I was a little disheartened in Torencia’s Phantom Capital Bestia.
No, Prim’s Flying and Mako’s Scaffolding are good spells, right?
While Flying, which requires using my own wings, is understandable, I wondered why I hadn’t thought of Scaffolding, which allows me to create a foothold with magic power.
Sayuri seemed to feel the same way, but since we had successfully cast spells before, and this wasn’t the place to complain, we decided to clear our minds and return to Alka.
Oh, Sayuri also succeeded in casting spells before, and those spells were Familiar Magic: Calling and Repetrating.
Furthermore, since she also succeeded in casting Summoning and Returning, spells of the same category, at the same time, it’s said that Sayuri cast four spells at once.
She also apparently cast an occult-related magic called Stamping.
She said she cast it during her time as queen because paperwork was a lot.
“Whoa, you have labyrinths here too?”
“Yes. It was quite tough, but fun. The undead floor of the Instant Labyrinth was the worst…”
The next morning, while eating breakfast in Alka’s dining hall, Mako was asking everyone about the Helios Orb. Apparently, she wanted to register as a Hunter and Healer and asked to be taken there by Feel.
“I dislike undead, but it sounds interesting. I’m not suited for combat, but I don’t think I’ll be a hindrance. I’d like to go if I have some free time.”
Mako says that, but I don’t think that’s true. Mako’s aptitude is in Engraving Magic (Martial Art), specifically support and wide-area types, with wind as her attribute. Having an aptitude for wide-area magic is more than enough, but she herself seems to be best at medical operations, which is why she says she’s not suited for combat. However, Mako has the title of Spiritual Valkyrie, so she undoubtedly possesses first-class combat skills or higher. That’s why she has the title, after all.
“Today, we’ll register Mako as a Hunter and Healer at Feel, but how about we try fighting a monster first?”
“Yes. I’ve only seen monsters as familiars or summoned beasts so far, so I’d like to do that.”
Following Mana’s suggestion, they intend to fight a monster first. Monsters are indeed everywhere, but considering Mako’s skills, I don’t think it would be easy to assess them unless they were at least B-rank.
“Yamato, what’s wrong?”
“Ah. With the title Spiritual Valkyrie, C-rank or I-rank monsters would definitely not be a match for Mako. So, I was thinking, why not have her fight a Feather Drake?”
“A Feather Drake all of a sudden? Won’t that be tough too?”
Normally, it would be, but don’t underestimate a first-class crafter with a title! Her Engraving Magic accuracy might even be higher than mine!
“Thank you for the high praise. But aren’t you an Ancient Human, Yamato? I hear your magic power is incomparable to High Class, so even if the accuracy is questionable, the strength is definitely yours, right?”
That might be true, but that statement implies confidence in your accuracy!
“Somewhat. I mean, it’s not like wide-area magic like your parents, but for support magic alone, I was better than my father.”
“Seriously!?”
My father is indeed not suited for support magic and dislikes it, but even so, his strength and accuracy are far superior to mine! To be better than him, even if only in support magic, is truly unbelievable!
“Well, compared to you, Asuka, who has become one of the Seven Masters now, I’m probably inferior. There’s also the difference in experience.”
I won’t deny that, but I still can’t help but shudder.
“Then, before we go to Feel, let’s hunt a Feather Drake in Mylight.”
“Understood.”
It’s unlikely she’ll be able to use Engraving Tools, so she’ll probably have to generate Engraving Tools. I know Mako is also a crafter, but she hasn’t been told about Engraving Tools, including their shapes. It’s normal to keep the shapes of Engraving Tools secret, but since this is a chance to see one, I’ll take a good look without hesitation.
After breakfast, we used the stone tablet at the torii gate in Alka to transfer to the summit of Mylight. I only found out recently, but if you retrieve the stone tablets, you can fly to where those stone tablets are anytime. While I don’t think we’ll have many opportunities to come to Mylight, it’s easier and saves time if we hunt here, which is helpful.
“So this is the Treasure Tree. I’ve heard about it, but it’s truly amazing.”
“The Sky Tree is even more amazing. Well, you can see it from Alka, so you already know.”
“Yes. Alka is at an altitude of 20,000 meters, but even then, I couldn’t see the top of the Sky Tree.”
Indeed, the extent of the Sky Tree’s growth is completely unknown. They say it’s also the pillar supporting the Helios Orb, but it can’t possibly be growing all the way to the ceiling, can it? By the way, the companions for this trip are Mana and Meena. Since Mako will also register as a Healer, Prim decided to register with the Trader’s Guild, and Flam is in the middle of studying to be a Crafter. Lydia is also heading to register as a Trader with Prim, while Ludia said she’s registering as a Crafter. Athena is training in combat with Eos. Yuri has gone to Float. I initially considered Aria, but I thought it might be too sudden to go to Mylight, so I’ve asked her to wait at Alka for now.
“So, Yamato, the one I’m fighting is a draconic beast called a Feather Drake, right?”
“…I’m sorry.”
Well, I can only apologize. After all, we stumbled upon an Orc settlement just by advancing a little.
“It’s a relief that the Orcs in this world don’t forcibly impregnate women.”
“Conversely, there are dangerous monsters that target men.”
In manga and novels, Orcs and Goblins sometimes kidnap human women and forcibly make them bear children, but in Helios Orb, they reproduce normally among their own kind. However, it’s said that demi-humans who are exclusively female, like Valkyries, Amazons, and Sirens, kidnap human men and reproduce by receiving their seed, so there’s a constant stream of men who are presumably kidnapped each year. Some men manage to escape, but they are apparently treated well until they die, so the treatment isn’t bad.
…Wait. Speaking of which, Antlions were also exclusively female demi-humans, weren’t they? But unlike Valkyries, there’s no story about them kidnapping men, so how do they reproduce? No, since Antlions are ant demi-humans, they might have males too. They might be few in number and not come out into the open, so it’s probably just unknown.
“Well, that’s fine. Anyway, I’ll give it a try.”
“Eh?”
Mako immediately activated the wind-element B-rank wide-area target spell, Air Vortex, but to my surprise, she didn’t generate anything, not even an Engraving Tool or an Engraving Tool. No, Engraving Magic should be unusable without an Engraving Tool or Engraving Tool, right!?
“That’s your lack of knowledge, Yamato. How do you think Engraving Magic is activated in the first place?”
“How? Through imprints, of course.”
“Exactly. So, by using a live imprint, Engraving Magic can be used, albeit with reduced accuracy and strength.”
Seriously, I didn’t know that. It’s not like reading out stored spells from Engraving Tools or Engraving Tools, so you have to control the spell yourself, but still, being able to use Engraving Magic without them is a huge advantage.
“Is this about it?”
“A-amazing…”
Mako’s Air Vortex is slaughtering the Orcs in the settlement one after another. Hmm? Is that ice mixed in… Ah, Needle Rain!
“Aren’t you a bit late to notice? I’ve been using a stacked spell of Air Vortex and Needle Rain from the start.”
“…My attention was caught by the fact that Engraving Magic can be used even with live imprints.”
Needle Rain is a water-element C-rank wide-area spell that shoots water or ice needles within a range. Mako is layering that Needle Rain onto Air Vortex, but surprisingly, Needle Rain was fired along the airflow and only in very small amounts, making it very difficult to see hidden behind the Orcs. It’s like a light rain on a clear day, where you’re fine but the ground gets a little wet. Needle Rain is a water attribute, so I can use it normally, but if you asked me if I could use it with this much precision, it would be quite difficult. Yet Mako is using it with live imprints, which are difficult to control, so her precision is definitely higher than mine.
“I’d like to say this is the end, but there’s one that Air Vortex didn’t blow away. It looks like a big red Orc, do you know anything?”
“A big red one? That’s a King or a Queen!”
I quickly activate Eagle Eye to survey the settlement, and sure enough, a giant Orc with reddish-black skin is standing with its sword stuck in the ground, enduring the Air Vortex. With that physique, it must be a King.
“So there was a King too.”
“Is it strong?”
“Didn’t I tell you? It’s a Catastrophe Species. It’s a monster that’s normally considered impossible to defeat alone. As proof, its Monster Rank is P-C. Before Alloy was developed, dozens of High Class adventurers would take them on, and even then, there were many casualties.”
I and Prim don’t remember it being that difficult, but it seems it was truly tough back then. Several people in the Alliance were injured, but no one died, and the most severe injury was a fractured rib, which was celebrated as a miraculous achievement.
“I see. No wonder it could withstand my Air Vortex. I guess I’ll have to play my trump card.”
Saying that, Mako dispelled the Air Vortex and generated an Engraving Tool.
“Is that your Engraving Tool, Mako?”
“It is, for now. This is Air Spirit. It’s a ladle specialized for wind attribute.”
Is it a ladle, then? Does that make it a Living Type? Air Spirit is about a meter long, but despite being called a ladle, it has a shallow bottom and looks more like a spoon. However, the opposite end is shaped like a key, so it could definitely be used as a blunt weapon.
“Since there’s only the Orc King left, this might be better.”
Saying that, Mako activated the stacked spells of Alfheim and Muspelheim. The lightning strikes of Muspelheim, amplified by the wind of Alfheim, pierced the Orc King one after another. Furthermore, a tornado accompanied by lightning was generated, and the Orc King was easily swept into the sky and slammed into the ground, dying without being able to do anything.
“Huh? What is this feeling…?”
Mako’s magic power increased further. I recognize this feeling.
“Mako, may I see your Library?”
“Sure, why not? ‘Librarying’. Here.”
Mako easily showed me her Library, and as expected.
“Congratulations, Mako.”
“On what?”
“You’ve evolved into an Ancient Human.”
““Eh!?””
Mana and Meena exclaimed in surprise at the same time, but I didn’t expect her to evolve so soon either. Mako was already level 66, so it was only a matter of time, but she evolved in her first battle…
“So this is the feeling of evolving. Does that mean all first-class crafters possess power equivalent to Ancient Class?”
“You can think of it that way, but why do you say that?”
“I have the title Spiritual Valkyrie, but I have less practical combat experience compared to your father and the others. That’s why my skills were one step below everyone else’s, but thinking about it this way makes sense.”
I understand what Mako means. In fact, before coming to Helios Orb, I couldn’t even lay a hand on my parents or the masters. If you replace that with High Class challenging Ancient Class, then of course they wouldn’t win. This means that if my parents and masters had also come to Helios Orb, they would all have evolved into Ancient Class. …My spine is really chilling, so I’ll stop thinking about it any further.
“Mako wants to join Wing Crest, so she’s the third one, isn’t she? How much more unbalanced will this Union become?”
“No, you’re about to evolve into an Ancient Elf yourself, aren’t you, Mana?”
“W-well, that might be true, but…”
Mana is also level 65, so it wouldn’t be strange for her to evolve the moment she levels up.
“Three of the four Ancient Classes are in Wing Crest. The power balance of Helios Orb is completely broken.”
“Indeed. And Mako dealt significant damage to the Orc King without using Engraving Tools or Engraving Tools, so she’s a different type from you and Prim.”
I think so too. Both Prim and I prefer close combat, but considering Mako’s aptitude, she should be called a rear support type. In fact, she said she only learned simple self-defense techniques for close combat skills, so in terms of pure physical combat, she can’t compare to Prim or me. From the way she fought earlier, she kept the opponent at bay.
“‘Storageing’. It gets sucked into the magic circle. It’s a convenient spell.”
“The King is big and heavy, so yes. I could also use it after evolving into a High Human, and it’s very useful.”
“And food doesn’t spoil either.”
Stroaging can only be used after evolving into High Class, but it’s truly a convenient spell. While the capacity varies from person to person, even immediately after evolving into High Class, it’s about enough to fill three large houses. Both Prim and I have an absurd amount of magic power, so we might have the capacity of a whole town, and in fact, we stored most of the monsters we defeated in the Solpreza Labyrinth in our Stroages.
“It’s a lifesaver. So, next, we’ll register with the Guild in a town called Feel?”
“That’s right. I can imagine old man Linus’s surprised face.”
“He’ll probably be beyond surprised and just stunned.”
“In any case, it will definitely be exhausting.”
Indeed. However, I’m not involved with this matter at all, so I probably won’t be suspected of anything unnecessary. Let’s go back to Alka once and then head to Feel.
