As my vision returned to me, I couldn’t help but let out a loud groan.

I’d managed to avoid getting stabbed by the mammoth horn, but I still got rammed into the wall and my chest was throbbing in pain. It really hurt like hell.

Getting out of the wall, I glared at the beast. It didn’t seem to pick up on the anger streaming from me since it charged forward once more.

“How annoying,” I muttered.

I held out my hand.

“Wind Slash!”

Trying to morph my wind ball into something a bit more deadly, a blade of wind shot from my hand and smashed into the beast. However, it didn’t even flinch at the attack and continued charging forward. Making it clear the attack needed improvement.

“This would be a lot easier with two hands,” I grumbled.

Who knew fighting with only one hand was so hard. Curse those damn crocodiles.

But moving past that, I jumped out of the way just as the monster slammed into the wall behind me. Meaning I had to try and dodge the debris as best I could.

After that, I pushed myself to my feet and started running across the giant room.

As I did so, I glanced at the walls of purple crystals.

They only covered the left and right and both front and back were just regular stone.

Speaking of which, the beast had slammed into the wall in the back.

I’d hoped to have just run past it to the door to escape while it was recovering, but the passage that led me here was already blocked off and the set of doors not too far away were so large that they'd be impossible for me to open on my own.

Having come to its senses, the mammoth quickly began speeding after me and was catching up faster than I would’ve wanted.

What if I used the electricity from the magica crystals to shock the thing to death?

It was worth a shot.

Using myself like a red flag, I drew the attention of the mammoth as if it were a bull and dashed toward the right wall.

The beast followed close behind me and would probably close in on me within the next ten seconds. But that was all the time I needed.

Finally stopping in front of the wall, the mammoth hadn’t slowed its charge and caught up to me instantly.

“Wind Leap!”

Using my wind magic, I jumped up high into the air and landed behind the beast who slammed into the wall with a loud crash.

“Oooh. That’d be a pretty good move against normal monsters. They would’ve been shocked to death in seconds.”

“I thought so…wait, did you say normal monsters?”

Another crash came from behind me and I turned around to find the mammoth standing there completely unharmed.

In fact, instead of getting hurt, it somehow looked bigger than before.

“That’s the Magica Mammoth for you! A type of mammoth creature that gains strength from exposure to magica crystals!”

I couldn’t believe this.

“What the heck is that bullshit!?” I screamed.

This was starting to get more irritating than it already was.

Sensing danger, I jumped out of the way right as the mammoth appeared in front of me and it managed to scratch my leg with its tusk. Causing me to wince in pain.

Trying to confuse it, I stayed behind the beast in an attempt to make it think I vanished into thin air.

I didn’t know if it would be stupid enough to fall for something like that, but I needed a bit of time to think up a plan.

Sadly, it turns out that didn’t work as the mammoth instantly spun around and brought its tusks forward.

“Dammit.”

Talk about an irritating monster.

I dodged for what felt like the millionth time. However, upon doing so, it crashed into the wall behind me and as bad luck would have it, the thing managed to hit the wall of magica crystals.

Growing in size a second time.

“What kinda crap is this!?” I screamed.

Sadly, getting frustrated wasn’t going to get me anywhere.

Activating my expanded thinking, I looked the monster over when…

There appears to be a spot located near the beast’s rear that is unguarded.

I thought that was great news until I realized exactly where the spot was.

"The ass!? Are you kidding me!? Just how bad is my luck down here!?"

This meant I had to quite literally kick this thing's ass in order to take it down.

Letting out a groan, I dashed past the beast's incoming attack and tried to get a read of its rear. Sure enough, the only place that wasn’t blocked by its tough fur was right there.

With no other choice, I prepared my next attack against the monster.

Watching the battle using magic, the voice who was speaking with Axel couldn’t help but chuckle.

“This guy really is putting up a good fight. Although, he doesn’t appear to be the one prophesied to come for me. How strange”

The voice continued staring at the match. Despite the mammoth having doubled in size, Axel still managed to hold his own.

“You really are an interesting one. It only makes me think that…”

The voice stopped that sentence as a thought passed through its mind.

“Y’know…that wouldn’t be a bad idea. However, that decision only comes depending on the outcome of this battle.”

Keeping her attention on Axel, she chuckled once more.

“Let’s see how you do then…my dear adventurer.”

With that, the voice started to form an idea in its head as it watched the remainder of the battle unfold.

Dodging another attack, I tried figuring out the best angle to attack from.

Thankfully, I wasn’t close enough to the wall for the mammoth to come into contact with any magica crystals. However, with how many of these things there were, I wouldn’t put it past the monster to crash into the wall a third time if I kept dodging like this.

Deciding it was time to stop hesitating, I steeled myself and prepared for my next move. A move that while absolutely disgusting, could help me win this battle.

“This is gonna suck,” I muttered thinking about how much I hated this idea. But even so, it had to be done. Thus, I pushed my feet into the ground while chanting a wind spell to increase my speed.

The mammoth let out a loud roar as it charged at me faster than ever before. It was probably trying to go for a finishing blow.

“Wind Leap!”

Pushing my feet into the air, I flew over the beast before landing behind it.

Not giving the monster a chance to respond, I sucked in my breath and dove at its back.

“HAAAH!”

Letting out a shout, I threw my hand forward and slammed it deep into the beast's rear.

It let out a loud scream as I did so. But now wasn’t the time to consider its feelings.

“I don’t like this any more than you do you ice age jackass! So just shut up and take it like a man!”

And before anyone asks, no I don’t know if this thing is a woman or a man. But I don’t care. This thing picked a fight with me and it still deserved what was coming to it.

“Fireball! Fireball! Fireball! FIREBALL!”

Using the strategy I’d used time and time again, I shot fire into the beast's body.

The monster squealed in pain as it tried to shake my hand out of its rear.

Trying my best to ignore the overwhelming amount of torture my body was receiving as the beast slammed me into the walls over and over again, I pushed my hand in a bit deeper. This has got to be the grossest thing I’ve ever done.

“Fireball! Fireball! Fireball!”

Continuing my barrage, I noticed the beast was slowly losing energy as its thrashing got slower and slower.

A few moments later, boiling blood leaked from the monster's eyes and mouth as it shook in fear.

And after a few more moments, the beast let out one last roar of pain before puking out burnt blood and collapsing to the ground.

Once it completed stopped moving, it turned into pixels and vanished into thin air. I had won.

Letting out a sigh of relief, I glanced at my hand. It didn’t look terrible, but it smelled awful. So it's hard to say whether the whole thing was worth it or not.

“Truly incredible…if not a bit gross.”

That voice spoke into my head.

“I swear whoever’s behind that voice is getting punished for making me go through all that,” I grumbled.

Forming a water ball, I tried washing off the smell as best I could. However, it seems I’d need to get some soap if I truly wanted to get the stink out.

Thus, once the smell faded enough to become tolerable, I decided to speak with the voice.

“So this means I beat your stupid trials, right?”

I was almost expecting the voice to say something like “Nope! That was just phase one!” or “I was just kidding about this being the final trial!” but I’d prefer for it to just be over.

“Nope! That was just phase one!”

“...Huh?”

I was only joking about that! What!?”

“Just kidding. You should see the look on your face right now. It’s hilarious!”

I could almost feel a vein pop on my head. This voice had a lot of nerve making a joke like that after everything it put me through during those last two trials.

Letting out a sigh, I rested my hand on my hip as the sound of a door moving echoed behind me and I turned to find the giant set of doors slowly begin to open.

“As a reward for successfully completing all of my trails, I grant you your reward. Come inside when you’re ready.”

It seemed the voice was welcoming me to come and meet them.

Glancing at the doors, I began walking forward…before plopping myself down on the floor nearby.

“Uhh…What are you doing adventurer?”

Getting into a sleeping position, I answered the confused voice.

“You said I could come in when I was ready. I’m tired after that fight so I’m gonna grab a nap. After that, I’ll be ready.”

“Er…Really?”

“Zzzz..”

“How’re you already out cold!?”

Completed dumbfounded, the voice stared at me before letting out a sigh.

“Fine then. Guess I’ll just let you sleep for now. Just don’t sleep for too long!”

I couldn't respond as I was still fast asleep. I wasn’t lying when I said I was tired.

So with that, the final trial had been passed and the day drew to a close.

A few hours later, I let out a yawn as I got up onto my feet.

If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it.

“Finally awake?”

The voice sounded annoyed. Hearing its frustration caused a grin to form on my face.

“What’re you smiling for?”

“Nothing. Anyways, I’m ready to go on in now.”

“Glad to hear it!”

Returning to a happy tone, the voice waited for me to enter.

Rolling my eyes, I walked through the giant doors and into the darkness ahead.

As I made my way through the tunnel the doors led to, I could hear my footsteps echoing in the corridor. It almost had a lonely feel to it.

Seeing a light at the end of the tunnel, I walked forward and closed my eyes on reflex from how bright the end of the tunnel was.

Once my eyes had adjusted, I made my way into the room that awaited me.

“...What the hell?”

To my surprise, I was met with a room that looked like nothing I’d ever seen.

The place was covered in a glowing crimson-red coating that gave off an intense vibe. Along with small white crystals that were stuck to the walls.

That was strange in and of itself, but what surprised me the most was what was the thing in the middle of the room.

What I found there was a stone pillar that had a similar coating to everything else but was also a bit darker.

The walls surrounding the pillar looked incredibly smooth and it felt like a giant dome.

“Greetings adventurer! I guess we finally meet in person!”

“Huh?”

The voice sounded much clearer than before. In fact, it sounded more like a normal voice rather than one speaking into my head. However, when I looked around I didn’t see anyone.

“I’m right here. Do you have hearing problems or something dude?”

“I don’t see you. Are you invisible or something? Or is this one of those things where you have some item in the room that blocks you from my sight?”

“Neither of those!”

“Really?”

They said that, but when I looked around the room once more, there still wasn’t anyone in sight.

“Just look on top of the pillar in the middle of the room! It’s kinda hard to miss!”

“Hm?”

Looking at the pillar in the center of the room, I approached it and tilted my head in confusion.

“Uh…Sorry. I completely missed it.”

“How!?”

“So you’re the pillar in the middle of the room?”

“NO!”

If you couldn’t tell already, I was just trying to mess with the voice. I was still salty about everything that I’d had to go through.

But figuring it might be best to just stop for now, I walked toward the middle of the room.

Stopping right in front of the pillar, the floor below me began to rumble and the pillar fell down low enough that I could see something resting on top of it.

So was the person I was looking for standing there? Nope! Instead, all that laid there was an oddly designed crimson-red book with some gold textures on the front and back.

As I looked at it, I suddenly realized why that voice seemed so familiar.

“So that’s it,” I grumbled before rubbing my eyes.

I didn’t remember there being trials before, but I knew this voice was familiar.

“Well don’t just stand there. Pick me up already.”

The voice sounded way too excited.

Oddly enough, this was exactly the thing I’d been searching for. Who would’ve guessed I’d stumble on it by chance?

Still…was this really what I wanted. I was almost tempted to walk away.

“Uhh…Adventurer?”

As much as I didn’t want to do it, I really wanted to get out of here. So without much of a choice, I picked up the book.

Upon doing so, it began to glow brightly.

A happy cheer filled the room as the book left my hand and opened up wide before shooting a beam of some sort into my chest.

I winced in pain but tried my best to bear it.

“Master has been registered! Beginning connection process!”

The voice started speaking in an almost robotic tone as the beam continued shooting through me.

After a moment, the beam vanished.

“Connection successful. grimoire has successfully been registered to the individual known as Axel Savoncho. Final maintenance is being made to match the individual's current skills. Maintenance complete. Now altering final changes…complete. Contract completed successfully.”

Upon saying those words, the book glowed a bright yellow before collapsing back onto the pillar it’d been lying on before.

With that, I’d successfully collected what I was looking for.

Now for those who are confused, allow me to explain. A while ago, I mentioned that there was a secret six heroine in the game. This secret heroine was unlocked by completing the side quest known as the “Grimoire of Crimson Red” which had the MC go through a dungeon that led toward him collecting the grimoire of the same title as the quest.

And once he did so, from then on he’d unlock a character that would act as the final heroine who you could only win over after beating all the other stories.

It was a bit of a pain to get, and the heroine's story isn’t anything that special. But it’s nice the developers gave the fans a bit of extra content.

Anyways, holding the book in my hand, I could easily tell it was the grimoire of crimson red. And just as it did with the MC when the two talked in the game, the two's relationship irritated me to no end and made the secret heroine a chore to deal with.

“It’s a pleasure to officially meet your acquaintance Master! My name is Nia. I’m the spirit of the grimoire you now possess and I look forward to our partnership together!”

Speaking of the heroine, I suddenly heard her speak into my ear from behind and I turned around to find a short girl who despite looking fourteen years old, was apparently almost fifty.

She had long black hair, some red ribbons on the side of her head, crimson-colored eyes, and a fluffy red dress that went down to her knees. But again, she looked like she was around the age of fourteen so she wasn’t exactly alluring.

“With that said, I’d be happy to now explain how my grimoire wo-URG!”

Just as the girl called Nia started talking, I slammed my fist into her head before grinding it into her skull.

“That really hurts! Could you please stop that!?”

“I could. But only if you can guess what I’m why I’m doing this in the first place.”

For the first time ever, I could finally do what I’ve wanted to do to this character since I saw her for the first time. I finally got the chance to give this little punk what she deserved.

“How could I guess that!? Please just stop it!?”

Nia tried batting my hand away to no avail.

After about five minutes, I felt a little better and finally let her head go.

Annoyed, Nia massaged her head while glaring at me.

“What the heck was that for!?”

“Meh. Reasons.”

It wasn’t that I didn’t wanna tell her those reasons, I just figured she wouldn’t understand if I tried to explain it.

“What a cruel way to start our partnership,” Nia grumbled before turning to face me.

“So? You said you had to tell about how your grimoire works right?”

As I mentioned that, one of Nia’s top hairs perked up as if to say “Oh yeah.”

With that, she began explaining how the whole thing worked.

To summarize what I was told, a grimoire in this world acted as an extension of one's being. It gave whoever owned one more strength than they could possibly have achieved on their own. In fact, grimoires were so strong, that almost none existed. In total, there were only three in the entire world. The first one was found by the MC in the game, and apparently, the creator of magic had another, and the final one was missing.

Since grimoires were so powerful, spirits were put inside them to ensure that they were not only well maintained but also gave the spirit a chance to choose a worthy individual to wield the grimoire's power.

And as you probably already know, I was now one of those people.

In terms of power, grimoires could do several things. From protecting the user from any surprise attacks to even making it so that things could be instantly imprinted on the user's mind. That’ll certainly make getting through school a breeze.

But the thing I liked it for the most was its ability to shorten spells beyond the need for words. In short, casting without even needing to chant. Something only those with grimoires could do.

To sum it all up, they were extremely OP, and made me mad that the MC never took advantage of any of the abilities offered other than a boost in magical power.

Also, as I mentioned before, this grimoire unlocked the secret heroine. Nia the spirit of the grimoire. Probably the most basic route in the game. It was your standard "does this guy truly deserve my power" situation where you have to gain her trust and eventually that leads to her falling in love with the MC.

It wasn’t anything too special, but it wasn’t bad either. Perfectly middle of the road.

But moving past that, once Nia finished going over everything, I let out a yawn.

“Well moving past all that, does that mean you can help get me back to the surface?”

Nia looked at me a little unsure.

“Of course. However, it requires you to learn the spell of teleportation.”

“Seems simple enough. Don’t you have that spell on you being a grimoire spirit and all?”

“Er…Well yes, I do. But there’s a catch.”

“A catch?”

What was she talking about? She was able to immediately teach it to the MC the minute he found her in the game.

“You see…teleportation is an incredibly powerful spell. And casting it on a whim isn’t normally possible. Meaning I’d need to imprint it on your mind which isn’t as easy as simply casting it.”

“I see.”

I knew that much. What was she getting at?

“Well…How should I put this?”

Nia seemed genuinely concerned about something.

“It’s just that after combining myself with you, I’ve noticed just how different your body structure is compared to other humans.”

“Is it really that different?”

“Completely different! It’s enough of a miracle you’re able to use the four basic elements!”

“Er….Really?”

I didn’t really get it, but if I had to guess, I think she was saying that since my body was from another world, she couldn’t imprint magic as easily with me as she could with people from this world.

“So wait…are you saying it’s impossible for me to use certain types of magic?”

“That, and a majority of what my grimoire has to offer. Such as wordless chanting and teleportation.

What!? The two most useful things won’t be at my disposal!?

“Is there any way for me to fix that!?”

I was starting to grow a little concerned. From the way Nia was wording it, not only would I be unable to use some of the best stuff the grimoire had to offer, I wouldn’t even be able to return to the surface.

Nia thought things over for a moment before speaking.

“There is one thing I can do. However, I can’t promise your safety.”

“What is it?”

Trying to calm down, I listened to what Nia had to say.

“How about dying and reincarnating into a new body?”

Nia instantly got a chop to the head.

“I was joking! There actually is a way to fix your current problem.”

With my hand still at the ready, I quietly listened.

“Let me ask you, have you ever struggled to grow? Physically that is?”

“Hm?”

“As in, does your body refuse to grow any muscle despite how much physical activity you do.”

“Yeah. But how’d you know that?”

Nia cupped her hands together and a ball of crimson red light began to form within her palms.

“This is a rare occurrence known as magiblock. Usually, it can only be caused through teleportation at a young age or a curse cast by a powerful magic user. Did you ever get teleported or cursed when you were a child?”

I was about to deny both those things, but then I remembered what that god did. He shrunk me down back to when I was ten and sent me through a portal to this world. Did that technically count as teleportation? I’ve dealt with this problem since I got here so I was sure it couldn’t have been a curse, so the portal was probably the only option.

“I think I’ve been teleported before. It’s a bit fuzzy though.”

“I see. In that case, you were probably in a state of magiblock.”

“Really? Then is there a way to cure it?”

Nia shook her head.

“Not to my knowledge.”

I see. So that meant I’d be stuck as a weak commoner forever.

“However, there is a way to lighten the magiblock.”

“Lighten it?”

Nia nodded as she formed something in her palms.

“The thing you currently see in my hands is a special spell all spirits were taught upon entering their grimoires. It's not specifically for this kinda of situation per se, but it should work.”

“Really? What is it?”

I glanced down at the crimson-colored orb in Nia’s hand.

“It’s what you’d probably call a restriction reducer. Basically, it’ll let me morph your body structure in a way so that it can move past the limits the magiblock has forced upon you and make it so that you can access everything the grimoire has to offer.”

“Morph my body structure?”

Hearing that caused me to look up at my hair. It really did look completely different.

“Yep! However, since I’m the one who will be guiding the transformation, I only have so much power. Meaning I can’t promise you’ll look the same after I’m done.”

I was about to say that she should just get on with it, but those words caused me to stop.

Did that mean…my whole body could be altered to the point I wouldn’t even recognize myself?

Nia let me think it over for a moment.

Finally, I made my decision.

“Do it.”

“You sure?”

I nodded.

“Even if I don’t look the same anymore, I figure it's a better option than rotting down here.”

“...I see. In that case, let’s begin.”

Having gotten my confirmation, Nia began guiding the orb toward my chest.

“Good luck and don’t die.”

“...Wait a minute did you say don’t die?”

Before I could receive an answer, Nia pushed the orb into my chest, and a sharp pain shot through my entire body.

It felt like my blood was on fire.

“RAAAAH!”

I let out a scream of agony. It was way more pain than I could’ve anticipated. It was like my entire being was slowly getting rewritten.

My heart began to rapidly speed up and my legs gave out from under me.

Before I knew it, I’d collapsed to the ground. And a moment later, I was out cold.

My body appears to be stabilizing. Activating my newly acquired healing abilities…task failed. Healing magic is unable to operate. Switching to water massage as a substitute.

Feeling an oddly warm sensation flow through me, I slowly began opening my eyes.

It seems I’ve managed to recover successfully.

Huh? Was it just me, or did my expanded thinking sound a lot more realistic?

Getting up onto my feet, a voice came from behind me.

“I must admit, I wasn’t actually expecting you to make it through the transformation process.”

Turning around in an instant, I chopped a familiar voice in the head.

“Ow! Did you really just do that!? After everything I did for you!?”

“Of course! That hurt like hell!”

“But you were the one who said you wanted it! Don’t blame me for your own choices!”

The one behind me, known as Nia, rubbed her head gently.

“Wait a minute.”

I just processed how I felt.

Looking down at my body, it looked a lot more sturdy. Only around the average, but it was enough that I probably wouldn’t run out of energy after a short jog. My vision seemed to be a bit sharper too.

Finally having recovered from the head chop, Nia looked me over.

“Well, it seems like a majority of you still looks the same. Other than the sturdier build, you don’t appear to be that different.”

Using magic, Nia pulled up a mirror-like object and let me get a look at myself.

She was right. Thankfully, I didn’t look that different from before.

However, one noticeable difference was the eyes.

Before, my eyes had been practically pitch black. But now, they were a pure crimson red. Combine that with my grayish-white hair remaining the same and I actually didn’t look that bad.

Making the mirror vanish, Nia bowed.

“Now that the changes have been completed, I’m finally able to help you to the best of my abilities. I look forward to what the future has in store for us. Master”

Scratching the back of my head, I felt a bit awkward seeing her bow so politely like that. Even so, I tried my best to put on a smile.

“Yeah. Same here.”

With that, I finally had full access to the crimson-red grimoire.