Nuclear Warlock

Artus sat in the small attic, he put the book on the bed carefully, and he examined the book carefully from all sides, looking carefully at the title on the cover.

"The Framework of Magic: Basic Concepts"

Artus slowly opened the book.

"Energy is everywhere in the world…. living beings gather the energy from their surrounding environment …. transforming its Configuration and changing its shape to a accomplish certain goals"

"Some may use it strength themselves…. enabling them to achieve feats which are unattainable through their physical bodies"

"Like running at faster speed…. jumping longer and higher distances…. carrying heavier objects and so on…."

"Others gather the energy in certain ways then transform it through complex measures…. changing its very nature to something else….to other forms of energy"

"fireball"

"Perhaps the most common spell ... the first step for many in the magic path….it requires gathering energy in the form of sphere…. stabilizing and balancing it between the caster hands…. then launching it towards a target…."

"whereas other spells like wind blades or wall of the stone do not require changing the form of energy….it utilizes the energy to manipulate things already exist in the environment….energy is used to compress air into sharp flat shapes akin to blades then lunch them in case of winds blades …as for wall of stone…it's much simpler…..using energy to control a Cuboid piece of dirt and stones in the earth….then rise it above the ground level…."

"On the other hand, the fire in fireball spell does not exist in the environment prior to casting spell…. the fire is created using energy"

"These are just examples to demonstrate the different processes used in casting spells….it should be mentioned that not all fire spells work in this way...the same applies to earth and wind spells…. for all elemental and non-elemental magic there exist various casting processes…."

"There are fire spells that utilize fire elements in the environment and wind and earth spells that use energy transformation…it just that when the element itself is available in the environment…. it's much more efficient to manipulate it using energy rather than creating it….and usually earth and wind are available everywhere…."

"It should be mentioned that after gathering energy from the environment….it can be transformed into various forms….as long as the right formula is used…. you can even create your own unique energy….at least theoretically"

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Artus spent several days reading the book, he would wake up in the morning, do light exercises…. go for a walk around the village…. In the night he would spend time with his mother…she taught him various things about the world…it seems she had experienced a lot in the past….

His father left for hunting a few days ago…. he and the other hunter would stay in a small camp near the forest…. which was several hours of walking from the village…. hunting for around one week…then they would return home...

He would sometimes spend time talking with the villagers…sometimes he would spend time with other children….

"Maggie, have you ever seen a mage?"

Maggie and Artus sat in the shades of the trees at the edge of the village…she watched Artus while he drew strange symbols on the ground using a dry tree branch…even though she did not understand a thing she watched him closely….

Artus was lost in thought…. he was trying to comprehend the concepts in the magic book he found… he tried several times to gather the so-called injury…. but alas he could not even sense it …

The book did not mention the methods to sense energy and make a connection with it…it appeared magic from a purely theoretical point of view….in the end, it was written by a schooler in magic studies, not a mage.

"Last year some mage came to our village…. he was traveling through the forest and lost his way…. he was welcomed by the chief himself …. he spent a night in our village then left the next day early morning…. I saw him once from far distance…. he did not look any different from normal adults"

"Hey Artus, aren't mages supposed to be powerful? If he's so powerful how come he lost his way in the forest…. how come he was tired from traveling and needed to rest in our village?"

"Maggie not all mages are the same…. some are powerful…. some are weaker…. a mage is a person who can utilize energy to cast spells…not necessarily a powerful one"

"Let me give you another example…in the last hunt Uncle Pedro, your father, came back with a large stag lord deer…. whereas another young man came back with a one-horned rabbit….in the end, both are considered hunters"

"The same applied to mages…. some of them are stronger than others…. but that does not make them less of a mage"

"don't forget that for one to become a mage…. he needs to be able to utilize the world's energy…. that alone requires not only hard work but also talent …."

"Oh…now you said it…. that does make sense"

"By the way did you find anything about methods and ways to become a mage in your book?"

"Unfortunately, no..…it's purely a theoretical book….so I will have to work things myself…."

"What do you mean by theoretical?"

"If a blacksmith wrote a book about swords…will it contain any sword-wielding techniques? It will contain information about how swords are made…. the materials used and how are they processed…how to make the handle…. how to make the edge and improve its sharpness…. but it will not contain any information about how to use the sword in real fights…"

"If one wants to learn how to use a sword, they should learn from a knight…. if one wants to learn how to be a mage they should learn from a mage"

"Then Artus how come there are people who learned to use swords by themselves?"

Artus was silent…. He was thinking about how to explain things in terms that Maggie could understand….

"it's not impossible to learn how to use the sword on your own…. but you will be not able to use it in the most effectively…that is the sword technique that was developed by several people over generations…."

"You may be right … but still an imperfect technique is better than no technique…. isn't it?"

"Magic is not exactly like the sword….nothing could go wrong by trying to learn how to use the sword by yourself…at most you would get some cut wounds here and there….and even if you were not able to learn anything … it would be counted as physical training to improve yourself…..as for magic….I don't know what would happen if things go wrong…..but your point is worth considering"

"By the way. Maggie. I did not see Tom in the last few days…. did something happen to him?"

"I think he is busy training with the chief…."

Artus knew that Maggie was trying to avoid his question…. he asked out of curiosity, but he did not pursue the subject as it was not worth his time…he now had more important things to do

"See later Maggie"

Maggie watched as Artus left…. she loved spending time with him…. he was mature…. he was smart…he had lots of knowledge about various subjects…. he even knew more things than her father…he would always explain things to her in an easy and simple way.

She knew such an exceptional person was bound to leave this small village someday…. but she did not think that day would arrive very soon.