"Are you alright?" he asked, his voice calm as Amanda looked at him.
"I am better than before," she replied, standing up and examining herself. "I feel new," she added, clenching and unclenching her hands.
"Good," he said, pleased with her progress. "Now don't rest on your laurels," he continued, "you still have to master the next breathing art." He paused, watching her closely. "It's called Aqua Flame Breathing, its perfect for you who has talent in Fire and Water Magic"
His legacy of Twilight has many breathing techniques, and he has selected the best one—Twilight Breathing, for himself. As for the others arts in it, he has decided to share them, but only with his loyal followers.
" thank you Master" she said, as he then began to explain to her about the difference between non awakened as well as awakened mages, In simple terms it is fake mage and true Mage.
After a moment, he asked, "Any doubts?"
"No, master," she replied.
Michael nodded. "Let's go then," he said, and began to head toward Lutia to meet Lith.
He just wanted to befriend him, to learn about Solus and how to craft his own magic tower. Having a magic tower meant having infinite mana, something he definitely wanted.
***
While on the other side, Lith was having a mental breakdown. After receiving the magic book, he wasted no time. As soon as he returned home, he began studying it, but...
Lith sat cross-legged in the study, the spellbook open in front of him, his brow furrowed in frustration. "What the fcking fck is this?" he muttered, flipping another page with unnecessary force.
"Is this how a spellbook is supposed to look?" he continued, his voice rising in exasperation.
Inside his mind, Solus's voice chimed in, just as frustrated. "By my core, what is this cr*p?"
Lith blinked, startled. "Did you just curse?"
"For the first time in my existence, yes. This book deserves it," Solus shot back.
Lith leaned back in his chair, running a hand through his hair. "I expected something groundbreaking—directions to manipulate mana, ways to connect with the world energy, something to make me stronger. Instead, I get... this?" He jabbed a finger at the book. "It's just a collection of weak ass spells. And not even good ones! 'Blasting Sphere' is just a lame Fireball. 'Piercing Ice'? It's worse than my Ice Spears!"
Solus was silent for a moment, then said, "Let's go over this again. Maybe we missed something."
Lith sighed but complied, skimming through the foreword. His irritation only grew. "This isn't written by a Magus. It's just a dumbed-down guide. Look at this nonsense—hand signs, syllables for proper pronunciation. It's like a kid's guide to magic. And nothing about silent casting!"
"Silent casting doesn't exist in this book," Solus muttered. "And maybe… maybe there's a reason for that."
Lith's fingers stopped flipping the pages. "What do you mean?"
"I mean..." Solus hesitated, her voice unusually cautious. "What if the way you cast magic isn't normal? What if the world doesn't even know about it?"
Lith stared at the book, her words sinking in. "Are you saying I'm special?" he asked, half-joking but unable to hide the glimmer of Pride in his voice.
"Not exactly." Solus's tone was dry. "You're not a 'chosen one,' Lith. But you might be different. Like Lochra Silverwing and other Magi(Magus) from history."
Magi*Female/Magus*Male
Lith straightened, intrigued. "What do you mean? What made them special?"
"They didn't follow the rules of conventional magic. They didn't need spells or hand signs," Solus explained. "If I'm right, they used what I'd call true magic."
Lith leaned forward, his curiosity piqued. "True magic? What's that supposed to be?"
"I'm not entirely sure yet," Solus admitted. "But if my hypothesis is correct, it's a way of using magic that bypasses all the inefficiencies of the standard methods. No hand signs. No chanting. Just pure will and mana control."
Lith's mind raced. "You're saying that the stuff taught to everyone—this spellbook nonsense—is fake magic?"
"Not fake, just… limited," Solus clarified. "It's a crutch. A system designed to make magic accessible to everyone, but it sacrifices efficiency and potential."
Lith sat back, stunned. "And I've been using this 'true magic' all along without realizing it?"
"Possibly," Solus said. "But I need to confirm it. We need to test this theory."
Lith nodded slowly. "What do you need?"
"Two things. First, books about the history of magic. The more detailed, the better. Second, a place to experiment. If we're right, you'll feel the difference between fake and true magic once we test it."
Lith stood abruptly, closing the book with a thud. "Fine. I'll talk to Nana. Maybe she has something useful."
After a brief conversation with Nana, Lith returned to his study with a history book. Hours later, as he skimmed through the text, Solus's voice interrupted his thoughts.
"Wait. Go back a page."
Lith flipped back, his eyes scanning the words. "This part?"
"Yes. Look at the timeline," Solus urged.
Lith read carefully, noticing a pattern. "Most Magi were considered mediocre early in life," he muttered. "Then, out of nowhere, their power skyrocketed."
"Exactly," Solus said. "It usually happened in their thirties or forties—long after people had given up on them."
Lith frowned. "The book blames it on myths or divine intervention. Magic amulets, gods of magic, that sort of thing."
"Or," Solus interjected, "they discovered true magic. Just like you."
Lith closed the book, his thoughts racing. "If you're right, this changes everything."
Solus's voice was firm. "It does. Now, let's go test it."
In the secluded glade deep in the Trawn woods, Lith stood with his grimoire. The tier-one spell "Piercing Ice" lay open before him. Solus spoke gently.
"Let's start simple. Memorize the steps for fake magic, and then we'll compare it to your natural casting."
Lith groaned as he began mimicking the elaborate hand signs and chanting the awkward magic words. "This is ridiculous," he muttered, drawing a mirrored seven in the air with his hands.
"Focus," Solus chided. "The faster you learn this, the sooner we can prove my theory."
Lith sighed, repeating the steps. As the shard of ice finally formed and shot forward, he shook his head in disgust.
"This is so clunky. It's slow and wastes energy."
"Exactly," Solus said. "Now, cast your Ice Spears the way you normally do."
Lith complied, summoning his spell with a thought. The ice spears formed instantly, sharper and more refined than the fake magic version.
"That's the difference," Solus said triumphantly. "True magic flows naturally, without the constraints of fake magic. Do you feel it?"
Lith nodded, a grin spreading across his face. "I do. This changes everything."
*******
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