Chapter 30: Teacher(2)

As Lucy’s long explanation ended, Avalli had a perfect understanding. Or rather, Avalli’s “understanding” was closer to memorizing answers for a school test… but accepting information without question was also a valuable skill.

‘Three attributes related to energy.’

Thermal magic controlled the output of energy.
Kinetic magic controlled the transfer of energy.
Spatial magic controlled the coordinates of energy.

‘…Would a science student understand this better?’

Probably not. In fact, they might not understand it at all. Avalli’s method of rote memorization was surprisingly effective for accepting new concepts.

Lucy demonstrated Thermal magic (Warmth), Kinetic magic (Wind), and then a combination of Kinetic and Spatial magic.

“Spatial magic is rarely used on its own. It’s often used to fix the influence of other magic at specific coordinates, like the Levitation spell I’m using now.”
“Fix the influence?”
“Think of it as applying the effect of reversed kinetic energy within the coordinates defined by the magic circle. You need to distinguish between the inside and outside to focus the power.”

Floating in the air with Levitation, Lucy continued her explanation. The three energy-related attributes weren’t completely independent. Even spells categorized under a specific attribute usually incorporated elements of the other two.

“And I can’t demonstrate the other two, since they’re not my specialty.”
“You can’t, Teacher Lucy?”
“Ahem… I am a ‘highly competent’ mage… but those are completely different fields. Conjuration magic is usually only considered magic when dealing with divine beasts or summoned beasts, and Thaumaturgy is closer to alchemy than magic. They’re not mainstream in the current magical world.”
“Alchemy.”

The first thing that came to Avalli’s mind was a certain manga featuring a protagonist with a metal arm.

“Is the law of equivalent exchange important?”
“Yes. …How did you know, Avalli? Thaumaturgy is a field most people, let alone non-mages, don’t even know exists.”
“Heehee, just a lucky guess.”

Avalli realized that the Sword and Magic series was a JRPG. It was natural for it to be influenced by other famous works from the same country.

“Anyway, the only fields I can teach you are the three I mentioned earlier. For the others… you’ll have to formally enter the Magic Tower or find another teacher.”

“You’re my only teacher, Lucy.”
“Th…That’s kind of you, but it’s not necessary. The pursuit of knowledge is endless. You’re still at the very beginning, Avalli; you shouldn’t limit yourself.”

Lucy’s stern expression made Avalli nod.

“Then I’ll take that back.”
“…Sigh.”

Avalli’s immediate retraction of her earlier statement made Lucy sigh. She had been basking in the afterglow of being called “my only teacher,” and Avalli had too readily agreed to find another one.

‘…Well, she’s a child right now.’

Even if the ‘green-eyed being’ wouldn’t have done that, Lucy had to be understanding of Avalli’s childish behavior. That’s what she told herself, but she couldn’t completely hide her sulking.

Who was the child, and who was the adult? An outside observer would likely have reached a different conclusion.

“That’s all for today. Do you have any questions?”

Lucy asked Avalli, trying to maintain a mature demeanor.

‘The most important quality of a mage is curiosity.’

That was a philosophy deeply ingrained in Lucy as a member of the Eastern Magic Tower.

“Yes, Teacher Lucy!”

Avalli raised her hand and called out. Seeing her first student acting as expected, Lucy’s sulking vanished, replaced by the sweet satisfaction of being called ‘Teacher’.

“Yes, Avalli. Ask me anything. I’ll answer to the best of my ability.”

A flicker of anxiety—‘What if she asks about something I don’t know?’—crossed Lucy’s mind, but—

“Is divine magic different from regular magic?”

Fortunately, Avalli’s question was something Lucy could answer.

“Divine magic is not magic. At least, that’s the official stance—”, Lucy cleared her throat and continued. “—but even within the magical community, it’s a hotly debated topic. Some argue that Divine magic, which deals with light and darkness, life and death, should be classified as a branch of magic.”
“Why the ‘official stance’?”
“If word of this got out, the Holy Kingdom would throw a fit.”
“…Really?”

Lucy nodded.

“Anyway, gods do exist in this world. And it’s true that divine magic utilizes the power of the three Goddesses.”

So, it was a different category after all. The fact that it could be activated by the power of faith rather than magic power made it a completely separate domain.

“But… strictly speaking, the distinction is blurry. It’s actually easier to understand if you consider the definition of ‘magic power’ we discussed earlier.”

Magic power.
The power to draw in and utilize the smallest units of energy scattered throughout the world.

“For mages, their bodies act as a kind of storage device. Actually, even non-mages unconsciously accumulate a minimal amount of magic power within their bodies.”
“And mages can do it consciously.”
“You remember well, Avalli. Excellent.”
“Heehee.”

Avalli beamed at the praise, but Lucy couldn’t take it at face value.

‘…A god.’

The most appropriate example for what she was about to explain was Avalli herself.

“And a ‘god’ is a collection of magic power on a scale incomprehensible to humans. The Holy Kingdom would consider this blasphemy, but… we can’t find a better way to describe it.”

Lucy continued her explanation carefully, hoping Avalli wouldn’t be offended.

“Simply put, for magic, the flow of magic power goes like this.”

Lucy scribbled something on a piece of paper with a quill.
[World (Magic Power) -> Caster -> Magic]

The caster draws magic power from the world, processes it, and then casts magic.

“And for divine magic, it’s like this.”

[God -> Priest -> Divine Magic]

A priest receives power from a god and uses that power to perform divine magic.

“…It looks a bit different to me.”
“It is different. But from our perspective, isn’t a ‘god’ essentially the same as nature?”

Lucy added a clarification after the word ‘God’.

[God (Magic Power) -> Priest -> Divine Magic]

“Ah.”

Indeed. Defined this way, the distinction between magic and divine magic seemed less significant.

“So, from a mage’s perspective, a ‘god’ isn’t much different from an ultra-high-purity magic stone. Prayers and faith are just rituals for drawing power from that magic stone.”
“…I can see why the Holy Kingdom would be upset hearing that.”

If Kyle were here, he might have drawn his sword in righteous fury.

“So, Avalli, it’s best to keep these discussions between mages. It would be troublesome if you offended a priest and sparked a heresy debate.”

Avalli nodded. Lucy, inwardly impressed by her ability to grasp complex concepts without difficulty, clapped her hands together.

“Alright, that’s all for today.”

Lucy, slightly nervous, asked Avalli,

“How was it? Was the lesson helpful?”
“It was very informative, Teacher Lucy!”

Avalli replied instantly without hesitation.

“…R…Really? That’s good to hear.”

Lucy blushed and fidgeted with her red hair. Avalli found her rather endearing. Despite her generally unkempt appearance, Lucy had pretty features.

‘She would be even prettier if she took care of herself a little.’

Avalli thought to herself, somewhat rudely, and closed the notebook where she had been taking notes. It was a rather luxurious item that Envel had found in the storage room after hearing that Avalli would be studying magic.

“…Oh, there’s one more thing I forgot to mention.”

Just as Avalli was wondering what was for dinner, Lucy spoke, as if something had just occurred to her.

“I mentioned five attributes, but strictly speaking, there’s one more.”
“Divine magic?”
“No. There’s another one besides divine magic. A magic lost in the war 700 years ago, now considered a myth.”

Lucy’s tone was light, like a teacher sharing a fun fact to fill time at the end of class.

“Time magic.”

The story of a lost magic, now considered just a fairy tale.