Helios Orb Chronicle – Chapter 7

The Glass Wolf attacks came a few more times after that, but thanks to Prim and Yamato easily repelling them, we safely arrived at Prada Village.

Prada Village is located at the northernmost point of the Amister Kingdom, surrounded by water, with the inner sea Nadal Sea to the west and the Mylight Mountains and Veil Lake to the east.
There are roads from Emosion and Feel to the south, and the border with the Libertarian Federation lies across the Mylight Mountains to the north. The Alegria Duchy comprises Plazia Island, situated in the central Nadal Sea, along with several surrounding islands.
Therefore, if a larger port were built in Prada Village, it could serve as a gateway to Alegria and Libertà, couldn’t it?
Prada Village isn’t that large, and developing it further would be difficult due to its terrain. It’s likely the Amister Royal Family is struggling with this issue.
So much for the tourist information.

Still, Yamato is truly incredible.
When I was in Valentia, no one was stronger than Prim, and compared to him, Yamato’s fighting style seems quite rough.
While his sword forms look elegant, the difference becomes obvious even to an amateur when it comes to actual combat.

Apparently, his father was a strict man who thoroughly drilled him in swordsmanship and Engraving Magic.
However, he doesn’t flaunt his strength and clearly understands his own capabilities and limitations. He’s a rare, fine young man these days.

To be honest, I’d like Prim to marry him, but he’s a guest.
If he finds a way back to his original world, he’ll leave.
If they had children, it might be possible to keep him here, but he has family and friends too, so I can’t ask too much of him.

This is a tricky situation.
I don’t know what Yamato thinks, but from my perspective, Prim is undeniably close to love at first sight and is almost completely fallen for him.

“Mother, is something wrong?”
“I was just wondering when you were going to make a move on Yamato.”
“W-What are you saying! There’s no way I could do that! Besides, we’ve only met for a few days!”

Your voice is too loud!
Foxy has excellent hearing, so if you shout so close to her, her ears will ring!
And what would you do if Yamato heard you!?

“Is something wrong? You’re shouting so loudly.”

See?
If you shout that loudly, anyone would get curious and come to check on you.

“I-It’s nothing!”
“Oh? If you say so, then it’s fine.”

Prim is blushing furiously, feeling shy, while Yamato looks completely unfazed.
He truly doesn’t seem to understand what’s going on.
Right now, he’s a perfect young man with no faults, but he might be incredibly dense when it comes to romance.
This is a formidable opponent.

“So, Yamato, were there any shops that would buy monsters?”
“No, unfortunately there aren’t any in this village. Well, as you can see, it’s a small village, so I suppose that’s to be expected.”

That’s true.
But if that’s the case, then there’s nothing to be done.
It’s inconvenient that there are no shops, but since it’s a hub for transportation, there seems to be an inn.
It’s not a very large building, but it’s plenty big for the village’s size, and that might be the limit due to staffing issues.

“Also, I only heard this very briefly, so I don’t know how true it is, but there seems to be some unrest around Feel lately.”
“Unrest around Feel?”

Prim and I both frowned.
That’s another big problem.
Where there’s smoke, there’s fire, so it doesn’t seem like an unfounded rumor.

Still, unrest, huh?
Unlike Valentia, Amister has strong royal authority, and its military strength is the largest on the Philia Continent. Even the Solemn Empire, with its ambition to unify the Philia Continent, shouldn’t have dared to make contact rashly.
Moreover, Amister, with its people, including the Royal Family and nobles, having a leisurely disposition, shouldn’t have been thinking about unifying the continent like Solemn.

“Yamato, you don’t know what specifically happened with this unrest, do you?”
“No. It seems the rumors started around the same time the monsters began to increase.”

If that’s the case, then it can’t be helped.
After all, with Green Fang present, there are likely to be not only Glass Wolves but also Green Wolves.
If even a high-tier I-rank Glass Wolf is troublesome, then it would be impossible for Amister’s Order and Hunters to deal with an increase in C-U rank Green Wolves.

However, it’s concerning.
It might be unavoidable for Feel to become isolated upon Green Fang’s appearance due to geographical factors.
But since it’s an anomalous species, the Hunter’s Guild must have put out investigation requests, and the Order’s Guild would surely have taken action.
Yet, there’s no sign of any activity.
In fact, we didn’t hear any such rumors in Emosion.

“Yamato, you didn’t hear about this rumor in Emosion, did you?”
“No. Just rumors about seeing Green Fang. I think those rumors were considered less credible because the sighting was at night.”

Prim and Yamato both seem concerned.
Still, what are the Hunter’s Guild and Order’s Guild in Emosion doing?
Even if an anomalous species sighting is a mere rumor, detailed investigations should be conducted.
Some species possess powers so immense they could destabilize a nation, so that’s the least that should be done. But the fact that they’re not acting is a major problem in many ways.
We might need to prepare for the worst-case scenario.

“It’s best if we don’t encounter it, but we should probably be prepared for any eventuality.”
“Agreed.”

In terms of Hunter ranks, Yamato is G-rank and Prim is S-rank, and Yamato has even evolved into a High Human.
On the other hand, Green Fang is an S-rank anomalous species, so even with just the two of them, it would be a tough fight if they engaged directly.
Yamato’s Engraving Magic is more refined than magic, and his mana efficiency seems leagues better than magic. Perhaps I should ask Yamato to let Prim see a bit of his magic.

Side: Yamato

“How is it, Prim?”
“Just as Mother predicted. I never imagined my mana efficiency would improve this much, or that my magic’s power would increase.”

The day after arriving at Prada Village, we decided to change our plans and stay another night.
The reason was to test whether or not it was possible to increase magic efficiency by imagining a shape and giving it directionality, allowing us to use our magic.
It might be a countermeasure against Green Fang, and I believe we should do whatever we can.
Besides, it was something I had planned to try once things settled down, so I readily agreed to Apricot’s suggestion.

I’ve never used magic, nor has Apricot had many opportunities to use it. Considering it doubles as a countermeasure against Green Fang, Prim, who has the most experience with magic among us, decided to try it with her inherent fire attribute magic.
As a result, her mana efficiency improved, her power increased, and by forming it into shapes like spears and arrows as imagined, its penetrating power also increased.
The large rock in front of us, riddled with holes and burning, is proof of that.
What? You can’t see it?
Well, it’s about the same size as the so-called stone stage burial mound of Soga no Umako.

“It’s amazing. To make such a large rock full of holes so easily…”

Apparently, destroying a rock this large with magic is difficult even for a High Hunter.

“I’d heard about it, but this is how you create Unique Magic.”

Originally, the magic of Helios Orb was positioned as combat support, and mages or wizards familiar from games and novels do not exist.
It is common to attack with swords, spears, or axes while the opponent is reeling from being hit by fire.
Even when infusing mana, it only resulted in something like a flamethrower, and if control was lost, it would cause damage to oneself, making it difficult to handle.
For these reasons, Unique Magic developed by individuals is scarce and can only be used by high-ranking Hunters and Knights, or the Order.

But the fire attribute magic Prim just unleashed took the form of a fiery spear and arrows, piercing the large rock and setting it ablaze.
Furthermore, she is now about to strike with an Iron Spear imbued with flames.

“Huh, you’re imbuing your weapon with fire.”
“It’s an application of mana enhancement. That way, weapon wear and tear can be reduced, and it becomes a form of further enhancing an already enhanced spear.”

What Apricot mentioned as mana enhancement is the mana enhancement magic, Mana Ring, of Supplication Magic.

There are also body reinforcement magic, Physica Ring, and acceleration enhancement magic, Accelerating Magic, which form the basis of Supplication Magic.

Physica Ring, as the name suggests, is body reinforcement magic. The higher the level, the greater the enhancement of parameters like HP, STR, VIT, and AGI in games.
Think of it as game stats increasing as your level goes up.

Mana Ring enhances mana, which in games is comparable to enhancing INT and MND.
However, the enhancement from Mana Ring affects not only the user but also the gear they are wearing.
Swords become less likely to break or chip, their sharpness increases, and with armor, defense power naturally increases, and weak attacks can even be nullified.
When exploring mountains or forests, armor can get scratched by branches or obstacles, but if enhanced with Mana Ring, it won’t get damaged by such things.
I had always wondered about this in games and novels, and now I understand.

Finally, there’s Accelerating Magic, which is very difficult to handle.
Closing the distance with a sudden acceleration or retreating is just the basic use. High-level users can even shoot down a rain of arrows with their swords.
This is because it also accelerates thought, and while Accelerating Magic is active, the surroundings appear to be in slow motion.
I interpreted it as magic that maintains a state of concentration, and that interpretation is likely correct. Naturally, when in a state of concentration, the power of magic increases, and rapid casting becomes possible. It’s truly fittingly named acceleration enhancement, as it accelerates the body, mana, and thought processes.

People of Helios Orb can normally use Physica Ring, and many can use Mana Ring as well.
There are individual differences in magic strength due to levels, but it’s sufficient for normal daily life.
However, only a few can use Accelerating Magic.
This is because Accelerating Magic is one of the magics that can only be used by High Class individuals, and although the details of the magic are known, there are few users, so opportunities to witness it firsthand are scarce.
Of course, mana quantity and difficulty are also reasons for the limited number of users.

Prim appears to be further enhancing the spear, already enhanced by Mana Ring, with fire.
Prim gripped the spear and charged towards the large rock.
And the moment the spear struck, the large rock exploded into pieces.
That was dangerous!

“Amazing…To be able to destroy such a large rock so easily…”

So, this is Unique Magic.
It makes sense that you can only use it by developing it yourself or seeking instruction. It’s also significant that it’s almost the same process as developing Engraving Magic.
Perhaps I should try to make something too.

“Huh? Is this… ‘Library Ring’?”

Hm?
Prim suddenly took out her Library.
It doesn’t show stats like stamina, mana, STR, VIT, AGI, INT, or MND, and Unique Magic isn’t displayed, is it?

“It is after all. Yamato, Mother, look.”

Her tail is wagging with incredible speed.
She seems extremely happy, but what on earth happened?
Yamato and I, with question marks floating above our heads, peered into Prim’s Library.
And then…

Primrose Hydrangea
17 Years Old
Lv. 49
Beastkin, High Fox
Former Duke Hydransia’s daughter, White Fox Winged Tribe

Well, not only has her level increased, but she’s also evolved into a High Fox.
Certainly, if I look closely, Prim’s ears and tail seem to have a more lustrous sheen.
It is said that as your level increases, evolution becomes easier, and with level 50, evolution becomes almost mandatory, so Prim evolving was only a matter of time.

But wait a minute.
Why did her level increase?
We didn’t defeat any monsters, we just pulverized a large rock.
I’ve never heard of leveling up just by doing that.

“You finally evolved. Congratulations, Prim.”
“Thank you, Mother.”

They’re both wagging their tails with great enthusiasm.
Well, I agree it’s cause for celebration, but…

“Well, for what it’s worth, I congratulate you too…”
“Thank you, Yamato.”

She replied with a slightly shy smile, her cheeks flushed red. She’s so cute.
Seeing that look on Prim’s face, who was already a beautiful girl, makes my heart skip a beat.

“But seriously, why did your level go up? Leveling up isn’t supposed to be that easy, is it?”

After all, the average level of people living in Helios Orb was said to be in their late twenties to early thirties, right?
And people above level 40 are said to number only a few hundred across all of Helios Orb, which means leveling up isn’t easy, right?

“Ah, I forgot to explain the details about levels. Levels aren’t just a measure of strength; they represent individuals with high total mana, efficient usage, and high transmission rates. Having a higher level means you’re better at handling mana, so saying it represents strength isn’t entirely wrong either.”

I see.
The reason Prim’s level increased this time is that the fire attribute magic she used to destroy the large rock was used more efficiently than before.
Apparently, Prim hadn’t used much magic before.
She frequently used Bestowed Magic’s Feather Cloak Magic and Supplication Magic’s Storage Ring and Physica Ring, Mana Ring, but other types of magic were less common, and she had an excess of high mana.
However, by overlaying imagination onto the magic this time and developing Unique Magic with directional intent, she made it easier to control that mana, improving her mana efficiency, which in turn led to her evolution.
This means that evolution might happen faster for those who are better at handling mana.

The most common level is in the early thirties, and many people cannot surpass the level 40 threshold.
Therefore, it is said that only a few hundred people have evolved.

In any case, I now have a clear direction for aiming at magic, and Prim has evolved into a High Fox, so this verification can be considered a complete success.