Chapter 12: 12. Impromptu Lessons
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The month passed by unceremoniously and with noticeable effectiveness. I stopped sleeping so late and Taiyo deemed it safe enough for me to start doing magic in a safe capacity and for us to begin doing minor physical therapy so that my body was operating in full capacity with the muscles it had gained during the R-system.
Even among the other kids, I had far less energy due to my reluctance to eat the food they gave us. Grandpa Rob said that the only reason I was able to match everyone when it came time to do any labour was a sign of me having a strong will.
This was something that Mia said was a good thing for enchanting since it's done by using the caster's magic to augment the nature of other objects and that the stronger the will the stronger they are and the longer the enchantments can sustain themselves. Will didn't ever really come that much into play when being used for general use, but high enchantments and master enchantments always required a strong mind to control them otherwise they would lack the control needed for them to be practical.
The basic one she encouraged me to learn was concept enchantments, versatile and the best foundation for aspiring enchanters to use. They usually reinforce the crop fields with heat concepts and nourishment concepts to boost the yield of crops, and the one she told me to focus on was the nourishment enchantment to boost my recovery.
On top of that, though, she also acted as my personal tutor for general education.
To say she was disheartened when she saw how lacking my education was would be an understatement.
However, I took to the material with relative ease, memorising each aspect of what I was given to study and referencing the new material I was given with the old. For the first time since I was a toddler, I was happy my memory was as strong as it is and enjoyed learning.
Each thought I had through every second of everyday was dedicated to learning and understanding what I had been taught. On the occasion that Mia allowed me to follow her to work they had been instructed to rotate the crops from one field to the next so that they could allow the first to replenish in nutrients.
It was awe inspiring, and Mia and one of her subordinates used an enchantment called Universe One to do it. The entire field turned red with magic as the land tilled itself under their instructions. The farmers planted new seeds in the trenches they made and the second group carried wheelbarrows filled with animal carcasses and expired food provided by the citizens and left them scattered across the first field where they used Universe One again to bury them under the surface.
This scene alone made me determined to master enchanting, something I have no doubt Mia had planned since I overheard her and her friends arguing which was better, an argument they tend to rope others into quite often.
On top of Taiyo dedicating our meetings to go on rants about medical knowledge and healing magic, Akihiko, who I had almost no interactions with other than the few times he ate in the mess hall, also seemed to have decided to drag me out of my lessons to make me watch the fighters after hearing from Mia that I had perfect memory.
It was…inspiring, to say the least.
No one else seemed to have fire body magic, but instead generated their fire in a variety of ways. In particular, Akihiko rarely seemed to cast fire himself. When I asked why, he said that there are three primary forms of fire magic taught to be used in combat.
The first is standard fire magic, the production and manipulation of flames to create shapes and attacks. It's the most versatile of the three and the various uses of it depends on the creativity of the mage.
The second is heat projection, a method primarily used to defend oneself by creating barriers of condensed heat that disperses the ethernano that hits it. He described it to be a type of anti-magic that doesn't require the usage of bane particles to destroy the ethernano, instead it forces the ethernano to change course by moulding it and pushing it off the barrier.
The third is pyromancy, the one he uses most when fighting other fire mages, which emphasises the usage of controlling already existing flames by using your magic to manipulate it. Although I didn't speak it, the concept sounded very similar to enchanting.
The fighters always captivated me though. They hardly ever mindlessly threw fire at their opponents, and when they did they used it as a distraction by trying to blind their opponents. They often chose to instead use the fire to propel their limbs to strengthen the blow from elbows, punches, and kicks.
Those that did fight with casting often tried to control the movement of their opponents, such as the blinding, but also by conjuring flames from the ground they stood on. These fighters drew my attention more, because they had to resort to overwhelming force to win their spars. Their main opponents ended up being the pyromancers who tried to control the torrent of flames or flame constructs sent their way, since this was a training exercise.
Very few people except for the more practised fighters seemed to use heat barriers. Akihiko, proud that I had actually been studying the fighters, explained that it's because it's the most difficult of the three combat magics used. The stronger the spells sent their way the stronger the concentration they needed to make the barriers, something that was difficult to achieve for most when in the "heat" of battle.
Despite my groan at the stoic man's pun, that note made me realise a common factor that I had been ignoring. A simple but important rule with magic, the stronger the spells the more focus needed to cast them, as well as the more magic power they consume.
This reminder made me determined to do something I had been neglecting since I came here, meditating.
It was something few seemed to do, and when I began to get close to the large bonfire I realised why. Few even seemed concerned that I was going near it and the scorching heat that seemed to make itself known immediately told me why.
Everything past a ring of stone towers that surrounded the sandy pit the bonfire rested in felt like a molten death. If Captain Tatsuo's magical presence made it hard to breathe, this heat felt like it was going to just outright kill me. But just because I can learn things quickly doesn't mean that some couldn't consider me a fool.
I was determined to grow strong, and if I can manage to concentrate in this heat, overcome and surpass this heat, and absorb the ethernano that was soaked in this heat, then that could only be considered a smart decision, right?
Eight rings of stone slabs surrounded the bonfire that seemed to be the source of the heat, and I could tell by the fractions of the few meditating already that the further in you got the hotter it was. No one rested at the sixth or seventh rings, and the only one on the eighth was Captain Tatsuo himself.
I couldn't even feel my lungs at the first ring, so I knew that the goal to reach the eighth would be long and dangerous.
— * —
Inside a dark crypt, a collection of large bones that laid motionless briefly glowed a dark indigo. The pitch black skeleton that rested against a wall creaked as the heat of its magic made the stagnant remains flex from the sudden flux of magic.
The large horns on the groaning corpse creaked as the soul inside that refuses to die forced the magic to communicate its thoughts to the underground jail's absent audience through an ominous hum.
[How…intriguing…]
— * —
The week after I started to meditate while Mia was working instead of teaching me was followed by me drinking plenty of water to rehydrate myself.
Taiyo, being my impromptu nurse, admonished me for my decisions, but Mia and Aki who followed similar training only told me to be safe when doing it and not to push myself.
Eventually though, I had decided to take advantage of my inability to actually practise fire magic on the same level as the others yet, and take a peek at the more advanced classes that were taught by Captain Tatsuo himself.
In the back of the training complex, the sounds of gunfire, explosions, and shouting could be heard as the elite trainees practised under the instructions of the colossus of a guard captain.
From my position a distance away, I could see a set of people using fire magic to blow targets into the air and send them hundreds of metres away. Beside them, a line of marksmen with rifles aimed at the ready would fire at the targets, seemingly using pyromancy to boost and control the bullets fired from the flintlock rifles.
Another field over, two lines once again formed as the two rows of people stood facing each other. They would take turns blasting fire at each other, yet seemingly no one had any burns and even their clothes seemed untouched.
"Confused?"
I jumped after hearing the voice of Captain Tatsuo coming from behind me, something he seemed to take minor amusement from.
"Relax lass, you youngins often get curious and come to take peaks at this scene, only to be confused and astonished."
"Why aren't they getting burnt by the fire? Are they creating barriers on their skin?"
"No, although they can if they do feel they are getting burnt, it instead lies in the casters' mastery over fire that allows them to decide when they don't burn others," he then waved his hand and the grass around us caught on fire, however when the flames dissipated, they weren't harmed in any way.
"Fire is amongst the most common elements in nature. However, it is often a force of destruction that serves to do harm to the environment around it. When our ancestors began to master flame in its primitive form they began to find ways for it to be used as a tool for our survival. It can provide heat in the cold, light in the dark, and protection to the meak. Even nature itself has found ways to harness the destruction left by the element to stimulate new growth by burning away the dead brush and vegetation, giving way to new life that can grow in its place."
"Fire is fickle, hard to control at even the best of times, and this nature is only amplified by magic. With training they were able to learn when not to burn something, but that same training allows them to burn anything that they may desire. As you train you will notice how your flames will bend more to your emotions than you may think, which is why I brought you here to train in the first place. When you meditate, focus on this concept. Magic bends to your passion, passions can be dangerous, just like fire. Emotions like rage, pride, and ambition can make your flames burn hotter, but without discipline and control those emotions will do just as much damage to you as they will to your enemies. Find that control during your time here so that no matter where you go in life you can burn as bright as you may need to, dear. My wish for all of you is to train you all to become as ever bright as the sun, not for you all to wane away as easily as a candle."
He walked waving for me to follow, "Come, I'm sure they'll be willing to answer questions if it means getting a break."
He began shouting out orders to the trainees, and my eyes were drawn to the grass he had just ignited moments prior.
'Maybe it's an enchantment?'
With trepidation, I lit a small portion of the lawn on fire in the same spot he did. After I dissipated the flames, clear as day was a small burnt patch in the otherwise green grass. Immediately I ended up staggering forward as a large hand hit me in the back if the head.
"Don't burn the lawn!"
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Ito Akihiko (Age 24):
Ito Tatsuo (Age 83):
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