"No, we should train first," Arnos replied again.

Erik chuckled at this. "That's enthusiasm, alright," he said as he placed his hand on Arnos's hair and brushed it. "About how to address me, you can skip the 'Sir' part," Erik added.

Understood, Arnos said with a nod.

Erik looked at Arnos curiously. "Can you use mana while you are using your ability?" Erik questioned.

"I don't think I have ever tried to do it," Arnos admitted.

"You haven't huh? Well, you could try to cast a simple fireball while your ability is activated. It would make it clear whether you can or can't do it."

"Yes sir," Arnos replied enthusiastically.

"I said to skip it, didn't I?" Erik said in a stern tone as he narrowed his eyes, giving a disapproving glance to Arnos.

"Ah, I didn't mean respect by it. I simply said 'sir' as we say to our teacher, who is teaching us, like, you know…" Arnos added in a slightly defensive tone.

"Does that make any sense?" Arnos asked Erik with an awkward smile.

"Forget about that. Think of me as your target," Erik said as he moved a few steps away from Arnos, stopping right at the centre of the training ground.

I just have to use fireball and my ability together, Arnos thought, raising his hand. Fireball... fireball? Wait, I never learned fireball! How would I use it? Arnos thought as an embarrassed look spread across his face.

"Arnos, just close your eyes, activate your ability, and cast a fireball immediately," Erik shouted in an instructive tone as he looked at Arnos.

"I don't…" Arnos mumbled.

"I can't hear you. Speak louder!" Erik shouted back.

"I don't know how to cast a fireball," Arnos admitted, his eyes looking at the floor, not meeting Erik's gaze.

"You can't? But you used lance, an intermediate spell during your duel with Seras," Erik questioned with a doubtful look as he walked toward Arnos.

Arnos looked up. "I was taught lance by an adventurer. He said it's the most useful spell, and if I learn it, I could use it with both of my affinities," Arnos said, looking toward Erik with an embarrassed look.

"I knew it! Adventurers aren't fit to be teachers, Erik exclaimed. Fireball is the most basic spell that everyone should start with," Erik added with slight frustration.

Arnos bowed slightly. "Sorry for being a difficult student," Arnos said in an apologetic tone.

"I wasn't saying it to you. Relax," Erik added as he raised both of his hands to his shoulder level, trying to give a calming gesture to Arnos.

Arnos looked at Erik. "You weren't saying it to me?" he questioned giving an unsure look.

"I wasn't. I was just saying adventurers don't usually make good teachers. Now forget about that and listen here," Erik said as he snapped his fingers to get Arnos's attention.

"Tell me Arnos, how do spells work? How is a mage able to cast a spell? What's the mechanism behind it?" Erik questioned, looking at Arnos.

How do spells work? Arnos repeated the words in his mind. He took a moment to think about the answer.

"A mage materializes their mana physically. Thinking about the property, mechanism, and form of the spell as they visualise it in their mind," Arnos answered.

Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

"Well, that's accurate. Could you please close your eyes and raise your hand?" Erik instructed.

Arnos complied with Erik's instructions, raising his right hand to shoulder level and closing both of his eyes.

"Since we already know you can materialize your mana, let's skip that part," Erik said.

He moved toward Arnos, standing right next to him. "Arnos, answer my questions now," Erik instructed.

"Yes," Arnos responded calmly.

"How does fire look? What's its colour? How does its flames act?" Erik questioned.

Arnos stopped for a moment, lost in thought before he began to answer.

"Fire... its colour ranges between orange and yellow. The flames flicker; they're chaotic. They spread if they get a chance as well."

"Anything else?" Erik questioned again.

"No sir. I don't know," Arnos replied.

"Hmm, that's fine. How does fire feel? Like, think about a burning fireplace and imagine yourself standing in front of it. How would it make you feel?" Erik asked in a curious tone.

How would it make me feel? Arnos thought in his mind.

"It would make me feel warm," Arnos replied after a moment of thought.

"That's right, Arnos. Now imagine the mana in front of your right arm materializing into actual flames, taking the shape of a ball. A ball made of flames. It isn't meant to disperse when it hits your enemy. It's meant to impale them. It's meant to cause a concentrated attack at one point of the body rather than spreading out and causing no pain.

"Can you visualize? Or if not visualize, think about what I'm saying verbally," Erik instructed.

Arnos didn't reply this time, his mind lost in thoughts.

Fire… it's hot. The flames flicker, they're chaotic, he thought to himself, imagining a large flickering flame in his mind. It's concentrating into a small ball, he said mentally, as all the fire in his imagination gathered into a ball. It impales, it doesn't spread, he finally thought, opening his eyes.

"Chant the name," Erik said.

And as Erik spoke the words, Arnos mumbled, "Fireball." Small mana particles of fire magic dispersed into the air forming a large ball with empty space filled with air. In the next moment, the space between the small particles was filled with fire. A huge fireball appeared in front of Arnos.

"It's hot," Arnos mumbled, staring at the fireball. The fireball was almost as big as Erik's staff. Arnos's eyes widened with surprise and happiness as he had successfully learned a new spell. A drop of sweat ran down his face due to the heat radiating off the flames.

Arnos took a moment to observe the chaotic nature of the fireball, its flickering flames, and the brilliant light it emitted. In the next instant, the fireball rushed toward the herb garden in the direction Arnos had unintentionally been pointing his hand.

Erik raised his staff. "Al…" Erik chanted. Arnos wasn't able to hear the full spell chant, but he saw a beam of light magic projected from Erik's staff and dispersed the fireball spell in an instant.