(An auxiliary chapter has been added to fully check out Donis's stats)
The daily routine of Donis waking up, going to the Academy and coming back home dead tired continued for a whole year. For the entirety of the year, Donis hadn't stopped using his abilities. From morning 'til night, constantly using all of his abilities to try and level everything up. He'd made some great strides but has yet to reach the half way point in any of them. He knew it'll take a while as everything requires more and more experience the higher the level is.
He also leveled up bringing his base stats up a notch. Some of his basic stats gained a 1 or 2 point increase, which in turn gave him more mana. This gave him not only more time to practice all of these abilities, but more of a drive to strive for leveling. The stat gains are pretty insane, especially for a 6 year old. Levelled as is he, his [Wisp] Mana State is still the same. Unsure of how to progress this further, he's leaving that specific thought for a later time, potentially until he begins the Academy itself at 10.
Throughout the year Donis had probed and rattled Corvigs noggin endlessly, just as the latter predicted. He found out that the Academies rule of admitting only 10 year olds at the youngest was ironclad. He also got mentored on many different aspects of controlling his mana. Turns out the abilities gain even more [EXP] when done more correctly than the previous attempt. This inspired Donis to experiment with the sensation of using his mana differently until he would see the [EXP] gain become higher, knowing his attempt was either a failure or a success.
With all of that combined his progress was unprecedented in the basics field. Normally to achieve his results it would take a normal 10 year old child upwards of two years, but Donis finished his two year schedule within a single year. This not only greatly surprised Corvig but also forced him to get more books for the young rascal.
"Mana Conversion – Classroom Basics"
"Emissions of Temperature – Classroom Basics"
"States of Matter – Classroom Basics"
Each book didn't give Donis new skills, or abilities, but it gave him further knowledge and application of his current Mana State prowess. He was able to change the state of his mana, to change it's temperature, to convert it's properties. They weren't that impressive just yet, as these were the absolute foundations from which he needed to learn. Corvig though thought that he was a monster. The basics of the basics are only so for the experienced. Donis had never learned any magic prior to his teachings, yet the lad barely needed any guidance. It was as if his mind was years ahead of him and able to grasp complex theories.
'Goddamn it feels good to be an adult mentally. These kids books are exactly what I need to successfully learn magic. Imagine I was reborn as an adult and trying to explain to everyone around me in this world that I have no clue what any of the basics of the basics are,' thought Donis, reminiscing once again about how lucky his entire journey has been.
He's been slipping into these thoughts more and more every day. His days have started to grow monotonous, and while his skills are progressing, nothing is happening. While he never thought of himself as overly mischievous, Donis now got bored enough to try something different.
Once again Donis found himself within the Academies walls, those history filled bricks surrounded him still. A bitter smile snuck its way on his face as he remembered the Archmages speeches.
A thought struck Donis, maybe he could sneak into the Archmages office to peek at the staff. He hasn't once been bold, nor was he rude to anyone, so he thought maybe he would be able to get away with little to no punishment if he got caught.
During lunch Donis would have about 30-45 minutes of a break, probably the only time he actually rested properly. In those 45 minutes Donis believed he could sneak into the office, sneak a peak at the staff and get out. The [EXP] gain for [Ocular Inspect] was greedily calling him once again. He knew it was risky but he threw caution to the wind for today, he's young, he's allowed to be curious.
Lunch arrived and Donis informed Corvig that he was going to walk around a bit to stretch his legs, an activity he did often, as sitting for hours gets incredibly tiring. This wouldn't set Corvig off and Donis knew this, it would be easy to get away from him. He also knew the Archmages office would be somehow protected, but he was banking on his adorableness as a 6 year old to save his ass.
The hallway from Corvigs office to the Archmages office was brief, but it was filled with a rising tension. Anxieties surfaced with each step, fear a constant whisper on his neck. Yet he braved it, he would brave anything for that sweet sweet [EXP].
At the door, Donis stood still holding his breath. He peeked his head around the corner to check if the Archmage was there, yet he saw that it was empty and open. A hint of relief flashed in his eyes. He took his first step forward and nothing happened. He took another, yet still nothing happened. His bravery growing, and his speed hastening, eventually he made it to the box that repelled his earlier attempt at inspecting the staff.
Upon closer inspection, the box itself actually had a description and could be properly assessed using [Ocular Inspection].
-Spacial Glass Case-
[Grade: Epic]
[Special Property: Can obscure the existence of the object within from all known forms of location finding spells and Inspect type spells]
'Even the box is of a much higher grade than my dads sword, or even anything he's ever worked on. Goddamn this place is wealthy beyond belief. I wonder how juicy the stats of the staff are if the box is Epic,' mentally drooled Donis.
Donis reached his hand closer and closer to the boxes opening latch. Oddly enough it wasn't locked, nor was it sealed via magical means. Donis knew it was a trap of some sort but the greed has long overtaken him. He was this close, there was no way he was going back without peeking at it.
As the latch of the case was opened, Donis felt a hand land on his shoulder. It felt like not only the scariest thing in the world, but also the most suppressing feeling he's ever experienced descended on to his body. His entire will was shook. His body no longer obeyed his mind as he felt mana tendrils wrap around his entire being.
-Ability scanning...-
"Boy, what are you doing here without my permission?" said Lorenzo. Even though he asked him this, he gave him no way to speak. Donis's mouth has been entirely forced closed by Lorenzos magical hold. A moment had barely passed yet Donis had felt like he was close to collapsing.
The mana tendrils slowly receded from Donis, easing his discomfort greatly. He quickly turned and began apologizing to the Archmage.
"Sir, I am so sorry, I thought because your offices door is open I would be allowed to enter! I just wanted another look at this here stick because when I first saw it, it looked so cool and and an-" Donis quickly fired off as the he felt like he was deep in shit, his only way out was his trump card, acting his age.
"My boy listen, I'm not mad, I just want to make it very clear that while I am not in my office, it is against the rules to come in here. If you wanted a look at the staff you had just to ask Corvig, he has the authority here to take the staff out and show it to whoever. Did you ask for his permission to come here?" said Lorenzo, a warm smile growing on his face.
'Fuck, I could have just asked Corvig? How am I supposed to know he has this much authority in this place,' mentally cursed Donis. "No sir, I didn't think to ask, I apologise," said Donis lowering his head and acting shy.
"It's fine, come, let me take the staff out, it is a precious gift to us from the forests of silence in Almouia. They forged it with the pretense of making a beautiful staff from their Silent Wood trees, yet what they made surpassed even their expectations. It even has decent stats to boot!" said Lorenzo, beginning his long awaited history lesson.
For once Donis wasn't upset that this old coot had something to say about history. He just gained some info, and it looked like more of it was coming. He grit his teeth for the possibility that this may take a while.
Lorenzo opened the case and picked up the staff. The mist acted almost like a thick cobweb, unwilling to let go of the staff, only breaking after being pulled out a meter from the box itself. Donis couldn't hold himself back and immediately cast [Ocular Inspection].
-Staff of Solitude-
[Grade: Epic]
[Runes: Silence, Mana Well, Deft Casting]
[Enchants: +1,200 Mana, +3 Intelligence, -Accumulation Time (20%)]
[Requirements: 11 Intelligence + [Essence] Mana State]
He knew these stats must be crazy good since the old man himself said they were "decent". Yet even knowing that he said that, his own eyes verified that scene for him. The sheer amount of mana this weapon gives is close to 7 times his entire manapool. He may not be able to tell what these runes are, but he can bet they're amazing.
Donis tried cascading down the meanings of the Runes and the Enchants, but there was no response from the system.
'System, am I unable to see what these runes and enchants mean because I don't know what they are, or because that's a limitation with the current version of you?' thought Donis.
-The [System] can be Upgraded to View any and all Explanations the [User] may Come Across. If the [User] Already Knows About it, Then the [System] Will let the [User] Read the Description.-
'Okay great, you had went silent for a while, I thought you almost forgot about the whole upgrading thing by now. Thankfully I was wrong. Fuck you,' mentally seethed Donis.
As Donis was having a cursing match with the unresponsive [System], the Archmage was telling the deep and colourful history of the staff. From its inception to it's journey here, he missed no detail. Even adding common anecdotes he's overheard over the years. Neither of them truly talking to each other, both deeply lost in their own minds.
Corvig opens the door and finds Donis still in the grasp of the Archmage and figured out what happened when he saw the Staff in his other hand. He sighed and walked away, not willing to deal with the Archmages daft talks about that overly glittery staff. 'He knew not to go near the Archmage in case he'd get stuck in one of his "History Lessons". His own fault, I'm not getting him outta this one,' sighed Corvig even further in his mind.