Chương 18: Chapter 17

"I'm not asking if it will be easy, I'm asking if it can be done." Anasterian looked sternly at the gathered people. He had gathered the best enchanters, High Magisters, and of course Sapphiron and Selessa to the palace. Even in the meeting room, the surroundings were luxurious and everyone had been served the best refreshments before the servants had withdrawn. Ron'vith tapped the table thoughtfully.

"Theoretically, I think so, yes. The enchantments needed would be costly and would require a lot of time and effort, but they could be done." He was one of the best enchanters in the kingdom, and by proxy that meant one of the best enchanters in the world.

"There's nothing stopping it. At least on the magical theory end of things." Sapphiron agreed.

"We had some rough ideas when the topic came up last time, and I don't think anything has changed. We could draw water from the Sunwell in order to create lesser copies, though I can't say for sure how much the power would be diluted, if any. The Sunwell is a lesser version of the Well of the Eternity, and I can only speculate that a lesser version of a lesser version will scale similarly."

As a blue dragon, he really shouldn't be helping the Quel'dorei propagate even more fonts of Arcane power, but the project interested him too much to ignore. Besides, it was better for him to help than have the Quel'dorei potentially bungle into a disaster.

"Yes, but what we have is the result of making no attempts to improve the effects of the Sunwell, whereas we would do our best to improve the effect of these…should we call them Starwells? Better than lesser Sunwell." Anasterian speculated.

"The Sunwell has grown in power over time to match mostly with the original Well of Eternity, even if it's quite not there yet. I would assume these would do the same."

"Well, as I said, the grounds for creating enchantments to improve the effect is there. The magnitude of improvement would depend on the materials used. The Grand Magister mentioned there was some special material that would work especially well, so the results depend largely on the quality of th material." Ron'vith offered with a questioning tone.

"How would the Sunwell react to water being drawn from it for this purpose?" Selessa questioned.

"We've used a few vials in the past to create some especially potent artifacts. The act slightly diminishes the Sunwell for a short time, but it recovers in ten years or so. We would have to create these Starwells one at a time over decades." Anasterian was one of the few with the requisite knowledge on the Sunwell due to his royal heritage which granted access to information others didn't have.

"Grand Magister? You're the one that has mentioned the material." Sapphiron nodded.

"Yes, though I'm not the one making it. My daughter is." He pointed at the bangle on Selessa's arm.

"It can absorb almost endless mana, conducts magic almost perfectly, and can work as an amplifier and the perfect vessel for enchantments." She let out a long sigh while nodding.

"I suspected you were talking about that. I'm calling the material Wraithbone, though there's a difference between creating a simple armlet to enhance spellcasting and something like creating a second Sunwell. If we want to do this, I'll have to dedicate a significant amount of time to refine the process and practice." She speculated. Something that not even all Aeldari realized until it was pointed out to them was that there was more than one type of Wraithbone. And the qualities of each type varied wildly.

She'd gotten the skill Bonesinging under Crafting Attribute, both being at level two, and while her skill and knowledge of the art of bonesinging came from her previous life and not from the skill, not all that knowledge was perfectly applicable when it came to magic.

One of the few things the skill did provide her was knowledge on exactly that, and if she wanted to try something like creating another Sunwell, she really, desperately, needed to improve her level with both the skill and the attribute to pull this off.

"I'm not doubting our esteemed Saint, but would it be possible to gain examples of this material for study? Not just that, we would need some materials to practice and plan our enchantments on." Ron'vith asked.

"I'd like to join in on that project!" Sapphiron declared eagerly.

"You're already in charge of creating the runestones for our new lands." Anasterian pointed out with a teasing tone.

"I can multitask. Consider it a repayment for my efforts. I… may be able to pull in a bit of help if I can offer something in exchange." Sapphiron suggested. Anasterian was one of the few aware of his nature as a dragon, and he knew the King would understand the implication. He knew some of the Blues and even the Bronze might be interested in a project like this. Maybe even Reds like Krasus. Heck, they might even draw the attention of Nozdormu, which might be worth more than all their other efforts combined.

The blessing of Nozdormu on Nordrassil, the Tree of Life hiding the second Well of Eternity, was what gave the Kaldorei their immortality. The Quel'dorei wouldn't be getting that, but even a lesser blessing from one of the Aspects would be a great boon. Actually gaining the blessing was the real problem, but a project like this might be just the thing.

"Well, I could be persuaded. Especially since I'll probably need to learn more about enchanting to create the best possible result." Selessa suggested slyly. Leveling Crafting would be a whole lot easier with two skills rather than one and learning something as useful as enchanting would never be wasted. She had been considering dumping some of the base points into the skill, but if she got a teacher instead, that would obviously be a superior option.

"Enchanting is a very demanding field, but from what I've learned, you're very quick on the uptake, and I can see how it would be beneficial for you to be familiar with the intricacies. You have an accord. I'll reach out for lessons tomorrow." Ron'vith suggested.

"And your father can help with the basics as well."

She was still surprised about the new temple that had apparently barely finished in time for the victorious return of the army and the parade. She'd seen larger and more impressive buildings in her old life, plenty of them, but this one had been created with obvious care and the fact that it had been made by hand in a society filled with magic mattered. It had also been built entirely without her knowledge.

The old temple still existed and served as a center for healing, but the new temple had become the religious center of Silvermoon, and there were plenty of visitors constantly. It seemed the events of the war, the contribution of the paladins and the healers, and her own participation had ignited a religious fervor among the Quel'dorei like a wildfire.

Suddenly a rather sizeable majority of the elven population seemed certain that it was her, and by extension the Light, that had led them to victory, and they weren't entirely wrong. The soldiers who had participated in the war seemed especially fervent followers of the faith, and their families were among the first to join in. From there it spread, and it spread quickly. It had been spreading even before the war, and the war supercharged things. Two paladins in particular met her at the door of the temple.

Sister Seraphina was wearing the usual gold plate armor with red cape and highlights, while Sister Ophelia had shifted her equipment somewhat. She was now wearing silver armor with a white cape and highlights on her armor. The change in colors signified and symbolized the shift that had taken place after the war. The shift was still ongoing, but the main lines were already becoming clear.

Selessa had not appointed anyone, but Seraphina had become the leader of the new Knights of Retribution, paladins who focused on that particular aspect of the Light. She'd gained the position by the strength of her arm, by her acts on the field of battle, by her dedication, by her obvious power in the Light, as well as her zealous faith. The Knights of Retribution focused on seeking out the enemies of the Light and Quel'thalas, as well as punishing heretics and those that broke the tenets of the faith.

It was her job to scour the land for cults and demon worshippers and to bring swift justice. Sister Ophelia in turn had become the leader of the Knights of Protection, who focused on protecting the weak, and safeguarding the kingdom as a whole. The coloring was just a way to distinguish the two different knightly orders. She had gained her position on similar merits, and because she was one of those flexible enough to shift her thinking from the war footing into protection.

Knights of Protection shielded the people from threats both internal and external, but white the Knights of Retribution focused on cults and heretics, Knights of Protection focused more on mundane threats like monsters and wild animals. They also brought justice by taking out bandits and mediated disputes, and in time would be accepted as the most reliable arbiters of justice.

There was also the Order of Healing, the third Order though not a knightly one, as it was made up mostly of priests and priestesses, and not the paladins of the faith. It was also the largest of the three, because there were more priests and priestesses when compared to paladins, and they were all gathered under one group. The leadership of the third Order was still being decided, but it seemed like Sister Cecilia, one of the longest serving High Priestesses would get the position.

As they hadn't settled on a leader, the third order didn't have colors yet either, though they also wouldn't be wearing armor, so there was little opportunity for confusion.

"Saint. The Sanctum of Protection has been completed. If you would follow me." Sister Ophelia requested eagerly.

"Lead the way." She gestured for the excited paladin to go first. Sister Ophelia led her to one of the rooms to the side of the main chambers. The room was smaller of course, but it was by no means small. There were plinths placed on the sides of the Sanctum, clearly ready for artifacts and statues of those they wished to celebrate. For now, those plinths were mostly empty, except for the one in the most prominent position, where Selessa saw a statue clearly depicting her, obviously designed to dominate the room.

The walls were covered with texts which seemed to be mostly her teachings, some of which she didn't even remember giving, though there were also lessons that the faithful had learned when communing with the Light and the Naaru. The plinth with her statue had a long scripture that seemed almost like a creed of some sort.

A spiritus Dominatus, (Spirit of Dominion) Qui manus ad bellum doce (Who trains my hands for war) Audi Nostra Voce (Listen our voice) Huna Elohai Ha'haim, (Hear me, my God of Life) Qui es mihi sensus et vox, (Who is my sense, and voice) Huna Elohai Hevas, (Hear me, my God of Flame) Qui suscis animam in nox (Who awakens my soul in darkness) Pro Sancta Selessa, (For Saint Selessa) pro cordibus puris, (For the hearts that were pure) pro innocentia rapta, (For the innocence that was stolen) Sono tuo gladius in noctis.

(I am your sword in the night) Huna Elohai Ahuvi, (Hear me, my Loving God) Qui es mio scutum et salus, (Who is my shield and my Salvation) Huna Elohai Heleon, (Hear me, my God most high) Qui scindit seditios sub me (Who subdues the traitors under me) Pro Sancta Selessa, (For Saint Selessa) pro martyres in umbris, (For the martyrs in shadows) pro fidelibus flentibus, (For the cries of the faithful) sum azar qui comburit (I bear your holy fire that consumes) Anima Saxum est, sed saxum non sum, (My soul is of stone, yet stone I am not) Mens ferrum est, sed ferrum non sum, (My mind is of iron, yet iron I am not) Sin dubio dogma obedio, sed servus non sum, (I obey the creed without doubt, yet slave I am not) Scriptura animat ruaḥ meam, (The Scriptures breathe life into my soul) non mortua, (Not dead) sed ipsa vita.

(She Is Alive) Orbis orbem claudit, (The wheel turns full circle) Adest. (She's here.) Adest (She's here.) Pro Sancta Selessa, (For Saint Selessa) pro proditis fractis, (For the betrayed and the broken) pro sanguine iniusto, (For the blood unjustly shed) Sum la tempesta quae nox frangit (I am the tempest that breaks the night) After reading the inscription, not only was she fairly confident it was in the form of a song, but that she'd heard it being sung in the main chamber as she arrived.

She had not paid enough attention to the song to notice her own name being used, but maybe she should've. Hearing her name in the temple wasn't rare though, not even in song. Of course, the room also had shields mounted on the walls, as befit the Sanctum of Protection. The shields bore several sigils, mostly the kingdom, the faith, and various flowers, though she was confident many would be replaced by personal sigils when appropriate achievements were made.

Although, now that she paid some attention, at least one of the flowers was depicted on Ophelia's armor, hinting that it might be her sigil, except for one thing. A quick glance towards Seraphina showed that she had the same flower on her armor.

"What's with the flower motif?" She asked curiously.

"We haven't really taken too many symbols for our own so far, so we thought the flower sigil appropriate." Seraphina explained happily.

"It's more popular among the sisters. Unsurprisingly the brothers prefer other iconography."

"That does remind me. Did the brothers not raise any fuss seeing that all three leaders of the Orders are sisters?" She'd been only slightly surprised as Seraphina and Ophelia had earned their position. They were the strongest of the Paladins for now.

"Not really. We both gave an open challenge that anyone that wants to contest our nomination need only either defeat us in a duel, or gather enough votes that agree they are better for the position. For some reason, none picked up our challenge." Ophelia smiled at the memory of the brothers all falling in line. The fact that all three of the leaders were women wasn't really a case of sexism, just that the church seemed to attract people of certain backgrounds, and women happened to be overrepresented.

Being a priestess also required certain traits and instincts more common in women, though the split wasn't majorly in their favor.

"I like what you've done with the place. You've decorated while leaving room for future achievements. I approve." She openly showed her approval.

"Sister!" Their discussion was interrupted by a small elf-shaped missile wrapping his arms around her waist. She'd of course noticed his approach, but didn't want to spoil his fun.

"You've grown." Her little brother commented innocently.

"Your butt is bigger. And softer."

"It's not polite to rub your face against someone's butt Raiel." She laughed.

"How did you change so much?" Her brother asked, not pulling away.

"Why didn't you come to see me?" That was the real question, made obvious by his tone. He had made a slight attempt at obfuscation, but children rarely had the ability to be subtle.

"I grew up." She replied to the first question simply.

"And I did come to see you last night, but you were already asleep. Had to attend the ceremonies and meetings first. Unfortunately, by the time all that was done, it was past your bedtime."

"I tried to stay up and wait." Her little brother admitted.

"I know. I knew you'd be here though. I hear you've been here almost every day." She finally managed to get him to let go and knelt down to meet his eyes on the same level.

"Have you been training?"

"I have!" Raiel announced with a wide smile. He cupped his hands in front of him, and a rather bright spark of Light materialized for all of them to see.

"I can create some Light, and I even managed some very basic healing last week!"

"Well done little brother." She ruffled his hair.

"You clearly have talent." She wasn't just saying that either. Being able to do even that at his age was real talent. She'd been similar age when she started learning the Arcane, but she was a special case. Raiel didn't have memories from a previous life to help him or the mind of a psyker.

"You're going to be a great healer someday." She said, remembering his dream.

"I feel like I can keep up here." He explained hesitantly.

"This comes easily. Not like the lessons Magister Levalin tries to teach me." She smiled at him, though that was hidden by her veil.

"I think it's great you've found something you enjoy. I know the other lessons tend to be difficult, but they're still necessary. Come, let's go see what you've learned." She prompted, just wanting to spend a bit of time with her brother.

"So, enchanting." Ron'vith started.

"At its very base, is the art of granting mundane objects magical qualities. Taking things further, you can also enchant objects that are already inherently magical, but importantly, you cannot enchant an object that already bears an enchantment. Even trying will cause the process to fail, and at worst destroy the object in question." Selessa was attending the lesson with Sapphiron, as the latter was here mostly to watch over her magical education.

He also expected her to give a lesson in return concerning Wraithbone. She was listening with half attention, as the topic currently didn't require full focus, the other half busy thinking that she needed to get back to exercising, considering her brother had called her butt soft.

"Enchantments are created by inscribing runes or glyphs on an object and using certain materials to empower the enchantment. These materials are necessary because they work as an anchor and allow the enchantment to gather and store power beyond the power provided during the process of creating the enchantment. More powerful and more complicated enchantments require more power to operate, thus requiring more powerful materials.

As I mentioned, these materials function as an anchor, drawing power from the surroundings." Ron'vith lectured. You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.

"Does that mean enchantments won't work in areas void of magic?" She asked, noticing a potential issue.

"There's almost always some ambient mana, but in low mana areas most enchantments tend to work at reduced capacity. They can also store power so that they can function for a time in low mana areas, or the user can provide the necessary mana. Thanks to this ability to draw on magic, even people with no magical ability or mana can use enchantments. Should they run out of power entirely, the enchantments will go dormant." Sapphiron helpfully answered.

"The abundant mana from the Sunwell is one of the major reasons why Silvermoon is so filled with magical objects, to the point of frivolity." Ron'vith hummed in agreement.

"Returning to the main topic, the skill of an enchanter is determined by the number of runes of glyphs in a single enchantment. I'm not the premier enchanter because I'm stronger or necessarily even more skilled than the Grand Magister." He nodded towards Sapphiron.

"It's because I can use more runes or glyphs when creating an enchantment."

"Unlike what one might think, enchanting really isn't about your level of power, or skill in the Arcane. It's hard to put into words exactly why some people can do more than others. You need to experience it to understand. It's an art rather than science." Sapphiron added again. Even as a member of the Blue Dragonflight, he had to admit his skill in enchanting was second to Ron'vith.

"Why is using more runes or glyphs better?" Selessa asked the obvious question.

"I'll get to that shortly." Ron'vith said curtly but not unkindly.

"Now, runes are the basis of any enchantment. Each rune carries a certain meaning, and glyphs are simply more complicated runes, able to carry more complicated concepts. As with Arcane magic, the exact shape of the runes is not important. What is important is what they mean to you. There is a generally accepted list of runes and glyphs, but every enchanter has their own additions to the list. The important part is that the symbol carries the meaning you want to instill on the object you're enchanting.

Notably, you can't just use any scribbles though. The symbol you use really needs to hold the correct meaning in your heart and mind, to the point where it's accepted by magic. The general list is easy, because every enchanter believes in the list and you instinctually accept the purpose of those symbols. If you try to use a symbol that you do not have faith in, the enchantment fizzles and likely wastes your materials. The more complicated the meaning, the more belief you need to hold in the symbol."

"Now, to answer your question, why does the number of symbols matter? Because extra symbols allow the enchanter to add extra qualifiers, or to create more complicated enchantments. Remember how I said you can't enchant an object already enchanted? Well, a skilled enough enchanter with enough symbols can add more than one effect with a single enchantment." Ron'vith continued.

"To give some examples. To enchant a weapon to grant its wielder more strength, you only need a simple rune, depicting strength, although if you don't hold the correct mental image, you might turn that rune into just strengthening the structure of the weapon instead. You could make the enchantment stronger by adding a qualifier like 'great strength'.

On the other hand, to cause a hammer to release an effect on impact, you need several symbols, first for the effect, and then for the conditions of causing that effect.

And going to the extreme end, to create a fully functional magical golem, you would need extremely complex enchantments to control the golem, to allow it to discern between friend and foe, to have it act in desired ways while encountering a foe, and then you'd still most likely need to enchant each separate part of the golem so that they can properly fulfil their function and allow the golem to move." Ron'vith explained patiently, before taking a sip from a wine glass.

Sapphiron took this chance to take over momentarily.

"This is also where the materials you're working with come into the picture. Certain materials are better at conducting magic, while others can hold more of the magic necessary to power the enchantment."

"Notably, those are separate qualities." Ron'vith took over again.

"Conductivity is important in many ways, but especially so when you're enchanting foci, as magical conductivity determines the amount of loss in mana. If you create a magical staff that empowers your spells, even a brick can be used to empower you spells, but if the material doesn't conduct mana properly, then you'd be losing almost all your mana while channeling it through the object.

That brick I mentioned might empower a spell, but if it takes twenty times the amount of mana to cast even a simple fireball, what's the point? On the other hand, a material's ability to withstand mana determines the power of the enchantments that can be placed on it. A simple stick from a normal tree cannot withstand the sorts of mana required to power most powerful enchantments.

On the other hand, materials like Arcanite are extremely rare, but their ability to withstand mana is extraordinary, making them perfect vessels for enchanting."

"Which brings us to why your Wraithbone is so important. So far as I can tell, there's almost no limit on the magic if can withstand, as it naturally can store eye-watering amounts of mana. It just so happens to also be the best magic conductor I've seen, which makes it the perfect material for enchanting." Sapphiron interjected again. Selessa realized it was her turn in this exchange of information.

"Right. First things first, before I tell you anything, I need you to agree to a simple condition."

"What sort of condition?" Ron'vith asked with slight suspicion.

"You cannot ask the question: 'How do you know?' or any of its variants. As far as you're concerned, the answer is that I just do. The information I have extensive, but it is still developing and thus not perfect, part of why we'll need to run tests." She looked at both men in turn.

"So don't ask for the source of the information. I can work with that." Ron'vith nodded, and Sapphiron agreed.

"Ok then. The first thing you need to understand is that there isn't just one type of Wraithbone. The difference can be hard to tell by sight, but the material can be as varied as the possible uses. That said, Wraithbone falls roughly into three types." She exhaled hard and gathered her thoughts.

"The first type is the least durable and the most malleable. It can be created thin enough to spin into a thread that can be used to create cloth. That said, least durable in this case is relative and still stronger than most materials. A shirt created from the cloth I just mentioned would be multiple times more durable than steel, just to give a simple example. This type is mostly used in objects that need to be malleable or used for mostly decorative purposes. My armlet is of this first type."

She showed the armlet she'd created the last time, and a quick click of her finger against the material created an almost metallic sound.

"The second type is much more durable, and it's defined by its rigidity and cutting edge. It's perfect to be used as material for something you don't want to bend or twist or is used to cut as it can be created extremely sharp. Often used in construction and for making bladed weapons, though combined with other types in places where some flexibility is required. Some flexibility is required in weapons or they become brittle.

Naturally, as rigidity and sharpness are the defining features, you'd never use it alone for something you need to flex under stress, which is why it's not the ideal material for armor or the core of weapons." She hesitated for a moment.

"This is the least used type because almost all uses outside the ones I mentioned benefit from at least slight flexibility."

"The third type is the heaviest and the most durable. Again, heavy in this context is relative and means it's still lighter than most other materials, but in comparison to the previous two it's significantly heavier. This material is by far the most durable, and part of that is because it retains some flexibility. Not a lot, mind you, but enough that it's not as fragile as the previous type when placed under certain stresses.

This is the material you'd use for armor and most likely weapons aside from those with a cutting edge." It also happened to be the type most Aeldari starships and tanks were made of. Even their Craftworlds were created from this type. It also happened to one of the hardest materials in existence, only second to Blackstone, and even that was debatable.

"Here's where things get complicated. I don't know how these types mix with magic. I suspect they all retain some of the qualities desired for enchanting, but whether one is better than others requires testing." She revealed simply. She might know how the materials worked with the psyker powers of the Aeldari, but she had no idea how they interacted with magic. Her skill level of 2 with Bonesinging didn't provide the answer either. It gave her hints, but no proper knowledge.

She wasn't even sure she could create all three types currently. She hadn't even opened the Perk tree yet, since it had been under construction until recently, but she assumed some of the Perks related to the different types. [Well-reasoned. As this is a completely new skill, and because the situation is somewhat new and unique, we're going to make a small exception to how your skills and attributes function. Crafting really isn't something that's used mid-combat, and thus we don't have to worry about mid-combat power ups. It also doesn't result in physical changes requiring sleep. It would also seem unnatural if all your progress happened while asleep. So, for a certain period of time, we're going to remove the restriction on gaining improvements after a night's sleep. Instead, for Crafting and the associated skills only, you will be able to gain improvements as appropriate even while awake.]'What's this certain period of time?' She tried to question while following the discussion between Sapphiron and Ron'vith. The two were discussing the merits of different types of Wraithbone in abstract. [Let's say for the period of three years. We're only giving this benefit because we're eager to see where this goes. It will not be repeated on other skills and attributes.] She could sense the System presence was gone again, just glad to have gotten this advantage.

Maybe she could finally take a glance at the Perks as well…

"Right. Let's test some basic enchanting. You'll get a better idea of what I'm talking about when you try it yourself." Ron'vith pulled out a simple wooden stick clearly meant to become a wand, a jar with some glowing substance, a box filled with glowing dust, and large cloth mat that he spread on the table. The cloth was embroidered with a large magical glyph, albeit a rather simple one.

"As you can guess, the stick is just basic branch from an Eversong Tree." He then tapped the jar.

"This is magical essence of very basic variety. Essences are great for enchantments that require continuous small discharges of power, which usually means weapons that have effects when you hit. It gathers mana faster, and can store more, but it's rarer and harder to produce. It can also be more difficult to work with." Next he tapped the box filled with dust.

"This is mana dust. It's basically crystallized mana, and it's the basic component of all enchantments. Like the essences, it comes in many varieties but is much easier to produce. All it really requires is magic old and dense enough for it to crystallize. Or you could disenchant a magical object you no longer need. As you may expect, the Sunwell allows us a rather endless supply of dust, though the more powerful varieties are more limited. Pretty much every enchantment is going to require some dust as the base."

He tapped the cloth.

"This is a basic enchanting circle. At very basic level, it can help you designate an area for the enchanting process to work in, so anything inside the circle will be consumed by the enchantment, except the object being enchanted. Circles come at many varieties, some make enchanting easier, some reduce the materials required, some very specialized circles can even be used to enhance the effect of an enchantment.

Enchanters also often use wands or enchanting rods, which basically perform a similar function in making the process easier, but at the base level it's not necessary, and I think it's a crutch for bad enchanters."

"Hey now!" Sapphiron protested.

"As I said." Ron'vith smirked a bit.

"We're going to start off by creating a simple wand, as the process is very easy. You place the object being enchanted, and the required materials in the circle." He did just that, moving the stick and a small glowing orb out of the jar into the circle.

"Then you use your own mana to form the required rune in the air above the circle." A single rune with a dash and two glowing arches surrounding it formed in the air.

"And then you push the rune inside the object." He forced the rune close, before letting it dissipate.

"I didn't finish the process because there's no point in wasting the materials. Now you. You can see the rune here." He allowed his mana to form the same rune again, and just maintained it.

"Alright, seems easy enough." She mumbled, before moving next to the table with the cloth. She quickly used her mana and the arcane to form the glowing rune and started pushing it towards the stick. She was surprised as she felt some resistance, as if the rune didn't want to work, but she quickly overpowered the resistance with her willpower. The glyph entered the stick, forming a glowing rune near the base of the now working magical wand, and the tip of the wand glowed for a moment before going dormant.

[Your Magical Crafting skill has increased from 1 to 2! Magical Crafting Perk point gained.] The information overload was instant, and she quickly understood why this usually happened while she was asleep, as she almost stumbled from the sudden vertigo. If she wasn't a psyker, even one of very basic level, the flood of information would've been hard to handle. It made sense though. Magical Crafting was very information dense.

She understood right away that the basic stumbling block for enchanting was exactly the small resistance she'd encountered. That resistance grew exponentially greater with every added symbol used and overcoming that resistance wasn't just a matter of willpower. Yes, being strong-willed helped a lot, but it was a matter of technique and understanding. Both of the enchantment, but also the process, which included the materials used and how the enchantment interacted with the object.

It wasn't just a case of 'magic goes bonk'. Instead, the information was about how exactly the wand generated the effect required. It also required understanding and a bond with the symbol used. She had never used that symbol before and felt no connection to it, which meant the whole thing had been harder than it needed to be. Not much harder, as the whole thing had been entirely trivial, but still. It was at least three times as hard as it should've been.

A normal youngster might have difficulty mustering the willpower required, but they might also struggle to sit still long enough to listen to the explanation on how to do it. She was an old Farseer that had sacrificed her life for her people. There was just no comparison. Incidentally, she also got a flood of knowledge on different basic level enchantments. The part that caught her by surprise was that the symbols used for the enchantments in the flood of information were very clearly of Aeldari origin.

On the other hand, it shouldn't have, really. She obviously had no connection to the symbols used by the Quel'dorei enchanters, while she'd spent thousands of years with the Aeldari symbols. The Aeldari script also happened to be, to say the very least, very nuanced and expansive. Her previous people had had tens of millions of years of relative peace to fiddle with their written language to their satisfaction even before the Fall.

And after the Fall, when the Path system became the standard, it was inevitable that some of her people would choose Paths where perfecting their written language was just part of mastering their chosen Path. She'd personally trodden some of those Paths. She'd always believed in synergistic Paths, building on something she'd already accomplished, so it wasn't a surprise that many of her Paths were selected almost as supportive ones.

She'd walked the Path of a Linguist, because she knew mastering her own language would be paramount for the Paths of a Poet and Musician, and mastering other languages would be important as a diplomat and a leader, as understanding a language required you to understand the people. Incidentally, it was from that original understanding that her disdain for the Mon'keigh had begun.

In any case, she'd spent decades mastering the nuances of the Aeldari written language, so it wasn't even the least bit surprising that those symbols would now be present for her to use in enchanting.

"Well done. I didn't expect you to fail, but it's still good to know you're not entirely without talent. You wouldn't expect how many promising prospects manage to bungle even this first step without several attempts. At least we avoided that." He flicked the wand, sending a bolt of concentrated Arcane to a nearby wall that was slightly scorched by the effect.

"Not bad. Quite a bit of power for a first attempt." He fixed the slight damage with a wave of his hand.

"Now, last lesson on the basics for today. Materials matter. We've already mentioned that some materials are more conductive or more able to hold magic, but that's the simplified version. While working on very high-quality materials like your Wraithbone, Thorium, or Spellcloth, this doesn't really matter, most mundane materials have an affinity for a certain type of enchantment.

There's a reason why magisters don't usually wear heavy armor, and it's not just because it's heavy, or because we feel like we don't need to. Those are some of the reasons, I admit, but the main reason is that cloth has more affinity to enchantments preferred by magisters. Conversely, while Thorium might be almost as good for caster enchantments, something like steel, or Sunwell forbid iron, just does not deal with such enchantments very well.

On the other hand, they're very good for protective enchantments, or something simple like added strength." Ron'vith pulled out three sets of bracers from a bag on his belt. One made of wool, one made of some sort of hide, while one was made of iron. Sapphiron added his own contribution again.

"It's not just a case of materials. I think it's also what the enchanters have decided to associated with each enchantment, and that has seeped into their spells over the ages, thus making it true in the eyes of magic. We all know our mentality has an effect on magic, not to mention the mentality of countless enchanters over the ages."

"Right. While academically interesting, and while we should always strive towards understanding, the fact remains that things are as they are. I have three very basic enchantments here, one for each bracers. I want you to cast all three correctly on the most appropriate material first. Then use the other bracer and mix them up, purposefully using mismatched enchantments, just to see the difference." Ron'vith instructed, as he placed the associated rune next to each set of bracers.

Strength next to the iron, mana next to the wool, and agility next to the hide. Intrigued by the idea, she quickly proceeded to cast the three enchantments. The resistance was there, but so minor it was barely there. As she moved one across and cast the wrong enchantment on every material, the resistance grew exponentially. Still completely negligible, but significantly more noticeable than before.

She held one iron bracer with the strength enchant in one hand, while a wool bracer with the same enchant in the other, and she could feel the difference even without putting them on. The iron one was at least twice as effective, if not three times. The same held true for the other three enchantments.

"I see you can tell the difference already. This concludes our lesson. Next time, I hope you can oblige and conjure us some of your material." Ron'vith concluded. With a quick exchange of pleasantries, her father and her were escorted outside.

"So, what do you think?" Sapphiron asked.

"Enchanting is more complicated than I thought, but it should pose no difficulty, assuming I'm given enough time to delve into it. I can also see how the proper use of enchantments will empower our military forces greatly in the future." She summarized her current impressions.

"It did seem like you had no problems with it. You noticed the resistance?" He asked.

"Obviously. Very, very minor, but it was there. I assume that's what separates the real enchanters, and the higher the number of symbols, the higher the resistance?" She already knew this to be true due to the System, but she was playing along.

"Exactly so. Though describing your first enchantments as only minor resistance is very promising. I should really stop being surprised by your talents, but it keeps being fascinating." He smiled proudly, and almost wanted to ruffle her hair, but thought better of it. Her new, changed appearance made the gesture a bit awkward. Almost as if mussing her hair was now a travesty. As they walked towards the palace, where both of them had rooms, Selessa took a look at her Perks for the two skills.

The Bonesinging Perk tree, which had been under construction until recently, gave her a bit of a surprise. She only had a single Perk available, the whole rest of the tree stemming from that single Perk, making it mandatory. Difference of Kind simply stated that it made it easy to create different types of Wraithbone. And since she had to take the Perk anyway, might as well do it straight away. The flood of information was very focused. As soon as she did though, she realized why it was mandatory.

The Wraithbone in this world was different from her old. Magic really did make a rather large difference. So far, she'd created what could be termed as 'unflavored' Wraithbone, except her bangle. Where the material she was used to was attuned to psykers, here Wraithbone was attuned to magic, and that made a difference. For that very reason, there weren't just three broad types anymore. Those three types did exist, but Wraithbone could also be attuned to different types of magic now as well.

It could also be attuned based on your intended purpose, to best suit any needs. The Aeldari already used the material for any and all purposes, but the breadth of uses in this world were much wider. On the other hand, it also made the process of creation harder, meaning it likely would remain her unique ability. With a slight smile, she took a look at the Magical Crafting skill. There was a rather extensive branch just for enchanting.

In fact, that covered most of the Perks, the other section mostly just being extensions of the craft, such as Inscription and Jewelcrafting, the latter of which was basically just the process of enchanting gems. She didn't hesitate long though, as there was a Perk that practically jumped out at her. Master of Disassembly supercharged the process of disenchanting magical objects, something they had not gone into during the lesson too much.

Disenchanting was the process of disassembling magical objects to gain enchanting materials. The Perk made the results of disenchanting magical objects much better, but that's not what caught her eye. No, what caught her attention was the fact that if she disenchanted an object that wasn't just magical, or even mundane, but enchanted, then she'd regain all the materials used in creating the enchantment.

She realized right away that she could make practice much easier and much cheaper if she enchanted mundane objects and simply regained all the materials by disenchanting the object afterwards. She could recycle the same materials. All she needed was piles of mundane objects to enchant. Of course, such practice could go only so far. After all, she could learn only so much by repeating the same enchantments over and over again. However, the Perk would still be very useful even when not abused in such a way.

[Your Bonesinging skill has increased from 4 to 5!] She allowed a smile of satisfaction as she picked up the sword she'd created and gave it a bit of a wave. There was still plenty of room for improvement, but finally she'd created something worth keeping. Oh, she had no doubt Sapphiron, Ron'vith, and the others would've been happy to have some of the objects she'd created in the last four months, but she had no intention of letting any sloppy work out of the little workshop they'd built at the back of the palace.

Happily, she'd learned that the world considered all Wraithbone magical, so it could easily be disenchanted, and for rather generous rewards if she was the one doing the enchanting. She was literally creating enchanting materials out of thin air. The blade itself was a simple Witchblade, the basic weapon of an Aeldari Farseer or Warlock. This only qualified as baby-warlock's first blade quality-wise, but at least it qualified.

She'd purposefully created something for the express purpose of infusing a weapon with the power of Light to make it more effective. It didn't match the strength of the power weapons from her old life, not by a long shot, but the principles were similar. If infused with enough power, it could cut through armor rather effortlessly. The blade was also a great example of the relatively recent Amalgamation Perk that made combining different kinds of Wraithbone in a single object easier.

The edge was made of the more rigid and hard type to maintain sharpness, while the core allowed for some flexibility to make the blade less brittle. Well, less brittle as far as Wraithbone went. She'd confirmed months ago that the material was sturdier than anything else the Quel'dorei had access to. Much lighter than any metals as well.

Still a shame she was the only one able to make the stuff, meaning she wasn't going to be equipping armies with the stuff anytime soon, even if her work reached a level she would be satisfied with. The best part was that the two Perks Eye For Errors and Eye for Improvement were already suggesting a hundred different ways for her to do better. Those two Perks had been excellent in driving her quick improvement.

A big part of growing with the System was making constant improvements, as that was much more effective than constant repetition, and the two Perks really helped in that regard. Best part was that they applied to all crafting.

"Still need to enchant the thing." She pondered, trying to figure out the optimal enchantments she was capable of making. Interestingly, her Magical Crafting had reached level 5 faster than her Bonesinging, which marked her at a skill level where she would be able to open a shop had she wanted to. She wasn't an expert and certainly not a master, but it was still good for only months of work, even if it had been very dedicated few months.

Unfortunately, this was the point where all her skills and attributes started to slow down.

"Your Grace, your mother is asking for you again." A servant nearby let her know. The servant in question had patiently waited for her to finish.

"This is the third time this week. I suppose I can't put it off any longer." She frowned in displeasure because she knew what her mother wanted. The workshop itself was restricted in access, only reachable through one of the teleportation orbs the Quel'dorei seemed to enjoy so much in their architecture. Why walk stairs when you could teleport? The workshop itself was third floor and up, with her personal section on the fifth floor of the spire.

The orb deposited her into the common area available for visitors, where her mother was waiting. She was playing with her new sword, spinning it behind her back with both her arms tucked behind her waist, just as a sort of relaxation exercise.

"Mother. You've been trying to reach me." She greeted simply.

"And you have been avoiding me." Selenna Sunstrider responded crisply.

"I'm not sure what I've done to earn this sort of welcome."

"It's not a personal snub. I'm busy. I don't know if you've noticed, but I'm the head of a religion, as well as working on creating replicas of the Sunwell." She did perform her role at the temple of course. She wasn't the type to shirk her duties, even if she was slowly delegating.

"And you could've still found enough time to meet." Selenna said firmly.

"You find time for you brother."

"My brother is a child missing the only member of his family that actually shows care. I did warn you not to expect him to follow in my footsteps. And I know what you want. There's only so many ways I can tell you I'm not interested in participating in political games." She shot that line of reasoning down firmly.

"And yet, you really don't have much choice." Her mother shot back.

"As much as you and Anasterian like to spread the glory around, a single conversation with any of those who actually fought on the frontlines makes it clear you are responsible for the recent victory against the trolls. Your cousin on the other hand was stuck teaching humans the basics of magic, and as for your brother, we both know he's not going to become the king. Anasterian might avoid voicing it, but you are effectively the heir apparent.

If something happened to Anasterian and someone else tried to take the throne, they'd have a revolt on their hands. And being the heir comes with certain responsibilities. The noble houses will await only so long."

"It is not quite that simple." Selessa shook her head.

"I might be the best war leader we have at the moment, but that does not translate into a good ruler. There are also circumstances you're not aware of, and will not be. Besides, all that doesn't change the fact that I'm busy. I don't have time to play at court politics. The noble houses will just have to contend with waiting."

"To get the support of the court, and to make sure there won't be issues with your position, you'll need to produce an heir eventually as well. How are you going to do that locked in a workshop? The court will eventually start creating problems for you, and your position isn't unassailable." Her mother tried to explain.

"Mother dearest, how old are you?" She asked bluntly.

"Impolite, but I'll oblige. A decade under five hundred." Not a precise age but close enough.

"So, when you had me, you were over 470 years old. I'm eighteen. I'm only technically considered an adult by Quel'dorei society, and most would contest that if I wasn't for who I am. Anasterian is also young, and not in any risk of passing away. Do you see my point?" She lifted an eyebrow.

"Now, if I was already the named Crown Princess and Anasterian was on his deathbed, then there might be actual pressure."

"Normally that might be the case, but you're not a normal case, are you? The price of excellence is responsibility. Look, I recognize that you're busy. I'm not expecting you to frequent the court, but you do need to make an appearance. By the Sunwell, you've not even made your official debut yet! You're purposefully snubbing the noble houses, and it's slowly starting to move from tolerable and amusing territory to infuriating and potentially enemy creating.

I'm not saying you need to get married this year, or even this century, but the court needs to see you're at least fulfilling the very basic requirements of civility. You've got the enigmatic Saint thing working for you, which gives you a lot of leeway, but there are limits. The court knows you've been made a member of the Convocation, and that too comes with the responsibility of bringing the problems of the people, in this case the court, to the king and the Convocation to deliberate on.

You don't need to be on their side, but they need to feel heard at least." Selenna explained.

"I get your point, but I'm not joking when I say I'm too busy. Creating another Sunwell should be worthy enough goal in anyone's mind." She stuck to her position.

"And it will buy you the leeway to not attend often. But you at the very least need to make your debut and make some introductions. You're getting powerful and influential enough that people are starting to get concerned when they don't know anything about you or your goals. Besides, the court is based on the idea of prestation, the exchange of favors and boons. If you haven't accumulated any favors, the day you need their support, you might find yourself wanting." She shook her head in disgust. She hated politics.

She'd always hated politics, even if she wasn't necessarily bad at it. Her System granted skills were telling her that her mother wasn't wrong. Not entirely correct either, as Selenna clearly had her own agenda, but close enough to matter.

"I'll see what I can do, but I make no promises."

STATUS: Level: 10 5000/10000 EXP 9 Base Points/2 Advanced Points/1 Mastery Points Body: 5/11 (2 Unspent Perk Points) Athletics 5 (1 Unspent Perk Point) Iron Lungs Heavy Weapons 4 (1 Unspent Perk Point) Cleaving Strikes Durability 3 Immovable object Reflexes: 5/12 (1 Unspent Perk Point) Light Weapons 5 (1 Unspent Perk Point) Swift Strikes Nervous System 5 (1 Unspent Perk Point) Keen Eye for Hidden Subtlety 3 Arcane Shots Charisma: 17/17 (+2 Max due to Eyes) (8 Unspent Perk Points) Politics 17 Competent Underlings Superior Subordinates Shared Vision Intelligent Improvisation Unleased Potential Unlimited Potential Above and Beyond Inspiring Loyalty Social 5 (2 Unspent Perk Points) Pleasure 1 Crafting: 5/12 (+) (1 Unspent Perk Point) Magical Crafting 5 (+) Master of Disassembly (+) Superior Runework (+) Creation 1 Nature 2 Eye for Errors Eye for Improvement Bonesinging 5 (+) Difference of Kind (+) Amalgamation (+) Discipline: 6/12 (+2 Max due to Past Experiences) (1 Unspent Perk Point) Commander 6 (1 Unspent Perk Point) Battlefield Awareness Ambush Expert Cavalry Tactics Squad Leader 2 Sensei Soldier 3 One With Your Steed One With Your Steed II Magic: 6/13 (2 Unspent Perk Point) Light 6 Severe healing Baptism of Light I Baptism of Light II Arcane 6 (1 Unspent Perk Point) Massive Spells Master Conjurer Spellbreaker 5 Magic Sight Anti-Magic Zone Projected AMZ