Chapter 888: Awaki Musujime's Resentment
Inside an abandoned warehouse, darkness enveloped the space, carrying a faint, musty odor.
Click. A metal lighter flicked open, a small flame dispelling some of the darkness, illuminating a man's face.
A cigarette was lit, and the smell of tobacco gradually filled the warehouse.
"Stiyl, smoking is bad for your health. Take care of yourself; you're still young," a woman's voice sounded.
"So what? Before I die of lung disease, I'll probably have already died in battle, maybe even soon," Stiyl said with a self-deprecating laugh. He lit the cigarette to mask the smell of blood in the warehouse and to hide the stabbing pain in his heart. He sensed something was wrong, not from the enemy but from within their own ranks.
The man and woman in the warehouse fell silent, the quietness broken only by the sound of a pin dropping.
Sure. The sound of something crawling echoed. Hearing this, Stiyl snapped his fingers, and a ball of flame rose in front of him. Stiyl specialized in fire magic, and with the aid of runes, he could wield powerful fire spells.
In the world of A Certain Magical Index, magicians differed from most others. Most magicians used mana as their primary power source, supplemented by elemental communication to cast spells. In A Certain Magical Index, magicians used runes as the primary medium, with mana as a supplement, rarely communicating with elements. This approach minimized self-consumption, reducing mana usage significantly. Without runes, these magicians were practically useless, unable to cast powerful spells and requiring temporary magic circles for even basic spells.
Both methods had their strengths and weaknesses. Mana-based magicians excelled in skirmishes, while rune-based magicians excelled in fortifications.