Return the piece of obsidian?

Chara was immediately taken with the idea, swirling delightedly. Yet, when she considered that to perform an invocation, she would have to recite a literal poem, she instantly felt flustered and began having second thoughts.

When she agreed to the curiosity spirit’s offer to learn magic, she had expected many things—studying, training, hard work—the usual training arc regime. Never once did she imagine that the greatest obstacle between her and magic would be embarrassment!

Uuhuhu, noooo! I can’t do it, I really can’t do it!

The little spirit lamented.

Nonetheless, the prospect of magic was extremely alluring, and she quickly found her reservations gradually eroding, unable to resist. Alas, the moment she accepted her fate, she faced another issue: she didn’t know the first thing about poetry. Furthermore, she couldn’t recall the curiosity spirit’s poem either!

Chara shivered. If she had to compose her own poem and then recite it, she would surely die of embarrassment!

Flustered, she urgently sought the teacher’s help. “Um, Miss Curiosity… Your poem was truly wonderful. Could you repeat it so I can hear it again?”

Listening to her request, the curiosity spirit scrutinized Baby before immediately deducing her intentions.

“Mm… no,” she giggled.

Chara had the urge to grab the piece of obsidian and launch it at the swirling teacher. However, since she didn’t follow this up with an invocation, there was no spell construct.

“Little Spirit, an invocation doesn’t need to be something fancy like a poem or even in incantation. As long as your performance can articulate the principal of your spell, it can be anything you wish,” explained the greater spirit.

“But what if I don’t know what to do?” Chara couldn’t help but feel discouraged. Despite her excellent grades in school and an intellect that put her above her peers, she wasn’t all that creative.

“That’s perfectly fine. Even if you fail, you can just try again later. Just do your best,” Curiosity answered in an encouraging voice.

Feeling the weight of her teacher’s expectations, Chara reluctantly started brainstorming.

In the end, despite her strong aversion toward recitation, she was ultimately unable to escape the fate of slam poetry. Due to buoyancy’s highly abstract nature, she couldn’t think of a single way to express its principles using a method other than vocalization.

Hence, she begrudgingly composed her own poem. It wasn't as long or elegant as the greater spirit’s poem, and it didn’t rhyme either. However, it described buoyancy, and it was hers.

“You got this Little Spirit! Show that piece of obsidian whose boss~!” cheered Curiosity.

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Shut up! I’m trying to concentrate!!

Feeling embarrassed, the little spirit repeatedly visualized the piece of obsidian floating across the classroom and landing atop the teacher’s desk. Once she was satisfied with her mental image, she repeated this process again, only with intent.

Okay, envisioning is done. Now for the hardest part…

She carefully reviewed her lines one last time before starting…

“H-heavy ships and tiny boats,

“All afloat the water’s surface.

“Displaced fluid, weight unknown,

“Lift the volume of this stone.”

As the little spirit continued her recitation, her voice took on an increasingly otherworldly quality. In concert, she could feel an ethereal weight manifest over her mind. Intuitively, she took hold of this weight, and pushed on it. In response, a stream of mana rushed out of her body and infused itself into the piece of obsidian.

Instantly, the rock lifted off the table, rose into the air, and floated toward the teacher’s desk.

I—I did it!

The little spirit swished in excitement. Alas, the moment the rock left her perception, its floating grew increasingly unsteady, as if it could fall at any moment.

Uwaaa!

The little spirit trembled in horror.

Unaware of her plight, the floating obsidian advanced unsteadily, its altitude decreasing over time. Just as it was about to reach its destination and make it onto the desk, it hit the corner! Unable to clear the edge, the rock descended sorrowfully, like a hammer plunging into the depths of a lake.

Nooooooo—!

Upon finishing its descent, the rock produced a soft clack, as if mocking her for her failure.

Uuhuhuhu… This can’t be happening. How could I put in so much effort, and endure so much humiliation, only to fail? Was my sacrifice all for nothing?!

Chara was devastated. Unable to accept the result, her swirling decelerated dramatically, like she could dissolve at any instant.

“Aww… You don’t have to look so sad. Actually, I already knew that you would fail from the start,” Curiosity confessed with her usual childish voice.

In response, her little student’s slow and lifeless swirling rapidly accelerated and she could feel a flustered glare coming from her direction.

“Of course, I didn’t set you up for failure because of how cute you look when you’re angry. Rather, aren’t you super capable? You understood all my explanations, followed a long diligently, and even got the spell to activate,” complimented the swirling teacher.

Chara maintained her glare, even as she quivered in embarrassment.

“And yet, the spell did not manifest in the way you envisioned… Aren’t you curious about the reason why~?” inquired Curiosity, her voice strangely mesmerizing.

Little by little, the little spirit’s anger slowly dissipated, until it was replaced by an overwhelming sense of curiosity. Before she knew it, the spirit in front of her was no longer an enemy to be feared, but a treasure trove full of answers.

Realizing the abrupt change in her emotions, the little spirit made a conscious effort to look to the side and inwardly pouted. Nevertheless, due to her interest in the swirling teacher’s information, she soon found her gaze right back on the curiosity spirit, unable to look away.

Curiosity giggled slyly. “It looks like you are eager to learn, an excellent attitude for an excellent spirit~! Sadly, while I wish I could offer you a simple solution, the factors contributing toward your failure are both numerous and varied.”

…Are you saying that my execution was so bad, that you don’t even know where to begin?

The little spirit swirled in dissatisfaction.

Curiosity continued, “Regardless, learning too many things at once can be overwhelming, especially if they are unfamiliar. So, for the remainder of this lesson, I’ll be focusing specifically on one, mana~.”

At that moment, a thin stream of mana flowed from the greater spirit and beneath her desk, linking to the fallen obsidian. Without a word, she lifted it into the air and placed it against the whiteboard.

Chara had already seen Curiosity do this once earlier, but upon seeing it again, with her newfound knowledge of casting, she noticed an important detail.

Wha—! Wait a second! She didn’t perform an invocation!