Chapter 117: A Difference of Time (3)

Rainer, now in a different room given the state of his previous, lay between Kara and an already asleep Luna.

“What’s with the goatee?” Kara asked. She noticed it before, but other things had been on her mind.

Rainer laughed, hiding the real reason behind it.

“Luna thought it fit with my darker hair. Might as well embrace the look of the Evil Sorcerer.”

Kara looked at him strangely before he amended his statement.

“I convinced her to get rid of the rest tomorrow.”

“Good,” Kara said before chuckling, “It does make you look villainous. Are you sure you’re still human?” The Wolfkin asked. She didn’t particularly care about the answer either way, but seeing him several inches taller and with unnaturally dark hair, she couldn’t help but wonder. And the ways his eyes glowed with magic at times…were she not so entranced by it she’d probably think it even stranger than she currently thought.

“That’s what it says. Besides, any magic unrelated to the Void would probably be impossible otherwise.”

Kara hummed in response, playing with one of his longer strands of hair.

“I like the new color.”

Rainer found it looked nice next to Kara’s black hair and Wolf ears tipped with white and Luna’s often glowing silver hair. It wouldn’t do for his hair to be the only normal kind.

Kara nuzzled back into his side, Luna on his other. The wolfkin who was once only a little over an inch shorter than he was now seemed far smaller. Luna even more so, though she was the tallest female Fae he’d met yet at 5’6’’.

After his Trial and a month spent sleeping on rough…fur, or so he hoped was fur, the softness of the expensive Fae bed got to him. Thoughts for any other night time activity left his mind.

Kara did not seem to mind; it was only half a day for her compared to his month.

And he was no stranger to extended periods of time away from normal social contact, Amer’s blood magic teachings notwithstanding.

After all, he had gone from an active high school social life, one facilitated by his sleeping habits, to a full-on recluse in his first year of college as he created what would eventually be [Void-walking]. The small reminder of home and the upcoming ritual to clear him of any tracking to his Soul from Amer meant he’d have another shot to track his sister.

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He wouldn’t visit, not risking the chances of the system failing him there and not being able to return, but he needed to at least see them. Maybe even pass along a message some way or another.

And so, he let the night take him. Knowing full well he’d be waking up in a different place in any case. He wasn’t ready for a full-on rest just yet. The results of the Trial and why he only ended up making 5 items needed an answer.

--

In the White Void of [Sleep Learning], Rainer found a calm to look over his recent gains. Prior to opening any status screens, Rainer looked over the stack of notes in front of him. The ones he left before losing his memories.

The first page had a number 5 underlined and bolded at the top. Along with a “You forgot to write this down last time dumbass.”

He felt oddly offended, even if it was technically him who wrote the insult. Though it did explain why he only created 5 items, despite all his numerous titles.

The next page offered a explanation on Kara’s ring. Parts citing how binding it solely to Kara Varg, was considered a positive, but a race was considered a negative. But with how rare Half-Demons were, even if it was considered a negative, it felt almost like cheating. He loved that.

Second was the blocking of Mana use. In the notes, it described information of the item becoming aware to him, in that anyone without Mana couldn’t use this Ring fully. But with Kara having 0 Talent for Magic or Mana, and yet still having some, it was the perfect negative for her.

As he read through more of the notes, he absentmindedly thought of the different tiers of his titles and whether having some listed as 3rd Class was a full confirmation that the third tier existed. Thanks for reading on ManaNovel!

And finally, a look at his new status after receiving all the deferred experience and a level up of [Void-walking] to level 3 from his intentional diversion.

[Name: Rainer Nvos]

[Age: 20]

[Primary Classes: Archon(2nd) Lvl 24/25, Harbinger(2nd) lvl 10/25]

[Titles: Immortal Slayer]

[Tier 1: Arcane Scholar, Fae Contractor, Dungeon Pioneer, Philanderer, Trollsbane, Devilsbane, Wielder of Space and Time, Wielder of Fire and Brimstone, Wielder of Water and Tides, Wielder of Terra and Foundation, Wielder of Shadows and Darkness, Wielder of Light, Wielder of Ice and Frost, Wielder of Mind and Illusion, Manipulator of the Elements, Arcane Elementalist, Basic Elementalist, Energy Drainer, Shaman, Speaker of Power]

[Tier 2: Wielder of the Arcane, Master of Space and Time, Master of Ice and Frost, Immortal Slayer, Chosen Slayer, Queen Slayer, Devastator, Corruptor]

[Tier 3: Draconic Contractor, Master of the Arcane, Arcane Speaker, Magus of Tongues, Draconic Magus, Voidwalker, One who defies Divinity]

[Exp: 3.1%, 12%]

[Sub-classes: Chronomancer lvl 11/25, Mage of Tongues lvl 19/25, Arcane Speaker lvl 19/25, Eldritch Draconic Mage, lvl 23/25]

[Race: Human]

[Skill Points: 165]

[Talents: Excellent Arcane Affinity, Human Growth, Gift of the Fae(Luna)]

[Stamina: 38/38]

[Stamina Regen: .1% per second]

[Mana: 334/334(414)]

[Mana Regen: .0298 per second]

[Arcane Power: 145/145(180)]

[Conversion Ratio: 1-12]

[Arcane Aura: 19/19(29)]

[Void Will: 84/84]

[Void Will Regeneration: .00298]

[Constitution: 37(+2)]

[Affinity: 414]

[Vitality: 36(+2)]

[Endurance: 38(+2)]

[Strength: 38]

[Dexterity: 38]

[Intelligence: 367(+2)]

[Willpower: 149]

[Arcane Attunement: 180]

[Arcane Alacrity: 26]

[Arcane Cohesion: 28]

[Gravity Control: 26]

[Blood Capacity: 33]

[Language Transmission: 30]

[Aura Control: 29]

[Aura Attunement: 29]

[Void Awareness: 215]

[Void Resonance: 106]

[Void Attunement: 26]

[Attribute Points: 94]

[Void-walking] increasing in level had been a surprise, but he had pushed the spell to a new limit. Having more time in the Void than usual let him change his original course, something he hadn’t done before. It would take an almost impossibly fast reaction to do it normally, but he assumed he could do the same now.

However, what had surprised him was not [Void-walking] and getting [Harbinger] to level 10 after his deferred titles, but rather the experience it gave to his level 24 [Archon].

A whole 3%.

It wasn’t bad, Rainer ventured. Level up several tier 7 spells and he’d cross the so-called impossible gap. That he had no idea how to actually level either of his two tier 7 spells, one of which may eventually be tier 8, and that [Absolute Frost] cost far too much to casually use, made the simple statement far more difficult to accomplish.

Rainer then looked at the new skill store he unlocked.

The descriptions of the skills before purchasing were as helpful as they had been for [Voidwalker]. Almost out of spite he simply wanted to buy [Time Manipulation] from his [Archon] store first instead.

[Harbinger Class Skills Currently Available]

[Void Harmony: Cost 100 skill points. The Void is omnipresent in its existence, always available to a Harbinger in their purpose. Showing them the way amidst the tides of change.]

[Void Presence: Cost 100 skill points. The Void is omnipresent in its existence, always available to a Harbinger in their purpose. Letting them display their will.]

This one he could at least guess from his own [Arcane Presence].

[Void Insulation: Cost 100 skill points. The Void is omnipresent in its existence, always available to a Harbinger in their purpose. Allowing them to defend against any intrusion.]

He didn’t remember exactly what the descriptions for his [Voidwalker] skill store had been but knew that had been about as informative as these. At least [Arcanist] and [Archon] had more obvious ones. There wasn’t much of a question what [Arcane Weaving] or either of the manipulation skills did.

Ignoring them for now, Rainer looked at his class and a new attribute over and over again.

[Harbinger: One who has wielded Magic to master the omnipresent Void. Whose presence heralds the Call of the Void, and the coming of its power free from restrictions. Their path is unblockable, their will immovable, their power’s unlimited as the omnipresent Void itself. 200% General Improvement to Space, Time, and Void Magic and Skills. 100% General Improvement to Space, Time, and Void Manipulation skills. 70% Less Cost for all Void-related Magic and Skills. +5 Intelligence +5 Affinity, +8 Void Awareness, +8 Void Resonance per level.]

[Void Resonance: Increases one's ability to use Magic to wield the power of the omnipresent Void.]

He understood that any Void Lord wouldn’t have a class like this. That having Magic improved, or even space and time skills didn’t matter for the Abyssal Elves, that were likely Void-touched or otherwise by nature.

And he thought back to his most recent battle. He could have done better. Used [Void Domain] or [Void Sense] to keep track of her attacks better. Using one of his other numerous spells to attack her rather than a hastily thrown together [Absolute Frost].

But just because someone knew 10,000 words of a language didn’t mean they could throw them out as they pleased. Anyone fluent in a language would struggle to write just 1,000 words they knew without context or pause.

And the very class he gained and its description seemed to be an answer for his current problems. [Void Call], [Void Mastery], [Void Grasp], [Void Hold], [Void Seer], [Void Sense], it was too much for him to contemplate in battle, on top of his already massive spell library. And even then, it wasn’t just using the skills.

It was making sure he didn’t overuse them and kill himself.

If [Harbinger] was a class of magic, then he needed to have a magic worthy of such a thing.

[Void Resonance] was a hint. A hint that practically slapped him across the face and told him to trust in the reason he got the [Voidwalker] class in the first place. But a hint nonetheless.

And both [Void-walking] and [Void Domain] could too be severely improved by Void Will. His newer resource would not be useless at all, but instead, serve to be more efficiently used rather than one or two powerful and fast [Void Call]s. Saving as well his Mana for other uses.

He needed to create a spell that used his knowledge of the skills of the Void. His knowledge of Space and Time. The power of his Domains. After all, if his skills were limited by [Void Detection] anyways, why not tie them to a single powerful spell?

And just as he created [Absolute Frost] to be as unlimited as the power provided, so too would he settle for nothing less with such an important undertaking.

Absolute…

Rainer’s grin was all but feral as he stared at the nothingness around him. A series of spells for not just this but for the problem of the Fae’s Disease as well. A series of spells that were Absolute. A series of spells that would define him as a Magus.

An Absolute Magus, he mused, wondering if such a title could be made solely for him. Before laughing at himself. Now was not a time for delusions of grandeur. After all, he didn’t particularly care what he was known for. All that mattered was reaching new heights of magic, and if no one else knew of his accomplishments? So be it.

He wouldn’t even mind if his academy was eventually a failure so long as it spawned competition in the form of other schools across the world, or worlds, as he now thought. All of it was for the progress of magic in the end. Bringing others up to his level, so that they could transcend it in their own unique ways as he trod his own path forward and used their advancements as well.

In the end, [Absolute Frost] was only possible with [Frozen Sun] and [Deliverance]. And with [Will of the Arcane] a magical language he only learned after studying the [Druidic Language] and then the [Devil’s Soul Language].

But for now, he had more recent goals.

Kara’s improvement took center stage, and he had many ideas for new Body Enchantments for her. He had a group of Fae to heal. And another, to let known the consequences of their actions, whoever the hell they were.

With no one there to receive any real anger, Rainer had remained mostly calm as they told him of the attempt. But internally a different picture was being painted, but as now, he shook those thoughts away again.

Rainer’s face already grimaced as he prepared to turn [Water’s Gentle Touch] into an Arcane based healing spell. And then a far stronger one at that. Incorporating all he knew of the Arcane, Blood Magic, and some newly gained Magical language ability.

But one needed an injury to practice healing.

It would not be a pleasant affair.