Chapter 64
After seeing off the Erza from the future, Marshall felt strangely empty.
He liked beautiful older women.
He liked the grown-up Erza even more!
And a grown-up Erza in a catgirl outfit?
That was the best of all!
To seize even more happiness in the future, Marshall would have to work twice as hard!
Not that he considered himself lazy.
He was only nine, yet his magic power had already surpassed Cana, who had inherited Gildarts’s monstrous talent.
He had caught up to the prodigy Mira and was steadily approaching Erza, the genuine walking cheat.
But it still wasn’t enough.
Marshall remained incapable of accurately sensing the full extent of Makarov’s or Gildarts’s magic power, which proved that the gap between them was still enormous.
With such clear goals standing directly ahead of him, he had no reason to relax.
Besides, he possessed a System.
Marshall was confident that he could eventually reach the very peak.
His cheat was excellent in almost every respect. Its only true weakness was that it required time to develop.
Given enough of that, Marshall believed he could push his three basic attributes and countless magical skills to heights no one else could ever reach.
That was why obtaining the time-space grimoire Remembrance of Time had thrilled him so much.
He had finally found a way to advance his Time Magic experience.
The Celestial Spirit World’s flow of time was only one-ninetieth that of the human world, and the System had confirmed that Celestial Spirit Magic contained elements of Time Magic.
That allowed Marshall to make a bold assumption.
Perhaps the difference in time flow within the Celestial Spirit World was itself a magical effect.
If Time Magic could slow time there, couldn’t it also be used to create a chamber where time moved faster?
A genuine Hyperbolic Time Chamber?
If Marshall succeeded, he would possess more time than he could ever use!
He could push every skill to Level Five.
Who could possibly stand against him then?
...
One week after obtaining Remembrance of Time:
[Time Magic LV1: 19.7%]
"...This isn’t working very well."
Marshall stared at the experience bar with dissatisfaction.
"The growth rate has slowed down again. Why is Time Magic so ridiculously difficult to train?"
He had already drained the grimoire of nearly all the experience it could provide.
Marshall now understood its fundamental principles.
At its core, Remembrance of Time used a form of teleportation.
Ordinary Spatial Magic transported something through the three dimensions of the physical world.
This spell simply added time as a fourth dimension.
By anchoring a particular moment and creating relative displacement, the grimoire transported people into the past.
It was exquisitely designed.
A magnificent piece of magic.
Marshall still couldn’t learn or reproduce it.
He suspected his Time Magic level was simply too low to perform something as advanced as temporal travel.
At Level One, he could only make certain inorganic objects move backward along their own timelines.
Even then, the effect was extremely limited and consumed a ridiculous amount of magic power.
The only practical spell Marshall had managed to develop from the inspiration contained in Remembrance of Time was—Reparo.
Yes, exactly like the repairing charm from Harry Potter.
Its effect and appearance were nearly identical. It restored damaged inorganic objects to the state they had occupied before being broken.
Makarov praised the spell highly.
Ever since Marshall developed it, the Guild Master no longer needed to worry nearly as much about Fairy Tail’s furniture being destroyed.
He even claimed Marshall could publish a paper on the spell at a magical academy and perhaps earn an advanced Mage’s qualification.
Gray was far less pleased.
If Marshall had invented the spell a few months earlier, the boys’ dormitory might still have been saved!
Natsu had demolished it, and Makarov had kept his promise not to rebuild the place, forcing every male guild member to find housing elsewhere.
Despite all the praise and recognition his creativity received, Marshall remained dissatisfied.
Using Reparo to grind experience was terribly inefficient.
The spell consumed enormous amounts of magic power while providing very little progress.
Spending the same energy on Body-Conditioning Magic would produce several times the results.
In the end, his greatest problem remained unchanged.
He simply didn’t have enough time.
Thought Projection allowed him to train two things simultaneously, but dividing his attention between two bodies was already his limit.
Marshall would have loved to imitate Roubaul by splitting himself into dozens of people and training like Naruto abusing the Shadow Clone Technique.
Unfortunately, he couldn’t do that.
A Thought Projection simply wasn’t a Shadow Clone.
It lacked that one crucial advantage.
"Are you worrying about which magic to study next again?"
Makarov watched him with a warm, grandfatherly smile.
The guild’s youngsters became more impressive with each passing day, and no one could have been happier than their Guild Master.
Fairy Tail’s future looked brighter than ever!
"Master, does the guild have any other books related to Time Magic?"
"Time Magic is exceptionally rare."
Makarov stroked his mustache thoughtfully.
"As far as I know, the only spell recorded in our guild’s collection that involves Time Magic is Fairy Sphere, one of the Three Great Fairy Magics created by our First Guild Master."
"Huh?! We really have one?"
Marshall’s eyes lit up.
"Then I want to learn it!"
"You?"
Makarov scoffed.
"You’re far too young! Fairy Sphere is one of our guild’s greatest treasures. Do you think we teach it to just anyone?"
"Become an S-Class Mage first. Then we can discuss it."
"What? That’s so stingy."
"You insolent brat!"
Marshall hadn’t realized Fairy Tail possessed its own equivalent of a secret supreme cultivation art.
If he hadn’t casually asked Makarov, he might never have discovered it.
Previously, Marshall had possessed little interest in becoming an S-Class Mage.
He was too lazy to accept ordinary jobs anyway.
Now, however, he finally had a reason to work toward the title.
"Still, if you truly want to study Time Magic..."
Makarov’s smile suddenly became suspicious.
"I may have an idea. Would you like to hear it?"
"What is it? Of course I’m interested!"
"You really are an impossible child."
Makarov shook his head.
"Your attention is scattered, you’re greedy, and you want to learn absolutely everything."
"Worse, you somehow possess enough talent to succeed at most of it. There truly is no justice in the world..."
"Oi! Master, get to the point!"
"Ahem."
Makarov cleared his throat.
"There is a form of magic that may suit you perfectly—Archive Magic."
"It was developed by Mages to preserve and pass down knowledge. It converts information into magical data that can be stored, searched, retrieved, and shared."
"Generation after generation, Mages have uploaded their magical research into vast Archives."
"In theory, once you learn Archive Magic, you could gain access to knowledge concerning nearly every kind of magic in the world."
Makarov grinned.
"Tempting, isn’t it?"
"What?! Why didn’t you tell me sooner?"
Marshall’s face flushed red, though whether from excitement or irritation was difficult to say.
This magic was practically designed for him!
Why was he only learning about it now?
If he had discovered it earlier...
Actually, it probably wouldn’t have changed much.
His greatest limitation was time, not a shortage of spells.
Still, Archive Magic would make studying them far more convenient.
"Teach me! Hurry up and teach me!"
"Calm down. Getting excited won’t help."
Makarov spoke at an infuriatingly leisurely pace.
"I don’t know Archive Magic."
"No one else in Fairy Tail knows it either."
"...Then why did you bring it up?"
"Because I told you to be patient."
Makarov continued before Marshall could complain further.
"Unless Archive Magic awakens naturally within you, the only proper way to study it is to enroll in one of the Magic Council’s academies."
"So, Marshall, why don’t you attend a magical academy?"
"Hah?!"
Marshall nearly hissed at him.
"Are you trying to throw me out of the guild?"
"If I remember correctly, Mages who have already joined a guild aren’t allowed to enroll in Council academies."
"Don’t be ridiculous!"
Makarov coughed awkwardly.
"You can simply use another identity and enroll secretly."
"Don’t worry. I know people inside the academy. No one will discover anything!"
[Once Marshall graduates, I’ll recommend him directly to the Magic Council. With that brat’s talent, becoming one of the Ten Wizard Saints will be effortless!]
[When three or four Fairy Tail members hold seats on the Council, who will dare cause trouble for our guild? Hahahahaha!]
"..."
Marshall could practically hear the gears of Makarov’s scheme turning.
Watching the old man’s expression grow increasingly delighted, he stared at him with open contempt.
There was no chance Marshall would become some tedious Council member.
The academy itself, however, might be worth attending.
"I suppose I could enroll."
Marshall considered the problem.
"But I don’t necessarily need to attend in person, do I?"
"What if I send a Thought Projection to infiltrate the academy and study there?"
Makarov thought about it seriously.
With the boy’s magic power and talent...
"That... might actually work."
Marshall’s eyes gleamed.
’Hehehe.’
’Beautiful students of the magical academy, here I come!’
"Since you’ve decided to enroll, choose a new name," Makarov said. "I’ll also need a photograph so my friend can arrange your admission documents."
"A new name..."
Marshall thought for a moment.
"How does Marshall Hanna sound?"
"No problem."