Chapter 157 - 156: Hunting Bounty
After running through it a few times in his mind, Zelir raised his Magic Wand again, attempting to trace the Spell Structure for Aurora Energy Beam using the new method.
Soon, a point of light bloomed once more.
This time, the point of light wasn’t as restrained as before. Its diameter was a full size larger, forming a much bigger Arcane Energy Ball.
A blue beam of light shot out from the wand.
When it struck the scarred boulder, the Aurora Energy Beam didn’t cleanly bore a hole through it. Instead, like a cannonball, it directly triggered a violent explosion!
"BOOM!!!"
The blast was deafening. The furious Aurora Energy Beam blasted a massive crater, over a meter in diameter, into the surface of the boulder!
Countless cracks spiderwebbed outwards, sending shattered rock flying in all directions.
Compared to the piercing effect from before, this version of Aurora Energy Beam focused more on area of effect, and its destructive power was also quite impressive.
Against heavily armored enemies, the former would definitely be more effective.
But if the target was lightly armored or unarmored, using the second casting method directly would have a much better killing effect.
Zelir also noticed that the Aurora Energy Beam he cast wasn’t purple like the One-Eyed Giant’s, but blue.
’It’s probably because our Magic Power is different in nature.’
’This is for the best. It’ll prevent it from looking too similar and attracting unnecessary speculation from others.’
After developing Aurora Energy Beam, the next was Fractal Fire.
Fractal Fire was also a Level Four Single-layered Spell Structure Magic.
In a way, its effect was similar to the Flame Breath Skill. Its single-target power wasn’t strong; its main application was for wide-area damage.
Depending on the user’s Magic Power reserves and output, it could condense multiple powerful Fireballs for a scattered attack.
Zelir gave it a try. A brilliant red light flared at the tip of his Night Peace Staff.
Seven Fireballs materialized before him, lined up in a row and radiating intense heat.
As Zelir pointed his Magic Wand forward, the seven Fireballs shot out, covering a large, fan-shaped area in front of him.
"WHOOSH WHOOSH WHOOSH...!"
The Fireballs tore through the air and exploded one after another on the distant riverbank, kicking up a thick mist of water.
In terms of power, a single Fireball was slightly stronger than the Level Two Magic Fireball Skill. Its true strength lay in its numbers and wide coverage, making it a decent Magic for clearing out mobs and providing suppression.
And then, there were the three physical Beneficial Magic spells...!
These were the Magic spells Zelir had been eagerly anticipating.
He could cast a full set of enhancement buffs on himself, and combined with the physical prowess granted by his Magic Contract, unleash terrifying combat strength!
Zelir reviewed the Spell Structures, then began Casting them one by one.
Swift Blessing.
Gift of Barbaric Strength.
Indestructible Body.
With each buff he cast, Zelir felt a distinct change happening inside his body.
His body grew lighter, his coordination improved, and his speed increased.
Magic Power fused with his flesh, causing a surging sensation to well up from deep within his muscles, amplifying his Power.
His skin and body also became tougher, better able to resist external attacks.
He drew his sword!
The cold gleam of the Fine Steel Longsword flashed from his hip as he brutally slashed into the boulder.
Sparks flew. Faced with such savage, enhanced strength, the hard stone could not resist and was split by a deep gash.
Zelir pulled out his Longsword and began practicing the various Sword Techniques that Gray had once taught him.
As expected, with his physical abilities elevated to another level, even the originally plain and simple Sword Techniques could be extended into various new moves at his will.
’The pinnacle of Swordsmanship truly is adaptability and complete mastery.’
’When your speed and Power surpass your opponent’s, no matter how exquisite his Swordsmanship, to you, it will be full of openings!’
However...
This immense Power did not come without a cost.
Although the benefits from the enhancements felt great, the Magic Power cost was just as astonishing, much like when he had cast the Healing Skill.
Zelir discovered that these three Magic spells had drained about half of his total Magic Power reserves.
’That’s just absurd...’
’And that was just from buffing myself. Casting buffs on others would consume even more Magic Power.’
’Looks like I can’t use these as a standard part of my repertoire.’
After he finished practicing, Zelir looked at the Longsword in his hand and felt that something was still missing.
Yes...
’The quality of the sword itself is good, but just hacking away with a bare blade seems a bit too plain and simple.’
’I wonder if there’s any Magic in this world that can enchant a sword blade?’
’Something like Wind Blade, Fire Blade, Water Blade, or some other Magic that increases cutting power.’
’I’ll have to look for some when I get the chance...’
Afterward, Zelir tried out the other new Magic spells he had learned.
The Flame Control Skill was a type of Magic that could precisely ignite a Flame on a target. Even if the target had no flammable material on it, you could sustain the Flame by continuously channeling Magic Power into it.
’But its destructive power isn’t great. I guess you’d call it a counter-measure Magic.’
The Calm Mind Skill and Vitality Granting were decent Empowerment Magic spells. The former helped to stabilize one’s Spirit, while the latter restored a certain amount of Physical Strength.
Their consumption wasn’t too high compared to the Healing Skill and other Level Four Empowerment Magic, so using them after a battle was acceptable.
Among the Magic spells Zelir learned this time was also Spring Resonance.
Its effect was to increase the flow rate of Magic Power, making the process of Sketching Spell Structure even faster.
In other words, it was a Magic that boosted the Intelligence Attribute, but it had no effect on Magic Power Strength.
The more advanced Magic Harmony was still being analyzed. That one should be able to augment Magic Power Strength.
All in all, having acquired so many new Magic spells, his strength had increased considerably, and he was now equipped to handle a wider variety of situations.
After finishing his experiments, Zelir turned his attention to the Blazing Flame Shield, Ring of Resistance, and Flame Thunder Spear, which were still being analyzed.
The first two would shore up his weakness of being unable to defend against Magic damage.
And the last one was an extremely powerful Level Four Attack Magic with a multi-layered Spell Structure.
He could use it as a benchmark to determine exactly where the threshold was for him to break through to Middle Level Mage.
...
「Two days passed in the blink of an eye.」
Zelir arrived at the Mage’s Guild in high spirits.
He had even deliberately chosen to come in the afternoon to avoid the peak rush.
When he arrived at the General Affairs office, the Elder Mage wasn’t sleeping today. Zelir guessed that the sheer number of people collecting their rewards was making too much noise for him to rest.
"Hello, I’d like to collect my reward for the Monster Hunting," Zelir said.
"Zelir, is it..."
The Elder Mage flipped through a register and found his name. "You don’t collect it here. Go to Manlin’s office. She left specific instructions."
’Collect it from Instructor Manlin’s office?’ Zelir was a little surprised.
"Oh... all right."
Zelir turned, left the General Affairs office, and headed to the small building.
He knocked on the door.
"Come in." Instructor Manlin’s gentle voice came from inside.
"Good afternoon, Instructor Manlin." Zelir bowed slightly in greeting.
"Good afternoon, Zelir."
Instructor Manlin’s gaze swept over Zelir a couple of times. "Have you been resting well these past two days?"
"Quite well. I feel energized enough to go on another Monster Hunting trip," Zelir replied.
"There aren’t that many Monster Hunts for you to go on. The Guild can’t afford the trouble..."
Manlin chuckled. "You’re here for your reward, I take it?"
"Yes, Instructor Manlin."
"It’s all here."
Instructor Manlin pulled open a drawer beneath her desk and took out a small, bulging pouch she had prepared earlier.
"After calculating the reward shares and factoring in the value of the spoils you acquired, the total comes to seventy-two gold coins."
Hearing this number, Zelir’s spirits immediately soared.
"Thank you, Instructor Manlin!"
He stepped forward to take the money pouch, his joy plain on his face.
With this handsome reward in hand, his personal coffers were full once more, instantly soaring to seventy-eight gold coins.
For the time being, he wouldn’t have to worry about money.
"Oh, right. Remember those Magic Plants we collected at Moon Bay? I saved some for you as well," Manlin added.
Zelir paused, a fresh wave of pleasant surprise washing over him.
’What an unexpected bonus.’
"Thank you, Instructor Manlin!"
"Don’t be so quick to thank me."
Seeing Zelir’s happy expression, Manlin couldn’t help but let the corners of her lips curve up slightly. "Have you learned the Low Level Recovery Potion formula I gave you?"
"I’ve learned it."
"Oh? Then I assume you’ve tried it yourself."
Manlin asked with interest, "Were you successful?"
"No..."
Zelir shook his head. "I tried three times. They all failed."
Manlin wasn’t surprised by this result.
For a novice Alchemist, failure was the norm. Success would have been the real surprise.
’Finally, I get to see a more normal side to this little guy...’
’If his talent in Magic Potion Science was as monstrous as it was in Magic, that would just be unfair.’
"Which step did you fail at?"
"After extracting the essential components from the ingredients, I failed at the fusion step. They always annihilate each other due to a violent rejection."
"The first two times, they were gone before I even put them in the water. The last time, the fusion failed in the water."
Zelir recounted his experience in detail.
"Afterward, I cross-referenced with the *Introduction to Magical Potions* and realized the problem was probably that the purity wasn’t high enough during extraction."
"And the purity of the extracted essence is directly related to one’s Magic Manipulation Level. So, I think I need to improve my Magic Manipulation Level first before I can seek a breakthrough in Magic Potion Science."
"Not bad. Your understanding is very thorough."
After hearing Zelir’s clear and logical analysis, Manlin nodded in satisfaction.
"The higher your Magic Manipulation Level, the finer the filter you can weave from Magic Power, and the purity will naturally increase."
"This is just the first hurdle you’ve encountered. As you go on, you’ll discover that the Alchemy of Magic Potions doesn’t just require a high Magic Manipulation Level; you can’t fall behind in Magic Power Strength either."
"The fusion Spell Structures for some advanced Magic Potions are extremely complex, no less so than those for Magic spells."
"However, don’t start doubting your own talent just because of this one failure."
Manlin stood up, walked over to Zelir, and gently patted his head.