“What is Magic?”
—
There are two ways to make a class interesting. One, obviously, is to teach something interesting to the students. For Spellcrafting 101, that can be an introduction of a new spell which they can learn to cast. The more powerful or useful the spell, the more attractive the class.
The other way is to start with a philosophical question like ‘What is Love?’ or ‘What Hurts the most?’ A risky teaching method, requiring the lecturer not only to be charismatic to maintain an engaging performance, but also to deliver meaningful answers to the questions posed.
Professor Soren did not have a problem with that approach. Wavy dark hair, hazel eyes exuding curiosity (like that of a cat) on a cleanly shaved face, the professor in his thirties is still considered a desirable bachelor. Addressing the class in the copper-brown suit that matches perfectly with the color of the wooden lecture, his delivery ‘What is Magic?’ can even be called more than Charismatic.
The rest is what goes after, and everyone in the lecture waited for it in silence, or maybe they were contemplating how to respond.
“Magic is Mana?” a hesitant voice, among the seats of the first year students, broke the silence.
“Not bad. We cannot cast a magic spell without Mana. Anyone with a different answer?”
“Magic is a Gift?”
“Oh right, most spells we know are the Gifts of the Constellations. What else?”
“Magic is a natural phenomenon.”
“Right, but not totally, at least for now and for us.” Noticing some confused faces, Soren remarked in his mind ‘Better explain that soon.’
A long silence. It seems there is no other definition for Magic.
“OK. Let’s start with what is NOT Magic, but constitutes Magic. Have you heard about the Five Senses?”
“You mean Sight, Hearing, Touch, Taste, Smell?”
“Not exactly them, but still they are part of the Five Senses.” Soren explained with a light smile. Many students give a confused face. Obviously, how can first year students know the topic that is barely discussed even among the High Scholars?
“Sight, Hearing, Touch, Taste, Smell are parts of the Sense of Physics. The most basic of the Five Senses, and also, the opposite of Magic.”
This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.
The Professor flicked his hand, and a golden fireball was conjured from the thin air, floating in front of the class.
“Look at this miniature sun. We can see its radiance, hear its cracking burns, feel the heat, and if you are close enough, can smell some of the sulfuric here… I don’t recommend tasting it though, unless you are a golem.”
“All living beings have the Sense of Physics.” He continues. “Animals run away from a burning forest. Sunflowers point their faces toward sunlight. Even microscopic creatures bear a little Sense of Physics.”
“Now…” Soren pointed his finger to the miniature sun and gestured upward. Streams of light emerged from the fireball, gradually forming a golden hourglass structure in the open air.
Five Senses [https://lh7-rt.googleusercontent.com/docsz/AD_4nXeGOEU4BhCEONQmBWr4qHdylXpWowIEh5UfO6pSltFfGEYT8Qc7eGnVRiPXjM7u4pza5m3_aMnNkG5Ra42NbkpCcNMn3ehRckMkb13DY1D_-Jhp1_QP6CuEM9peaFbmoxD6Yw8mvw?key=0ZNMfaICYmOtCB41tfv2M_bT]
“The Five Senses stack on top of each other, forming the Laws of the World we live in. The higher the Sense, the more limited it is to the living beings. Next to Physics is Emotion. This Sense is mostly reserved for animals, allowing them to sense their own and possibly other’s emotions.”
“The third layer is on its own and at the center, Sense of Linguistics. Grant the ability to associate signals, characters, melodies, ... to specific messages. Some animals, like ants, dolphins, whales, and parrots can still maintain an advanced form of this Sense.”
“Can you guess what the Fourth Sense is?”
“Logic...” a few voices mumbling across the lecture.
“Correct. The opposite of Emotion, the Sense of Logic gives the ability to deduce and infer. It’s pretty clear that Humans have this Sense thoroughly, while other animals have difficulties using it. Surprisingly, it’s not Chimpanzees that have this Sense closest to us. It’s Octopus.”
“And finally, Magic. Limited only to Humans, the Sense of Magic allows us to perceive and influence the Mana. Did you know that in different worlds, it’s called by different names. Qi, Aether, Aura, ... the common term for them should be Mystical Substances.”
“Mana sometimes resonates with the stars in the sky. When we sense these resonances and mimic them, we learn the spells and understand more about Magic. That’s why they are called the Gifts of the Constellations.”
“But that’s not the only way to learn Magic. There is a world where Magic is learned from what they call the Five Earthly Elements. Magic is not fixed, and in different worlds it can be studied with its Laws established in different ways. Most, if not all, of the time, the eventual Laws of Magic of a particular world is the result of Human’s manipulation. So, Magic isn’t totally a natural phenomenon.”
“Professor! So is it possible to change the Laws of Magic of our world?” a student questioned.
“Yes, it is. But the amount of effort, or Mana, to do so would be tremendous, not to mention a few tricky requirements to do so. Luckily in terms of spellcasting, our world’s Magic Law is pretty neutral, allowing a wide range of Magic systems to be cast here.”
“The Laws of Magic can fluctuate and differentiate in different worlds, but they are all based on the Laws of the Four Senses below: Laws of Logic, Laws of Linguistics, Laws of Emotion, and Laws of Physics.”
“Now, can anyone explain why all we have learnt so far matters to our Spellcrafting class?”
A long silence. Then a girl with long silver hair raised her hand. “Comprehension of Magic Laws will improve with understanding of other Laws.”
“Exactly. In this class, I will not teach the Laws of Magic alone. Other Senses’ Laws will be taught as well, specifically on how you can apply them to Spellcrafting and allow you to do something like this…”
Professor Soren raises his hand, and a loud bang echoes the lecture...