10 Source Magic

-Anos PoV-

"Have you had a chance to think about what we discussed yesterday?" I stood behind the podium, looking out at the class.

Looking around from where I stood in the center of the stage, I saw my students glance desperately at each other in hopes that one of them had the answers to the questions I had asked them yesterday.

"Looks like there's no choice but for me to answer the question," Feyrith sighed as he stood up. "The mana core is an excellent way to easily and accurately measure the level of the mage's power because it correlates to how much effort and time that mage has spent on condensing and refining mana from their surroundings into their core." He finished off with a toss of his head and took his seat.

"No." I hopped off the stage and walked toward the shocked Feyrith. "It certainly is an easy way to gauge the mage's power, but it's far from accurate." I turned my gaze to the princess sitting next to the embarrassed elf. "Kathyln, if you see an ordinary fighter who stands tall and his body is like that of a bear, what is your assessment of that warrior?"

"I can expect the fighter to have robust strength," she said, after pondering the question.

"Correct. All we can say is that he has robust strength." I turned my gaze to Arthur. "Now tell me, Arthur, would that be enough to deduce that he is a great warrior?"

Arthur looked thoughtful for a moment before responding, "Probably not. All we can say is that he is probably freakishly strong. But that doesn't tell us anything else about his combat ability. Yes, he's strong, but in order to be a great combatant, other factors are needed, such as agility, technique, mental fortitude, experience, et cetera."

"A perfect answer. The mana core is similar. While it can give you an idea of someone's magical power, it doesn't reveal the full extent of their capabilities. Various factors contribute to a mage's effectiveness in combat."

The pretentious student with glasses raised her hand after she finished writing down her notes. "Question!"

"Yes?"

"If the opponent's mana core isn't an accurate way of gauging his or her level, what do we do?" she asked. Her expression made it seem as if she was testing me.

I smirked at her question. "You pay attention to other aspects. Watch their movements, analyze their spells, and observe their decision-making during a battle. Always give it your all when facing an opponent, regardless of their mana core level. If sensing the mana core level could accurately gauge a person's fighting strength, would you simply pick on them for having a lower level? Will you be scared due to a higher level? No, because there are plenty of ways to overcome differences in magical power. The outcome of a battle isn't solely determined by one's mana core level."

I walked back to the center of the stage, clasping my hands behind my back. "Now, for the next piece of homework. Can any of you, aside from Arthur, sense my mana core level?" I glanced around the room, meeting the eyes of each student.

A hollow silence filled the room.

Haaah. I sighed. Being spoon-fed answers all their lives seemed to have really taken a toll on their critical-thinking abilities.

"Let me do a little demonstration then." I perceived the mana core stages of every student in the room, focusing on their magical signatures.

All felt a shiver went down their spines as my gaze swept over them. After a few moments, the faces of some of the students lit up in understanding, while others voiced their surprise.

"Some of you seem to have caught on, so can one of you enlighten the rest of the class?"

A timid girl with a huge spear next to her responded in a hushed tone, saying, "It has to do with concentrating mana into the eyes to sense the mana core. Right, Professor?"

"Correct. Augmenters are trained to use their many mana channels, and you do so unconsciously for many of your spells, diluting them." I continued. "Since conjurers naturally have fewer mana channels than mana veins, they naturally shoot their spells in a compressed form. As such, they simply need to increase the amount of mana concentrated in their eyes to sense mana cores accurately."

I surveyed the class. "Despite what I said earlier, knowing the opponent's mana core level is not without its advantages. Knowing a mage's mana core level allows you to learn things such as the amount of mana they have, and the number of spells they can cast in succession, among other things. Information is half the battle. But keep in mind, relying solely on the mana core level to judge an opponent is a quick way to lead to your death. Now, let's continue with yesterday have all of you sensed my magic power."

—————

I sat cross-legged inside a dome-like structure within the academy. Beneath the academy's library was a labyrinth that housed dozens of training rooms only accessible to upperclassmen for a few hours at a time. The structure I was currently in was one such room.

The floor underneath me was grass, and there was a large pond with a waterfall as well. Huge boulders and trees surrounded me, giving the illusion of being in the midst of a forest. The mana in the atmosphere was quite dense, perfect for practicing spells and training combat techniques.

I opened my eyes, clenching my fist with full force. The walls of the room shook violently as the shockwave of my clench reverberated throughout the area.

'I still only have 10% of my original power,' I thought to myself. 'But finding something powerful enough to awaken my Source of Destruction will be a challenge in itself.'

I stood up and walked to the edge of the pond, observing my reflection in the calm waters. The crimson glow of my magic eyes intensified as I stared at my reflection. My appearance from the past appeared on the waters.

Maybe I don't need to rush to regain my power. The time of war is over. A peaceful era like this has no need for the Demon King of Tyranny.

My old self disappeared as the door to the training room creaked open.

"Arthur," I called to him without turning around. "You want to learn source magic, correct?"

Although I never saw it directly, I could tell Arthur was surprised that I knew about his interest in source magic. I turned around and faced him, my eyes locking onto his.

"Let me just ask you one question before we begin," I continued. "Why do you want to learn source magic? You're already more powerful than most of the teachers here in the academy, and only a handful of people in this continent can even match your abilities. So why pursue something like source magic, especially in this time of peace?"

Arthur hesitated for a moment, contemplating his response. "Didn't you say it yourself? I will never know how long this peace will last. And even if the world is at peace now, there may come a time when my abilities alone won't be enough to protect those I care about. The sort of power you wield is beyond anything I've ever seen, and if learning source magic can even bring me a fraction closer to that level of strength, then I owe it to myself and to those around me to pursue it."

I smiled at his response, satisfied with his reasoning. "Very well, Arthur. You've at least shown to me your determination. I'll respond in kind."

Snapping my fingers, I created a chair, a table, and a small blackboard in front of me. I gestured for him to sit.

Arthur sat on the chair.

"Do I need to reiterate what a source is?"

Arthur shook his head. "No, I remember. A source is the concept of one's existence, beyond the mind, beyond the body, beyond the soul, and what makes them who they are."

"Correct," I nodded. "It is also the wellspring from which all magic originates. If you want to use the power of the source, you must first perceive your own source. I do not know if your existing knowledge of magic power would be a crutch or an aid in this process. But we will start from the basics nonetheless."

Words began to glow on the blackboard in front of us. "To access your source's power, you must first perceive and understand its nature. Meditation would be the most common method used to achieve this. Close your eyes and focus on your inner self. Do not perceive your mana core or the mana that flows from it. Understand yourself and your existence on a deeper level."

Arthur closed his eyes and took a deep breath, following my instructions. I watched as he delved deeper into his own consciousness, diving deep into the abyss of his being.

Minutes passed, and Arthur remained in a state of deep meditation. Moments later, he opened his eyes, failing at the first attempt. He looked at me, frustration evident in his eyes.

"That's fine, Arthur. This outcome was expected."

In my time, most people instinctively used magic from the source. But unlike the beings of my era, the people of this time were unfamiliar with the concept of sources, and it would take time for Arthur to grasp its intricacies.

"I predict it would take around three days of intense meditation and practice before you start to perceive your source. But once you do, progress will be much quicker."

Using Iris, I created a book and handed it down to Arthur. "This book contains all the things you will learn after perceiving your source. Study it during your free time."

Arthur took the book and nodded, a grateful expression on his face. "Thank you, Anos."

With that, I dismissed Arthur, allowing him to continue his studies on his own. He left the training room, leaving me alone with my thoughts.

—————

For the next several weeks, nothing noteworthy happened, and my time at the academy proceeded smoothly. The disciplinary committee continued to monitor the campus, occasionally dealing with minor incidents or disturbances, but nothing major occurred.

The class I was teaching had a harder time than I'd expected when it came to

'divergent training,' as I liked to call it. The concept of breaking past defensive barriers and perceiving another's mana core proved to be difficult for all but a few students.

So far, out of all the students except for Arthur, only Kathyln had managed to perceive my mana. Feyrith was a close second, and he was the only other student on the brink of success.

Arthur was also making progress in his training. As I had expected, he was able to perceive his source after three days of intense meditation. From there, his progress was rapid, due to already existing knowledge on magic.

"Origin magic?" Arthur asked with a curious expression. "Never heard of it."

"That's understandable," I replied, leaning back in my chair.

Arthur and I were back in the underground training room, discussing the next steps in his training.

"Origin magic was something I developed near the end of the Great War. It would be unusual if origin magic was passed down but source magic wasn't."

Origin magic was a type of magic I made to allow even low-ranking soldiers in my army to produce great amounts of destructive power. It was widely known throughout my era since even humans started using it after some time.

"Origin magic borrows power from an older and stronger existence. The older an existence is, the greater power it can provide," I explained.

Arthur nodded, processing the information. "So, how does one learn origin magic?"

"The standard approach to using origin magic is to borrow from the most ancient, most powerful existence possible. However, the older the existence is, the more ambiguous it becomes, making it hard to control the power being borrowed. One often ends up with more power than they can handle."

In short, in order to use origin magic, one must be aware of whose power they call upon. The older the being, the more information is lost to time or passed down incorrectly, creating discrepancies with the spell's original existence.

Because of this, it was standard to borrow from an old but proven origin, for example, someone from folklore or legend. Drawing from an ancestor of the same bloodline also increased the chance of success.

"But," I continued, "there's a risk associated with using origin magic. If you lose control over the borrowed power, you may die or even have your source destroyed. That's why it was standard procedure to have the origin be a relatively young and well-documented entity."

Arthur nodded, absorbing the information. "So, where do we start?"

"I would've preferred with you to start with my past self as the origin, but since I don't how long it's been since my death, I wouldn't recommend it. Instead, I'll have you start with a much younger and more controllable origin. Do you perhaps know of any folklore or powerful ancestors from your lineage that you could draw from?"

Arthur furrowed his brow in thought. "Well, my father once said the Leywin family was once a powerful family before falling into decline. Although, I personally know nothing of any specific individuals from that time."

Hmm. That is troubling. Not having any prominent ancestors would make it difficult to find a suitable origin to borrow power.

"Are you personally close with any old and powerful people, preferably those above 100 years old?" I asked, considering alternative options.

Arthur nodded his head. "Well, there is Tess' grandfather."

The Former King of Elenore, huh? I suppose that would be a given considering his relationship with Tessia.

"That would be a sufficient origin to start with."

I created the magic circle for Jirasd on the ground. Since I didn't personally know the former king, the spell formula was incomplete, but Arthur would be able to fill in the missing details himself.

"I already taught you about spell theory, so you should be able to complete the missing parts of the spell formulae," I explained.

Nodding, Arthur completed the missing parts of the spell formulae, filling in the gaps with his knowledge of magic theory. Once the magic circle was complete, I nodded in approval.

He transferred the magic circle from the ground to his hand. With a small amount of magic power, he activated the spell, and his hand began to gather jet-black lightning, slowly swelling in size and power.

He fired the bolt of lightning at a nearby boulder, watching as it dealt little damage to the rock.

"Huh? Why is it so weak?" Arthur frowned, looking at the lackluster result of his spell.

"It's not unexpected," I replied. "Remember, origin magic becomes stronger the older and more powerful the origin is. Since Tess' grandfather is still young and relatively weak compared to other potential origins, the power you can draw from him is limited."

I raised my hand and formed the magic circle of Jirasd, using me of the past as the origin. As I activated the spell, my hand crackled with black lightning. With a thought, I unleashed the bolt of energy at the same boulder Arthur had targeted.

The boulder disintegrated into such tiny particles that it would be hard to see them without using Magic Eyes.

Hmm... The power is a lot more potent than I expected. Has more time passed after my death than I initially thought? Five thousand years should have passed at the very least, but this level of power suggests otherwise.

I dismissed the thought, focusing instead on Arthur, who was watching with wide eyes as the boulder crumbled.

"That is the difference in power between using a young origin and an ancient one," I explained. "Of course, there are some origins you will never be able to tap into, as they are simply too ancient to be controlled. Even I can't properly control magic using the Goddess of Creation as the origin."

"Goddess of Creation? Gods are real?" Arthur had a confused expression on his face, clearly surprised by my statement.

Humans of this era had no knowledge of gods, demons, or spirits. It was no surprise that Arthur would react this way.

"Yes, gods do exist," I confirmed. "But that's a discussion for another time. For now, focus on refining your control over origins of lesser power. Once you master that, we can move on to more ancient and powerful origin."

Arthur nodded. "By the way, can't you use origin magic to trace the time between your death and reincarnation?"

Ho? It seems he has some interesting ideas. Unfortunately, his idea won't be able to bear fruit.

"Unfortunately, I need an origin of similar power to me to compare the spells' output. An origin of similar power to me must have existed between my death and reincarnation to accurately identify the amount of time that has passed."

Origin requires both age and power. In order to calculate the age of one origin as compared to another, the two origins must have the same power. Since the chances of someone being of equal power to me are thin, this method won't work.

"I see. That's unfortunate," Arthur said, looking slightly disappointed. "By the way, are you ready for the dungeon excursion tomorrow?" Arthur asked, changing the subject.

On Saturday, we were to have an overnight trip to the outskirts of the Beast Glades with our Team-Fighting Mechanics class. Glory had received permission from Goodsky, on the condition that we were not allowed to go past the third floor of the dungeon we planned on exploring.

The dungeon was a minor one—and a popular site for new adventurers, since the mana beasts in the upper levels were only E-class—so Glory thought it would be a great way for the class to get in some real-life team-fighting mechanics practice.

"I won't be joining you on the dungeon excursion."

Although I wanted to see the natural wildlife of the Beast Glades, there are a few things I need to take care of here at the academy that require my attention. In addition to that, since Clair, Curtis, and Arthur will be away for the weekend, I'll have to pick up after them.

"I guess being so strong would make the entire trip pretty boring for you," Arthur remarked with a chuckle. "Well, I'll make sure to tell you all about it when we get back."

With a nod, I watched as Arthur left the training room.

————

-Arthur PoV-

As I tumbled through the hole, I spread my arms and legs, desperately trying to find anything to grab to stop myself from becoming a splatter mark on the ground. The rubble falling around me kept me from stabilizing myself, but finally my right hand latched onto a tree root jutting out into the opening. Unfortunately, that was also the arm that had been dislocated during the battle, so the sudden jolt sent a sharp pain up my arm and made me wish I'd just fallen flat on the ground instead.

I was dangling helplessly by my right arm, which felt as if it were going to rip off at any moment. I couldn't see anything at all; the gap through which I'd fallen was choked with dust and dark as night. Gathering my wits, I reached up to grasp the root with my left arm to relieve some of the pain, while I desperately sent Sylvie a mental transmission.

'Sylv. Are you there? I fell quite a ways, but I'm still okay. Do you sense where I am?'

I waited for a minute but there was no response—I couldn't even sense my bond. I began worrying that something had happened to her, but with the queen snarler dead and the rest trapped inside the dungeon, it was unlikely. It was more reasonable to conclude that either I was too far down, or that this area was warded off and sealed from the outside—or more accurately, the surface.

Given the extent of my drop, I doubted I was on any of the floors immediately below, making me wonder if the explosion had unveiled a hidden passage to some room somewhere inside the dungeon.

I thought back to the explosion caused by the mutated queen snarler. It was strange—the blast was large, but I got the feeling that the explosion hadn't been meant to kill whoever was near it. If that were the case, Professor Glory and I would be in a much worse state.

Gritting my teeth, I resisted the temptation to just let go and leave my fate up to the gods of this world.

After a quick assessment of my body—which was in fairly good shape other than my right shoulder—I tried to survey my surroundings, but I couldn't see a thing. It wasn't simply dark; it was pitch black. That feeling when you shut your eyes so hard that it seemed like different lights were oozing around in your vision or the sensation that no matter how hard you squinted, your eyes couldn't adjust—that was what I was experiencing.

As I activated my mana rotation, I redirected the mana I had covering my body to only my left arm. I had to use this "break time" to gather as much mana I could. I augmented what little mana I had into my eyes in hopes of seeing something, but I was rewarded with only darkness.

'I'm not blind… am I?' I augmented my eyes again.

Just to ease my anxiety, I broke one of the most basic rules in a situation like this—I produced a small fire on the tip of my right index finger.

Looking at the warm red and orange flicker of fire on my fingertip, I breathed a sigh of relief, then extinguished the flame.

While vision was important, the last thing I wanted to do in a dark place like this was draw attention to myself. Now that any enemies here knew my location, I needed to move.

Since I couldn't see, I used wind to sense the type of space I was in. I had no idea how narrow or wide this hole was, but I assumed it wasn't too wide since I had hit quite a few objects along the way while falling.

Sending out short, soft bursts of wind around me, I calculated that this shaft, for a lack of a better word, had a diameter of about thirty feet. I couldn't sense how far down I was, though, or how much further I had to go before I had a floor to walk on.

I had to decide whether to try and climb back up or make my way down. Considering all the debris that had fallen down along with me, it was safe to assume that there would be an opening at the top, but with no response from Sylvie and with Professor Glory and the rest of the class in no condition to mount an immediate rescue attempt, I only had one option: going down.

I sighed.

No matter how rational and level-headed I was, I couldn't help feeling anxious in this situation. I couldn't see anything or even sense any life forms, which made me more edgy than when I could see the danger in front of me. When the army of snarlers had been trying to rip us apart, I'd known what I had to do and had been able to think how to deal with it. Right now, I could neither predict nor imagine what might happen in the next couple of seconds, making me all the more tense.

Augmenting both hands with earth-attribute mana, I was able to bury my hand into the wall of the abyss to create a handhold. I positioned myself flat against the side, both hands dug into the wall to keep myself from falling.

Focusing on my source, I sensed there was a bit of mana left. With a steady motion, I pulled my augmented hands out of the wall and allowed myself to freefall.

I let out pulses of wind every now and then to gauge how much farther I had to go down. But even after some three hours of falling, according to Tel, I had yet to sense a floor anywhere even close beneath me.

'How deep is this f*cking hole?' Without the luxury of venting my frustration aloud, I was left to rant inside my head, using words even the most vulgar of adults would find inappropriate.

Everyone warned adventurers about the dangers and unpredictability of dungeons, and so far those warnings were proving to be true. This supposedly low-level dungeon had caused me more trouble than the all times I had adventured with Jasmine without using magic. Then there had been the Dire Tombs…

I mean, what were the chances that the one time I go to a D-class dungeon, supposedly filled with E-class monsters, a monstrous army decides to welcome us on the first floor?

The minion snarlers hadn't even been that bad, to be honest. We had been stupid for using so much fire magic with no ventilation, but I'd handled most of them without even using mana.

That mutated queen had been the problem. How the hell had it gotten so strong? Was it because it ate the other queen? Was it even possible to just get instant power-ups like that?

I continued debriefing myself about the day's events as I continued to fall, trying to distract myself from the uncertainty of my current situation.

When I grabbed onto the wall to the side to slow my descent, my hand couldn't penetrate the surface.

What the…

I clawed desperately at the wall, but even with the augmentation in my hand, I wasn't able to make so much as a scratch.

The surface of the wall was different now; it was smooth—too smooth to be natural.

I still couldn't sense the floor anywhere close to me, so I had time—but if I fell any faster, even if I could grab onto a support, I wasn't sure if my arms would be able to take the stress of the abrupt stop.

I continued fumbling my arms against the wall, searching for anything that might slow down or stop my fall. Suddenly I was finally able to sense the ground.

Damn it… This isn't good.

I had about two hundred yards before my body became a puddle on the ground. That left me with about… six seconds?

Damn it all.

One hundred feet…

Seventy feet…

Using all my current knowledge on source magic and focusing all the remaining mana I had in my source, I prepared to cast a spell as a last resort. I didn't have much time to think, but I remembered a spell I had learned from Anos.

Fifty feet…

I see a faint light!

Thirty feet…

Ten feet…

"Fless!"

The magic of flight abruptly manifested around me, slowing my fall just enough that I landed on the ground with a thud rather than a splatter. My eyes bulged and the only sound I could make was a painful cough as I met the ground.

I rolled forward as soon as I could, trying to spread out the pressure as much as possible, but it wasn't enough. I felt like a hammer being smashed into an anvil.

Head spinning and vision blurred, I struggled to stay conscious.

My vision!

I lifted my head up from the ground; faint lights illuminated the area. Though my vision was blurred, I could tell I was in a passageway of some sort, with small lights along the sides. From further down the hall came a brighter source of light.

"Who's there?" a female voice asked, echoing down the hallway.

—————

POLL!!!

Should Alea die or not:

Yes

No