46 46 Easy Gains
Once he reached the other Lab and had time to sit in his seat by the door, Wolfe took a moment to look over the displayed runes of his Inheritance. He was certain that the last 24 hours were highly beneficial, and he intended to make the best of his gains while they were still coming easily.
[True Name] Beowulfe Abraxas Asmodai Lokarth Noxus
[Magi Bloodline] 9->12 Percent
[Demon Bloodline] 1 Percent
[Mana Density] 10->15 Percent
[Mana Focus 1/7] 19->29 Percent Complete
[Lightning Affinity] Low
[Fire Affinity] Low
[Gravity Affinity] Low
[Unholy Affinity] Medium
[Other Elements Locked Due to Insufficient Bloodline]
[Familiar Witch Lv+1] Ella Mariel
[Familiar Witch Lv+1] Cassie Noxus
The gains tonight had been incredible, both for him and the Witches. If he could keep that rate up for even a few more days, there would be no problems for them during class.
But the most interesting part was that their bond had levelled up. This level of Familiar Bond let them feel each other’s emotions when they were nearby, but strangely, it appeared that they felt each other’s emotions more strongly than they felt his.
Wolfe wondered if it was because they were both on the same side of the bond that they were tied so closely together, but he knew one thing for sure. There would be no sneaking around on one with the other. Their bond was too intense.
Even from here in the next lab, separated by a wall of stone and multiple protective spells, he could still feel their frustration as they worked on the potion, and occasional bouts of amusement, that might be them sharing a joke.
The regular class Witches were getting quite a bit better than they had been the first day. The ones who Wolfe had put some effort into Awakening could now mostly complete their potions without his assistance, and Wolfe was sent to work with the ones who couldn’t use magic at all since he could force Mana through them to complete the assignment.
There was some hope that this process, repeated for a semester, would help them improve enough to successfully cast the Familiar Summoning. If they could Summon a Familiar, it would at least grant them some mana flow, even if they had very little to none of their own, which was a start to becoming a proper Witch.
Only the Class A witches had all done the summoning on the first day. The regular class would do it in groups as the teachers determined that they had the capabilities to succeed.
But the Academy rules wouldn’t let them continue training if they didn’t meet the standard at the end of the year, so those few who suffered the fate of never successfully summoning a Familiar during their training, but who could use some magic, often became apothecaries in the lower floors, selling medicine or potions made by their former classmates.
It wasn’t a glamorous job, but it allowed them to stay in the Academy, with access to Academy resources, and keep the hope alive that one day they would increase their powers enough to be recognized as a proper witch.
Wolfe counted the Witches in the class and wondered what had happened to the rest of the regular class witches from previous years. They either kept very quiet about the skills they learned here, or they never returned to the cities. The math simply didn’t add up for that many former students to be floating around the city.
Certainly, it was very rare for any of them from the lower floors to come back successfully, though he could see here that many of them could actually use magic, so their families should have been elevated to Commoner Witch Family status, but it was rare for more than one or two families a year to get that honour throughout the entire city when there should have been at least one new Commoner Witch per floor every year.
Wolfe wasn’t sure who he could ask and get a real answer, though. Maybe, Professor Ashcroft would tell him what he needed to know. She said she intended to protect him when she brought him here before things went crazy, so she might give him at least a hint now that it was clear he was never going back to the city.
No more Witches managed to awaken an aura today, even with Wolfe’s help, though some showed promise for later. The class was over before the last of the students were finished, so the failed potions were set aside as a project for the seniors to deal with, and the class was dismissed to lunch.
After lunch, Class A returned to the practical skills room, where the professor happily greeted Cassie, Ella and Reiko when they came in together.
“Did you three manage to make any progress on the homework I assigned you?” She asked, pushing up her glasses to stare down her nose at them while ignoring Mary, who appeared to be asleep on top of Pup in the corner of the room.
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Flame stood up in her arms, thumped his chest proudly, then extended his arm and snapped his fingers as if to say it was something done in an instant.
What he really meant was that he thought the finger-snapping theatrics made the spell much cooler, but Reiko ignored the reference, choosing to pet his head instead.
She would leave the finger-snapping to Wolfe.
“Then please come to the target and show me how close you’ve gotten to activating the spell.” Professor Miranda asked sweetly.
Reiko strode confidently to the front of the room and entered the protective circle. This was much closer than the students’ practice hallway, and Reiko was a bit concerned about singing herself if the spell worked too well, but it was the largest protective circle in the room, and the target was at the far side.
Once she was in place, Reiko pulled as much mana through Flame as her aura could hold and let loose the Flame Strike, creating a thin pillar of fire, but dense and hot enough that the students in the front row could feel the heat it gave off.
“That was an impressive showing, even with a fire element Familiar. Your Aura Manipulation still needs some work, but it fully formed with only one day’s practice.” Professor Miranda congratulated her.
“Work on [Firebolt] next. Three fully formed and stable bolts are the standard for the end-of-term exams. Now, how did the other two do?”
The girls hesitated, so Wolfe spoke up on their behalf. “After consultation with Flame, Miss Reiko’s Familiar, they made great progress. As you know, they both have exceptional aura strength as well.”
“Ella, you are up next. Show me the best [Flame Strike] that you can manage.” Professor Miranda requested.
Ella definitely held back. Wolfe barely felt the draw, but the pillar of fire was still as thick as her leg.
The teacher’s pride in their accomplishments was evident for anyone to see, though she hadn’t actually done anything to help them learn the spell. “Cassie, your strength was the highest during the entry exams. I’m looking forward to seeing your abilities.”
The [Flame Strike] she created was no larger than Ella’s but more intense, increasing the temperature in the entire room, even with the protective circle in place.
She also didn’t pull nearly as much as she could have through, and Wolfe was a bit disappointed at the merely envious looks they were getting. He had been hoping for stunned, astounded, even flabbergasted.