"Hello, boys. I just finished my shift at the Order Hall and decided to drop in on my favorite students." Sansa strutted in, bumping Ethan lightly to the side as she took the only chair in the room.
Alan, still lounging on the bed, retorted with a snort. "Don't flatter yourself. You couldn't even clean the shoes of the one we call 'Master'."
The lazy comment left Sansa utterly speechless.
Ethan, seeing this, felt a wave of satisfaction. "Don't worry, it's like a God-given talent of his. The moment he opens his mouth, he creates this reaction. I bet he could evolve it into a proper skill one day."
Sansa, puffed up with mock anger at being ganged up on, narrowed her eyes. "You'd think you two little monkeys would respect your ancestors a little more... Hmmnn, let's see who answers your questions correctly today."
Seeing Alan open his mouth to speak again, Ethan felt threatened and shouted before a single word could escape. "Of course, my Lady Sansa! How could we ever doubt the prestige your name carries? I'd serve you tea, but as you can see, my lady, we are just two poor initiates in the Order. Nobodies, I tell you."
Ethan delivered the entire speech shamelessly without batting an eyelid. Sansa, witnessing the totally convincing act, didn't know whether to be impressed or annoyed, knowing he didn't mean a single word.
Ethan immediately joined Alan on the bed, sitting opposite Sansa. "Did you start timing our tutorial the moment you stepped in?"
Smiling, she replied, "Of course. Do you think I just love spending time with the two of you? An hour is really cutting into my schedule." Ethan nodded; he'd seen her tap her soulband the moment she entered.
"Okay, I'll get right into it," Ethan began. "First, I want to ask: can the Initiate rank learn spells?"
Sansa tapped a finger on the arm of the chair. "Well, they can. But what's the use in learning something you couldn't use if you tried for a million years? Initiates can absorb energy, but have you ever tried channeling any of it? Its really simple you can't and that's because you don't have a core to store and channel the energy you need to form a spell structure. So do you understand now why I said it's useless?"
Ethan nodded, his mind racing to connect this new information with what he already knew from the journal.
"Can you just explain the whole process?" Alan asked impatiently, seeing that Ethan was lost in thought. "From start to the point where we can actually use the spells you know magic and stuff."
Sansa nodded. "This is beyond Initiate-level information. Fifty points, and I'll explain. Know that this is half of what you'd pay in the library for the lowest-tier tome on ranking up from Initiate to Soul Born."
Alan immediately glanced at Ethan, who gave a subtle nod. Alan transferred the points.
Sansa's expression became serious as the points hit her wallet. "Honestly, I was never going to skimp on this. I've told you some of it before, but now I'll explain it properly."
"The mortal body wasn't built to accommodate this Path. The Path lies in the soul instead, and that's what separates us from mortals. A regular mortal soul cannot handle an affinity. But we, blessed with the Path in our souls from birth, we have the chance to ascend. Each affinity is a Law and well, we call them 'affinities' because each soul blessed with the Path has a natural inclination towards a specific Law to study."
Ethan raised a hand, slowing her down. "About the Laws... do we have types? What are they?"
Sansa raised a brow, noticing the mischievous look Alan was struggling to contain. She answered anyway. "Of course, there are types. So far, I've confirmed two. I should charge you for this, but anyway... They are Master Laws and the Elemental Laws."
Ethan was shocked. She hadn't mentioned the Mind Laws at all. He shelved the thought, not about to reveal his knowledge. "What are their differences?"
Sansa thought for a moment, then shook her head. "Telling you their names and explaining their essence aren't the same things. You need to pay for that. One hundred points, nothing less. If not, forget about it."
Knowing this was critical—and that they could afford it after selling the rest of their stones—Ethan tapped his soulband, transferring fifty points from his dwindling reserve. "I sent fifty. Alan will cover what's left."
Alan, unbothered, made up the difference.
Sansa nodded, her day now thoroughly worthwhile. It had to be understood: she only earned 1500 points a month from her five-hour daily shifts at the Order Hall. Unlike battle ascendants, she avoided the battlefield, focusing on research despite her affinity for the destructive Fire Law.
"The Ascendant Path is set from birth with an affinity to a Law," Sansa continued, her tone lecturing but earnest. "We use research the law patterns to create our own spell structures but within a single law they are billions of patterns which each Law embodies."
She leaned forward. "The Master Laws are extremely powerful. That's why people with those affinities usually have powerful souls from the start, to handle the strain of peering into such a Law without shattering their soul on the first try. Elemental Laws are less mentally tasking, but that doesn't mean they're less powerful. You have to remember that the strength of an ascendant doesn't lie in the Law being used but instead focus on how it is used."
Ethan nodded, his mind whirring as the information from the journal began to click into place. "Do you know what these Master Laws are, exactly?"
Sansa folded her arms and fell silent for a moment, making Ethan's heart sink. "Don't tell me we have to pay again. That's just unfair at this point!"
Sansa laughed, waving him off. "Relax. The only Master Laws I know to exist are Time, Space, Creation, Death, Life, and Fate. As for the Elemental Laws, I don't need to waste my time listing each one."
"Hmnnnn... Creation, huh?" Ethan looked up, realizing he'd spoken his thought out loud. He coughed immediately, changing the subject. "So? the ranking-up process to the point where we can use actual spells? Can we get back to that?"
"Okay," Sansa said, picking up the pace. "First, you have to create your core. This will let you store the energy you absorb properly. But of course, you can't have a closed-off core; so you'll need energy pathways to channel energy into it and out of it. You don't have to worry about that since the Weaving technique covers the creation of these pathways. Forming the core is the main hurdle; the energy pathways are just an extra task if you ask me."
"When you finally have your core and energy pathways, you've officially stepped into the Soul Born rank. At this point, you must pick a spell specialization."
She held up a finger. "The first path is using Spell Patterns. This is the universal path and the only one that brings recognition from the World Will.
She held up a second finger. "Body Runes. Ascendants on this path use their bodies to assimilate their Path; they continuously refine magical runes that let them cast a specific spell drawn directly on their skin. Of course, this path's benefit lies in continuous, instant casting with its low energy consumption."
"But it has a disadvantage in the astronomical cost of inscribing even a single low-rank rune, and the fact that the low energy cost comes from a lack of fine control; you can't easily manipulate the spell from the rune."
She held up a second finger. "The second path is Spell Structures. This is the universal path and the only one that brings recognition from the World Will. That's what every Soul Born rank hopes for."
Ethan, hearing the mention of the World Will, was shocked. Leo had mentioned it in passing, but he didn't think it was common knowledge. "Hold on, can you explain this 'World Will' thing?"
Sansa immediately raised an eyebrow and shook her head. "I won't even give you a price for that information now. Try asking me again when you reach the Soul Born rank." She smirked, a look that pissed Ethan off, but he pushed his frustration down.
"Okay then, continue please. Body Runes and Spell Structures. That's all available, or?"
"Well, there's still one more. But this last path is just too resource-draining. And only those Creation bastards use it. They are called Spell Stones." A flicker of her earlier disdain returned. "The Creation affinity, as a Master Law, is unlike any other Law.
"The first spell most of their Initiates learn, from what I know, is a Body Rune spell. "The Elemental Eyes spell. Because, unlike other affinities that can only see patterns of their own Laws, they can see into any Law, matter anything at all. And if they can get the combination right... They can use Creation energy to make well.... literally anything."
Ethan was absolutely shocked. It seemed he had completely underestimated his second Law. But the main question burning in his mind now was far more complicated: How would he bring up the topic of dual affinities without looking suspicious?