C21
Ethella walked around comfortably, as if she did not enter the Spirit Zone, and continued to explain.
“This is the basic form of the Spirit Zone. It takes up all the space equally. However, in an actual fight, more often than not, you will not have the opportunity to use the entire space. Let me give you an example.”
When Ethella flicked her finger, a target appeared 20 meters away.
“With a diameter of only 10 meters, you won't be able to affect the target with magic. As such, you would have no choice but to either move towards them or increase the size of your Spirit Zone. However, simply changing the size of your Spirit Zone isn't something you can do on a whim… But by changing the shape, you can do something like this.”
Ethella's Zone lengthened in the direction of the target. It had the same volume but was able to reach the target by changing its shape.
“The shape of your mind dictates the shape of your Spirit Zone. And then…”
Ethella held out her hand and chanted.
“Fire.”
Fire burst out and burned the target 20 meters away. The eyes of the new students who were in their first-ever class popped open. Ethella, who had been taken lightly because of her gentle appearance, suddenly looked imposing.
“However, there is a fatal problem when using this method.”
Due to Ethella's words, the new students were embarrassed after hearing that the demonstration a while ago was actually an example of something bad.
“The shape of the Zone can vary. However, having to change the shape every second in a battle is inefficient. So mages use a specific pattern to decrease its inefficiency. And they do it through the Spirit Zone's four patterns, the Four Way Formation.
Shirone's heart started pounding after hearing the concept for the first time.
“The first form in the Four Way Formation is the Defense Form.”
Ethella's Spirit Zone closed in and transformed into a cube with 20 triangular faces. Although it looked rough, it appeared similar to a sphere from a distance.
PR/N: Imagine a sphere that's sort of squarish and has a low-polygon count, that's what it looks like.
“The basis of the Defense Form is the cube. It's about building a mental framework using the frames. Oh, and the frames are the triangular faces, for those who don't know. The more frames the cube has, the more durable it becomes. It's also a shape that can protect a large number of allies. Next is the Attack Form.”
Ethella changed the shape of her Spirit Zone. The spherical surface area seemed to decrease, while dozens of long needles extended in all directions.
“The Attack Form has, what we call, a star shape. In return for decreasing the center area, it extends the number of Zones. It covers all directions, so you don't have to worry about the location of your target. It's the ideal form when dealing with multiple enemies. Next is the target form.”
Ethella's Zone changed once again. Her Spirit Zone extended out into the four cardinal directions: north, east, south, and west. The final form was shaped like a cross.
“The basis of the Target Form is the cross. It has the longest range among the basic forms of the Four Way Formation, and although its power is less than that of the Offensive Form, it can easily detect and seize the target.”
As she flicked her finger, the targets began to encircle Ethella and in response, she followed the targets with sharp eyes.
“45 degrees to the side. Fire.”
The cross started spinning, and every time the cross caught a target, fire shot out. Magic was cast simultaneously, front to rear, left to right. And no mistakes were made. It was as if she also had eyes located at the back of her head.
“What you need to master for the Target Form is the speed of your Spirit Zone rotation. While, when done to an extreme, the Straight Form will have the greatest range. But this adjustment is only really used when attacking from a distance and if the target is straight ahead. Since a mage is usually stationed at the very end of a straight line, it is extremely difficult to change the direction of the Spirit Zone.”
Ethella stopped talking for a second and took the time to wipe her glasses.
“Lastly, the Deviate Form is about shifting the center of the Zone. In other words, it would be like moving your brain.”
Tags:
Infinite Mage (Novel)
