Sorcerer’s Handbook

Chapter 373: A Day in the Life of the Sword Princess

Stars Kingdom.

“How about you? Do you miss me? Do you miss me so much that you cry under the covers at night? Do you like me the way I like you?”

“You can show off my infatuation as a trophy to other girls, tell them how cheap and shameless I am, and then hold that girl and say, ‘Thank goodness I met you.’”

“Don’t worry, I won’t cry or make a scene, because I know—”

“I’m no longer your exception.”

Miracle: Blood Moon Blossoms!

Countless threads sliced through the air, and blood bloomed like a curtain. The Red-Haired Sword Princess stood amidst the bloodied veil. Droplets of blood fell onto the girl’s face, sliding down like tears.

“Cut! Perfect!”

The tense atmosphere on set instantly relaxed. Sonya exhaled deeply and sat down on a folding chair to rest. Her assistant immediately came over to wipe off the stage blood from her face and handed her a glass of lemon water. The illusion sorcerers and earth sorcerers in the crew quickly started reshaping the set according to the designs, the rumbling of shifting earth serving as the background music for the actors’ break.

“Miss Therave, that was an excellent performance.” The director approached, his six-eyed glasses hiding his gaze, but his words were filled with praise. “I initially thought that since you haven’t had formal acting training or much life experience, playing a role driven to madness by love would be challenging. But you got into character so quickly.”

“Although you still have some way to go compared to top performers, your acting will definitely impress the audience as a newcomer. You were the perfect choice for this role… By the way, are you experiencing unrequited love? Your portrayal felt incredibly genuine.”

“Haha,” Sonya gave a professional smile. “Of course not. I don’t plan on dating until I’ve graduated—”

Director: “I really enjoy writing characters who fall into twisted love, but there aren’t many performers who can pull it off. So I was wondering if I could count on you for similar roles in the future—”

“Actually, I have someone I’ve been pining for three years,” Sonya said, instantly adopting a sorrowful and self-pitying tone. “The reason I applied to Swordflower College and came to Galaxia was in the hope that one day I could stand before him. But when we finally met again, he was already my best friend’s fiancé…”

The director adjusted his six-eyed glasses. “Got it. I’ll make sure to call Miss Therave for auditions for similar roles in the future.”

“Thank you, Director~”

The assistant was left dumbstruck—wait, was what Sonya just said true or not?

“But I really troubled you this time, wasting so much of your spellforce because of my sudden idea.”

In the original script, Sonya’s character simply decapitated her former lover with a single stroke and then left with his head.

However, the footage of Sonya defeating the alchemist Tida with a single sword strike during the Social Gathering Tournament had spread widely. Her swordsmanship miracle, Blood Moon Blossoms, had caught the attention of many. The director decided to modify the script on the fly, having her use Blood Moon Blossoms for the execution scene.

Sonya was, of course, very pleased to have a chance to show off more. But to achieve the best filming effect, she had already shot the scene nine times, to the point where her spellforce was nearly depleted, leaving her feeling a bit dizzy.

“Oh, it’s no trouble at all. As long as it’s for crafting a better piece of work, it’s all worth it. In comparison, I’m more concerned about whether this scene can be faithfully presented on the holographic screen,” Sonya said immediately. “Because it’s a bit gory, and I remember this show is intended for all ages…”

“Don’t worry about it,” the director said casually. “I’m the best at shooting bloody scenes in romance dramas. We can’t show everything, but just by displaying the edges of the scene, we can let the audience imagine an even more spectacular image than what we actually filmed. And with such a beautifully twisted scene, I’ll use all my connections to make sure they don’t cut it.”

“Even if it does require significant editing, your close-up shots won’t be cut, don’t worry.”

Sonya blinked. “Oh, was I that obvious?”

“Not too obvious, but actors who don’t care about their screen time are as rare as cats that don’t knock over cups.”

Just as if it had heard itself being mentioned, a small golden tabby cat poked its head out from under a fisherman’s hat. It was about the size of a palm, looking fluffy and plump. It lightly hopped into the director’s chest pocket, grabbed a gold coin from inside, and then returned to the hat.

“Ah!” Sonya’s eyes lit up. “Is that…”

“Yes, that’s a gold-eating beast,” the director said with a sigh. “It doesn’t like to be touched or teased. Apart from eating gold coins, it just causes trouble. Cute, right? I got it in exchange for my frayed nerves. I think the Virtual Realm is targeting me specifically, gifting a creature that’s the least likely to be quiet to someone who needs tranquility to create.”

Gold-eating beasts are native to the Time Continent but aren’t classified as knowledge creatures. In the Stars Kingdom, they are listed as ‘rare species.’ When a sorcerer encounters a rare species in the Virtual Realm, there’s a chance the rare species will attach to the sorcerer and be brought into reality by them.

Currently, there’s no evidence to suggest that rare species provide any benefits to sorcerers. However, generally speaking, sorcerers favored by rare species share three major traits: ① They are at least two-wings sorcerers; ② They have a kind heart and can easily empathize with others; ③ They possess a naive and simple mindset. In other words, those favored by rare species are…

“You don’t need to envy me,” the director said. “Miss Therave, you might encounter a gold-eating beast that clings to you in the Virtual Realm one day.”

“Haha, that’s impossible,” Sonya waved her hand dismissively. “I’m not of noble birth.”

Being powerful, kind-hearted, and simple-minded—these are qualities only noble offspring are likely to fully possess. Ordinary people, no matter how capable, have to sacrifice one of these traits to survive. Under normal circumstances, ordinary people can’t meet all three criteria. Being powerful aside, the latter two qualities require careful nurturing and are beautiful attributes to maintain.

“Since I don’t have any more scenes today, I’ll head out,” Sonya said.

“Thank you for your hard work today,” the director replied. “Are you heading back to school?”

“No, I’m going to Truth College to use their Time Training Room. I managed to book three hours of training time.”

“You’re so diligent!” the assistant beside her said admiringly. “You truly are a Swordflower—talented and hardworking. I can hardly even get myself to study most of the time… But for you geniuses, training must be a lot of fun, right?”

“Well~,” Sonya pretended to think, “it’s not exactly fun. But I can clearly feel myself making progress bit by bit. It’s like playing a game where every now and then, I see ‘Experience Points +5’ pop up above my head…”

“Sigh, geniuses really do live in a different world from ordinary people,” the assistant sighed. “Miss Therave, it’s no wonder you’re so amazing.”

“I won’t keep you any longer,” the director said, adjusting his six-eyed glasses. “Don’t push yourself too hard—I don’t just mean in acting.”

Sonya blinked, but the director had already turned back to planning the next scene.

Having a kind heart and caring for others… truly enviable qualities.

Sonya chuckled to herself as the assistant led her to the side to change clothes, then to find a makeup artist for a quick removal of her stage makeup. Since this scene needed to highlight the character’s devilish charm, her makeup wasn’t thick but was particularly intricate. In other words, it was a hassle. Her eyebrows, in particular, needed to be cleaned strand by strand.

By the time Sonya left, the set had transformed into a forest scene, with the male and female leads filming a confrontation.

As the most prolific film and TV drama production base in Galaxia, these sets were highly versatile. With a bit of detail added by Earth sorcerers and illusion sorcerers, the set could be transformed into various real-world scenes. Not only did it look real on the Holographic Screen, but it was indistinguishable even in person—this was the power of Miracles.

As for the distant scenery, it was even easier. Using tools like the Camera Eye, illusion sorcerers could project real-world distant scenes directly onto the set, blending reality and illusion seamlessly. Whether it was a forest or a snowy landscape, or even an underwater lava scene, the filming base had several Camera Eyes permanently stationed.

It was only after arriving here that Sonya realized that the TV dramas she saw on the Holographic Screen were daily miracles woven into existence. Even if the crew members weren’t sorcerers, they had to master sorcerer tools. For instance, the six-eyed glasses the director wore allowed him to watch six camera views simultaneously.

Watching the male and female leads under the spotlight, Sonya left the film base by car.

Since it was a half-hour drive to Galaxia’s city center, Sonya kept herself busy by opening the Miracle wristband and reviewing the “Social Gathering Tournament Player Information.”

The Social Gathering Tournament between colleges had concluded, and the College League was about to officially begin. The academy had already compiled information on the seed players that each college had sent to the tournament, detailing their performances.

Under the profiles of some strong players, Professor Trozan had even provided specific swordsmanship counter-strategies.

Senior sister Leoni had once joked with her, “The College League ends before it starts.” While that was an exaggeration, the analysis indeed helped Sonya understand her strengths and weaknesses against different sect sorcerers. She could even estimate her ranking in the league—assuming she didn’t make significant progress or hide any trump cards before then.

And this was just the analysis from Swordflower College. It was rumored that at Truth College, there was a professor from the Prophecy Sect who could deduce a player’s true combat strength from available data and formulate targeted strategies. Truth College students often dominated their matches, thanks in large part to the Prophecy Sect’s analytical prowess.

The College League might not end before it begins, but it certainly starts before it officially opens. Schools provide as much support as they can, and students must quickly absorb this knowledge to mitigate weaknesses and bolster strengths.

By the time Sonya felt her eyes getting tired from reading, the car had already arrived at Truth College.

Sonya got out and immediately noticed the White Tower not far away.

Since the “Starsfall” incident, the White Tower had stood tall in the center of Galaxia, and the stars had not fallen since. Though she couldn’t see it, Sonya knew that a Star Prayer was maintaining the balance of the stars from the top of the White Tower.

Truth College wasn’t open to the public, but this “public” didn’t include students from other universities—non-Truth College students could visit with valid credentials.

“Swordflower?”

“Red-Haired Sword Princess…”

Sonya’s recent surge in popularity and her legendary experiences had made her a well-known figure, even at Truth College. Many students recognized her as the rising ‘Sword Saint Seed.’ As she walked through the campus, numerous students noticed her. However, they didn’t approach her or engage in conversation; they simply nodded in acknowledgment. Sonya, maintaining her composure, responded with a gracious smile to each friendly or hostile look.

She arrived in front of a gray-white building, where two Gun Sword sorcerers stood guard. Although the Gun Sword Sect was still in its early stages, its impressive combat effectiveness and relatively low learning threshold (for both swordsmen and gun sorcerers) had already made it a standard for silver-armed sorcerers.

As she walked up the steps, one of the Gun Sword sorcerers raised a hand to stop her. “Apologies, but this area is off-limits to visitors. Non-students are not permitted to enter.”

“I’ve already booked the training room,” Sonya replied, a bit puzzled. “You should be able to see my reservation, right?”

The Gun Sword sorcerers in charge of security wore Miracle Goggles, which shared a database with the academy’s veil, providing immediate access to basic information about the students in front of them—very useful for catching rule-breakers. Thus, they could easily identify Sonya as a non-student, but they should also be able to see her reservation.

Moreover, this was Sonya’s third time visiting the Time Training Room. The previous two visits had been without incident; why was she being stopped now?

The Gun Sword sorcerer responded politely, “Apologies, but the academy has recently enhanced its security measures. Non-students entering important facilities must report to the management office. Please wait a moment.”

“Alright.”

Sonya stood there for several seconds, until a student walked past her and entered the Time Training Room. Suddenly, she realized what was happening.

“May I go in now?” she asked.

“Sorry, the management office hasn’t replied yet,” the Gun Sword sorcerer said. “Perhaps the staff is out. Please wait a bit longer.”

This flawless official rhetoric was the kind of nonsense only a Council Member drunk on three bottles of wine after a five-day bender could come up with.

Sonya instantly understood what she was facing—suppression from Truth College.

No, it wasn’t really suppression from Truth College itself. Such a colossal institution wouldn’t bother to target someone like Sonya directly. It was more likely the work of an administrative staff member in the admissions office. Because Sonya had recently declined an offer from Truth College, they were now exacting a small form of revenge.

Many of Truth College’s training facilities were the best, most advanced, and even unique. Other allied schools could use these Miracle facilities, such as the Time Training Room in front of Sonya, as long as they had approval from their professors.

The person enacting this revenge wasn’t openly bullying Sonya. They merely instructed the guards to intercept non-students and report their information to the management office for review, which was a procedurally sound requirement. Especially after the “Starsfall” incident, such heightened security measures were entirely reasonable.

Sonya could even predict the outcomes of various possible reactions:

1. Losing Her Temper: If she lost her temper and yelled at the two Gun Sword sorcerers, it would attract the attention of Truth College students. These students were likely already resentful of non-students using their training resources and would not sympathize with Sonya. They might even feel that it was about time someone addressed this issue.

2. Waiting: If she chose to wait, the Time Training Room schedules were typically fully booked. Even if she waited for three hours and was eventually allowed to enter, there wouldn’t be an available training room for her. More likely, after waiting for over two hours, the staff would ‘very apologetically’ return and approve her entry, making it difficult for her to even express her frustration.

3. Complaining on Forums: If she went to the school forums to criticize Truth College for discrimination, she wouldn’t find much support except from members of the Stretch Paw Club. It would be akin to a noble girl complaining about being married off to a duke’s son of equal standing; to ordinary students, Sonya complaining about being strong enough to be discriminated against by Truth College would seem more like bragging.

4. Reporting to Professor Trozan: If she complained to Professor Trozan, regardless of the outcome, today’s training session would be ruined. Whether or not she would face similar issues in the future would depend on how much influence Trozan actually had.

However, the most likely scenario was that even if Sonya complained to others, they would merely think she was being ‘paranoid,’ ‘making baseless accusations,’ or ‘overly self-important.’

After all, why would Truth College, with its vast resources and reputation, target a single student like you?

There’s no smoke without fire. It takes two to tango…

But Sonya was very sure of her suspicion.

She was all too familiar with this feeling: when people followed all the rules, yet somehow managed to disgust, inconvenience, and cause you needless trouble and loss.

They knew you didn’t have the means to fight back, so they acted without restraint.

Even if you stood your ground and didn’t give in, at most, you would only reclaim your rightful benefits. There would be no compensation for you, and they would face no punishment.

This feeling of frustration and pain, like a fishbone stuck in your throat, unable to spit it out or swallow it, was something she and her mother had endured together since childhood.

The difference was that her mother had become increasingly numb over time, while Sonya had become increasingly angry.

In the sight of the two Gun Sword sorcerers, Sonya cleared her throat, tapped her Miracle wristband, and dialed a number.

“Hmm?” A lazy voice answered on the other end.

“Pro… Professor Trozan!” Sonya sobbed, crying out like a distressed maiden, “Please come to Truth College and save me!”