5
Chapter 5- Circuit Education
“I became excessively excited. I couldn't control the amount of mana flowing into the rune language. It's my mistake. It's my inexperience.”
As soon as he opened his eyes, Yurik swallowed the bitter taste of failure.
However, that failure was not despair.
Rather, it was hope.
He saw the path he needed to take from yesterday's magic.
His concept had clearly expanded from narrow to broad.
Although he had found his own method, he felt there was something ambiguous between rune language and magic.
As if there was something deeper proving it within addition and subtraction.
Yurik opened the window and ventilated the air in the room while simultaneously clearing his mind.
After breathing in the cool morning air for a while, he broke free from his thoughts and returned to reality.
“I have caused trouble for my master.”
Although it was an unexpected accident, it was still an accident triggered by him.
He left the room, prepared to receive a word of scolding from his master.
"You're awake. Have some breakfast."
Master Hene personally prepared breakfast for her disciple who had collapsed unconscious yesterday.
Yurik sat down in his chair apologetically.
"I'm sorry."
"I think you simply didn't take it into account because it was your first time. It's perfectly understandable at this stage. That's what magic is. The magic you've been using without issue your entire life until yesterday can change today. Magic is never predictable. Remember that."
"Yes, I will definitely remember that."
The master sat across from him, watching her disciple eat quietly.
In truth, despite her calm words, she couldn't sleep at all last night with the magic he had performed yesterday lingering in her mind.
“...This child who has barely begun his training...”
To think he would find his own method just from hearing a single piece of advice.
He was still a child who didn't know about mana circuits or how to break down rune language in greater detail.
Hene's hand trembled slightly at her disciple's talent that increasingly exceeded imagination.
What kind of being had she encountered?
Hene herself had certainly been called a genius until her ears hurt.
It was talent even acknowledged by the Grand Matron. ...However, her disciple before her eyes was on a different level entirely.
What was driving him like this? Was the universe showing favoritism to him?
That couldn't be.
The universe is fair.
Fair to everyone.
To the universe, they are all just parts of itself.
...Perhaps Yurik's very existence was an appeal to the universe.
Master Hene carefully considered what to do next.
A master has the responsibility to guide their disciple to a more excellent path.
She wanted to help his development, his growth.
Her petty pride was unnecessary.
For her disciple, for Yurik, she was prepared to do anything.
"Yurik."
"...Yes, Master."
"Let's learn about mana circuits."
The reason Yurik collapsed after using such profound magic yesterday was because he couldn't properly handle the mana circuit yet.
As a result, the mana in his body that he couldn't control poured out completely and evaporated.
Magic performed according to introductory texts already has mana circuits somewhat controlled.
However, if he had found his own method, he needed to learn how to handle it himself.
Though the process had jumped ahead somewhat, there was nothing wrong with learning mana circuit control early.
In fact, before introductory texts were established, Mages historically learned from mana circuits first.
However, there was someone more specialized in this field than Hene.
A Grand Mage who had steadfastly researched mana circuits alone for decades.
Grand Mage Ingris.
Of course, Hene had sufficient skill to teach about mana circuits, but she didn't want to confine her disciple's potential within her own limitations.
"Finish your meal and prepare to go out."
"Understood."
After finishing his meal and washing up, Yurik followed Master Hene, who was dressed in outdoor clothes.
Grand Mage Ingris's mansion was located in the center of Arpenheim.
Ingris came out to the entrance herself to welcome her junior Hene's visit.
"Has the sun risen from the west? What brings you here? Coming to see me of all people."
"I have a favor to ask of you, senior."
"A f-favor?"
Ingris heard the word ‘favor’ from Hene for the first time in her life. Her aloof expression changed dramatically.
"Come in first."
Yurik, belatedly feeling the gaze upon him, quickly bowed his head in greeting.
However, Ingris, who had little interest in anything not directly related to her, barely acknowledged his greeting.
The three entered the reception room.
Ingris's disciple, Little Mage Monica, served them each a cup of tea.
"So, a favor? What kind of favor?"
Hene placed her hand on Yurik's shoulder beside her and looked at his profile.
"I was wondering if you could teach my disciple about mana circuits."
Ingris's eyes widened at the unexpected request.
When it came to mana circuits, Hene's knowledge wasn't particularly lacking.
After all, Hene was one of the Grand Matron's masterpieces!
"Specifically me? Why?"
"Because no one can match you when it comes to mana circuits, senior."
Implying that much expertise was needed?
Ingris looked at Hene's disciple with fresh eyes.
Of course, she had heard he was talented. But wasn't this being too protective?
...However.
This was the first favor ever asked by her beloved junior.
“She must have her reasons.”
Besides, Hene was also a Grand Mage acknowledged by the Grand Matron. There must be reasons for making such a judgment.
"Alright. I'll do it."
"Thank you, senior."
"Thank you, elder!"
"Drop the 'elder.' Just call me senior."
"Yes, senior."
Ingris felt too old when she heard the word ‘elder.’
In reality, she was only about ten years older than Hene!
Since they had come all this way, she decided to start teaching today.
Hene thanked her once more, left her disciple in Ingris's care, and returned to her cottage.
Grand Mage Ingris took Yurik to her research room.
Her research room was densely packed with complex diagrams covering the walls.
He couldn't help but exclaim in admiration when he saw them.
She was a Grand Mage, after all.
There was no way he could possibly gauge the depth of her research.
Before beginning the education, Ingris started with an introduction to mana circuits.
"In fact, rune language is a formalized mana circuit. It's like a pre-arranged symbol. Of course, this alone is sufficient to perform excellent magic, but if you enter an independent magic system, you might feel that rune language alone is somewhat insufficient."
"Yes."
"Mana circuits are the most fundamental basics. In some ways, it might be the first thing one should learn when mastering magic. However, the theory is so vast and complex that beginners often struggle at this stage. If you're not careful, you might even lose interest. That's why Mages have worked for centuries to formalize circuits."
Yurik was dazed by the depth of magic.
To think that even a trivial rune language contained such hundreds of years of history.
“There are five elements that make up a circuit. From these five elements, six types of circuits are usually created: amplification, oscillation, modulation, demodulation, filtering, and logic.”
Ingris demonstrated the five elements of circuits and the six types of circuits created from them.
“It’s complicated. But this is just the basics. A single rune is a combination of at least three or four circuits.”
It was incredibly complex. But Yurik found it oddly familiar. ……Could it be because of his past life memories?
“The first priority is to understand how the elements work and how they function when combined. …Here, take this.”
Ingris handed Yurik a thick book titled The Basics of Mana Circuits. Just reading the title sent shivers down his spine.
But Yurik felt an inexplicable surge of excitement.
‘I can dissect magic in such detail…!’
What could be more thrilling than this?
Though he hadn’t experienced it yet, he imagined the indescribable joy of creating his own circuit and completing a spell.
“We’ll study this from now on. Open the book.”
“Yes, Senior!”
After finishing the introduction, Ingris began the lesson in earnest.
…And then.
‘………Look at this kid.’
When she explained one thing, he grasped two or three more, and soon he was figuring out four or five on his own.
It was absurd, but it felt as if Yurik had been familiar with this theory all along.
Theories that had taken her most talented disciples over ten days to understand were being devoured by him in a single glance.
Ingris found herself growing increasingly excited without realizing it.
“What about this? Can you understand this too?”
She gradually moved from the basics to more advanced topics.
But it didn’t stop at just advanced topics—he began creating his own circuits.
“What if we do it like this?”
He mixed amplification and modulation circuits, inserted a logic circuit, and then dispersed it through oscillation and demodulation circuits.
Such complex combinations formed even larger circuit combinations, which in turn combined with others.
He even created complex logic circuits she hadn’t taught him, using them to filter conditions.
He mixed amplification between logic circuits, a feat that defied convention, and even inserted unique circuits to prevent mana leakage caused by amplification.
Though it was an outdated theory no longer included in basic texts, the fact that he had thought of and created it himself was nothing short of astonishing.
Lost in the circuits, Yurik only snapped out of it when he noticed the sun was setting.
‘Look at me.’
“What’s wrong? Where are you stuck? What else are you curious about? Huh?”
Ingris, half-crazed, couldn’t take her eyes off Yurik. No, she couldn’t look away.
“Um, Senior. It’s getting late, so I should probably head back.”
“……Huh? ………What?!”
Ingris finally looked out the window. The sky was already dark.
‘…No!’
But she had no intention of letting him go. Not at all.
“Stay the night. Let’s study more today. Let’s learn more about circuits. There’s still so much to learn. You’re enjoying this too, right?”
Ingris frantically rang the bell on the table. Soon after, the young mage Monika entered the study.
“Yes, Master.”
“Tell Hene. I’ll be keeping her disciple here for the night. ……No, wait.”
The grand mage waved her hand, canceling her words.
“Three days. I’ll keep him here for three days. There’s so much to learn about mana circuits that it’ll take time. Hene will understand what I mean. You understand too, right?”
Ingris stared intensely at Yurik, seeking his agreement. Feeling as if she might kill him if he refused, Yurik quickly nodded.
Honestly, he had just gotten into circuits and didn’t want to stop either.
“Yurik agrees too. Go and deliver the message quickly.”
“Understood.”
As Monika left, the atmosphere returned to one of intense study.
Ingris propped her chin on her hand and stared piercingly at Yurik.
“Now no one will disturb us. Keep going. Ask me anything you’re curious about. Understood?”
The grand mage’s attitude had changed in half a day.
‘Yurik is mine now.’
A genius of circuits.
A master of circuits couldn’t let such a genius slip away, could she?