"Mana is everywhere," Matt explained. "Earth doesn't have very much of it, so you can't use powerful magic there, but here on Tetra mana is overflowing from the planet's core."
Jedi soaked up as much information as he could from this long magic lesson. Having his own system was already a dream come true, but being able to invent his own power on top of it? He might die from the excitement alone.
Matt continued, "However, there are many limitations. Firstly, your spells may only have one focus. Once you choose that focus, it will appear in one of your magic slots. A champion whose focus is fire will find it impossible to cast ice magic. Secondly, the more powerful a spell is, the more mana it consumes."
All of this was pretty self-explanatory as far as Jedi was concerned, but he'd feel bad interrupting Matt's lesson. Looked like he was taking a lot of pride in teaching him for some reason.
"This is the most important part." Matt's voice deepened. "Magic is all about equal exchange. The more you're willing to give, the more you will get. When mana is not enough, magic will begin to take from you by force. Some people sacrifice their limbs. Others lose their lives. I caution you against trying to use magic that's too powerful. Things like time travel, although possible in theory, always come at a price."
Jedi gulped at the sudden shift in Matt's goofy attitude and took the advice to heart. That being said, he already had a pretty good idea of what he wanted his magic focus to be.
"What do you think about gravity magic?" Jedi asked excitedly.
"Oh, that'll kill you for sure," Matt replied casually.
That was a letdown, but not entirely outside expectations. Jedi was just testing the waters with that one. The magic he truly wanted was something he'd thought about his whole life. It was as if he was born for it.
"Alright, I've got an idea, but how do I get it into my magic slot?" Jedi asked.
Before Matt could respond, the system was already chiming in Jedi's ear.
"The Champion's soul wants to learn Force magic. Accept?
Warning: Once a focus is obtained the choice is irreversible."
Matt looked at the system message floating beside Jedi and stroked his beard.
"Force magic, huh? Well, the inspiration is obvious, but I've never seen anything like it before. You'll be creating your own branch of magic from scratch, which is easier said than done."
Jedi didn't look concerned at all. Whether that was ignorance or confidence was yet to be seen.
"I don't care about any of that," Jedi said firmly. "What I do want to know is whether or not you think I'll explode while using it."
Matt thought for a moment, then shook his head.
"As long as you don't try to send people to the moon or something, I think you'll be fine."
The excitement on Jedi's face was palpable as he accepted the system proposal.
"Congratulations! You have learned Force magic!
Quest Alert: Take your first steps as a champion and learn your first spell.
Reward: +1 level."
Jedi thought that upon choosing a magic type he'd feel a surge of power or get a new outfit. That was not the case. There was basically no change in him whatsoever.
However, something within his system had changed. The screen, previously a dull gray, was now a dark purple. Insignificant, but cool. Matt's screen had been bright orange, so he assumed there might be some customization.
Matt nodded at the new messages.
"Congrats, kid. You've got some magic. Now you've got to learn some spells before we can get out of this cave. Please take my advice on this one: don't try to create a super strong spell at first. You don't have nearly enough mana for that. Something small will do, and ideally it should be defensive."
While Matt was talking, Jedi was already testing his new ability. He really had paid attention to Matt's lessons—the important bits anyway.
Magic is limited by your imagination.
What you can imagine, you can do.
Jedi focused on a small rock beside his foot. He stretched out his arm and tried lifting it with his mind.
Nothing happened.
"Matt, you're a dirty liar," Jedi complained. "I'm more than capable of imagining a rock floating. Nothing's happening."
Matt chuckled.
"Yeah, you're not ready to use magic freely like that yet. Make a spell first, then shout out the name of that spell. You had the right idea pointing your arms as well. All of those things help bring life to the images in your mind. It's harder than you think."
Jedi closed his eyes and imagined the creation of a spell.
Name: Float
Function: Lift a target a few meters into the air.
A familiar chime echoed.
"Congratulations! You have created the spell: Float.
MP cost: 1 per second.
Cooldown: 0 seconds.
Congratulations! You have completed the quest: Create your first spell.
Reward: + 1 level.
"Congratulations! You have reached Level 1. One skill point is available for you to allocate."
Jedi smirked and pointed at the rock.
"Float!"
A purple aura surrounded the stone, and it rose above Jedi's head. When he dropped his arms, the rock dropped as well.
"You're a quick learner, kid!" Matt said proudly, slapping Jedi on the back. "Must've had a good teacher. Now that that's in order, you ready to get out of here?"
Jedi still had more spells in mind.
"Just one second."
He closed his eyes again.
Name: Push
Function: Produce a pushing force similar to one he could create with his own hands.
"Congratulations! You have created the spell: Push.
MP cost: 2.
Cooldown: 0 seconds."
Satisfied, Jedi opened his eyes.
"Let's get out of here!"
But as he stepped away from the fire, he remembered a very important detail. He was still wearing next to nothing on a frozen mountaintop.
He slowly turned toward Matt with a forced smile.
"You got any spare gear, Mister Matteo?"
Matt burst out laughing and extended an arm.
A moment later, a parka materialized out of thin air.
"Might be a bit big on you, but anything's better than what you've got on right now."
Jedi gratefully accepted the oversized coat. He wanted to ask how Matt pulled it out of thin air, but decided to save the questions for later.
As they stepped out of the cave, Jedi noticed the blizzard had calmed, revealing the beauty of the mountain range.
"So how do we get down from here?" he asked.
Matt gave him a confused look.
"Down? Nah buddy, we're going up. I came to these mountains to do my own quest, remember? And I intend on finishing it."
Before Jedi could ask what the quest was, Matt shoved his screen in Jedi's face.
"Quest: Slay a Giant Slugberg.
Reward: Slugberg crystal."
Jedi had no idea what a Slugberg was, but he had a good feeling he didn't want to find out. Still, he followed Matt up the mountain.
"This guy's level 50. If a monster shows up, I'm sure he can take it," Jedi thought.
As if the universe heard him, two massive monsters appeared.
Their bodies were tall and cylindrical. Their heads rocked back and forth as they waddled, as if constantly on the verge of falling over. White fur covered their bodies except for their massive blue feet and huge blue lips.
"Ah, a perfect opportunity," Matt said. "Those are Yeti Logs. If you didn't almost freeze to death, you might've had to kill one of these to get your awakening. Now you really get to test out those new spells."
Jedi's heart began to race.
He was supposed to kill these behemoths?
How?
Before he could protest, Matt had already hidden behind a nearby rock. The yetis, previously strolling, now locked onto Jedi.
"Well… it's do or die," Jedi thought, raising his fists in what he hoped was a boxing stance.
The first yeti charged.
"Holy crap, that thing's faster than it looks!" Jedi yelped, turning to run.
It didn't matter. The yeti was much faster. It leaped, jaws wide open.
Jedi barely dodged left as it crashed headfirst into the snow.
"That would've killed me for sure."
He was panicking. His heart pounded. Sweat dripped despite the cold.
The second yeti was already airborne, even faster than the first.
Jedi didn't turn around until it was already upon him.
With barely a meter between him and the creature's jaws, Jedi thrust out his arms and shouted:
"PUSH!"