The Dreamer's Fall

Chapter 5 - Lesson on Magic

Arthur didn't respond, not that Levin would have noticed if he did. The man seemed like the type whose nose was so far up into the clouds that he wouldn't be able to see Arthur even if he wanted to.

"Let's begin with testing your knowledge of magic. Now tell me what you know of aether." Levin commanded after a moment of silence.

"Aether is an invisible primordial energy that permeates the world without interacting with it. Through cultivation, mages draw aether into their mind and convert it into a form of energy that can interact with the world called mana." He replied robotically, spewing the textbook definition of aether.

Levin nodded. "Good, Good, and how do mages use mana?"

"Mana inherently lacks form and can only be used to control objects at a distance through telekinesis. To give mana form, mages use spells that allow them to create a unique phenomenon that we call magic."

"It appears that you've read 'Sir Theo's Introduction to Mana'. That's commendable for your age, but I'll take over from here since that book only covers the basics." Levin applauded with a genuine smile that left Arthur slightly taken aback.

'Maybe I judged him wrong?' Arthur thought.

Despite applauding Arthur, Levin still managed to underestimate Arthur's knowledge of magic. Not that Arthur could blame him.

However, Arthur wasn't quick to correct him. He had already displayed enough competence for a thirteen-year-old to be taken seriously as a student of magic.

"Spells are constructed using Aetherin, sometimes referred to as 'The Language of Creation'. A spell's creation begins with a circle as its base, while the geometrical shapes and Aetherin written inside the circle act as the spell's function.

"Once the spell is completed, a mage can imprint it to their mana core... Do you know why a mage would do this?" Levin asked curiously after a long pause.

"No?" Arthur replied hastily, not expecting Levin to ask him a question so suddenly.

Of course, he knew the answer. But if he didn't want to openly display his status as a third circle mage, keeping his mouth shut and suffering the lecture would be better.

"As you said before, a spell gives mana form. But to invoke one, a mage must first draw the magic circle using their mana. That includes all the Aetherin written inside.

"Depending on the complexity of the spell and the aptitude of the mage, the process of drawing it out can take quite some time. However, once a spell is imprinted onto a mage's mana core, it acts almost like a stencil, allowing the mage to force mana through it and instantly produce the spell's effect."

Arthur had to hand it to Levin. He was a good tutor and genuinely seemed to enjoy talking about magic. It would've been nice to honestly speak with Levin about magic, but he had to stick to his act and play the fool, at least until he got to know him more.

"Have you already begun cultivating mana?" Levin asked.

"Yes, I finally created my mana core two months ago!" Arthur exclaimed with youthful boisterousness.

Of course, that, too, was a lie. Arthur had been weighing his options since he learned about the tutor last week. If he had claimed not to have a mana core now, Levin would have tried to help him create one and discovered that Arthur was already a third circle mage.

So, it was necessary to pretend that he had just begun his journey in cultivation so that Levin wouldn't be too curious.

"Oh? Very good. Come here and give me your hand so I can check how much progress you've made," Levin said with a chuckle, causing Arthur's heart to drop.