The Cursed Heracles

Niedern nodded and said, "Good. You can still laugh, which means your stress isn't great enough yet."

Suye was caught between laughter and tears. "Teacher, you misunderstand. I've already successfully inscribed the Magic Array Diagram. I'm just lucky and good at guessing."

Niedern's brow furrowed slightly, but the next instant, he stared intently at Suye.

"Really." Suye was utterly sincere.

Niedern actually took a deep breath, suppressing the shock in his heart.

Soon, Niedern regained his composure and nodded. "Just like you mobilized magic power earlier, mobilize the Magic Array Diagram, then connect it to the Magic Ox Rope I gave you. If it can move, it means your Magic Array Diagram is a success."

Suye placed the Magic Ox Rope on the wool blanket and took a deep breath.

An instant later, an image appeared in his mind. The Magic Tree Leaves suddenly grew enormous, as large as a planet. Then, blue liquid flowed into the Magic Array Diagram on the leaves.

The array diagram was like rivers and seas; the magic power was like flowing water.

After the magic power coursed through the fixed paths of the Magic Array Diagram, the entire diagram suddenly burst with dazzling light.

A powerful pillar of white light shot straight up, bursting out of the Magic Tower and reaching the highest point of the mental world.

This scene seemed slow, but it actually took just over two seconds.

Suye felt a surge of heat flow at his brow, a hundred times stronger than the previous one.

Instinctively, Suye raised his right hand and pointed his index finger at the Magic Ox Rope.

An astonishing sight appeared. The Magic Ox Rope slowly rose as if alive, coiling like a long snake.

Seeing this, Suye felt an indescribable sensation. He never imagined he could actually control the rope, that he had truly mastered magic!

Then, Suye kept moving his right index finger, and the entire Magic Ox Rope obediently followed his gestures like a Magic Servant, vivid and lifelike.

"Amazing."

Suye instinctively entered a state of awareness, using his mind to feel his body's condition and his eyes to observe the changes in the Magic Ox Rope. This was an ability he had slowly mastered after long periods of meditation.

Seeing this, Niedern sighed lightly. "I didn't expect you to be a fool for learning but a genius at meditation."

The Magic Ox Rope fell with a slap.

Suye turned to look at Niedern. "Teacher, you can't learn from Horton!"

At that moment, Niedern suddenly opened his Magic Book and began reading a Magic Letter.

Suye waited quietly.

After a long while, Niedern stared at Suye.

Suye's skin crawled, because he sensed vigilance and suspicion in Niedern's gaze.

He was a Gold Mage.

"Teacher... what's wrong?" Suye deliberately amplified the panic in his heart.

"Your present and past are too different. If you hadn't safely entered Plato Academy and walked under the Sea Demon Fountain, being thoroughly examined, I might even suspect you were possessed." Niedern said.

Suye let out a long sigh. "From the Seventh Day after my parents died, I knew I was different."

Niedern said with great sympathy, "I understand. History has too many people who suddenly awakened their talents under great shock. Like Heracles, who suddenly went mad and killed his teacher by mistake, then his power skyrocketed. Then he killed his wife and children by mistake, and his friends. Now he's practically the Hero King. Unfortunately, everyone suspects him, even calling him the 'Friend-Killing Maniac,' but every mage can guess he was cursed."

"Who cursed him?" Suye asked casually.

Niedern shook his head. "We speculate at least a Demigod, possibly Greek, or from another nation."

"I see." Suye hadn't expected the Greeks to be unaware of the truth behind Heracles' curse. It seemed the World of Gods was deeper than he imagined.

Suye's heart stirred.

"I met Lawrence on the First Day, Horton on the Second Day. I won't be cursed too, will I? Probably not. Today and tomorrow will definitely go smoothly!"

The thought flashed through Suye's mind.

Niedern looked at Suye. "I truly didn't expect you to have such excellent magical talent. We all misjudged you. But this is beneficial to both you and Plato Academy. In the past, the Four Geniuses of the Academy dominated all of Greece and even the world, but in recent years, the Aristocratic Academy has produced many geniuses, even several magical prodigies, putting immense pressure on the academy. Plato Academy has fallen behind. The academy's future depends on you."

"Teacher, I'm still an apprentice." Suye said helplessly.

"Yes, you're still too young. Enough of that. Your control of the Magic Rope just now was excellent, showing your Mental Power is very strong. You can already use this spell directly. Now, you need to learn to use the incantation. Try to attack me with the Magic Rope. If you can bind me, you've mastered the spell."

Niedern stepped back as he spoke. "You can control the Magic Rope, but to instantly burst all your magic power, you must rely on the power of the incantation. Spell Study is a discipline completely independent of any language. Neither the pronunciation nor the meaning can be directly understood; only the mind can read it. So, to others, magic incantations sound like chaotic noise. Only after mastering them can you understand. You haven't learned Spell Study yet, but I can teach you through magic, letting you understand in a short time. However, you'll need to constantly memorize and study afterward, or you'll forget quickly."

Suye stared intently at Niedern's lips, his vision and hearing utterly focused.

"Skenny!" Niedern said.

Suye was suddenly stunned, because the flow of time before him seemed to change. Niedern appeared to be roaring out each syllable slowly.

In normal language, this incantation should have five syllables, but in the incantation, there were only three sounds. Each sound seemed normal when heard, but in his mind, it automatically transformed into complete sentences.

Suye couldn't fully grasp the meaning of the three sentences, only vaguely sensing that the incantation consisted of three parts, involving commanding mysterious power, controlling mysterious power, and finally unleashing mysterious power.

In the end, Suye vaguely realized that "Skenny" could be translated as "demonized rope," or simply "Magic Rope."

An instant later, the flow of time returned to normal.

"Did you understand?" Niedern asked.

"Half understood, half confused." Suye said.

"Pronounce it."

"Skenny!" Suye said.

"Wrong. Again. Skenny..."

After a full dozen attempts, Niedern nodded in satisfaction and said, "Not bad. Now try it."

"Alright."

Suye watched Niedern slowly step back, excitement flickering in his eyes.

He was about to use magic offensively for the first time.

But realizing he was too worked up, Suye instinctively tapped his right index finger and thumb together, took a deep breath, stretched his shoulders, and relaxed his body.

Niedern couldn't help but nod slightly, a hint of approval in his gaze.

Suye took another deep breath, then suddenly pointed at Niedern and said in a low voice, "Skenny."