The next day.
As promised, Lili came to my shop.
Rather than because she wanted to learn Magecraft from me and become a proper adventurer... it was more because of Bell boy, and that stung a little.
Ahh, so this is what they call paternal instinct.
That "evil professor" really did have every reason to be so attached to Fran.
So watch your back at night, Bell Cranel!
"Lili, what do you think Magecraft is?"
"Um, making flames appear from your hand or controlling the wind?"
"That's the typical image, but that's not all there is to it."
To put it bluntly, Magecraft is ultimately the art of manipulating mana to interfere with the laws of reality and handle the miracles of mysterious supernatural phenomena that arise from that interference.
The most important thing here is the energy source itself: mana.
"Without mana, there's no Magecraft. And normally, the amount of mana someone has and their ability to control it differ from person to person, sometimes a little, sometimes by an enormous amount. But control can be improved as much as you want through effort."
Here, control refers to the output of mana a practitioner can draw out at once.
In other words, the amount of mana one possesses is something innate and fixed from the start, while control is something that can be improved later on as much as one likes.
This becomes clear when you look at how, even if an adventurer levels up, the number of times they can use a given spell does not change, while the same spell can still become stronger than before.
"If your control over that output is excellent, you can suppress unnecessary mana consumption and slightly increase the number of times you can use Magecraft. But in the end, the total amount of mana you possess doesn't actually change, so there's still a limit. My Magecraft, for the most part, starts from the point where it breaks through that limit."
"Then how did An-sama solve that limit?"
"The method itself is simple. I borrow unused mana from somewhere else."
Ever since I first learned Magecraft, and ever since I decided to walk the road toward romance, I had thought the same thing.
This just wasn't enough.
"Most of my Magecraft is the kind that consumes a huge amount of mana. There are a few that don't, but they're not many, and their power is on the low side too."
That was why, in order for me to use Magecraft, a large amount of mana was practically a prerequisite.
As I thought about how to solve that, Medea, the Caster of the Fifth War, suddenly came to mind.
Modern Magecraft had become absurdly weak compared to the Age of Gods because the world itself had grown poor in mystery.
Even so, she had obtained a first-rate ley line in Ryuudou Temple, strengthened her Magecraft, and replenished her lacking mana by siphoning life force from the city.
Even if I gave up on the latter part, since it would cause all sorts of problems and was likely to become an issue.
The former was certainly efficient, but it came with many restrictions on where you could choose, and the chances of actually obtaining such a place for yourself were close to zero.
Then...?
"So I changed my way of thinking. I didn't need a first-rate ley line in the first place. What I needed was a reserve stockpile that could support me with lacking mana anytime, anywhere."
A ley line is, in a sense, the flow of life running beneath the earth.
Therefore, beneath dead land, no ley line passes through, and above it, no living thing can survive.
Not even grass can sprout there, let alone people living on it.
In other words, it's safe to say that there are almost no places where even a faint ley line does not pass through.
Even if it's a gray city built by damaging the natural environment.
"However, ordinary ley lines like that are so common that they're really troublesome to use. They're always there, but their power is so weak that even if you draw mana from them, the amount is so insufficient it's hard to make practical use of. Most of the time it ends up below zero rather than even breaking even, so other magi never use them."
What magi usually do when they seize a ley line is a kind of "domination."
To put it roughly, taking control of a ley line is like mining iron ore.
Drawing mana from an ordinary ley line is like trying to extract iron from a pebble you picked up off the road.
There was no need to say that the former was more efficient and stable.
"But that's impossible for me. So I changed the method. Instead of the same kind of 'domination' other magi use, I decided to replenish my lacking mana through 'trade' by means of a contract."
Absurd.
If other magi heard that, they would surely laugh and call it foolish, a delusion so ridiculous it was like a crippled man claiming he could not only run but also reach beyond the far side of the universe.
Because in the end, that meant communing with the world itself and briefly becoming one with it.
In other words, it meant...
"For a moment, you touch the [Root]. It's basically the same thing."
"The... [Root]?"
"If I start explaining that, it'll take forever, so let's skip it for today."
Anyone who knew even a little about Magecraft would never accept such a ridiculous story easily.
Even that professor had shaken his head and denied the possibility.
As for Flat, well, he'd just cheered from the back with empty enthusiasm, saying it sounded fun as always.
"Everyone said it was absolutely impossible, that it couldn't be done. But if I couldn't see any other way, what else was I supposed to do? Win or lose, I had to throw myself at it first."
That was why, after passing the basic introduction to Magecraft, I had practically gone all-in on this one thing for years.
After all, only by getting past this part would I be able to see even a little of what came next.
And then, in the end.
Five years after I first entered Magecraft, I was finally able to fasten the first button properly.
"My contract method with the 'world' starts by first completely affirming the existence of the land I stand on, [Gaia], as a single personified being."
People often say this.
That the earth is alive, that the earth breathes and lives just like we do, and that it is a precious and cherished existence.
But no one ever sees the earth as a single, individual person.
Not even the magi who called her [Gaia].
They all simply treat her as a resource to be used and consumed.
"In other words, unless you have an absolute belief built from unconscious delusion, or from faith-like conviction and stubbornness, it won't work. You have to affirm [Gaia]'s existence and accept her as another person to that degree before you can even begin a trade with her."
That is why I cautiously suspect that the reason magi of the Age of Gods could live so closely with the Root, unlike modern magi, was because they believed in and worshiped the world itself as a person.
Well, it might have been for some other reason in reality, but at least that's what I think.
After all, if some form of "conversation" can be established, like it was for me, then you have no choice but to accept the other side as another person.
I nearly jumped out of my skin when I first heard a voice out of nowhere, too.
"So, Lili, the next thing you need to do after mastering the basics is to get acquainted with the earth, [Gaia]. It may be difficult, but if you want to learn Magecraft from me, you'll have to rewrite your common sense and accept her as another person. Start preparing for that from now on. Understood?"
"Yes. I understand, An-sama."
"If it's really too hard, you can also believe in and worship her as a god, the same way you do the gods here. That alone might not be enough, but it should help at least a little."
In my case, I had only reached this level by constantly running a self-made moe transformation in my own brain until it was practically a perception rewrite.
But Lili was a resident of this world, one who had lived with gods since birth, so I didn't need to worry too much about that part.
If it really proved difficult, I could try guiding her a little with hypnosis... no, let's not do that after all.
As a teacher, I couldn't fail to believe in my student's growth.
No matter how long it took, I decided I would wait with hope for Lili's growth.
"Now then, that's enough theory for today. Let's take a tour of the Magecraft workshop where you'll be spending a lot of time from now on. You're my first guest, Lili."
"Lili is the first..."
At my words, Lili looked at me with a clearly excited expression.
Hoo, this is making me weirdly nervous.
I guess it couldn't be helped, since this was the first time I'd shown my own secret base to someone else.
If possible, I hoped she wouldn't be disappointed.
"Then, ta-da~!"
"Waa... huh?"
And so the secret passage revealed itself.
And beyond it, the hidden space spread out before us.
My very own secret base, the kind any dream-filled boy would long for and envy!
"Haa?"
But Lili's face didn't exactly light up with cheers.
Rather, it looked more like... disappointment? Confusion? Disgust?
"An-sama."
"Uh... yes, Lili?"
"Are you doing your research in a pigsty?"
That's too harsh!
I wanted to snap back, but I forced myself to turn away and avoid Lili's gaze.
Come to think of it, even I could tell it was a little dirty.
Why hadn't I noticed until yesterday?
No, maybe I had noticed and just deliberately looked away.
But cleaning every day is such a pain!
And I definitely cleaned it thoroughly not long ago!
"So. When was the last time you cleaned it?"
"Hmm... maybe about three years ago?"
"...An-sama."
"I-I still know where everything is! I remember it all perfectly!"
"That's the classic excuse of a lazy cleaner."
"Ghk!"
Th-this is bad! My dignity as a teacher is crumblingggg!
But ignoring the scream in my heart, Lili smiled brightly and looked at me.
Then she said firmly, "An-sama, let's clean."
"Uh, wait, right now you're in a very important phase as a magus..."
"Let's clean."
"Th-that is to say, that's not the most important thing right now..."
"Clean."
"Yes, ma'am."
Sniff, today's Lili really is like my first mother.
Even after being reincarnated twice already, I still haven't forgotten that back-smash from back then.
If Lili ever gets married and has children someday, maybe she'll become like that too.
At that time, I'll personally cry like a baby and twist her husband's neck off.
"An-sama, that's not how you mop. You need to squeeze it out harder first, then wipe."
"Ah, yes."
And so, for the rest of the day, we spent the time until late at night tidying up the workshop, removing dust and grime, and making the day feel worthwhile.
Haa, I'm tired.
Still, starting tomorrow, I can finally get back to proper, full-scale lessons...
"We're not done yet. We'll keep cleaning tomorrow too, so keep that in mind."
"Oh, my goooood!"
I despaired in a Joseph-style pose.
Sniff, I miss my mom even more today.
Mama, uuuuu~