Chapter 13: FRIH - 13
"'Ignite anything without fire?'" Frieren blinked, a puzzled expression dawning on her delicate features. What kind of magic was this? She had never encountered anything like it. The idea was beyond her comprehension; it seemed impossible.
The spellbook lay open between them, its ancient runes glowing faintly under the sunlight filtering through the window. Dust motes danced in the air, untouched by the weight of the revelation that had just been spoken.
All combustion, from the smallest spark to a raging fire, required an initial flame. Without a spark, how could anything ignite? Even fire magic involved converting mana into flames. To ignite something without fire implied that mana could spontaneously cause combustion. How was that possible?
Frieren had studied under the greatest magical minds for centuries. She had read grimoires from high mages and survived trials testing her arcane willpower. She had cast powerful spells, yet what she was reading here, what Ronan had casually explained, shattered her understanding of magic.
Magic was rooted in imagination, but that didn't grant it license to defy reality. Take cutting magic: theoretically capable of severing space, but no one had ever achieved it because neither elves nor humans could truly envision such a feat. Fire, she suspected, posed a similar challenge.
She turned her gaze downward, studying the magic circle etched on the page. It looked deceptively simple, too simple for what it claimed. Taking a deep breath, she tried to calm her thoughts. Had she misheard, or had Ronan misspoken? But then, she noticed his unwavering certainty.
His posture, voice, and calm confidence hinted at no doubt, which unnerved her. The idea that a young human could interpret a spell challenging her core understanding left her unsettled.
The protest on her lips faded. In that moment, she understood the elder's reluctance to let her study this spell. It was likely unlearnable, destined to erode her confidence. It was wiser to maintain its mystique.
For someone like her, who had spent centuries honing her magic, this spell would seem like an illusion, a fraud. The elder must have known offering it to her would only lead to frustration. Better to keep it locked away in legend than face the disillusionment of failure.
Ronan had been observing the shifts in her expressions, noticing her dejection.
He gently closed the book, concern lacing his voice. "Is something wrong? Do you not understand the spell? Or are you astonished by my ability to decipher it?"