The Owl House

Shirou gestured to a diagram of a person with arrows displaying the flow of energy. "Magic Circuits have two basic functions. The first is to convert Life Force Energy into Magical Energy. The second is to direct the Magical Energy and your commands to the world for spells. The number and quality of Magic Circuits one possesses is determined as soon as a soul forms and cannot decrease or increase naturally. For example, I was born with 27."

Eda raised brow at that number. "Is that a lot?"

The hero shrugged. "The average magic user is twenty, but I've met people with more than 40 circuits. A higher number may give people an advantage, but magical ability and skill can still compete with brute force."

"But I love the brute force approach!" complained King. "It's direct and to the point!"

Luz tried to focus on a possible object on her arms to no effect. "You said that magic from where you're from is rare. How rare is it?"

Shirou tapped his chin. "Well, the average person has little to no Magic Circuits. Frankly, they are unnatural for the human body, so they normally stay within a mage's family line."

"Oh..." The girl deflated as her chances of performing magic lowered. She doubted she was the descendant of any Latin American Witches. "is there any way to check?"

He stepped toward Luz and gestured for her hand. A bit flustered, she obliged. His larger hands wrapped around her own, and he closed his eyes to focus. "Trace On." The room felt a vibration through the air. This time, the glowing teal lines extended from Shirou onto Luz, much to her immediate shock.

Luz stared at the older boy, red in the face. This was the longest someone held her hand. The feeling of the spell was new, to say the least. There was a warmth from what she assumed as magic. It didn't hurt, but it was as if she was being watched from all directions.

Information flowed through his head, and he had his answer. Shirou let go of her hand and frowned. "I'm sorry, but I couldn't find any magic circuits." A frown formed. "Also, you need to watch your blood pressure."

The trio stared in confusion about what had happened.

"Shirou, what spell was that?" asked Eda.

King tilted his head. "What were you turning on?"

Luz crossed her arms. "I'll have you know I go light on the salt."

Shirou rubbed the back of his head. "Ah, sorry for surprising you all. Simply put, I used magic to scan your body."

Eda blinked, never hearing about that sort of magic before. If anything, you could put it under the oracle track for scrying information.

Luz gaped. "That's amazing! What else did you learn about my body?"

Immediately, the Owl Lady burst into laughter while King look

The hero blinked at the girl before raising a brow. "Care to rephrase that?"

She repeated the words in her head, and she burned red. "F-Forget what I said and whatever you learned."

"Right..."

An idea popped into King's head for the spell, but he would save that for another time. He jumped to his feet. "I can't even imagine getting all sorts of info from anything at a touch. How does your mind not melt from everything?"

Shirou tapped his head. "As part of their second function, Magic Circuits record, store, and process information in addition to the brain. It's how many mages comprehend the magical formulas and calculations for spells."

The Owl Lady gagged. "That sounds like way too much work."

The young girl tapped her chin. "What about that phrase you said? Is that the chant?"

Shirou chuckled. "Oh, it's more of a mental trigger to focus and activate my Circuits. For me, it's akin to firing the hammer of a gun."

"I suppose you could say the same thing about me," commented Eda. Anytime someone wants to draw a spell circle, they need to focus and push the intent from their mind. Otherwise, people would just be waving their hands in the air for nothing."

The witchling in training narrowed her eyes. "Are you telling me I could do better in school if I had circuits?"

"Technically, yes." The hero shrugged. A friend of his had done it to become a top student.

Luz snapped her fingers in disappointment. "Drat..."

His expression faltered at her downcast expression. "Sorry to break it to you, Luz. You're one of the many non-magic folks."

She waved her hands. "It's fine. There has to be a way for me to do magic."

"I have little doubt that we'll find it."

Shirou turned to the other teacher. "It's unfortunate, but Luz won't be able to use the same method that I perform magic. I suppose now is a good time to demonstrate, Eda."

The girl pumped her fist. "How do you do magic?"

Eda allowed the boy to take a seat. "Yeah. Yeah. Hold your applause. Now, unlike the nerd here, we don't need to do complicated math. Outside of a Bile Sac, a Witch's staff can be used for spells."

'So magic staffs here allow anyone to use magic?' The image of Merlin's staff surfaced in his inner world. He wasn't sure if it was still usable in mundane hands. In comparison, the copy of Owlbert now in his Reality Marble was hollow. He couldn't replicate the soul that inhabited the living wood familiar. It was just a wooden staff. Perhaps he could get one for himslef and try out this Titan magic.

"I can do magic if I just have a staff!" Luz got to her knees and begged. "Can I try it, please!"

Eda shook her head teasingly. "A witch's staff, much less a palisman, needs to be earned. Before then, every witch must know how to cast spells independently. Now..." She threw Owlbert to the side. "I will show you how to create... light." Eda drew a glowing orange circle with her finger in the air. White light sparked in the center, forming a ball of light. It descended until it was before Luz's face, where it disappeared."

The hero's eye's softened. Despite its simplicity, a light spell held historical and symbolic significance across different cultures as one of the first elemental magics performed.

Genesis 1:3 - Then God said, "Let there be light," and there was light.

Hesiod's Theogony - From Chaos came forth Erebus and black Night; but of Night were born Aether and Day.

Luz gasped in amazement, on the edge of her seat and wanting to do the same.

"Now, everything depends on the spell circle." Eda drew a large circle in the air. "The bigger the circle, the more powerful the spell." The ring burst out, creating a much bigger light than before, and faded much faster."

It took a moment to realize before Shirou stared at the witch with a deadpan expression. Magic for Witches here was as easy as just drawing a circle and concentrating on the spell's effects. No complex formulas are seemingly required. He doubted there were any general health risks either. Shirou crossed his arms, a little jealous. "Now, that's just unfair."

"What about all your sword-making magic!" King waved an arm like a weapon. "You're like a walking armory, a perfect soldier for me!"

He shook his head in amusement. "At its core, my swords come from my head, not too dissimilar to the mechanics of the illusion spells I've seen here."

"Yeah," Luz answered. "You had so much to say on discerning enemy illusions during the games. Why is that?"

"The way I make my weapons are part of my specialty. Projection is the materialization of objects from the imagination. I shape magical energy into the object I want." He held up a hand. "Trace on." His magic circuits hummed as motes of light gathered along teal lines, becoming a simple mace.

Eda hummed in thought. "I'm familiar with Evocation, but your magic seems more like the Conjuration."

He allowed the mace to dissipate. "Their principles are the same. The spell allows us to project our inner world over the outside one. Despite what others may say about Projection or Illusion Magic, I believe in their value. At the core, I see the spirit of magic. It brings your thoughts into reality. Taking a lie and making it the truth. I'm telling a story to the universe so utterly, cosmically perfect that for a single, shining moment... the world believes me."

The Latina stared in awe. The words perfectly describe how she saw magic at a young age. The possibilities were endless with enough understanding, energy, and skill.

Even Eda paused for a moment. She hadn't thought about it before. Back at school, the Illusion track wasn't well respected. Even she made fun of the track at one point or another. 'Maybe I should brush up on my illusion skills down the line.' The kid made it sound more profound.

King jumped on the couch with enthusiasm. "So that's how you make magic swords that can shoot lasers!

The redhead took a page from another life. "If you cannot defeat your enemy with the weapon you have, imagine one with which you could."

"Imagine me a sword that will guarantee me victory."

Shirou sweatdropped at the request, a particular sword coming to mind. He figured Luz told King about being able to make enchanted weapons and shrugged.

"I knew it! The power of imagination is invincible!" cheered Luz.

With a laugh, the hero traced familiar blades as a little sample. Then, after extending out his arms, his Teal colored circuits activated along his arms before a sword appeared in each hand. True to the Yin and Yang symbol on their crossguards, one blade was the darkest black tortoiseshell pattern and the other the purest white wave pattern.

"You have seen them before, but I haven't properly introduced you to them. They are Kanshou and Bakuya."

Even the average viewer could appreciate their beauty.

"That sounds like a person's name," noted Luz.

"That's because they are. They are the married twin swords representing Yin and Yang, forged by and named after Gan Jiang and his wife Mò Yé during the spring and autumn period of China." He placed both down on the coffee table. "Would you care to hear its legend, its story?"

"This isn't a sword you imagined?" inquired Eda.

"For some objects, the persistence of their legend through history gives birth to their magic."

He received three nods of curiosity.

"Long ago, King Helü of Wu ordered Gan Jiang and Mo Ye to forge a pair of imperial swords for him in three months. However, the furnace failed to melt the metal. Gan Jiang was at a loss on how to forge the swords. Mo Ye suggested that there was insufficient human qi in the furnace."

Familiar with the term thanks to anime, Luz frowned at the implication. "It needed more life energy."

"Indeed. The metal they were using was of supernatural quality. Seeing his frustration and desperation Mò Yé decided to gamble her own life. In their culture, the sacrifice of life was necessary to forge items reaching the realm of Gods. So, Mò Yé hurled herself into the furnace before her loving husband, giving her life to helping the Essence of Five Mountains and the Metal of Six Heroes meld into these swords."

Eyes went wide in shock. The woman was dedicated to their craft, possibly caring little for the life with her husband.

"With the loss of his wife, Gan Jiang forged the two swords in grief. After three years, he finally finished the project, naming the two swords after them."

The trio wondered if the loss was worth it in the end.

"Gan Jiang kept the male sword for himself and presented the female sword to King Helü. Helü was already very displeased since he ordered a pair of swords to be made in three months. Instead, Gan Jiang only gave him one sword after three years. When the Helü eventually discovered the hidden male sword, he had Gan Jiang killed."

"That's so sad." "That's so cool!" Luz and King glared at each other.

Eda shook her head. "So what magic do they have anyways? Being forged with a soul had to be worth something."

King reached to hold a sword, but Shirou pulled away.

"I would be careful, King. They have a strong affinity against monsters, allowing them to cut down magical creatures easily."

The child was conflicted, putting his arm back down. "I can't defeat my enemies without risking defeating myself! That's bogus!"

"Then don't." Eda rolled her eyes.

Shirou held the two swords side by side. "There is a reason why they are called the married blades. The strong bond between husband and wife ingrained itself into the swords." Turning away, he gave a small toss to the white sword. Just as it was about to touch the floor several feet away, it's trajectory curved, returning back to Shirou's hand. "Like magnets, they attract each other, said to return to their owner even if they are lost." Then, carefully, he allowed Luz to hold one of them.

She could feel the invisible pull between them. "That's so sweet and sad all at once."

"I would like to think of their story as a reminder of how we go about our lives. You can dedicate your entire life to a goal and achieve it, but that doesn't guarantee the happiness of you or your loved ones. It's up to you if the product of your decisions is worth the sacrifice."

It tugged at Eda's heart for a moment. There were a number of decisions she made where the final cost almost seemed to outweigh her goal at the time. 'What would have happened if I never pushed them away...'

"The original story aside, I like them for a different reason as well." Shirou looked at his reflection from both blades." Their creation had no real purpose, yet they were still captivating and beautiful. They were created without vanity and lacked the sense of purpose as other swords. They contained no fighting spirit to defeat others or competitive spirit to beat other weapons. They contain neither the desire to be famous nor the faith to accomplish great deeds. They were a blank slate, ready to be given purpose by the will of its user." He turned to Luz with a gentle smile. "Doesn't that sound familiar?"

Thinking back to the day they first met, Luz mirrored his expression. The words seemed to flow from her heart. "We don't come into this world with a purpose." Her hand brushed against the black-and-white symbol. "To make this sword special, I have to believe it's special." She looked back up at him. "Even if there is no purpose, the blades are enough and always will be. That's all that matters. Like myself, I create the purpose. Even if I'm still searching for that, I don't need to wait for it to keep going. The meaning of life is... life. Be good at a thing, be bad at a thing. It's all part of it." Luz smiled at Shirou, once more reinforcing her resolution.

Feeling the emotions rolling off of the girl, Eda and King both give their form of comfort to her.

Shirou lowered himself and ruffled her hair, proud. "As a student of mine, putting this into practice is the first step of your growth."

By this time, the lesson had ended, and they would soon go about the rest of their day, not noticing the clouds starting to darken.

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