The Art of the Arrow
Magic Missile is the most fundamental of all offensive spells. Yet, depending on how you wield it, it can remain a powerful weapon until the very end of the game. I hope Flora realizes this as well—that the lethality of a spell changes drastically based on how it’s used, and that the world of magic is far broader and deeper than she imagines.
Fzzzt— While Flora’s Magic Missile was like a heavy, lumbering dodgeball, mine was a single beam of light fired from the tip of my finger. It hit the target the moment it was released; the trajectory was too fast to even see. The giant rat, struck in the head by the missile, died instantly. The gaping hole punched through its skull was a testament to the sheer destructive power.
“Estelle-ssi, what was that just now…?” Flora muttered, completely stunned. “I’ve never seen anyone in the Magic Tower use Magic Missile like that… How on earth…?”
“It’s thanks to you, Seonbae.”
“Me? M-me?”
“You taught me so well that I picked up the tricks quickly. I’m decent at applying them, but learning the basics takes me a while. Thank you for helping me.”
“Ah—i-is that so! Was I actually helpful? I’m so glad—” Flora nodded, beaming with pride.
…She really is an easy girl to handle. On the other hand, it’s actually a bit worrying. If someone were to sweet-talk her, wouldn’t she just fall for it without a shred of suspicion? Once we part ways, I might feel like I’ve left a child unattended by the water’s edge.
‘That aside, I still have a long way to go.’
Improving the spell using my existing knowledge was fine, but a single Magic Missile had drained my mana instantly. Perhaps I’d overdone it to show off in front of Flora. I could use the abilities stored in my Phylactery to fire one or two more, but even then, my absolute mana pool is severely lacking.
‘Fancy techniques aren’t always the answer.’
Refining the spell to fire with the precision of a handgun—the “Estelle Style”—consumes extra mana. The same goes for imbuing it with the cold attribute. The more power I add, the more the mana consumption skyrockets.
After resting for a while to recover some mana, I decided to test the next spell. It was the second spell I’d mastered from the Standard of Magic. As I focused my mana into my dagger, the blade began to glow with a blue hue, and white vapor started to drift from it. It was Frost Blade, a basic offensive spell from the School of Frost. While Frost Blade might have less raw destructive power than Magic Missile, it is far superior in terms of efficiency. Once cast, it lasts for a certain duration, and when channeled through a dagger like this, the mana drain is significantly reduced.
“Seonbae, fire.”
“Okay!”
As I pointed at a giant rat, Flora nimbly fired a Magic Missile. Even if she couldn’t kill it in one shot, I would finish off the crippled rat with my Frost Blade. With this strategy, we could hunt monsters with minimal mana expenditure.
‘This is going smoothly.’
The true threats of the Underground Waterway hadn’t appeared yet, but the hunt was proceeding exactly as planned. Feeling satisfied, I began to process the carcass of the giant rat. First, I pulled out the whiskers, which were concentrated with magical energy, and then I sliced off the thick tail.
“Ugh—d-do we really have to keep those?” Flora asked, her brows furrowed. She was standing far behind me, keeping her distance as if she couldn’t bear to get any closer.
“Of course. This is all money. You have to take everything you can.”
“Uuu…”
“Seonbae, come here. Open your bag.”
“Yes? M-my bag?”
“Or would you rather carry it in your hands?”
Flora looked extremely reluctant to put the rat’s remains in her bag. Well, what can you do? She’ll have to get used to it. I don’t like it either. Who enjoys fiddling with rat whiskers and tails? But if you hunt monsters and only take the mana stones, you’ll never break even. Unless you’re a knight backed by the deep pockets of nobles, adventurers have to scavenge every profitable scrap they can find, or they won’t last long.
“Eww…”
Flora had her eyes almost completely shut, unable to bear looking. She stood in an awkward posture, arms stretched out, holding the bag as far away from her body as possible. Seeing that, a mischievous urge stirred within me.
Wiggle— I rubbed the base of the rat’s tail with my hand, making it twitch as if it were still alive.
“Whoa, what is this? Seonbae, it’s moving! Watch out—”
“Kyaaah!”
Flora leaped over a meter into the air, then scrambled backward in a total panic.
…That was a bit too intense.
“Wait, Seonbae, behind you—”
Splash— Flora lost her footing and landed squarely on her bottom in the middle of the flowing water.
Oh dear.
“Are you okay? Are you hurt?”
“…”
Ah. No response. Her expression had frozen, too. Was that prank a bit too much?
“Sorry… I was just playing around.”
“…”
“Your pants are going to get soaked, get up. Come on, hurry—don’t make that face. Here, take my hand.”
Flora whipped her head away. Oh boy. She’s properly sulking.
“…You’re too much.”
“I’m really sorry. I won’t do it again.”
As I took another step toward her… Splash—
“Whoa!”
“Ahaha—gotcha!” Flora splashed water at me, as if she’d been waiting for this exact moment.
“Hey, damn it—that’s sewage water—”
“That’s revenge! I shouldn’t be the only one getting soaked, Estelle-ssi.”
“Ugh, ptooey—it got in my mouth…”
Flora laughed her head off, enjoying herself despite being soaked to the bone.
As we ventured deeper into the Underground Waterway, we grew more accustomed to the hunt. The number of monsters increased, and now three giant rats appeared at once.
“Seonbae, shield.”
“Already on it!”
Flora skillfully deployed a Magic Shield before I even finished my sentence. After blocking half of the narrow tunnel with the shield—
—Squeak—
“Here they come!”
Crunch! I immediately pressured the giant rat crawling through the gap we’d intentionally left open with a Magic Missile. Flora, who had a much larger mana pool than I did, provided cover from the back, and I swung my dagger at the giant rat without hesitation.
—Kreee.
The blade, imbued with the cold attribute, tore through the rat’s neck like it was slicing steak. Another giant rat behind it tried to poke its head through, stepping over its companion’s corpse, but the same situation just repeated itself. That’s it, good girl. Keep poking your heads out one by one like that.
‘It really was a good idea to bring Flora. The hunting speed is much faster than when I’m alone.’
It took less than two minutes to take down the three giant rats.
“We could probably handle five at once now.”
“I think so too. Estelle-ssi, I think I’m starting to understand now. How I should use magic.”
It wasn’t just talk; the proficiency of the magic Flora was using was improving by leaps and bounds, even to my eyes. As expected, there is no better teacher than real combat. By the time we’d caught enough giant rats to make Flora’s bag heavy, the narrow path of the waterway ended, and a wide, circular space opened up. The path ahead split into two. One was a large, wide road, and the other was a narrow path barely wide enough for one person to pass through.
“Should we explore that narrow path first?” Flora said, her eyes sparkling with a burning sense of adventure. She must have thought that a more exciting adventure awaited in the narrow, dark path.
“Wait.” I grabbed Flora’s shoulder to stop her. “Seonbae, I have a bad feeling about this. Let’s put that path on hold for now.”
“Is that so…? I’m not sure, though…”
“The smell is weird.”
Flora sniffed the air and tilted her head. Not that she’d know anything from that. In truth, I was the same. I didn’t know anything about the smell. I’d been wandering through the foul-smelling waterway all day, so my sense of smell had been paralyzed long ago. The reason I stopped her was that I already knew what was waiting ahead.
‘The sub-dungeon of the Underground Waterway, the Polluted Waste Deposit.’
The rewards are decent, but it’s just as dangerous. It’s not a difficulty level that we can challenge recklessly, at least not right now. I marked the location of the sub-dungeon on my map.
‘I’ll have to come back and clear this later.’
At first, it was a blank slate, but as I explored the waterway, the map was slowly filling up. Of course, I wasn’t making it just for fun. It would be helpful when clearing the Underground Waterway, and I could sell it to make a profit when I eventually left the frontier. An adventurer must be able to create side income anytime, anywhere. Nobody is going to spoon-feed you money while you’re just sitting around.
As I sat crouched, drawing the map, Flora approached, curious. “What are you doing, Estelle-ssi?”
Flora looked at the map and chuckled. “Ah—you were resting while drawing pictures. Hehe… how cute.”
“…I’m not playing around.”
I gave her a sidelong glance, dumbfounded. She thought it looked like a drawing game? Did she think I was a real child? However, after hearing Flora’s words and looking at the map again…
‘My drawing skills are a bit lacking, aren’t they.’
The lines and letters I’d drawn with colored pencils weren’t very satisfactory. If I didn’t explain it beforehand, it really did look like a child’s scribble. It couldn’t be helped. It must be because my Mapmaking skill was insufficient. And I didn’t have a Drawing skill either. It’s definitely not because I’m small that my drawings look like a child’s.
“Seonbae, sleep first.”
“I’m fine… I’m still good to go.”
“You’ve been yawning since a while ago. It’s safe here, so you can sleep soundly.”
The Underground Waterway is an early-game dungeon, so you don’t need to worry about night ambushes. Neither the giant rats nor the Ratmen that appear in the next section actively patrol; they just guard their own territory. The spot where we were currently located was a halfway checkpoint and a resting place.
“Rest when you can. Tomorrow won’t be as easy as today.”
There was no answer. When I turned around, Flora was already asleep. She must have been quite tired… but even so, don’t people usually have trouble sleeping in such a foul place? To fall asleep the moment her head touched the floor… if that’s a talent, it’s a talent. I was almost envious.
I watched Flora’s sleeping face for a moment, dumbfounded, then covered her with a blanket. Sweet dreams. Now then, I have things I need to do myself. I took out the necessary items from my bag. A giant rat’s molar. And an antidote, just in case.
‘Honestly, I’m not thrilled about this.’
In a game, it wouldn’t matter, but having to experiment on my own body makes me hesitate. However, it’s something I have to verify at least once. Preferably while I have the luxury of time like now.
‘If my hypothesis is correct, there will be a major upheaval in my future growth direction.’
I was curious. How far does the potential of the Undying trait go? Even a veteran like me doesn’t know this. In the game, Undying was a trait that players couldn’t possess. To grasp the detailed information, I had no choice but to gather data by dying myself.
Phew. I’m hesitating now that it’s time. "One, two… hup—" After a deep breath, I drove the giant rat’s molar deep into my wrist.