Rebirth From Ordinary Person To The Strongest

"Th-then, let's begin the lesson right away! Please!"

Shirayuki-sensei bowed deeply.

Still in my workout clothes, I sat in the white chair at the front row.

First, she would explain what Resonance Magic was.

Shirayuki-sensei looked down at the notebook on the teacher's desk and began speaking.

"Itsuki-kun, do you know what Resonance Magic is?"

Notebook? I tilted my head in curiosity, but it seemed like she had written down the lesson plan there.

In this day and age, it was rare to see someone relying on paper notes.

While pondering that, I also thought about the question she asked.

"Isn't it the magic that can restore people who have turned into Narri?"n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

Honestly, that was about the extent of my knowledge. Shirayuki-sensei, however, clapped her hands.

"Y-yes! That's correct! You get a gold star!"

Really? A gold star? It almost seemed like she had looked up "just praise them no matter what" on the internet.

Was I overthinking this?

"But, um, that's not the whole picture. Have you ever heard of Sympathetic Magic or Contagion Magic?"

"Magic? Not… sorcery?"

She asked, and I found myself hesitating to respond. Why was she suddenly bringing up sorcery?

I had to answer, though.

Sorcery? That made me think of curses. The first image that popped into my head was a straw doll.

"Yes, sorcery. These are concepts from a Scottish anthropologist, James Frazer. They fall under the category of 'Sympathetic Magic.'"

"Sensei! Question!"

Shirayuki-sensei had suddenly started talking really fast, so I had to stop her.

This could quickly turn into a situation where the only student—me—wouldn't be able to keep up.

Shirayuki-sensei, surprised by my interruption, blinked at me as I asked my question.

"What exactly is Sympathetic Magic?"

"Uh, w-well... Sympathetic Magic is…"

She glanced back at her notebook, flipping through the pages. When she stopped at the third page, her face lit up.

She's so transparent.

"The detailed explanation is in Frazer's book The Golden Bough, but… simply put, it's a type of magic based on sympathy. For example, when you think of a curse, Itsuki-kun, what comes to mind?"

"A straw doll…"

Not sure if modern elementary school kids would think of that, but for me, that was the first image.

When I said that, Shirayuki-sensei clapped her hands again.

"Exactly! With a straw doll, you put the person's hair into the doll and drive nails into it, right? The idea is that by harming something resembling the person, you harm the person themselves. This is the basis of Sympathetic Magic, where things that are similar share the same qualities."

"I-I see…"

I was kind of getting it... sort of?

Shirayuki-sensei continued.

"Contagion Magic works similarly. In ancient Japan, people would take a lock of someone's hair before they went on a journey and pray for their safety. This is an example of Contagion Magic, where you use a part of the target's body to cast the spell."

Now I was lost again.

Seeing me tilt my head in confusion, Shirayuki-sensei quickly changed gears.

"Resonance uses these concepts. F-for example, look at this!"

She pulled out an apple from her bag. One was a real apple, the other a model.

"An apple…?"

"Y-yes. Now, watch this."

Shirayuki-sensei produced Silveit threads from both her hands and connected them to each apple.

"Itsuki-kun, I heard you have True Sight. Can you see the passage between these two apples?"

"…Yes. I can see the Silveit connecting them."

"Thank you."

With that, she severed the Silveit.

For a brief moment, the Silveit sparkled with rainbow colors.

"Now, these two apples are in Resonance. If I destroy this one here…"

She wrapped Silveit around the model apple and, using Aspect Change: Blade, sliced it in half.

In the next instant, without making a sound, the model apple was cut in two. But it wasn't just the model—without any Silveit touching it, the real apple beside it had the exact same cut.

"Wh-whoa! That's amazing!"

"This is the foundation of Resonance."

I couldn't help but lean forward, my voice filled with awe.

Shirayuki-sensei looked visibly relieved.

Her expression was practically shouting, "Thank goodness that worked."

But seriously, this was amazing.

If Resonance could do this, it meant that you could exorcise monsters without even having to extend Silveit or engage directly. That would mean not having to risk close combat—and reducing the chances of dying!

Still excited by this revelation, I eagerly asked Shirayuki-sensei.

"Sensei! Isn't Resonance incredible? With this, we could make a doll resonate with a monster, destroy the doll from a safe distance, and exorcise the monster!"

"W-well, yes, that's true, but… Resonance isn't quite that versatile."

"…Huh?"

Wait, what?

"For one, not all monsters have a humanoid shape. If they don't, Resonance Magic using a doll won't work. Also, even if they are humanoid, some magical monsters can overwrite the Resonance, making it ineffective."

"Overwrite…?"

"Y-yes. The monster can transfer the Resonance onto a regular person. If we don't realize that and cast the spell, the person could get seriously hurt."

Ah, okay. That made sense.

But… wouldn't we be able to tell when the Resonance had been transferred? Shouldn't a skilled exorcist sense something was off?

Curious, I asked her about that.

"Can't you tell when Resonance is transferred from the monster to a person?"

"With enough training, you can, but if you had the time to train for that, you'd be better off practicing Attribute Change or Aspect Change. Those will make you a stronger exorcist faster. Resonance is that kind of magic."

Shirayuki-sensei looked apologetic as she said this, and I sighed.

Unfortunate. Find adventures at m_v l|e-NovelBin.net

I had figured that Resonance was a niche and unpopular magic, but I hadn't realized it had this many drawbacks.

Seeing me deflate, Shirayuki-sensei continued.

"Resonance healing magic is also relatively easy to use without requiring deep knowledge, but it consumes a lot of magic power, so its advantages don't always balance out. It's a pretty unpopular magic… ahaha."

I wasn't sure this was something to laugh about, Sensei.

"B-but! It does have its good points! When a child has turned into Narri after prolonged contact with a monster, only Resonance can save them. The example I showed you earlier used Resonance for attacking, but if you use it kindly, it can save lives."

"I see…"

Nodding, I listened to Shirayuki-sensei's hurried explanation of the good sides of Resonance.

She was right. There are some things that only Resonance can do.

I hated the idea of dying. But just as much, I didn't want my friends or loved ones to die either—even if they were exorcists, a high-risk profession.

In this life, my motto is "strike before you're struck," but I knew there would be situations where offensive skills alone wouldn't solve the problem.

That's why I came here.

Not just to avoid dying—but to make sure no one else dies either.

"So, even though Resonance Magic is unpopular and difficult, do you still want to continue the lessons for the next three days?"

That was probably her way of testing my resolve.

"Yes! Please teach me!"

I nodded firmly.