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Serena Prince: Love of Magic - chapter 146
🕑 Added 2025-08-16 01:24:24 +0000 UTCAuthor's Notes: Chapter edited and corrected by Scott Fellman.
I looked at my hand engulfed in fire. It was a relatively soft orange-yellow fire. My pyrokinetic ability hadn't advanced since I acquired it.
At first glance, it looked like a normal fire. A fire so ordinary it wasn't even worth mentioning. It released heat and burned objects like a normal fire. Yes, I could easily manipulate it and boost it, making it burn brighter and hotter, but it still didn't seem like anything really special.
I could only generate it from my body; it was easier from my hands, but I could generate it from my entire body with a little effort. I could use it as a flamethrower up to dozens of meters, up to 100 meters, maybe more if I tried hard, but I hadn't seen anything else in particular.
My flame alchemy was much better, more precise, more instantaneous, and easier to handle. That was the reason I couldn't advance. There was nothing special about it at first glance.
That was until my new Reality Marble formed. All my abilities were cataloged, studied, and analyzed down to the smallest detail. And I finally understood my pyrokinetic ability.
Harmony.
Fire had the property of harmony. What did that mean? I had no idea; there was nothing more to it than that.
Initially, I considered the god metal, harmonium. Upon entering Adolla and obtaining an Adolla Burst, my initial thoughts and uses of the Adolla realm centered on obtaining harmonium, which may have influenced the creation of the ignition skill.
After all, the ignition abilities were heavily influenced by the Adolla realm, by thoughts, so it wouldn't be strange if it was influenced by that.
But what did that mean? I had no idea. Harmonium was a metal that was the crystallized form of Harmony's power, and Harmony, in the Cosmere, primarily promoted free will.
As a fusion of the power of Preservation and Ruin, this free will includes the capacity for both acts of goodness and those of evil and destruction, accepting them all in their own intention.
There were more powers related to Harmony in the multiverse, but that was the one that made me think of something specifically.
Sky Flames.
Flames of Sky, an attribute of the dying flames in the Katekyo series Hitman Reborn, was a series I had seen years ago, so it wasn't something I quickly remembered, except when we were looking for fire abilities for Ravel, although they were quickly discarded.
The flames of Sky were terrifyingly close to the Cosmere's definition of Harmony; the Sky created by someone with the flames of Sky was able to envelop everyone and accept everyone, maintaining a balance between opposing forces, between opposing people.
There are several examples where the protagonist of Katekyo Hitman Reborn, accepts everyone as they are, especially his chosen group, where everyone's personalities varied considerably and even clashed with each other many times, or even with his enemies.
If my ignition ability was influenced by the term Harmony and I searched my thoughts for its analogue, then it made sense.
The flames of Sky are said to be extremely rare; they are one of the strongest flames in the world. Their characteristic is harmony; they represent a state without contradictions or flaws, balance.
This feature enables it to combine with other types of flames or even harmonize with the enemy's flames, thereby absorbing them.
Which sounded really good… if it wasn’t completely useless outside of the KHR universe. Or maybe the Fire Force universe. If it were a world where fire was the universal form of attack and other supernatural effects, then it would be extremely powerful, but outside of them?
Yes, they weren't much use.
I really would have liked some of the other flames. There are at least 15 different ones. The lightning flames have a hardening property, which would have been really helpful with my Noble Phantasms, so I could add more magic to them without breaking them. And those flames felt more like electricity than real flames.
Or the cloud flames with their propagation characteristic, the ability to multiply things. That would have been truly amazing. Or the Earth's flames and their characteristic gravity. Instead, I got the sky flames, from Harmony, which were almost entirely useless.
Unless… it worked with other supernatural things, it was classified as a Mystery since it was in my internal world, so it's possible that it could work with things other than fire. Maybe magic?
The ability to harmonize with magic might be helpful? It could also be combined with other types. Would adding effects to fire be a better approach? I mean, fire with magical properties sounded excellent.
Even absorbing enemies' magic sounded really useful if it were possible. I'd have to try it. It would be best to start from the beginning and begin cataloging what worked and what didn't. I had several things to try.
I had a couple of hours until Azazel arrived to pick up Vali. Within my time bubbles, I had more than enough time to try out a few options. It was time to get down to business.
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"No, no, no, that's wrong. I put in too much Wormwood infusion, it harmonized much more than I thought with the Asphodel roots, half Wormwood and a third more Asphodel will do." I said aloud.
The enchanted quill quickly scribbled down some notes while crossing out the previous ones in the nearest book it had. I had one hand under the cauldron, constantly emitting Sky Flames, and with my free hand, I threw the ingredients into the cauldron. Before starting to stir, I stared at the potion, smiling slightly before continuing to write down.
"Good, good, it's the right color, the angle before is the same, and the temperature of the fire remains constant, the effects are amplified 3 times more than with a normal fire. It's perfect." The quill continued writing without stopping. I grabbed the next ingredient and threw it onto the cauldron.
"next test, ingredient-"
"Serena?" I heard my name and looked over my shoulder, smiling widely.
"Ravel?! What can I do for you?" I asked with a smile before returning to the cauldron. "Ingredient: Sopophorus Bean Juice, 300ml. Same variables." I said, pointing to the pen, which continued writing.
"I was sent to find you? When... how long have you been brewing potions?" Ravel asked almost cautiously. I ignored her as I stared at the potion.
"I don't know, a few hours?" I said distractedly as I stirred the cauldron. "Six turns clockwise, dark green, the amount of juice was almost right, I'd say it was 50ml short, but still, it harmonized about five times better." I said to my quick-note pen.
"A few hours? Do you have the stopwatch on?" Ravel asked. I nodded distractedly. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Ravel reach for her watch. "It says here you've been there for... 206 hours?! You've been brewing potions for over eight days?!" Ravel asked, surprised.
I finally raised my head as I froze the potion in place and removed my hand from under the cauldron. I blinked out of my reverie and looked around. I was standing in the center of my laboratory. The surroundings looked like they'd been hit by a hurricane.
The cauldrons were all around me, boiling in different colors, ingredients everywhere, on the floor, on the work tables, and even floating. And the books weren't far behind. There were dozens of open books, pages torn out, all with crossed-out notes and new writing above or to the sides of the paragraphs.
Notes added on top of notes. Sheets rubbing and turning. Pens writing and crossing things out. It was complete chaos all around me.
"Okay… maybe it's been 8 days," I said slowly. "But it was important!" I said quickly.
"Important? That you lost so much sense of time?" Ravel asked, confused. I smiled widely.
"Harmony!" I said excitedly as I stood up. "Harmony is the solution," I said, sounding almost intoxicated with emotion. Ravel looked at me, confused.
"Harmony?" she asked slowly. I nodded vigorously.
"Yes! Harmony! My fire, it's Sky Flame, it has the property of harmony. It's capable of harmonizing various elements within it." I said excitedly as I summoned a small flame into the blade of my hand. "It works perfectly for my potions!"
"I… I'll believe you. I certainly can't say I understand." Ravel said with an apologetic smile before blinking. "Wait, Sky Flame, they sound familiar…" Ravel hummed. I nodded quickly.
"Yes! We went over them when you were choosing a template," I said quickly. Ravel snapped her fingers.
" Tsunayoshi Sawada, yes, I remember." Ravel said, finally remembering, I nodded quickly.
"Exactly! We saw all the Last Will Flames, which are quite a few. But I got a copy of the Sky's Flames, and do you know what their feature is?" I asked excitedly.
"Harmony?" Ravel asked amusedly.
"Harmony!" I exclaimed forcefully before staring at her. "Do you know how potions are made? Almost by force! Magic hates magic! It's almost a universal constant! Not in the direct sense, but rather that the innate magic of one ingredient is capable of attacking the innate magic of another. That's why they need to be combined in perfect quantities and with the perfect ingredients!"
"Being able to stack ingredients against each other to negate some properties while enhancing others is a delicate art! Magic becomes aggressive and dangerous, making it difficult. Many ingredients don't want to coexist together. Some are even complete opposites!"
"But the Sky Flames, with their harmony trait, can force them to coexist. They can force them to merge, harmonize, and come together without the need for counter -ingredients or external binders!"
"Not only that! By coexisting so peacefully, there's almost no loss of the ingredients' innate magic and properties, resulting in effects much stronger than the originals! I mean, I had to change all the existing potions ."
"How, literally everything, from the ingredients used, their quantities, and even the steps involved in preparation. The original proportions and ingredients take into account the significant loss of properties when cooking, but thanks to Sky Flames, most of the properties are not lost."
"So I had to adjust all the formulas, remove some ingredients, and so on. It was tedious; I had to go in blind and learn how all the ingredients react from scratch and start cataloging them again. But once done, I moved quickly, and the result is magnificent! Some are even 5 to 10 times more potent than their normal versions!" I said excitedly.
"Wait, that strong?!" Ravel asked in surprise, and I nodded excitedly.
"Yes! As I said, magic hates magic! Potions have a limited effect because a person's internal magic fights against the incoming magic of the potions. But now, the potions are so imbued with the characteristic of harmony in their final result, that the body accepts it with extreme ease without fighting against it and even eagerly!"
"This is simply amazing!" I said, bouncing in place. I take back everything bad I'd said about Sky Flame! These flames were perfect! It didn't matter if they didn't directly increase my combat abilities or make me stronger; this was like 100 times better!
"Yes, it is," Ravel marveled. "Are you planning on selling them? You could sell both versions. You could charge more for the new potions." she asked. I hummed.
"I mean, maybe? I still have to correct the rest of the potions, and it will take me many more days, maybe weeks. I would also have to teach the girls the new recipes," I said simply.
"To your apprentices? Don't they need the Sky Flames for these new versions?" Ravel asked, confused, and I pointed to one of the cauldrons at the bottom.
"Interestingly, they count as mystery, specifically as magic, the harmonium was able to absorb them with ease, and I was able to use them as lighters, so there's no problem for the girls to be able to use it." I said. Ravel looked at me with a grimace.
"You know that two of them are still part of the Phenex family, right? In fact, they have their own laboratories in Phenex territory where they brew more potions," Ravel said with an apologetic grimace.
"Yeah, I know. I mean, was it obvious from the start? It was part of the deal and everything," I said nonchalantly. "But a few things. The contract only stipulates that I teach you, and that you can use all the potion ingredients and utensils available in my shop or my labs. It doesn't mean you can take them to Phenex territory."
"Sky Flame lighters will be restricted within my laboratory. I will teach you both ways to create potions, the normal ones and the attuned ones. Outside the laboratory, you will only be able to create the normal ones since I doubt you can replicate Sky Flames. As long as you can create the normal versions, I will be fulfilling my part of the deal."
"In fact, even several of the potions I teach require the ingredients to be purchased from me since they don't exist naturally in this world. I was able to discover several substitutes and exchange them for ingredients from this world, but even so, some are irreplaceable." I said with a shrug. Ravel snorted amusedly.
"I see you've got everything figured out," Ravel said smugly. I smiled broadly at her as I nodded.
"By the way, weren't you looking for me for something?" I asked Ravel, confused. Ravel's eyes opened slightly.
"Right, the meeting with Azazel, you're late." Ravel said, I groaned in frustration, but still started walking towards the exit while breaking the time bubble.
"Okay, let's get this over with. By the way, where's Vali?" I asked over my shoulder.
"Don't you remember where you left the white dragon?" Ravel asked incredulously. I shrugged.
"It wasn't my priority last night." I winked at her, making her blush slightly. I created a portal to the living room before stopping stiffly. Ravel bumped into me and watched from beside me.
"You left it there all night?!" Ravel asked incredulously. I cleared my throat awkwardly. Because yes.
I looked over and saw Vali sprawled so uncomfortably on the living room floor, face down, his face literally planted on the floor, while his limbs were thrown around completely randomly; the only reason he hadn't woken up was because he was drugged with the most potent sleeping potion.
I only remember last night going through the portal with Vali, and then getting distracted by everything else. At some point, I opened it, dropped him, and I clearly forgot about him.
With a sigh, I levitated him out of his awkward position, created a portal to Kuoh, and walked through it with Vali right behind me. Alright, let's get this over with. I need to get back to brewing potions.
Or trying to see if Sky Flames worked with other things. As soon as I discovered that flames could be used with potions, I became hyper-focused on that and couldn't test anything else. I already had some ideas to play with later.
Author's Note: And I'm back!! It was a nice, much-needed little vacation! Chapter scheduling is back to normal!
I was going to ramble on about my vacation, but I'd better leave it out this time. I went to some outings with my family, with friends, to some birthday parties, like my great-aunt's who just turned 90, and more. I had fun, rested, and everything was fine!
But now about the chapters. We're starting slowly and we're about to go to other worlds! I'm still deciding exactly which one to choose now! Bella will almost certainly end up going to Danmachi to cause chaos and kill her way to the bottom of the dungeon. While for Serena, I might roll a roulette wheel with several names to decide which one to go to, unless I decide to continue with the DxD plot. I haven't decided yet!
