Seconds turned to minutes before the pain finally subsided, Ivan let out a sigh of relief before standing up straight again. A hand pressed against the wall he had used as support moments ago.
However the same couldn't be said for Yue, who was brought to her knees before her face made contact with the solid wood floor they stood on.
Unlike Ivan she didn't possess multiple thought processes to divy up the overload of information that was implanted in their brains. And as such she momentarily shut down. It was likely that in her sleep her brain would focus entirely on processing the new information.
But, the others didn't know that, and so they panicked.
"Master, Yue, what's wrong with you two?! Are you alright?!" They rushed to their sides, Tio and Claire supporting Ivan whilst the rest checked up on Yue. It was only when they were assured of their breathing that they relaxed a little.
"We're fine… you all felt it too, didn't you?" Assuming they weren't in the same condition as both him and Yue, Ivan came to the conclusion that what they felt was isolated solely to those who possessed the other ancient magics.
Nevertheless the other girls felt the usual kickback that came with learning ancient magic. And thus they were unable to support either Ivan or Yue before they fell.
"Um um, yep. The whole whoooosh, and bzzz, that came with the light, right? It was just like that other time! But how come you and Yue got hurt by it, it wasn't like that last time!" Felis voiced out the question concerning the whole group.
In response Ivan simply waved off the others before cradling Yue in his arms.
"I don't know if it's the same for Yue but… aside from the magic from Schnee I obtained something else. It was as Haltina said, only when possessing every ancient magic does the final tier show itself. Concept Magic…"
Ivan's slow introduction only made the group more anxious, so feeling pressured to move on he approached Tio with a question.
"So, Tio, what do you think about the new magic?" It was simple, since the magic was something the others had as well it was enough to derive their attention. As he thought their thoughts became filled with the new power.
"I am able to see just how that Freid man was able to conjure an army, this magic, 'Metamorphosis Magic' , is incredible…"
She pointed one of her fingers to a nearby object, or rather, an organism. The pot she blasted was imbued with mana before the plant it sheltered began writhing with vitality.
Sharp razor-like teeth adorned each leaf, tentacle-like vines reached out and entangled itself with the table the potted plant had been sitting at.
"Halt!" With a commanding voice the monstrous plant ceased all movement, its tentacles receded back into the pot and unhanded the innocent table.
"To transform the organic, and take hold of them… Even weaker monsters would fall to the magic's temptation with a simple wave of my first."
The plant monster was self-serving in example, as Tio had simply manipulated it and transformed an ordinary house plant and turned it into a weapon. To metamorphosize something was to change it.
But there was another revelation with the magic, in order for something to be a monster it must possess a magic stone. So without hesitation Ivan smashed the pot of the plant and laid eyes on the crystal that sat beneath the monster.
He broke the stone with his two hands, signaling toward Tio to apply the magic upon it once more.
BZZZT
And it was a success, the crystal formed back together despite being separated into two pieces.
So what did the magic do? Did it really make a mana crystal out of thin air? No, something cannot be created from nothing. Which meant only one explanation existed.
"Everything has a mana crystal…" Or it was more suitable to say that every organic being possessed mana. Mana that would, like the divinity stone, harden over time and become a crystal.
But what separated humans from monsters? Unlike humans, animals that grow into monsters have no way of expelling the mana built up within them over time. And thus metamorphosis, or evolution, occurs.
Even a human with no magic would occasionally have to use their mana, such as to activate the status plates. Or to sign important documents. Even that tiniest disruption in a human's pool of mana is enough to disrupt the flow and stop the pool from becoming a solid.
If this world considered monsters to be beings with mana crystals, then that meant every living being had the potential to become a monster.
It was only a matter of time….
"But this is great news!" Ivan jumped up and yelled escastically, not noticing the scrunching nose of the vampire queen nestled to his chest.
With metamorphosis magic Tio was able to prove that it was possible to remend a broken magic crystal. Meaning—
'Unless Felis and Canis were erased to atoms, there is always an opportunity to revive them…'
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Ivan nor the girls decided it was wise to waste the time they were given whilst Yue rested in her sleep.
Now that they had a new ancient magic to experiment with, the best thing they could do at the moment was get as much training in with it as they could. This was especially so for Ivan, who had to adapt not only with Metamorphosis Magic but Concept Magic as well.
Ivan who, judging by the expression on his face, was having a hard time figuring things out. He shot up out of his cross legged position before allowing his back to plummet into the snow.
'Concept magic is powered by 'belief'... what the hell kind of vague trigger is that?!' One does not simply believe in something wholeheartedly in a single instant. That's where he was stuck currently.
Concept magic was extremely powerful, that he had no doubt in. But what was the use of such power if it only worked when the user had a specific desire in which he could only create something to remedy that specific situation.
It was the art of bending reality, every ancient magic conceivable formed into one technique. The perfect power to activate Ars Magna with.
"Great desire huh…" Concept magic seemed to be related to giving the user what they needed rather than what they wanted, or at least what their souls really needed. So a half ass desire like 'give me tons of money!' probably wouldn't work unless Ivan truly treasured wealth.
Meditation was on the right track toward his goal of creating an artificial desire and sticking it to the forefront of his true desire. Like, he had a strong desire to make it so that his loved ones would never die, hence he made the Homunculi practically immortal, so that if he failed in living with Yue for all eternity they shall accompany her in his place.
There was the desire that could be used for Concept Magic, for his loved ones to never die. It was vague enough that he could manipulate it into something along the lines of 'I want a magic that would make sure my loved ones would never die' or 'I want a weapon to destroy all those who see to kill my loved ones'.
But the most important thing was combining those two thoughts into one coherent desire.
"May death for my loved ones forever be only a thought, may it never come to fruition…"
RUMBLE RUMBLE
And before without his notice, the entire lair shook furiously. Light shot into the sky like a beacon, and even the eyes of those indoors were blinded.
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