Nihility [ Isekai • Dragon Evolution ]

"What? It's not like I have much to do besides manning the mage guild, at least not after I broke my last research laboratory" Farahio said. I just kept staring at him. "Besides. You would be lucky if you managed to get to talk with anyone higher than a priest. Even the paladins have better stuff than talk with the randoms that appear"

"...I guess" I said, still considering what he was proposing.

"And more. My connection with my old professor can open a lot of doors that you wouldn't be able to"

He made some valid points. I needed to face the reality that I still was new to this society and didn't have a clue what the norms were. Though, that begs the question of why would he want to come with me in the first place?

"Why?" I asked.

"You see, it's a very simple reason" He paused. "I'm bored."

"Wut?"

"Yes. Since my laboratory was condemned after a small accident, I had to work manning this branch of the mage's guild and in exchange they would give me a new laboratory so that I could resume my research, actually start it all over as I lost every detailed note I had on that explosion"

…

I didn't know what to say. Was that guy serious?

"And. I'm pretty sure you and your friends have amazing skills. It's something I deduced based on what my professor once told me and your information about your world. Since you didn't have magic until you came here, how could you create such a perfectly controlled flame? It could be a skill, of course, but I felt the activation of a magic circuit moments before the flame, meaning you cast it by yourself."

I looked at my hand, and then at the elf in front of me.

"If you have two thousand years of magic practice and don't get these minute details, then you're better off being a sorcerer." He smiled at me.

I… Couldn't refute that logic. If amount of improvement I've been able to make on the three months in the time loop was anything to go by, then two thousand years of the same would be so far above what I knew that it would be the same as comparing the distance to the boon to the length of a banana. I couldn't even ask what would be in for me, as he already told me he could speak with higher personnel in the church for me, as well as having the assistance of a powerful, at least I think he is, mage.

"Fine…" I reluctantly agreed, but I would try to get something more of the deal if I could. "With two conditions"

"Oh? And what would those conditions be?" He asked me.

"First. You will teach me about the world. I am actually pretty new here and don't know much and my common sense will obviously not match of this world"

"That's doable, the second one?"

"That you try to teach me magic" This would be the best way to acquire more magical knowledge since I lost access to Henry's books, which were more oriented for nobles and stuff. I was sure that if I could understand magic and skills better I would be able to create more advanced spells from the areas I still wasn't used to. The majority of the time I've been in this world has been just me perfecting a set of spells that worked together to push something out of the timeline like a Krenim weapon from Star Trek.

"Hmm. But don't you already know how to do magic?" He asked.

"Well… Yes, but just a small amount. ninety percent of what I know has been from trial and error"

"Hmm" He eyed me, probably judging me. "Fair enough. The next portal to Dracona will open in four days"

"I… Don't think it would work" I said. There were two reasons for me to believe this. The first was, obviously, my last teleportation that threw me in the forest near here, and the second was what had just happened when I entered this expanded space… I was already dreading getting out.

"What do you mean?" He asked.

"The last time I was sent through a teleportation spell, let's say that I ended up in a bad place"

"Oh, it just means that whoever casted the teleport failed to calculate the coordinates"

"...I somehow doubt it"

"Bah. Let me show you. Let's go to the portal plaza right now and go to Praxus" He got up and walked out of the room, leaving me there for a few moments before he shouted for me to follow him.

As I approached the door, my anxiety increased with every step I took until I was just at the door frame. Just before crossing it, though, I had the most stupid idea ever and activated the mind acceleration portion of my skill before walking.

As I crossed, I felt space twist, compress, expand, twist, twist again. I couldn't tell what was up and what was down. Directions lost all meaning as I looked at the floor from six different perspectives at the same time. I couldn't even disable the skill as I was too dizzy to make sense of what I was feeling and my own thoughts.

Even they started to seem twisted and disconnected. Where was I? What was I doing? Who…

I was suddenly jerked back as I felt a slap across my face.

This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.

"Denaru, Get back!" He shouted as I felt another slap across my face and then a soothing sensation.

"Wha… What…What happened?" I eventually said. My words felt slurred as my mind started to settle back.

"Oh thank Gods you're alright. You suddenly collapsed after passing through the door and weren't responding to anything. Your aura felt erratic as well" He then gave me a cup of water which I readily accepted and drank right away, coughing as some of the water entered my lungs.

"Easy, easy" He said, then offered me a hand. I took his hand and he helped me get up, and then held me when my legs faltered for a moment as they still felt twisted in a weird way.

"...This is one of the reasons I'm not sure about going through a portal" I said. Farahio just eyed me and then the door.

"Come with me" He said and then went towards the counter, where he picked up a… I wasn't exactly sure how to describe it, it was a series of crystal balls with a type of wire coming out of them and then connecting to another piece of crystal that was embedded in what looked like a hand scanner.

"This is a calibrated affinity tester" He explained. "Your little problem when crossing the door led me to believe you have a higher sensibility than normal to the space element. So, reading your affinity, free of charge by the way, will answer this for us"

"I see"

"Just place your hand on the crystal pad. I'll calibrate it for the space element" Farahio said and then started to mess with the crystals and wires. I just placed my hand on the hand scanner like he asked me to do.

I felt a weak pulse of magicules flow through the crystal pad and enter my hand. I felt it trying to pull it back, but the natural movement of my own magicules was stronger than the pull it had, so it didn't pull anything back.

"Strange" He said, looking at the piece of magical technology. "It discharged, but didn't produce any results. Do you have any skills that steal magicules?"

"No…?"

"Don't worry. I won't tell others. In fact" He then proceeded to create a circuit in mid air using only magicules and suddenly the sounds coming from outside stopped. "There, now one one will be able to listen to us. It's a small silencing spell"

"I see. The answer is still no, though. But I know why it didn't work, though"

"You do?"

"Yeah. I felt the magicules entering my hand and the device trying to pull them back, but they got dragged by my own"

"...You do realise that to be able to feel the pulse this device uses means you have an extremely high level [Magicule Detection] or the magic status?... Which is why the device wouldn't be able to pull it back, it got overpowered by your base magic attribute"

…Did I just…Reveal that information by mistake? Yes, yes I did…

"Fine. I'll change the mode. Just start to put your magicules in the device. It will read from those"

I nodded and then, remembering how the last time I put a small amount of magicules in that paper from the guard at the gate caused the paper to combust, started to push the tiniest of streams I could control with my level in [Magicule Manipulation]. The device sprung to life, filling with bright colors that waved through the crystals and wires like a drug induced trip.

"Good. Good. Keep it like this for a few more moments" I did as instructed. Farahio kept staring at one crystal in particular that didn't shine like the others. It was blinking a deep blue, like it couldn't decide if it wanted to turn on or not. "This is weird. If what the device is reading, you don't have affinity to the space element, it's worse than that? I'm not sure of what to make of this. In theory, you have negative affinity."

"What does that mean?"

"Normally, having zero affinity in an element just means it's extremely difficult and costly to use magic of that element, as you have to pour more magicules into it to have enough elemental charge for it to work, but you do the opposite?"

"What? Like, I drain the element?"

"Actually, yes. You do exactly that. How did you know?"

So it really was the case, just as with the time energy during the loops that I kept absorbing.

"I had a similar thing happening to me with another element" I decided to tell him, but not the whole thing.

"I see… In that case, portalling might not be the safest way to travel. You might absorb the portal and make it collapse on top of you, which would not be good for your health"

The image of having a portal closing with me in the middle sent shivers down my spine. I definitely didn't want to be inside one until I had this draining spatial energy under control.

"That also might explain your story about the teleportation not putting you in the correct coordinates. If you drained it before it could reach the destination, it probably dumped you wherever you were on top of at the moment, which could be anywhere, even underground"

Another image that caused me to thank my luck that I exited the spell in the middle of the air and not in the middle of a mountain, where I would slowly suffocate to death.

"Then, I guess I'll have to go to this Dracona place on my own" I said.

"Absolutely not" Farahio immediately countered.

"What? Why?"

"It is on another continent, and it usually takes a month to go there by boat, and that is if you don't encounter any sea wyvern on the way. I cannot let someone so young such as yourself go in such dangerous journey"

I thought about what he said to me until the moment before answering. "You just want to study me, right?"

"...Am I that obvious?"

"You don't even try to deny it!?"

"Of course not! You're the first… what's the word? Otherworlder that I've met. Probably one of the only ones who ever existed! Of course I want to study you!"

I sighed. This was starting to turn into a headache. The one I got from passing through that door was still pounding on my head, but was manageable, but this guy was managing to motivate it to pound harder.

"If I say no. Would you stay here and not come with me?" I asked.

"Of course!" He said, pausing just enough for me to eye him suspiciously. "Not. If you don't agree I'll just follow you from a respectable distance away"

I sighed again. I really had no other choice. It's not like I could just ditch him and take flight. The moment I turned back into my true form he would rush to study me even more eagerly. The guy probably had at least four manners to fly himself. I mean, I did fly before I evolved using only wind spells goddammit.

"...Fine. We can go together" I relented. "Would you mind if we went tomorrow? I'm kinda in a hurry to save my friends and stuff"

"Of course. I'll get my stuff and we'll meet each other in the northern gate tomorrow at midday" He said, then said his goodbye to me before moving to the back again, probably to gather his stuff. I just groaned.

Now I'm stuck in this form I thought. I didn't want to show my abilities to complete strangers, even more so to a stranger who openly admitted he wanted to study me, meaning I couldn't return to my true form for the duration of this trip.

I looked at the countdown I had set up to show how long I had before dinner but the door incident caused it to be completely bugged out, showing I still had "-√ℼ" hours remaining. I just shook my head and went back to the inn I had rented.