"Anyways, about that Tzenmi guy…"
Murakan continued to ramble on about Tzenmi. It was a story so long, it would take a thousand years just to finish telling even its summarized version.
Jin's eyes sparkled as he listened to Murakan, and Gilly softly lay her eyes on Jin.
'At times like this, it's as if he's still a child.'
And so, they left the village for the Free City of Tikan.
Although there was no bounty on them, they couldn't go back to the capital and use a transfer gate due to the ruckus they caused.
Thus, they chose to ride a ship.
After travelling on a carriage for a day, they arrived at a port and contracted with the best ship on dock. Being offered a large sum of jewels and gold, the captain prepared to set sail.
"I am honoured to escort you."
Crewmates were called out to deck, and they didn't complain at the sight of many precious minerals.
"It will take one week at most to get to Tikan."
The boat departed within an hour.
On the first day, Jin trained the release of his spiritual energy with the ocean wind blowing against his chest. If there wasn't anything to do, training was the way to go.
The fun part would start after Tzenmi's magic tome got fully deciphered.
"I wondered what light magic Tzenmi practiced. And it looks like some magic you need the most."
"What is it? What is it?"
Jin, who was resting in his room, bolted to Murakan.
It was hard for him to contain his excitement. Murakan explained Tzenmi's strange magic techniques as destructive spells that made even dragons quiver in fear during their era.
Among the spells within the tome were one that decomposed an opponent into light particles, a piercing spell that penetrated any shield or force field, and a spell that summoned a spirit of light.
There wasn't really a spell that was better than the others.
Murakan laughed at Jin's excessive curiosity. Then, with a straight face, he spoke,
"Tzenmi called this spell Photon Cannon."
"Photon Cannon! The spell that breaks down the opponent into particles of light…"
"Nah. It's just a spell that instantly blinds someone. With a strong flash of light, that is."
"Hm."
Jin calmed down and nodded.
He then considered the effectiveness of Photon Cannon. It wasn't what he wanted, but it was definitely useful in some scenarios.
"It's perfect as a distraction for attacking or escaping."
"Whoa, kiddo. You don't seem too disinterested."
"It's probably in the magic tome because it has good use. But I would be lying if I said I wasn't disappointed. Still, it's indeed a spell that I may need the most."
"Of course. It's easy to learn too. I deciphered it an hour ago and cast it as a test… Close the door for a sec. The curtains too."
Seeing the darkness in the room during a bright afternoon felt bizarre.
"It doesn't necessarily need to be cast in the darkness, but it's a light spell. I'll demonstrate, so open your eyes wide and watch carefully."
Sssssssss—
In Murakan's right hand, mana started to gather and solidify. Naturally, Jin was staring intently at the mana sphere, awaiting some bright result. However, the ball of energy was drowned in black.
"It's a light spell, so why is it bla—"
The moment he spoke, before the mana sphere dissipated and disappeared, there was a bright white light akin to hot, glowing steel. For a split second. The instant the light exploded, Jin reflexively flinched and let out a groan.
"Ugh!"
It was because of the blinding light that filled the room.
It was as if he were staring at the sun during the highest noon. The light felt like a giant needle prodding his retinas.
'I feel like my eyes will get swollen.'
Photon Cannon was unleashed for only a second, yet being exposed for such a short time was enough to make one's eyes very weary. Jin opened his eyes and saw an afterimage—a giant blob floating across his vision.
He really wanted to give Murakan a nice uppercut for telling him to 'watch carefully', but the strength of the spell gave him goosebumps.
'Incredible…!'
If he could cast this spell at will during a battle, fighting a stronger opponent wouldn't be a problem.
Including the scenarios where he would need to escape, the spell was useful in terms of offense and defense.
"From my knowledge, I'm pretty sure this spell was Tzenmi's most prized spell. So, what do you think?"
"It's incredible. In fact, your cast wasn't even 30% of its true power, right?"
Jin knew without an explanation, making Murakan proud.
A shoddy demonstration right after deciphering.
Additionally, Murakan said that it was easy to learn, so Jin could master the spell by the end of the boat ride.
"With your talent, you could master it in two days. If you absorb the magic tome for the rest of the trip, then by the time we get to Tikan, you'll have a god-tier weapon under your belt."
Even if Jin finished mastering these 'unique spells', he would still need to absorb the magic tome to enhance his general skills and abilities.
The process of absorbing a magic tome was simple. Jin just had to convert the cipher system into a rune and then cast the magic tome onto his body.
"I'm sure you'll make me deal with the rune conversion. Am I right, kiddo?"
"Mhm."
"How do you expect to repay me for that kind of debt?"
Jin immediately started to learn Photon Cannon. Murakan said it would take him two days, but mastering the theory of the spell didn't even require a day.
'It's the most incredible spell I've ever seen. Such a sophisticated and simple spell, yet so powerful.'
However, the spell was simple for a reason. Moreover, even though all of the magicians in the world attempted the simple spell, not many were able to use it.
Photon Cannon required insane levels of mana and mana control that only talented magicians had.
Flash!
Although the resulting light was not as brilliant as Murakan's shoddy demonstration, Jin understood the spell as soon as he tried it.
He felt weak and dizzy, but he smiled in the light of success.
'The caster is not affected by the light coming from the spell.'
There was a big difference between the light emitted by the spell and the surrounding natural light. Jin could stare at the flash, but it still wouldn't affect his vision.
"Hey, kiddo."
Four days later, Murakan finished the rune conversion and asked Jin,
"Schugiel Hister or whatever's magic tome. I can't decipher it. I think it's just regular garbage. Wanna use it as kindling?"
"Kindling?"
"I'm just pissed. This stupid-ass code's annoying me, the great Murakan."
Jin was about to say that it was a code from his fond memories.
But instead, he just smiled.
'I was originally gonna decipher it myself and use it… But I'll just find my teacher and have them teach it to me instead.'
Jin's master spent their entire life recovering the magic spells of Hister. Although it was a relationship in his past life, Jin always felt indebted to his teacher.
"I'm sure we'll find many great spells if we find a good decoder. I just feel it. So don't fuss over it, and just give it to Gilly."
"You little brat. You could burn my precious magazines any time, but this old book…"
"Speak some sense, O Great Black Dragon. If you're done with the rune conversion of Tzenmi's magic tome, just cast it on me."
Murakan scoffed.
"Ha! Strawberry Pie and I—we're no different from slaves. Ever heard of a wicked master who got stabbed and killed by a slave?"
"My bad. Unfortunately, growing up as a Runcandel made me like this."
Murakan began to cast the magic tome on Jin's back. The text in the magic tome began to glow and come off the pages.
Murakan slowly moved the glowing text towards Jin's left shoulder blade, and the magic tome's text was printed onto Jin's back. It emitted an eerie glow—like a special tattoo.
"Damn, I wanted to cast it on your ass, or even your di—"
"Enough with the unfunny jokes. Let's see what changed."
As soon as the text sank into Jin's skin, his understanding of Photon Cannon increased rapidly. The absorption of Tzenmi's tome seemed to have stimulated his abilities.
'Photon Cannon.'
Fwoooosh!
The spell was cast, and the entire room was bathed in white. The ardent light pierced through the curtains and was seen on the deck.
Thud, thud, thud, thud, thud.
The captain—who was surprised by the light—rushed into the guest room.
"Sir, did anything happen? There was a light…!"
Jin and Murakan looked at the captain and simultaneously denied.
"Light? What light?"
"Ah, it's nothing. I presume you were hallucinating."
The captain didn't need to know that they just practiced an ancient light spell.
The boat arrived in the Free City of Tikan on the 2nd of July, 1795.
To show his appreciation for the satisfactory trip, Jin tipped the captain, then passed the city gates with his fake identification. When passing the gate, Murakan temporarily transformed into a cat.
"Meow."
In Gilly's arms, Murakan shook his head.
"The atmosphere in Tikan and Akin are completely different, Young Master."
"Yeah, you can feel the energy and enthusiasm wherever we go."
As opposed to its amazing scenery, Akin was filled with hopeless people. In Tikan, on the other hand, the ocean was always in view wherever they looked.
It was because of the city's unique landform. The entire island had a single horn-shaped tower with ten floors.
Instead of 'Free City', calling it a 'Tower' was more fitting. It was a name that held the dreams of the initial founders.
"Young Master, shall we first find a place to stay?"
Poof!
Jin almost tripped when Murakan suddenly returned to his normal form and spoke.
"You won't just go to a ramshackle inn and abuse the hell out of the owner like last time, right?"
"Murakan, you know how many people are here? Transforming in the middle of a city…"
Although Tikan had a small population, the density was high. Transforming in the middle of the road was an easy way to lose anonymity.
Gilly tried to add to Jin's scolding, but Murakan shook his head.
"Humans never pay attention to strangers. Haha, no one probably saw."
They scouted the area, and it seemed like it was the case. Everybody walked with busy footsteps, and even in an open area, no one seemed to care about the three.
"Uhh…"
However, it only 'seemed' as if nobody cared.
"A cat… turned into a man."
Startled, Jin, Murakan, and Gilly turned their heads towards the voice.
"How did you do that?"
While holding a small dragon plushie, a small girl stared at them.
—————