The Ascendant Wizard

The AI began recording immediately.

Morena avoided blinking or moving her eyes away from the faint circle hovering above the booklet just so it wouldn’t miss anything. The structure was not large, barely the size of her palm, but it was so complex that she couldn’t even begin to understand it.

At first glance, it looked simple: a circle, three short marks along the outer edge, a thin thread curling inward toward the center, and several smaller symbols arranged between them. But it was anything but simple; each symbol was countless tiny markings of the spell language, and even the circle was carved in a specific pattern.

The thread curling inward was the connection to the Matrix, allowing the caster to push mana through the structure and release it outward in a controlled pulse.

That alone made it different from the fragmented diagrams she had seen in theory books.

’So this is what I paid for.’

One hundred and fifteen points.

A ridiculous price for such a small booklet, but after seeing the actual spell structure, she understood why the Tower charged so much. Something like this probably took countless years of innovation to even research.

She couldn’t begin to imagine how the founders of the wizard path even walked it.

[Recording complete.]

[External binding detected.]

Morena’s eyes narrowed slightly.

’External binding?’

[The spell structure contains restrictive marks linked to the booklet seal and the user’s badge.]

[Function: Prevent unauthorized display, replication, and transfer.]

’Can you still record it?’

[Affirmative. Internal memory recording successful. However, attempting to output the full structure to another medium may trigger the restriction.]

Morena clicked her tongue softly.

’So even the booklet itself is a trap.’

It made sense.

The Tower would never allow apprentices to simply buy one spell and then copy it for all their friends. She could store it, study it, and analyze it inside her own mind, but if she tried to draw the structure down or show it to someone else, the Tower would likely know.

’Analyze the structure. If possible, try to find a way to remove the restriction, but it’s not a priority right now.’

[Understood.]

The faint circle remained floating above the page, slowly rotating as the AI separated it into smaller sections inside her mind.

[0-Circle Spell: Sensory Pulse.]

[Category: Mental-leaning Perception Spell.]

[Primary Function: Release a weak mana pulse outward and interpret nearby movement, mana disturbance, and object resistance through returning feedback.]

[Required Conditions: Formed Matrix. Basic mana control. Stable mental focus.]

[Risk Level: Low.]

[Weaknesses: Poor range. Poor detail. High mana loss during release. Requires interpretation from caster.]

Morena read through the analysis carefully, her finger tapping against the desk as she did.

’Requires interpretation.’

It was an interesting part that the AI made sure to point out; she doubts that the AI would’ve pointed it out if it wasn’t important.

A normal apprentice would cast it and then rely on their own senses to understand what returned. To them, the spell would likely feel like a vague awareness of movement around them.

But Morena had the AI.

If the spell returned even a little information, the AI could record it, compare it, and build a model from it. That meant the spell was not as useless to her as it might be for others.

"Can it be improved?"

[Possible. Current structure contains inefficient channels and weak return.]

[Recommendation: Improve before binding to the user.]

At her current stage, the spell she learned would be her foundational spell. Most stages had such a spell, which required the person to carve the spell inside their mental space, and in doing so, it would remain as a permanent part of them; this came with various benefits.

Once a spell had been carved, it could not be removed or altered normally.

The third-level apprentice at the Spell Hall had warned her not to alter it, but that was because most apprentices didn’t have the means to alter a spell. It was dangerous and very foolish.

Most people didn’t have what Morena had; she had the AI. With the help of the AI, she could theoretically analyze and research alterations to the spell at rates that no other apprentice could.

Just like she had done with the meditation method, she could do the same with the spell. Improve it, not just the way she wanted it to be, but also the best way to suit her.

It would not only make the spell more useful, better even, but it would also make carving it much easier.

But that was only if she could make the changes properly.

If she altered the wrong part or changed too much, the spell could become more unstable than before. Worse, if she carved such a flawed spell into her Matrix, then it would become a permanent issue that would follow her forever.

She was not foolish enough to think the AI could make anything perfect with no information.

"AI, list possible improvement routes. Only ones with current data. Don’t speculate beyond what can be supported."

[Understood.]

The spell structure in her mind changed. The complete circle remained in place, but several parts were highlighted one after another.

[Possible Improvement Route One: Connection Reinforcement.]

[Purpose: Reduce mana leakage between Matrix and spell structure.]

[Risk: Low.]

[Limit: Does not improve returned sensory detail.]

Morena looked over the highlighted thread.

It was the safest option. The connection thread was the part that linked the Matrix to the spell. Strengthening it would make the mana flow smoother and reduce waste, but it would not solve the spell’s poor information quality.

Useful, but not enough on its own.

[Possible Improvement Route Two: Channel Compression.]

[Purpose: Narrow and strengthen the outward channel.]

[Risk: Low to Medium.]

[Limit: Excessive compression may reduce detection width.]

The channel glowed next. It was the part that released mana outward from the spell, and by making it more compact, the spell could likely reach further, but that also meant the pulse might become too narrow.

A wider pulse could detect more around her, while a narrower pulse could go further, but miss things. Neither was strictly better; it depended on what she wanted the spell to do.

[Possible Improvement Route Three: Return Filtration.]

[Purpose: Reduce useless feedback before it reaches user’s perception.]

[Risk: Medium.]

[Limit: Requires additional spell language detail. Current dataset incomplete.]

The third option made her pause for a moment.

The return filtration was the part she cared about most. If the spell gave back messy, vague information, the AI could help sort it, but there was still a limit. Cleaner feedback meant the AI would have better data from the beginning.

But the risk was higher as adding new details meant adding complexity, and the AI did not have enough complete spell models to guarantee safety.

[Possible Improvement Route Four: Mental Affinity Adjustment.]

[Purpose: Improve compatibility with user’s Mental affinity.]

[Risk: Medium to High.]

[Limit: Alters spell foundation. Requires more Mental spell data.]

If she could make the spell more suited to her Mental affinity, then it would become more valuable as a foundation. It could possibly make future Mental spells easier to learn as well, or even become the type of spell that grew with her.

But the risk was too high.

She only had one complete Mental-leaning spell. Altering the identity of the spell with such little data was no different from guessing with more steps.