Chapter 10: Chapter 10 - Boring Days

Chapter 10 - Boring Days

Boring days indeed come.

Most of the compulsory classes teach something I already knew of. And I would simply just waste my time if I just sit in class so I prepare a few books that I am interested in reading and bring those with me in class. Once I feel that the lesson would not contribute anything to me, I would just read the book I bought.

Of course, doing such a disrespectful thing in class would get me in trouble with the lecturer but I simply proved that I have mastered this part of the lesson and also done the assignment given to the class. I also argued that it would be better for me to study on my own rather than wasting my time learning the basics again.

If the lecturer is still unresigned with my argument, I just show them that I could multitask by listening to them while I read my book and also doing mana control training at the same time.

Because I've shown my ability and perhaps also because I am also already a tier 3 mage, most lecturers are powerless to force me to obediently listen to the class and decided to just let me do my own thing.

Well, yeah indeed strengthening the basics is the foundation for my achievements in the future but not all lecturers are good teachers. If the lecturers are the kind that just makes you read books and do the thing inside the book then I will just completely ignore them.

But if the lecturers are good teachers, I won't even touch the book I bought.

Just like in my basic mana control class. Aside from casting and meditating, mana control could be said to be the basic of basic, bread and butter in magic.

Mana control is, just like what is written in its name, the ability to control mana in its base form. The better your mana control is, the better your magic casting would be.

In my case, I cast most of my ‘science’ magic by manipulating world physics with my mana control. I vibrate molecules to spark fire or make them stop moving around to freeze things, I round up electrons in the air and let them jump to simulate lightning, create lenses to disperse and focus sunlight, and simply use telekinesis to move wind and earth around.

So yes, I basically do not use chants to cast magic. I manually cast my magic by relying on my magic control.

Magic control also trains my brain to multitask. It somehow feels like playing the drum or juggling multiple objects at the same time. And after training it to the extreme for years since my reawakening, I managed to train my brain to multitask. That’s why I can read while training my mana control and also listening to the lecturer’s lesson.

Anyway, I was talking about a capable teacher, right? The lecturer in basic mana control feels like a capable one. Well, at least he gives me a lesson that is still challenging even at my level.

“So you are Mr. Stadford?”

“Please just call me Milo, sir”

“Alright, Mr. Milo. I heard from the other teacher that you are quite disrespectful toward their class. I am quite curious about your ability to ignore the other teacher. Please demonstrate your ability for me”

“Uh, what kind of ability, sir?”

“Of course basic mana control drill ability. That is our current class right?”

“Okay then, sir. Here I go”

I begin my usual mana control training. Mana control training is basically training a mage’s telekinesis power. So the basic mana control training usually involves lifting a feather and making them move around with your mana control, turning mana into a shield, and stabilizing any elemental magic.

Lifting and moving feathers is the control training, mana shield is power training, and stabilizing elemental magic is endurance training.

I quickly lift 4 feathers up in the air and start spinning them in different directions and on a different axis. Then I conjure 4 elements of magic and raise them up behind me and let those stay. And lastly, I summon 2 mana shields to rotate around me.

“Excellent display, Mr. Milo. 10 consecutive drills with all 3 kinds of basic drills. Not to mention, each drills show a different display. It is hard to believe that you have just turned into an adult this year”

I dispelled the 4 elemental drills behind me so I can speak. 10 magic control basic drills are the most I can display currently. It just gives the right burden in my mind to help increase my magic control ability.

“I have been training magic control since I was a little kid. I can’t immediately cast spells so I just keep training magic control. But I have been bottlenecked at the 10 consecutive drills stage for a while now”

“That is a great show of perseverance, Mr. Milo. It really makes one wonder how someone as young as you could achieve something this high”

“Hahaha, thank you for your compliment, sir”

“You are already running far ahead of your peers with your current skill. But I can see that you are getting a bit too comfortable with your pace. Why don’t you try sprinting?”

“And how can I sprint, sir?”

“Cast the drills again into your limit and maintain those. I will answer you then”

I simply obeyed him and cast the 4 elementals' endurance training again and let it hover behind me. And when I am still focusing on stabilizing my control of all of my drills, a sudden danger premonition blared in my head. There’s a danger coming from the front! I tried to move my head away but I can’t dodge it in time!

“Ouch!”

“Oh, you can feel that? I see that you have rich combat experience too”

I fell down from the sudden attack. I was in the middle of dodging so my body position is unsteady which made the attack just enough to down me. There is also the element of surprise which increase the effect of the ambush just now. Of course, all of my mana control drills around me ceased to exist as my concentration got disturbed.

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“Did you just attack me, sir? Why did you do that?”

“That is your training”

“My training, sir? So I have to fully concentrate on mana control drills while also trying to evade any attacks aimed at me?”

“Evade, block, or even letting the attack hit you is all valid as long as you can maintain your maximum drills”

“The last one is rather severe, sir”

“Do I need to explain the reason to you?”

“No, sir. I can imagine what I can achieve with this training”

The lecturer shows a challenging smile at me. I guess he tried to ruffle my pride as a young genius so I would try harder in his challenge. Well, that does not really work for me but I still feel excited to try his challenge. Isn’t this a kind of training arc as well? And it is such a great fortune to find a great teacher like this lecturer here.

“Okay Mr. Milo, wait here for a bit while you keep up your maximum drills. I need to address this to the other student as well. I will send you surprises from time to time”

“It’s okay, sir. Take as long as you need”

“By the way, those 5 are your followers, right?”

“They are, sir”

“Seems like you are teaching them well, Mr. Milo”

“It is them who worked hard sir, I don’t deserve such praise”

Another danger is coming towards me. Thankfully I am not at my maximum concentration usage yet as I still need to respond to the lecturer so I managed to block the attack by deflecting it using one of my mana shields.

“You are indeed experienced in battle. No young adult could do the same as you”

“Thank you for your praise, sir. But some from my private army could also do the same”

“Some.. Do you mean, not only those 5?”

“Yes, there are some others who could contend with me in basic mana control drill but they are not really gifted as a mage which I found weird”

“This is also my first time hearing that. Someone who isn’t blessed in becoming a magician but can still do basic mana drills to your extent. I would love to meet that person sometime in the future”

“You can meet him anytime, sir”

“Okay then. But first thing first. You 5, come up front and sit beside your lord. Show me your best attempt”

The one I’m talking about is, of course, Leon. That’s why I tried mentioning his circumstance to this lecturer but it seems that this lecturer here also does not know the reason so no luck finding the answer here.

Anyway, long story short, the lecturer makes me and my 5 followers come up to the front of the class and do the most consecutive basic mana control drills that we can and start bombarding us at random with some stealthy attack.

I figured I would need more shield to block all of the lecturer’s attacks so I managed to cover two of my levitating/telekinetic training drill with a shield so I would have a total of 4 mana shields to block. The training indeed gives a quick result as I am inspired to cover the feather used for levitating/telekinetic drill with a mana shield. That is my current best for now.

Of course, I tried to ‘cheat’ by turning most of my drills into mana shields before but I got scolded by the lecturer. He said I am taking the easier route which is not wrong. And I have to say, this strict training regime which pushes me by introducing the element of pain works absolutely well. It’s been a long time since the last time I had a visible increase in my basic mana drill routine.

“Okay. that is all for today. Students, always remember that mana control is the foundation of your path in magic. If you can work hard and reach the level of these 6 people sitting in front, I will also give you your deserved private training like them. Yes, the minimum requirement to get a pass from this class is only managing to do all 3 basic drills on its own but I will be disappointed if you only strive to clear the basic minimum. Reach as high as you can. Class dismissed. And Mr. Milo, I want to ask you a few questions. Would you please stay behind for a while?”

Of course, I agreed to stay behind. I feel a mentor vibe from this lecturer and I think it would be good to get acquainted more with him.

After waiting for the other student in class to leave the classroom, the lecturer started to talk again.

“Now we can talk a bit more privately Mr. Milo. First of all, I really want to know why you could reach this level of skill at your age. Of course, if it is personal you can choose to not answer but maintaining a student's mental health is also a teacher’s duty after all”

“Ah, thank you for your concern, sir. And yes, I can answer that. It's just that I feel a bit embarrassed about it. In short, I was always enamored by the stories about heroes saving the beauties and such in the past so I have always wished to become a hero since I was a child. Thus I decided to train both my body and my magic in order to reach that dream”

“Oh my, such an innocent dream. But it indeed gives you a great boon. By the way, where did you learn that multiple drilling methods? I have never seen anyone train their basic mana control drill to such extreme”

“Well, at first I was just doing it one by one like what my private magic teacher taught me but when I teach the other kids about mana control, I somehow made it a game and I started to learn doing multiple concurrent drills around that time”

“A game? Can you elaborate?”

“Yes, sir. So in the case of basic telekinetic training, I made it into a game of tag. If I can touch others’ feathers with the shaft of my feather then I win. Then for mana shield training, I use it to hit a ball at my opponent. If my opponent fails to return the ball I hit then I win. Those are the two basic mana control games that I play around with my friends at the time”

“And so? How is it connected to the multiple concurrent drills?”

“Well, sir. As the one teaching mana control training to others, I am simply too good at it so I won most of the time. My friends then started to fight against me in a group. Facing 2 or 3 at the same time is still manageable but my friends started to overwhelm me with more. And as I am also still a kid, I am also thinking of a way so I don’t get beaten even when I am facing multiple opponents. So I started to think of conjuring 2 drills at the same time, then 3, then 4 and it keep on continuing”

“Interesting. No, that is actually amazing. To turn a boring basic training into a game. Such a thought is simply revolutionary. This concept can be applied to many others training too…”

The lecturer started to mumble as he went on and on about turning education into a game. He is indeed a great teacher as he is always open to new ideas that could increase the learning process. But well, I don’t have all day to talk. I still have my next class to attend.

“Sir? Is that all you want to ask?”

“Maxwell”

“Pardon?”

“My name, Maxwell. I have a feeling that we need to talk more in the future so it would be practical if you know my name“

“Ahaha, So you realized it, sir Maxwell? Well, I just basically don’t bother with most things as I have a curse to cure”

“The curse of the Stadford family, right? I can only say good luck with that. And one more thing Mr. Milo”

Sir Maxwell is showing a serious look. Does he want to say something important?

“First of all, try using the chanting casting method when casting the magic from any other element besides darkness that you are capable of. As you are someone with high mana control mastery, I guess you never bother using the chanting method again when casting magic right? Try to do that later”

“And next up is to train your ability to create different shapes with your shadow and train the movement of your tentacle. You won’t get much if you keep on repeating basic mana control training. Those two are an advanced form of mana control training that is unique to your affinity. You can train both your control and familiarity towards darkness element”

“So trying to control your magic to an extent is also categorized under mana control?”

“That is indeed the case. That’s all for now. Practice hard”

“Thank you for your guidance, Sir Maxwell”

Sir Maxwell only nods then says his goodbye and walks away from the classroom. I should also go to my next class. Well, I might have something new to do besides reading if my next class is a boring one.

But listening to Sir Maxwell’s guidance, I realize that I might have grown conceited with my own ability to silently cast magic. Although I know the theory behind the chanting method, I actually never really try to cast genuine magic according to this world method. I don’t even try to cast magic according to the magic circuit method that I’ve learned before in the library. I just try building it and cancel the casting after getting a good picture of building a magic circuit.

As I am now a mage, I need to experiment more. I need to at least experience all the other method even if it looks obsolete.

As for shaping my shadow into objects and manipulating it. Well, there is already a great example of that. The blind shadow controller assassin! He is the perfect model for my fighting style. But I need to be careful not to let my shadow gains its own sentience and end up hijacking my real self too.

Well, there’s no use thinking about it now. Let’s first experiment with what teacher Maxwell told me first then let's see how it goes later on.