Only Wisdom Awakened - Chapter 203

Chapter 203: Wisdom
“I want… that guy”

“That guy? you mean…”

“Yes, your student, Colton”

“What do you mean you want him?! Do you need to possess him or something?”

“This dumbass… I want to teach him the Frostbane techniques”

“What?!”

Hans pinched his cheek to check if he was dreaming but was shocked when realizing it was the truth.

“You want to pass the Frostbanes spells down to him?!

Why is that?! Weren’t you always boasting about your spells and your family heritage?!”

“What?! I never…”

Hans watched the mirror in order to let Caelan see his doubtful face.

“A-alright, I may have talked about my family’s heritage, but that’s exactly what I’m doing this for.

I do not want all the teachings passed down from my ancestors to disappear with me and my world…

I think, passing down their legacy would be the greatest thing I could do.”

“I see… now that I think about it, it does make sense, but why would you like to teach it to Colton?”

“Because his ice element affinity is extremely high, almost as much as the Frostbanes’ ”

“Mh… indeed it is, but what about your body? He may be able to learn your techniques, and maybe your meditation, but he won’t have either the blessing of the goddess or the unique body of the Frostbanes.”

“I have already thought about that, even if the goddess’ protection against cold could be useful against ice mages, when it comes to the learning capabilities it does not influence much.

Even at high levels, with a couple of artifacts, he could defend himself from the cold of his own spells.

As for the special ability we have when it comes to absorbing cold mana… he won’t need it, especially if he really manages to uphold his promise of reaching the peak of tier 4 in just a month.

His improvement speed is truly remarkable, he may fall a bit short when compared to our unique bodies, but that boy has a chance of getting to the very top, like me.”

“The very top… is it really the very top?…”

‘In the end, even a tenth-tier died when faced against them, just how much stronger… Do I have to become to put an end to this disaster?

Forget about that, thinking over it right now won’t change anything’

“I am not sure he’ll be able to fulfill your expectations, but if he really does have such talent, and could get so far by being taught by you, then who am I to clip his wings?

There is a problem though… How will you teach him?”

“Using you of course…”

“Yeah, I thought so, but won’t that mean I’ll also learn the Frostbanes’ techniques?”

“Yeah… that doesn’t matter, I don’t really have a choice, do I?

You better make up for it if you are thankful”

“Alright, it’s settled then… a month from now to the end of the year, for about four weeks, I will lend you my time for one hour every day in order to teach him.

I won’t do any more than that”

“That’s enough… thank you”

“Oh… I got a ‘thank you’ from the Frostbane’s heir, I guess all my promises were worth it”

“Funny aren’t you?”

Caelan replied to the teasing.

“I guess we’ll just have to wait for him to wake up”

Hans commented yawning.

But causing him to take a second look more carefully was Caelan, who said:

“I wouldn’t be so sure about that if I were you”

“Pardon?”

“The kid… it seems like he’s about to get up”

A wave of mana was spread across the room, and with it, a breeze lifted Hans’s hair.

The young man’s leaps twitched as he watched his student’s talent unfold.

Both Hans and Caelan thought in unison:

“That’s my student right there!”

The fourth circle had just been created, and all that was left to do was stabilize it.

It was a tedious job that required finding the right position for the circle, but it usually didn’t take long.

“It seems like your judgment was spot on… He won’t have any trouble keeping up with the Frostbanes’ unique absorption abilities.”

“I wouldn’t say so… he’s still not as good as us”

“And there you go with your family’s pride once again…”

Hans congratulated Colton and gave him clear instructions about how he should proceed.

“First of all, you must improve your current level, otherwise you’ll fail my test, I won’t teach any of you if you cannot improve as I expect you to.

No exceptions made…

Now that we have some time of peace, it’s better to strengthen the foundations of your spells, even if your circle will remain the same for a long time while training with meditation instead of leveling up, your wisdom will be higher compared to that of those in your same tier, and your control over the spells will improve as well.”

“Yes, thank you for the advice teacher”

Hans was left alone in his room, where he could finally get the answer he wanted from Caelan.

“Now tell me, what is wisdom? What do we mages cultivate?”

“Wisdom… I’ve never heard that word, but I can feel its meaning, we mages cultivate wisdom, and unlike strength or endurance, wisdom belongs to us, not to our bodies”

“What do you mean!?”

“I mean what I just said, wisdom is the power that does not belong to the world, like mana, or like our body, it is our existence, the very root of our being”

“Is wisdom related to our souls?”

“Souls…”

Caelan took a few seconds to think about the meaning of the word before answering:

“No, it is not related to our souls, but to our own being”

“What does that mean?! You aren’t making any sense?”

“Souls are just like bodies, they are temporary, and if someone were to switch bodies or souls, their abilities as warriors would change, however, mages are different.”

“How are we different? Don’t we also have to improve by creating circles?”

“We do not shape our bodies, it is our bodies who shape themselves to keep up with our existence…

Circles are just… means to let all of our existence be unleashed through our bodies.”

‘I still cannot make any sense out of what he’s saying, but I doubt he’s lying.

If what he says is true, then Wisdom would be… the ‘king’ of the stats.’

“Caelan, you said some people train their bodies or their souls right?”

“Right, the goddess said so herself”

“If so, that must mean there are some people who can use their souls to aid them in battle”

“I think so too, but I have never met them, I heard some apostles talk about them being creatures similar to humans but with slight differences in their bodies, I am not sure about the limit of their capabilities.”

“I see…”

‘That sounds right, but thinking about it from an external perspective, it doesn’t make any sense…

Here on Earth, for those who believe it exists, we have always thought of the soul as our representation beyond the human body.

But hearing what Caelan said, it seems like just like the body, the soul is not the source of the mage’s power.

If that’s truly the case then… does it mean a mage would be able to switch bodies, and even souls, without losing themself and their power?’

“It seems like you’ll have to sort out your thoughts a bit, I will step out.

If you could send me back…”

Caelan did not have to repeat himself, and just a few moments later, the connection between Hans’s circles and the dark power was cut off, sending the man back to the plain of darkness.

Hans, trying to make sense of what he had just come to know, spent the rest of his day inside his room, thinking about a meaning he could attribute to his own existence.

In the meantime, someone had just returned to the academy after a few days of vacation, her sunglasses slightly tilted, her skin almost burnt, and her face painted with a wide smile.

Ava Rivera, the dean of the American Academy, seemed to have just returned from a long holiday.

“Ha… it’s good to be back, and it’s also good to move around… I’ve been stuck in the same position for the last week…

Shall we go and see… how the students’ progress is going”

The days were shortening because of winter’s arrival, and by the time the sky was covered in a dark veil, Hans still hadn’t managed to conclude anything.

Hoping to get some fresh air to run his brain with, he opened the window and stared at the countless beautiful stars in the distant sky.

They were quite distant from the city, so the light pollution wasn’t as bad as the one in the center of LA.

At that exact moment, the phone that had been resting in his pocket for the last few days, with only a sliver of percentage left, vibrated.

Hans took it up and watched the notification:

“Today’s events:

My birthday”

A notification from the calendar.

“That’s right, how could I forget that?…

I’m nineteen now”