Morning again, and I feel awesome. It is actually a bit before sunrise, but I am already rising and shining, as they say. Sleeping next to someone you love is really refreshing. It would be even better if there wasn't some paranoid watch set up. I am sure it was because of all the bug parts that were dumped nearby, and it had nothing to do with us.
The gnomes finished their job and just vanished when I ran out of MP in the middle of my sleep. But Marcy is awake, and with a terrible mood.
I wake up before Helen this time and greet the one doing the watch. "Good morning, Salty."
"Who? Dunno who you are addressing, but I am hungry. Hurry up and give me a meat skewer." I take out a juicy meat skewer. It is still sizzling from being just removed from the grill two days ago. Timeless item box FTW.
Marcy chews the meat with a delighted face. People in the field have to satisfy themselves with jerky, travel bread and maybe some stew if one is lucky. "Do you want to rest for a while? I need to do some stuff, I'll keep watch."
"Sure, G. You don't mind if I take your place in that warm blanket there, right?" She says in a teasing tone. Too bad I know Helen well enough to not be jealous of her female friend sharing a bedroll with her.
"I'm good. You should have asked for a warming spell, I can do that much now. Here you go [Warming]!"
"Tch. I want to use magic too, why can't I? I even have a decent MP pool." She returns to her upset mood from before. As she moves away, I take a step forward and grab her arm.
"Hold it. Is this what is eating you from inside?" She looks at my hand and then stares at me.
"Let go!" She struggles but doesn't really pulls away.
"Won't. You and me, we are going to talk this over, miss."
"What do you want to do with me? What is there to talk?" She lightly brushes her free hand over the muffler that cover her breats.
"You feel left behind because the three of us can use magic, and you don't." I'll go straight to the point with zero finesse. Tears form in the corners of her eyes. With this advancement method I am using, one's horizon is as broad as the number of options they have. And Marcy has the least among all of us.
"You don't have to rub it in my face, do you?" Painful tears roll down her face. Her strong woman facade cracks.
"Wounds sometime need to be cleaned, disinfected and even burned if they are to heal without festering. Listen up, Marcy. You are important to me. Not as a lover like Helen, but very important nonetheless. You are like a big sister to me. One that can teach me in the ways of this world. One with inestimable knowledge and experience to point me the right way." I loose the grip on her arm a little but she does not pull free.
"Why do I feel like I have just been rejected?"
"Did you ever had any romantic feelings for me? I can ask Helen to share, if you want. But you don't, do you?"
"I.. it is that... I want... no... not like that..." Her mind is spinning around. She even lost the ability to speak properly.
"Marcy, I think it is normal to feel curious. And maybe you feel left behind by Helen. Look behind you. Go there and take my place in that bedroll. Helen will place a sound isolation barrier, so please have some girl talk with her."
Of course all this yelling around would wake up any adventurer worth their copper coins. Any heavy sleeper in monster country is a meal on legs waiting to be devoured. Helen woke up at the first yelp from Marcy. She looked at me and with a gaze I told her to let me handle it.
Marcy looks behind her shoulder and Helen flips the blanket to invite her in. She drops her shoulders and make a motion to walk when I grab her arm again.
"What is it now?" She asks with a hint of despair in her voice.
"Sleep well and be rested. We are going to delay our incursion to the dungeon a bit. Later today we are teaching you magic."
"It is impossible." I stare at her and let some of my fear aura leak. "Is it impossible? No? Can I?"
"I have a fairly good idea on why you haven't been able to use magic until now, Marcy. After you wake up, I'll try to teach you. I can't guarantee you will learn, but the three of us will try our best. Cheer up. I won't forgive you if you make Helen cry."
Marcy walks to the bedroll, sits on it and removes her boots. Helen throws the blanket over her as she lies down and then gives her a hug attack. I'll admit that I am just a little curious too, but I'm satisfied with what I have right now.
But now I have a more serious thing to do. I need to make me something that can resist my trollish style of combat. I also need to make a mental note to buy some tents. Anyway. I take some cloth and hides out of the storage, and begin to work. I need new clothes and I have just the right skill to make them. I focus on my A-rank tailoring skill to get the clothes I want. From the akashic records, knowledge of how to achieve my goal is shown before me. I take the materials and begin to sew them together at a fast pace. Rivets where rivets should go, reinforce where it must be reinforced. Cloth, wool and furs. The first rays of the sun dye the sky and my hands still move with intent. I stop to rest a bit and before long my new clothing armor is finished. It offers very little protection, but is fashionable and better yet, enchantable.
The next step is exactly that. My understanding of the skill increased since it leveled up. I need materials with an affinity to what I want. I want clothes that regenerate like I do. Therefore I need troll blood. I'm lucky there is some fresh troll blood lying around just here by my fingertips. I take one of the B-rank pemadras, crush it in a pestle and bite my finger. Let some drops of my blood soak the powdered mana crystal, and mix it while pouring MP over it. It glows with a crimson light not unlike the morning sky. Now I pour the mixture over the finished clothes slowly, giving it almost double the MP the shield took. The B-rank stone is a hungry one. Probably too hungry for my actuall skill level.
The whole thing rumbles and sends out pulses of magic. One of the fire traps detonate at the edge of the minefield making me flinch in surprise. I am at my limit of MP when the thing suddenly stabilizes. MP is filling in for the part I am lacking. When I look to where the MP is flowing from, I see Zahariel next to me, sending his own MP to the powdered pemadra. I can't let this opportunity slip. I redouble my efforts and fight the MP depletion dizzyness. I pour MP as soon as it recovers. Focus.
When the enchantment finishes, I black out. It has been a long time since it happened. I recover my senses the sky is already entirely blue except for a few clouds that play in the last winds of autumn.
Marcy and Helen are up and talking in the distance but Zahariel is right next to me. Giving me a lap pillow. There is a millenia old dude giving me a lap pillow. Eww.
"How long was I out?"
"Less than an hour. But it has been so long since I've done that, it is nostalgic." What has he done to me?????
"Done what?"
"Back in the time, it was normal for us to descend upon the mortal world to assist worthy craftsmen in their chores. Just like I did with you. Why don't you check on your new clothes?"
I look down, it seems someone changed me. My old clothes are folded next to where I was sleeping. I look around and see the girls giggling. Something happened but I will just ignore it. The feeling of these clothes is awesome. Feels like clothing from Earth. Soft. I wonder what are the thing's stats.
There is one freebie with the enchanting skill: I can appraise the stuff I enchanted.
Trollblood Cloth Armor (A): Durability increased 10x. Negates 3/4 of all damage dealt to the armor. Recovers 10% of max durability every minute or 5% every HP recovery tick of the wearer. Healing magic used on wearer also repairs this armor. Resists 10% of all magical damage except fire and acid. Resists 10% of all physical damage. Bound to the soul of Beowulf.
"Looking good, G!" Marcy gives me her approval with a thumbs up.
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"Thank you, I guess."
"If you are grateful get us some breakfast to eat, we are starving here."
"Coming!" I'm glad she is back on her feet. I take out fresh soft bread and some scrambled eggs. Also fruit water.
The four of us dig in our impromptu picnic in the middle of nowhere. After we are done, I clear my throat to get everyone's attention.
"We are delaying our assault on the dungeon to address one problem here. The problem lies with communication. If the four of us are to be a group that can stay together, we need to trust each other like the right hand trusts the left hand. So if there is something troubling you, speak up. If you hold it in, you will regret it later."
They look at me and look at each other. "Wait how did it go from 'Marcy can't use magic' to 'trusting your left hand'?" Marcy asks timidly.
"I never said we have only one problem. We have several. But there is one problem that is keeping the others from being known. You solved it splendidly. You just spoke up. From now on, if you have something to say, please speak up. I haven't yet learned mind-reading magic."
"Will you?" Zahariel can't understand sarcasm, i think.
"Probably not. But you, miss Marcy, you are going to learn magic. I know why you can't use magic."
"Say it then! Is it because i have no 'affinity' with an element?"
"No. It is because you need more imagination. After I used my first spells I recognized it. The magic depends on having a clear image of what you want. But just a picture inside your head is not enough. You have to understand the element you are using deeply. It is like this: I can't use wind magic right now. Let me show you."
I stand up, and with my bare hands I visualize my best image of wind magic. A bald kid with arrows tatooed in his body. The composition of air. The current of winds. Everything I understand about the air because of the cheat known as Earth schooling. I gather the wind at my hand. The wind flowing across my arms. Pressure. Temperature. Now add MP to it and shoot.
BOOM!
Skill Wind Magic level 1 awakened. Spell {Air Cannon} learned.
A tree outside the minefield has a hole punctured in its trunk.
"You learned air magic in your first try?" Helen's chin drops. "It is one of the hardest elements!"
"it is because I have a good understanding of what air is. Now, Marcy. I will ask you some questions, I want you to give me the most detailed answer you can."
"O-okay?" She is trembling. The fear in her eyes is visible.
"What is fire?"
"It is the burny orange-red thing that burns things and is hot and bright."
"What is water?"
"It is the wet chilly thing that quenches thirst and slips and wets things."
"What is earth?"
"It is the dirt thing that is the ground and dirties things."
"What is air?"
"I beg your pardon?"
"Air. The thing you breathe."
"We breathe the wind. Air and wind are the same things, right?"
I really hope something is lost in translation. But I suddenly got an idea.
"Marcy, you know what? Forget this stupid mage magic. What we need is Marcy magic. Come, take your bow and get ready to shoot."
She goes to her things, get her bow and sets the quiver on her back. I take a ribbon of cloth.
"I am ready, what do you want me to shoot?"
"See that tree I punched a hole in? Look at it until you can see it with your eyes closed. Think of the distance, the position. Engrave that in your mind so you can hit it even with a blindfold. But don't shoot yet. Don't even nock your bowstring. Actually you need only one arrow, let me take the others."
"OK?" She stares at the tree, looks up, down and makes a motion like she is drawing the string with her hand.
"Good. Now hold that stance. Be ready to shoot." I tie the blindfold around her eyes, making sure no light can go in. Next I steal the arrow in her quiver.
"Am I supposed to shoot with a blindfold?"
"Yes. First turn off system messages. Get even the party screen out of your sight. Close everything. But now, I want you to describe me, what is an arrow?"
"An arrow is a shaft of wood, with a tip made of a hard material like iron or a troll's nails and feathers at the back."
"Good, good. Hold your stance. Now I want you to see an arrow in your mind. In front of you. Can you smell the wood? Can you taste the feather as you fletch it? The sharpness of the arrowhead that could pierce your finger." I get really close that I am whispering in her ear. "Imagine the perfect arrow. A sharp arrowhead. With just the perfect shape. It is cold to the touch. Sharp tip and edges. The shaft. It is completely straight. It does not bend to a side. There are no knots in the shaft. It was cut to perfection to fit the arrowhead and the fletching. At the back the feathers of the fletching. Of a perfect size. The fibers of the feather are all aligned. The arrow is of the perfect length. Perfect weight. The best arrow ever, is right in front of you. Can you see it? Can you feel it?"
"I can!"
"Can you understand that arrow? Can you feel the bloodlust of the arrow? Can you feel its desire to pierce Marcy's enemies beating in your heart? Its desire to fly true into whatever Marcy aims at?"
"Of course I can."
"This arrow exists." I bump into her quiver and tap on the edge. "This arrow is in your quiver right now. Imagine it is there. The last arrow. The one between victory and defeat. The one that will slay your foes. It is there, can you feel it? It is in your quiver."
"Yes... yes, I will believe."
I keep whispering in her ear. "This arrow is magical. It needs your MP. Just like you do with the job crystal or those guild slabs, you need to put your MP when you reach for the arrow. A lot of it. It is the arrow that can kill anything." I take her right elbow. "Slowly. Focus the MP in your hand. Let it pour out. The arrow can only be touched by a hand clad in MP. Reach back, slowly. The arrow is in there. Feel it in your quiver. You can see it in there even without your eyes."
She slowly moves her hand in to draw the arrow. I continue focusing her. "Now. Before you touch it. Put your MP out and feel it spreading through the arrow. It goes from the butt into the fletching down the shaft and into the arrowhead. The whole arrow is warm. It wants to pierce. More MP. Pour all your MP into it. Into the perfect arrow. Now! DRAW AND SHOOT!"
She is startled by the shout but her muscles trained by years of practice make the motion. The MP she pours make her hands shine and some glow is seen when she draws the bowstring and lets go.
TWANG! TOC!
The flash of light made a beeline to the tree trunk, hitting a bit above of the hole I made.
"Take the blindfold, Marcy. Look at the tree."
"There is no arrow in there!"
"Do you know where you aimed at? Look closely."
"Yes, but... there is a hole in there! It is the hole an arrow makes when hitting wood."
"Yup. You shot that arrow and made that hole."
"The arrow that was inside my quiver, did it vanish?"
"No. I had it in my hand the hole time." I take my hand from my back and show her the arrow.
"What did I shoot?"
"Magic."
Skill Instructor level 1 awakened. Grants
"Magic?"
"Yes. You shot a magic arrow." Helen?
"Marcy! Marcy!" Helen skips next to Marcy and holds her hand. "You did it! You created a magic arrow! It was amazing! It went swish shoom BANG!"
"It was really impressive!" Zahariel chips in his two cents.
Marcy is completely dumbstruck. "What just happened?"
And now the coup the grace. "Marcy, turn on system messages."
"WHAT!!!" She jumps in surprise. "It says here I have learned a new skill. [Conjure Arrow]"
"Can you read its description for us?"
"[Conjure Arrow]: Conjures a magic arrow for a few seconds. Precision and damage increases with level. MP consumption reduced with level."
"Could you please do the same thing you just did and use that skill to shoot the tree one more time? Without the blindfold, of course."
"[Conjure Arrow]!" She makes the same motion, but now we can see the a translucent arrow. she shoots and the arrow flies to the tree, vanishing moments after hitting.
Marcy falls on her knees crying. Helen also kneels next to her and hugs her friend's head.
"I did, Helen! I used magic! I used magic!"
"You did! I saw it! Marcy has now an unique magic!"
Zahariel approaches me and whispers to me "I knew you were worthy, Beowulf-Grendel. But you amazed me now. How did you know she would learn to do that?"
"Because I changed her job to Super Villager while her system messages were turned off. Super villagers have an increased chance of learning new skills out of their arses." It is usually a joke class some MMORPG developers put in their games. Sometimes they are the thing for bored players to challenge themselves. "Just like I have learned a new skill to make people learn new skills, and the multiplicative nature of this world's system means these chances went through the roof."
"I didn't understand half of what you said. But it seems you can create new skills out of thin air. It is amazing. It is like you have power..."
"I just have a big imagination nurtured by hours and hours of games, comics and cartoons."
Distracted, I have no time to react when a bawling Marcy jumps and hugs me around the neck. "Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!" She sobbing, really close, too close, and they are rubbing on me!
And then Helen comes and hugs me around the waist. "Thank you Beowulf. Thank you for cherishing my dear friend." She is also leaking a lot of face water.
Words are of no avail right now. I just put my arm across the two girls, hold them tight and take on their tears. The wind stung my eyes. Yeah, Zahariel. The wind stung my eyes. Clear that smug smile off of your face right now.
Is it over? Of course not. As if Akashic Records-sama would do things halfway. "Job Change! Marcy to Mystic Archer!" I chant out loud.
"What?" "The heck!?!" The startled girls let go of me at once.
Marcy has become a [4] Mystic Archer!
Skill Conujure Arrow +1 skill point added. Skill Elemental Arrow level 1 awakened. Skill Speed Shot level 1 awakened. Skill Multishot level 1 added. Skill Homing Arrow level 1 added. Skill Max MP increased level 1 awakened. Skill MP Recovery level 1 added.
It is like the Akashic Records read my mind to create the class I designed with Marcy in mind. I'm scared that it might be exactly that what happened.