I made up magic and taught a world-destroying witch?

Chapter 89 Mentor Demonstration

The fisherman stared at the thin line extending from Joseph's fingertip, and the words he was about to say about how the academy people were good at putting on airs were abruptly cut off.

The next second, something even more astonishing appeared: a reddish-gold spark emerged from the fingertip of the man's other hand!

The fisherman remained completely silent this time.

Although he wasn't an academy mage, he wasn't unfamiliar with magic. Occasionally, people with some magical knowledge would come to Raven Tide Bay to inspect the messy magical items under the pontoon bridge. The magical buoys in the merchant guild warehouse would also glow when activated, and white light patterns could be seen when people from the White Dove Church came to bless the small boats setting sail.

But all magic has its own form, with spells, gestures, and tools; at the very least, there should be some preparatory action.

Who else can stretch out a purple line and then stretch out a red-gold flame like that!

Could this gentleman from out of town really be one of those legendary great magicians?

Mia and Grace were also stunned. They knew that the Master could use magic, but this was the first time they had seen him use magic related to them up close!

Grace stared at the thread emerging from Joseph's fingertips, a profound and indescribable tremor washing over her. It was something she had finally come to understand; the man had told her it could be a guide and a connection.

But now, the same purple thread is as quiet as a tamed silk thread in the gentleman's hands, gently supporting the broken wood and piecing the two broken ends back together.

So this is how purple thread can be used. Sir really knew that purple thread could become something like this. Grace clenched her fist, suddenly feeling a little ashamed, yet also a longing she couldn't hide.

When will she be able to become a magician like her husband, able to manipulate magic at will?

Mia stared at the line so intently she forgot to blink. She only knew that the master was very powerful, but he was now using Grace's purple line.

It was their new magic that turned what they had just begun to grasp into something truly usable.

Then, something even more eye-opening appeared the next second.

A spark of reddish-gold emanated from the fingertips of Joseph's other hand, and Mia instinctively held her breath.

That was her furnace light! No, it was a reddish-golden spark that was even more obedient than her current furnace light! Holding the two copper pots, she unconsciously moved forward a little.

Joseph, of course, had no idea how profoundly the people around him had interpreted his impromptu demonstration.

He is actually a little nervous now, after all, this set of lesson plans is strictly speaking a newly made one, and the theoretical basis mainly comes from the experience he gained in the training tower a few days ago, as well as the teaching mentality he has only recently managed to change.

But things have already come to this point, and there's no way to back down. Even if a mature mentor isn't confident, they still need to keep their expression steady.

Joseph looked at the rotten wood that had been hastily pieced back together with purple thread and continued, "Confirming its original appearance is only the first step."

Following the same procedure he had performed in the training tower, he controlled the small red-gold spark to slowly approach the edge of the crack. The red-gold spark gently circled the edge of the broken wood, then was slowly pulled back by the purple line. The next second, a very faint smell of burning wafted up, and Joseph immediately stopped the spark.

Mia:

"————"

Grace:

Fisherman: "————"

The grey-backed fish in the wooden bucket: "Burn it."

Joseph: "—"

Joseph calmly withdrew the red-gold spark, leaving only a purple thread gently supporting the piece of wood. His expression was serene, as if that slight burnt smell was an integral part of the teaching plan.

"Look," Joseph said, "this is where we can't go on."

Mia blinked.

Joseph continued, "So, restoration isn't about putting two things together and baking them."

Grace's eyes widened slightly. It turned out that the master had deliberately demonstrated the wrong direction. She had thought the slight burning smell was a mistake, but now that she thought about it, how could the master make a mistake at a time like this?

He must have wanted Mia to see clearly that the light of the furnace cannot be just a flame. If you only understand repair as heating, you will only burn things in the end!

She should have brought her notebook with her, Grace couldn't help but feel a little annoyed.

"Mia," Joseph said, looking at her. "You were right. Repairing and heating are not the same thing."

The furnace light is just the most familiar way of expression for you right now, but new magic doesn't have only one fixed use.

"New spell slots can accommodate new understandings."

Mia, holding the bronze pot, asked with a hint of confusion, "So—repair doesn't necessarily have to be like fire?"

"Yes." Joseph nodded. This was something he had just thought of, but the more he thought about it, the more sense it made.

Mia's biggest problem right now is that she's too familiar with fire. But if she also interprets repair as fire, she'll always be worried about burning what she's trying to fix.

"Firelight is your foundation, but it's not the only way all your magic must grow to resemble fire," Joseph said. "Fire can indeed melt and re-bond adhesives, but if you only focus on heating, all you'll end up with is charred wood, just like I demonstrated."

Since we've already come this far, it would be even more suspicious not to continue. Since Red Gold Spark has already revealed the incorrect answer, let's just package this error as a teaching segment.

All the mistakes of a seasoned mentor should ultimately become necessary examples for students' growth.

“New spell slots can accommodate new understandings,” Joseph said. “You don’t need to cram everything into Hearthlight. While Hearthlight is what you’re most familiar with, it may not be the final answer.”

Mia listened attentively. When she first heard the gentleman talk about restoration techniques in the reception room, she always thought that if she could repair things in the future, it would probably be by fire, such as softening the broken part by burning it and then re-attaching it. She never seriously considered that if she just put fire near the object, it might get worse.

Repairing isn't like baking—that statement is kind of funny, but Komia suddenly felt like she had actually touched something different.

"Then what should I do?" she asked softly.

Joseph pointed to the broken piece of wood supported by the purple thread: "Don't rush to fix it."

"Don't rush to fix it?" Mia asked, a little confused.

“Yes,” Joseph said. “You have to imagine what the wooden strips should have looked like.”

As he spoke, he gently separated the broken ends of the wood with a purple thread and then put them back together.

"You see, even if they're broken in two now, they're not two unrelated pieces of wood."

Mia's eyes gradually brightened.

"Use your magic to let them know where they should return to," Joseph said. "Imagine what this wooden plank was like before, whole, and use your complete memories to cover up its current broken state."

As he said this, he himself felt that what he said was a bit mysterious, but there was nothing he could do. New magic was inherently mysterious, otherwise how could he have succeeded in making up magic?

But having said that, it's up to the students to understand it now.

"Give it a try," Joseph said to Mia.