Magic Maker - How to make magic in another world - - Chapter 25

Magic Maker – How to make magic in another world –

Chapter 25    Magic research analysis 4

Morning. In the courtyard.

In front of the Thunderstone through which intermittent electric currents run, I stand.

My sister is standing beside me in the same way.

Dad is not here today.

Until now, I was told not to do experiments when Dad isn’t around.

But in the presence of my sister, I was told that it’s okay to do simple experiments.

And always have a bucket of water ready nearby.

It seems that in Dad’s mind, experiments equate to needing water.

“Um, sis.”

“Hmm? What is it?”

I glanced at her, wondering what to do.

She’s close.

Arms crossed, not moving away from me.

Rubbing her cheek against my arm.

Cute like a cat, but it feels more like lovers than sister and brother.

I don’t mind, but if we get too clingy, Dad will scold us again.

And somehow, this current closeness doesn’t seem good for the future.

It’s okay for kids, but… hmm.

Anyway, let’s put that aside for now.

Right now, I don’t want her to be so close.

“Sorry, but I want you to move away a bit.”

“Why?”

“I’m going to do some magic experiments, and it’s dangerous if you’re too close, you know?”

“Am I in the way?”

She lowered her eyes sadly.

What’s this?

From an outsider’s perspective, it probably looks like we’re being lovey-dovey.

When I was in Japan, if I saw such couples, I’d secretly curse them.

I never thought I’d be in that position.

But we’re siblings.

“Your not in the way! But, you know, it’s easier for magical research if you move away.”

Pursing her lips, my sister moved away from me.

She looked at my right arm with a hint of reluctance.

I wonder if she really likes my arm that much.

“Okay, I get it.”

While pouting, my sister reluctantly distanced herself from me.

She sat at the edge of the garden, hugging her knees.

My sister can be a bit selfish, but she’ll understand if I explain it to her.

I sighed softly and smiled.

Now, let’s start today’s research.

Until today, I had been practicing and experimenting on several things.

It’s about changing the shape of magical power.

When I released magical power externally, it used to take the form of a perfect circle.

I’ve tentatively concluded that when magical power is released without any specific command, it naturally takes that shape.

So, it took some time to come up with the idea of changing its shape.

But that’s beside the point.

I’ve succeeded in changing the shape of magical power.

It was relatively easy once I focused on it.

I’ve learned a few things about changing the shape of magical power.

First, it’s possible to increase magical power beyond the mass of magical power at the point of external release.

When released without any thought, magical power forms a perfect circle with a diameter of about twenty centimeters.

It’s not about increasing or decreasing the mass like clay, but rather thinning out the magical power itself.

Let’s assume the amount of magical power released externally and its volume 60.

It’s not fixed; it’s inversely proportional.

In other words, if you increase the volume, the amount of magical power decreases.

If the volume is 80, the magical power is around 40, and so on.

However, this doesn’t mean the total value is fixed.

In this example, the total value is 120, but in reality, it’s quite different.

I don’t intend to calculate the exact proportions right now, but there’s no doubt about it.

Well, it’s natural. The energy of externally released magical power doesn’t change, so when consumed, it decreases.

And it gradually decreases even when it just exists.

When I realized this fact, I had several questions in my mind.

How far can it expand, and how far can it contract?

For the former, roughly, a perfect circle with a diameter of five meters.

If I stretch it thinly, making it like a puddle, I can probably go up to ten meters.

However, if the magical power is too thin, it can’t be used for magic.

It won’t ignite, and it won’t conduct electricity.

A certain level of magical power is necessary.

I hope this helps!

By the way, if it’s about five meters, electricity only passes through a little bit. The electric current is almost invisible.

At three meters, it briefly lights up, and the electric current is visible for just a moment.

At one meter, it shines brightly, and you can clearly see the electricity.

The reaction varies depending on the amount of magical power, and there is clearly a difference in power.

At the five-meter point, it probably wouldn’t make much sense to conduct electricity. It’s just a slight tingle, I think.

As for the flare, it didn’t ignite unless there was magical power similar to that at the point of external release. Even when stretched thinly, it didn’t catch fire, and it was meaningless.

Now, what if we condense magical power?

With electricity, it simply lit up a little. Perhaps the volume was too low. Condensing it might increase the power, but it’s not currently useful.

What about the flare?

Here, it showed a somewhat unexpected reaction. Instead of regular fire, a flame akin to a burner was created. It was a reaction like igniting gas. Up until now, the flares were Will-o’-the-wisps, in other words, a normal fire shape. However, when magical power was ignited with a dense concentration, from the perspective of firepower, there was a clear improvement.

As an experiment, I directed both towards a wooden board.

The previous flare merely caused the fire to spread in a normal fashion. Besides, it took some time for it to spread after being touched.

The latter flare, tentatively referred to as a gas flare, caused the surface of the wooden board to instantly char and ignite. The spread of the fire was similar to the regular flare, but it left a black mark on the board’s surface. The gas flare is definitely more powerful, although the regular flare lasts longer. The duration of the regular flare is about five seconds, while the gas flare lasts for approximately three seconds. The difference in duration means that, inevitably, when released externally and directed towards a target, the regular flare has a longer range. The regular flare reaches about ten meters, while the gas flare extends to around five meters. This is the first realization.

And the second point.

The change in the shape of magical power is rather coarse.

Triangles, rectangles, pentagons, those are doable, but when it goes beyond that, it tends to become vague.

Creating precise shapes was challenging.

It might be due to lack of practice, so this aspect needs further verification.

Regarding forms other than distinct ones, such as shapes resembling bundles of threads or a combination of circles and squares, in other words, non-conventional forms, the answer is that it’s possible.

However, it’s extremely difficult, and achieving the desired shape is even more challenging.

Compared to the external release of magical power or general commands, like releasing and directing it towards a target, magical power shape alteration is very delicate.

This means that a clear mental image is necessary.

Human thinking is complex and unclear, with various thoughts intermingling.

Even if you try to visualize, distractions seep in.

No matter how much you calm your mind, unless you are a person who has undergone extensive mental training, achieving a perfect mental image is difficult, in my opinion.

This is another area that requires continuous training, although for now, there isn’t a need for a precise mental image in magical power shape alteration.

Looking ahead, I think it’s not a bad idea to undergo training in manipulating magical power.

And the third point.

After external magical power release, it’s possible to change its shape.

Basically, when I release magical power, I create it from the palm of my hand.

This is because the contact surface is large, and it’s easier to form a mental image.

In cases with shapes that have a large contact surface, there’s no issue. However, if, for example, I want to create a long, slender cylindrical magical power, it’s produced in the manner where magical power extends straight from the palm of my hand.

Shapes that can’t be created directly from the palm, like a perfect circle or a square, are released using this method.

In other words, it’s somewhat like Sun Wukong’s Ruyi Jingu Bang from Journey to the West.

For lengths of about one meter, it can be released instantly, but when it’s longer than that, it can’t be created in an instant.

Naturally, the longer it is extended, the lower the amount of magical power, and the larger the volume.

Of course, since magical power is in direct contact with the palm, I’ve also added the command to release it from the palm, ensuring that it doesn’t touch the body, as contact with electricity or fire can be dangerous.

Now, this is all I know about the shape alteration of magical power at the current moment.

With this in mind, I’m standing in front of the thunder stone.

I create magical power from my right hand.

Imaging a cylinder extending from a point slightly away from my palm.

That cylinder touches the thunder ore.

And an electric current runs through.

In front of me.

A red electric current ran right up to my eyes.

The terrifying sound, a “zap,” echoing, and the thorns flowed, and then disappeared.

The blinding light illuminated the central courtyard and then vanished.

I instinctively pulled my palm back.

Even though I had released the magical power from my hand, extending it further wouldn’t have caused any harm, but my heart raced noticeably in that moment.

“Are you okay, Shion!?”

My sister rushed to my side, worried, and repeatedly checked my hand.

I wasn’t injured, just scared. I had expected this to happen to some extent.

“I’m fine. It was nothing.”

“Re-really? Well, that’s good, but… about what happened earlier? I thought the electricity would go in Shion’s direction.”

“It’s a bit hard to explain, but it’s similar to what happened with the flare. Magic is created by consuming magical power, so it’s not strange for it to flow towards the source of magical power. When magical power touched the thunder stone, it naturally flowed in my direction.”

My sister tilted her head, not quite understanding.

Explaining it was proving to be somewhat challenging. The concept of electricity hadn’t penetrated this world, even though thunder was known, so providing a vague explanation was possible.

Now, let’s verify the phenomenon from earlier.

Of course.

I created a stick-like magical power from a distance and touched its tip to the thunder stone.

Electricity followed the magical power from the point of contact.

In other words, it moved towards me.

Well, this was naturally expected.

It was just scarier than I thought.

In this case, unlike with the flare, electricity discharged upon contact, making it difficult to send it towards a target.

When magical power touched the thunder stone, the magical power stick needed to be fully extended toward the target.

This meant I had to be in the position of me, the thunder stone, and the target, with the magical power extended to the target while keeping it in place and making contact with the thunder stone’s central part.

This involved quite a bit of inefficient commands, leading to significant magical power consumption.

It required external release, extension of magical power, keeping it in place, making contact with the thunder stone’s central part, and then flowing electricity.

There were many wasteful commands involved.

It would be ideal if I could extend the magical power in a straight line and release electricity at any given moment.

However, that wasn’t possible. The thunder stone discharged intermittently, and it was impossible to hold in your hand.

“Hmm, as it is now, it doesn’t seem as easy to use as a flare.”

I reassured my concerned sister and returned to the experiment.

This time, I tried touching the released magical power in a relatively diluted and extended state to the thunder stone.

As I mentioned earlier, for a thin circular shape with a diameter of about three meters, it would briefly emit light and have electricity running through it upon contact.

However, you had to create the shape before making contact.

Lightning magic had its quirks.

Upon contact, electricity would run rampant, consuming magical power.

Fire was similar, but it had staying power.

Lightning consumed magical power in an instant, leaving little room for error.

Unlike fire magic’s flare, lightning magic posed numerous challenges.

I wondered what to do.

I felt there was a lot of potential for various applications, but I kept experimenting and mentally analyzing it, and before I knew it, it was already noon.

“Shion, should we head back soon?”

“Sure.”

My sister had been considerate of me. Since our father wasn’t around, she didn’t engage in her sword training and accompanied me in my experiments. She was already doing a lot, and I didn’t want to burden her any further.

With a smile on my face, I returned home with my sister.

I was starting to realize that something was missing.

As it stood, I felt like I couldn’t use lightning magic properly.

It was still undeveloped.

And I couldn’t come up with a solution to this impasse.