Insight into the human body

"I want to be an archaic mage! Please show me the way!"

"Good!"

Mathew gave her a nod of approval.

While waiting his posture of being profound, he paused for a few moments to remember the things he had made up.

"Just so you know, out of a hundred thousand people, only one person is born with the ability to sense the most basic elemental mana, and out of ten hundred people that can sense elemental mana, only one person can develop the ability to interact with mana."

"Even among those that can interact with mana, only a few can really successfully walk on the path of becoming a mage."

After saying this, Mathew let out a sigh of having seen through the vicissitudes of life.

"This is due to the limitations on innate aptitude, too many people wasted their time an money on the ladder of mage-hood in vain."

"This is why I am only giving you a time limit of one year, and you must also psychologically prepare yourself for failure."

Sneaking a peek at Natasha, Mathew found that she didn't seen to suspect him of lying, and she seemed to believe him more and more.

Natasha was indeed fooled, she felt that the things Mathew said were full of context, much better than the cheaters she had met before, so her suspicion over Mathew were decreasing.

Mathew gave her a few moments to digest the information he gave to her so far, he took a sip of water while carefully preparing his next words.

"Now I will explain to you on how to get started and become a mage apprentice.*

"Like I said before, mana is the source of creation and it is everywhere."

He pointed to his eye and said:

"Even at this moment I can see mana passing right through your body."

Natasha was surprised by such a revelation.

"Really? Then all I have to do is trap in inside my body and I can become a mage?"

Seeing how she easily believed, Mathew almost couldn't suppress his laughter.

'This girl is too easy to deceive!'

He shook his head again and again before responding to her.

"Ignoring the fact that you don't have the abilities to do so, even if you did, your body would be unable to handle it, you would likely explode the next moment."

Natasha's face turned pale, and she quickly asked.

"Then isn't it dangerous for mana to be passing through my body? Oh, I guess not, since no one ever just explodes?"

She quickly realized her stupidity, without giving Mathew a chance to comment, she asked another question.

"Then, if I can't keep mana in my body how do I become a mage?"

Mathew cleared his throat and said slowly:

"So we have to improve your body!"

"This is the first step to becoming a mage apprentice."

Natasha seemed slightly disappointed.

"So I have to exercise?"

In response, Mathew nodded before shaking his head.

"Yes, but it is more complicated than that."

"Even if you became the world's most muscular woman, you would not be able to keep mana in your body!"

"We have to refine you body in a special way."

Hearing this, Natasha regained her energy and listened carefully.

"As I have said before, your body is fundamentally made of mana, and it still contains trace amounts of elemental mana."

"The lungs used for breathing are made of and and still contain trace amounts of the wind element of mana."

"The brain and nervous system contain trace amounts of the electric element."

"The heart, the source of vitality of the human body, contains wood elemental mana."

"The liver, used for detoxification, contains the elements of fire."

"The bladder, water elements."

"The spleen, iron."

"I'm sure you can get what I'm trying to get at here. If you can sense and mobilize these elements, then you can use then to refine your body."

At this point, Natasha's eyes were shining brightly and she was visibly very excited.

"Then how to sense and mobilize these elements?"

Mathew was quite for a while, before solemnly responding:

"100 pushups, 100 situps, 100 squats, and a 10 kilometer sprint everyday."

Hearing this, Natasha's cheek twitched visibly.

"Blood runs all over the human body and it is connected to all organs, the key to sensing and mobilizing energy lies here."

"Well"

"During intense and long term exercises, the blood in your body is mobilized to the maximum and if you have the talent for sensing elemental mana, that is the optimal time to sense it."

"As your teacher, I only teach the way not the method, it is up to you try come up with better ways."

Natasha seemed to be lost in thought for a while before responding.

"I understand!"

Although she found it slightly shady, it sounded very plausible to her so she decided to give it a try.

"If you can sense mana, the next step would be to mobilize it to refine your skin. Refined skin would become slightly invulnerable to swords, and you will no longer be afraid of heat or coldness."

"After your skin is refined, then you will refine your bones next. While modern mages use wands, your refined bones will leave you with no need for wands."

"Next would be the refining of your internal organs and muscles. Your physic would surpass even those of knights."

"Only when your whole body is refined would you be considered an apprentice mage."

"You will game the ability to see mana with your naked eye."

"You will become loved by nature"

"You will gain small supernatural powers, being able to create small fireballs, ice shards, and thunder by just waving your hand."

Mathew made this up on spot after seeing that Natasha enthusiasm was a bit too low after hearing that she had to exercise.

The more Natasha listened, the more excited he became.

Just as she was about to ask a few more questions Mathew waved his hand and interrupted:

"Okay, you can ask some questions after you make some progress, don't be too ambitious."

"When practicing, you must be calm and don't be impetuous. It's good for practice!"

"Yes, teacher!"

Natasha's heart still in the hype so she quickly responded respectfully.

Seeing this Matthew nodded with satisfaction.

It wasn't that he didn't want to continue talking, but that he didn't any more material to say, all the prepared lies were already told.

'The three stages of skin refining, bone refining, and organ refining that I made up should enough to fool Natasha for now.'

Mathew thought to himself.

'It is impossible to refine your skin in five, ten, or even a hundred years. Not even in your whole lifetime, so forget a year.'

'If you can become a mage then I will eat this chair, lol'

...

"While you exercise, you must adjust your breathing..."

"Follow the breath entering your lungs, and feel the blood flow, try your best to sense for an obscure sense of warm energy."

Natasha was doing side lunges as she listened to Mathew's guidance.

'Breathe and sense where the blood flow'

Mathew pointed and said:

"The way to becoming a mage lies the word 'enlightenment', and in the word 'substance', not in form."

"You have to calm down, forget about useless things, and comprehend carefully in order to find the 'meaning' in it..."

He was just making things up so the more obscure the better, and it is better if his words sound mysterious.

After all of his careful teachings, if she is not able to sense it, will be a matter of her own aptitude, and it won't be due to the techniques of him the teacher.

"Whether you can sense elemental mana depends entirely on your own understanding, and whether you can get a glimpse of the 'meaning' in it."

"Once you sense mana, try to mobilize it to temper the skin membranes all over your body, and enter the skin refining stage..."

Mathew continued instilling the notion that Natasha's aptitude is the reason she will not be able to become a mage.

"This is the foundation of becoming an archaic mage"

"You should practice well, comprehend well, rest when you are tired, combine work with rest, and don't rush it."

"The more impatient you are, the harder it will be to sense mana. Do you understand?"

Natasha responded respectfully:

"Yes teacher, I understands!"

"Good, practice well!"

Mathew left with his hands behind his back, and happily went to look over Natasha's apprenticeship fee.

He did not use the gift last night as he was afraid the dumb girl would change her mind overnight.

"Now that she has accepted my teachings, there is no going back"

After entering his house he went right to the neatly placed three boxes, and he opened one of the boxes.

"The root of a 9 leafed vitality flower,"

This root had a unique shape as it had a humanlike shape to it, a head looking part, torso like part, two arms and two legs.

Looking at this magical plant, Mathew couldn't help swallowing a gulp of saliva, but he forced himself to close the lid with pure will.

Although he has decided to swindle Natasha, he is not willing to put his life on the line.

If she decided that he is a cheater at the end, returning the things he took might still give him a way out, so he decided not to use it for now.