15 Apprenticeship part 3 , The importance of Science, A craftsman's tools

I Had retired to my room in the black clam with me were the five books given to me of the five two of them were core content and the rest could be considered reference Science!!!!!! fell into its own category it probably had to deal with the scientific theory equivalent and other fundamental worldly knowledge and laws, even if I understand the scientific law of my world the possibility of altered laws of physics still existed!

Any misunderstanding towards such matters could lead to catastrophic consequences... or maybe nothing at all depending on whether certain principles even exist in this world.

As such Science!!!!!! was required reading for me. The existence of mana particles completely threw ones understanding of matter, antimatter and subatomic particles into disarray. The theory behind spacial magics alone undermined most of the conventional knowledge regarding gravitation, density and even the theory of quantum entanglement.

The reference books such as '101 runes you need to know' , and 'Rune Compatibility and Spell Interactions: a Compendium' were simply scanned into the system.

The information could be called upon at any time using the directory the need to actually memorize or carry them around simply wasn't present due to the existence of the system.

The final two books needed to be studied and their information absorbed 'Arrays for dummies' seemed like a good place to start after finishing 'Science!!!!!!'

Science was both an easy and a difficult book to study, almost all of the concepts in the book were simply common knowledge on earth, but in this society they could be considered groundbreaking, especially when you consider the fact that magic eliminated most of the reasons for technology to develop.

who needs planes when spells make it possible fly with just a few spoken words, in some ways science was a completely optional book in the context of this world. Regardless of this fact the book was extremely helpful, more than that it was a literal lifesaver several of the things I planned to try or would have eventually thought to would have gotten me killed with 100 percent certainty!

This was due to the presence of mana particles, a strange force that completely subverted the laws of physics!

nuclear fission for example, didn't even exist in this world the energy released simply turned into a chaotic form of mana before dispersing normally. A fart could do more damage than this, especially if it was charged with wind type mana

compressing mana to form a foothold in midair , you would just blow your legs off.

so many scenarios that would normally work based on my present understanding of physics chemistry and other sciences were just colorful ways to court death

in short mana completely changed the manner in which physical particles interacted with each other The only way to control this otherwise rampant force was through arrays and formations!

According to arrays for dummies rune formations consisted of five aspects, this applied to both spells and enchanting the five elements were

Structure- This determined the flow and output of energy as well as regulating the ideal balance between elements

Function- A rune or set of runes that determines the exact function of a spell or enchantment it expresses a spell's intent

Support runes- often used to further modify the use of function runes or change the conditions around them

Trigger runes- trigger runes are specialized runes that trigger a formation in response to a specific stimuli

Energy- the type or mixture of mana used

for certain spells the mana used was interchangeable resulting in various effects and levels of potency

in short the structure of the array was the container, the function was the basis of the array, support runes added special effects, and triggers detonate the spell according to a preset condition

a simple fireball spell often consisted of sphere type structure, a function rune to cause an explosion of force, a support rune to gather oxygen continuously, an impact type trigger rune and of course fire type mana.

conversely the same spell model could be adapted to an acid ball by interchanging the support rune for one that gathered hydrogen and sulfur instead of oxygen, while swapping the mana used to water type mana.

While spells and arrays were very different beasts they were also very similar enchantments remained static and spells could be modified on the fly this was an advantage that genuine magic users held over those who used magic tools but it also carried with it a set of risk know as magic circuit rupture or MCR for short

due to the mental and spiritual connection magic users required to maintain with a spell model the risk of backlash is directly proportional to the power of the spell.

In short if you found a way to make a magicians spell formation go berserk it was very easy to kill a magician. This was the Achilles heel of all magic users!

, But this is only possible if you have the power to do such a thing.

after all who wouldn't have countermeasures while such a fatal weakness exists!

enchanted equipment had no such weakness, it could be used freely without repercussions the main disadvantage to this was the cost and output of this equipment after all consciousness is required if one wishes to manipulate the planar laws,

Unless the equipment possesses life and a strong soul such a thing is naturally impossible.

The fact was that magic equipment often traded power for safety, as such a magic weapon would never truly match a high grade mage. This limitation stemmed from spell batteries capacity for energy and the magic conductivity of the materials used.

but combat professions weren't the only ones to benefit in fact magic users benefited from enchanted items the most due to one particular invention that could be considered a half magic item

Catalysts! these could be considered half magic items that were loaded with spell structures and various runes. These reduced the blow back from MCR buy absorbing the rampant mana in place of the user, protecting them from an otherwise fatal blow. The catalyst would be destroyed in this event , a magic user throwing away an overloaded wand in an attempt to kill someone with the resulting explosion is a fairly common sight on a messy battlefield.

Enchantment offered risk free access to magic and opened up new avenues from which combat could be approached, in short giving a veteran warrior a magic weapon or a lower level magician a catalyst was the same as giving a tiger wings.

the main problem with magic weapons and scrolls was cost, magic weapons were essentially fighting with money while unable to threaten true powerhouses on their own a well made magic weapon could mean having a decisive advantage against those on the same level.

with the cost of the required materials and the difficulty of making spell batteries magic equipment seemed mostly out of reach for the current me.

but that didn't mean I wouldn't have a use for it in the future, after all the power of firearms fixed their strength existed independent of the user, higher level enemies would likely be untouchable if normal conventional weapons were the only thing used, most of the defensive type silver level monsters would probably be able to shrug off any non magnum handgun round.

By the end of the week I had learned all of the content in the books given with the exception of science

During this time I visited the professor whenever I had questions. He would always awnswer with great care.

After the professor had confirmed that I understood the basic underlying principles of arrays He asked me a question

"If two rival powers go to war with one another what determines victory"

I replied

"the one with the most resources"

he shook his head

"your answer is only half correct, the winner will be the side with the most advanced technology, logistics do play a role yes, but the important thing to understand that the individual strength of the armies members bear little significance on the final outcome, unless there exist individuals that are strong enough to change the outcome of battle singlehandedly, but the conflicts that involve these sorts of individuals are often too short to be called wars."

The professor continued

"magic items are arguably the fastest path to power, even if they do have a limit. Unless you encounter an opponent capable of crushing you in an instant having the proper tools or being able to make them will ensure that you will maintain a plethora of options"

"an unmovable shield and an unstoppable spear are all well and good, but what purpose do they serve when you can, drown, burn, suffocate, or die in countless other ways"

"strength will only get you so far, that is why cunning exists"

The professor spoke while watching my reactions

"I've never had a student who has taken up combat as their primary profession but I do know no shortage of things about weapons"

"as a rouge you are right to study enchanting, It is a vast and multifaceted profession"

"since you have taken this path for practical reasons as opposed to scholastic ones, I will take you down this path as far as I can, I will not teach you how to chase riches by making valuable works of art but instead you will learn to make simple, but deadly tools"

The professor began to walk back to his laboratory beckoning me to follow

Inside the lab there was a workbench littered with scraps of metal, hammers, chisels, gemstones, and all manner of powders

"Sit "

He pressed a hammer and a chisel into my hand

"how do they feel"

The leather on the handles was spongy and rough repelling my grip as if they did not wish to be held

"Hard to grip, traction, isin't the issue though, the fit is bad"

the professor gave a nod of approval

"Good as a craftsman the first step should be paying attention to your tools"

he gave me another set of tools this time with wooden handles but it only a glance for me to see the problem

"the wood needs to be sanded and oiled, the user of these tools would likely get splinters"

The professor pulled out another set of tools the first was a chisel with a stone handle the hammer had a wooden one

"no tricks this time, tell me how they feel"

picking up the tools they felt strange but not uncomfortable the fit was right but something else was off

"the chisel feels steady but abnormally weighty, same for the hammer"

the professor gave a warm and encouraging smile

"those are a craftsman's tools, sturdy and dependable. Your engravings should be both accurate and deep, and you should feel the weight of the tool in your hand. While they may feel heavy or even unwieldy now but in time that weight will bring its own form of comfort "