"So from what we've seen you are possibly an innately gifted elementalist who knows how to use spell-centric magic. That means that you might be a skilled conjurer, which is the sphere of magic, naturally specialized in the elemental circle, which is one of the specialties of the conjuration sphere. The way you, specifically, use the magical energy inside of you is through spellcasting. That is not the only way to use magic." Ashlen informed me, evidently quite eager to talk so long as we talked about magic.
"The two most commonly known ways to use magic are through rituals, which are lengthy processes but can result in powerful magic, and through spellcasting. Spellcasting is the more common way to use magic in day-to-day life, as it is quicker and easier than ritual casting. Spellcasting involves knowledge of arcane formulas and an understanding of how to transform magical energy. Magical energy in someone is guided somewhere and then released in various forms." Continued Ashlen, explaining common magical knowledge, knowledge which I already possessed thanks to me reading her mind, with a level of eloquence that surprised me given that she was quiet before.
"The ways that magic is used are referred to as 'arts'. Many professional magi know a handful of rituals and many spells, but some spellcasters interact with spirits and those spellcasters on average tend to use rituals more. That said there are more 'arts' than just ritual-casting and spellcasting. For instance, many items can be covered in eldritch sigils and can thereafter channel magic for a variety of purposes. That is known as 'alteration magic'. And it is known to sufficiently wise scholars of magical history that some ancient grimoires once suggested that there were mages who could cast spells through sheer force of will, in what is known now as 'Will-casting'." Respen informed me, beginning to speak almost the instant that Ashlen finished speaking.
Internally I began to chuckle as I got proof that there was precedent for my sort of casting. I figured that I wasn't the first-ever will-caster, and even if I had been I knew I had the power to be able to trick people into thinking I wasn't. I hadn't used that power yet but I did have "Bless" which allowed me to share my powers with others.
The powers I possessed had given me considerable freedom with what I could do. I still needed to be cautious but I had the means to achieve a number of goals through a wide range of options. With my current arrangement of knowledge and spells I suspected I could achieve considerably more through my powers than through my magic but the ability to use will-casting gave me a lot of space to be creative and to use magic to fill any gaps that I couldn't currently fill with something like "Creation" or "Transmutation".
"There are three other commonly used and accepted spheres of magic aside from conjuration. They are known as thaumaturgy and sorcery. Before we get to them the other circles in conjuration are 'Infernal and celestial magic' and 'Faerie magic'. As for the other spheres..." Respen began before pausing for a moment and lifting his hand. He began to spin it in a circle and I watched as a small portal appeared in front of him, just beyond his hand.
"Thaumaturgy has the circles of 'Time and space magic', 'Physical manipulation magic', and 'Energy manipulation magic'. It is a sphere of magic that is excellent for people who possess scientifically oriented minds, as it is the sphere of magic with the most connections to the physical world and the dimension of existence we mortals reside in." Respen explained, a cocky grin on his hand as he stuck his other hand into the portal and motioned for me to look up. I did as he asked and saw his hand jutting out of another portal, directly over me. Ashlen chuckled and moved forward to begin to speak.
"The other big sphere of magic is sorcery. Sorcery is based on the idea that there is something special about sapience, intelligence, and willpower. Sorcery takes those things and asks people to use their intelligence and willpower to alter reality. Sorcery's first circle is 'Fate magic' which is a big circle for making educated guesses about the future but is extremely tricky to use properly. That said the other two circles are much more decidedly direct than fate magic. 'Mind over matter magic' gives intelligent sorcerers the means to alter reality through their perceptions of themselves and others." Ashlen began, before leaping into the air and then suddenly freezing in mid-air.
"With 'Mind over matter magic', I can use my perceptions or the perceptions of others to alter reality. If I wanted to make illusions this would be the circle of magic that allowed me to most readily and reliably do this, provided those I was targeting had something akin to both sanity and sapience. The other circle in this sphere is 'Mind and soul magic' which is the magic that is used to replicate psionic abilities such as mind control, telepathy, remote viewing, and more." Ashlen explained, before allowing herself to descend back down. Respen watched this and smiled before beginning to speak.
"As you could see from the fact that both Ashlen and I could fly there are a variety of means for magi to achieve more or less the same ends through magic. How each magician uses magic to achieve an end is up to them, but for example, a sorcerer could use their own will to help someone heal from an injury in battle through commanding their companion's body to heal faster, and an elementalist could use the elements to help heal the same injury. Those make for two very different approaches to the same problem, that ultimately get the same end result. Proper magic usage is oftentimes about the journey more than the destination, though both are important aspects to magic." Respen explained. I nodded at his thoughtful words.
"I wonder what spheres and circles most call to you..." Ashlen wondered aloud, a curious look on her face as she considered her question. She then turned and looked at Respen, before sighing.
"Respen tried to get you to be all excited and passionate about elemental magic but that's far from the only magic out there. Each sphere and each circle has potent spells and rituals and can be used creatively to great effect. You should thoughtfully consider the strengths and weaknesses of each circle and sphere when constructing your own magical strategies and goals." Ashlen told me, and it was again obvious how passionate she was about magic. It almost made me want to tell her what I could do. I didn't, and I wouldn't, but I did think about it for a moment.
For a moment I replicated the question Ashlen asked and asked it to the system. I was unsurprised when one of the text boxes in my head was updated with new text.
[You are beyond archmage level with each sphere and circle of magic. Respen and Ashlen are adepts in elemental and mind over matter magic, and you could blow them away with but a thought. This also means your magic, aside from cantrips which have a maximum level of power they can achieve unless they are consciously supercharged, is normally virtually unblockable by anyone who doesn't also have a spark of divinity within them. At least if you're being somewhat serious about it.]
I smiled at Ashlen and asked if there was a way I could be tested if I had an affinity with other sorts of magic. I knew that there was, and I was just purposefully guiding the conversation in such a way that I'd "learn" the cantrips she knew from each sphere and circle of magic, as known to the people of Jasper.
The next hour would be spent with me learning various cantrips and introductory-level spells that weren't cantrips. Along the way, I read the minds of both of the magi who were "tutoring" me, and incorporated their knowledge and plans into my own, which would allow me to prepare for one major event which I now knew was going to happen later tonight.
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For the next hour, the trio of magic-users would astound each other with displays of arcane experience and displays of raw arcane power. Raul quickly demonstrated a learning speed that far outpaced either Ashlen or Respen, and a voracious appetite for arcane knowledge and spells while they showed him the power of versatility and years upon years of learning to understand the arcane.
Raul was actually impressed with the sheer variety of magic that either of his companions knew. He was not arrogant and he knew that if he were to fight them in an actual magical battle he'd need to rely on the knowledge stored in the minds of their fellow magi, whose minds he also read and copied knowledge from, or his own will-casting to be able to win despite his innate arcane talents. Raul had not come to Jasper to join a guild or to go to magic school but to quickly learn magic and he was doing just that.
He'd have felt worse doing what he was doing if he hadn't learned part of what "Protocol 777" involved, through the inner thoughts of Respen. The grand adonis learned that now that Respen had identified someone who had serious natural power in magic, the conjurer was going to do his best to get him to join the academy through the actual circle that Respen had the most experience in, which was the infernal and celestial circle.
Respen had already used telepathy to alert Ashlen and other magi to Raul's potential and even as they trained together the elf's companions were preparing for a ritual to summon a succubus for Respen to command to seduce Raul and bring him to the academy. These actions were a mistake on the part of the National Arcane Academy, but Raul himself saw them as an opportunity.
While practicing basic faerie magic Raul was internally questioning the system. He rigorously questioned the thing about succubi, their abilities, and how to deal with them. Slowly but surely Raul began to ready himself for a decisive encounter that he knew would take place that night.
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The rest of the day passed by in a blur. I trained with Respen and Ashlen for over an hour, allowing them to "teach" me basic spells when in fact I had absorbed every fragment of arcane knowledge either of them possessed not long after they told me about the spheres and circles as they understood them.
When I said farewell to the two magi they gave me a gift. It was a spell-scroll for a more potent version of the low-heal healing spell I had used on Anthony earlier today. It was also a locator that they were going to use to sic their succubus on me. I happily accepted it, though not for the reasons they suspected.
I went and used superspeed to absorb the contents of the library over the course of a few seconds, memorizing every word in every book, and fully leveraging the combined, astounding power of superspeed and hyper-intellect. After that, I was armed with a far greater understanding of magic and had the time to prepare myself for the rather fascinating strategy that the National Arcane Academy was going to employ to ensnare me. I wasn't mad at them for it, and instead, I almost liked it.
It was actually useful to me that they were going to try this lust-based approach to ensnare me. Succubi were a terrible matchup against a grand adonis, due to the fact that their powers were basically those of a grand adonis but on a far inferior scale. This also saved me from feeling any pity I might otherwise feel for using my sexual powers freely since I'd be defending myself against an enemy who feeds off of sex and kills people she sleeps with.
I went ahead and booked a room at one of the inns recommended by the adventurer's guild, while successfully testing out my ability to create money using "Creation". That discovery meant that I had all the freedom I could ever want long-term, and I had the freedom to devote the rest of the day to preparing for the night to come. I continued my hobby of questioning the system, while enjoying myself using "Seduce the world" in the inn.
I began to learn about my full range of sexual abilities after informing the system of my plan to use my sexual powers to defeat the succubus. By the time I was aware of my sexual powers I was feeling excited to challenge the succubus.
When night fell and the succubus approached the inn I went to the inn's dining area and initiated my strategy against her. I was ready to face off against Riezel, the succubus that Respen had summoned whose name I knew thanks to the fact that my powers were growing in strength with every use and so I could easily sense minds on the other side of the city, as well as accurately read them and discover their machinations. I watched as Respen summoned Riezel and bound her to an arcane contract which I had the means to fight against using my own potent powers. Every aspect of this was perfect for me, and I intended to take advantage of it.
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The dining area of the inn I was staying in was packed. A few minutes after I arrived and began to eat a simple, unnecessary dinner, I watched a variety of adventurers, most of whom were in parties of their own begin to arrive and celebrate the day's achievements. I also saw various travelers who were enjoying the somewhat chaotic ambiance of the place, rest and relax after a hard day of traveling.
I listened to adventurers swapping tales of places like the Emerald Cavern and beyond, and heard as they whispered rumors to each other. I listened intently, even while drinking a mug of water and eating some bread. I knew that every passing second brought Riezel closer and closer. I was excited to see her, and to defeat her, but I did a convincing job of looking casual and curious.
About half an hour after I went downstairs she entered the dining area and began to look around. When she noticed me she visibly brightened and walked right up to my table, before flashing me a charming smile and sitting down across from me.
"What's a handsome stranger like you doing all alone in a place like this?" She asked, with a soft, sing-songy sort of voice. She was disguised as a human woman with fair skin, long black hair, and the fullest, most kissable lips I had ever seen. I smiled at her and began to activate one of the powers I was taught about earlier today. In a subconscious reaction to my power, she moved a bit closer to me and began to try and tempt me into staring at her cleavage, which was visible in the outfit she was wearing.
"Well I was listening to the audacious and mind-blowing stories of various adventuring parties but now I can imagine more fun ways to spend the night..." I replied, leaning forward and gazingly openly at the succubus's lips. She studied me, or rather she leered lasciviously at me. I could feel her attraction to me, it was evident in the way she stared at me, her body language, and even the way she breathed.
A waitress came and took her order, and it was obvious that it took every ounce of self-control Riezel had to not shoo the waitress away. I was enjoying watching this succubus fall all over herself because she was an incredibly beautiful woman and normally she prided herself on her self-control but in front of me it took her actively working to not lose it.
The power I had activated earlier was named "Pheromones" and it was an especially handy ability. With it, I could affect creatures in my presence and make them feel awe towards me, but its real power was that it granted me direct control over someone's libido, including the power to direct someone's desires towards anyone I wanted. I was being subtle and messing around with it in my mind, increasing how much she wanted me slowly and directing all of her attention towards me.
I was having fun bullying this bully. I knew her, because I had read her mind and her memories the instant that she appeared to Respen. She was an unrepentant murderer who had been used by Respen a number of times and by men far worse than my elven "friend", for a variety of reasons.
She was fond of delivering good people to bad men, and so if I really wanted too I could pretend this was some sort of justice. But I knew better than that. I was using Riezel and sure I wasn't evil but to call what I was doing here "moral" was stretching that word far too loosely. I was just giving a creature of lust, pleasure, and sex, a taste of her own medicine. I didn't need to lie to myself.
She and I made idle conversation until her food arrived. We lied to each other in the various ways that men and women who are caught in the throes of passion often lie to each other. We lied about where we were from, what we were, how we made a living, things like that. And when she finished eating her dinner, we gave each other one more look and I paid for our meals, leaving a generous tip so that we could go upstairs and she could see my generous tip.
By the time we were outside of my room and I was unlocking my door, she was already kissing my neck, her legs wrapped around mine for the sake of giving her access to my neck and face. She was not a tall woman, and my tallness was one of the things she was attracted to.