In the eight years since was reincarnated into this strange fantasy-like world, I've been able to familiarize myself with its customs and common knowledge through various books my parents have collected over the years.
First Arathen, the name of the continent I was born in which is two times bigger than any continent back in my world, is split into five regions and in those regions, there are four dominant races, Humans, Elves, Dwarves and Monster beasts.
Lisen the Elven kingdom, a very proud and reclusive race. Because of their bodies' special constitution, they possess immense mama sensitivity and life spans much longer than any humans and were once known as the most powerful race on this continent.
Two hundred years ago they started a war with humans and lost! So as of today after losing most of their lands to humans they have made the deepest parts of the Erden forest spanning from the northern to the eastern part of the continent their home.
Midea, the Human kingdom which occupies the entire central region of the continent and is the most developed as well as being the most populated of the three with an excess of ten million people living within its borders.
The land of the dwarves, Burav. An isolated race of talented blacksmiths who have created some of the most powerful weapons and durable shields and armour that are used by all the races on this continent. They reside within the Tifera mountain range in the west which is known for its concentration of rare minerals and metal ores.
And finally the beast glades, a massive expanse of land comparable to the human territory located in the south where some of the rarest and most powerful monster beasts reside.
Some who have ventured into the glades say that some monster beasts have become intelligent and developed a community, or so the rumours say.
[Ring]
"Good morning Mr Till"
"Oh hello there Elric, come in"
"When did you get a bell installed?"
"A few days ago, Mira said it would be a good aesthetic for the shop"
"Sounds like her, where is Mira? Did she not come to the shop with you today?"
"She went to the restaurant with her mother today, she said something about learning to cook"
Mira, Mr Till's only child and the closest thing I have to a friend in this world. But to be honest, she is more of a bully than a friend and I would rather not see that she-devil ever again if I had things my way.
"What brings you to my shop today?"
"Mom asked me to get everything on this list," He said handing him a piece of paper and a small bag.
"Alright, give me a minute"
Maybe u should ask him if he knows anything about magic, he probably doesn't but it won't hurt to try.
"Hey Mr Till, do you know anything about magic?"
"I can't say I do"
Like I thought, how could a person who knows about magic be living in a small town like this?
"But I have a book on it in the back a customer left you can read if you would like"
"That would be great!" he said, his eyes twinkling with excitement.
"Alright then Elric here you go, everything your mom asked for and the book"
"Thanks, Mr Till, I'll be on my way now"
"Be careful on your way back"
"I will"
[Ring]
I can't wait to get back and start reading this book. Maybe I'll even be able to learn magic.
[Click]
"I'm back mom"
"That was fast, I hope you got everything"
"I did mum don't worry," He said placing the bag on a table and hurrying away.
"Where are you off to in such a hurry?"
"To my room!"
"You're always in your room, why don't you go outside and play with other kids your age for once?"
"I'm fine mom, I just want to finish reading my book then I'll go play with them"
"Elric!"
That boy is so strange! Kids his age would be begging their parents to let them play outside, but all he wants to do is sit in his room and read all day.
[Click]
"Sorry mum, but I don't have time to play outside with a bunch of kids! There's so much I don't know! Especially about magic, which surprisingly exists in this world.
"I've read all the books we have on history, language and culture. All that is left now is the book Mr Till gave me, "Introduction to magic"
Magic is the manipulation of a fundamental building block of all things in this world called "Mana". It is present in all things from the air we breathe to the smallest spec of dirt under our feet and can be used in different ways, ranging from everyday tasks to being a weapon of war! Although found everywhere it is much more abundant within living beings, which is why the different races can manipulate it.
The ability to control mana is largely genetic, roughly one in every one hundred thousand people possess it and is even rarer in other races.
Mana can be used in different ways but the two most common and efficient ways are Conjuring and Enhancing
Enhancers use mana to strengthen their bodies allowing them to surpass their physical limits giving them almost inhuman strength, endurance and agility. This makes them experts in close-quarters combat.
Conjurers emit mana allowing them to bend the surrounding elements to their will. However, to do this they must supplement their mana with mana from nature to form a "spell".
A mage awakens naturally when all the mana within a person gathers and forms what is known as a mana circle located around the heart which is capable of either channelling or storing mana.
A person who awakens as an enhancer will be able to store mana within bodies while a conjurer channels the mana within them. Being able to both store and channel mana is impossible and unheard of, all who have attempted to do so have lost control of their mana and died!
"The more I learn about this world the more it all sounds like a story from a fantasy novel.
"Thinking about it practically if what this book says is common knowledge it is inefficient. Firstly if allowed to occur naturally a person wouldn't awaken as a mage until they are in their early teens, meaning one wouldn't start learning how to properly use their newfound powers until they are thirteen or fourteen.
Second, the mana is filtered by your mana circle and doing so reduces the purity and strength of the mana absorbed, in the process making it more difficult to efficiently absorb mana and extending training unnecessarily.
There has to be a way for a person to both store and channel mana as well as use unfiltered mana, but how?
[Creak]
"Eric dinner's ready and your father's back, why don't you take a break from your books and come down"
"Alright mom, I'll be there in a bit"
[Click]
I guess I won't be able to figure it out within a few minutes of just learning how magic works, I would have to be a never before seen genius to pull that off.