Chapter 467: Chapter 467 - High Time I Change That
"Ow...my everything hurts. I think this sparring might’ve been a mistake," Groaned Celestia, wincing as she poked at a bruise on her arm.
"Uh, well...I made sure not to break anything, at least," I replied sheepishly.
"Easy for you to say, when you can regenerate. Damn it, I wish the Magic in this world was like the Magic in your world, where basically half the population were able to use Healing Magic. Or at least those Magic Item things you told me about, an object that heals you just by running Mana through it sounds so convenient," She sighed wistfully.
Yeah, Magic Items don’t exist in this world. They do have barriers to detect and keep out Monsters from populated areas, those are made using Mana Crystals.
Mana Crystals are usually used by Adventurers to boost their Magic and physical abilities, pretty much all high quality gear and weapons are embedded with those crystals.
According to Celestia, the maximum boost you can get to your Magic using Mana Crystals is about fifteen percent. Not a lot, but far from insignificant.
Mana Crystals work differently with Physical Magic users, since they don’t cast their Magic outwards. Physical Magic is passive, it works on its own without any real conscious effort from the user, so Mana Crystals boost that effect and make them stronger.
To get back on topic, Mana Crystals work differently when it comes to Barrier Magic. By casting a specific Barrier Magic Spell on a Mana Crystal, it automatically activates a copy of that Spell on a large scale, though it only lasts a few hours and needs to be re-activated four to five times a day.
Anyway, a couple of days had passed since those S-Ranks showed up and attacked us. As I’d suggested, Celestia and I had sparred against each other, me to get more used to my new body, and her to get more accustomed to her new blades.
She revealed the technique she’d invented, boosting her speed by channeling lightning throughout her body. She can only maintain it for about five minutes, but during that time, her speed exceeds even mine.
But after it wears off, it takes a bit of a toll, her movements get stiff and slow for a while. So, it’s a bit of a double-edged sword, a weapon she can only use if she’s at least relatively certain that she can end the battle before the time limit of that technique wears off.
When we began sparring, I’d initially held back a bit, but I didn’t have that luxury after she unleashed her speed boost. We both ended up landing some significant hits on each other, and while I healed right away, she had no way of healing.
I no longer have the ability to heal others, and each person only gets one type of Magic in this world, so yeah. That said, the stronger you are, the stronger your body’s natural healing ability is.
And since she’s an S-Rank, she should be good as new by tomorrow. But, well, for right now, she’s probably in a fair bit of pain.
"You know, what, I think I’m just going to practice against a tree or something from now on. You hit way too hard, it felt like I was taking blows from a warhammer," She frowned.
"Hey, in my defense, you were way too fast for me to hold back against, I had no choice but to stop pulling my punches. On that note...that Jerik guy, I’m pretty sure he said that he’s one of the strongest S-Ranks in Hyuma. And he was pretty tough, but...your speed far exceeds his, by a lot. And you’re faster than I am too. So, I’d say there’s a good chance that you’re actually the strongest Adventurer in the nation."
"Well, I did underestimate just how powerful my speed boost technique is. So, yeah, maybe I am the strongest. But, then, that’s only for about five minutes at a time. I’m maybe barely in the top ten without the use of that technique, and that’s being generous," She replied with a wry smile, before adding, "Also, you’re improving at a pretty insane rate. At the level you were when we started sparring, we were about evenly matched once I unleashed my speed boost, but before I knew it, you suddenly had the advantage. I was still faster than you, but your reaction time is crazy. Also, your tail...that thing moves way too fast."
"I mean, it’s not like I was training myself up from scratch, so the rate of my improvement isn’t all that crazy. I’m just adapting and adjusting my existing skillset to this new body, and I also have this sense of instinctive intuition with the abilities of my new body, which is definitely helping me make those adjustments faster," I explained, as I stretched my arms up.
"So, then, have you fully adapted to this body now?" She asked me.
"No, I’m not quite there yet. I’d say I’m about half-...no, closer to two-thirds...-of the way there, more or less," I estimated as I opened and clenched my fist a couple of times.
"Huh? Does that mean you’re only at about sixty to seventy percent of you full strength and speed?"
"Not quite. It’s more a case of efficiency, my movements should grow sharper and more efficient, but that isn’t directly proportional to strength and speed. As far as strength goes, I’d say I’m pretty close to hitting at full power at this point. I’ve got a bit more room for improvement with speed, but I’m pretty sure that even at my full speed, I’ll still be a bit slower than you when you use your speed boost technique. Speaking of, do you have a name for it? For that matter, are Spells named at all here?"
"Oh, yeah, you mentioned that most people need to chant the name of the Spell to cast in your previous world, didn’t you? Yeah, Spells do have names in this world, it’d be inconvenient otherwise. See, we have Grimmoires for every Magic Class, they describe how each Spell of the specified Class works and how to use it. And for the sake of convenience, the Spells are named. For example, with Lightning Magic, you’ve got Spells like Lightning Bolt and Lightning Beam.
Although, once you master enough Spells, you don’t really need a Grimmoire anymore, since most stronger Spells are just bigger and more intense versions of basic Spells, so it just becomes a matter of being able to cast your Spells on a larger scale. And with the exceptions of Physical Magic, and using Healing and Enchantment Magic on yourself, all Spells are cast outwards, that’s just common sense.
But since I had to solo so many Dungeons, I had to really push myself, and a thought occurred to me. What if I cast my Magic inwards like with Physical Magic? It seemed like a stupid idea, especially since Physical Magic is the sole Magic Class that works passively, the user doesn’t need to put in any conscious or deliberate effort to use it.
But I figured it was at least worth at try, it’s not like I had anything to lose. So, I was pretty surprised when it actually worked, though it took several months of intense training after that to master it upto my current level. I do feel like I still have some room for improvement with it...not with the actual speed boost itself though, I think I’m close to the limit of how much I can boost my speed with this technique. But I think I should be able to make it last longer if I keep working at it. Wait, what were we talking about, again?"
"Names for Spells, you did get a bit off-topic halfway through," I laughed, before adding, "But yeah, that makes sense, the more you use that technique, the more your body gets used to it, and the longer you should be able to maintain it as a result. Since it’s a Spell of your own original creation, why not name it?"
"I guess I could...not sure what I’d call it, though. Maybe Lightning Speed Boost, or simply just Lightning Boost?"
"I mean, those work, sure, but they’re kinda uninspiring. You should think of something cooler...mind if I suggest?"
"Yeah, sure. Go ahead."
"Let’s see...oh, I know, how about Electro-Velocity?"
"Huh...no idea what that means, but it sounds cool, so sure, let’s go with that."
"Wow, just like that?"
"Yeah, I mean, it doesn’t really make a difference either way," She pointed out with a shrug
.
"Fair enough."
"By the way, got any ideas on how I can creatively use my Magic? Since you’ve lived two other lives across two different worlds, you’ve got quite the unique perspective."
Yeah, I suppose so. Hm, a way to creatively use her Lightning Magic, huh? Let me think...
Oh, how about electromagnetism? That could let her manipulate her blades without even touching them, not to mention disarming opponents with metal weapons.
But it might be hard to explain it to her...not just because she doesn’t have any concept of the idea, but also because, well, I don’t really know how it works myself.
Wait, I do know of a couple of anime with characters who use electromagnetism, maybe she’ll get the idea if I show them to her.
"Alright, I might have something, but I don’t really have the knowledge to properly explain it, so let’s watch an anime that uses the concept I’ve got in mind," I suggested.
"Sure, sounds good! That’ll be like two birds with one stone, I get to be entertained while also possibly getting a new technique," She grinned in response, starting to head back towards the cave before wincing slightly.
"Uh, you okay?"
"Y-Yeah, just aggravated a bruise. This really sucks...I wish I at least had some booze or something to help dull the pain," She sighed wistfully.
Now that she mentions it, I could go for some intoxicants myself...I’ve been sober the whole time since reincarnating in this world, and I think it’s high time I change that. Emphasis on high.
