It wasn't a secret that symbol studies was my favourite class in the academy. I was good at it, and I enjoyed improving my craft. I placed the stone block down on my table, receiving a few curious stares in response. However, most of the students were trying to decipher the symbols that the professor had written on the blackboard. Every week there would be a new test, and I'd been banned from taking it.

Amanda and Gold examined the blackboard carefully, and Roxxy sat behind me. I saw her trying to finish a water symbol on parchment. Our homework from the last class.

She injected it with mana, and it promptly exploded into drops of water that cascaded down her table.

I laughed and she leaned forward, jabbing her inscribing pen into my shoulder.

“What did I do wrong?” She asked.

I turned my chair around and examined what remained of her paper. It was wet and soggy, but the lines were still clear. The inscription pen didn't write with materials that were vulnerable to water.

“You added too much mana to it, but the symbol itself is good. Since it actually gathered the water droplets from the air like it was supposed to.”

“It's like sticking a thread through a needle, but the needle explodes if you get it a tiny bit wrong.” Roxxy huffed. “How did William get out of this class?”

“Symbol studies class isn’t necessary when you're replacing it with business subjects.” I replied. “He also did a test to show that he knew enough to not blow himself up by accident.”

Roxxy sank back down into her chair, her brows furrowed in concentration as she brought out another symbol paper. Before she could go back to inscribing her water symbol, I placed my hand on her table and she looked up at me with curiosity.

I had a worry that refused to stop gnawing at my mind.

"In your opinion, am I making any progress toward attuning to water?” I kept my tone steady. “Sorry if I sound like a broken record.”

Roxxy raised her head, resting her chin on her hand as she pursed her lips pensively. We sat there for a full thirty seconds before she spoke.

"What's a record?” She asked. “It doesn't sound like you mean a written paper.”

Oh.

“A type of regent my dad makes. It plays music.” I lied smoothly.

Roxxy’s eyes narrowed, and we stood there in silence for a moment. Then a smile broke out over her lips.

"That sounds like fun.” She beamed.

Internally, I breathed a sigh of relief at her words. Every now and then I would slip up and use an expression from Earth out of habit. Most times people ignored them. It was easy to correct, but it still got my heart rate up when I did it.

"I think you're really close.” Roxxy leaned in closer, and her voice fell to a whisper. “If you can hear the mana clearly, and see it, then you should already be far on your way. All that's left is to truly connect with it on a fundamental level. That could be done in our next meditation session, or our hundredth from now.”

I nodded. That was the feeling I had gotten as well. My [Mana Sense] skill allowed me to see mana, and [Mana Communication] allowed me to talk with it. However, it was [Mana Affinity] that allowed me to progress the most. It allowed me to bare my soul and self to the mana around me. I could hear and see mana while the skill was activated, but it could also see and hear me.

Every day I could feel myself growing closer with all elements of mana. Not just the ones I had affinity with.

"Thanks.” I said.

“Anytime. It'll be cool to have another water magician to hang out with.” Roxxy grinned. “We're still on for later today, right?”

“Of course.” I nodded.

We'd scheduled a training session with each other today, but Roxxy had asked for us to go to a new place. Amanda’s house.

Before I could ask Roxxy about the unusual choice in location, a spattering of noise interrupted us from the blackboard.

“We got it!” A voice cried out.

The class gave a light-hearted clap as one of the students figured out which of the symbols on the board was real. They ran their hand over it and broke the chalk inscription.

A moment later a man appeared in the middle of the classroom. Our professor. The students greeted him and moved to their chairs.

He’d been there the entire time, invisible.

Amanda sat next to me, Gold hopping onto the table. I could tell from his happy chirps that Gold had spotted the symbol first, but he wasn't allowed to break it.

A few minutes later all of the students were face down at their tables, inscribing.

“I expected less excitement from a Jâl.”

The voice came from my symbols class teacher, professor Pernacles. In his hands he held the stone block that I’d carved symbols into. There was a symbol on each face of the block except for one. He handled the stone block carefully, his fingers gliding over the materials as though he was holding a diamond. His voice was unimpressed, but his eyes were glued to the chunk of material. The moment he'd set eyes on it he'd sent the class straight into their daily tasks and moved over to me.

"You created this using your [Earth Creation] skill?” He asked.

I nodded. The professor had activated symbols around the room that prevented anyone else from listening in. Even Amanda couldn't hear me, and she was sitting next to me.

Despite my confidence in my growing prowess as a scriber I knew that the professor could do things I couldn't imagine. For all I knew the other members of the class couldn't even see the stone block.

"Fascinating.” He put the stone down in front of me and motioned at it. “Activate the symbols please.”

He didn't have to ask me twice. From within my chest a soft flow of golden mana poured into the stone block. Activating a symbol was a delicate process. Too much magic could lead to adverse effects. Too little would lead to the symbol staying inactive.

Within seconds the symbol began glowing. Before I could react, the professor brought out a hammer and smashed it into the block.

It didn't budge.

“Basic hardening, layered over preservation symbols, and connected with a variation of toughness.” The professor muttered under his breath, his words meant for himself. “It's practically a pseudo-regent. With a few more layers...”

His voice disappeared into a whisper. He'd already forgotten I existed.

I couldn't blame him. The stone in front of him wasn't ordinary. It was created using my [Earth Creation] skill. Normally, it was difficult to carve symbols into stone or other materials created using a creation skill. Extremely difficult.

The reason was because there were higher amounts of ambient pure mana residing within the blocks as a result of their origin. These were materials brought to life by pure mana. When attempting to inject foreign mana into them, they were likely to simply reject it or obscure it enough that symbols would never activate.

In other words, only certain symbol combinations that could utilise or resonate with the type of mana inside the stone blocks would work.

"You chose to use symbols that have their basis in protection.” Professor Pernacles nodded to himself, finally allowing a smile to colour his expression. "I'm assuming the bird had something to do with that."

Gold preened out his chest boastfully at my side. Symbols class was his favourite for the sole reason that he could actually learn from what was being taught.

"Yes.” I didn't deny it. “Even though he uses twigs as his main medium, the origin of Gold’s regents and symbols are a combination of nature and earth elements.”

That wasn't my only inspiration. Working with the church of the Crijik and Wahyu had helped me by leaps and bounds. A few of the symbols used for strengthening the foundations of houses could be transplanted directly onto my stone blocks.

Was it just a coincidence? That was something that I had no way of verifying.

I clicked my fingers and several twigs and rocks appeared from my inventory. Each one of them was covered in intricate and thin symbols.

Gold had created all of them when he was bored.

"It works.” Professor Pernacles compared the rocks with the stone block. “This is a rare case, even for me. I haven't had a chance to work with materials created from nothing, with the exception of materials found within the frontier lands.”

"I made a few prototypes, but they were all destroyed during the testing phase.” I grinned sheepishly.

The single successful stone block had cost me dozens of attempts. The only upside was that I wasn't lacking materials, only time. I could conjure new stone blocks as easily as I breathed.

"We'll need a few more before we can start doing in-depth tests and comparisons. But I think I can mock up a few working replicas using normal stone. If they don't explode, then I'll need at least an hour to do so.” The professor handed me the stone. “Have you considered making it bigger?”

"Bigger?" I asked.

“Create a room out of your stones. Then cut these symbols directly from this stone block to place on the walls of the room.” He glanced at the block. “These are symbols used to strengthen houses. They can take the stress placed onto them from the transplant. You could consider it a portable habitat of sorts.”

I hadn't thought of that. The stone block rose in front of me and I examined its surface. The professor was right. Theoretically, now that the symbols had been placed without issue, I could simply melt them into a bigger stone block without issues. If I made the stone hollow inside, it wouldn’t impact its abilities.

"Are you sure they'll continue working?” Curiosity ignited in my heart. "It took a lot of time and effort to make this one."

“The difficulty in this project isn’t the symbols used, it is the fact that [Earth Creation] users are so rare that the creation of symbols and regents using their conjured materials hasn’t been studied in depth.” Professor Pernacles said. “I’m not even sure if the symbols carved into conjured stone will have the same effects when carved into regular stone, but I shall endeavour to test it. For that is what all inscribers must do.

"If that succeeds, you may be a very rich young man.” The professor smiled. “Assuming you can prevent the created materials from exploding when adding more than a few symbols to them.”

I couldn't help but feel excited at his words. A person that had both the earth creation skill and was the scriber were so rare that I'd likely never run into another. I wasn't even sure another person with that combination of skills currently existed.

The possibilities swam through my mind one by one.

Using my skill, I could create an infinite supply of earth materials to make regents. I'd never lack for funds. I could conjure houses in moments and have them inscribed in days. Or I could find other symbol combinations that worked even better and sell those. I could create an infinite number of spears to throw at my opponent, all inscribed with symbols that increased their effectiveness.

I was still in my daydream when the class ended an hour and a half later. Two straight periods of symbol class had been dedicated to inscribing more symbols into stone blocks.

I’d failed every one of them.

"Is it really that hard?" Roxxy’s head popped up beside me, curiosity lacing her voice.

"Like you wouldn't believe." I raked my fingers through my hair. Then I realised there was a layer of sweat across my neck.

It was caused by heat coming off of Roxxy’s head.

“Is that— Agni?”

On Roxxy's head a small tuft of deep orange feathers appeared, a bird head poking out and two beady eyes staring down at me. Gold chirped at Agni and she let out a single lazy chirp.

"She decided to join me.” Roxxy held her hand up and fed the phoenix a treat. “My table is a good place to sleep during class.”

Agni nodded her head in agreement. Unlike Gold, she wasn't at all interested in symbols or their application. Agni looked from Gold to me and chirped.

Loud. Failure. Tough!

My [Spirit Communication] passively allowed me to understand some of what Agni was saying. A moment later Gold joined the conversation, and I lost track of what either of them were saying. Unlike listening to mana, there were less concepts and more words. It was like trying to decipher a language that I could only understand when spoken clearly and at a snail's pace. When Agni and Gold spoke at the same time they sped up naturally and it was impossible for me to follow their words.

"They really go at it.” Roxxy laughed. Unlike me, she could understand both of them perfectly. Or at least Gold. “What do you think?”

That last question was directed at Amanda, who was packing up her things beside me.

“It’s different from an ordinary stone, but that's all I understand about it.” Amanda admitted.

I raised my hand and the inscribed stone block appeared in it.

"It's weird that it works at all." I took on both of their doubt filled gazes without hesitation. "Technically, this is a stone charged with mana. That mana should interfere with any attempts to carve symbols into it.”

Both girls shot me a look and I waved my hand, moving the stone block to hover in front of them. Amanda took it delicately in her hands and examined the block carefully.

"Why?" Amanda shook the block. “Carving symbols into regular stones doesn't stop them from working, does it?”

“What makes this different? It's just a bit of mana.” Roxxy chimed in at the same time.

"Remember how Amanda's beads explode every time Gold gets his talons on them? Its like that." I pointed out. "Things that are hyper charged with mana or are made of mana don't work well with symbols."

We made our way outside, the school day already over, and walked towards the front lawn where a portal was scheduled to appear.

"It's—” I hesitated, thinking of how to explain it. “It's complicated. Basically, symbols are a conduit—” I saw their faces turn blank. “—a funnel. Symbols are a funnel that allows a concept to gain physical form and influence the world around us. To do this the symbol uses the mana of a material or the mana supplied by an external party to activate.”

Agni was falling back asleep, but Gold was listening to my words intently. To my surprise so were Roxxy and Amanda.

“If you use the wrong kind of mana, then you can't activate the symbol. And it's the same for the amount of mana used. Regent materials require a lot of trial and error to determine what symbols they can carry, and my stone blocks act in a similar way.”

“I activate my texting regent easily enough. And my inventory.” Roxxy pointed out.

“That's different. Those were designed to be mass-produced and usable by everyone.” I shook my head. “But that took hundreds of scribers years of trial and error, and piles of coins, to achieve. Creating a regent from scratch with brand new materials means you have to start with yourself and then figure out how to make sure everyone else can use it. There is a high risk you'll fail and lose the time and money you put into the project. Its easier to just work on an existing project with a company.”

Gold nodded alongside me. The puffer had been key in determining which symbols could be used. I’d tried dozens of variations of different symbols, each one failing over and over again. We were partners in inscribing, and without him I'd have spent years finding the symbol variations that could work with stone.

"So, you need symbols that work well with earth mana?” Amanda blinked in surprise. “That doesn't explain why you blew up a chunk of stone and got dust all over my symbol papers.”

I tapped my cheek sheepishly at her words. My failure during symbols class had been more explosive than usual. I'd overestimated how much mana the symbol would need.

“Since the stone is made with my [Earth Creation] skill, I don't just need symbols that can be activated with earth mana, I need symbols that accept pure earth mana only. Even then specific symbols are needed that can work with the exact amount of mana inside the stone. If the symbol requires more mana than the material supplies, then it'll never stay activated unless I'm constantly holding the block and sending mana into it. If it requires a lot less, then the symbol will collapse under the amount of mana inside the block and take the stone with it. Like it did just then in class.”

"Thanks for the practical demonstration." Roxxy said. “It made class fun again.”

“You didn't get stone dust all over your hard work.” Amanda grumbled.

Agni had woken up fully now and she sent a puff of flames toward my head. She was bored.

"Okay, okay. I'm not going to give you the full thesis.” I chuckled. “Basically, I need to keep experimenting to find out which symbols work together. If they can be used in various combinations, I can probably make a regent out of just my stone. Or add other existing materials to a stone block and make a regent easily.”

Finding symbols and their variations would cost time and money for any other person. Luckily, my dad had access to a symbol library, and he held a vast amount of knowledge about symbols in his mind. My professor was more than willing to help me as well, and unlike others I could create an infinite amount of stone.

Adding Wahyu’s knowledge into the mix was one of the final tipping points.

If I couldn't supply my own materials then I'd have to dig out an entire mountain to find half as much stone as I'd already used. Most of the blocks were the side of my chest in height and twice as thick.

"Meanwhile, I finally managed to connect the symbol for sun and a variation of fire.” Amanda took out a piece of paper from her inventory and held it up proudly. “It only took me two weeks.”

She was visibly excited at the achievement and Roxxy clapped beside her. I joined in too, happy to give approval. The creation of any kind of symbol was an accomplishment that most people would never achieve in their lifetime. Doing it successfully while connecting it to another symbol was already making a pseudo regent.

The resources provided by Koshima Academy were frightening when paired with Amanda's incredible work ethic.

"This will burn the hair off of someone's head with enough mana.” I held it carefully. Amanda had done a good job, and she took her work back with pride.

"Maybe you should test it." She hummed. "I think you'd look good bald."

We stepped onto the vibrant grass of the lawn just as a chime resounded through the air. Gold perked his head up at the sound and I paused, activating my [Mana Sense] and gazing at the space in front of me.

Purple mana bled through a crack in the air, dropping to the ground and condensing into liquid form through sheer quantity. Gold moved his beak forward and tried to bite the droplets with his beak. They ignored him and dissipated the moment they touched his body.

I blinked, and when I opened my eyes there was a door. Big and purple it looked down at us calmly, biding its time for us to approach it.

It was a portal through which we could travel far and wide across the world. Countries crossable in moments. Cities far and wide were accessible at the click of a finger.

"Is it just me or is the mana thicker today?” I tilted my head curiously.

The purple mana normally formed pools at my feet. Today it drenched the dirt and transformed it into a swampy terrace that sank into the ground. I ignored it, knowing that it wouldn't stain or mark my clothing.

"It definitely is." Amanda knelt down and waved her fingers through it. "Unlike you, I normally can't see it until I'm inside the Nexus. Weird.”

"The nexus is always weird.” Roxxy chimed in, striding over the drops. “The mana looks like water, but I can't even talk to it.”

The trip through the Nexus was uneventful, though the area was flooded with purple mana. It looked like we'd have to swim through the corridors at first, but then the mana parted just enough for us to wade through it.

Unlike the other types of mana, I couldn't communicate with these ones. Not directly.

I didn't have much affinity for the space element, even with my [Mana Affinity] skill. However, I could feel a sense of kinship from the purple pools that hadn't been there before I’d gotten my class. It was as though I could reach out and try to communicate with them, and they wouldn't dismiss me out of hand.

It was tempting, but I had a different objective today.

This trip had been organised by Roxxy. But we weren't going to her household to use the cultivation room. Instead, Amanda led the way confidently.

I stepped out of the portal and into a foyer. The walls were bare and unadorned. There was no sense of style or pizzazz.

It was a mansion. And it belonged to Amanda’s family.

“It's nice.” I gazed at the empty walls.

The followers of the Divine, Mehta, weren't fond of material possessions and luxuries. If I were to compare them to people from my old world, Mehta’s followers were essentially minimalist hippies, except magical.

Because of the events in Koshima, Amanda had become the uncontested heir of the Mitra household. Her grandfather had insisted on her staying with him to learn the family trade. He had also decided that his granddaughter deserved better accommodations than a shoddy safehouse.

"I can't believe I finally get to visit this place after hearing so much about it." Roxxy flew past us, buzzing around the foyer, impressed. “Not bad.”

There was fire mana dancing around me, invisible to the naked eye, and could feel magic coursing through the air. As the portal closed I saw symbols lighting up along the walls. Protection, and other concepts. Not all of them were defensive in nature.

“Tada! Welcome to the seat of power of the Mitra household.” Amanda spread her arms out wide. “We call it Rashadon.”

“This is perfect! Exactly what I had in mind.”

Roxxy’s shout echoed out into the building. She stepped toward me and slapped me on the back. A cheshire grin grew over her lips and she flicked her finger toward me, a ball of water hovering in front of my face.

“Let's unlock your water element.”