Chereads / Samurai Detective / Chapter 31 - Basics of Magic (Part 1)

Chapter 31 - Basics of Magic (Part 1)

Sasori walked into the D class classroom and looked around. The main classroom looked the same as his own, but there were different side rooms equipped with equipment that was unknown to him. The rest of the students started walking in, so Sasori decided to find a seat in the classroom. He decided to sit at the front of the classroom because he wanted to be close to the Professor and so he could hear and see clearly.

As the students walked in, those who were interested where noticeable as they sat closer to the front like Sasori had and then there were those who sat at the back in groups so that they could talk to their friends and just not be stuck in the dormitory. Professor Benoit, the D class professor walked in front of everyone and spoke, "Settle down everyone." Everyone turned their seats and faced the front. Sasori couldn't figure out what was making everyone want to listen to the professor but everyone, even the students at the back went quiet.

Professor Benoit was an elderly man with a very long snow white beard. He had very little hair on the top of his head and some strands behind his ears. He didn't seem fragile from old age, in fact he seemed to look like a man in his prime. His posture was perfect, and his physique was one of a seasoned soldier. He had dark brown eyes that seemed to be full of wisdom and was as ready to discipline you if you made a wrong step.

Professor Benoit was well known throughout the school as a kind-hearted teacher that wouldn't hesitate to make you suffer when you disrespected him or a fellow classmate. All students that had bullied in the past had had a conversation with the professor. A short one but an effective one. All the students came back and apologised to those they harmed and became model students. His methods were unknown, all that was known was that they were very effective.

"Good morning students." He looked into the eyes of every student with kindness that made every student calm and ready to learn from him. "Today I will go over the basics of magic with you all." The students all sat up and took out their notebooks and a pencil. "What we are going to cover are the elements from which we derive magic and how to identify them in the natural world." Sasori started to write notes on what the professor was saying.

Professor Benoit turned to the board and drew six circles. Inside each circle he wrote an element of magic. "The first elements that we will go over are the elements of creation. These two elements are earth magic and light magic. Now some of you may be asking yourselves, how is light magic an element of creation? The answer to that question is that light magic is what a healer uses to rebuild broken bones, create new muscles, and heal those who are injured."

"I can't demonstrate light magic's abilities for you today as it is still a risky element of magic. The reason it is so risky to use, is it's opposite, darkness magic. I will talk about it later, but darkness is the counter and polar opposite to light magic. What I can demonstrate is earth magic. It is an element of creation because you can create anything will earth magic. You can create walls to protect yourself, shelter when you are on a mission and many more things that you can use your imagination to create."

"These two elements are key elements used in battle by mages around the world. The reason being that earth magic is the easiest element to control. It is vital for a mage in battle as it can protect you from virtually any spell if it is strong enough. And Light magic is key because if you or an ally is injured, there is not always a healer around, so it is vital that any mage knows basic healing spells in order to survive."

The professor looked around the classroom at all the students taking notes or listening carefully to his words. "Now if you could all direct your attention to the front I will show you earth magic." Everyone quickly finished what they were writing and looked straight ahead at the professor. "Now there are tiers to magic that you will learn about, and they each have a different difficulty. For instance, Tier 0 is the simplest version of magic across all elements."

"It is essentially portraying the element in a spherical form." At those words, a sphere of brown matter appeared above the professor's right hand. "You do not need and incantation to perform these spells. They only come into play in the higher tiers." The professor looked around the classroom until he spotted the hand of a short girl, who had bright red hair in a ponytail and light blue eyes that almost looked white. "Yes, do you have a question?"

"Yes, Sir." The girl stood up from her seat, "You said that magic above Tier 0 needs an incantation, is there anything else necessary to achieve magic of a higher level and is it possible to learn to cast silently at the higher Tiers." She sat down and looked at the Professor for answers and so did the rest of the class.

"What a great question, thank you for asking it. For your first question there is other criteria necessary for higher Tier magic. There are key words that must be used to achieve your spells and those will be provided at a later date. And to your second question the answer is no. No mage in the history of magic as we know it has been able to cast magic silently. The closest we have gotten to silent magic is spells imbued in weapons that can be released and by shortening your incantations until they are quick and simple but still powerful."

"For example, do you all remember the match between our top two students?" All the students nodded and started whispering to each other how amazing they were and what they thought was best about the fight. "Silence please. Thank you. What you saw were some of their personal spells that they have shortened to two words instead of a full incantation. I must warn you though that only the most talented mages can achieve such a thing. Majority of mages use full incantations and some that struggle to control their power use hand signs."

"These are available to all mages to use as a crutch for learning, but this school doesn't use them as we don't want students to become dependant on them and then not reach their full potential, instead we train students as much as we can and if they still struggle in their final three years then we will allow the use of hand signs but under regulation, so they don't become dependent."

"Magic is about feeling the flow of mana through your body and into your surroundings. That is why we don't use hand signs as they limit the flow of magic into a set point and not into your full surroundings. Again, great question and if anyone has one please ask. We are all here to learn so do not hesitate." The professor inwardly sighed and thought, 'Although most students may not ask questions because they don't want to sound stupid compared to that young lady.'