Watching as the pale white rune shattered once more, I let out a frustrated growl before uncorking a mana potion, taking a few sips so that I could return to my training.
I had gotten further this time than I had ever before, but it was so very frustrating to see that pale rune refuse to bend to my will.
So what was I doing wrong..?
My eyes returned to the small notebook that Mother had given me, and I scoured the first few pages once more, trying to find out what I was missing with this new form of magic.
The shift from a structured, logical sequence of runes shaping magic to one that held no defining structure besides your will was one that I found difficult to transition to.
ƥandasnovel·ƈom I relished in understanding just what I was going to do, formulating it, and watching as it did what I wanted it to do, completely guaranteed because I knew it would do that.
That was what structured runic sequences provided.
This new version of magic relied entirely on your will, and while it would seem like the perfect fit for me, there was this small part of it that was entirely subject to unconscious whims and shifts that couldn't be accounted for.
That irritated me, but I was more than willing to deal with that since these two types of magics offered more benefits than downsides.
Sighing, I tapped my fingers against the various notes inside the book before raising my hand once more, closing my eyes and concentrating on the flow of the mana.
Perhaps, unlike the volatility of Fire, Moon Magic likely needed an unprecedented amount of steadiness; after all, I would imagine that in order to create illusions, the mana would need to be insanely stable in order to maintain the illusions.
So I took a deep breath and allowed a small amount of mana to ooze from my finger, wrapping it in my will and ordering it to remain stable.
When I felt the rune complete itself, I began to move onto the next part of the spell - visualizing the illusion I wanted and shaping it with my mana.
More and more mana trickled out of my finger and into the room, and I took another deep breath as I felt my ability to control the mana begin to waver as more and more of it demanded attention.
Gritting my teeth, I shaped out a simple rose, my mind recalling the vivid red velvety petals and beautiful shape of one of the most popular flowers.
After a few moments, and after sensing that something was shaped, I opened my eyes and sighed in relief as a fist sized rose floated in front of me, its petals swaying gently like there was a soft breeze filling the room.
Reaching forwards, I hesitantly touched the small flower and chuckled wryly as my fingers poked through it, brushing against air.
"So? Figure it out?"
Hearing the sound of a book closing beside me, I glanced over my shoulder and nodded, replying "It needs a lot of control and attention - currently, anyways. I needed to maintain a tight grip on the mana in order to do... well, anything with it."
Mother just grinned at me, adding "Oh, it gets much~ worse after this. Moon Magic is unreasonably hard to master, and it's lower - and even middle - levels of magic are simply not worth the effort put into them. However, I saw my Father do things I never would have thought possible with Moon Magic. A pity you can't meet him."
I frowned at that, and she just gave me a half smile as she said "Your grandparents are... well, your Grandfather is dead, and your Grandmother is missing - likely dead as well. Your Grandfather saved quite a few of the smaller Vampire Clans from hunters and the like before he was captured and executed, whilst your Grandmother went on a bit of a killing spree before escaping into the Labyrinthian, which just left me with a few of my relatives - Aunts, Uncles, Cousins - to grow up and do what I could."
Looking away, she sighed before getting up and taking the notebook from my hands, smirking at me as she said "Luckily for you, I took the time necessary to get a rather good grasp on Moon Magic, and I can tell you that, despite being an incredibly hard branch of magic to master, it is very worth the time and effort put into it. Though, I've more of a liking to the multitude of uses Blood Magic has for us Vampires..."
Tossing the book back onto her pile, Mother beckoned for me to move towards her, showing me her own spell as I stood off to her side.
"This is something that you could eventually do..."
The same crescent moon appeared on her palm, before I had to blink as a momentary flash of light filled the room.
When I opened my eyes again, the room... was gone.
In its place was a never ending field of red roses, the setting sun illuminating the field and bathing it in a bearable warmth.
The scent of flowers filled my nostrils, and I could feel the breeze against my skin as we stood there, Mother smiling softly as she gestured towards this new world.
"This is the power of Moon Magic. Illusions so strong that you could fool your enemy. With a little preparation, this is the end result. If they are of really strong will, it is easy to break free, but otherwise..."
Snapping her fingers, Mother grinned at me before fading away, her whisper filling the air as she said "This is what they could experience. Find your way out, my daughter."
With her departure, the sun began to rise, and I wrinkled my nose in confusion as a metallic scent replaced the floral.
Looking down, I frowned as I noticed that the roses were dripping with blood, splattering the grass in crimson.
"Intriguing. So... how to get out? I'm still in the same room, so nothing in that regard - moving would be ill advised. This is a trick of the mind as well, so perhaps..?"
Closing my eyes, I exhaled before pulsing my mana inside my Core, sending a burst of it towards my head and inducing a small 'wound' to myself.
When I opened my eyes again, I was back inside Mother's room, the older Vampire beaming at me as she approached.
"That was rather good! Many assume that there must be a physical thing sustaining the illusion, or that they can somehow find the caster and force them to drop the illusion. While possible, I wouldn't advise it; you are effectively blind, deaf, and without smell inside a good illusion. Even tasteless, if they are really good. Touch is the only thing that might be capable of guiding you out, but even then..."
She tapped my arm, and I stared at her in amazement as I noticed how soft - and nearly missable - her tap was.
If an illusion was occupying my other senses, I wouldn't be able to sense that whatsoever.
"Well! Come, drop the form. I can tell your around half capacity, and your Mom is coming over soon. Let's focus instead on your Fire, hmm~?"
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