Book 3 Chapter 24 (Patreon)

Nox attended his lectures like usual on Seconday—his presentation in Advanced Mana Theory. The professor approved his dissertation and assigned him a senior researcher in the department to act as his supervisor. Nox would still need to attend lectures but would have the freedom to work on his dissertation and other projects silently. The professor claimed the general theories and research conducted in the class would benefit everyone with their own. Nox used it as an excuse to work on the spell for his newest planet and continued his efforts through the Intermediate Warding.

The following day, instead of going to Intermediate Manipulation, he sought out Professor Reginal Dwight first, showed the professor the new spell script, and demonstrated the function.

“This is fascinating work, Sir Ratra, but I don’t understand why you came to me with this,” the man said. “Couldn’t Professor Wyrd help you with this?”

“I’m sure she can, but I’d rather share this with you,” Nox answered. “Professor Wyrd would also like me to join her other courses and refuses to take no for an answer. So, I’m minimizing my interaction with her. Besides, you’re the one I need to impress if I want to get into Advanced Manipulation or similar courses.”

“You have interests in pursuing further courses?”

Nox nodded. “I want to graduate with the title of Wizard. I won’t get there without them.”

“Honestly, Sir Ratra, I’m surprised you’re just stopping there. This spell and the bit about spatial magic you’ve discovered could lead to research that benefits the university and the world.”

“You really think I have what it takes to become an arcane researcher?”

“Of course!” The professor exclaimed. “You’re smart, academically minded, and a talented mage. The only thing you lack is money and funds. Make a proposal to the research department for funds. Build a team of smart academics to do the math and plebian work for you, and be the brains behind the operation.”

“I never considered anything of the sort,” Nox said, considering the possibilities. “Do you think this would help with the Wizard title?”

Professor Dwight laughed. “I respect your ambition, but I think you’re setting your sights too low. You have the potential to achieve a lot more if you can bring spatial magic into the mainstream.” He went over the spellform. “Have you patented this?”

“I always do before showing them to anyone.”

“Very diligent of you. I don’t understand the spatial section of your spell, but I see no faults with your demonstration. This should work. I’d say go ahead with planet formation. A Manipulation planet will ease the mental strain, and you can expand into something more substantial. Could you explain it to me once more?”

“These two sections locked on to two points in space.” He highlighted sections of the script and then marked two points on the diagram. One dot represented him. The other was the furthest point of his stretched-out mana zone. Then, he drew a straight line between them. “This bit involves a bit of Shaping. I still need to refine it so the spell only affects this line and not the entire space within the mana zone, but the script folds it so the two points meet.”

“So you move a step and instantly cover that entire distance,” Professor Dwight said thoughtfully. “How's the mana cost?”

“High,” Nox replied. “My standard casts are draining close to fifty mana from the star. I expect it to quarter once I have a Manipulation planet and finish integrating the spell.”

“Once said planet has grown a bit, I'd suggest you develop moons that remove the modifiable distance script from the equation. Only let direction be the modifiable element. I know it removes versatility, but it will significantly reduce cost.”

“I'll keep that in mind.”

Nox arrived at Intermediate Manipulation a handful of minutes late and received an icy reception from Leisel Wyrd. Much to his relief, Joey had saved him a seat so he didn't need to sit with Hinata. He only half listened to the lecture and focused on circulating mana through his magic system. Professor Wolfhammer let him sit against Ygg’s trunk and continue the exercise during Advanced Dungeon Combat. Hinata and a couple of other students tried talking to him, but Otis and his friends kept them away.

Planet formation was surprisingly easy. Nox couldn't tell whether it was the new artificial arcane energy channels that came with the Ratra’s Bow implant or Mana Burn Immunity, but he faced no resistance as he solidified a planetoid.

Crystalize Essence | Essence Animation
53/132 | 12/29

Essence Shaping | Arrow
22/56 | 5/13

Temporal Sphere | Spatial Manipulation
229/220 | 7/7

Spatial Familiar | Spatial Storage
39/39 | 17/17

The task left Nox tired, but he felt ecstatic. His old heavenly bodies hadn't fully recovered yet and only reached forty percent of their capacity before Temporal Sphere started claiming all mana, but it was still better than nothing.

The mana reader given by the university and the one built into his gauntlet displayed the same value. Neither could identify the details of the new spell but sensed the spatial element. However, the latter gave him the option to change the name for a more accurate representation. Nox still needed to have a name he liked, so he decided to hold off until integration was completed.

The mana technique had already taken hold, but the folding element was slow to settle in. Nox felt a deeper connection between the planetoid and the relevant star than any between Crystalize Essence and any of its neighbors. He guessed the wildness in Temporal Sphere's heart had something to do with the connection. The script Nox weaved through it had somewhat tamed it, but clearly not all the way. Otherwise, the old star and its planets would've recovered to a hundred percent. It was a slow process, but Nox was determined to reach his destination.

“Interesting development,” Professor Moyo said when Nox showed him his manameter in Understanding Binary Systems. Nox had agreed to share the data with the arcane researcher but not the rest of the class. His peers were disappointed, but Nox didn't want his personal developments to become public knowledge. “I'd be lying if I didn't confess to a hint of disappointment. I was looking forward to calculating the mana gravity coefficients and disparity with the class. This will make it significantly harder. However, I'm happy for you.”

“I know there is little math involved, but perhaps we can study how shared planets change and develop with the respective stars,” Nox said, summoning Otis. He had used the familiar’s abilities in Advanced Dungeon Combat several times over the past year and was sure people knew how he functioned. “Temporal Sphere gives him a spatial storage. He also transforms and gains temporary abilities when he consumes essence crystals.”

“That does sound interesting. I suppose we can do the coefficient and disparity math with the old data. It won't be conclusive, but still enough to form a decent hypothesis.” Professor Moyo turned to the rest of the class. “What do you think? Should we focus on planets shared between multiple stars? My father and brother have a few, including their familiar planet. We could draw several parallels.”

The class approved of the new direction. However, Nox noticed several looks of envy and scorn. The class didn't appear to mind him having a binary star system when half of it was not functional. Now that he was on the road to recovery, they didn't appear pleased.

During his time with the research department, Nox had sensed their distaste for mages with a focus on practical magic. The average artisanal mage made more money than them and had an easier time gaining renown. War mages gained both along with political and social power. They also had far more stable lives with secure sources of pay. Meanwhile, delvers lived hard, fast, and often short lives. They had an easier time rising to the higher ranks of magehood and were also quick earners.

Research mages only made money when someone invested in their work. Renown took even longer and was subject to success or progress relevant to the project. The magnitude was often subject to the impact of the results on a continent-wide or monetary scale. Researchers and theorists also experienced arcane progress at a snail’s pace, unlike practical mages. From what Nox could tell, his classmates were primarily at the journeyman rank and had been stagnating at it for several years. Only a handful in the department had stars with maximum mana in the triple digits. From what Nox could tell, it was mostly senior researchers like Eugene Moyo and Michelle Beaufort who had the adept rank. Although the latter owed it to her brief career as a delver.

Meanwhile, if the Temporal Sphere star’s maximum capacity increased by thirty-six, Nox would ascend to the low-expert ranks. His raw power level would be at the same level as the university professors, especially those of the war mage department. When Nox reached said ranks, he didn’t plan to keep his strength a secret or be humble. In fact,  he planned on using said status and the imagined power that came with it to keep competitors, foes, and the Cabal’s agents at bay.