Harder Than Imagined

The Twilight Manor wasn't dimly lit at night; on the contrary, it was brightly lit.

The light from the Magic Stone lamps inside each of the spires seeped through the windows, and together with the Magic Stone lamps embedded in the courtyard, they almost drove away the darkness and illuminated the surroundings.

A gentle evening breeze blew by, causing the blonde hair of the girl standing in the courtyard to flutter and sway, a breathtaking sight.

Leo stopped and met the gaze of the blonde, golden-eyed girl, falling into a long silence.

Looking at the girl who was silently watching him, who, even after a year together, was still so taciturn, his expression inexplicably relaxed.

Every time Leo saw that overly beautiful girl, he would immediately stop, as if unwilling to intrude into the beautiful scenery where the girl was and break the atmosphere. When his eyes met the girl's, he would be unable to speak immediately.

Every time the two met, they would silently gaze at each other for a while before breaking the silence, which wasn't uncomfortable.

Sometimes it was Leo, sometimes Ais. It seemed like the two of them were always waiting for the other to speak first, which made a certain Amazon girl who often witnessed this scene and was very close to the girl complain several times.

"Anyone who didn't know better would think you were having a test of patience here, the kind that no one else could join in."

Recalling the Amazon girl's past complaints, Leo chuckled inwardly, and finally stepped forward to stand before the girl.

What are you doing here?

Leo spoke those words as if he had just come home from work and seen his girlfriend sitting on the sofa waiting for him.

Whether the person involved was aware of this is unknown.

The girl, as always, was concise and to the point.

"----Waiting for you to come back."

The cold, emotionless voice, if ignored in its blunt and blunt content, would easily be mistaken for someone deliberately distancing themselves from someone they dislike.

"How did it go?"

Ais's self-light quickly scanned Leo's body. Seeing that he had no obvious injuries and was incredibly clean, she immediately realized that he had tidied himself up at the Babel Tower before returning.

"Of course." Leo let the girl look him over, speaking casually as if he were a visitor. "It's just a stroll through the first few levels of the Dungeon, what could possibly happen?"

Clearly, Leo had no intention of telling Ais about his near-death experience.

Little did he know that, as a first-level adventurer, Ais's experience and observation skills far surpassed his own.

Although Leo had cleaned himself up perfectly and returned without a single scratch, he forgot that he still carried his weapons and armor with him.

Ais glanced at the small straight sword and small shield tucked at his waist and immediately noticed that both pieces of equipment showed signs of wear that, while not severe, were certainly not negligible.

This equipment was more than enough to use up to the 12th Floor of the Dungeon, and even under special weaponry it was considered excellent, so why was it worn out like this in the first few floors of the Dungeon?

This only proves two things.

Either Leo was lying, or he not only went to the first few levels of the Dungeon, but also ventured deep into the lower levels, using these two pieces of equipment to fight powerful enemies.

Alternatively, Leo must have experienced a lot of brutal battles, which led to the wear and tear on his weapons and armor.

The former is unlikely. Ais knows the other person quite well; she can tell from their expression that they are not lying about this matter.

If that's the case, then it must be the latter.

The boy I brought back has experienced countless battles that ordinary people cannot witness in just one day.

"----Which level have you explored?"

Just to be on the safe side, Ais still asked the question.

"5th Floor."

Leo had initially intended to keep it a secret, but seeing the girl staring intently at his face, he gave a wry smile and told the truth.

"Are you really alright?"

Upon hearing that the boy had gone to the 5th Floor, Ais remained silent for a long time before cautiously uttering these words.

It seems the girl is quite aware that a novice adventurer shouldn't go to the 5th Floor on their first visit to Dungeon.

This is a very reckless and dangerous thing to do.

Even though the girl herself had done plenty of reckless and dangerous things, she still couldn't help but say it, as if blaming him.

"It's alright, I know what I'm doing," Leo explained. "I didn't originally plan to explore to the 5th Floor, but I have magic, and after trying it once, I knew I could go deeper, so I went to the 5th Floor."

"Magic—" Ais seemed somewhat surprised, looking at Leo and saying, "You've gained magic?"

"Hmm." Leo nodded and smiled, "A very promising spell. I wonder how it appeared in a human race like mine who doesn't have any innate magical talent."

These words seemed to pique the girl's curiosity and spark one of the few interests she had on ordinary days.

What kind of magic?

The girl stared intently at Leo again, making no attempt to hide her curiosity. However, those who didn't know her might not be able to discern this from her aloof and emotionless expression.

Leo didn't try to hide anything and simply stretched out one hand.

"[Light of Heaven, Sword of Stars.]"

Leo fluently chanted his magic.

"[Meteor Dance]."

The next moment, several shooting stars flew out from Leo's raised hand and hovered above his palm.

Ais was instantly captivated by the scene, her golden eyes fixed on the shooting star flying back and forth in Leo's palm, a rare ripple appearing in her eyes.

"What beautiful magic!"

The girl exclaimed honestly.

"This is star-attribute magic."

Leo gave a brief introduction.

"Star attribute?"

Ais tilted her head, clearly having never heard of magic with this attribute.

"I'm not sure either, that's how it's displayed on the magic panel of the ability stats."

Leo shrugged.

He had cast his spells many times throughout the day, but he hadn't found any obvious difference between this so-called Star-Attribute Magic and other attribute magic.

The only certainty is that this magic is quite versatile and controllable.

Some magic is inherently difficult to control freely. The most typical example is fire magic. Due to its extremely high offensive and explosive nature, it is very difficult for the user to control it perfectly, often resulting in excessive destruction.

In this respect, Leo's Star-Attribute Magic seems to be completely different; it is very easy to control, and even a novice like him can easily control it.

The reason Leo can make the spells he's casting fly above his palm instead of being released is because of its excellent controllability.

Furthermore, Leo discovered that he could cast spells even without chanting incantations.

Yes, Leo can cast spells without chanting incantations.

However, without chanting incantations, the power of the magic that Leo unleashes will be very small, less than half the power of a normal attack. Furthermore, if he tries to increase the number of attacks and the power by consuming additional mental energy, the mental energy consumed will be much more than when the attack is activated normally.

This is an emergency measure that should only be used in critical situations when one is unable to cast a spell. Unless Leo becomes powerful enough in the future to inflict significant damage on a powerful enemy with even less than half the power of the spell, this method of use would be absolutely counterproductive.

Leo felt that the reason for this strange usage was probably related to the [People of the Alien Star] skill.

The significance of "removal of all ability restrictions" likely far exceeds his imagination. It might not only be the fundamental reason why this ordinary human gained such promising magic, but also because the magic itself "requires incantation to activate."

The restrictions have been lifted.

In any case, Leo felt that the "all-around ability" mentioned in the skill description definitely did not just refer to basic abilities, but included all aspects such as development abilities, magic, skills, and even level.

This "ability" does not refer to basic or developmental abilities, but rather to the "ability value," which is the entirety of Blessing of the Gods itself.

Leo had a vague feeling that this skill would be amazing.

How serious is it?

It's very likely that it will be even more extraordinary than the protagonist's [Liaris Freese] in the original work.

As Transmigrator from another planet, perhaps he will have to rely entirely on this skill to escape his unremarkable future.

Unaware of Leo's inner thoughts, Ais admired the "very beautiful magic" he described for a while before slowly speaking.

"Since there's magic, we can rest assured."

With magic, not only could we handle the monsters on the first few floors of the Dungeon, but we could probably deal with the entire upper level as well.

Of course, this is all predicated on the magic being successfully cast and hitting the enemy.

If someone is a pure defensive Mage who needs protection to chant and cast spells, then they definitely cannot venture alone into floors beyond their capabilities.

However, Leo's spell was clearly a very short incantation. He had also learned some swordsmanship himself, so casting and applying magic in battle was not particularly difficult.

"You—perhaps you are well-suited to the path of a magic swordsman."

Ais suddenly made this assessment.

The so-called magic swordsman refers to a high-level mid-range class.

They are highly favored and welcomed by various adventurer teams. Unlike ordinary Mage, they can go to the front lines to fight and apply the power of "magic," which is considered a trump card, in fierce battles.

Adventurers of this profession typically use short, quick-cast attack spells as their primary means of combat. They excel at casting spells in intense close-quarters combat, being swift and agile while maintaining firepower. They are highly sought-after teammates wherever they go.

Ais possesses magic, but it's used to enhance herself, not to kill opponents in battle. Therefore, she's not a magic swordsman, but simply an ordinary swordsman who can use magic to increase her power.

Unlike Leo.

He has learned swordsmanship, enabling him to engage in close combat with enemies on the front lines, and he also possesses this kind of short, quickly cast spell attack magic, making him perfectly capable of pursuing the path of a magic swordsman.

If he can successfully navigate this path, he will surely have a place even among the powerful Loki Familia.

Magic is a power that only a few can obtain, and offensive magic that can be used in intense battles is even rarer. If Leo can become a magic swordsman, his status in the Familia will probably rise sharply, and he will soon stand out from the crowd.

After all, even within the Loki Familia, there are only a handful of people who can truly be called magical swordsmen.

Ais saw the potential in Leo to become a magic swordsman, so she gave him this advice.

"Actually, I had the same thought."

Leo was invigorated, realizing that Ais's suggestion coincided with his own previous thoughts.

He also discovered that his magic was well-suited for the path of a magic swordsman.

At first, Leo even considered whether he should become a Mage specializing in magic. After all, although his magic was a very short incantation, its power and number of attacks could be increased by consuming additional mental energy. If the consumption was disregarded, he could use the very short incantation to unleash a wide-range attack with power comparable to or even exceeding that of a long incantation. In that case, becoming a rear-guard Mage would be more than enough.

Mage are a very rare profession among adventurers. No clan would refuse to let a Mage join them. The most sought-after and scarce members for many clans are healers who can heal injuries, and Mage who can serve as the rearguard.

Becoming Mage would be something many people would find appealing, including Leo.

However, Mage lack the ability to fight alone and often need to act in a team to fully demonstrate their value; without teammates, their abilities will be greatly reduced.

Leo didn't want to be someone who could only be protected by others and couldn't fight without someone to fight alongside him, so he wanted to be a magic swordsman who could fight alone rather than a pure defensive Mage.

Therefore, Leo has already made up his mind.

"I'd like to continue learning swordsmanship from you, and if possible, I'd also like to learn Parallel Chanting." Leo smiled at Ais and said, "I expect there will be many opportunities to trouble you in the future, so I hope you won't find it annoying."

Upon hearing this, Ais shook her head, her blonde hair swaying with her movement.

"No, I won't." The girl said very seriously, as if she had received some kind of mission. "I will teach you well."

"----It's okay if you don't take it so seriously." Leo recalled his past experiences being trained by the girl, his lips twitching slightly as he said, "Just teach me when you have time."

Ais isn't actually Spartan; she just often hits without knowing how much force to use and can't control her strength. Plus, she's not good with words and is clumsy, so she often chooses to teach Leo through sparring.

Because of this, Leo was often knocked flying by this delicate girl.

Recalling those past events, Leo's body trembled slightly.

This road is even more difficult to travel than I imagined.