Beyond my expectations, Viola manages to learn all the basic magic I teach her quickly. With just a couple of tries, she masters the basic fire, water, earth, wind, and lightning spells. I don't know if this is due to her being an elf, thus probably having a higher innate talent with magic, or it's just her own natural talent. At any rate, this means she can go learn the more complex stuff immediately.

The first spell I teach her is [Rock Body]. This spell uses the Earth element to augment the hardness of your own body, making it as hard as a rock like the name suggests. This spell is the last resort of mages if some warrior manages to get through your offensive spells to strike at you directly. It will only do good if your opponents are just some ordinary swordsmen though. A more magic-oriented one can just imbue their weapons with their magic, making it sharp enough to pierce through your defense. Hell, even a strong enough warrior is enough..

That is why I teach her this spell as her second. [Barrier]. It casts a--you called it-- barrier in front of the caster, protecting her from anything coming from that direction. The difference between this spell and [Rock Body] is that it doesn't cover the user's entire body. In exchange, it has a more powerful stopping potential. [Rock Body] is sorta weak to magic attacks while this spell can stop both physical and magical attacks.

The third spell is [Wind Walk]. It increases your movement speed and-- that's pretty much it. Doesn't seem so impressive but it will surely come handy in a fight.

Oh, and by the way, have you noticed how [Rock Body] and [Wind Walk] have elements, Earth and Wind respectively, attached to it while [Barrier] doesn't? That's because both [Rock Body] and [Wind Walk] are offshoots of Earth and Wind magic, while [Barrier] is a non-elemental magic.

She masters them all in just a month's time. Morgan says that ordinarily, mastering one spell of that level will take at least a month, so three months at the very least. She does it merely with a third of the usual time. I am more and more amazed with her ability. At this rate, maybe she can even--

"If you have any ideas of her surpassing Tina, think again. That girl... she's a monster of magic. In just one year, she manages to master all known magic, a feat that no other mages have ever done in a lifetime."

"W-wait, seriously?"

"I'm not joking here. Before she took up the mantle as one of the Three Heroes, she was merely a sickly princess, living her days on her bed attended by her servants. She hadn't had any training in magic whatsoever, that is, until Maya visited her. She then stole her from the palace, and when Tina returned, she was strong enough to overthrow the king, her own father, by herself. And I'd like to remind you that the palace was full of high-level mages so it was no easy feat."

"And of course, there's the fact that I've witnessed with my own eyes and body the power of her magic. And your little elven girl is still far, far from her level."

...In short, she is a cheat character.

I have no clue how she became one. Usually only guys from other worlds like me got to be one in this kind of stories.

Unless...

"Morgan, you said that Maya is an Outsider just like me, right?"

"Yes, yes I did," she answers.

"And I still know nothing about her except that she has some creepy mind reading abilities. I have a hunch that she is the most important member of the Three Heroes."

She sighs hearing my exclamation.

"My knowledge of her is, sadly, almost as limited as yours."

"But why? You fought her before!"

"I did. But even then, I still cannot explain her powers."

She turns away from me, folding her hands below her enormous chest.

"You see, her powers... I can't even say if they're magic."

"What do you mean?" I ask.

"I mean that I sense not a single trace of magic from her or her attacks. In all aspects, she's just an ordinary human."

She sighs once more before continuing her explanation.

"Let me explain her power. She's capable of producing a force to repel or pull all kinds of things, from the flesh, to magical constructs, to raw energy, and even spirits and the like. You think that sounds simple and basic but you won't think so once every single of your attacks got diverted or deflected back at you. With that power, I didn't even manage to put a hole on her pretty dress."

"Hmm, that sounds like gravity manipulation, or telekinesis in general." I comment.

"...Wait, I used to be able to do telekinesis!" I exclaim, referring to when I still have my moth body.

"No, no, that is different. I can still feel you spending mana when you do it. She, on the other hand, doesn't need any mana at all, which makes it even more terrifying. That means she can do it infinitely at the worst case scenario."

"Oh..." Now, I feel dejected.

"Anyway, the only other thing I know is that she was summoned by the Graham Empire. And that's about it."

Maya, huh? Another mysterious cheat character has appeared.

Goddamnit, I'm starting to think my own evolution cheat is inferior to theirs.

"Don't look so worried," Morgan suddenly says, "I have a plan to deal with them. We just have to bide our time until my pillar gathers enough energy."

I just hope she knows what she is doing.