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Chapter 16: Magic Shop
🕑 Added 2025-01-09 03:07:14 +0000 UTC“Hm? What’s a magic shop? Can I buy magic here? How much does it cost?” James asked. The name of the shop seemed obvious.
James was more than excited to properly use magic. However, from his experience with the goblin shaman’s magic, he felt it was impractical. It took a long time to cast, and it needed his undivided attention, almost bordering on immobilizing him. James hadn’t used his magic so far except for making a campfire.
James was alone in this trial. He thought this magic thingie would be a good addition if he had a vanguard. Since he had no vanguard, he had abandoned the notion of using magic to fight. James chose the boring but practical way to complement his range battle style, his crossbow.
[Magic shops sell a variety of magic. However, survivors need to first buy a blank mana core. Mana cores will cost 500 coins.
After survivors obtained a mana core, survivors could then specialize their cores with 6 principles of magic. Water, Earth, Wind, Fire, life, and mind. By the way, lightning is included in fire principles, while ice is included in water’s
After survivors specialized their magic talent, they could then learn spells from said principles. To learn new spells, they needed to increase their principle’s spell mastery.]
“But I already have a mana core. Do I need to buy it too?”
[Yes. In the unique case of Survivor James, other cores will be stored in an extra slot while a new slot, called the mana slot, will be created.]
“Can you learn magic from two principles?”
[Only by unique skills, special enchantments, or a race’s unique ability could one use magic from two principles of magic. Survivor James’s Chimera skill is the prime example.]
“Nice! That means I could learn magic from two principles since I have a mana core for fire, right?”
[Unfortunately, you can not learn magic other than your main principles. The only magic available from your Lesser Mana Core is the Fireball spell. You may not learn its next tier. However, if you plundered a high-ranking mage’s mana core, you could learn the skills in their mana core. However, you could never advance mana cores from others.]
James frowned. He almost forgot. If something feels too good to be true, it probably is.
“What magic is inside each principle?”
[information classified]
“Fuck you! Are you telling me that I must go blind in choosing what magic I could learn for the rest of my journey?”
[That is correct. Or, you could ask others who have chosen those paths.]
“There are no other survivors here!” James spat out. His voice was blurred by the water around him. He couldn’t hold back his curse. If a system was a physical entity, he swore he would give him a good smack or two. No… make that ten. Not only do you have to pick your magic blind, you also have to pay for it using coins. This game was bugged. James had never played a game so hardcore before.
After taking a few deep breaths, James continued his journey. There is only one place left to conquer. The place beneath the lake. Where the boss monster lurked. His steps were cautious. Thanks to his heavy bag, he could walk there. As he was finally out from the narrow underwater cave, he saw it. The place beneath the lake, a dome that sunk into the deepest floor.
Its surface was a dark ocean hue, almost unrecognizable from afar. At the base, there was a massive blue gate with white carvings. He got a sense of Deja Vu, another wide arena, he thought. Will he be pitted against some crazy, strong boss like the one on the second floor? Now that he thought about it, the boss on the first floor was also placed inside a wide arena.
He was about to approach the gate, but something caught his eye. A piece of meat dangling in the water. It bobbed up and down rhythmically, as if inviting anyone to eat it. He dropped his bag and swam for it, trying to get a closer look. After he got close to it, he saw a piece of meat dangling from a fish hook! Someone was fishing.
He followed the fishing line and found 6 people on the surface. James wanted to meet them, but remembering his face and monster body, he turned back.
The four survivors from James’ second floor transferred almost a full two hours after James’s. At that time, James had already reached the lake and was well into his own path. Meanwhile, these new arrivals took a different path into the winding and branching route, and they met up with two survivors. A timid girl and an aloof boy.
The timid girl seemed to pander and agree to any of the aloof boy’s words, clearly stating the hierarchy they were in. She was the follower, and the boy was the leader. The aloof boy was like a cosplayer. He was a man of few words. His demeanor and clothes looked like they were stolen from a game. A black cape, black pants, and a black shirt with a shoulder guard that looked more decorative than functional.
While his outfit was outlandish and obviously mimicked that of a certain anime character, his sword was definitely real.
If this was the real world, the four adults might have laughed and pointed him to the nearest anime convention centers. However, now, they are in dungeons that are made to look like a game. Here, in this world, this delusional boy might be stronger and more knowledgeable than they were.
“Are you survivors from other servers?” the boy asked. The boy asked. His sword was already drawn when they met.
“K-kouki-san, that’s a real sword. Pointing it towards real people is rude.” The girl said.
“This world has no rules. They might as well be bandits. Don’t let your guard down, Kaina.”
Kouki accepted the invitation immediately after he went home to grab his backpack. After all, he was that kind of boy who had read numerous isekai fiction and dreamt of becoming an overpowered protagonist of the otherworld.
And this dungeon trial had provided him that. The journey was full of challenges, but he managed to overcome them. He finally had become what he wanted to be, a swordmaster of fantasy world.
Kaina, on the other hand, simply made a wrong choice. She had a fight with her parents and wanted to get away from them for a moment. Despite the warning, she impulsively agreed to System’s invitation. They first met in the first-floor dungeon. Kaina never played any RPG game, but she was smart and humble.
A single look and she knew Kouki was more familiar with this kind of environment than her. Moreover, since they were the same age. It was easier for them to communicate. And so, she chose to be his follower.
“We are no bandits! We are survivors, too! I am John, from America, California!” one of the four survivors said. “We swear! We have never harmed anyone.”
“America? But you guys were speaking Japanese. Wait, do I speak English to you?” Kouki asked. He suspected The System used some kind of magic to translate their thoughts. Their speech pattern sounded native. Not even Kaina, who lived in another region of Japan, could do that.
“Yes! You are speaking English.”
“I see. I shall trust your words for now.” Kouki sheathed his sword on his waist. “Don’t block my way.”
The group journeyed. They searched other parts of the cave different from James’s, their path never crossed. Unlike James, they didn’t take any chances inside the water. Kaina and Kouki sensed that something might be in the water, but they chose not to go there because they didn’t have magic tools to breathe in the water.
And so, they spent weeks venturing into the dungeon in vain, searching high and low in other parts James didn’t search. James only cleared the west part of the dungeon. After a long time venturing the dungeon, they finally got what they had been looking for. However, as they were about to begin their adventure in the water, a system chime told them that the floor had been cleared.
James let go of his desire to meet humans. He was a monster now. His desire was to fight. He promptly returned to his bag and proceeded into the dome, challenging the floor boss. Just like before, he stood before the gate.
Unlike before, the blue gate opened on its own. The stone gate, dyed blue and lined with a white inscription at its border, creaked open. Its hinge groaned as some kind of magical force wrenched it open slowly.
Inside, The arena stretched wide, reminiscent of the first-floor boss room. Illuminated by a soft glow from the luminescent moss and otherworldly plant, A massive clam stood shut at the end of the arena when James strolled inside, his steps wary. The clam creaked open, revealing a sahuagin draped with an array of fine jewelry. A necklace made of pearls, bracelets made of gold, earrings made of silver, and the most eye-catching one was the golden staff with a pearl as big as a basketball at the tip.
A golden chest sat behind the sahuagin. It lies there as if motivating James to defeat his foe to claim it. Its surface shimmered with a faint glow. James grew excited. He had a prize waiting for him if he cleared the boss.
Blue mana gathered and swirled around the pearl. Such an image was vivid thanks to James’s new eyes. James tilted his head, confusion rang on his face. He had been expecting a massive boss monster, an alpha or a king, like the massive wolf that challenged him on the second floor, or an orc that challenged him on the first floor. Instead, the sahuagin before him was… less threatening.
This sahuagin was a head shorter than he is. Even other elite sahuagins were at least a head taller. Those monsters exuded a killing intent and decisiveness fit for veteran warriors. This one, in contrast, had a slim, and almost frail appearance. The jewelry and staff adorning it gave it the impression of a priest instead of a warrior. No… calling it a priest was a misnomer. A priestess should be more accurate. The two bulging mammary glands, covered by two clams on its chest, did not escape James’s gaze.
“Ah… I see. She is a mage. But can a mage fight alone? if I can get closer…” James pondered his tactics as the sahuagin priestess stood.
Dread filled the air as four more sahuagin swam beside the priestess. Their armor was sleek, but it exuded a masterful craft, outweighing even the previous elite Sahaugin that took James’s arm. James’ confusion at the priestess finally cleared up.
“I see. So this is a team battle.” James felt a pang on his chest. He was never a team player. For a moment, he regretted himself for not asking the survivors at the surface for help. There were six survivors there. If only he could bring them in, he could have easily cleared this floor. And now, just because of his stupid pride and aversion to social contacts, he was now surrounded 5 to 1
The Sahuagin began to snarl; their trident was at the ready. James dropped his leather bags and raised his longsword, ready to meet their challenge head-on.
Just before James could think, the massive stone gate closed behind him. He was now locked in with the sahuagins. James readied himself. He had resolved himself. He came here not just to survive; he came here to change, he feared no death, and He had no intention of backing down.
