Chapter Summaries

Ace completed rifled guns and cannons before celebrating Nightglow City’s harvest and the success of its new water system. The city had become prosperous and well organized, though Ace still planned to grow its population gradually rather than conquer large numbers of barbarians.

• Ace produced three hundred rifled flintlock guns and thirty steel-barreled rifled cannons using magic and scientific principles.
• After a month, Nightglow City completed its dam, water channels, water towers, and supply and drainage network.
• Ace announced the abundant harvest and promised residents they could eat their fill if their work points met the standard.
• Ace praised the wizard apprentices who had saved the city from a mountain flood, and the residents applauded them.
• The water towers began supplying the city, and the central fountain confirmed that the new water network worked.
• Ace surveyed the city’s farms, roads, and pastureland and decided not to conquer a large population of barbarians yet.

Ace introduced Leon and Ancesta to rifled flintlock muskets, a new weapon he had developed, and taught them how to operate them. Ancesta fired at an iron plate from thirty meters away and was shocked by the result.

• Bayern healed four apprentices injured when Eddy's rune experiment exploded, then deducted ten Social Practice Points from Eddy for breaking the rules.
• Bayern escorted Leon to Ace's tower, where Ace introduced him to Intermediate Wizard Apprentice Ancesta and assigned them a task.
• Ace showed Leon and Ancesta three hundred rifled flintlock muskets and taught them how to load and fire the weapons.
• After practicing with simulated rounds, Leon and Ancesta tested the muskets with live ammunition against an iron plate thirty meters away.
• Ancesta fired his first shot and stared in shock at the damage it had done to the iron plate.

Ace demonstrated that Muskets could penetrate armor and shatter a Lesser Magic Crystal Shield, then planned to arm ordinary people and establish a firearm force. He assigned Ancesta and Leon to recruit and train soldiers, and the territory’s men gathered for selection after hearing about the rewards and faster citizenship.

• Ace showed Ancesta and Leon that a Musket could pierce heavy iron armor and break a Lesser Magic Crystal Shield.
• Leon worried that arming ordinary people could threaten the wizard apprentices, so Ace explained his plans to control ammunition and train the soldiers.
• Ancesta supported developing weapons and magic, and Ace told him to recruit and train soldiers while Leon built training facilities.
• Leon narrowly dodged a Heavy Water Missile in the public hall, then injured his back again when he fell.
• The territory announced military recruitment, and men gathered after learning that service offered better pay, food, and faster citizenship.

Ancesta selected recruits and subjected them to harsh military drills while Daina and the wizard apprentices began work on a harbor and the road leading to it. The chapter ended with Caro collapsing after training and the apprentices continuing their construction work.

• Ancesta selected two hundred musketeers and thirty artillerymen, then organized them into a battalion and began drilling them under strict discipline.
• Caro endured the day’s punishments to preserve his chance at roast pork, but collapsed when training ended; Ancesta decided to reduce the intensity.
• Daina led wizard apprentices to a natural harbor to begin building a port and shipyard, with Borg advising them from his experience at docks and shipyards.
• Betty led apprentices in making stone bricks to pave a road from Nightglow City's southern gate to the future port.
• Caroso complained to Polina that he wanted to fight Demonic Beasts and divine descendants instead of making bricks, while Polina defended the peaceful work.

Daina and Borg organized construction of a harbor while Ace investigated Lesser Vine Entanglement for a way to build ships with magic. Ace discovered a potentially new field of magic and began testing a spell model that combined activation with the fire element.

• Borg presented the harbor plans, which Ace had approved, and Daina inspected the site and recorded its details.
• The wizard apprentices paved a road to the harbor and began producing standardized construction materials as work on the harbor advanced.
• Ace decided that his fleet should match the Medimous City-State’s two-masted square-rigged ships and began researching how magic could help build them.
• Ace and his Mirror clone found that Lesser Vine Entanglement and Spore Zone Technique shared runes, including one that could activate a mushroom and let it move briefly.
• Ace assembled a new spell model using the Lesser Activation Rune and the Lesser Fire Element Rune to test his hypothesis.

Ace created a small fire elemental using a spell and studied its behavior and mental connection to its creator. He and his mirror image then tested four additional spell models, which produced four different little flames and new mental connections.

• Ace used a spell combining the Lesser Vitality Rune and Lesser Fire Element Rune to create a small flame that could move and respond to mental commands.
• Ace found that the flame had low intelligence, resisted commands that threatened it, and consumed its magic power as it moved.
• Ace's thoughts influenced the flame through their mental connection, causing it to attack mushrooms until it went out.
• Ace and his mirror image recorded their findings and discussed how the mental connection might help solve the synchronization problem between Ace and his duplicates.
• Ace added Lesser Radiance, Lesser Scorching, Lesser Explosion, and Lesser Mind Activation Runes to four spell models, producing four differently shaped little flames with vague mental connections.

Ace tested the intelligence of four artificial flames, then combined his flame-creation spell with a familiar contract to create a faster, more capable humanoid flame. He began considering how to keep the new familiar’s shape stable.

• Ace found that the flame with a Mind Activation Rune could solve a simple maze and respond cautiously to punishment, while the other three showed no learning.
• Ace created the Lesser Activation Flame Technique and the Lesser Familiar Contract Spell, then combined their models to summon a new flame.
• Fuwa failed to record the mysterious rhythm because she fell off Ace’s head, and Ace turned her back into a cowlick.
• Ace used the contract’s strong telepathic link to shape the new flame into a humanoid form and tested its movement and attacks.
• Ace observed that the familiar reverted to a ball of flame when it moved too fast and considered adding a rune to stabilize its form.

Ace studied the Activation, Proliferation, and Nutrient Absorption runes, concluding that they formed a new field he named Life Magic. The Mirror clone then discovered a miraculous combination spell.

• Ace observed Little Flame’s Rune Core and elemental outer body, then confirmed that destroying the core made it disappear.
• The Mirror clone tested the Proliferation and Nutrient Absorption runes on mushrooms, finding that they accelerated growth and helped with recovery by consuming nutrients.
• Ace tested the runes on Mole Rats and found that Proliferation rapidly aged animals while Nutrient Absorption could ease their weakness if they ate.
• Ace summarized his findings, named the unknown foundational rune the Life Rune, and recorded the new field as Life Magic.
• The Mirror clone suddenly announced that it had discovered a miraculous combination spell.

Ace discovered that a nutrient-draining spell combined with nourishment magic could restore some vitality, then tested and named the Lesser Rejuvenation Technique and its casting material. The chapter ended with the Mirror Image experimenting unsuccessfully with magically joining growing wooden planks into a ship plank.

• Ace combined the Life Rune, Nourishment Rune, and Nutrient Rune, then used raw meat as a casting material to nourish the elderly mole rat and slightly restore its life force.
• Ace and the Mirror Image tested a nutrient mixture made from young Mole Rat hearts and soul powder on elderly convicted slaves, observing improvements in their health and apparent age.
• Ace found that four parts soul powder to six parts thick fluid worked best, named the mixture Proto-Lesser Youth Potion, and named the spell the Lesser Rejuvenation Technique.
• Ace recorded that the spell's effects diminished with repeated uses and stopped after reducing a person's apparent age by roughly ten to twelve years.
• The Mirror Image tried to make wooden planks grow together with a strange Spell, but the planks failed to join.

Ace developed Lesser Wood Animation and used it to grow an enchanted ship keel as the first step toward a magical two-masted square-rigged ship. Meanwhile, Daina and Betty completed the port district and returned with their group to meet Ace.

• Ace refined the animation and shaping runes with help from his mirror clone and the Book Spirit, creating Lesser Animation #2 and the Lesser Shaping Rune.
• Ace used the new spell to turn logs into planks, then guided the planks to proliferate and fuse into an integrally grown keel.
• Ace named the spell Lesser Wood Animation and planned to build a magical ship that would serve as High Tower Territory’s mobile sea fortress.
• Daina and Betty finished the port district, including its residences, berths, warehouses, naval camp, and dry dock.
• Daina, Betty, Borg, and the apprentices returned to the Magic School castle, where Bayern arranged a celebratory lunch at Ace’s request.
• Ace arrived as Caroso and the others ate the meal Bayern had prepared.

Ace celebrated the apprentices’ construction of the harbor and road, then led them in felling trees for shipbuilding. As logs piled up, Caroso and the apprentices worried they would not be able to transport them in time.

• Ace praised the apprentices for building the harbor and road, and he personally commended Caroso for his work producing bricks and stones.
• Two days later, Ace took the apprentices to a forest and had Daina and Auli teach them Crystal Shaping and Lesser Wind Blade for logging.
• Ace explained to Daina that the Lesser Shaping Rune was meant for quick production, while precise shaping still required personal control.
• Within a week, the apprentices had piled up a huge quantity of logs, but Caroso worried they could not move them quickly enough to meet the shipbuilding deadline.

Ace used the dam to send timber rafts swiftly to the Harbor District, where the apprentices began building ships and Ace prepared a magical vessel of his own. Meanwhile, Romon faced pressure from nobles seeking to take Ace’s Manor, leaving him unsure whether he could protect his son’s estate.

• Ace animated logs and transformed them into rafts, then ordered apprentices at the upstream dam to release water so the rafts would race downstream.
• Ace urged the apprentices to use nature’s power as well as magic, then flew to Nightglow City to warn its residents about the incoming timber.
• By the following evening, Daina’s apprentices had delivered most of the logs to the Harbor District and began building sailing ships under Borg’s guidance.
• Ace gathered eleven Intermediate Wizard Apprentices to teach them Lesser Wood Animation and build a unique magical sailing ship so he could welcome his parents.
• Two men in white robes and a hooded young man pressured Romon to surrender Ace’s Manor and reveal its secrets in exchange for protection and Gold Talers.
• Romon considered that he might be unable to protect the estate after the crown prince fell into an unending coma and the royal family’s protection disappeared.

Dean and Samous used the Crown Prince’s prolonged absence to test the King’s response by targeting Ace’s Manor. Meanwhile, Ace completed a fleet’s prototype ships and began a ritual to activate a magic ship, awaken its intelligence, and form a contract with it.

• Dean told his father, Samous, that he understood the plan to use Ace’s Manor to test the King’s attitude while the Crown Prince remained incapacitated.
• The apprentices launched the first twin-masted sailing ship in the High Tower Territory, and Ace’s team completed an enchanted, self-repairing keel that could withstand roughly thirty-five Lesser Firebolts.
• Ace and his mirror image led eleven Intermediate Wizard Apprentices in assembling and enchanting the ship’s hull over the following week.
• Ace devised an Enlightenment Rune and constructed a composite magic array to activate the ship, grant it intelligence, and bind it with a familiar contract.
• Ace began the ritual with the prototype ship at the center of the array, uncertain whether his plan would succeed.

Ace completed and unveiled the conscious magic ship Knowledge Seeker, while Polina became eager to learn how to create magical creatures after seeing its wooden helpers. The chapter left Polina watching Betty experiment with the Activation Spell and moving closer to her.

• Ace activated the magic ship, established a master-servant contract with it, and used Knowledge Infusion to teach its immature consciousness.
• Ace and the apprentices finished outfitting the ship, and the awakened vessel was named Knowledge Seeker as the six-ship fleet prepared for service.
• Ace showed the apprentices how Knowledge Seeker could produce temporary wooden lifeforms to serve as crew, helpers, and fighters.
• Polina became fascinated by the wooden figures and longed to learn how to create magical creatures.
• Betty demonstrated her modified Activation Spell, producing a clumsy Lesser Earth Element Life, and Polina quietly moved closer to her.

Ace’s fleet left High Tower Territory for the south while Romon learned that powerful figures threatened Ace’s Manor and fled Medimous City-State with Marina. Ace’s ships reached the waters near Dess Town as Romon’s group headed toward Pontos City-State.

• Polina praised Betty’s Lesser Earth Element Life spell, and Betty explained her modifications and offered to teach her.
• Bayern toured the magic ship Knowledge Seeker and marveled at its vast interior and facilities.
• Ace appointed Mirror Image acting governor, left Bayern to assist with High Tower Territory’s affairs, and sailed south with five other ships.
• Peter warned Romon that powerful figures were using Ace’s Manor for their own ends and urged him to sell its contents, escape, and find Ace.
• Peter told Romon that the crown prince had entered the ice coffin, and Romon left to flee with Marina.
• Romon and Marina departed with Dean Media’s group for Pontos City-State, while Ace’s fleet arrived near Dess Town.

Ace landed his fleet on an island, left Daina in command, and traveled to Dess Town to learn about recent events. After discovering that Athena had helped defeat the Abyssal Lord’s projection and that she remained unconscious, he headed for his manor, where Dean Media had taken control.

• Ace brought the six sailing ships to an island and gave Daina the magic ship’s Contract Bead before flying to Dess Town.
• Daina gathered the apprentices while Polina struggled to create an Earth elemental life and Betty tested an iron elemental life that lacked intelligence.
• Ace used Charm Human and the Hammer of Oblivion on Hicks, then questioned residents and a Divine Descendant to gather intelligence.
• Ace learned that Athena and the Child of the Ocean had defeated the Abyssal Lord’s projection, the Tsimari Region had gained independence, and Athena remained unconscious.
• Ace flew toward Ace’s Manor to investigate its condition and found that Dean Media had taken over the master’s residence.

Ace secretly returned to Ace's Manor, discovered it had been seized amid a political struggle, and attacked the Divine Nobles occupying it. After killing Dean, he reunited with Romon and Marina, who had been trapped in his illusion.

• Ace transformed into a night owl and then a black cat to enter the manor undetected, where he found a Hero-class presence in the lord's residence.
• Ace used Charm Human to question Kelson and learned that Ace's family and manor had been caught up in a political struggle among the upper ranks.
• Ace cast Illusion Barrier over the residence, subdued the outside guards, and caused Dean's Mermaid's Tear to wake him from the nightmare.
• Dean fled through the air while Ace fired tracking Flameburst Bombs from an Ultra-Long Pneumatic Railgun, killing him after his defenses failed.
• Ace notified Daina to bring the fleet to the manor's port, then woke Romon and Marina; Romon tearfully greeted him after more than three years apart.

Ace revealed his wizard powers to Romon and Marina, then began evacuating his estate and rescuing Daina’s and Bayern’s families from Medimoth Royal City. As the estate’s people and supplies boarded six ships, Romon insisted that nobody could be left behind.

• Ace reassured Romon and Marina, demonstrated his magic, and explained that knowledge—not worship of demons or devils—had made him an Advanced Wizard Apprentice.
• Ace told Romon to move the estate’s people and supplies to the fishing port, burn the estate, and prepare to sail while he went to Medimoth City to rescue Daina’s and Bayern’s families.
• Ace evaded the royal city’s defenses by entering as a button beneath a soldier’s shoe, then charmed Daina’s brothers and transformed Bayern’s grandson and Daina’s family into buttons for transport.
• Ace told Daina to take everyone and the supplies aboard the magic ships and wait at Nameless Isle; after seeing the six ships and the crowd, Romon said they could not leave anyone behind.

Daina’s people boarded Ace’s magical ship, and Ace brought her family and Bayern’s grandson to safety before sending Daina and Borg to investigate Tsimari. As the fleet split up, Samous Media discovered the burned manor and vowed to find his son’s killer, while Mirror Image received a report on the casualties in Nightglow City.

• Daina organized the manor’s people and supplies aboard the Knowledge Seeker, astonishing Romon with the ship’s vast interior.
• Ace left Medimuss Royal City after seeing Peter teach, then met Daina aboard the ship and used six buttons to restore her family and Bayern’s grandson.
• Ace tasked Daina and Borg with traveling to Tsimari in a disguised merchant vessel to investigate and make contacts while keeping their mission secret.
• Samous Media found the remains of Ace’s Manor, mourned Dean, and transformed his bloodline power into the Power of Frost of Extreme Cold as he vowed to find the murderer.
• Ace’s fleet divided, with the magical ship and four vessels heading for the High Tower Territory while Daina and Borg sailed toward Tsimari Port.
• Caroso reported to Mirror Image that nearly five thousand residents had entered Nightglow City and that casualties included nearly two hundred ordinary residents and six wizard apprentices.

As the Demonic Tide intensified, the Mirror clone investigated the red-eyed beasts and violent humans, learning that both could resist the frenzy with mental spells. The city repelled a major attack, but when Ace returned to the harbor, the Demonic Tide affected him immediately.

• The Mirror clone recalled the musketeers to the city, captured five red-eyed Demonic Beasts, and brought them to the West Tower for study.
• Bayern reported violent brawls among townspeople and relayed the barbarians’ warning that the Demonic Tide peaked on the night of the missing moon and could drive humans mad.
• The Mirror clone compared the imprisoned people with the beasts and found that Secondary Mechanized Mind and Calming Technique helped both resist the frenzy; he suspected a source of contamination in the Lar Mountains.
• Caro shot a climbing Demonic Beast with a rifled flintlock musket, and Ancesta led the defenders in repelling the wave at the western wall.
• Ace brought the fleet into the harbor, descended into the deserted Harbor District, and felt his soul shake as his eyes turned blood-red.