Apocalypse Reborn: Academy 7 (Patreon)

Apocalypse Reborn: Academy 7

…

Magic.

What is it?

According to the studies conducted by the Academy, it was something that didn’t exist during the time of the Ancients. I knew that from the in-game lore that its first form was a superweapon that was used to kill off most of the population. The Ancients took it, changed it, and turned it back against them and then fought a bitter world-wide war while establishing an absolute defensive perimeter for this continent for their future descendants to avenge them.

But what is magic really?

I suppose that the simplest way to describe it is that it’s a form of energy manipulation. The energy in question didn’t come entirely from the person either. In fact, most of the energy came from a ‘source’ that was between realities. Magical techniques worked on that source, then the effect manifests. All you needed to do was make sure that the input was correct, then you’d get your desired output, but with study, time, and research you could test more inputs and get different effects.

It was like… creating script through movements of hands, words, and sensations within the body into ‘thin air,’ which was in reality some sort of interdimensional machine with immense power and ability. Magical capacity is your limitation in ‘wordcount’ when making a single script. After using up your words, then you need time to recover the miniscule amount that you have inside you by rest and eating food. Most of the real energy expenditure came from the source, which makes it so that the laws of physics aren’t violated more than they already are.

And, through that understanding of magic, the people of this land have researched, developed, created, and improved as time passed. According to historical anecdotes, creating a ball of fire used to take minutes, but the formula’s been refined. Less ‘wordcount’ was required, the unnecessary portions were taken out, and the spell is now basically something any mage could use in a pinch to save their life… and then there came foci like staffs or reserves of energy stored in various materials.

Tools decreased the expenditure necessary to reach the source, some ‘words’ could be grafted onto them so they didn’t need to be recited, and more.

Magical artifacts sipped from the source of magic too, with their inscriptions.

Meanwhile, permanent body enhancement could be achieved by sacrificing capacity to continuously strengthen and improve the physical form.

Mages can be trained from the average individual. Their diets and physiques were regulated to be as healthy as possible. They learned and refined their spells and abilities. With time and training and tutoring, just about everyone can learn to sling around molten rocks, throw around lightning, and throw up a shield of earth. The people of this world knew how to produce mages, and they were a part of daily life and warfare.

I wanted to know as much as possible about magic because I wanted to mass-produce Champions… or at least find the middle between them and Mages.

Mages were fine, and if I could make one that’s great, but I didn’t want anyone with even slightly more potential to be wasted.

The more people I had on the frontline, dishing out serious damage, the better.

…

The Academy didn’t even hide the fact that it poached talent from the outside lands. If some village in bumfuck nowhere had someone who could light up a fireplace, they’d have recruiters from the Academy on their doorstep within days. The whole family would get carted off to Academy lands, the mother and father are given a good home in a safe village and encouraged to have more kids, and the kid in question trained to be an artillery piece at a minimum.

It kept the number of magic users outside the Academy’s borders relatively low, and they had a head start when it came to recruiting those magic users.

Most mages outside of Academy lands were trained by former Academy mages, or taken in by warlords at an early age and trained by warlords.

Either get scooped up by the elite to work for them, or find yourself working in the outskirts at the beck and call of warlords… and live lavishly whichever path you choose.

Being living siege weapons comes with certain perks.

But that role will soon be replaced by cannons.

Thus, we could refine the practice, make them better, and find better niches for them to be implemented in.

The only way to do that was to test their limits, find out how much they could manage, and then move on from there.

Thankfully, I knew how to do that.

Ayah and I made our way to the latest recruitment tent for our screening efforts. The whole process was streamlined and efficient. Three wagons and around twenty people. Two mages and ten staffs designed to gauge how much input a person could push for their magic by turning all that they had into water, which is then measured and recorded for future use. You hold the staff, you aim it at the container, activate the staff, and then it creates water until you’re almost dry. Rather than having to cast multiple spells, having to learn spells first, measuring aptitude for magic was as simple as holding onto an artifact and measuring how much water your can produce.

And, then, the water can be used by the village, since distilled water is pretty luxurious.

Those who are just average go on to the usual track, those with the potential to become Champions get sent to the Academy, and I… get to find something to do with those in the middle.

Those who were better than average, but not the best.

We were already making headway.

“How are we doing in this project again?” I asked Ayah, while our carriage trundled forward toward the latest village our program was visiting. The Ancient Administrator had just about everything about my projects stored in its head. It was honestly the only way I could keep track of everything and pay everyone. “We’re in the clear in Alistair’s eyes, right?”

“Correct. The headmaster is pleased with the recent findings of multiple individuals with the ability to become Champions, as well as locating more mages.” Alistair only received news about how many Mages and Champions the Academy was getting. Those in the middle were the ones I poached for my own projects. There were various schools of magic, even though everyone using magic should be able to use any.  “We have found four individuals with the power that we desire, and we have marked them as outliers that we are studying. If he asks questions, we can forward him our reports.”

“Good. We’ve got our asses covered.”

My goal was to solve the issue of a lack of bodies on the front line, which meant necromancers. In-game they were High Tier units that the Guardians received in the late-game and used until the endgame, as a form of artillery. They made endless armies of undead that did passive damage against the enemy and held them down while other units killed them. They were core units for the Guardians, as far as I was concerned, and I wanted them for myself.

Speaking of the Guardians…

“Celia’s got her Citadel now, right?” The Heiress of the Guardians of the Moon was going to graduate in a year or two. I’d gone ahead and gave her some hints on what to do to get more power. Education secondary to getting experience. Level up in dungeons and kill as much as possible. You can learn how to lead after you learn how to kill hundreds with a single swing of your sword. “We’ll need to get in touch with her for some tomes on Necromancy.”

“Very well, I’ll make a note of it.” Ayah stated, and our carriage stopped. Soon after we were let out onto the small outlying village, which still had the massive Academy capital still in view in the distance. More than a few people bowed in my presence, but I had my guards get them to stop. I wasn’t about to open that can of worms.

The village was idyllic compared to the outside It had a functioning system for running water and dealing with trash and sewage. The road for the main street was stone and joined seamlessly with the Academy’s road system throughout its territory. It had a general store, a central administration building, a clinic, and specialist shops like tailors and blacksmiths. These were the places where families with magical potential were placed, where bloodlines were encouraged to intermingle and grow, for the Academy to have a constant supply of siege weapons and Champions… whose population didn’t need to move to another place or bother those who lived in the Academy proper.

Yeah, all these agricultural, small towns existed for the sake of making soldiers and artillery.

So, of course, Alistair was fine with me working towards making them as efficient as possible.

“Ah, my lord Jack, you’re here!”

“Holden, nice to see you again.” I plastered a smile on my face and gave the aged man a firm handshake. Mages rarely reached an age where we're no longer needed for their firepower, but Holden was one of those few, and he even reached past the age of sixty after turning forty, and so he also retired from teaching. Typically, that would mean a cabin in one of these human recruitment pools where he’d enjoy a quiet retirement, but I’d poached him. The class he taught in the Mage school was development of magical tools, which meant he was happy to lend his expertise with our project. “How’s this village doing?”

“Very, very good, lord Jack. We’ve found two with the ability to become Champions and two dozen with the ability to become mages. Also, there are six more right in the middle!”  Holden had been short his whole life and age robbed him of more. He had twinkling blue eyes that were always curled in a smile, and a long and white beard that joined with his white mane of hair. He was a bit of a mess, but he had the energy and the work ethic, so I didn’t pay his looks and age any heed. “We’ve also found someone just beneath the ranking of Champion!”

“Interesting. That’s a first. I’d like to meet them and offer them a chance to become part of a project.” I nodded at Ayah, and she went to one of the clerks that came with Holden, while I went with the man himself. The records were going to show what we found here, but the most important part was that the six above-average individuals the last individual just below Champion was marked as ‘Mage’ in terms of capacity. This report was going to someone else before reaching Alistair, and the lazy bastard in question had the usual habit of being too lazy to be thorough. “How shy are they of the mark?”

“Exactly one tenth of a tank shy from being a Champion. Four tenths higher than the average mage.” The measuring tank being filled or overflowing meant that you were a Champion. Holden walked briskly, despite having to use a gnarled cane. I followed him towards the town hall with six of my guards present. I drew a few stares from passerby, but most of the people in the town just went about their business. “I believe that you’ve got the right of it, lord jack. This method of ours is the finest way to finding those great individuals who propel magic forward, because they are not forced to wage war their entire lives.”

“I’m glad that you understand. This is the only way we can progress magical research.” Holden needed to cling to a lie to allow us to not report this. The Academy, of course, could use these people to further its own ends and keep them out of my hands. However, after pointing out that all these above-average individuals would just get turned into siege weapons, Holden heard me out and did as I’d asked. He believed that we were getting the people who would be otherwise wasted as mere Mages and training them in disciplines that weren’t flourishing, like artifact creation, which he loved. “There is more to magic than destruction, and this is our best method of furthering it in every respect.”

I mean, I’m not lying.

The Academy has no interest in furthering enough, because their current system has them as the dominant power. The only way to introduce now technologies to them is by making it, then having one of the upper crust take it and steal it. My way of doing that was Alistair. He’ll find out what I’m doing, use it just like with the guns, and I can move onto another project.

But I didn’t find any issue with that.

I’ll keep laying golden eggs, since Alistair wasn’t the type of person to sit on his laurels. After taking the guns off my hands, things have been advancing splendidly. Everyone involved had better pay, more help, and the resources that they needed. Sure, sometimes the people there felt bad about betraying me, but those feelings fade in the face of better working conditions. Alistair knew the worth of the things he stole, and he polished it to perfection, and made it better to make it his.

He wasn’t creative, but he certainly had a nose for value and worked hard, and I was going to use that to my advantage.

Holden and I reached the area where the aspiring mages and Champions were. There was a clear divide between the rest and the two with extreme potential. While the majority were going to have good lives, those two in the corner were going to live ones that were going to end up in legend, and their names were going to be etched into history. They were going to the Academy, become monsters that enhanced their minds and bodies with magic in levels that others couldn’t, and practically be demigods with immense potential.

But, in the end, my interest was in those beneath them and above the common mage.

The specialists that will push the boundaries of magic, the future archmages that’ll shape battlefields, and finally those who will be the key to supporting Champions in killing other Champions.

“Here he is, lord Jack. His name is Jean an orphan.” Holden introduced me to the teen on the cusp of adulthood. Blonde hair and blue eyes… and a slender figure with a lack of Adam’s apple. In disguise, and more importantly, with calluses on her hands and eyes filled with malice. Holden needed glasses. “Jean, please introduce yourself—

Well, I wasn’t about to take chances.

“That’s a woman. One trained in combat, too. Seize her for questioning. Now.”

I didn’t get this far in my second life without being able to spot skilled people who can kill me.