Let's circle back to Zack. Lately, he had been all about meditating, nailing those spell patterns, keeping the library clean, and, of course, munching on grub.
But then, while mindlessly crafting spell patterns and casting [Zap], it hit him. Lightning? What if he could whip up his own version of the Flash?!
Who knew what sparked that idea. Maybe it was the extended solitude starting to get to him, or maybe he had just gone a bit bonkers from lack of human interaction.
So, while working in the library, he dived into the beginner spells section, level 0 spells, flipping through books like crazy. Quick heads up: you couldn't actually read the books without spending some points, but you could still catch a sneak peek of what was inside from the blurb on the cover.
After days of searching, he found it, [Body Enhancement - Lightning]. "But hold up, something's off," Zack paused before he could celebrate, flipping through the book once again. This book walked you through casting a spell to juice someone up with lightning, boosting their reflexes and speed. "Pretty neat, huh? But isn't body enhancement supposed to be about channeling and circulating your mana inside your body to beef up a specific part?" Zack scratched his head.
"That's what all those novels I've been devouring said in the past." Zack pondered, "So, there has to be another book out there! And if there is a book on body enhancement through mana circulation, I can double up on the enhancements! Talk about tapping into the Flash's territory!" Zack grinned, feeling the excitement bubble up inside him.
After another day of hunting, he struck gold with [Body Enhancement - Mana], tucked away in the dusty depths of the mana manipulation section. Only after splurging some points to grab the book did he figure out why it was stashed in such an obscure spot.
Turned out, it wasn't a spell at all, just like he suspected. All he had to do was shuffle mana around in his body to amp up whatever part he wanted. The targeted body part would get a boost in strength, durability, and speed. Pretty straightforward, huh? Plus, since his mana type was pure lightning, he got an extra kick in reflexes and speed on top of the basic perks.
But there was a catch: unlike the lightning spell version, he had to keep that mana flowing the whole time. And for a wizard juggling spellcasting, splitting their focus to keep the mana circulating would be risky business. Even a tiny slip-up in concentration could botch the spell they were trying to cast and bite them back hard.
The repercussions of a spell backfiring could range from being disabled at best to kicking the bucket at worst. That was why most apprentices steered clear of [Body Enhancement - Mana].
In any case, the [Body Enhancement - Lightning] spell did the trick for the apprentices, giving them a boost in reaction speed and reflexes. Plus, the higher-level version of that spell could beef up their durability and strength, just like the mana circulation method.
But hey, who did you think Zack was?! He wasn't your run-of-the-mill wizard. He had the skills to pull off the mana circulation trick without messing up his spellcasting game (most likely). “Heh heh heh…” after laughing like a maniac for a solid 10 minutes for no good reason, he headed to the practice hall to give the spell and method a whirl.
So, he had already cashed in his library member privilege to grab [Body Enhancement - Lightning], and then he had splurged his last points on [Body Enhancement - Mana]. Surprise, surprise, now he was flat broke and couldn’t even afford to rent out a practice room. Cue the tears as he trudged back to his room. Practice time might have been confined to his humble abode, but hey, beggars couldn't be choosers.
First things first, he gave [Body Enhancement - Lightning] a shot. He tore through the book from start to finish in one sitting. Then, he cast the spell straight away. With a bit of experience in his pocket, he nailed the spell pattern at half the usual cost. Of course, pumping mana into the pattern itself cost a point, setting him back a total of 1.5 points to cast the spell.
Once he got the spell to target his body, it was like time itself hit the brakes. His hand moved in slow-mo as he tried to bring it to his face with all his might. It was like his brain was functioning at high speed, but his body couldn’t keep up. "But man, it was a rush," Zack thought excitedly during the spell's duration.
Then, once the spell duration finished came the dizzy spell and stomach churn, which the book assured him was totally normal. Apparently, going from warp speed to a snail's pace messed with your brain. ‘But hey, practice made perfect, right?’ He figured he'd get the hang of it in no time.
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He estimated the spell lasted around 5-10 seconds, going by his gut feeling. Seemed a tad short, but it was plenty of time for an apprentice wizard to whip up a sneaky spell or dodge an attack.
After catching his breath, he gave [Body Enhancement - Mana] a whirl. This time, he took a much closer look at the book, considering it wasn't technically a spell, but a method for circulating mana inside your body. After making sure he had the technique down pat, he followed the steps to a T. Drawing mana from his mana heart, he carefully guided it to his right arm, following the book's instructions.
Now, for your average Joe wizard, wrangling mana inside the body was no cakewalk. One misstep, and you were looking at some serious self-inflicted hurt. And if your mana type was lightning or fire? Forget about it. Those two were the wild cards of mana types, especially if it was pure lightning or fire. The book specifically warned apprentices with those mana types to tread extra, extra carefully.
After soaking in this info, Zack became even more convinced as to why many lightning tower apprentices steered clear of the technique like it was the plague. Here was the deal: for most wizards in the tower, their mana was as pure as it got, all of their chosen elements, all the time.
Take the wizards in the lightning tower, for instance. The tower was right smack in the middle of a lightning mana hotspot, so it was like an all-you-can-absorb buffet of lightning juice. Naturally, the apprentices in the tower opted to absorb only lightning particles, given the massive perks it offered by having pure attributed mana.
Having pure mana amped up the power and effectiveness of your spells while slashing the spell cost for spells that matched your mana attribute in half.
Meanwhile, wizards outside the tower couldn't afford to be choosy. Absorbing just one element would be slower than a turtle on a Sunday stroll because, out there, each element was just a drop in the mana bucket. But lightning tower wizards? They had it made. Snag that lightning element, and it was like hitting the mana jackpot; it replenished in a flash thanks to the abundance.
But circling back to the point, casting [Body Enhancement - Mana] was gonna be a real challenge for lightning tower wizards. Not only was their mana attribute lightning, but it was as pure and volatile as it got.
Zack mused, no wonder that book was gathering dust. But hey, not for our guy Zack. He had this down pat, effortlessly maneuvering the mana like it was play-dough in his hands. He circled the mana into his arm with finesse.
Once the effect kicked in, it was like his muscles got a shot of adrenaline, crackling with energy. Lightning danced across his arm, forget about the effect, it was just plain cool!
He glanced around his room for anything he could afford to mess up... nada. So, he opted to boost up his legs instead.
Swish! Bang!
He failed to rein in his newfound speed and crashed into the wall. But quick thinking saved him from a face full of plaster, diverting the mana to his whole body to soften the blow.
Lying on his back, he looked pretty sorry. But hey, feeling like the Flash himself, he still had the energy to chuckle like a loon. After relishing the sensation for a bit, he got up and resumed his practice.
After some more trial and error, he figured out he could sustain the enhancement for a point per minute per body part, or five points a minute for the whole body. That was just the base cost, though. He could pump in more mana for an even bigger boost, but he was saving that for the practice room.
He was dying to try out both techniques in action, but that would have to wait until he was back in the practice room. Can't afford any room renovations, after all.
***
The next day, it was the same old routine in the library. Except Zack's mind was off in la-la land, fixated on the Flash this, the Flash that. The guy had definitely gone off the deep end.
After his shift, he bolted to the cafeteria for an early dinner and grabbed his go-to steak and chocolate cake combo. Gotta keep those taste buds happy, even if he was in a rush to practice his spells. Then it was off to the practice hall, where he coughed up the cash for an hour of playtime.
Taking a deep breath, he got ready. First up, he clocked his [Body Enhancement - Lightning] at a solid five seconds. Not too shabby, just as he expected.
Then, it was time to push the limits of his [Body Enhancement - Mana]. With his arm crackling with lightning, he threw a punch at a steel plate in the practice room. It was standard service, so he didn't need to ask for it specifically. With the basic enhancement, he left a dent in the armor. Cranking it up to the max, he was cutting through it like it was nothing.
Next, he decided to see how much mana he could pour into the mana circulation. He found out that he could max out the enhancement of one body part with 10 points of mana per minute. And even when he dumped more than 10 points into a body part, the strength boost didn't change.
Maybe he had reached his limit, maybe he wasn't spending enough mana, or maybe his body just wasn't cooperating. He'd figure it out later.
So, in theory, he could max out the enhancement of his whole body with 50 mana points per minute. But alas, he didn’t have enough mana to give it a shot.
Then, he amped up his entire body with just enough basic mana output to kickstart the technique, which he dubbed the "basic enhancement" state. When he tried to move, he was zooming around at superhuman speed. The enhancement covered all the bases; the durability boost meant he wasn't turning into a mushy mess mid-sprint, and his reflexes were sharp as a tack, giving him enough control over his speed.
Combining both enhancements was the moment he had been waiting for. First, he charged up his entire body with [Body Enhancement - Mana], then he closed his eyes and unleashed [Body Enhancement - Lightning].
His body crackled with lightning, sending subtle ripples of energy around him, making his silver locks and robes flutter in the air. When he finally opened his eyes, the whole world seemed to stand still...