The exercise began by having Alaster sit down cross-legged. Of course, Alaster first built a short platform out of bone so he wouldn’t be sitting in cold melting snow. Aila loved to see the normally solid bone float through the air, changing shapes like a liquid.
Once he was comfortable, Aila instructed him to close his eyes and find his Mana Core. It took him a few minutes. He had found his Core a few times before, but it had never been very important at the moment.
Normally, Mages would spend several hours a day meditating and exploring their Mana Core and Veins. That was also vital, as it allowed them to discover new optimal pathways to channel Mana and Spells. Doing so would reduce cast times as well as the Mana costs.
Alaster hadn’t had the opportunity to do so. Which made his Spells slower and more costly, but his true power lay behind his Undead. And with [Blood Price] he had so much Mana available to him that it was quite unfair to everyone else around his Level. Then again, Alaster certainly didn’t know all the Abilities. For all he knew, he was only mediocre compared to the truly powerful Low Adepts.
As it was, it only took him a few minutes to find his Core once again. Just as before it was a ball of sickly green mist with a small dot of orange, signifying his Fire Magic. He was able to see countless Mana Veins stretching from Core. Every time Alaster saw it, he thought it was beautiful.
Aila seemed to know when Alaster had found his Core once more and instructed him to copy her as she began to move her mana. Alaster did his best. And each mistake was punishing.
The Pattern Aila was displaying was flowing and graceful, yet the feeling it gave off was similar to his Mana, yet different. Normally, it was impossible to see Mana with the naked eye, however, Alaster wouldn’t be surprised if there were Ability Evolutions that made the Mana Visible.
This particular use was likely an Evolution of [Mana Manipulation]. However, it was probably a Toggleable Evolution.
Any mistake Alaster made while attempting to follow the Pattern, would cause his Mana to spiral out of control. Wisps of his Mana would shoot out from his hand in every direction. Alaster would have thought that they would be random, but no, most of them shot back into him. Likely wanting to return to his Core.
Luckily, the wisps didn’t melt his flesh like [Necrotic Bolt]. They did however sting like he had just gotten stung by ten wasps at once. The few that went toward Aila simply dissipated against an invisible force field of some kind. And the rest just hit the snow or a nearby tree harmlessly.
He actually had to stop and meditate twice before he finally got it.
[Ability Learned: Summon Undead Soldier]
[Summon Undead Soldier
Level 1: 0%
Summon the Dead to fight for you.
Max Minions: 0/1
Mana Cost: 50]
“Yes!” Alaster cheered, throwing up his arms in triumph.
Aila floated closer, “Congrats! Now let’s see what it looks like!”
“You don’t know?” Alaster lowered his arms and tilted his head at her.
“Nope! Like I said, I don’t like Necromancy. That vast majority of Elves don’t. We are highly attuned to nature, and while death is a part of nature, Undead, are not. Its just a disgusting feeling to work Necro Magic.
I’ve just been around and studying magic so long that I know most of it, at least the basics. So go on, I wanna see!”
Chuckling to himself at her antics, Alaster raised his hand and began to cast his newest Spell. He did so slowly, so he could feel the process.
As the Spell finished, it was as if the Undead simply materialized into existence. The bones and equipment just seemed to appear as they flew into position, as if they had always been just in a pile on the ground. Within moments, a Skeleton stood before him.
It was slightly shorter than his Blackguards, but only by an inch or two. It wore no armor or clothing of any sort, revealing its human bone structure. Though Alaster did not know if the other Races, such as the Elves, had a different skeletal structure. In its left hand, it held an old and battered wooden shield with a rusted iron band around it. In its right hand, it held a similarly rusty Arming sword.
However, Alaster was able to see that the rust was only surface level and did not compromise the equipment.
Compared to his Blackguards, this Undead looked weak and fragile. But, he also knew that if he had this Spell back when he first received his Class, it would have been amazing. It was obviously much stronger than the Goblin Skeletons that Alaster had first started with.
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“Huh, that’s boring.” Aila yawned.
Alaster just rolled his eyes, “What did you expect? It’s a beginning level Spell at Level one. You said it yourself, the Third Method is all about easy numbers, not strength.”
“Yeah, still sucks though. Now, this is the very basis of the Third Method. As it levels, you will be offered Evolutions that will allow you to Summon other Types of Undead. Depending on what you choose, it will create a whole new Spell, leaving this one virtually untouched.
For example, Skeletal Archer is one such Type of Undead that you will gain access to as you Evolve this Spell. If you choose it the System will create an entirely new Spell, allowing you to Summon both Types separately. And both will have their own Minion Limit.”
Alaster grinned, “That’s awesome.”
“Yes, it is, but remember, the Third Method is capable of summoning a large amount of Undead very quickly, but it is also Mana intensive.
Now, the while this Spell is the Basis of the Third Method, there is also a second Spell that is the equivalent. A more industrial variant. Most Necromancers learn this one, even if they don’t branch very far into the Third Method. Here you go.”
Aila conjured another pattern of Mana for Alaster to see. It was actually very similar to the first one, but it was different. It only took him an hour to nail it.
[Ability Learned: Summon Undead Worker]
[Summon Undead Worker
Level 1: 0%
Summon the dead to work for you.
Max Minion: 0/1
Mana Cost: 50]
Without Aila’s prompting, which was on its way, Alaster tested his new Spell.
The Summoning method was similar to the Undead Soldier, except, this one had nothing. No armor, no clothes, and no weapons. It was just a Skeleton.
“Now, this one is proficient in labor. Nothing complicated, even telling it to cut down a tree would be outside its abilities, but if you want something hauled from one spot to another, it is perfect.”
Alaster looked over his latest Minion with skepticism, “Can it fight?”
“Sure! About as well as a drunk Novice! The Industrial Undead are not meant to fight. They will if they are attacked, but if you are using them in a fight, you must be desperate. They are slower, weaker, and more fragile than the Soldier. However, that applies both ways. Don’t try to use a Soldier to do the Worker’s job, it won’t end well.”
“I don’t see when I’d use this.” Alaster shook his head. It wasn’t like there was a limit on how many Spells he could have, so he didn’t mind learning it, but he struggled to imagine an actual use for them.
“That’s because you are too narrow minded young one. You have spent so long with your Custom Undead, who can do whatever you need them to, and out in the middle of nowhere only fighting. That won’t hold up.
Especially with your plans to rescue your sister. You know you can’t go in Magic flying and swords swinging. What if you need to haul supplies somewhere? Sure, your Custom Undead could do that, but what if they are otherwise occupied or there is a situation where they are not ideal?
There are plenty of uses for them, and just like the Soldier, as the Worker levels up, they are able to branch out into other types of work, like Lumberjack or Miner. I’m sure there are even Craftsman Types! Wouldn’t that be amazing? You can just have an Undead Blacksmith making a bunch of equipment with the materials provided by the other Industrial Undead. And because they are dead, they don’t need rest!”
Alaster played with his sister’s ring as he thought. When it was put like that, Aila was correct. If he put the work in to Level them, the Industrial Undead could prove vital. Especially when he reached the limits of Bone. Regardless of how strong he could make Bone; metal will still be better.
“I need to level them then.” Alaster mumbled to himself.
“Yep! And the Undead worker will be easy!”
“How so?” Alaster looked up at her as she floated around.
“Just have it haul stuff around.”
“But I don’t need anything moved.”
“So? The Worker will still get level progress for it, even if the action serves no purpose. Just have it move something from one point to another and back again. It will get levels from working.
The Undead Soldier, however, will only get levels from fighting. And unfortunately, sparing against your other Undead won’t work. It needs to be an actual foe.”
Alaster didn’t see an issue with her logic and took out a bundle of hides from his Ring and tossed it to the Worker.
‘Move these ten feet that way, put it down, then pick it back up and return it to this position. Repeat this until I say otherwise.’ Alaster ordered with a thought.
It immediately set to work, picking up the hides and walking to the mentioned point, dropping it, only to immediately pick them back up and walk back, dropping them again. Alaster watched it for a couple of turns before he moved onto the Soldier.
Unfortunately, the Soldier was weak, stronger than a Goblin, but still weak. And this deep in the forest, there wasn’t much that it could fight and not die to a single blow. And because Alaster couldn’t give it a Mind, it was stupid, and likely would just run up to the Monster and start swinging. He mentioned his thoughts to Aila.
“Oh, that’s simple. I can just lure a few Monsters here for you to fight.”
“But the Soldier is still too weak.”
“It doesn’t have to fight alone. Use the rest of your Undead, they will all level!”
“Before we do that, is there any other Schools of Magic you think would benefit me?”
Aila flipped upside down again, “All of them you big dummy! But that would take a few decades to teach just the basics. So instead, I will narrow them down to the most useful to you.” She thought for a moment before continuing.
“First, you haven’t even touched [Flesh Crafting] and only used [Flame Bolt] to light your cooking fire. The most powerful Undead will require [Flesh Crafting]. Right now, your Custom Skeletons are powerful, but only when compared to weak Adepts. For the Average Adept, they are slightly weak. At least on an individual level.
[Flesh Crafting] is also one of the key aspects of smarter Undead. If you want smarter and more powerful Undead, you need to improve the flesh!
Now onto [Flame Bolt]! Fire Magic is the most powerful of Elemental Magic. It is a mighty threat, but right now, your Fire Magic is weaker than the arrow of a Novice.”
“I’ve been concerned about using it around my Undead.” Alaster interrupted, not that Aila minded.
“Why?” She asked, as if that was a stupid thing.
“Aren’t Undead weak against Fire?”
“Holy Fire. Normal fire? No more than anyone else. As they are right now, even your Minotaurs would fall apart with even a brief brush of Holy Fire. But that is a High Adept, Low Expert, weapon.
Basically, you have nothing to worry about, unless you have horrible aim.
Moving on! For magic that you should learn? Ice and Earth. Ice Magic, because Undead are nigh Immune while the vast majority of foes are not. And Earth Magic because of its power and versatility.
Honestly, every Mage should learn Earth Magic. It is nearly as powerful as Fire Magic, but is infinitely more useful.”
“Can you teach me?”
She pretended to be offended, “Uggh! You wound me sir! Of course I can teach you! And while you are working on your Magic, I can be bringing over Monsters for your Undead to kill! Multitasking at its finest!”
She giggled, and while the sound was amusing, the context behind it was worrisome. Alaster couldn’t help but worry for his Undead.