Chapter 96: The Formation Specialist
Over the next few hours, Emilia conducted numerous experiments with various weapons and different sizes of rock fragments. It turned out that if she personally managed the mana and the auras emanating from the stones, she could make different weapons function. However, when she tried to explain this, only three of the youths—those with weaker weapons—grasped the basic principles.
"Emilia, people cannot sense and direct auras like you do; that is master-level knowledge," Elion reminded her several times.
Finally, Emilia was forced to carve an absorbing formation onto one of River Nessie’s scales. The formation was designed to absorb and purify the energy before sending it to the weapon. She worked through the entire night and finally succeeded in completing the formation.
After testing it extensively and resolving several complications, she found Alexander and woke him.
"Here, I found a way to power your weapon with fragments from the rocks."
She then showed him the formation and explained how to operate it.
"It is not complicated. Just place seven rock fragments into the points of the expanded Star of Imhotep and wait for the central three glyphs to charge and start glowing in your Mana Sense skill. Then, carefully activate this glyph by touching it with your mana. After that, the formation is already tuned to your sword and will transfer the mana automatically. It takes about twenty seconds for one strike. If you learn to direct the energy yourself and assist the transfer, it will drop to ten seconds for a single air blade."
"And how many blades will I be able to throw with these seven rock fragments?" Alexander asked, carefully examining the scale fragment from River Nessie, which was covered in tiny symbols and intricate magical lines. He looked visibly impressed, and a note of respect lingered in his voice.
"If you use your weapon at full power, perhaps about three air blades for each rock fragment. Or twenty-one strikes in total. But it would be wise to change the rocks a bit earlier."
Alexander immediately took his sword, activated the formation, and began slowly firing air blades. After about five minutes, he was clearly satisfied, a wide smile lighting up his face.
"Thank you, Emilia. When we return to the city, you can always count on the Evander family."
"Where is that Elion when I need him?" Emilia thought, a strange glint appearing in her eyes. Then she pondered. "What should I tell him? Maybe something like:
"Ahem, I cannot use gratitude to power my formations..." or "Yes, when we return, we shall eat and drink for three whole days. But in the meantime, the price is this many crystals.""
She then wondered how many crystals her services should actually cost. Eventually, she decided to leave all that for later.
"Yes, we will discuss that when the others wake up. For now, I recommend you stock up on a large amount of this rock and practice with it. It will be of immense benefit if you can reduce the charging time of your weapon."
"Yes, thank you." Alexander nodded slightly, smiling broadly as his hand toyed with his blonde curls.
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A little later, when Elion woke up, Emilia questioned him in detail about what strategy she should adopt regarding the valuable mana crystals.
"Emilia, you have an important choice here. If you simply collect mana crystals as payment, you will acquire a large quantity of them. But is that what matters most? Perhaps trying to gather goodwill from these influential families could be even more important than earthly resources."
"Nonsense!" Rumi countered. "The more you fight for their attention, the more they will despise you. You must negotiate with them from a position of strength. But still, Elion is right. A bag of crystals, no matter how deep, will eventually run out. This Alexander, for example—his family here is part of the greater Evander clan, which trades throughout the entire kingdom. Even with the neighboring kingdoms."
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"Well, what of it? We are a city built next to a major trade route. Are there not countless merchants traveling upriver into the heart of the kingdom?" Elion smiled.
Emilia considered this carefully.
"Perhaps I should find a balance. To demand payment while also accumulating political credit."
"Easier said than done, but finding that balance is no simple task," Rumi agreed, munching on a piece of stale, dried-out cake. She had pulled some rather strange food from her ring on the first day.
Emilia looked at her apple and the piece of slightly moldy cheese. They did not look impressive, but they were specially selected, filled with purified mana, and came directly from nature.
They had not been artificially enriched; rather, the apples grew beside a mana-rich meadow near the river. For two years, Emilia had been collecting river pebbles and dropping them at the base of the trees to see how it would affect their development.
To her surprise, the tree quickly enveloped the pebbles with leafy matter and root-like growths. Every time there was mist or a storm, the pebbles filled with energy, and the tree slowly absorbed it.
Evidently, it had grown for many years in that mana-rich meadow and had learned to utilize the energy better. Because of this, the mana-rich apples were quite valuable and, above all, exceptionally juicy and delicious.
While they spoke, Alexander was showing his weapon to the others and explaining the magical rocks. Their voices were distant, and Emilia could barely distinguish the individual words.
Soon, however, a group of eight youths approached Emilia’s tent. As they drew closer, they felt the cool air emanating from the cooling formation.
Elion stood to meet them, Rumi nodded while continuing to eat her cake, and Emilia scrutinized everyone carefully.
"Emilia, no family name, acolyte of the church, with a stable military credit and a medium-sized meritorious service record with the army," began a boy of about fourteen, wearing beautiful armor made of a triple-reinforced alloy of magically conductive silver, steel, and several large magical gemstones.
Seeing that Emilia did not react, the boy continued. "Clearly my name is not known among the plebeians, so let me introduce myself."
Rumi abruptly interrupted him.
"This is Filippos, of the Kerykes family, an ancient Athenian house with an enviable history. But currently long forgotten, having lost its money and influence, forced to sell its estate in the capital and start grazing sheep and chopping wood to survive in the province."
Filippos’s face turned bright red, and he gave Rumi a cold stare.
"Exactly so—from an ancient Athenian line, currently tasked with strengthening the defenses of a strategic provincial city, personally appointed by the royal family."
Rumi simply gave a small wave of her hand and continued eating her cake, even offering a piece to Emilia. "Do you want a piece of cake? It is very delicious."
Emilia smiled and declined. Meanwhile, Alexander stepped forward.
"Emilia, we spoke with the others and decided we need more formations like the one for my sword. That way, the stronger among us will not have to worry about the consumption of mana crystals and will be able to protect the rest from the monsters."
"An interesting situation," Elion chimed in, sounding quite confident, though his voice trembled slightly. "What can the ancient Athenian family offer for the services of a church-licensed specialist?"
"With important military merits," Rumi made sure to remind them.
"And a genius of formations." Elion pointed to Alexander’s sword. "Uniquely capable of helping in this crisis."
The tension quickly began to rise, and while Emilia was still trying to absorb what was happening, several sharp remarks were exchanged between Rumi and the nobles.
Elion was quickly forced to adopt a much more neutral stance, being inclined to admit that everyone, after all, needed protection against the monsters.
At a moment when the tension rose slightly higher, Alexander proposed a compromise. If Emilia succeeded in creating a large number of formations, she would receive a substantial quantity of mana crystals once the adventure concluded. The total sum would depend on the effectiveness of the formations, but it would not be less than 200 crystals for eight formations, or 25 crystals per formation.
Emilia, for her part, explained that she required three crystals for each formation in advance, and furthermore, she needed some kind of magical material to serve as a base for laying them down.
More negotiations followed, and Alexander agreed to represent Emilia regarding her services during this challenge. She would provide water for everyone, receiving one crystal in advance for the purification formation, and each person would donate a sum in silver after they exited the space. He guaranteed that he would try to ensure a suitably high reward.
Finally, Emilia was forced to agree. Since these daily monster attacks had begun, mana crystals were becoming an invaluable resource for their survival, and she understood that they simply could not afford to pay her entirely in crystals.
The group searched for a long time for suitable magical surfaces—stable enough and with high magical conductivity—for the inscription of the formations.
Eventually, two girls from noble families secretly contacted Emilia and promised to pay three golden apples if Emilia would make them a cooling formation. It was to be inscribed upon a piece of hardened sea foam from the Black Sea, specially delivered by airship and reinforced with steel threads.
These golden apples were artificially cultivated earthly treasures with an exceptionally beneficial effect on mana control.
