Geometric Mage: First Spell, Circle

"Damn, what a day," Lian murmured, staring at the ceiling. With a gesture of his hand, the staff, Runic Seal, and Runic Stylus appeared before him.

He had a couple of hours before meeting Rick, enough time to try enchanting the staff. "If I manage to create a decent artifact, maybe I can sell it tonight," he thought. "I just need to succeed in the creation—"

Lian paused for a moment, considering how failure could cause an explosion. "Damn, I did not think of that—" he said, sitting up. "If I fail the enchantment, not only will my room become a complete mess, drawing unnecessary attention due to the noise, but I will get dirty again!"

He let out a distressed sigh before focusing his thoughts on succeeding in the task. "I cannot fail. I must not fail. If I succeed in creating the artifact, it will make me a full-fledged Rune Master! And if I become one, I can leave this place. Rune Masters all have private homes, after all… I could invite Rick—"

Lian stopped, imagining the terrifying scene of Rick wandering around his house, dirtying everything.

"Okay, let us say we do not invite him…"

After a minute of rest, Lian stood up with determination. He had decided not to wear anything except a pair of underwear.

With his left hand, he grabbed the staff. It looked like a long stick with a crescent-shaped top. The wood it was made of felt very solid, and the metal reinforcements here and there made the staff respectable. It would not break easily, not even against a steel sword.

He placed the staff on the desk. "First, we engrave the matrix." With his right hand, Lian carefully took the Runic Stylus. The concept was simple but different from how the sword was made.

After all, it was not the same enchantment being applied. Each matrix was created specifically for that type of enchantment.

There was no universal formula.

For the sword, Torin had made lines that served as channels to transport mana throughout the weapon, and then the matrix, the heart of the artifact.

Similarly, Lian would first draw the dot representing the fireball spell, right in the center of the crescent at the top of the staff.

Finally, the matrix, identical to the one made for the sword: a series of concentric circles.

"Okay, let us see what I can do."

Lian was hyper-focused as his Runic Stylus positioned itself in the middle of the crescent. With a simple touch, Lian began to carve a dot, about half a centimeter wide.

"Good, the first step is done." He nodded. "Now comes the fun part. I must not mess up—" he muttered, starting to engrave a circular matrix at the point where the staff would be held.

Typically, Mages wielded staffs with one hand, not from the lower end but from the upper half.

The circle took shape, slowly but surely. And a few moments later, the first circle was successfully created.

"Good, it was easier than expected, actually…"

Lian looked at his hand slowly before shaking his head to focus on creating the second circle, the first concentric one. The enchantment he was applying was only Bronze 1, so he did not need to make too many circles, just two in total.

With focus, Lian tried to recall Torin's movements and the spacing he left for the second circle, inside the first.

Lian exhaled, pointing the Runic Stylus at the right spot.

"Just like drawing a circle in my mind…" he murmured, as the Runic Stylus traced the line almost perfectly.

After a few seconds, the matrix was completed.

Lian set down the Stylus, panting slightly. It had not taken too long, but the concentration required to create the matrix was significant.

"Good, the first step is done!" he exclaimed joyfully. Wait a second… it was not during the matrix creation that Torin caused an explosion, but during the placement of the enchantment in it! he thought, his face turning pale.

After a moment of hesitation, he grabbed the staff with one hand while staring intently at the Runic Seal on the desk.

"No problem, I am Lian, and from today, I am a Rune Master!"

His mana flowed out of his body, heading toward the Runic Seal containing the final rune.

The moment it left its shell, the enchantment began to lose energy, but before it could continue, Lian decisively placed it into the matrix.

The room filled with a low hum, and the staff began to glow with red sparks dancing on its surface.

A moment later—

---

Meanwhile, Rick had returned to his room, his heart still heavy despite the smile he had shown Lian.

The conversation with his friend had lifted his spirits, but the desire for revenge still lingered in his conscience, like a guilt that would not go away.

"I can control this urge. It is not the first time I have controlled one…" he murmured distractedly, looking in the mirror, thinking of all the girls who passed by him every day.

His eyes were darker than usual, but his spirit was unshakable. However, he could not yet ignore the feeling of revenge.

He took a quick shower before changing, putting on a clean white robe with bronze veins. "Tonight, I want to eat fish," he said, trying to shake off all the unpleasant feelings.

He still had some time before heading to Lian's room.

Driven by this sudden desire to become stronger, Rick decided to experiment with a couple of spells. The enlightenment he had received was not just about the concepts underlying his Shadow affinity, like sacrifice and revenge, no.

The enlightenment had brought a significant increase in his affinity. When Rick had taken the affinity test during his first days at the academy, the teacher had told him that his affinity was extremely rare but only reached a good level.

There were different levels of affinity: None, Poor, Good, Excellent, Supreme.

Although the difference between Good and Excellent was only one level, the gap was huge. Even more so was the difference between Excellent and Supreme.

It was an unbridgeable abyss.

Very few had such affinity, and each of them held a very important place in the world.

And now, Rick had just crossed a level. From Good, his affinity had reached Excellent in one fell swoop.

"Umbra Velum, Simulacri Vani!"