Magic Tools.

A few days had passed since Rasmus received the books from Lenin. He hadn't left his room since that day and kept studying until he grasped all the knowledge from the book.

"Where did she say she's at?" Rasmus mumbled as he grabbed the ring that Novia had given him. "Was it 90th floor?" He looked at the ring as he walked to the corner of the room where the magic circle was engraved on the ground and ceiling.

Rasmus was curious about the ring and the magic circle because he wanted to know how they worked. "Press the gem on the ring," Rasmus paused to press the emerald on the ring. "Then wait until the magic circle activated..." he watched the magic circles glowing underneath and above him.

A blue light surrounded Rasmus and it made him feel like inside a tube. He looked at the runes in each circle and had no idea what kind of spell each circle produced. He then saw words and numbers floating in front of him. He used the ring to point out which floor he wanted to go to, and once he was done, he was teleported to the floor he wanted to be on in an instant.

"This is hard to process," Rasmus scoffed in amazement.

Rasmus looked at the 90th floor's plan and noticed it was massive and that he could get lost if he didn't know where to go.

Rasmus asked the Arch-mages who walked around the 90th floor about the location of the research lab. At first, they glared at him with disgust until they saw the ring on his left index finger. They treated him like an important guest and guided him to the research lab where Novia was.

He entered the research lab, not knowing what it was used for because, in his head, it would be researching microorganisms or something like that. He didn't expect the research that Novia was doing to have something to do with gems where the whole room was filled with colorful gems.

"You looked tired," Novia noticed when Rasmus entered the lab. "Have you eaten?" She asked with a stoic expression as she observed the gem in her hand.

"I ate the fruits in the room. I just haven't slept," Rasmus answered and looked at the rare and finest gems around him. "What are you researching here?" He asked and grabbed a dark blue color gem that was as big as his hand.

"The quality and durability of rare gems for magic tools," Novia answered as she put down the gem. "Just like the ring you're wearing, it's a magic tool as a medium to make it easier for people who can use Mana to use magic," she explained and pointed at the ring on Rasmus's finger.

"So you engraved magic circles in these gems?" Rasmus glanced at Novia who was focused on checking the quality of the gems in front of her.

"Yes. It seems you have read about magic tools," Novia looked at Rasmus with her brows raised. "Do you know the types of magic tools?" She asked and continued to focus on the gem in her hands.

"Improvement, expansion, alteration, and protection," Rasmus put the gem down carefully.

Rasmus explained each type in detail where improvement magic tools were meant to enhance and boost magic power. Expansion magic tools were meant to hold more power as an external space that the body couldn't handle. Alteration magic tools were meant to use Mana from the surroundings rather than from the body which prevented the body from exhaustion. Lastly, protection magic tools were used to create protection for the wearer.

Not only did he explain the purpose of each magic tool, but he also explained how it worked. He explained it simply and yet he didn't miss anything in his explanation.

"You learned," Novia looked at Rasmus, impressed by his knowledge. "So you really have been studying and that's why you're in that state," she realized why Rasmus had bags under his eyes. It was the first time she showed her smile.

"I don't like wasting time," Rasmus responded as he kept exploring the lab.

Novia could see in Rasmus's eyes that he was thirsty for knowledge that reminded her of herself back when she was a child.

"Do you want to test those out?" Novia pointed at the magic tools on a table away from the rest.

Rasmus looked at the table and saw gloves, cloaks, and different types of jewelry. He went there and looked at them from up close then grabbed the white glove from the table.

"Where are the gems?" Rasmus looked at the glove inside-out.

"It's mixed with the fibers to make the glove. If you pour Mana on the glove, you will see the magic formation," Novia explained as she walked toward Rasmus. "Try it. Don't be shy," she smiled at Rasmus's curiosity.

Rasmus put on the glove and poured his Mana into the glove. It was as Novia said, the engraving did appear in a glowing blue light. The runes that were engraved on the glove were nothing like those in the book, which made him confused.

"They're runes that have been modified to serve a specific purpose. You can say that one letter of the modified rune is equal to a single or multiple words unlike normal runes that represent letters," Novia explained as she pointed at the runes on the glove

Rasmus understood that immediately because it was similar to the languages in Asian countries, like Chinese, Korean, and Japanese. He didn't expect that runes could work like that, and that it would give endless possibilities.

"What does this glove do?" Rasmus observed the unique engravings on the glove.

"Break this," Novia pointed at the gem that she was holding.

"How?" Rasmus furrowed with a confused look.

"Imagine your hand is crushing this gem. You can do it," Novia answered as she lifted the gem high in the air.

Rasmus pointed his right hand at the gem and crushed the air with his fingers as if he was crushing an apple in his hand. He was shocked when the gem that Novia held shattered into pieces and fell on her head.

"I wasn't expecting that to happen..." Novia brushed off the debris on her head. "I forgot that you have mastered controlling Mana. You used that magic tool to its maximum capability," she added as she gathered the debris on the floor.

Rasmus looked at the glove for a moment and then looked at the red gem on the table. He imagined himself picking up the gem, and it made the gem float and move as he moved his hand around. He realized the magic tool gave him the telekinesis ability, and it was amazing.

"Tell, me. What's the reason it's forbidden to learn about runes?" Rasmus removed the glove since he didn't want to play with an expensive item.

"Every nation has its own secret techniques, knowledge, or traditions. Nobody has the right to learn them until you're worthy to earn them," Novia answered as she stared at Rasmus. "You lent us your knowledge, and we paid the price for it. So we earned it, as simple as that," she smiled at Rasmus.

"That's fair, and I don't mind about it either because I have more in here," Rasmus pulled out his notebook and showed it to Novia. "Your mentor is so interested in the content of this note of mine that she would trade it with her research. So, I still have a lot of knowledge that I can use to get what I want," he added, his brows raised as he looked at Novia.

Novia looked at the notebook for a moment and then looked at Rasmus. She wondered what made Lenin interested in that notebook and how she would trade her personal research for it. She knew Lenin well enough that Lenin's research was worth more than anything in Neva.

"If my mentor is interested in that, I suggest you keep it for yourself. I might look young, but I was raised in a place where power means anything. Some individuals would offer you things that you want and need for that book, then they will use it for things you can't imagine," Novia warned with a serious expression.

"I'm not planning on selling this in the first place. When I said I can use it to get what I want, it's about using this knowledge to get what I want," Rasmus responded as he put the notebook in his suit's pocket. "I don't care much about wealth and I already got my gold mine from the deal I made with your mentor," he added.

Novia was confused by Rasmus's words because it sounded like he hadn't mastered the knowledge in his notebook. It made her curious about the content of that notebook and why Rasmus sounded so confident in his statement.

"Anyway, I haven't asked you the reason why you came here. Do you need anything?" Novia asked as she put the shattered gem on the table.

"I want to test the magic formation and circle that I have created. I don't know anyone else in this tower, so you're my only choice," Rasmus answered.

"I see. My mentor also said that I should accompany you when you want to test your magic. You managed to make my mentor bedridden, so it would be wise for someone to keep an eye on you to avoid unnecessary casualties," Novia nodded with understanding.

"Perfect. I can wait until you're finished, so I'll let you be," Rasmus said as he walked toward the door.

"We can go now. Shall we?" Novia asked with her brows raised.

"Ladies first," Rasmus walked to the side and pointed at the door with a smile.