Ice Shaping Magic

Most people had to take great care when casting a new spell, especially for the first time. If they rushed into using new magic without complete confidence, the consequences would be painful indeed.

If a spell failed, they would lose more than just the magic power invested in it. They would also expend additional magic power to compensate for the backlash caused by the failure.

For these Magic Apprentices, once their magic power approached exhaustion, they would become unable to move, their whole bodies convulsing. Mentally, they would feel like ordinary people who had gone an entire week without sleep.

Besides, Magic Apprentices were not yet ready to learn meditation techniques. Only after becoming second-level Mages, with more than a hundred points of magic power, could they practice them.

Only with a hundred points of magic power in their bodies could they gather their scattered power into a magic vortex. Even the poorest meditation technique required a Mage capable of sustaining a hundred points of magic power to complete its full cycle.

Forming a magic vortex was also the hallmark of a second-level Mage.

Among the less popular courses, Ice Shaping Magic could be considered relatively common. Yet fewer than ten apprentices sat in the enormous classroom.

Compared with popular spells such as Small Fireball, which drew at least fifty students per class, the difference was like heaven and earth.

Fifty was already a considerable number. After all, Blue Town had only a few hundred Magic Apprentices, and fewer than a hundred had become full-fledged second-level Mages.

As for third-level Mages... sorry, Blue Town's resources were far too scarce. Mages of the third level and above had long since left.

As afternoon approached, Dean arrived at the classroom with his course permit.

Dean chose a corner seat off to one side. Such a spot was usually the least conspicuous and could minimize unnecessary trouble... all sorts of trouble.

Dean had arrived rather late compared with the other apprentices. In fact, he was already there half an hour before class began.

This was a show of respect for the teacher, even if he was only a second-level Mage, one rank above them.

The classroom was quiet, with no one chatting. Everyone made the most of the time to study a little booklet introducing the lesson.

At some point, rhythmic tapping sounded outside the doorway—the sound of a wooden stick touching the floor, drawing closer.

Dean straightened. The teacher had arrived.

As expected, an old man with a full head of white hair walked in, sweeping his gaze across the room before stepping up to the lectern.

Close to ten, but not quite ten. The old man's expression relaxed, and he took his place at the lectern.

Hey, people actually came to hear my lesson. At least I won't be too embarrassed. Perhaps that was what the old man was thinking.

More or less everyone would have thought so, because the white-haired old man taught theory rather than practical combat. Although he was a second-level Mage, his combat strength might well have been the weakest among them.

Thus, most apprentices were not particularly fond of this white-haired old man.

Of course, the few people in this classroom had come to learn his theoretical knowledge and did not care about his strength.

"Ahem. For this lesson, I'll be explaining Ice Shaping Magic to you," the white-haired old man said.

The apprentices were all quiet, and Dean watched with complete concentration.

"The most important part of Ice Shaping Magic is the shaping. Whatever you want to create, you must first imagine its appearance in your mind."

As he spoke, the old man began drawing on the blackboard behind him.

A few minutes later, a little snake appeared on the board. Calling it a little snake was not quite right, though, since its body was already as thick as an ordinary person's arm.

Looking at the lifelike little snake on the board, Dean could not help thinking, As expected of a teacher. Even his drawing is this impressive.

"This is the Sky-Swallowing Python as I picture it. Well? Doesn't it look realistic? Hahaha." The old man chuckled.

None of the apprentices laughed along, however. Every pair of eyes remained fixed on the pose of that "Sky-Swallowing Python."

It was far too lifelike. Even with a simple black-and-white drawing, the white-haired old man had managed to make it look real in just a few minutes.

The old man was very pleased with the apprentices' reactions. He did not interrupt their examination of the little snake, but waited quietly.

Only after several minutes did they come back to their senses. This... was a fake snake!

"What we call ice shaping isn't limited to physical form. What matters most is its bearing. In other words, you must give it a false soul."

Having reached this point, it was time for the old teacher to demonstrate his skill.

One hand still held his ruler, while he extended the other. All the apprentices' gazes immediately converged on his right hand.

Within those few seconds, a cloud of icy mist appeared, enveloping his right palm like an irregular ball of ice.

The transformation continued. A crack suddenly appeared at the very top of the ice ball, then widened until cracks covered almost its entire surface.

Crack! Crack, crack!

The ice ball shattered.

A streak of white light flashed past, leaving the old man's hand empty. Everyone followed the white streak with their eyes to his shoulder.

A slender figure stared at them all, as though this creature were the only predator present.

"A Swallowing Sky... Little Snake?"

The apprentice sitting closest to the front sucked in a cold breath. Precisely because he sat nearest, he could see most clearly how lifelike this little snake called the Sky-Swallowing Python was. Every single scale stood out distinctly.

The other apprentices followed suit, all drawing sharp breaths. Had they not witnessed the creation of this Swallowing Sky Little Snake with their own eyes, they would have suspected that the teacher had caught a Marsh Ice Crystal Serpent to pass off as his work.

Dean's astonishment did not show on his face, but the shock in his eyes was unmistakable. Yes, this was one of the essential requirements for Magic Hand.

The old man continued explaining Ice Shaping Magic, while the Swallowing Sky Little Snake on his shoulder flicked its tongue from time to time. Before long, he dispelled the magic.

There was no helping it. The old man was a theorist, not a combat specialist, and his magic power was not particularly strong. There was no need to waste energy and magic power maintaining the spell.

Sure enough, Ice Shaping Magic's power consumption was not to be underestimated. Even the old man, a second-level Mage, was unwilling to waste magic power keeping the Swallowing Sky Little Snake in existence.

Perhaps condensing the Sky-Swallowing Python into such a little snake was also a way to conserve his magic power as much as possible!

The old man continued explaining the various key points of Ice Shaping Magic. Before they knew it, however, an hour had passed, and the lesson came to an end.

The old man looked at the apprentices, who were still hungry for more, and left the classroom in satisfaction. It seems I taught that lesson quite well, he thought with some delight.

(End of chapter)