Due to the side quest, Li Xiang initially planned to focus on learning detection magic. However, after some thought, he decided to explore other spells as well.
After spending over an hour poring over the book, Li Xiang closed it and approached the reading room's supervisor. "Excuse me, can I borrow this book?"
The young woman with long black hair glanced at the book's title. "Yes, you can borrow it. Are you a student of the Modern Magecraft Department or another department?"
"Modern Magecraft."
She opened an old, somewhat outdated computer—an electronic device that Li Xiang hadn't seen much of since arriving at the Clock Tower. The sight was almost nostalgic.
"Your name?"
"Li Xiang."
The young woman typed his name and the book's title into the computer. "Is this your first time borrowing a book?"
"Yes."
She pulled a library card from the drawer of her desk and handed it to Li Xiang. "This is your library card. As a regular student, you can borrow up to ten books per month, each for a maximum of two weeks. If you fail to return a book on time, your credits will be deducted."
Ah, credits again.
Li Xiang recalled the Modern Magecraft Department's grading system. It operated on a ten-point scale, with five courses per semester, amounting to fifty points in total.
Though a score of six was considered passing, theoretically requiring only thirty points to pass the semester, final rankings would be based on total credits. Side Quest 3 required him to rank in the top three in the theoretical exam.
Thus, credits were crucial for him, as they related directly to the clues for the Holy Relic.
Li Xiang accepted the library card, took the book, and left the library.
He headed to the cafeteria to eat, then hurried over to the Department of General Fundamentals.
At exactly eight o'clock, Li Xiang entered the classroom just as the Clock Tower's bells finished tolling. The teacher was already standing at the podium, so Li Xiang quickly found an empty seat and sat down.
The teacher didn't say anything; he was used to students rushing in during the middle of class.
"Today's lesson is on Magical Foundations and Systems."
Li Xiang took out his textbook and sat attentively.
He had just settled on his magical system that morning, and it seemed fitting that the afternoon's class was directly related to it.
Magical Foundations refer to the pre-existing system inscribed upon the world, allowing magecraft to be performed using academic or religious forms.
From Li Xiang's understanding, Magical Foundations were like the laws of nature—just as apples fall due to gravity, magecraft could be performed because the world had these pre-existing laws, known as Magical Foundations.
Modern magecraft's foundation was the Western Foundation, established through academic principles.
The mage's Magic Circuits connect with the large-scale magic circle of the Magical Foundation, allowing the spell to be cast.
Magical Systems, on the other hand, are the branches that extend from the foundation, like the twelve departments of the Clock Tower, each representing a major magical tradition stemming from the Western Foundation.
After class, Li Xiang saw Flynn, who seemed to be in a much better mood compared to the previous day.
"Hey, Li Xiang, want to grab a meal together?" Flynn waved at him.
"Why are you so cheerful today? Did a pretty girl confess to you or something?"
"No, nothing like that. It's just that I didn't have any nightmares last night, so I finally got a good night's sleep."
Li Xiang sighed. Great, you're fine now.
After having lunch with Flynn, Li Xiang headed to the Magic Square.
It was around noon, and the square was mostly empty, with only a few people milling about.
The Magic Square was a place the Clock Tower provided for students to practice magecraft. There were also dedicated labs and research buildings, but since Li Xiang only needed to practice basic one-syllable spells, and didn't have the money to rent a space, the square sufficed.
"Detect!"
Li Xiang quickly chanted the spell. A faint mist rose from his Magic Circuits, hovering in the air before him.
He closed his eyes, visualizing the ghost's face.
The mist began to shift, resembling a smooth mirror that slowly formed the ghost's visage.
But then, ripples appeared, distorting the mist.
"Failed."
Li Xiang frowned. Detection magic wasn't what he had initially thought. He had assumed it would require a medium related to the target, such as scent or a personal item. To this end, he had kept his dorm room in its original state.
But this detection magic was more straightforward—almost brutishly so. All that was needed was information about the target, such as their appearance, residence, or acquaintances. The more detailed the information, the easier it was to detect them.
Of course, the final success rate also depended on the target's distance and magical resistance.
Li Xiang tried to track the ghost's current location by recalling its appearance, but the attempt failed.
"It's the way my Magic Circuits are operating," Li Xiang quickly identified the culprit. Unlike the Yin Qi Bullet, detection magic wasn't knowledge imbued by the system. It was his first time running the magic himself, and the speed and amount of magical energy were off.
However, he was relieved to see the system log.
---
Detection Magic (5/100)
---
In other words, after about twenty attempts, he should be able to master the spell.
Li Xiang activated his Magic Circuits again.
After trying the spell a dozen more times, Li Xiang felt lightheaded, his body utterly drained of energy.
He collapsed onto the grass, wiping the sweat from his brow with the back of his hand.
"Overexerted myself without realizing it. This is miserable—I'll have to be more careful next time."
Li Xiang's face had paled significantly, and his right arm felt as though it were screaming in pain.
In essence, Magic Circuits are like any other organ. Overworking them naturally leads to this kind of reaction. It felt like the time in school when he had to suddenly participate in a ten-thousand-meter run without any prior training—afterward, his entire body had felt like it didn't belong to him anymore.
Still, the results were encouraging. His progress with detection magic had reached 85.
After resting for about fifteen minutes, Li Xiang left the Magic Square.
Pushing himself any further would be asking for trouble.
Casting spells consumes life force to generate magical energy.
For ordinary practice, it shouldn't cost him his life force.
To recover magical energy, there were generally two methods. One was using magical tools that contained stored magical energy, like Rin Tohsaka's jewel pendant, which held ten years' worth of magical energy—enough to bring someone back from the brink of death. Rin used it to save Shirou Emiya's life, and it became the catalyst for summoning Archer. The other method was meditation, absorbing external magical energy to slowly recover.
Of course, there was also the rare option of "magic replenishment," where magical energy is transferred through physical contact.
Fortunately, as an Apprentice-level magus, Li Xiang only needed a night's rest to fully recover.
Plus, tomorrow was Saturday, giving him more time to practice other one-syllable spells.
Judging by his brief encounter with the ghost, Li Xiang was at a disadvantage, largely because he only knew one spell.
In a battle between magi of the same level, there's no doubt that the one who has mastered more spells has the upper hand.
The afternoon class was on The Origins and Development of Chaos Magic, taught by none other than Waver Velvet.
In fact, as one of the Twelve Lords, Waver's rank might not be the highest, but his status at the Clock Tower was undeniably at the top. The only reason he was still teaching was because he was broke and couldn't afford to hire other lecturers.
It had to be said that Waver's kindness was a weakness. Without his foster sister, Reines El-Melloi Archisorte, he would have been devoured by the old sharks of the Clock Tower long ago.
Even though it was Reines who put him in this predicament in the first place.