Chapter 33: You Wouldn't Want to Be Saddled with Debt at Such a Young Age, Would You?
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 33: You Wouldn't Want to Be Saddled with Debt at Such a Young Age, Would You?
I didn't press the matter any further. If I kept digging and Senior Sister Tang Yihan didn't know the answer, wouldn't that just be awkward for her?
It was like trying to explain how to use a smartphone to someone who had never seen one, only for them to immediately ask how the phone was manufactured.
How would you even explain that?
You’d have to say the craftsmanship is incredibly complex and involves a vast array of theories.
The water in this trade runs deep; you wouldn't be able to handle it, kid.
So, to avoid unnecessary trouble, I dropped the subject and simply asked for more information about spell slots to see if they really functioned like they did in games.
Ultimately, I concluded that they really did. A spellbook was a tool for quickly mastering and using spells; it wasn't even a learning aid, because using it didn't grant me the corresponding knowledge.
Furthermore, you had to read the instruction manual or figure out the usage method yourself before casting. Spellbooks even had a limit on how many times they could be used for learning; if you pushed them too hard, they would self-destruct.
On top of that, manufacturing a spellbook was a massive headache. I heard that one had to at least reach the Transcendent level to even meet the threshold for making one.
It was a real eye-opener.
Didn't this make the Transcendent world seem as easy as a game?
No—if placed in reality, this was likely a game on Hell difficulty. I had no main storyline and no main quests; completing tasks didn't grant quest rewards.
Well, the Academy's task system did offer rewards. At least they paid in cash, didn't they?
It was the same for everyone. The only people who felt things were "easy" were those who already controlled the resources, and that certainly wasn't me.
I told myself to maintain a balanced mindset. At the very least, those high-level concerns weren't something a guy who still had to scrub dishes needed to worry about.
At least the existence of spell slots was a significant advantage for someone like me. Otherwise, if learning a single spell required understanding its composition, studying magic theory, thoroughly grasping its operational principles, and possessing powerful mental power to interfere with mana to release the spell...
That would be truly exhausting.
Though, I had been mentally prepared for that. Before enrolling in the Transcendent Academy, our curriculum already included courses like Basic Spell Theory and Elemental Theory, and those subjects were graded in the College Entrance Exam.
However, I still felt those theories were too basic. Understanding them felt less challenging than some of the complex math problems from my previous life that used to leave me utterly helpless.
I had originally thought that upon entering the Witch Academy, I would be exposed to more profound Transcendent theoretical knowledge. Now, I was being told that Transcendent methods had been reduced to one-click, idiot-proof spellcasting.
Naturally, this was a bit hard to swallow.
But at least it saved me from the tedious process of manual casting.
The world doesn't revolve around me, after all. Perhaps I had been influenced too much by the literature and novels of my previous life, leading me to form my own ideas and definitions of what a Transcendent world should be.
To me, a Transcendent world shouldn't just be a violent place where people master skills and start blasting each other; it should be about exploring the essence of the world through a Transcendent perspective...
Maybe I was just being too idealistic. In a Transcendent world, combat power was likely the most important thing.
If spells could be popularized through such simple means, it would certainly make it easier to rapidly form an effective fighting force.
Only with strength do you have a say. That was true in my previous life, and it was likely even truer in this Transcendent world.
I comforted myself with these thoughts.
Then, I ended my fantasies and faced reality. Looking at the mountain of dishes and utensils still piled up, I really wondered: did they really sell enough bread and cookies to justify using this many tools?
But that wasn't my concern. As Tang Yihan had mentioned during our chat, the display cases outside had solidified preservation spells on them, so the goods wouldn't spoil easily.
Speaking of solidified spells, I remembered that my badge seemed to have one as well...
And it was a basic spell like the Fireball Spell.
Since I couldn't manipulate mana yet, how was I supposed to use this Fireball Spell?
This wasn't a spellbook, after all.
I remembered Sister Bai saying back then that this was to help New Students get through the awkward early period when they lacked combat power. Senior Sister Tang Yihan had also said that New Students couldn't manage to release spells independently using mental power for the first few years.
Wasn't that a contradiction?
Or had I misunderstood something?
"Senior Sister Tang Yihan, can I ask one more question?"
"Mm, go ahead."
By now, I had taken over the task of washing the dishes, leaving Tang Yihan relatively free. Naturally, she was happy to clear up my confusion.
"Didn't the New Students get an Enrollment Four-Piece Set? The badge has a solidified spell on it. How do I use that?"
I pointed slightly at the badge on my chest as I asked.
"That badge is an alchemical product. To some extent, it has an effect similar to a spellbook, but it's a physical object that suffers from wear and tear. You use your mental power to trigger it..."
"Wait!"
"Huh? What's wrong?" I was just about to try it out based on Senior Sister Tang Yihan's explanation when she suddenly cut me off.
"Don't you dare try it! You've just come into contact with magic; you don't know how powerful spells can be. You have to remember, spells are highly destructive. I don't want you blowing this place up. Just listen to what I say. You wouldn't want to blow this place up and end up saddled with debt at such a young age, would you?"
"Right, right. Definitely not."
I nodded hurriedly in apology, immediately killing any thought of experimenting.
"In short, you need to use your mental power to guide the spell on your badge. If you eventually learn to interfere with mana, you can inject mana directly, but you can't do that right now. Once you activate it, it will automatically draw mana from the Mana Source within your body to release a spell of fixed power."
"The controllability of this spell is very poor. You don't have the ability to handle the aftermath once the spell is released. Every year, New Students cause explosions all over the Academy out of curiosity or carelessness, saddling themselves with debt before they've even started. So, you have to be careful."
Afterward, Senior Sister Tang Yihan gave me a stern lecture, warning me not to use the spell lightly. Even if I was interested, I had to test it in a designated area.
She also told me not to rely on this power. Items with solidified offensive spells suffer heavy wear, and continuous use makes it even worse.
In short: don't try it now, and definitely don't try it in the shop.
I quickly agreed. After all, the Senior Sister had answered my question. It turned out I did have combat power right now; it was just a shame it was a "weapon of mass destruction" that I couldn't use freely.
However, the dishes I washed were eventually rejected by Senior Sister Tang Yihan. They weren't clean enough, which effectively doubled my workload. Was hand-washing really no match for magic?
Fortunately, Senior Sister Tang Yihan was kind enough to say that when the Shopkeeper returned, she would report the situation and let me master the necessary spell as soon as possible.
Even though it was just a Cleaning Spell, I was still thrilled. A Cleaning Spell was incredibly convenient—and not just for washing dishes.
Because of the time, Tang Yihan joined in on the dishwashing. Watching her finish the job so easily with magic certainly made me envious.