Practising alchemy and better spell

During the course of my training, which lasted for five hours, night had fallen. My instructor, whose name I came to know as Sirion, stood amazed at my progress. He shared that in his youth, he needed a month to achieve what I had accomplished in just those five hours. My delight grew further upon learning from the System that I had achieved dual sword mastery, already approaching 20% proficiency. After merely one day of training, my progress in dual sword mastery had surpassed my hand-to-hand combat skill, honed during my karate lessons a few years prior. In this case, I believed I would reach the pinnacle of mortal ability within a year. Although I lacked a master to teach me alchemy, I held hope that it wouldn't lag behind my other skills.

Before delving into alchemy, I recognized the necessity to enhance my fire spell, as I required a means to generate heat. As the morning sun broke, I concluded my meditation and made my way to the training hall. This routine persisted for two months.

Those two months proved immensely beneficial. Both my fire spell and dual sword mastery had reached an astonishing 50% proficiency. With these significant advancements, I lacked only one thing before embarking on my alchemical journey – an improved fire spell. While the current one suited close combat, I had time to develop more intricate ones for other purposes.

My first task was to extend the incantation. I devised the following: "Infernostrum draconis vim et cor ardenti astra, Infernostrum accende, flammae ab longinquo saltent. Cum fervore igneo, fiat voluntas mea, Infernostrum, fulgeat ut sol!" This translated to "By the power of dragons' breath and the heart of the blazing stars, fire ignite, let flames dance from afar. With fiery passion, let my will be done, fire, blaze bright as the sun!" Following this modification, my proficiency with this spell increased significantly. However, my efforts didn't end there. For the subsequent month, my nights were dedicated not to meditation but to perfecting the pronunciations of this incantation and drawing a circle of runes around my feet.

Another month passed in this manner. The most time-consuming aspect of this process was perfecting the runic circle. Initially, I focused on the runes, selecting symbols representing fire, dragons, stars, and power for the runic circle. Subsequently, I had to arrange these symbols in the most harmonious pattern. When all was said and done, my *Infernostrum* spell had reached an astonishing 300% proficiency. With this accomplishment, I could seamlessly begin my alchemical studies, which I did.

With everything prepared, I retrieved my homemade cauldron and ingredients, following the recipe meticulously. I gently crushed the Glimmerroot in a mortar and pestle to unleash its energy. Next, I placed it into a vial and covered it with demineralized water. To meet the final requirement, I exposed all my Glimmerroots to moonlight overnight, ensuring I didn't waste any more time in case I faltered in executing the recipe correctly.

Turning my attention to Starbloom Essence, I began plucking delicate petals from the flowers. The following day, I cautiously added a few drops of Glimmerroot-infused water to the Starbloom petals. Unfortunately the mixture exploded towards my head. However in contrast to some idiots who spent all of their cultivated energy in order to increase strenght, I am and I will be balanced in all aspects, so this explosion didn't hurt me. I remained stuck at this step for several days, even pausing my swordsmanship lessons temporarily for safety. Among the students, some had significantly increased their strength in recent months, and I preferred to avoid unnecessary conflicts. A few even managed to perform simple spells, although their effectiveness left much to be desired.

After overcoming this obstacle for the second time, I proceeded to repeat the process for all the Starbloom petals, allowing them to rest in a cold, dark place for the entire day. My next challenge involved combining a pinch of Bloodfire Moss with a few tablespoons of the Glimmerroot-infused water. I carefully heated the mixture over a low flame until the moss dissolved, imbuing the liquid with a warm, fiery energy. This step, too, demanded days of learning and refinement.

The subsequent major step was extracting the Tears of the Nightshade. After collecting the tears, I mixed them with Starbloom essence. For the first time, nothing exploded during my initial attempt at a significant stage. I proceeded by sprinkling a few drops of the Glimmerroot-infused water over the Silverfern Leaves and allowed them to absorb the mystical essence. This product required exposure to sunny surroundings for the entire day.

Now came the final and most challenging part of the process – combining all the elements: the Glimmerroot-infused water, Starbloom essence, Bloodfire Moss solution, Tears of the Nightshade extract, and Enhanced Silverfern Leaves into one. This single step consumed two whole months, during which I emerged from my seclusion to resume my swordsmanship training.

A few days after the anniversary of my mana awakening, I had achieved everything I aimed for during my time at the academy. I had elevated my dual sword mastery to the pinnacle of mortal level and produced two hundred and thirty Rank 1 stat-improving pills, precisely the quantity needed for myself and my parents to gain two stats in each category. Now, I could depart and enjoy life at home with my parents.