Chapter 77: Summons Lifted
“Shinya, I can do it just like you said.”
“Alright then, try making a Shelter with just that much Magical Power.”
“Shelter!” 《Hah!》
With her shout, a faintly glowing Shelter materialized. Its speed, size, and hardness had improved considerably, perhaps because she was getting used to making Shelters.
“Oh my, I did it! So this is what it means for magic to manifest even with reduced Magical Power.”
She looked so happy making Shelters over and over that I had her stop, shortened the mark on her arm, and had her practice reducing her Magical Power again. We gradually shortened the mark, confirming the point where the magic wouldn’t activate, and called it a day.
The next day, I had her make Shelters continuously starting from full Magical Power, stopping just before she ran out. As a result, where she used to say she could make a Shield 14 or 15 times, she could now make an estimated 20 Shelters.
I cut a twig from a dead tree to the same length as the charcoal mark and handed it to Ariela.
“What’s this?”
“That’s your current Magical Power usage.”
She stared intently at the twig in her hand, murmuring, 《So this is my current Magical Power level.》
“Fran was also able to reduce hers down to a certain amount, but she didn’t make any progress after that. For making the fence in the village, she kept practicing squeezing her Magical Power by endlessly creating stone pillars. As a result, she can use magic nearly 1.8 times more, but it seems her Magical Power didn’t actually increase. Fran’s Magical Power is 76, and when she first started making stone pillars, she could make an estimated 27 of them, but after practicing squeezing her Magical Power, she can apparently make about 50.”
“So then, if it was 14 or 15 times, does that mean I can use magic about 27 times?”
“There are probably individual differences, so I can only say I don’t know. It went from 14 or 15 times to 20 times, so I think it’s worth continuing.”
“This is good. Maybe I should switch to this method too, rather than trying to squeeze my Magical Power while channeling it. If I know the usage amount for one cast, it’s easier to reduce it,” Glen said.
“Fran also couldn’t activate her magic when she first tried to squeeze her Magical Power, but now she can probably use magic even if she squeezes it more than that. Once you get used to it, you can reduce the Magical Power for the same spell, so I think you can reduce it even further.”
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We returned to Tanza once for a shift change, and the Adventurers at the Dismantling Area were astonished by the number of prey Fran had taken down with her Stone Lances.
The prey from the area Tanza’s Shield and Osius’s Fang were responsible for were all large, and most were killed with only one or two wounds, so we had become a respected presence even in the Guild.
Since I brought in a big catch the first time, my name seems to have gotten around a bit, but I just act like a member of Tanza’s Shield.
When the prey submitted to the Guild are all large, the earnings are good, so jealousy probably arises.
To avoid trouble, even after submitting our prey, we weren’t allowed to relax; we’d stock up on food and barrels of ale and then be practically kicked out of town.
So, on our way to Deelgo Village, we’d arbitrarily increase our holidays, recharge our spirits, and then return to our posts.
The replacement party would grumble, but we’d just brush it off, telling them to complain to the Guild Master.
While taking turns with Fran to subjugate the Beasts that occasionally appeared, I watched over Ariela’s Shelter and Dome creation.
After about a week, her Shields, Shelters, and Domes had become somewhat presentable, so we started practical training.
“It’s a pack of Gray Wolves. Shall we have Ariela-san handle them?” Glen asked.
“It’s probably just right for practice. There’s also coordination with Tanza’s Shield to consider.”
“You guys are so carefree~” Ariela commented.
“This is a prime example of what happens when you receive Shinya-san’s teachings,” Glen said.
“Hmm? I don’t recall advising anything like that.”
“While saying you wouldn’t do anything dangerous, you involved us in real combat calling it practice and tested our skills, didn’t you? Thanks to that, I’ve become a Magician who prioritizes defense over offense.”
“And you’re earning money without getting injured because of it, right?”
“Yes. I’m grateful. Just because I’m an Adventurer doesn’t mean I want to risk my life.”
“It really is a large pack of Gray Wolves! Ariela, stop getting caught up in their carefree talk and get to it!” Dorado urged.
“Leave it to me!” …《Shelter!》
As a wall of faint light rose around Glen and the others surrounding Ariela, she created small windows one by one.
Everyone took out bows from their Magic Pouches and nocked arrows.
The pack of Gray Wolves charged towards Ariela’s group, who stood in a tight formation, but with Glen’s signal, arrows were loosed all at once.
After three volleys, the pack scattered and fled, and the battle was over.
“How anticlimactic.”
“It makes me wonder what all our previous battles were for.”
“I was envious of Fran and her group, but… this is too easy.”
“More importantly, let’s deliver the finishing blows and collect them,” Glen directed.
“Hurry up. The ones that heard the screams and changed direction are heading this way,” Fran warned.
“She’s saying something carefree again.”
“With Ariela’s Barrier, it’s natural to be carefree.”
“Exactly. I never thought we could subjugate monsters without risking our lives. Even Shinya can subjugate them from a safe place, so he’d be carefree too.”
“You say carefree things, but he’s also fighting with his life on the line, you know.”
“It’s a Brown Bear!” Ariela exclaimed.
“Is this… going to be okay?”
“Ariela, make the Shelter a bit bigger and let Dorado and the others in too.”
“Hmm? What about Fran’s Shelter?”
“I thought of a method I want to try. You two try it together.”
Beckoned by Glen and his group, Dorado and the others also entered Ariela’s Barrier.
“Shinya-san, what are you planning to do?” Glen asked.
“I’m going to lure it over, so just wait.”
I went outside the Shelter and ran towards the Brown Bear, provoking it with Hoo-chan and the others. Bitten by Hoo-chan and her companions, and with its snout smacked by a training staff, the enraged Brown Bear roared and chased after us.
I rushed into Ariela’s Barrier along with Hoo-chan and the others.
“Is this… really going to be okay?” a worried voice could be heard.
“I think it’ll be fine.” I had slammed a Demon Steel Short Spear against it with all my might, and it held, so it probably wouldn’t break.
“But still, to go and taunt a Brown Bear!”
“If the Guild Master saw that, Shinya would be promoted to A-rank for sure.”
“I just became C-rank recently by the Guild Master’s authority. I don’t want to be A-rank at 20.”
《BOOM!》 The Brown Bear slammed into the Shelter, making a thunderous noise.
“Put up Shields in front of it and on its sides, quickly!”
“Eh… eh, eh?” Ariela stammered.
The Brown Bear rammed the Shelter two or three times, and unable to pounce on us, it slammed the ground in anger.
“Fran, surround it with Shields on its front, back, left, and right!”
“Why?”
“Just do it, quickly!”
“Shield!” 《Hah!》 … “Shield!” 《Hah!》 … “Shield!” 《Hah!》 … “Shield!” 《Hah!》
“Hey, hey, are you planning to capture it alive?”
“Ah, it’s going to escape through the gap!”
“Were four not enough? Fran, close the gaps and don’t let it escape.”
“Understood.”
“Shield!” 《Hah!》 … “Shield!” 《Hah!》 ……
“Ah, now it’s trying to get out from the top!”
Everyone watching started laughing at the bear’s frantic state.
“What are you going to do with a Brown Bear captured alive?” Glen asked.
“It’s not about capturing it alive, it’s practice for when we need to subjugate large prey. It’s a technique Fran can also use when she needs to hunt. If you just stay cooped up in a Shelter, the crucial target might not necessarily come at you. If you surround it with Shields, you can subjugate any Beast you like.”
“In that case, we’ll need to increase the height of the Shields, won’t we?” Fran said.
Fran replied while shooting Stone Lances at the Brown Bear as it tried to climb over the Shields and escape.
“It’s an excellent method for easily capturing or subjugating both people and Beasts, isn’t it?”
“You’re still someone who thinks of all sorts of things, aren’t you?” Glen remarked.
There’s also a method to completely envelop it instead of using Shields, but there’s probably no need to teach them that far.
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Two days later, we stopped a Bighorn with Ariela’s Shield and killed it by shooting through the gaps with powerful bows.
“From inside a Shelter, it can escape, but with this, we can kill it for sure.”
“Yeah, we need to be careful about attacks from the surroundings because of it, but it’s an easy subjugation.”
Glen, Bright, and the others were talking carefreely while looking at the Horn Boar lying dead inside the Shield cage.
They don’t seem to have noticed, but I think the number of large prey appearing in this area is decreasing.
While hunting the bears and tigers that occasionally appeared and waiting for our replacements, only one party arrived. They told us that the compulsory summons had been lifted.
However, they laughed, saying that since there was more prey than usual, an announcement had been made to earn money by disclosing locations with high subjugation counts.
Although the large prey in this area had decreased, I told them they could still earn well since herbivores and Orcs also appeared frequently.
The next day, two parties appeared, and two more parties appeared the day after that, so we decided to withdraw.
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In the bustling Guild, I caught the Sub-Master and confirmed the cancellation of the compulsory summons.
“Oi, good work. Tanza’s Shield, Osius’s Fang, and Shinya, head over to the Guild Master.”
We were told to go to the second-floor meeting room, so all of us entered.
“Guild Master, is there something you need?”
When Glen asked on our behalf, the Guild Master just grinned and said, “All of you, show me your Guild Cards.”
I had a baaad feeling about this, but when the Guild Master tells you to show your Guild Cards, you can’t refuse.
As Glen collected everyone’s cards, his face was beaming, so it was probably a rank-up.
“Guild Master, if this is about a rank-up, I already became C-rank before I went scouting.”
“I know. However, I can’t ignore your achievements this time. Everyone is ranking up!”
Everyone else was overjoyed, but why on earth did I have to become a B-rank Gold at the age of 20?
If I go to an unfamiliar town, there’s no doubt I’ll be looked at with suspicion.
“Guild Master, can’t I just stay as a C-rank Silver?”
“Absolutely not! If you wish, I’ll even raise you to A-rank!”
“I’ll have to decline that, thank you very much!”
He handed our cards to an attendant waiting nearby, and we were told, “Get your new cards at the reception desk,” before being kicked out of the meeting room.