I looked around as well and saw countless corridors lined with towering bookshelves. I was still hovering in the air, about ten meters above the first floor. Glancing down, I saw the same vast shelves packed with books, and at the center — a great fountain that seemed to mark this place's square. Counting from the floor with the fountain, the structure rose twenty stories high, each about twenty meters tall, every level filled wall-to-wall with shelves that reached the ceiling.
The abyss in which we now stood resembled the mark of some colossal termite that had chewed straight through this "library."
I scanned mana in a hundred-meter radius and sensed several hundred traces. Either sorcerers chanting spells… or familiar skeletons and other magical creatures.
Slowly, carefully, I descended to the first floor, landing beside the fountain. Ariel climbed down and turned her gaze about.
"This isn't what I expected at all," she said, her eyes shining. "Incredible. Are these all real books?"
She lifted one from the floor and opened it.
"I wonder what's inside…" she began, but within seconds she snapped it shut with force, staring straight ahead.
"What?" I asked.
"Nothing. Doesn't matter," she lied, tossing the book aside. "Just Azure atlases. I was hoping for something interesting," she added with a feigned air of disappointment.
"Drop the packs here. We won't need them."
"Why?"
"Because we won't linger. And fighting with packs on our backs will only slow us down. Better to leave them here, at the center. Every floor of this place leads back to the fountain. If needed, we can return here. Though that won't happen, of course."
"Alright," she said, setting hers beside mine. "Where to now?"
"First, let's take a look around. Where did you toss that book?"
"Over there—" she began, but I had already blinked to it and picked it up.
"No! Wait!" she cried, rushing to me, trying to snatch it from my hands. "It's maiden's only — you can't!"
I leaned away easily from her swipes and opened it. At first the page was blank, but then a pencil drawing began to surface on its own: a naked Ariel.
Ariel froze, eyes wide in shock.
"Give that here!" she snapped, wrenching the book from my hands.
We both stared at the illustration. A moment later, the page turned itself, and a new sketch began to form — this time, of a young, muscular naked man. As the features of his face grew clearer, Ariel slammed the book shut.
"Let me finish!" I protested.
"No! Better find another book — there are plenty," she said firmly, cheeks flushed.
"Yours was drawing something else. I want to know how it works."
"Get your own, and I'll see how this one works. Deal?" she insisted with a strained smile, clutching the book away from me.
I could have argued, but I already suspected how it functioned. With a sigh, I bent to pick up another from the floor. When I opened it, a sketch appeared: a naked horned girl. She stood straight, hands folded behind her back, head lowered, gazing upward with shy, modest eyes — yet her forward step betrayed determination. Her breasts, like two juicy cherries, ripe and springy, hung full and proud, emphasized all the more by her posture. Hiding her hands only thrust them forward further, making them the centerpiece of her form. She was both bashful and insistent.
"Now that's art!" I declared with satisfaction.
"Who is that?" Ariel asked.
"A beautiful woman, isn't it obvious?" I replied.
"I can see that! These books must draw what we want — or what we're thinking of. So you've seen her before," Ariel said.
"The daughter of one of my counts. She's from Rus', you wouldn't know her. If only you knew how perfect her breasts feel," I explained, almost fondly.
Ariel lowered her head, suddenly subdued, unsure how to react.
"And why are you thinking of her now? Do you like her?" she asked.
"Of course I do," I said, deliberately plain. I had endured too much to care whether my words offended. "Look at her — gorgeous. I'll wrap her up, gift it to her later." Carefully, I tore the page free and tucked it into my pocket.
"You're going to… oh—" Ariel began, then fell silent.
Normally I wouldn't press, but we were here to train her. If she let her mind stew in unpleasant thoughts, it would ruin her mood — and mood determined how well she could cast.
"You want to ask me about that girl, don't you?" I said, as if asking, 'Don't you want to know my favorite ice cream flavor?'
"Well, I didn't mean to pry. But if you don't mind, you could tell me," she answered politely, a little resigned.
"We met at the academy. I invited her for a walk, and then we went to my summer villa," I told her, as though I were indeed describing my favorite flavor.
"I thought as much. Seems you're a master at love as well," she said politely.
"Wrong answer, Ariel."
"What?" she asked, surprised.
"What spell do you want to learn to cast?"
"What do you mean? Today?"
"Yes. And in general."
"All of them, ideally."
"All of them? Perfect. Then this is exactly the right topic, and a fine example to start. Listen carefully. As I've told you, the first thing you must understand to master all spells — is to learn to see truth. Your mana is worthless unless you can imagine with precision why you want to shape it into a spell. When you heal someone — you must not merely believe, but know they truly must be healed. When you cast lightning or slash — you must understand exactly why you want to kill, and why with that spell. And so on."
Ariel listened, not fully grasping why the subject had shifted so sharply, but attentive nonetheless.
"Alright. I understand."
"Ask yourself now: what do you want? Say the first thing that comes to mind."
"Hmm… I want to relearn the spells I once knew. In fact — all eighteen of them."
"Why?"
"What do you mean, why?"
"Why learn them at all? Why not return to your palace, spend your days with courtiers, eat pastries, take lovers? Explain precisely why you need these spells."
"Because it's my duty as the future queen. I must know them. Besides, I already did once," she said, puzzled by my questioning.
"And pastries, don't you want those?"
"What pastries?" she laughed.
"Pastries. Everyone loves pastries. Everyone loves to rest, to love, to play. So why choose work instead of pleasure? You don't need spells — you fear fighting even your own nobles, so you'd be useless on a battlefield. There are no great wars now. So why not teleport home and enjoy the rest of your life? Why?"
"Because I can't just sit idle! Then why did you learn them all? Because they must be known!" she retorted, irritation rising.
"Good. Enough. Do you see my point?"
"What? No! What was the point of all that?"
"The first truth you must grasp is what you want from life — and why. As a child, you could master spells because you didn't know reality yet. But now the world has filled you with blocks. To break them, you must know your desires."
"Can't you be more concrete, instead of speaking in riddles?" she complained, arms thrown wide. "I hate when people do that. They spout clichés and explain nothing. Can't you just tell me plainly what to do?"
"Hm. A fine idea. I wanted to correct you, but perhaps I really should show you how I do it."
"Yes!" she said suddenly, delighted. "Tell me! We have time. You can explain briefly what you think when casting each spell. Of course! Why didn't I think of this right away?"
I frowned.
"I could tell you everything at once, yes," I paced aside, considering. "But you might not be ready. Hm…"
"You're doing it again! Talking in riddles. I want to know now. It's easier for you too — tell me once, and then you'll have less work later."
"…Alright. Let's sit."
We approached one of the small tables, pulled out chairs, turned them around, and sat facing each other. I asked her to take out her phone and switch on the recorder. Then I stayed silent for almost a minute, pressing my hands together while searching for the right words…
"In this world, there is no truth. The first spell is Ta, the ability to enhance one's body. You can unlock it if you tell yourself: 'I don't know what truth is or where to find it, but I will discover it.' It's the simplest spell, because you unlock it in childhood, when you believe all dreams come true, that true love and friendship exist, that good triumphs over evil."
"The second spell is Sa, healing. You unlock it when you realize that helping others is a wonderful way to achieve peace, to avoid conflict and chaos. When you believe the good you do will surely return to you."
"The third spell is Vi, explosion. You unlock it when you face something unexpected and overwhelming. It might be war, a terrible job you can't quit, or bullying at school. You don't understand what you did wrong or why you're being punished. So you snap, trying to use anger and fear to somehow fix the problem—because you don't know another way. You might throw a tantrum or start a fight, instinctively hoping that if you scream, like you once did as a baby, someone will come and help you."
"The fourth spell is Ra, fire. After Vi fails, you realize this world is much harsher than you imagined, and you'll need to work long and hard to deal with it. That's when fire is born—a slower, more controlled monster you stoke whenever the world reminds you of itself."
"Then you begin to adjust. You can show both kindness and cruelty, and you grow used to handling the problems that appear right before you. The next four spells are tied to foresight and effort. The first is Ita. With it, you pass your mana to another person. At this stage you return to the wish of being noble and righteous, realizing that peace requires sacrifice from everyone. The essence of Ita is self-sacrifice for another."
"Isa is creating a barrier around yourself. You unlock it when you learn that to sacrifice yourself, you must also learn to take joy in the act of vitue itself. And also when you realize that God is a philosophy, where every person serves the greater good and places it at the root of their motives and feelings. At that point, you begin to understand that this philosophy is the only way to avoid chaos between people. And that you must serve it."
"Ivi is lightning. You unlock it when you realize you cannot place God at the root of your own motives. Also—when you take up some work and obsessively continue until it's done. Egoistic obsession, the drive to achieve your own goal at any cost—that's what opens Ivi."
"Ira is the creation of clones. You unlock it when you realize the only way to discover truth is to let go of your desires, to discard all restrictions and doctrines, and ask yourself: 'What do I want?' Then you can create your own copies."
"The first higher spell is Ata. Multicasting, which unlocks when you learn to fear nothing. Negative emotions only tell you what to avoid, not where to go. Here you must step back and, even briefly, believe that the world around you is good and safe. Then you calm down and learn to cast using only positive emotions."
"Asa is the ability to blink short distances. It's similar to Ata, but it focuses not on exploration or insight, but on enjoying your desires regardless of good or evil. It's the realization: you want everything at once—love, good food, glory. Everything at once. You simply want to enjoy yourself."
"Avi is levitation. When you realize the world is full of egoists like yourself, you stop seeing people as valuable—or even alive. If you can't control your own egoism, neither can they. Evil is everywhere, but anger and fear won't help. So you do what you can. You set for yourself a measure to follow… and simply relax. When you calmly, slowly observe the world with utterly cynical eyes—you begin to realize how free you are from moral limits. Then you unlock new knowledge along that selfish path. That's how you learn to fly."
"The spell Ara unlocks when you realize your desires will inevitably clash with others', and you want to take everything from everyone. Absolute power—only for yourself. That is the key to Ara. But it has another side—love for suffering and trials. Because this world is cursed, and no investment will save you from the cycle of self-destruction. So you must always be strong. And to do that, you must love pain and hardship. Because they are the mark of the trial that brings victory. Adrenaline, testosterone, the thrill of battle—that's Ara."
"The spell Aita is mana scanning. It focuses on dreaming and, through dreams, discovering what you truly want. It also unlocks when you learn not to yield directly to the fear of death. Meaning, always clarifying why you want or don't want something. You can unlock it without the previous spells, but in truth, any spell can open in a non-standard order. That's why, for instance, some mages know Aita but not Ara."
"The spell Aisa is thought-sharing with other mages. It's only given when you understand: even if everyone is selfish, only virtue and sacrifice can save this cursed world. Even egoists need some order, founded on virtue. That's why laws and rules still exist. Because even egoists must pretend to be noble."
"The spell Aivi is the ability to store and accumulate spells—or to drain mana from another person or mage. It unlocks when you realize your core motivation is survival. Not women, not food—but survival itself. Pure egoism, and you cannot change it."
"And finally, the spell Aira—the ability to control another's mind. It unlocks when you understand: you can no longer change. You want to have everything—all the women, all the power, all the wealth. Only for yourself. And everyone else is the same. You live in a maelstrom of chaos where everyone tries to steal what is yours, and you—theirs. Then you begin to see people as puppets you can do whatever you like with."
"And then you can perform any spell. The entire world becomes nothing more than a pile of dolls for your own amusement. If it benefits me—I heal or empower them. If not—I burn them or cut them down. And at the center, always me. And everything must be exactly as I want. That's how it is."
Ariel straightened nervously and, avoiding my eyes, asked:
"And you think this way about everyone?"
"Of course. Though after this you also realize there is still empathy and altruism within you. You still like helping people, seeing them smile or laugh, supporting them… But only in the context of your own pleasure and gain. Just as people help others because they're afraid of ending up alone if they show their egoism too openly. That's why humans sometimes show kindness—genuine kindness, but still ruled by egoism."
Ariel rose from her chair and went over to the fountain. She scooped cold water into her hands, washed her face, and took a deep breath. Then she turned, pulled out her phone, and switched off the recorder.
"Well, I should think this over. Though I believe these ideas truly helped you master magic… I don't think they'll help me. I don't want to harm people, and I can't see them that way," she said, staring down at her phone. "Although, who knows… Maybe one day I'll understand what you mean."
I silently watched her face. She, in turn, stared silently at her own reflection in the smartphone screen.
"Come on. It's time to practice," Ariel said.