Spell Selection (2)

After some searching, I managed to find another book that seemed promising.

Grabbing it, I ran my fingers along its aged spine.

It was about half a foot thick with a dull red cover.

A title was printed on it, however, it was so faded that it was almost unreadable.

Barely deciphering what it said, I managed to spell it out.

===

[Mana Diffusion (E)]

(Non-Systematic Type)

This spell allows the wielder to destabilize their Avatar by overwhelming it with its own mana, therefore, causing a suicidal explosion within a 100-meter radius, great for going out with a bang.

===

Yep, nope!

Hastily putting it back on the shelf, I once again began my browsing as I ran my thumbs over the covers occasionally pulling out something that interested me.

Eventually, I made my way down to the bottom row of the stacks, which was filled with tomes that were extremely old.

The very first volume I pulled out from its resting place was a small black leather-bound book.

As soon as I touched the binding, a faint light shined off of it as though it were reflecting the sun.

Pulling a chair from a nearby table, I sat down and carefully flipped open the pages.

On the inside, there was nothing but a single page with the Mana Code written in it, there was no identifying writing about what spell it was.

Deciding to carry it with me and ask the pixie from earlier, I continued until I narrowed it down to a single spell.

It had a relatively worn-out cover and was slightly torn in place

As I finished taking the books to the desk at the front, a loud thud came from above.

Looking up, I could see several books falling out of a high shelf, landing on the carpeted floor with an audible crash.

"Hey, did you know the roof is supposed to be a safe zone?"

Craning my head upwards, my gaze froze.

Laying on the top of the shelf, gazing down at me was a very familiar face.

Long wavy black hair, as dark as night curled around two plump rosy cheeks.

Bright gold eyes gazed deep inside me as if reading my soul.

But her mischievous smile was the most attractive thing about her.

It seemed as if it was attempting to ensnare my heart.

Her lips parted slightly and her voice came out in a breathy whisper.

"Good morning, Isaac. You seem quite busy today."

"You too?" I replied with an awkward smile, unsure as to why she seemed so familiar with me.

deep down I was feeling quite uneasy about these encounters with her.

However, Rule #36: Conceal any negative emotions, forced me to appear nonchalant as if I was greeting an old friend.

"Yes," she nodded, "I believe we've met before, haven't we?" she added with an amused grin.

"Oh...yeah..." I said awkwardly.

"Don't worry, I won't bite," she said with an evil smirk that sent an unpleasant chill down my spine.

"It sure doesn't seem that way..." I muttered.

"Hmm?" she said innocently, cocking her head.

"Nothing," I said evenly as I raised my mask so as to not let any emotions filter through my face.

She laughed softly, as if enjoying my discomfort, and then gave a nod as if deciding something important.

"You know, you look a lot better than when you arrived here," she said as she eyed my attire.

"Thanks, I think I'm pretty good-looking if I do say so myself" I retorted, my voice turning sarcastic.

"Oh my!" she exclaimed playfully as she clapped her hands together gleefully.

"Well, if it's all the same to you I have to finish up so it was a pleasure to meet you," I said attempting to end the conversation and check out the spell I wanted, however, it seemed fate wouldn't have it that way.

"Wait, wait a second," she said grabbing my arm and halting my movement.

"Would you by any chance be willing to join my club?" she asked, her eyes conveying sincerity

I stopped and stared at her incredulously, wondering how this could be happening now of all times.

"I am sure you are curious about the reason for this request," she said slowly as she took an elegant pose.

I didn't reply because I had no idea what she was talking about, however, her words made my ears perk up.

I wasn't sure if I should trust her or not, after all, this was the same person who had stopped my plan not long ago, yet, it also felt like I should listen to her.

However, my mind kept drifting back to her asking me to join a club, and I had to wonder if it really was just a ploy to stop me from doing anything.

"My club is the Hunting club. We use Specialized MSM's and hunt Monsters in the Mad Forest."

"Hunting huh? Sounds interesting I guess..." I said with a shrug.

"But of course, we do have some requirements," she explained.

"What kind of requirements?" I asked uninterestedly, trying to hide my skepticism from her.

"You must be willing to participate in Monster Hunts and like firearms, that's all."

I raised an eyebrow at that last requirement.

"What makes you so sure, I like firearms," I asked her inquisitively.

I glanced over at the spell books in my hands and thought about how to answer her.

"If I am being honest with you," I began with caution, "I'm not particularly fond of guns."

"Really?

"Yep, never have been a fan," I answered merrily, happy to be finishing this conversation.

"Well that's weird as from what I read in your school file, you enjoy shooting guns as a hobby," she said, her eyes bending into crescents.

"How did you get your hands on my school file?" My eyes had taken on a dangerous light as those words left my grit teeth.

After all, I had been polite so far as this was an enemy I knew virtually nothing about and therefore I had to be cautious however she had far exceeded the bounds of my patience.

"Is that really important right now? so...

What. Will. It. Be. Isaac?" she sounded out, poking my chest as a grin formed on her face.

Sighing in resignation, I realized there was no backing my way out of this one.

"Fine," I muttered begrudgingly, a disgruntled expression draping my face.

It was best to get close to your enemy if you did not understand them so it seems I would have to play along for now.

"You're sure?

"Yes, fine!" I replied curtly.

She smiled, as if she had won, and then began to speak.

"Well, I will be expecting you at our next meeting."

"Yeah…" I answered, my eyebrows furrowing together.

"It was nice talking to you, Isaac," she said simply, sounding out my name with a smirk, before walking away.

I watched her leave and then let out a sigh.

This was going to be a long day.

Turning around I came face to face with the pixie from earlier.

She was glaring at me as if she couldn't believe I hadn't noticed her until now.

I held out the black book in my hand patiently a timid smile plastered on my face.

"Is it possible for you to tell me which spell this is?"

She kept glaring at me, however,

"What spell?" she finally asked, turning her gaze to my outstretched hand.

Huh?

Can't she see it in my hand?

"The black spell book in my hand?" I asked her again.

"What on earth are you talking about boy, humans... tsk." she clicked her tongue.

'Hmm, so maybe it's something only I can see?'

That doesn't make much sense, does it?

Then again I had started to question my own sanity long before this so it wasn't an unfamiliar notion, I mean let's be honest what is sane about all of this?

Maybe I was in a mental institution right now for having gone insane.

That would be…

No.

Stop thinking about it.

As I pondered this, I glanced at the other spell book in my hand.

===

[Blockade (E)]

(Acceleration-Type; Movement-Type)

Cancels the inertia of an Avatar.

===

Since Magic Spells affect the Avatar in the Ethereal Realm which then corresponds and affects the Physical Realm through Mana Wavelengths then if the spell canceled the inertia of an Avatar in the Ethereal Realm then the person or thing that had its Avatars inertia canceled would also have its inertia canceled.

Now that I looked at it, it was a really useful spell.

"I'll take this one," I said.

Grumbling to herself, the pixie took the spell book and entered it into the database as having been taken.

"Very well," she said before handing me back the spell book and once again zooming off to who knows where.

Sighing and shaking my head I made my way back to the main library and flipped open the black spell book in my hand

Memorizing the Mana Code into my chip, I opened up my status.

===Status===

Name: Isaac Moreau

Affinity: ???

Rank: E+

Strength: E+

Agility: E

Stamina: E+

Mana Control: E-

Perseverance: E+

Awareness: E

-- > Martial Techniques: [Art Of Annihilation]

-- > Spells: [Frozen Domain (B)], [Meteoric Blade (E)], [Lightning Beam (D)], [Blockade (E)], [Nightmare (A)]

==========

What the hell?

An A-Rank spell was just sitting there in the lower-rank spells section?

What is going on in this novel?

I leaned my head back as an exasperated sigh left my lips.

Perhaps I really do have a chronic illness.