"I think it's now obvious who has passed this test and who hasn't," Instructor Seiya stated, eliciting a sigh from the students as their eyes shifted to Zane, Sergeant Rhode, and a few others. "However, don't be too happy yet. Previously, I was only using the lowest 0-ring Aura Spell and kept it at the lowest intensity. There is nothing to be proud about for resisting such a level of spell, and you should be more ashamed for being unable to do it."
Instructor Seiya's hawk eyes scanned everyone, causing many students to lower their heads. "Well, according to the tower's rules, I must reward some of you, no matter how useless I think you are. So, here it is:
"Sergeant Michael Rhode: 15 points.
"Zane Skylar: 13 points."
"Sarah Bennett 10 points.
"Keesha Jackson 10 points."
"Evelyn LeBlanc…"
Instructor Seiya finished reading the names, and without much of a break, he proceeded to the next step of today's training: "There are 275 spell dummies, one for each of you. Line up and cast an attack spell. Do not use a staff or any form of arcane focus, and don't stop casting until I say so."
Zane lined up more than ten meters from the target. Although his maximum spell distance was just over 15 meters, everyone stood behind the ten-meter line, and he didn't want to stand out; he had a suspicious feeling that Instructor Seiya didn't like him much. Without much fuss, he began casting his Magic Bullet Spell. Over the past few days of nonstop training, his aim had improved quite a bit, and he had no trouble hitting a stationary target.
"What the hell is this?" Instructor Seiya asked.
"M-My spell diagram."
"Why is it so crooked?"
"I'm sorry, but I can't draw."
"That's not an excuse; drawing is a skill that can be learned," the Instructor stated. "Although mana is an extension of the mind, which means most spell diagrams will fix themselves, there is a limit. If your spell is unrecognizable, your mana will not know what to do."
"Is that why my spell won't activate sometimes?"
"That's obvious. Keep practicing engraving until your mana resonates with your mind to fix the spell diagram. Don't waste time using the incantation for activation."
"Y-yes, sir."
"You? Why is the magic circle so small? The required parameters are 70-90 cm in diameter. Anything bigger or smaller than that requires greater mana output, greater control, and a more perfect drawing."
"I don't know how much that is."
"By the Arcane Truth, you had two weeks to figure this out. 90 centimeters is 2 feet 11 inches. You're 5'5, right? That's the length of over half of you."
"Sir, I'm 5'6."
"Does it matter?"
"…No, it doesn't."
"Do it again with the proper measurements," the instructor ordered before walking to the next student.
"Your hands — are you suffering from tremors?"
"Yes, sir. I was in an accident, and well."
"Come to me after class, and I will teach you how to use mana channeling to steady your hands."
"Thank you, sir."
Instructor Seiya was patient, helping each student one by one. Although he said only a few words to most people, they always hit the core issue. One student after another received guidance, and just as it was about to be Zane's turn, an accident occurred. Instructor Seiya stopped and turned to a student who had sat down to meditate, most likely to recuperate his mana.
"What are you doing?"
"I-I'm running low on mana."
"My instructions were to keep casting until I say stop. Did you hear me say that magical word?" the instructor asked.
"But —"
"Keep going," he roared, and the student jumped to his feet. Without saying anything else, he cast another spell. As expected, his mana reserves dried up, and he fell to the floor, immediately twitching as if he were having a seizure.
"Mana is just like a muscle, and just like any muscle, you must train it, you must allow it to adapt to being strained." Instructor Seiya's powerful voice spread to every student. "The reason your body reacts this way once you are out of mana is that it hasn't fully adapted yet. Once it does, you will only feel slightly weak when you run out of mana rather than passing out, and the best and quickest way to adapt is to empty your reserve and refill it. Understand?"
"Yes, sir," the student responded in unison.
"Good," Instructor Seiya nodded, finally focusing on Zane's. After observing for a moment, he stated, "You know, sometimes, being too smart has the opposite result."
"Hmm? Am I doing something wrong?"
"The bodies of humans in this dimension are not used to mana, meaning they need a period of adaptation. The fact that you almost passed out after emptying your reserve is the most direct sign of that," Instructor Seiya explained.
"What about shamans?" Zane asked.
"Are you a shaman?" the instructor snapped back.
"No, but my family has a few of them."
"Earth's shamans followed the ancient path, which only focused on training mental energy and resonating with the ambient energy in the environment, so even they have not truly adapted to mana or any other type of energy."
"Is that so?"
"Back to your issue," Instructor Seiya continued. "The process of learning Mana Projection is one of the best ways to accelerate the adaptation. And that's because the mana inside your body must circulate from everywhere else before exiting through your hands."
Zane nodded. Whether he was using normal spell engraving or practicing projecting mana outside his body, the energy did indeed circulate through his hands. Unlike spell engraving, Mana Projection technically doesn't require the use of the hands, but Zane — and many other students — had already formed the habit.
"Your method — while significantly faster than the stupid approach of trial and error — has also reduced the circulation of mana and prolonged the adaptation period. However, this is not even the greatest issue. The greatest issue is that you are lowering your potential by skipping the basics.
"Do you think the tower doesn't know that learning Mana Projection through simple trial and error is an inefficient approach? We don't tell students other methods because learning to control mana in this way will lay the perfect foundation for when you have to learn more challenging Magic Skills."
"I understand. I'll stop using Mental Energy Condensation," Zane nodded.
"You don't need to stop," Instructor Seiya shook his head. "Mental Energy Control is as crucial as Mana Control. I would be a terrible teacher if I advised you to stop."
"Then?"
"You're usually so smart. Why are you acting stupid all of a sudden?" Instructor Seiya uttered. "Separate the two. Train your mental energy control and Mana Projection separately. Once the time is right, you can combine the two."
"And when will that be?"
"The adaptation will be completed once you no longer pass out or lose all your physical energy when your mana reserve is empty. As for Mana Projection? Once you can cast spells using only projections."
"I see. Well, thank you."
Instructor Seiya nodded but said nothing else. He moved on to the other students to instruct them; his job was to train these mages into true soldiers in just one year, which was not much time. Time was of the essence, so Instructor Seiya always targeted the core issues each student faced. And once all of them had received his personal teaching, he spent the next half hour of class ensuring every student had drained and recuperated their mana at least twice before moving on to the next segment.
Two massive holograms floated in front of the class, with the words "Group A" and "Group B" and a list of names underneath. Zane checked the list, and about 40% of the class was in Group A, including himself, and all the members of his dorm — even James.
"Divide according to your groups, with Group A on the left," Instructor Seiya's powerful voice spread. The students swiftly followed his orders, which pleased the instructor. Although these Earthlings lacked discipline, they still understood the basic concept of military orders.
"Group B, you should be ashamed of yourself. You had two weeks to learn to cast the most basic spells, but you failed. Now, I'm sending you to the Virtual Learning Lab where you have unlimited mana and don't have to worry about any accidents. You have three days to learn to cast, or I will make you regret you were born."
The students felt a chill down their spines; they wondered whether the instructor had used another aura skill or was he just naturally intimidating. Luckily for them, they were so terrified that they forgot to be embarrassed. It also helped that Ms. Luna swiftly led everybody to the Virtual Learning Lab.
"Now, for the rest of you," Instructor Seiya stated, shifting his focus to Group A. "While all of you can cast, there is a difference in skill level, which I need to determine. And the best method is through competition. We will have a small tournament, and the winner will receive 50 points. And from now on, we will hold the same competition every two weeks, and the top 10 will also receive rewards."
Zane's eyes shone with brilliant light: the championship must be his. Over the past few days, he's accumulated a decent number of points from Professor Burbank's assignments and class participation. And with these additional 50 points, he will finally meet the requirement to exchange a magic crystal.