“Magic requires more than simple intuition gained from acquiring the skill. It is a study further expressed by how one is able to understand and harness mana down to its basic components,” Katherine stood several meters away from me, speaking in a commanding tone which echoed throughout the near empty training floor’s enclosed space. “You might’ve thought that as your skills rise in rank, your spells would attain more effects, thus becoming more powerful. That would be true, but most mages would perceive it to be detrimental to their own livelihoods.”

  “What do you mean?” I asked. “Don’t everybody want to grow more powerful than they were before?”

  “Then how about we do an experiment. Try to cast a spell and fire it.”

  I followed her instructions, conjuring a single [Flame Arrow] then fired it on the cold hard ground, exploding upon impact.

  “Good. Now try again, but now try to make sure that it doesn’t explode.”

  “As in, to downgrade the [Flame Arrow] spell? Isn’t the whole point of ranking up skills to make spells stronger?”

  “Then let’s say you’re in a position where you’ve got a group of hostages right in front of you. Their captors are holding a knife to their throats. If you were to use the [Flame Arrow] spell on them in its current iteration, you’ll only end up exploding both the captor’s head and the hostage’s.”

  “But then I could just cast some other pinpoint-accurate spell.”

  “Then do you know any right now?”

  I didn’t. I wasn’t at that step yet and considering the fire-based spells I’ve learnt over my time here in the Mage Tower, almost all of them were focused on its destructive aspects. This was why I set out to acquire other elemental manipulation skills, but if the results were similar, then I guessed this lesson was a necessary one. The question was how?

  Consuming less mana was my first thought, but the amount of mana consumed for a spell was always fixed at a base amount, and I could only add more fuel, but not subtract it. Next I tried prolonging the [Flame Arrow]’s movement, though the splosion would always occur after a set time and regardless whether it hit a target or not.

  “I … can’t …,” my back hunched. “It’s like trying to fight nature itself.”

  “Skills are like tools permanently attached to your hands. Once you acquire one, you could never normally remove it. These tools are a boon born from the world’s leylines, yet they can become a curse. The strong are praised and acclaimed, yet also feared for what they could do. Intentionally or not, many carelessly fell down the wrong path, which is why we must learn how to not rely on the system, so that we could remain and be perceived as we are now.”

  Katherine conjured a pluming fire above her palm, chantless, yet it looked oddly different from the floating fires I’ve conjured. Rather than a controlled flame generated from one central focal point and out into a singular floating finger, her flame was wild and unruly, as if it was constantly being blown by wind of which there was none. Its crimson fingers constantly tried to extend its length, becoming tendrils which sought to spread its flames in all directions.

  “This is the lesson I wish to teach you, my apprentice. To use magic without Orbiterra’s intervention, and the thing is, you’ve already done it,” —my brows raised, head tilted— “Everyone has and that is when we first try to acquire skills. Do you remember how it felt? How the mana first coursed through your veins, nestling within your heart, as you then proceeded to pull it out of the container that is your body, as it becomes something of your creation? Try to replicate that feeling right now.”

  I closed my eyes and entered the realm of thoughts, burrowing deeper into where numbers could not reach and only fictitious dreams existed. A vivid fire blooming upon her palm, its bright evanescent light illuminating the room, wishing to spread its tender warmth to safeguard those around it. From deep within, it was taken, flowed, stretched out until they retained a new simple form with no special effects.

  An arrow of wild flames rested atop my palms, as I then sent it forward. The moment it made contact with the walls, it just hit it. No subsequent explosion nor splitting into multiple copies. The arrow made a scorch mark and that was it. However, my eyes remained fixated on where it hit, heart jumping in and out of joy, as I’ve unlocked—rediscovered a new ability to add to my arsenal.

  “That being said, the whole process feels a bit needless,” I said, for why would I bother to spend five minutes imagining a spell if I could cast one after saying one or two words. “Is there no way to shorten it?”

  “The same way you would do when raising your skill ranks. Practice and become proficient in it,” Katherine snapped her fingers and flaming rose petals descended from the air, almost filling up the room, yet burning anything despite the great heat emanating out of every single petal. Then I had a thought. Could this whole show be a demonstration itself of what one could do through manual casting? And it happened instantaneously no less.

  Excitement mixed with curiosity quickly pumping the heart, as it beckoned me to attempt and master this new method of doing magic. I’ve already got a lot of ideas in mind and I couldn’t wait to try it out. But of course, basics first. And the rest of the lesson continued with that in mind.

  =====================================

  STATUS PROFILE

  Name : Akari Takebayashi

  Age : 15

  Race : Human

  Class : [Mage]

  Titles : [Hero], [World Traveler]

  HP : 52

  MP : 84

  STR : 6

  DEF : 3 + 2

  AGI : 7 + 5

  INT : 14 + 16

  WIS : 6

  If you come across this story on Amazon, it's taken without permission from the author. Report it.

  CHA : 7

  LCK : 7 + 3

  Skills : [Appraisal C] [Translator EX] [Fire Manipulation C] [Wind Manipulation E] [Water Manipulation E]

  =====================================

  Once training was over, I headed downstairs to get some reading. As keen as I was to learn the ‘original’ method, Katherine said that it'd be best to study the ‘common’ method as well. Mostly as formalities as well as to be able to blend in a bit better amongst my peers. Coming up to the front desk, I asked the kind-looking librarian with glasses and a ponytail, “Where’s the section for intermediate fire magic, Eden? Sensei said I need to learn more spells before the next set of lessons.”

  “Haven’t I told you yesterday already?” he pointed out.

  “I … may have forgotten,” I looked away embarrassed, but could anyone blame me when the whole library felt like a maze. Turn right and you’d enter the monster-cooking section for dungeon exploration, go straight and you’d come across a lecherous section filled with perverts who couldn’t keep it in their pants, turn left and you’d stumble into a cult gathering of living books. Yes, there were some books that appeared to possess intelligence and made a whole cult worshipping a painting of a green worm deity. In addition, whenever I tried to go to the bathroom, the location seemed to change every so often from west to east to below the stairs or directly beside the entrance, as in the two doors would magically appear in random places, yet no one seemed to be bothered by it. Maybe they’ve already given up because whenever I noticed someone intended to stay in the library for a long period of time, they would bring a bucket with them. I dared not to ask what they were using them for.

  And yet despite all the confusing aspects of this place, there happened to be that one guy who somehow knew where everything was.

  “East side, third row, head straight toward the end then turn left until you see a section where the books are a bit charred. Make sure to head to that section without looking at the wall, otherwise the old-lady painting will try to stab you with her pitchfork.”

  “Then … why not just remove it from the wall?”

  “My boss, the current head librarian, has particular tastes when it comes to decor,” his eyes shifted at the bunch of old lady portraits on the desk as well as the giant old lady statue standing behind him. I always thought it to hold some sort of historical meaning, like the old lady being the first Tower Master of Kyanos or something. But upon closer look, they all had a variety of faces, which was kind of a let down.

  “Ah, it’s her. That woman’s apprentice.”

  “She doesn’t look all that special. You think that hag found her on the streets?”

  “Must be and I honestly feel bad for her, having eyes that small. Like, ‘Oh no! I don’t recognize who you are. Let me pull my eyelids up.”

  “Hahahaha!” the three men in robes nearby laughed without a care for those around them. Their comments were discomforting, though I felt more enraged than hurt. And here I thought this was a library, though perhaps the silent law didn’t apply to this world.

  “Don’t mind them,” told Eden, quietly. “They’re just idiotic manchildren too obsessed over themselves. Can’t take stand the fact that the Tower Master decided to pick a cute talented girl over their pea-sized brains with ears made out of .”

  I held back my laughter. It’d been a long while since I last heard a savage remark, which came even more of a surprise from someone with his looks. When I first met Eden, I thought of him to be the princely type. He was beautiful and handsome, yes, with skin as clear as porcelain and possessing a sharp beguiling gaze, though once he opened his mouth, hell broke loose.

  “Hey, watch this. Ahem!” he turned toward the three mages and let out his voices. “Nak, Kon, Tol! I’ve just received word that the erotica section is receiving new books on plugs and stuff, so try not to get too crazy.”

  Instantly, their faces went beet red. The three quickly left the area, hoping to get away from everyone’s judging eyes, but not before leaving a you-won't-get-away-with-this look sent directly at Eden, who remained nonchalant and unfazed by their threats.

  “That’s just thirty percent of my power,” he said. “Anymore and I’d curse the hell out of them, but alas I couldn’t possibly curse in front of little children.”

  “I’m fourteen though,” I argued using this world’s logic, which dictated that anyone who’d come of age as full grown adults. To everyone whom I approached, this appeared to be the case, for they treated me like one of their own. Except for the man in front of me.

  “Nah, still a child. Grow another ten centimeters and I might consider you as a teenager,” he snickered, causing my veins to pop and eyes to twitch, as I immediately made mental notes to drink more milk. “Anyway, I’ll say this again. Don’t mind the words coming out of those clowns’ mouths. Easier on the head when you’re not constantly second guessing yourself. Overthinking is a disease, I tell you.”

  “You sound like you’re speaking from experience, Eden-san.”

  “Boy, let me tell you that people can be both the kindest and cruelest beings. Like back at my previous workplace, there’s no shortage of workplace bullying and harassment enough to make you want to kill yourself.” Despite the depressive experience, Eden sounded very pissed off in reminiscing those days. “But compared to that hellish nightmare, this is nothing. Plus the wide open area really gives you a chance to breathe after a bad day. Oh, and did you know that—”

  Eden continued on with his yapping longer than I could tolerate, jumping into multiple subjects from his irritable ex-coworker who dumped his work on him to his ex-girlfriend who cheated on him with another older man. I felt like I wasn’t supposed to hear this very grown-up stuff, as my tolerance was about to reach a breaking point. So, when he looked the other way, I quickly fled the reception desk and went on my way.

  There were tons of books stored inside Kyanos’ library, with the first floor reserved for basic to intermediate tomes and general subjects mostly read by curious folk both rich and poor. Apparently it was a recent thing for the poor and homeless to be allowed inside the mage tower often visited by distinguished mages and individuals, which was a great thing because knowledge was a power to raise one’s ranks. A future merchant, tailor, barber, cook, or a future mage could be simply born through flipping pages of words.

  Although I still had to get used to this archaic method of gathering information. If only I could scroll through holographic panels like the system. It was very similar to how it was … it was …

  Like back home! Can't believe I almost forgot. Better make a journal right after this, I thought, then continue my read on the crisped book. Its contents pertained to the many intermediate fire-based spells: [Flame Pillar], [Blazing Heart], [Fiery Wisps] being among them. Their descriptions were rather specific and cool-sounding. Although after learning about the ‘original’ method of casting magic, it made me wonder if there was any use of learning any of these when I could just simply turn to imagination.

  Well, Katherine did say to also learn them regardless. In the heat of battle, the quick cast time of system-aided-spells were superior in that front, at least with my current proficiency and understanding of mana.

  Let’s try them tomorrow, I thought, closing the book which immediately flew back to its shelf. I was heading to the elevator, when I heard two mages talking in the next row.

  “Have you heard? Apparently delegates from the Aeryn are coming here.”

  “You ought to fix that screw loose on your head. As if people from that forsaken tower would bother with us.”

  “But what if they decided to … you know …”

  “The Tower Master ain’t to be underestimated. It’d take a hundred of those guys to be able to match her in combat. This city is safe, so long as you keep that damn mouth of yours shut.”

  They started moving and I went the opposite way, not wanting to run into them. Neither would surely be pleased to have their conversation being peeked by said Tower Master’s apprentice. Regardless, what they said concerned me. If I wasn’t mistaken, this Aeryn was a kingdom eastward from Peryer, said to be the home of the Iranos, the White Tower, and the first magic tower ever built.

  Secrets of forbidden magic and knowledge were said to be stored there, safeguarded from any outside eyes except for the Tower Master and their chosen few, who were entrusted the role as its protectorate. Apparently that had been the tower’s only function ever since the other mage towers were built, forfeiting its role as a teaching hub in order to fulfill a more righteous and noble purpose. And although Iranos was the de facto leader of the seven Mage Towers, its members rarely stepped outside of the marble walls protecting the tower.

  Those two were probably just gossiping around. I’ve yet to hear news about it, and I was the apprentice of Kyanos’ Tower Master herself. Surely, if word were to spread about the arrival of reclusive mages from the prestige Iranos Tower, Katherine, who also Peryer’s governess, would’ve known about it first.

  That was until three days later, when delegates from the Aeryn kingdom made an impromptu visit to Peryer alongside a mage cloaked in white.