⌈The next stellar spell you will learn is Melting Body.⌋
The name felt strange. Melting Body? Was it going to melt my body or something?
"Don't tell me this spell is going to melt my body or do something messed up like that?"
⌈This kid, will you let me finish explaining? Stop interrupting this deity.⌋ Virgil shot me a glare and then continued. ⌈Melting Body is a body enhancing and defence type spell.⌋
"Oh, I'm listening." My curiosity was now properly piqued.
⌈The name is Melting Body but the spell does not melt your body. Instead it raises your body temperature and increases your resistance to physical attacks. By increasing your body temperature, you become capable of performing physical attacks that can melt through metal. Just imagine someone receiving a punch that burns their skin on contact. Wouldn't that be terrifying.⌋
"Now that is a solid all-rounder spell, it can block and attack at the same time. Say less, I couldn't ask for more." I nodded.
Virgil glanced at the molten chair and table and they reverted back to normal as if nothing had ever happened. He then tapped the table with his finger.
A white magic circle formed on the surface. It had zigzag lines running through it and small dots circling the entire design.
⌈Now get to work. This should come easier to you now. The incantation is:
"Oh stars of the cosmos, bless my body with your warmth, embrace me with it so that I can fight for you and so that I can defend for you. Turn me into a living star so that I can burn bright, because you are the one who lit up the darkness in the cosmos."
⌋
I listened carefully so I would not miss a single word. The incantation sounded more like a poem than a spell, which made me wonder how Virgil had come up with them in the first place.
I voiced the question. "How did you come up with these incantations? They sound more like poems."
⌈Oh, well, it is simply that my wisdom is so great that anything that comes from this deity's mouth could be considered divine poetry.⌋ Virgil gave a graceful bow, not to me obviously, but as if he were standing before a large audience. I clicked my tongue.
⌈Jokes aside, you could say the incantations are reflections of myself.⌋
Reflections of himself.
Did he mean that the incantations said something about the kind of being he was?
I did not really understand that. Why would an incantation reflect the person who created it?
Seeing my confused expression, Virgil waved his hand. ⌈You will understand once you reach the point where you need to create your very first spell.⌋
"Is that not something only mages of the highest circles can even attempt?"
I knew this well enough. Once a mage reached a deep enough understanding of magic, they could create their own spell. It was an incredibly difficult thing to do. Some mages locked themselves inside their towers for months, sometimes even years, just working toward it.
It was way too early for me to be thinking about that. But if someone asked me what kind of spell I would eventually create for myself?
A nuclear bomb.
Not invented by me, obviously. But bringing that concept into this world through magic was something I had been quietly looking forward to for a while.
A lot of people reincarnate and immediately get swept up chasing women from other races, friendships, money or luxury, completely forgetting what kind of knowledge they are actually sitting on. I could understand that if they were illiterate in their previous life, not everyone is dealt the same hand. But for me?
No. I would rather put that knowledge to actual use. For good and for my own benefit of course. I did not know everything about advanced technology on earth, but I knew enough to work with.
I suddenly pictured myself dropping a nuclear bomb on some arrogant noble's estate. One that had dared to disrespect the noble and glorious potato.
Nuke the whole generation. I thought, a slow and deeply satisfied smile spreading across my face.
Virgil was watching me with a frown. ⌈Kid, why are you smiling like that?⌋
"Me?" I pointed at myself. "A creep? Nah, you are just jealous of my smile."
⌈Keep dreaming.⌋ Virgil crossed his arms. ⌈Now get to work.⌋
"Aight."
I locked in and started studying the magic circle. I practiced drawing it on the board the same way as before, but this one felt a little easier than the first. I was making fewer mistakes, though there were still plenty.
I drew and drew through every failure until I had it down in less time than it had taken me with Heatwave.
Hours later I was standing in front of Virgil, who was sitting with his eyes closed.
"Are you sure I am not going to burn myself?" I asked, for what had to be the thirtieth time.
A vein appeared on Virgil's forehead and his frown deepened considerably.
He was clearly done with me.
⌈Kid, how many times do I have to say it? You will not burn yourself. It is your own energy, you idiot!⌋ Virgil opened his eyes with full fury.
I raised both hands. "Okay, okay, relax. I was just making sure. No need to lose it over a simple question."
Virgil stared at me with a look that said very clearly that if I opened my mouth one more time I would be incinerated on the spot.
I did not open my mouth one more time.
Phew.
Taking a slow breath, I got into my stance and started casting.
This time I wanted the magic circle to form behind my back since the spell was going to wrap around my whole body. And this time I was going to try casting faster. I wanted to start building my casting speed and the sooner I began practicing that the better. For that to work, I needed to push the speed of my visualization.
With that in mind, I began drawing the magic circle in my head as fast as I could while speaking the incantation out loud.
"Oh stars of the cosmos,"
The circle began forming behind me. The speed was decent.
"Bless my body with your warmth, embrace me with it so that I can fight for you and so that I can defend for you. Turn me into a living star so that I can burn bright, because you are the one who lit up the darkness in the cosmos."
I felt the power of the stars rushing through my body as I finished the last word.
"Melting Body."
The moment I said it, a bright white silver energy burst out from my body and wrapped around me completely. I felt the temperature of my body rising fast, deep down to my very core.
Then I felt my feet beginning to sink into the earth beneath me.
"Hmm, this won't do. I can't move around if I'm melting through the ground. And keeping it this strong is going to drain my reserves dry."
With a single thought I pulled back on the stellar energy I was feeding into the spell. The burst settled down until the energy was sitting tight against my body like a second skin, but I was still shining. The light flowed smoothly around me, moving like water.
What I did not notice at the time was that the spell had covered my clothes entirely as well. The only things visible were my grey eyes and my white hair, which had taken on a white silver glow of its own.
I took a step forward. My feet held.
"Good. Much better."
I did not notice when Virgil moved from his chair, but suddenly he was standing to my left, arm extended, holding a sword out toward me.
This guy is going to give me a heart attack one of these days. I thought, though I managed not to flinch.
⌈Here,⌋ Virgil said, completely unbothered. ⌈Hit the sword.⌋
I did not hesitate.
I pulled my arm back and drove my fist straight into the middle of the blade.
There was no clang.
Just the sound of my fist melting clean through the metal like it was nothing.
The sword split in two. The lower half hit the ground, the earth around it still glowing red from the heat of my punch.
"D-damn! This is insane!" I said, staring at my hands wrapped in white light.
⌈That is the attack side. Now for the defence...⌋
"Wait—"
My eyes went wide as I watched Virgil pull his arm back and drive his fist straight into my chest.
This bastard.
I tried to react but Virgil was far too fast.
His punch hit me like a moving vehicle and sent me flying several meters before I crashed hard into the ground.
"What was that for! I could have died!"
Virgil said nothing. He simply held up his fist.
It was slightly burned.
⌈Do you feel any pain?⌋
Ah.
I had been so focused on being furious that I had not noticed. I reached up and touched my chest right where he had hit me.
"You are right." I said slowly. "It doesn't hurt at all."
⌈As it should. I limited my strength to match your rank. Now you understand the value of this spell. However, it will not protect you against someone stronger than you. If something a rank above yours lands a full hit, you will die.⌋
I nodded and deactivated the spell. The stellar energy faded and the magic circle disappeared instantly.
Virgil took a single step and closed the distance between us in under a second.
Fast.
⌈Now that we are done with the stellar spells for the time being, let us move on to your other affinities. We will start with space.⌋
Before I could even feel excited about learning a new affinity, my vision shifted.
The garden was gone.
In its place was a dark, open, starry sky stretching endlessly in every direction.
I looked down and there was no ground.
My stomach dropped instantly.
And that was not even the most alarming part. I looked further out and I could not see Virgil's dimensional space anywhere.
That was when it hit me.
I was not inside it anymore. I was outside. In actual space.
"Fucking hell."