"But don’t get too excited. Your journey as a mage has just officially started. Now you must discover which element you resonate with."
Element affinity...I forgot about that.
Noah turned to the succubus with genuine curiosity replacing his earlier breakthrough excitement.
"How can I know what my affinity is?"
Instead of responding immediately, Lola smiled with the satisfaction of someone who’d knew they held valuable leverage.
"That wasn’t part of our agreement. I only agreed to help you breakthrough. As for your element, you’ll need to figure that out yourself..."
She paused midsentence.
"Or maybe you can sell me triple the usual. Then I can help you."
Triple order, she wants three loaves and three glasses of iced-tea. The automakers will replenish everything within hours anyway. I suppose I can do that.
Noah nodded without hesitation. "Okay, no problem. Three loaves and three glasses of iced tea."
Some knowledge is worth bending policies for.
"But first, teach me. How can I learn which elements I resonate with?"
"Elements?" Lola’s eyebrow arched with amusement.
"What makes you think it’s more than one?"
"Oh." Noah’s assumption crumbled as reality reasserted itself.
One element. I’m not a magical prodigy like Kip, who probably has multiple affinities.
"Most people only have one basic element they resonate with," Lola explained, settling into teaching mode.
"Fire, earth, wind, wood, and water. These are the most common affinities you’ll encounter."
The five basic elements, that means there is elements higher in ranking, perhaps lightening, or ice.
"To discover which one you resonate with, there are three ways. They all differ in effectiveness and convenience."
Three methods. That’s quite the range of options.
"The first way would be through an academy or a rich family. We will focus on the academy example."
"The academy has orbs containing high concentrations of each element. This has the advantage of being the fastest method since you’re having direct contact with pure elemental energy."
Noah’s mind immediately jumped to Princess Elara’s repeated invitations.
"That sounds efficient."
"It’s indeed efficient. However," Lola continued.
"There’s a significant downside to this method. If your element isn’t abundant and very few people possess it, you might not find an orb available for testing. This method mostly helps those with classical talents."
Classical talents. So people with rare elements might not find their talent orbs.
"What’s the second way?" Noah asked.
"The second method involves traveling to areas with elemental abundance. This approach is problematic because you don’t know your affinity beforehand, so you’d need to head to various locations to test every element until you find the one that resonates."
Lola gestured toward the shop’s window, indicating the world beyond.
"For example, heading to a river or sea for water element testing, forests for wood affinity, volcanic regions for fire, mountain caves for earth, high plateaus for wind."
That sounds time-consuming.
Noah nodded with understanding. "Lots of travel involved."
"Exactly. Plus, some elemental regions are dangerous for novice mages. Volcanic areas don’t discriminate between experienced fire mages and beginners who might accidentally immolate themselves."
"The third method is the hardest," Lola’s expression grew serious.
"You’ll need to try imagining every element you can think of and attempt to resonate with it through pure visualisation. No physical contact, no environmental assistance. Just imagination and willpower."
Pure mental exercise. That sounds... difficult.
"Has anyone actually succeeded with that method?"
"A few," Lola admitted.
"Usually, people with exceptional mental discipline or those who already have strong intuitive connections to their element. Most give up after a few attempts."
"Which method do you recommend?"
Lola’s smile returned, carrying mischief that suggested her answer wouldn’t be straightforward.
"For someone in your unique situation? I’d suggest starting with the third method."
"The hardest one? Why?"
"Because you have advantages most people lack. Furthermore, the areas with abunance of basic elements are outside the safe zone, so you might hurt yourself."
She gestured toward Moon and Star, whose gentle pulsing continued to enhance the shop’s mana density.
"Enhanced mana sensitivity from your cultivation plants, plus whatever other secrets you’re hiding."
She suspects there’s more to my situation than normal development. Well, she’s not wrong.
"If the visualisation method fails," Lola continued, "you can always visit the academy or travel to elemental regions. But attempting pure mental resonance first costs nothing except time."
That’s a logical progression. Start with free methods, escalate to expensive or dangerous ones if necessary.
"How exactly does the visualisation method work?"
"Close your eyes," Lola instructed. "Imagine fire in perfect detail. Not just visual, temperature, smell, the way it moves, the energy it contains. Then reach out with your mana and see if anything responds."
Noah closed his eyes, picturing flames dancing in his mind. Campfires, candle flames, raging infernos. He extended his newly accessible mana toward the mental images.
Noah shifted his visualisation to flowing streams, ocean waves, and falling rain. Again, he reached out with magical senses seeking connection.
Mountains, caves, fertile soil, solid stone. His mana probed for resonance with geological imagery.
Gentle breezes, hurricane forces, air currents carrying birds. Noah’s magical awareness searched for affinity with atmospheric elements.
Ancient forests, growing saplings, living trees swaying in summer winds. His mana sought connection with botanical life forces.
Noah closed his eyes, concentrating intensely on wooden imagery. Living trees, growing branches, leaves rustling with life energy. His mana reached toward the visualisation with careful attention.
Despite his second attempt at connecting with wood, it didn’t yield anything.
Lola nodded her head with understanding rather than disappointment.
"Okay, so that means you don’t have a particularly strong affinity to any of those elements. You just need to keep practising."
No immediate magical specialisation. Of course, it wouldn’t be that simple.
"I’ve already taught you what you need to do. For now, all you need is practice."
Noah nodded with a sigh that carried more frustration than he’d intended to reveal. He’d been imagining himself creating small fireballs or wind spheres, but reality wasn’t so simple.