novelbin Chapter 151. Lilia Ranks Up
Chapter 151. Lilia Ranks Up
Lilia had been pursuing a theoretical class that might not even exist. The idea came from her own class, Rune Mage, and her studies in Spell Weaving. Rune Mage existed because the study of runes had been pushed to the extreme through practical use before the gods eventually shaped that specialization into a class. That led her to wonder if the same path could exist for Spell Weaving. If runes could form an entire class through deep specialization, then perhaps Spell Weaving could do the same.
She wasn’t interested in creating something that simply mirrored the Rune Mage class, however. What she wanted was a class that complemented her own strengths. After studying the mechanics and structure of spells, she decided to take spell extensions down the same path.
Spell extensions functioned somewhat like runes because they enhanced a specific effect within a magical phenomenon. A simple example was the Fire Bolt spell. Fire Bolt was a basic Apprentice Rank skill that launched a small projectile of fire, dealing moderate damage on impact and sometimes igniting the target.
If a spell extension such as Explode were applied during the casting process, the result would transform the spell into something closer to an Apprentice Rank version of Fire Ball. Instead of striking a single point, the projectile would erupt in a burst of fire upon impact, albeit with a greater mana cost and longer casting time.
For this reason, she had spent years studying Spell Weaving, focusing especially on spell extensions that normally functioned only when attached to spells. She approached the subject methodically, learning as many extensions as she could find and testing them across a wide range of spells.
Through constant experimentation, she refined the way those extensions interacted with different spell models. Some attempts failed, others produced unstable results, but many succeeded. Over time, her research even allowed her to create several new spells simply by combining extensions in ways most mages had never considered.
Now she believed she was finally ready to advance to the next rank. That confidence didn’t come lightly. It came after years spent studying the spells she had gathered from multiple sources, including the Royal Academy, the castle’s library, and several trips to the Mages Guild throughout the years.
“What are you waiting for?” Bastion asked.
“This project of yours to finish up,” she answered. “I was about to go through the Rank Up when you asked me to enchant this behemoth. It took me a few days to figure out how to replicate Hammerfist’s formula for the air cushion, and it wasn’t easy, I tell you.”
“Alright, well it’s basically done for now. I’m moving on to making my Rank 2 armor, so you’d better be ready to do some more enchanting for me.”
“Sure, sure,” Lilia said, waving her hand dismissively before hurrying back to her room to finish her studies.
A week later, she was finally ready.
She had already taken care of the levels she was missing with Ariel during several trips to the Troll Dungeon in Brightstone. With that requirement out of the way, there was nothing left to delay the process.
Lilia opened her panel and accepted the Rank Up. A moment later, her vision was pulled inward, deep into her soul.
She arrived in a world of blue, deep underwater, with a black abyss below her and an icy surface far above. She floated between the layers where the water shifted, where it changed from freezing cold to lukewarm and grew heavier the deeper it became.
Her soul hadn’t always looked like this. In the beginning, it had been a calm blue, like the surface of a serene lake. Now it was colder and deeper, likely the influence of her growing affinity with water mana, and perhaps the first signs of a budding talent for ice as well.
Suddenly, a transparent blue panel appeared before her, its borders decorated with elegant twining ivory that gave it a sacred appearance. On it, she saw her class options.
Rank 3: Spell Weaver
Rank 2: Enchanter
Rank 2: Frost Mage
Rank 2: Mist Mage
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.
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“Spell Weaver?” Lilia noted with interest.
She selected the class and took a tentative look. On the left side, she looked no different than usual, with no visible changes. Still, the light might have been playing tricks on her eyes, because she could have sworn there were threads of mana connecting to her.
On the right side, appeared the class’s details.
[Mana Weave]: Perceives and manipulates the “threads” of mana within spells. Reduces the mana cost of spells, improves their stability, and increases mana regeneration.
[Mana Thread]: Creates a thin strand of condensed mana that can attach to a target. The thread guides spells toward that target with increased accuracy and reduced casting time.
[Mana Net]: Launches multiple mana threads that spread across an area, forming a temporary magical lattice. Enemies caught inside experience disrupted mana flow and reduced mobility.
[Weave Burst]: Detonates active mana threads connected to enemies or objects, causing bursts of arcane energy. Damage increases based on the number of threads attached.
[Spell Stitch]: Allows the caster to merge two compatible spells together into a single casting. The resulting spell inherits properties from both components.
[Grand Pattern]: Rapidly constructs a large spell formation, empowering the next spell cast. The empowered spell gains greatly increased scale, efficiency, and control.
“Hisssss.” Lilia drew in a sharp breath at the shocking results of her new Rank 3 class option. “It isn’t what I wanted, but I can probably make it work.”
She had wanted a class that could augment the skills Bastion and the others regularly used, empowering them further and strengthening her role as a supporter through spell extensions. Instead, this class offered a different kind of support, one she could still learn to leverage.
Spells were quite handy and numerous, but they often came with certain disadvantages such as the difficulty of preparing, aiming, and casting them. Mana Threads, however, largely trivialized those problems.
All she needed to do was cast Mana Thread on each of her allies and stand back while bombarding them with support spells that increased their effectiveness in combat, such as Haste, Cat’s Grace, Bull’s Strength, and others that normally required too much time to cast at the start of a battle. Now all she needed to do was throw out the threads at the beginning, then empower them as they fought.
In a way, it did fulfill her requirements for the class, though not in the way she had originally imagined. Overall, it wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t the best either. After all, she couldn’t use her own skills for it. She would have to rely on spells.
On the bright side, she could now debilitate enemies beyond simply freezing them with Mana Net. If her assumptions were correct, she could use Mana Net to attach threads to enemies and bombard them with spells with greater accuracy, improving her offensive role within the team.
“Nothing much to consider,” Lilia said before accepting the class.
Her vision expanded, and a moment later she found herself back in her room in the castle.
The space was as cluttered as ever. Towering shelves packed with books of every size and age lined the walls, while the tables were buried beneath stacks of open volumes, their pages filled with notes written in neat blue ink. Scrolls covered in carefully written formulas lay unfurled beside them, some pinned down by ink bottles, others weighed flat beneath loose quills.
Soft blue mana lamps illuminated the room with a cool glow, giving the entire study the quiet atmosphere of a midnight library. Even the bookmarks and ribbons tucked between pages were shades of blue, a habit she had picked up long ago without realizing it.
Then she noticed something peculiar.
Glittering lines of thread drifted throughout the room, darting between enchantments, books, and the castle’s walls. She knew they hadn’t been there before. They shimmered faintly in the lamplight, weaving through the air like strands of invisible silk that had suddenly revealed themselves.
The castle walls, in particular, were breathtaking. What had once looked like ordinary enchantments now appeared as an ancient tapestry of impossibly intricate patterns. Countless threads intertwined in elegant formations, layered with a level of precision that made her breath catch.
Her own enchantments paled in comparison. The difference was like that between a masterfully woven tapestry and a crude patchwork cloth.
Clearly neither she nor Bastion were good enchanters.
Compared to whoever had woven the magic of this castle, they looked like children.
“Are these… mana threads?” she asked softly, staring in amazement as she followed the glowing strands with her eyes.
After a moment, she whispered to herself, almost reverently.
“This is the best class ever.”
Quickly, she opened her status and unlocked her skills before she began experimenting.
[Name]: Lilia
[Age]: 50
[Class]: Spell Weaver (Rank 3), Rune Mage (Rank 3), Mystic Water Mage (Rank 2)
[Ability]: Mana Weave, Rune Body, Mystic Water
[Rank]: Rank 2
[Level]: 200
[Health]: 440/440
[Mana]: 1100/1100
[Strength]: 4.4
[Dexterity]: 4.4
[Vitality]: 4.4
[Intelligence]: 11
[Wisdom]: 11
[Charm]: 4.4
[Status Points]: 0
[Arts]: Water Magic 5, Spell Weaving 5, Enchanting 5, Runes 5, Summoning 5, Staff 5, Cooking 1, Cleaning 1, Traps 1
[Skills:]: Water Barrier 5, Water Curtain 5, Mystic Mend 5, Mystic Veil 5, Mystic Downpour 5, Summon Familiar (Misty) 5, Frost Ray 5, Mage Hand 5, Shocking Grasp 5, Minor Illusion 5, Amplify 5, Dash 5, Dodge 5, Rune Casting 5, Rune Imbuement 5, Rune Infusion 5, Rune Circle 5, Rune Guardian 5, Mana Thread 1, Mana Net 1, Weave Burst 1, Spell Stitch 1, Grand Pattern 1
[Skill Points]: 125
She experimented with Mana Thread by attaching one to an object and attempting to pull it. However, no physical force could be applied through the thread. The only actions she could manage were attaching and detaching it. She did, however, note that sustaining them drained her mana.
Next, she cast Mana Net and tried sending Illuminate through the threads. The result surprised her as the spell traveled along the strands, lighting up the objects they touched like a chain of glowing beacons. Although the effect of the spell was weaker since the mana was distributed across multiple targets, perhaps increasing the mana cost might fix this issue.
She avoided using Weave Burst, unwilling to risk destroying any of her books.
Instead, she used Spell Stitch on Water Ball and Illuminate, creating a sphere of water that shone brightly like a floating lantern. When she used Grand Pattern on Water Ball, the spell grew noticeably larger, its mana density swelling until it nearly reached the power of the next Rank.
She was ecstatic with the results of her experiments until her gaze drifted back to the enchantments woven throughout the room.
Compared to the intricate patterns now visible in the castle walls, her work looked embarrassingly crude.
“Looks like I have a ton of work to do if I want to improve my enchanting from this point on.”
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