[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-the-extra-s-rise":3,"chapter-the-extra-s-rise-the-extra-s-rise-chapter-13":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"english","The Extra's Rise",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},1512998,1965,"Chapter 13 Four-Circle Spells (1)","the-extra-s-rise-chapter-13",13,"\u003Cp>The next day's class was Spellcasting II—which, for a room full of fist-fighting prodigies, was the equivalent of handing a broadsword to an accountant and asking them to solve a duel with calculus.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The focus was on four-circle elemental spells. Most of us were far more comfortable breaking things with our bodies than with our minds.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Unlike the Body aspect, where raw instinct and sheer physical conditioning ruled, the Mind aspect required thought, precision, and an unfortunate amount of mathematics.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Spellcasting is a language,\" Nero Astrellan announced as he paced in front of us, his grey eyes scanning the class with the patience of a man who already knew exactly who would fail first.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"It is not merely throwing mana at your opponent and hoping something happens. It is calculation. Structure. Order.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He turned, raising a hand. With barely a flick of his fingers, a glowing four-circle sigil appeared before him, rotating lazily in the air, arcane glyphs shifting like pieces of an impossibly complex clock.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"This,\" he said, gesturing at the circles, \"is what separates an actual spell from the kind of half-baked mana blasts that untrained children throw around.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Circle Method was the backbone of all structured spellcasting. Each circle represented a layer of complexity, an additional component of control that enhanced the depth and precision of the spell.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>One-circle spells were the most basic—elemental manipulation, minor bursts of fire, lightning, ice, or whatever else your affinity dictated. Two-circle spells allowed for directed control—changing a fireball's shape, guiding wind currents, stabilizing unstable elements. Three-circle spells introduced multi-layered inputs, enabling spellcasters to combine properties and refine their casting speed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Four-circle spells,\" Nero continued, letting the one floating in front of him hum with energy, \"introduce the most crucial element of high-level spellcasting.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He let the sentence hang in the air, waiting for someone to guess.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cecilia, who had been lounging at her desk like this was all beneath her, lifted a single, perfectly-manicured finger.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Compression.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Nero nodded. \"Correct.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The higher the circle, the greater the complexity—but also the greater the difficulty in stabilizing the spell. At four circles, a spell had multiple interacting equations, requiring the caster to compress all of them into a singular controlled form before release. If done properly, the spell would be exponentially stronger. If done poorly, it would collapse. Possibly in the caster's face.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Which would be tragic for your survival,\" Nero added, \"but highly educational for the rest of us.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The class groaned.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The basis of the Circle Method was mathematics. Mana input. Spell coordinates. Force calculations. All of it had to be measured, controlled, and balanced perfectly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But then, just as the logic of spellcasting began to sound nice and orderly, Nero made things worse.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"However,\" he continued, \"math alone is not enough.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>There was another factor. A slight but significant part of spellcasting that made everything horribly unpredictable.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Mana is not just energy,\" Nero said, his voice calm but pointed. \"It is intent. It is will.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He let the four-circle spell in his hand change, the perfectly formed glyphs shifting, bending, reacting.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Spells are affected by what the caster feels, because mana is, at its core, a force that responds to the individual.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Which was why spellcasting wasn't just a mechanical equation, but also a product of imagination, conceptualization, and emotional resonance.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This was why only living beings could hold and manipulate mana—because only living minds could give it meaning.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Try forming a new four-circle spell,\" Nero finally instructed, stepping back. \"Let's see how many of you collapse under the weight of your own incompetence.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Another day, another impossible lesson.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Learning a new spell wasn't easy. Not by a long shot.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sure, spells weren't as instinctive as martial movements. They didn't rely on muscle memory or the innate reflexes drilled into a warrior's body. But that didn't mean they were simple.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Spells were numbers, intent, and willpower all wrapped into one infuriatingly precise equation. Get a single calculation wrong, and instead of a Flame Lance, you got an underwhelming puff of warm air—or worse, an explosion to the face.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And since we were Silver-rankers, four-circle magic was the absolute limit of what we could cast.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That didn't make it any less painful to learn.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Nero assigned each of us a different spell.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When he reached me, he handed me a set of notes with a title that immediately filled me with unease.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Flame Lance.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I skimmed through the details, feeling the weight of high-level spell theory settle uncomfortably on my shoulders.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The spell required fire-elemental mana particles to converge, shaping themselves into the form of a lance. But that wasn't the hard part.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The hard part was the compression process.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The fire mana didn't just take the shape of a lance—it transmuted, its entire composition altering to become something more than just raw fire.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It became a weapon.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A true, solid lance made of living flame.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"This is the first four-circle spell I am learning, not Arthur,\" I reminded myself as I reread the notes. Arthur's memories helped, but they didn't give me actual experience.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Nero, as always, watched us with mild amusement, like a scientist observing a group of test subjects attempting to solve a puzzle they were doomed to fail.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Once you understand the underlying theory, creating your own spells—or rather, viscerally learning spells that already exist—becomes easy and possible,\" he said. Then, after a beat, he added, \"Of course, this is only for those truly committed to the Mind aspect.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The implication was clear.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If you weren't fully devoted to spellcasting, you would struggle. A lot.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And that struggle began right now.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I took a deep breath, gathering my mana.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The first step was aligning the fire-elemental particles, focusing them into the correct formation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The glyphs began to glow faintly in front of me, the first circle taking shape.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Good.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The second circle followed smoothly, and I felt a small flicker of confidence. Maybe this wouldn't be so—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The third circle faltered immediately, my control slipping.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And then the fourth?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gone. Completely gone.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Instead of a Flame Lance, I got a pathetic spark of heat that fizzled out before it could even pretend to be useful.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Nero sighed audibly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Predictable.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I wasn't alone in my failure.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Across the room, Seraphina's spell collapsed spectacularly, her water mana overloading and vanishing. Ian, ever the brute, was forcing mana into the circles like he was hammering a nail into the wrong wall, while Jin just stared at his half-formed glyphs like they had personally offended him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But there were two exceptions.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Rachel's four-circle glyph flickered, on the verge of stabilizing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cecilia's, though slightly unstable, was almost complete.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Nero stopped pacing, his gaze flicking toward them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Interesting,\" he muttered. \"At least two of you have some grasp on this concept.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cecilia smirked, looking entirely too pleased with herself. Rachel, as always, remained composed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The rest of us? Well.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I tried again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And failed again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Nero clasped his hands behind his back, his face betraying absolutely no surprise.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"As expected,\" he said, because of course he expected this.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He gestured to Rachel and Cecilia.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"These two are the closest to success, but even they have not fully mastered the spell.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then, his eyes swept over the rest of us, lingering on me for a fraction of a second longer than necessary.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You will all have until the end of the month to succeed.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He turned, walking toward the exit.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The door slid shut behind him, leaving us to either succeed or fail.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I exhaled slowly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Three weeks.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I had three days to master a spell that currently refused to exist in my hands.\u003C\u002Fp>",1271,"2026-06-06T05:13:22.572Z",1,"novelbin.me","9416d41d6f92f72bcbc9deecea94a0e1c79d6b74cdd2f54d40435045bad5052b","the-extra-s-rise-chapter-14","the-extra-s-rise-chapter-12",1100,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fthe-extra-s-rise-cover.jpg"]