The lines that seemed disorderly soon formed a single diagram. A refinement array. Magical power burrowed into the grooves dug by qi techniques. Light flashed, and the grooves of the thunder wheel partially melted... changing to a larger specification.
In a brief moment, the thunder wheel more than doubled in size. It wasn't crudely stretched by force, nor was it randomly appended to. It was purely processed through alchemy.
The regressor admired inwardly.
"You can do alchemy too?"
"If I couldn't do alchemy, I wouldn't be able to disguise myself as an alchemist, right? I learned as much as was necessary."
Just how serious is she about this disguise? The regressor muttered in disbelief.
"If you learn skills because you have to disguise yourself, by that logic you can probably use magic too..."
"Huh? How did you know? I've learned most of the 'Imperial' systematic magic!"
"What?"
Rather than explaining further, Hilde wrapped the thunder wheel with her palm. Then she closed her eyes and repeated inwardly.
'I am a mage. A sage who reproduces the principles of the world within her grasp.'
The prayer shifted. Hilde, who had been an alchemist until just now, became a being similar to a mage.
As with everything in the world, people have aptitudes. Even if you know the principles, if it doesn't match your aptitude, you mostly can't achieve much.
In that sense, I have zero aptitude for all skills. Thanks to telepathy, I can understand and accept any skill, but I can never achieve beyond a certain level of accomplishment. Both qi and magical power are average.
But Hilde is a bit different. She has sufficient magical power and qi, and perfectly utilizes her abilities. Standing out in all talents is virtually impossible even for an incredible genius, but Hilde places suggestions on herself to pull herself up to the level of first-class.
"Set, Ri. Bolt."
The magical power scattered throughout her body took the form of lightning and seeped into the thunder wheel. Hilde had a considerable amount of magical power, and her method of manifesting it as magical power was first-class.
Lightning dwelled in the thunder wheel. Hilde proudly displayed the crackling thunder wheel wrapped in lightning as she approached the engine.
"Didji, instructions."
[Yes sir! Please connect Part A to the drive shaft! It's optional, but for Part B, we recommend removing it entirely to prevent interference! If you align only the center in that state, it will mesh with Parts C and D at the current specification!]
Hilde acted exactly as instructed.
She doesn't know everything. She only learned the minimum foundational knowledge regarding the instructions. However, that minimum understanding combined with the signalman's instructions produced a perfect result.
It was precise work combining strength and skill. She boldly tore off unnecessary parts and fitted the enlarged thunder wheel to the connection. Minor discrepancies were adjusted with makeshift alchemy.
Is this the true form of the Military Nation's Six-Star General's spirit chariot?
A moment later, the thunder wheel spun and the cataphract slowly began to move. The golem shouted excitedly.
[Engine sound... good! Output good! It's a success!]
Magic, alchemy, and even mechanical engineering had reached the first-class level. She even grasped the principles of qi techniques. A universal person who can use all weapons at master level and disguise herself as another human perfectly.
She'd be able to make her own place wherever she goes. Heh. With this, a lot of my work disappears and it'll be comfortable...
Huh?
'Being skilled at miscellaneous skills is exactly like Hue. If Hue recovers just a little more power, he'd become similar to that child... Goodness. I don't know who's the child and who's the father.'
Huh? Wait a minute.
Doesn't that make her a superior version of me?
Setting aside my anxiety that there might no longer be a place for me, the cataphract with its side panels and roof stripped away was quite fast. Combined with the driving skills of a golem starved for speed, it raced down the road at a pace that ordinary beasts couldn't keep up with.
It seemed like it would be a smooth and comfortable journey if not for the fierce wind... I thought.
"Spirit chariot. Try balancing a bit over there."
"You're ordering people around empty-handed! Just this once, so next time ask more politely!"
Bang, bang. The sound of hammering steel rang out regularly. The regressor was using Ji-Zan as a hammer to make something.
A flat footboard. And a T-shaped handle tightly bound with tough rope. At a glance, it looked like a sled you stand on with both feet.
However, the question is why that's necessary. The cataphract we're riding is already advancing at sufficient speed.
'I can't just space out while we're going. I have to use this time productively! I'm going to train that Huez guy!'
...Actually, I know because I read it with telepathy. The moment I read it, I cursed the telepathy that let me glimpse a forbidden truth, but whether I know or not, it's a blow that will come back to me anyway. It's just a difference between suffering knowing or suffering not knowing.
I asked cautiously.
"Mr. Shei."
"Yeah?"
"What on earth is that?"
The regressor lightly lifted the sled and answered.
"You asked just in time. This is a device to help with your training!"
"Training?"
"Yeah! I said I'd help with your training, didn't I?"
So, why is a sled a training device? I desperately tried to change the subject.
"Do I just grab it and lift it with my hands? It looks a bit heavy, but it seems doable as exercise."
"You idiot? If it were for such a simple purpose, I wouldn't have made it into a sled."
"You said it's a sled yourself! That's even stranger! How does a sled become a training device?"
"It's simple. Before training, it's to assess your qi level."
The regressor set the sled down in front of me and said.
"You know Geon-Gon-Gam-Ri, the basics of qi techniques, right? You even tried showing off by giving a lecture at Tantalos."
"Of course I know."
Qi techniques are skills that use qi to strengthen the body.
Geon infuses qi into all things in the world, Gon extends qi beneath one's feet to become one with the earth. Gam strengthens the body itself, and Ri twists the principles.
I know all of that. I can even use all of them except Ri. The problem is just that my body can't keep up.
"Usually, just achieving Geon-Gon is considered usable. If you grasp up to Gam, you're treated as an outstanding qi practitioner. The basic condition for becoming a general in the Military Nation was also learning Gam-qi technique. If you can do that much, beyond that it's a matter of scale. Well, Ri has such extreme individual differences so it's an exception."
"Why is Ri an exception? Is it because you couldn't learn it, Mr. Shei?"
"No! It's because the realm each person reaches is different so they can't be compared!"
'It's true that I couldn't learn it either...! Tch. Even with training and broadening my experience, I just can't understand Ri!'
Well, asking someone who regresses through time to recall a core image they want to achieve is funny anyway. You can just do it next loop, right? If you've overcome death, do you really need principles?
"Anyway. From what I saw, you had definitely grasped up to Gam, right? Well, depending on talent or educational policy, there are cases where you grasp Gam first, but with the Military Nation's curriculum, it's in the order of Geon-Gon-Gam-Ri. So for a brief moment, I thought you were general-class."
"Hahaha. I don't know what to do with myself."
"Well, I still think you could fully become general-class depending on your training. For that, I need to accurately grasp your current state."
Shaking his head, the regressor pushed the handle to me.
"Grab the handle tightly with Geon-qi technique, and stick your feet to the footboard with Gon-qi technique. Get on the sled and keep your balance. Try to hold on as long as you can. Consider it training."
Ah, so in other words.
You're going to hang a sled behind this rattling cataphract, put me on it, and drag me? Now that's a prank Azi would love. Haha.
...You're joking!
A cataphract moving at high speed. To not fall off here, I have to pull that rope with my grip strength. My grip, or arms, or waist, or legs. If strength in any part slips even a little, at that moment I'll immediately lose my balance and crash face-first to the ground.
I wouldn't even be able to specify where I died! My body would be ground to pieces on the ground and scatter debris over hundreds of meters as I die!
"What kind of training is that! That's punishment, no, execution!"
"If it's not hard and painful, it's not training."
"I won't do it! What era do you think this is, building strength with such crude methods?"
'What, with just that much. I've even been dragged around wearing only straw sandals? If I didn't protect the straw sandals with qi, the soles of my feet would get completely scraped. This is better than that, right?'
That's a bad practice! You suffered it so you're making others do the same? The reason this society doesn't improve is because of people like you who blindly follow bad practices!
"I thought you'd give me elixirs or treasures. Why would I suffer voluntarily? Give the sled to Azi!"
"Woof?"
"Right, Azi. You came at a good time. This will be more fun than just sticking your face out and staring blankly!"
When he waved the handle, Azi, who had been yawning out of boredom with only her upper body sticking out, showed interest and approached.
As if this handle could be Azi's toy. I made Azi bite the handle and pulled the rope to play tug-of-war. Well, calling it tug-of-war, it was nothing more than struggling not to let go of the rope every time Azi twisted her head.
"My, look how strong you are."
"Woof woof! Harder!"
"Gently, gently. You're several times stronger than me. It won't make a difference even if I put in strength."
Seeing me playing with Azi instead of showing interest in training, the regressor clicked his tongue.
'...This is the most training-negative guy I've met throughout all my regressions. Wanting to become stronger is instinct, isn't it? I never expected them to refuse when a master offers to oversee their training.'
Due to my stubborn refusal, the regressor slightly changed his attitude.
"In my view, you have sufficient potential."
"The Military Nation's training officer said that to me too. This kid seems to have talent but clearly doesn't put in effort, he said. I resented it then, but now I'm actually grateful that they believed in my potential."
"I'm not being sarcastic! Seeing that you're skilled at qi techniques, magic, and alchemy overall, it's not that you lack talent. Just, how should I put it... everything feels somewhat blocked."
You know it well. Here, this is my limit! A person who knows that so well is trying to drive me ruthlessly?
"I'm sorry, but I've grown too old to envision new possibilities for the future. Sadly, this is my limit."
"No, it's different. From what I'm thinking, your body's balance seems to have broken down."
"Balance?"
"Yeah. It's something I've experienced once too, but when you learn skills with different properties together like magic and qi techniques, that... what should I call it. Your body tilts to one side? Your balance gets ruined. Correcting that balance is important but..."
How funny. I haven't experienced such difficulties as you mentioned.
I am the King of Humanity. All knowledge and skills granted to humans, I can handle as if they were my own. It's just that I can't reproduce them due to the lack of absolute amounts of magical power and qi.
Then wouldn't increasing magical power and qi be enough... I thought, but no matter what I do, power doesn't gather beyond a certain level.
I don't know the reason. Probably 'that incident' where the King of Humanity lost their power is related.
What incident that is... I don't know. Really.
Rather, I'm the one who wants to know.
I'm not lying. Azi has inherited a promise made long ago, but if you ask what it is, she'll just tilt her head and go "Woof?"
No matter how outstanding a detective is, they can't reproduce the situation at the time just from looking at a contract. By the same logic, even if the promise is passed down, memories aren't transmitted along with it. I speculate it's probably a curse or seal, or something close to it. Perhaps related to the first saint...
Anyway, since it wasn't entirely a balance problem, I gave a half-hearted response.
"Will I become stronger if I do that? How about you just give me elixirs or treasures instead? I can put them to good use."
"There's no way you can properly use power gained without effort! I'm telling you I've had a similar experience! If you do it right, you can break through the wall!"
'The way of handling qi and the way of handling magical power are completely different. Qi is the power that moves my body to cause change in the world, and magical power is the power that reproduces the changes occurring in the world into my body. From within to without, from without to within. Since they have opposing properties, when you try to use both together, they keep clashing... Umm. How should I explain this.'
Hmph. Nothing ventured, nothing gained? The moment you put in effort, you've already lost something. Just watch me!