After finishing breakfast, Amelia turned on music by herself and began washing the dishes.
Ian had tried to help as well, but because Amelia flatly refused, he decided to wait until the dishes were done and sat in the study, poring over a grimoire.
Rustle.
He turned the page of the Abyssal Chronicle.
Once he passed the section on simple offensive magic outside the summoning category, descriptions of Outer Sea creatures appeared one after another. Ian popped a candy into his mouth and began rereading the section on plankton first.
[The most basic life form inhabiting the Outer Sea. It serves as prey for all creatures, and its appearance is like that of an insect. They subsist on fragments of corpses from other creatures drifting through the Outer Sea. Furthermore, they suffer no ill effects even if starved for one year.]
Plankton of the Outer Sea.
It had no other name. It was literally just plankton.
It had this and that characteristic, but what it did wasn't much different from Earth's plankton.
Its role was to drift in the sea and be eaten by other creatures. Nothing more, nothing less.
'Still, its appetite is incredible. If summoned in large numbers, it can devour a person in mere seconds...'
The magic Ian had used against Laura and her group not long ago.
That magic which scattered black seawater in every direction was effectively no different from a plankton summoning spell. It wasn't officially categorized as summoning magic, but the effect was similar.
The plankton's abilities were greater than one might think. Not only did they devour everything indiscriminately, organic and inorganic alike, but they even swallowed spreading flames. Anti-personnel combat, war of attrition, creating variables, and so on—they were good for flexible use in all sorts of situations.
However, since a low-risk, high-return spell called Recreate existed in the same field, he didn't use it that often.
Still, it could be applied as a substitute for defensive magic by covering the skin, so it couldn't be said to be completely useless. If he looked for ways to use it, he could find plenty.
'It's possible to lay them like traps too, so they could play their part well enough when building a stronghold.'
Ian thought as much as he turned the page.
Next was the Courier.
[The weakest life form among the predators inhabiting the Outer Sea. It moves by rolling across the floor or swimming with four tentacles, pushing prey into the mouth at its center.]
Content he had already known for a long time. He read it as if reviewing once, then shifted his gaze to the side.
[In its initial stage, the Cycler is weaker than any other life form inhabiting the Outer Sea. However, each time it dies, the Cycler grows in size and its abilities evolve. To be completely annihilated, it must die a total of five times.]
A total of five deaths.
Ian etched the number into his mind and turned the page.
Honestly, he didn't think anything on Earth could kill a Cycler five times, but it was better to be safe than sorry. For now, it was good to remember.
Recorded after the Cycler was the Producer.
After that came the Watcher, the Concealer, the Strategist, the Suicider, and so on.
Descriptions of all sorts of Outer Sea creatures were written in order. As Ian read through their contents one by one, his gaze briefly fixed on the section of the Regressor.
[A being capable of detecting in advance all threats directed at it and situations equivalent to such. Normally it feeds on plankton, but when using its ability, it feels extreme hunger and dyes its entire body red. When feeling hunger, it unfolds its wings like blades to hunt prey. Though an incredibly small life form, it can hunt most creatures in the Outer Sea.]
Regressor.
The fourth child created by the master of the Outer Sea, as the Deficient had informed him.
The ability's description itself didn't seem greatly related to regression, but if it truly weren't, it wouldn't have been given such a name. Most likely, whether directly or indirectly, it could do something similar to regression, which was why it bore the ominous name of Regressor.
He would be lying if he said he wasn't curious, but the detail about feeling extreme hunger when using its ability approached him rather unpleasantly, so he had no intention of summoning a Regressor just to satisfy his curiosity. If something went wrong because of it, it wouldn't end quietly.
'The Deficient evaluated the Regressor as weak, but looking at the description, it isn't exactly so. It's weak in the Deficient's eyes. Among Outer Sea creatures, it's one of the strong ones.'
It was laughable to begin with that a creature fourth-born in the Outer Sea would be weak. Ian leaned back against the chair and let out a long breath.
'Will there ever be a time to summon this one?'
Honestly, a single reverse targeter was enough for the role of an alarm. Although it was merely a tool, it was basically an item crafted through the Alchemy of the Outer Gods, so its performance was considerably outstanding. Thanks to that, there was hardly any reason to carry around another alarm.
If he did summon it, it would likely only be in a truly desperate situation where a Regressor was absolutely necessary. Until then, simply rotating the Courier, the Cycler, the Strategist, and so on was enough.
'Three Couriers and it's game over.'
Ian thought as much as he closed the grimoire. He put the cigarette he'd been holding back into his breast pocket and stood up, pulling the curtain wide open.
Swoosh.
The drawn-back curtain revealed the bright, sunny sky as it was.
Early May. The cusp of slowly entering summer.
And the point when half a year was beginning to pass since Ian had picked up the grimoire.
"......."
Looking back, quite a lot had happened in half a year.
Starting from picking up the grimoire, getting entangled with the Management Bureau, building friendships with magicians, handling all sorts of anomalies, and so on. It had been truly eventful, packed into these six months.
What remained of his life ahead would be more so than now, not any less. He would encounter factions he had yet to meet, and there might come a time when he had to face Laplace's ranting bullshit head-on.
Whatever it was, at least it was certain it wouldn't be easy.
That said, he didn't regret becoming a magician. Perhaps before becoming a magician, but now he had no thoughts of returning to the past. It had been that way until now, and likely would be so in the future.
He had no doubts about himself. After all, he was a magician.
Arrogance and pride were the basic virtues of a magician. Ian was no exception.
"Oppa, I'm done with the dishes. I think we can leave now."
While Ian was looking down at the window lost in thought, Amelia poked her head through the crack of the study door and said. Ian turned around with a bright smile.
"Yeah, let's go. Good work."
"Yes!"
Amelia smiled bashfully.
*
The entrance of the Owl, visited after a long time. Ian parked his bike in a nearby alley, then stepped into the bookstore together with Amelia.
Squeak.
When they opened the plastic sliding door and went inside, a thick lime scent wafted over them.
A fresh yet sweet smell. Ian's gaze naturally turned toward where the scent was coming from.
"Mmmgh..."
The counter of the used bookstore. A place equipped with a small living space and stairs leading down to the basement.
At its center.
A woman with green hair sitting in a red chair was sprawled over the desk, muttering something.
"I'm the authority on animal possession magic at the Clock Tower, Pleas... a freaking amazing magician who rose from the bottom... but are you really going to ignore me like this just because I don't have a single combat ability..."
"......."
"Damned bastards... Clock Tower Lord, you bastard... grimoire-humping pervert bastard... just fucking bastards..."
Ian furrowed his brow, chewing over the name 'Pleas' she had spat out, while Amelia broke into a bright smile and trotted toward her.
"Pleas unnie!"
"...?"
Only at Amelia's call did the green-haired woman slowly lift her head. Amelia's face and Ian's face standing behind her were reflected clearly in her blue eyes.
"...Ah."
Light returned to her previously bleary eyes. She stretched out her hand and pinched Amelia's cheek, bursting into a laugh.
"Hi, Amelia. Have you been well?"
"Owowow! P-Please shtop!"
"But I don't want to. Are you going to show dislike when we're meeting after so long, my little cutie? Should I tell your grandpa everything?"
"Wha, what are you tawking about! I didn't do anything wrong!"
"Mistakes can always be made. For example... yeah, telling him that you skipped the magic studies I assigned and just went around playing instead. Wouldn't Eric's face be something to see then?"
"Th-That's made up! Stop it!"
"Hehe, okay, okay. I won't tell."
Pop.
Pleas let go of Amelia's cheek. Amelia rubbed her reddened cheek and glared at Pleas.
"Eeeek...!"
"Oho? What's with that look you're giving your unnie? You want a scolding?"
"Waaah! Oppa, help me!"
Amelia scurried behind Ian. Then she stuck her tongue out at Pleas.
At that cute sight, Pleas burst into laughter, and Ian let out a deep sigh as he turned to Pleas.
"So you're not a cat today. Is this your real body?"
"What, how did you know who I was? Don't tell me you're stalking me? Creepy!"
"...It's not like you were even trying to hide it."
Ian approached her with a wry smile. Pleas leaned back against the chairback and crossed her legs.
"Yeah, I'm Pleas. Sorry for not being in cat form. If I'd known you liked furry, fluffy things, I'd have prepared one from the start."
"Don't treat me like a crazy bastard. I don't like fur."
"Nope, everyone has a little furry enthusiast growing inside them. You too, before long. I guarantee it."
Having said that, Pleas made cat ears with her hands and grinned.
"Nya nya! I'm a cute cat beastkin, nya! Will you pet me, nya? You can scratch under my chin too, nya!"
"...Hah. So the nyahing was just a concept? I thought it was a side effect of being in a cat's body."
"Nya nya nya. Of course it's a concept, nya. But don't get me wrong, nya! It's all to make the customers happy, nya!"
"......."
"Because the cutesy charms of a supreme beauty like me are overwhelmingly cute and lovely, nya! Of course there's huge demand, and there are bound to be many who love it, nya! Nyaha, the customers find mental stability looking at me, and I gain regulars for the shop, nya! That's my design! Sales actually went up a lot, nya! Nyahaha!"
Ian looked down at her and twisted the corners of his mouth.
'...Isn't this just a foreign Gim Yura.'
In Ian's ear, a gloomy voice briefly echoed, "Hello, newbie-yang."