Cores and Talents
--NOTE: Anything in square brackets [ ] is written inside a book.
Desser grabbed a sharp letter opener on the nightstand next to him. He prinked his finger enough to cause a bit of bleeding as he winced in pain. He touched the cover of the book that was wooden. It had a golden engraving that looked like a griffin and was primarily black. The book reminded him of Magi Cornelius's attire. He opened the book after hearing a pop from the latches unlocking itself. Runic writing began to shine and projected itself onto the ceiling.
'Looks like this Arch-Magi loved theatrics,' Desser thought.
The chapter after the title page, "Magi Ladar Mogar's Succession Arts," read as follows:
[ Intro: ]
[ If you are reading this, then you are one of my successors. My only wish is to lead my people to more victories and prosperity. I don't know what will happen after my experiment, but I want to make sure my son and his descendants rule this nation with power, dignity, and compassion. Our people have suffered at the hands of the Fre-Jan for far too long. ]
[ Let's begin with the first chapter and the first thing you should understand about the cultivation and power I will bestow on you. ]
[ Chapter 1: Magic Cores and Ranks ]
[ This world is governed mainly by Magi. Magi are magic wielders of at least the 5th circle. Before looking at Circles, we must analyze one's Magic Core. Everyone's Magic Core goes from black to silver. When the core reaches the silver rank, it'll gain a Circle and turn black again. Every time you reach silver rank, you gain another Circle. Important to note, all knights must be at the dark silver rank. To become a noble knight or higher, you need to have at least one circle. ]
[ There are many sub ranks, but the primary ranks in society are as follows:
1. King/Arch-Magi
2. Prince
3. Magi
4. Priest
5. War Knight
6. Noble Knight
7. Knight
]
[ Chapter 2: Talents ]
[ Before you can even begin your cultivation, you must receive your first Talent. Since time immemorial, everyone—including commoners—headed to the temple on their 12th birthday to receive their first Talent. This was of utmost importance. Without being blessed by one's deity, you should not start your cultivation journey. The mortality rate for those who attempt cultivation without god's blessing was about 90-percent while cultivating with their god's blessing was just 1-percent. The vast risk made almost everyone avoid going against god's blessing, but there is always that one idiot who tries despite the taboo. When researching those who've broken the taboo, it seems that anyone blessed by a deity has a more stable core in comparison. That most likely contributes to the mortality rate. ]
[ In Mogar, I've made it so that everyone must visit the temple to get their Talent. I've also prohibited anyone from divulging their Talent. I've noticed that many would go missing or murdered out of fear, jealousy, or hatred because of one's Talent. One unfortunate incident was when a child got "Mind Coercion" as a talent. With that Talent, this female child could alter someone else's mind despite breaking the laws of Magic. Magic usually does not allow you to manipulate another living being, but there are cases of Talents circumventing fundamental truths. Everyone feared this girl because they thought she could do anything to their minds. A mob descended on her and her family, killing them all in one night. However, Talent is not a magic bullet. It takes excellent quantities of Magic power to manipulate someone, even with a talent bypassing Anthul's laws. I've discovered that the girl had to be a 6th circle Magi to begin causing as much damage as the village feared. That's why I implore my descendants to be cautious about revealing their Talent. ]
[ Everyone's Talent is displayed to only the user to see on their forearm. Information like the general "how to's" and Talent name were displayed there in the divine runic language… ]
Desser stopped reading and looked at his forearm. He could see a faint light appear. He was surprised to know he could understand the inscription. It said, 'Targetted Enhancement: able to enhance the power of anything but you must concentrate on it. You cannot enhance more than one thing at a time. The maximum duration depends on how often you use the Talent. Current Duration: 1 hour per week'
Desser was surprised and excited to learn more. He could never play video games because his mother didn't buy them when he was growing up. Still, he read a lot of manga and watched anime. So, he felt like that was his daily video game or fantasy world he'd escape to in the worst of days.
He picked up the book and continued reading.
[ …I've also found out through countless interviews that it seems one's Talent depends on one's desire. If you live on a farm and need the strength to endure such hard labour, you will most likely get a strength-based amplification skill. The girl with the "Mind Coercion" Talent probably wanted people to do something she wanted/needed. Maybe not in an evil sense. I say that because I later found out that she said her father beat her and her mother every day, but no one in the community believed her. I think it's possible that she wanted people to listen to her and help her at all costs; controlling someone's mind is an effective way of doing so. ]
Desser thought about his own Talent: 'Why did he have Targetted Enhancement? Could it be that the original owner wanted to enhance his PP?'
Desser looked down at his crotch and shrugged… 'looks average, my friend. It's the motion of the ocean that counts.' Desser then started to pat his own back in solidarity with his original body's insecurity. However, Desser would find out later that the original body wanted to make himself the greatest magi and concentrated on only studying magic enhancement. His narrowmindedness would often get him into arguments with his father because he wouldn't expand his understanding. Ruling a kingdom cannot only be done by force but with a combination of important assets.