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After breakfast, we moved from the usual garden to a small hill a bit away from the town.

“If I accidentally destroy the garden, I’d be kicked out of the inn. Ho ho ho,” Tao Ran laughed, though it didn’t seem like a joke. The techniques capable of blowing a grown man over a high wall were too dangerous to demonstrate in the inn’s garden, no matter how spacious.

“…Alright, we’ve arrived. We’ll be training here today,” Tao Ran announced.

The place he led us to featured a flat, circular boulder, making it look like a training ground. The area was open, with nothing notable around except for a single Dragon Tree.

“Here, Miss Hom can unleash her full power,” Tao Ran said.

“…Thank you, Teacher,” Hom replied.

“It’s not kind to keep you feeling constrained. Ho ho ho.”

Hom had been taught ‘common sense’ to avoid actions that would bother humans, and it seemed this extended to her restraint during training. Though Tao Ran was laughing, it might be considered disrespectful to hold back against one’s master. Still, I couldn’t imagine the extent of Hom’s full power, so I couldn’t give her permission to unleash it.

“Now, let’s get to the secret technique. My technique is called ‘Thunder Step’—but seeing is believing,” Tao Ran said.

He climbed onto the boulder, assumed a low stance with his right foot back, and slowly extended his hands forward. Taking a deep breath, Tao Ran simultaneously activated Armament Transmutation and lightning magic without incantation.

“Watch this… Thunder Step!”

As Tao Ran stepped forward, two steel rails erupted from the rock beneath him. Enveloped in the electric currents emanating from the tracks, Tao Ran moved with incredible speed and delivered a powerful kick.

The sound of the air tearing apart accompanied the sight of distant clouds splitting in two.

“This is the secret technique, Thunder Step. In the Empire’s language, it would be called Blitz Raid,” Tao Ran explained, turning back to us.

We stood in awe, staring at the path his kick had carved through the sky. The foot that delivered that astonishing kick had been reinforced with steel through Armament Transmutation.

Now I understand. Ordinary equipment couldn’t withstand such force, so it was fortified using Armament Transmutation. The shape of the arms was maintained by transmuting them anew before the currents in the rails could destroy them, enabling the execution of such a powerful technique.

The principle involved using the two electrified rails as a launch platform to propel his body forward at incredible speed. The sound of the air tearing suggested that Tao Ran’s kick traveled faster than the speed of sound.

“Well, this is the culmination of all the advanced techniques you’ve learned so far… What do you think, Miss Hom?”

“I shall give it a try,” Hom replied, nodding. She stood atop the boulder, which now bore a large indentation and cracks. Closing her eyes, she replayed the secret technique Tao Ran had demonstrated. Then, she opened her eyes with determination.

“Thunder Step!”

With Hom’s incantation, two steel rails emerged from the rock. However, something was clearly missing compared to Tao Ran’s secret technique. Hom couldn’t move along the tracks with the same speed, and the power of her kick didn’t change.

“Hmm, it seems even for Miss Hom, this is quite difficult,” Tao Ran observed, jumping onto the boulder to compare the conjured tracks and Hom. It didn’t seem like she failed due to difficulty alone. The tracks were generated, and her legs were equipped with sturdy shoes from Armament Transmutation.

“It looks like the lightning magic isn’t coming out,” Alfe muttered, revealing the source of the discrepancy. The core element of the secret technique, the lightning magic, wasn’t present. The rails were created, but no electric current was running through them.

“…Hom, can you generate electricity from your fingertips?” I suggested the simplest lightning magic. To demonstrate, I produced a small spark from my fingertip. Hom nodded and began to chant, “O, Lightning—” but no change occurred in her fingers.

Something was clearly wrong. There was no reason why Hom couldn’t do what I could.

I had dismissed the possibility that the oxygen supply device incident had any lasting effects, but now it seemed like something was definitely off.

Reflecting on that incident, I recalled being electrocuted by the electric current in the leaking amnios fluid.

“…Hom, what kind of image do you have of lightning magic—electricity?”

“…It’s something scary, Master,” Hom replied with a hint of fear.

It was the answer I dreaded. During that incident, I was healed almost instantly thanks to Aether Overproduction Syndrome, but for an ordinary person, it would have been terrifying.

Back then, Hom had synchronized her emotions with mine, and that image had clearly been conveyed to her. Despite setting her to suppress feelings of fear during alchemy, the fact that she reacted with ‘fear’ meant…

“Why are you scared?”

“Because getting shocked is painful, and it causes the skin to burn and blister, Master…”

I stopped Hom before she added ‘just like it happened to me’ with my gaze, and sighed. My experience, which would be terrifying enough to make anyone fear for their life, had significantly impacted Hom.

“…Alfe, could you use your Pure Eye to check on Hom?”
“Of course.” Alfe climbed onto the practice field and faced Hom.
“Hom, you don’t need to use any magic. Just create the elemental aether in your palm.”
“Understood, Master. Lady Alfe, are you ready?”
“Whenever you’re ready, Hom,” Alfe replied cheerfully.

Taking that as a cue, Hom closed her eyes and focused her consciousness on her palm. I couldn’t see anything, but Alfe’s Pure Eye should be able to perceive the color of the elemental aether.

“…Red… light blue… green… brown… It looks like one is missing…”

Just as I thought, the fire aether appeared red to Alfe’s Pure Eye, the water aether was light blue, the wind aether was green, and the earth aether was brown. However, the lightning aether, which should appear yellow, was absent.

“Hom, try producing only the lightning ether,” Alfe prompted.

Hom focused her mind once more, but her hand began to tremble.

“…I apologize, Lady Alfe…”

“It’s okay, Hom. I’m sorry for pushing you,” Alfe reassured her, shaking her head and comforting Hom, who was holding her arm and apologizing. Then, she turned to face me.

It seemed clear that Hom couldn’t produce only the lightning aether. She appeared to have an elemental deficiency that prevented her from generating the lightning element.

“…Master…”

“It’s okay, this is partly my fault too,” I said.

It was undoubtedly the electric shock during Hom’s development that caused this. The pain I felt and the brief image of what would happen to a normal human had instilled a fear in Hom that was strong enough to override the emotional suppression mechanisms.

“…Teacher, I apologize. I…”

“Don’t fret over it. Let’s take a break,” Tao Ran gently interrupted Hom, who looked dejected. Meanwhile, I continued to ponder how to resolve this issue.