Frieren: How Did Humans Learn How to Fly?

The characters we’ve seen in Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End are truly amazing. Although Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End is a Japanese work, the authors behind the project have tried to create a fantasy world familiar to both Japanese and Western fans of the series. In this article, we will discuss not a character particularly, but a skill that certain characters in the series possess. The skill we are going to talk about is flight, which is an ability that Mages in the series can use through magic. How? Well, as Frieren explained it, it is a relatively recent novelty for non-Demons and in this article, we are going to reveal everything you need to know about it.

Flight was initially a Demon-exclusive spell, but humans learned how to copy it

If you’re a fan of Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End, and since you’re here reading this, we assume that you are, you’ve probably noticed that Frieren and Fern were able to fly. On the other hand, Stark and now Sein could not fly. How is that possible? Well, both girls are Mages, so we can deduce that the ability to fly is related to magic, which makes a lot of sense. But if you remember carefully, Demons could also fly in the series, although we haven’t seen too many of them so far. So, what is with this ability? Can any Mage master it?

Well, Frieren actually provided us with an explanation for that. She said that, initially, only Demons and avian monsters could fly. If we disregard bird-like monsters and creatures with wings, who have a natural ability to fly, that leaves Demons, which is quite interesting, even more so if we consider the fact that the world of Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End has been around for millennia. So, for a very, very long time, Demons were the only race in the series that could fly. They did not have wings, but they could use magic (as Demons are generally skilled Mages) to fly, as they had discovered how to do it. This means that flight is basically a demonic spell and has been one – exclusively – for a very long time.

Of course, humans and other benevolent Mages studied demonic magic in hopes of discovering the truth behind it, and flight was one such spell. When other Mages study demonic magic, they try not only to copy it but also to discover its secrets so that they can modify it (just remember our story on the spell Zoltraak) and use it freely. And while humans managed to crack the flying spell, it happened only roughly 40 years ago and with a twist – namely, they did not discover its secrets; they only managed to copy it.

Since Demons initially used the flight spell on themselves, other Mages can only copy that aspect of this spell, and they cannot use it for any other purpose; they cannot modify it, change it, or adapt it. They can only fly themselves, and that is about it. Also, from what we’ve seen, flight requires a lot of skill, as Sein – although skilled with magic – was unable to use it.

This proved to be quite a predicament when the party was attacked by an avian monster and lifted up in the air. Stark suggested that Frieren should levitate the carriage they were in and land it safely, but Frieren then explained what we have told you above. Sadly, the Mages still haven’t deciphered the essence of the flying spell, so they have a very limited skill there. Sure, flying in itself is useful, and it can help the individual user a lot, but there are still more secrets to uncover and, as we’ve said, this is a significant limitation.

This is all the information that we have on the flight spell from Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End.

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