Magic Academy Mayhem: A Class Full of Maniacs - Chapter 43

Having found a definite answer, Cynthia closed the book and returned every volume she had read to its proper place before leaving the library.

Her best guess was that the magic circle’s level was too low for her to use magic, but subconscious rejection from the owner remained possible.

If she wanted to know for certain, she would have to try a two-star Spirit-Submergence Magic Circle, one level above an elementary circle.

If she entered the space again and still could not use magic, then the owner’s rejection had to be responsible.

Of course, she had no guarantee she would enter the same person’s consciousness a third time. Even so, resolving the question could do no harm.

The moment Cynthia returned to her dorm, she began practicing the two-star circle.

Unfortunately, at her current level, its difficulty bordered on prohibitive.

She practiced for nearly three hours and snapped dozens of magic quills without succeeding once.

The intense exercise drained her magic dry. Her nose ached, and bright blood dripped onto the paper. With her mental strength nearly exhausted, Cynthia had no choice but to put down the quill.

Even You Xia, who remained inside her consciousness, could no longer bear to watch. He had not intended to interfere casually, but her persistence impressed him.

After some thought, he offered a warning.

“Human, the star rank of a magic circle corresponds to the ten Orders. At your current level, practicing a two-star circle is the same as challenging a higher Order.

“If you truly want to draw one successfully, you should concentrate on reaching the Second Order first. Otherwise, with the amount of magic you possess now, success will be very difficult.”

“I know.” Cynthia would hardly have persisted this far without understanding the basics.

A one-star magic circle corresponded to the First Order.

A ten-star circle corresponded to the Tenth Order and was also known as a god-rank magic circle.

A two-star circle therefore matched the Second Order.

She knew that drawing a magic circle demanded a proportional expenditure of magic and mental strength.

Nor was she training above her level merely to discover why she could not use magic in the dream or consciousness space.

More importantly, while drawing a two-star magic circle, she could feel the elemental magic in her Soul Sea fluctuating in response.

The longer she practiced, the more her magic began to circulate on its own and the more smoothly her mental strength condensed.

That was unquestionably beneficial.

The frustrating part was that every attempt failed at the same step: the injection of magic.

Perhaps You Xia was right. Her present level simply did not contain enough magic, making success all but impossible.

You Xia sounded helpless. “If you know, why insist on doing it? Keeping your mental strength in a constant state of depletion can damage your mind.”

“I’m stopping now.” Cynthia sorted the scattered books and papers on the table. She knew she had reached her limit and had no intention of continuing.

“Human…”

Cynthia interrupted him. “Just use my name.”

Being called human over and over sounded odd, especially when You Xia himself had once been a living person.

“Oh. All right.” You Xia had used the word to remind himself that he was no longer human. But after knowing her this long, continuing to address her that way was indeed inappropriate. “Then may I call you Xiya?”

“Either is fine.” Cynthia had not expected him to simply discard the first part of her name, but it was only a form of address. It hardly mattered. “What were you going to say?”

“I wanted to ask why you’re so determined to practice dream-entering and spirit-submergence magic.”

Cynthia answered honestly. “It isn’t that those are the only two I want to practice. They’re the only two I currently know.”

“I tried studying other circles, but the spell structures and rune-spirit analysis are completely different. Without guidance, I can’t break them down at all. Teaching myself is essentially impossible.”

“So that’s how it is…” You Xia pondered for a moment. “How about this? You still have some time before the Team Competition ends. Since fate brought us together, I’ll personally teach you other kinds of magic circles before I leave. What do you say?”

Cynthia wiped the blood from beneath her nose and sprawled lazily against the sofa. “Weren’t you only a second-year student when you died? What could you teach me?”

“Hmph! What’s wrong with being a second-year?” Hearing the doubt in her voice, You Xia bristled. “I may have died horribly, but I was still a direct descendant of the Prometheus Clan! Magic circles and witchcraft are as simple to me as one plus one. Just tell me whether you believe me.”

He did not sound as though he were joking.

Cynthia recalled the magic array carved into the cave wall on the deserted island and ultimately chose to trust him. “All right. I believe you.”

“That’s more like it.” Satisfied, You Xia continued, “Under normal circumstances, drawing a magic circle above your Order is impossible. But I can let you ignore that so-called common sense.”

Confidence practically overflowed from every word. Cynthia played along. “In that case, Teacher You Xia, what should I do now?”

The word *teacher* nearly made him burst out laughing. He cleared his throat twice. “If you want to draw a two-star magic circle above your Order, you must first cleanse your marrow and temper your body.”

Cleanse her marrow?

Cynthia asked with perfect sincerity, “What is the purpose of marrow cleansing?”

You Xia explained patiently, “The maximum amount of magic a mage can contain depends not only on the capacity of their Soul Sea. The strength of the body, which serves as a second vessel, is equally important.”

“I can say with certainty that your mental strength already surpasses what anyone your age should possess. But this body of yours is far too weak, and toxins and impurities have piled up inside it like mountains.

“If you absorb Magic Element in this condition, you won’t be able to store the magic. Worse, your progress will become even slower.”

“Is that so…” Cynthia sank into thought.

This body had not been exceptionally frail to begin with, and more than a month of training had improved it considerably.

As for toxins and impurities…

Ever since the original Cynthia became obsessed with poisons at eleven, she had constantly tested them on her own body.

The doses had been excessive but not fatal. Because the toxins had thoroughly adhered to her meridians, blood, and bones, healing and restorative potions could not dissolve those impurities.

After years of accumulation, it was only natural that so much poison remained.

It had never interfered with daily life, so after transmigrating, Cynthia had unconsciously ignored the issue.

Could those toxins and impurities also be why she had remained trapped at her bottleneck these past few days?