Chapter 52. Time to Reap (7)
How should one go about firmly establishing a reputation?
There were many ways to increase one’s fame, but the method Shane chose was to gain acknowledgment from people who were both rigid in their standards and widely admired by others.
In that regard, Mages were precisely that kind of people.
They possessed tremendous pride in their knowledge and an almost desperate hunger for learning.
There were few groups better suited for spreading one’s name.
However, the fact that Shane was still merely a Cadet—and that he had no affiliation with any Magic Tower—was a significant weakness.
That meant he needed to satisfy their current curiosity before it faded.
[Without further preamble, I will begin by taking questions.]
It was hardly something an ordinary presenter would say.
A presenter was normally the one who stood before an audience and explained the information they had brought.
But unless the subject involved their own field of study, Mages tended to lose interest quickly.
Shane had already thought of a way to capture the attention of every Mage present.
Even an unfamiliar field could become interesting if one showed them something they could not help caring about.
Nearly every Mage in the hall raised a hand at once.
One of the hosts selected a person, and the first question began.
“I am Sergei of the Mardy Magic Tower. What kind of magical knowledge did you obtain from the expedition and the opening of the Mezaia Great Forest?”
[I have gained an understanding of the fundamental nature of Elven magic, along with several basic applications.]
“Hmm……!”
Shane answered immediately, as though he had been waiting for the question.
Interest appeared across the Mages’ faces.
He might still be only a Cadet, but before the expedition he had already caused considerable excitement among multiple Magic Towers with his paper.
And he was a Mage who had personally survived that Cradle.
There was more than enough reason to hear him out.
“I am Melphis of the Horquai Magic Tower. In that case, could you give us a general explanation of that fundamental nature?”
[Yes. Let me first show you something I prepared.]
Shane wrote a formula on the blackboard beside the platform.
The Mages attending the conference looked down at the discs distributed by the organizers, each roughly the size of two palms.
The formula Shane wrote appeared identically upon their surfaces.
[This is the formula required for Elves to wield their magic. Fundamentally, the essence of Elven magic is affinity. Over hundreds and thousands of years, they actively utilized their Mana Adaptability to assimilate with the Great Forest. Based upon that assimilation, they became capable of influencing the vast territory of the Mezaia Great Forest while expending only a very small amount of Mana.]
“Then that means……”
[Yes. Within the Mezaia Great Forest, there is no way to escape the Elves’ sight. Every plant there can become their eyes and ears.]
The hall immediately became noisy.
It was easy enough to describe in words.
But everyone present could imagine how complicated the process must have been and how much time it would have required.
Once again, the Mages were forced to confront reality.
Humanity had only been using Mana for a few hundred years.
A gap between humans and the ancient races was inevitable.
At the same time, Shane’s words served as a warning to humanity.
If anyone ever considered waging war against the Elves or attempting something like kidnapping them—
They should first consider what the consequences would be.
There was a reason only several thousand Elves had once controlled the Mezaia Great Forest, a territory larger than the Empire itself.
Furthermore, the magical formula Shane displayed had been constructed entirely around Mana Adaptability.
Even if humans copied it perfectly, they would be unable to accomplish anything with it.
In other words—
At humanity’s current level, there was practically no room for them to interfere with Elven magic.
“I am Garpa Sergio of the Harmen Magic Tower. Then what, in your opinion, can we humans learn from Elven magic?”
Sergio’s question was somewhat of a test.
Even the accomplished Mages gathered here could not immediately think of a method for humans to make use of Elven magic.
There seemed little chance that Shane, who was still only a Cadet, would already have an answer.
[It would be difficult to declare that this will immediately bring about some enormous change. However, just as humanity has always done, have we not created new paths by beginning with imitation? For example, like this.]
Shane raised a hand into the air and uttered a brief incantation.
Strands of Mana emerged above his palm and began drawing a landscape in the air.
“Good heavens……!”
The Mage who had asked the question and everyone else in the hall widened their eyes.
The verdant landscape looked extraordinarily alive.
An expansive grassland stretched across the scene, with mountain goats running freely over it.
Behind the plains rose a towering mountain.
High above, sunlight shone through the clouds with an intense vitality.
The Mages gathered at the conference quickly realized that this was not merely a landscape painting constructed from Mana.
The warmth beneath the sunlight soothed their bodies and minds.
More astonishingly—
Their aging bodies began regaining vitality.
The Mages stared at Shane in complete disbelief.
[This contains Natural Essence that I received from the Elf Queen, ruler of the Mezaia Great Forest. I constructed the magic around it. Admittedly, it requires Elven Natural Essence as a material, but assuming that condition can be met, the potential applications are practically limitless.]
Using the Elf Queen’s Natural Essence was astonishing enough.
But was it truly possible to create magic like this using the Natural Essence of a living being?
From the perspective of modern Mages, the concept was almost incomprehensible.
Naturally, if one judged the matter solely through humanity’s present magical knowledge, their reaction was entirely reasonable.
But that was merely the human perspective.
[Through their Adaptability, Elves can manipulate the Natural Essence of the forest in this manner. No…… that wording is somewhat inaccurate. The Natural Essence of the Elves is itself the Natural Essence of the forest, and the reverse is equally true.]
“I-I have a question. If that is the case, does that not mean it remains practically impossible for humans to make use of this?”
[Not necessarily. When I describe magic that utilizes Natural Essence, there should be one particular school that comes to mind for many of you. Am I wrong?]
Several Mages frowned.
Naturally so.
There was indeed a school of magic that used the Natural Essence of living beings—in other words, their Life Force.
Several of the older Mages had personally experienced the horrors of the war when the Allied Nations subjugated them decades earlier.
They muttered quietly.
“That’s right. They used it……”
“Even now, remembering that time makes me…… Hah.”
[Yes. Black Magic. Its methods and philosophy may have been misguided, but just as Elves can manipulate Natural Essence, it is not entirely impossible for humans to do the same.]
“Hmm……!”
Several Mages groaned uneasily.
To many of them, the words Black Magic still evoked trauma.
Yet they could not completely reject Shane’s argument.
Because Shane had prepared something specifically for that reason.
The magic before their eyes was a clear result.
How could they deny something they could see and feel for themselves?
Mages were rigid people.
But they were not the kind of people who turned away from a proven result merely because they disliked it.
Meanwhile, Kayden, Elder of the Kabir Magic Tower, who had previously conducted research based upon one of Shane’s papers, raised his hand while studying the magic Shane had displayed.
[Please ask your question.]
“Hmm. I believe your theory has considerable potential. But what exactly did you mean earlier when you spoke of imitation?”
[To explain that, I should first provide a precise definition of the Natural Essence I mentioned earlier. I compared it with Black Magic, but in truth, the Natural Essence used in Black Magic and the Natural Essence I have just demonstrated differ even in their fundamental nature.]
“Hmm. Indeed. Black Magic is notoriously domineering and exceedingly violent.”
[That is because the Natural Essence used in Black Magic is extracted through the death of living beings. Natural Essence released from the dead naturally attempts to return to nature. Black Mages suppress that tendency with Mana and wield it as the energy of the dead, causing its Life Force to become corrupted. In other words, it is an act that defies the Will of the World.]
“Indeed. We Mages do not seek to defy the Will of the World. We pursue new forms of order.”
[Correct. By contrast, the Natural Essence I manipulated earlier already exists within nature itself, unlike the Life Force residing within living creatures. Because it lacks a medium such as the energy of the dead used by Black Mages, it is extremely difficult to manipulate unless one can assimilate with nature as Elves do.]
A question appeared on Kayden’s face.
Now that Shane explained it, the reasoning was perfectly sound.
But if that was true—
Would the magic Shane had just displayed not be impossible even if the Elf Queen had given him some of her Natural Essence?
The contradiction only made Kayden more interested.
[That is why I decided to imitate the Elves’ Mana Adaptability. Naturally, there were many failures along the way, but the resulting formula looks like this.]
Shane approached the blackboard again and wrote another formula.
Unlike the first, this one was not based primarily upon Mana Adaptability.
Because of that, most of the Mages present could immediately begin understanding the formula.
[As you can see, unlike Elven magic, I constructed this around Mana Patterns rather than Adaptability.]
The Adaptability possessed by Elves existed on an entirely different level from that of humans.
Even humans considered extraordinarily gifted in Adaptability would be regarded as hopelessly deficient among Elves.
That was why Shane had changed his perspective.
Rather than attempting to reproduce Mana Adaptability itself—
He focused on analyzing and reproducing the Mana Patterns.
“I see. So there was a method like this.”
“Indeed. If the spell does not rely upon Circles and instead constructs the Mana Pattern externally, it may not be impossible.”
“But what can we actually use it for?”
“You fool! Did you not see the magic he demonstrated earlier? It filled this entire hall and still displayed that much restorative power. If that effect were concentrated onto a single point, it could surpass even a Healing Potion made from Troll blood!”
“Must you shout like that at your age? Urgh. Still, you have a point.”
Once Shane showed them a single path, countless branches immediately began forming from it.
That was entirely different from having no path at all.
[This is admittedly not magic that can be used without preparation. However, as long as Natural Essence is available, the method itself is perfectly usable. The next question is how humans can obtain Natural Essence independently. I have not yet found an answer to that. However, with the Elves’ cooperation, I believe that problem can eventually be solved, even if it requires time.]
After saying that much, Shane bowed his head and left the platform.
One might have expected the Mages to continue bombarding him with questions.
But they were already too busy dissecting everything they had heard and analyzing the formulas Shane had shown them.
With that—
Shane had successfully captured the interest of the Mages.
One might ask why they were troubling themselves with a problem like this when humans could not yet independently extract and manipulate Natural Essence.
The answer lay in the restorative effect of Shane’s magic.
It had only replenished vitality rather than actually healing injuries.
But just as one Mage had pointed out—
It had done so while filling this enormous conference hall.
That alone was revolutionary.
Shane desired fame.
But Mages were equally hungry for reputation.
Why?
Because reputation became money.
When Potions made from Troll blood first appeared in the world, how enormous had the resulting revolution been?
They were not perfect cures.
Even so, countless Adventurers had been able to fear injuries a little less because of them.
And had the Mage who created those Potions not obtained both unimaginable fame and mountains of gold?
If the information Shane had released could be developed into something with similar effects—
Then the Mages sitting here had effectively been handed the same kind of opportunity.
Fame and wealth.
Two prizes at once.
It was an idea capable of drawing attention regardless of one’s particular school of magic.
After all, no existing school possessed any particular advantage when it came to manipulating Natural Essence.
In other words—
Whoever reached the answer first would be sitting on a mountain of gold.
—
Naturally, a conference of this size had not gathered solely because of one person.
Since it had been quite some time since the last major conference, Mages who had achieved breakthroughs in their own research took turns ascending the platform and presenting their results.
Yet almost none of it truly registered in the ears of the audience.
Even the presenters themselves seemed eager to finish quickly so they could turn their attention elsewhere.
The reason was obvious.
The material Shane had presented earlier.
Before the banquet prepared for after the conference began—
Shane sat inside a carriage waiting outside, facing someone.
It was Kayden, Elder of the Kabir Magic Tower.
Kayden spent a long time asking Shane about what had happened within the Mezaia Great Forest, his expression overflowing with excitement.
Shane answered every question as sincerely as possible.
Naturally, he concealed everything that needed to remain hidden.
By the time Kayden heard the entire story, however, his expression had grown solemn.
“Gordon…… You are saying that man was still alive?”
His reaction came from hearing about Gordon, the leader of the Black Mages who had supposedly disappeared during the subjugation decades ago.
But that seriousness did not last long.
Just as Shane had already agreed with Raviata, he attributed Gordon’s death to Raviata.
Shane had no need yet for the reputation that would come from defeating a Black Mage of Gordon’s caliber.
In any case, Raviata had personally confirmed Gordon’s death, allowing some relief to return to Kayden’s face.
“Still, today’s presentation will create quite a commotion. You really are…… more calculating than you look.”
Kayden smiled.
“At first glance, it seems as though you revealed the formulas you created far too freely…… but you have another plan, don’t you?”
“Yes. I do.”
Shane calmly nodded and admitted it without hesitation.
Naturally.
He had gone to the trouble of bringing Elven magic back from the Mezaia Great Forest and revealing it to the outside world.
Settling for nothing more than reputation would have been a terrible bargain.
As someone born into a merchant family—
It was only natural that Shane would take everything else he could obtain as well.
