Chapter 85
“The human kingdom.” Part 6.
[The skill Mana manipulation has leveled up to level 3!]
[The skill Mana manipulation has leveled up to level 4!]
Kalysto uncrossed her legs and placed the soles of her feet on the bed. She bent her knees and emptied the quiver full of arrows, then put them into the inventory, which indicated that she had created one hundred and two so far.
A couple of beads of sweat slid down her forehead, and she hurried to wipe them away.
It had only been a little over half an hour since she had started practicing with the quiver, but she was already feeling tired. So she ate another thel.
“So now I can create four arrows per minute” and although she was very curious about that fact, the next round she dedicated herself to create them more slowly while she focused on feeling how the mana came out of the palm of her hands and the tips of her fingers until it impregnated the quiver.
The skin on the inside of her hands began to prickle, almost as if it was pressing her to stop doing it that way and hurry up. She had to stop several times and take a deep breath before continuing again, this time with her eyes closed so as not to lose concentration.
The stinging sensation returned, but this time it was not as unpleasant. And despite keeping her eyes closed, she could feel the mana slightly warming her palms and fingertips and then see small dots of light coming out of those places and soaking into the quiver. Then she tried to force the mana to come out not only through those places but through the rest of the skin of her fingers that were touching the quiver.
She couldn’t get it on the first few attempts, but fifteen minutes later, not only had she succeeded, but she could also feel the pair of system notification windows opening up before her.
[The skill Mana Manipulation has leveled up to level 5!]
[The skill Mana Sense has leveled up to level 3!]
[The skill Mana Control has leveled up to level 2!]
“Soon I’ll be able to test not only my new theory but all my ice skills as well," she got excited as she imagined what her ice daggers would look like when she could finally conjure them.
It wasn’t until an hour and a half later that she finally managed to get her mana down to the soles of her feet while still filling her quiver with arrows.
[The skill Mana Manipulation has leveled up to level 6!]
[The skill Mana manipulation has leveled up to level 7!]
[The skill Mana Manipulation has leveled up to level 8!]
[Mana Sense skill has leveled up to level 4!]
[Mana Sense skill has leveled up to level 5!]
[The skill Mana Control has leveled up to level 3!]
[The skill Mana Control has leveled up to level 4!]
[The skill Mana Control has leveled up to level 5!]
All of her forehead was bathed in sweat and she had to take another grade II revitalizing potion to reduce her fatigue level, which again had reached ninety-nine.
Then she put away the last batch of newly created arrows and saved them in the inventory, whose box now indicated that she had created eight hundred and thirteen arrows.
“I wanted to get to a thousand,” she muttered, but she figured she had leveled up enough to the skills of mana control and manipulation to begin her experiment.
Then she pulled out one of the stones she had been given to raise enchantments and held it in her hands as she stood on the cold ground.
“Ice creation!” She muttered, concentrating on bringing the mana not only to her hands but also to the soles of her feet. But a layer of ice began to form on the stone long before she could finish visualizing the mana reaching south of her body.
She tried again and again, getting the same result before she put the stone down on one of the bedside tables and pulled out another.
Ice creation! She thought, feeling how it cost her not only more effort but a greater expenditure of mana to use a skill mentally, and as the mana flowed out of the palms of her hands and the tips of her fingers, she struggled to get it to the soles of her feet.
After another ten more attempts, the usual notification appeared before her again.
[Warning: user has only 10 MP left. Please wait a few minutes before attempting to use any skill again or your health will be severely affected.]
[The skill Mana Control has leveled up to level 6!]
[The skill Mana control has leveled up to level 7!]
[The skill Ice Manipulation has leveled up to level 6!]
She pulled one of Caranthir’s potions out of her inventory and took a sip, enjoying watching her MP increase by two thousand points.
“I can’t believe I’ve been wasting this potion until now.”
Then she touched the ground beneath her feet with the back of her hand. And although it was cold, the floor she hadn’t touched was cold too, so she couldn’t tell if her experiment had been a success or a failure.
So she sat back down on her bed.
“Purification! Purification!” She whispered, touching the soles of her feet. And she stood up on the bed, putting her feet where her bottom had previously been warming the sheets. And she concentrated this time, with another stone in her hand, on using the skill.
She closed her eyes and breathed in deeply.
Ice creation! She thought, concentrating by feeling every little change that happened inside her body as the skill manifested and trying to recreate it afterwards, without invoking it.
It was an hour and twenty minutes later, when she began to feel the fingers of her hands going numb and the coldness in her feet increased.
Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.
When she opened her eyes, not only were the stone on her hands and her fingertips covered in ice, almost half an inch of the sheet around her feet was as well.
She immediately closed the collection of notifications in front of her that prevented her from seeing clearly.
[The skill Mana Control has leveled up to level 8!]
[The skill Mana control has leveled up to level 9!]
[The skill Mana control has leveled up to level 10!]
[Mana Manipulation skill has leveled up to level 9!]
[Mana Manipulation skill has leveled up to level 10!]
[The skill Ice Manipulation has leveled up to level 7!]
[The skill Ice Manipulation has leveled up to level 8!]
[The skill Ice Manipulation has leveled up to level 9!]
[The skill Ice creation has leveled up to level 7!]
[The skill Ice creation has leveled up to level 8!]
[The skill Ice Creation has leveled up to level 9!]
“Yes!" she shouted excitedly after closing the windows. “Ice manipulation!” She said, concentrating on melting the ice on her hands and touching her forearm to the ice around her feet, needing to check that what her eyes were seeing was true. “I did it! I really did it!” She then thawed the ice on her feet as her lips began to shiver with cold.
She ran to put on her underwear along with the clothes she had taken off before bathing, the pair of socks and her trusty pair of black tennis shoes. She pulled another of the blankets out of the closet and pulled it over her, then walked over to one of the few candles in the room, which was still burning and brought her hands close to the small fire, wishing it was even bigger and that the crystals on the walls that lit the room could also produce warmth as well as light.
In the meantime, her frozen hands slowly acquired some heat again. Then Kalysto took out one of the small bottles of holy water she had and took a sip, feeling the characteristic healing itch spread throughout her body.
“I definitely need more holy water," she concluded.
Ten minutes later, as her hands regained their body temperature, it was that she realized that half of her bed was completely soaked.
“Damn!” she grunted, realizing that she would no longer be able to sleep there, at least not for that night.
And after letting out a long sigh, she removed the sheets from the mattress, and spread them out on the couch to dry faster. Then she took out the unbound home stone her boss had given her as a reward.
“Home stone!” She whispered, standing in the empty space between the bathroom door and the stone toilet.
A violet-colored window appeared before her.
[Warning: the user has attempted to use a home stone that has no information engraved on it. Do you wish to set this location as the destination point?]
[YES/NO]
“Yes.”
[The user’s current coordinates have been engraved on the home stone. Then say out loud the activation phrase for this home stone.]
Kalysto blinked, feeling confused at the system’s request. Since she didn’t want to get confused in the future or change the keyword, the queen had set with the other two stones, she decided not to change it.
“Home stone," she said. And a new window opened before her.
[The activation phrase has been set - are you sure you want to use the phrase “Home Stone” as the activation command?]
[YES/NO]
“Yes.”
[The user can now use the homestone. The return coordinates of the respective return stone have been updated. If the user wishes to change the destination point, the “reset destination point coordinates” command must be used.]
She immediately took out the home stone that would take her back to her room in the fairy kingdom and activated it. A couple of seconds later, the soft glow of the magical barrier protecting the food Alynn had left on her bedside table allowed her to see Tsuki’s silhouette asleep on her pillow.
Her heart was softened by the sight of him, and though she couldn’t wait to join him and sleep beside him. She picked up the loaves of bread Alynn had left for her and put them in her inventory, along with the cheese and collection of theles she left for her on a tray.
Then she lay down on the soft, cushioned bed next to Tsuki, whose ears twitched alertly. In the next instant, the little one sniffed the air and his body relaxed as he recognized her.
“Tsuki, let’s go hunt more slimes! Level you up and try out my new skill!” She whispered excitedly as she petted him.
But her pet didn’t seem too happy with the idea. And after he gave her a drowsy look, he laid his head back against the pillow.
“I’ll give you half of one of my cupcakes if you come with me and help me” she tried to bargain, and the little guy frowned.
Apparently, he didn’t understand what I said. Kalysto thought.
So she took out her black backpack and then one of the cupcakes inside. After breaking it in half, she put one of the two parts under Tsuki’s nose. Who woke up immediately at the delicious smell.
As soon as her little fenrir was about to take a bite, Kalysto withdrew her hand.
“No, no. We are making a deal here, my dear Tsuki. You accompany me to kill slimes and get more of their cores until the sun comes up, and I give you the cupcake.”
Tsuki gave her a sharp look before turning to where Alynn’s collection of delicious breads had been, protected by the magical barrier that kept Tsuki from eating them or from deteriorating and losing the warmth of freshly baked bread.
A pitiful whimper came from Tsuki’s throat as he saw the delicious treat he had been waiting for disappeared. Then he pointed a paw at the empty space.
“Arff?” he demanded with a bark.
Kalysto, on the other hand, blinked, confused and surprised at her pet’s great intelligence.
I definitely have to stop comparing him to a dog! She thought.
“You’re pretty smart, aren’t you?” she commented with a smile. Tsuki then sat up on his hind legs and stuck out his chest, completely proud of himself as he wagged his tail full of happiness at the praise he was receiving.
Kalysto hugged him.
“All right! I’ll give you just half of one of Alynn’s bread as soon as the sun rises if you help me, and half this muffin as soon as we get to the forest. Do we have a deal?”
And as Tsuki barked in acceptance of the deal, a violet window appeared before Kalysto.
[Does the user wish to make a soul binding contract with the sacred beast, Tsuki?]
[YES/NO]
They both blinked in surprise at the pair of violet windows that appeared before them, while Tsuki tilted his head in confusion.
“Arff?” He asked her.
“Don’t touch anything and don’t do anything until I tell you!” Kalysto ordered him and she immediately rejected the system’s offer.
What the hell is wrong with this thing? Don’t show me that again when I deal with Tsuki! She thought with annoyance.
“Tsuki... are you a sacred beast?” The fenrir nodded his head.
I can’t believe he actually understands everything I say, except the meaning of a cupcake! she thought. And what the heck are holy beasts? How many types are there? What do they do? Are they immortal or indestructible? What advantages does it give me to have one?
As a casual reader of the fantasy genre, there were many things she didn’t know, but the question was whether that phrase had the same meaning in this world as it did on Earth.
“Inspect!” she said. And her pet immediately curled up against the pillow, curling into a ball while tucking his tail between his hind legs and hiding his genitals from her. “Stop doing that!” However, Tsuki didn’t stop in his attempt to hide his personal information from her.
Now I don’t know if he has a natural ability to block me, or if my skill level is too low compared to his. She thought with annoyance.
“Let’s go to the forest before the sun rises, Tsuki,” she said as she got up from the bed and headed for the door.
Only then, Tsuki decided to follow her.
The next morning, the training in the kingdom of Balsac went almost the same as the day before, only this time Kalysto, Katia and Gabriel were put to practice archery with the other soldiers, instead of making them waste their time training with the sword.
And while Kalysto helped Katia correct her position before shooting an arrow and ignored Gabriel’s constant stares, Milo arrived at the training center with his dark hair tied with a ribbon behind his neck and an elegant navy blue tunic.
He looks like a nobleman. Kalysto thought.
“All those who have the wizard class come with me. Miss Luna, please come forward!” Kalysto was surprised at the sudden call, yet he approached the handsome court mage without dropping her bow or abandoning the arrows that were in the quiver she had been given for training.
“What’s the matter?” she asked as soon as she reached the small group. Of the seventeen heroes, only four others had magical skill, apart from her.
“Your training will be different from the rest. So today we will go to a dungeon.”