Projection

Although Borne marveled at the "exquisiteness" of the Count's estate, he truly didn't know how to complain about the architectural style of Seventon!

The Ioulaum House estate was not the most opulent or luxurious in Seventon; on the way here, Borne had even seen many castles and courtyards that were far more extravagant and grand!

They all had their own unique styles and characteristics, and there were even some that leaned toward a wilder, more primitive aesthetic.

It was simply a hodgepodge; in Borne's memory, this was the first time he had seen such a collection of buildings with such wildly different styles.

It gave Borne the feeling of several different races being mixed and matched together.

If he had to use one accurate word, it would be "hodgepodge"!

Netheril was located in the northwest of the continent, near the sea and close to the High Ice Glacier, far from the strife of the Faerûn continent. After the elven Crown Wars, Netheril had entered a period of rapid development, with the elven High Forest nearby to the west.

It was the standard template for a "farming" style of development!

Precisely because the time was so short, although they had begun to develop their own magical civilization, they had not yet developed their own distinct cultural characteristics. This reminded Borne of Russia in his past life—peerless in military heavy industry, but destitute in other aspects. Netheril's situation was the same: they were putting all their efforts into developing their Arcanist civilization, and as for other aspects, they would just "pick up" whatever they could. It was normal for it to be a mix of styles after absorbing various refugee groups, but Netheril was deeply influenced by the elves, so in most respects, it still continued the elven cultural style while simultaneously incorporating the characteristics of many other peoples.

The decoration of the Count's estate was not the nouveau-riche style of opulence and luxury; it was more like an alternative kind of beauty. Even with Borne's meager artistic cultivation, he could feel that ultimate beauty!

This was an estate built in the elven style.

The furnishings in the bedroom were also highly artistic; the murals and carvings on the walls were the work of masters, and the bed was made of an unknown wood. Upon entering the room, one immediately felt a sense of peace and tranquility.

Even his thoughts became much clearer. Borne was very surprised, as he did not feel any magical fluctuations; this must have been the handiwork of some elven master!

After touring the bedroom, it was time to get to know the rest of the estate. The person taking Borne on the tour was the estate's old butler.

He wore a dark tailcoat, a snow-white shirt and gloves, and his demeanor was elegant, rigorous, and capable, with his graying hair combed very neatly.

The old butler was also a veteran of the family. This time, Borne was only wearing a simple linen garment, but the old butler saw that he was the young master at a glance, and then smiled.

"You look just like Viscount Gordon when he was a child!"

Borne: ...

The entire estate occupied a huge area, with more rooms than a country castle and even more complete functions! There were four dining rooms alone, used for different occasions.

Except for the top floor, which was the Count's laboratory and had not been visited, he had roughly toured all the other different areas.

And this was just the estate. As the Vice Dean of Giles Academy, Count Ioulaum had independent living quarters and a larger experimental area in the Academy's Wizard Tower!

That night, Borne rolled back and forth on the huge bed, feeling the softness of the bedding, and even jumped up and down a few times. After so many years of coming to this world, he finally had a soft bed to sleep in; he had had enough of the stone-slab bed in the country castle.

But before Borne could start enjoying his brand-new life, and before he could enjoy the morning greetings of 30 beautiful maids every day, the old butler woke him up. Butler Walker held a list in his hand.

Looking at the long list of books on the slip of paper, Borne was instantly petrified on the spot...

Although the Count had mentioned to him on the way here that a true spellcaster was not just someone who could chant spells, familiarity with magical philosophy and the general theory of spells was also indispensable. Arcanists were known for their erudition, and there was even more to learn. It just so happened that Borne was still young and it was not easy for him to come into contact with magic so quickly; what he needed most now was to lay a good foundation.

But at the time, Borne hadn't cared at all.

He had survived nine years of compulsory education, five years of college entrance exams, three years of mock tests, and four years of torment—what else could possibly stump him!

But when Borne actually saw this book list, his whole person instantly felt terrible...

Basic Theory of Magic and Foundations of Magical Cross-Application he understood, but what the hell was everything after that?

Identification and Meaning of Emblems

Art Appreciation of Senila

A Brief History of the Second Crown Wars

In total, it covered mysticism, dungeons, nature, geography, history, local lore, nobility, royalty, and religion.

Mysticism (ancient secrets, magical traditions, mystical emblems, mystical incantations, constructs, dragons, magical beasts)

Architecture and Engineering (buildings, waterways, bridges, defensive works)

Dungeons (aberrations, caverns, oozes, exploration)

Geography (soil, terrain, climate, humanities)

History (royalty, wars, colonization, migration, city-building)

Local Lore (legends, personalities, inhabitants, laws, customs, traditions, humanoids)

Nature (animals, fey, giants, monstrous humanoids, plants, seasonal cycles, climate, vermin)

Nobility and Royalty (families, heraldry, genealogy, family precepts, personalities)

Religion (deities, mythological history, church traditions, holy symbols, undead)

Various disciplines continued to be refined as one's knowledge deepened, and Borne felt a bit oxygen-deprived.

No wonder Viscount Gordon had run away back then; it seemed he had suffered quite a bit from this torment. Borne wondered if it was too late to run now...

Borne sighed softly and touched his thick hair. Looking at Gordon, he knew he would also be a handsome young man in the future. He hadn't even touched a young lady's hand yet...

This was the rhythm of going bald...

"I wonder if there is a spell for hair growth? Netheril had a bunch of weird arcanum in its later stages; there should be one, right?"

By the way, what kind of shampoo does Grandfather use...

Butler Walker led Borne to a room. Borne knew this place; he had visited it yesterday. Several rooms in this vicinity stored numerous books and research materials.

He had only glanced at it briefly before, but as Borne drew closer, he realized this room was truly massive!

In his memory, only the library possessed such a scale.

Inside the circular room, a giant arched crystal was embedded high in the ceiling; the meticulous carving and design allowed the light from outside to project directly onto the desk below, neither too dim nor too glaring.

Surrounding the room were tall bookshelves packed with dense rows of books; Borne estimated the room was at least two stories high.

With just a slight sweep of his gaze, Borne discovered that every book on the list was present here.

It seemed the number of books on the list increased in tandem with the quantity in this room!

There definitely hadn't been this many before; even with the best maintenance, time would leave its mark, and the books higher up were clearly newer.

Borne felt his scalp tingle; there had to be tens of thousands of volumes at the very least! And that didn't even include the rare, unique copies and documents in the adjacent rooms!

He walked to the chair in the center and sat down.

At that moment, Borne felt as if he had transcended time, witnessing generations of the Ioulaum House struggling and striving within this very room.

The butler Walker placed the weekly curriculum in front of Borne and set a stack of books beside him—these were just the amount for a single day.

Borne swallowed hard. Just then, the door to the room was pushed open, and a middle-aged man dressed in grey robes walked in.

Having just looked at the curriculum, he knew this was the instructor for this morning.

Elwood had a very ordinary appearance, but his eyes shone with the light of wisdom. Although his attire was extremely plain, the badge on his chest was striking—a badge Borne was very familiar with, as the Count wore one as well.

A Scholar!

And simultaneously, an Arcanist.

The only difference was that the Count's was gold, while the one before him was bronze.

Elwood introduced himself briefly and began the lesson, showing no disdain for Borne simply because he was a small child.

He had already sensed the magic power within Borne.

"The mapping structure of the Weave refers to the form in which the Weave projects into the brain; some believe it is in the soul, while others argue it is in the consciousness. This has been a subject of constant debate among Giles and his peers in recent years.

Of course, that topic is not what we are discussing today.

The form of the projection determines whether a spellcaster can cast spells—to put it clearly, whether they have the talent for spellcasting.

The shape of the projection determines the form of your subsequent connections.

Currently, the primary Weave structures are the reticular Weave, planar Weave, square Weave, and hybrid Weave.

As the name suggests, the reticular Weave is the shape in which primal magic manifests in your mind, and it is also the mainstream for humans on the continent today.

The reticular form of the planar Weave is also quite similar..."

Elwood paused to look at Borne, and upon confirming he could understand, he continued: "Square projectors can perform assembly connections; the principles are much the same, even forming various plug-in style anchor points, which are then connected via magic power. Irregular shapes also connect their projection forms; such shapes can be linked in sequences, like a chain forming a circular loop, or a square, and so on. By mixing these basic structures, such spellcasters are natural hybrid spellcasters.

The casting of a spell is the combination of these projected shapes. We abstract the Weave into a point or a total power source, then use incantations, focuses, and gestures to shape and optimize the transmitted magic power, forming the magic in our hands!

The influence of incantations, and the roles of focuses and gestures, will be explained in detail later!"