After leaving Wind on the first floor, I headed up to the second floor of the <Crafting Hall> to find a [Magecrafting] station so I could start my weapon-crafting project. I was a bit nervous about leaving my big brother downstairs since this was our first time working on our crafts in a separate area. I was already used to being separated from since we go to different schools in real life, but not in <Isekai Online>. He did say I had to learn some independence since he wasn't always going to be there to help me, but I felt like I wasn't ready to go alone at the time. Then again, he might've just wanted me to be brave and not rely on others so much, for my own sake. For now, I decided to start getting used to being alone for now and work on my magical gear.
I eventually managed to find a station a few meters away from the stairs. The station had several things one could find in a magic lair, such as a black cauldron to make potions, several wands in multiple sizes, some chalk, and some runes and magical circles spread around the bordered small walls and table. Compared to my previous station before, it was somewhat flashy and magical, which didn't surprise me considering that it was a station for [Magecrafting] instead of [Alchemy]. And unlike my usual [Alchemy] tool kit, I had to use several extra tools for this [Mastery], which meant that I might've had to spend more money than I usually did at the general store.
[Beginner Enchantment Kit]
[A toolkit that provides several stones, magical potions, and a magical circle board to any aspiring magician.
Quality: 10]
[Beginner Rune Tome]
[A book that contains information on any basic runes. It is recommended to any aspiring magician who wants to create their very own magical gear.
Quality: 10]
[Beginner Magical Guide]
[A special spellbook that contains special spells for enchantment and magic creation. It is recommended to any aspiring magician who wants to create their very own magical gear.
Quality: 10]
I felt a bit guilty that I had to use some of my allowances to buy these tools, but since we were going to try [Masteries] that we'd never tried out before, I felt it was a small sacrifice to pay to upgrade our equipment. Besides, Wind was currently working on his new bow with his [Woodcrafting] skill, so I wouldn't be surprised if he did the same with his crafting tools.
However, the biggest dilemma on my mind was how different [Magecrafting] was to other [Masteries]. While most of them relied a lot on real-life experiences such as [Blacksmithing], [Woodcutting], and [Cooking] as well as [Alchemy], the latter of which was simply making medicine like the people did in the olden days, which I think the fantasy novels managed to popularize by putting their spin on it or combining it with real-life alchemy like this game. But for [Magecrafting], I had no clue on how I was going to make a staff or a grimoire out of these tools and materials I had on hand since this was the only [Mastery] so far that had no real-life reference on how to create them. Even as I looked around the floor after settling into my station, I saw far more tailors and leather makers than magecrafters in here. And while I had managed to find some in other stations, I saw that they had only embedded magical stones in their stand, and used the crafting menu with half of their process while the others used the menu for their entire crafting process.
I guessed that because of its vague description in the official site and wiki, no one was able to use [Magecrafting] without the aid of a crafting menu. Just looking at these magecrafters made me worry over how I was going to make my magical gear. But I also didn't want my playthrough to be plain and easy in my very first VRMMO. I wanted to make my experience feel a bit realistic and similar to the heroes of Seraph! Giving up wasn't going to help me improve my skills and abilities as a magician.
So how was I going to make my magical gears without the aid of a crafting menu? Well, the key was my crafting tools' flavor texts and my station's magical circles and the other equipment provided for me. If I could figure out how to use them more efficiently, I might able to figure out how to bypass the lack of real-life applications to this [Mastery]. Though now that I thought about it, the game's lore had a unique take on its magical system and how we were able to cast any spells with our staves, wands, and grimoires. I had taken a sneak peek on a book on the world's magic back at the library before we log out, so it pretty much answered most of the questions regarding the basics of magic.
I knew beforehand that [Mana] is needed to cast any spell, and every living being possessed some since birth, especially with the [Beastfolk] race (though in a low amount comparing to other races). However, I also learned that chanting an incantation wasn't enough to invoke a spell. By creating an image of the spell they wanted to cast in their head, magecrafters were able to cast them more proficiently and even get the chance to make weaker spells stronger than their high-level successors. And if they used their imagination more carefully and creatively, they could cast a spell with no incantation at all! I was a bit surprised at this when I read that section, but it made me wonder if I could handle this feat. The game didn't say I had to chant an incantation out loud, but I had to practice and master it if I wanted to do any non-verbal spells in the future.
That aside, I started to wonder about the other aspect of casting a spell, namely using my imagination. I wondered if I could apply that to [Magecrafting] since it was practically the same thing as casting spells in battle. The [Beginner Enchantment Kit] did provide me with magical stones and potions I could use for the craft, so they were also key in creating the gear. Either way, it never hurt to try. I already had the materials needed for my test staff and I didn't want to waste any more time thinking up theories and what-if scenarios.
So as always, I brought out the needed materials for my craft.
2x [Staff Base]
[A wooden staff that serves as the main base for any magical staff.]
2x [Mana Stone]
[A stone made of mana. It's widely used for staves, wands, and magical accessories.]
6x [Feather of Artificial Phoenix]
[A feather that was plucked from an [Artificial Phoenix]. Due to its species are artificially bred by the [Insignis] race, its mana is a bit weaker than a real phoenix.]
Since this was just a test run, most of the materials came from in-game instructions on making a basic magical staff. I would have asked Wind to make me a [Staff Base], but it might've taken a while for him to finish and I didn't want to disturb him from working on his new bow. So that was another 500 [Lapi] down to the drain. But it was worth another sacrifice for my debut as a magecrafter. The instructions said to start by embedding the [Mana Stone] in the top of the staff like the others were doing with their own, but I decided not to follow their example.
Instead, the first thing I did was to set up a magical circle board from the kit and draw a basic pentagram from the design that the magical guide provided me. It was nothing special since it was like any old magical pentagram one would see in novels and anime. Once that was done, I placed the [Staff Base] and the drawn pentagram on top of each other in the middle of the table. Sure, it seemed to be a bit loony to do this because of the [Mana Stone], but I knew that it wasn't enough to make a staff without considering the base itself. In place of a leather handle and stronger wood, I decided that some enchantments could be another way to make it more durable and prevent any slips or breakage during the heat of a battle.
Once everything was set up, I closed my eyes and placed both of my hands on the pentagram. There was a special incantation written in the tome, which for some reason, the system translated its weird language. However, for some reason, it only worked specifically on a basic staff, so I had to improvise on future incantations for my next craft. Now all that was left was to chant it.
"Embers of the sun, raindrops from the storm, I call upon the mana that descends and ascend from our world. Turn this mere branch into part of nature once more and strengthen it to defend its master." As I said this, the pentagram began to glow green, and the staff began to absorb the energy that started to seep from it. At least that was one good sign. "Now envelop this staff with your power become one with mine!"
I was hoping that the [Mana] would just absorb into the staff and harden itself or something once I finished my chant. But as I stared at it, a bright green light suddenly flashed right before my eyes. I quickly covered them once I realized this, and as the light started to simmer down, I saw is a glowing staff covered in magical circles around its wooden body. This wasn't what I expected from my menu-less crafting, but I was very amazed at how the [Staff Base] had transformed with a single spell.
[Magical Staff Base]
[A wooden staff that serves as the main base for any magical staff. It has been enchanted by a spell that allows strong durability to the base and adhesive spell to provide extra grip in any battle.]
Those were the exact effects I wanted for this staff! It's as if the game had read my mind while I was crafting this. But amazement aside, I still needed to insert the [Mana Stone] at the center of the staff's tip. So I carved out a hole with my hammer with a few gentle taps while measuring the size making sure it was enough to fit a jewel before I sanded the edges down a bit. Once I finished with that, a new pop-up window confirmed that it was finished!
[Reinforced Mana Staff]
[A magical staff that is imbued with a light amount of [Mana]. It was also imbued and enhanced the staff's body for extra grip and durability against other humans.
Creator: <Kazu>
Effects: +9 Magic ATK
Quality: 10]
That was a good name. [Reinforced Mana Staff]! Not to mention it had such decent quality in terms of what I could do in the kitchen. My first time making my staff and yet, I was now holding the first real-life staff since the old starter one I got on the first day of the launch. But despite its quality, it's magic attack was a bit bad for my taste. The whole comparison between them is a bit obvious.
[Beginner Rod]
[A simple staff that is imbued by magic and enhancements.
Effects: +11 Magic ATK
Quality: 10]
While I liked the detail of these weapons, I was worried that I couldn't use this staff as my upgraded weapon in my next fight. But it did help me learn how to cast a spell using my imagination. So now that that was done, perhaps I could do more experiences with additional material?
3x [Burning Gemstone]
[A special stone that is well-known for creating flames and explosions. Proceed with caution.]
2x [Sparking Gemstone]
[A special stone that is well-known for creating uncontrollable electricity. Proceed with caution.]
I had found these gemstones and the feathers in a vending store a few days ago, and when I read their flavor texts, I felt they could be useful for my new staff. The [Sparking Gemstone] sounded useful because I possessed [Thunder] magic, but the burning one was one of my main concerns. For one, I didn't have any [Fire] spells on hand, so making a separate staff would be a waste of materials and [Lapi], not to mention could be might be completely useless or very dangerous if I crushed it up and used it for [Alchemy]. If I could combine the power of two stones in one staff, it would lessen my worries a bit.
...
Wait... combine them?
It just might've worked, but did such an item exist in <Isekai> at all? I'd never heard of a staff that had two different kinds of gems. But what consequences could result from this? What could happen if I even tried to cast a spell with it? Would it create disastrous calamity in <Initio>? I started to become worried when I realized the negative points of this hypothetical staff. I then decided that I should try adding one more material to stabilize its power. It might not be much, but if it was going to balance its [Mana], it would be one less accident to worry about. In any case, I had nothing to lose, so I decided to just give it a shot and hope for the best.
After I stored my new [Reinforced Mana Staff] into my inventory, I prepared another [Staff Base] and another set of the same materials I used before. Using the same method to enhance my last staff, I transformed it into another [Magical Staff Base] and this time, I grabbed a hammer and a gouge chisel and carved out three holes at its tip.
I decided on three holes instead of two, because I was not only inserting the [Burning Gemstone] and [Sparking Gemstone] into the base, but I also decided to add a [Mana Stone], which could serve as a stabilizer of sorts to balance out the powerful gemstones (and hopefully not explode in my face). One would think that inserting these stones would finish the staff, but I felt it was still not enough. If I wanted to avoid any accidents, I had to do everything to make sure this staff is safe for use in future battles.
So instead of just waiting for a pop-up window, I pulled out my board and drew several different kinds of magical pentagrams on it. Unlike before, I just drew each pentagram on a top of a previous one and repeated the process until it looks like some sort of triangular pentagrams. And yeah, just saying those words can be a bit confusing, but just think of it as a large circle with two circles at the top of it.
Magical pentagrams aside, I placed the staff at the top of the circle and prepared my hands for another enchantment process. I already had a bit of an idea after reading the incantation, so I took a deep breath and started my own.
"Embers of the sun, raindrops from the storm, I call upon the mana that descends and ascend from our world. Combine the flames and thunder into one and let their magic flow into mine!" Like before, the circles began to glow around the staff as it absorbs the mana around it. "As I release my spells through this staff, show the might and speed of these elements as I call on nature's wrath!"
I was hoping that it would have the same effect when it transformed my [Staff Base] into a durable [Magical Staff Base], but fate had other plans for me. Because when I lowered my hands to see the full effects of my improvised incantation, flames, and lightning suddenly spat out of the circles and flew around out of my station and all over the rest of the second floor. I was shocked at what had just happened right in front of me, that I could only scream in shock and back away from my station. Game mechanics or not, my worst fears had come true. I could even see several artisans and mages running and ducking trying to escape from the lightning and fire bolts that had been released from my spell to the point they were running towards the stairs.
Oh man, what had I gotten myself into?! I just hoped that Wind didn't s-
"Kaz?!"
My eyes widened when I heard that familiar voice. And unfortunately, it was Wind's. I knew right then and there that I was in big trouble...
----
Wind's Masteries
[Archery] Level 11
[Woodcrafting] Level 6
[Swordsmanship] Level 10
[Cooking] Level 6
[Wind] Level 9
[Physical Enhancement] Level 3
[Hunting] Level 10
----
Kazu's Masteries
[Arcana] Level 10
[Thunder] Level 11
[Wind] Level 7
[Alchemy] Level 12
[Magecrafting] Level 8
[Magical Affinity] Level 11
[Scribe] Level 4