After a brief mont of reverence for Lady Seir, a resud the lesson.
“As I got to know more about Eclipto, I learned that he has two wolf offspring, and I developed a summoning magic to call them as my next demonic spell.”
Solagarm and Managarm. Wolves that devour the sun and moon. It was probably the spell I envied the most out of all the ones I’d seen so far.
“But the third spell I created with Eclipto’s contract was a magic that corrodes the physical bodies of those affected by my mana corrosion.”
Even I didn’t know all of a’s spells. I could always just ask her, and she’d answer without hesitation. But I’d never felt the need or had the ti.
“See the difference?”
“You’re asking about the difference between the second and third spells, right?”
“Yes.”
a had created three spells from her contract with Eclipto: one for mana corrosion, another for summoning a familiar, and the third for bodily decay.
If there was a distinction between the second and third spells…
“The second spell uses a different power from the first, but the third is based on the sa power?”
“Perfect. Spot on.”
Satisfied, a offered a rare, small smile and gave a light clap.
“Unless a new contract is made, a demonologist’s quickest way to grow stronger is by expanding their arsenal. Either deepen an existing power to create advanced magic or add spells by borrowing a new power.”
Once a demonic spell is ford, its structure is fixed. As my skills improve, the casting speed and potency might increase, but there’s a limit.
For example, with my blink spell, the core of the magic is spatial movent within my sensory range. As my proficiency increased, I could bring one more person along—now two people.
‘Though Ray’s small, she’s surprisingly heavy.’
Despite the height difference, Ray and Leif weigh about the sa. Muscle, maybe.
In any case, existing spells have room to grow, but my blink spell will never evolve into teleporting to completely unknown places.
“Expansion and addition.”
“But either option requires you to pay a higher price than the first contract…actually, never mind. It doesn’t apply to you, Roman.”
That’s right.
My demons are already at the limit of what I can handle based on my current level of power. My rank has increased to the point that I can make a contract with a duke-level demon like Seir, but that doesn’t an I can manage a fourth demon.
However, I can establish an additional contract with a demon I’m already bound to.
[If you hadn’t taken this one on, you’d have room for three more.]
[Tsk. Without , the Oathkeeper wouldn’t even be here in the first place.]
This was a difficult decision.
Which demon, and which power, should I strengthen?
While I was mulling over it, a offered her advice.
“In my opinion.”
My skill tree consultant was about to give her take, so I listened carefully.
“Your most essential magic is Exhaustion.”
a’s unexpected assessnt made raise my eyebrows in surprise.
In my mind, Leraje’s excited voice rang out.
[Ha! That dark elf knows her stuff. She’s got so skills, huh?]
“Exhaustion? Not Blink?”
[Hey, Roman, you better explain what that ans.]
[What’s there to explain? It’s obviously the correct response.]
[Roman doesn’t know magic like I do. That dark elf’s got it right.]
[Hmph. Just because they haven’t yet witnessed the greatness of my powers, they underestimate . If they’d even glimpsed my authority over the elents, they’d never say such things.]
Ignoring the clamor of my guardian demons, I focused on a’s reasoning.
“Exhaustion is correct.”
“Can I ask why?”
“Blink is powerful. Spatial magic alone creates an enormous advantage. But in the end, it lacks offense.”
“True.”
“In terms of escape or evasion, Blink is invaluable. But to defeat an opponent, it falls short. Instead, Exhaustion is the key to victory.”
a scribbled sothing on the board.
She divided the potential opponents into three categories: those stronger than , those at my level, and those weaker than .
“A weak opponent is simple. As long as you’re not careless, you’ll win. For an equal opponent, it’s the sa. Even if they aren’t careless, your Blink ability ans they’ll still lose. Blink holds that much power.”
[At least she’s got so sense.]
[“So sense” – rather, complete precision.]
While my demons debated in the background, a continued.
“But if the opponent is stronger than you?”
“If Blink doesn’t end it in one move, they’ll quickly find a counterasure.”
Viola would likely sense Blink with her sensory abilities, while the professor could impose limitations through incantations.
“To beat such a strong opponent, Exhaustion is the only path to victory.”
It’s a spell that continuously saps an opponent’s power the more it’s layered on them.
In theory, if I could land a hit, Exhaustion has the potential to weaken an enemy stronger than to a comparable or even weaker level.
But then a thought occurred to .
“Wouldn’t it be stronger to deepen the spatial power and create an offensive spell?”
“It would, but…”
a pointed to the space between “stronger opponent” and “equal opponent.”
“It would only work up to here.”
“Oh…”
I’d almost forgotten that Blink only worked smoothly with mutual consent. If my partner used autonomous mana defense or a protective skill, the spell would misfire or warp the coordinates.
Even if I made it an offensive spell, it likely wouldn’t work against anyone stronger. Unless I drew even more power from Seir, which wouldn’t happen overnight.
“You’re right.”
“In the long run, you might be right, but there’s no telling how long that would take.”
Seir certainly offers a higher ceiling, and perhaps Procel as well.
But in terms of imdiate power, Leraje was right.
‘While Seir’s side would likely be more intuitive to learn, Leraje’s isn’t far behind.’
Using magic bullets aligns well with using Exhaustion.
I made my choice.
“a is right.”
I’m going with Leraje.
I apologize to Lady Seir, but right now, increasing my strength is crucial. Who knows what kind of dark cultists are out there waiting to strike?
“Your second contract demon is a shooter, right?”
“Did you figure that out?”
“No. Just guessed. Poison-users usually have a ans to deliver it.”
Ah. That made sense.
The Southern Sect specializes in throwing weapons to deliver poison efficiently.
In this context, a’s deduction that Leraje’s poison attribute indicates a shooter’s nature was impressive. She was indeed a seasoned demonologist.
“Then they must also have a power related to perfect accuracy.”
“Perfect accuracy?”
“Exhaustion requires contact. But a high-ranking demon like yours would surely have a way to ensure it lands.”
[Correct! That dark elf is sharp. Keen eye and solid reasoning. Roman, from now on, learn demonology from her.]
Leraje had beco an eternal a fan.
[It’s just a decision based on available options. I could show you an entirely new path that’s far better. Contractor, ignore Leraje’s words.]
Let’s use both, then. Seir for the big picture, a for the details. They match in scale, too.
“So, you’re saying I should go with perfect accuracy for the additional magic.”
“That’s right.”
The direction was clear in my mind.
Seir would specialize in deepening spatial abilities, while Leraje’s Exhaustion would gain more options through additional specialization. I’d leave Procel for later when I’d gained more proficiency.
With the path decided, it was ti to take action.
“The second contract can be simplified. The established contract script will serve as a summoning circle. Just think of the demon’s na and their power, then form the contract for the spell you want.”
There’s no need for all that since they’d been listening from the start.
[Easy enough.]
The deity associated with Leraje was the renowned Artemis. For Leraje, accuracy was a fundantal ability.
‘Like a basic implant.’
The contract script pulsed as a new line was added, and a new spell imprinted itself into my mind.
However, containing the authority of a high-level entity in a human body is close to impossible.
A degraded shard of their authority was tethered to .
From now on, any target I hit once would be struck by my second shot with guaranteed accuracy.
When the magic settled into , Seir was the first to speak.
[Der Freischutz. The Magic Marksman. This is a perfect na for it!]
Ah, that’s a na I recognized—turns out it was from an opera.
However, my mind quickly settled on a na that felt even more fitting.
“I’ll call it Mark.”
That’s the one.
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