Sleepy Streams and the Shape of Mana
There was definitely a time when I loved streamed games so much they made me suspiciously sleepy. With my limited range of movement, they were the only way to connect with the outside world. A fair world. Even amid the profanity flying everywhere, most of it wasn't aimed at me. My character absorbed all the insults, so I just loved the games. Back then, I hated studying with a passion. Funny how things turn out. In my first life, I barely played games at all—studying was my entire existence. And now? If I don't want to die, I have to play games. Just looking at avatars makes my teeth chatter these days. Studying even seems fun by comparison. I guess I'm just a fickle person after all. Memories of the past get romanticized, and time heals the pain. But my wounds from gaming haven't healed enough to make it a career, so I had no plans to play games on stream either.
"How did you get in here?"
"Just wandered in. Is it okay if I stay?"
"Uh... sure... yeah."
But I have no idea what people in this world do in virtual reality besides play games. They can't just be gathering to chat aimlessly. So, for reconnaissance, I decided to hop into a random channel for reference.
The space reminded me of a university lecture hall. The presumed host looked like an old professor in his late 50s.
"Sorry, Professor! I forgot to set the password. What should we do about her?"
"She's already here as an auditor—kicking her out would look bad, right? She'll leave when it's over. It's not exactly thrilling material anyway."
While I settled into a seat, he wrote on the chalkboard—the same as the stream title.
Micro-Nano Transmutation Circle Hermeneutics Make-up Class #2
Has personal broadcasting expanded into private education to this extent? Or maybe it's the other way around. While the old professor cleared his throat, the TA diligently printed PPT materials and distributed them to each seat. Then he fiddled with some settings window a few times, and avatars popped into existence in midair. None of the unique game avatars—just plain-looking young adults in their twenties. My avatar, modeled exactly after me, actually made the room feel more awkward. Some viewers, already chatting among themselves, whispered about me. Whatever. The TA kindly handed a printout to my seat too. Being short, I'd picked a front-row spot. With the professor's roll call as background noise, I flipped through the handout.
Microscopic interpretation of transmutation circles. Today's topic: the advantages of applying semiconductor lithography processes to transmutation circles. First time hearing "lithography," but it promised a breakthrough in resolution—one of transmutation circles' chronic issues. Pretty intriguing to me. Is this the kind of content you need to make real money? Society's still harsh. The room itself screamed professional setup too. But how do they monetize? No donations enabled...
The professor began the lecture. The throat-clearing must be a habit—even in VR, it grated a bit mid-sentence. But the content was way denser than expected. If anything, the handout fell short. The other viewers' heads were already bowed low—maybe they knew it all since it was a make-up class. Everything was new to me, so I traced a transmutation circle in the air with my finger and looked up unfamiliar terms online. What a waste for someone this talented to rot as a streamer. In my past life, he'd have been a shoo-in for tower lord.
"Ultimately, we scientists and engineers are always challenging material limits. If the tunneling effect exceeds a certain probability, it doesn't just hurt efficiency—it disrupts operation entirely. We can't ignore it. You there—what's your name?"
"Me?"
"Yes, the student with the cute little girl avatar."
The professor pointed at me without warning.
"Nami."
"Nami? Nice name. I noticed you listening intently, so I thought I'd ask. So, Nami—which material from today's lecture do you think yields the highest resolution in a transmutation circle?"
Sudden spotlight. Even the dozing heads snapped up, eyes on me. Not used to this pressure. I reviewed what he'd said. Was there something like this in my old world? Efforts to boost resolution, sure. Lithography was unique there too.
"I don't think it has to be tied to a specific material."
"What do you mean?"
"If we're ignoring efficiency entirely and focusing purely on resolution, using interference waves like you described is probably the smartest approach right now."
"Want to come up and explain?"
Chalk in my hand. Even the texture felt real—impressive. I drew a simple dual transmutation circle for incident and reflected waves, tweaking formulas at the vertices.
"Connect a dual interference wave transmutation circle in parallel to the lithography one like this. Since they're in phase, it stays stable. Then, instead of hunting real-world materials, trial-and-error the constant values for the blank spot here via computer. Faster, right?"
Simple stuff. Time-wise similar, but effort per trial differs. Former means scouring Earth's elements and compounds. Latter? Just compute till it spits out an answer. Like games—better master one champ through hundreds of practices than hunt the perfect one from hundreds. Damn, thinking of games again. I handed the chalk back and prepped to leave. PC bang time ending in 5 minutes—notification popped up.
PC Bang session ends in 5 minutes.
"I gotta go—time's up. Great lecture, sorry I can't donate."
"Donate...? You're not from this school?"
* * *
The unease during class? Kinda deflating. A real university lecture, as suspected. Why on Twishi platform? Twishi and VTube monopolize VR? National schools' infrastructure is pitiful. Guess I slipped in while the TA set the room. Professor hoped to see me next Wednesday, but I'll think on it. Pay me, maybe. Recon mission: total failure.
Summer evenings—sun still high. I savored the reddening sky on the walk back to the orphanage, where Arin was probably waiting anxiously.
"Why're you so late...?"
"Baek Arin?"
Already exhausted, and here she comes tackling me again. Normally I'd soothe and peel her off, but her voice cracked with tears.
"I don't wanna leave Nami."
"What happened?"
I wiped her tear-filled eyes.
"I'm getting adopted tomorrow... by the guy who took Min-woo oppa last time."
"Isn't that good?"
"Not without Nami! I wanted us to go together! But... the uncle said... no to two... sob... waaah... I won't go. I'll stay here forever."
"Don't be stubborn."
"Why say it like that..."
"This might be your last shot to leave Merlin Orphanage. We're just apart temporarily."
Poor Arin—loner at school and here. Such a pretty, kind, diligent girl rotting away? Swans don't shine among ducks.
"He said he's rich... but Nami's prettier and smarter—why only me...?"
"Know where you're going?"
She shook her head.
"Listen, Arin. I was planning to leave the orphanage anyway. No more school."
"Huh...? Why not?"
"Doctor says my body's weak—rest at home long-term."
"Knew you were really sick..."
"I just want you eating well, going to a good school. When I return, can you help me adjust? Like I did for you?"
"..."
"Don't worry about me. I have a place too."
"But... how'll we talk...?"
"Uncle's rich, right? Bet your new home has a capsule just for you. Meet up when we're free."
"Promise?"
"Yeah."
"Break it and lightning strikes a thousand times."
"Obviously."
Not that a thousand lightning strikes sound fun—I'd gotten them before. Dinner cut our chat short. Arin picked at her food, heart heavy. Felt bad, so I force-fed her a banana. She snatched it eagerly—pure puppy vibes. Somehow, today became our last tutoring session. I'd miss teaching a bit.
"Learned something fun on Twishi today."
"You stopped at the PC bang—that's why you're late?!"
Brief chaos, but I calmed her and pulled out the stone slab I'd snuck from the career expo.
Last lesson—time to go all out.
"Ever seen mana?"
"Mana? Saw blue orbs when the principal casts spells at school."
"Not magic. Mana particles exactly. I'll show you."
Started with a great circle on the slab. Magic circle, not transmutation—so double caution. Even I mess up math sometimes.
"Mana's invisible—not just tiny. It's not even particles. Nor waves."
Her age wouldn't grasp wave-particle duality, but I pressed on. Filled it with runes too.
"Mana's possibility. Or probability. Like—how'd you express liking me?"
"Um... sky-high, earth-deep, universe-wide?"
"Yeah, we approximate with concepts. Time, space, properties... You gave your feeling 'size' and pulled the matching idea."
"Don't get it."
"You hold my hand or hug to show it. Same with mana—make it 'there' for sure, then grab its hand."
Added dimensions to the slab. Research showed it could auto-deploy 3D magic circles. My mana limit: four simultaneous. Perfect—we needed four.
"This shape's a tetrahedron. Four equilateral triangles. Base is the observation lithography transmutation circle. Sides are the magic circles."
Now my magic—quick formulas.
"First purifies mana. Similar properties to gather it."
"Second condenses it. Past Nesetite threshold, probability nears 1—turns particle."
"Last's secret. No fun spoiling all."
Mana from the tetrahedron's vertices converged centerward. Red, yellow, then white—tiny, bright particle born. I tweaked lithography luminosity to dim it. Bluish icosahedron floated—like hail. Arin stared wide-eyed.
"Smaller than a hair by 10,000 times. Cool, huh?"
"Yeah... like winter snowflakes."
"Caster's emotions shape it. Many faces? Yeah... means I'm sad to part with you too."
"Really?"
"Yeah."