Liturgical magicka, in some cases also called courtesy magicka or ritual-type magicka, was one of the many systems of magicka. Though it was called that, it was completely different from magicka systems like numerology or astrology. Rather, it was the term for the type of magicka which was invoked simply by performing a specified action or by properly reciting a chant.
In modern terms, it was also called manual magicka. To react in a predetermined way upon the use of an action or chant was inherent to the behavior of many types of magicka. Summoning magicka was an extreme example of this. The circular dances of Sufism, ninjutsu, yin-yang ceremonies, and Buddhist seals all fell under this category. Essentially, all magicka that activated in such a fashion could be classified as manual.
That included the magicka Suimei had just used. It was strike magicka that he had performed the proper ceremony for beforehand, and tied to the action of snapping his fingers. With that, he could perform the specified gesture and activate it at any time. It was plain, simple, and effective, which made it easy to use. And deploying such simple magicka without requiring a keyword was completely normal to Suimei.
“Then you’re...”
“Yeah. I apologize for not saying so sooner, but I am indeed something like a mage.”
When Suimei apologized for his late introduction, the surrounding crowd broke out into surprised murmurs.
“A mage? With that kind of appearance...?”
“I’ve never heard of magic without a chant or keyword...”
“Hey, don’t tell me he’s actually some kind of amazing mage...”
Uh oh...
He’d gone too far. All he’d done was snap his fingers like always. In terms of magicka, performing a spell with a simple action like that was a popular trick, so Suimei never thought of it as something amazing. He’d also had to choose an attack that wouldn’t seriously harm his opponent in an enclosed space, so this was just about his only option. While ignoring the reaction of everyone around him, Suimei turned back to the receptionist and shrugged his shoulders.
“Do you not believe me?”
“N-No, it’s not that I don’t believe that you can use magic... But if you’re a mage, why aren’t you wearing a robe or carrying a staff? Are they not indispensable tools for a mage?”
Huh?
“Are they really so important that all mages are expected to carry them around?”
“No, that’s not exactly what I mean... but it is the general trend among mages.”
“Then there’s no problem, is there? It’s not my style to carry around crappy antiques like any stereotypical mage would.”
Perhaps because of the way he had said it, the receptionist was now simply staring absentmindedly at him with her mouth agape. And as if to reprimand him for saying something ridiculous, she finally snapped.
“I-It isn’t ‘your style?!’ Aren’t they tools necessary for accurately controlling your mana and defending against magic?!”
“Well, it’s true that robes are on the classy side, but there’s no real reason to carry a magic staff, right? It’s common to use magickal tools to assist with complex spells, but it’s natural to just use your body for the minute control of mana. Only third-rate magicians can’t do that.”
“Oh, come on...”
As Suimei rattled off his harsh take on the matter, the receptionist let out a groan for some reason. Just how strongly was she determined to hold on to the belief that robes and staffs were absolute necessities for magic wielders in this world? Felmenia hadn’t used a staff, so Suimei hadn’t thought it mattered all that much, but apparently it was a big deal.
Certainly in ancient times, the staff was an indispensable tool for magicians. According to history books, this dated back to ancient Egypt where they wielded staffs carrying characteristics of the gods as a symbol of authority. In Celtic civilization, the staffs used by the druids were also quite famous. In the modern age, one of the most frequently mentioned examples was Mather’s Lotus Wand. The origin differed between systems of magicka, but it was true that magicians augmented their strength using staffs as magickal tools.
It wasn’t as if Suimei hated such old-fashioned things. He also wasn’t making fun of the traditional methods passed down since ancient times. But he was right in that such a thing was wholly unnecessary for a modern magician. After all, magicians were the type to go against the flow to chase after mysteries.
Suimei was from a world driven by the advancement of science. Magicka had to learn how to grow and adapt as well. Magickal staffs had been replaced by magickal guns. Robes had given way to suits and jackets. It was true that tradition was important, but it was equally important to think of blazing a path to the future. But despite however natural it might be to him, he’d caused an extraordinary misunderstanding with the receptionist.
“I’m quite sorry. I truly did not realize that my appearance would be such a big deal.”
As Suimei apologized and timidly bowed his head, the man he had just fought answered in a slightly flustered manner.
“N-No, it’s fine. I also jumped to the wrong conclusion. Sorry.”
“I truly appreciate you saying that... Can I assume you no longer take issue with me registering?”
“Yeah. If you’re a mage, then I don’t got any complaints. I’ll leave the rest to her.”
Suimei walked up to the man and held out his hand. The man took hold of it to pull himself up and then pointed at the front desk. Following his finger with his eyes, Suimei looked at the receptionist.
“So, how about it?”
“O-Of course. There are no problems with regards to your registration. I apologize for having been so impolite.”
“No, there is no need to humble yourself so... It was my fault for creating the misunderstanding in the first place.”
The receptionist bowed down while humbling herself, feeling that she’d failed at her job for not properly being able to judge Suimei’s abilities. Suimei responded politely and tried to lighten the mood, but she only apologized again. With this, the surrounding crowd dispersed and the guild hall returned to how it had been before. The man he had just fought also gave him one more apology before going back to what he’d been doing.
“Um, then I have a blank form for you here. Please fill in all the necessary items.”
With that, the receptionist pulled out a piece of paper with fields to enter personal information needed for the registration process. It wasn’t much, so Suimei didn’t have any trouble filling it all out. Using the nearby quill pen and inkwell, he quickly finished filling in the form and handed it back to the receptionist. She then briefly inspected it.
“Suimei Yakagi-san...? It may be impolite of me to say, but that’s certainly an unusual name.”
“Yeah, I get that a lot.”
Suimei returned her statement with a wry smile. It was indeed something he heard frequently; “Suimei” was an unconventional name even in Japan. He couldn’t help being amused hearing someone comment on it even here.
“So, Suimei-san, please let me confirm just a few things with you. Would it be correct to list your occupation as a mage?”
“Yes.”
“On that note, what attribute do you use?”
“...Um, do I have to specify?”
“Collecting such information is standard procedure. This is all personal, of course. We won’t make any of it public.”
“Hmmmm...”
“Is something the matter?”
The receptionist tilted her head to the side, puzzled by Suimei’s reluctance. For her, asking such a thing was completely natural. When Suimei thought about it, he recalled a conversation he’d had with an excited Reiji and Mizuki when they’d first started learning magic.
They’d said something ridiculous along the lines of the attributes a mage could use being determined at birth. Since he’d heard that from two people who could use every attribute, it seemed like complete nonsense―but regardless of how Suimei felt about it, it w
as perfectly reasonable for the guild to want to know what kind of magic its mages could use. A pensive expression on his face, Suimei came up with an answer.
“My specialty, well, it would be the fire attribute...”
“Fire, you say? But the magic you used earlier wasn’t attributed to fire...”
“Y-Yeah... I can also use magic with the wind attribute.”
“I see. Suimei-san uses two attributes, correct?”
“Yeah, well...”
Suimei could only be vague, but the receptionist gave him a great smile. It was true that he was especially good at magicka using the fire attribute, but there wasn’t a significant difference between that and his use of other spells. Unlike what Reiji and Mizuki had suggested, Suimei could freely use all types of magicka.
His actual specialty was Kabbalah numerology, which took all of the world’s matter and phenomena and interpreted them as catalogs of numbers and numerical formulas, making it possible to peruse them as if they were in a book. By combining this with magicka, he could manifest the true essence of the numbers, be it fire, water, lightning, or solidifying liquid. With the correct spell and the requisite amount of mana, it was possible to recreate any of the world’s matter and phenomena as magicka. In the world Suimei came from, magicians would generally never speak of the magicka systems and attributes they were unable to use so as to not expose their own weaknesses, but...
Attributes, huh?
Ever since arriving in this world, Suimei had had a feeling that these people placed far too much importance on this aspect of magicka. It was true that for magicka, the traditional four elements or the five elements of wu xing were important components of elementary theory. With them, it was possible to intuit basic relationships and correlations, such as the water attribute being effective against the fire attribute, but that in no way meant that someone who could use the fire attribute couldn’t use the water attribute.
Of course people had natural affinities for certain types of magicka, but fundamentally all humans had the potential to handle any attribute. There were individuals who weren’t particularly talented with certain magickas, thus they might choose not to use certain attributes. It was similar to how most people would prefer to light a fire with matches than flint. Everyone can use flint in theory, but it’s much easier to use the matches.
Thinking of the match and flint as different systems of magicka, the act of creating fire could be accomplished in many ways. It could be done by borrowing the power of a devil, god, or some other paranormal existence. Or as Suimei did, it could be done by using mystical numbers to manifest the fire. The results of using the stars or tarot cards for divination could bring about the flame. It was also possible to create it using runes or yin-yang techniques. It was simply a matter of the user’s preference.
So if there was a magicka technique someone had aptitude for, they would be able to manifest whatever attribute they desired. Attributes weren’t meant to be off-limits to magicka users. For Suimei, who had touched upon many different systems of magicka as a modern magician, there were certain attributes he found hard to handle, but that was the extent of his limitations.
That being said, if everyone here used the same system of magicka, they would be restricted by that. It was possible to conceive that certain attributes would be out of reach for certain people that way. By that logic, Suimei could start to understand how this world thought of attributes in such a black and white manner. It was very likely that the magicka system used by Reiji and Felmenia was the major, if not the only, magicka system in this world.
“By the way, Suimei-san, are you able to use recovery magic?”
“R-Recovery magic?”
Suimei raised an eyebrow at this sudden question. The receptionist once more made a confused expression and continued.
“Oh my, are you perhaps not aware of it?”
“No, I do know of it...”
He understood what she was saying, but the nuance of the phrase “recovery magic” was just too vague to him. He knew of healing magicka and spiritual treatment from back home, so he was a bit stumped at her choice of words.
Suimei could guess that healing magicka was an important ability for an adventurer, which would explain why the receptionist was asking about it. The ability to heal oneself and others during battle was certainly a desirable power. Throughout history even in his own world, the number of magicians capable of using strong healing magicka was chronically insufficient.
“...Yeah, I can use it. Well enough that I won’t fall behind, at least.”
“I understand.”
Suimei gave her a nod, and the receptionist finished filling out the form. She then cleared her throat and began speaking in a business-like manner.
“Ehem, excuse me. Well then, after this, we will have Suimei-san evaluated and appointed a rank between F and S based on ability. The explanation for the rank you’re assigned will be given by the person in charge of such matters afterward. Suimei-san, could you please go through that door and take a seat in the next room? We will be with you shortly, so please be patient.”
With those words, she turned around and waved her hand towards the door behind her. Following her instructions, Suimei headed through into the room beyond.
★
After being told about the upcoming evaluation by the receptionist, Suimei headed further into the guild hall and took a seat in the hall he found himself in. It was illuminated by what looked like lanterns hanging from the ceiling, and had something of a slightly lonely feeling. It reminded Suimei of something... A hospital waiting room in the middle of the night.
Despite being in another world, Suimei stewed on the strange, nostalgic feeling this room had inspired in him as he sat and waited. Before long, the door at the end of the hall opened up and someone came out. It was a girl with soft and wavy light brown hair. Similar to the receptionist, she was wearing the guild staff uniform. She walked over to Suimei and cocked her head to the side.
“Um, Suimei Yakagi-san... Right?”
“Yeah... That’s right.”
When Suimei gave an agreeable nod, the girl put on a brilliant smile.
“Please excuse me. I’m the one in charge of guiding the new guild members. My name is Dorothea, and it’s a pleasure to meet you!”
“L-Likewise. I’m looking forward to working with you.”
Suimei responded as politely as he had with the receptionist to the energetic girl who saluted him. While remarking internally how different she was from the others in the front, Dorothea began speaking with a candid smile.
“Oh, don’t feel the need to be formal. We’re similar in age and everything, so let’s be friendly and casual with each other.”
“...Is that alright?”
“It’s fine, it’s fine! It’s easier this way anyway. It’s my job to make sure our brand new guild members who are about to take the evaluation feel at ease, you know? Well, from the looks of it, that may not be necessary for you, Suimei-san.”
“Y-Yeah... Well, once again, it’s nice to meet you.”
“The pleasure’s all mine!”
When Suimei agreed to her request, Dorothea replied with a burst of energy. She enthusiastically urged him to come with her, and then began walking slowly down the passageway. Suimei followed. After a few steps, as if she’d suddenly remembered something, Dorothea turned around and asked Suimei a question.
“Um, I had a look at your registration form. You’re a mage who can wield both the fire and wind attributes, right?”
“Yeah, well, more or less.”
“Heehee. Being awfully modest, aren’t we? Didn’t you just send Roha-san flying using magic without chanting so much as a keyword? I think that makes you, mister, a super skilled mage.”
“Not at all. It all happened so suddenly that I lost myself in the situation and used it by accident.”
Suimei responded to Dorothea’s smile with a harmless smile of his own.
“Well, just
like you saw, Roha-san is quite quick-tempered. Recently that kinda thing has been happening a lot, and he likes to just charge into the mess. There’s no stopping him. I’m afraid it was quite rude to you, Suimei-san. I’m sorry.”
“...Do people screw around and play pranks that often here?”
“Yeah, they do. There are innocent people who march right up to the reception desk, the kind of people who admire adventurers but don’t have a shred of talent or experience. And there are those who only want to join the guild to leech off of the benefits that come with membership. I guess it’s a side effect of the hero appearing. Over the past three days, the number of these incidents has increased several fold...”
It must have caused quite a lot of trouble to the guild members. There was a sigh mixed into her voice here and there as Dorothea explained the situation. It was certainly believable that the hero summoning, which was performed because of the attack by the demons on Noshias, would suddenly inspire those who may have been cowering in fear previously. Suimei wasn’t sure how the people of this world commonly viewed the hero, but if it was anything like the blind devotion he’d witnessed in the castle, the hero’s very existence would be a huge morale boost to the side of humanity in the battle to come. It was a powerful enough effect that it had even produced a fever of sorts here. It was good on the whole, but it was quite troublesome for the guild and was the primary reason for the incident at the reception desk earlier.
“So are there many adventurer hopefuls gathered where we’re headed?”
“Nope. You’ll be the last one receiving an evaluation this morning, Suimei-san. I doubt any of the other candidates are still hanging around.”
“I see...”
While Suimei was nodding, Dorothea changed the subject.
“By the way, Suimei-san, did you catch a glimpse of the hero during the parade?”
“Well, yeah, I did see a bit of him...”
He couldn’t exactly admit that he knew the guy and had seen him off. There was simply no reason for him to say it. With stars in her eyes and a gentle sigh, Dorothea continued.
The Magic in this Other World is Too Far Behind! Volume 2 Page 3
