The discussion continued between the two departments. Considering all of their viable options, they have outlined the procedure that they are going to use for the capture of the Masked Magician. This process was enabling them to cooperate for the joint operation between Knightstar and Croalea as they have started establishing their forces into command by taking it outside and summoning knights stationed around the capital.
"Is everyone here?" Commander Henry garnered almost all of the guards that are patrolling the nearby areas.
After calling them, he gave everyone a note that has all of the provided information for the Masked Magician and how he looks like.
"I apologize for the sudden summoning to all of the knights in the central capital. I am here to announce that we will be having joint cooperation with the Western department regarding the criminal who silently fled last night from Croalea. It is to assume that he is now under the surveillance of our city as we speak. This criminal seems to be very familiar with the places and is very difficult to capture. He uses advanced magical spells and is also skilled at hand-to-hand combat." commander Henry started the meeting.
Taking part in the investigation and pursuit, Commander Bill made his way to explain the further information that can be used for their own safety.
"I am Commander in chief from the West, Bill Frawley. I will be the one in charge of our operation. Starting tonight, we will be assessing the whole city and monitoring every area including the villages outside. Since we are dealing with a murdering machine that has slaughtered a lot of civilians, it is required for everyone to cooperate and execute their efforts and safeties at a level that is above the usual. As we speak, the Masked criminal has entered the state of the capital. For whatever reason does he have in going in here doesn't seem to exhibit enough notable clues. That being said, this joint operation is not under the influence of causing havoc. We will commence the operation silently without alarming the public. Failing to do so may lead to a panic state and the criminal might have to kill everyone else. Is that clear?" Bill outlined the plan in front of them.
Everyone's morale seems to be under the roof as this was a case for discreet work. Normally, when dealing with a joint operation, it is acknowledged that the threat must have been high level. If the knights fail to do their task, multiple lives will be at risk. That thought alone could be very unnerving.
"Now that you know the general information, let us layout the process of the operation. We will be dividing the knights and scouting league into three different battalion units. The first unit will be partaking in the downtown of the capital near Farshield. This will be the cornering point if the criminal wants to flee the city. The downtown is the only place where you can exit the capital. The next unit will be deployed on the seaside, particularly in Swanbrook town. And the third unit will be deployed on Fosier. The other units that will arrive as reinforcement will partake as a scout for the other alleyways and area and they will be disguised as a civilian. As for our connection, we will be using Magic Sense to contact everyone. Take note, we will not be engaging with the other people after we dispatch. Everyone is required to disguise themselves as a normal civilian." He instructed.
"I have a question, wouldn't becoming a civilian mean that we are going to leave our armors? Is it safe to assume that we are not going to be killed even without our armor?" One knight asked.
"Ah for that, you will be using these clothes instead..."
To answer the question of the knight, Henry approached the large chest on his back. Using both of his hands, he twisted the lock of the chest and slowly opened it. Inside the chest are uniforms that don't have any metallic body armor. Henry grabbed one pair of clothing and showed it to everyone.
"This is the uniform that you will use. It is called Mark II." He handed it.
The uniform that he is talking about has a few resemblances to what Nash gave to Aran. It is a long black coat with a leather belt and a touch of a red collar and red cuff that is extending on both arms. It partnered with dark grey pants and black leather boots. And on the chest, is the mark and the emblem of their department which is patched. Inside the coat is an attachment of a body vest with pockets and holsters that can be used for dealing or hiding their weapons.
"Umm, this is pretty neat, but is this going to be fine?" Another knight has asked.
"Don't worry. It works the same way as your body armor. This is designed by Nash Sterling. Even with the absence of the metallic carbon field, you won't be able to take damage because this uniform is imbued with magic dissonance and has a level five magic resistance. Mere lightning magic won't be able to take you down. And what's best of it is that you don't have to walk anymore with that much weight and you will be able to move faster and respond quickly." Everyone seems to be satisfied with the new uniform.
"Woah! If it is designed by one of the strongest knights then I wouldn't bother wearing it."
"This is the work of the Silver Knight!"
"Thank you so much!"
Murmurings swallowed the area as they have found a new way of fighting. Everyone started undressing their metallic armors and wore the uniform. After a few moments, they have gathered once again in the city hall.
"Mm! That's very nice. Now, since we are done with the preparation, our operation will start at exactly 1800 before sunset. Everyone is expected to dispatch on their assigned unit and place and we will send out the instructions using Magic Sense communication. Right now, the criminal wouldn't be able to come out in the day because of the major opening of the Fosier Academy. Our best bet will be undermining him at evening." Commander Henry began outlining the plan once again.
"If anyone of you encounters the criminal that we are dealing with, do not engage in a public area and communicate with the rest of the team immediately. We need to be cautious about his actions, and if a battle were to transpire, the havoc might have to start and we won't be able to control the situation in time. That's all! Prepare for the operation!" Bill ended the planning session on his accord.
"Yes, Sir!" While lining up in their own assigned team, they have started calling out more carriage to bring the other knights to their area.
While he was watching the deportation of the squads, Bill approached Henry.
"Hmm, we've finally managed to convince them," he said.
"Well, it will be hard for us to retain our position in any way after this. But I don't really care about that. What I want for today is to capture that criminal or else the city will be on its demise." Henry replied.
"Are you planning on going in as well?"
"I want to... But I can't leave the affairs. There are a lot of things I should be working on for today. That's why I'm leaving the command to you..." Henry pats Bill's shoulder as he head inside the city hall. He took the two guards with him and left the hall.
"What should we be doing?" The guard asked.
"We're going to join the forces under the Fosier Academy. I have a slight feeling that he will be going there." Bill answered.
"The academy? Wouldn't that be far-fetched from the initial plan that he won't be engaging any publicity offer?"
"Not really. The academy has started its own service for today. This means that it will be the most viable option for the criminal to hide his way inside the academy. After all, I am pretty sure that he already knows our plan of capturing him and getting that many knights to inhibit the whole capital." Bill replied.
"I see, he will use the movement of those masses from the academy to divert our attention."
"Yeah, that's probably what he is thinking right now. We need to hurry, you two should enclose the area as soon as possible. I need to head out on the academy quickly." Bill instructed them.
"Yes, Sir!" They responded as they left their position and split out.
***
Meanwhile, under the scorching heat, the discussion of the magic concept commenced inside the room of Section C. Aran, Huck and Eunice were paying attention to the lesson.
The head instructor, Julia Primrose, grabbed the chalk from the table and started writing a bunch of symbolic letters on the board.
"Can anyone tell me what these letters mean?" She asked.
Everyone seems confused about how to comprehend the cryptic organization of the symbols. They waved their head left and right to signal that they don't really know how to read it.
However, just before she explains, someone on the far right of the corner of the room raised her hand. Everyone looked at the person and so do Aran.
It was the girl with glasses that he bumped into earlier.
"Oh yes, Umm... Miss?" Being that they don't know each other, it is hard to know everyone's name because there hasn't been any introduction session when the class started.
"Nice to meet you. My name is Nikki Shimizu." She bowed respectfully, her tone seems to be really sweet. She then raised her head slowly and began to answer.
"The symbols that are written on the board are part of the ancient magic graph. It was discovered 2000 years ago when Rahel did his first expedition outside of the walls. It serves the very first foundation of magic spells that cultivated the land generation after generation." She answered.
Despite her shy aura, her knowledge and beauty contributed to the impact of her answer.
"That girl..." Aran murmured, Huck turned to him.
"You know that girl?" He asked.
"No, that's actually the person that I have told you earlier, the one who bumped me," Aran answered. Huck shifted his gaze once again to take a good look.
"Are you sure? She looks really pure and somewhat respectful. I don't see to her nature that she will just leave without anything to say." He doubted what Aran has said.
"No really, I am not kidding. She just left after I apologized... Like, she's probably avoiding me." Aran countered the claim to defend himself but Huck is still doubting.
"Maybe you just didn't hear her..." Eunice said while her face is leaning on her hand.
"No... she didn't really say anything, and why are we even talking about what happened?"
"Needless to say, Aran, I think you have found your rival when it comes to knowledge. I mean she literally nailed the answer. I am pretty sure that you were about to raise your hand earlier but didn't do it. Why?" Huck noticed Aran's plan earlier. He knows the answer to the question but he couldn't do anything because of his shyness.
"I think you already know the reason why. And also, I don't know the answer. I was just about to tell my speculation. I couldn't find any book regarding ancient magic so it is definitely hard for me to answer the question." Aran sighed.
"Uhh, Aran? are you smart as well?" Eunice asked. She seems to be interested.
"Well no, actually I am just a little knowledgable but not that pretty smart."
"Don't believe him. This guy is smart, he is just being modest." Huck grabbed Aran's arm and locked it.
"Heh..." Eunice smirked and laughed.
The ongoing discussion continued after Nikki sat.
"Very good, Miss Shimizu. That was a very splendid answer. Now, as you have heard, this combination of symbols is equivalent to a magic spell that has been used 2000 years ago. We call this spell a part of Ancient Magic. Normally, when we say magic, you might be thinking, where does all of this magic come from? Well, the answer is of course the foundation of it which is our Magic Cube." She continued.
"Magic's very root, huh? That seems to be interesting..." Aran whispered to himself.
"Well, we don't really know where it came from so I guess we will learn something for today," Huck replied in a soft tone.
William explained the Magiculation process to them last week but it didn't cover the different varieties and techniques.
"There are three categories of magic that have been founded since. The first one, which I have explained was the Ancient Magic. Comprises of about a hundred original spells that still can be used as of today. However, only old and powerful mages can use it. The reason why lies in the amount of mana they have to use. We all know that in order to produce a spell, we need to infuse our mana, correct?" She asked. Everyone nods.
"Ancient Magic does the same but the complexity and molecular build of the sequences are far from what we have established today in the modern time. Ancient Magic requires both the blood, the soul, and the magic molecule of the mages. That is why it is hard to perform Ancient Magic without harming yourself to that degree. Those three precedences are required, the combination of those three factors builds up an equation, and the outcome will provide a powerful visualization. Once you have successfully offered those factors, you will be able to perform ancient magic. Take note that ancient magic is strong and it should be performed with safety." She explained.
She walked across the side and wrote another combination of spells on the board.
"Now that you know the basic concept of magic from ancient times, let us move on to the second foundation of magic. People from the old ages didn't only rely on the usage of Ancient Magic. They have also founded magic in which uses the spirits of the earth's four elemental creatures to perform magic. It is called 'Spirit Magic'. The second generation after the Ancient Magic. For this concept, the blood has been taken out and only a part of your soul and magic molecule can be used to achieve its level. Simply by calling the spirits of the elemental creature that you desire, you can use its power over the price of your soul's essence and molecule. That being said, it is also a dangerous aspect of combination even without the blood. But nevertheless, it also performs high and advanced magic simulations. Most of our ancestors used second-generation magic to help the poor and reorganize the land. By using earth, water, fire, and wind, they can assimilate or cultivate the land on their own, configuring mother nature itself." She explained the second concept of magic.
Aside from the Spirit Magic, the formation of the contract using Spiritual Form also derives from the same concept of magic. The four elemental creatures existed long ago, but there are also tons of creatures who can perform the same feat. Old mages brought the Spiritual Form account to the modern world in order to minimize the danger of using 2nd generation magic.
"I didn't know that you can also use your soul's essence for the generation of spirit magic," Eunice pondered. Aran agreed.
"Well, I think it is because of the eclipsing of modern magic." He replied. Eunice turned her attention to him.
"Eclipsing of the modern magic? What do you mean by that?" She asked.
"Well, why don't we hear it from her..."
"Now finally, the third generation of the foundation. It is called 'Modern Magic'. I think most of you are already familiar with this. Modern Magic is the current system that we are all using today in battles and in other enchantments. Unlike the previous generation, the concept of this magic is pretty basic and its equation doesn't harm the user's essence. Simply by infusing your magic molecule or what we call the 'mana', we can generate a spell and execute a magic sequence in which it will be used as the main consumption material. We don't need blood or our soul's essence to perform it and it is not quite harmful. The only thing that we should only worry about is that using a lot of mana is equivalent to losing a lot of energy as well. If you were to deplete yourself by leaking out or using too much of your magic molecule, you will fall unconscious and the recovery time depends. However, even if you are unconscious, it is guaranteed that there is no side effect over the depletion. And that's what are we going to learn for today, the use of Modern Magic." She introduced.
"Did you get it?" Aran asked Eunice.
"A little bit, but I think I get the reason why. It is because of the over usage of modern magic that we tend to forget the previous generation." She answered as she stared at him.
"Yep! That's correct. Magic is supposed to be kept and well hidden, but ever since modern magic came to bloom, people are fixated on using it in their daily routine and that is the reason why no one knows about the existence of the previous generation of magic foundation. I have read some of them in an old book but I can't quite clearly understand their own nature." Aran replied.
"Heh, so you really are 'smart'..." Remembering their earlier conversation, Aran got flustered and started making noises.
"H-Hey..." Embarrassed by this, he turned around.
"Hahaha!" Eunice chuckled.
"Alright, let us start with modern magic. I get that most of you here are more skilled with close combat. With your weapons, you can easily take down an entire squadron of magicians because they still need to chant their spells, however, the main question that I would like to ask is, what would happen if the magician's casting abilities is far faster than your control? What can you do if they have activated their spell even before you approach them?" She asked seriously.
"No one?"
Behaving silently, Nikki raised her hand one more time.
"Yes, Miss Shimizu?"
"I believe that in order to face the opponent, we should learn the basic magic spells that can help us in times of close combat or early engagement of battle." She answered perfectly.
"That's perfectly correct, Miss Shimizu!"
Everyone looked at her again and their expression tells that they have grown fond of her cuteness alongside her genius nature.
"Haha! Aran, are you jealous that she is the one who's getting more points than you?" Huck teased him again.
"..." Aran didn't pay attention.
"Now, our session for today will be the use of one of the most common magic spells under Modern Magic. As you might have known, there are more spells that can be used under modern magic because of their distinct variants erected from the previous generation in which they were divided by clusters in order to minimize the effect. One of which is the prominent spell that is used to dismantle someone's weapon and spell." She started writing again on the board.
"The magic spell called... Impedimus." She continued.
"Impedimus... the dismantling charm..." Aran mumbled.
"By using Impedimus, if you see your enemy casting a spell, you can cancel their magic sequence in a short amount of time and that will give you time to counter. This spell is also called the 'dismantling charm'. A very basic cancellation spell." She explained.
"Now, I want everyone to stand up..." She instructed. Following her order, everyone stood up from their seat.
"I want you all to try activating the Impedimus spell on your own and cancel this magic sequence that I am going to perform." Julia raised her arm, without any incantation, a massive magic circle appeared and a flame suddenly burst out of it. The fire circulated around the magic circle. Everyone dropped their jaw as soon as they saw it.
"This spell is a repetitive loop incantation. The flame that you are seeing right now is put under a sequence of magic activation. This means that this flame will not go out unless you cancel the sequence using the spell that I have mentioned earlier. Your goal is to use the magic spell and dismantle it. I will give additional points for those who are able to use the basic cancellation magic spell." She instructed.
"Should we try it?" Huck asked Aran.
"I guess so, I mean, it might be a requirement so let's do it," Aran answered.
Eunice didn't respond. She was observing the magic sequence silently. Upon analyzing it, she sighed and stood up.
"Uh... Eunice?" She raised her left hand and blurted out the magic spell.
"Impedimus!" A consecutive spiral motion of wind rippling throughout her arm instantly fired a concatenated wave of magic. The coercing noise of the wave resonated throughout the entire room and detected the presence of the one who cast it. Everyone glanced at Eunice.
As the wave dispersed, the entire magic circle suddenly dissipated into cubes, ending the loop of flame that Julia cast a while ago. With this in mind, she successfully passed the first activity of using the basic spell of cancellation magic.
"Woah..."
"What the hell is that?"
"The top of the class did it!"
"Are you kidding me?"
"She is scary!"
Murmurings have started, the instructor smiled and gave her the bonus point.
"Great job! You will be getting the additional point for the next session. Now, of course, that will not end our trial and error for today. I will cast multiple loops of spells with the flames in it and I want everyone to try it on their own as well. Our goal for this session is to enable to you harness the modern magic foundation and use it freely." By raising her hand, she made a lot of magic circles on every corner of the room to provide the assistance that the candidates will need for their basic canceling trial.
"Impedimus!"
"It doesn't work! Impedimus!"
"Impedimus!"
Within the room, only a few of them have managed to distribute the waves to cancel the magic.
Aran raised his hand and tried it.
(I know that I don't really have that much magic power in me, I can't leak out my light energy particle. I need to infuse all of my molecules in one direction and only up to twenty percent of it. I have to do this!)
"Impedimus!" Upon chanting the spell, a circular wave of magic appeared on his hand and successfully canceled the flame.
"Woah! I did it!" He jumped.
"Huck, Eunice, I did it!"
"Yo, congrats. I also managed to do it but I don't know if I really want to try this again." Huck replied.
Eunice took his hand and raised it just above their chest.
"Congrats." She winked.
"Eh?" Aran blushed for a little.