New chapter of Let’s Create a Dungeon is out! (1/3 chapters)
Physical Ability Enhancement & Magic Training
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The horseback riding training had begun. That said, we did not make it run or anything like that. We just rode. Other than riding, it was still difficult. However, since it would have been troublesome if it had walked freely, I had restricted its range of movement with Arachne’s threads around it. In the small, restricted area, there had been only two people besides me and the horse, standing still. It had been Rin and Ena.
The two had been undergoing physical ability enhancement training. The method for physical ability enhancement had been to imagine one’s own body and fill it with mana. At first glance, it had sounded very easy, but in reality, it had been extremely difficult. After all, if even one finger was missing in the image, it was a failure, and they had to imagine their posture while standing, sitting, walking, and their current form, all while filling their body with mana. Rin and Ena had been in the middle of that. However, they had just been standing without sitting or walking. Even that had taken quite a lot of concentration, and there had never been any sign of ease on their faces. Even if they managed this, the next steps had been walking, running, and swinging a sword. There had still been a long road ahead before they could master it.
But this training had been thought up by Volt. It had been carried out by Alice. There had been no way this would have ended by just standing still. At times, Alice had used Gravity to check if the physical ability enhancement had activated and had asked me to imagine the slight changes in the body when load had been applied. The Demon King me had been left stunned by the strictness of her training. Having tried it myself, I had understood that when the former failed, they had collapsed immediately after using Gravity, and when the latter failed, they had collapsed with a slight delay. There had been once a time when Rin had seemed to have endured Gravity, but she had only been doing it on her own. Without using physical ability enhancement to endure, the training would have been meaningless, so I had increased the load fivefold and forced her to collapse.
In any case, the physical ability enhancement training had been about to come to an end. It had only been four or five minutes since it had begun, but based on the checks using Gravity just now, neither Rin nor Ena had activated physical ability enhancement. Their mana had probably run out. They had not been magicians, and it had been their first time handling mana, so naturally, their mana had been low. If they had kept going, they would have gotten used to handling mana and the duration would have increased. I had heard that in the beginning, it lasted about three minutes, but they had done quite well. Alice had mumbled something about leveling up, but unfortunately, there had been no plans for such battles. The magic user battle had been more like an accident caused by a fool. One shouldn’t have gotten their hopes up.
“Thank you for your cooperation.” (Alice)
The training had finished. Rin and Ena, though their mana had been exhausted and they must have been feeling painful, had satisfied looks on their faces as if they were enjoying a pleasant sense of fatigue.
Hmm? When my mana runs out, I feel extreme fatigue before losing consciousness, but maybe it’s because their bodies are different.
“As long as you stand without collapsing until your mana runs out, you pass. Keep at it.” (Nobunaga)
“Thank you very much.” (Rin/Ena)
Talking while riding the horse makes me feel somehow very dignified. But even while talking, the horse keeps walking. It’s kind of unsettling.
Now, the horseback riding training had begun. However, for that, I had needed Selmina. She had been teaching Ran magic at the house in front of us. Yes, this had been the Arachnid’s settlement. That’s why, even during the training earlier, I had seen Arachnids peeking out and constantly glancing in our direction. It would have been nice if I could have waved at them, but I currently didn’t have the courage to let go of the reins. So, I could only look back at them. When I did, the Arachnids had pulled their faces back, but soon another one had popped up somewhere else, so it had turned into a sort of whack-a-mole.
In the midst of this, the horse, perhaps bored, had finally sat down. As if saying it wouldn’t move another step, it had shown a posture of sitting still. Since it couldn’t be helped, I had gotten off the horse, and immediately, the horse had stood up and begun chewing on the Arachnid’s threads surrounding it. It seemed like it wanted to get out, but the threads were tough. The horse’s teeth couldn’t cut through them. Then, from the side of the horse, I had boldly squeezed my body through the gap in the threads and escaped. I struck a pose right in front of the horse.
*Click*
At that moment, the sound of a door opening was heard, and everyone immediately froze in place. I definitely wasn’t posing. Absolutely not.
“Ah, Maou-sama. Have you perhaps already mastered horseback riding?” (Ran)
It seemed like it had been Ran. It seemed that since I had gotten off the horse and faced her directly, she had misunderstood. Unfortunately, that had not been the case.
“No, Rin and the others’ training is finished. I just got off for a bit. By the way, how is the magic training going? Has it already finished?” (Nobunaga)
Only a few minutes have passed. Thanks to that, I couldn’t even make the excuse of taking a break. Can magic training really finish in just a few minutes? I had heard that it starts with classroom lessons.
“Yes, we finished a simple talk and now we are about to actually see magic. It’s dangerous inside the house.” (Ran)
Ah, I see. But wouldn’t it be better to do a bit more classroom lessons first? I don’t understand it well, but it seems Selmina is also a practitioner like Alice.
“This is Demon King-sama. It seems the training with the Lizardmen has finished.” (Selmina)
Selmina had also come out of the house. In her hand had been a staff. It seemed she was really going to show some magic.
But, isn’t her robe too deeply pulled over her head? Ah, it’s because the horse ate her hair.
“Just now. If you’d like, you can join us. I’m interested in magic.” (Nobunaga)
“If that’s the case, why don’t you listen to the talk from earlier? It’s a short talk. What do you think, Selmina?” (Ran)
“I understand. Then, shall we go back once?” (Selmina)
It had been a talk that would finish in just a few minutes. I had thought it was enough to do it outside, so I decided to listen on the spot. Ran had seemed to want to invite me, but somehow, it had felt like I was about to jump into a spider’s web, so I had declined.
“A ‘mage’ is a innate profession, and compared to acquired professions like ‘swordsman’ or ‘lancer,’ it is fewer in number. Also, the first magic they can do is just a little from the fingertips, so it’s a very difficult profession.” (Selmina)
Innate, acquired? In other words, whether one can become a mage is decided when they are born, while swordsmen and others are obtained by fulfilling conditions. So, does that mean the Demon King is innate?
“Other innate professions include ‘trainer,’ who can control monsters. You must have seen the worms in the Orc’s fields. Basically, it is said that acquiring an innate profession is up to luck, but if the parents have a innate profession, the child is more likely to acquire one.” (Selmina)
I had heard that Selmina’s parents were both mages, and her older sister was also a mage, so the reliability of this story had seemed high. Ran didn’t seem to have many memories of her parents, but it seemed her mother hadn’t had a profession, so Ran had been lucky. Her father had been eaten shortly after she had been born.
…I feel like I just learned something terrifying about the biology of the Arachnids.
“Therefore, there are two ways to train a mage. One is to use a mana medium, which increases the power of magic. This can be made by an ‘alchemist,’ but it’s very expensive, and I don’t have any. So, the other method is to have your companions weaken you and finish them off yourself. This is safe and your companions also gain experience, but the growth is slow. I recommend the latter.” (Selmina)
A mana medium that increases the power of magic. I was curious if it could be used with “gravity,” so I asked, but the response I received was disappointing.
“Mana mediums must be used according to their respective attributes. Fire, water, wind, earth. The four basic attributes. A long time ago, there were light and dark, but they seem to have died out. Extinct. So, mana mediums also belong to these four attributes.” (Selmina)
…Which attribute does Gravity belong to? In the first place, Gravity isn’t classified as magic but as an environment, so I wonder if it can’t be used anyway. Anyway, I thought I would try it before thinking more. But, both Selmina and Ifrina can use strong magic without a mana medium, so it seems they don’t have one. Mana mediums are bought by second-rate mages aiming to increase their firepower, so it seems they’re unnecessary for first-rate mages like us, she said with a smug face.
So, if I had a mana medium, I probably wouldn’t have lost to me without a scratch, I think to myself, breaking my heart. Selmina looked a bit down at that, but quickly shrugged it off. If I had been injured, I would have been killed, so it’s better that I didn’t have one.
“How pathetic a statement for someone who claims to be first-rate,” I thought, but upon looking at Ran beside me, I immediately realized that this was the correct course of action.
Ran was wearing such a terrifying expression that if she judged me to have hostility toward the Demon King (me), she would likely attempt an ambush. The intensity in her gaze had an aura that seemed to ignore any level difference.
“Well then, let’s put the discussion about professions and mana mediums aside and move on to the demonstration of magic. The magic that every mage must learn first. It’s commonly called ‘Ball,’ and I use ‘Water Ball,’ while Ran-san uses ‘Fire Ball.’ The power differs depending on the attribute, but in my case, ‘Water Ball’ is about that much.” (Selmina)
The water orb that flew went to hit a tree, shaking the branches and causing the bark at the impact point to fly off.
“With fire attributes, it’s a bit stronger. For now, Ran-san, please do your best with fire coming from your fingertips until you learn the Ball. Once you can do that, I’ll teach you how to handle the Ball and some techniques as well.” (Selmina)
“I understand. Maou-sama, may I join the hunting of the Kobolds for a while?” (Ran)
“I don’t mind, but are you sure it’s okay? You’ve only just recently finished learning multiplication, and I just taught division. You’re managing the Arachnids, making clothes and nets. Isn’t it difficult?” (Nobunaga)
Having said that, I couldn’t refuse. But, since she had just started learning new things and was also doing her duties as the clan leader, I had wondered if it was okay for her to go out. It would have been a problem if Ran had collapsed, but more than that, I had worried it might cause issues for the Arachnids as well. The nets could have been delayed, but I had wanted to distribute the loincloths as soon as possible. Even though there had been clothes, seeing those things dangling around had been an eyesore.
“Well then, would it be alright if I leave part of it to Ichi? It would mean entrusting the mission given by Maou-sama to another.” (Ran)
“That’s fine. In some cases, I’ll leave various things to Ran. If you use subordinates in those cases, you shouldn’t be reprimanded for it.” (Nobunaga)
There’s no way I’d deny leaving things to others. I, who plan to ultimately leave everything to others and shut myself in! Besides, if the negotiations with the Empire end in the best way, Ran’s work should increase. It would be helpful if she could start learning how to leave things to others now.
“Thank you very much! Then, I’ll take my leave!” (Ran)
Saying that, Ran swiftly ran out of the dungeon.
She must be planning to look for monsters outside, but unfortunately, there are almost no monsters in this area, right? The Kobolds, like those with legs, would need to travel far to find them.
Left behind, Selmina and I returned to horseback training. Finally, I was able to make the horse walk according to my will.
Wait, did I really manage it? Since Selmina appeared, it feels like the horse has started to listen to me.
At that moment, I suddenly remembered something that had been on my mind, so I decided to ask.
“If you use too much mana, you experience a severe feeling of exhaustion or fatigue, and your body becomes immobile, eventually losing consciousness. Does this happen to mages as well?” (Nobunaga)
“I’ve never heard of such a thing. If mana runs out, there’s a sense of fatigue, but it doesn’t seem to have that much of an effect on the body or mind… By the way, I’ve heard that ghost-type beings are made of mana for their bodies, so if they use too much mana, they vanish. Maybe Maou-sama is something close to that?” (Selmina)
That’s possible? I was a bit surprised by this unexpected information. Ghosts are made of mana for their bodies. So, what is mana used for in my body, which has flesh? …Blood, perhaps?
Looking at my hand, it seemed like it lacked any blood flow. I thought about cutting it to check, but stopped because I was scared.
In the end, I couldn’t figure out the truth.
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