Chapter 4 Mr. S
The person who goes by the alias “S” was someone Will met a year ago when he posted a plea for help on the Adventurer’s Guild.
At that time, Iaar was just learning Ice Armor Infusion. Will had calculated the theoretical value, which suggested it could withstand heat up to 200 degrees Celsius, yet Iaar was repeatedly burned. After much thought, he posted a commission, hoping to find someone with practical experience.
Then, he received a letter signed with the alias “S.”
The letter explained the principles in detail, from steam to ice armor, and finally listed several possible ways Iaar could be burned.
One analysis suggested that Iaar was in direct contact with the ice armor when using Ice Armor Infusion. The defense of Ice Armor Infusion was actually a dynamic cycle replenished by the melting of the ice armor. When the temperature was too high, especially with steam heating, the ice armor would vaporize directly. Since the temperature of steam is higher than that of liquid water, it was easy to get burned.
Therefore, the simplest method was to create an air gap between Iaar’s body and the ice armor during Ice Armor Infusion. Before the smallest unit of vaporization could contact her body, it would be cooled down by the dynamically generated ice armor into liquid or even solid, joining the dynamic cycle of the ice armor and effectively preventing burns.
Will recalled the ice armor data he had previously written. In the game, the dynamic cycle time for Ice Armor Infusion might correspond to the shortest damage interval.
Using this, he calculated a minimum distance and had Iaar follow it. Indeed, she was not burned the next time.
This was also the first time he discovered that the data he created as a numerical planner could be applied to real combat in this world. Those numerical values were a set of formulas that he could derive without memory after all these years—perhaps it could be considered one of his few advantages.
Subsequently, S was shocked by Will’s ability to calculate such detailed data, while Will was often impressed by the solid theory and rich practical experience of his correspondent. The two frequently exchanged letters, discussing dungeon monster strategies, details of magic composition, and usage of various weapons.
Over the past three years, the letters had accumulated to fill several cabinets. These letters were packed with valuable information; one could write dozens of MCI theses from this cabinet of letters if they were a graduate student at the Magic Academy.
Will’s address for this person evolved from “that S” to “S” and finally to “Mr. S.”
Hmm… As for why he called him “Mister.”
S had indeed never written his gender, but his analysis was so rational and logical, each sentence in his writing being concise and without any superfluous words. Such a rational and decisive person was definitely a man!
Moreover, S’s tone was too mature; it was undoubtedly that of a reliable adult male with extensive battlefield experience.
However, compared to S’s gender, another question was more worth considering—
Who was S?
Since this was a novel, a story, such a powerful person might have appeared in the original work.
But…
In the original work, most of the teachers from the Magic Academy side lacked practical experience, possessing only theoretical knowledge and spending their days writing papers. It was unlikely that someone like S, with rich practical experience, would be among them.
If not a teacher, then what about a capable adventurer?
Among adventurers, there were few academic types; most were skilled only in their own profession. Even the captain of a front-line adventuring team would at most understand the roles of each member. Someone like S, who was thoroughly familiar with all kinds of magic and techniques, was a rare find.
Then this person…
Could it be…
The protagonist himself?
In the original work, the protagonist Xiu had a theoretical level that surpassed most teachers at the academy. After graduation, he joined an adventuring team as support, and was thoroughly familiar with the skills and moves of various professions.
Such an obvious guess, a sharp mind like Will’s would naturally not miss it.
According to the original work—the original work whose fate could not be broken—at this point in time, Xiu was still in school, researching theory, and had not even ventured into any dungeons. It was still about two years before Xiu would truly set foot in a dungeon.
Will immediately wrote a letter to test him.
S replied that he did odd jobs as an adventurer and occasionally provided support in shallow dungeons, hence his extensive combat experience. He also stated that Will could ask him anything and even offered to help if he needed materials.
Will dismissed the idea that S was the protagonist.
The timing and actions didn’t match; how could it be him?
How could it be!
Hmm… In a novel, it’s normal to have some reclusive experts with no specific names and who never appear. It definitely wasn’t the protagonist.
Thinking this, Will sighed.
If he were the protagonist, Mr. S would likely be in the position of the protagonist’s mentor—continuously supplying him with cheat abilities, helping him level up, and serving as his spiritual pillar in times of difficulty.
It was just a pity that he wasn’t.
Therefore, Mr. S would forever remain an alias, and perhaps they would never meet.
“I should check Mr. S’s letter. If he’s replying to me at this time, he must have discovered something.”
It was already after dinner. Will, by the lamplight, opened the letter that Mr. S had sent him—though this time, it should probably be called a package.
Inside the package were a letter, a small wooden box, and a tattered booklet with yellowed pages.
Will opened the letter first.
To: W
The last time you discussed with me how to reproduce the ancient magic “Extreme Flame Meteor,” honestly, ancient magic is not my area of expertise. I can offer little help. Fortunately, I found relevant ancient texts in a dungeon, which contain fragmented records. One passage mentions the need for a catalyst, a substance from the abdomen of a miniboss called a Blazing Firefly. So, I killed over a hundred of them and refined a small bottle, which I am sending with this letter. Please use it sparingly.
If you can obtain more accurate explosion and damage data after testing, please inform me in your next letter. Thank you.
S
Will opened the small wooden box. It was packed with shock-absorbing cardboard. Although the box was large, it contained only a small bottle of powder.
Perhaps it was extracted from the abdomen of a firefly. Will turned off his desk lamp and observed it under the moonlight outside the window. He could see a faint pink fluorescent glow emanating from within.
“This is indeed good stuff. I just don’t know if it will work.”
He opened the red-bound “Quest System.”
“Alright, Extreme Flame Meteor, Extreme Flame Meteor. Phew… this mission is here.”
He flipped to the next page of his notebook:
Important Mission: Have Iaar block an assassin’s Extreme Flame Meteor strike! Must accomplish, extremely important! As a precaution, preliminary experiments are recommended.
Looking at this line, his expression became a little more serious.
He wrote down the mission to avoid forgetting the plot. This important mission hint reminded him of a terrible plot from the original work that was only briefly mentioned.
Assassin…
He remembered that according to the original work, “Young Master Will” would later encounter a witch who used the ancient magic Extreme Flame Meteor.
The original description stated that after Will received his acceptance letter from Entak First Academy, also known as the Imperial First Academy, he was attacked by a witch on his way to the capital.
This incident resulted in minor injuries, causing him to miss the entrance practical exam. This was the cause of Will’s bullying, the root of his later psychological issues, and the beginning of the deterioration of his relationship with his father. It was also… the fated entanglement with the highly popular Half-elf Princess from the original work.
Although reading the original work made him feel that this villainous comedic character deserved it, now that he was going through it himself, he couldn’t be happy at all!
Such an important mission… the reward is…
The reward was written on the next page. Will flipped forward.
Reward: Transfer to Mission 38. Upon completing the series of missions, obtain Iaar’s exclusive ancient magic tome – Ice Array (Attack).
His skill as a mission planner had not dulled; he could even turn rewards into side quests to torment players.
Ice Array (Attack).
This was very important. To put it metaphorically, Iaar’s Ice Armor Infusion now was like a character’s basic skill at the start of a game. It might be enough now, but in four years, when the protagonist joined the party, it would be rendered useless by power creep.
Ice Array (Attack) was an upgrade for this old character, allowing her to become a T0 class!
But…
In the original work, by the time Iaar learned this move, she was already a discarded, loser woman! What use is a T0 class for a rejected loser!
If she could withstand Extreme Flame Meteor—the former Iaar didn’t have this strength, but the current one might not be the same.
Could this give Iaar a chance to master the T0 enhancement skill early…?
Will rubbed his temples, turned on the desk lamp again, flipped open that tattered booklet, and took out a piece of draft paper and a pen.
If he could understand it tonight, he could have Iaar conduct a preliminary experiment tomorrow—the sooner, the better.
Knock, knock.
Then, there was a knock on the door.
“Iaar?”
“Young Master… Hmm… haven’t you slept yet?”
