Under Elfman's guidance, Zhou Xin successfully bought all the painting supplies he needed. But as they approached the guild entrance, they could hear a loud commotion coming from inside.
"What's going on?" Zhou Xin muttered, pushing the door open. As the two stepped in, they were immediately greeted by a chaotic scene: Mira and a crimson-haired girl in armor—clearly Elusa—were locked in a heated face-off in the center of the guild.
Before Zhou Xin could ask, Elfman began whispering like a seasoned commentator. "The one fighting my sister is Elusa. She's just as strong as Mira."
"Oh, so that's Elusa." Zhou Xin observed her carefully. She indeed gave off the commanding aura of a heroine.
"You know her?" Elfman asked, surprised at Zhou Xin's lack of reaction.
"Mira Faction vs. Elusa Faction—kind of hard to miss." Zhou Xin shrugged and skirted around the battlefield with Elfman.
Elfman let out a sheepish laugh and scratched his head. As they passed, they found themselves in another familiar brawl—this time between a pink-haired boy in a scarf and another wearing only his underwear.
"The scarf guy is Natsu, and the one in boxers is Gray," Elfman whispered. "They're just like Mira and Elusa—constantly competing."
At that moment, Natsu noticed them and broke off from the fight, leaping in front of Zhou Xin. "Yo! I'm Natsu! Lisanna told me you're the new guy."
"Yeah. I'm Zhou Xin." Zhou Xin gave a polite nod.
"Let's duel!" Natsu grinned, immediately getting into a fighting stance.
"I'm not really good at fighting," Zhou Xin said quickly, waving his hands.
He wasn't lying. Mira and Elusa were already B-class mages. Natsu and Gray were C-class. Zhou Xin had just awakened his magic and didn't even fully understand how it worked. Any duel would just be a beatdown.
"Don't mind this idiot. He's always like this. I'm Gray." The underwear-clad boy strolled over.
"What did you say, you pervert?!" Natsu snapped, forgetting Zhou Xin entirely as he clashed heads with Gray again.
"You called me what?! Wanna go again, scarf-face?!"
While the two resumed bickering, Lisanna approached with a smile. "Brother Zhou Xin, Brother Elfman—welcome back! What did you buy?"
Zhou Xin held up his bags. "Just some painting supplies."
Kana, who was passing by, joined the conversation. "Oh? So you use drawing magic?"
"That's right," Zhou Xin nodded.
"Ah, just like Lidas, huh?" Natsu frowned, clearly unimpressed.
Natsu wasn't interested, but the rest welcomed Zhou Xin warmly. From then on, Zhou Xin settled into guild life.
Since Fairy Tail provided food and lodging for young wizards under fifteen, Zhou Xin spent most of his time practicing magic and trying to understand how to strengthen it. He held onto one belief: *There are no useless abilities, only useless people.*
Occasionally, he joined Elfman for easy, risk-free D-class missions around Magnolia. Otherwise, he sat quietly in the corner, sketching and refining his craft. Lidas tried to help, but Zhou Xin's magic was fundamentally different. Lidas used imagination to materialize his art. Zhou Xin's evolved version required *knowledge.*
Six months passed.
Eventually, Zhou Xin found his breakthrough. But when he did, the entire guild found him sobbing uncontrollably at a table.
"I've come all this way… and I still can't escape this fate…" he wailed.
Why?
Because unlike Lidas, who could draw something and imagine it into existence with enough magic power, Zhou Xin's magic required precise data—*scientific* data.
To materialize a simple kitchen knife, Zhou Xin had to know:
- The knife's exact dimensions (length, width, thickness, curvature),
- The materials for the blade and handle,
- Their molecular and even atomic composition.
In contrast, Lidas only needed a strong mental image and enough magic. Zhou Xin's magic required in-depth knowledge of physics, chemistry, and material science. Without it, his creations were lifeless imitations.
His golden finger did come with a vast knowledge base. That was his saving grace.
But it didn't change the fact—Zhou Xin had traveled to a fantasy world… only to find out he couldn't escape learning math, physics, and chemistry.
That's when it hit him.
*Magic and technology aren't opposites. They're just two paths to the same goal—understanding the universe.*
Whether through science or spells, the rules don't change. The laws of force, matter, energy, and data transmission still apply. To become stronger, Zhou Xin realized he needed to study as rigorously as a scholar or scientist.
Hence the tears.
He had magic.
But he still had to study STEM.