Chapter 24: Attempting to cast a spell

As Eldrian waited for Dave to return, he grew curious as why he hadn't seen anyone use magic. If it was such an integral part of this world then why hadn't he seen it everywhere he had gone thus far.

He felt that this was very strange since it sounded like magic was involved everywhere. This also lead Eldrian to ask himself, 'Which professions would then not have tiers. Only those that do not use magic?'

But this again gave him a hard time. Since he felt that, in a way, magic can be used in every profession. If one wanted to use it.

Eldrian felt certain of this point.

Luckily Dave didn't take too long to come back, which brought Eldrian out of his spiraling thought pattern before he got lost in it.

"Alright, here is the basic spell model of a Tier 0 flame spell. Look carefully at how it is all constructed." Dave said as he handed a new page to Eldrian.

This page only had four triangles on it, which Eldrian felt looked a lot like steps, since they followed up on each other to the final piece. Unsure how he should use the page he looked at Dave and asked, "How should I use this exactly?"

"Ah yes, it isn't that difficult. For most people or rather humans, it is very simple. You have to envision this pattern here by the end." Dave said as he pointed to the second last triangle on the page. This triangle had all its corner points replaced by the node, which had been on the previous page Dave had given him.

"Normally all one had to do was create a visual image of the last step and say the word of power. This word is normally represented as in this last diagram, being written inside the complete model. This is a standard convention of spell modules."Dave said as he pointed to the word 'Floga', written inside the last triangle.

"But this doesn't always work. In such a case you would then have to follow the steps. This helps people in creating the visual image. Start by first envisioning the basic spell model here." At which Dave pointed at the simple equilateral triangle on the page.

"Then after creating this image in your mind, replace the top point with a node, and then the bottom points. After which you say Floga." Dave said as he pointed to the second, third, and last step in order as he had spoken.

"Let me show you how the spell looks when cast," Dave said, as he stepped back and prepared to cast the spell.

"I am going to give control over to the word of power. Just giving it a framework via the spell model. This means I am just going to create the visual image of the module in my mind, and say Floga." Dave said as he stretched out his hand.

Next, he concentrated for less than a second and said, "Floga", after which a small flame sprang into life right above the palm of his outstretched hand.

The flame was very small, much like the flame created by a lighter.

"As you can see, this spell has basically no combat use," Dave said as he closed his hand and killed off the flame.

Eldrian also felt it was quite a bit unimpressive. The flame was simply too small for any use other than lighting a fire. Which would be very handy in normal life, but not of much use in a fight.

"Now when I decide to follow the steps and guide my mana this is the result," Dave said as he opened his hand again

This time he took a few seconds before saying, "Floga".

The flame inside his hand this time was as big as his entire hand. Eldrian felt amazed at the difference. But this wasn't all as the flame then started moving and resizing.

"Due to me having guided the flow of mana, instead of relying on the word of power, there is a clear difference," Dave said, as he made the flame spin around his hand, even juggling it between his hands.

"Wow," Eldrian let slip as he saw the flame fly around Dave, more like a wisp than a conjured spell.

"It gave me control over the spell I had cast," Dave said as he smiled happy to see how entranced Eldrian was.

"But also due to this the difficulty in keeping it active has gone up significantly. But I can now attempt to use it in combat if I wanted to." Dave said as the flame came back to his hand. After which it started shrinking and died soon after.

"This is the reason why we say matured High Elves are monsters. They have an innate ability to control their mana completely, not letting a single mana point wander. But I could only guide my mana, not really control it."

"This means I can't really do it with complex spells which I haven't mastered completely. But I believe you will be able to always do it with spells once you have managed to control your mana."

Eldrian was quite happy with himself when he heard this. It meant he would indeed have a great advantage from his race choice. He was now just worried about how difficult it would be to control his mana. Still, this had given him more determination than ever, as he certainly didn't want his magic to be static.

He believed magic should be able to move freely. He even felt the need for a spell module was already restrictive, but he felt it was reasonable for starters.

Eldrian also felt that this might be why magic isn't as prevalent. It was clear that it took Dave much longer to control his spell, which meant the difficulty must be far more. Then spells wouldn't be of much use when you use the basic version, unless the spell was created for a specific task. Eldrian felt certain most spells would be combat-focused.

"Now why don't you try to cast the spell. As you are going to do this I will cast a spell to inspect the mana flow inside of you. This will allow me to see if the rumors and my speculation is correct or not." Eldrian nodded as Dave said this.

From the facts, Dave had raised Eldrian felt certain he will likely fail at this first attempt. But he was still very excited to try.

He also noted to himself to ask Dave later about inspection magic, as he needed a way to see the stats of people and monsters. More specifically he wanted to be able to see who are people and who are NPCs.

After calming his mind, Eldrian started creating the visual image and said the word of power.

"Floga."

After which... Nothing happened.

But Eldrian didn't want to give in so quickly so he tried for almost five minutes before surrendering on the first method. After which he started trying to go through the steps for the other method.

Almost ten minutes later, Eldrian felt defeated. Nothing had happened, no matter what he had tried. He hadn't even felt a small fluctuation. He had even looked at his stats later on, while casting the spell. But his stats had also shown no change.

"As I had thought. When you had tried just now, your mana hadn't moved at all. It was completely static, like the rumors had said." Dave said after he saw that Eldrian was done trying.

Desperate Eldrian asked, "Sir, how will I be able to learn how to control my mana? Won't it be impossible since I can't cast spells?"

"I myself am unsure. I have heard that High Elves have created a meditation technique to help their kind, but we certainly do not have a copy, as they kept it a strict secret from others. And we can't really go to the High Elves to ask them, as their nearest kingdom is a few empires away." Dave said while pacing around the floor again.

"The normal method would be for you to practice the flow mana should take through spells, until you can envision it subconsciously. Thereafter you will have to look into your own body and see if you can start a flow inside yourself as you invoke a spell."

"With this method, you should be able to succeed. The only problem will be the time it is going to take you. It can take anywhere from a few months to years. There is no way of knowing how long it will take in the end."

Desperate Eldrian asked, "Is there any other way?" He was desperate for a quicker way, as he was certain he would fall too far behind if he tried this. He would have to recreate his character then.

"I have thought of another method of trying to force your mana to flow. But I can't guarantee that it will work as I haven't had the time to work it out in more detail." Dave said after a few seconds of silence.

"I had only come up with because it had taken me over 7 years to move from my clutch, of using word of power, to control the mana myself. Thus I wanted to find a quick way for others to learn mana control from the start." As Dave said this he had a look of reluctance in his eyes.

"I am just afraid that this method will be very painful, and more so for you," Dave said after he was silent for a while again.

Eldrian felt that this was far more promising, he wasn't worried about a bit of pain. He certainly wanted to try, as the alternative would be recreating his character and losing the option to play as a High Elf forever.

"What is this method?" Eldrian asked as he hoped to succeed and keep playing as a High Elf.

"We force your spell into effect, even without your consent or control. Then you have to work backward and fight for control. Which will allow you to both feel your mana, and learn how to control it. There might even be some benefits from this."

Confused about how this is possible when Dave had said that High Elves have total control over their mana, Eldrian asked, "How can you force me into casting a spell without me having control? I thought High Elves have total control over their mana."

"That, Haru, is why I asked Old Sword to bring you here. This method I believe will be very painful for you especially. But if you can bear with it, then you should be able to learn how mana feels within a day or two. And you should be able to master your control over it in a few more days of practice." Dave said as he dodged the main question. He didn't want to go into the details of how the process would work, as he himself was still unsure.

"But it is something I had come up with only recently. So you will be the first person to try it." As Dave said this he again looked at Eldrian, looking for acceptance of the risk he was trying to convey.

"Then let's do it," Eldrian said, excited by the prospect of being able to do magic after a bit of training. He wasn't even bothered by the fact that he would be the first to try it or the warning of pain. He subconsciously thought that the game would limit the pain scale.

"Alright, I am curious if it will work too. But I will warn you again, it is going to be very painful for you."

Eldrian was curious why Dave had brought it up again thus he decided to ask, "Why will it be painful?"

"Because, for High Elves, mana is like blood is for others. So when we are going to force the mana to flow, it will be like forcing someone's blood to flow in a certain way. I have no reference on how this is going to feel, so I just want to warn you before we try." Dave said as he had a look of uncertainty.

Dave wasn't one of the crazy wizards or warlocks who loved to experiment on people. He was a modern civilized mage, thus he felt this method was crossing the line. But he also felt that in order to save years for every person who can cross the Tier 5 gap, it was worthwhile crossing the line.