“Those are almost always figments, not the original monster,” she explained.
“Figments?” I really hoped I wasn’t the only one behind on these facts. “What are those, Summoner equivalents of simulacra?”
“Almost.” At least she didn’t seem to look down on me for asking. “Figments are more varied. You’ll often see ones that are smaller than the original monster, for example, but cost very little mana to maintain. I could make several of those at once, and make each of them slightly different. Maybe make one monster quick, another more resilient, or that sort of thing.”
“That sounds pretty useful,” I noted. “Can you make something stronger than the original monster?”
She gave a thoughtful, “Hmm,” before answering. “Probably? I suppose that depends on the monster.”
Roland narrowed his eyes. “How are you casting rank four spells? Most graduates can’t do that.”
Sera steepled her fingers. “I’ve got my ways.”
Typical Sera.
When it became obvious that she was not going to answer, Patrick’s attention turned to me. “Sooo... Corin,” he said, faux-casually. “How’d you get that ice sword?”
I reached down and ran my hand across the grip of the sword self-consciously. “I had it with me when I left the tower.”
“That’s amazing. I’ve never seen anything like it!” He seemed to have forgotten to downplay his excitement, and his voice was enthused. “I’ve always wanted a magic sword.”
I felt myself smiling in spite of my reservations. Patrick’s energy was a little overwhelming, but he was so earnest that I couldn’t stay irritated. “Yeah, it’s pretty great. Only reason I managed to hold my own back there. Once I figure out how it works, maybe I’ll let you use it sometime.”
He made high-pitched sound. “I would love that. Thanks, Corin.”
I nodded, going back to focusing on eating. We spent most of the rest of the meal exchanging small talk, catching up a bit on the years we’d spent apart.
All things considered, it wasn’t a bad way to spend a meal.
Chapter VIII — Training Courses
The next couple days went relatively smoothly by comparison. No other teachers threatened to annihilate me with overwhelming magic — just overwhelming homework.
I had a lot of reading to do.
I also had to get my mana ratios tested at the Divinatory. I got around to that on Kyrsday night, just before the deadline. The results weren’t quite what I expected.
From the Diviner’s frown, they probably weren’t what he’d expected, either. I’d been sent to a second year student for my measurements; there weren’t any teachers working at the hour I’d arrived. He was tall and thin, with thick spectacles and probing blue eyes.
“You’ve got one of the worst mana balances I’ve ever seen.” He scribbled notes in his book, sighing. “Give me your right hand again, I’ll double check it.”
I offered him my hand, frowning.
“My mind seeks the truth within. Give me sight of his strength.”
The Diviner finished his incantation, pulling away from my hand. “Looks like I was right the first time. Hm.” He shrugged. “Nothing for it, then. You’re going to have a hard time being an Enchanter.”
I frowned at that. “What do you mean?”
He pointed at my right hand. “You’ve got C-ranked mana in your sword hand, which is good for your first week. That’s what you’re expected to have in your attunement location. Unfortunately, that’s not where your attunement is, and it’s the wrong type of mana.” He pointed at my forehead. “You’re Rank D in your actual attunement spot. That’s not great; you should have at least Rank C there. And a mark on the forehead isn’t great for enchanting in general. You’re probably going to have a tough time getting started.”
My frown deepened. “Can’t I just use the mana from my sword hand?”
“You’ll develop scarring. You’ve been overusing it already, and probably for a long time.”
That didn’t sound good. “Scarring? What do you mean?”
He rubbed his forehead. “Did no one explain how to properly use — never mind. Of course not. Okay, listen. This is important. If you use too much mana from a particular part of your body, you can hurt yourself. Do that without giving yourself time to recover and you end up with mana scars. Permanent damage to the flow of mana in your body. You’re already very close to developing some in your right hand.”
Undoubtedly from training with the dueling cane. Thanks, Dad. Really great parenting there.
“I’ve been using mana for a long time, yeah.” I closed my eyes for a moment. “What’s the problem with these scars? You talked about hurting my mana flow, but what effect would that have?”
“Slows down your ability to recover mana from that spot and makes it harder to convert.” His response was immediate. “They can also make it harder to get stronger. Everyone here is expected to exercise to increase their mana levels. That’s going to be tougher for you if you get scars. Your attunement naturally regulates the mana in that location, so it’s safer to use that mana repeatedly without hurting yourself.”
Ugh. Perfect.
“All right. I’ll be careful not to push it too much. Anything I can do if I end up with scarring?”
“Mmm, some powerful Menders can fix that, but I doubt you can afford the cost. And it doesn’t always work. You’re best off just trying to avoid dealing yourself more damage — which means staying well below your safe mana use thresholds.” His tone indicated I’d best heed the advice.
He scratched a few more things down, then tore off a page from his notebook. “Here. Your safe mana limits for each mana point on your body. Just keep in mind that for your hand, you could cause yourself damage just by using it too frequently.”
I nodded in thanks, scanning the page and heading out.
18 Mind Mana. (Rank D.)
24 Right Hand Mana. (Rank C.)
16 Left Hand Mana. (Rank D.)
10 Right Leg Mana. (Rank E.)
10 Left Leg Mana. (Rank E.)
8 Heart Mana. (Rank E.)
6 Lung Mana. (Rank E.)