25 – The Arcane Arts

We spent the rest of the night helping the witches repair the damage to their village. By the time we made it back to Bluebell Tower, faint wisps of dawn were beginning to stir in the east. Alynur gathered us all around the round table before we could retire to our rooms.

“I spoke with the Senior Archwitch and the witches have agreed to watch over our tower and protect the town of Benick while we are away. It is a long journey to the White Tower and even longer to the Eastern Front. I won’t lie to you. There is a very real chance that some of you might not make it back alive. The Archsorcerer commands an army of highly trained necromancers, some who could rival the best wizards and witches in the White Tower. I won’t force anyone to come. But that being said, if the Archsorcerer continues to push further into our realm, it is only a matter of time before the war comes to us. Now, is there anyone who would prefer to stay here? There is no shame in that path if you choose it.”

We all glanced around the table at one another. Any trace of afterglow left in our systems had faded, leaving only the reality of grim, exhausted faces. No one said anything. As much as I’d come to think of Bluebell Tower as my new home, I wasn’t going to be the only one to stay behind. I was at a much lower level than the rest of the guys, and I knew they would understand if I wanted to stay. But it wasn’t just Bluebell Tower that made this place feel like home. It was them.

I would follow them to the ends of the earth.

“Then it’s agreed,” Alynur said. “We’ll set out tomorrow at first light. Get a bit of sleep and spend the rest of the day preparing for the journey. If there’s anything you will miss, bring it. It may be a long time before we see these walls again.”

The wizards all nodded solemnly, one by one, and trudged off to their respective quarters. Soon it was just me and the Senior Archmage. Before I could head off to my room, he put his hand on my shoulder.

“Mark, last night you came too close to death for my comfort. While your void magic is powerful, you have no way to defend yourself. It’s time you consider which arcane art you will learn.”

“Arcane art, Senior Archmage?”

“You are rapidly approaching level 10, at which point you’ll be able to learn your first arcane art. It is how your fellows channel mana through their bodies in close combat. An arcane art is different than a spell in that it doesn’t consume mana. It merely moves it around the body in different ways.”

“I see. I always wondered how they did that… Will the system give a list of options, like it does with the spells?”

“No. An arcane art must be studied outside of the system. Great masters of old put down the techniques in various grimoires. I suggest you spend what little time we have left here going through our library to find one that is suitable for your affinities. I doubt you’ll find anything for a void affinity, but a water or plant art would suit you well.”

“Thank you, Senior Archmage.”

With that, the old man began his long ascent up the stairs. The lightning-fast movement I had seen only a few hours ago was gone. Despite how effortless he had looked in battle, the exertion must have drained him. His steps were even more labored than usual.

I tried to get some sleep in my room, but my heart was still pounding from the battle. I couldn’t even check on my spell creatures, I was so keyed up.

I decided to follow the Archmage’s advice and look for an arcane art.

I’d kind of given up on getting any sleep tonight, so I made myself a cup of coffee and headed up to the library. The golden light of morning was already beginning to seep into the inner sanctum, lighting the statues and the manicured trees.

I did a preliminary circuit around the circular wall of books, looking for some general information on the subject. Eventually I found The Arcane Artist: A Guide to Mana Manipulation Techniques.

After some skimming, I learned that all magic users could learn an arcane art at level 10 and every increment of 10 levels after that. The book referred to them as Tiers. A tierless wizard was anyone under level 10. During this stage, their orb was still forming, and their body was still getting used to the presence of mana within it.

At level 10, a wizard reached Tier 1, which was a qualitative jump from being tierless. Apparently something happened in the orb at that threshold that allowed mana to be used more freely throughout the body.

An arcane art took advantage of this flow of mana to enhance fighting techniques in different ways. It was highly suggested that you choose an arcane art that aligned with your primary affinity. Arts that aligned with your secondary or tertiary affinities would have decreased effectiveness.

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And thus began my search for a void art. Each arcane art had an entire grimoire dedicated to it. Apparently, there was a lot to learn. They weren’t like spells where the spell circle did most of the work for you.