Magic Class

We stood in the center of the chamber, and I observed some guys holding out their hands, and a ball of cosmic-looking energy appeared.

“Why are you still experimenting with our cosmic magic?”

The Preceptor smiled and glanced at the working magicians. “We still have potential for growth. We might be able to create something new from it. And with the mixture of alchemy, we are still able to grow our strength.”

I did hear there was some sort of potion that permanently made a person more powerful. Well, from the memories at least. That being said, they were limited to someone’s age. For example, you could only drink it at twenty years old. And it was not too great of an improvement, but would still be good. The effect was gradual too.

“And we can only grow to our chosen class, right?”

“That is so.”

“... Has there been any research on Puppeteer?”

He was silent for a moment, looking around as if looking for the right words. “... Apologies, Princess. Our research is mostly on common classes in the kingdom. Puppeteer is sadly not among them.”

“That’s unfortunate…”

“Are you seeking a way to develop your class?”

“Not really, I was just curious.” I had already expected something like this, and wasn’t actively looking for a way to strengthen my puppeteer class. It just would have been a nice bonus. “Are we really stuck in the magic class we have chosen?”

“Yes. What we choose the cosmos give us is engraved on our soul. Overwriting it is just not possible.”

“I see. Now then, to my main question. Is it possible to have two magic classes?”

He paused in place for a moment, flabbergasted by the question. It was common knowledge, after all. I should know something like this. “It is not possible, Princess.”

“Why not?”

“Well… The magic power is blended with your soul. The magic types are different, and being in one soul, they would conflict. It is a bad mixture that will ruin your soul. Ruining your soul will be deadly. Your soul can only take so much magic power.”

I slowly nodded. “Has anyone actually tried it though?”

“... There was someone I knew in the distant past. He was stubborn.”

“So what happened to him?”

“His magic became unstable, his soul couldn’t sustain it, and his body couldn’t endure. He exploded into pieces.”

Holy crap!

I didn’t expect you’d be exploding into pieces! I imagined that they would just drop dead. This was kind of brutal.

“It’s just not meant for us to take two classes of magic. A violation of nature.”

“So, our magic class is stored in the soul. But what if…” I stepped closer. “What if there are two souls in one body? What if two souls became intertwined with each other, or became one?”

“... That… I… Two souls merging, how is that even possible? We are each to our own, it shouldn’t be possible.”

“But what if it is possible?”

He lowered his head. “The subject of the soul is not commonly studied because it cannot be studied directly. But choosing magic has always been engraved on one’s soul. But if there’s another added to it, would merging mean a larger soul? A larger capacity? If intertwined souls, two different souls but linked. But that would mean a conflict with your nature as a person.”

Intertwined, I could imagine it might conflict with you as a person. But I felt no conflict within me whatsoever. But I did notice that… I was a bit too calm when facing these scary creatures. And to be honest, I felt my reactions to stuff, my responses, were not something I would completely do when it was the Earth me. I would be freaking out.

The Preceptor continued muttering, “If it is intertwined, I can imagine it more clearly. Theoretically, as they are technically different, it might be possible for one body to cast magic from two classes. However, the person’s nature would come into question.”

“If it is merging?”

Mine seemed to be merging.

“... It’s hard to tell. If your soul ‌amounted to two, theoretically you would have a larger soul. It shouldn’t be possible to erase a soul after all. A larger soul might mean more space for other things. However, this is assuming that the first class does not take the entire thing. It’s hard to tell.”

Nothing was certain. Great. I sort of expected that they had experimented with this sort of thing. But then again, manipulation of the soul was impossible for normal beings.

“The magic classes are designed for one soul,” the Preceptor continued. “So I don’t think it would take a pair’s worth of soul. But what if two souls with a class merged? Then it might mean two classes in one body.”

“What if a merged soul added a second magical class?”

“My old acquaintance exploded because the soul couldn’t sustain the power. But if there are two souls worth in one… theoretically, you might be able to sustain it. But as I said earlier, I can’t tell. This is assuming the first class does not take the entire soul. Still, if it is possible, I think the experience would be quite painful… And we don’t know how the body would respond.”

“I see…”

So it would be pretty risky for me. With the possibility of me dying… A bit scary.

“But if we are to prove this, where would we even get a being with two souls in one?” he muttered.

Well, I was right here in front of you. But there was no way I was mentioning that.

“You didn’t merge any souls while creating chimeras?”

“... There is always a main body, which is alive. The rest are dead. We tried putting two brains in one body, but that’s not merging two souls. They still think independently.”

I nodded. Manipulating souls was perhaps impossible. But what happened to me, though? Was it just an accident? Just a play of the universe? Or for just no good reason at all? A one in a billion occurrence.

“... Tampering with the soul is a work only possible with the divine.” The Preceptor shook his head. “I can’t do such an experiment.”

“So the best-case scenario is getting two magic classes in one body, but might suffer great pain? And the worst is exploding into pieces?”

“I suppose, yes.”

Great.

Both were scary. I didn’t want to feel any pain at all!

“What brought this curiosity, Princess?”

“... Just a thought, a wonder. When you’re lost in thought.”

“Are you perhaps displeased with your magic class?”

“No, I’m proud of it. I get to create cute dolls.” Partly true, I could create soldiers and such. Or just toys. “I’m just wondering if there can be more to it. Having two classes was an interesting idea.”

“It is an interesting thought, one I would like an answer to. But alas, even we have limits to what we can pursue.”

Except, such a thing was not an impossible thing anymore.

“Indeed. You have given me interesting answers, Preceptor. By the way, do you have a way to improve my class, anything at all?”

“... I can only provide you with a magic strengthening potion. However, Your Highness is still not at age.”

“What would happen if I still took some? Just curious.”

“You will ruin your constitution and possibly soon perish. Permanent damage or death. I do not recommend doing it at all.”

“Of course. Anyway, that is all I came for. Thank you for answering my questions, Preceptor.”

“Anytime, Princess. If you’d like to see more of my work, feel free to come.”

You mean more of those chimeras? No thanks.

***

I was back in my room, pondering about what to do with what I had learned. In the end, there were no definite answers. But theories made by an expert should be taken well. Because their thoughts are based on their knowledge and experience. There should be a degree of truth in them.

But now what should I do with what I learned? Should I do it?

I walked over to the window, staring at the view outside. It was a bit scary to do anything. However, did I even have the luxury of being choosy with my options? I closed my eyes, taking a deep breath.

I’m gonna do it.

I have decided. I was going to try and get another magic class. Later. After dinner.

Please let it work…

I prayed to whoever was listening, since that was all I could do to get some courage.