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The revised edition of Cientia’s book, Basic Theory of Magic, continued to sell like hotcakes.

It was selling so fast that the sight of a scribe hastily stitching books together only to have customers snatch them up and toss money before leaving became a common occurrence.

“Hmm… at this rate, the scribes are going to collapse from exhaustion. Isn’t there something we can do about it?”

“A good idea?”

“Yeah. If we could create books with magic or have a spell to duplicate other items, that would be a lot easier.”

A spell to duplicate items…? Well, it’s possible to create material using magical power, but it consumes a ton of magical energy.

If this was a country overflowing with magic, maybe it could work, but Encia using it… would be tough. Yeah.

Instead…

“If there’s a spell that makes a feather pen move automatically, that could help.”

“A spell to make a feather pen move automatically?”

“Yeah. The scribe can remember the movement of writing, and then it can replicate that movement automatically, so it keeps writing without the scribe.”

In other words, let’s call it a magic printer.

Well, it wouldn’t have functions like ink supply or paper supply, so that would still need human effort. But hey, if there’s a scribe working non-stop, the production efficiency would definitely go up.

Plus, it would reduce the workload for the scribes, potentially lowering labor costs.

“Hmm… a spell that remembers and reproduces movements. I hadn’t thought of that.”

“That’s not a spell that comes to mind easily.”

It’s probably impossible unless you’re someone who uses magic freely like Encia.

Other mages usually stick to the magic they handle and don’t stray too far from it.

“Then the magic feather pen… Hmm. Should it be made to recharge magical energy? Or should it be equipped with a mana stone to use the stone’s power?”

The former allows mages to use their magic and save on mana stone costs, while the latter could be used by anyone, making it accessible to many…

Encia only shared one idea, yet she was diving deep into thought on her own.

“Speaking of which, I heard the dwarves have technology that uses mana stones as power… If we can adapt that…”

With that, Encia embarked on creating a feather pen that could save movements and write automatically.

Weeks passed.

“Done!”

Encia was raising the feather pen triumphantly in her hand.

Except for the small mana stone embedded in the grip, it looked just like an ordinary feather pen, but its function was entirely different from that of an average pen.

“Phew. Implementing the function to remember movements was really tough! Plus, there were parts that didn’t go as planned, and once it was remembered, there was no way to change it!”

“Good job, Sia.”

“Yeah! Thanks to Tia! The idea of using the mana stone as memory would have been impossible without you!”

If I really pushed my abilities like when I created Talos, I could make the pen itself gain personality, but… I didn’t lend my power for that! Encia made it on her own!

The only movements the feather pen can remember are enough to write just one page. After placing paper and an ink bottle at predetermined spots on a flat desk and injecting the mana stone with power, it simply reproduces the remembered movements.

Even so, she created something that could write on its own.

With various restrictions, it might be a new revolution in automatic production.

“Alright! Now we have to call in a scribe to make them remember the movements!”

“Um… I doubt the scribe will be happy about it.”

“Wouldn’t they be thrilled to have something doing their job for them?”

“To put it another way, a tool has been created that takes their job away. They might actually want to smash it!”

Like the Luddites destroying machines that automatically wove cloth.

Ah, maybe that’s a bit different? Since it’s saving the scribe’s characters, it might be fine as long as they get a proper compensation for it.

“Hmm… then let’s do this! For every page this pen writes, we’ll pay them as if it wrote a hundred pages! That way, they won’t have any complaints, right? The scribe won’t have to suffer excessive labor either.”

“Hmm… it should be fine as long as the scribe doesn’t have any complaints. But who knows?”

Perhaps the profession of scribe would change. From merely copying the contents of books, it could evolve into a role that preserves their unique handwriting.

Well, that’s not something I need to worry about! I’ve already got plenty to think about, so I can’t fret over trivial matters!

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

After paying a hefty sum to the scribe and having the magical feather pen remember the movements, the speed at which Encia’s books came out skyrocketed dozens of times over.

From producing just two or three books a day, it picked up to nearly a hundred, meeting the overwhelming demand for Encia’s books.

Thanks to this, some surplus was created, and a significant quantity spread even outside Procyon.

As a result of this continuous sales.

“We, the Council of Elders of Procyon, bestow the title of the Beginning Mage upon Encia, the weather mage who opened a new era of magic.”

“Thank you.”

Encia had even received the grand title of Beginning Mage.

Well, it’s only natural. New mages with entirely different concepts from existing ones were growing at an unparalleled rate.

Their numbers were staggering, and those wishing to walk the path of magic continuously flocked to Procyon, knocking on its doors.

Procyon began to thrive like never before, so giving such a title makes perfect sense.

“Beginning Mage… Your master is incredible, isn’t he!”

Cecil, Encia’s disciple, sparkled her eyes while looking at her. It seemed she fully intended to remember the moment her idol engraved her name deep into the history of mages.

In daily life, Encia showed a disheveled appearance, but as a mage, she displayed remarkable skill.

“Hehe. Thanks, Cecil. You’ll become a great mage who won’t fall behind me.”

“How can I ever hope to be like that?”

“How can you say that? You’re the one and only disciple of the ‘Beginning Mage,’ right? Don’t underestimate your potential.”

“Y-yes! I’ll do my best, Master!”

The warm bond between the master and disciple made the other mages around them smile unconsciously.

Watching this scene, I turned my attention to Encia.

No, to be precise, I focused on the mass of faith that was beginning to sprout within Encia.

A mass of faith that was born at a surprisingly rapid pace. To call it by another name, divinity.

A seed was sprouting within Encia’s body, aiming to become a god.

But Encia was oblivious to this.

Was it because the seed was so small and faint compared to magical power? Or was she unable to perceive it due to being overshadowed by the force of magic?

Or perhaps… was the human body suppressing the sprouting of such seeds?

I don’t know. Turning a living human into a god… Hmm. Is this the first since Rychlen? How did the gods try to make Rychlen into a god back then…?

Did they pour faith into a living human to create one? Could a human truly be reborn as a god through that? Or perhaps, in that process, the body was destroyed by faith and reconstructed as divinity.

That process… doesn’t sit right with me. Destroying a living being’s body with faith to make it a god? I’m not keen on that.

When turning other beastmen into gods, they all died naturally after their lifespans ended, and their souls were taken to become gods. So the situation was different from now… Hmm…

What should I do? Should I leave the seed of divinity within Encia and let her be reborn as a god after dying? Or should I help her transcend the limitations of her body?

I don’t know. What would be best for Encia? It’s unclear.

“Tia? Why are you so quiet?”

“Ah, it’s nothing.”

For now… Let’s just observe the situation. Encia herself isn’t trying to become a god right away.

“Hmm… When you say that, it feels like you’re definitely pondering something.”

“Really, it’s nothing.”

“Okay. If you say so, I’ll take your word for it.”

However, if Encia wishes… if she declares that she wants to become a god right away…

Hmm. At that time, let’s teach her the method. The way to transcend into a god through soul, divinity, and magical power.

Even if it means ending her life as a human.

 

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