I loaded the Mysticism panel.

No, it doesn't seem to be as simple as walking with less effort.

Richard brought up the control panel.

[Walking level 3, progress 91.3%.]

Last night it was 91.2%.

Richard raised an eyebrow.

In the past six months, he has tried everything to encourage walking: jogging, climbing stairs, taking detours back to his dormitory.

After level 3, progress slows down even slower than a snail; a half-percentage increase per week is considered good.

I never expected that walking in the air would increase my walking speed.

"..."

He did a comparison test that day.

I walked normally for half the time and floated for the other half, walking the same route and the same distance. I found that my progress increased significantly faster when I was floating.

At first, he thought he had gotten the better deal.

To raise the bar for free and even increase the progress—is there really such a good thing in the world?

【Critical Thinking & Inner Awakening】Let him leave and enter a deep thinking mode.

Without friction, there is no leverage; people walk by being pushed by the ground.

Push your feet back, and the reaction force will propel you forward; half the work is done by the earth.

Now that the ground is no longer there, he has to rely entirely on his own ankles, knees, waist, abdomen... every step he has to take depends on his own center of gravity, and on those two wings to propel himself out.

The distance hasn't changed even after taking one step, but now I have to start spending ether.

He tried to count the steps from his dormitory to the Petrie Building. It was about 420 steps on a normal walk, and it was still about 420 steps on a floating walk.

After walking that route, his lower back felt warm.

"...So it was carrying a load."

Li realized that he was somewhat like those men who run in gyms wearing lead vests.

Another thing popped up.

shadow.

For the past six months, he'd had a vague feeling, but only today did he dare to put it into practice:

The shadow practiced stone armor, moon nails, and silencing behind the curtain for several months;

Meanwhile, his own proficiency in these techniques was also increasing.

It hasn't increased much, but it is definitely rising.

The techniques are shared because his spirit is embedded in the shadow.

Ultimately, a spell is simply a method of using ether. The more the spirit uses this method, the more proficient it becomes, and naturally, the original body also benefits from it.

If techniques can be shared, and even breathing techniques can be shared, then why can't walking, eating, and sleeping techniques be shared?

Richard returned to his dorm and continued to ponder the matter.

Breathing, eating, sleeping, walking—these are what the panel calls the "body."

The shadow has no lungs, no stomach, no bones, and no knees.

It traveled ten thousand miles for him, traversing a weightless expanse of darkness.

Richard has figured out the key:

"The reason why levitation can propel [walking] is because the circuit maintains levitation, and the consumption of ether adds extra weight. The circuit is also part of this body."

"But the shadow is not part of this body at all."

"The spirit can be sent out, but the body cannot be outsourced."

...At least not now.

Under the "Out of Body" section, there's a list of unlocked items. Once you reach five strands or more, "other conditions must be met."

Shadow has been growing for the past six months, from a puppet that he was pulling on strings to something that can extend its tentacles to snatch food and follow him when he takes a half step back.

What if one day it really could be considered a "shell"?

"If one day the 'out-of-body experience' could peel away more strands, or the shadow could acquire an independent body, would this condition loosen?"

Richard screwed the pen cap back on. The thought was too far off; thinking about it now would only keep him up at night.

He closed the notebook and locked it in the drawer.

Fisher was the first to discover the phenomenon of levitation.

The classical prose writing class ended on Monday morning.

That afternoon, right after the inscription class ended, Richard walked out from the back row and went around the podium to hand in his homework.

After handing over the papers and turning to leave, Fisher suddenly jumped up from his seat.

"Williams!"

"What are you doing?" Richard was slightly startled by his sudden outburst.

"How did you get here?"

"They walked over."

"I didn't hear that!" Fisher looked like he'd seen a ghost.

"My hearing is perfect; you walked more than ten steps from the door to the podium and I didn't hear a thing!"

"My shoes have soft soles."

Richard sighed inwardly.

This guy may not be good at anything else, but his observation skills are frighteningly sharp, even in these seemingly useless places.

Fisher's eyes started to dart around; Richard knew that look all too well.

"No!"

"I haven't said it yet!"

"You definitely have to compose music for me."

Fisher immediately stood up straight.

"How did you know!"

"You wanted to do this the last time you made that face."

"This time is different." Fisher pulled the sheet music from his pocket and flipped through it noisily.

"This time it's purely instrumental. I've decided to just play the double bass on one note from beginning to end without any variation."

"...Why?"

"Because your walking style hasn't changed!" He had an expression that said, "Is that even a question?"

"I've already thought of a name, it'll be called 'Silent Williams'."

"Doesn't this name have a...ghostly feel to it?"

"Fischer, what has been changed from your last song?"

Fisher's hand holding the pen stopped.

"I heard the cafeteria version again this morning," Richard said.

"The lady serving the food sang while ladling soup. When she sang, 'The cook replaced the meat with radish three times,' she ladled an extra spoonful of radish into my bowl."

"That's because she felt guilty."

"Yesterday afternoon I was in the library, and I heard someone humming the second verse."

What is the second paragraph?

"Four calls go unanswered, five calls go unanswered, six calls go to ask the tutor for money."

Fisher fell silent.

"...This change is indeed quite good." He admitted with some pain.

"He grasped that strong sense of drive."

"So," Richard said, slinging his backpack over his shoulder.

"Are you sure you want to write a second poem for me?"

Fisher was quiet for a moment, then slowly crumpled the paper into a ball.

"...I just think it's a pity." He muttered, "Your subject matter is very good, it has a lot of mystery."

"Keep writing about yourself."

"What is there for me to write about?"

"Fischer in the Proofreading Room"

"...That sounds like someone who's been dead for a long time."

Fisher took two steps out, then suddenly turned back.

"But the way you walk is really strange."

Richard did not respond.

"Are you practicing something?"

"Mirror-like traditional center of gravity training."

"A traditional way of walking in a mirror?"

"For a mirror to reflect a person, that person must first be steady, and the first step to steadiness is to keep their feet on the ground."

Richard found that he no longer needed to think before making up these lies; they just flowed out of his mouth.

Fisher gave an "Oh," looking like he understood but decided not to delve any deeper.

His curiosity comes quickly but fades just as fast; he usually can't keep up with the next new thing.

"Then you can practice." He waved his hand.

"Don't be late for the inscription class this afternoon, Old Ke will be taking attendance."

Montague and Catherine are much more difficult to deal with.

The third round of the routine sparring match had just begun when Richard moved to the side.

The way he slid out that step was much smoother than usual.

Montagu stopped immediately.

He stood in the center of the field, his grey-blue eyes fixed on Richard's feet.

"Williams".

"What's wrong?"

"That step you just took..." the blond youth frowned, "Did you put something under your feet?"

Fisher was sitting in the corner, panting, and didn't hear a thing.

Edith was looking at her book.

Catherine closed the silver needle box and looked up at them.

Richard answered very quickly.

"Mirror-like traditional center of gravity training."

"Focus training?"

"There shouldn't be any fluctuations when you're photographing someone," Richard replied naturally.

"Your body will break as soon as it sinks into the water, so you have to practice walking without any undulation, landing lightly and lifting your feet evenly."

That's partly true; the second stage of the Condensing Mirror Method, "Seeking Stillness in Movement," is precisely what this is about.

"Alright." Montagu put away the still-dissipating light barrier in his hand: "Then continue practicing."

He turned around, took two steps, and then turned back.

"But you're learning pretty fast."

"The traditional mirror industry can only be developed by ourselves; if we are slow in developing it, we will starve."

Montagu chuckled and didn't ask any more questions.

When the show ended, Catherine walked next to Richard.

She took a notebook out of her pocket, opened it, wrote a line, and held it up.

There's something under your feet.

Richard was about to open his mouth.

Catherine turned the notebook over and wrote on the next page.

"I was to your side just now, and I could see the dust on the ground."

She raised the notebook a little higher.

You didn't step on it.

Richard sighed.

The most dangerous thing about this girl is that she only reports what she saw, and then you have to read on your own after she finishes reporting.

"Catherine, I'm practicing a levitation technique, don't talk nonsense."

The red-haired girl blinked.

She tore that page out, shredded it in front of him, and then rewrote it: "I won't say."

He left after he finished writing.

Richard feels that he has to think through every word he says before speaking to anyone.