~ Mana progression

(Narrator's POV)

Jhonatan is awakened by the clock tower. It has been a while since he fell into a deep sleep. He looks around confused and notices that the other bed is still empty. They haven't even met yet. Jhonatan knows from the head teacher that he shares a room with Mike, but the first impression isn't too positive. Jhonatan tells himself "If he doesn't even make an effort to connect now, it's not worth building a bond."

Suddenly, Jhonatan realizes that the Head Master mentioned that classes begin after the clock tower sounds. He quickly puts on his clothes from the previous day. Jhonatan realizes he only brought one set of clothing with him. Other students don't seem to have a problem with this and have other concerns on their minds. Many students are already waiting for the lesson to begin. Just before the class starts, Jhonatan walks into the room. The teacher arrives shortly after.

Winston introduces himself again to the students of the lower classes. He looks around calmly and spots Flinn with Jace sitting at the back of the room. Winston is pleased with this because he knows they have a lot of potential for growth. If he makes a positive impression on them now, they'll be more open to him later. His family will be proud when he shares this news.

The beginning of the lesson provides students with clarity on mana progression. Winston is explaining the basics of mana use. He does this with the help of a chart:

(look in the comments for the chart!)

"Most of the students present here are in the Light-stage. This means your blood is yellow. The shade of yellow varies from person to person. For some it's darker and for others it's lighter. You could be in a higher stage, but none of you are in the Shadow-stage. In this stage, you haven't meditated yet and your mana hasn't been stimulated. As you've all experienced, you've had that tingling sensation in your body. That tingling is how you know your mana has been activated in your blood."

You can see that the students in the room are curious about their blood color. They haven't had a chance to test this before, so they ask Winston, "How can we check our blood color?"

Winston responds enthusiastically to the question, explaining that there's only one way to check it: by using a crystal ball. He elaborates "You need to meditate first so your heart can infuse mana into your bloodstream. When you feel that well-known tingling in your body, you can let a drop of your blood fall onto the crystal ball. The result will show the stage you're in."

After explaining this, Winston continues his story. "As you can see from the chart, each stage consists of three phases associated with a blood color. When you enter a new stage, you start in the Early phase and end up in the Peak phase. As you transition to the next stage, your blood mutates and you acquire the corresponding color. Mana development progresses the same way for everyone, but the speed varies from person to person, depending on their talent." Winston looks towards Flinn and Jace during his last sentence.

Winston now delves deeper into the different stages. He explains that in the first two stages (Light & Knight), meditation takes considerably longer than in the later stages. This is because the body needs more energy to generate mana. When you start using your mana, it also disappears from your blood more quickly. This is a significant difference from the later stages. In these stages, you don't need to meditate as long and it takes longer for the mana to disappear from your blood.

Winston continues his explanation, providing more details about the phases within the stages. Within the stages, there are three phases: Early, Middle, and Peak. You can progress to the next phase by meditating more frequently and using your mana regularly. This allows your body to become accustomed to generating mana in your blood, ultimately requiring less energy. It also takes less time to perform a spell. This enables you to grow and become more powerful.

Winston goes on to discuss body development. "When your blood color mutates, not only does your mana usage become more potent, but your muscles also become stronger. If you could only lift 50KG in the Light-stage, you can lift 100KG in the Knight-stage. This makes it easier to defeat someone in a lower blood stage."

Winston now delves deeper into muscles, explaining that it's possible to strengthen your muscles through training. When your blood mutates to the next stage color, you can always lift an additional 50KG. An example is given: "If you're in the Light-stage, you can lift 50KG from the beginning. Without training, this remains the same and you only get an additional 50KG when you mutate to the Knight-stage. If you train your muscles in the Light-stage, your muscles become stronger. This won't happen quickly and it takes time to gain more strength in your muscles. This allows you to progress to 100KG in the Light-stage, enabling you to lift 150KG in the Knight-stage. You don't need to activate your mana when you want to train your muscles; you can do it at any time." Winston didn't cover everything, but these are the main points.

The last point of the lesson is Winston's explanation of meditation. "When you start meditating, it's essential to do it frequently and regularly. Through meditation, you enter a state of calm, focusing entirely on your body. When you feel the tingling sensation, that means all your mana is active in your blood. When this happens, you need to stop meditating. If you don't stop meditating, it can lead to severe consequences, such as regressing to an earlier phase. In the first two stages, you need to meditate for a longer time to activate mana. Also, mana disappears from your blood more quickly. If you want to reactivate your mana, you'll need to meditate again. That way, your heart can infuse mana back into your bloodstream. In the later stages, you can meditate for a shorter time, and your mana remains in your blood for longer."

The class is still curious about the Mythical stage on the board and wants to see their blood color. Just as the students are about to ask about this, Winston announces that the lesson is over. Jhonatan is relieved that his blood isn't publicly tested right now; otherwise, he'd stand out immediately...