Night wind swept across the open training courtyard of the Arcadia Healing Department, funneling through broken colonnades and across flagstones stained with soot. The scent of burned air drifted ahead of the flames—thin at first, then thickening, as if the night were bracing for what was about to ignite.
Kairos eyed the boy in the black academy cloak with a mixture of disdain and boredom. At first glance he had assumed the newcomer was an instructor from another faculty—one of those elemental mages who enjoyed meddling in other people’s business.
But the moment the boy mended the healer girl’s broken arm, the truth became obvious.
A first-year healer, no less.
Ridiculous.
Kairos shifted his weight, stone cracking under his heel, preparing to crush that fragile spark of hope in a single blow—but the figure perched lazily on the rooftop behind him finally spoke.
“Don’t underestimate him, Kairos. According to our intel, that boy is Rein—third place in this year’s Grand Magic Tournament. Master-Troposphere. One of our designated targets.”
“What…? That baby-faced first-year?” Kairos’s teeth ground together.
Memories of his own tournament years flashed through him—an arena filled only with third-year elites and prodigies from across the continent. Back then, reaching the final rounds required talent bordering on monstrous.
“So the Grand Magic Tournament has fallen that far.” He spat the words like ash.
He himself had once clawed his way into the top eight… only to finish dead last. The expulsion that followed carved a wound he had never forgiven.
“And now some first-year runt took third place?”
The resentment simmering beneath his ribs swelled—volcanic. Taking this job wasn’t only about coin anymore. It was a chance to reopen old scars and cauterize them with someone else’s blood.
A grin split his scarred face. Crushing the current number three would be a delightful bonus.
He stepped forward. Another crack split the stone beneath him. Mana roiled through his veins—boiling, not flowing—like a sealed cauldron moments from blowing apart.
“Rein, be careful!” Ingrid cried. “He’s Kairos—eighth place in the Grand Magic Tournament, years ago!”
Rein didn’t answer.
He simply watched the giant advance, unmoving, unflinching, even as waves of heat distorted the night air into trembling ribbons.
Then Kairos ignited.
Flames burst from his body as though a dormant volcano had awakened in his flesh. Heat warped the air, bending shadows and pulling long, wavering lines across the courtyard walls. The stone beneath him split into branching fractures like a spiderweb of molten glass.
The roar of his mana was deafening—thunder layered upon thunder.
Finally Kairos bellowed:
“Flame Strike!”
No feeling out. No testing blows. Just a slaughter condensed into one charge. The hulking fighter launched forward—mass, velocity, and flame collapsing into one murderous vector, every step detonating stone into the air.
“Rein!!”
Ingrid screamed. Ordinary magic shields couldn’t hope to stop that blow.
Flame Strike fused Ignited Flame—raw eruptive fire magic—with Strike Impact, the crushing kinetic art of unarmed Brawlers.
A Flame Brawler excelled at this hybrid: fire to amplify their blows, physical power to drive the flames deeper. Every hit multiplied physical and magical force alike.
A normal barrier wouldn’t merely fail—it would shatter instantly.
Their triple-layered shield had nearly collapsed from just one punch. Kairos was Stratosphere-tier at minimum. And Rein had only just recovered his strength. He couldn't possibly—
Yet Rein didn’t move an inch.
His blue eyes remained steady, almost cold.
He simply lifted his right hand, speaking in a voice barely louder than the rumble of flames.
“Magic Shield.”
A translucent shield unfolded before him—shaped like a rounded glass sigil, its surface gleaming with a crystalline sheen. Inside the barrier, strange luminous lines flowed against one another in shifting currents, weaving patterns no ordinary spell form resembled.
The world detonated.
Kairos slammed into the shield with full force. Fire and shockwaves rippled outward, scattering rubble, splintered wood, and broken stone in a storm of debris.
A hot blast tore across Ingrid’s face, forcing her to raise her arms as tears stung her eyes from the heat.
But in that instant—She saw the impossible.
The shield held. It didn’t shatter, crack, or even shudder.
Kairos froze mid-charge, eyes wide, the flames around him quivering. Then—the backlash hit him.
A violent recoil of force smashed into his own body, sending his fire cloak flickering wildly as if punched by an invisible hammer.
The sound of breaking bones snapped through the courtyard—wet, brittle, unmistakable. Kairos’s shoulder and wrist collapsed inward, joints crushed to splinters.
“Ghrk… y–you… bastard—”
His words dissolved into a spray of blood as it burst from his nose and mouth. His massive frame toppled backward like a crumbling mountainside, the shock of impact shuddering across the stone floor.
The mana-fire engulfing him extinguished almost instantly.
Ingrid stared, eyes wide.
The shield held. She hadn't expected that.
Rein looked down at the fallen brute. His right arm trembled; the counterforce had numbed him almost to the elbow.
Yet the corner of his mouth still lifted in a thin, wry smile.
“…One down.”
The four black-cloaked men behind Kairos froze.
Not because Kairos had fallen—but because none of them had understood how the boy had blocked a Stratosphere-tier Flame Strike head-on.
Even the man seated motionless on the rooftop—until now unmoving like a carved idol—rose to his feet.
A glint surfaced beneath the shadow of his hood.
The black-haired boy with the blue eyes…
had become an unpredictable variable—one they had not accounted for.
Rein exhaled slowly, regarding the unconscious giant at his feet with a mix of irritation and reluctant resolve.
He didn’t enjoy starting fights—but he wasn’t letting anyone beat on him or his people, either.
Even back in his old world—lab nerd or not—he’d once brawled with an entire basketball fan section for messing with his friends.
Some habits died hard.
“Well… four left. Guess the real party starts now.”
He muttered under his breath, eyes sweeping across the remaining enemies.
His right arm was still numb from channeling the shield.
A faint tremor lingered in his fingers.
“Gonna… have to be careful with this one,” he murmured, flexing the hand slowly.
Then—
a pale blue holographic window flickered into existence before him, as though a page of code had materialized from the air itself.
Lines of text streamed downward in rapid succession.
[Executing threat assessment.]
[Neutralized: 1]
[Remaining: 4]
Then a red bar flashed with a chime that echoed directly inside his mind.
[Warning: Magic Shield exceeded operational threshold. Overheat detected.]
[Right arm neuromuscular circuits: risk of permanent damage.]
“Haaah… yeah, yeah, I know.”
Rein muttered under his breath.
The text shifted—No longer automated. Someone was typing.
Fortunately, only he could see these windows.
[LIZ: ‘You know’? Rein, your arm was one spell away from going limp, you reckless idiot.]
“It’s fine. Just hurts a little.”
[LIZ: A little? Rein, that was a Primary Stratosphere-tier impact. Not a beach ball hitting your elbow.]
This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.
Rein let out a quiet laugh.
“It was necessary. And besides… I trust your calculations.”
[LIZ: Trust all you want, but if you pull that stunt again, your arm might pop like an overfilled balloon. Consider that a friendly warning.]
“Not that bad…” he whispered.
[LIZ: Just so you know—your mana reserves aren’t fully restored. But you insisted on testing a new spell, so I had to hack a portion of external mana from the ambient field to compensate.]
[LIZ: And since that mana didn’t pass through your natural circuits, the backlash was… predictable.]
“Well, lab experiments sometimes short-circuit. Nothing new.”
Rein mouthed the words silently, careful not to let Ingrid see him talking to himself like a lunatic.
[LIZ: Hah… whatever. You’re stubborn as always.]
Rein sighed, though amusement shimmered faintly in his eyes.
He tightened his grip, forcing his right hand to stop shaking.
“Okay, okay. I’ll be careful next time.”
[LIZ: Don’t forget—your motor-recovery cycle is still incomplete.]
He didn’t answer. He never looked away from the robed figures.
Good, he thought. Let them keep guessing. The longer they hesitate, the better.
Another set of warnings chimed.
[Analyzing remaining targets.]
[Data incomplete. Further combat required.]
Rein shrugged.
“Huh. And here I thought you already knew everything.”
[LIZ: Rein, I am an AI, not a prophetic deity. Stop assuming I can see the future. How am I supposed to know what surprises they’re hiding if you don’t let one of them punch you again?]
“Feels like you want me to get hit.”
[LIZ: Not at all. I just want more data. If you get hurt in the process, well… that’s field research.]
Rein rolled his eyes skyward.
“Okay… Houston, copy that.”
A new red window blinked into existence.
[Preliminary assessment:]
[Spellswordsman: mana flow irregular along blade. Possible Enhancing Spell.]
[Assassin: Shadow Clone signature detected.]
[Shadow Step capability confirmed.]
[Threat level: High.]
[Necromancer: Mana output approx. 280% above baseline.]
[Classification: probable Stratosphere-Class (unverified).]
[Rooftop Target: Data insufficient.]
[No reliable assessment available.]
“Thanks for the data,” Rein murmured under his breath.
[LIZ: Translation— you just beat the weakest one. What a lucky brat you are.]
Rein’s eyebrow twitched upward as he glanced at the floating text.
“The weakest one…? My arm’s half-numb from that, you know.”
[LIZ: Yeah, well… the most dangerous of the remaining four is that one—the guy just watching from the rooftop.]
The AI’s next line enlarged itself as if to emphasize the point.
Rein exhaled slowly.
“No surprise. With that much pressure radiating off him, I don’t even need Mana Vision to know he’s Stratosphere-tier at least.”
[LIZ: Next engagement probability:
—Eighty percent the Assassin and the Spellswordsman will strike.
—Sixty percent chance they’ll attack together if your luck sucks.]
“Got it. And the analysis I sent you—done yet?”
[LIZ: Ugh—hold on! You’re using me nonstop here.]
The text blinked out.
Ingrid stood behind Rein, heart hammering like a war drum.
Moments ago, she had been certain—absolutely certain—that his fragile-looking shield would shatter under Kairos’s Flame Strike. She had even prepared herself for the only choice she thought she had left:
If it breaks… I’ll push him away.
Even if it kills me.
But the world refused to follow the script she had braced for.
Rein’s magic shield endured—utterly unmoved—its surface gleaming like hardened crystal wrought by ancient hands. The shockwave it threw back had crippled Kairos, leaving the giant sprawled and broken on the stone.
For one heartbeat, hope blossomed in her chest.
And in the very next, shadow swallowed it whole.
Her three undead friends lunged from behind—faces she had known since childhood warped into masks of hunger, their uniforms torn, bones scraping against ragged flesh. The smell of dried blood and decay rushed at her like a memory turned rancid.
“No—!”
Her breath hitched and her knees locked. There was nowhere to run.
The nails and teeth she’d once teased as “too delicate for real combat” were now tools meant to tear her apart.
And in that knife-thin instant—somewhere between terror and despair—something inside her ignited.
Her body became a column of radiant gold, light bursting outward in a clean, vertical flare.
Lux Sanctus Exorcis!
“Holy light, exorcise!”
Her voice cracked, raw and trembling, yet the spell roared free.
The air trembled as the holy light swept through the courtyard.
“Turn Undead!”
The three girls convulsed, shrieking in voices that no longer held their names.
One still had a braid she had helped tie that very morning.
Another still wore the charm bracelet they bought together at the winter festival.
They crumbled into black ash before her eyes.
Uniform scraps fell last—soft, soundless, empty.
Ingrid pressed her palms together at her chest—more instinct than ritual.
Her vision blurred.
“Goddess Luminara… take them.”
“Please. I’m sorry. I’m so, so sorry I couldn’t protect you…”
She forced her tears back—not because she wanted to be strong, but because she knew if she cried now… even for a breath… Rein might die in the next one.
The ache did not fade. It folded deep inside her ribs like a shard of glass she dared not touch.
“You—you can use Turn Undead?!”
The necromancer’s snarl cracked through the air.
His violet eyes trembled with fury.
“A mere Troposphere-tier healer shouldn’t be able to cast beyond her rank…
You’re using an Artifact to boost your spells, aren’t you?!”
His gaze snapped to the silver pendant glowing faintly at Ingrid’s collar.
That light told him everything—the source that had allowed a first-year to unleash magic above her tier.
He stared at the girl, jaw tightening.
So… she had held that purification spell in reserve.
Pretended to falter. Let the undead surround her, only to wipe them out in one strike.
He had misjudged her.
A small mistake—but a mistake nonetheless. And still his eyes did not leave the pendant.
The moment he shifted his mana to strike—he froze.
The black-haired boy was staring at him. A single look… yet it was enough to halt the master of death in place.
The image of that black-haired boy—the one who had appeared out of nowhere and felled Kairos in a single exchange—wouldn't leave him.
He hesitated.
No.
Acting first was not his role. Necromancers were not vanguard fighters.
The violet gleam in his eyes flickered. He ground his teeth, a muscle twitching at his jaw, and turned his face aside.
“Tch… I’ll wait for the right moment.”
The necromancer drew back a step—slow, deliberate—ceding the front line to the small-framed Spellswordsman who advanced with measured ease, the assassin in pitch-black gliding up beside him like a lengthening shadow.
The assassin’s eyes narrowed.
“What stopped Kairos?” he murmured, licking his lips as he tossed a dagger lazily from hand to hand.
The small Spellswordsman rolled his wrist, letting his blade tilt into a ready angle.
“Not sure. Some kind of trick, probably. A Troposphere-tier magic shield shouldn’t be able to block Kairos’s strike.”
A thin smile crossed the assassin’s face.
“Whatever trick it was… he’ll be pieces before he uses it again.”
Side by side, the two walked forward with the casual indifference of men strolling through their own courtyard.
Rein lifted his chin slightly, drawing in a controlled breath.
He let the sounds around him tighten—footsteps, shifting steel, the faint scrape of gravel—pushing every other sensation to the edges of his awareness.
Two-on-one. Exactly as LIZ had warned.
The assassin vanished first, melting into the shadow beneath him with a ripple of displaced air.
At the same instant, Rein’s gaze dropped to the shifting silhouettes on the ground.
The Spellswordsman closed in with no wasted motion—just a single step, compressed into a blur, collapsing distance as though space itself had folded for him.
Windfold Step.
His blade swept up in a cold arc, mana-laced steel carving a pale crescent through the night air. A razor wind trailed its edge—silent, invisible, lethal.
This wasn’t just any Spellswordsman.
Rowan, the Mystic Wind Blade. A name whispered in dueling halls and criminal dens alike. Revealing a signature technique this early meant only one thing — he wasn't here to probe. He intended to kill cleanly and vanish.
And the boy before him—who had dropped Kairos with a single counter—was no opponent he could afford to underestimate.
The wind-forged blade hissed toward Rein from barely ten feet away—a killing arc no first-year mage should ever react to.
Yet Rein slipped aside at the very instant it passed, as if he had known the trajectory before the spellblade was even swung.
The ground where he had stood split open, carved deep by the invisible edge. The leftover wind slammed into Ingrid—ripping the breath from her chest.
She hit the stone before she fully grasped what had happened, palms scraping rough ground, vision stuttering.
She pushed herself upright—one knee down, one hand braced—a posture halfway between prayer and survival.
Her glasses had slipped, and her fingers shook as she forced them back into place.
Then she saw them.
Rein and the small man in black were moving too fast for her eyes to track—flashes of silver, ruptured air, shadows folding and unfolding in impossible patterns.
Rowan’s silver bit into nothing. Rein was always a fraction of an inch away, moving with an economy that made instinct look clumsy—as if he were stepping through a pattern only he could see.
Ingrid couldn't move. The instinct to reach for him—to offer whatever strength she had left —thrashed inside her, but her limbs wouldn't obey. It wasn't the enemy keeping her down. It was the boy.
The Rein she knew, the one who could barely stand, was gone. In his place was a stranger who navigated the steel with a grace that felt utterly wrong.
"...Rein," she whispered, her voice failing.
"What are you?"
Rowan’s jaw tightened. This was impossible. Every silver arc bit into empty space, missing the brat by a fraction of an inch. It was insulting. No one should be able to slide through a spellswordsman’s reach with that kind of cold, quiet certainty. This wasn't luck, but a goddamn calculation.
How is this boy reading my blade?
Tournament third place or not, this kid was a mage—
not a front-line fighter.
"Dangerous." Rowan stopped testing him.
The Spellswordsman’s stance shifted—subtle, but unmistakable—and Rein felt it immediately: the moment a duelist decides to end a fight.
“Try dodging this, boy.”
Rowan’s voice cut through the air as his blade swept twice—one vertical, one horizontal—two arcs of pressure that collided mid-flight, knitting together into a single killing stroke shaped like a luminous cross.
The ground erupted beneath its path.
Stone split open in clean, surgical lines, dust bursting upward in a violent plume as the cross-slash drove Rein backward, herding him toward the training hall wall.
Rein angled his weight to slip aside—and that was when the real attack came.
A shadow detached itself from the pillar behind him—silent.
Assassins didn’t need theatrics.
His dagger flashed upward, aimed straight for the nexus between spine and kidney—an anatomical kill point no healer could revive.
It was a perfect Back Stab, timed to intersect the half-step Rein would take to avoid Rowan’s slash.
A strike designed not merely to wound, but to end the fight in a single, perfect puncture.
The cross-slash closed in from the front and the dagger’s killing edge rose from behind.
Two vectors. Two executions.
A trap laid with clinical precision—and Rein stood at the dead center of it.
These entries expand the lore and mechanics introduced in this chapter.
Completely optional — read only if you enjoy diving deeper into the system.
Skills & Techniques
Flame Strike (Kairos Variant)
Type: Hybrid Martial–Magic Finisher / Vocal-Based Trigger
Category: Physical + Fire Mana Compression
Origin / Class: Flame Brawler
Tier Requirement: High Silver–Gold (Fire Affinity Required)
Elemental Requirement: Fire affinity
Cost: Mana + Stamina
Description
Kairos’s personal finisher technique that fuses the eruptive spell Ignited Flame with the kinetic martial art Strike Impact.
Instead of releasing fire outward, he absorbs the full detonation into his body and uses it as propulsion—turning himself into a fire-launched projectile.
Mechanism
Ignited Flame erupts inward instead of forward, coating his body in compressed fire mana.
Strike Impact adds a straight-line kinetic channel, aligning all momentum into penetration force.
The fused technique multiplies fire thrust + physical impact, creating a burning charge over an extended range.
Range / Output
Effective charge distance exceeds 30 ft—more than triple the base Ignited Flame.
Leaves a scorched trench along the ground.
Destroys shields, ruptures barriers, and pulverizes targets at the point of impact.
Combat Usage
Used as a gap-closing finisher or to punish casters who believe they are safe at mid-range.
Negates the Flame Brawler’s traditional weakness to ranged opponents.
Limitations
Extremely mana-hungry, can cause recoil if timing breaks, and requires exceptional fire affinity.
Dangerous indoors or in flammable areas.
Heavy stamina cost.
Notable User
Kairos — Flame Knuckle Brawler, known for weaponizing this technique far beyond normal boundaries.
Strike Impact
Type: Martial Technique/ Gesture-Based Trigger
Category: Physical (Kinetic Compression Art)
Origin / Class: Warrior Path, Brawlers, Flame Brawlers
Tier Requirement: Silver-tier and above (requires advanced body conditioning)
Elemental Requirement: Neutral affinity
Cost: Mana + Stamina
Description
Strike Impact is a high-level martial technique centered on condensing full-body kinetic force into a single point of contact. Instead of relying on mana, the user channels raw physical power, breathing rhythm, stance compression, and explosive muscle release to produce a devastating blow. It is considered one of the foundational “heavy arts” among elite melee fighters.
Core Mechanism
– The user coils their body like a loaded spring, tightening muscles and lowering their stance
– Momentum is funneled through a single limb (usually fist or elbow)
– Impact timing is synchronized with exhalation and muscle release
– The resulting strike delivers concentrated kinetic shock, capable of cracking stone or disrupting unstable magic circles
Combat Applications
– Used to break defensive stances or interrupt spellcasting
– Effective against lightly armored enemies due to internal shock transfer
– Scales with physical conditioning; stronger users generate exponentially greater force
– When paired with elemental augmentation (e.g., fire), it multiplies destructive output
Limitations
– Ineffective without proper stance and timing
– High stamina consumption
– Vulnerable during charge-up stance
– Requires close combat proximity
Notes
– Kairos combines Strike Impact with Ignited Flame to create Flame Strike, turning the kinetic art into a fire-propelled finishing move
– Mastery of Strike Impact is rare among young fighters; most practitioners learn only partial forms
Windfold Step
Type: Movement Skill / Gesture-Based Trigger
Category: Mobility / Evasion
Origin / Class: Warrior Path — Spellsword / Hybrid Combatant
Tier Requirement: Gold-tier warrior or higher
Elemental Requirement: Wind affinity
Cost: Mana + Stamina
Description
Windfold Step is an advanced mobility skill used by elite Spellswords and high-tier warrior-mages. Unlike traditional movement spells, this technique does not require chanting or mana weaving. Instead, the user “folds” surrounding air currents and rides the slipstream produced by compressed wind, allowing instantaneous displacement across short-to-mid distances.
This ability is functionally equivalent to a Master Troposphere wind spell, but executed purely through physical mastery, elemental affinity, and refined combat instinct.
Mechanism
– The user manipulates wind-aspected mana through instinctive motion (finger snap, arm flick, stance shift, etc.)
– Airflow around the body is compressed and folded, reducing drag to near-zero
– A burst of directional slipstream launches the user in the desired direction
– No chanting or magic circle required; purely affinity-driven kinetic manipulation
Windfold Step is designed for sudden gap closing, dodging lethal attacks, or repositioning in melee range within a fraction of a second.
Range
– Minimum Dash: 10 ft
– Maximum Dash: 30 ft (achieved only by highly trained Gold-tier warriors)
– Movement occurs in an instant—comparable to a blink or teleport to untrained observers
– Directional freedom: forward / sidestep / diagonal / retreat
Activation Method
– Triggered by gesture-based initiation (snap, flick, shift, step compression)
– No vocalization
– No casting time
– Success relies on reflexes, body conditioning, and wind affinity
Limitations
– Moderate cooldown; delay increases with fatigue or injuries
– Requires high coordination and full-body control
– Ineffective without wind affinity
– Misuse can cause joint strain, disorientation, or uncontrolled trajectory
– Cannot pass through solid obstacles (not a teleport, still physical movement)
Notes
– Often used to start a duel or close distance against casters
– Considered a hallmark skill of elite Spellswords
– In the hands of a master, Windfold Step can chain into rapid assault patterns indistinguishable from teleportation
– Its existence explains why warriors can threaten mages even in mid-tier or high-tier magical combat
Mystic Wind Blade
Type: Hybrid Technique/ Gesture-Based Trigger (Rapid Sword Swing)
Category: Wind Magic + High-Speed Swordsmanship
Origin / Class: Spellsword Technique
Tier Requirement: Gold-tier warrior path or higher
Elemental Requirement: Wind affinity
Cost: Mana + Stamina
Description
Mystic Wind Blade is an advanced Spellsword technique that creates a razor-edged arc of wind released from the user’s blade. The cutting wave travels in a curved trajectory, its range and sharpness determined by the user’s speed, mana output, and wind affinity. Though categorized as a technique rather than a spell, its potency rivals Master Troposphere magic in the hands of a seasoned warrior-mage.
Mechanism
The user concentrates wind-aspected mana along the weapon’s edge and swings with extreme velocity.
The motion folds surrounding air into a compressed slipstream, sharpening it into a crescent-like blade.
Upon release, this compressed wind arcs outward, capable of slicing through armor, wood, and even low-tier magical barriers.
Distance scales with the force and precision of the swing; sharper cuts produce longer and faster wind arcs.
(Rowan-Enhanced Variant)
In Rowan’s hands, the technique surpasses its conventional boundaries.
His unique-grade weapon stabilizes and compresses wind mana with exceptional efficiency, allowing the resulting arc to harden into a stone-shearing edge. A full-power strike from him can cleave through pillars or fortified walls—an output far beyond what standard Spellswords can safely produce.
Range
– Standard range is 15–30 ft for trained Spellswords
– Exceptional masters may reach up to 60 ft
– The arc widens slightly as it travels, though cutting power decreases past 40 ft
Casting / Activation
Gesture-based.
Requires no chant, circle, or vocal command.
Activated through a mana-infused sword swing; maintaining correct form is essential.
Clumsy form produces unstable wind bursts or short-range distortions.
Limitations
– High stamina consumption due to repeated high-speed swings
– Mana cost increases drastically with longer-range arcs
– Users with low wind affinity cannot stabilize the compressed air, resulting in misfires or recoil
– Difficult to use indoors due to arc expansion
– Continuous use can cause muscle fatigue or arm numbness
Notes
Rowan is regarded as the gold-standard practitioner of Mystic Wind Blade. As a Stratosphere-tier Wind Spellsword and an elite member of the Golden Lion Guild, he can extend wind arcs to distances few Spellswords can replicate. His weapon—a unique-grade wind-aspected blade—further reduces mana strain and shortens recovery time, allowing him to use the technique with near-machine precision.
Spells Codex
IGNITED FLAME
Type: Offensive Spell (Fire Element)
Tier: Expert Troposphere
Category: Eruption / Close-Range AoE
Casting Method: Vocal / Quiet Casting / Palm-Directed
Taught In: Arcadia Academy, Year 3 Battle Mage Course
Description
Ignited Flame is a high-pressure fire spell that unleashes a short-range explosive cone of flame. Unlike Fire Bolt, which functions like a projectile, Ignited Flame behaves more like a magically compressed flamethrower—capable of overwhelming multiple foes at once. It is a difficult spell that requires strong fire affinity and precise control.
Many novice mages consider it too dangerous, while experienced battle mages use it as a finisher in close-quarters engagements.
Mechanism
– Fire-aspected mana is gathered into the palm
– Mana is compressed until it reaches an unstable ignition threshold
– Upon release, the mana detonates outward as a cone of high-heat flame
– Burn duration persists as long as the injected mana has not fully combusted
– Water-element spells directly counteract and extinguish the mana-fire
The spell’s destructive output increases significantly with the caster’s fire affinity.
Range
– Shape: Forward cone
– Distance: Approximately 10 ft
– Width: 6–8 ft at maximum spread
– Burn Duration: Depends on mana density; difficult to extinguish without opposing-element magic
– Kairos Variant: Redirects ignition inward, enabling high-speed flame propulsion
Incantation
“Ignis Ardens, Accendo et Rupto!”
(O burning flame—ignite, and burst forth!)
Limitations
– Extremely dangerous for low–fire affinity users
– Blowback risk: unstable compression may cause flame to recoil toward the caster
– Ineffective in drenched or high-humidity environments
– Very short range; requires being in striking distance
– Heat signature makes stealth impossible after casting
Notes
– The spell’s baseline power greatly exceeds Fire Bolt
– Often used as a final blow after breaking through an enemy’s guard
– Considered a milestone spell for becoming a full-fledged battle mage
– Kairos’s mastery allows him to absorb the ignition into his own body, creating a fire-clad impact attack rather than a normal flame burst
Special Application (Kairos Only)
Kairos uses Ignited Flame to coat his entire body in compressed fire, turning the spell from an AoE attack into a propulsion technique that fuels Flame Strike, a thirty-foot flame charge that incinerates anything in his path.
Only someone with Kairos’s fire affinity and resistance could survive this technique.
TURN UNDEAD
Category: Divine Light / Purification
Tier: Stratosphere (Unlocked for Ingrid via inscribed Silver Pendant)
Element: Holy Light (Divine-Aligned)
Casting Method: Vocal + Divine Invocation
Mana Cost: High
Description
Turn Undead is a high-order divine spell originating from the Church of Luminara, used to cleanse, repel, or outright annihilate undead entities. Unlike conventional light magic, this spell channels divine light whose purity disrupts the very foundations of dark mana animating the undead. Only ordained Priests or casters granted divine relics can wield it safely.
Mechanism
The caster focuses mana through a sanctified medium—typically a pendant, staff, or engraved relic—which acts as the conduit between mortal mana and divine authority. The spell forcibly converts mana into concentrated divine light according to a sacred formula.
When released, the light expands outward in a short radius, dissolving or destabilizing dark mana structures within undead bodies. Weaker undead are instantly purged; higher-tier undead may only suffer severe internal damage, depending on their resistance to holy elements.
Range
Burst radius of approximately ten feet from the caster
Incantation
Lux Sanctus Exorcis!
“Holy light, exorcise!”
Limitations
The spell’s effectiveness depends on the caster’s affinity for light, the quality of the divine conduit, and the resilience of the undead.
Elite undead may withstand the purge and only sustain heavy damage.
The spell offers no defensive barrier and leaves the caster momentarily vulnerable after release.
As a divine-aligned spell, it cannot be invoked without a proper relic or authorized blessing.
Notable User
Ingrid is capable of casting Turn Undead only because her Silver Pendant—obtained during the Winter Festival—contains an inscribed and sanctified version of the spell that temporarily elevates her access to divine light.
Notes
Turn Undead is considered a sacred technique of Luminara’s clergy.
Although Stratosphere-level by classification, its power can be accessed by lower-tier casters through divine relics, though with reduced efficiency.
The spell annihilates dark mana at its source, making it one of the most feared anti-undead abilities in Aetheria.
Items & Artifacts
Ingrid’s Silver Pendant
Category: Divine-Class Artifact (Unconfirmed)
Status: In possession of Ingrid
Known Properties:
– Radiates faint divine resonance even when inactive
– Functions as a focus or channeling medium for high-tier light magic
– Once activated, glows with an inner brilliance akin to condensed holy light
Observed Function:
During the battle in the Healing Ward, Ingrid successfully cast Turn Undead (Incantation: Lux Sanctus, Exorcis!)—a Stratosphere-tier divine spell far beyond her typical casting capability. The pendant activated in response to her channeling attempt, releasing a surge of light-element mana.
This suggests that:
– The pendant contains a reservoir of pre-stored divine mana, likely imbued by a high-ranking cleric or divine entity
– It serves as both catalyst and vessel, enabling spells to be cast without vocal incantation or complex spellwork
– The spell was not of Ingrid’s own making, but sealed within the pendant itself
Origin:
– Acquired during a Winter Festival from an unknown giver
– Its enchantment is not documented in Arcadia’s relic archives
– Master Chloe is aware of the pendant’s properties but has withheld formal analysis
Current Theories:
– May be a single-use relic that releases one divine spell and becomes inert afterward
– Alternatively, it could be rechargeable—requiring refined divine mana from a Stratosphere-tier cleric
– Possible connection to the Church of Luminara or forgotten divine rites
Codex Classification:
– Tentatively listed as a Divine-Infused Relic
– Full appraisal pending future revelations
The patterns Rein has been tracing now twist in ways that refuse to fit any logic—scientific or magical.
And the Academy, for the first time, feels less like a sanctuary
and more like a testing ground.
what becomes of those who aren’t ready to face it?
See you in the next chapter.
—Re:Naissance
