Chapter 908 908 Brilliant
Another of the girls came up and put her hand on the barrier, which adjusted to mid-Rank Two in power.
“I get it, it adjusts to the maximum output of the last person to touch it. Oh, that is incredible, it is a portable power tester, that is much more convenient than the power stones.” She gasped.
“How high can it test?” One of the Elders asked.
“In theory, that’s only limited by the statue. If it’s truly solid gold, it will handle Saint level power without issue. Gold transfers mana very well, with limited resistance.” Wolfe explained.
One of the Family Elders came forward, and put his hand on the statue, causing the barrier to surge to the middle of Rank Five as power was drawn through him to top it off.
There was no sign of damage or stress to it, and the barrier simply protected the statue itself, not showing any signs that there might be an issue. But, with an active barrier, everyone nearby could feel the effect of the powerful magic, which was just as effective as glowing lights or changing colours to inform the others of the current potential of the user.
“What happens if the one touching it can’t use magic?” One of the young Noblemen asked.
“Well, most humans have at least some magical potential. This doesn’t test knowledge, just your ability to move mana. So, while it would flicker nearly out of existence, it should remain active unless a Null or someone with absolutely no talent touches it.” Wolfe replied.
There wasn’t anyone like that here, they weren’t allowed in the Gentlemen’s Club, not even as employees, but once they knew what the potential of a promising child was, it might be useful to know in the future.
“Did anyone have questions about the inscribing method? You have to carve the sigils to the exact shape that you desire. The more even the depth is, the better, and then fill them with something that can transmit mana if the object you are using cannot.”
The room was filled with thunderous applause as Wolfe’s presentation seemed to have come to an end, and most of the youngsters split up, taking their folding chairs to the corners of the room, where there were extra side tables. All they needed was something to work on, and they could test the technique.
Fortunately, the staff was prepared for this eventuality, and they brought out training tools from the storage area.
“Everyone, before you get started, and in the name of saving the resources of the Club, if you use a metallic paint pen, you can just write the inscription on paper. It won’t handle much power, but if you are at the point where you wish to test the theory, it will be much less costly than carving into the metal training discs.” Wolfe called.
A number of Elders and all the students turned to look at him.
“There is no way that it’s that easy.” One of the Elders laughed.
“Here, I have a pen filled with silver ink. Draw a spell, and hand it to someone to activate. It’s just that nobody uses real silver and gold in their paints, so it doesn’t come up. You can use other transfer mediums as well, but they’re not for the squeamish.” Wolfe added.
Petros smiled and mouthed two words.
“Blood Magic.”
Wolfe nodded, and the others looked at them, confused as to what these two knew that the others did not.
Obviously, Petros knew. Sacrifices to power magic had been a thing for a long time, but nobody had really made the connection between them and the modern creation of magical items, which was viewed as an activity of pure mana exertion and skill.
The Elder took the pen and drew a spell for Unholy Bolt, the equivalent of a Magic Missile, and handed it to one of his family members, a lovely brunette debutante.
Wolfe smiled at her. “You can target me with that spell, don’t worry, I won’t be harmed.”
She wasn’t one who had gone up to get questions answered, so Wolfe assumed her skill with magic was very limited, but the inscription glowed, and a faint, pale blue arrow raced toward Wolfe. Well, not quite toward Wolfe, but in his general direction.
He caught it in his hand before it could fly into someone else, allowing his armour to absorb the miniscule bit of power.
The paper was still intact, as low Rank One power wouldn’t destroy a paper medium. Even simple wood would hold up past Rank Two, though the discs were much thicker than a sheet of paper, even the coarse version that they had here, which was closer to card stock than the thin, mass-produced writing paper Wolfe was familiar with.
The young mage was overjoyed with the result, though slightly embarrassed about her aim.
“My daughter’s eyesight is not good enough to memorize the inscriptions needed for casting. I believe that this might be the first time that she has successfully activated a spell.” The older man explained.
[Yet you let her fire a magic missile in a crowded room.] Wolfe thought to himself as he put a congratulatory smile on his face.
“Well, then this knowledge should be quite valuable to her. If the spells are written for her in magically conductive ink, she should be able to perform basic daily tasks with only a small spellbook to help her.
Though, my two lovely consorts are adept in healing magics and tinctures, so there is a chance that we might be able to correct her eyesight enough that it would be unnecessary.” Wolfe offered, with a gesture toward Cassie and Ella, who were still seated by Petros.
Cassie motioned for the girl to come over, and then pretended to reach into her new purse, the storage item, as she created a short length of cloth. She took it out and tied it around the girl’s eyes, and then cast a Rank Two healing spell on her eyes and related nerves, which fixed her eyesight instantly.
“Keep that on for the next half hour, and when you take it off again, you should be able to see just fine.” She assured the girl, who flailed around for a moment, trying to locate the witch to give her a hug.
Wolfe escorted her back to her father, who was beaming in pride, and Petros did his best not to laugh.
Being able to see through the tricks of this trio was a blessing and a curse. It was like watching a minstrel show, but in reverse. They were exceptionally talented magic users pretending to be charlatans, instead of charlatans pretending to be talented magicians.
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