The library was buzzing. Not just with the soft rustle of pages and murmured conversations, but with a tangible, ambient energy that hadn't been there yesterday. The air felt richer, clearer, and a faint, pleasant shimmer seemed to hang in the sunbeams cutting through the glass dome. Serena approached the main desk, where the same two librarians from the day before were sorting returned books. She bowed her head slightly, projecting a careful, contained thought.
[I wanted to apologize again for yesterday. I have learned how to suppress my mana emissions. I will be studying outside from now on to avoid disturbing anyone.]
The librarians, a man and a woman both wearing thick woolen shawls, looked up. To her surprise, their wary expressions softened into something closer to amusement.
"Oh, think nothing of it," the woman said, her voice low but kind. "It was a bit overwhelming in the moment, I'll admit. But the emissions you produced... they were quite potent. The library's been 'breathing' exceptionally well all morning! We've had three people comment on how clear their heads feel today."
The man nodded, adjusting his spectacles. "It's a net gain, really. Just... perhaps a less concentrated method of delivery next time."
Serena blinked. She recalled from Virgil's memories that locations saturated with high ambient mana were prized for cultivation. They strengthened the body, clarified the mind, and accelerated the replenishment of one's core. Of course, in a peaceful library, you couldn't practice combat spells, but the subtle, transmutative spells central to scholarly work—things like precise translations, material analysis, memory enhancement—would flourish here. Fighters benefitted most from dense mana, especially when pushing raw capacity and physical enhancement. However, specialist mages still also benefitted from perfecting technique, which required clarity and focus. The community's happiness with the mana boost made sense.
"You're welcome to study here," the female librarian added. "Just be careful. Judging by the smiles I've seen today, I doubt anyone will mind your presence. Might even start a waiting list for the table you use."
A small, genuine warmth bloomed in Serena's chest. [Thank you. I will be mindful.] She selected a hefty dictionary of the common tongue and a basic grammar guide. She couldn't make direct use of the high mana for cultivation—her power source was a different, darker well—but if it made the town happy and benefited their scholars, her studying could be a quiet gift. This community was more than she'd dared hope for when she first sought human contact: a happy, normal town willing to turn an anomaly into an asset.
She resolved to dive into history books as soon as she was linguistically capable. The burning curiosity about what transpired after Virgil's reign, what bridges were built in the ashes, was a powerful motivator. She was also wondering about the 'Witch Coven'. A library of this calibre was possible only for prominent royals back then, though perhaps magical resources were just simply readily accessible in this age.
For now, she had another appointment. Salih had promised to show her a 'proper' flight spell matrix. She didn't feel she needed it—the manual method worked flawlessly—but appeasing his scholarly sensibilities seemed like a small price to pay for his continued guidance.
As she walked back, she mused on the assessor's comment that her flight placed her at the level of a seasoned mage. In Virgil's era, sustained, self-powered flight was considered a pinnacle skill, a mark of immense power and prestige. Here, it seemed... notable, but not extraordinary. The world has definitely improved. Maybe not in power, but definitely in technology.
She found Salih in the front living room, reclined on a couch with a massive book open on his lap. He glanced over as she entered.
"I took the liberty of printing the blueprint," he said, gesturing to a thick stack of papers on the low table. "It's a simplified version for pedagogical purposes, stripped of the theoretical frameworks and safety redundancies. With your... unorthodox aptitudes, you'll probably reverse-engineer the complete principle from it in an afternoon."
Serena picked up the stack. It was dozens of pages long, filled with dense geometric diagrams and annotations in a script she couldn't begin to decipher. The only images she understood showcased mana flow patterns that looked both unnecessarily complex and alien to her intuitive process.
She stared at the bewildering mosaic of information. [I can't read any of this.]
Salih turned a page in his own book, a faint smirk playing on his lips. "You'll figure it out. Consider it a language lesson. Start with the diagrams."
Serena looked from the daunting stack in her hands to Salih's smug reading form, and sighed internally. It was going to take some time before she could try to tackle it. However, the challenge felt mundane, almost comfortable. The kind of problem that ended with a mastered skill and a warm house, not with a scream onto the ocean. She took the papers and placed it in her room, deciding to decipher it as soon as she's able to.