Zeke and Maximilian were sitting in the study, the mood heavy after Maximilian's revelation about the Mind Mages of the Geistreich family.

"So," Zeke said, trying to change the mood, "do you have any recommendations for movement-related spells for Space Mages?"

The question seemed to snap Maximilian out of his thoughts. "Do you know why it is said that Space Mages only reach their full potential by the time they become Arch Mages?" he asked.

Zeke didn't know the answer and shook his head. "Well, it's because teleportation of any kind puts an enormous strain on the body," Maximilian explained. "If an apprentice mage tried to teleport, the side effects from traveling through space would tear them apart. But at the Arch Mage level, the body goes through a significant transformation. After reaching that realm, even the physically weakest of mages is strong enough to survive long-range teleportation with minimal problems. Do you understand?"

Zeke thought about Maximilian's words for a moment before replying, "What you're saying is that it would be possible to learn short-range teleportation much earlier if the mage's body was strong enough?"

Maximilian looked at Zeke with a proud look on his face. "That's exactly what I'm saying, my boy. Now, you told me that you've been working on your new [Analyze] spell, right? A marvelous idea, by the way. How about you use it on me to find out what stats you would need to survive long-range teleportation?"

Zeke swallowed nervously, he had never used the spell on his teacher out of respect, but that didn't mean he wasn't curious about what the stats of an Arch Mage looked like.

"I-I can do that," he stammered.

Maximilian nodded, "Good. I'll be standing right here, whenever you're ready."

With a deep breath, Zeke focused on his spell and cast it on his teacher. He watched as the information flowed into his mind, analyzing Maximilian's physical abilities. As he studied the data, his eyes widened in surprise, the numbers were much higher than he had expected.

[Results of Analyze]

First name: Maximilian. Mage name: Bombastus. Last name: von Hohenheim. Age: [unknown]. Gender: Male. Height: 1.85m.

Strength: 88 Constitution: 102 Agility: 72 Intelligence: 75

No Magic core detected, (no affinity), Rank: none, engraved spell: [None].

Zeke was impressed by Maximilian's physical stats. He couldn't determine anything about Maximilian's magical core. He was aware that at the Arch Mage level, the core of a mage would fuse with his body. Therefore, he would first have to calibrate his spell to be able to work with the body of an Arch Mage. At this point, Zeke did not need such an adjustment, though, since the only Arch Mage he ever really had any contact with was his teacher. This being the first time Zeke had used his spell on an Arch Mage, he was curious about how his teacher compared to others of the same rank.

"Do you think you're on the physically stronger or weaker side for an Arch Mage?" Zeke asked.

Maximilian puffed up his chest in pride as he answered, "I'm one of the strongest ones in the empire. Not only do I have a dual affinity of Fire and Earth Magic, but the Earth affinity also strengthens the body the most out of all Elemental affinities. It's not comparable to your blood affinity, but it's still noticeable when you get to my level."

Zeke nodded, understanding what his teacher meant. He knew that his blood affinity gave him a powerful body, but he was also aware that it was not the only affinity with similar effects. He couldn't help but imagine that if he could combine the power of his blood affinity with the physical resistance of an Earth Mage, he would be like a walking fortress. He was reminded of Theodore Steiner, who he had seen a couple of times in his blood magic class. Since the Steiner heir had been in that class as well, it was pretty obvious that he had a blood affinity in addition to his earth affinity. He felt a moment of jealousy towards the young Earth Mage, but then he remembered that he, in fact, had three affinities himself. He got his mind back to the present and thought about what Maximilian had told him, starting his calculations.

Zeke ran the numbers and realized that if his teacher's words were true, then the average Arch Mage was 4 times as durable as Zeke. Even if he rated Maximilian's Constitution as 20% higher than average.

Maximilian saw the look on Zeke's face and smiled, he was aware that Zeke had realized the vast chasm between the ranks of mages. Before Zeke could fall into despair, Maximilian reassured him with a calm voice. "Long-range teleportation puts a much larger strain on the body than short-range teleportation. You also have to remember that I told you that even the weakest of Arch Mages could endure the strain of long-range teleportation. If you want to calculate accurately how much endurance is necessary, then you don't have to consider the average, but the lowest possible value. I would say it only needs about half my Constitution to be able to successfully teleport without incurring much damage."

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Zeke sat in silence, his mind whirring as he considered the numbers Maximilian had presented him with. Teleportation magic had always seemed like such a faraway dream to him, but with this new information, the subject suddenly seemed much more attainable. If the old man's speculations were to be believed, then Zeke would only need a total of around 50 Constitution for long-range teleportation, and he estimated around half that for short-range. That meant that he would only need around 25 Constitution to start learning this spell.

The excitement began to bubble within him as he thought about the possibilities this newfound knowledge presented. He turned to Maximilian, his eyes alight with excitement. "Where can I learn how to perform teleportation magic, Maximilian?" he asked, his voice resolute.

Maximilian's face twisted into a bitter smile. "Unfortunately, all teleportation-capable mages need to be registered with the Mages Guild. And the guild won't even consider teaching you until you've advanced at least one more stage and become a Grand Mage."

Zeke's heart sank, but Maximilian continued. "I think you have two options. First, you could wait until you advance to Grand Mage and learn it the legitimate way. Or second, you could just find someone who knows how to perform the spell and try to copy what they are doing."

Maximilian's tone suggested that he meant the second option as a joke, but Zeke's eyes were shining with a greedy gleam. He couldn't wait to start learning teleportation magic, no matter what it took.

Maximilian watched as Zeke's eyes shone with excitement, a look he had come to recognize as the young man's desire for new knowledge. He could tell that Zeke was getting strange ideas, ideas that might lead him down a risky path. Just as he was about to intervene, Zeke spoke up again in a transparent attempt to change the subject.

"So, what can you tell me about Mind Magic spells?" Zeke asked, his voice eager. Maximilian could sense that the young man had realized that he was about to convince him to give up on teleportation for now. He sighed and let it go, knowing that Zeke's curiosity would not be easily quenched.

"I'm afraid there isn't much I can tell you about Mind Magic spells," Maximilian began, his voice heavy with regret. "The Geistreich family, who are known for their expertise in this field, do not share their secret techniques with anyone outside their family."

Zeke's face fell, but Maximilian continued, "You should consider yourself lucky. The fact that Sophia gifted you with the telekinesis spell, despite it not containing any core secrets, is a rare privilege."

Zeke nodded, understanding the gravity of Maximilian's words. The young man may have been denied access to the Geistreich's mind magic, but that didn't mean that he had given up on his plans. He sat quietly in his mentor's study, lost in thought. Maximilian watched him, a small smile playing on his lips.

"You're thinking about other ways to get your hands on Mind Magic spells?" Maximilian asked, breaking the silence.

Zeke looked up, startled. "Yes," he replied, "I realized that if I want to achieve my goal, I'll likely need to create the spell myself."

Maximilian nodded, his smile growing wider. "I had a feeling that's what you were thinking," he said. "Don't be daunted by the task ahead of you. Creating new spells is a challenging and rewarding process. And I know for a fact that there is nobody in the empire who is better equipped to succeed. You should just consider this situation as practice."

Zeke felt a rush of excitement at his mentor's words. The thought of creating his own Mind Magic spell was daunting, but also exhilarating. His mind was already spinning with ideas on how to go about it.

Maximilian watched as Zeke's expression turned more certain, and he, in turn, grew more assured that his young apprentice was ready for this new challenge. With a satisfied smile, he turned back to his own work, leaving Zeke to his thoughts. The two were consumed by their work as the hours passed.

Zeke groggily opened his eyes as Maximilian's hand shook his shoulder, rousing him from his deep concentration. "It's time for our daily meditation research, Ezekiel," Maximilian reminded him, his voice stern. "You mustn't let yourself become too distracted. Our research is still the most important project at the moment."

Zeke nodded, sheepishly, as he banished his earlier thoughts about inventing his own Mind Magic spell. He knew that Maximilian was right and that he couldn't afford to let his focus stray from their number one priority like that.

As he joined his mentor and the children in their daily session, Zeke could already feel the progress they had made in just one week. The changes to the meditation technique had already led to a 10% increase in efficiency when forming a magic core. He pushed all thoughts of Mind Magic aside for the moment and poured his full attention into the work at hand.

Zeke sat in quiet contemplation, his mind racing with the discovery of the three young children who had shown such promise in their meditation training. A boy of twelve, with only two years left before the evaluation exam, and a pair of ten-year-old twin girls. He couldn't help but feel a sense of excitement at the thought of the three of them developing magic cores.

There was something special about those three, especially the twin girls, something that set them apart from the others. As he watched them leave, he couldn't shake the feeling that their cores were like fire and water, or perhaps light and darkness. It was too early to tell, but Zeke made a mental note to keep a close eye on the three of them as they continued their training in the coming years.

After wrapping up his work on the research for the day, Zeke returned to his room. Now he was finally able to tackle his own projects. The boy sat at his desk, surrounded by books and notes, as he meticulously formulated his list of tasks. He knew that the end of the year tournament was fast approaching, and he needed to be prepared. The difficulty of the tasks ahead weighed heavily on him as he wrote them all down, each one more daunting than the last.

"Raise Constitution to a minimum of 25." He muttered to himself as he jotted it down. He knew that this would be a tall order, as one's constitution was not something that could be easily increased in the short term. He would have to push himself to the limit, both physically and mentally, in order to achieve this goal.

"Learn short-range teleportation." He added to the list, his mind racing with the possibilities that this skill could bring. The thought of being able to instantly transport himself to different locations was both exhilarating and intimidating.

"Invent a mind spell to use for control in battle." This task was perhaps the most daunting of them all. Zeke knew that Mind Magic was a powerful tool, but also one that was highly guarded and closely monitored by the Geistreich family. He would have to tread carefully if he hoped to succeed in this task.

"Improve the utility and control of my blood magic spells." He finished the list, feeling a sense of hopelessness wash over him. His Blood magic was a powerful and dangerous tool, and Zeke was not using it to its utmost right now. With proper control and mastery, it could be a much more formidable weapon in battle.

Zeke looked over his list once more, feeling a sense of overwhelming pressure press down on him. How was he supposed to accomplish all of this in just one month? He let out a sigh and buried his head in his pillow. The road ahead would be long and difficult, but he hoped that if he gave it his all, he could manage to achieve his goals.

Zeke sat up in his bed, staring at the list of tasks he had written with a renewed sense of determination. He was aware that it would be almost impossible to achieve everything on the list before the end-of-the-year tournament on his own. As his eyes wandered from one improbable goal to the next, he couldn't help but feel a sense of hopelessness once again.

He let out a deep sigh and ran a hand through his hair. Instead of confronting the entire list at once, Zeke tried a different tactic and started by only focusing on a single task. One thing that he was sure of how to achieve was to raise his physical stats. Thanks to his [Perfect Body Control] spell, he knew the best way to improve his body was through training. And he was already devising a training regimen in his mind.

Sighing again, he muttered to himself, "I guess I'll have to go and visit Markus tomorrow, he'll be able to create some equipment for my training." He hoped that his friend would be able to create the specialized equipment he needed to push his body to the limit.

Zeke lay back on his bed and closed his eyes, his mind already working on the blueprints he would present to Markus. He had something in mind that would challenge his body to the extreme.