“As you all know, the power of your spell comes from 1 source, that is your mana. Now the important thing to remember is that the quality and quantity of your mana are the determining factors of your spell power. If you increase the quantity of the mana output then the spell’s size, speed, or power will become better. If you increase the quality of your mana, then the spell's effect will become better.” As Professor Reagan’s lecture continued the notes written on the board began to form. Rather than use an electrical SMART board that would be found in schools for normal classes, the room only had a classic and massive blackboard. What was written on the board was not written by Professor Reagan himself but rather a moving piece of chalk that copied what was written on a paper facing the class. On the board was a Venn diagram that was split between mana quantity and quality, the effects of both written in their respective sections.

“While it is true that you could solely focus on one aspect of mana management and continue to refine the aspect you want to, that would become increasingly difficult and have diminishing returns on your investment. It is therefore more effective and efficient to work on both at the same time.” The Venn diagram was now complete with the middle column being occupied by the words “Effective” and “Efficient”.

Everyone in the class was diligently writing along with Professor Reagan’s lecture. But Terran continually stole glances to his right, at the new student Valentine. While none of the students below could spare a single moment to look away from the lecture, Valentine was taking long gaps in the movement of his pen, rather it looked to Terran as though he was more focused on the sketch, he was drawing in his notebook than the notes he was taking. Though Terran was confident in all aspects of study at Heaven Magica, he was not so confident that he would spend his time during a lecture drawing in his notebook.

“Mana enhancement is what we call this process, and it is a process that takes place through diligent self-effort. Not many methods exist to share progress in mana enhancement, and the ones that exist are so dangerous for the little return they give, that no one uses them. Rather to enhance your mana you have to take your time and circulate your mana regularly, like working out a muscle.” A drawing of a body was drawn on the board, then inside the body, many different arrows were drawn to show a circulation of mana from the central point inside the stomach area.

“And like working out a muscle there are different ways to circulate this mana. The most common is through a set technique you develop yourself. Practicing this technique regularly will enhance your mana most safely. Another more costly way is to regularly drain your mana through battle, or the use of magic. Draining your mana regularly is the most effective way to enhance it, but it also leads to negative side effects. Therefore, it is strongly recommended that before participating in a battle you circulate your mana for a small amount of time to lessen the strain the battle will have on your body. And before even allowing students to partake in battle, we do months of mana circulation class.” The students writing all shared a face of disappointment. This last part of the lecture was repeated time and time when the students asked when they would be able to take part in actual battles rather than mock versions.

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“There is another method that is used to refine your mana quality, that is drawing a magic circle. Drawing a magic circle of the magic technique you want to use will lessen the quantity of the mana supplied, but in return will enhance the quality of the mana supplied to the spell. And while there is only one magic circle for a spell, there are many different ways you can draw that circle to change the effect it has. Drawing a circle takes time, but its effect is very clear. The better the circle, the better the spell.” This part of the lesson gave Terran a hint at what Valentine had been drawing in his notebook during the lecture. Valentine had been sketching magic circles into his notebook.

While Terran now knew what Valentine had been sketching in his notebook, he was still confused as to why Valentine would be doing that. While the Professor had not mentioned it yet at this point in the lecture, it was common knowledge that for a magic circle to work, the medium of transcribing them had to be magical. Most mages used magic-infused chalk as it was cheap, effective, and easy to transport. But regular pencil lead would not have any chance of drawing an effective circle. Terran sighed at the thought that a new student who had just gotten into the best magical school in the country would waste his time drawing ineffective magic circles rather than taking notes.

“I think that we will have to stop class today. I expect everyone to finish the homework assigned on Monday by tomorrow. Mr. Valentine, you can ask one of your classmates what should be expected for the homework, you will only be responsible for half of the work assigned since you joined us late.” Mr. Reagan spoke with a hurried tone and the bell rang not long after. Everyone got up from their desks at varying speeds. Some immediately headed for the door to quickly leave the room, others headed for the teachers' desk. A majority of the students, though, headed for the back of the classroom to speak to Valentine.

Before the sudden commotion of students moving around after the bell Terran took one last peek at the magic circle in Valentine’s notebook. He figured that we would try it out after he finished his homework for the night, and maybe he could fix it and give it back to Valentine. Terran didn’t want to fix the circle to be nice however, he wanted to fix it to show that he was better. Terran wanted to make sure Valentine didn’t think that just because he got into the best magic school, he was going to be the smartest student there. And Terran didn’t want Valentine to think that he would be equal to Terran.

After copying the circle in his notebook Terran quickly made his way out of the classroom to his dorm room.