"Breadfruit juice is notoriously difficult to squeeze, making it a real challenge for the younger witches in the lower grades to even think about turning it into juice," Sylph explained, her brow furrowing in thought. "But if they had a juicer, it might just be possible to experiment with the most accessible breadfruit they can find."
Lyra nodded, a spark of determination in her eyes. "If I could get my hands on a juicer, I'd be the first to try it out with breadfruit!"
Lyra's enthusiasm didn't go unnoticed. "Dean," she said, turning to their headmistress, "is it okay if I sell the juicer card to the younger witches?"
A puzzled silence filled the air, and Lilith, Vasida, and Sylph exchanged glances, bewildered.
Before anyone could respond, Ms. Amisha, who had been eavesdropping nearby, interjected firmly, "No!"
Lyra shrugged, her expression lightening. "Alright then! I guess I'll just have to hunt down some senior sisters in grades four and five to sell it to. I need to recoup my costs somehow!"
Lilith raised an eyebrow, intrigued. "Lyra, is this how you usually approach the dean?"
This was the first time Lilith had witnessed such boldness from a younger witch.
Lyra smirked. "The dean is always watching us, so why not ask her directly? She might not answer everything, but asking won't hurt!"
The other witches nodded in agreement, murmuring, "I've learned something new!"
Lyra leaned in conspiratorially. "You know, I have this wild theory: I think there's a hidden chamber in the academy where one hundred and forty-eight Ms. Amisha clones are lurking. Each one is keeping a watchful eye on the little witches to prevent any accidents. I mean, how else do you explain the dean's timely appearances?"
"Really?" Sylph's ears perked up, her interest piqued. "One hundred and forty-eight Ms. Amishas?"
"That sounds ridiculous!" Lilith scoffed, shaking her head. "What kind of magic could create that many clones? And how could they possibly be maintained?"
Vasida, ever the logical thinker, chimed in, "Is that even true? Why not just ask the dean?"
"Good idea!" she exclaimed. "Dean, is it true? Do you really have 148 clones?"
An awkward silence enveloped the group.
Lyra smirked, "See! I told you, the dean isn't going to answer everything. That's why we have our suspicions!"
"Alright, alright, let's drop the subject of the dean for now," Lilith said, nervous that they might draw the headmistress's ire.
"Anyway, Lyra," she continued, changing the topic, "why are you investing so much into researching a card that seems easily replaceable? You could explore other options."
Lyra frowned, considering Lilith's words. "What do you mean?"
"I think your automatic juicer card has great energy storage potential. Instead of focusing solely on the juicer, why not develop a card specifically for energy storage? You could charge it with extra magic and access it whenever you need it."
Lyra's eyes lit up with understanding. "That's brilliant!"
She recalled having a purple gemstone in her Book of Cards designed for energy storage but hadn't thought about making a dedicated card. The juicer card was unlikely to be a hit among the younger witches.
"Right now, we're spending more than we earn. If we could break even eventually, that would be a win. But a card that stores magic power? Now that's different! Not every witch has enough mana to explore their talents fully. If they could save their extra energy, they'd have more purchasing power when it comes to buying cards!"
Lyra's mind raced with possibilities. "If I can make that work, I could actually earn more!"
Lilith, noticing Lyra's deep concentration, winked at Vasida and Sylph. "You keep at it, Lyra! We'll be waiting for your good news!"
"Yeah! Good luck!" they chorused as they headed for the door.
Once alone, Lyra sat in silence, excitement bubbling inside her. She had so many ideas to flesh out, including the space cards she still hadn't designed. This was just the beginning.
Lyra took a deep breath, determined to learn from her past mistakes. "Dean," she ventured, "can I sell the storage space cards?"
The dean shook her head firmly. "Not until you reach fourth grade!"
Lyra's shoulders slumped. She had hoped for a different answer, but she understood. The space cards were tied to specific magical abilities that younger witches needed to master first. With a sigh, she shifted her focus. "Alright, I'll concentrate on developing the energy storage card instead."
If she could build up enough magical power, creating a space card for her own use would eventually be within reach.
"A card that stores magic power... it needs to store and retrieve energy effectively," she mused, her mind racing. "But not every little witch is the same. It should also convert magic power into other forms of energy."
As she began sketching out her ideas, the possibilities excited her.
Card Design: Energy Storage Card
- Estimated Consumption: Unlimited mana
- Expected Appearance: Template 1
- Expected Function: Users can convert their own energy into magic power, store it, and later convert the stored magic into any energy type for absorption. Maximum capacity: 10 mana.
Lyra's brow furrowed as she read the estimated consumption. "Wait, why does it say unlimited mana again? What's gone wrong?"
With only a maximum of 10 mana in storage, this didn't make sense. She inserted the card design into the card slot, her curiosity piqued.
Current Difficulty 1: Card-making energy is critically low. Recommended actions: replenish card-making energy, reduce expected functions, or set a function cap.
Current Difficulty 2: Lacks knowledge on how to absorb ownerless energy. Recommended: supplement knowledge.
Lyra felt a wave of realization wash over her. Of course! Even the magic she charged into the purple gemstone in her card book couldn't be directly absorbed back for personal use; it was solely for card creation.
She remembered the Golden Pen Technique Contract, which allowed her to transform others' magic into her own. But that was a right granted to her by the contracted witch Carmella; it wasn't an inherent ability. So, she couldn't replicate that effect when designing her cards.
"At this point, I can only create energy storage cards that store magic power but can't be used directly by witches," she concluded, frowning. "But how can little witches keep up with so many cards to consume?"
Perhaps in the future, as she developed a wider variety of cards, those special energy storage cards would become valuable. But if they didn't hold much significance now, they wouldn't sell well and that would be a loss.
Holding onto a glimmer of hope, she adjusted her design. "Instead of saying the magic power can be absorbed, I'll change it to: 'The magic power in the card can be converted into energy for casting spells.'"
After a moment of anticipation, the feedback still showed insufficient energy and a lack of knowledge for casting spells with stored energy.
Realization hit her hard: "If I don't know any magic or understand magical concepts, how can I create magical cards with any effects?"
Even for space cards, she could only use the card book to design them, but without knowledge of space magic, she wouldn't be able to create effective storage space cards!
Her thoughts swirled as she recalled her earlier attempts at designing a simple storage card. The results matched her expectations perfectly, it was a reminder of the limitations she faced.
Lyra sat back, a mixture of determination and frustration coursing through her. She had a long way to go, but she was ready to learn and grow.