"Caster and Infuser? What are they?" Adrian asked.
Sir Joran raised his palm in front of him, as if to demonstrate something. Bluish translucent energy began gathering in his palm. The energy twisted unnaturally before solidifying into greyish-black metal.
That metal slowly took the shape of a small knife. Sir Joran casually waved the knife in front of him.
Then, as he gripped the knife, the energy gathered again — this time coating the blade. It formed an aura that resembled the blade's shape, but larger.
Adrian could even feel a certain sharpness from that aura, making the hair on his skin stand up slightly.
Sir Joran swung the knife towards the ground, and a small yet deep cut formed on the grassy ground, exposing the brown soil underneath.
The cut was far deeper than a small knife should have been able to make.
Sir Joran tossed the knife to the side. As the knife left his hand, it turned into bluish energy and disappeared.
Adrian observed without reacting.
Sir Joran spoke with his usual casual smile.
"As you saw, I first created the knife out of thin air, then I coated its blade with mana, which increased the knife's lethality. That is essentially what Casters and Infusers do."
"Casters can create magical phenomena using mana through magical formulas called spells. Creating a knife out of nothing should be a good example. Infusers use mana directly as physical energy through techniques called infusion arts. They increase the lethality of their physical bodies and weapons instead of creating new phenomena out of nothing."
He looked at Adrian, and their eyes met.
"While both require a significant amount of effort, a caster's abilities depend on the mind, while an Infuser's depend on mastery of the body. Tell me, Young Master Adrian, which path will you choose?"
Adrian leaned back slightly, pondering.
'So it's basically a choice between a warrior and a mage, huh?'
He had played many RPG games and had plenty of experience with such choices. Most of the time, he played as a warrior since mages were heavily dependent on the support of teammates, while he was a solo player.
'Still, I don't think it's wise to apply game logic to this situation.'
If he were to choose the one based on his own capabilities, then it would be…
'Caster, since my greatest advantage as a reincarnate is that I'm far smarter than those my age.'
And according to Sir Joran, a caster's abilities depended on their mind, which was why it was the best choice for Adrian.
That didn't mean he was physically weak; he had decent physical ability back on Earth. It was just that he didn't have the same kind of advantage as he had with his intelligence, since his body was like that of any normal child.
After thinking for a bit more, Adrian made up his mind and answered.
"I believe becoming a Caster would suit me best, since I'm often praised for my intelligence. I believe that it is the best choice."
Sir Joran's smile froze, then slowly shifted into an awkward smile instead as his lips kept twitching.
"Young Master Adrian, are you completely sure… of that choice?"
Seeing Joran's awkward expression made Adrian uneasy. He felt as though he had overlooked something.
But after thinking again for a few moments, he replied.
"Yes, I'm certain."
'This could be a test — to see if I change my answer due to doubt.'
Sir Joran's expression turned more awkward.
"Young master Adrian, I don't think becoming a caster is the right choice for you…"
'Did I overlook something after all?'
But he couldn't think of any reason why he should choose to be an Infuser instead of a Caster. Yet Joran seemed certain, so there had to be a reason for his words.
Still in doubt, Adrian calmly asked.
"Is there something I'm not aware of?"
Hearing that question, Sir Joran's face became filled with reluctance. After remaining silent for a few moments, Sir Joran let out a sigh of defeat as he spoke.
"Young master Adrian, for anyone else in the same situation as you, choosing the path of a Caster would've been the correct choice. But not for you, I'm afraid."
Adrian gave him a questioning look. Sir Joran still tried not to explain any more, but gave in the end.
"You should've taken the elemental orb test around a year ago, so you must know that you possess the Space element, right?"
Indeed, he remembered doing something like that. By the end of it, his mother had briefly mentioned that he possessed the space element. But since he had no knowledge related to magic, he didn't think much about the topic.
'After all, I had more important things to worry about.'
"Yes, I do remember. How does it matter?"
"Every person has a fixed elemental affinity from birth," Sir Joran began explaining. "Using mana, one can manipulate the elements that make up the world. This is the basis for spells and infusion arts."
"There are six major elements, an unknown number of derived elements, and two special elements. The special elements include time and space."
Adrian tilted his head.
"Why are they special elements? On what basis?"
Even though space and time elements seemed like something grand and special, he wasn't convinced that was the reason they were called special.
"Well, think of major elements like a great whole, and the derived elements are a fragment of that great whole. Do you remember how I made a knife of greyish black metal? I could do that because I have a derived elemental affinity from the major element earth, it's an undiscovered metal which I call dark platinum."
He gestured with his hands while explaining.
"Major elements are elements that have elements derived from them, while derived elements are the ones derived from an element. But Space and time elements are the only exception to this logic. They neither have any elements derived from them nor are they proven to have been derived from another major element, which is why they are considered special."
"The easiest to find are derived elements; they are rather common. Next come the major elements, which are far rarer to find compared to derived elements. Last are the special elements, which are almost impossible to find. Young Master Adrian, you are one of the five individuals known to possess the space element in the entire world. And there is no person known to possess the time element."
'Oh, so that's why. It makes sense now.'
He had been treated like some sort of unrivaled genius by everyone around him. He had thought that it was because of his overly mature behavior, and that Phase One awakening. But it seems that this space element also had a hand in that.
Still, that didn't explain why he shouldn't choose Caster.
'He's terrible at explaining things.'
"Sir Joran, all I understood from that explanation is that I possess the Space element, which is rare. But it still doesn't explain why my choice to be a Caster was wrong."
The reluctance in Sir Joran's expression deepened. It felt as though he really didn't want to explain this part.
Yet he spoke despite his reluctance.
"Young Master Adrian, you understand that the Space element is extremely rare, right?"
Adrian nodded.
"Well… Since it's so rare, very few spells and infusion arts exist for this element. And most space element spells are related to teleportation. Until you reach a very high phase, you will have no attack ability. All you would be able to do is teleport."
Hearing that answer, Adrian froze.
It felt like he had been hit on the head with a hammer.
'So… this space element is more like a collar around my neck?'
It meant his greatest advantage as a reincarnate was now restricted by this space element. He had no choice but to be an infuser.
Slowly, he turned to Sir Joran and asked with gritted teeth.
"If I never had a choice to begin with, why ask me at all?"
Sir Joran smiled awkwardly.
"If I hadn't, and told you from the start, it would've demotivated you greatly. I didn't want that. And most noble children are infatuated with knights and swordsmen, so they mostly choose to be Infusers. I had hoped the same from you. And if you had, then I could've just skipped this information for later."
For a moment, frustration flared inside Adrian, as if termites were crawling through his skin. It made him want to do something, yet he didn't know what.
But slowly, the frustration faded, and his mood returned to normal.
'It doesn't matter. After all, it's not like I'm doing this because I want to.'
Maybe… hearing everyone call him a genius had actually gotten to his head. He may have unconsciously begun believing that he really was some sort of genius.
If so, then Adrian was thankful for this reality check. He never wanted to repeat those past mistakes again.
'Never forget, you are special because you are a reincarnate. Because you are a man in the body of a child, there is nothing else that's special about you.'
When he spoke, his voice was neutral. It contained no trace of frustration from before. If anything, it felt completely devoid of emotion.
"I understand. Please continue your teaching."
Sir Joran took a book from his coat. Flipping through its pages, he tossed a wooden sword lying on the ground to Adrian.
Gesturing him to observe, Sir Joran raised one hand and released mana from it, then swung it down in one clean motion.
"You saw that, correct? Try using the wooden sword to replicate the move I performed just now."
Adrian observed him silently, then sighed and picked up the wooden sword.
'Let's do this, I suppose.'
***
As Joran watched Adrian swing the wooden sword with his tiny hands, a thought crossed his mind.
'What a monster… I hope there aren't other children like him in this world.'
It wasn't because of his unusual behavior, not even because of his intelligence. The reason was something the boy himself likely had no idea about.
Joran observed Adrian, but what appeared in his eyes was not a tiny five-year-old child. Adrian's small frame was enveloped in a dense, massive bluish aura, rising to even Joran's own height.
This was the boy's presence. And it was so absurdly massive that one could hardly believe this presence belonged to a small child. It almost seemed like an adult's presence.
From the moment Joran was told to teach Adrian, he had been skeptical and reluctant, even questioning whether this was really the correct decision.
The boy had titles like the greatest genius of the era, the unparalleled prodigy of House Ravenshade. Joran remained skeptical.
Rumors were common in noble society. These titles could've just been exaggeration. Besides, what could a five-year-old child learn even if they were a genius?
But the moment Joran laid eyes on the boy, he understood.
'The rumors don't do him justice.'
The boy was special, too special. He couldn't be considered a mere genius.