COI C84
After their weekends, they return to their daily lives as they gain something new during their visits. The shield student will be busy going on the weekends with the Raker Mawn guild inside the city, he is not allowed to visit in Stranding Island because it was meant for the embassy from the very beginning. The students were happy but not satisfied as they need to grind the mastery of their control. The drawbacks were immense to see what happened to their UIs, they are getting worried and to think that there is anything to mention about it. Ironically it did, and it was the same day where they have it.
While in the fort, the leaders or authoritarians had already learned about their progress. It’s going to get dangerous when the entire city can learn to have their own power independently. The elf leader however feel relief once she heard it among her sisters.
“That’s good, it will only lead to delay their time to survive long enough until they fully realized it, both their independence and secrets of their mana”
“Will Mylnoie have time for this crucial event?”
“Even I have gained a title only befit for this place, and I am sure they will come to this city. Demons will always take the best fruits where they plant it”
The mage and the other Agatheans who are with the demon leader, one of the few demons are here, and this gathering made it frightful to be heard among themselves.
“It is going according in time, but these children are late blooming. The city itself grows like a tree instead of a farming produce”
“Speak none of these slangs, even words got out that more people who visit from Enders Bridge obtain other ways to gain their mana control”
The demon lord brings up the book once raided from the east coast. “Ironically, including the traitors. Neutral mana has so many benefits . . . but it mainly belongs to the Primarch”
Pesters among each other for the name of that title, never once heard from the demons to speak that title unless the conversation is serious. The title as it called identify as king among demons, but there is no hierarchy, only one demon possessed the power of a creator. The demon leader speaks about the mana controls
“It slowly coming together now. The same were happening back from the previous eras, they are rediscovered the arts of our magic. Fastly than we always expected, be ready, their powers back then will be as dangerous as the beginning”
The adventurers who were isolated from Enders Bridge had finally come home. Their signal reaching the city troubled them to have a proper internet, then the swarm ends, and they have the convenience once again to the entertainment needed while staying there. People from other cities from the northern region are also coming home after switching exodus to both citizens of their respected city. The moonlight causes hindrance to their journey back home, made it better to travel on foot than randomly causing problems to their magic teleporting network.
Those adventurers who made it to the city guild, showing off the abilities they have to the guild groups. Team Platinum was there, witnessing the improvement of their power levels but kept the rank of their classes to be the same. B ranks against each other, then soon after the higher ranks. Gordon Truefan from the Sun's Skies, being baffled at the moment of the games they played. One of the Team Platinum members, MRage, the mage who was challenged to do arm wrestling match with magic while they use theirs bare.
Both of them grab each other’s hands readying to pull some shenanigans, seeing by touching on their palms already something distorted. When it started, the adventure acting dumb released his aura without even enhancing his arm. MRage looks annoyed to see his own magic arm begin to weigh down after that stunt. The adventurer started to look annoyed how he plays around with him, and his own bare hand resist the magic arm he made. The magic wasn’t supposed to interact one another. It will disperse once in contact. The adventurer did something to him. The magic arm begins to bend.
The magic forearm from the adventurer starts to show muscles trying to move against the opponent, showing signs of using his own strength. The adventurers thought it was some tricks, but mages who can see through the mana flow see he contains the magic it has and preventing it to lose its control. Basic control to stay in form without needing more mana to keep it existing. MRage had already stop using his mana on his arm as the adventurer is using his as his own. The channeling link is shown to both of them, realizing there is no competition on each side but one is hosting it all.
The adventurer stops using his aura, and proceed to win by slamming MRage’s arm to the side. He won, and the mages understand what they saw. The other adventurers listen to what they seen.
“It looks plain, but he did control his mana impressively”
“Is this going to be our next stage being able to fight to become stronger than ever before?”
“I would like that, and fighting against runes would be best for me”
“Now I am getting curious when Team Platinum will be honing these new skills”
Paladin, from one of the Team Platinum, head to MRage and ask about the situation.
“What did you add during that match?”
“They, said that they have mana control. You already see his aura can’t reach through his arm. The arm band has runes to block the mana flow, but the aura itself is siphoning my mana as it leaks. Resulting what I could believe is true, all the magic casters can see it”
Paladin however, didn’t expect it to be true. Those adventurers are controlling other people’s magic, that is going to change drastically when others will learn this ability.
The sparring made the other adventurers take another shocked from what they seen. A lower rank managed to last longer from the higher ranks. She still lost but the impression made they give to the adventurers worried and at the same time hope to the lower ranks. Even their own words put some praised among the people at the back
“I am a C rank adventurer. I know I was attending to Enders Bridge with little survival skills I have. Now look at me now, handling myself against an S rank”
The staff cheered for her and the other adventurers of her group start coming at her and raised her up for her achievement. The S rank claps for her as he moves back to his group telling them what happened.
“Her new familiar, not shamanism, it was her old pet who always need to be fed with mana. A support type that bears fruit of healing orbs and such. That thing carries her to survive, and one last thing, that thing thinks for itself”
A familiar that it thinks of its own. They didn’t see it as it quickly destroys when he realized it. It creates more impact when they have control of it.
Those adventurers cheering around to them stop, as they see Heist and his friends from Stranding Island. His fame grew out of the chaos from the rumble, while the Rogue at his side with her well entertaining fights. Heist had made others swing on him how he is fighting against multiple of people around him, they thought it was chaotic, but reality it is automatic. They don’t care, because multiple fighting at the same time made them witness how coordinate the others are. It wasn’t a brawl. It was a fight of mid cooperation until nonsense to their allies. The Horsin knows who are the threats and which of them to take out.
They see the adventurers who obtained their control as the two of them already had theirs. Lower ranks meet higher ranks who had their mana controls. From both sides, they can’t sense if they have it but words got out made them curious about it. A simple greeting with a little magic to the side, both sides show their fruits of their labor. The Rogue however had some training with Thean during her time in the island, she has learned a few skills in her set and her new abilities on full control. The adventurers shake their hands, neither side feel or sense their mana through their UIs.
The stats board for both of those S ranks are rogue class, their stats are either jumbled or hidden. While the rogue class can identify them but can’t see anything else to see through their skills sets but replace something else. The Rogue reacted in a soft voice
“Pervert”
Heist sees it too “I guess you don’t know”
“Know what?”
“We are rogue class, meaning we can identify your stash now”
“Stash . . .” The male adventurer didn’t get it what they said and turn to the female adventurer, she is the one is blushing
“Ok? What is going on?”
The Rogue faces the female adventurer as she thought it was his UI, realizing her mistake and blurted out.
“I thought you have something in your inventory”
The man turns and look at the female adventurer, he tries to mix and match things up as he opens up his inventory.
“All I have are all tools, why would you call me a pervert?”
The Rogue reacted quickly out of embarrassment and she tries to punch him. He uses parry and redirect her strength forward and pass them. Heist sees something nice for once. He excitedly said to him
“A B rank can actually parry her punch. Is that your abilities?”
“No, I learned from Enders Bridge. It is a forced ability and it is situational reaction. Like she did try to punch me, and boost the direction she is heading only her direction”
The four of them gathered together and talk about how they managed to have control, the results are the same. They have to do it and continue on with the price of their convenience to be taken away. The adventurers thought it will be a mistake, but realized it depends on their chosen main roles. Those adventurers who ventured to Enders Bridge didn’t learn their class properly because the Enders have knowledge of their preferred skills but they learn the basic stats required to have Enders variety abilities.
While Heist and the Rogue were learning from Stranding Island who recently got their mana control. The adventurers explain the difficulty to obtain skills based on what they learn.
“You can tell how we already learn how to use our mana in constraint. But we able to do so about a month or so. It can’t be that easy since we were learning the basics, if I have the vanilla UIs, I could be a beginner than having the basics”
“That something new for us two. The Agatheans provide the knowledge, but not as good, we have to make it ourselves since our understanding of magic is different to theirs. The best example I could tell you are the attributes”
“That’s for sure, but we learn archscience in Rune Isles. We were also helping the city to fought off the siege”
The Rogue leans forward looking at their device “Did you guys record it?”
“Yeah . . .”
She shows it to them and see only videos where occasionally being hitting around in a bunch of monsters as they fight. But she has her mind thinking about it. He continues
“. . . But we did experience something odd about those monsters over there”
“The look of your recorded lists, it looks like it is a common event happening. Somewhere between weekly basis or more”
“That’s what strange about it, those size in numbers focus in one bridge. One of our groups volunteered to venture off to the Isles with no little equipment to stay out there in the wilderness. Then the siege happens, they come back after the siege was over without any harm. I remember her saying “It always focusing on this very bridge””
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“With this video you captured, these monsters could attack this region at any moment”
“I don’t know, I heard about it when we were lying in their hospital beds. They said something alive is in the Rune Isles who survived the Fall Era. But we are not involved in their matters”
“So, about that friend of yours. What did she find in the isles?”
The two adventurers look at each other as they are as confused what this world really was. They took it out from their own personal bags, not from their inventory, sealed and hidden with a special cloth wrapped around something inside. A plating, a newly made in texture from what they see. Heist and the Rogue couldn’t believe it
“This is what she found in Rune Isles”
“It looks rather new than being a scrap material”
They couldn’t explain what it is but they brought the moon dust and sprinkle it “Wait and see”
The plating interacts with the dust as it starts to form a shell plating, an energy plating. The exposure status still pop ups into their UI, no information except the basic readings they have. Heist examined it quickly
“I can sense energy coming from a plate, electrical current, this is some strange interaction”
“We did try to understand it with their help. They give us a note instead and let our city study for themselves. Terms wise, I have no idea about magic engineering b.s.”
“Groan* Again with that complicated shit”
“Let’s wait and see what they discovered from what we brought”
In the research department, Emerald and the other researchers went too deep and compiled too much paper work among their research papers. Jigeram, new underground area, mana control, and many more they have to find out or else more they will get overwhelmed with problems than getting solutions.
“It’s getting out of hand now, we made distinct projects to improve the securities without making it look dystopian”
“The stranded adventurers brought new materials for us to check it out. These byproducts look new than it looked where the entire part of the ruins had gone for the worse”
The parts of the plating they received are either advance or mystical. Because of this world being both technological and magical at the same time, they could not grasp the law of magic due to its non-coexisting interaction. The archscience is their only basis to overcome this nuance in this world.
“This plating they found said to be always drifting on the shores. Quite bizarre and mysterious”
“The video samples showed us that this sprung out from the machines they fought along the way. Its weakness looks easy for it to die”
“The contrary of that video is the Enders already spreading those unidentified fluids”
They check further in with the notes given from the Enders themselves, it was fully handwritten and never tried to reprint it with their surviving printing machines. The adventurers said to them, they could give them a finished copy. But the written one has more interaction and minimize the size of it all. The researcher uses their magic on the note, turning itself into a book, a finger place on it as he turns the pages. Each page indulges with numerous animating drawings and multiple descriptions divided to where the reader chose to find, it cleverly helps the research to find it with ease.
“This book is fast and already let me find the right search. This plating . . . Either it be nanites or magic manipulated . . . I see”
“Did you get the idea of it?”
“Too much variation for me to see if it is really made of. As of now, we will first depict it as magic”
They look at the plating, exposed with the dust as it brings it to activate, it made everyone excited to see how can it really do. Alongside with the parts from the machines that appeared from the shrine, it starts to interact where both shines together.
Emerald left the facility, the continuation of the research of the strange materials had already bring them reaching to reverse engineer it. The other researcher rather wiped clean the hidden components inside the parts. Emerald thought it was a great idea and fear something worse might happen. One of the researchers approached her
“Are you done with the machineries?”
“Huh? I mean yeah, I only want to disassemble it to see what materials are made inside”
“They already show the readings. It made out of heavily compounded substance like most plastics”
The two discusses further as they both is eager to mention about the next topic. Emerald reaches her interest where one of the adventurers made their report as they are new. One from Stranding Island, one from Enders Bridge, and the other one that is prioritized to deal with . . . dusts.
“The causes of them not controlling their powers properly because of our UIs”
“I heard it too, but I don’t get it why it made it difficult for us to control our magic”
They thoroughly read the reports from both ends, and the common result where the Enders portray their assumptions while Agatheans made theirs.
From the Enders “Most mana controls possessed a lot of the desired stability through their chosen abilities. These conveniences if were the caused not to properly control their powers personally, then they were already superb at the start but no knowledge of their limits. This UIs they mentioned, how much information or usage does it need for someone else not able to breach and take control of it? This is only what they have stated so far. There was no further research as if it was made to be absolute or divine and not being corrupted that easily”
From the Agatheans “This profound study was written under a day, don’t try to gain anything from our findings. One of the demons we have is trying to form a mental link with your people. This is the only terms he could describe; “It’s like a computer requires enough memory to let other programs to function. This UI garnered a lot of the memory in order to exist, protected, and execute without any problems. Such limited amount leading their rest of the memory to leak. I can assume that this memory as control, and that’s the basics what we can understand it””
Emerald familiarized the samples and the researcher made conclusion to their related interaction. “I get a feeling that the UIs we have now had something to do exceeding our control. We see our magic eventually taken control by the locals during the volunteer work to scout out the realms. I could guess this, the reason why we can do both to do anything to our magic powers had unleashed will still as powerful. In the end those experienced or even skillful demons will overtake us. That’s when I’m starting to question that part of my thoughts”
“Why’s that?”
The man looks at his own UIs to see through all the configurations to the personal outlook of it. It had so much features that his mind didn’t would have thought off. Managing all of it on his head under one UI settings in each other panels, it is beyond normal mind can do to manage it all. That incident where one of them get possessed, the demon managed to control them and it is sign of the host is dead. Failed to no end.
“The only thing that blocks my conclusion is us being protected from the demonic influence”
Emerald never would have thought about it and the researcher continues “It is my ultimate question, if the demon is the source of all neutral mana. Then we borrowed their powers and destined to be trapped once wield it”
“Gulp*”
“Yet, they didn’t succeed and the poor people being possessed are the desperate and the sinful. Did the UIs are the one who is protecting us? If that so, how did the demon managed to infiltrate one of them instead entire groups of people?”
Both squander their heads of the cause of such question from one of the researcher’s trains of thought. The mana control is important, and lucky they segregated the two of its functionalities. Emerald and the researcher focus on the mana control.
“That would be enough of your observation, let’s focus on the data here”
“I hope those who gain control of their mana won’t be affecting their resistance from the demons”
“Enough of that, let’s see what the adventurers gain their new abilities after their breakthrough”
The results were outstanding to the least. All of them who gained control lost their full access to their UIs, limiting to their known aspects of their intelligence. It means from what they know it is what they have in their UIs. It would be troublesome for them not learning to survive and rely heavily on their on-hand devices. The UIs however is faster to react, as it helps them faster and even automatically protect them before engaging. It only happens if they wanted it to always appeared on their face. A lot of them rather keep it hidden out of immersion.
Those who lost their original UIs, they can now do better to control their powers. Chances are unknown, meanwhile from Enders Bridge, even though they are mostly low ranks, had shown improvement to use their magic effectively. In between magic such of the other four types of mana, they can now fight against it. That depends the quality of their powers. The best examples are the riot rune equipment with regards of the sparring with the Enders. Runes depend on quality of materials, Shamanism on charms and influences among the spirits, Elven magic through their gods, Neutral mana based on will alone but it is clearly subjective on this complicated matter . . .
. . . Finally, the archscience, the most complex of them all. All together to function separately side by side, not interfering and the same time coordinating during the process of use. These are the premises of having a stable variation of using mana efficiently. The problem now is the Neutral mana they have, bountiful but mysterious to get it or where it come from. Anywhere according to others, but it said it belongs to the demons. Only now they found out that Will is the source of control of their mana. The UI is the basics to have, and discovered it has so much that made it difficult to all of them as they reach their limits already.
“We have found the basics for the price of mana control. The only thing left now what the idiots trying to spread their experience in social media”
“You are a good thinker but that ego of yours really take the bad taste on my mouth”
“Your choice of preference. I can only describe of my faults when someone in the internet did it better. So Emerald, shall we look at it”
“Sigh* Fine, but we need find better research materials instead from the internet”
“I thought that as well, but some other people leak some dangerous intel”
They look around as anonymous, they didn’t search around in social media but in the private servers hidden among the defectors. Some poorly known sites where the best they go to when something controversial happened.
“No way”
“They already found about it”
“I thought it was a joke at the time but the slang really does fit the bill”
“It feels weird they are using it now to hide what it meant”
“Yeah . . . calling it as ‘rap’ does make it sound ridiculous”
“I’m not laughing, you?”
“Me neither, let’s hope they are not reaching that far”
They read one of the posts. “Alright, I am asking a friend . . . what the fuck is rap anyway? They made the comments sounds like is nothing about music”
“Not everyone is too keen about memes”
“Thanks to the internet they explain it in a rap battle contents”
“But those content creators weren’t summoned in the first place, and there is no creator who is making it”
“I lol when I see at the first time this rap (Required Action Points) doesn’t make sense”
“I was wondering about that too, now I realized it gets complicated when the price that it will take away your UI as the condition”
More comments proceed to argue and others were a bit humoring about the name. It gets to the point they found links to most trolls love to do. It gets the researchers nerve than to laugh at the jokes they are making. It took a bit of time and they found a commentator. One of those shut ins but the comments recommend to him as if he is special. For the sake of their research, they have to check it out.
“. . . Uhm yeah, that’s the premise of having those powers (bleep donation) . . . Oh thanks for the donation, I hope you guys are entertained as I only talk about stuff”
Emerald waits for the researcher to try asking him about the topic they are searching. His eyes look at her as he expects him to do
“I’m not giving a low life my money”
“I understand, but back in our world it is a sustainable job . . .”
“I don’t give that BS even if we are the one who setting back the progress of our research. I’ll just wait for the opportunity to ask the chat instead”
“But it would take longer than we need be”
“Says if someone sees us now looking at this and called it research. Will they actually think this part of our work?”
“Ugh, I’ll have to find some other ways then” Emerald left leaving the researcher to continue his findings.
The video sets in about more than five hours now, finding the right part of the video would be difficult but with his magic. He can search through with no problem whatsoever. The problem now is he will endure the mundane conversation the blogger had to say. He patiently listens to the right phrase about mana control, the first search through his spells is the called rap. Multiple results found but neither it is easy as it just some chit chat with no further explanation. Scowl look on his eyes as he tries harder and found something odd about the chat. Even the blogger says it too.
“What’s with all the spam there?”
The researcher retraced again the video and carefully found out the randomness of the chat is starting to make sense. The timing fix accordingly, and there were people making messages that hid easily among the wall of comments coming through. He gathered the comments with the nonsensical conversation until he got what he didn’t expect. He went back to the source who is sending the link then send the information to the forensics department.
“Is something suspicious about the indirect messaging through the public forums?”
He waits for a bit and the reply is already there. “That was quick”
“Yes, many gangs are using these tricks. Same tricks back in the dark side of the internet who used this as scams and any other malicious activities. This information though, we have it but still deem to be unclassified due to not providing solid evidence on this case”
He replies “Care we have permission to see it now? New research cases regarding mana control had relation this new term called ‘RAP’”
“For sure, but never reveal the sources where it came from. We found hackers already protecting other suspicious accounts. We don’t have the materials to produce the new software we need to combat it”
The researcher received the data, under a sealed lockout program. He looks rather annoyed to waste all the forensics programmers to make this complicated. The files are open and sees another way to have mana control. All things are setting in, the researcher have to make it fast to make the basis of these few discoveries. One entire night till morning, the man had made a draft to see this theory to be accountable for the rest of the department. Later that night, Emerald sees him stayed all night working on the draft with his computer. She walks to him and see what he is doing, laying down with coffees on the table.
“Up all night?”
“Stayed up for this theory I made”
“Is it? Let me see”
The theory explains about the common term of mana control and rap. It is gets easier for her to read as the concept is nearly identical but there are categorized into three. Main, Agency, and Religious are now called to be trending on the terms in the internet. Tutorial, Solo, and Groups are replaced from what he found out. Tutorial is having all the UI features to learn about it and everything arounds them but will disappeared when switch. Solo is self-made by the individual skills sets, very unique but difficult to identify what supposed to do.
Groups are mostly the same with solo but together. All of them will have the same abilities as their skillsets and easily shared onto the same community. It is understandable to be called as religious as the main greatest source of shared powers are the gods in these worlds or lesser, but they decide it to make it a group instead. Too flashy for the other terms. Yet they all have set backs with limitation when switching back and forth. Again, the religious part is detrimental because it has the worse when switch. It removes all the group’s abilities and traits when left, and coming back will take time to process but full potential is conditioned.
Emerald sees him enjoying his coffee and he said “That group version of mana control has the most detail among the two. The internet has secrets that we can’t possibly know. All of that is coming from the forensics department”
“!!! You mean . . .”
A call coming from her device and is coming from the city guild
“. . . Hello . . .? What!?”
The message already received as an urgent message. She opens it. The researcher asked “What is it?”
“Monsters breach happened, at the border. They are coming from the dungeons . . .”