章 120: Experimenting with Magic
The first thing I did was attempt to cast a small [Water Ball] spell. I did in fact succeed in conjuring water, only the water did not form into a ball. Instead, water droplets began to form in various sizes in random locations surrounding me and quickly fell to the ground.
'Just as I expected. The same thing happened in the Teleportation Labyrinth.'
When I had tried to heal Elinalise, flesh and bone still formed, only it formed in an uncontrolled manner. When I tried to conjure that small flame, I only managed to singe my fingertip. It seems that whenever I try to cast a spell, the mana still maintains the attribute I am imbuing it with, but something is interfering with my control. If I had to guess, I would wager it has something to do with whatever is causing the change to my vision.
I'm starting to get used to it, but even now my vision still has that same haze to it. It remains unchanged from when I first woke up after being freed from that mana crystal.
"Let the great protection of water be on the place thou seekest. I call a refreshing burbling stream here and now. [Water Ball]."
Once again small, irregularly shaped water droplets formed around me before falling to the ground.
'Huh. Even when using the incantation, the spell doesn't form properly.'
The size and shape should have been defaulted when using the incantation and not intentionally modifying the mana. At least that means it's not me doing something wrong. There is most likely some sort of interference messing with my mana.
I had actually borrowed a book on elemental spell schools for beginner mages from the library. Since I never use the incantations anymore I don't remember many of them verbatim. It's a good thing they reserved the training hall for me; it would be embarrassing to be caught reading from a beginner spellbook given the reputation I've earned.
I tried casting [Water Ball] once again without incantations, but this time I put more effort into maintaining the spell. Unfortunately all that happened was that I ended up putting more mana into the spell in an attempt to maintain it and creating larger water droplets. The droplets were still equally as irregularly shaped and randomly sized and immediately fell to the ground, soaking the floor in gallons of water.
Again and again I repeated the experiment. Each attempt I would try something different. I tried modifying each of the spell's attributes little by little to analyze the effect. Eventually, after several hours of experimentation, I began to get frustrated.
"Damn it!"
I'm not making any progress at all! No matter how I go about modifying the spell, the only thing that seems to have any effect is the total amount of mana the spell consumes. What that mana is used for is not being translated properly and instead only results in a greater volume of water appearing in random shapes and locations around me.
I specifically chose the [Water Ball] spell to practice with because it seemed like the safest in the event something goes wrong. Falling boulders or uncontrolled flames are much more deadly than getting a little wet. Even so, given the extreme amount of mana I possess, even a [Water Ball] spell can be dangerous if I let loose.
*DING*
*DING*
*DING*
The lunch bell echoed loudly through the empty training hall. That's perfect timing. I need a break from this anyway.
"Taking a break for lunch?"
The same teacher who welcomed me into the training hall stood right outside the entrance standing guard.
"Uh, yeah. Have you been standing there this whole time?"
"Vice Principal Jenius was very clear that I should make sure you weren't bothered. I'm normally one of the Magical Combat instructors so I have nothing else to do anyway since the Hall has been reserved for you."
"Sorry for the inconvenience", I said while rubbing the back of my head.
"It's no trouble at all! Really! We're honored to have somebody like you studying here! Reserving the training hall for a day or two is a trivial matter."
I waved goodbye to the instructor and made my way to the cafeteria. I felt kinda bad for the guy having to stand right outside the door like that; it must make for a boring day. Then again, isn't that basically what any soldier standing guard does on a regular basis? I could never do that kind of job.
Once I arrived, I found Sylphiette, Zanoba, Linia and Pursena sitting around the table I had created outside the cafeteria. I took my seat beside Sylphy.
"Welcome back boss!", Linia greeted.
"Thanks. I'm glad to be back."
"Seems like we're missing a few regulars", I commented while looking around at the empty seats.
"I heard Seren's in bed with a cold", Pursena answered.
"My sister hasn't eaten here in a while", Zanoba added. "She's been spending almost all her time at the church lately."
"Luna is probably inside on the first floor eating lunch with everyone else", Sylphy said.
"And Norn is probably eating lunch with her student council buddies", I added.
"Student council?", Sylphy asked, confused. "I don't think I've ever seen Norn around any of them. Except when Ariel and her attendants came to your birthday party that is."
"Oh yeah... haha. My mistake."
The five of us enjoyed our lunch. Just as I was about to get up and head back to the training hall, we had an unexpected visitor.
"I don't recall outdoor seating. Did they make this table just for you?", Roxy asked in intrigue.
"No, Rudeus crafted this table with his magic", Linia answered with pride for some reason.
"Really? That's really impressive. It looks like something you would buy in a high end furniture store."
Over the months of eating lunch here with everyone I had slowly been embellishing the table with highly intricate engravings, just for fun really.
"Roxy! I didn't know you were coming.", Sylphy said in surprise. "We would have waited to eat with you if we'd known."
"Speak for yourself", Pursena muttered with her mouth full.
"So this is Master Roxy that I've heard so much about."
As Zanoba said this he stood up from his chair and gave an exaggerated bow. If you didn't know him you might think he was mocking Roxy.
"It's a great honor to meet you. If I may humbly introduce myself, I am Zanoba Shirone, third prince of the Kingdom of Shirone."
"Ehh!? Please, stand! Why are you bowing to me?"
Needless to say, Roxy was surprised. Zanoba always dressed to impress and it wouldn't be hard to convince somebody he was a prince, despite his eccentric mannerisms.
"Don't worry, that's just how he is", I assured Roxy. "Take a seat. We're all special students, so it's not like we're in a rush to get back to classes."
"That's alright", Roxy refused. "I just saw you guys and wanted to stop by. I was actually on my way to apply for a position as a professor", she answered.
"That's a great idea", Sylphy said excitedly.
"What classes do you intend to teach?", Zanoba pondered.
"I'll have to discuss that with my former teacher, but I would assume he'd have me teaching courses related to magic, assuming that I get the job."
"I'm sure you'll get the job. They'd be crazy not to hire you", I assured.
"Well, I'd better be on my way", Roxy said. "It was nice to meet you all."
"The pleasure is mine", Zanoba said as he bowed once again. Linia just waved goodbye and Pursena seemed to be ignoring everyone as she continued eating.
After lunch, Sylphy followed me to the training hall to try and help me with my practice. Knowing that Sylphy and I are good friends, the teacher standing guard didn't say anything as she followed me in.
Unfortunately, even with Sylphy trying to help me, I didn't make any real progress. Nothing I tried changed the result and Sylphy seemed stumped as well. I felt helpless.
After classes had ended for the day, Sylphy, Norn, Roxy, and I all walked home together. It didn't take Norn long to become friends with Roxy. The two got along great.
Once we finally got home, I went back up to my room to see if Orsted had replied to my message and found that he had.
____________________
Dear Rudeus Greyrat,
There is much we need to discuss. I wish to meet with you to determine our next steps. Tomorrow morning at sunrise I will use the scroll you gave me to teleport to your house. Please let everyone know so they will not be surprised.
-Orsted
____________________
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