The Library: Infusing And Summoning

"Welcome back, everyone!" Yeah, welcome back! It's been a long time. "It's only been three weeks, Narrator." Well, three weeks in Webnovel time is basically three months, so yeah, it's been a while. But it feels good to be back. I'm glad The Writer hasn't forgotten about us.

"As am I. Now, last time we finished explaining all the Affinities, and today, as the chapter title suggests, we're diving into something new." He snapped his fingers, adding a bit of dramatic flair. "Infusing and Summoning."

As usual, The Librarian stood in the training field, though I didn't think we'd be using it much today. "Possibly, but, on that note, how much do you actually know about Infusing and Summoning magic, Narrator?" A pretty good amount, mostly about Summoning, though. Less so Infusion.

"Well then, why don't we share the lesson today? I'll explain Infusing, and you can handle Summoning." Sure, even if that's technically your job.

The Librarian adjusted his bow tie with a satisfied smile. "Of course. So, what do we already know about Infusing?" He crouched down, picking up a random rock from the ground. "We know that instead of enhancing themselves or casting spells like typical Casters, Infusionists turn everyday objects into items of magic. Like so..."

He held up the rock, and slowly, it began to glow, its surface crackling with fiery energy. It now looked like it had veins of magma running through it, the stone pulsing with heat. 

"I have now made this ordinary rock into, well, essentially a grenade. Or maybe a firebomb would be more accurate?" The Librarian rubbed his chin, thinking it over for a moment before shrugging. "Either way, this is what it can do now."

He casually tossed the rock towards a wooden training dummy in the distance. As it hit the ground, the rock began to glow with a hot orange hue, pulsing brighter with each second. Then, in an instant, it exploded in a burst of magical fire, engulfing the dummy in flames. The heat from the blast even caused the air around it to shimmer.

The Librarian dusted his hands. "Decent, but that's something anyone could do with a grenade or a firebomb. The true power of an Infusionist lies in their ability to create magical weaponry." He snapped his fingers, and suddenly, a massive greatsword appeared in front of him, resembling a zweihänder and emanating a frosty mist.

"This," he gestured towards the blade, "is a magic weapon I created by infusing ice magic into a high-quality greatsword. And yes, the quality of the material you're infusing your magic into is important. The rock I threw earlier could never become something like this."

He motioned to the greatsword, lifting it effortlessly with one hand. "The reason I didn't show you how I made this is because it takes quite a bit of time to create a magical item. It's not exactly something you usually do on the spot." He swung the greatsword horizontally, and the grass in front of him froze instantly, a layer of frost spreading from the blade. "This particular weapon is a copy of a legendary sword, crafted by a legendary Infusionist-slash-blacksmith. Completely unmatched to this very day. No one, including myself, has come close to his skill."

The Librarian smiled, admiring the sword. "Despite what it may seem, I'm not all-powerful. I would struggle to win against someone like, say, Winter, for example."

Who wouldn't? Unless I help, of course. 

"Hmph. That would be cheating, wouldn't it?" He glanced over, but then continued. "Anyway, while I may not be the best Infusionist but this copy I made can still freeze entire cities with a single swing. That's the level of power a high-level Infusionist possesses. But it still pales in comparison to the original, which could freeze entire solar systems with one strike. Absurd, right?"

Yeah, pretty absurd. So, where exactly are these swords now?

"In the hands of some reasonable people... mostly reasonable people."

I don't like that pause—or the correction after said pause.

"Ah, I just realized I haven't explained how you actually infuse things." Don't ignore me! "It's very similar to Casting, since you're still channeling mana, but when an Infusionist holds something, it feels like an extension of their own body, much like Enhancing."

Ugh, whatever.

The Librarian waved his hand, and the greatsword vanished into thin air. "Well, that's Infusing. As an Infusionist, you're essentially a maker of magic items, one of the most valued members of society. Or... a slave who does nothing but make magic items, depending on how things go. Either way, you're very desirable. Now, The Narrator will explain Summoning!"

Sigh, okay, so we've already seen a Summoner in the novel—Verandez Rasanto. He's decent, I guess, and he's shown you what most mid-tier Summoners can do without calling on anything or anyone specific. I mean, he did summon Malvorr and his demons, but that was with help, not entirely by his own will, so let's just ignore that.

But to get started, Summoners are called Summoners because they have the innate ability to... well, summon. It's something you have to be born with, like Casting, Enhancing, or Infusing. Summoners, though, need catalysts most of the time—although some are so powerful they can just Summon things without them. So, what's a catalyst? It's... literally anything you can get your hands on, as long as it has some sort of connection to whatever you're trying to Summon.

The trick is, the more distant or indirect that connection is... well, the harder it gets. An example of a shitty catalyst would be, like, a random rock a monster touched once. You could still use it, sure, but Summoning with that would be a nightmare. Possible, but ridiculously hard. A good catalyst, on the other hand, would be something more meaningful.

In the novel, Verandez used magic crystals, which form from excessive magic—usually from spirits, I think? Not 100% on that detail. Anyway, using those crystals, he Summoned shadow spirits. As for the other beasties he brought out, those were actually Summoned using crystallized remains of the monsters themselves. That's the key for Summoning nameless creatures—using something tied to their essence.

Now, when you're trying to summon a particularly powerful individual or entity, like some big-shot demon or spirit, that's when things get tricky. You'll need a specific catalyst related directly to them—blood, skin, teeth, hair, a memento, something significant. And on top of that, you'll have to perform a chant. A simple rock ain't gonna cut it here.

"You're doing great!"

Thanks. Anyway, as I was saying, here's an example of a chant. Let's say I wanted to summon Dracula—yes, the real deal. It would go something like this:

Son of the dragon, I speak your name,

The dragon of blood, who may once again reign,

The prince of relentless pain, who renounced Mara off her throne,

Whose blood is forever stained by evil,

I call upon thee, Dracula Vlad Tepes.

"Fantastic! That would have definitely summoned the King of Vampires!"

Thanks, worked hard on it. So yeah, with a proper catalyst and the right chant, you can summon whoever or whatever you want—and they'll of course be under your control.

Now, the fun part is you can summon literally anyone. Let's say you wanted to summon some random dude like... I dunno, Steve from the supermarket. All you need is a bit of chanting and like his hat:

O Steve, who stocks the aisle of the supermarket,

Who leads a life unenviable by all,

Who does little but live day by day,

Drowning in the debt of being a student,

I call upon thee!

And boom—out pops Steve. What's he gonna do? What's his purpose? Hell if I know. But you can do it!

Anyway, that's it for today. And as always, "Happy learning!"