Geometric Mage: First Spell, Circle

"Relax, I just wanted to know more about the Gates. But first, let me introduce myself. My name is Lian, nice to meet you."

The braver boy of the trio stepped forward immediately. "I'm Fois, nice to meet you." He extended his hand toward Lian, who shook it with a smile.

"I'm Zun," the sturdy man also extended his hand in greeting. Without hesitation, Lian reciprocated, his smile unchanged.

Finally, his gaze fell on the girl. Her bangs swayed slightly as she took a step back, positioning herself closer to Zun.

"Don't worry about her," Fois said, seeing her so agitated. "Her name's Perl, she's very shy and gets scared easily—"

"I don't get scared easily! I'm just cautious, that's all!" The girl's cheeks puffed out as a slight blush appeared on her face. Her hands were clenched into fists, almost threatening to hit Fois.

Lian's eyes widened in surprise. Shy? She seems more like a tiger—

A soft laugh broke the awkward atmosphere as Zun gently patted Perl's head. "Relax, he's joking," he murmured softly. "Everyone knows how strong, brave, and beautiful you are!"

The girl blushed slightly, her eyes fixed on Zun.

"What the hell is going on—" Lian whispered faintly, watching the scene. He couldn't believe his eyes. Are they all idiots?!

"Ahem," with a cough, Lian brought the attention back to himself. "I overheard you talking about the Gates, and I got curious. What does it mean that they're appearing more frequently?"

"It means what I said," Zun stated with a stoic face. "Every day, the requests for help from nearby cities increase. Monster sightings, mysterious murders, missing people. But that's not the main issue. Requests for help like these have been around for a while. The problem is the Gates."

Zun paused for a moment before continuing. "Before, it was rare for citizens to spot a Gate. Even Iron Knights in those low-level cities could die without ever seeing one. But now it's different."

Lian couldn't help but agree. He came from a small city himself, Dustwall, and few there had seen a Gate.

Thinking about it, Dax came to mind, the Iron 5 Knight who had supported him in the Gate. They had become fairly close… I wonder what he's doing, Lian thought distractedly for a second.

"Now it seems like everyone sees Gates everywhere!" Fois added, his face a mask of pride as he continued. "We Mages, along with the Knights, have been tasked with dealing with them. But according to Perl, we're too weak. Sure, I know, but we weren't planning to enter a high-level Gate—"

Fois fell silent, sensing a strange pressure in the air, enough to make him sweat slightly.

What's happening?! Fois thought, losing his breath. Perl felt the pressure too, while Zun only sensed a slight but persistent discomfort.

Noticing the odd situation, Lian blinked a couple of times. "Sorry—" he murmured, scratching his head with a smile.

A moment later, the pressure vanished as if it had never been there.

"It's just that I don't like it when others underestimate dangers and overestimate their abilities. You must never be arrogant…" Lian said with a serious look, staring at the three.

Damn, now I feel like that old man, my father… am I aging before my eyes? He thought, distractedly glancing at the lock of hair over his eyes. No white hairs, at least not yet—

"I'm sorry, you're right. I was foolish—" Fois lowered his head slightly. He didn't expect to be talking to a Bronze 4. How is it possible that someone of this level doesn't know about the increased Gate frequency? Fois thought.

Likewise, Zun and Perl's perception of Lian shifted. They had never interacted with anyone of that level before. They were quite scared, actually. They didn't know how to behave.

The class they attended had only low-level Mages like them, mostly Bronze 1, with only a few Bronze 2 scattered around, like Zun.

Lian tilted his head slightly. He didn't understand what was happening. Did I do something wrong? But I apologized…

Ignoring it, Lian asked the trio a few more questions, and they responded much more formally than before.

After several minutes, Lian simply bid them farewell, heading toward Rick's room.

"How strange…" he murmured, walking away from the trio. "It's like they suddenly saw a ferocious monster."

Rick's room wasn't far from his, actually. The dormitories for Bronze-rank students were close by.

After a while, Lian finally reached his room.

Knock, Knock—

"Rick, it's me, Lian. Are you home?"

After waiting several seconds, no one came to the door.

"Could he still not be back? Or maybe he came looking for me?" he thought while continuing to knock. "Could he be in the bathroom taking a shower?"

As this thought crossed his mind, an ironic smile formed on his lips. "Let's not be ridiculous. Rick literally cleans himself on my bed…"

After waiting a few more minutes, Lian headed back to his room. He planned to take a shower and then visit the association that handled help requests.

Talking with the trio, Lian had learned that one way for students to earn money was by completing missions. Often, these were simple tasks like standing guard, collecting materials from somewhere in the kingdom, killing wild monsters, and the like.

Besides this, another way to earn money was to be a good student and get the best grades in class. A sort of scholarship, so to speak.

Another method was betting in the arena, which Lian had done on his first day at the academy, making a name for himself.

But as the days passed, his name was forgotten. After all, he seemed to have vanished into thin air. The fact that Lian didn't attend any classes made him seem like a mysterious figure.

After a few minutes, Lian reached his room but saw no sign of Rick. "Strange… I hope nothing serious happened. Maybe he's still blaming himself for yesterday's theft." Lian sighed helplessly.

Without wasting time, he entered his room, undressed, and took a shower.

By now, taking care of himself had become his routine. He showered at least three times a day… a real fanatic—