Varocia : From Gamer to Mentor

"Before you teach me [Fire Ball], can I ask something first?"

"What do you want to know?" Edith replied, her gaze steady.

"Isn't it better to train my [Basic Mana Control] before learning any offensive magic-related skills?" he asked, a hint of uncertainty in his voice.

Edith nodded thoughtfully. "In hindsight, you're not wrong. That approach applied to Ancient Magic in the past, before the Priasia Magic Ring was crafted."

"Since you're focusing on Circle Magic, you can actually skip training [Basic Mana Control]. The same goes for modern Ancient Magic. With the Priasia Magic Ring, [Basic Mana Control] is no longer a prerequisite before we can learn any offensive magic-related skills."

"It's simply wiser to learn a skill that can protect you first," she explained, her tone reassuring.

Olgan nodded, though a flicker of doubt lingered in his mind. He still felt it might be better to train [Basic Mana Control] first, but as someone who had never wielded real magic, he decided to trust the expertise of an actual expert.

"Alright, are you ready?" Despite instructing Olgan on a new skill, they maintained their brisk pace. Their journey would take about three days on foot to reach a town within the Magect Dukedom's territory, where a Teleportation Circle located, significantly shortening their travel time to Magect mansion.

"Yes. What do I need to do?" Olgan replied, determination shining in his eyes.

"Memorize this." Edith tapped the air with her finger, using mana to trace a magic circle, then applied [Basic Fire Control] to etch glowing flame runes into the design.

The magic circle for [Fire Ball] materialized as a small, radiant circle, flickering with hues of red from the flame runes and blue from the mana. Within the circle, the flame runes shimmered with heat, readied to unleash a ball of fire.

To him, it appeared deceptively simple, yet for someone illiterated in magic circles, it felt overwhelmingly complex.

"So, should I just memorize it without understanding why it's drawn like this?" he asked, gesturing toward the complex symbols.

"For now, that's sufficient. You can delve into the intricacies of the [Fire Ball] magic circle later, once you've learned the skill. This is what our ancestors sacrificed their blood and tears for, after all." she smiled at him.

He nodded and began to channel his own crude mana to replicate the magic circle... and, to no one's surprise, it failed.

The circle he drew shattered into fragments, dissipating into the air without causing any backlash.

"Phew, I was scared for a moment that you might succeed on your first try," Edith admitted with a relieved sigh, met with a nod of agreement from both Olex and Lenna.

Oh, it seems I'm the only one surprised by my failure, Olgan thought, forcing a wry smile.

"Instead of learning [Basic Mana Control], maybe I should focus on improving my drawing skills instead," he said jokingly.

Edith chuckled softly. "You're not wrong there. It does require some artistic skill, but don't worry—just keep trying, and you'll succeed eventually."

Without releasing the suspended [Fire Ball], Edith kept the magic circle floating in front of her as they walked, allowing Olgan to practice repeatedly.

It took him the entire day before he finally managed to draw the magic circle correctly. Just as he began to feel a surge of delight, the magic circle spiraled out of control, sending a rogue [Fire Ball] hurtling toward Lenna. With a swift motion, she swatted it away as effortlessly as one might flick away a pesky fly.

"Sorry!" he scratched his cheek in embarrassment, while Lenna simply nodded, though a shadow of regret seemed to flicker in her eyes.

"What's wrong?" he asked..

She met his gaze, her expression unchanged. "I was regretting not sending your [Fire Ball] back towards you for being rude."

He smirked playfully. "Alright, next time, I'll send it towards your princess instead."

"Don't you dare!" she shot back, her glare fierce but lacking any real malice. It felt more like playful banter than a genuine threat.

Olgan shook his head at this playful tsundere and refocused his mind on the hologram shining before him.

[You have learned Circle Magic Language]

[You have learned Fire Ball]

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Skill: Circle Magic Language (Active)

Level: 1 (MAX)

Description: Circle Magic Language, created by the legendary mage Circlet with the assistant of another legendary mage, Priasia, and countless others, is a magical language able to rewrite and memorize the function of any magic-type skills and spells, casting a protective enchantment on them to prevent harm on the casters and enhancing their casting speed significantly at the cost of damage reduction. This magical language radiants a cold yet warm feeling, as if it holds the weight of countless mages' sacrifices.

Damage Reduction: 20%

Cast Speed Reduction: 75%

Magic Backlash Reduction: 99%

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Skill: Fire Ball (Active)

Level: 1 (00.00% EXP)

Type: Target Point

Description: Unleash a small orb of fire in the direction you are aiming for. Upon impact, the Fire Ball explodes in a small eruption, dealing fire damage to the target and causing additional burn damage over time.

Damage: 5 + (10% of INT) = 12 Base Damage

Cast Range: 10 + (5% of PER) = 10 meters

Mana Cost: 5 - (1% of WIS) = 5 mana

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"Not bad," Olgan mused, nodding as he read the details of his newly acquired skills.

"[Circle Magic Language]… what an incredible skill," he said, genuinely moved. Although a 20% damage reduction wasn't insignificant, the advantages heavily outweighed the drawbacks. It was evident that this skill had been perfected over time, already starting at max level.

"Yeah! Priasia is amazing, isn't she?" Edith chimed in, her voice brimming with admiration for the legendary mage.

"What about Circlet?" he asked, recalling that the primary contributor to this Circle Magic Language was a legendary mage named Circlet.

Edith's expression darkened. "Yes… but according to records, the legendary mage Circlet descended into madness in his later years. He tampered with his own [Circle Magic Language], forcibly draining the lifeforce of anyone who attempted to use the magic circles he created. More than half of the mages who learned his [Circle Magic Language] suffered lifeforce depletion and perished without ever understanding why."

Her tone shifted to one of sorrow. "His madness stemmed from his desire to use those lifeforces to resurrect his deceased daughter. While I can sympathize with his grief, it's not right to sacrifice the lives of others."

She then added, "Originally, it was called [Circlet Magic Language], but it was renamed to [Circle Magic Language] after his death."

Olgan absorbed this history lesson and then inquired, "Can they really do that? You know, since we can't tamper with the System, right?"

Edith responded thoughtfully, "If enough people have a cognitive shift and genuinely wish to change the name of a skill, the world itself will comply. That's what happened with [Circlet Magic Language]. For instance, if enough people believed the [Fire Ball] skill shot water instead of fire, its name would eventually change to [Water Ball], despite it still producing a ball of fire."

"Hmmm, what an intriguing world," he remarked, impressed.

"Do you know what happened to Circlet's daughter? How did she die?" he asked, his curiosity piqued.

She shook her head. "As far as I know, there is no record detailing what happened to his daughter."