’s why she didn’t want to try something she thought she’d fail at. She didn’t want to be laughed at.

But in the end, she’d chosen to recite the chant and try again—not because of some flowery lie about [Flow Technique] being a lesser version of magic.

It was because she’d picked up on what Sylphy’s words were really saying.

Because she saw Rudeus demonstrate magic with skill, without condescension or arrogance, even though he was shorter and younger than her.

Because she sensed that everyone, in their own way, was trying to support her.

And so—

She decided to try again.

To respond to their expectations.

That’s who she was.

The very same tsundere young lady who, even when she didn’t want to learn the birthday waltz in the original timeline, would still give it another shot just because Rudeus offered her a clumsy word of encouragement.

The proud and prickly Eris Boreas Greyrat.

Smoke curled into view.

[Instant Task Complete — “Form the Jobless Trio Ahead of Schedule.” Time: 00:06:52]

[Private Tutor Arc Participation Score Increased!]

[Current Phase: Private Tutor Arc — Cumulative Participation Score: 50 Points]

[Without realizing it, you’ve already built a group around you—and this group is something you created.]

[When hearts are aligned, your plans don’t always need to be pushed forward by your own hands.]

[Evaluation: “Winning by lying down is still a win.”]

Like hell I was lying down.

[Fair point.]

Allen waved a hand, dismissing the system panel.

The smoke vanished.

In the courtyard, beneath the dappled shade of green trees—

Eris laughed joyfully, hurling [Water Ball] after [Water Ball], each one crashing to the ground like a leaky garden sprinkler.

Sunlight spilled across Allen’s face.

And for the first time since this private tutor arc began—

He smiled from the heart.

---

T/N: AHHHHHHHH WHY IS THIS PEAK

This is a fan translation of 无职转生：剑，魔法帽与恋爱系统 by 意外火灾 All rights to the original work belong to the creator. Please support them by exploring their original work or sharing it with others if you can. Thank you for reading and supporting my efforts to bring this story to a wider audience!