Chapter 10 -
Teto and I had our stuff to take care of among other things.
Like delivering potions to the guild, completing the unpopular requests, and bartering for items and artworks lined up at the marketplace and harbor.
Some requests had to be handled outside the city as well which we managed to turn into just a day trip using the ‹Flying Carpet›.
Enrolled in the magician clan, Yuishia also had her own things to take care of.
Getting up in the morning, learning magic under the guidance of other magicians in the magician clan, and researching.
That being said, she was mostly deemed incompetent by others so she was usually pushed to do chores or made to do work that other magicians detested at low wages during her dorm life.
Though once she began to live with us, which eased her financial situation, she was now able to utilize her time training her magic.
Besides that, she also gained the aptitude to use some simple offensive spells once the circulation of mana in her body was restored to a healthy state after I fixed her old wound.
"Chise-san, Teto-san! Look at my magic! ----‹Breeze›."
Yuishia happily reported to us about her achievement and showcased her usage of the ‹Breeze› spell, a life magic that brings forth a gentle breeze.
It was kind of like feeling the rustling of the faint wind, so it was not usable for offense.
Nevertheless, it was a ground-breaking deal for her to be able to use the wind element magic that the organization she was affiliated with specializes in which was evident from her cheerful expression.
"Congratulations, Yuishai."
"Congratulations-nanodesu!"
‹*Purr* Meow-Meow!›
We congratulated her on her achievement, but, as if to say not to be proud of using such insignificant magic, Kuro slapped his tail on Yuishia's feet.
"Ouch! It hurts, Kuro-san! What are you doing?"
‹Nya~›
Apparently, Cat-Sith Kuro treated her as his follower based on the order they had joined the family. It was just that because Kuro looked adorable with his shiny, lustrous fur, the cute things lover Yuishia gave in to him and caressed his back and nape while masking her grinning face with a troubled expression.
I had occasionally seen Kuro secretly following Yuishia when she had to go out or slipping into her bed at night every now and then.
"You're so cute, Kuro-san. You're so intelligent for a cat. It's as if you can understand my words."
"You both have really become good buddies, huh?"
"And Teto is a good buddy of Majou-sama!"
‹Nya~›
At my soliloquy, Kuro slipped out of Yuishia's grasp and ran to our side. Then he nuzzled himself onto us, asking us to spoil him, and absorbed plenty of mana from my hand that was caressing his body.
I guess, rather than Yuishia herself, Kuro liked the mana that has been spilling out of her.
"You have grown enough to have an aptitude for magic now, so I guess it's time to teach you magic earnestly. Well, it'll be more like the practical lessons that the guild gives to magicians though."
"Really!? I have already acquired the ‹Mana Control› skill now that there's no obstacle in my mana circulation route, and, probably due to that, my mana reserve has also increased!"
We each had our own lives to take care of, so I had her go through some simple basic training under my watch in our rented house. But we had to shift to a more spacious place outside for me to teach some real magic, or else it may be dangerous to the people and surroundings.
Aside from that, the reason behind her increase in mana reserve was due to the ‹Mysterious Nut› that I quietly slipped into her meal.
Besides raising her mana reserve to a certain limit, I wasn't sure what other prerequisites were needed to gain the ‹Immortal› skill like me.
Either way, my current plan for her was to increase her mana reserve just like Selene until she acquired the ‹Slow-Aging› skill. Eventually, she would become another mana battery for the world.
"Alright, let's go for a walk on the sandy beach outside of town."
"Let's go."
"O-Okay!"
With that, we all moved to the beach outside the capital of the Lovile Kingdom.
"Majou-sama, Teto found a beautiful stone that could be a souvenir for everyone!"
"Nice. Pebbles are rolling all over the beach so we might be able to find raw gems or something like that."
We walked along the beach rolling with pebbles instead of sand and picked up things like driftwood wood that had washed ashore as the waves crashed into the beach.
Just as I was thinking that they may become objects in our backyard, someone raised their voice behind our back.
"*Huff* *Huff*...... Chise-san......Teto-san...... how do you have so much stamina?"
We walked all the way from the royal capital to the beach outside of it, but this was apparently too much for Yuishia due to her lack of exercise as a magician. Kuro was perched on her shoulder and was pressing his paw against her cheek as if to say 'Do your best'.
I gave him the 'It would be a relief if you just get off her shoulder' gaze, however, he brushed me off with a cool face as if he didn't understand me, causing me to smile bitterly.
"This is the application of mana manipulation, Yuishia. Concentrate magic on your eyes."
"Teto's using ‹Body Strengthening›!"
"Eh, ah yes!"
Although her mana reserve has increased, it was still just 1500 units.
So she couldn't use ‹Body Strengthening› for a long time but I have been teaching her how to strengthen certain parts of her body.
"However, it'll be a pity if you don't train your body too!"
Yuishia still had room to grow, so she could still increase the efficiency by which she could use ‹Body Strengthening› and even amplify the strengthening degree by building up her base endurance.
Well in my case, my body stopped growing at the age of 12 after gaining immortality so no amount of load training could affect the base stats of my body now even by a minuscule amount. Heck, I wouldn't be able to stand up so fast if I didn't use ‹Body Strengthening› constantly.
"Phew......‹Body Strengthening›."
Yuishia stopped and focused on recovering her stamina by cycling her mana through her body while digesting the meaning of our words.
I smiled wryly when I saw her breathing calm down at the expense of half of her mana reserve and took out a mana potion from my magic bag.
"Drink this since your mana reserve can't withstand being used for physical recovery just yet. I'll tell you about magic."
"A-Alright...... thank you very much for your care......"
Since things like housing, food, books on magic that I finished reading, daily necessities, and potions like this were all arranged by us, she was often too embarrassed to accept things as everything amounted to a considerable sum if converted into money.
Teto couldn't teach Yuusha magic, so she left to pick things up on the beach.
"Thank you very much."
"Alright, let's start with the review on magic. What is magic?"
Yuishia paused midway as she was drinking the mana potion when I asked her so and answered seriously.
"Magic is the phenomenon brought forth through the help of mana. Magic can be anything from the reproduction of a natural phenomenon to the individual fantasy."
"Correct. So what are the attributes of magic and its components."
"Y, Yes. Magic is divided into six attributes: fire, water, wind, earth, light, and darkness, as well as non-attribute which cannot be classified into any of them! Basic attributes combine to form compound attributes such as ice and thunder. The elements that construct magic can be divided into strengthening, alteration, releasing, manipulating, and materialization, among others!"
Yuishia recited details about magic in one breath.
It was the general theory of magic in the world and the centerpiece in constructing magic.
However---
"That's quite good, you have properly memorized them. But forget all of that for the time being."
"Ehhh... forget them?"
This was the mainstay theory when learning magic, and it was how I dramatically improved my spell invocation, mana consumption, and manipulation ability by studying them in detail compared to the past.
That being said,
"Do you know what kind of magic the first magic user world used?"
"Y-Yes? Why, so suddenly......"
'Forget the general theory about magic', Yuishia was surprised at my philosophical reply but turned to contemplate it seriously seeing that I was equally serious.
"The great figures in the scripture were granted magic by the gods, so is that not magic? Like magic to make it rain, magic to grow food, or magic to punish bad people."
"Hmm, it's a bit different."
The anecdotes written in the scriptures of the five great god's teachings or the church's magic index were imitations of the miracles performed by the goddesses.
In other words, it was the reinforcement of our fantasies to identify ourselves with the goddesses like Liliel. Also, the magic bestowed by the gods was, in a way, the result of people imitating the magic shown by Liliel and the other gods to guide them.
However, that wasn't exactly the magic I mean.
Long before the demise of the magic civilization, the Creation God created humans. It was the era of genesis when humans and gods couldn't be any closer. What I was talking about was the very beginning of magic that people found out on their own, even before they learned the concept of magic from the gods.
“The first magic used in this world was to create a glass of water. Just like this.”
I showed her using the life magic ‹Water› to collect water from the air.
"Chise-san, that's too difficult to think about. But I get it, you're saying that the first magician in history wasn't a great figure, right? You're saying this to cheer this talentless person, right?"
Yuishia brushed off my words with a laugh.
I shook my head while smiling at her silly misunderstanding.
"I didn't mean it that way, alright here's my next question. Do you know what wish brought forth the first magic?"
"Huh...... what...... wish?"
Yuishia fell into contemplation at my question and ran her gaze around as if to search for the answer. Then she closed her eyes and began to look through her memory and knowledge for the answer.
And then—
"Because they were feeling thirsty?"
"Correct. The first magic was born out of the wish to quench their thirst since they wanted to drink water. What is important in magic is the reproduction of individual fantasies that you mentioned before. I think the sentiments that one carries within themselves along with that fantasy is the most important aspect of magic."
"Sentiments......"
In fact, there wasn't much difference between the world now and the genesis world, the world that had just been created by the Creation God.
It was nothing like the earthly paradise extolled in the myths but was instead fraught with barren lands, abnormal weather, and famine. And then, the wish of the man who was about to die of hunger and thirst due to famine and was wandering around in search of drinking water was the beginning of magic.
Just one glass of water kept the man alive.
The man who understood that drinking water would be born if he wished, created drinking water in the village and shared it with his thirsty companions.
I had heard this story firsthand from Goddess Liliel and Lariel, who had witnessed this, in the dream oracle.
"You see, what's important in magic is the sentiment that goes into making it. It is not a mere reproduction of a natural phenomenon. What it’s for, who it’s for, I want you to think about that.”
"Ugh, this conversation delves into complex philosophical ideas. There's no answer to this, is there?"
"Indeed. But this is what I want to talk about first before I begin teaching you magic earnestly."
This was what I first spoke about, whether I was teaching my stepdaughter Selene, or the magicians at the guild's training ground. I want them to think deeply about what and for whom they wield their magic.
"One more thing, magic, to be honest, is just normal magic. Even this globe of water can kill a person depending on the way it is used."
"Wha...... you're joking, right?"
Yuishia turned to stare at the water globe I conjured using life magic during our conversation as her expression stiffened.
I guess she vividly felt the impact of my words that even a commonplace life magic could kill the people, along with the faint mana coercion in them.
It wasn't an exaggeration. One could use a glass of water to choke someone and kill them by suffocation. Water released at an extremely high speed could even cut rocks.
"Magic is just like a finely sharpened tool. You must understand what and how you're using it."
Magic was a convenient tool that could kill yourself and others. Its meaning can be changed to anything depending on the holder's sentiment.
"A-Alright......"
After that, I practiced magic with a slightly perplexed Yuishia while facing the sea.
I was a firm believer in putting everything into practice, so I showed her some basic magic and also made her repeat them many times.
When she was stumped at a particular magic, I would break down the magic I showed into its composite elements, and advise her which element should she focus on while reinforcing her imagination to maximize firepower in the shortest amount of time.
"This is completely different from the way the magician clans teach."
"Well, as a practitioner, I mostly learn through feeling. Even if you understand it in theory, when it comes to practice, that theory falls out. So all in all, it’s important to be aware of the phenomenon you want to create.”
Class magicians, if I were to label them, had a more research-oriented aspect.
There were various ways to reach the same phenomenon or result, and class magicians explored basically that.
Conversely, magicians who are practitioners, such as adventurers, strive to attain the highest possible firepower in the least amount of time. They both were different in nature.
"Ughh, I can't use offensive magic with my mana reserve."
"Well, your mana reserves will grow from here on out. Also, if you analyze and remember the factors that make up magic well, your subconscious will complement the image of your magic, reducing your magic consumption. And it’s better to narrow down the number of magic you really use in battle.”
"A-Actual battles......"
"There’s no need to fight right away. But if you level up by defeating monsters, your magic power will increase and your range of usable magic will expand, so just go steadily."
Even if they knew what they wanted to use magic for, they couldn't bring that wish to fruition either if they didn't have the strength to back it up. So there was no need to rush.
One step at a time, she could take her time to get used to it and become strong.
"Y-Yes, I'll do my best!"
"Earning 3 silver coins a day as an adventurer isn't a pipe dream once you have grasped a certain level of strength. Well, I’ll also teach you how to make potions and other things with your hands. Even if defeating monsters feels impossible, I’ll train you to be able to live.”
"A-Ah, right, that was my goal indeed. I- I'll do my best."
Fueled with such feelings, we repeatedly fired magic for our practice while facing the sea.
