Chapter 82: Planning a New RPG and Magic Shooting

Lately, Ras often thought that he wanted to buy a slightly larger home and live together with Ella. But living in separate homes like now, meeting again every day, and having her come over to play were enjoyable too, so he felt reluctant to leave this place.

He also feared that if they lived together, their current relationship might change.

Since thinking about it would not produce an answer, Ras shook his head to drive the thought away, then took off his shoes at the entrance.

He also deliberately thought back to Myth of Salvation, which he had played earlier, to forget those thoughts.

The first idea that came to mind was, of course, a sequel to Land of Adventure. After all, it was the representative work that had given Meta Soft and Ras the title of founder of role-playing games.

Hmm...

But for some reason, he did not want to make it yet. It was not particularly because he felt pressured.

Land of Adventure had already reached a considerable level of completion in the previous title. So instead of clumsily adding something new, if they greatly improved the graphics and sound, then pushed Aspa to produce one excellent scenario, it would be more than enough to become a fun game and a satisfying answer for waiting gamers.

But rather than Land of Adventure, Ras wanted to do something new.

There were piles of masterpieces in his memory that he wanted to recreate, so he did not want ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠to make something that was merely a simple improvement. So Ras decided to wait for a different opportunity before making Land of Adventure 3.

Then he began thinking about what kind of game to make. Suddenly, he remembered the nurturing game he had once tried to make before giving up. He was not sure why, but the keyword “nurturing” remained in his head.

Role-playing and nurturing...

In truth, all role-playing games involved nurturing. After all, they were about raising oneself and one’s companions. But then Ras thought of a game that focused more heavily on nurturing and had achieved tremendous success on Earth.

“Ah!”

It was Pokémon. Honestly, when Ras first saw this game, he had not rated it very highly. For one thing, the setting was too unrealistic, and even by the standards of the time, the graphics were too far behind.

But after it became a tremendous boom, he grew curious and played it seriously again. He remembered becoming interested in its powerful character identity and battle elements, and eventually becoming a fan himself.

It also showed the strength of powerful IP. For Ras, who wanted game culture to grow, it was a game too valuable to simply pass over.

But he did not plan to copy it exactly.

He did want to add his own originality, but there was a bigger reason than that. In this other world, monsters truly existed, and they had a very negative image.

It probably would not matter much to city children who knew little about monsters. But he expected another problem. They might end up forming the wrong image of monsters, which could cause serious accidents.

If a child went to a rural area, discovered a monster by chance, then approached it while trying to tame it and got hurt, the parents might show up at the company office with shotguns.

Of course, there was a way to change the name. They could call them phantom beasts instead of monsters, for example. But he was not sure whether children would distinguish that. In Ras’s imagination, the image of a child chasing after a yellow Giant Rat they happened to find while calling it “Pikachu” kept appearing.

And then came the shotgun ending again.

After pondering for a while, Ras thought of one plausible material that could replace monsters.

Spirits.

They possessed attributes, existed throughout nature, and since they did not have clearly defined forms, he could design their characters however he liked. They were exactly the kind of material that fit.

Of course, in this world, it had been discovered in modern times that Spirits were not things dwelling within natural elements, but massive existences similar to certain laws. But that was knowledge known only to mages. Ordinary people in this world also generally thought of Spirits based on premodern theories of the four elements or five elements, combined with superstition.

And even if someone knew the true nature of Spirits, games were fiction anyway. As long as people knew that such a concept existed and could relate to it, there should be no problem enjoying the game.

Taking this one step further, unlike Pokémon, monsters could appear as enemies in addition to Spirits. If he inserted a setting where monsters were dangerous beings that could not become friends, unlike Spirits, it would likely prevent children from misunderstanding and falling into danger.

Ras sat on the sofa and thought for a long while, then soon went to the computer and began drafting planning documents. While doing so, he regretted that the development team still had a lot of vacation left.

A considerable amount of time had passed since Bert acknowledged that Ras had mastered Rune Language. Or rather, calling it mastery was a bit much, but at least he had reached the point where he could learn and use magic alone.

Ras continued studying magic diligently afterward.

He had reasons such as finding the cause of why he was dragged into this world, researching a way to return, or becoming an Archmage who could fly through the sky and walk on water. But honestly, those were matters for the distant future. The biggest reason he worked so hard these days was because he had something he wanted to protect.

First, he had to protect himself, but he also wanted to protect Ella, who always went around with him.

The Republic of Smite was a capitalist country, and since people with money held power, Ras was already in a position that could be called strong. As such, the possibility of something dangerous happening was not very high, but no one knew what might happen in the world.

And if, in such an emergency, he defeated villains with magic and protected Ella, nothing could be cooler than that.

“...”

Honestly, Ras himself felt this thought was slightly foolish. But that did not dampen his motivation.

“So where exactly are we going today?”

Ella asked from the seat beside him in the car, looking slightly uncomfortable.

“Just an open lot in the suburbs. I looked into it, and apparently people usually go there for shooting or magic practice.”

Ras glanced at her expression as he answered. Something felt a little strange. Ella had been like this since he first invited her. After hesitating for a moment, Ras asked.

“Are you okay? If you’re really uncomfortable, we don’t have to go.”

“Ah. No.”

Ella widened her eyes and waved both hands. Then she smiled slightly, but it was obvious she was forcing herself. As expected, it seemed she had some ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠unpleasant feelings or memories related to magic.

But Ras decided not to worry about it further. Ella was trying hard to hide it, and even now, she was sitting beside him. Since she shook her head even when he suggested going back, it did not seem serious enough to be called trauma.

In that case, pretending not to know would probably be more comfortable for both of them.

“We have arrived.”

After driving along the road, then rattling across an unpaved path for quite some time, they arrived at an extremely quiet shooting range. If there had not been a sign at the entrance reading <Outcity Shooting Range>, he would have thought it was just a ruin.

No, it simply looked like a ruin. It was a wide open lot surrounded by artificial cliffs, as if a mountain had been dug out. He later learned that it used to be some kind of quarry.

There were targets beneath the cliff, but half of them were broken while the other half were still intact. In addition, cars that had already turned into scrap metal, wooden barrels, drum cans, and other objects were placed around carelessly.

It did not seem like the kind of shooting range Ras knew, where one aimed, shot, and then checked how many shots hit. It seemed more like a place where shooting itself was the point.

“Welcome.”

Still, when they entered the shabby building in front of the open lot, there were unexpectedly several types of firearms inside, and everything was well organized. It seemed to be a business that was actually operating.

The owner who greeted them also looked like a fairly proper Orc.

Ras said he had come not for shooting but to use magic, then paid the fee and received a permit before going back out.

“Please don’t break too much.”

“Ah. Yes.”

The owner did not stop him from using magic on the targets. But unlike guns, which only pierced holes, magic burned or exploded things and drastically shortened the lifespan of targets, so the owner made that request with a troubled expression.

Ras had not come intending to hit anything in particular. He thought it would be a success as long as the magic activated properly, so he nodded without much objection.

He found a suitable spot with Ella. The place was quiet, but two people were still shooting guns, so he kept enough distance to avoid disturbing each other.

Bang!! Tatatang!!

He watched them shoot for a while, and it looked rather fun. Ras thought he should try shooting himself sometime later. Previously, he thought the experience he got in the military was enough, but this felt somewhat different.

Ras placed a Mana Cartridge on the ground and took out a spellbook. In the past, mages personally processed offerings to make magical reagents. But Ras still lacked experience, and since processed products were sold instead, there was no reason for a rich person like him to waste precious time making them personally.

No, doing it himself would probably cost even more money. The materials were not cheap to begin with, and if an inexperienced beginner tried to process them personally, several failures were practically guaranteed.

The spellbook was a very classical item, an antique he bought ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠for a fairly high price at an old bookstore. He did not know if it was true, but ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠there was a saying that old spellbooks retained the memory of connecting with existences many times and increased the success rate of magic.

That was why he deliberately brought it and opened it even though he had already memorized the spell. And it was not only because of that property. He simply thought spellbooks like this looked cool, so he bought and collected them. Ras planned to decorate a study and fill it with plenty of spellbooks when he moved into a large house later.

“Are you okay?”

“Mhm. I’m completely fine, so don’t worry too much.”

Before using magic, Ras glanced at Ella’s complexion. She chuckled and waved her hand. Ella was grateful that Ras cared about her. It felt ticklish because he seemed to be treating her a bit too preciously.

But she liked that part too. Without realizing it, Ella’s ears and tail moved slightly.

Hmm.

Ras thought about which magic to use. Until now, he had occasionally practiced very weak magic at home or at the office, but today he had come to try using something strong enough to injure a person.

Perhaps because of that, he felt very nervous, and even choosing a spell was not easy.

But he could not keep standing there forever, so he eventually made up his mind. Then, after reviewing the spell in his head for a moment, he began chanting it aloud.

“Flamma animismus...”

Although there was a roof, it was only at the level of a sunshade. This was his first time chanting a spell in such a wide-open space, especially with gunshots ringing out from time to time, so it felt awkward. But Ras focused as much as possible and tried to consciously connect with an existence.

Fortunately, it seemed his prayer was conveyed well enough, because something red began appearing in Ras’s half-open eyes. A mass of flame was summoned in the air above both of his hands.

Ras lifted it with thought and gesture, then pushed it forward.

The flame instantly transformed into an arrow and flew forward as though shot. It was not fast enough to compare to a bullet. But fitting the spell name Flame Arrow, it seemed to be at least as fast as an arrow.

Boom!

The flame flew while dragging a long tail, then soon struck the wall and produced a fairly large burst of red fire. If a person took a direct hit from that, it was obvious they would die or be badly injured.

“Ooh!”

Ras himself was startled by the magic he cast and let out that exclamation. Then he turned to Ella with an expression that seemed to ask, “How was that?” It seemed he wanted to hear her praise or admiration.