Volume 7, Chapter 57 – The Location of the Source of Mana

After the sun had set behind the mountain peaks, Gota ushered in its liveliest time of day. The people of this world lacked recreational activities, and since oil lamps and candles were a non-negligible expense for ordinary families, once night fell, most people would eat dinner early and go to bed. This was the practice in most villages.

In Gota, however, people would gather in taverns, casinos, and any brightly lit place where many could congregate. They would exchange information learned during the day and prepare for the next day or for the more distant future. However, this situation has changed recently. Now, people are more enthusiastic about playing poker. For this easy-to-learn game that emphasized strategy, people would tirelessly invest a large amount of time.

And today was a special day.

Perhaps it was the work of the Water Tree’s dryad, but Gota was experiencing its first rain of the year.

Listening to the sound of the rain outside the temple, Yisi, who was in the warehouse, let out a light breath.

She was trying to create a trigger-type magic item.

Unlike a magic weapon that required the active infusion of magic power to be used, a trigger-type magic item was focused on defense. Like a tripwire trap, as long as a certain condition was met, its effect would be automatically triggered.

What Yisi wanted was a small item that could automatically deploy a magic shield when struck. Currently, her companions had various means of attack, but their defense relied too heavily on the coordination between Mary and [Aegis of Arcus]. If Mary’s stamina were to give out, the entire team would collapse in a very short time.

If they had a trigger-type defensive item, although the line would still break, a slow retreat and an immediate collapse were two different things. The former provided more reaction time. Furthermore, with such an item, it could also prevent the rearguard, Camilla and Tiffany, from being ambushed. It had happened before; because her companions had not noticed, Tiffany had been attacked. Fortunately, as a slime, she was immune to most physical attacks. If it had been Camilla, it would have turned into a very bad situation.

“The problem is a lack of knowledge…”

Putting aside the dismantled trigger-type magic item, Yisi spread her hands helplessly. The biggest problem she currently faced was a lack of knowledge. Even with a finished product right in front of her, she didn’t know how to replicate it. The magic circuits and the external shaping were not a problem for her with the foundry platform. The key was that she didn’t know the formula for the magic liquid to fill the circuits. It was like having repaired an aqueduct but having no water; no matter what, it could not become a truly useful thing.

“It would be nice if I had a mentor.”

Unfortunately, there was no such talent in either the Blood Clan capital or the Ymir territory. She had asked Andrea and Evelyn before. The former had answered that the people who had mastered the key technology for magic items in the Blood Clan were in the south. The latter had directly replied that there were none. The magic items excavated from the ruins of the Age of Gods were far superior to those made in this era, so the Church had never cultivated masters of magic item creation.

“Hmph.”

Recalling the information she had gathered from Dominic, Yisi took out a map of the continent from her inventory and spread it out, her gaze fixed on the royal capital of the Hels Kingdom, west of the Taris territory.

“If I want to learn from a grandmaster of forging magic items, if I don’t go to the United Kingdom south of the Norta Empire to find a dwarven craftsman, my only choice is to go to the royal capital of the Hels Kingdom and visit that royal blacksmith…”

The United Kingdom, where many non-human races lived, was a place she had to visit. But to get there, she would have to cross the Norta Empire in between, which was too far. In comparison, the royal capital of the Hels Kingdom, located west of the Taris territory, was much closer.

And from Dominic’s description, the aesthetics of the royal capital were very close to her own. In that case, she was more likely to find champagne-flavored blood.

Although she hadn’t specifically looked for it for a long time, she had been keeping an eye out for potential sources of champagne-flavored blood. Since there was none in either the Blood Clan or human kingdoms, the only remaining possibility was among the non-human races.

In addition, Yisi had also noticed one thing: the closer a person’s appearance was to her own aesthetic, the better their blood tasted. The blood of her companions around her was all quite enticing. Camilla’s blood even had the rich aroma of alcohol. In that case, the search range was much smaller—she just had to look for beautiful young girls.

“By the way, I feel like the taste of Camilla’s and Andrea’s blood has changed recently. It seems sweeter.”

Why did this change happen?

She had thought about it but had not come to a conclusion. The quality of blood changes with the health of the provider. A person’s blood tastes better when they are healthy than when they are sick. She had noticed this back in the Niru Diocese. But Camilla and Andrea had always been in good health. And if she were to attribute it to them growing up, Mary, who was also in a growth period, had no change in the taste of her blood at all. She couldn’t find a reason.

“In any case, better equipment means safer adventures. Although finding the Child of Fortune is important, before that, I have to upgrade Camilla’s and Mary’s equipment. The next stop will be the nearby royal capital.”

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Having made her decision, Yisi put away the magic weapon she had repeatedly failed to create and found Laxy on the map.

“She’s in my room… being an angel really is tough. Not needing to sleep means missing out on a lot of happiness.”

It was hard to imagine how a person could spend the long night without any form of entertainment. Even though the nights in Gota were very lively, by late night, it would also become a silent city.

I’ll go and fulfill my promise to Laxy from this morning first.

Before going out this morning, she had promised Laxy that she would have a one-on-one session with her to learn combat techniques. However, they had been delayed for a long time by the slimes under the Water Tree, and she hadn’t mentioned it to Laxy all day.

“And ever since we came out of the Water Tree, Laxy has been looking worried. Haaah—from my position, it’s not convenient for me to ask her directly, since it might touch on her privacy. If I ask, it would feel like I’m ordering her to tell me, which might lower her affection for me. That’s not a big deal, but the problem is it’s just too rude.”

Even if Laxy was unwilling to tell her, it would be fine if she confided in Mary, whom she had always taken good care of. Keeping it bottled up would lead to psychological problems sooner or later.

No, if she had run into real trouble, Laxy would definitely not confide in Mary. As an angel of guidance, Laxy had a strong protective desire for children. She would absolutely not do something that could trouble Mary, like telling her her worries.

“Hmph, that’s what makes it so tricky. Even if the problem can’t be solved at its source, keeping it to oneself and confiding in someone are two different things.”

Right now, besides proactively approaching Laxy, she had no other choice.

It would be too pitiful to leave Laxy all alone.

Letting out a long sigh, Yisi walked straight to her room.

◇

A silent night.

A long-awaited heavy rain was falling outside the window.

For the residents of Gota, the heavy rain would make them ecstatic. In this water-starved wasteland, rain symbolized sustenance and hope. Countless residents of Gota had even stripped naked and were standing in the streets, letting the rain wash over them—to be precise, they were bathing. The night was filled with the rising and falling cheers of the people, so loud that even the faint sound of thunder could not cover them.

“Rain…”

Standing in Yisi’s room on the third floor of the temple, Laxy, looking out the window, let out a long breath, as if to expel all the foul air from her chest.

“This is… just terrible.”

Was she talking about the rainy weather?

Yes and no.

In Laxy’s eyes, this rain was like a mockery of her. She subconsciously placed her hand on her collar, making a gesture of grasping something.

She had been in an unsettled state all day.

There was only one reason.

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“The Source of Mana…”

Her inner conflict made Laxy’s hand tighten slightly, not even noticing that the chest of her maid’s dress was bunched up.

That was exactly where the diamond-shaped crystal she had discovered this morning was located.

This morning, when facing the slime giants, she had already exhausted her magic power, but at the critical moment, she had been saved by this diamond-shaped crystal in her chest. If it hadn’t supported her to cast the last [Sacred Fire], she would have been corroded by the slime’s strong acid by now. If this were an ordinary magic crystal, she would have been overjoyed. It would have been like having an extra life-saving charm, allowing her to unleash all her skills without reservation at any time.

But this was not an ordinary magic crystal. It was a special item that could continuously provide magic power without stopping, and it was also the thing Yisi was looking for—the Source of Mana.

At first, Laxy had held onto a sliver of hope. For half a day, she had continuously cast enhancement magic on herself to drain the magic power from her core. Her thinking was simple: as long as she continued to consume the magic power within the diamond-shaped crystal until it could no longer provide magic power through elemental resonance, she would have proven that it was not the Source of Mana. Unfortunately, the crystal was still providing a stable supply of magic power. The amount it had already outputted far exceeded the maximum capacity of her own power core. Her maximum magic power was 382 points, but the crystal had probably already outputted over a thousand points. This undoubtedly violated the law of elemental resonance.

Two magic crystals in elemental resonance must have equal amounts of magic power and be similar in size. Assuming the diamond-shaped crystal was already in resonance with her own power core, there was only one possibility that could explain the current situation—the reason the crystal could provide over a thousand points of magic power was not because it itself had that much, but because it was constantly producing it while outputting it. This further proved that this diamond-shaped crystal was the Source of Mana.

It was for this reason that Laxy was so unsettled.

From the perspective of a God-Forged Angel, one should not hide anything from the master they serve. This was a law that all angels had to follow since they had left the Kingdom of God. As an angel of guidance who taught other angels, she should be even stricter with herself and always remember this rule.

If it were the Age of Gods, when she had set foot on the crown of the Water Tree this morning and seen Yisi for the first time, she would have told her that she had the Source of Mana and then let her take it from her chest. The master’s needs were absolute. Besides, a God-Forged Angel could not truly die. Taking away the Source of Mana would certainly cause her own power core to explode, but in the Age of Gods, a First-Rank Angel could quickly reshape a body for her. In that case, the angel would not have violated her principles, and the master would have obtained the necessary item to become a savior. There would be no loss for either of them. In a story, it would surely be classified as a legend with a happy ending.

The angel sacrifices herself to help her master, and the master who obtains the item does not fail the angel, becoming a hero who saves all things. A joyous occasion.

Even the usually serious Laxy had looked forward to becoming the heroine of such a story.

But this was not the Age of Gods.

This was a barren era, abandoned by the gods.

The Kingdom of God had disappeared from the continent, and people didn’t even know that such a kingdom had ever existed. Not only that, but even angels had become things of legend. The last time an angel had appeared was hundreds of years ago. There was one thing Laxy had never told Yisi, or rather, she herself did not want to face this fact.

Laxy had previously mentioned that the angels had set up many teleportation monuments to facilitate their movement on the continent. At that time, she had not finished her sentence. Now, those monuments have disappeared from the continent. Laxy could not sense a single one of them, which could only mean one thing.

Either the angels had abandoned this place, or the Kingdom of God had suffered a catastrophic disaster.

Laxy could not accept either the former or the latter. Of course, she could bury all these speculations in her heart. As long as she did not verify them, did not search for clues, she would not see the cruel truth. But now, she had to face it.

After taking away the Source of Mana, she might not be able to be reborn.

If the Kingdom of God no longer existed, the soul of a dead angel naturally could not return to its core crystal. Taking a step back, even if the Kingdom of God still existed in some corner of the world, and her soul could return to the core crystal and be rediscovered and given a new body by a First-Rank Angel, by the time she had recovered, could she still return to the human world? Or rather, could she still find Yisi?

The most likely possibility was that when she found Yisi, all that would be left for her was a pile of yellow earth and a tombstone.

This was something Laxy did not want to see, from the bottom of her heart.

Then, as long as she didn’t tell Yisi about the Source of Mana, could she avoid such a dilemma?

The answer was already written on the paper. Of course not.

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Thus, Laxy was trapped in the current dilemma.

If she told Yisi about the Source of Mana, she would face death. Death was not scary; Laxy had sacrificed herself before. In the eyes of an angel, death was as common as being injured in an adventure. But now was different from the past. Once she died, it meant that she would never be able to continue serving her master. More importantly, Yisi was not an ordinary person. She was a hero who bore the duty of saving the world. If Yisi were to be defeated in a future battle with a Demon Lord because she had chosen to sacrifice herself, what meaning would such a sacrifice have?

But not telling Yisi that she had the Source of Mana would be a dereliction of duty for a God-Forged Angel. The angel would have violated her own principle of existence. The angel would have lost her most praiseworthy radiance.

Which one should she choose?

Looking at the cheering people outside the window because of the heavy rain, Laxy pressed her lips together tightly.

“Is there a compromise…”

For example, after she had trained Yisi to be a person who could stand on her own, then tell her that she had the Source of Mana and let her take it? This was indeed a solution worth considering. But before the real battle with the Demon Lord, who could be sure that Yisi would not be defeated? Or perhaps in the battle with the Demon Lord, she would need her, an angel, to assist from the side? The Gospel’s guidance to her only said to go to the human world to find a hero and assist them. It did not specify what to do. If it required her to assist from the side, then the Source of Mana should not be given to Yisi.

Then should she place her hopes on Yisi not taking the Source of Mana?

Tell Yisi about it and explain everything, that only by letting her stay by her side can she defeat the Demon Lord in the future. If that could make Yisi nod in agreement, it would naturally be the best result. But Laxy was not sure that Yisi would do so. Yisi had come to Gota for the purpose of exchanging the Source of Mana with a Demon Lord for the freedom of the Pope of the Ymir Church.

Leaving aside the feelings between Yisi and Evelyn, just looking at the stakes, one could see how great a favor this was. The Pope of the Ymir Church would definitely do everything in her power to help Yisi in the future. This undoubtedly meant that Yisi would have a great asset. A hero could not defeat a Demon Lord single-handedly; she also needed the common help of all humanity. This was what Laxy had once said to Yisi.

Furthermore, obtaining the Source of Mana was a challenge given to Yisi by a Demon Lord. If she could not obtain it, Laxy had explained to her what kind of end awaited those who failed the challenge. They would become undead, never able to obtain release through death, their souls would be seared as if by fire. Even if they tried to escape through a mental breakdown, the Demon Lord would heal their broken spirit. Nothing was more terrifying than this.

Therefore, it was almost impossible for Yisi to give up on taking the Source of Mana. As long as she said it, there was at least a seventy percent chance that Yisi would take it. And if it were a direct order from her master, even with all the considerations just now, Laxy would definitely carry it out. This was her bottom line.

Unable to find a solution, her mind in a mess, Laxy lightly tapped the window frame. Along with the sound of raindrops hitting the ground, it became the only two sounds in the entire world.

“Hmph, what on earth should I do…”

Although she knew that continuing to dwell on it would not change anything, and that burying it in her heart and not dealing with it was the best choice, Laxy just couldn’t ignore it.

Knock, knock, knock.

A gentle and steady knock on the door.

Laxy quickly straightened her clothes, closed the window, and tidied her appearance to its best state.

“Ahem, is-is that you, my lord?”

“Yes. May I come in?”

“Of course. This is your room, after all.”

Laxy quickly walked to the door and opened it. The Yisi in her field of vision was not wet at all, not even a single water stain on her footprints.

Laxy tilted her head.

“My lord, didn’t you go out?”

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“Eh? I didn’t say I was going out. I just went to the warehouse to try making a magic item. Unfortunately, my skills are limited, and I probably won’t be able to make what I want in a short time, so I came back. You look very worried, Laxy. Are you alright?”

Is it that obvious?

Laxy’s heart tightened. She had thought that Yisi had already gone out.

“Uh, it’s nothing. I’m fine.”

“Your worries are written all over your face,” Yisi, who had entered the room and hung her coat on the rack, sighed lightly. “If you’ve run into any problems, you can tell me directly. Although you always call me ‘my lord’, I’ve never treated you as a subordinate. Well, you don’t have to tell me. Mary and Refina are also good people to talk to. They are very gentle.”

Even if I tell them, it won’t change anything.

The more Yisi cared about her, the sadder she felt.

Laxy could only watch silently as Yisi changed her clothes.

As if feeling that the silent atmosphere was too oppressive, Yisi took the initiative to speak.

“By the way, you didn’t urge me to train today, Laxy. What a strange day.”

“Yes. Even Gota is raining. Of course it’s a strange day. I didn’t expect you to want me to urge you every day, my lord. You don’t have a fetish for being forced to do things, do you?”

“Ehh—” Yisi deliberately dragged out the sound, looking back at Laxy with an amused expression. “Seeing that you can still joke, Laxy, I’m relieved. Actually, I was just wondering if you had forgotten something.”

“Something?” Laxy, who was holding Yisi’s nightgown, frowned in thought. After a little while, her whole body stiffened. “…You seem to have promised that you would have a one-on-one training session with me today.”

“Exactly. That’s why I didn’t change into my nightgown. It’s not too late yet. How about we go to the temple’s training ground? Of course, if you’re not feeling well, Laxy, we can train another time.”

Although she was not in a good state right now and really wanted to put it off, if she missed today, who knew when Yisi would agree to it again. Laxy shook her head slightly.

“No, now is the best time. What would you like to train, my lord? Ah, before that, I must prepare some training clothes for you. A formal dress is not suitable for combat, after all.”

As she spoke, Laxy quickly turned around and rummaged through the wardrobe for the training clothes she had prepared earlier.

To be honest, it was a little too gorgeous.

Yisi couldn’t help but widen her eyes slightly.

“Are you sure these are for training, Laxy? Isn’t this even more gorgeous than a formal dress! And it looks a lot like the clothes you wear as an angel. Wait, the back is exposed. This is an angel’s dress!”

“As expected of my lord. This is indeed an angel’s attire. But only the underage sixth- and seventh-rank angels wear such clothes. They are easy to move in and have a very high resistance to impact. And they don’t get dirty easily. After you fell asleep, my lord, I measured your body and specially modified the clothing. It should fit your figure perfectly.”

Hey, hey, what on earth did this girl do while I was sleeping?!

Even if you miss those little underage angels, don’t project them onto me!

With a face full of black lines, Yisi, who couldn’t bear to refuse Laxy, changed into the angel’s attire and went to the temple’s training ground.