The Runic Alchemist

The golem spell was advanced-level but didn't require much time to gather mana for, especially when Damian filled the surroundings with his own mana, allowing it to accumulate faster. He needed the slab because he couldn't use mana threads inside the invisible box that wasn't even cast by him. To ensure the best possible result, he set the spell's mana requirements to their absolute maximum. The slab was a one time use thing anyway.

Like many basic and advanced spells, the golem spell's effectiveness depended on the amount of mana supplied. While most spells had fixed parameters, some—such as this one—featured a customizable mana section. Damian could make any spell mana dependent if he wanted to, with adding that section in them, but not many spells would show the difference. More mana equal to better effect was only possible if the spell was conjuring type mostly.

After chatting for about half an hour and pooling their mana over the slab, Damian and Reize had the spell ready for activation. Dirt-yellow runes glowed faintly on the flat steel plate, evidence of the full mana powered spell being ready for activation.

He put down Toph on his work table and stood up. She was beside him like a shadow - not wanting to miss anything.

"Ready?" Damian asked.

Reize nodded eagerly.

She performed an invisible box spell chanting to activate the spell. Damian then used a water ball to pinpoint the location of the invisible box. Once he calculated the distance, he drew the runic circle for the wormhole, ensuring it was just small enough to align with the invisible box's sides. Quickly, he activated the wormhole alongside the water ball, then inserted the resized steel ingot and the enchanted plate into the wormhole, triggering the spell as he did so. With that, he dismissed the supporting spells.

Now they just had to see it take effect, to Damian's eyes it was like seeing two pieces of steel hovering in air as a runic circle for golem creation formed above it.

As Damian turned to Reize, her strained expression showed the effort she had put into sustaining the spell. Together, they shifted their gaze to the invisible box. For a few tense seconds, the dirt-yellow runic circle flickered, the dense mana visibly degrading the small steel plate as the spell reached completion. Both the ingot and the damaged plate were consumed by the glowing circle, transforming into a small, doll-like humanoid figure. It was roughly 70% of the box's height. Some steel from the ingot remained when the spell dissipated - not enough mana, even though the slab looked unusable for another spell at all. A mana required to damage the slab was large and both Damian and Reize had given a lot of their mana to the slab and yet it couldn't even form a box sized iron gole. Now, he understood how even the Spellmaster herself had lost so much mana making just one human sized iron golem.

Reize stared at the steel doll, her wide eyes brimming with shock and wonder. She dismissed her spell at last as Damian manipulated four of his mana threads to guide the golem to the ground with a heroic landing.

Her awe-filled expression brought a smile to his face as he animated the doll, making it jump, flip, and dart around the lab. Toph eagerly joined the fun, chasing the little steel construct with unbridled enthusiasm. However, Damian, with his deft control, kept the doll just out of reach of the chubby elephant.

Standing just 25 cm tall and 10 cm wide, the doll's dimensions presented new challenges. Even Damian's micro runic spells couldn't be inscribed properly onto its thin steel body; shrinking the runes further would weaken their power and usability. It might handle low-intensity elemental runes, but the steel's fragility would render such spells short-lived. But then again, what can he do with dolls like these..?

He can change their shapes with his knowledge of golem spell he had accumulated over the years and could possibly have a big enough flat surface for his mini runic spells. But the issue of small iron frame still remained, rendering the golem useless in just one or two uses of advanced tier spell.

'Wait a second, wasn't I able to form them into any shape..? Doesn't that mean I have a literal 3D printer for hard metals..? I can make even the tiniest mechanical parts without going into all that mess of making it by hammer and casting molds. More than that, small armor pieces that were annoying to make could also be built like this much faster at that.. That was really useful.. Provided I take Reize to work with me..'

Man, how he wished for a way to convert his runic spells into traditional spells. And his modified spell, learned by people he trusted.. Who could help him in that..? A good mage with years of experience..

Creating spells wasn't for beginners. It was master-level work, often undertaken by older mages in their forties or fifties—those who had the time to refine their craft after reaching the heights of their Enlightened levels and skills and just needed to qualify for the transcendant trial. Most second-ranker mages wouldn't even consider such a thing, save for a few rare geniuses.

He didn't know many second-ranker mages, though. Aside from Tristan and a few Eldoris folk, his options were limited.

Here there were a lot of them, but Highswords obviously wouldn't teach such secret stuff to an outsider. A trade perhaps..? Guess he could ask Worldscribe to teach him and see how that goes.

He could also strike a side deal with a noble family known for producing a renowned mage or scholar who had developed a groundbreaking spell. At the academy, where individuals from across the five kingdoms converged, such underhanded dealings and secret exchanges of information were far from uncommon. In fact, the city beneath the academy housed guilds that specialized in loaning money to students—on the condition that they divulged any valuable knowledge about their homeland. These shadowy transactions were an open secret, a true example of the academy's vibrant yet treacherous atmosphere.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om