Episode 6: A Nighttime Stroll
As December arrived and snow began to flutter, Eleanor, with Ordo in tow, came to me with a smug look on her face.
“Unlike your God’s Mischief, I received the blessing of the gods and was granted Ice Magic. And my Magical Power is 91!”
“We Black Dragonkin have many mages! You’re nothing like a cat like him!”
They declared so proudly, so I decided to tease them a little.
“Congratulations. Ice Magic, you say? I’m envious, but I don’t think ice is needed this time of year.”
“You’re always so cheeky. That’s why mixed-blood children are so ill-mannered…”
Watching Eleanor start with her sarcastic remarks, foolish me cursed myself inwardly.
Ice Magic… If it’s magic, shouldn’t I be able to read it like the Magic Pouch?
As I watched Eleanor spew her endless sarcasm, I used (Read/Memorize) [Ice Magic x1].
I couldn’t help but grin, which made her face turn sour, and her voice became even more sarcastic.
(Read/Memorize) [Ice Magic x2] (Read/Memorize) [Ice Magic x3]…
Getting carried away, I kept reading, and Eleanor’s complexion subtly changed, and the tone of her voice dropped.
“Is something the matter, Milady?”
At my question, Ordo, who had been glaring at me next to Eleanor, hurriedly looked at his sister.
“What’s wrong, Sister? You look pale.”
“I feel like the strength is draining from my body.”
“The servants’ quarters are probably not suitable for Milady. Shouldn’t you return to your room?”
“I know that! I was going to show a mere glimpse of magic to a lowly cat like you, but I’ll refrain. Let’s go, Ordo!”
Ordo glared at me, but being glared at by a twelve-year-old brat didn’t bother me in the slightest.
More importantly, the fact that I could read and record other people’s magic was significant, but recklessly continuing to read it would cause physical discomfort.
Thanks to the foolish siblings, I got a lead on magic, and I also obtained five Ice Magics.
This only increases the fun of my nighttime wanderings.
First, I tried to see if I could attach the memorized Ice Magic to myself.
When I thought (Ice Magic, Ice Magic), [Ice Magic x5] appeared in my head, so I muttered (Attach) towards myself.
The Ice Magic I read became [Ice Magic x4], so it seemed to have worked, but [1/5] appeared in my head.
What is [1/5]?
Even when I attached the Magic Pouch, something like this never appeared in my head.
There’s only one possibility: if it appeared when I attached Ice Magic to myself, it must be the number of magics I can attach to myself.
If my guess is correct, the number should increase each time I attach magic to myself in the future.
I want to try out Ice Magic right away, but I probably can’t do something like Ice Bullet right away, so I’ll just try freezing something.
I created a 5cm diameter water sphere with Magical Power and placed it on the table.
Chanting shouldn’t be necessary, but I wondered what to do, so I quickly thought (Freeze!) and sent Magical Power from my arm.
I’m a genius♪
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I want to have Hattie let me read her Earth Magic, but I’d be troubled if she felt sick like Eleanor, and there’s another problem.
If the other person’s magical ability decreases by the amount I read, that would be unfortunate.
It would be fine to suck magic from a fool like Eleanor, but that would be bad since Hattie has been taking care of me.
After much deliberation, I couldn’t come to a conclusion, so I decided that if the magical ability decreased after reading, I would return it by attaching it.
If I can’t return it, I’ll attach Ice Magic for her.
I’ll check with Hattie during a hunting break.
“Hattie, I want to try something, so could you cooperate with me?”
“What’s with the formality?”
“No, I want to know about your physical condition. If you feel unwell, could you let me know?”
“Oh, Fernan’s getting interested in girls, huh?”
“Hattie, stop it! Her husband is right in front of you.”
“Should I take you to a place with pretty older sisters next time?”
“Yeah. Thanks to you, I’ve been earning good money lately.”
“You guys, don’t teach him stupid things. So, what are you going to do?”
“No, I’m not going to do anything, but I want you to tell me if you feel anything. I want to hear about changes in Hattie’s body.”
All four of them have question marks floating above their heads, but Hattie said, “I don’t know what it is, but it’s fine,” so I started reading.
(Read/Read) [Earth Magic, Fire Magic, Short Bow Skill] Hmm, Hattie doesn’t just have Earth Magic.
Also, if I can read skills, does that mean I can memorize the Short Bow Skill too?
“Hattie, you have Earth Magic and Fire Magic.”
“Eh… You can tell? I mean, I shouldn’t have talked about Fire Magic.”
“Oh, Hattie has also been granted Fire Magic?”
“We’re hearing this for the first time, but Fernan… are you an appraiser?”
“No. I can tell that Hattie has been granted two magics and one skill, but I don’t know anything else. I recently found out that I can tell what people have been granted in the Bestowal Ceremony.”
“You were told you had God’s Mischief at the Bestowal Ceremony, right?”
“That’s right. However, they also said my Magical Power was 73. So, I’ve been thinking about various things, but I can tell what magic and skills other people have been granted…”
“What about the ‘but I can tell’ part?”
“That’s what I don’t know. So, I wanted to hear what would happen if I read Hattie’s.”
“If you can tell skills, can you tell what skill I was granted?”
Cokes, huh? (Read/Read) [Short Spear Skill, Long Sword Skill]
“Cokes, you’ve been granted Short Spear and Long Sword skills, right?”
“Hmm, it seems to be true that you can tell what Asshira-sama has granted.”
“So, what do you want to try with me?”
“I can tell what magic you’ve been granted, but I want to find out what kind of thing it is and to what extent I can tell.”
That’s a lie, though. I can’t say that I want to know to what extent reading and memorizing will affect the other person.
“Okay, go ahead and try.”
Since Hattie gave permission, I decided to try something else that came to mind.
(Read/Memorize) [Earth Magic x1, Fire Magic x1, Short Bow Skill x1]
Glancing at Hattie, she tilted her head and made a subtle face.
She seems fine, so I tried again (Read/Memorize) [Earth Magic x2, Fire Magic x2, Short Bow Skill x2]
“I feel like something is draining from my body.”
“Something… what does it feel like?”
“Well… if I had to say, it’s similar to when I use magic.”
It would be bad if Hattie’s condition worsened, even if it’s just in a shallow part of the forest, so I stopped reading.
Today’s harvest is that the other person will notice a change after reading and memorizing six times, including magic and skills.
In Eleanor’s case, she felt sick after reading and memorizing Ice Magic five times, and this time, she felt a slight change after reading magic four times and skills two times.
Is the degree of feeling different even if the number is higher than Eleanor’s, or is it the difference between someone accustomed to using magic and someone who has just been granted it?
“Fernan, can you tell about mine?”
Kilza, huh… (Read/Memorize) [Bow Skill x1]… (Read/Memorize) [Bow Skill x5] I read and memorized five times in a row, but he’s perfectly fine.
“What’s wrong? Can’t you tell?”
“Kilza, you’ve been granted the Bow Skill.”
“Is that all?”
“What do you mean by ‘that all’?”
“No… I was wondering if you found out anything other than the Bow Skill.”
“I could only tell the Bow Skill. Do you have any other skills?”
“I also have the Scout Skill.”
“That’s a skill you acquired through training, right? I can only tell what you’ve been granted.”
While talking to Kilza, I memorized skills from Cokes, but he was perfectly fine even after reading [Short Spear Skill x5, Long Sword Skill x5].
There’s a change when I memorize magic, but does the skill not change?
There are still many things I don’t know, but my future seems to be manageable.
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I make full use of my Search and Stealth Skills and go out for regular nighttime strolls.
Of course, even though I say stroll, it’s a reconnaissance of Honings Baron’s office.
The disheveled-looking man who comes on the night of the Bestowal Ceremony at the beginning of the month, his name is Kadif. He seems to be undertaking the dirty work of the Honings Marquis family.
The large mansion, as known from light novels, seems to have been built with the support of the Marquis family, so there’s no doubt that it’s under the control of the Marquis family.
The Baron title he received with the Marquis’s authority, and since he’s a parent and child, it’s natural that he’s under their control.
The conversation tonight was rather unsettling; it seems they’ve arranged to send me off on an errand once the Ceremony of Bestowal is over.
“The arrangements are in place, so please bear with us for a little while longer.”
“I understand. Honestly, all this because that woman got pregnant so easily. We’ve raised him until now to avoid any bad reputation, so he’ll have to be useful at least at the end. The Party calling themselves the Bums of Hunza, whom we entrusted him to, will meet a fitting end for such a ridiculous name.”
“Recently, it seems they’ve improved their skills quite a bit, but will it be alright?”
“What can a few adventurers do, even if they’ve improved a little? Or are you all that weak?”
“Have we ever failed you? Even if there are guards, they’re just a bunch of adventurers. Please leave it to us.”
They call me a cat, but the 1/4 cat-person blood in me drastically enhances my hearing.
There’s no way I’ll move as you want me to!
It’s troublesome that they plan to use me to take advantage of the Bums of Hunza, but for a bright future, I’ll rebel against you with all my might.