With enough experience, anyone can master runes; there have been many barely competent Archmages. I am no exception; I benefited from a good teacher, a brother who knew what he was doing, and plenty of time. As a result, I knew what I wanted to do and had a will to dedicate myself to the task.

I wanted to do something incredibly specialized. My goal was to make a wand that could replicate my Heavy Fireball Bullets. Unfortunately, a day wasn’t enough time to succeed, but with enough help, I could get a leg up on the project.

The few successes I gained were more due to luck than skill on my part. Only the supervision on Kale’s part and some direction from my brother allowed me to find any success. If not for them, I would have blown everything up, including my costly books.

…

My hands worked quickly as my spectral arms turned pages. A single glance was enough to update my technique and adjust to the grain of the wood. The wooden stick in my hand heated a little before cooling down; I heard a feminine breath let out overhead.

Kale waited just next to me beside a window. Burn marks covered the window seal from my earlier attempt to carve runes into the wand. The resulting craters had put my centaur friend on edge.

Though with her robe off, it was almost worth my wand exploding to see her ass. Kale’s ebony donut and cunny made it challenging to concentrate when I had to slow down the wand’s explosion. The smell, if anything was even worse, I wished she at least wore underwear or something that would be less of a distraction.

Whatever the council put in my drink hadn’t entirely left me. Just seeing Kale was enough to set me off in ways I wasn’t comfortable with.

I shook those thoughts out of my head; my knife work was getting better with practice. This wasn’t like drawing runes on paper. For the runes to take, I had to infuse each rune with just enough mana for it to set but not enough for them to connect. If the mana from multiple runes connected at the wrong time, it would produce a chaotic error causing an explosive chain reaction. Even if the runes worked well together, connecting them at the wrong time was dangerous.

“You’re doing well pretty soon. I’ll have you touch up my hooves.” Kale said.

As if I could concentrate on runes if I was that close to her. Just being near her was agony. My blood was up, and concentrating on my work became ever more difficult.

I pulled back my mana and waited for my latest carving to settle.

Ding!

Mana Control lvl5

Type: DEX/MAG

Rank: C

ATL – Manipulate the flow of mana without letting it get out of control.

Description – The user can manipulate the flow of mana better with every level of this skill.

Abilities

Direct – The user can push and pull their raw mana inside and outside their bodies.

Turn – The user can curve their mana.

Slowly but surely, my skills were leveling. Who would have thought the act of wand making required so many lesser skills? Wood Carving had really come in handy.

One of the rune’s mana pools ruptured, and the wand rapidly heated. Kale snatched the wand out of my hand and tossed it out the window. Seconds after it left the window, it glowed a dangerous orange before exploding violently.

I snatched a block of wood from the pile and began carving a new wand. Fortunately, Kale took me to a cheaper wood distributor for my practice. It was midday already, but I’d gained plenty of ground. Not enough to complete my project by a long shot but enough to make a reasonable dent in it.

“This is why you had me buy the cheap wood,” I said.

“Well, better wood might not overflow as easily, but that would just give you a bad habit. Wand craft isn’t the only profession that requires rune control. Nearly any rune system requires some rune control. Any magic engineer with a professional license should have mastered basic mana distribution.” Kale said.

I nodded and went back to carving. “What’s to stop someone from just forcing their mana into active runes and causing a critical error?” I asked.

“They’re active,” Kale said.

I waited for her to elaborate. She didn’t. “What does that mean?”

Kale sighed. “I forget your magic education is spotty at best. Any child born in Taur country could tell you that active runes resist foreign magic signatures.” Kale said.

I blinked up at her while I edged the mana in my first rune to full. That one was easy; keeping it from spilling before I placed the next three connected and added a temporary break wouldn’t be.

“What’s a magic signature?” I asked.

Kale groaned at my question. “You have some of the most expensive texts gold can buy. Why don’t you look up the term?” Kale asked.

I found myself staring at her tits while I flicked through another tome and glanced between page flips for what I needed. But, honestly, Kale’s tits took up my gaze more than the texts did.

“So, it's like a fingerprint unique to each person with an almost infinite number of variations. That’s interesting, so how do magic engineers work on and adjust city wards. If they all have different magical signatures, shouldn’t the wards reject any of their adjustments?” I asked.

“You’re like a colt always asking why. No, I don’t know how the sun was made or what dark lord made it. And if you must know, there are ways to alter your outputted magical signature. The city wards use their own signature used by the city magic engineers. Each city in the Taur Republic has their own standard signature that a magic engineer needs to duplicate to earn their license.” Kale said.

I had two down, only two runes to go. My knife moved at a deliberately slow pace as I copied the latest rune to my wand. To be blunt, this was the most basic of the basic rune carvings. Every new rune made it more difficult to control the ones before it.

“I’m sorry, but there are some things not written in books. So who else would I rely on but you?” I said.

Kale fidgeted and stomped her hooves. Before turned to the window. Her tail flashed to the side, and before it lowered, I counted the number of wrinkles between her ass and cunny. A shiver ran down my spine as her tail fell all too slowly. I looked up to see Kale staring back at me, eyebrow raised.

Lightning flashed between her hooves. “You can always attempt to mount me again.” She bent her legs, readying for a hard kick. “I might even let you if you’re brave enough,” Kale said.

I smelled a mix of arousal and determination. Kale might be horny as hell too, but I didn’t want to jump her. Giving in to the madness again wasn’t going to happen. I could feel my blood pressure rising as my heart hammered into my chest. All it would take was a little speed and tanking a single kick. Nothing compared to the blows I’ve taken before. I could use a break.

Those thoughts felt utterly alien to me. Then, for the second time in an hour, I shook the desire from my mind and began carving the fourth rune.

I watched the lightning die down, and her intense look fell into a frown of what I thought was a disappointment. Her ears flattened, and I knew I’d had to say something, or she’d get the wrong idea.

“You’re beautiful, but if I started, I wouldn’t be able to stop, and we’d lose a day. So I need to get this today.” I said.

She snorted. “Many talented mages take decades to earn the right to work with some of the materials you’ve acquired. You should have used your gold to hire a wandmaker if this is about getting a good weapon. There are many still in this city. With enough gold, they would work all night on your project.” Kale said.

“That wouldn’t teach me how to do it myself. A few fireballs won’t mean much, whether it's from my hand or a wand. I need to learn how to make a wand and then turn that wand into something new.” I said.

With the last rune completed, I added a break. Kale’s eyes widened as I connected the runes one at a time until one spilled over at the last second.

Kale took the wand and flung it out the window. Instead of bursting into flames, the wand just burned where I carved the runes.

Once again, I began carving one of the spare logs. This time my work was much faster, reaching the break quicker. I began the connection at a much slower pace until the four runes buzzed then calmed down.

Kale took the wand from my hand and inspected it with a critical eye. “Congratulations, I think you just completed months’ worth of training in a single morning. Now you only need to craft four more sets and change the breaks into linking runes.” Kale said.

She turned the pages in a reference text on combining runic sets into larger arrays. After she showed me various types of runes, I realized none of them would work by themselves. Instead, I’d have to pick those that fit each other and connected the separate rune sets.

If anything, my next step was even more difficult.

The sun had started setting, and I needed a break. Kale feasted on one of our last fresh meals before we reached Bridle. I picked at a roasted lamb while flipping through a text about fire-based enchantments and their volatility. Where an item is enchanted is just as important as how. The more I studied, the more it was revealed that I knew very little.

My phone beeped, and I picked it up to find a message from Blue. “I don’t think you’ll be able to make a gun that fires bullet-shaped fireballs after a single day of study. Wands don’t take well to being any other shape than straight. If one has a little curve to it, then you know it was made by a master.” Blue said.

“But I don’t want a stick; I want a gun that fires magic, preferably long-range,” I said.

“You do you, but I’m telling you wands are the way they are for a reason. I’ve seen wands fit into casings to work around that, but the wand itself normally needs to be straight or only slightly curved. Staves follow similar rules. Magic guns sound cool, but you should stick with what works and experiment when you have time and less invading armies.” Blue said.

“If I can’t have a magic gun, then I’ll do without,” I said. “Good luck with your exam. I need to go; I have lots of planning to do before tomorrow.”

I inventoried my phone and tossed a bone in my mouth. There had to be a way to do it without resorting to working around the wand itself. All I have to do is make the wand right the first time, and then I can work on doing the impossible.

Kale kissed me. “Don’t stay up too late; we have to be on our guard tomorrow; it’s a two-week journey to Bridle,” Kale said.

I kissed her back, enjoying the sensation of her lips. Her breasts pressed against me, and for a moment, I forgot about my problems. She pulled away before I was ready, trotted for the other room, and looked back at me. “If you want any more than that, then drop your tools and come with me. Otherwise, you can sleep alone.” Kale said.

Ok, I was superhumanly powerful. I could lift multiple tons and take blows that would crumple tanks. A blow from me could shatter buildings and turn the average NPC into paste. My speed was practically unparalleled, and my senses made me aware of things no human should detect.

However, I knew for a fact that I wasn’t finishing the wand tonight. Superhuman or not, my brother was right; I wasn’t making any breakthroughs on my first day. Maybe in a month or two.

I dropped my tools and followed her. Making a magic gun could wait a few more days.

Woodcarving lvl35

Type DEX

Rank: D

Description – Carve wood into many artistic and useful shapes. The sky can be traversed with the right use of wood.

ATL – Carve wood into something artistic, functional, or both.

Abilities

Steady knife – -25% energy cost when wielding a knife to craft. With Grain – Carvings are always smoother when cutting with the grain. Planned Project – While the image of the user’s grand design remains fresh in the user’s mind, success increases by 25% Deviation – When ideas take shape mid plan they can have unexpected results. Wood Sense – The user’s QI flows into the wood, granting the future item some agency. Lacquered Touch – The areas the user carves become resistant to weathering. Minor Tool Ritual – The user’s tools for carving play a role in the crafting outcome. Lesser Wood Fairy – Through hours of absorbing the user’s QI, it is possible to develop a minor entity within the item.

Craftsmanship lvl15

Type: DEX

Rank: D

ATL – Create items through base materials; the more complex, the greater the experience received.

Description – An intelligent species's greatest skill and the art of taking material and transforming it into more useful forms.

Abilities

Primitive Tying – The user can instinctively tie knots to create primitive tools with sinew, vines, or another cordage. Intelligent Hands – Once a crafting technique is learned, the user can replicate it easily. Attention To Detail – The user becomes acutely aware of the durability and capabilities of any item crafted. Delicate control – Even when exhausted, the user’s hands remain steady.

Wand Lore lvl5

Type: DEX/MAG

Rank C

ATL – Craft wands or rods that wield magic in many different ways.

Description – The user has learned how to construct wands, the most basic and often reliable tool of any magic-user.

Abilities

Point Me – The user has learned the most basic wand-making and can make a stick that fires a magical effect in a straight line. Minor Customization – The user has delved into the most basic but essential mysteries of wand lore. What constitutes a wand?

Runes lvl15

Type: DEX/MAG

Rank: C

ATL – Write, carve, and create runes and combine them in any pattern the user can think of; the more complex and functional, the better.

Abilities

Periodic – The user is aware that runes react differently and has begun to construct a table, either mental or physical.

If/Else – One of the most basic forms of rune carving if this happens, then this or else this.

For – The user has discovered loops and how to safely end them.

Structure – Runes hold mana easier without spilling to nearby runes.

Mana Control lvl5

Type: DEX/MAG

Rank: C

ATL – Manipulate the flow of mana without letting it get out of control.

Description – The user can manipulate the flow of mana better with every level of this skill.

Abilities

Direct – The user can push and pull their raw mana inside and outside their bodies.

Turn – The user can curve their mana.

Nickname: Red

Title: Traveler

Parameters

STR 37 (262.4) (524.8) (536.8)

CON 23 (207) (414)

DEX 92(357.5.5)

AGL 31 (62) (329.5)

QI 233

PER 31 (192)

MAG 63 (67.26)

World Waifu Relationships

Kale 35/100

Silent 53/100

Fang Mei 14/100