The professor moves us outside to a nearby magic range like the one on the hunters guild. The idea is that we have to cast a spell and meditate and look for ways to reduce the mana used. This is a really hard part since the skill system gives me no help, it just gave me a flat discount when I put points into it.
We aren't here to work on the mana spill that happens when you cast a spell, that's part of [Mana Efficiency]; we are not here to change the size of the spell, that's [Mana Control]; what we have to do is build more with less. Instead of building a spiral stair we have to create a ladder directly to the target, it's gonna be more fragile and more difficult to traverse but it's gonna use less materials. This is fine for a single spell but we have to understand the rule that lets us apply this method to every single spell to conserve mana.
The bell chimes and nobody makes any progress. I look behind and Alissa is nearby watching from afar. I wave goodbye to Toroo and Hatara and go back home.
The girls got Ciel's equipment. Another Grey Berserker jacket and pants, steel vambraces and gauntlets, she also has a light small-sized leather targe to protect against arrows, and a backup iron short sword. The glaive blade is a green dragon fang, not emerald, this one has affinity with wind so it helps her wind magic.
The glaive has a long wooden shaft, a single-edge blade at the top and a small hook at the back. It is a mid point weapon, slower than a spear but faster than a halberd, less slashing power than a halberd but more than a spear, less piercing power than a spear but more than a halberd. The range is also mid point, it definitely wins against a long sword so her advantage is still range and dexterity, she can use the sword for close encounters, though.
Ciel was pouting since the equipment is expensive but it's a gift from us, it's also quite literally the same quality as all our equipment so we are all even now.
Hana found a good request for us, a nest of dragons was found and now a merchant is offering a group subjugation request. When a dragon nest is found it's the responsibility of the local lord to subjugate it but since dragons are really valuable (considering our most valuable equipment comes from an emerald dragon) there's always a merchant who will post a subjugation request for it. This one is also an escort request since the merchant will extract the scales and meat on"site, a dragon corpse is too heavy to carry without enough space mages. The meeting to negotiate and choose from the interested fellowships will happen at the 9th.
"S-so… you all take a bath together?" Ciel asks.
"Yep, it's a tradition now, even during an expedition we all must take a bath together. Our bath is sacred," I say.
"Our bath is sacred," Alissa adds.
"Our bath is sacred," Roxanne joins and laughs.
"Our bath is sacred," Hana finishes with a nod.
Thank god even the bath has sound protection, Hana is always a little loud and even Roxanne gets loud when she gets in the mood.
For dinner Alissa brings out the premium Grey Berserker fillet steak and Hana opens a fine blue wine. Ciel is another lightweight with alcohol.
"Hohohoh, it's like I left one family and already joined another," Ciel says while wobbling her head about.
"Well… you did, quite literally, since these are all my fiancees," I say.
"Hm, yeah! Quite happy to join the hen house, hohoh."
"We are happy to have you here, as an equal," Alissa says, she's a bit flushed.
"Yes, as an equal," I say and smirk.
Ciel chokes a bit. Gotta be subtle.
We spend some time on the living room and Hana puts Roxanne to sleep with her brain massage. I teach Ciel how to massage Alissa's ears and with me working her tail she soon falls over her book. Ciel is very amused with this sight, she has to stifle her laugh not to wake up Alissa when she sees we all sleep on a huge bed.
Today is the 6th.
I feel something pulling me, it's like heaven opened its doors and I'm being forcefully dragged into it, then I feel my soul leaving my body while I'm showered in pleasure. I wake up and Hana is swallowing, she seems very proud.
During morning practice Ciel joins too, she has quite a lot of dexterity and speed. It has been a while since she used the glaive so she's a little rusty but she's definitely gonna be able to defeat me, that is if we don't use magic, once she gets back in shape. Not that I'm implying she's fat, good thing she can't read my mind.
The griffin is watching us again and he brought a platypus with him this time. He seems particularly interested in Ciel.
"Awn, there's even a nature spirit here. They never come near the temple, there's way too many people there," Ciel says while pouting.
"I gained some levels in [Nature Magic], perhaps I could befriend him soon."
"Please do! They bring good fortune to people who treat them well," she pleads.
"We all wish the same, but here he is practicing the sword again," Alissa says smirks. Roxanne laughs and nods.
"Oh you…"
Ciel is quite excited so she and Hana go practice on the hunters training grounds. I secretly told Roxanne to look for a dress for Ciel, I want to reserve one to give to her on a special occasion.
Class is [Space Magic] again, today we learn how the chants for this magic school works. The chants are basically whispers that follow a cadence that increases in speed, for [
Telekinesis
] it takes 5 seconds to say the words, which normally makes it inconvenient to use in combat like I use. My style is to only cast the spell when I'm striking and then end it after the strike. Trying to swing around an object under the effect of [
Telekinesis
] is a quite odd since it's not under the same gravity as I am, so I have to adjust the force on it to match the environment after the strike otherwise it becomes a waste of mana.
I can also use [
Gravity Crush
] now but it's a rather destructive spell so I just practice my [
Telekinesis
] on the small block of metal we have been given. An object too light would be difficult to control, but I can easily do fine movements with the amount of [Mana Control] I have now.
"You were already practicing [
Telekinesis
] last class weren't you?"
"Dyuh~!" I let out a dumb noise in surprise.
The gnome professor is floating besides me and looking at me with curious eyes. I was concentrating so much on my spell I didn't notice him silently float towards me.
"Uh, yes, I was. How did you notice?"
"My [Sense Mana] is very high. Impossible for me not to notice, but I never saw you chant."
I try to not cringe while I force an innocent smile.
"I have a bit of a talent for [Space Magic], I never need to chant," I lie.
"Hmm, so are you aiming to learn [
Gate
]?"
"No please, the last thing I want is to be chained by the empire."
"Heh, it's not like they enslave you," he discreetly rolls his eyes, "You can get permission to walk free if you serve long enough or someone backs you."
"Backs me? Is the blessing of a god not enough?"
"Not really, but aren't you an adventurer? If you get enough achievements a lord is a good enough backer for exemption. I know a few of the famous fellowships around can use [
Gate
] freely."
Hm, that's a good idea, but I'm not sure Alaraste would give me such a favor, this exemption sounds like a much bigger thing than the town pass. Bypassing customs might allow me to bring illegal goods into town and such things but being able to freely use [
Gate
] means I can transport anyone I want nearly anywhere. I know there are ways to block [
Gate
] from being used but these countermeasures aren't so easy to use.
When I get back home I see Ciel with an exhausted face, she slowly walks around the house, it seems she won't be able to help with cooking today. Hana is beaming a smile and after my strength training she drags me into the bath where I fuck the shit out of her, wait no, that sounded a bit too disgusting.
"How was training?" I ask while Hana massages my brain.
"Wonderful as always, but I'm having to spar with the instructors more, the other students aren't a match for me. Maybe I will fight those living-armors, they sound interesting. Oh, the best was Ciel though, people asked about her and if she was 'Mr. 'Good Luck's' new woman'. She was way too flustered to answer them properly so I just left it like that.
"Oh, that sounds good," I say. Except for the nickname.
"Ciel is a wonderful woman, I wonder why she was single for so long," Alissa says.
It seems Alissa and Ciel are getting along well.
Seeing Roxanne wash Alissa's tail and ears is getting me into the mood again. I pounce on Roxanne.
After dinner I see Ciel cuddling Alissa and playing with her ears.
"Hm… I'm feeling envy," I say.
"Heheh, those ears are way too cute to let them alone," Ciel answers.
"That's not exactly the envy I feel.
Is it harassment if I keep saying things like this? Ciel doesn't seem to dislike it, I can see her cheeks redden. I guess flirting on this world needs to be more straightforward.
Today is the 7th.
I feel as if I'm wrapped in pleasure, just happiness and warmth. I don't want these days to ever end, this is a small piece of paradise. Ah, the pleasure increases in intensity, it increases more and more. I'm feeling such a burst of pleasure.
I open my eyes and I see a happy Alissa swallowing, she did the same as Hana.
"Next morning is Roxanne's turn," Hana says.
"I-I'm not that good with this, I'm sorry.
"I will teach you tonight during bath, don't worry," Alissa says.
"Uh… what's going on?" I say, groggy.
"Don't worry, just enjoy it," Alissa says and she gives a last lick that gives me shivers.
My [Space Magic] increased by 1 (now 0+12) and I learned [Muscle Explosion], Alissa's [Muscle Explosion] also increased by 1 (now 0+2).
Today I decided to look into the university's library for the first time. I want to look for a [Light Magic] book and see if there's at least a small introduction on it. There's light rain today so I don't feel like sparring, even when Hana and Ciel teased me about it.
The first part of the library is a large corridor where there's 2 floors filled with tables and chairs dedicated for study. The chairs here seem more comfortable than those on the classrooms.
After the large corridor there's a huge spiral staircase that goes up 10 floors, each floor has a long corridor that makes it impossible for me to even guess the amounts of books. There are no windows along the corridors of the bookcases, the light there is only a dim artificial light. In the middle of the staircase [
Telekinesis
] powered glass elevators ferry scholars around, looks beautiful if you are not afraid of heights.
The architecture here is quite grand, following the baroque style of excessive columns, twisting designs, gilding and, sculptures of famous figures everywhere. The ceiling of the spiral staircase is a large glass dome with stained glass with the symbol of the university and the heraldry of the lord, a black kite with a golden sword and rose crossed. I can hear the pleasant tip-taps of the rain on it.
With my ID as a researcher I don't have to pay to enter, but I will pay a hefty price if I damage the books. I walk past the study corridor and near the start of the bookcases there's a counter with the name "Reception". I go over it and there's a man with his back to me, he's bent over collecting some papers from archives.
"Excuse me."
The man raises his body and his head instantly turns 180º and faces me, large grey eyes stare into my soul.
"HYAH!"
"Oh sorry…"
The man turns his body and aligns it with his head. His large eyes look apologetic to me. He's an owl-type wereanimal with grey hair with white streaks and a small curved nose.
My ears are burning with shame, in this silent library my scream echoed around the entire building.
The man coughs," Sorry about that, I'm new among humans and I forget doing such thing scares them.
"N-no problem, I understand. A-anyway, I'm looking for an introductory book to [Light Magic], do you have any?
"Let me see… ," he brings out a large book and sifts through many pages.
"7th floor, corridor D, section 4, that's where the [Light Magic] books are," he says.
I say my thanks and take the elevator. I take the slow elevator and enjoy the view.
The nostalgic smell of old books makes this place so comfortable to be in. Next time I study monsters I think I will come here and bring Alissa too, this place is much more pleasant than the dungeoneering guild.
I find many books and treatises on [Light Magic], things like proposed new spells, research of known spells, diagnosis, epidemiology, psychology of wicked and evil beings, analysis of undead and how to fight them, beneficial effects of magic and pairings of potions with spells. Finally I find a small section with a few small books, it's "Teaching Light Magic to Children".
The book mainly teaches about child songs that stimulate the spell chants so a child can at least use [
Clean
] and stimulate the learning of [
Spirit Light
], for those who might have talent there are a few tests to see if the child can possibly learn [
Heal
].
For the parents there's some explanation on how to keep the house clean, it seems they have a basic notion that things like bacteria and viruses might exist since the spell [
Clean
] impedes wounds from festering and [
Purify Body
] can heal diseases and even drunkenness. It's possible they over rely on using the "Status" windows to identify wounds and diseases, the "Status Effects" window gives symptoms and treatment is based entirely on what is said there, even though I know there's times symptoms don't show, like the mind poison from the arachne. It seems [Diagnosis] is a rare skill and practical tests are not that developed. Magic is convenient but it's blocking the progress of technology.
I copy the chants and go to my office to practice them. The way you need to sing [Light Magic] is upbeat and with a fast tempo, it reminds me of nursery rhymes. So far I managed to cast [
Clean
], [
Spirit Light
] and [
Heal
] through chanting, it takes from 30 seconds for [
Clean
] up to 3 minutes for [
Heal
], the book says [Light Magic] is the one who takes the longest to chant.
Alissa brings lunch for me and we eat together at the office.
"Isn't it tiring coming and going all the time?" I ask.
"Not really, I feel that my stamina in the fox form is increasing, perhaps I will level my skill soon. Also… I really enjoy when you ride me…"
"I do too, you are so fluffy."
Alissa blushes and her tail wags.
It seems Hana and Ciel quit trying to spar in the rain and they are now drinking hot tea after a hot bath.
"Tease them in my name," I say.
"You don't even have to ask."
I spend the rest of my time until class cuddling with her. If the walls were soundproof I would definitely make love to her here, perhaps I can use the gag again, but it will have to wait for next time.
During class the Gloomy Pervert brings us to a place with lots of plants, since it's raining we use the greenhouse. There's plenty of dangerous and poisonous plants around so we are confined into the flower section. I see all kinds of flowers, from the common ones like lilies and poppies, to exquisite colored roses, and others with complex and mesmerizing arrangement of colors. There's even a few very precious flowers that glow, which we are not allowed to go near.
Chanting [Nature Magic] is almost whispering, it's very slow tempo but there are not many words so it's faster than [Light Magic]. The idea is literally whispering to nature and since the "conscience" of nature is not very complex you have to reduce the amount of words to the minimum possible to get your idea across.
I successfully cast [
Entangling Vines
] on a dummy in front of me and [
Regeneration
] on myself. Most people also achieve the same, being so close to nature helps a lot in casting such magic. At the end of the class I manage to cast a weak version of [
Vine Weapon
], it creates vines, manipulates them in a shape and hardens them. In a pinch it might be useful to have a vine sword or to create a throwing weapon, though I have no skill with it.
Tonight Alissa gives me even deeper scratches, she does not seem ashamed anymore, is she turning into a sadist?
Today is the 8th.
I feel like I'm being pulled, dragged by the tip of my fingers towards somewhere nice and pleasant. I want to reach such place faster, it's taking too long. I'm getting tired from walking, that place doesn't sound so enticing anymore. I wake up and a sad Roxanne greets me, even though Alissa trained her yesterday it was not enough. I spend a few minutes consoling her, her pride as a sex demon is hurt.
Today my [Light Magic] and [Nature Magic] increased by 2 (now 9+4 and 0+8), my MP increased by 20 (now 560) and my "Magic Power" increased by 10 (now 235).
The backyard is muddy so Roxanne heats the ground and drains the water, with a magic skill high enough you start to be able to manipulate the elements at your will though it's much less efficient than casting a spell.
With that I train [Battlefield Perception] by being surrounded and attacked by the 3 girls. It was really painful, Hana massaged my brain during the bath to compensate me.
Under a covered magic range we learn how to chant [Electric Magic], it's basically fast rapping. I manage to chant [
Lightning Bolt
] but I couldn't chant [
Shocking Touch
] yet. Lyle was one of the few who completed [
Shocking Touch
], but after doing it once he cast the bolt repeatedly until he fainted, he was like a child during Christmas.
Strength training and satisfying Hana leaves me drained. Tonight I ask Alissa to put me to sleep with her hands. With the rain it got chilly so we turned on the fireplace and we are all around the living room cuddling.
"Every time I see you you are hugging or touching someone, it's like you are made of glue," Ciel comments to me.
"This is the dream of every man, to be able to be in touch with a woman you loved during all times."
"Pff, no wonder you have three women."
"And I couldn't be happier."
After I fall asleep on Alissa's arms Hana carries me to bed. I enjoy this, I have no shame anymore.
Today is the 9th.
I wake up full of energy as usual with the help of Hana.
Today my [Electric Magic] increased by 3 now (0+5), my magic progress is amazing.
Me and Alissa go to the guild. A large room has been prepared for this meeting and a long line of interested parties waiting for an interview is on the way. It seems a dragon subjugation is really profitable.
I see Simon on the line, we trade a nod. I hope he doesn't participate.
We have been discussing negotiation tactics during our meals, Hana or Roxanne can't really give me advice during the talks or I will look weak so they have been guiding me. As the girls instructed me, I put 10 points into [Acting] and 10 into [Mental Resistance] temporarily. Hopefully it's enough to prevent people with high "Charisma" from messing with me.
When it's my turn we enter and the first thing I see is an elegant woman with fiery red-hair, she has asian eyes and a delicate triangular face. She wears what looks like to be a red qipao with yellow roses embroidered near the bottom. Her eyes tell me she's bored and she lifts an eyebrow when I arrive. I still haven't fixed my image, even with a scar on the cheek I look like a baby who had an accident instead of a reliable an experienced hunter.
Beside her is a small girl with a pale face, droopy eyes, and straight black hair with bangs. She looks expressionlessly at us yet she still looks cute and feminine. She has a simple black dress with a bit of frills. On her neck is a black metal necklace with a tag, she's a traditional slave.
Behind her are two tall dog-type wereanimal women. They are wearing a simple hauberk, leather pants, and a longsword on their belts. They have a snout, square jaws, and a sharp gaze. One has black hair and long pointy ears of a doberman while the other has white hair and furry white ears, the doberman has a thick black tail standing upright while the other has a furry and curvy tail standing low.
"Good morning. My name is Wolf Ryder, I'm the leader of Helios, this is my fiancee, Alissa."
"Good morning. I'm Hildegard Roth, I represent the Armorer's Guild who's funding this request. This is my slave assistant, Lina."
The girl sifts through a stack of papers and then pulls out one.
"Helios, 5 members.
"Wolf 'Good Luck' Ryder, summoner, magic swordsman, possess the blessing from the Goddess of Knowledge.
"Alissa, blood slave, expert archer, possess the blessing form the Goddess of Love.
"Hanafuria, blood slave, experienced adventurer and merchant escort, skilled with many weapons, capable of dueling with the instructors of the guild.
"Roxanne, mage, experienced adventurer and potion-seller, posses an original and very powerful magic called [
Explosion
].
Ciel, former priest, experienced in polearms, wind mage and a main healer of the temple, also participated as warrior priestess in the past.
"Notable hunts: Grey Berserker, Orc Headhunter, Oodogloo in a single night, Symbol of Hate, Orc Chief," Finishes the girl, even her voice is cute.
"Symbol of Hate..." Hildegard mutters with eyes wide open, "So you are that one... well then, besides what has already been said, what else can you bring to us?"
"Alissa is an expert tracker and capable assassin, she can work as a scout or with us as the vanguard during the travel. I'm very versatile, I have some knowledge of Electric, Light, Nature, Space and Blessing magic. Roxanne's potions can enhance strength so it gives us a chance of standing toe to toe with a medium dragon for a short while."
Hildegard smiles.
"What is your price?" She asks.
"1 gold and half for each member."
Hildegard frowns.
"You should know killing the Symbol of Hate is not a small feat. We can protect you even if a large dragon appears but we are not specialized in killing dragons, so we can only protect."
"The Symbol was killed by your mage by a stroke of luck, her ridiculous magic is the only reason you are alive," Hilde says with a dismissive tone.
Pff, only
now
Roxanne gets the credit.
"And yet we killed a 200 years old creature. It wasn't just luck, I still have the scars on my body, my point is we are not gonna get scared so easily."
"I can get tons of squirts who are ready to throw their lives away on a bargain, bravery is cheap," she says and motions dismissively with her hand
"And bravery is not all we have. During the battle with the Orc Chief it was our versatility that saved the fiancee of the Lord's son, even the Lord himself showed his gratitude to us. My elementals became the stability points in both battles we had during that expedition."
"Such feats by a small man are hard to believe, you didn't even exist 3 months ago," she says and narrows her eyes.
"Then perhaps we shall test him," says the doberman woman with a grin, I can see sharp canines.
I summon a titanium skeleton earth elemental. The guards grasp hilt of their swords and the small girl gasps.
"I'm a very skilled summoner, my feats aren't a lie," I smile innocently.
"N-no chanting..." Mutters the white weredog woman.
"You can strike it with all your might and test his durability," I say and motion to the elemental.
Hilde nods to the doberman woman. She draws her sword and gives a savage overhead strike to the head of my elemental. A loud *ding* resonates on the room, the elemental didn't even flinch and the woman draws back her hand in pain. There's a chip on her sword.
Hilde and her attendant trade whispers.
"We will offer you the role of vanguard during the trip and protection during the hunt," she says.
"Sounds good to me."
"70 silver."
"1 and 30," I say with confidence.
"75 silver."
I narrow my eyes.
"1 and 30."
"85."
"1 and 10."
"90."
"1 gold, final."
"95 silver."
"Final," I repeat with hint of anger.
Hilde bites her lips.
"Deal."
I let a long sigh in my mind, I'm so tense. I just followed the script, first brag about our accomplishments, then assure our bravery, and finally show off since my magic is quite impressive. The price you want has already been set but you always aim higher to gauge the desperation of the other party, I almost buckled and accepted 95 silver.
"Half now, half after completion," she says.
The day of departure wasn't defined so I ask for it to be on the 11th. We will take a full day to reach the target and we will spend 2 days at the nest, then we return on the 14th. With this I have one last day of rest before classes start again, the lessons have been easy so I don't need a long rest.
Today I increase my [Blessing Magic] by 1 (now 8). After class I complete my knowledge of dragons up until late at night, it seems the library is a popular place for owl wereanimals after sunset. Alissa was like a small child looking at the grandiose of the library with wonder.
Dragons are a very smart race, depending on their lineage they can be as smart as humanoids and even hold conversations with humans. They still have the unstoppable need to kill humanoids whenever they meet but some are capable of temporarily suppressing it and allowing conversations to happen. Orcs are another race who are smart enough to talk and they are even born with innate understanding of Andraste and a few other languages, but they are incapable of controlling their bloodlust so hardly anyone ever talked to an orc. For the orcs there's no need to waste breath on someone who's about to die, either the orc or the humanoid is dying soon anyway.
For me it raises questions about the morality of killing and eating monsters, is it not cannibalism to eat orcs? Apparently there are monsters who are born without such bloodlust, because of that Dragolites were domesticated and there's even a dragon knight squadron on the empire using domesticated dragons, so is it fine to kill indiscriminately? There's barely any debate about "tamable" monsters, it's like people do not really care whether or not monsters can talk or that you could actually befriend them, monsters are monsters and they get killed and eaten if they are hostile.
In my obsession with trying new foods I ended up ignoring how human looking orcs and goblins are, it's like how easy it is to eat chicken but hard to watch how it's prepared. I'm not sure it's cannibalism but even if it is, it's not bad, is it? The whole world eats goblin meat and there are orcs in most places of the world. I guess in the Age of Oppression you had to eat what you killed or otherwise you starved, so it could have been then that the tradition of eating any sort of monster must have started.
While I think I feel something change in me, my "Wisdom" increased by 1 (now 16), with this I can see spells up to level 30. Fucking awesome!
There are a few interesting spells now, like [
Gate
] from [Space Magic], [
Detect Evil
] from [Light Magic], [
Soul Search
] from [Spirit Magic] and [
Fly
] from [Wind Magic]. Unfortunately the only 2 viable spells for me would be [
Detect Evil
] and [
Gate
], the others I have no trained levels in it so it would be a waste of my skill points and only [
Gate
] has immediate use. [
Detect Evil
] is interesting because I can use it to detect wicked people when I touch them or "feel" harmful intent from people around me.
I still don't understand how I "unlock" spells. My guess is that it's related to maximum MP, "Intelligence", "Wisdom" and soul level.
Today is the 10th.
I train [Battlefield Perception] again but I only increase my [Block] by 1 (now 8). Hana improved her [Tatesomu Style] and [Sword Use] by 1 (now 4 and 20) and much to her happiness gained [Oral Technique] with 1 point.
At the [Reduced Mana Cost] class nobody progresses. I have another tea time with Toroo, she's a magic craftswoman who's trying to create illusion magic tools. When I tell her of our expedition she asks for dragon eyes, if she studies them she might find out if dragons have a weakness for certain illusions.
At night I light a scented candle and everyone puts the Clothes of the Berserker, then we rub oil on Roxanne's tail. She remains on the throne as Empress of Sex, hopefully that title is not lèse-majesté.
The first day-cycle of my school life ends up quite uneventful, it seems I have been reading too much manga and my expectations became quite warped.