Giving magic-lessons was a strange mix of relaxing and stressful. After waking up, I managed to get some more food before taking over one of the inner rooms, inviting those with affinity-traits to join me. Once those interested had gathered, I had given them my explanation in regards to Astral Power, the Astral River and magic, stressing that it was simply the concepts and images I used to understand something that could be influenced by our own understanding of it. For them, the images might be different or other images and concepts might work better, it was something they had to experience and understand for themselves.

After giving them that explanation, I had my seven pupils introduce themselves. Other than the two from the night before, there was another younger woman, somewhere around sixteen, two middle-aged men, one middle-aged woman and an older woman, likely somewhere in her sixties, all with magical affinities and an interest in learning. I had no idea if these were all who had affinities, or if there were more, just not willing to learn from me, and I didn’t really care.

The younger woman introduced herself as Noriko, adding that her affinity was Light-Magic and she was level two. I managed to keep myself from flinching at that, there was still the memory of getting scoured from Mundus by the overwhelming power of the sun, making that my second least favourite type of Magic. Fire-Magic remained my least favourite, but only just. That her affinity was of the Rune-Magic variety didn’t help things, making me consider whether or not I wanted to help her delve into the Astral. On one hand, I wanted to do my best when it came to teaching, on the other hand, I wasn’t sure I wanted to be in close, mental contact with somebody messing around with Light Magic.

Next, one of the middle-aged men introduced himself as Kenji, his affinity being to Wind-Magic and his level a rather impressive five, making me think that he had been guarding the place and fighting back Shattered, maybe even going out to hunt them. In regards to his affinity, I had no idea how Wind and a slightly stocky, heavyset male fit together, but outward appearances were just that, appearances. By looks, I would have thought he might be, or become at some point, a dwarf and Wind-Magic was the furthest from dwarves I could think of. Thankfully, I had some memories of Lenore using Wind-Magic and while I wasn’t sure I could do it myself, I had some ideas about where to start. Maybe I should try to learn it myself, at least make an attempt, it might open doors that I had considered closed to me. Maybe even allow me to reclaim the sky, at some point.

The other man introduced himself as Leon, level four, one of the few people not of some sort of Asian descent in the small community, though I had no idea how he fit into the group. Not really my business but simply a small curiosity. Learning that he had Earth-Magic, I simply nodded in acceptance, having no particular preference or hate for that type of magic. Some concepts from Ice-Magic applied, things like crystal-structures and magic to mould rigid materials, those worked for Earth, Rock, Metal or Ice, similar ideas, different materials.

The middle-aged lady, finally, gave me a serious surprise. Aiko, also level four, as she introduced herself was lucky enough to have an affinity for two types of magic, with Flesh-Magic, something I had only vaguely heard of as an equivalent to Blood Magic, and Nature-Magic, a combination that I was quite envious of. It would make her a tremendous healer and supporter if she wanted to go that route. Both her affinities were Rune-Magic Affinities, making me wonder if the Rune Magic was something inherent, or how that worked. Something to investigate, though the limited sample size might make it difficult. Either way, having her work with Sandy might be useful, allowing them to contrast and compare their abilities. Or it might stifle things, turning them into copies of each other, with one innovating and the other simply copying without thinking about her own magic. Time would tell.

Lastly, the older lady, who introduced herself as Ling, adding that she had reached level two, had a most curious affinity that threw me for a loop. Weather-Magic didn’t fit with the elements I had learned about and given that she didn’t have a runic affinity, it made me wonder where to even start with her abilities. Sure, my Ice Magic could affect the weather, though the effect was quite limited at a low level. For now, I could create mist, but my power was far from enough to truly affect a system as large and complex as the weather. Regardless, I made a note to have her listen in to my explanation of Air-Magic and Water-Magic, as either might help get her into her own affinity.

Knowing what the different people had access to, I began to work with them individually, though everyone was invited to listen. My first step was to ask Kevin and Sandy whether they had made progress in their self-study. Kevin eagerly stepped forward, reporting that he had managed to link three runes together in a Runic Formation, a concept I had only vaguely touched upon the day before.

After praising his initiative, I asked if he had gained the Special Ability governing three-rune formations, only to get a negative reply. Curious, as that had been one of my initial abilities, making me wonder what blocked it for him. Checking my sheet, I realised that I had gained it as a sub-ability of my Natural Mage-Perk, with an Intelligence requirement, though the requirement was likely low, as I had gained the five-rune version at the same time.

Given that he had yet to unlock Water Magic, that was what I had him work with next, as the magic ability linked to a Rune Magic made things a lot easier, allowing for a massive increase in his repertoire. Hopefully, he’d be able to learn it. For now, I had Ling watch him and try to get a feeling for water, simply because the weather was closely linked to the water cycle.

Sandy hadn’t progressed far, she could make her potted plant grow another leaf, but nothing more. For her, I wanted to try unlocking the Rune Magic, but before, I had her work with Aiko, trying to have Aiko unlock Nature Magic before we worked on her Rune Mastery.

That left me with the two older males. Given that I wanted to have Ling listen in when working with Kenji and she was occupied with Kevin, I started with Leon. Talking to him for a bit, I realised he knew much more about the material we were working with than I did, especially on the microscopic level. When I asked him about it, he told me he had been working as a Civil Engineer, mostly designing fire protection and safety solutions but that things like concrete and similar building materials were part of his job. It made me wonder if he had leaned into that career due to his affinity or if he had the affinity due to his career. Either way, I decided to tell him about the dwarves and their way of magic. I remembered enough from my studies to design my own connecting patterns at the Ashenforge to give him some ideas, but most of it would have to come from his own efforts.

Lastly, there was Kenji. He was quite amusing, almost childlike in his eagerness, with a permanent grin on his face as he listened to my explanations for the others. I had to keep myself from laughing at the image of a roughly forty-year-old, slightly chubby guy bouncing around as if he was a little boy but his ebullient curiosity was infectious. He wanted to learn, that was obvious, and I wanted to teach.

After getting Ling to listen in, I began speaking of the Wind and air, telling them about my time with Lenore and what I had learned from her and the contact with her mind. By the time I was finished, I was a little hoarse but filled with a combination of nostalgia and longing, missing my feathered friend. For a moment, I was tempted to delve into the Astral River, trying to reach her in the distant plane she was in, but I knew better. I lacked the strength to reach her, for now, but that didn’t mean I couldn’t think of her.

Closing my eyes, I remembered how she had moved the air, how the wind had yielded to her wings, while her wings had used the wind. A constant cycle of motion, without the stillness so ingrained into my Ice Magic. For a moment, I felt a barrier and pushed against it, feeling a chunk of Astral Power leave my system. In turn, I noticed the air around me move a little, barely enough to rustle my hair but the movement was clearly unnatural. Or completely natural, if magic was part of Nature.

Wind Magic, not enough to gain the skill but it was enough to make me think I would get there. Similarly, I was certain that Kenji and Ling had seen what I had done, looking at me with slightly wide eyes.

“Well, something like that. Wind is not my element, but as I told you, I know a few things,” I grinned, before giving them a few pointers on where to start.

Finally, it was time for my last pupil. I wasn’t looking forward to being in direct contact with someone meditating on the Light element, even if I intellectually knew that it had nothing to do with Sunna and getting scoured off Mundus. And yet, there was a slight cramp in my gut, an uncomfortable, twisting sensation.

But not one I would let myself be stopped by. If nothing else, knowledge was power and knowledge about an element I was uncomfortable with might be doubly important. Know thy enemy, and all that. If I could learn enough about the Light-Element from teaching her, I might learn how to easily counter it.

“Now, Noriko. Your Affinity is with Light Magic,” I began, “Don’t make the mistake to think that Light automatically means good, for it does not. There are some implications, but they go more in the direction of Order and towards a certain directness. As far as I know, Light does not hold any inherent healing properties, though I believe purification would be well within your grasp if you venture into that direction. Think of it like a sterilisation process using high levels of ultraviolet radiation. For that, too, is light. I don’t know the limits between Light-Magic and something of a higher order, likely some sort of Radiance or Radiation Magic, but that’s for you to find out,” shaking my head, I paused, giving her a task before continuing.

“For now, I will guide you into the Astral River, where you can form the first runes that will guide your magic. Generally, you will be able to form three initially, so think about what three concepts you want to use as the foundation of your Light Magic. The more specific a concept, the more powerful it is, but the less versatile and vice-versa. But even a less powerful concept can be used to incredible effect if you apply it in the right way.”

Looking at the others, I realised that the same held true for all of them, especially those with Rune Affinities.

“It is something you should all consider. What concepts do you want to use as the foundation of your abilities? They should be what you consider the foundation of the element you have an affinity with, at least that’s my understanding. Maybe you could ask Kevin what his first three runes are, and use that to consider your own. Hopefully, I will be able to guide each of you into the Astral and back, allowing all of you to utilise Rune Magic. But we shall see,” I told them, giving them a bit of time before we continued.