Chapter 53: The Hidden Ability of the "Genius" Class – Cumulative Caster Levels

However!

Lyle distinctly remembered that when he first saw that Papermaking had two different magic scroll versions, he had specifically asked a member of the Mage Guild about it.

Yet, that person had not mentioned anything about a Tier 2 Papermaking!

Logically, there was no reason to hide information about a non-combat spell like Papermaking, which had no offensive capabilities and was purely a utility spell.

"Lowest-tier alchemy material."

Lyle's gaze lingered on the final line of the appraisal information as he pondered its implications.

Researching life-based magic generally had two purposes: analyzing higher-tier magic or improving daily convenience.

If Tier 0 Papermaking was simply meant for basic utility, then Tier 1 Papermaking was likely developed for nobles, serving as a way to differentiate themselves from commoners by using superior-quality paper.

Alternatively, it might have been used for producing high-quality books or documents.

In fact, the paper produced by Tier 1 Papermaking was already comparable to the paper from his previous life. At that level, it was sufficient for most daily and professional needs.

Yet, the people of this world had developed Tier 2 Papermaking—something that, at first glance, seemed unnecessary.

Unlike magic passed down from the Eight Greed Kings' era, Papermaking was independently developed by this world's inhabitants. The sheer effort and time required to refine such a spell to Tier 2 were unimaginable.

From a caster's perspective, that kind of effort could have been better spent mastering other Tier 2 spells or even advancing to Tier 3.

From a practical standpoint, this level of research seemed unnecessary for a society focused on utility and efficiency.

So, why did Tier 2 Papermaking exist?

The only reasonable explanation was demand!

Alchemy material, perhaps?

Lyle considered the idea but couldn't find a solid lead. He shook his head and decided to set the thought aside for now.

Then—

Lyle suddenly noticed something unusual, his expression shifting to one of surprise.

Both Heating and Papermaking had an "↑" symbol next to them.

"How is that possible?"

Lyle stared at the interface, his face filled with disbelief.

Levels 1–7: First-Tier Spells

Levels 8–14: Second-Tier Spells

Given his Genius class was Level 9, when converted into other caster classes, he should only be capable of casting Second-Tier magic.

Yet, Heating and Papermaking were showing an option to advance even further.

What was going on?

After a brief hesitation, Lyle decided to spend a skill point on Heating.

...

[Skill: Heating] (Tier 3) ↑

MP Cost: 15

Effect: Increases the temperature of a touched object up to 600°C within one minute, with an instant heat-up of 200°C.

...

Lyle was still in shock.

Not because of Heating's improved effects, but because the spell had actually advanced to Tier 3.

He used another skill point.

...

[Skill: Heating] (Tier 4)

MP Cost: 20

Effect: Increases the temperature of a touched object up to 1200°C within one minute, with an instant heat-up of 400°C.

...

Lyle inhaled sharply.

A 1200-degree temperature was enough to melt steel easily—almost reaching the heat levels of magma!

Even more alarming was the instant temperature increase of 400°C—a level that could cause serious destruction.

But this time, there was no more "↑" symbol.

Seeing this, Lyle began piecing together what was happening.

"So, the Genius class calculates caster levels cumulatively across all compatible caster professions?"

Lyle muttered to himself, still stunned.

Originally, he thought Genius merely converted base professions without any stat boosts or access to profession-specific abilities.

Essentially, he assumed it was just a shell disguising itself as multiple classes.

But now, it was clear there was more to it.

The reason Heating had jumped straight to Tier 4 was because it met the level requirement for Fourth-Tier magic (Level 22–28).

The only possible explanation?

The Genius class was summing the levels of all magic-related professions it had converted.

Currently, his Genius class had converted the following:

Magic Caster (Level 9), Alchemist (Level 9), and Pharmacist (Level 9).

Totaling 27 caster levels.

Both Alchemist and Pharmacist were production-based professions, but since they used MP to cast spells, they were considered part of the magical hierarchy.

That meant—

The Genius class could accumulate caster levels across different magic-related professions, effectively bypassing the specialization restrictions present in YGGDRASIL.

"This is practically a cheat ability for spellcasters!"

Lyle couldn't help but be amazed.

In YGGDRASIL, casters were divided into four main categories, each calculated separately:

Arcane Magic (Mana-based), Divine Magic (Faith-based), Psionic Magic (Mental-based), and Other Special Magic (Miscellaneous-based).

For example, a Level 7 Mage + Level 1 Cleric equaled 8 caster levels in total.

However, because Mage and Cleric belonged to different magic systems, the character could only use Tier 1 Arcane magic and Tier 1 Divine magic.

That's why players in YGGDRASIL only focused on a single magic system, aiming to max out their specialization.

To cast Tenth-Tier magic, one had to invest at least 64 levels into a single magic system, leaving only 36 levels for other classes—which wasn't enough to reach meaningful levels in another system.

But now—

"If I use Genius, I can maximize all four magic systems simultaneously."

Lyle took a deep breath, rubbing his temples to ease the excitement-induced pressure in his head.

He had thought Genius was just a disguise mechanism for job-switching.

But it turned out to be something far more terrifying.

The Implications of This Power

The Genius class was still a Basic-Class, meaning its maximum level cap was 15.

However—

If he acquired five different Basic-Class caster professions, or four Basic-Classes plus one Intermediate-Class,

Then he could easily meet the requirements to cast Tenth-Tier magic in a single magic system.

Even more insane—

By repeating this process across all four caster systems (Arcane, Divine, Psionic, and Other), he could eventually master all of them.

No wonder Lyle thought this was a game-breaking ability.

Even in YGGDRASIL, such capabilities were extremely rare.

Not impossible, but rare.

In the light novel version of the game, the Overlord himself once mentioned that a high-level illusionist could deceive the world itself, making their magic appear as another system entirely.

In-game, this meant an illusionist could make their Arcane spells look like Divine, Psionic, or Other magic.

That was already an extraordinary ability.

But now, Genius gave Lyle something even more ridiculous:

He didn't need illusions.

He could simply use all four magic systems for real.