Chapter 28: The Hand of the High Mage

Joan slept soundly through the night and awoke feeling refreshed, clear-headed, and full of energy. As he had surmised the night before, sufficient rest rejuvenates the mind. Sitting in bed, he recalled the odd events from last night and soon arrived at a reasonable explanation.

To test his hypothesis, Joan cast “Inner Sight,” entering a meditative state. Dim lights and shadows coalesced into rows of data. His physical attributes were unchanged, but his class level had undergone a significant shift.

After just one night, Joan was no longer a mage apprentice; he had quietly advanced to a full-fledged Level 1 Mage. Along with this promotion, he gained the right to use First Circle Arcane spells. His mage level combined with his intelligence granted him two First Circle spell slots—so long as he enjoyed proper rest, he could access two First Circle spell slots daily by linking to the arcane web. Which spells to prepare depended on which First Circle arcane arts he had mastered.

Once the initial excitement faded, Joan realized he could not have advanced in mage rank without first grasping at least one First Circle spell. Conversely, since he was now a Level 1 Mage, it stood to reason he should have mastered at least one such spell, aligning with the logic of cause and effect.

Joan had never systematically learned any First Circle spells. Where, then, was the problem? Recalling last night’s unusual experience while practicing Mage’s Hand, Joan gradually discerned the crux of the matter.

Whether by sheer luck or thanks to his recent intensive training, Joan had gained new insights into “Mage’s Hand.” The magical energy he could channel through this spell had far exceeded the scope of a zero-circle cantrip, and without realizing it, he had upgraded it to “Greater Mage’s Hand.”

“Greater Mage’s Hand” required a First Circle spell slot to cast. After eight hours of sleep, Joan spent another hour in bed preparing his spells, filling both his First Circle slots with “Greater Mage’s Hand”—in truth, he had no other First Circle spells to choose from.

The shift from “Mage’s Hand” to “Greater Mage’s Hand” was a textbook case of quantity becoming quality, a pivotal subject in the magical theory of the Varesse world. Scholars had written enough research on this topic to fill an entire wall of bookshelves. Joan had studied this subject as well. Analyzing it from the perspective of the three core elements of spell construction, when a spell is elevated to a more advanced version, its basic function usually remains unchanged. For example, “Mage’s Hand” manipulates objects remotely; its enhanced version, “Greater Mage’s Hand,” retains this function. Therefore, the spell’s “seed” and “initiation glyphs” do not differ from the lower version. Similarly, the “casting material” usually remains the same before and after the upgrade. The only major change occurs in the “rules” element of the spell.

Take “Mage’s Hand”: its weight limit is about five pounds, with a base range of twenty-five feet. As the caster’s level increases, the range grows proportionally, but not dramatically.

When “Mage’s Hand” evolves into “Greater Mage’s Hand,” both weight limit and range—the two most crucial rule elements—change markedly. Joan’s own tests showed that “Greater Mage’s Hand” could lift up to forty pounds, eight times the original limit, and its basic range was one hundred feet, four times longer than before. Additionally, for each level Joan gained as a mage, the range of “Greater Mage’s Hand” increased by ten feet, whereas “Mage’s Hand” only increased by about two and a half feet per level—a quarter of the growth rate.

Comparing “Mage’s Hand” and “Greater Mage’s Hand” in full, Joan realized the latter was simply the former with improved weight and range; everything else remained the same. Even the spell’s duration was identical—as long as the caster maintained focus, “Greater Mage’s Hand” would persist.

There are generally two approaches to improving a spell. One is to identify flaws in the current design and make modest adjustments, maximizing the spell’s potential within its current circle—this is called “optimization.” Varesse boasts thousands of spells, some of which are optimized to perfection, such as the renowned “Fireball.” Its structure is nearly flawless, delivering the greatest power a Third Circle spell can muster.

Others, however, are less fortunate. Take the equally famous “Cone of Cold”—its original configuration lacks serious optimization. As a Fifth Circle spell, it is often less practical than Third Circle Fireball, making it a classic example of poor optimization.

The principle of optimization is to keep the spell’s circle unchanged. For instance, the energy limit of a Third Circle slot is ten degrees (group effect); the best-optimized Fireball fully utilizes this, but cannot exceed it. If it did, the Third Circle slot would be unable to contain such overwhelming power, and a Fourth Circle or higher slot would be required—at which point the process is no longer optimization, but the second method: “elevation.”

The magical energy required by “Greater Mage’s Hand” far surpasses the limit for a zero-circle cantrip, so its evolution from “Mage’s Hand” is a classic case of elevation, necessitating higher-level spell slots.

Joan could only access two First Circle spell slots per day, meaning he could cast “Greater Mage’s Hand” at most twice. For someone eager to study and practice this new spell, every slot was precious. Fortunately, if he remained deeply focused, “Greater Mage’s Hand” could persist indefinitely. To avoid wasting his slots, Joan informed Conti in advance and instructed Jamie to guard the door, locking himself in his room all day to practice “Greater Mage’s Hand” with undivided attention.

From dawn until late at night, for fourteen hours straight, Joan maintained spell concentration every single moment. For the first few hours, he was utterly absorbed, his mind clear and unwavering. As his familiarity with “Greater Mage’s Hand” grew, he realized he needn’t be so tense, so he tried to maintain focus while drinking water and eating dry rations. Several times he nearly lost concentration and the spell almost dissipated, but he recovered in time, narrowly averting disaster.

After eight hours, Joan could barely go on. Fatigue manifested as drowsiness and headaches; he sat dozing, feeling dizzy and nauseated. He knew the toll that prolonged focus would take on his nerves, but he refused to give up now. A mage’s talent hinges on intelligence, and since his intellect was hardly exceptional, he could only bridge the gap to genius with tireless effort and willpower.

Joan took out the “Tear of the Gods,” brewed a potion, and drank it to ease his mental fatigue. Through sheer determination, he managed another six hours before finally ending his concentration, collapsing onto the bed like a felled stump.

Half asleep, half awake, Joan remembered he still had one unused First Circle slot today—a waste, he thought with regret, and drifted off with that lingering disappointment.