Chapter 71

Docetus, known as the academic city, has many educational institutions, including private schools, in addition to the magic academy. Many researchers are affiliated with the magic academy and private schools. The main reason these researchers gather in Docetus is the library.

The Praetaria Library, known as the world's largest library, is said to house 700,000 books, some of which date back over 3,000 years, to the prehistoric era. The library is housed in the main castle of the fortress city that preceded Docetus, making it the largest building in the city.

September 4th.

I attended classes for two days but found no meaning in continuing them. Furthermore, after checking the academy's rules yesterday, I confirmed that there were no attendance requirements as Lidi had mentioned. Just to be sure, I also confirmed this with my homeroom teacher, Mr. Bennett.

"Indeed, we don't evaluate based on attendance. The evaluation is solely based on the mid-term and final exams... But, do you find my class so boring?"

The teacher added a sarcastic remark at the end, but I responded,

"I have no intention of criticizing your class. Since you must follow the academy's educational policy, I understand that it can't be helped."

I said this and bowed to him.

Today, September 4th, I didn't show up in the classroom in the morning and came to the entrance of the Great Library with Lidi and Sharon. Since the library is built on a fortress, we enter through the castle gate, where there is a window for paying the usage fee. We show our mage orbs and enter.

The entrance of the library, covered in gray stone walls, had a thick wooden door. I pushed it open with a creak. Inside, the space was brightly lit by many magical lamps, brighter than I expected. The area, which was likely a grand hall when it was a castle, now had bookshelves several meters high, and many people were using ladders to find books.

The smell of paper, leather, and faint ink tickled my nose. It was a unique scent, a mix of an old bookstore and a leather goods shop, which made me a bit disoriented. However, Lidi turned around in front of me and said,

"It's nostalgic. This smell, and the silence... It's really nostalgic."

As she murmured this, a young elf woman, who looked like a librarian, approached. She had sharp, intelligent eyes, smooth white skin, and was tall with abundant golden hair tied back. She was a beautiful woman, giving off the air of a capable career woman, though not as much as Lidi.

"Could it be, Lidian? Do you remember me? I'm Kitry, Kitry Elbain."

The librarian, forgetting that the library is a quiet place, called out to Lidi excitedly. Lidi turned to her and said, "Kitry? Oh! It really is you," taking her hand. They seemed to be old acquaintances, both surprised by the sudden reunion.

"Are you still working as a librarian here? It's been over forty years?"

At Lidi's words, Kitry pouted slightly,

"That's rude. I'm a professor at the academy, you know. Well, I do spend a lot of time in the library, just like before..."

It turned out she was a professor at the magic academy, there to look for research materials. I thought it would be a bother to others, so I whispered to Lidi, "We're causing a disturbance here. We should move to another place."

Kitry must have heard my words as well, as she quickly covered her mouth.

After that, we moved to a meeting room in the library, and Lidi introduced us.

"Zacharias Rockhart and Sharon Jakes. They are my students."

Lidi said this with a playful tone, but Kitry's eyes widened in surprise at our names.

"You're Rockhart? The one Professor Raspede calls a genius, the top student this year?"

I was surprised by her words but quickly composed myself and introduced myself.

"I'm Zacharias Rockhart. You can call me Zack."

Even after my introduction, her eyes remained wide in disbelief. When Sharon finished her introduction, Kitry finally came to her senses,

"I'm Kitry Elbain. I'm a researcher in theology and history. You'll have my class when you're in your fourth year."

Kitry winked with her right eye. I was flustered by her gesture, and Lidi puffed her cheeks, saying, "Don't try anything with my Zack."

Kitry smiled, surprised, "Oh, you saying that is unexpected."

After Lidi and Kitry caught up, we explained why we were there. Kitry nodded in understanding,

"So, you want to study on your own because the first-year classes aren't useful to you."

"Yes. By the way, are there many people who skip classes and study on their own like us?"

I asked Kitry, who is a professor and has been at the academy for a long time, just to be sure.

"Well, every year, about twenty to thirty students skip lectures. But the number decreases after the second year."

I was surprised by the number, "Twenty to thirty...," I lost my words. Then I asked, "What about practical classes?"

"Everyone attends practical classes. After all, practical performance is the most important at this academy."

When I murmured, "I see," she asked, "So, what are you here to study?"

"I want to research darkness and metal attributes. Also, things related to composite magic..."

As I explained, Kitry's expression became more and more interested. She then said, "I have some good books for that," and went to the bookshelves. I didn't know what to do and looked at Lidi, who smiled, "It's just like her."

After a while, Kitry returned with about three books.

"I think these are good to start with. Let me know if you're not satisfied."

The books she brought were "Introduction to Darkness Attribute: Practical Magic from Demons," "Augmentation Magic: Metal Spellbook," and "Is Dual-Attribute Magic Possible? The Reality of Multi-Attribute Magic."

I thanked her and consulted her about the books for Sharon. She nodded immediately and returned with two books. When Sharon thanked her, Kitry patted her head,

"So, you're the top and second student. I can see why the higher-ups at the academy are in a panic. Still, your students... I can't believe the 'Recluse Lidian' is teaching someone."

"Hey, don't say that to the Queen of Ancient Books, the Mistress of the Library. If people who knew you back then heard that you're a professor and teaching classes, they'd all faint."

Lidi and Kitry were exchanging barbs, but their expressions were bright.

(This is one of Lidi's few friends. Still, she's so outspoken even to others. I've never seen Lidi like this before...)

After about twenty minutes of conversation, Kitry said, "I'll take my leave now. I have to go to Professor Raspede's office next," and left the room. Since we couldn't continue using the meeting room, we moved to the reading area of the library.

I started reading the book on darkness that Kitry brought. In a nutshell, it was an introductory book on mental attack magic. It introduced the history, theory, and actual spells of mental attacks like sleep, confusion, and fear, which are said to be used by demons. However, it seemed that these were not actually used by demons but were written by users of darkness attribute magic.

Darkness attribute magic is described as a presence that instills fear in the depths of the human soul, and it constructs mental attack magic using this effect. As I read, I thought that elves and beastmen, who have good night vision, might not fear darkness, but the book explained that their eyes only amplify light and cannot see true darkness, causing them to fear it even more than humans.

(I see. It's like a night vision device that amplifies visible light, not infrared. My 'Enhanced Vision' might be the same. I haven't been in a completely dark place like a sealed basement, so I didn't know.)

On a side note, my vision, thanks to the character setting, allows me to see quite clearly at night. It becomes difficult to see on a new moon night with thick clouds and rain, but it's not completely dark.

Magic that uses the nature of darkness is effective on creatures with instincts, even if they lack intelligence. For example, insect-type monsters might feel fear based on their survival instinct, making mental attack magic somewhat effective. However, it is said to be almost ineffective on amorphous monsters like slimes.

Darkness attribute magic, which can be used on groups for sleep, confusion, and fear, is convenient but has a short range. This is because it uses darkness as a medium, requiring it to cover the target's field of vision, often using something like fog.

(I don't think it necessarily has to be fog or clouds... I feel like it could work by injecting it directly into the body like an arrow...)

That was a rough summary of what I read about darkness attribute magic.

Regarding the metal attribute, which I'm also weak in, the book Kitry brought was a spellbook on augmentation magic. The preface explained that metal attribute magic focuses on enhancing objects using the properties of metals and on processing metals themselves. In other words, it is positioned as support magic, with almost no direct attack spells. Metal processing involves refining and synthesizing metals using magic, which is generally called alchemy. The book stated that augmentation magic, using spells alone, cannot provide permanent effects and has a time limit. To achieve permanent effects, a combination with a magic array is necessary.

(I didn't choose augmentation magic in my character setting. The book doesn't specify the extent of the effects on weapons and armor, but it might be quite useful given the current lack of front-line fighters...)

Finally, regarding composite magic, the conclusion was that the theory of composite magic spells has not been established. The firestorm I was curious about is not considered a composite magic of fire and wind but is recognized as a fire attribute spell. The reason given in the book was that it only spirals the flame, not using wind to rotate the fire. In other words, it is seen as a continuous formation of spiral flames. The book concluded that composite magic refers only to magic using arrays and cannot be achieved with spells.

(In other words, if the image is clear, the same effect can be achieved with a single attribute without necessarily making it composite. But is that really true?)

The book concluded that composite magic is impossible based on the structure of spells. Indeed, from the structure of spells, one would first chant the names of the gods of the required attributes, then the desired effect, and finally the activation word while visualizing the amount of magic power. The explanation was that chanting the names of two gods at the beginning would confuse the spirits of the required power, preventing activation. However, I was skeptical about this.

(If it can be done with arrays, doesn't that mean it's possible with spells if the steps are followed? If the spirits' power can be controlled properly, it should be possible... Well, it's not like composite magic is absolutely necessary, so I can think about it gradually.)

We spent the morning studying in the library and went into the forest in the afternoon. The travel time made it inefficient, and we only managed to defeat a lone wolf. I plan to separate the days for library study and monster hunting in the forest from now on.