Chapter 28 Tatsumis Magic Verification
Tatsumi closed his eyes, and tried to slowly release his senses.
After letting go of the feeling of his body, he was able to sense the mana in the air certainly.
There were mana flowing in the air around him. Tatsumi tried to gather that mana in his body.
The Image was ‘Breathing’. As he breathed in, the mana in the air was also inhaled into his body.
For ordinary mages like Giuseppe and Calcedonia, they imagine a ‘Water well’ inside their bodies from which magic gushes out like water. That’s the image they use to sense magic.
But Tatsumi didn’t have that ‘Water well’ inside him. After taking advice from Giuseppe and Calcedonia on a lot of points, he judged that the image of breathing was the most suitable.
With every breath, the Oxygen enters his body, mixes with his blood, and due to his heartbeat it spreads to every nook and cranny of his body. Tatsumi used this image to breath in mana.
Like this, the mechanism of breathing Tatsumi learnt in Modern Day Japan helped him a lot when forming the image.
Tatsumi who felt his body overflowing with mana opened his eyes, and picked up a stone from the ground.
A normal stone the size of a fist you could find just about anywhere.
But as Tatsumi lightly squeezed, the stone was crushed into pieces easily like a mudball.
Next, Tatsumi looked towards the scarecrow in front of him . It was wearing a leather armor similar to the one he used during weapons training.
He punched out straight with all his power as his golden mana clad fist hit the scarecrow. The scarecrow was blown into smithereens with a roaring sound as if it was hit by explosives.
Seeing that scene, both Giuseppe and Calcedonia drew in a cold breath as they let out sighs.
“….Son-in-law is as haphazard as usual…”
“…But Master’s haphazardness is a good thing right…”
There was of course a good reason why both of them were amazed.
Right now, there was no practice to use mana directly to strengthen one’s body in their world.
Of course there were spells used for similar results, but that was in the end the result of ‘Magic’. Using mana directly to do that was unprecedented.
Causing an effect decided beforehand to come forth in reality by chanting an aria, that was the form of magic of this world, it was Aria Magic.
Mana is the energy to fuel magic. After putting a magic spell in the form of an aria, a fixed amount of mana would be consumed as ordinated by the spell itself.
Of course it was possible to make the magic more powerful, or maybe extend the area of effect using more mana. But in those cases one had to modify the chant in a few selected places, like making it plural, for the consumption of mana to increase which will cause the area of effect to increase as well.
In other words, directly using mana was not something that’s practiced often.
“The amount of mana consumed by using spells, and the spells themselves are the result of generations after generations of research. Even now there are many who are researching spells in order to improve them, some even spend their whole life doing it.”
For example, suppose there is a magic for which 10 units of mana is necessary when reciting the spell.
No matter who uses the aria to invoke the magic, the consumption would be 10. But if suppose one wished to bring about the same result without that aria, than according to the person who is invoking it the consumption might be 20, or even 30.
“…I see. In other words, if one doesn’t use the aria then the mana consumption becomes harsher.”
Listening to Giuseppe’s explanation, Tatsumi understood.
For mages, directly using mana itself directly wasn’t impossible.
If Calcedonia used mana directly on her whole body like Tatsumi, then her physical power will also go up.
But even for someone like Calcedonia, as she has close to zero experience using mana directly, whether or not she could achieve the even same results and Tatsumi or results better than him, one couldn’t say now.
And most of all, there was a matter of the amount of mana.
There was a limit on how much mana a single human being could store in his body. If a normal mage expended mana like Tatsumi, then they’d probably use it all up in moments.
Even Calcedonia who boasted of having a few folds more mana than a normal person, if she diffused mana throughout her body like Tatsumi, then she probably would not last for much time.
But if she used an aria to invoke a spell for the same results, then even if she used it 20 times in a row, her mana probably wouldn’t dry up.
“A long time ago…..when we didn’t have spells like we do now, I heard there were people who used mana directly like Son-in-law. But after spells came into practice, they slowly died out.”
The development of spells. It made it so as long as one properly used an aria, then one could bring about the same results using the optimum amount of mana.
It was like natural selection. As after this user friendly method began to spread, all the other hard to use methods slowly went extinct.
Spells brought about the era of ‘Magicians’, but at the same time it ended the era of ‘Mana users’.
That was the reason why even though this age had a lot of magicians, it only had a handful of Mana users.
But Tatsumi who himself was not a Magician but a Mana User, had no choice but to directly use mana without using spells.
Of course, Tatsumi wasn’t only a Mana user, but also an irregular Outer origin Mana user at that.
For Tatsumi, it was basically impossible for him to run out of mana. He could simply ignore the remaining mana he had in store as he could just take it from the surroundings.
And it was because it was Tatsumi that he could punch the scarecrow from before into pieces by directly using mana.
This was why Calcedonia replied to Giuseppe that his haphazardness was a good thing.
***
“Fumu. Finally Son-in-law can feel mana and even control it deliberately.”
“But still, his magic progress is slow. I don’t think he could use it in practical combat as of now.”
“Certainly….he’s at the level where he can feel the mana in the air and control with with his will, but he’s still not at the level where he can use it in actual battles.”
Tatsumi himself nodded as he understood the point Calcedonia and Giuseppe brought up.
“Well, that would be our topic of practice from now right? The fact that you can feel and control mana is good progress.”
It’s been a good while since Tatsumi began to study magic under Giuseppe and Calcedonia.
Tatsumi has been studying magic diligently alongside performing his duties as a Junior priest and training as a cadet.
For Tatsumi, he felt that it took a long time for him to progress this far. But for Giuseppe and Calcedonia, they thought Tatsumi’s progress was extremely rapid.
Certainly at the beginning Tatsumi had some trouble feeling the mana, but after he successfully felt it once his progress turned fast.
Because they had no spells for Tatsumi’s <Sky> system magic, they had no choice but to make it so that Tatsumi could have minute control when directly using mana.
But when it came to directly controlling mana, Tatsumi should surprisingly good results.
For this, the life that Tatsumi led in Japan was to thank.
This does not have to be said but in Japan, no, back in Earth real Magic and sorcery did not exists. Well it might have existed beneath the everyday society but at least Tatsumi himself had never seen real magic.
But even if the real thing did not exist, it was a common thing in games and comics and other popular sub-cultures.
Tatsumi wasn’t too engrossed in those sub-cultures but he had a casual interest in it.
He had used magic in games, He had read comics where there was magic and witchcraft. He had seen movies where the mages rapidly using fireballs and lightning bolts.
The polished graphics of modern games and comics, they were certainly successful in engraving the image of magic in Tatsumi’s brain.
Tatsumi simply combined the image of magic he had in his mind, and the mana he gathered from the surrounding. Like this he was able to use magic.
But for this method, a huge amount of mana was necessary. Because it was converting an abstract image he had in his mind into reality. The amount needed was not something a normal magician had.
From now, Tatsumi would try to get used to the process of combining the image with mana. If he got used to it, then maybe the consumed mana would start to decrease. But in the end the only reason he could do it was because he was an outer origin mana user.
***
“Now then, let us proceed to out next course.”
Calcedonia’s bright voice echoed in the room.
Right now, Tatsumi, Calcedonia and Giuseppe were in a room of the temple. It was a room surrounded by reinforced stone and was used for magic training.
It only had a door for coming and going. It was about the size of the underground cellar Tatsumi was summoned in.
Calcedonia pulled out a silver coin from the bag tied around her waist.
This was a ‘Trading coin’’ used universally throughout the Zoysalight Continent.
“Master already knows this, but I have left a silver coin similar to this on top of the table in our living room. I want master to transfer that coin here using magic.”
Tatsumi nodded. He too had seen Calcedonia put a silver coin on the table when they left.
The magic Tatsumi was going to practice now was the most famous magic of the <Sky> system, <<Instant Transition>>.
Tatsumi closed his eyes, and he imagined the living room in his and Calcedonia’s home. He then imagined the desk at the center of the living room, and a single silver coin on top of it.
The mana from the surroundings gathered towards Tatsumi. A faint golden glow appeared at the tip of his finger, and it gradually became brighter.
And the moment the golden glow split open with a flash,
A silver flat piece of metal———did not appear in his hands.
“Yup….A failure.”
“Looks like it…”
He could certainly create an image of the coin Calcedonia left on the table. But even so he could not call it over.
“In that case, try to send this silver coin somewhere else.”
Instructed by Calcedonia, Tatsumi then concentrated on the silver coin on her palm.
Like before, golden light gather on his fingertip, and the moment he touched the coin, it vanished and then after a heartbeat, it appeared in Giuseppe’s hand.
“Looks like this time it succeeded.”
“Yes….looks like it….”
Tatsumi folded his arms and tilted his neck.
One time he failed and then he succeeded. Both times felt the same, but the results were completely different. Just, where did the first time go wrong?
Calcedonia and Giuseppe were both thinking about the same thing as they concentrated oe the coin on top of Giuseppe’s palm with a scrutinizing gaze.
Then suddenly, Giuseppe raised his head as if he thought of something.
“Wait, maybe…! Fumu. Yes, it’s worth verifying. Right, son-in-law?”
“What is it?”
“This time…right, try sending this coin over to the other side of that door.”
Giuseppe pointed towards the door that was the only entrance to this room. Currently, the door was closed and they could not see the hallway on the other side.
Tatsumi, as instructed, repeated the same process as he touched the coin.
And then, there was a flash of light. But this time, the coin did not disappear from his hand.
“So in the end what happened?”
Calcedonia tilted her neck in confusion. On the contrary Giuseppe showed a satisfied expression.
“Fumu. As I thought. But it needs some more testing. Son-in-law, please try to do what I instruct from now.”
Tatsumi nodded, and then he tried to teleport the coin a few more times like Giuseppe said.
There were a few times it succeeded, and a few times it failed. By doing it repeatedly, Tatsumi was slowly able to figure out what was happening.
***
After experimenting for a bit, they were able to find out that Tatsumi’s <<Instant Transition>> had a few restrictions.
First, Tatsumi was only able to transfer things he was directly touching.
This didn’t differentiate between animals or objects, as long as a portion of it was touching him he could transfer it.
For this they used a locust like bug (it had 8 legs, not 6) they caught in the courtyard, and the result was the same as the silver coin’s case.
Also, there were places where he could transfer them was limited to ‘what he could see’. In other words, he couldn’t send things outside his field of vision. This was why he couldn’t transfer the coin to the hallway where he could not see it.
On the contrary, there were not much limits on which things he could transfer. It didn’t matter whether they were big or small, animated or inanimate
But, the bigger the object was, the more mana it took for the transfer. Likewise, the mana consumption got greater with the distance of transfer.
Of course, for Tatsumi who used outer origin mana, this point wasn’t really a weakness.
Changing the place where they were experimenting, the results were the same for the big garden stone in the courtyard, and a random rock lying around in the garden.
Of course, there was no way to know if that was because of his own inexperience, or if it was a restriction of the <<Instant Transition>> for now.
***
“Well then, should we move on to today’s main topic?”
They once again returned to the stone magic practice room. Giuseppe, with his usual calm smile, said to Tatsumi and Calcedonia.
Today what they practiced was various verification of Tatsumi’s <<Instant Transition>>. This was the final experiment of that, and also today’s main purpose.
That was, the <<Instant Transition>> of a human.
Before, Tatsumi was able blink rapidly with <<Instant Transition>>. But he did that subconsciously. Now, he would try to do that consciously.
Of course, transferring humans came with certain possible risks. That’s why Giuseppe and Calcedonia, 2 of the most experienced clerics of the temple, and 2 powerful magicians were standing guard in case any accidents happened.
“First, try to teleport yourself.”
Instructed by Giuseppe, Tatsumi closed his eyes and concentrated.
Feeling the whirl of mana around him, he imagined himself being teleported in his mind.
Someone famous once said in a certain movie, “Don’t think, feel.’ For some reason when Tatsumi was concentrating, he thought of that.
He absorbed the whirl of mana around him into his body. And just as it integrated into his being,
Tatsumi opened his eyes. At the same moment, he disappeared and appeared again in one corner of the stone room.
“Success.”
Giuseppe laughed calmly, while Calcedonia happily clapped.
“But, as expected, it takes too long for the magic to invoke.”
“Well, that too is something we will practice on. Now then…”
Giuseppe looked at Calcedonia beside him, and after nodding once, Calcedonia approached Tatsumi.
“…Next try to transfer someone other than yourself.”
Tatsumi was going to transfer someone other then himself. This would be his first time doing it, so he did not know what would happen in case of failure.
And Calcedonia was the one who volunteered herself to do this dangerous experiment without a shred of hesitation.
Calcedonia stood in front of Tatsumi silently. What reflected on her face was a smile, not a shred of fear could be seen.
“M-Mister Giuseppe… As I thought, isn’t transferring a person so suddenly a bit dangerous? First let’s try it on a cat or dog and…”
Unlike Calcedonia, Tatsumi showed a dissatisfied expression. Well, it was to be expected. Because if by chance this failed, then he didn’t know what effect it would have on his precious Calcedonia.
“You’re saying that now? There is no way we can suddenly find a convenient small animal like those at the moment.”
It seems like in the kingdom of Largofienly, people didn’t really have the custom of keeping small animals as pets.
If one said dog, then they would think of hounds or mountain wolves, in case of cats they would think of wildcats or lynxes. This world didn’t have cats and dogs that were bred selectively to be pets.
And unfortunately, the jobs of the hunting dogs and sheepdogs were transferred to some domesticated monsters.
There are mostly no habitates of wolves and lynxes in the capitals’ vicinity, and the only way to have them captured was by requesting the monster hunters. Of course, this would be costly.
For that reason, this wasn’t an option for today’s experiment.
“It’s okay Master. Because I believe in you.”
After Calcedonia expressed her trust with a sweet smile, Tatsumi suddenly found himself at a loss for words.
“Besides, if something does happen then we have grandfather here. He can heal someone back to normal for almost all cases.”
“Beautifully said. And son-in-law, you should believe more in yourself.”
Being urged by both Calcedonia and Giuseppe, two people who he could call family in this world, Tatsumi finally made his resolve.
“Then……are you ready?”
“Yes….I’m in your care…”
Calcedonia stood there in a natural posture and closed her eyes. She wasn’t really worked up, nor was she nervous.
After gathering enough mana, Tatsumi touched Calcedonia’s left shoulder with his right hand lightly.
The soft and warm sensation of her body transmitted into his hands. For someone like Calcedonia who rather preferred the skinship with him, he was already very familiar with this nice feeling.
While feeling a bit regretful as that sense of warmth vanished from his hand, he released the magic.
Right now, he transferred Calcedonia from one corner of the room to its center.
The reason why he transferred her into the center of the room was because there was nothing there. So the chances of an accident happening went down.
So, after the warmth of her body disappeared from Tatsumi’s palm, she appeared in the center of the room.
“Oho, it’s a success…!?”
“Ye—ugh!?”
There appeared Calcedonia, in the center of the stone room.
Yup! She appeared! Only!Her!Body!Did!
***
Calcedonia felt a light fluttering feeling. But that only lasted a second. After that feeling dissipated, she slowly opened her eyes.
It seems like Tatsumi was successful in transferring her, as she appeared in the center of the room.
At bit further away, Giuseppe and Tatsumi were looking at her. But for some reason, their eyes were wide open in shock.
Calcedonia tilted her head in wonder, with the ahoge on top swaying along with it. It was then, ‘That’ appeared in her line of vision.
There, coiled up on the floor as if they were suddenly thrown in the air were a set of priestess uniforms. After concentrating, she could also see something that looked like white underwear.
And on top of those uniform was a very familiar holy crest.
—–Huh? Isn’t that my crest? Wait, then those clothes too?
It was then that her brain finally comprehended what happened.
Frightened, she timidly, meekly looked down at her own body.
In her ruby red glossy eyes, a milky white bare body was completely exposed.
A long, smooth and tender body, yet plump thigh and legs.
A well-fleshed buttock that drew an exquisite curve, and between her legs was a small bush the same colour as her silver hair.
Slender hips that were tightly bound.
And then, those round assets on her chest that were full of mass and pride, yet never showed signs of crumbling out of shape.
On top of those two masses of pride were two small light coloured cherries that meekly showed their existence.
“………………………………………………………..Hyi…………..”
Calcedonia, after short circuiting for awhile, finally understood, that she currently, was completely and utterly stark naked. Her face, in that instant, without any pause, blushed completely red. And the blush soon spread to her whole body.
It seems like a moment ago, what Tatsumi transferred was her and ‘only’ her.
“Hyiiiiiiiiieeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!?”
She hurriedly covered her breasts with her hands, and almost gracefully crouched down on the ground.
“I-I don’t really mind about master but. Grandfather! Please look the other way!!”
After finally being smacked into sense by that scream, both Tatsumi and Giuseppe looked the other way.
After confirming that, Calcedonia slowly approached her clothes with teary eyes, and put them on in a hurry. Seeing that even Tatsumi looked away, she felt a hint of loneliness in her heart.
A faint rustling sound of clothes from behind, to a young man like Tatsumi, that was a very stimulating sound.
In addition to that, just a moment ago he suddenly saw Calcedonia’s killer body, even if he didn’t want to his heart was violently beating.
Realizing that his face was gradually heating up, he suddenly remembered something.
“H-Huh? In the end, what about the experiment…?”
“Well, it’s a failure no? But I don’t think the adjustments should be hard.”
Because he concentrated too much on Calcedonia herself, he ended up transferring only ‘her’. Next time he should concentrate on both herself and her clothes so he doesn’t transfer only ‘her’. The experiment should succeed then.
“But for son-in-law this should a rather jolly failure no? For you, in the future no matter what kind of women is before you…. Even if she is a female knight wearing armor, you will be able turn her naked in an instant right? Ho ho ho”
“Hell no I am not doing that kind of thing!!”
Just to make sure Calcedonia doesn’t here, the two talked by whispering.
Giuseppe showed Tatsumi a magnificent thumbs up with a huge grin, and Tatsumi turned redder by the moment.
