- [5]- Magic Hand Lv 3 Part 1
The process of casting a spell was straightforward. All it took was a clear mental image of the desired effect, followed by channeling just the right amount of MP to make it happen.
But before that, an essential task remained. Alex needed to tap into his MP pool, allowing the mana to surge through his body for the first time.
During the mandatory nine years of schooling, every student was instructed in a breathing technique—a foundational practice ingrained into the curriculum, meant to teach children how to draw out the latent mana from the pool when they eventually obtain it.
Alex sat cross-legged on his bed, carefully following the steps he'd been taught in class. As he settled into the familiar rhythm of the breathing exercise, a new awareness washed over him—an acute sensitivity to his own body that hadn't been present in his earlier attempts. Every breath seemed to unlock a deeper connection, allowing him to perceive the subtle shifts in his internal muscles, and the way the air coursed through him. It was as if a hidden layer of understanding had revealed itself, making the effects of the exercise strikingly clear.
It must be because of that one point to Focus I gained after the level-up.
Alex rationalized, amazed at the stark contrast. It was just a single point, but somehow, it made an immense difference—like the gap between a flicker and a flame.
His consciousness swept through his body, and soon enough, he located his MP pool. It was centered around his heart.
Under Alex’s careful direction, the mana, condensed into a gaseous form, stirred to life. Slowly, it followed the path of his blood through the vessels, a soothing coolness spreading through his entire being. As the mana coursed into his muscles, the tension of the day seemed to melt away, healing aches and strains as it went. Alex felt a rush of energy surge through him, his body brimming with renewed vitality.
So, this is how it feels to have mana in your system. So soothing. Like a dip in the pool on a hot summer day. If this is how the Wizards feel all day, it explains why they always seem coolheaded.
Alex made a ‘eureka’ face as though he deciphered some deeply hidden secret of the world.
He opened his eyes and took a glance at his arms. Under the dark of the night, his veins under the skin revealed a weak blue glow. When mana flows through the veins for the first time, such spectacle was something to be expected.
Wow! Looks mysterious.
Congratulations! You have suffused your body with MP for the first time. For the next five minutes, you’ll enter the [Cleanse] state.
Cleanse: A process to wash away the accumulated toxins in the vessels to improve the fluidity of mana flow.
Alex glanced at the new notification, noted the duration of the status effect, and revealed a wry smile. At the library, he learned about the impact of Cleanse and the importance of its duration. The longer it lasted, the more benefits he would reap.
Blood vessels served as the pathways for mana, channeling its flow to different parts of the body for spells and various wizardry tasks. The [Cleanse] buff does more than just purify these vital channels—it refines them, attuning the vessels to mana with heightened precision, making them more responsive and efficient for future casting.
Due to various factors, he only obtained a five-minute duration. It was not bad considering the maximum time a new Blessed could obtain was eight minutes. Right in the middle, just average.
Although he was not particularly pleased, Alex couldn’t do anything about it. With a resigned sigh, he sat upright, waiting for his veins to stop glowing like firefly butts. It was, however, a fascinating spectacle in the dead of night.
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Five minutes slipped by in the blink of an eye, and slowly, the glow began to fade. It was advised in the books to not draw upon your mana during the cleansing process, thus Alex had to wait patiently.
Is it done?
There was no follow-up notification from the Akashic Records, leaving Alex to rely solely on his own judgment. The entire process had been unnervingly subtle—no special sensations to guide him. No pain, no numbness, not even a tingling to mark the transformation. It all felt too ordinary, forcing him to wonder if anything had really changed at all.
He summoned his character panel, only to be met with disappointment as his attributes remained unchanged. The anticipation that had built up was quickly deflated. Alex recalled the short article in the book, which emphasized the effectiveness of the status state, leading him to believe that something spectacular would happen to his stats.
I feel cheated. Alex pouted.
He quickly forgot about it as there was a much more interesting thing to try at hand. The only spell in his arsenal.
There were three steps to successfully cast a spell: first, visualize the spell according to the visualization diagram in the spellbook. Second, draw upon the mana from your MP reserve. Third, recite the name of the spell.
As a spell gifted by the Akashic Records, the visualization diagram was ingrained directly into his memories.
Alex recalled the image of the ethereal limb, a translucent humanoid hand with a slender long finger, looking quite dexterous. Mana flowed from his MP pool as he continued to visualize the hand. However, since it was his first time performing this task, his mental imaging was not clear enough and took a bit of time to fully manifest. A chunk of mana has already been wasted by that point.
However, Alex’s Focus stat was high for a beginner spell, and he got the hang of visualization after a few failed tries.
As if a magnet is thrown into a handful of iron balls, all the magic particles funneled in and swirled around Alex. Gradually they arranged into the shape of five slender fingers on a palm.
Of course, Alex couldn’t see the hand, but he could perceive it. His brain registered the tactile feedback as if the invisible hand were real, alerting him to the coolness of the air it brushed against. It was a strange sensation—feeling something that wasn’t visible, yet knowing it existed just by the subtle response his mind provided.
Alex bit his lip, narrowing his focus entirely on controlling the spell. Every ounce of concentration was poured into maintaining the invisible hand’s form. His efforts were rewarded as the spell held, lasting just over five seconds before his focus wavered. In an instant, the spell dissipated, slipping from his control like smoke through his fingers.
Nursing a dull pain in his head as it throbbed uncontrollably in the wake of a broken spell, Alex firsthand experienced what would happen when interrupted mid-spell.
It sucks. Feels like one of those new year mornings.
All the enthusiasm accumulated throughout the day about his magic-based profession evaporated in an instant. The headache was that painful.
Alex slumped on his bed and closed his eyes, wishing to sleep through this pain. Luckily, perhaps because of the day’s exhaustion finally catching up, his consciousness drifted off.
-~X~-
The following morning, Alex woke up feeling refreshed. A quick glance at his attribute panel revealed an abundance in his MP stat. While he had slept, the mana he’d spent practicing the spell had quietly refilled, restoring his reserves to full.
He got off the bed and stretched. His eyes fell upon the stack of materials he spent half a gold to buy the previous day and the realization that he had become a [Wizard] class Blessed sank in.
His gaze shifted to a corner of the room where a wooden sword quietly lay against the wall.
I guess, I don’t need that sword anymore.
A Wizard’s path and a Swordsman’s path were vastly different. One took the way of the body while the other sought enlightenment from the mind. The physical fitness training he had been doing all this time would have to change from today.
When he got to the kitchen, only Mom was there, working on sewing a piece of cloth.
“Breakfast is on the stove. Heat it before eating,” she said without lifting her head.
“All right,” Alex drawled, and zombied his way to the other side of the counter. Lighting up the stove, he put the bowl of soup on it to heat up.
Because the stove relied on Flame Crystals, a byproduct of Fire Slimes, there was no open flame, making it incredibly convenient for heating up food. The crystals provided a steady, controlled source of heat without the mess or risk of traditional fire.
Alex brought his heated breakfast to the table, ready to satiate his tummy before thinking about the day.
“Don’t take your father’s words to heart,” Mom put away her work and gave Alex a gentle glance. “He is only worried about your future.”
Last night, his father scolded him for the first time in many years, and he also mouthed back, which also happened for the first time ever. He was not happy with how he behaved but didn’t know how to apologize either. He figured he would avoid Dad until things cooled down.
“It’s… okay. I guess, I shouldn’t have retorted back,” Alex looked down, his hands stopped shoving the delicious soup into his eager mouth.
A brief silence lingered in the room and before Alex could sink into self-blame, a hand softly patted his shoulder. Looking up, he saw his mother smiling at him. “Truly, you and your father are so similar.”