Chapter 29. Magic tutor, and the orb in the sky

A day passed since I visited the Magicians' Guild and began training Eris in my gym.

The results of the healing herbs were not very clear yet.

Apart from doing my usual magic, strength and swords training, these days I spent most of my free time studying the book on the 20 Intermediate rank Detoxification spells that came from the Borea's family's library.

Learning the Incantations was easy for me, but studying Detoxification magic past the Elementary rank was much more than that.

Even at the Elementary rank Detoxification magic is able to cure a wide range of common sicknesses like the flu and purge the body of most poisons including alcohol.

But when it comes to rare diseases or the venom used by high-ranked monsters, you need to know more advanced spells which target specific illnesses and require using lots of mana.

Each disease requires a specific Detoxification spell to be used.

Apart from showing the Incantations, the book spoke in length about how to identify the related diseases and what their symptoms are, so I had to become familiar with these as well to be able to use the right spell in the right circumstances.

The incantations for Intermediate rank Detoxification magic were painfully long. The chants were several times longer than those of Elementary or Intermediate rank spells from the four attack schools.

It seemed that while the Incantations for attack magic were shortened at one point, ones for Intermediate rank Detoxification magic were not. I remembered it from the novel.

If a regular magician had to memorize all of these chants, it would be a huge pain.

Fortunately, after using any spell once with an Incantation, I could then repeat it silently. It was the same with the chants for Detoxification magic.

It was very convenient.

Despite that, it was still difficult for me to keep track in my mind of which Detoxification spell was which when I have never even used them in practice to cure someone.

For that, I began creating a small and convenient Detoxification Magic Spellbook that included the last sentence of each Incantation to help me identify the specific Detoxification spells quickly, as well as include the basic symptoms of the related illnesses.

For my wants and needs, that was good enough for now. It isn't like I planned for my main occupation to be a healer.

Bang, bang, bang!

Just as I was engrossed in studying the diseases in the book that evening, someone banged on the door to my room while shouting.

"Se-Ra-Phim! Open the door! It's me!"

I could hear clearly that this someone was of course Eris.

As she continued knocking, I approached the door and opened it.

Eris bursted into the room and plopped her butt on my bed. "Seraphim, how do you cast magic without chanting? Tell me!"

I slowly closed the door. I then recalled and said, "Ah, right... Today you started studying magic with a home tutor, yes?"

"Yes! But that old woman can't even cast magic without saying a line of words! I'll fire her!"

Oh, okay.

I formed a wry smile.

If not being able to cast silent magic was the reason she wanted to fire her magic tutor, then she'd have to fire almost every magician in this world.

I let out a sigh inwardly and patiently explained, "Casting magic with an incantation is the norm. Almost no one can cast magic silently, you know?"

"That's what she said too! But Seraphim can do it!"

"Yes… But I'm a rare talent."

"So I won't be able to do it?" Eris looked at me with a pitiable expression.

"Maybe you could."

Perhaps if she started at 7 years old it wasn't impossible?

According to the novel, a person's mana pool stops its growth at around 10 years of age. At least, that seemed to be noted by Rudeus.

If I recall correctly, Rudeus had also only started teaching Eris silent casting after teaching her magic already for around a year. At that point she was already 10 years old.

But what if we started early?

I feel there was a good chance she might be able to pull it off.

"Really?!"

"Yes. As long as you can learn the fundamentals, I can try teaching you silent magic using my method."

"So there's a special method?" Her eyes sparkled.

"Yes."

"YES!!!" Eris got up and started jumping in excitement as if it was already settled she'd succeed. After she calmed down, she asked me, "So I still need to learn the basics?"

"Yes. Even I needed to learn the Incantations first."

"It's because the basics are important, right? That's what Ghislaine says too…"

"Well… At least, you need to learn the Incantations for Elementary magic. After that I can teach you how to cast them silently."

"Got it!... But it's really a pain to learn these Incantations," Eris grumbled again.

I could see the annoyance on her face.

I thought of something and said, "Hmmm… Eris, do you maybe have a bad memory?"

"I don't!"

She immediately denied it.

But although she denied it, I knew that she had a very poor memory in the novel.

It was never mentioned early on in regards to her magic studies, but Eris did have an extremely limited and selective bad memory…

I think… by the end of the novel, she forgot almost all of the magic Rudeus had taught her. Out of all the spells she learned, probably from all schools, she only remembered how to cast [Fireball].

As for Ghislaine, perhaps she had forgotten even that as well.

And that's why I already thought that memorizing Incantations might be difficult for Eris. Even if she eventually learns one, she might forget it soon after.

I knew it from experience, the difficulty of recalling things. Not from this life, but from my previous one.

I asked her, "Have you learned any Incantations yet?"

"...Not yet!"

"I see… So what I wanted to previously ask is - do you have difficulty remembering the long incantations in full? If yes, I know a trick that will make you never forget them after you learn them."

"Really?! There is a trick like that?!"

"Yes. But if you can remember them normally, then you don't need it."

"...What is that trick?"

Yeah. I could see she did have trouble remembering incantations.

Since I think she will need to repeatedly practice each spell many times for even a chance of grasping silent magic, I already thought of a method that might help her memorize an Incantation at hand.

It would especially be helpful in making her begin practicing magic early since she is unable to read yet.

"It's the Link method," I said.

"Link method?"

"Yes. It's a method that connects something that you want to remember to an image or a story. I'll show you how it works."

I reached for the magic guidebook, opened it and then flipped through its pages.

In the meantime Eris straightened her body and sat straight in anticipation.

'Here.'

After finding the incantation for [Fireball], I placed the guidebook on my lap and glanced at Eris.

"Okay. Let's see. The incantation for Fireball is like this: 'Let the great protection of fire be on the place thou seekest. I call the bold heat of a torch here and now. Fireball'."

"To not forget it, you will need to create an image in your mind that you will connect with the Incantation for Fireball. To make it simpler, you'll have to create a story."

"Give me a moment."

I thought for a while while writing down various ideas.

After a few minutes, I said, "Okay, I got it! Close your eyes."

"Yes."

I slowly said, "...Now imagine yourself adventuring in a forest by yourself. It's night and you are in a forest haunted by ghosts."

"Oh, and what then?" Eris sounded curious.

I knew it would interest her.

"You are on a mission to hunt down the ghosts in the dark forest. You have a mission letter in your hand and a torch with a round head in another, round like the head of the bald man who kidnapped us before. You are seeking ghosts." After a brief pause, I continued, "Now focus. You wanted a great fire to protect you, help you see in the dark and help you seek the ghosts. Next, you called the flames from the torch with a round bald head into a fireball, and dropped the torch here and now. | You let the great protection of fire be on the place thou seekest. You called the bold heat of a torch here and now."

I said again, "Remember. You're in a dark forest haunted by ghosts, on a mission..."

"Yes."

I repeated the entire thing slowly to help her burn the story into her mind, adding in some small details.

Maybe it wasn't perfect, but I felt this kind of story was quite good and somewhat personalized.

After Eris repeats it several times, the images should burn into her memory and she should associate the Fireball incantation with that story. It would help her recall the chant and the trigger words by thinking back about the ghost story.

I hardly used this method myself, but I once learned it either in school or online, I'm not even sure anymore.

I then said, "Listen. The incantation for Fireball is: 'Let the great protection of fire be on the place thou seekest. I call the bold heat of a torch here and now. Fireball'."

"Yes."

"I'll say it again and you try to repeat it while thinking of the story. First, recall the letter…"

"Yes."

After a moment's pause, I slowly and clearly recited the chant again: "Let the great protection of fire be on the place thou seekest. I call the bold heat of a torch here and now. Fireball'. Think back to the story and repeat it."

Speaking slowly, Eris repeated with closed eyes: "...Let the great protection of fire be on the place thou seekest… I call the bold heat of a torch here and now. Fireball."

I couldn't help but chuckle.

It went better than I thought!

"Ehhh? I said it all on the first try?!" She shot her eyes wide open and looked at me as if for confirmation.

"Yes. Good job! Try to do it again."

"Y-yeah! Uh, how was it?..."

I recited the chant again, and Eris repeated it.

This time she repeated it more clearly without pausing in the middle.

"Eh, what was that feeling?" Eris opened her eyes and looked at her hand in shock. "Did I just cast magic?!"

What magic?

Nothing happened.

"No, I don't think you did. Try to focus more… Maybe focus on the feeling of gathering mana in your fingertips, concentrate."

I continued guiding Eris and on the next try she succeeded in creating a spark of a flame over her fingertips, but by the time she opened her eyes the flame had already disappeared.

I then made her recite the incantation again, but that time without closing her eyes.

Eventually, she succeeded! She succeeded in creating a spark of a fireball.

But although it was only a spark, Eris looked accomplished as if she just cast a God-rank spell.

"HAHAHA! I cast my first magic! Seraphim is a genius!!! You should be my magic tutor!"

…

When Eris asked me to be her magic teacher, I dodged the subject for the time being and only said that I'll think about it.

"Mmmmmm!..." With a grumbling face, she left and rushed off somewhere.

She could at least close the door…

I closed the door and returned to my studies.

A while later, someone strongly pulled at my door, as if to pull them off its hinges. When this didn't work because the door was locked, he then began to bang on it as if to break it down.

Bam, bam, bam!

"Seraphim! Open!"

A loud voice of a man sounded out.

I had any doubt who that was.

"I'm here." I rushed up to open the door.

Then I did a hurried noble's greeting before the person that came over. "Sauros-sama."

"You're locking yourself up. Are you doing something bad?" Sauros asked.

"No… I just like privacy."

"Hm." Sauros walked in and then looked at some of the items I bought. "Are these the books you bought?"

"These are only borrowed from the library. I haven't bought anything yet."

"Hm," Sauros replied non-comitally and then sat down at the bed whilst I closed the door. He then crossed his arms, lifted his chin and looked at me. "I have a request! I want you to teach Eris magic."

So she went to ask Sauros in the end.

She was still such a kid, and was so predictable.

"Me?" I faked surprise as I sat down on the wooden chair and looked at Sauros.

"Yes. She came to me and told me that she cast her first magic thanks to you. She said you're a much better teacher than the tutors she had."

"I see…" I pretended to contemplate.

However, I have already thought about this.

Originally I didn't want to be Eris's tutor to not waste my time and instead outsource it.

Even for magic - once she learned the Incantations from a hired tutor first, that's when I could try teaching her silent magic to supplement her swordsmanship.

However, if it was only magic, I realized that it would be perfectly fine.

I would need to teach her using my methods anyway, and if I tought her from this moment onwards, it would only be more optimal since we could get started earlier.

Besides, teaching magic doesn't consume much time. Learning magic is a simple process that relies on mostly talent and practice.

A person has a limited amount of mana as well, so the lessons wouldn't last long either - I knew it from Sylphy's example.

In other words, I have already decided to be the one to personally teach Eris magic. Before she learns how to read, I would certainly be the best magic tutor for her.

It would also be a good way to see what it's really like to attempt teaching someone silent magic from scratch when they're not a magical genius with a Laplace Factor like Sylphy.

I wanted Eris to become stronger. She was a heroine, and my potential wife in the future. I could even do it for her for free.

But of course, I wouldn't mind a reward.

The Boreas family is rich, after all. They could spare some change for the peasant me.

As I was faking being in thought, Sauros eventually spoke up, "You don't need to be here all the time. You can stay here, train with Ghislaine and Eris, teach Eris magic, and go back to your family from time to time."

"Yes…"

I dragged the conversation.

Won't he mention a reward at some point? I'm a young genius Saint rank magician with talent for Silent Magic, also being distant family rather than just a random guy... Surely it warrants a reward better than just normal salary?

"...Then what's the problem?! Will you teach her or not?!"

As Sauros raised his voice and glared at me, I saw that his patience was running thin.

Okay, perhaps I was being a bit too selfish and greedy.

I'll agree first.

I'm sure the Boreas family won't be ungrateful.

Besides, I need a reason to stay in the manor, so it isn't like I could have declined it either way, or even wanted to decline in the first place.

I quickly replied, "There's no problem. I'll teach Eris!"

"...Good!"

"Yes. I'll do my best teaching Eris magic."

"Good! You do that! You can settle the rest with Philip!"

"Yes... I just have one question. It's about the red orb in the sky."

Since there was an opportunity, I finally asked this question.

I went out to watch the sky a few times these last few days, but I never managed to notice the orb in the sky.

Sauros should know more about it.

But he bluntly asked me: "What's that?"

What's that?

Is he bluffing?

It didn't seem like it.

To probe anyway, I said, "...One night I went out and saw an orb in the sky."

"Maybe you imagined something?"

"...I don't know, maybe?"

"Hm! It could have been something coming from the flying fortress. Who knows. Well, don't wander about at night!"

After saying so, Sauros left, without closing the door.

And I was left alone in my room with a still expression, lost in thought.

Sauros didn't seem to be lying. He simply knew nothing about the red orb!

Yet, to my knowledge it should be about time for it to appear.

I even kept making more changes in the world and influencing the fate of people in Roa, yet the orb wasn't visible yet.

I already suspected it might be the case, but could it be that the orb simply wasn't there?

From what I understood from the novel, the more changes Rudeus caused after reincarnating, the larger the hole in between worlds over Roa became. When Rudeus was in the world for 5 years, something like 'the resistance of the world' weakened enough that the rift in space-time caused by the Miko from the future increased and the red orb of mana became visible to the naked eye. That's how it was explained.

Then, when novel's Eris offered to sleep with Rudeus as he happened to be 10 years old, enough changes in fate accumulated and the hole became large enough for the summoning to finalize and physically summon Nanahoshi to the world.

In other words, any of my influence that I caused on top of what Rudeus did, if significant enough, would have hastened the timing of the Mana Disaster, if I was in a somewhat similar world to the novel's at least.

I think fanfics probably make the Mana Disaster's timing fixed and always happen at the time of Rudeus's 10th birthday to preserve canon events or simply don't bother thinking about it, but something like this would have no reason to happen in reality if an OC similar to me made significant changes.

Just me coming to Roa and meeting Eris earlier would have had the effect of hastening the Mana Disaster.

For example: if Eris decided that she was in love with me earlier, the Displacement Incident might happen right at that moment, since her fate would have been altered forever.

Practically for my situation, my actions I should have only hastened the appearance of the red orb, yet it wasn't even visible.

The most likely explanation I had was that the orb simply wasn't here.

And perhaps it's because it had no reason to be here.

I suspected this might also happen.

The more I thought about the topic, the more I believed that the presence of the orb over Roa was a 50/50. And that's why I wanted to come to Roa to confirm it.

After all, firstly, it's a different world from the novel's with Seraphim Greyrat instead of Rudeus Greyrat. It is a different universe and any number of things could be different here.

Second reason, connected to it, is that the special set of circumstances that led to the Mana Disaster in the novel was a result of a single out of hundreds of 'loops'. I could live in any of the other countless loops as well if I came here in another way; it didn't have to be exactly that one.

Lastly and most importantly, Rudeus+Nanahoshi and I are from two different worlds and even time periods. And the same Summoning magic logically can't be targeted at two completely different places.

Simply put, I couldn't have been summoned in the same way as Rudeus's soul was while Nanahoshi still gets summoned through the Mana Disaster because I'm from a different Earth and time than these two. For me these two are even just fantasy characters!

If there was a Mana Disaster related to Nanahoshi in this world, then I would have had to come here in another mysterious way.

Of course, although it seems like a nonsensical concept, being thrown into a novel-like world by a Random Omnipotent Being (ROB) or due to another divine intervention was still not impossible. After all, here I am.

But in contrast it meant that if I came here as a result of the same Miko from the future related to Nanahoshi's and Rudeus's summoning in the novel, which is more grounded in reality, then there would be no reason for a Mana Disaster involving Nanahoshi.

The underlying story behind my reincarnation would have to be different.

The problem here was that I simply did not remember my death.

How did I die? Why did I reincarnate? And why don't I remember my death?

I had too few clues.

There was just one more thing I could do: this night I will ask Ghislaine to scan the entire sky with her Demon Eye to confirm whether the mana orb is really there or not.

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(AN: For people who are not aware of things like the Miko and the other novel events, there will be a chapter explaining it soon, as well as explaining MC's reincarnation to have everything make perfect sense. Monday is a double release.)