Chapter 54 - Moons

Three weeks passed as Lily waited for the New Moon. While nothing too eventful happened, she had made some good progress on all her various fronts.

Her Moonlight spell was upgraded from grape to apple, and she could precisely direct the moonbeam in her intended direction. Lily appreciated the spell now that it was more usable and less novelty, and even used it on one of the rare nights when she decided to sneak out and hunt a slime or gremlin.

Her Nebula Veil, on the other hand, could now fully cloak her entirely. She absolutely loved it. With no need to grow out the length of the spell, Lily had spent more time learning to manipulate and control it directly. Unfortunately, she was limited in her applications, and beyond causing it to spread out or wrap close, she was a bit restricted.

When I have Astral affinity, I hope I can do more!

Starlight had received a significant upgrade in quantity, and Lily could quite easily create and maintain six tiny stars at once. Whenever she added another star to the collection, Arakil would recreate her entire practice routine, which required further fanciful maneuvering to accommodate the addition.

Again, she didn't directly understand how this was helping her with magic, but she found the activity extremely fun, so she didn't complain.

As for Lily's evening adventures, she was having some moderate success taking out the occasional slime or gremlin. The first few times, she had yet to exceed the two-star maximum; but in the last week leading up to the New Moon, she finally achieved a third star!

Lily was over the moon with joy at that upgrade. Not only did she now have a higher theoretical maximum, but it also reduced the probability that she would have a zero-star result.

Arakil had confirmed those suspicions with her, although he still seemed rather sour about it. On several occasions, Lily asked about the spells to skew the results in her favor. To her surprise, Arakil had actually discouraged her from pursuing that until well after her Astral attunement.

When Lily begged and pressed, he eventually revealed it was a far more complex spell, and without the attunement she might have no chance of casting. He'd even offered her the caveat that he would teach her the spell early if she had grown her Moonlight spell to the size of a watermelon.

With that perspective, Lily had to agree that she could see why he warned against touching it for now and would instead focus on adding the fourth star as soon as possible.

Funnily enough, Lily had originally thought she would've needed the third star to take out a gremlin in a single casting. However, once her understanding of the spell, practice, and visualization improved, two were more than enough to dispatch a gremlin.

Lily had also discovered that the zero-star outcome was still marginally useful. While not producing a directly offensive projectile, the scattered stardust still boosted the next star to make contact. Not that Lily got to use this more than once by accident, as she preferred to stay far, far away from any monsters.

Her Mana Core felt rather robust compared to its extremely meager origins, although comparing herself to Camilla, she knew she still had a long way to go. While the woman didn't know of her slowly expanding capacity, Lily could roughly approximate herself to the maximum outputs she'd seen the woman perform.

Speaking of Camilla, the woman had received her supplies and spent an entire day brewing the major healing potion. Lily did get to watch, but beyond handing some tools and supplies was very uninvolved in the procedure. With so many mixtures and swapping between various temperatures at different timings, it was an almost crazy hurdle to overcome.

When the potion was successfully brewed, Lily expected Camilla to let out her signature cackle, but instead, the woman was actually brought to tears. At first, Lily thought something was wrong, but she soon discovered it was tears of joy.

"I never thought I'd get to brew one of these again…" Camilla said softly. "I thought age had finally caught up to me. If not for the glyphs you made me, I don't think this would have been possible. Thank you, Lily."

Lily gave a reassuring smile. "Just doing my job, Miss Camilla! Gotta get paid." Lily teased.

The woman snorted a laugh but gave Lily a soft pat on the head.

Shortly after that, she had brewed Lily's Mana potion. This time, she was allowed to assist and tried to absorb as much information as possible. If the opportunity arose, she would love to brew one for herself.

Lily had expected to drink it as soon as it was done, but Arakil instructed her to wait until after the Astral attunement.

[A sudden increase in your Mana Core's size might make your job harder. Keeping it small and manageable will make your task easier.]

"Does that mean I should stop using the gathering array or killing slimes?" Lily asked with some worry. "If I had known… I would have stopped sooner…"

[No, not at all. Those were gradual and small increases, requiring no time to acclimate to the change. I suspect the Mana potion might be a rather substantial increase. Better to be safe than sorry.]

Lily nodded. It somewhat made sense. If she looked at her daily progress, there was almost nothing there, but if she looked back a few weeks, there was a discernable difference.

Glyph-wise, things had remained relatively unchanged. The only change was that Lily now had two small glyphs that would cast a water spell, just in case she had another out-of-control fire situation.

I wonder if Rose ever caused any forest fires… Although knowing her, she probably just shouted at the fire to stop burning! Lily giggled at the amusing thought.

The time had come; the first night of the New Moon. Lily was extremely grateful that it was a clear night. So, with her folded-up Mana-gathering array, she climbed out of the window and walked to a quiet spot to meditate under the stars.

Perhaps instinctually, she was drawn to one of her old resting spots, the tree she used to sit under and stare at the other kids enviously while they played games without her.

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Having those thoughts brought back to her, she felt a tinge of nostalgia and wondered if her past self would even recognize her now.

And soon, I'll be a qualified mage! With Rose and Arakil, nothing will stop us!

Lily carefully placed and unfolded the wooden board on a relatively flat surface before taking her seat on it in a comfortable position. She took a deep breath and began to cycle her Mana.

Once her body was brimming with Mana, she stared at where she presumed the moon would've been and began reciting the first mantra while focusing on the symbol Arakil had drawn out for her.

With the moon, I plant new seeds of intention, embracing the promise of growth.

Lily hadn't really felt anything, which made her wonder if something had gone wrong or if she had made a mistake. She repeated the mantra while focusing on the empty circle, representing the New Moon.

She had lost track of time before getting up and returning to her room. She immediately questioned Arakil and expressed her doubts.

[Of course, nothing would happen the first time! Remember, this is a full lunar cycle you must go through. Trust the process; you've no doubt done well! I promise you, if not the second, the third step will ensure you've started the path.]

Lily nodded and went to bed. Arakil had urged her not to give him any Mana during this process. With plenty of Mana to spare, she wrapped herself in a Nebula Veil blanket before succumbing to slumber.

The second night was also clear. Lily eagerly went out once it was around midnight again and set up near the tree again. This time, she had the Waxing Crescent Moon to stare at, which she found oddly comforting.

Once again, she breathed deeply, cycled her Mana, and began the mantra while envisioning the arcane symbol representing the Waxing Crescent.

I gather strength and clarity as my intentions take form.

When Lily finished and returned her Mana to her Core, she swore she saw something had marked her Core. She could've sworn it looked like the Waxing Crescent Moon was traced onto her silvery sphere if she had looked closely enough.

"Did I see nothing for the New Moon because its symbol is basically empty?" Lily pondered as she returned to her room.

Arakil confirmed her thoughts, and she felt extremely sheepish for her initial freakout.

The night of the third step was extremely cold, and Lily wore as much extra clothing as she could before venturing out. Again, she took up her familiar spot and stared fondly at the First Quarter Moon before beginning the process.

I face challenges with courage, moving forward with purpose.

Lily rushed to check her Core afterward, and parallel to the Waxing Crescent was now the First Quarter arcane symbol. Lily giggled excitedly before a cold gust blew against her, causing her to shiver and hastily retreat to her room.

The night of the Waxing Gibbous Moon was even chillier, and Lily knew at some point she would have to suffer through a rainy night, if not multiple, to complete her task.

This time, she came prepared with a small glyph to create a warming aura. After setting up her seat, she activated the glyph and let out a joyous sigh as the warmth radiated from the page.

She secured it by placing it under the wooden board before taking her seat. Staring up at the moon, she began.

I adjust and refine, trusting the unfolding of my path.

As expected, the Waxing Crescent and Gibbous Moons flanked the First Quarter on either side. Lily couldn't wait to add the Full Moon to her Mana Core's slowly growing collection of symbols.

"Of course, it would rain…" Lily grumbled as she stared out the window. "I suppose I should be thankful it's just a light rain, not a storm… But still … Ugh !"

Originally, she had asked Arakil for advice on a rainproof glyph, but to her surprise, he had said that it would require an inscription as it would need to combine two crests.

Lily had tried to jump on that lesson, but Arakil reminded her to focus on the task at hand and instead suggested she use the existing warmth glyph and her Nebula Veil.

While Lily was disappointed at losing the chance to finally break into inscriptions, she was excited by the prospect of using her Nebula Veil for more than just hiding from gremlins.

Before jumping out the window, Lily wrapped herself in the spell, finding it oddly comforting, before heading towards her usual spot. To her surprise, the astral cloak seemed to keep her dry, and she couldn't help but curse her lack of hindsight in using it like this earlier.

Despite the rain, the brilliant glow of the Full Moon could be seen, and Lily eagerly started.

Under the moon's glow, I celebrate abundance and release what no longer serves me.

Once done, Lily gazed with glee at the faint new marking joining her budding collection.

Now Lily was in the final stretch. Despite not being complete, she couldn't help but notice very small changes in her spells. She could've sworn her Nebula Veil was more sparkly than normal.

On the night of the Waning Gibbous, Lily rushed out, cloaked in her Nebula Veil, and immediately began the next step.

I give thanks for lessons learned and share my light with the world.

The arcane mark of the Waning Gibbous joined her collection, and now she only had two steps left. Her anticipation was bubbling.

Lily gazed happily at the Last Quarter Moon, almost done and feeling more confident than ever. She closed her sparkling eyes, took a deep breath, and began.

I honor endings and make space for renewal.

Six visible symbols sparkled across her Mana Core, although she knew the seventh was invisible. One last step, and she would be Astral attuned!

Despite a night of restless sleep and some festering pessimism, the night of the final moon was glorious. The chill was gone, and there wasn't a cloud in sight. Despite that, Lily still cloaked herself in the Nebula Veil, which she had grown extremely attached to lately.

Lily almost suspected something would go wrong at this final step, and to her horror, Arakil had even admitted he thought something might happen, too. She scolded herself for not being more optimistic and promised to look fondly toward the bright future ahead of her.

Lily stared up at the Waning Crescent Moon, seated comfortably, cloaked in starlight. She sighed happily, took in her last deep breath, and began.

I surrender to rest and prepare for a new cycle of growth.