Okay, they actually might be more capable of taking care of themselves then I initially thought. With Rigurd in charge, the groups have done their best and worked hard to gather food, resources, and even make some shelter. Not great shelter, but with a good amount of [Sticky Thread] most things stayed together. It's quickly becoming the duct tape of this world. That isn't to say an overly excited wolf couldn't knock them all down without thinking. They've been behaving so it's not much of a concern.
That leaves me asking myself what it is I'm suppose to do now. I'm tired of going through [Mind Library] in the hopes of finding something useful, and I can't help Rigurd since we want him to be independent. Going to the Ogre village is an option, but it hasn't even been a day since Rimuru left. Thinking about it over breakfast, I remembered the first time I learned about my skills. One of them was [Dark Magic], there's no one around that can teach me how to use it, I'm still interested in experimenting with it. But before that, there's a matter to take care of.
"Rigurd," I call over to him as I approach.
"Yes," He replied in an anxious way. "Good morning, Lord F/N. I hope you slept well."
"Rigurd, are you worried about Rimuru and the others?" I asked, his head sunk in response. "Would it put your mind at ease to know that they're alright?"
"I'm sorry to trouble you with my worries, it isn't anything to concern yourself with. I know Rigur and the others will be safe with Lord Rimuru," I raised a hand to his words.
"[Strong Bonds]," I said, "It's one of my skills and if something happens to them, I'll be the first to know. Work easy knowing that Rimuru isn't the only keeping an eye out for them." He doesn't need to know the specifics of the skill.
Rigurd bowed his head, "Thank you for your reassuring words! I feel relieved already!"
"You sure know how to get excited. As long as you're not bothered... By the way, do you know if anyone here practices magic? I was hoping for someone to answer a few questions." I asked, expecting a no.
"Hmm," Rigurd thought for a moment, "I'm sorry to say this, but no one here uses magic."
"Master, may I make a suggestion?" Erebus spoke up, coming from speaking with the Tempest Wolves. "Since all is quiet in the forest, may we go to the river and work through your questions together?"
"That doesn't sound like a bad idea. Do you know any magic?" I asked, Erebus' tail kicked up.
"No, however I'm sure we can figure it out together!" Did he realize I don't know the first thing about magic, or is he just putting us in the same boat? Either way, going to the river sounds nice.
"I'll grab a few fruits and we can head over," I patted Erebus on the head.
The river he was referring to is the same one Rimuru and the others followed north to Dwargon. It was a good distance away from the village, making it a safe place to experiment with potentially dangerous skills and magic. After he saw Rimuru ride off on Ranga, I knew Erebus wanted to take me there himself and run with me on his back. Allowing for it, I learned quickly how fast the Twilight Wolves could run. If I hadn't used [Sticky Thread] there was a good chance I would have ripped his fur off.
That reminds me, I need to practice using that skill and the others. Rimuru and I had enough time in the cave to try out the skills we acquired and share information with each other, it was simply a matter of spending more time using them to be more skillful with the thread. [Poisonous Breath] is another one I need to learn how to control better without risk of hitting someone friendly. By the side of the water I stretched after getting off Erebus and removed the thread on him. I took the fruits we brought and put them into a net I practiced making for a while with [Sticky Thread].
Letting the water of the river cool them while I started the real training. The only thing I know about magic is what I've seen in anime and movies. They can't possibly be right, but I have no other reference point other than the skills I have and what Rimuru has said. Using skills is easy, natural even, that I don't even have to think about how they are used. This [Dark Magic] however must be different if I can't use it like [Thought Communication].
"[Magic Sense]," I called out, allowing me to see the Magicules in the surrounding area, looking at Erebus I could see they were more concentrated within him. "Erebus, I'll be talking to myself for a bit, don't mind it."
"Understood master, I'll keep watch until you need me," The big wolf said.
"[Voice], are Magicules needed to perform magic?" I asked.
Answer. Yes.
"Hmm, it couldn't be as easy as..." I pointed my open palm to the water. "Fireball!"
Boom! And the entire river was destroyed! Nope. None of that happened.
"Burn with the heat of the sun, fireball!"
Again, nothing. I expected this, I need to do more than just say a spell name or random chant. Taking a deep breath, I thought about it in [Mind Library] as I went through some of the magic worlds written in fiction and how Rimuru described his [Water Manipulation]. I wasn't interested in using the same abilities without testing what I could do on my own. Instead of learning it through [Strong Bonds], I want to learn it on my own.
From the way he described it and using some of the memories as a basis, it came to mind how to begin my magical experiment. While using [Magic Sense] to know where the Magicules in the air were, I used the sensation of sealing my aura to try and bring them over to my hand. In my mind, the flame of a small candle appeared as I imagined the approaching Magicules as the fuel source feeding into it. Sure enough, with the knowledge of what I wanted to achieve and enough practice, a small flame appeared in my hand.
But that wasn't enough, now it was time for the real test. I pointed my palm to the water and fueled the flame with my own power. Without realizing how much I put into it, the fire blazed across the river, evaporating all the water that came into contact with it. At this rate, if the fire hits the trees, this area of the forest is likely to be burned to the ground. Taking a deep breath, I attempted to decrease the fuel by treating my body like a propane tank with a valve. Feeding less fuel as the valve closed.
Hesitantly, I allowed the fire to spread onto my hand and arm since I was next to a body of water. Thankfully, the fire didn't burn and was warm in a good way. I closed the valve further until the flame had its fuel cut off completely.
Skill Fire Output Control has been acquired. Skill Fire Stream has been acquired. Skill Fire Coat has been acquired. The Skills Fire Output Control, Fire Stream, and Fire Coat have evolved into Extra Skill Fire Manipulation.
That's exactly what I was aiming for! Not really since I didn't know it existed, but it's good to know that I can successfully learn new skills this way on my own without using [Strong Bonds] or Rimuru's [Predator]. And since their offensive skills, I'm especially happy to learn them. Now let's get testier with it. I used the sensation of concealing my aura as a reference and imagined the Magicules spreading across my body, coating me in them. With [Dark Magic] in mind, I imagined the coat as a black shroud that was covering me completely and gave me an evil quality.
Demon Affinity activated.
Okay, maybe I should have thought of a nicer quality. Like angelic or something. I opened my eyes to see my hands and body covered in a black shroud as I had imagined. Like fabric flowing in the wind, the shroud of Magicules hung onto me until I mentally stopped drawing them to me. The magic of this world may not be so hard to get the hand of with [Magic Sense]. Alright! Time to try fireball again, but this time with style!
"Alright, let's put them together," I raised my hand toward the air and shrouded myself once again, this time picturing the flames as coming from the shroud itself which created a red and black geyser of fire from my hand. Not fireball but kind of cool.
Composite Skill Demon Flame has been acquired.
On second thought, maybe I shouldn't use [Demon Affinity] with anything else. It's starting to get too edgy for me. Turning off the magic, I asked the [Voice] to tell me what it is that the skill does besides add the color black to my flames.
Answer. Demon Flame produces fire that is considerably more dangerous to Angels.
"Ah, so completely useless to me," I took a deep breath, "...I really shouldn't use them together, but if it expands my skills. Can you tell me what would happen if [Demon Flame] was used with [Darkness X] and what other skills could come from that result?"
Analyzing potential outcomes and corruption.
I checked on Erebus while it did and saw his amazed expression, "Master!" He said loudly, "I knew you were amazing the moment you made our entire pack kneel under your command, but seeing your power now has made me realize how truly amazing you are!"
Hard to tell if he's overexaggerating in the hopes that I pet him for his words or if he actually believes that. Either way, being called amazing is nice in its own way, "I'm sure you'll develop into an amazing being yourself, Erebus."
"Thank you, master!" He said as I walked over and took some of the fruit from the water, splitting a cold apple with him as I listened to the [Voice].
Analysis complete. Use of Darkness X and Demon Flame would result in Angel Flame through altering Demon Affinity. Use of Darkness X and Angel Flame would result in Spirit Flame through altering the resulting skill Angel Affinity. Use of Darkness X and the resulting Spirit Affinity would result in Demon Affinity. Warning. Resulting corruption of using Darkness X with the first two totals thirty-six percent. Risk of minor abnormality likely.
It must have counted the last skill as worthless to use with [Darkness X], that must mean it would result in [Demon Affinity]. So Demons beat Angels, Angels beat Spirits, and Spirits beat Demons. Noted. But more importantly, "It would be minor issues for now, I may be able to handle that," I mumbled to myself.
"What's the problem, master?" Erebus asked.
"Nothing for now. I was just talking to my skill, it can say rather troublesome things," I said, giving him some pets to make him worry less. "But I should probably tell you about it, in case it does become a problem."
"Whatever it is, I will do what I can to assist you," Erebus said with confidence.
"Then I'll ask the same thing of you that I asked Rimuru," I said, "One of my skills acts like a status effect and it's called [Corrupted], the higher it gets the more likely bad things will happen to me. You understand so far?"
"Yes," Erebus answered quickly, listening carefully.
"Then you'll understand that, if something bad happens to me, whether it's I lose control or am suffering beyond what is imaginable, I ask that you put me out of my misery," My words created a silence between us that caused Erebus to lower his head.
"Master..." Erebus spoke in a serious and low tone, "I do not wish to be given such a task, so may I ask instead that I am allowed to save you?"
"Geez, neither you nor Rimuru are willing to take that burden... not that I can blame you. Erebus, whether you accept it or not, I want someone stronger than me to appear," I said lowering myself to raise his head up with my hands, "Someone I can trust to protect people when Rimuru and I can't. Whether it's because we left to explore the world, or because my body can't handle the corruption anymore and something happens to him. Do you understand?"
Erebus looked at me, his tail low and motionless, "...Yes, master, I understand. I will work to become stronger so you needn't worry about a thing."
"And it's F/N, at least call me that when we're alone, alright?" I asked one last question.
Holding his head upon his own, "Understood mast- I mean, yes, F/N."
I didn't need to ask the [Voice] if our bond grew stronger, because I felt it as the day went on, "Well, that's enough serious talk, let's see what you can do!"
"I will show you my best!" Erebus said, getting back to his energetic self.
Instead of training we mostly just played in the forest. Despite his earlier speed, it turns out that the Twilight Wolves are actually slower than the Tempest Wolves. This shouldn't be taken as a bad thing since they have become excellent at not only concealing their presence, but at making no sound at all when they move. In other words, when we played hide-and-seek, Erebus was incredibly good at both hiding and seeking. If I didn't use [Magic Sense], which definitely isn't cheating, I would have never found him.
Additionally, like Ranga, Erebus can make himself smaller, allowing him to hide easily in bushes. I'll force him into washing up in the river before we head bad as punishment- I mean, to bond by caring for one another's hygiene. Yeah, that. Can't have him playing in bushes and not give him a bath. Now that I think about it, I haven't had a hot shower ever since I got here. Enjoying hot water sounds so nice. Rimuru's lucky in many ways for not having a humanoid body. I don't think Slimes are even capable of smelling bad.
Back to some actual training while I weighed the risks of using [Darkness X], I put the magic of this world to the test. It was a challenge to control the output at first, much like how it was with my strength, but with enough practice not only did I become better at using [Fire Manipulation], I even started on the first steps to [Water Manipulation]. I think. Erebus and I ending up playing in the water at one point after I threw a ball of water at him. Turns out he doesn't mind the cold river water.
I did discover something important, there is a difference, at least in my mentality, between [Dark Magic] and the element of Darkness. Fire, Water, and Wind are some of the elements that I practiced with, and upon speaking with Erebus, he asked if there were other elements, suggesting Darkness and Light. I don't know, and truthfully speaking, they don't sound like elements. However, this world may treat them as such so we tried.
Demon Affinity activated.
If I hear that one more time, the nearest tree to going to be the victim of my next attack. Using Darkness was more difficult than I thought. It could be that I was becoming too comfortable with [Dark Magic] and naturally gravitating towards it. Apparently it pertains to Demons and in my mind [Dark Magic] and Demons go hand-in-hand. Wait, I could ask the [Voice], it can identify magic after all.
Answer. Dark Magic is also referred to as Demon Magic and can be countered with Spirit Magic. Darkness is an advanced form of Elemental Magic.
Then the reason the [Voice] referred to it as [Dark Magic] must be because it derives from the skill [Darkness X], which has nothing to do with the Darkness element. That is both needlessly misleading and confusing. But knowing that Darkness is more advanced than the other elements does help explain why it's being a challenge. By learning the basics with fire, water and wind I've taken off the training wheels and now I'm trying to do tricks I've never done before. Don't get me wrong, that isn't grounds to give up.
When Erebus attempted to move his shadow it became clear that he was naturally suited for it. Not only moving it, but later on he learned a skill called [Shadow Wolves]. This allowed him to create black wolves out of any shadows in his sight. At the moment, he can create a maximum of two, which made for perfect training partners when it came to target practice. Additionally, I used [Lover's Embrace] on him to see if a Resistance would appear. Sure enough, since Erebus was aware of it and was told to resist the best he could, he managed to develop [Abnormal Condition Resistance].
Focusing on the skills I have, I attempted to combine [Poisonous Breath] & [Paralyzing Breath] while trying to control it. The end result was my second Composite Skill [Ailment Mist]. Anyone trapped in it will be poisoned and paralyzed. Not a kind way to go. And after much debate, I used [Darkness X] to alter [Demon Affinity]. Gaining me [Spirit Affinity], [Angel Affinity], and the flames that came with them. However, an abnormality did arise.
Notice. Abnormality detected. Skill Ultrasonic Wave has been corrupted. Effect of the skill has been decreased by half and may not activate.
I got lucky that it wasn't an important skill like [Thought Communication]. Let's refrain from using [Darkness X] anymore, for now. In the end, it was a good day. Both of us returned to the village feeling more powerful and closer. The others were well since nothing had happened while we were gone. Since we didn't eat all the fruit we brought, we hunted on our way back so we could have a bigger dinner. Come night, Erebus entered a peaceful sleep beside me. As for myself, those past memories kept me awake. One day, I'd like that to end.