...

Place: Temple (Wolfsteeth)

Time: After getting the train schematics

Alexander waited expectantly for Ludwig since the squirrel had said he had a present for him. Whatever it was, it was probably fantastic since it came from the Oracle.

However, after minutes of awkward silence, Ludwig still looked hecticly through his sling bag. There was nothing, and he became slightly embarrassed, chuckling through the uncomfortable moment.

"I swear he said he gave me something... I may have misunderstood. He spoke in a weird dialect."

Both suddenly turned to Green when she sighed loudly. They were thankful for her intervening since it became weirder by the second. Still, looking at her more closely, she also felt a great deal of secondhand embarrassment, likely wanting to stop whatever they were doing.

"Nobody can watch this weirdness for too long; just touch each other."

Alexander raised an eyebrow, shaking his head, "Sorry, I don't swing that way..." He stopped himself, being slightly confused, "...I think?" He was still confused since he didn't feel any sexuality at all.

Green rolled her eyes, "I meant that he gave Ludwig a blessing, which you will get when you touch him."

Alexander looked at Ludwig nervously, not knowing what to do, "May I?"

Ludwig snickered, "Of course, since the Oracle did it this way!"

Alexander was about to pat Ludwig's head, but he was stopped by him shortly before touching, "What are you doing?!"

"Wha... I thought..."

A loud groan escaped Green, and she became increasingly annoyed, "Just his hand. He is not a pet..." Her tone became much more sarcastic and ominous, "...yet."

Ludwig puffed his cheeks out, "I will never..." Then he angrily looked at Alexander, stretching his hand out, "...now come!"

Alexander ignored Ludwig's cute cheeks, wanting nothing more than to observe how he would eat nuts, and touched his little hand with his finger.

It felt weird, with nothing happening again. Alexander tilted his head, confused, "Maybe we are doing it wro..." However, when he said it, an enormous amount of natural energy, dense and overwhelming, escaped Ludwig, entering Alexander's hand.

'That's not good...'

The density of this energy was unlike anything he had ever seen before. Even when his Mother performed the demonic baptism, her energy was a tenth of what he saw in front of him, and at that point, he was almost drowning in what seemed to be mind-breaking energy.

Alexander immediately let go, his anxiety making him also take a step back, but it didn't help. The natural energy flowed into him like a peaceful but unstoppable river.

When Alexander looked in his body, trying to ascertain the energy with his [Mana Sense] indirectly, it dispersed immediately, with tiny sparkles flowing into every single nook and cranny, even entering his brain. Now, Alexander was really panicking.

Even a speck of energy had the same amount as he had mana as a whole. It was a crazy quantity condensed into what seemed to be specks of dust.

'Here it... comes?!'

After the energy dispersed, Alexander felt an overwhelming healing power coming from it, far more potent than whatever Ipe could do. This made him anxious since the stronger the energy, the more excruciating the pain, but nothing came.

Even though he felt how every muscle, blood vessel, bone, and layer of skin broke apart and rebuilt again instantaneously, there was no pain. However, he felt a very unpleasant itching and his stomach acting slightly up, but that was all.

It was like a walk through the park compared to the usual when he accidentally broke or jammed his jaw by using too much pressure because the pain was too unbearable.

For now, he enjoyed it for the first time even though it became slightly creepily when he looked with [Mana Sense] at his core and mana veins, how they broke apart and became more flexible and broader.

'Five to ten years, easily.'

The weight of the weight-increasing artifacts became non-existent, with Alexander needing to increase the weight multiplicator to 48 times to feel the same pressure as usual, and the mana collar became almost useless as his mana moved practically unimpeded.

Furthermore, the constant pain from Nature's Break, which had plagued him since birth, decreased to the point that it was nothing but a scratch. An overwhelming feeling of lightness invaded his body with every breath he took, becoming ever so refreshing as if he could take in so much more air.

However, while he felt great, he needed a moment to adapt, as the body he was in felt not like it was his own anymore. Even his skills, like [Mana Absorption], became far too efficient with the better mana organs he had, making it uncomfortable to use them.

His muscles became almost explosive, and his skin felt as if he had a layer akin to steel. It was an insane sensation he couldn't imagine. Wanting to move normally again made him feel like he was an infant.

'Right, what about my system window?!'

Before he could speculate how much his [Attributes] had risen, Green was already interrupting his thoughts with some bizarre dialect.

"Behold, ye who toil diligently and display great merit shall find due reward for thy labors."

Alexander turned to her, confused, "What? Do you have a stroke?"

Green rolled her eyes, "It means that every member of our branch will get great rewards, fitting their merits, and honestly..." She frowned, "...this reward seemed a bit too little."

"A little?!"

"This was too little?!"

Both turned to Ludwig, who was the loudest and most shocked. However, while his eyes shook, he also smiled widely, loving the gift he received. Alexander could see it since he cleaned his fur, with dead skin flakes falling to the ground, being very jealous of him.

Alexander stayed true to his nobility, not wanting to embarrass himself by cleaning up. The only thing he did was to wave his tail around a little harder, shaking off some dead skin, but if it only was the tail, it would be fine. Under the clothes, the itchiness was barely tolerable, but it was not like he could clean his asshole before everyone else, even though it felt like a million ants invaded it.

Green shrugged, turned to Alexander, and explained that, apparently, besides the Temple giving away rewards for meritious action, other religions did the same thing.

He did not say it out loud, not wanting to embarrass himself, but he didn't even know that some races had a religion at all. Like with culture, Alexander had no idea about different faiths.

"The Church grants the human Hero a legendary sword and others also exceptional weapons, while the Altar tattooed their dwarves with runes, giving them immense conditional power, and the Arcanum of the high elves gives their mana a property, making them the best mages on the continent, besides some draugr races, who by the way, receive their blessings through soul imprisonment."

"That... sounds..."

Green ignored Alexander's bafflement about how other religions acted, immediately continuing while puffing her chest out proudly. However, he also became much more sympathetic, especially since he had a Father with some say in the Temple.

"The Temple..." She sideglanced Ludwig a little, "...or at least our branch also gives out rewards for meritious actions. While those from other religions like to give external rewards, we strengthen your body with ours directly, and what you got now is called a minor prospering, with your attributes and body generally becoming much more robust."

After she finished, Ludwig immediately asked, being as baffled as Alexander.

"This was something minor?! What does a major look like?!"

Green shrugged, "Before I came to Wolfsteeth, I had none. Now, I have one major and two minors. I can compete with quite a few people with them, but someone with far more blessings is running around, probably able to even compete with far stronger ones..."

"My Dad?"

Green nodded, "Oh yeah, Kairo received more than I care to count, with them also being quite rare, like the ones changing his energy. He even gave one or two to his wife, the Lady. However..." She smirked at Ludwig, "...you may receive even more and better rewards once you make yourself useful. Great, right?"

Ludwig looked at her perplexed and nervously, "I... am not a member of your branch, though? I am part of the Earthly Sisters branch and am proud to be one of them! I would never switch to another! "

His voice cracked, with Green rolling her eyes, "This is not central Mal-Gil, and we reward whoever does something well..." Her smile widened, "...you saw the craziness yesterday, right? This is not a normal Temple and not even a seemingly ordinary place. You are not part of us? Who cares! We will do it either way, even if your Oracle or Deity doesn't like it, so how is it?"

Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

Alexander's Father warned him about two things: not to insult or tease their Oracle and not to have intercourse with mantis-kin women. The former made him think that their branch of the Nature of Circle religion was too extreme in the sense of openness.

They took in everyone and had no preconceptions about race or even loyalty. This branch was also the only one that took his Father in since everyone else saw him very negatively, knowing about his opinion about their religion and his steady loyalty to his Mother.

Usually, Druids or Shamans were such a pain in the ass to marry because they would need to have at least a spouse provided by the Temple so that they would procreate more Druid puppies.

Fortunately, it seems that the Twin-Acorn branch just didn't give a fuck about anything, taking him in and most likely boosting him to an insane degree, which he also deserved.

They didn't care, and Alexander wanted to know the exact reason, trying to ask sensitively, "Is there a reason for not agreeing? Would anyone even attack our branch if we helped him? That sounds stupid even saying it."

Green chuckled, waving her hand in dismissal, "They would not dare. Our branch is the strongest..." She propped her head on her hands, looking at an indecisive Ludwig, "...my little fauner, I like you since you are so honest. Not everyone is able to get a gift from that ugly elf. I will make it like this then..."

She leaned back, looking at him angrily but playful, "I will force you then; otherwise, I will turn your fur into paintbrushes for the Lord's daughter. Got it?"

Ludwig was suddenly perplexed, stuttering, "But..."

Green interrupted him, now sounding seriously angry, "Your little rat of a sister broke a contract and sold the paper we provided for a very reasonable price. Anything less than killing you is a form of mercy, got it? Now..." She tapped at her desk several times, "...sit, and I will tell you what to do, got it? If your branch has a problem, tough shit."

Ludwig said nothing, walking to Green with his head hanging down, looking sad, but Alexander could see a smile. He could now enjoy the seemingly great rewards while staying here as long as possible.

Alexander rolled his eyes and said his goodbyes after getting his answer that their branch was the most powerful but sadly still the smallest.

'Well, never mind... need at some point to read some theology literature, though.'

Even though Alexander wanted to catch up on some things regarding religion, he now had other things to do. Since he already had created enough black powder beforehand, expecting something like this to happen, he was now somewhat free for the next week to try himself out on the schematics he received.

Usually, he wanted to ask his brother to help him since he could legitimately enchant, since his mana skills were linked to a [Mystic Skill] called [Masterful Writing], making him almost a natural in this.

However, Narsiz had no time. He created some of Alexander's other essential ideas for the camp and their upcoming Blitzkrieg on the island.

...

Place: Alexander's Room, Leonandra Estate

Time: After Dinner, Night

Lying on his stomach, a young wolf-kin boy was reading a book about the train's mechanics he wanted to build, his legs cutely paddling in the air. Yet, his eyes moved rapidly, but still comfortably since he read a page every five seconds and understood it in another five seconds.

A light orb he conjured floated in the air, providing the needed light since the moons gave out a bisexual glow tonight, which he disliked. It always felt like he was at a house party of someone overly ambitious, who bought even colorful lamps to create a particular atmosphere.

However, like the house party, the book he was reading became an ambitious failure, and he let it float to the heap of others, barely better.

"What a waste of time."

For now, he read them and surprisingly understood the schematics perfectly, but it was disappointing. Why? It had an engine.

Anyone from Earth listening to Alexander's thoughts would ask if he was stupid since one needed one to move the train, but was this actually the case?

Alexander stood up from the bed, sighing, and walked to the bookshelf, 'This is too easy.'

This was not Earth, though. Some things became easier, while others became tasks of monumental scope. Alexander believed that creating societies with his ideal values on Orbis was a million times harder than sending someone to all the moons.

Alexander took a book from the shelf and let it float beside him, 'This world is indeed peculiar.'

His mana swirled around the book's back, putting a construct on it and invoking a chant. After a couple of short words, the air was sucked to a point where the construct was, creating something akin to an air ball, which slowly deflated, making the book fly around the room like a deflated balloon.

'It works, I guess.'

Bang

After the book fell to the ground, Alexander confirmed that his newly created spell construct worked. It was obviously a substitute for the complicated mechanical construct, the steam machine, which would need dozens of blacksmiths to develop.

'There is no need for an engine.'

What was an engine used for? The Otto engine transformed chemical energy, primarily oil, into heat, thermal energy that would turn into mechanical energy. This, in turn, would make the wheels turn, making the vehicle move.

Was an Otto engine that different from a steam machine? Yes, but not substantially in the sense of what they did. They converted energy into something humans could use.

Funnily enough, producing energy was always rough, barely changing after thousands of years. It started and ended with the question: What was the most efficient way to heat water? As such, for example, nuclear reactors were nothing more than giant kettles.

However, he could build something simple for this little project, making him nervous. It sounded too easy, but simultaneously, it was the best way to create a train.

'Artificing it is, I guess.'

Alexander walked out of the room, not caring that he was already wearing his pajamas. He strolled to a storeroom in his mansion, which should've tons of material he needed for his project.

After reading dozens of theoretical books about artificing, he precisely knew what to do and get and which problems he should avoid when enchanting.

While he loved to be a little more rogue, he decided not to do anything outlandish this time. Otherwise, because of a minuscule gain, he might need much more time trying to trial-and-error his way through.

'Let's repeat the theory; it was some time ago when I read it.'

What was an enchantment? It was a spell engraved onto an object that a user could use without chanting or putting in their mana.

Artificing as a whole described just all the other ways one could create particular objects that were of the same sort, which were none of Alexander's concern for now.

First, he needed a fitting material as a base on which to enchant. That's why he walked through the mansion toward the storeroom. On the way, all the maids ignored him, only bowing down before quickly dispersing in the opposite direction of where he was going.

'Night shift is that hectic? Hm...'

Ignoring his poor maids, he concentrated back on his enchanting. Sadly, Alexander couldn't use any material, like ripping the wood off his desk and starting to engrave it. The first and foremost reason not to do it was that Melina would bash his head in because she managed the mansion, and all his furniture was apparently made from rare and costly wood.

However, besides preserving his life, there was a more technical reason why he should not do it. Every material absorbed mana to some extent, and at the same time, the mana reacted heavily with the material, deteriorating it. Some materials did it more than others.

As such, why did the book Alexander used his spell on didn't deteriorate? He didn't engrave it but just laid a construct on it, which he activated with his mana, which he controlled. The mana the book absorbed would be barely worth mentioning, probably the same as when it would lie around.

As such, what would have happened if he had engraved it? The mana, which would either come from the material itself or another source, like a mana gem, would be transported through the engravings, like water through a canyon.

However, like water, mana also slowly eroded the engravings by being absorbed, destroying the material. The effect increased the faster the mana moved.

There was no definitive proof, but Alexander believed that mana acted like atoms and that if it moved faster, it would be more reactive. It was an exciting thought that he quickly pushed away since it was theory, something for later.

The material should absorb mana as little as possible to mitigate such a damaging effect. There were many possibilities to achieve this, with the most popular one being to have the best material, which was an obvious conclusion. Just get the best stuff, Alexander thought so sarcastically.

What was regarded as the best material, though? It would have a high unit of something called mana conductivity. It was just a way to describe how much mana was being absorbed by the material. The less was absorbed, the better it would be transported through the engravings.

Other than the spell being able to function correctly and the material being deteriorated much less since less mana seeped into it, there was another significant effect: The efficiency would also be better since less mana was needed to activate it.

However, there was no solid idea of which material would be best for enchantments. It was all trial and error to determine which material acted how toward mana.

One could probably find some pattern for sorting the materials by their physical properties and reaction toward mana. However, a detailed table showing how they acted was enough for now.

When Alexander arrived absent-mindedly at the storage room, he looked around—it was very clean and sorted—and thought about giving the maids a raise again. Besides that, he was pleasantly surprised to find that he had enough material for his little do-it-yourself project, 'Perfect.'

He readied himself to go back to his room and write down his plans for tomorrow, but now he had an exciting night ahead of him, 'Great! Like this, I will also not disturb anyone!'

With a handwave, Alexander made all the ordinary wood and plates of processed metal float beside him. With a joyful hop in his step, he immediately went to the entrance hall to test his idea since he would need the space. Going outside would be too crazy, in his opinion.

Sadly, though, he frowned as he observed the floating metal plates he had taken with him. Enchanters usually used Mythril or Adamantium, which had excellent mana conductivity, but they were more than a little costly.

'I hate my fief for this.'

Mana-saturated metals, mainly processed ones, were highly expensive. Worse, in Moorgrel, there was barely anything of that sort, and for a good reason. Once used on a monster with even the tiniest speck of wild demon energy, almost every enchantment and metal would immediately corrode.

This was also why his Mother barely used her energy, as it was highly corrosive, deteriorating her clothes like they were nothing. She only used it when she wore her Demonium armor, which couldn't be used for enchantments since it transformed mana into wild demonic energy.

As such, while reading through the schematics, Alexander was trying to develop a novel solution since he didn't want to pay an arm and a leg for the materials used to build the train and which one would need to be enchanted. If one estranged monster attacked, the whole thing would become a pile of trash.

His novel idea was a little laborious and roundabout, but the more he thought about it, the more he liked it, 'All that an engraving does is let mana through, so why not use Manullium since it will not pull any in.'

Manullium, a metal used for his mana chamber, had the unique trait of repelling any mana. This was also why no one used it since the mana wouldn't be transported through the engravings and just thrown outwardly. However, Alexander wanted to test something out, hoping it would work.

Arriving at the giant entrance hall, he became somewhat giddy, not because of the enchantments he would make. He was more excited about his idea. If he could make it happen with Manullium, he would create a great use case, making their mines soar in value.

With another handwave, Alexander moved the wood and metal around him, building it into a cute little train before starting his experiment.

'Let's create something great!'

While he expected everyone who walked past him, the one who had the night shift, to watch him for a little bit, all they did when seeing him was mostly ignore him and walk as fast as possible away.

'Hm, night shift sure is stressful.'