"It is simply unbelievable... you actually succeeded!" Kael'thas said, his face a mask of pure shock.
Even though he had mentally prepared himself, even though he had a gut feeling that Anveena could do it, seeing it actually happen made him feel a certain unease. As a genius, his greatest fear was being surpassed. One can claim not to care, but who can truly be at peace with it in their heart?
Kael'thas was currently in a very bad mood, but what happened next was about to make his mind truly fracture.
"It's not just that, Kael'thas. Look closely at these fire elementals. They are completely different from the ones you summon. Their cores are more stable; they can exist permanently. Anveena has completed the plan we've had all along—the theory we've been chasing," Rhodes said, taking a deep breath as he shared his findings with Kael'thas.
Look, Kael, I know you're upset right now, but I have news that's going to make you even more upset.
"How is that possible? Rhodes, are you saying these elementals—these fire spirits—will exist forever? They won't dissipate after 24 hours?" Kael'thas's eyes widened, filled with disbelief.
"It... it seems so. When I analyzed the magic, I felt like this was its original form: creating a living being through one's own mana. It's a bit similar to what Teacher Krasus taught me. I tried to make some changes, and I successfully summoned them. The spell was quite difficult, but I mastered it and added a bit of my own understanding," Anveena said, excitedly raising her hand.
To her, the spell's true nature was meant to summon these permanent entities, but it had been altered by others so that ordinary mages could use it. However, she had spotted the discrepancies. Her "father," Krasus, had used powerful Life Magic to create her; there wasn't much difference between the two concepts. While these fire elementals could exist forever, they lacked self-awareness and followed her commands implicitly.
If the Red Dragonflight mastered this, they could easily conjure a permanent elemental army.
To Kael'thas, the girl's innocent smile now looked more terrifying than a devil, more frightening than a demon. Heavens, let this girl stay away from me! The further, the better. Please, don't show up in front of me again. I don't want to be around geniuses. I hate this spell! Damn it, why did I even study magic?
Seeing Kael'thas's expression—as if he had just swallowed something foul—Rhodes couldn't help but want to laugh. The scene felt oddly familiar. He recalled a scene from an anime he watched before his transmigration where a cautious hero studied under a goddess of the sword, only to leave her completely broken. Luckily, Anveena didn't have a sharp tongue, or Kael'thas might have collapsed entirely.
Rhodes realized he was the only one who could handle Anveena's terrifying learning speed, mainly because he was a "cheater" himself.
"Anveena, not every mage is as powerful as you. This version of the spell is impossible for ordinary mages. However, you could try to modify it—or pass the complete version to Kael. Let him refine it so an ordinary mage can summon one or two of these elementals for battle. That would be perfect," Rhodes said with a smile.
If they did that, mages—and even Paladins and Priests—would gain a spell to summon Light Elements.
"I... I can certainly help with that," Kael'thas said, coughing twice.
Despite his jealousy of Anveena's talent, Kael'thas desperately wanted to learn this trick. Once mastered, Quel'Thalas could give birth to a limitless army. The Blood Elves produced more mages than humans; with this spell, he could raise a terrifying military force in a very short time—a perfect "cannon fodder" legion that would play an indelible role in future conflicts.
"No problem, Brother Kael'thas! I'll transmit the spell to you right now. Stand still," Anveena nodded and stepped in front of him.
"You can just tell me the principles of the magic, the casting process, the runic inscriptions, and the incantation. I will study it in private," Kael'thas said. He believed that with the detailed structure, his own talent would allow him to master it in a few days—or a month at most—to prove his worth.
"Actually, it doesn't need to be that much trouble! I can just engrave the spell directly into your mind. That way, you won't need the fire elemental scroll; you'll be able to cast it yourself, and they'll be the permanent kind, too," Anveena said, scratching her head.
She remembered how Rhodes had used that blue, elemental-like creature (Somra) to imprint magic into her mind. She thought the method was interesting, efficient, and safe. She didn't want to bother with incantations and complex runic arrays. After seeing it done several times, she had learned the "teaching" ability herself, though she hadn't practiced it yet.
"......" Rhodes.
"......" Kael'thas.
Do you even hear yourself? "Engrave it directly into my mind"? What does that mean? What on earth does that mean?!
"Anveena, do you mean you can directly imprint a spell into a mind just like Somra can?" Rhodes asked, his hand trembling involuntarily. Are you the avatar of the Sunwell, or are you Azeroth's favorite daughter?
"Yes, Lord Rhodes. Somra's spell was very interesting, so... so I learned it," Anveena said cautiously.
At this point, it wasn't just Kael'thas who was "broken"—Rhodes felt like his heart couldn't take much more. Is this a joke? That's a Skill from the Heroes of Might and Magic world, not a spell! It's a "secondary skill"—it's basically Academic!
However, he realized this wasn't necessarily a bad thing. With her terrifying learning ability, he could actually "leech" spells back from her. Suddenly, it didn't seem so unacceptable. Anveena's value far exceeded his imagination; he had to keep this girl close. She was a future powerhouse—a "golden thigh" to cling to.
"Anveena, try to see if you can give the spell to Kael'thas first," Rhodes said, taking a deep breath.
"Okay, Lord Rhodes. Brother Kael, please stand in front of me. Relax your mind; don't think about anything," Anveena said.
Kael'thas nodded expressionlessly, suppressing his racing heart and forcing a strained, awkward smile. Anveena placed her small, white hand against Kael'thas's forehead and, mimicking Somra, attempted to imprint the entire construction of the spell into his mind.
Kael'thas felt a terrifying surge of power enter his head, making him feel dizzy, but it was immediately followed by a sun-filled, holy, and warm energy that shielded his consciousness. It felt wonderful. A unique spell appeared in his mind; as long as he had the mana, he could cast it effortlessly.
Rhodes, watching from the side, found it strange. Learning spells in Azeroth wasn't that easy; Jaina had nearly died of pain just learning a Level 1 spell and took a month to recover. But Kael'thas had just received a Level 5 spell. Usually, he should be rolling on the ground in agony, yet after a brief moment of discomfort, he looked like he was enjoying it.
"I added some improvements," Anveena said, turning to Rhodes with a smile. "Learning spells this way usually hurts the head, so I added some Holy Light to neutralize it. It makes it more comfortable."
Rhodes's lip twitched. You really are a little sweetheart, aren't you? Come on, give that ability to me! Right now!
"It is indeed very comfortable. My mind is perfectly clear, and I have mastered the spell. Thank you, Anveena. Let's... let's call it a day. I'm leaving," Kael'thas said, taking a deep breath and turning to walk away without looking back. He needed to be alone to process this.
"Brother, wait for me. Let's go have a drink; I need to clear my head too," Rhodes said, waving goodbye to Anveena as he chased after Kael'thas. He'd get her to teach him tomorrow; he didn't want any more "shocks" today.
"???" Anveena stood there, confused. Did I do something wrong?
Just then, Jaina returned after finally calming herself down outside. She saw Kael'thas and Rhodes walking off shoulder-to-shoulder and felt it was rather strange.
"Oh, you're just in time, Sister Jaina! I have a special spell I want to teach you," Anveena said, waving her hand. She was eager to try her new teaching ability again. Jaina had mentioned she wanted to learn Lightning Bolt, hadn't she?
"Oh? What spell is it?"