章 10: Chapter 20: Starlessly Broke Phase

t appeared that nearest Mana pit was three days away. This resulted in one cranking goddess and the badger who tried to accept progress while trying to persuade me on the demerit of throwing half-millennium of text books into the furnace.

"Why?" The goddess cried to the unfairness of heaven. "After so long, I finally had chance at getting my revenge on the tyrannical little brat and might even show of piece of my mind that steely eyes demon. So why deny me my justice!"

"Does it concern you that she turned from having a nightmare about them to working on her revenge in a day?"

"Don't mind her. She is the type who sprung up to take action the moment she spot opportunity." Scathach mused. "In fact that attitude of her combine with her moral compass was likely the core redeeming qualities in that pool of uselessness."

"She was not that useless," Lux insisted while procuring another cake from fridge.

"Of course you said that," I eyed the cake that was quickly consumed. "She is your daily sugar supplier."

Seriously, I wonder what would happen to her weight if she was half as diligent. The scale's would likely skyrocketed in a week.

"But we must talk about this discovery," Scathach tried lift herself up as a badger. Upon deciding that badger-mode was insufficient to convey the gravity of the situation, she revealed her true form as a brunette woman with a steely grey eyes. "Rem what you had discovered will change everything."

"Hence, while it will never leak out in a scientific paper," I replied. "I know how human worked Scathach. People who benefit from researching the--how should call it-- 'classical' magecraft will try to discredit me, assuming they don't put a hit on my head. Even if the world recognized my style as true magic, it will cause such a massive shift in society and social order. If so-called spell-crafting had been around as long as you did the whole library would be burned and the greatest economic crisis from the death of companies who operated under that outdated system will cripple the entire world."

"It will end with mass unemployment," Scathach face-palmed. "Followed by a massive recession. That is assuming that everything adapted fast enough. Some cooperation who discovered this secret will went on a conquering spree. National border will change on top of mountain corpse."

"This knowledge is that dangerous?" Lux slowly spooned in the cake while the goddess watched us wide-eye.

"Lux, in my world, two nations once entered an arm race when atomic bomb was discovered. The entire world was clenching it teeth and try to stop one press of a button from ending everything," I answered. "We are damned lucky to survive that. And this was even worse, mana was not some massive war head controlled by a country, it was available to anyone. Now one idiot can launch a killing spree that end a country and there will be no threat or negotiation. One week later and a mountain of corpse will be all that happened"

Scathach laughed sarcastically.

"It won't even be a week," Scathach chuckled in despair at that very prospect. "If Micheal and the Aztellics ever knew about this, I guarantee that they will butcher each other empires in minutes. They are already too bloody powerful country killers using spell-craft. Giving them more power would only bring a worse crisis Phantasia had ever encountered."

Cytortia suddenly turned pale green.

"Yeah, giving those guys more power was really asking for Armageddon." She murmured. "Tie Hua wouldn't hold herself back at all."

I sighed. This issue kept reminding me of an article I really should have show Lux by now. But I decided to wait and bide my time. A perfect timing to set Lux toward what she needed to do. I needed everyone on my side to persuade Lux from going on rampage.

"I already told you that it will not leave this room. In fact I already make a plan to deal with the fallout." I stood up. "Remember what we stand for? We are basically aiming to be a guardian of hope to save everyone. People loved tearing down heroes. The powerful hogged power and refused to let it go." I looked outside the moving landscape the recent article I read come up to mind. "Those are facts of the universe. If we try to play hero and they don't like it, and trust me they won't, they will come out on us like a jackhammer on a wine glass."

"So you get it," Scathach said.

"That why we had to act in secret operated in secrecy. The only one who we can trust is those in this Van and we can only say that because we know that Satholia herself will not be pleased if this get leak out."

"True," Scathach looked at the sky. "I don't think it will end castration punch this time."

"Yeah, she would punched us to the moon." Lux looked terrified as she recalled the time Satholia's fist met a particular beam.

"Ditto," Cytortia agreed. Her face to face meeting convinced her that messing this up won't end well with her omnipotent investor.

"That why, we will go underground." I announced. "Until we are ready. Until we are hundred percent sure that we can fend off the combined might of Phantasia and beaten anyone who misbehaved into the ground and broke their arms for good measure. We will operate as aunty Cytortia who made cookies or uncle Rem who tell funny stories about an elf goddess who destroyed an entire army just to save one innocent village. I assured you, given that our discovery, divine backer and enough time, we will get there one day. But till that day arrive, we will be a myth. A masked guardian, an urban rumor, that people, including us, will laugh at." I breathed. "Let our ideal be laughed, be criticized until we decided it time we can back it up. But I assured you my comrade when we come out to show who we are. All worlds will remember it."

I turned back toward them dramatically.

"Hence we begun our SNP protocol." I announced. "The Horizon Dawn: Starless Night Phase."

...

After that, I've to explain what the protocol meant.

"So you are asking me to play dumb for indefinite amount of time," Cytortia said.

"Yes."

"What if we have to recruit?" Lux said.

"Satholia's guidance," I answered. "We won't be recruiting in the tavern. In fact we will minimize our number. This way our secret won't leak easily. If anyone managed to trick good itself and infiltrated us, I have to say they deserve to have it."

Lux raised her hand went up again.

"What if we want to meet someone?"She said. "What if we want to protect someone or teach them a little?"

She was probably thinking about Magnolia. I smiled but cringed from the inside. Poor Lux. She was up for a huge disappointment. Both in her family moral integrity and in her sister intelligence.

"Collective voting," I answered. "I have to talk with Satholia in time about this policy the moment she showed up. Any question?"

None raised their hand up.

"Okay, thank you very much?" I concluded to day. "Now are there any report worth reporting."

Cytotia slowly raised her hand up.

For god know how many time that week, I sighed. Keep this up and I might degraded to Jeane, a whinny excuse of human being who spent time sighing and accomplish nothing. Oh well, let hear of cake supplier out. Maybe this time it's something important.

"Go on," I said, a chill then ran down my spine for some reason.

"We are running out of supply," Cy announced, looking distress. This was not hilariously worrying Cytortia. This was the rare we-had-a-problem-Houston Cytortia. I instantly perked up. Things were about to get grim, I feel it. "We have only a few bag flour for maybe at least two cakes. Our meat are also running out. And unless we found a way to make money, taking the Hyper channel as we plan will bankrupt us."

Next to me, Lux fainted at the mention of declining cake supply. Great now I had to deal with that article and hungry Lux but let focused what will end us first.

"How did this happen!?" I looked at Scathach who was checking on the unconscious elf. "Who managed our income and supply line?"

No one raised their hand.

"Emergency convention!" I declared. "This is highest level crisis."

...

After the discussion about our financial crisis, a crying goddess, a barely conscious elf and mean comments from a badger, we hatched the plan to save our wallet.

That was how we found ourselves on the valley with nice clear river and Phantasia's breed of grazing animals. Several gazelles, larger than the one found on Earth, grazed on the river bank. Meanwhile, on opposite side of the river, what could only be described as domestic child of bison and sheep are traveling in pack.

"Okay, guys hope you remember the plan." Scathach said.

"It was just a hunting session right?" Lux said.

"Not with the Ravine Earth Snapper," Cy said, cracking her knuckle. "It was vicious animal that attacked from below ground, mostly praying on livestock or people. It said that it jawed can crush solid steel in one bite and it was a master of ambush. But the most important was that it attacked in coordinated pack and will go berserk the at the scent of its kin blood. We have to time our attack carefully."

Suddenly a shadow appeared from underground and lunged at the sheep/bison hybrid and dragged it into the ground before the creature could even manage a death cries.

Several moment later the predator exploded out of the ground and spit out the remaining skeleton. It looked like a dog with a horn of a lamb and flat mouth of crocodile. It snared at every grassland creatures who ran away in panic before diving back into the ground again. For the first time since looking at the Paracyst, I had to admit an animal scared me a little.

"Seriously," Lux gave Cytortia and incredulous looked. "You people made medicine out of that thing. What the hell are you Alchemist thinking?"

"Don't look at me like that," Cy ranted, letting her pent-up frustration out. "It's not my fault that any profitable and safe to make medicine was overflowing the market. People keep demanding for more exotic pills but they never supplied any material. Then the same people keep complaining about the price hike! Of course the price will hike! Look at the material we are working with! Do you think making pill or concoction is easy! Do you think the pill that instantly cure poison or increase stat growth rate are made out of radishes? NO! Those are made from ingredient found in forbidden zone. THE. FORBIDDEN. ZONE. AND THOSE GUYS KEEP COMPLAINING!!"

Scathach and me backed away five steps from the furious goddess. A mental note: don't talk about the pill's market.

"Anyway the Ravine Earth Snapper was a pretty incredible species." Cy said, calming down marginally. "It bone could be make into cosmetic base pill and concoction. Its blood also had revitalizing recovery property once properly processes. The only reason it was not hunt to extinction right now is because the difficulty in purifying and processing them was extremely difficult. Only B-Rank or above Alchemist could process it. And even then only the S-Rank like me could do it in massive scale."

"Plus it was pretty difficulty to hunt given that it had a sonar to detect the pray up to 30 meters above it." Scathach added. "Luckily I knew the rune required to attract it."

Scathach draw a series letter on the ground interesting the mana was surrounding the rune and interacting with it. the mana was being consume by the rune to unleashed a wave of energy that interacted with other mana. Interesting, if I can find the way to converted energy in mana instead of burning it myself.

First thing first, Central any recommendation.

'Roger that my lord. I might add that it will be a good time to test out some new skills. May I suggest you bring out The Blade of Solitude.'

Righto Central. Please monitored my vital signed while using. I did not plan to end up as an ice cube. And how much of the blade power can I currently used Central?

'Yes sir. Your current stamina can take up to 45% of the blade power. Oh, in case you are asking, you can partially activate Ice Age in your territory creation. The current development on your mana will also help ease the activation strain.'

A frosty looking blade with a cross-hilt designed appear in my hand. It was like holding a lump of ice. The blade was cold to touch. And I could feel the malevolent aura from it. I send my mana to reinforced the blade. My eyes trace across the ground. Fifteen mana signatures registered, prepared to activate the blade freezing zone.

"Remember the plan guys," I said plunging my sword to the ground which started to be webbed with ice. Now it order time: lock-on to target mana signature Central. Don't isolated friendly target.

Roger

"Ok," Lux answered, knocking a three arrows on the bow she borrowed from Scathach. The girl was terrifyingly competent with her aim. She won the right to decide our dinner two days ago by winning our range attack competition. Every one of her arrows hit the flying target Scathach launched effortlessly. Even I, with the advantage of [Photon Ring] faster firing couldn't keep up with her precision shot. But the worse scoring of course was Cy with classically pathetic [Magic Bullet].

With everything set Scathach activated another rune that cause the Ravine Snapper to attack. And it did some come

Sorry suckers.

Ice Age

The area around the sword frozen to form a sheet of ice the stretched and crept up on all the Earth Snappers, including the seven that was still frozen under ground. Meanwhile the Eight that about to take the piece out of me was frozen and shot with an arrow. Cy even tried to help by stabbing them but tripped over and nearly impaling herself with her stick.

For anything still alive below ground, I decreased the temperature until their mana signature faded before finally dispelling the the blade and returning the entire area back to normal.

I looked at my hand. It was still caked with thin ice. The numbness was only starting to fade. Given that this is the first time I activated my blade true special attack, it went pretty well. But that didn't change the fact that this is only partial activation.

I sighed. Using it to kill the other snappers would likely resulted in severe frozebite.

The full activation would without a doubt be lethal at my current power.

"Okay guys, get me a spade we had some corpse to dug up."

I had to grow stronger. A lot stronger.