[Chapter 29: Magical Programs]

Adjusting to my new levels has been an interesting experience. Not that it was at all difficult, no instead what is statistically a complete overhall of my body was adjusted to pretty much automatically mid-fight. Overall, despite the power I achieved in mere few minutes everything is normal. Too normal in fact, that is why the adjustment is so interesting.

I was expecting that as my stats increase I would grow in physique as well, after all my str was 6 before and I have definetly put on some muscle since getting here. The slightly flabby noodle arms I came with are now starting to become something I can be proud of.

But despite all the stats I obtained I haven't changed at all from before the fight. My body has the same apparent height and muscle mass as the last time I checked. It's really quite strange. Though I do have some guesses as to why this is, I don't have enough evidence to make any conclusions.

But for what it's worth, I'm really enjoying this increased int. With how much I obtained in a short period I can really feel the effects. I knew that my mind had gone far beyond what it was, but no change has been as drastic as this. Faster processing speed, better memory, just the works for this kind of stat.

There are already skills for basically everything, maybe I can get some skills to make my mind better as well. Oh I hope that's possible, I'll have to look into that when my living situation settles down.

But what did I use my massively increased int for? Why the same thing I always do of course, MAGIC!

[Skill level increased]

[Basic mana core| lv: 3]

[Mp is increased by 15%]

Well actually I only spent the bare minimum time on meditation and the like. Instead I decided to focus on something far more important to my current situation, magic circles. I wasn't kidding in my plans for a magic air conditioner. They very well may be the key to obtaining modern niceties while still managing to keep myself isolated. In short, I need to learn as much about them as possible.

But despite magic circles being so integral to my plans I didn't try and rush my progress with them, I am a scholar after all, instead I focused on getting the basics down as best I could. It's mainly just experimenting on how the circles and lines interact, try and get a greater feel on how it all works. And unlike my first time practing with circles, I have begun figuring out the delivery part so that it doesn't just leak like a sieve. Though the main thing I learned is that I have far to go, I still feel that I've improved greatly.

[Skill level increased]

[Magic circle creation | lv 2]

[20% ability to create magic circles]

But I'm not done yet. Typically I only stop important subjects like these when I'm either burnt out or not making progress, but I haven't hit either yet so I'm still ready to go.

More yet more work needs to be done. This is a rabbit hole and I plan on exploring every last crevice.

Back to the contecting lines, wow, it really just seems to keep coming back to these lines. They need to be better, I need to get these down the best I can or else everthing else is worthless. While the output is pretty darn integral as well and I haven't even begun figuring out how to make the outside lines get the circles to run on atmospheric mana, I still need to perfect these lines.

The way they react to mana is so weird and tricky. You do it like this you can get just abit more bang for your buck. But if I do it like this instead it reaches the middle a bit faster. I feel it out with my mana the best I can, find out what patterns the mana likes to go in and all that, but the reasons why they have the effects they do just escape me. I'm sure there are a bunch of super wizards out there that understand all this down to a science, but asking them would mean not only socail interaction, but I'd probably get caught up in some shenanigans as well because interacting with someone as important as a super wizard would flag like fifty different bad guys to come and RUIN ANY CHANCE OF ME LIVING IN PEACE!

So for now I'm stuck with trial and error, it's gotten me this far at least. Look on the bright side me, the more little successes I make through trail and error, the more I'll be able to discern about the overall workings of mana from the way the successes relate towards each other.

And so I continue on and keep going at the magic circles to the best of my ability. Despite the haphazzard hitting a wall with my head till it breaks down nature of it all, progress into the connecting lines improve at a decent enough pace allowing for just a bit of the glorious mystery that is mana to be revealed. My work with elemental mana was not left behind, with me trying my best to take lines and circles and inscribe enough feeling of the elements into them that they may convert my basic mana into that of the element desired, ultimately leading to varying degrees of success. Lots of work was put in, days of doing little but rearanging patterns of bone dust on the floor, but at least I got a level out of it.

[Skill level increased]

[Magic circle creation | lv 3]

[30% ability to create magic circles]

In the end it was a lot of work for what may or may not be an appropriate reward, still I’m glad that I did it. I learned a lot of stuff that will be useful down the line, both in further projects with magic circles and in improving my other magic using what I learned while making the circles. And even disregarding the skills themselves, putting my all into learning makes me feel pride as a scholar.

With all that I’ve practiced, maybe creating stuff like that magical air conditioner isn’t too far off. But despite the small successes I’ve had with the elements, my circles that modulate pure mana have improved the most, I can even make ones that are more effective with outputting mana than me.

Huh, more than more effective than me, I wonder if I can use that?

I read a series where mages used magic through magic circles implanted in their bodies, maybe I can do the same thing. I’ve already got a mana core and mana reinforcement, so I see no reason why it shouldn’t work.

Really I think the question is less can it be done, and more how to do it. Obviously I’d have it hooked to my core, but that would mean the power source is on the inside, so how would I do it inverted, seal the outside and feed the lines back into the core, somehow make the entire thing two way? I don’t really know how to do it, but I’m pretty sure it can be done. Well then, my enthusiasm was waning but this project has fired back up for one last project, let’s go.

I started off with designing the prototype/blueprint out of bone dust like my normal circles, because I’m not foolish enough to Immediately start working on my magical insides without any sort of plan. But as the real deal will be made out of my own pure mana which is just about the best material you can get instead of bone dust, a literal practice material, the results may be very different so I’m hoping for a decent outline of what to do at best.

Finally I got a design that I’m somewhat happy with. It’s supposed to be a two way circle,  if I reroute my mana paths through the circle it should focus my mana while at the same time not hinder mana coming back through, because if this messes with my mp regen in any way it will not be worth it, all the while being easy to improve upon for when I get better at making circles. Of course the prototype doesn’t actually work, mana would escape and fizzle out before it moved halfway through the lines, but I was always pretty sure that no matter what I do it won’t hold up in practice. But as long as I’m not flying in blind I’m good.

This is going to be a slow process, I don’t quite no how everything will react so I’ll be losing a lot of me just trying to figure out what works. But then again that’s why I waited to start this at morning, I’ve got all day and then some.

First off, I’ll need to be in constant meditation, I might even lose mp just sustaining the structure but based on what I’ve seen so far it shouldn’t require any further upkeep after it’s done.

Then it’s time to start creating the circle, slowly I drag little wisps of mana, still connected to the core, outwards. These will eventually be the connecting lines, but for now they’re supports for the outer circle. But I was right, this is draining on the mp, but if it’s just holding it in place I should be able to out regen it by just a bit.

Now I work on the outer circle, sending out tiny lines from the tops of the wisps that connect with the others, map cost is getting a bit higher, not to mention what I’m losing from actively moving the stuff, but still manageable. So long as the the mp keeps flowing in everything will be fine.

[Skill level increased]

[Basic mana core| lv: 4]

[Mp is increased by 20%]

Now for the last of then general structure, the inner circle. In a way it’s much like the outer one, but also very different at the same time. The main challenge is that I need to make sure the entire circle connect properly to the core, almost like I have to half finish this part already. A bit hard yes, but still doable.

Problem, with the inner circle the cost of maintaining it surpassed my regen. I’ve still got a bit under my max to work with but this entire project fails if I don’t do something fast. Okay, hold the circle the best you can, and with every last bit of focus I can spare on meditation. Just need another level, focus on the mana, fuel the meditation, absorb the mana. My mp dropped to under a quarter but eventually.

[Skill level increased]

[Meditation| lv 3]

[30% increased mp regen while meditating]

It was a slight thing but slowly, bit by bit, I could feel my mp filling back up as my regen overtook the expense of maintaining the circle once more.

I didn’t dare make a move until my mp reached full once again.

Then with mp restored, I continued on with the circle. The basics are already done, a wispy frame of mana in the vague shape of a proper circle. Now all that left is turning it into the most advanced circle I’ve every created, easy.

Of course it is very much not easy, it was with a great effort I fashioned the whole thing into a vague facsimile of the prototype circle. Just doing so drained massive amounts of mp, though luckily the passive cost stayed pretty much the same allowing to to wait until it was restored.

[Skill level increased]

[Mana circulation| lv 4]

[40% control over one’s own mana]

But much like the prototype, this circle was completely non-functional, meaning now is the part that only experimentation and feeling the mana can allow me to complete.

This part is rough, it is hard, and it is long. Testing countless different ways that every last bit could be is tiring on the mind and mp, but this might give me increased magical powers, so I have no choice but to push through.

I am thankful for focusing on the string so much, as I figured they are the most difficult part of the entire endeavor due to their complexity. Making wires that can flow both ways is something strange even in magic. It is quite sad that despite this being so complicated it is doubtful that I will every use it outside of this context.

the outer circle is strange as well, needing to both keep mana from leaking into where it shouldn’t be while simultaneously preparing it to ready for the paths of mana that will soon be integrated into it.

the inner circle, already halfway completed, is actually the least difficult, though still very much so, with the main focus being on making it play nice with the core it is connected to.

But eventually, piece by piece, bit by bit, things start falling into place, part begin to exist in ways that I can feel will actually allow for what I envisioned to come true. And the more things started to work, the easier other parts followed suit, until the circle, a majestic piece that despite many limitations caused by my inexperience, held great potential.

And so with that I began the final phase. Thrumming the entire circle in a way slightly akin to my reinforcement, I prepared it to become part of me now and forever. Aiming to make it a part of my mana flow I attempted to move the pathways that connected with my core and instead drive them through the circle. And to my surprise they listened, the little paths mana took allowed themselves to be slightly diverted from their original places, connecting to the outer circle, some in ways I cannot quite comprehend, but it works, connects, though yet to be permanent they seem practically ready to accept this a their new way, not quite touching in a physical way, yet still connected flowing mana through it. Though I guess I really shouldn’t be surprised, all magic is imagination after all, I got this far through my ingenuity, so what would my imagination be if it didn’t allow such a thing to work at the end.

So I just sit there, tired yet victorious, and as I slowly thrum my mana through the new circle as it solidifies into reality I can’t help but return to a though I have had so many times before and will have countless times again.

"I absolutely love magic."

[Obtained skill]

[Basic mana circle| lv: 1]

[Magic potency is increased by 3%]