While strolling around Kamar-Taj with the Ancient One, Finney Hellseg wondered if he could bring Skye along to learn magic, and casually asked the Ancient One about it.
But the Ancient One countered by asking him what magic was.
Finney didn't know.
The Ancient One told him that almost everyone who came to Kamar-Taj had a story; they had experienced many things, passed through layers of selection, and their will had been tempered through countless trials.
Magic requires not only talent, but also spiritual strength; communicating with and guiding the energy of heaven and earth is no easy feat.
Furthermore, learning magic even requires breaking down one's own common sense beliefs, which is incredibly difficult. To convince energy to help you, you must first convince yourself.
After hearing the Ancient One's words, Finney felt it would be quite difficult for Skye to learn magic.
Skye's childhood was rather tragic, but after being adopted by her parents, she lived a happy life. Moreover, she was a hacking genius—simply put, a tech-savvy person. If she wanted to learn magic, she would need to abandon certain aspects of her scientific understanding, which would go against her beliefs.
Magic is a power of 'miracle,' and the word 'miracle' is often unscientific. While their ultimate outcomes may be similar, the underlying philosophies can be contradictory. Even
Doctor Strange, who hadn't yet fully unlocked his magical talent, had to be driven to near despair by all scientific and medical advancements before learning magic. It was only after overcoming this cognitive barrier and embracing the mystical that he began to study magic.
Therefore, experience and understanding, while not absolute, have a significant impact.
Thus, Finney feels that bringing Skye to Kamar-Taj to learn magic now has a low success rate; it's certainly not the right time. Perhaps when the world changes, with aliens and mutated creatures emerging, and her understanding matures, the learning will be more effective.
However, despite his thoughts, the Ancient One hadn't objected to him bringing Skye to learn, so he figured he could just take her there and experiment.
Arriving at Skye's room, she was sitting cross-legged on the bed, waiting, her small face showing seriousness and worry. As the only one in the family who knew Finney's secret, the more she knew, the more worried she became.
"Don't be so nervous. Didn't I tell you before that I wanted to learn magic? I found a place today," Finney explained, sitting down beside the bed.
Skye recalled that Finney had indeed said that a month ago, and seemed to have even offered to ask if they could learn together.
"Does magic really exist?"
Skye couldn't help but ask. Although she had already witnessed superpowers, changing her perception of the world all at once was still difficult, which was why Finney thought Skye would have trouble learning magic now.
"Of course it does, but what I'm learning should be called arcane magic," Finney corrected after a moment's thought.
"Is there a difference?" Skye asked, puzzled.
"Probably what Earth calls it!?" Finney wasn't quite sure why either.
"If you're curious, I'll take you to see it tomorrow. If you want to learn, you can try it out together."
Although the chances are practically impossible, it would be interesting if Skye, like Doctor Strange, was a genius with maxed-out magical talent.
"Really?"
Skye looked delighted. Who could resist the allure of magic?
"So get some rest, we're leaving tomorrow!"
Finney didn't chat for too long. It was best to leave Skye's curiosity about magic to her own discovery, which would also change her perspective as much as possible.
However, when they ate breakfast the next morning, Finney couldn't help but laugh to find Skye sporting dark circles under her eyes.
"I told you to get some rest, why are you like this?"
"It's all your fault!" Skye yawned and gave a resentful glare. Excited about learning magic, she'd spent so much time researching online that morning had flown by.
Luckily, due to the time difference, Finney had planned to leave in the evening anyway, and she'd told her parents she'd be staying at the shop that night, so they didn't need to worry.
The two went to the shop together. After Skye went to catch up on her sleep, Finney ran the business for a while, diligently practicing her skills.
At 7 PM New York time, they arrived at the Sanctuary.
"Is this it?"
Skye asked nervously in front of the New York Sanctuary, then took out her makeup mirror to touch up her makeup before double-checking, "Does it look okay?!"
"Okay, okay, no problem, let's go in!"
Finney rolled his eyes helplessly, pulled Skye through the door, and led her inside. This time, the hall wasn't empty; two young mages were sitting in a corner, drinking tea and reading.
The two men seemed to have been absent from Kamar-Taj yesterday, so they didn't recognize Finney and were now eyeing them warily.
"Hello, I'm looking for Mage Daniel."
"Wait a moment."
Seeing that Finney didn't seem like an enemy causing trouble, one of them nodded and went upstairs to find him.
Soon, Daniel came downstairs, introduced Skye, greeted her, and then opened the portal at the spot from yesterday.
Seeing this magical scene, Skye's eyes widened, she swallowed hard, and nervously gripped Finney's hand, her heart pounding.
"I won't go with you."
Having already led the way yesterday, Daniel didn't accompany them this time, and waited for them to pass through.
Finney didn't mind, thanked her again sincerely, and then pulled the anxious Skye through the portal to Kamar-Taj.
"Was that magic?"
The scene changed, and Skye looked around in bewilderment. From the library to the courtyard, looking at the pale sky outside, she couldn't help but show a shocked expression.
She had initially thought that Finney hadn't slept well that morning because he was taking care of her, which was why he came over in the evening. But seeing the situation now, she understood the reason somewhat.
"Where are we now?"
Skye couldn't help but ask. Many people were already up and practicing in Kamar-Taj that morning. Because of the Ancient One's introduction yesterday, many people recognized Finney and greeted him with nods.
Finney returned the greetings as he walked, answering in a local accent, "Kamar-Taj, located in Kathmandu, a sacred place for sorcerers to practice."
"The Himalayas?" Skye didn't know where Kathmandu was, but she recalled what Finney had said yesterday.
Seeing Finney nod, Skye couldn't help but be shocked again: "But we were just in New York!"
"So, this is magic!"
Finney shrugged, looking completely at ease. Seeing Skye's incredulous expression, he couldn't help but smile: "Alright, don't worry about it. I'll take you to meet my master, the Ancient One.
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(End of this chapter)