Chapter 191: Spell Formulas

"Sorry, I didn't quite catch that."

Cuique moved her hand away from the cup, placing it naturally to the side, and her gaze shifted along with her hand: "That statement is a bit too vague."

The words left her mouth, but they seemed not to reach the other person, because Xia Liang continued to look at Cuique without opening her mouth to explain the meaning of her previous remark.

This state did not last long, but to Cuique's perception, it felt like years passing in seconds, making even the act of blinking seem infinitely prolonged.

Then, accompanied by a "pfft," Xia Liang covered her mouth and began to laugh.

"Why make it so tense? The atmosphere is so strange."

After laughing for a while, she straightened up and waved her hand: "There's no other meaning, just a thought I had regarding improving my strength."

"Look, haven't I already reached the Hua Ye level recently? Junior Senior, you've already briefly explained some basic knowledge to me before. I feel the timing is now quite mature, so shouldn't we..."

"You want to formally begin learning spell formulas?"

Blinking her eyes, Cuique gradually realized what was happening: "So that's why you came to find me at this hour?"

"... I guess so."

Her smile slightly faded, but Xia Liang still nodded: "After all, the progress in increasing my mana shouldn't be enough to promote me to the Lei level in a short time. To improve my combat ability, spell formulas are the best method."

"Improve combat ability, huh?"

Hearing this, Cuique pondered for a moment: "When you promoted before, I should have told you that if you want to maintain the fastest promotion speed, it's best to only dabble in spell formulas, learning only a few necessary practical techniques. Otherwise, researching spell formulas will occupy a large amount of your cultivation time, causing your promotion speed to slow down."

"Mm, I know." Xia Liang softly agreed.

"So, when you say 'want to learn spell formulas,' to what specific extent do you mean?"

Cuique raised her eyes: "Is it 'learning some simple techniques' to improve your adaptability in actual combat; or 'making spell formulas the main research direction for the future,' letting spell formulas become your primary combat method?"

"For now... it should be the first one, right?"

Xia Liang tapped her chin: "But it's not entirely certain, because I don't know how my talent is in the direction of spell formulas. If I confirm my talent is good, wouldn't it be nice to go a bit deeper?"

"A very rational choice."

Cuique nodded: "Many magical girls understand spell formulas as the 'magic' in fairy tales, thinking that after becoming a magical girl, mastering a wide variety of 'magic' is the right path, not realizing that this actually goes against the essence of a magical girl's abilities."

"Regardless, for a magical girl, the most important thing is one's true form, which is mana. Spell formulas are just 'tools,' just 'weapons.' Just like grappling techniques in ordinary people's hand-to-hand combat, no matter how exquisite the skill, when facing a huge physical gap, it is no different from a mayfly shaking a tree, and cannot produce a decisive effect."

She continued explaining: "Of course, precisely because of this understanding, my research into spell formulas is not deep. You can consider this a conclusion given by an outsider out of ignorance; there is no problem with that."

"So, Junior Senior, you actually don't recommend I research spell formulas too much?" Xia Liang asked.

"As you said yourself, it ultimately depends on your talent. If your talent in spell formulas is very outstanding, and researching spell formulas yields twice the result with half the effort compared to cultivating mana, then that path is not impossible to take."

While saying this, Cuique paused, then added: "Or, if you say your interest lies in spell formulas, then I won't stop you..."

"No interest, at least not any special interest right now."

Xia Liang waved her hand again: "Anyway, I already know, Junior Senior. You just want to tell me not to neglect mana cultivation, right? Don't worry, I won't forget."

Having had her intentions exposed by Xia Liang's words, Cuique didn't feel there was any problem. She simply leaned back slightly, resting against the chair back, as if thinking about something.

After pondering for a moment like this, she seemed to make some sort of decision and spoke again: "In that case, let me ask you: if I say I will teach you spell formulas right now—would you be willing?"

Although Xia Liang had come over on her own initiative, the time was already quite late; in a little while, it would be eleven o'clock. If they started explaining the composition of spell formulas now, both of them might have to stay up very late before sleeping.

She herself didn't mind—after all, the document work was mostly handled, and staying up late was normal for her. But Xia Liang was still a child; sleeping too late is bad for both her body and her studies.

"Sure."

However, whether she hadn't considered it or simply didn't care, Xia Liang herself seemed to think without any deliberation and nodded very calmly: "After all, there isn't much time left, right? For the competition with those people in Bai'an City."

"... Sorry. I imposed this kind of task on you without permission."

"It's fine. Junior Senior and Miss Asou must have your own considerations. I knew that from the very beginning."

Xia Liang smiled lightly: "Rather, it's precisely because I have a lot of drive for this matter. Whether it's the competition or the upcoming assessment, I want to win, which is why I came to find you."

"The upcoming assessment..."

Hearing this, Cuique couldn't help but raise an eyebrow: "Can I understand this sentence as 'I have already decided to participate in the assessment'?"

She hadn't expected that Xia Liang would be the first to come and express her stance on this matter.

After all, whether it was Lin Xiaolu or Bai Jingxuan, they both seemed a bit more impatient. Whether they 'wanted to go' or 'didn't want to go,' those two children should have been the ones to reveal it first.

As for Xia Liang, this child obviously considered various matters more thoroughly, and her progress in mana cultivation was also very smooth. Analyzing the current situation, she actually didn't need to be in such a hurry to obtain a small qualification certificate.

"Of course. After all, only by obtaining the certificate does the beginning of 'standing on one's own feet' start, right?"

Xia Liang tilted her head: "I have already become a magical girl. In that case, I must definitely aim to 'do better.' There is no reason to stop at the current point."

"But next year's assessment will be much more dangerous than in previous years..." Cuique subconsciously tapped her fingers on the table again.

"No matter how dangerous, it is still held under the guard of the Magic Kingdom and with the protection of many examiners, right?" Xia Liang countered: "That is to say, no matter how dangerous it is, ultimately someone is responsible for providing a safety net, right?"

"Theoretically, that is correct, but accidents can still happen."

"After all, it's just an accident. No matter what, it is safer than encountering a real crisis."

Xia Liang responded seriously: "Perhaps Junior Senior thinks my consideration is too taken for granted, but I feel that if one doesn't dare to face this 'simulated Great Beast Disaster' under such heavy protection, wouldn't one be even more at a loss when facing a real disaster?"

"You might not know exactly what level of event a Great Beast Disaster is." Cuique tapped the table, her brows slightly furrowed: "Even if it is just a simulation, it cannot be underestimated."

"But it is ultimately just a simulation, right?"

A slight smile curled Xia Liang's lips: "If we encounter a real Great Beast Disaster in the future, would the magical girl who has experienced the simulation adapt better, or would the magical girl encountering it for the first time perform better? Without a doubt, it would be the former, right?"

It was sheer sophistry. To throw oneself into a crisis that could be instinctively avoided just to rehearse a major crisis that was unlikely to happen sounded truly strange.

Cuique very much wanted to say this, but she had no way to open her mouth to refute it—because delving into her heart, she herself held similar thoughts.

If, when she first learned the content of the assessment, her subjective will was more critical and rejecting, then after calming down for a few days, regarding the content of this assessment, she actually had a bit more understanding.

No matter how much she worried about the children's safety, no matter how uneasy she felt about it, the rationality within her heart told her that actually, what Xia Liang said was correct.

If she really didn't want the juniors to participate, she would only need to find an excuse to forbid them from going; she wouldn't even need an excuse. There was absolutely no need for her to give statements like 'respecting free choice' as she is doing now.

Being conflicted like this ultimately happened because her rationality could not overcome her emotions, and her emotions could not completely overwhelm her rationality. To be honest, even she felt that this series of decisions was utterly confused, with no normal logic at all.

"Besides, Junior Senior, you will go yourself, right?"

And Xia Liang, as if able to see through Cuique's thoughts, leaned forward slightly, her misty eyes shimmering with some inexplicable emotion: "If Junior Senior goes, do I have any reason not to? I believe in you from the bottom of my heart."

The emotion in the girl's eyes made Senior Cuique unable to help but avert her gaze once more.

She could not respond to such emotion; perhaps the best course was to play dumb.

"... Since you have already made your decision, and time is growing late, let us quickly discuss the technique."

Awkwardly shifting the previous topic, Senior Cuique spoke in a somewhat hoarse tone: "The techniques I have mastered are not many, so I will begin by teaching you the simplest, and thus most practical, one."

"Little Senior, you are cunning." Xia Liang narrowed her eyes in slight displeasure.

"The first technique is one you should have encountered many times before; it can be said to be the most fundamental of all techniques, and the one that most significantly enhances a Magical Girl's combat capability—the Mana Barrier."

Regarding Xia Liang's small mood, Senior Cuique pretended not to see it, continuing to tilt her head and speaking in a steady voice: "Using a Mana Barrier can block an opponent's mana attacks and allow you to secure a better position. At the same time, the Mana Barrier has numerous advanced and variant forms; when mastery of this technique is reached, whether it be attacks from magical armor, techniques, or even the lairs of Remnant Beasts, can be blocked to a certain extent."

"For most Magical Girls, mastering techniques is also a crucial lesson in compensating for one's own shortcomings—because not all Magical Girls' magical armor can provide fully comprehensive abilities; some lack offensive means, while others possess no defensive capabilities. The Mana Barrier is vital for those Magical Girls whose armor cannot provide protection."

Raising her hand, Senior Cuique spread her palm before Xia Liang; then, from her sleeve, strings of fine, rune-like mana condensations emerged, drilling out. As if controlled, they arranged themselves neatly in her palm before suddenly bursting forth with light.

Almost at the same moment the light burst forth, an invisible barrier suddenly materialized around Senior Cuique, taking on an arched appearance and separating her from Xia Liang.

"This is the process of forming a Mana Barrier; you should have seen it before. However, in actual combat, its formation will be much faster than just now."

Maintaining the mana barrier around her, Senior Cuique said indifferently: "I just slowed down the entire process of the technique's formation. Can you see what the most critical part of this is?"

"The most critical part..."

Xia Liang blinked her eyes: "Is it that mana flow that looks strangely shaped?"

"A strangely shaped mana flow?"

Hearing this, Senior Cuique twitched the corner of her mouth but quickly regained her composure: "That is not entirely wrong, but I should have mentioned before that this mana flow has its own specific name; we generally call it a 'Rune'. The runes used by Magical Girls in techniques are generally called 'Favor Runes'."

"Favor Runes are the basic units constituting a technique. We carve mana into the shape of runes, then arrange and combine these runes to guide the flow of our mana going forward, thereby forming the technique."

"In other words, Favor Runes can be understood as the words of a technique. After we use runes to piece together a name referring to a certain technique, all mana used thereafter will be infused into this technique until we activate the runes to trigger the technique, or scatter the runes to make it cease."

"I don't quite understand." Xia Liang spoke bluntly.

"You don't understand... then just think of Favor Runes as a foreign language."

Senior Cuique found this unsurprising: "Just as when you learn a foreign language, you must first master the letters, then the words, and finally learn how to combine them into sentences. Favor Runes are a language of the Magical Realm; runes are the letters of that foreign language. You need to learn how to spell words with them, while high-level techniques are equivalent to sentences, that is, combinations of many words."

Saying this, Senior Cuique actively dispersed the barrier around her, once again condensing runes in her hand and arranging them neatly: "Just like this now; the structure formed by these runes represents the meaning of 'Barrier'."

"Eh..." Xia Liang looked at the runes in Senior Cuique's hand and let out a meaningless sigh.

"However, merely arranging the runes does not mean the technique is complete; indeed, one could say such a technique is only half done."

Senior Cuique suddenly added: "If the next step is not performed, the runes are merely mana structures that are neatly arranged and look very flashy, possessing no actual significance."

"Obviously, because Favor Runes are not the technique itself; they are merely a command we use to employ the technique, a key. Or rather, until we construct the runes, not a single bit of the consumed mana has been used on the technique."

"To turn the key into the technique, to make the command reality, the final thing we need to do is very simple."

Saying this, the Favor Runes in Senior Cuique's palm gradually burst with light: "Infuse mana, and let these runes come alive."

(End of this chapter)