Chapter 33: You don’t want to be burdened with debt at such a young age, do you?
I didn’t press the issue further. If I kept asking, it would be awkward for Senior Tang Yihan if she didn’t know.
It’s like explaining how to use a phone to someone who’s never encountered one before, and that person keeps asking how phones are made.
How do you even explain that?
You should say that the processes involved are very complex and there are many theories to consider.
This industry is deep water; you can’t grasp it, kid.
So to avoid unnecessary trouble, I refrained from probing any further and instead continued inquiring about other information related to the spell slot to see if it really worked like in a game.
In the end, I concluded that it really was the case: a spellbook is a tool for quickly mastering and using spells; it’s not really a learning tool since using it doesn’t provide me with corresponding knowledge.
Moreover, before using a spell, one needs to check the user manual or figure out how to use it by themselves. The spellbook even has a limit on the number of times you can learn from it; if you learn too many spells, the spellbook might self-destruct.
Also, the production of spellbooks is quite troublesome; I heard that you need to attain at least extraordinary status to meet the threshold for making spellbooks.
This truly opened my eyes.
Isn’t this extraordinary world as easy as a game?
No, in reality, it might be hell-level in terms of game difficulty. I have no main storyline and no main tasks; completing tasks won’t earn me rewards.
Though the academy’s task system does have rewards, at least you get paid, right?
That’s the case for everyone. It seems simple only to those who have mastered the resources, but that obviously can’t be me.
I reassured myself to keep a calm mindset; after all, those issues were not something I needed to worry about right now as someone who still had to wash dishes.
At least the existence of spell slots is a significant help for someone like me; otherwise, if learning a spell required understanding its composition, studying spell theory, thoroughly grasping its operational principles, and having strong mental power to interfere with magic release, it would be exhausting.
However, I also had the corresponding psychological preparation; after all, before enrolling in the Extraordinary Academy, our curriculum included courses on spell theory and elemental theory, and these subjects were counted in the final exams.
But I still felt those theories were too basic. Understanding them felt easier than some of the complex math problems from my previous life that left me at a loss.
Initially, I thought that by entering the Witch Academy, I would get to engage with more profound extraordinary theoretical knowledge. Now, I’m being told that extraordinary methods have turned into one-click, fool-proof spell casting.
That was naturally difficult for me to accept.
But at least it saved me a lot of the cumbersome process of using spells.
After all, the world doesn’t revolve around me. Perhaps due to the influence of many literary works from my previous life, like various novels, I had my own ideas and definitions of the extraordinary world.
To me, the extraordinary world should not be merely a violent one where you start fighting as soon as you master skills; rather, it should be about exploring the essence of this world from an extraordinary perspective…
Maybe I was being too naïve. Combat power might really be the most important thing in the extraordinary world.
If spells could be popularized in such a simple manner, it would indeed be easy to quickly form effective combat power.
With strength comes corresponding power to speak. It was so in my previous life, and it should be even more so in this extraordinary world.
I comforted myself with those thoughts.
Then, putting an end to these fantasies and facing reality, I looked at the still towering pile of dishes and utensils, and I truly wondered if selling all these tools for making bread, cookies, and such would be feasible.
But that isn’t something I should be concerned about; after all, Tang Yihan had just told me during our conversation that there were solidified preservation spells in the display case outside, so it wouldn’t spoil so easily.
Speaking of solidification spells, I recalled that there seemed to be a solidification spell on my badge as well…
It was still the basic Fireball Spell.
Since I couldn’t mobilize magic power, how was I supposed to use this Fireball Spell?
This isn’t a spellbook, after all.
I remember Sister Bai saying that this was to help new students through the awkward period of not having combat power, and Senior Tang Yihan also mentioned that new students wouldn’t be able to independently release spells with their mental power for the first few years.
Isn’t that contradictory?
Or is it that I misunderstood?
“Senior Tang Yihan, can I ask one more question?”
“Sure, go ahead.”
At this point, the dishwashing task had all fallen to me, and Senior Tang Yihan was now, in a sense, free, so she was naturally willing to answer my various questions.
“Aren’t new students given a four-piece uniform set upon enrollment? That badge also has a solidification spell. How do you use it?”
I gestured slightly to the badge on my chest as I asked.
“This badge is an alchemical product; in some respects, it has effects similar to a spellbook, but it’s a tangible item that will wear out. You need to use your mental power to activate it…”
“Wait a minute!”
“Hmm? What’s wrong?” I was just about to attempt it based on Senior Tang Yihan’s explanation when I was suddenly interrupted.
“Do not attempt it! You just started learning spells, and you don’t know the power of them. Remember, spells can be highly destructive. I don’t want this place blown up because of you. You don’t want to ruin things at such a young age and then be burdened with debt, right?”
“Uh, no, I don’t want that.”
I quickly nodded in apology, dismissing the urge to try.
“Anyway, you need to guide the spell on your badge with your mental power. If you can eventually manipulate magic power, you can inject it directly. But right now you can’t do that; just activating it will cause it to draw magic power from your internal magic source, releasing a spell with a fixed power.”
“This spell has very poor controllability. You don’t have the ability to fix the various issues that might arise after releasing the spell. Every year, new students manage to cause explosions in various places around the academy out of curiosity or accident, and end up burdened with debt at a young age, so you have to be careful.”
After that, Senior Tang Yihan continued to educate me about refraining from recklessly using this spell, urging me to only experiment in designated areas.
Similarly, she advised me against relying on this power; the material of the attacking spell was subject to significant wear and tear, and continuous use would worsen the degradation.
In short, in one sentence: don’t attempt it now, especially not in the shop.
To this, I quickly agreed, after all, the senior had clarified my confusion for me. Apparently, I do have combat power now, but unfortunately, it’s a big weapon that I can’t use freely.
However, the dishes I washed were eventually sent back by Senior Tang Yihan because they weren’t clean enough, doubling my workload as I realized that handwashing can’t compare to spells after all.
But Senior Tang Yihan kindly stated that when the store manager returned, she would report this matter to her and help me quickly master this spell.
Although it was a Cleaning Spell, I was still quite happy; cleaning spells are incredibly convenient and not just for washing dishes.
Due to time constraints, Senior Tang Yihan also joined the dishwashing team. Watching her use spells so easily made me feel quite envious.
