00017 [Part 1] [Potion Seller] ------------------------------------------------------------------------=
[Potion Seller]
Having changed into the robe handed to him by the instructor, Last headed out to the hunting grounds to test his magic in actual combat. Perhaps because it was already late in a village where players rarely came and went, no one else had set foot in the hunting grounds.
[As night deepens, monster abilities increase by 5%.]
Hunting grounds untouched by light were the exception, but in hunting grounds with a stark difference between day and night, this message appeared as night deepened. When night grew deep, monsters' wild nature grew stronger and their physical abilities were enhanced, making them far from easy to take down. Of course, the trade-off was that item drop rates and experience also increased by 5%.
"Their eyes have turned red."
The Rabbits' eyes, which had looked nothing but cute during the day, now sparkled red as blood. Watching them blink their red eyes in the darkness was rather horrifying.
Even so, they were no match for Last. Even if they hid in the darkness and launched ambushes, he had grown so accustomed to fighting Rabbits that he could dodge their attacks almost instinctively.
"Phew~."
Before he knew it, his level had risen and both his stamina and mana had recovered. He invested his stat points into Intelligence and the rest into Agility, checking to make sure there were no Rabbits nearby.
"Then shall I try using magic now? Skill window."
As he called out the system command, the skill list of an Apprentice Mage appeared before his eyes one by one.
[Mana Arrow
Proficiency: F
Consumes a certain amount of mana to create and fire magical arrows.
Chant: "O Mana, become an arrow that pierces my enemy."]
[Memorize Lv 1
Proficiency: F
Can memorize up to 3 incanted magics.
Chant: "Can I truly say that I have understood all things?"]
[Mana Shield
Proficiency: F
Consumes a certain amount of mana to create a thin defensive barrier at a designated location.
Chant: "Protect me from my enemies."]
[Mana Control (Passive)
Controls mana.]
[Incantation Lv 1 (Passive)
When incanting magic, deploys a thin defensive barrier within a certain radius.]
[Light
Proficiency: F
Consumes a certain amount of mana to create a sphere that illuminates the surroundings.
Chant: "As I walk a narrow and dark path, I behold a single strand of light."]
[Fire
Proficiency: F
Consumes a certain amount of mana to ignite fire at a designated location.
Chant: "I beseech thee, a flame that incinerates my enemy."]
"It looks like Mana Arrow is the only attack magic."
The skill tree was sparse. Even an Apprentice Swordsman had about two attack skills. It seemed the saying that a mage was difficult to raise until they could pull their own weight was true.
"Can't be helped. Well then... O Mana, become an arrow that pierces my enemy. Mana Arrow."
It was much easier to use than when he had practiced at the training hall. As he recited the chant, an unknown magic circle formed before his outstretched hand, and a membrane that looked like it could be easily torn with a knife formed around him. His control was still inconsistent when aiming at monsters, but the strain placed on his hand had lessened considerably.
"I was told that what's needed to use magic is mana, formula, and image. Since I obtained it as a skill, it's good that the burden on those three elements is lessened, but..."
The advantage of having obtained Mana Arrow as a skill was that it took less effort to control. Conversely, the disadvantage was that since it was standardized as a skill, he couldn't freely set the power, number of arrows, size, and so on. At the training hall, he had gathered mana directly to create the arrows, so he could freely adjust the number of arrows, but the Mana Arrow skill at Proficiency F fixed the number at three.
"I could do it without using the skill, but..."
If he didn't use the skill, there was no need for an incantation. He would gather mana, shape it into arrows, and fire them. That was all there was to it, but he had to consider mana and power regulation, image, and understanding of the formula, making it impossible to focus on combat.
"I wonder if it'll get somewhat better if I raise Mana Arrow's proficiency. Somehow, it's not easy at all."
Mana Arrow at Proficiency F could basically fire up to three arrows. As proficiency increased, the number of arrows and power grew while mana consumption decreased. Of course, with Mana Arrow at Proficiency F, if he regulated the mana, he could increase the number of arrows in exchange for reducing power. The problem was that when he inserted his own image and mana into a skill where mana, formula, and image were standardized, he effectively had to consider five elements.
"Ah, would this work? Can I truly say that I have understood all things? Memorize. O Mana, become an arrow that pierces my enemy."
He used Memorize to store the formula and image needed to cast Mana Arrow. Since he had pre-satisfied two of the five elements with Memorize, wouldn't he only need to consider the remaining three? With that thought, Last pointed at a nearby Rabbit.
"Mana Arrow. ...As expected."
His prediction was correct. Thanks to Memorize, control had become easier.
"The problem is that Memorize's proficiency is low, so I can only remember three magics. For now, let me check out the other magics too... and recover my mana first."
He took a deep breath and drew in the mana of nature. A small amount of mana began to fill his body and mind. Perhaps because his level was low, it didn't take long before his nearly depleted mana was fully restored.
"Then this time I should practice Mana Shield. Protect me from my enemies. Mana Shield."
A thin defensive barrier formed of mana was created in the direction his hand was extended. He tempted a Rabbit to attack him as a test, but after the Rabbit headbutted it twice, the shield shattered into pieces.
"The defense is an issue, but maybe it'll be fine if I put in more mana? Besides, it seems I can change it into whatever shape I want as long as I have the image, so it should be fairly useful."
Triangles, squares, even stars were possible. As a test, when he made a small circle, it was thicker than the shield that had used the same amount of mana. It seemed that the smaller the area, the higher the defense.
"As I walk a narrow and dark path, I behold a single strand of light. Light."
It was a magic that created a sphere of light at a designated spot. If he moved away, it automatically followed him. He couldn't use it for long because his proficiency was low, but it was a decent magic for illuminating the night.
"I beseech thee, a flame that incinerates my enemy. Fire."
Depending on the situation, it could probably be used as attack magic. Of course, only if his proficiency was high. When he used it on a Rabbit, it ended up merely singeing its fur.
"I guess skills need to have a certain amount of proficiency to be usable."
Last used magic while dodging the Rabbits' attacks. Generally, mages were weak in close combat, but based on his experience as a swordsman, he could easily evade attacks from monsters like Rabbits. He dodged attacks while muttering chants and quickly cast his magic. When his mana ran out, he recovered mana from nature, and when his stamina ran out, he recovered with the potions he had bought.
"Haa... haa..."
By the time he drank his last potion, he had reached level 8. The proficiencies of Mana Arrow, Mana Shield, Memorize, and Light had each risen by one, reaching E. Though they had improved from before, the difference wasn't glaringly obvious.
"Haa... haa... I'm out of potions. Shall I stop hunting here?"
Last placed the spoils obtained from the felled Rabbits into his inventory. Since he had fought only Rabbit-type monsters until reaching level 8, his inventory was full of Rabbit spoils.
[Three-Branched Herb
Grass that Rabbits enjoy munching on. They say it's good for your health if eaten.]
"...Can I eat this?"
His stamina had fallen to half. He could make it back to the village without issue, but he was suddenly struck by curiosity.
Last took out one of the herbs that the Rabbits had been munching on from his inventory and chewed it thoroughly. When the bitter green juice spread through his mouth, he frowned, but after seeing his stamina gauge rise, he chewed another.
"It does recover stamina. Let's see, is this the herb they were eating?"
He used Light to find the grass that Rabbits enjoyed eating. When he plucked and swallowed one, the recovery amount was greater than the herb the Rabbits had eaten.
"Not bad. I'll eat all of this and head back to the village."
In the end, it is said that Last pulled up and ate the grass that was essentially the Rabbits' feed until all his stamina recovered, earning the Rabbits' resentment, or so the story goes....
---------------------------= Afterword ---------------------------=
Chapter 3 [Potion Seller] begins.
The three elements of magic: Mana, Formula, Image.
Mana is the energy needed to use magic.
Formula is that which materializes individually varying rituals or concepts into form (reality).
Incantation is that which materializes conceptual images into form (reality) together with Formula.
Image is the core element directly connected to Incantation and Formula.
In other words, to use magic in C.Y:
1. Image the magic you intend to use.
2. To pull the abstract image into reality, use Formula to concretize, form, and generally standardize it.
3. Add Incantation as seasoning to the framework that is the established Formula.
4. Once materialization construction is complete, interfere with the world's principles by calling the magic's name.
This is what is called standardized magic. Of course, you can also use magic using your own personal mana without using skills.
The problem is that the necessary tasks must be carried out simultaneously.
1. Image it.
2. While imagining, concretize the image.
(Number of arrows, mana required, mass, thickness, length, etc.)
3. Maintain the image, maintain the concretization, and imbue the mana required for materialization.
4. Maintain the image, maintain the concretization, imbue mana, and manifest the magic.
ps. The character 'Karon' has not been deleted~ He decided to quit the game, but he isn't prepared to delete Karon yet. Perhaps he wants to keep him as a memory. The existence of 'Karon' is nothing more or less than an attachment to the protagonist, whatever it may be.