"If it had been any other student, it would have been difficult since you don't know enough to even start researching subjects of interest until the second year." Reina looked up from the book again and gave Alec an almost creepily intense look.
"But you're special, Alec. You're currently the only mage in the kingdom with formless mana. You might not be able to get a scholarship of your own, but becoming a research assistant for a mage interested in that mana of yours is entirely possible."
"Would that mage be you, Miss Woltz?" He was a little unnerved by her intense gaze. It reminded him slightly of the intensity mad scientists had. Rather than helping with the research, wasn't it possible that he would end up as a research specimen? His mana was inside him, after all.
"I have a feeling Wilcox or any of the other mage teachers would be interested as well, but I found you, so you're mine. If you want, of course."
'Being yours doesn't sound so bad.' Alec kept that thought to himself as he nodded thoughtfully.
"Ah! Before you answer, though, I want you to think it over properly. You should also hear what I've found before you make your decision. I might have overestimated formless mana earlier."
Alec's eyes narrowed. That did not sound hopeful.
"Alright…"
Reina gestured for him to grab a chair and sit down in front of her desk. Once he was seated and his full attention was on her, she started.
"Before I start, though, I have to tell you that I did not find as much as I would have liked. Formless mana is even rarer than I thought. There isn't much known about it, and not many have tried to walk its path, much less study it in depth.
"That is because it's not a permanent condition. You can gain an elemental affinity that removes the formlessness of your mana in any number of ways. If you eat a lot of elementally attributed food, you'll gain an attribute, for example. However, the most straightforward way to gain an affinity, I found, was to choose a condensation method.
"Once you start condensing a magic circle with the chosen method, you will gain the element that the method uses. And it's not just that. Do you remember what I told you all earlier today about how everyone has a little of most affinities but more of one or two?"
"And how a rare few have almost only one affinity?"
"Exactly. You can gain perfect affinity for any element you choose."
"That explains why there aren't many formless mages."
"Yes."
Alec didn't know much about magic. But from what he had understood during Reina's lecture, perfect affinity was good. He might be limited to one element, but he would dominate with that element. He would learn it quicker, and the spells he cast would be more powerful than the same ones cast by his peers.
In return, spells of other elements would be almost impossible to cast. But who needed other elements when you had one that could take you to the peak?
"I see." Alec's face was serious.
Reina was anxious.
"I understand if you want to—"
"Become your research assistant?" He interrupted.
Reina's face blanked.
"You do…?" She asked, confused.
"Don't you want to be an ordinary mage? If you choose an elemental method, you will become strong, you know. The only drawback is being unable to use other elements. But in the case of perfect affinity, that isn't much of a drawback at all." Reina tried to clarify what it meant to choose an element.
"Are you trying to convince me to lose my formless mana, Miss Woltz?" He asked.
"N-no. I just want you to make an informed decision."
"I'm pretty sure I'm informed. I can choose an element and walk a path countless have tread before me. I probably won't struggle until I hit the end of that road. Setting aside the fact that I will be constrained to only one element, there are barely any drawbacks.
"Or I can choose a route we have no precedent for, where I have no one to guide me. Every step that I take will be the first on this path. I will have to cut down the hurdles myself if I want to advance. Since every step of the way will be filled with hurdles, I will have to do a lot of cutting.
"I might end up wandering in circles. I might never get anywhere until I die. I might die ahead of time, even.
"Miss Woltz, you're asking if I would choose an easy road ahead—the path of an ordinary mage—or a path that doesn't even have a road."
"Yes…" Although it seemed Alec was getting prosaic, he was at least thinking deeply about it.
"Too bad. The path I'm on is already one filled with hurdles, and I can't leave it. I might as well get as much hurdling experience as possible while I'm at it. Besides, aren't you curious, Miss Woltz?"
"Curious?"
"About what formless mana can achieve, I mean? It might not be unprecedented, but from your explanation so far, it looks like it is unlike any other element. Doesn't that mean formless magic will be unlike any elemental magic?"
'I also don't think I can save the world with the magic that already exists. If that were enough, my presence wouldn't be necessary.' Alec's choice was already made for him.
"That does sound…reasonable." Reina nodded, already thinking about what formless magic would look like. Not elemental magic cast using formless mana, but magic specifically developed for Alec's mana.
Elemental magic is built on the attributes and properties of elemental mana. There was a framework for those spells. Elemental magic takes the form of elemental mana and blasts it into the world using spell formations.
But what about formless mana, mana without form? What would magic specifically defined around that property look like?
"After getting me this excited, there's no way I'm letting you go, even if you regret it."
"I won't regret it," He said confidently.
His words sparked something within Reina. She couldn't help but want to put that statement to the test.
How far could she push Alec until he started regretting his words this day?