One month after Theodore’s party arrived in Elvenheim, the 1,000 elf warriors deployed to Meltor returned.
Meanwhile, many changes had been made in Elvenheim, and the progress was continuing. Since Mitra’s spectacular entrance before the ents, the forces that made up the Great Forest had started to move actively according to their roles.
As mentioned earlier, the four high elves, apart from Ellenoa and Titania, were doing the summoning ceremony for the divine creature. Theodore collaborated with the other two high elves to set up the defenses in the southern part of the forest.
The number one contributor to this task had been decided from the beginning. As always, the small girl with the blossom on her head was the main character. The ents ignored the high elves but followed every one of Mitra’s commands. The dryads promised to cooperate like the ents, and the two species made their defenses according to Mitra’s words.
[Woong... You! Go there and sit down, you! Go three more steps and lay down! No, to the left!]
Mitra looked several times at the topographic map that Theodore had drawn. She determined the shape and pointed back and forth. They were clunky instructions, but her orders were delivered through thoughts, not words. She might have seemed like a 10-year-old, but Mitra was the fragment of a deity who had power over vegetation.
The ents were a plant species, and there was no better species to accommodate her wishes.
Kuuong...kung....kuong...
Rumbling sounds rang out in the peaceful forest. The ground was overturned every time the ents stepped, and puffs of dust rose up. Every tree moved was over 10 meters tall.
The sight of hundreds or thousands of these ents moving wouldn’t be common in any era. The forest’s appearance was changing. As the height of the ground was raised, the wild beasts were surprised by the sudden environmental changes and rushed out in all directions.
There was a hill that hadn’t existed yesterday, and a vacant area had turned into a sheer cliff. The topography itself was being used to prevent the invasion of external enemies.
‘Hrmm, it seems to be turning out better than I expected?’ Theodore watched the progress from the sky and nodded with satisfaction. He had been anxious about leaving everything to Mitra, but she had grown into a little girl who possessed outstanding intellect.
Mitra understood Theodore’s topographical map and positioned the ents as intended. If things continued like this, everything would be finished in a fortnight. He examined the southern area before turning his eyes away. This time, it was the habitat of the creatures in the east.
“Well, there is nothing that will be an obstacle for Veronica.”
Veronica would be fine even if she was left alone for a week. The ward on her would last for two weeks. She had become impatient and asked Theodore for something to do. After a long moment of thinking, he had asked her to subjugate the eastern forest. It was a forest, but it wasn’t a big problem if she stayed on the outskirts. The beast clan acknowledged Veronica’s power and followed her commands.
‘I don’t need to worry much about the west and north areas... Things have been going smoothly so far.'
It might not be the best, but things were being handled well. Apart from cleaning up the east and building the defenses in the south, Theodore had left the rest of the preparations to Elvenheim. The elves who had lived here for centuries were going to experience a great invasion!
A warlock that had contracted with an evil dragon would be at the forefront, while an undead legion would push forward. Theodore’s tension increased as the days passed, and he prepared for the invasion in his own way. There was a heavy noise as he pulled out Soul Calibre.
“...I have read all four books.”
This signified that he had read all the books he had taken out from the Zero Library.
Sigh. However, Theodore’s complexion wasn’t bright. It was because of the predation. He picked up the four books in turn, looking at their covers with troubled eyes. Then he looked at the information windows by placing his left hand on them.
[Ultima]
[This book describes cryogenic magic that can stop all the phenomena of the physical world. It is no coincidence that Ultima, from the ancient world ‘Ultimate’, has become the name of this magic. In the past, it was said that a magician had used Ultima to freeze a dragon, only to cause himself to die. In order to use this perfectly, the 8th Circle is needed.
* Your understanding is mediocre (65.4%)]
His understanding didn’t become higher, even though he had read the book a few times. Given that the lower the level of understanding, the lower the effect of predation would be, it was likely there would be no benefits in this current state. Theodore looked at the information window again, and the last sentence stabbed at him like thorns.
‘Eight circles or more... The magic Blundell used seemed to have something to do with Ultima, so it is a pity.’
The Time Stop magic that had even stopped Invidia for a moment...! If Theodore could acquire that magic, it would be worth spending a lot of achievement points. Techniques that dealt with time, the ultimate magic, was a domain for the peak of the 9th circle, which was why Blundell’s life had been consumed.
However, Theodore didn’t want to talk about this now. He descended gently toward the ground and sat on a moderately high branch, looking at the remaining three books.
“It can’t be helped. I should do the rest quickly."
Then the mouth on his left hand opened and prompted him, -Go ahead, User! My stomach is hungry!
“Your appetite seems to have become stronger. Can ordinary books fill you up? Come, eat.”
Gulp!
The magic book was sucked into his left hand.
[‘Rotting Hands’ has been consumed. Your understanding is very high.]
[7th Circle magic ‘Rotting Hands’ has been acquired.]
[Your earth magic ability has increased slightly.]
[An original copy has been consumed. Due to the many years, the author’s soul has become weathered. There is only a fragment of the soul remaining.]
The wisdom of the 7th circle magic, Rotting Hands, entered Theodore’s mind. It was corruption magic that no substance of the material world could afford to be affected by. Rotting Hands had a disadvantage of being dependent on the user’s earth affinity, but that wasn’t a great disadvantage for Theodore. He was someone with the power of Mother Earth, an affinity that reached the limits of a mortal.
‘Okay, this is a pass.’
The burden on his mind was small. After Rotting Hands, Theodore picked up another book. Then Gluttony’s tongue emerged.
[‘Reverse Shadow’ has been consumed. Your understanding is very high.]
[Your proficiency with permanence magic has increased.]
[The Umbra Imprint has reacted loudly. Your sense of dimensions and spiritual dominance will increase greatly.]
[An original copy has been consumed. The synchro rate with object name ‘Lenix Agarta’ is being checked... Blocked. Lenix Agarta has refused to sync with the user. You can try to force a sync using the permissions of a user, but it is not recommended.]
Theodore frowned when he saw the last message. “Rejected? The sync was rejected?”
-It seems that the author doesn’t want to talk. There are no emotions left. What do you want to do?
“...It’s okay. Talking to someone who doesn’t want it won’t get me any good results.”
There was one more remaining. Theodore picked up the last book, Soul Calibre, and cautiously placed his left hand on it. If the author of this book also refused to talk, he would have to force one of them. The last book entered Gluttony’s mouth.
[‘Soul Calibre’ has been consumed. Your understanding is very high.]
[The 8th circle special magic ‘Soul Calibre’ has been acquired.]
[The astral attribute affinity has reached its limit. In compensation, the level of skill proficiency will rise even further.]
[An original copy has been consumed. The synchro rate with Reynolds Spencer is being checked… You are at an appropriate level. You can absorb some of Reynold’s experience. The duration of the episode is 38 minutes and 17 seconds.]
[Synchro is starting.]
Theodore was relieved by the message, and his consciousness was drawn into the unknown space.
‘Reynolds Spencer....’ As Theodore’s consciousness faded, he was troubled by the name of the author of Soul Calibre.
He seemed to have heard the name somewhere a long time ago.
* * *
Kuweeeeeoh! There was a roar that seemed to burst his eardrums. Theodore’s consciousness woke up to a great shock. His blood boiled like a molten furnace, and his brain was filled with excitement and tension. It was a familiar feeling. Faced with a hideous monster, his feet started to move. Theodore remembered that this was synchro, so he stepped back and watched the situation.
‘This is Reynolds Spencer’s memory?’
The scene continued. He didn’t know who the owner of this body was, but the battle style he was using was clearly a very technical type. His feet moved 360 degrees, and he accelerated forward. Was it more appropriate to call it acrobatics than a technical battle style?
The three-headed demon was confused by the acrobatic movements. The fight was fleeting. The demon had three heads and twelve eyes. Yet the moment its eyes looked around, the master of this body had already disappeared. It was an assault beyond the speed of sound, combined with six secondary magics!
As the owner of the body admired the magic, a dazzling sword emerged from his right arm.
Kiiiing-!
Asurahi’s Resounding Sword—perhaps it was the perfect sword on which to use Soul Calibre. Otherwise, it would be impossible to cut the body of a demon that was outside the laws of physics.
Simultaneously, three heads rolled to the floor, and the demon’s headless body turned into dust. In the end, the demon, that was a foreigner, was sent back to its dimension. The astral attack had dealt a heavy blow, but it was lacking to destroy the demon. Destroying a body that was beyond this dimension needed the power of a god.
Either way, the owner of this body won. It was a fact that didn’t change.
“Ha!” As he erased the sword that protruded from his right arm, the person presumed to be Reynolds shouted in a big voice, “Asura's soldiers—they aren’t a big deal! They are nothing in front of Reynolds! Spencer’s descendant won’t stop until you are all dead!”
The warlocks in the distance were surprised by his voice. The magnitude of the force they felt couldn’t be classified. At this moment, Theodore remembered where he had heard the name ‘Reynolds Spencer’.
‘Oh, my god.’
Reynolds spoke like he heard Theodore’s thoughts, “What is it? Person from the future.”
‘I-I’m sorry. Can I ask you one thing first?’
“Okay.”
Theodore gained the consent of the other person and took a deep breath before opening his mouth. If his memories were true, then the person he had synced with was...
“Defeater of the sand dragon, Azi Dahaka, as well as demon slayer and magic swordsman... Are you the great hero, Reynolds Spencer?’
Theodore knew it was a stupid question, but he couldn’t hold it in any longer.
Magic Swordsman Reynolds Spencer was a great hero who had existed a thousand years ago, a legend who had killed a sand dragon that had swallowed up three kingdoms. He was a magician of the 9th circle and also a grand-class sword master. Numerous writers had written stories about him, and there were more than 10 epic poems based on Reynolds Spencer.
To think that Reynolds Spencer had actually written an original book and Theodore was now in his body...?
“That’s right!” Reynolds shouted in a dignified manner. “This body is Reynolds Spencer! The last descendant of Spencer who destroyed the sand dragon, Azi Dahaka!”