Desolate Wind

"How am I supposed to understand this?" Amelia questioned as she looked at the book.

Fortunately for her, Augmentation Magic, despite not being counted as a separate element, was a form of pure mana spell.

To cast augmentation magic, your mana core needed to attract pure mana, which was then used to weave the augmentation spell.

Just like affinity, if your mana core didn't have the affinity to attract pure mana on its own, you couldn't become an augmenter.

The only reason augmentation magic wasn't considered an element was because of the principles behind it.

But that didn't mean the ones who created the spells of the Sanctuary of Mages didn't factor in such possibilities.

Although rare abilities like Eva's barrier magic, or even Kai's Illusion Magic that was part of his bloodline ability, wouldn't be detected by this spell, for Amelia it wasn't the case.

Thus, she was fortunately transported to an area where a variety of books were placed, and all of them were either about pure mana or augmentation magic.

However, she wasn't having as good a time as Alyssa, and especially not as good as Asher.

"I need to choose carefully," Amelia told herself as she meticulously tried to understand each of these books.

"The professor mentioned a few names; let's look for them," Amelia murmured as she started flipping through the pages before setting the book aside.

All of them had received a few suggestions from Elsa, but she didn't mention the fact that they could only visit a particular section.

There were two reasons the Elders didn't outright protest the students from World Academy entering the Sanctuary of Mages.

The first reason was that they would only read the books related to their strongest affinity.

This meant that a plethora of information and legacies passed down by generations of Elders in the Mage Association would remain safe.

The second reason, which simplified the whole process immensely, was this: The Chairman of the Mage Association had the right to grant direct disciples, and two of their family members, access to the Sanctuary once each.

After that, they needed to earn that right by contributing to the Mage Association.

Farnus used his 'favors' with Silvus to arrange a visit to the Sanctuary of Mages, as Silvus had no official disciples he taught.

Silvus's position in the Mage Association was distinct from previous Chairmen. There was a reason he was given the title of Archmage, among many others.

Furthermore, while Silvus was considered one of the most powerful mages in the history of mankind, this claim was never officially confirmed by anyone.

Even Silvus himself never claimed to be the best mage ever born, though many believed otherwise.

Amelia's eyes sharpened, her determination clear; she was intent on maximizing this opportunity.

A year ago, she was regarded as the best in the Greville Family, but suddenly Asher's overwhelming talent overshadowed hers. She didn't want to surpass Asher, recognizing the gap between them, but that didn't mean her competitive spirit had waned.

Moreover, she had a new motivation: to become a role model for Livia, who looked up to her.

While Amelia was full of energy and eager to read the books, Alyssa approached the task with a quieter zeal, selecting a new book.

This book detailed methods to augment the structural strength of ice.

Ice was an advanced element. The room she was in housed works of numerous renowned mages from history.

Some books even explored Tier 4 Spells, which were currently beyond Alyssa's grasp.

Alyssa's gaze, somewhat listless, scanned the words. She began to grasp various methods to implement a superior spell circle and strengthen the formation even more.

The technique was intricate. The individual who discovered these spells also emphasized the considerable amount of mana required to execute them.

She set the book down, not having finished it.

She recalled Elsa's advice, which emphasized understanding the fundamentals of each book and identifying what one needed before selecting the five books to take.

Completing even one of these books could take months, and fully comprehending their theories required even more time.

Yet they had only a single day to choose the research papers or books they needed.

However, among the three of them, there was one who wasn't strictly adhering to these guidelines.

[ Magic Mastery is increasing ]

Another system notification appeared as Asher voraciously consumed the content of the books, his mind exploring various adaptations using the knowledge he acquired.

For Asher, the Restricted Section of the Great Library and the Sanctuary of Mages were the only places where he could obtain higher-tier Space Element spells.

There were specific items Asher sought in the Sanctuary of Mages, with the space element being his primary focus.

Therefore, possessing the Rune of Eirdin allowed him to access this particular section of the Sanctuary of Mages.

Because of the Greville Bloodline, if Asher entered the Sanctuary of Mages in his previous life he would have been teleported to the Pure Mana section the first time he entered this place.

His bloodline made it possible for his body to attract mana, which was one of the traits of an augmenter.

This would have resulted in the spell determining that Asher was more suited as an augmenter even if he was not.

But luckily, he neither had the Greville Bloodline, and the presence of Rune of Eirdin made the spell bring him here.

"This is also flawed," Asher said as he dropped the book.

He had read much of that book, and his brain processed all the information, but he could see the fundamental flaws in the spell. He could fix it, but the power would decrease substantially if he did.

Grasping the spatial elements around was a challenging task that not many mages could do, even if they had an affinity for it.

Even if they could master it, the constant mental drain and the effects of using Space magic made it impossible for researchers to stay sane throughout their studies.

Many of these books deviated from their intended path as the researchers got lost in their work and perished before completion.

The only reason the Mage Association permitted such studies was because of the power of the element. It was clear that if they made any progress in this field, it would be beneficial for the entire world.

The High Council also allowed people to learn Space Magic, but they made sure that everyone pursuing the path of a hunter understood the consequences of such decisions.

Asher read a spell, raised his finger to mimic it, and a ball of violet energy formed at his fingertip.

The spell was designed to gather spatial elements, but it was described as extremely difficult to implement.

However, for Asher, this wasn't the case. The Rune of Eirdin enabled him to perform such tasks with much greater ease.

Having witnessed the effects of the Rune of Eirdin firsthand, Asher was convinced that the swordsmanship Nathan had demonstrated to him paled in comparison to what he could achieve at his level.

Because the power of the Rune of Eirdin increased with the rank of the mana core, this suggested that Nathan's Rune of Eirdin was of SSS Rank.

Outside the Sanctuary,

"Did you tell that girl about the books inside?" Edward asked Elsa.

"No, but if she was teleported to the section of her advanced element, she might find them," Elsa replied.

"Then it's fine," Edward said.

Elsa understood Edward's inquiry and had no reason to inform Alyssa.

In Elsa's opinion, it was better if Alyssa remained unaware.

However, unbeknownst to them, Alyssa was already in the know.

Inside the Sanctuary, as Alyssa perused multiple names, her steps halted upon spotting a particular one:

Elizabeth Garcia.

This was the only location where records or documents bearing this name could be found.

It was the sole remnant of her mother's existence in this world.

Elizabeth Garcia had been one of the most accomplished mages in the advanced Ice element, and she was Alyssa's mother.

Alyssa's gaze fixed intently on the name, standing beside the only remaining testament to her mother's legacy.

Due to the purge of the Garcia family, anything associated with them had been expunged, including their achievements and possessions.

Sanctuary of Mages was a place that had remained untouched by the law of the society and even High Council didn't interfere with it.

It was meant to be a place where the knowledge gathered, and it didn't matter what the person who wrote it.

The status and power of the individual behind the research didn't matter; if their work was of merit, their name would be forever preserved in the Sanctuary of Mages.