Training [4]

In the study room, Kassandra Nagi was tutoring Marth about the magic of the [Dark] system. Because it was the first day, she merely introduced the magic to the young boy. 

" ... and that's why us the [Dark Mage] are fundamentally different than those the likes of Cursemancer or perhaps known as [Shaman]. We are ..."

However, since the start, she just blabbered on and on about the difference between [Shaman] and [Dark Mage]. 

He understood that [Dark Mage] was different from [Shaman]. Although they both use dark magic, it was not of the same system. [Curse] magic was more like a derivation of the [Dark] magic, while [Dark] magic was derived directly from the original [Ancient] magic. It was one of the [Dark] magic branches rather than their own system.

He got that, after all, Kassandra Nagi has told him for at least half an hour empathizing that single thing.

Albeit Marth wanted to change the topic back to the right track, that was about the [Dark] magic she wouldn't listen. Thus, he fiddled around with his tablet and start to see the compilation of dark magic in the folder T5. Reading about the [Dark] magic law and trivia by himself.

'..., Dark magic. It's more abstract and absurd compared to the Elemental magic.'

Written in the file Dark_Magic.md was the compilation of the tablet maker's thought regarding the Dark Magic. It also contained the list of available spells, it was linked to other files on the same folder.

It was summarized greatly and there were also some notes of the most effective way to learn the spells. It looked more like a game walkthrough and how to rather than general summary of a book. 

Marth took a good look at the note and felt somewhat giddy. This note, or rather the tablet was something that was made by someone like him. In other words, a player.

He felt thankful for the tablet and some other bizarre magic devices left out in his room. But he couldn't get rid of his suspiciousness. Just who was it, the one who made all of this? And why he/she left it in his room?

'I also can't remember anything that happened yesterday ... what a strange course of the event, really.'

While he lost in thought, Kassandra Nagi asked in displeased voice.

"Hey, are you listening, Marth-kun?"

"Y-yes, of course, I do. It's about the difference between the [Dark Mage] and [Shaman], right?" he nodded and put his attention to his hired magic teacher.

The woman in purple robe sighed, "So you didn't, after all. I've done with that already, now, I'm explaining to you about the Dark magic on its core."

Marth went silent, he needs to listen to this teacher explanation. Well, it's a given when his mother already brought her from far away place just to be his teacher.

With the tablet, he could gain much of the knowledge of this world, but he needs to learn practical knowledge by himself. And casting a magic spell without any professional is a dangerous thing to do for a novice(pupil) like him. So, please keep in mind to not do magic experiments at home, kids!

"I will repeat my explanation, but listen properly, you know? I ..., Teacher Nagi will feel sad if you don't, you know!" said teacher Nagi in big beady eyes.

"I-I'm sorry, ma'am."

Somehow, she looked really sad after being ignored by him. So this time, Marth put all of his attention to her, even turned off his tablet. She smiled after Marth looked really willing to pay attention to her lecture and then continue.

"As you may know ..., the emitter-type magic is divided into three main systems. Light(Faith), Elemental(Logic), and Dark(Reason). Teacher Nagi is a Dark Mage, a person who studies the dark magic ..., your mother, Petra is an Elemental Mage, and most of the person who is related in the clergy like Cleric or Monk is a Light Mage."

'The name of the classes aren't that different from the game ...' Marth thought while listening to her explanation.

While mulling over her words with a serious look on her face, she continued.

"Dark magic is a usage of magic driven by the force of darkness. It's even more powerful than the elemental magic. In fact, we could brag ..., that in the emitter-type magic, we are the strongest in terms of firepower."

Marth nodded his head agreed with her.

In terms of pure magic attack, [Dark] magic has the most number compared to the other magic system. The table of comparison of the three magic system was something like this.

Magic System

Damage

Speed

Spell Variety

Light (Faith)

★☆☆

★★★

★★☆

Elemental (Logic)

★★☆

★★☆

★★★

Dark (Reason)

★★★

★☆☆

★☆☆

Light has the most lightweight damage but with faster spell speed. Elemental is balanced and the most versatile with a wide range of spells. And Dark is the one with most heavy damage but slow speed.

There was also a short amount of Dark magic spell circulated in the Continent. Mostly because there was a strong stereotype regarding Dark Magic equal to Shamanism. It made some of the temples and churches who adhere Light magic above all to hunt them down.

They called it witch hunting, and the biggest and most fearsome event was the [Cross in the Cave of Cretes] which happened on 18 December, 429.

It happened in the Mt. Cretes of the Estra Alliance, the Saintess of Jute at that time has an extreme view about the [Dark Mage]. Sometimes she led the [Order of the Golden Scale]/(as scale in measuring tool) in a witch-hunting operation and execute anyone who has a connection with [Dark] magic. She was well known for her ruthlessness and her extreme prejudices against [Dark Mage]. 

But her most successful operation was when she annihilated a group of [Dark Mage] who were having a secret meeting in a cave in the Mt. Cretes. She then erected inverted crosses and hung all the beheaded [Dark Mage] she killed in it. It was a hellish sight, their blackish-crimson blood garnered into a small pool.

This made the [Dark Mage] and anyone who was dealing with [Dark] magic in Estra Alliance to fleed away from the place. Some to the Hastem Desert, some went to the Osterreich or Uthgard, or even to the forever winter mountainous region of Regia.

The event that happened around a hundred years ago made numerous [Dark] magic spell-book to lost. Mostly because it was destroyed by Goddess Jute's extreme followers. Although at this age the persecution against [Dark] magic was no more as narrow-minded as hundred years ago, there was still prejudice against them.

"However, as strong as it might be ..., Dark magic has a fatal flaw. And it was speed. Be it casting speed or spell speed, it's far inferior compared to the other spells. It's no use if mage's spell didn't hit its target. Do you think so, Marth-kun?"

"..., yeah, I heard that it's easy to dodge Dark magic spells."

He has experienced this feeling, and he felt frustrated about this. [Dark Mage] or [Shaman] has the highest firepower compared to the other magic-based class. And as a person who was thinking with his kneecap, he thought more power means stronger. That's why he chose [Dark Mage] to be his first mage-class when he first played [Golden Ark] the game. 

He learned his lesson shortly after. Although [Dark Mage] has the most lethal magic his/her spell hit nothing. The hit-miss percentage was around 35,2%, and it was very hard for a character of this class to level up on the early game. If not because tireless grinding fighting against slower enemies, this [Dark Mage] won't be able to keep up with the other party member.

Though after that he chose not [Dark Mage] and the more versatile [Elemental Mage].

'..., Canaas is one good-hearted uncle, I like his light purple magic robe..., hmm ..., maybe I could make one myself.'

He recalled the bespectacled purple-haired [Dark Mage] that could be recruited in the [Osterreich Upheaval]. It was one of the favorite characters in the game despite being a male character. Most of the reason was that he thought that [Dark Mage] animation CG was too cool and his robe design fulfilled his chuuni hidden desire.

His thought went astray and he began thought about mage robe design if he made one.

Unaware of the young boy's thought, Kassandra Nagi continued her explanation.

"Sword Warrior like Lin perhaps will say, speed is the utmost importance. I can't refute that, there was some occasion I was saved by that. Yes, the [Dark] magic is slow. And the more complex the magic, which means higher the circles, it would be slower. But if you could kill your enemy in one single spell, why would bother casting two or three spells? That would waste Magic Power right?"

"If the spell couldn't reach, then it would also meaningless ..." rebuked Marth.

It was a direct retort, but Kassandra Nagi just smiled behind her muslin gauze.

"True ..., but, what about the spell I showed you this morning?"

Recalling the hellish training that was only to run with curse stacked on his body, he shuddered. It was only some hours ago but he didn't want to remember it and felt like don't want to go for the next session tomorrow. He felt fear for the first time in this world, and the perpetrator of this fear was Lin Yue.

"...," 

His face was ghastly pale. Noticing such expression from him, Kassandra Nagi took him into a tender hug. She pulled his head into her hidden cleavage. Enveloped by the sudden warmness and sniffing her unique orchid-like fragrance, Marth calmed down.

'Teacher Nagi, she got some boobs on her.'

He was a true pervert to think about a woman's sexual part even in this situation. And yeah, although her body was covered by the baggy purplish-dark robe, she was a woman with a nice body. Of course, Marth didn't know her true measurement, but it was shaped well enough to call it curvaceous.

"Don't worry, Marth-kun ..., I won't help Lin again if she wants to torture you, you know."

"Unn ..." he nodded his head inside her embrace.

"Good boy ..." she patted his head with a chuckle.

Letting go of his head, she walked a bit further away from him and chanted some undecipherable magic spell. From her shadow, a magic circle formed emanating purple light. A jet-black dark hand sprouted out from the magic circle.

It looks like Be☆elgeuse's Invisible Hand seen by S☆baru, but more slender and not creepy. No, it's creepy enough but ..., compared to the B☆telgeuse's Invisible Hand Marth had seen on the anime, it was less creepy.

"My [Dark Hand], it's good magic, right? It's only of the First Circle, and I could cast it in mere seconds. This is how Teacher Nagi compensates for her lack of speed. By putting a restraining and control spell to my enemies."

She said while manipulating the [Dark Hand]s to move around the room. Its speed was slow yet also seemingly fast. Probably like a flying moth, the speed was comparable to that. She enshrouded his body with the tentacle-like [Dark Hand]s. These hands were the very magic-casted hands that hold his body back from moving when he was trained(tortured) by Lin Yue.

After teasingly patted his head with it, she cancels the spell. The [Dark Hand] dispersed into tiny black particles before it vanishes completely from the air.

"Today's Dark magic was deciphered from the lost Ancient magic in the ruin. It's a product of scholar of the current age interpretation regarding the concept of the more profound and mysterious Ancient magic. Because it was a deciphered of other unknown and unexplorable magic system, there was some inefficiency and flaw that we don't know ourselves on it. Yet, the immense power of this flawed magic system is to be apparent so ... yeah, even if it's not the most perfectly balanced system, we use it because it's super strong, you know~." she puffed her chest with a proud expression.

"Now, let's start with the first lesson immediately!"

"Huh, so you haven't started it?" he jerked his body because her explanation took around an hour until now.

But the Dark Mage just tilted her head in confusion, "It's just the introduction, Teacher Nagi hasn't start anything, you know~?"

"Okay then ..., what should I do first? Do I have to practice imagine something like how it was with Elemental magic?"

"Non, if you want to learn Dark magic, you must first learn about this ..." she dropped a thick leather-bound book.

On the book cover was a simple title written in hijayah abjad. He took a picture of it with his tablet and let the auto-translating program to translate the words into English. The result was shown immediately, the title was 'Basic Cryptography'.

"Basic Cryptography?"

"Yeah ..., you must understand the language we use, and you must learn how cryptology works. You must learn the letter before you can read, you know? Try read it ..., ah, if there's something you don't know, it's fine to ask teacher Nagi, you know?"

"..." he wordlessly opened the book and read it.

It seems that Nagi would only bring him learning materials that were written in hijayah abjad and with the Desert language. So he used this opportunity to learn a new language and how to read this abjad.

He must know the sound of each symbol before he formed a word and then find the meaning behind those words. Deciphering the first paragraph took him around ten minutes. And he needed the help of tablet-sensei for translating it into the language he knows. The blank paper scroll now filled with scribble and note for future reference.

Seeing the young boy took a time reading and deciphering the thick book to his own language, Nagi sat down on the couch waiting for him to raise a question. Yet, since the start to finish this afternoon study session, he never asked a single question to Nagi.