[367] Special Training (2)
"All right. I've decided on one for now."
Scatter Movement was far harder when treated as an omnipotence-type than as an omniscience-type.
But that actually played to Shirone's advantage—his Spirit Zone was strong.
He estimated he could master it in about a month.
'Then I can learn one more. Maybe I'll bump up the difficulty this time.'
Shirone walked to the shelf with the new spellbooks and scanned the advanced section.
Books with titles like Time Locks Using Quantum Conversion and Interference Between Magic Circles by Wave Principles lined the shelf—just reading the titles made his skin crawl.
Most were about information magic anyway, so none were urgent.
'Pass. Pass. Pass that one too.'
He read every title as he walked. Since it was an advanced shelf, there weren't any slim volumes.
"Huh, this one?"
He stopped at the last slot.
It was as thick as the others and not an information tome. What drew his eye was the title.
Laser Guidance Technique.
"Laser..."
It required tremendous energy output, but Shirone could reach that level easily thanks to the divine particles. Being able to convert mass into energy was a massive perk.
Still, most mages only mastered such techniques after long training. Whoever developed a laser‑guidance method would be a serious expert.
"Let's take a look."
The white cover marked it as photon-type, but a red band wrapped around it to signal the laser content.
Shirone checked the developer's name under the title and bit his lip in surprise.
Louis Jacobin.
'Ah, Jacobin...'
He was the head of the particle research institute under Thormia's unit—anyone studying photon magic would know the name.
When he opened the book, complex formulas filled almost every page.
Shirone skimmed past the derivations and read the overview. As he read, his face lit up.
"This is incredible."
It was a fusion magic combining two photon principles.
Magic manifests through concentration, and thought slots are basically singular. Advanced mages combine two or three attributes to get multiple benefits at once.
Jacobin's spell could be summed up as a photon with a laser‑guidance device attached.
Normally bending light needs fiber optics or special media, but if you guide a target with a laser you can alter its trajectory freely.
Above all, within the limits of inertia it could even track moving targets.
Jacobin had probably developed it for information transfer, but in Shirone's head the arcing trajectory of a photon cannon was already vividly mapped out.
'So this is what Plu meant. A magic that fills in weaknesses and creates synergy.'
If he put spin on a mass-bearing photon cannon, he could get some arc. But as predictive fire it was inefficient and the bend angles were small.
'But if I learn laser guidance...'
He could hit a target no matter how it moved. Precision would vary by skill, but for Shirone—who could draw explosive firepower in moments—it would be the ideal magic to cut down wasted mental energy.
"All right! This will be my first fusion magic!"
Shirone grabbed the book and went to find Plu. She was browsing the fire section and, halfway to a high shelf, turned at his approach.
"Oh? You picked already?"
"Yes. These. Two books."
Plu flipped between them and nodded. There was an advanced course, but being intimidated from the start wasn't a good idea.
"They seem to pair well. Tell Izabel and borrow them."
Izabel stamped the loan slips as they picked up the books.
When she saw the Laser Guidance Technique book she looked surprised.
"That one's pretty difficult. You sure?"
"Yes. I already use lasers. Is it that hard?"
"It's a specialty the school doesn't cover. It uses radio‑wave methods, so it'll feel unfamiliar."
Shirone's lasers worked differently from other mages'.
The divine particles let him vault over barriers he couldn't otherwise reach, but because he lacked a clear conceptual framework for those systems his range of application was inevitably narrow.
"I'll give it a try. I want to learn lasers properly this time."
If the student insisted, Izabel had no reason to stop him.
"Using photons as an attack is rare, so I can see the appeal. If you get stuck, ask me. The association president told me to arrange tutoring if needed."
Gaold's concern was both welcome and a little chilling.
He truly believed Shirone might develop a spell that could ruin heaven itself.
"Thanks. I'll probably be back soon."
"Ha! Good. Come by anytime."
Having made a little pretext so he wouldn't feel awkward later, Shirone stepped into the elevator.
The iron gate of the library closed behind him before the elevator even moved.
As always, it felt like stepping into another world.
* * *
With Plu's help—really under Gaold's orders—Shirone got a private training room. It wasn't as vast as an underground bunker, but it was plenty of space to unfold his Spirit Zone and work alone.
There was a sleep capsule in the corner, and the floor was the same material as Training Ground 2000. The simulation system could probably analyze spells from multiple angles.
Shirone sat on the cool floor and opened the Scatter Movement book.
After reading it quickly from start to finish, he closed it and organized his thoughts.
"Hmm. Could be easy. Could be tricky."
The core was the linkage speed between passive and active magic. The instant he cast teleportation, he had to fire photon output in all directions. The principle was simple, but the linkage had to feel almost simultaneous to count as a viable technique.
"Let's try it."
He stepped into the training area and cast photonization. The familiar sensation rippled through him and the scene ahead folded in.
Arriving ten meters ahead, Shirone stared at the ceiling and concentrated. He intended to cast Scatter Movement, but it didn't trigger.
"Oh, right."
When teleportation activates, the slot empties. The movement was so fast there was no time to cast photon output.
'So the slot swap needs to be much faster?'
If so, Shirone had a trump card—time‑slicing.
He decided to base Scatter Movement on time‑slicing.
By sunset he was getting the hang of it. He used the sleep capsule for about an hour to recover mental power, then pushed forward with maximum focus.
Finally, at the instant of teleportation, flashes burst out in eight directions.
Having moved along the northward route of the Scatter Movement, Shirone turned and couldn't hide his excitement.
"It worked! It worked!"
"What worked?"
He looked toward the door.
Plu stood propped against the wall with her arms crossed, expression cool. She didn't look pleased.
"Oh, senpai, when did you get here?"
"Just now. What were you doing a little while ago?"
"Scatter Movement, of course."
"Is that so?"
Plu stepped into the training room.
Stopping about ten meters from him, she scanned the area as if checking coordinates, then looked back at him.
"Do it again. I'll evaluate."
Her decisive tone made him a little nervous.
But the Scatter Movement he'd shown matched the form in the book.
"All right. Then I'll start with the basic route—"
"No. Don't. Do the intermediate course. From the eight directions, go to whichever one you want. From what I saw, you can manage that."
It sounded like praise—but oddly not entirely like it.
Still, as a beginner, Shirone didn't fear failure.
'Southeast, then.'
While he concentrated, Plu just folded her arms and waited.
"Scatter Movement!"
Shirone's body turned golden and a blinding flash burst outward.
He arrived exactly ten meters southeast and clenched his fist.
'Success, success.'
His joy lasted only a moment. Shirone sat up in surprise.
Plu, already standing in front of him, reached out and grabbed his shoulders.
Her eyes were half‑closed, calm as someone who'd just subdued a terrorist.
Usually she was a nagging, annoying older sister—but in moments like this she was undeniably a certified Rank 8 mage.
"Um, well..."
"Now I get what your problem is."
Form‑wise the Scatter Movement had succeeded. But Plu had singled him out among the eight flashes.
Not only that, she'd moved faster than the caster and stepped in front of him.
"Too slow on the linkage, right?"
Plu let go of his shoulders.
"Right. You can't see it with the eye, but in the Spirit Zone you feel it instinctively. For manipulators like me, the delay stands out even more."
"But I did my best."
"This isn't about effort. Honestly, your linkage just now was excellent. I think you swapped at about time‑slicing speed..."
Plu paused, then spoke with certainty.
"But that's the problem."
Shirone tilted his head.
Time‑slicing is a way of thinking where you rapidly swap two attunements in a single slot. The thought itself might slow down, but there's no faster swap than that.
"To explain your mechanism: you equipped teleportation and cast, stripped the teleportation, then equipped photon output and cast."
Plu mimed inserting and removing two fists to show the linkage.
Because it involves at least three steps, a delay appears that the Spirit Zone can pick up.
But that was the limit of what Shirone could do.
"If there's a delay even at time‑slicing speed, how the hell do you fix it?"
"Smash them together."
"Huh?"
"Smash them. Don't strip the teleportation—hit it with the photon output spell and knock it away. At the same time, shove the photon output into the slot."
Plu thrust her fists forward.
When the right hand struck the left, the left flew out and the right took its place.
She'd turned the earlier explanation into an image.
"End the stripping and equipping simultaneously by colliding them. That shortens the mechanism. Do it in the realm of thought—strike the old thought with a new one. Mages call that 'Force.'"
She showed the motion again. This time she brought her fists almost together and collided them rapidly, punctuating the movement with a sharp pop.
"Get it? Skip the stripping step and go in while you hit. If you want to work in the field someday you need to know Force. Passive‑active linkages are used across types."
Shirone listened, stunned. Bounce one thought off another?
Normal people never think that way. But for a mage it was an extremely efficient mode of thought.
"Force... I didn't even know that existed."
"Of course not. It's a combat technique. The school doesn't teach it."
"Is it dangerous?"
"No, just less stable. You collide thoughts and have to slot them perfectly. It relies heavily on sensation, so it's not fit for the standard curriculum. Time‑slicing is also a pro skill. You teaching yourself already is impressive. You'll probably pick up Force quickly too."
Plu's words steadied Shirone. Though his first attempt had failed, learning a technique the school didn't teach felt like progress.
The key was Force.