Chapter 41: Spellbook · Cleaning Spell
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 41: Spellbook · Cleaning Spell
After everyone had their fill of food and wine.
The bakery had closed early today, though it wouldn't cause much inconvenience to the neighbors.
In the end, the Shopkeeper had to be dragged away by the combined efforts of Ying Shiqian and Senior Sister Tang Yihan.
Between the guests and the chefs, there were six of us in total, and two had ended up dead drunk.
One of them happened to be the other boss.
I could already see the awkward and helpless expression on that boss's apprentice's face.
As a result, I ended up with a half-day of paid leave. I had nothing left to do this afternoon.
The only thing remaining was to handle a few trifles around the shop and then lock up.
"Wait, Xiao Han, don't leave yet."
Just as I was clocking out to head home, Senior Sister Tang Yihan stopped me.
"Is something wrong, Senior Sister?" I turned back to look at her. Surely she wasn't going to make me work overtime? I was on paid leave—even if it was only for half a day, coming back to work would definitely require extra pay.
"Of course there's something. You're in luck this time." Senior Sister Tang Yihan played coy for once, approaching me with a look that suggested I was about to get a massive bargain.
"In luck? How so?"
"Here, take this." Tang Yihan pressed something that looked like a light orb into my hand.
"This is...?"
I instinctively caught the orb. It felt weightless, emitting a soft glow that wasn't at all piercing to the eyes.
"This is a Spellbook. I managed to snag it from the Shopkeeper's inventory while she was in a good mood. It's the Cleaning Spell we talked about before."
"Really?"
Hearing her words, my eyes widened immediately. This was a Spellbook? I had imagined a skill book that actually looked like a book. I didn't expect it to be like this.
"Of course. Use it quickly. Once these things are out of their specific storage containers, they slowly self-destruct."
"Right, okay. How do I use it?" I asked with a hint of urgency. I was eager, but I had no idea what to do; I could only wait for her to explain.
"It's simple. Just slap it anywhere on your body. Your head, your heart, your chest—wherever you like." As she spoke, she demonstrated the motion with her hand.
"That simple?" Despite my doubts, I chose to trust her.
I cupped the light orb. It was weightless, and I was a bit worried it might slip through my fingers, but I obediently pressed it against my chest.
The orb dissipated against my front, and countless stray specks of light stretched into long threads that merged into my body.
There didn't seem to be any physical sensation?
No, wait—there was. I felt a connection, one I couldn't quite describe, as if it were something I was born with...
And then, a surge of information rushed into my mind!
"Don't worry. Usually, a Spellbook requires a manual to learn how to use it, but the Shopkeeper's Spellbooks always come with the instruction manual data built-in. Just take your time to feel it. Turn it into your instinct. Spells are just tools for you to use at will..."
Seeing my reaction, Tang Yihan didn't panic. She knew this was normal and quickly explained the process to me.
"Mm..."
I was busy processing the information and could only manage a brief grunt in response.
I had to admit, the sensation of a manual being uploaded directly into your brain was indescribable, but it was incredibly convenient.
"Feeling better?"
Tang Yihan asked with a look of concern once she saw me open my eyes and regain my focus.
"Much better. Thank you, Senior Sister," I thanked her sincerely. This was, in a true sense, my first spell. The one on the chest badge didn't count; this was my real first one.
Even if it was just a utility spell with no combat power, it was still magic!
"Don't mention it. However... from now on, you'll have to wash all the tools you use for your baking practice yourself~"
"Yes, of course!" I nodded in agreement. Even if I had to do all the cleaning from now on, it wouldn't be a problem!
I didn't say that out loud, though. One should always leave themselves an out and not take every single burden onto their own shoulders.
Fulfilling a promise is never as simple as just saying the words.
* * *
After saying goodbye to Senior Sister, I set off on the path back to my dormitory.
Though the walk wasn't long, I started trying to cast the Cleaning Spell along the way.
Even though I had the instructions in my head and knew how to do it, I couldn't resist trying it out for myself. I simply couldn't wait.
According to the manual, casting a spell required using Mental Power. Once the spell itself was dominated by Mental Power, it could rely on the spell structure to draw mana.
This skipped the step of having to manually use Mental Power to interfere with mana to cast the spell.
As for how the spell actually utilized the mana, the manual didn't explain.
I could already feel the dormant Mana Source within my body beginning to stir under the spell's influence. A surge of power flowed from the Mana Source and was injected into the Cleaning Spell in a way I didn't quite understand.
"So this is what it feels like to control a spell?"
Once the Cleaning Spell was activated, I felt a force come under my control.
I opened my Spirit Vision to observe my current state—from the Mana Source to the spell, and finally to this soft power I could now manipulate at will.
The transformation process was extremely complex, but the power I held in my hand was no longer raw mana.
Furthermore, maintaining the Cleaning Spell consumed very little from the Mana Source. I felt as though the consumption and recovery rates were almost equal.
However, if I had to use Spirit Vision to judge which was more terrifying between the Mana Source and the spell...
I would have to say the Mana Source. Of course, the Cleaning Spell was also complex, and the feedback I got from Spirit Vision was equally incomprehensible.
But there was a difference between these two types of "incomprehensible."
To use an analogy, the Mana Source was like the final, condensed version of the mass-energy equivalence formula ($E=mc^2$). It was concise and clear, yet so terrifying that I had no way to approach it; the moment it was expanded, it would become an overwhelming sea of derivations and rituals.
The spell, on the other hand, felt complex, but once expanded, it was full of things that seemed understandable. I could even recognize parts of it based on my previous theoretical knowledge. However, actually understanding it would require a massive investment of time.
Even though I couldn't understand it now, I could still use it thanks to the manual.
After all, practical application always precedes theoretical derivation.
I used the Cleaning Spell on my clothes, and every speck of dust—visible or otherwise—was swept away.
It was miraculous.
However, I noticed a disclaimer in the manual: If the Cleaning Spell strips away the inherent surface, inherent color, or dyes of the object being cleaned, this is not a fault of the Cleaning Spell, but rather a quality issue with the object itself. In such cases, one may report the issue to seek compensation. It even thoughtfully included a hotline for complaints...
This manual was strangely meticulous in the oddest places. Why couldn't they have been this thorough in explaining the principles of the spell?
Then again, that was probably impossible. In a Transcendent world, knowledge was surely something you had to pay for.
Whatever. Once I got back to the dorm, I'd use the Cleaning Spell to give the entire villa a deep clean. It would be the perfect way to get used to using the spell.
Even though the house had that Smart Butler, that robot vacuum looked completely unreliable no matter how I looked at it.