"Where are you going?" Noir asked when Rino got up. Wasn't this a little too soon to be leaving him after their long separation? The last time he was here, Rino was extremely clingy.

The lich patted him and scratched him behind the ears before searching for something on his shelf. Whatever the magician was looking for, Noir did not expect it to be a small sling bag. Rino opened the bag and looked at the cat expectantly. It took the black cat a few seconds to understand what it was for.

"I can walk," Noir insisted, but Rino was faster. He scooped the feline in his arms and put him in the sling bag.

Disoriented from getting dropped into a bag, Noir wanted to protest and popped his head from the black sling bag that Rino tied over his right shoulder. However, all Noir's whining fell on deaf ears. Rino knew that if the black cat wanted to, he could easily teleport away.

Together, they travelled to the fields. Fronzo was directing the fairies and checking if the potato seeds were properly sown. There was still plenty of time before the sun came up, and Rino was not worried that they could not finish sowing one acre of fields before that. He was simply here to observe the space and think of a good way to draw a magic circle without ruining the land.

"What are you thinking?" the cat made himself comfortable in the sling bag, and Rino hummed.

For now, they only had one acre of field. It wasn't very big, but it also wasn't very small. He could create artificial rain clouds that will trigger upon a spell activation to water the crops within a barrier. However, he wasn't too sure about the nutrients that different crops needed. Rino honestly thought that mulch was all that was required when it came to soil conditioning.

"I want to make artificial rain to water the crops, but the magic circle should be drawn in a way that does not destroy the fields. Also, there might be different crops in the future. It is not easy deciding the perimeters of this automated watering system."

Surprised that this was what the powerful magician struggled with, Noir hopped out of the bag and walked along the field. Rino protested to that, claiming that those beautiful paws would be dirtied, but Noir paid him no attention. At least, the usual Rino he knew was back.

There were a few ways to create weather spells. Most magicians drew them on the land over the area that they point the spell's coordinates to. Dark magicians often did this to bring calamity over targeted towns for their sacrifices. However, there was one disadvantage in doing so. The coordinate points did not guarantee every inch of the location getting affected by the spell.

If Rino wanted a very thorough automated watering system, it was still better to affix individual runes with a smaller targeted area effect. Phil mentioned that sprinklers were a thing that used pressure to shoot water over a distance. If Rino could find a way to use that, they could fix water runes along the rows of the crops. He did not need to go as far as making a magic circle big enough to cover an entire field.

"What about using individual runes written with a timed spell to activate on conditions triggered spaced evenly throughout the field? You can cover the area more thoroughly without fear of it not covering every square meter."

Noir's suggestion was something Rino thought about before. However, the problem wasn't the design of his watering system. It was the water.

"Fronzo said that different plants needed different nutrients in the water. I don't know what works, and not everything is going to be potatoes in the future. Crop rotation is a thing, and different crops grow during different seasons."

Ace was impressed that Rino thought that far ahead. He was right. They would ask him to grow different plants if the potato quest was completed with huge success. Perhaps he should give the lich a hint.

"Why not use mana imbued water? It should work for anything."

Rino paused. Mana imbued water? Was that possible?

The God of Prayer paused and looked back when Rino did not follow. The lich stood rooted to the spot, and Noir flicked its tail in annoyance when there was no response.

"Cat got your tongue?" the snarky remark brought Rino back to reality.

He shook his head and quickly caught up in a few strides. "No. I'm just thinking about what you said. How can you imbue water? It does not store magic."

Indeed, most magicians only knew that certain objects like gems could store magic. However, the truth was that everything can be charged with magic. Some items were more receptive and can contain the mana energy inside them for a long time, while others cannot contain mana for long, and it dissipates back into the environment.

"Think about it," Noir twitched its nose. "Why can air contain mana if a powerful mana emitter is constantly in the area?"

Rino followed the black cat as Noir inspected the potato fields and occasionally swiped at a wisp that flew too close. It made a lot of sense, and Rino never actually thought about it before. All his life, he thought that mana was something born in certain creatures. It was a talent by the Gods or a curse by the Devil that determined which affinity you had. The concept of karma and past life contributions came into play to explain the kind of elemental affinity a magician had.

Now that he was living his second life, Rino did not question that concept. He destroyed his previous world, and even if he did not, he must have caused a lot of destruction and deaths. His crimes in his past life made him an undead, or so he thought.

Was Noir hinting at something else? Was there perhaps a different reason for why mana and magic existed?

"I've been meaning to ask this for a while now," Rino mused when Noir lost his balance and fell into the mud.

"Where have you been this past week? I was waiting for you. Even that farmhouse was constructed specially for you because you did not like the mud hut. Was there something you didn't like? I know I don't have proper windows yet, but there are some very helpful gnomes. They can fix that soon."

Speechless, Noir curled its tail around itself. He coordinated a backstory with Ark before coming down to keep his identity a secret. He could not stay in the mortal world for too long and needed a good excuse to leave often and visit occasionally.

"It's very comfortable," the feline averted its gaze. "I like it."

Puzzled, Rino continued to press for a reason. He wanted this little guy to stay now that everything was finally on the move. They could live happily in comfort together.

"Then why?"

Noir couldn't look at Rino in the eye sockets. Instead, the cat turned its back on Rino.

"A cat has its secrets that cannot always be shared. I'll come back from time to time, so you better keep the place clean. In any case, I came back this time to check on your progress. You look like you're able to understand dark magic a little more."

Rino nodded. Thanks to the system, he was now able to use two very useful skills. The shadow sack and teleportation skills had to be his favourite.

Noir hopped onto the lich's shoulder, startling Rino. "Now that you know the basics, shall I teach you something more advanced?"