Happy New Year.
I look forward to your continued patronage this year as well.
—Rudia
While Yamato and Mana were escorting my father-in-law and mother-in-law to Amagi Castle, I decided to create the MARS that would be installed in Glacian MINERVA with Mako.
That said, Yamato is apparently going to join us at Amagi Castle after finishing his work at Memoria.
Flam is also out for training at Prada, so today’s main focus won’t be on full-scale assembly, but rather on constructing new barrier patterns and improving the overcoat.
“Do you think this is necessary?”
“It exists in dungeons, so I think it’s fine to have it. However, while it can reproduce the scenery, there aren’t actual walls or ceilings, so that’s the issue we need to address.”
“I see.”
The newly incorporated barrier pattern mimics the maze-like floors found in dungeons.
Of course, it only reproduces a part of it, and it’s not an actual maze, but the maze floors have walls on both sides and a solid ceiling.
Since it becomes an all-out close-quarters battle, turning on walls by kicking them is something that’s often done.
But that’s precisely why the problem of how to reproduce it remains.
“For simple close-quarters combat, we could use a small barrier like the prototype, but the problem is that it doesn’t allow for combat that utilizes walls or ceilings.”
“That’s exactly it. Even so, I think we can get a feel for it, but the difference from actually encountering such a situation might be too great, potentially leading to confusion.”
“That’s right.”
The barrier pattern merely displays the scenery; in reality, there are no walls or ceilings.
Therefore, combat utilizing walls or ceilings cannot be performed, but since this is for combat training, we want it to be usable with a sense as close to actual combat as possible.
“Would it be better to prepare a small combat space with a telekinetic Tenma Stone, similar to a mock ship?”
“Wouldn’t that eliminate the need for a barrier pattern?”
“That’s how it is.”
As Mako says, I don’t think it would be difficult to prepare a small combat space with walls and ceilings.
However, that would be like creating a small Coliseum within the Coliseum, and if we’re going that far, the barrier pattern would become unnecessary.
Furthermore, if it’s a completely enclosed space, it would be impossible to observe from the outside, and confirmations would be impossible even if an accident occurred.
In the worst-case scenario, someone might exploit it, so Yamato and Mako have repeatedly emphasized that external observation is absolutely essential, and that idea must be rejected.
“Indeed. Also, if High Class users go all out, materials with insufficient strength would be easily broken, making it impossible for training.”
“Ah, that problem too.”
I had forgotten, but utilizing walls and ceilings for turning or other maneuvers puts stress on them.
Even Normal Class users can break ordinary stones, so it’s entirely possible that High Class or Ancient Class users would break a wall the moment they kick it.
Yet, the dungeon walls don’t budge even when attacked with the full power of an Ancient Class user. Therefore, as a barrier pattern mimicking the maze floors of a dungeon, it’s unusable for combat training if it breaks with a mere kick.
“I’m home. Oh? Mako and Rudia, you both look incredibly troubled, what’s wrong?”
As Mako and I were racking our brains over the problem, it somehow became evening, and my mother-in-law returned.
Huh? Wasn’t there a banquet at Amagi Castle tonight?
“Mother-in-law, wasn’t dinner supposed to be at Amagi Castle tonight?”
“Mako, I still can’t get used to being called mother-in-law.”
“You have to get used to it soon. Well, I also find it a bit difficult to call you that.”
“Then you don’t have to force it. Ah, the banquet, right? It was changed to tomorrow.”
It’s understandable that they’d both find it awkward since my best friend became my stepmother.
Wait, the banquet was changed at the last minute?
“Rather than the last minute, it seems to be because the Queen of Alegria will be available tomorrow.”
Ah, so that was the reason.
My father-in-law declared he would defeat Nidh, and Enigma Island, where Nidh resides, is within Alegria’s territory. Therefore, we need to inform Emperor Glisina, the Queen of Alegria, about this.
Hence, the change of the banquet to tomorrow, including Emperor Glisina.
“I see. That means Emperor Glisina might also come to observe.”
“Mother-in-law is here, and we’ll be going, so if it’s just for escort, we should be fine.”
Falcon’s will be here, and I’m sure others will want to come, so it should be sufficient as an escort force.
“More than sufficient, we could probably defeat them with just that. Although, since the main objective is to watch Asuka’s fight, they probably won’t intervene, and I doubt there will be an opening for them to do so.”
“Yes, there won’t be. It will probably be over in an instant.”
“I-in an instant…?”
The conversation between my mother-in-law and Mako is frightening, but apparently, it was my father-in-law who saved us from the Dragons during the recent war. He said he did it with just a simple swing of his sword, which makes me think that even against Nidh, it might truly be over in an instant.
After all, my father-in-law didn’t just cut off the heads of the Red Dragon and Burning Dragon; he cut their bodies in half.
If he were to target Nidh’s neck with the Engraving Magic he used then, even a Demise Species wouldn’t be able to withstand it.
“If he uses that, it will truly be instantaneous, and if he uses too much magic power, he won’t be able to return. So, I don’t think he’ll use it this time.”
“Really? Ah, but there’s also Mist Inflation, so he could use that.”
“Yes, if he were to use something, it would likely be that.”
Mist Inflation, if I recall correctly, is the Engraving Magic that Yamato’s Mist Solution is based on.
Yamato said it was a degraded version, but is that Engraving Magic, Mist Inflation, really that amazing?
“It’s amazing. While Mist Solution is less effective against large opponents, Mist Inflation doesn’t have that problem. Even if they resist it, internal damage remains.”
“It’s even more incredible now, with improvements made since the student days.”
Even based on what Mako knows, it’s already astounding, so I can’t imagine how much more incredible it’s become.
“Well, let’s look forward to seeing how he actually fights then.”
“Yes.”
While they say that, I’m starting to get a little scared.
“So, what are you two working on?”
“I told you, didn’t I? Adjusting the barrier for MARS.”
“Ah, the AR-like thing, right?”
“Yes. Since it’s a reference, you could call it a Helios Orb version of AR.”
I don’t quite understand what they’re saying, but Yamato did mention that he used technology from his world as a reference.
He said it’s common and he’s used it many times, but he never expected to actually create it himself. But thanks to that, monster research is progressing, and Hunters can learn about monster attacks and defenses, which also leads to fewer accidents.
“Wow, Yamato created something that amazing?”
“We helped too, it was really tough.”
“It was. It’s currently in practical use, but the cost is high and there’s still room for improvement, so we continue to research day and night.”
The barrier patterns we’re adjusting now, as well as the MARS unit itself, the visor, and the overcoat, all have potential for further improvement. So, while not every day, we’re trying various things when we have time.
“And right now, we’re struggling with how to reproduce the maze-like floors in dungeons.”
“Mazes?”
“Yes. Of course, it’s not about creating an actual maze, but about reproducing combat in a confined space. We’re discussing how to handle the walls and ceilings.”
“I see.”
The material issue also makes an already difficult problem even more challenging.
“In that case, didn’t Mako create some kind of magic to create footholds?”
“I created it… Ah, Scaffolding. It does create footholds, but… Ah!”
“Huh? What do you mean?”
Upon receiving advice from my mother-in-law, Mako suddenly seemed to have an idea.
I still don’t understand, but what could she mean?
“Was that the way to go… Oh, sorry, Rudia. Scaffolding creates pseudo-footholds using magic, so it can be erected on water or in the sky, right?”
“Yes. Thanks to that, I’ve been helped, and I’ve heard that Hunters and Ritters have expanded their combat options and increased their survival rates.”
“Depending on how you use those pseudo-footholds, they can be used like kicking off a wall, can’t they?”
“Yes. Martial Artists like me often use them… Ah, I see!”
After that explanation, I finally understood.
That’s right, that was the solution!
“Was I able to help?”
“More than you know! Thank you, Maoh!”
“I’m glad.”
To summarize my mother-in-law’s suggestion, we would create Tenma Stones imbued with Scaffolding and deploy them to serve as walls and ceilings for the maze.
Of course, constant deployment would consume a lot of magic power, which needs to be considered. However, if we can skillfully integrate it with the overcoat and adjust it to automatically deploy upon contact with walls or ceilings, we might be able to reproduce not only maze interiors but also indoor spaces.
The adjustments will be tedious, but it’s worth the effort.
“Adjustments will be necessary, but first, we need to create Tenma Stones imbued with Scaffolding.”
“Right.”
If the Scaffolding imbuement is successful, wouldn’t it also make it easier to conduct simulated sea battles using the mock ship we previously made?
“This will be computationally intensive, so we might need to seriously consider Multi-Core.”
“Huh? Wasn’t Multi-Core something that was scrapped before?”
I recall it was a plan to distribute processing by using multiple core magic stones in parallel.
“That was because it was difficult to deploy multiple monsters. However, even with normal use, processing speed and performance will improve. Also, I just realized, but with Multi-Core, monster behavior might become more natural, and even A-rank Monsters might become usable.”
“Huh? Really?”
“It’s just a possibility, but to be honest, we won’t know unless we try.”
With the current MARS, the limit for natural movement is M-rank Monsters, and even then, their movements can be somewhat unnatural.
However, if we can improve that and even use A-rank Monsters, wouldn’t monster research advance further?
“But if that’s the case, shouldn’t we use the magic stone from the Burning Dragon we defeated recently?”
“That’s impossible. It’s said to be contaminated with Demon Race magic power, rendering it unusable.”
“I heard that at Amagi Castle earlier. They said magic imbuement isn’t possible and might even have adverse effects.”
Wow, is that so?
Indeed, there was talk that not only Demon Race monsters but also Burning Dragons and Red Dragons might have been using Demon Crystals. The fact that magic imbuement is impossible and might even have adverse effects sounds like a crafter’s nightmare.
“That’s right. However, it seemed to be fine with monsters from the Philia Continent. So, it’s speculated that the Gradia Continent’s ambient magic power has become stagnant due to the increase in Demon Race presence, negatively affecting monsters as well.”
Mako relays information she heard from Falcon’s, but this only proves that the Demon Race is nothing but a menace.
Burning Dragons and Red Dragons are apparently unusable as monster materials, meaning there’s no reward for defeating them, no matter how hard we try. Who would want to fight under such circumstances?
“They’re Demon Race in the truest sense. Shouldn’t that man who called himself the Divine Emperor change his name to Demon King instead?”
“He’s called that on the Philia Continent, but he probably believes he’s chosen by the gods, so I doubt he’ll ever change his name.”
That’s why he’s calling himself the Divine Emperor.
However, the inability to use Dragon materials from the Gradia Continent is a significant blow.
But there’s no point in wishing for the impossible. We’ll make do with the materials and methods we have and try our best.
We’ve received a great idea from my mother-in-law, so we need to complete that first.
