Chapter 24 Efficiency

Adrian sat cross legged on the floor, channeling his inner Yrenor as he focused entirely on his magic. Next to him sat a wooden box filled with mana potions.

He found his new gear to be generally comfortable, albeit a little too warm in the afternoons. His Vitality and Strength had taken a hit in exchange for Intelligence and Wisdom. Practically speaking, Adrian felt much more awake and aware of himself and his surroundings, as he learned, mostly due to his Intelligence. The lower Vitality would only make itself known once he got injured or killed, his lower Strength however already a slight issue when he carried his pack.

Adrian focused on the glass bolt in his hand, trying to enhance its durability without breaking it. He could feel the glass, knew exactly when the tension became too much. His ability to manipulate the material had grown immensely, just from the gear her was now wearing, and the staff resting on his legs. He increased the tension beyond what he knew to be effective, the glass hardening further and further. It didn’t break however.

Hmm… why is it ineffective then? he asked himself, flicking the bolt a few times. It seemed perfectly stable and incredibly durable. But I can feel the tension within… if…, he paused and unsheathed one of his daggers, slightly scratching the bolt. He was rewarded by an explosion of glass, his bolt shattering into a thousand tiny pieces.

Interesting… not good for a shield or something. But a bolt? I’ll have to test it against the undead, he surmised and grabbed his crossbow, still considering his staff the two hand weapon he wielded to retain its effects. The problem he had with the crossbow was neither its power, nor his aim. Ammo wouldn’t be an issue anymore either as he could make that himself, magical even. He just had an issue with the extensive reload time.

He looked at one of the bolts he made, trying to glimpse information from it the same way he could identify pieces of gear. Nothing came up however. Just a manifestation of magic, I suppose. Not intricate to the world? Or I can’t glimpse information from it because it’s made from my own mana? I do know everything to know about this bolt after all.

Adrian pulled on the heavy string, just slightly. I can manipulate glass I touch… that has to enable thousands of possibilities I’m just too uneducated or technically versed to grasp. But if…

He grabbed one of the many glass daggers and reformed the material, slowly letting it flow around the core part of the crossbow, merging it with the metal hooks and most importantly the front and back of the weapon. It would provide stability, enough maybe to hold against the released forces.

“Why are you still interested in that tool when soon you’ll be able to move projectiles without?” Yrenor asked.

The question registered but Adrian didn’t let the man break his concentration, finishing the precise lining of the crossbow, glass now slightly shimmering along its sides, several hooks fastened around the metal front, more connecting together behind the back. He had managed what he wanted, feeling the fatigue slowly come to his mind. Two sliding tracks and hopefully enough stability to use it more than once.

He looked at the box with mana potions, itching to drink another one. One adequate potion restored nearly his full pool, even now that it sat at two seventy. Just one today. Don’t want to puke all over Yrenor’s living room or he might throw me out. Plus dying to mana potion overdosing somehow sounds a little too decadent.

“Because this tool is easy to aim. You think my magic will come close to this?” Adrian said and got up, pulling back the string and loading the weapon with a glass bolt. He turned and aimed at the door he chose to use for target practice. He felt the vibration when he fired, finding that not only did his glass casing not break, its seemed to absorb some of the force, his arms steady as he lowered the crossbow.

The bolt was gone entirely, having penetrated through the entrance, shattered inside the house or deep within a wall.

Yrenor puffed. “To wield magic is a privilege reserved to a few talented individuals. You disgrace it with such a barbaric application.”

“Oh do I now?” Adrian asked, walking to the door. He found a small hole. Better than steel… that’s pretty insane. Is that just because it’s magic glass? Or could glass actually do this? I know there’s bulletproof glass but as an offensive application? Though I suppose a glass tip on an arrow would be deadly too. Guns just change all that entirely. Can’t really compete with propelled metal.

He wondered if his assessment was true. Adrian knew his magic would improve in time, unsure of the limitations it had in Olsdaat. Videogames usually had some kind of balancing to make sure mages weren’t twice as powerful as melee fighters but that only meant something with the assumption that he had found himself in some kind of game. An assumption he highly doubted by now.

“You are. Any mage of repute would call you laughable, disrespectful, and dishonorable,” Yrenor said.

Adrian glanced his way. “I don’t give a shit about their opinion. What do You think?” he asked.

Yrenor remained quiet.

“Come on. You’re a military man, are you not? You know there’s no honor in battle,” he said.

The old man shook his head. “You are wrong Adrian. There is honor in battle. I will agree that results speak for themselves. Perhaps our mages were too proud of their abilities to consider applications like yours. Some of those who chose the path of adventuring would surely agree.”

Guess they haven’t had their world war one yet. Honor in battle, he thought, not visibly showing his opinion. He could let the man have his opinions while he had his own. Adrian acknowledged that he had no experience fighting anything but undead but he had a hard time seeing honor in industrialized warfare. With swords and shields, perhaps he could entertain the idea, in a romanticized way. The more cynical part of him suggested it had always been the same.

That didn’t mean he had to be a dick about it however. Let the old man dream his military delusions while I figure out how to reload this thing with magic.

“Adventurers who are now shambling around with their magic enhanced weaponry?” he asked.

“Not all are dead,” Yrenor spoke. “I thought you were an adventurer when I first met you. But your capabilities were far too laughable to ever reach Faenhold Castle.”

“Where are they then?” Adrian asked.

“Not here. I suggest looking in the Bastion of Horadim. If they haven’t eaten themselves alive by now,” Yrenor said.

“Is that a city? A fort? People there are still normal? Not undead like the ones here?” he asked.

“I don’t know where your constant rambling about undead comes from. These people are not undead. It’s a town southeast, though with your current abilities… I wouldn’t try to travel there. It’s a death sentence.”

“What are they if not undead?” Adrian asked.

Yrenor ignored him.

Damn old men and their pride. I bet he’s involved somehow. Maybe I’ll find answers elsewhere.

“Any other settlements still around that you know about?” he asked.

“You’re free to explore the continent on your own volition,” Yrenor said and left.

How very helpful. Which means there are other settlements.

Adrian did have a feeling that whatever had happened to Faenhold castle was more widespread than just this area. Plenty of comments from Yrenor in the past months had alluded to that. But I trust him when he says I can’t manage the journey. Plenty of things to work on still before I leave this place anyway, he thought and glanced at the potions.

When he had meditated long enough, Adrian finished his idea, having added two dull hooks to the glass tracks along the sides of the crossbow. Both were located in front of the sturdy string, the man using his magic to move them back, touching the glass with both hands.

Slowly, he felt the hooks move. He grinned to himself, pulling with his mana until the string hooked itself into the loading mechanism. With a last effort, Adrian made the two glass hooks turn aside so that the crossbow could be fired again.

He breathed out, feeling a slight tension in his mind. Great. Just have to figure out how to do that faster and without using so much mana. Right now it’s more efficient to just load it manually.

Adrian went on to train his dagger throwing, not about to throw all of his time into one endeavor. His afternoon he spent cleaning up a small part of the mess he had made the day before. It would take weeks to get rid of all the bodies, therein lying his next issue.

Adrian sat in his designated chair, reading about a variety of potions before he stopped. With the pace he was going at, it would take weeks to get even a few more levels, which in turn would slow his magic training. He thought about going farther into the city and killing undead there but he didn’t want to take the chance of Yrenor finding out. The man had helped him a lot already, he wouldn’t betray his trust. Nor did he think the decision would be pragmatic either. All the insights, guidance, and knowledge shared by the old man likely outmatched the benefits of simply slaughtering hundreds of undead every day. Likely.

At some point I’ll have to leave. If only to gather essence in a more efficient way. Preferably while I keep the relationship with Yrenor friendly. He’s the only ally I have, let alone the only human fucking contact.

In the coming days, Adrian tried to ask Yrenor about the Bastion. He found that the man had little love for the place, calling its inhabitants dishonorable rabble, thieving fools, arrogant lunatics, and plenty of other choice words. At least Adrian could work on his repertoire of Ols cursing.

A town of cutthroats, rogues, and adventurers. What Yrenor thought to be a shithole, Adrian considered a place of opportunities. With his ability to return from the dead, he could take additional risks as well, not that he planned to go in crossbow blazing. Gear he found in Faenhold could be sold for information, help, maybe even a mage that could bring him back. Though he doubted the possibility. What seemed sure was that he needed to be more experienced to survive a place like that.

While he couldn’t exactly learn how to effectively persuade a group of hungry thieves by training with Yrenor, he could reach a point where his daggers would handle the talking.

He tinkered more with his crossbow design, adding actual sliding parts into the glass to lessen the strain on his magic. He aimed the weapon and fired, pulling on the two glass hooks, the pieces sliding into a compartment when the string had hooked into the loading mechanism. Adrian smiled, putting a bolt into the weapon before he fired again.

By now he had reached a point where he could reload the crossbow about as quickly as he could manually. Without having to take his eyes away from the target. Nor did he have to put it down and shoulder it again.

He sat down again, pleased with his progress as he opened another potion. Five days had passed and today he would drink just as many bottles. So far there were no discernible side effects. He found the taste to be somewhat metallic, mixed with an aftertaste of berries and herbs. Certainly not made for taste, or even improved with sugar or honey. These potions were made for their effect, nothing more, nothing less.

And an effect they had, propelling his slow magic training forward by leaps and bounds. When he used the new wealth of mana to tinker with his crossbow, his ability increased noticeably. A quick glance inward showed why.

Soulbound:

Essence – 1070

Level – 13

Vitality – 16

Endurance – 10

Strength – 9 [11]

Skill – 8 [10]

Intelligence – 16 [27]

Wisdom – 14 [27]

Soul skill – Flowing Glass Magic – level 5

Flowing. Finally. Let’s see what it can do.

Adrian grabbed one of his daggers, feeling the connection instantly. It felt to him like the haze had cleared just a little bit. As if a new part of his senses had opened up. A sense that extended beyond what he touched.

He opened his eyes to find the dagger floating above his palm, slowly turning in the air as he willed it. Standing up, he focused to keep the dagger floating. Adrian turned to his target practice door now riddled with holes before he willed the weapon to shoot forward, using only his mind.

The dagger shot out immediately, sinking into the wood somewhere close to where he had aimed. The speed hadn’t been quite comparable to a throw and nowhere near close to a bolt fired from his crossbow. But he had just shot a glass dagger into a wooden door with his mind alone.

Adrian stood there, speechless and with his gaze focused on the weapon. Next he tried a glass bolt. The result was similar, though he felt the projectile flew a little faster. Just because it’s lighter? It definitely feels that way. The throw itself felt like it used up a bit more mana than just making it float around.

He checked the range of his limited telekinesis, the dagger clattering to the ground about half a meter away from his body. Stretching out his arm towards the weapon made him regain the connection, again at about half a meter of distance. Level five meaning fifty centimeters? Or is it a hard limit? Guess I’ll find out soon enough, he thought, glancing at the box of potions. No. Five for today. Don’t be stupid. You have time to figure things out.

Adrian still had mana for a few more tests, quickly finding out that if he threw the daggers normally, he could add a push of mana to make them fly even more quickly. The combined effort of physical force and magical acceleration made for quite a deadly projectile, and that was for just his daggers. The timing with his crossbow turned out to be a little difficult, the bolt either leaving his telekinesis range too quickly for him to react, or flying out before the string even touched it because he used his magic too early.

Practice makes perfect, he thought and put the crossbow down, focusing back on throwing. He hadn’t killed a single undead since going to the barracks but he didn’t much care. The progress he made with his magic alone had been more than worth his time.

Adrian continued to work on his magic in the coming week, finding that his new telekinesis allowed him to shape glass just as he could before. Both moving and shaping used up just as much mana as it had before, about one point per second. Shooting an object with his magic used up about ten points of mana, the propelling power dependent on the weight and shape of the projectile. Right now there was a weight limit too, Adrian guessing it to be about half a kilo.

The main additional thing he found out was that he could move around more than one object at a time. Five was the limit, each again limited to the weight. The mana cost turned out somewhat interesting. He could do individual things with multiple pieces but in that case each would use up one point of mana per second. If he instead aligned four bolts to one and shot them in the same direction at the same time, the additional ones only cost a fourth of the resources to control. He assumed it had to do with his mental capacity. It was much easier after all to move five objects in the same direction than it was to make them all do individual things.

Adrian spent some of his time searching the cleared out parts of the town, finally finding a larger wagon to carry undead. It allowed his cleanup to go more smoothly, any monsters that got too close quickly dealt with using his spear. For now he wanted to focus his mana on purely training purposes. He mostly trusted Yrenor about the complexity issue, assuming he couldn’t raise his magic level to a higher point by simply shooting glass bolts at undead. He did use his daggers from time to time when he felt it appropriate, the magically enhanced throws easily punching through the tattered clothes of the undead, killing them instantly.

The additional bodies had to be transported back too however, making him slightly regret each of the kills.

Adrian spent his time slowly pulling the wagon back by thinking about new applications of his magic. By now he was sure that investing into Wisdom and Intelligence would remain his main priority for quite some time. If only to get better at it. He had the possibility of searching for more or better gear but the further he went into unexplored territory, the higher was his chance of finding something he couldn’t beat. Dying wasn’t the issue but losing all his gear would be disastrous. Especially now where so much of his magic capability came down to his equipment stat boosts.

Just take your time, he thought, pulling the wagon. One step at a time. Sweat dripped down his brow, rolling onto the metal of his Warmage helmet. And bring some fucking Strength gear to pull this bloody wagon.

Soulbound:

Essence – 1190

Level – 13

Vitality – 16

Endurance – 10

Strength – 9 [11]

Skill – 8 [10]

Intelligence – 16 [27]

Wisdom – 14 [27]

Soul skill – Flowing Glass Magic – level 5

Equipment:

Helmet – Faenhold Warmage Helmet [Rare]

Wisdom +5

Wood Magic Control +2%

Stun Resistance +18%

Chest – Faenhold Mage Robe [Rare]

Intelligence +5

Wind Magic Control +2%

Mana Shield +25%

Arms – Faenhold Warmage Bracers [High]

Intelligence +4

Fire Magic Mana Cost -2%

Hands – Faenhold Mage Gloves [High]

Wisdom +2

Magic Projectile Speed +1%

Belt – Leather Belt [Adequate]

Intelligence +2

Legs – Faenhold Mage Pants [High]

Wisdom +4

Fire Resistance +1%

Boots – Faenhold Mage Boots [High]

Wisdom +2

Fire Resistance +5%

1h Weapon – Faenhold Spear [Adequate]

Skill +2

Off hand – Knight Shield [Adequate]

Strength +2