episode_0045

One side of the village’s main barrier was wide open, with elves and humans taking turns guarding it.

As a result, they often roamed through this area to scout the forest or rescue humans.

This meant that there were no people on the opposite side.

I headed towards that direction.

Swoosh.

Although blocked by the main barrier, that was no obstacle for me. I easily opened a new temporary exit and moved outside the village.

And when I turned around.

Thud, thud.

Thump.

Shuffle~

Shayla.

Floren.

Lania.

Three of them followed behind me.

Except for one, they had gathered to teach me magic.

“Magic begins with a wish.”

First, I attended Floren’s magic lesson.

Magic is about.

Communicating with mana.

Guiding mana to convey intentions.

Creating a path for mana to follow and enticing it to do so.

“In other words, to guide mana as intended, you need to know the language of mana and be able to convey it to mana.”

The language of mana.

Characters, shapes, sounds, arrangement.

There are countless ways to manipulate mana, and each mage handles it differently.

One prominent method is through magic circles.

“Watch closely.”

Floren reached out with one hand.

Mana gathered on his hand.

Mana formed a magic circle with a specific arrangement, and characters shaped by mana were added to the arrangement.

Then.

Swoosh

Whoosh!!

A condensed fireball appeared in Floren’s hand.

“Ta-da~ Creating a guide using the language of mana to manifest power!”

“Do I have to learn the language of mana separately?”

“Yes. However, there are so many characters that each school uses different ones. Magic varies greatly depending on which characters are used. Here, I’ll write down a few examples for you.”

Floren wrote characters on the ground.

It looked like a combination of worms.

I roughly understood.

“It means fire.”

“Yes! That’s corre… huh?!”

“Why are you surprised?”

“Are you learning magic?”

“Not exactly.”

“But how do you know?”

“It just comes to me.”

Since becoming a plant, I can understand and comprehend all languages as if I originally knew them.

I don’t know the principles.

But I can know everything.

“Can you use magic right away?”

“You still have to memorize it. You can read it, but you don’t know what characters and shapes it has. Honestly, I’m not really into it.”

“You’re not into it? Even with such an incredible talent!?”

“Well… Is there a better way?”

It’s annoying and uncomfortable.

For some reason, I’m not into Floren’s magic.

Since there’s no right answer to the language of mana, each mage or school uses it differently, so learning magic independently.

It’s definitely going to be a headache and take a long time.

“I’ll show you. Thanks to the grace of the gods, I can communicate directly with mana!”

Fortunately, Lania offered a solution.

He slightly raised the Volcanic Staff he had brought and moved the mana.

“Like this.”

Shalak~

Whirlik!!

A soft yet sharp wind blew.

It was the wind magic Lania had cast.

Although the magic circle wasn’t visible, it was much faster and more straightforward.

“Wow!!!! This can’t be real!! How can magic be so simple…?”

“Hehe! There’s nothing impossible for the gods. Since all mana moves for the gods, what need is there to communicate with mana?”

Shooosh~

Lania spread his arms triumphantly.

At the same time, a cool breeze enveloped us in a whirlwind.

“Amazing. How did you do that?”

“Just feel it. If you empathize with what you want, mana will follow me. It’s like the grace bestowed by the gods!”

“I still don’t understand. Let’s try again.”

I leaned into Lania, feeling his energy.

“I don’t know, just try it yourself and you’ll see.”

“Ah… Yes!”

Focusing all senses on the agitated Renia, I carefully observed her actions.

She used magic along with additional explanations.

“If you express your will, the effect becomes stronger. For example… Strike them down!!!”

Shrrrrr!!

A powerful wind arose.

It was truly a communion with mana.

Just like how I could sense the feelings of nearby plants or see through their eyes, mana was not that different.

Returning to my physical form, I concentrated.

Although I had never tried it before, just like communicating with plants to make them move, I could do the same with mana.

Expressing my will clearly enhances the magical effect.

Like this.

“Wind.”

Whooooosh!!

I desired the wind.

And a refreshing breeze blew.

“Fire.”

Crackle.

As I wished for fire, a small flame-

Fizzle…

Went out.

The flickering flame extinguished in an instant.

“Hmm?”

“Oh! Our magic is strong in terms of attributes. It’s difficult to handle things like fire.”

As I expressed doubt, Renia added.

In other words, it was simple and flexible, limited to friendly attributes.

“…It’s not bad.”

“But it’s amazing!! I’ve never heard of using magic like that before!!”

Although Floren exclaimed in excitement, it was disappointing. I thought I had become all-powerful for a moment, but it was just a misconception.

“Still, it’s a good gain. With practice, you’ll be able to handle the wind well.”

“Yes! It’s nothing for a great deity like you!!”

“And… it’s not just mana.”

Interestingly, my magic consumed nutrients as well. I couldn’t understand the principle, but it felt like nutrients themselves became the language of mana.

In other words, consuming both mana and nutrients doesn’t make it energy-efficient.

There are clear pros and cons.

You can use magic as you imagine without set rules, but it’s difficult to use if it’s not a friendly attribute, and the consumption of mana and nutrients increases drastically when you wish for something vague and large.

“It’s convenient, but it will require more practice to use it properly.”

There are limitations, but it’s a tremendous power.

With enough power, you can do anything.

It might be difficult with a physical form, but if I could draw out all the power of my main body…

At least, could I cause a massive destruction in the surrounding area?

“Ugh… It feels like everything I’ve learned is being denied. Well, since common sense has been denied since creating the elves, it’s not that surprising anymore.”

Floren muttered in a helpless tone.

Even though he said that, the feeling of being lost was evident.

From a normal wizard’s perspective, this magic method seemed somewhat shocking.

Perhaps that’s why.

Giggle.

I noticed Shaela nearby, who was watching with interest, raising her eyebrows.

It was so distracting that I couldn’t help but ask.

“Why are you smiling?”

“It’s impressive to handle such power related to plants. It’s quite similar to me.”

“Can you use magic too?”

“Of course.”

“…I can use magic just with my will. If I focus my mind with my main body, I could even cause landslides. Can you do that too?”

I unintentionally challenged her pride.

For some reason, I didn’t want to lose to Shaela.

However.

“Isn’t it simple?”

Shaela’s response made me uneasy.

I thought highly of myself as I discovered my power.

But Shaela’s answer felt like…

“Can you really do it?….”

Giggle.

“It’s risky, so I’ll show you something fun instead. The true power of magic, not just an imitation. The power of a real god.”

Swish.

Shaela raised her hand.

And with an indescribable dignity, she began to chant.

“The world… shall flow abundantly.”

Hiss.

The golden light spreads.

“Look at this part. Mandala.”

Paaaah~

A warm light.

Just by looking at it, I felt like my whole body was melting. It felt like I was being sucked in and disappearing, but I accepted it without fear.

In that moment, the world changed.

No, it flipped.

Everything was reversed as if standing upside down under the ground. At the same time, Shaela stretched out to become a curtain that enveloped the world.

“Ah….”

“What in the world….”

An unknown chill ran through me.

Floren and Renia also trembled as if they felt a shiver.

A world turned upside down.

A world in an incomprehensible realm.

At the same time, thousands and thousands of hands reached out towards me from all directions…

“Discovering a gap.”

Tuck.

Thud~

It was cut off.

I returned to the original world.

Realizing it, Shaela was patting my head as if finding me cute.

“What is this….”

“A magic of affection.”

“……?”

Swoosh.

I grabbed the hand that now felt natural and spoke, clearing it away.

“Is that… really magic?”

“The goddess’s magic is a special law~”

“Yeah. It was kind of creepy.”

“What!?”

Honestly, it was bewildering.

It didn’t seem like magic, but it truly was magic.

It felt like magic that had been honed and refined into one ability.

I realized thanks to that.

The magic Floren used was just an imitation. True magic is so free and connected to its essence. Perhaps magic is not an imitation of the power of the gods.

Even the deliberate revelation of enlightenment just now…

Giggle.

“Can you start feeling my greatness now? You can admire me as much as you want~”

“…As long as it’s not your mouth.”

“No matter how you say it, the truth that I am great doesn’t change. Hmph.”

“How do you use that kind of magic? Mandala?”

“I imitated another god’s magic with this.”

“Hmm?”

“The real one is even more amazing. So wake up. You’re too inexperienced to imitate something like this. Practice more, like the slight breeze you conjured earlier.”

“……”

Somehow, I felt a sense of provocation in the tone of ‘You can’t do it anyway.’

Sigh~

I focused.

There was nothing I couldn’t do.

I followed what Shaela did.

With specific imagination and will to infuse my unique world into the world.

“The world is me. Mandala.”

Ahhhh!!!

All the mana and energy of the doppelganger drained away.

At the same time, the world changed.

It wasn’t really changing the world, but I realized that I briefly overlaid my world onto it.

There was no fixed framework for my magic. If I understood the principles even slightly, then imitating it was just a matter of…

Shooosh~

Ah, it appears.

A world imbued with my truth.

Covering myself with my own world, I reconfigured myself anew.

I really did it.

This is possible.

Is this truly what they mean by the realm of magic?

Look.

The doppelganger disperses like mist.

It projects my essence onto the cloud-like land.

That is….

Crisp, crackle~

Pop!!

A small seedling.

…Huh?

A plant seedling sprouting in the dreamy cloud world covering about a radius of 30cm.

A very small seedling in a small world.

What the….

“Hahaha!! Isn’t it cute?!”

Excited Shaela rushed over.

Pop.

Thud~

She patted the doppelganger turned seedling.

Due to the blindfold, her eyes were not visible, and her face had turned grim.

Why, though?

I definitely succeeded.

I succeeded in imitation.

The special effect-like cloud and my essence-infused world overturned the surroundings.

Just, it was only within a radius of 30cm.

I followed it properly, but…

However, I clearly understand.

My imagination and willpower were sorely lacking to express my world, and as a result, my mana and energy were inefficiently consumed.

I just didn’t understand.

It’s frustrating, but I can’t help it.

I couldn’t even mimic 1% of it.

That was the result.

“Cuteee!!”

“Now, little god!! Hyaak….”

A cloud-like ground within a radius of 30cm.

A small, delicate sprout sprouting there.

And three women squatting around the sprout, reaching out their hands.

Ah…

It’s just confusing.

Magic that overlays my world with my will.

Phenomenal magic that makes me stand out more.

It’s definitely a great power, but… I feel something strange.

Fortunately, returning was easy.

Since my world disappeared the moment my energy was depleted and my will scattered.

Thanks to that, I realized.

Magic must be developed on its own.

I should focus on training for a while.

…Weak, but to mimic it once you see it.

Moochan.

Do you know?

Your magic is connected to the essence of the world.

It’s the power of the gods that manifests their unique attributes.

It’s hard for humans to realize that.

But you understood it from the beginning.

Just like me.

I’m genuinely curious.

Were you really human?

What kind of being will you become in the future.