I sat down on a chair at the end of the aisle and In front of me, rested several books hovering in the air. Each page flipping simultaneously as I quickly skimmed the contents. These books on the first floor contained basic spells and knowledge that could be used if studied thoroughly.

Reconstruction of mag...no. The lost art… useless. The trick—

The pages of the books inflamed, engulfing the books into ashes as they dropped from the air. The embers of the book floating down from the air, it was almost beautiful.

I glanced upwards to see the three guys that I trapped inside an iceberg standing on the other side of the aisle. Their lips tinted blue and their bodies shivering, occasionally dripping onto the wooden tiles.

“Seems like you forgot who we were, ice cube.” Said the guy with ruffled red hair and unbuttoned blazer with a fireball over his palm.

“Should we jolt his memory?” Sneered the spiky headed kid beside him with electric staticking like an aura around his body.

What a really lame pun.

I leaned to my side to peer over their shoulder to see a white haired guy with beady eyes and square glasses reading one of the books off of the shelf. I guess he just came to see the show. I can respect that.

I sprouted off the chair and stood on my feet, one arm behind my back. I brought my other hand up in their direction and gestures for them to come at me.

It’s not that I was cocky, I just wanted to see what they were like when agitated. Ah, well maybe I was a little cocky. These guys are cockroaches after all.

The electric guy moved first, jumping into the air and pushing himself off the overhang to come right at me.

He reached for my head which I dodged in a split moment but he pushed himself off the ground and kicked me in the abdomen. I staggered backwards and regained my composure, trying to concentrate my magic. However, he just kept coming at me.

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His movements were fast, I was barely able to block his attacks. This body wasn’t trained for even the simplest of hand to hand combat. Shit.

I brought my hand out to try and form an ice spear but he spun and kicked the shards of ice each time. I brought one arm up to my face and laid the other on my chest. I felt the chilling sensation that made my body body drop a few degrees lower

Ice formed around my stomach, then formed on my shoulders and arms. The soles of my feet lifted me a few centimeters off the ground, coating itself in ice. On top my head grew a jagged crown with three points at the front. The crystal body, ice armor.

“How’s a little ice going to slow me down?”

With every punch and kick that hit me, shocked my body each time. Soon, I was going to lose control over my motor functions. I had only one thing left to do.

I dropped to the ground and planted both my palms onto the ground. Four large walls of ice erected all around me with the top closing off, entrapping me inside. Ice prism. Now how am I supposed to slow down someone who can move at such high speeds...a question with a dreaded answer.

I closed my eyes inside the cold dark space I stood in.

“Hey! You embarrass the school by being so cowardly. It seems you need a shock of reality.”

“Step aside, Zach. Let’s drown him in his own spell.”

I felt the vibrations of the walls around me. I stretched my arms to the wall, feeling the dripping of water sliding down my hands. It seems the fire kid has finally decided to join in. He must not know any advanced fire magic like Leah, otherwise this block of ice would have not lasted long.

I clapped my hands together in prayer gestures. Taking a deep breath, I began channeling mana and feeling the flow of energy around me. The tik-tok sound of a clock echoing in my ears. Breathe.

Inhale...

Exhale...

There are a few ways you are able to use magic. One is by using the energy that flows inside your body known by multiple names, chi, chakra, but most commonly, mana. The second way is to feel free mana in the air. Our surroundings are all covered in it, floating without a destination.

The only thing you needed to know is how to control the direction and flow.

Thud!

Thud!

My ears perked to the creaking of the ice, the walls are cracking.

Focus... control the flow... and stop it!

The ice shattered around me. Puddles of water spread all over the floor with the electric guy ready to shock the water that was beneath me. The flame guy hurled another fireball, seems to have been charged up. But that was fine!

The rippling of the water slowed down, the fireball that was coming at a decent speed was now like it's floating. The electric that traveled up the stream of water was sparking very slowly. Until everything came to a stop. No wind, no rustling, no sound except for the tick-tocking of a clock that grew louder and louder.

"Now this...now this is how to do Time Magic."