I Have Seen the Mountaintop

"The complete edition of The Standard Book of Spells? So there are incomplete editions too?"

That made sense. Some magic was not suitable for all students to access, such as spells that could easily cause enormous harm.

With that in mind, Manus turned to the next page. It was the preface. After skimming it, he turned another page to the table of contents, gave it a rough look, then flipped to the next page, and the one after that...

Manus closed The Standard Book of Spells, Volume One, having flipped through roughly a tenth of it, and fell into thought.

There was nothing.

The theory of magical principles he had been expecting was practically nonexistent in this book.

In the preface, the author mentioned that the book systematically introduced the theoretical foundations and practical methods of spells, aiming to help young wizards learn magic safely and efficiently. But in reality, these so-called theoretical foundations were nothing more than correct pronunciation, wand gestures, and magical effects.

Theoretical foundations + practical methods ×

Theoretical foundations = practical methods √

"Although I realized long ago that wizards seemed to be practical types who dug into talent while neglecting theory... this is still a textbook. I had held out some hope."

Manus sighed.

"Forget it. Since it isn't here, I'll organize it as I learn. These spells may only have practical methods when I study them, but once they're archived in my library, they'll definitely have theoretical foundations!"

Ever since the Mage Tower had been built, Manus had developed the habit of archiving the magic he mastered in ways only he could understand. It had long since become second nature, even showing signs of turning into obsessive-compulsive behavior.

And Manus would never allow such things—things where he knew what they did but not why—to exist in his magical library!

"I'll skim through it first. I can study it carefully when I have time later. Even if I can take the book away, and there are other ways to enter the library, that would be too troublesome. Besides, this place may not be safe in the future."

Although he could enter the library through other portraits without passing through the old house, there were still portraits in the old house that led to the library. What if he happened to run into the uncle he had never met on one of his visits...

Besides, every visit would inevitably require his parents to lead the way. In that case, how often could he come without it seeming strange?

This was different from Potions. He did not have a peer his age to serve as a benchmark for showing that he was merely a little more talented than the others.

"Once every six months or so before I enroll should be fine."

Thinking that, Manus took a deep breath to steady his mindset and emotions, then cast Scholar's Touch on The Standard Book of Spells, Volume One before him.

"As expected, there's a difference."

Normally, Scholar's Touch allowed the caster to finish reading a book instantly. But it only meant "finish reading"—the book's contents merely passed through the caster's mind once.

It could neither create deep memories nor allow the caster to master the knowledge within. Digesting the book's contents still depended on the caster himself.

But under this world's magical rules, Manus controlled his emotions with an experimental mindset, trying to make Scholar's Touch change under their influence.

Just like Prestidigitation and Mage Hand had changed in strength and effect under his urgent thoughts, whether through deliberate experiments or accidental coincidences in the past.

His guess proved correct.

With his eyes closed, the entire contents of The Standard Book of Spells, Volume One surfaced in Manus's mindscape.

About a third of it appeared hazy. That was Scholar's Touch's normal effect, representing a level of memory equivalent to "having been read through once by an ordinary person."

Without reinforcement, those memories would become much blurrier by tomorrow. After two or three days, they would mostly be forgotten.

Of the remaining two-thirds, eighty percent appeared as clear text, roughly equal to the level of memory Manus himself would have after reading a book once. Even without further review, it would remain perfectly clear for at least a month.

As for the last portion, it was like arcane marks revealed by detection magic, carrying glowing annotations. That meant Scholar's Touch had strengthened his memory of that knowledge even further; even after years without revisiting it, he would still recall it vividly.

All these changes were the result of Scholar's Touch being driven by Manus's emotion of "wanting to remember the useful content."

In other words, that hazy third represented knowledge with almost no value to Manus—things he would choose to forget after reading. Of the remaining two-thirds, eighty percent had some value, while the final twenty percent was highly valuable.

These classifications were based on Manus's own judgment, but interestingly, the process of making those judgments had not actually taken place.

In other words, under the influence of Manus's emotions, Scholar's Touch had completed a series of judgments from Manus's perspective... Were those judgments accurate?

After truly reading through the book in his mindscape and classifying its contents himself, Manus compared the results with Scholar's Touch's results—the two were exactly identical.

Manus could not help smiling.

"Interesting..."

Magic in this world truly favored the power of the mind to an extraordinary degree. It could even be said to carry a hint of idealism.

As long as I want something badly enough, have magic, and know what to do, I can make it happen?

Come to think of it, the spell instruction in this book seemed to be doing exactly that.

"Having magic" was the foundation for enrollment. The textbook's incantations and wand gestures taught students "what to do," while the clear descriptions of magical effects... strengthened the students' mindset of "wanting it badly enough"!

The wand his mother had given him lay on the desk. Manus picked it up casually, drew an arc toward The Standard Book of Spells, Volume One before him, and said:

"Wingardium Leviosa~"

The book, as thick as Manus's palm was wide, quietly floated into the air. It stopped five inches above the tabletop, exactly as he had imagined.

"Focus, clarity, determination... As long as those conditions are met, learning magic is actually this simple."

Manus could not help sighing.

"After getting used to learning magic at this level of difficulty, no wonder wizards gave up on rational research. If I had grown up in an environment like this, I wouldn't be willing to chew through mountains of books either."

People were naturally lazy. When faced with immediate rewards and greater rewards that required long-term investment, instinct alone would definitely make the former choice feel more comfortable.

"Unfortunately, I wasn't raised in this environment. I personally set foot upon that floating continent, and I saw that magnificent magical plane with my own eyes..."

Having already seen the summit of a mountain towering into the clouds, how could he be satisfied with the view from a dirt mound?