Puppeteer of the DanMachi World

It was a wooden container. Ming Ge poured a flowing, liquid-metal-like substance into it, then touched the wooden container to the ground and slowly traced the flowing metal onto the floor.

With the thread tied at the center as a guide, a metallic line formed a circle as he dragged it along. Ming Ge then inscribed magical runes within it.

After placing nine magic stones at the fixed nodes around it, the ritual setup was complete.

After a full three hours, Ming Ge looked at his handiwork and nodded in satisfaction.

Their ritual differed from traditional ones, using mithril and magic stones as its primary materials.

In truth, the magic awakening ritual was not difficult. It was merely the most basic of basics.

Ming Ge sat at the center of the completed magic circle and looked at Meitellia. "Light it."

"Understood." Meitellia nodded slightly before saying, "Activate!"

"Activate" was an incantation, the trigger used to "light the fire."

In a sense, it was an innate form of magic, though it was more like a switch—simple and completely devoid of any "power."

That was precisely why even Meitellia could learn it with ease.

As Meitellia recited the incantation, she released magic power, and the entire magic circle lit up.

The magic stones were the ones truly bearing the ritual's consumption. Once the ritual began, it started drawing upon their power to awaken Ming Ge's magic.

Chapter 10: Innate Magic

Two prerequisites were needed to activate innate magic—

First, one had to master the incantation. Second, one had to understand the spell's effect.

An incantation was akin to a key, capable of directing and restraining the flow of magic power.

There were also chantless spells, which meant incantations were not truly necessary. Ordinary people simply could not cast magic without chanting.

The more powerful the magic, the longer the required chant.

At the same time, the more powerful the magic, the harder it was to cast, making chantless casting impossible.

But it was not entirely impossible. For example, when the original protagonist used a skill to charge up a firebolt attack, he did not need to chant.

But for something as basic as "lighting the fire," even Meitellia could accomplish it easily.

The mithril magic circle, which possessed extremely high magic conductivity, began to glow. It drew power from the magic stones and gathered it within Ming Ge's body.

Following the contents of the secret rite, it transformed Ming Ge's mental power, Mind. Amid a sharp pain in his head, a certain power was born.

Perhaps because he was so intensely focused, Ming Ge could feel his spirit gradually changing.

An invisible sense emerged, mental power that felt almost tangible.

As he felt his spirit transform bit by bit, Ming Ge found the sensation wonderful.

Compared to Divine Blessing, which ended in an instant and did not even leave him with any real sensation, being able to feel himself "growing stronger" was incredibly fascinating.

"It's complete."

The transformation had taken only four minutes.

The ritual was not yet over, and Ming Ge did not leave. Instead, he slowly opened his eyes and released magic power.

The mental power residing in his brain flowed into his hand, forming an invisible distortion.

This distortion could not be seen with the naked eye. Only magical races of the same type, or adventurers, could "sense" it.

"This is... magic power?"

Meitellia said in surprise, "You can control magic power immediately after completing the secret rite? I've never heard of such a thing."

Without the aid and guidance of a magic slot, it was difficult for non-magical races to achieve this.

Humans were inferior to magical races in terms of magic power quantity, control, and other aspects.

"It seems I have a little talent in this area."

Ming Ge smiled.

It might also have been due to the difference in materials, since the power of magic stones differed from human power.

After defeating monsters in the Dungeon, adventurers brought the monsters' magic stones to the surface, where they exchanged them for Valis through the Guild.

The Guild then exported magic stones. Once outsiders acquired them, they processed them into magic items.

The lamps used at home, for example, were made using magic stones as their material.

Ordinary people could not afford such magic-stone lamps, but they were not actually expensive, because they were ordinary magic items that could be processed even by those without "Mystery" as a development ability.

As for how the power of magic stones differed from human mental power, that required further study. There was also the possibility that Ming Ge's transmigration from a parallel world had something to do with it.

After all, people had different bodily structures. People from two worlds might seem identical on the surface, yet their underlying structures could be entirely different.

That, too, required further study.

"If this is magic power, then I feel... the essence of magic may be surprisingly simple."

Ming Ge stared at the unnatural "distortion" in his hand and murmured.

"Don't boast."

Meitellia chuckled.

"This isn't boasting."

Ming Ge smiled, then lowered his head. "Gather."

"Magic Bullet."

Aiming at the water cup ahead, Ming Ge compressed his magic power into a single mass.

As the words "Magic Bullet" fell, guided by the incantation and directed by the spell's effect, Ming Ge completed the first magic of his life.

He condensed magic power, then fired it.

With a bang, the wooden water cup was struck by a powerful impact and shattered before it even hit the ground.

"Magic?!"