[Dismantle.]
I tapped the cuffs around my ankles, and they immediately broke apart into their individual components, neatly separating into the pieces that originally formed the restraints.
So, my earlier theory was correct. Intent combined with action and mana is all that's needed for magic to work!
Satisfied, I placed the dismantled parts side by side before turning my attention to the cuffs around my wrists. Using the fingers of my opposite hands, I tapped each cuff, and they disassembled in the same orderly manner.
I grouped the similar pieces together on the ground and began to think.
Projection… perhaps I could change the shape of these objects? Wait, no, that would fall under transfiguration. Maybe I could trace the chains and then create magical chains and cuffs! The only issue is that such a projection wouldn't be permanent. I grabbed one of the chains on the ground and held it firmly.
[Trace.]
Mana surged from my body as the spell activated, instantly providing me with all the information I needed about the chains. Surprisingly, unlike the last time I accidentally used this spell, I had much more control and far less of a headache managing it! Then again, the chains were only 1.5 meters in length and 1.7 meters in width—far more manageable than when the spell had tried to expand across the entire earth around that lake. That disaster wasn't something I wanted to repeat anytime soon!
25% high-carbon steel, 10% nickel and tungsten, with the remaining materials unknown. Must be materials unique to this world, I guess. I mean, it would make sense that I can recognize materials from my last world but not these other ones. Although, to be fair, I don't know every single material out there, so who knows.
"What are you doing?! Actually, how did you do that?!" Selene's voice sounded strange almost incredulous but I couldn't understand why. 'Couldn't she remove the cuffs herself? Our mana was fine, after all.'
"Uh, taking the cuffs off? My question to all three of you is why you haven't done so yet." I looked at them questioningly. 'Here I thought they liked being chained up… okay, just kidding, but seriously, why hadn't they removed their own shackles?'
"Cause we can't, obviously! You think we love being chained up?" Selene responded matter-of-factly. I turned my attention away awkwardly, not wanting to get into all that.
After a few seconds passed, I turned back to face her. With the dim lighting in this place, it was hard to make out every detail of them, but that didn't really matter.
"Why can't you? My mana works just fine," I asked.
"Yeah, ours works fine too, but that isn't the issue. These chains block the realization of magic!" Selene answered immediately.
"The realization of magic?" I was genuinely confused, and Selene and the others didn't seem to believe me.
"You can't be serious! Don't tell me your family also has different magic knowledge?!" Selene was practically yelling. Where did this girl get all her energy? Even while chained up, she was relentless.
"Well, I guess we do? My understanding is that you need an action, intent, and mana to utilize spells and magic. Of course, an understanding of the elements you wish to use helps." I explained hesitantly, feeling out of my depth. This was information I'd barely tested for a day before getting captured!
"Okay, I'll explain how we do it, and then you tell us what's different, okay?"
"Selene… I don't- hah~ fine." I sighed. How was I supposed to explain anything when I wasn't even a beginner in magic?
"Magic normally works in four steps: Reservoir, Attunement, Blueprint, and Manifestation.
First, you draw mana from your pool—that's the Reservoir step. Then, you align that mana with your natural element or specialty in the Attunement stage. After that, you give it shape and intent during the Blueprint phase. Finally, in Manifestation, you release the magic into reality. Miss one step, and the whole thing falls apart!"
I nodded, listening carefully. As she explained, I corrected the process in my mind based on my own experience. The only thing I'd remove was the Attunement stage. Since I had True Creation Magic and Creation mana, my intent seemed to handle the alignment automatically.
Attunement and Blueprint should be fused in my utilization then.
The only unclear part was the Manifestation stage. It sounded similar to how I executed magic, but maybe I was missing something. Maybe it's the method of execution? I wondered.
"Selene, in the Manifestation stage, how does the execution take place?" I asked, curiosity evident in my voice. This little conversation was already improving my understanding of magic!
"Uh, you channel mana throughout your body to the designated point of release and, well… release it?" Selene sounded unsure herself, which made sense. She was about my age, so she likely didn't know everything about magic either. Her understanding was probably a result of her upbringing.
"I see. If I had to say what's different about how you use magic compared to me, it's two things: the Attunement part and the Manifestation part. Like I said earlier, I can do anything with mana, so I don't need to tune it to any element. As for Manifestation, I'd say the whole process is different, but I can't confirm anything with what I know right now."
"Unreal…" Selene's gaze shifted to one of astonishment. This time, I understood why. The information she shared had shed a lot of light on the nature of magic.
I shook my head and walked over to her, ignoring the look in her eyes. Due to the small size of the cell, it only took a few seconds to reach her. Still, with the poor lighting, I could only make out her clothes, hair, and glowing eyes. Everything else was concealed in the darkness.
"W-What are you doing?!" she stammered, trying to back away in fear, leaving me speechless for a moment.
"Freeing you? I thought you didn't like being chained up."
"Here you go!" Her attitude shifted instantly. She was suddenly as close as she could get to me, close enough that I could hear her breathing and even smell her breath. She was really excited to get rid of those shackles, and honestly, I couldn't blame her.
I tapped the cuffs on her ankles and wrists, activating [Dismantle], which broke them apart into their individual components.
Guess I'll go and releas—GUAH!?
"THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU! I was starting to get so soreeeee!" she cried out, hugging me. For the first time, I realized the physical strength difference between True Dragons and High-Humans… it feels like I'm being crushed by a building!
"S-Selene, while I don't mind being hugged by a girl-especially one who's probably beautiful-I would like not to die!" I shouted for the first time in this life. She really needed to let me go!
"O-Oh, I-I see…" She slowly released me and looked at the ground, but she didn't seem upset. Not that it mattered; at least I was alive!
I moved over to the other two and freed them in the same way, which made me think.
If I can use [Dismantle] to separate things, which seems like a fusion of projection and transfiguration, then I should be able to do the opposite, right?
With this thought in mind, I picked up all the separated cuffs and chains along with other small parts from the original shackles. The other three huddled together, having their own conversations, but I didn't really care about any of that. I went back to my original sitting position and neatly arranged all the parts together.
I remember Izanami saying that my body needed to be strong enough to handle my powers. With [Dismantle], there's no strain, but with [Trace], there is. So I should prepare for creating or altering an object to be painful! Of course, I could be exaggerating, and this won't hurt at all.
I picked up the cuff parts of the shackles and closed my eyes, activating [Trace] once more to refresh my memory and warm up my body. Similar information to the chains appeared in my mind, along with details of different materials I didn't recognize, and a slight pain began assaulting my mind.
With this information now in my mind, I began to think of what I could try to do with my abilities.
I could probably create a spear or sword easily in terms of weapons. I'm not familiar with other types of weapons since I didn't care much for them in the past, but fortunately, I had a strong affinity for swords and spears in my previous life. Setting aside weapons, I could also create items like needles or utensils such as knives. Then again, anything can be used as a weapon, so maybe separating them into weapons and non-weapons feels a bit arbitrary.
The cuffs still in hand, I tried changing them into the visions in my mind.
[Transform], Nothing.
[Change], Still nothing.
[Figuration], Tch! Still nothing.'
[Construct], Swoosh~
GOT IT! Nothing particular happened when I thought of [Construct], but my mana swirled, and I felt it move into the cuffs!
I tried repeating the same process a few different times, with the same result. However, I thought about my word choice and the intent behind it. Construct didn't seem fitting for what I was trying to achieve. Maybe that was the reason nothing was changing or taking form. Then, like a lightning strike, a word entered my mind.
[Sculpt]!
Ding~
A ringing sound resonated in my mind, and I could feel the cuffs transform and change into an unsharpened blade. It lacked a hilt and other components, but whatever it was progress. I couldn't make out its color in the dim light, but that didn't matter right now.
Holding the unsharpened blade, I felt a little excited in practicing this magic. My thoughts turned to the remaining chains and loose pieces.
'Perhaps...' With a new idea forming, I grabbed two of the chains and envisioned the base of a partisan spear. As I activated [Sculpt] again, the pieces began to shift and transform to match my vision.
The image in my mind was the base model for a spear—a partisan spear, to be exact. However, this model lacked the materials to make it more solid, as it was currently equivalent to paper.
I grabbed the unsharpened blade model in one hand while holding the spear model in the other and used [Trace] on both. Obviously, the materials were the same as their original counterparts, but that wasn't what I was focusing on.
The blade has more inconsistencies than the spear. Makes sense, as a blade is typically more complicated than this type of spear.
A partisan spear is a type of polearm that consists of a spearhead mounted on a long shaft—or at least that's what I remembered. However, I extended the blade portion a little bit beyond two feet to about 2.4 feet, and I ensured the shaft would be durable and as light as possible. The only issue? I wasn't a blacksmith or forger by any means, so I probably messed up somewhere. I was relying on general knowledge rather than experience to create these items!
'Time to put these two parts together! [Sculpt]!'
I could instantly feel the blade in my right hand morph and the spear model in my left grow heavier. The spear became more durable. I could truly feel it! The length of the shaft increased by a few inches beyond what I'd intended, but that was inconsequential. The blade, or head of the spear, shortened from 2.4 feet to 2.2 feet, but again, I didn't really care. Whatever adjustments were needed to make it functional seemed to be happening automatically.
Strange that these aspects are changing without me willing them to. However, I don't know everything about my abilities yet, so maybe I'll understand later! I noted my thoughts internally and focused back on my magic.
In a few minutes, the whole process was finished. I held a fully functional (though untested) spear in my hands. I realized I could sense its internal design even though I couldn't physically see it, a strange sensation. This made me realize I didn't need to see what I created or altered, as the information was already in my mind from the processes and changes.