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People Call the Dungeon the Forest of Deception – Part 04

“How many times can you use that spell?” Hikaru asked as they strolled through the plains.

“Let’s see… I can use it thirty times without a break.”

“Wow, that’s incredible. I wonder if I can use magic too.”

“Everyone has mana, so if you practice, you should be able to.”

Hikaru stopped and started reciting the incantation for Fire Breath.

“…”

“…”

“Nothing’s happening.”

“Normally, you need to first deepen your relationship with the elementals and practice releasing mana…”

“Normally? Was it different in your case?”

“Yeah… It was.”

Lavia was six years old when her aptitude to magic became known. That time she was still living in their main residence as the daughter of the Count’s second wife.

It all started when a horse that strolled next to her stepped on a nail and went wild. Right when it was about to hurt her, Lavia suddenly released magical powers that lay dormant within her.

It was a simple mana discharge, like the one she used when Hikaru met her in the dungeon, only enough to alter the air around.

But the amount of power she released was enormous. The horse fainted, and the coachman and her attendant all collapsed in a heap. Lavia alone was on her feet.

That was how the Count discovered her powers. After the incident, large beasts and tied-up Goblins were brought before her to test her abilities on. She was made to recite different elemental magic incantations, and the findings said that she had great affinity to Fire. She somehow just learned to use fire magic without studying or training. All the monsters that were brought before her were reduced to ashes in one shot.

The Count was both pleased and afraid of Lavia’s power. He had her isolated, forbidden to go outside. It was also around this time when the Count hired knights as guards, since ordinary men wouldn’t be able to handle her if she went out of control. Thus, while the Count was testing the limits of Lavia’s abilities, he began exploring ways on how to use her.

Hikaru had a feeling that the border skirmishes between the Kingdom of Ponsonia and the neighboring Empire of Quinbrand were Count Morgstadt’s idea.

How could he use his own daughter, his own blood, like some kind of a tool?

Only a select few were privy to Lavia’s powers, including the king himself. She had value as an instrument of war.

Hikaru’s chest tightened just thinking about what she’d been through.

The past is the past. She can enjoy life to the fullest now. Lavia and I, together…

Hikaru gathered himself. Lavia was free now.

“I know it’s a touchy subject, so thanks for telling me,” he said.

“It’s fine. I wanted to tell you.”

“Can you tell me more about your magic? How much of the Fire Breath can you control?”

“Control?”

“You said it was a basic spell. But what you used was too powerful for something basic. If an ordinary Mage cast it, it would be less effective, right?”

“I think so. I don’t know if you can call it control, but I can adjust the location where it’ll appear and the direction it flies to. I can’t change how much mana it consumes, though. That part is constant.”

“So even though it consumes the same amount of mana, yours was bigger.”

I see, Hikaru thought. It must be the five points she has on Fire. The higher the number, the bigger the fire ball. In other words, even with the same amount of mana, there’s much higher firepower.

Hikaru had no idea what war was like in this world, but he assumed elemental magic was considered a valuable asset. If thirty of those Fire Breath spells hit the enemy, there would be no hope for them.

“Can you change the shape of the fireball, then? Or perhaps compress or expand it?”

“I’ve never thought about doing that before.”

“Let’s try it when we get the chance. Unfortunately, this area is too open, so we can’t run tests here.”

There were only grasslands nearby. Two small birds were frolicking about in the skies. Hikaru didn’t want to burn down such a tranquil place.

“We’ll have to examine your Blessings some other time as well.”

Lavia chuckled.

“Hmm? What’s up?” Hikaru asked.

“You sound like a scholar, talking about running tests and examinations.”

“Really? Doesn’t it bother you when you don’t find answers to your questions?”

“A bit, but I’m not as fixated on them as you are.”

“Speaking of which, I have one more question.”

Lavia chuckled again.

“Sorry. Some other time, then.”

“No, go on. I said I’d give you everything. That includes my experiences and knowledge.”

Hikaru was surprised by Lavia’s candor. “All right, then. Did you have that much mana from the start?”

He was curious about her Soul Board’s available points being zero. She most likely got her six ranks from killing the monsters brought to her. Not something you’d ask a young girl to do, not even for experiments. Her points were allocated to Mana Capacity and Fire Elemental Affinity at some point.

“No, I had much less at first,” Lavia said. “I hardly ever had opportunities to use magic, but sometimes it felt like my mana increased.”

She had a remarkable eleven points on Mana Capacity, which allowed her to use Fire Breath, a basic fire spell, thirty times without rest.

“Did you do anything special?” Hikaru asked.

“No.”

“Okay…”

So the points were automatically allocated.

A human’s potential was quantified as points. You earned more points as you grew older and by increasing your Soul Rank. If you excelled at something, your abilities would be enhanced in the form of talents, and points were then allocated accordingly.

In Lavia’s case, her stats were unbalanced, with only her gift in elemental magic being improved.

“Did that answer your question, Professor?” Lavia teased, peering into Hikaru’s face.

“The mystery just deepens. Which is why racking your brains is fun, Miss Lavia,” Hikaru replied with a smile. “Hmm?”

“What’s wrong?”

“Shh. There’s something there.”

“What?”

Hikaru spotted a creature with a red horn on a slope a hundred meters ahead, its face buried into the ground, grunting—a Red-Horned Rabbit. A monster that Hikaru hunted down to fund Lavia’s rescue operation.

“Let’s kill it,” Hikaru said. “They’re worth decent money.”

“Is that a rabbit?”

“Can you wait here? We’re downwind, so it shouldn’t notice you if you just stay still.”

“Can I come with you?”

“Sure, I guess. Don’t let go of my hand.”

Hikaru hesitated for a moment. He was simply going to approach the rabbit and stab it with his dagger—nothing special for Lavia to see. Though the act could be seen as cruel by some people.

There was one more reason he really didn’t want her to see him kill the rabbit. She had killed helpless creatures with her magic in the past. He figured those were painful memories for her.

But Lavia said she wanted to go adventuring. She had to get used to killing living creatures. It was too late for playing nice.

Hikaru activated his Group Cloaking and inched closer to the Red-Horned Rabbit. It didn’t take long for them to close the distance. Hikaru pulled out his dagger and stabbed its heart through the back. The creature quivered, then went limp.

“Wow.”

That was all Lavia said. Hikaru could feel her discomposure through her hand, but she wasn’t as shocked as he had expected her to be. Good.

“Your Stealth is way more amazing than my magic,” Lavia said.

“I just happen to be the right person for this job. Hmm?”

Hikaru saw the dirt where the Red-horned Rabbit stuck its head. It was eating something that resembled a potato.

Is this their staple food? I can use this info when I get asked how I hunt them.

“Hikaru? What’s wrong?”

“It’s nothing. I’ll just drain this thing’s blood, then we head back.”

“Isn’t it heavy?”

“I can carry one just fine.”

Hikaru put a point on Muscle Strength for this purpose. Lavia was surprised to see him stuff the rabbit in a sack and carry it like nothing.

“All right. Let’s head back, shall we?”