"Lightning Attribute Magic?"
"Please, by all means!"
Placing his hands together in front of his face, Muratti responded while then bowing down his head.
"Shall I bring you something cold?"
Yukari asked Muratti while I wondered where should I start with. He drank the hot tea all at once, so maybe he was thirsty. That's very thoughtful of her.
"Ah, lea...do."
"...What?"
"Ah, ple-se, do."
Muratti looked quite different from when he was talking to me, he was shrinking back, staring down at the table and nodding with a small, breaking voice. There was no shadow of the familiarity he normally used with me.
"Are you for real?"
"N-No, it's just… I'm embarrassed to say that I can only talk properly with those that are close to me..."
"Eh."
Does he think of me as an otaku friend?
"Forget that, let's speak about the lightning attribute magic!"
"O-Okay, got it, just give me a minute."
This guy, seriously, for him, first comes [Magic], then [Magic], and lastly [Magic].
I heaved a sigh, then opened my mouth to speak.
"First of all, I have my doubts about whether or not you can learn lightning attribute magic, but I think it's impossible."
"As I thought."
"However, it's not 100% impossible. I think it's more about 99.9% impossible."
"Wh-How!?"
"The reason I think so is because of the spirits. If you're lucky enough to summon a spirit that handles lightning attribute magic, that means there's a chance."
"...!!"
The moment I mentioned the word "spirit", Muratti's eyes opened wide, he then kicked his chair back and quickly leaned forward.
"Do you know a spirit that goes by the name Angolmois?"
"Of course, I know it! That's the only lightning attribute spirit! I heard it's the ruler of the spirit world! I've read about it in books!"
"Okay, calm down. I learned lightning attribute magic the second time I summoned Angolmois."
"Ligh, mag, sum...Ohoho!"
"I learned all of them, from First to Fifth Form. After I felt as if I had become one with Angolmois, I then realized I had mastered them."
"I knew it! I knew it!? ...Whoaaa!!"
Muratti expressed his agreement with a fist-palm-banging gesture. Constantly nodding.
"Did you notice something?"
"I'm currently studying the relationship between magic and spirits. I've come to the conclusion that spirits have nothing to do with the power of your magic or the aptitude of your attributes."
"Well, of course. The power depends on your INT, and there should be no such thing as an aptitude for magic attributes in the first place. The only factors that affect your aptitude for magic are your race and growth type."
"G-Growth type?"
Oops, that slipped out. Oh well, I'll just tell him.
"People are born with things they are suitable and unsuitable to do. You can tell to a certain extent by looking at the growth of their status."
"Second-shi, you're almost like a library of knowledge. There's one more question I want to ask."
"Sure, ask me when you see fit. Before that, you were going to tell me about your conclusion, right?"
"Yeah, that's correct. I was about to come to the conclusion that magic and spirits have nothing to do with each other, but then I discovered something. Mental interference."()
"Mental interference?"
Ohh, I see. This is an approach that would've been impossible when Mobius was a game. This is quite interesting.
"Recent studies in the spiritual field have shown that spirits can infiltrate or even interfere with the mind of the user. This brings not only positives, in the form of allowing telepathic communication with said spirit, but also negative aspects, such as the user's personality changing completely due to the merging of thoughts with the spirit. And among the many cases, there have been confirmed cases of influencing the magic of the user!"
Muratti spoke excitedly without pausing for breath. As soon the talks steer towards the topic of [Magic], he is all eloquence.
But still, mental interference from the spirit? Certainly, Angolmois seems to always understand what I'm thinking...
"Is there a chance it also happens in the opposite direction? Telepathy is basically a two-way street. Not only the spirit is infiltrating the mind of the user, but the user should also be able to infiltrate the mind of the spirit, if only a little, right?"
"That's right!! As expected of you, Second-shi, to notice something like that! And you can also use telepathy, right? I'd like to head directly from you. Up until now, I've only read about it from books and documents."
"Even though you call it telepathy, it's not like an actual conversation, but I can understand what the spirit is thinking in the current moment. It's less of a chat and more like a sense of unity that allows us to read each other's consciousness at all times."
"I see, I see. I have hypothesized that a user can infiltrate the mind of a spirit just as much or more than a spirit could. In that respect, Second-shi, you're the person who embodies that hypothesis the closes at present."
The user can do it equally or better than the spirit?
"Why do you think people can infiltrate the mind of a spirit better than a spirit?"
"Because of Spirit Possession. Spirits can possess people, but people cant possess spirits. Obviously, people are the main subjects in this case. Therefore, a spirit cannot take in a person, but a person can take in a spirit. It's that simple reasoning.
"Hmm...In my experience, I think it's the opposite. Infiltrating the mind is equal to being possessed. If people are really the main subjects, they should take over the spirit. But if you take over the spirit it means you are possessing the spirit. But that would mean the person is not the main subject."
"The other way around! I hadn't thought about it that way. Umu, reverse...umu."
"This is just the relationship between me and Angolmois, but probably Angolmois has infiltrated my mind many times over. It seems as if he was reading my memories and knowledge like a novel. He didn't seem to understand most of it, but he has read every inch of my mind to the point he can share some knowledge that only I could know. But on the other hand, I know almost nothing about Angolmois. The only thing I know is that I got lightning attribute magic."
"In other words, the spirit is superior in infiltrating the mind. Infiltration then means being possessed. Therefore people take in spirits...?"
When I told him my opinion, Muratti placed his hand on his flabby chin and began to mumble something while deep in thought.
Then, after some tens of minutes of contemplation, we arrived at a new tentative conclusion.
"My new hypothesis is...The magic given by the spirits is the price paid for their mental interference."
"...I see. Is there anyone else aside from me who had been given magic from a spirit?"
"As far as I know, there have been three people. All of them from ancient documents. Two were given up to the Third Form, and one was given up to the Fourth Form, each of them being the same attribute as the spirit. And the most notable part is it was recorded all three of them used telepathy."
"Is it rare for a summoner to use telepathy?"
"It is quite so! At present only you, Second-shi, and the previous Reiou, Vogue, can do it."()
Ohh, that attractive elf too?
"Since you've been given up to the Fifth Form, Second-shi, the degree of mental infiltration, which you described as a sense of unity, fits perfectly with the hypothesis."
"You mean to say that the price Angolmois paid for infiltrating my mind was up to the Fifth Form of lightning spells?"
"No, I think that was a side effect. If a spirit tries to dig deeper into the mind of the user, the more skills and knowledge, such as magic, will be automatically shared. However, I am not sure what triggers a spirit trying to infiltrate the mind of the user..."
Certainly. If the user can be given magic, why not just give it to them? Is there a reason why it cannot be done so freely? Does it vary from spirit to spirit? Or is it arbitrary?
Uhー...
"I'll just have to ask him."
"What...?"
Since it was too much trouble to just keep on this guessing game, I opted for the quickest method.
Using "Spirit Summoning", I called that Great King forth.
"――What is it? My Second."
Angolmois, the great king of the spirits, who had a neutral face and voice, appeared flamboyantly behind me among an aura of rainbow colors, wearing his usual ostentatious clothes.
" "
Muratti stood shocked still, his mouth agape.
This is probably the first time he's seeing him at such close range.
Well, I too was certainly fascinated by his otherworldliness at first. However, that was only at first.()
"Hey, hey, what's with this unbearable smell? Who's the one who let pigs into the house?"
...Well, he's always like this, so I'm already used to his attitude.
"P-Pig?"
"I don't see any other pig beside you, fatso."
"...Uh...!"
"Still, how weird, for them to wear clothes and even glasses when they are just some farm animals. Times surely have changed."
"O...Ohhh! M-More! Please abuse me more!"
"What? So now even pigs can speak words? Shut up you swine. Don't casually talk to me, you stupid pig. Pigs should just squeal as pigs do."
"Buhiiiiiiii!"
...What the hell is this?
I ignored Muratti, who started to squeal with an ecstatic expression, and spoke to Angolmois.
"Say, can I ask you something?"
"Huh? Whatever do you need?"
"Remember when I learned Lightning Attribute magic? What was that?"
"That was because we're compatible."
"Compatible?"
"Correct. The more distant one is from the world of the living, the closer they are to the spirits. And you, my Second, being a deviant, would end up swallowing any normal spirit. That's why the spirit you could use had to be me, the Great Spirit King. Our encounter was inevitable."
So our meeting was a fated one?
Still, more distant from the world of the living...Then, in other words.
"（Having died once?）"
"（...You could put it like that.）"
Then, that would be the deviation.
"The spirit world, so to speak, is the space between this world and the next. Only those who look at death in the eyes and bet their lives get to mingle with us spirits."
So that's the answer. Muratti's hypothesis was largely correct, but still, half of it was wrong.
It seems that regardless of the spirit's will, the higher the irregularity of the spirit user, the more the spirit interferes with their mind, that is, the more it infiltrates their mind and is taken in by the spirit. And in this process, the spirit's [Magic] is also shared.
I offered my gratitude saying "Thank you," and used "Unsummon" to send back Angolmois.
"So he says. Did you understand?"
"Buhihihi!"
"...He already went back."
"Ahh, yes. Say no more, I understood."
Muratti replied sharply, looking as brilliant as a sage. Apparently, he got a satisfying answer. Good for him.
"Alright, then on to the next topic."
"Oh Ma-Ma-Ma-Man, I've been waiting for this! Ma-Ma-Ma-Magical Magic!"
Ohh, a ma-ma alien.
"Having said that, what I did was putting together the info on how to learn it in this paper, you can read it later."
"Put together!? On paper...!?"
"You don't want it like that?"
"No! No, no, no! It's not that! It's just that the number of family heirlooms keeps increasing, I was wondering what should I do!"
It's just a paper note, no need to treat it as an heirloom...Well, whatever, so long as he's happy with it.
"There are three types of Magical Magic skills: Combine, Synergy, and Charge. This time I only explained the condition to learn Combine in its entirety. As for the remaining two, I only gave you a hint."
I figured doing it like this would be more interesting to this guy.
Seems like my plan was right, and Muratti smiled brightly like a little kid receiving a surprise present. He carefully grabbed the paper with trembling hands and began to read it with a look of excitement unbecoming of a man in his mid-thirties.
"Mu, muhoho! Oho ohohoho! Foo↑"
In addition, an unpleasant sound came out of his mouth.
It was so unpleasant that I had to interrupt him to shut him up.
"Is it really that much to make you do that weird voice?"
"Yes! Yes! It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say this is akin to an erotic book for magicians."
"If so, then please go home and read it there."
"...I g-guess I can do that."
Muratti stood up with a creepy laugh, "guhehehe," then put the paper away in his inventory. He looked fidgety and restless as if he couldn't wait to get home and read what was inside.
"See you later. I had fun today."
As we walked out the door and parted ways, I said goodbye with a smile on my face.
It was a refreshing feeling. It felt like back in Mobius, when I was lecturing the newer members of the team, so it reminded me of the old days. But not only that. I found Muratti's analysis and his different way of thinking from Mobius' quite interesting.
"A, u, e...I-I also, had fun. W-Well, then, until next time!"
Muratti stammered to reply, bowed down, then saluted and left.
Looking at his big, round back, I thought it was still a long way away from the time when I could happily talk to him about topics other than [Magic].
...I've got high hopes for the summer Eishou tournament.
＊ ＊ ＊
"In the end, those two talked like maniacs for eight hours straight without even eating."
"...If I'm not mistaken, Master was teaching magic to the leading expert in magic research."
Silvia and Yukari exchanged words while looking at the back of Second as he stood in the doorway, a look of dumbfounding on their faces.
The pair thought to themselves "Maybe he's an otaku?". However, they didn't voice it out.
"In all ages, those who amass huge fortunes are often geniuses with weird obsessive interests."
"Umu, certainly. He's almost like a person who takes action, with a unifying force, decisiveness, creativity, unshakable and unswayed by others."
"Certainly, or rather, isn't he totally like that?"
"Certainly."
If being an otaku wasn't a drawback, then what was? The pair began to think playfully.
"A downside...Would be that he's a bit too fierce in combat."
"He's too strict with others but more than anything he's more strict on himself. I'm always worried about what he would do."
"And he's occasionally a bit childish."
"Moreover, he's also a bit teasing."
"And he has a foul mouth at times."
"And he gets angry easily when he doesn't like something."
"And he dotes over Eko a lot."
"He's forgetful."
"...That melancholic profile is wonderful."
"He always has me on the edge whenever we meet someone new thinking he'll say something rude."
"And that sharp gaze is a sight to behold."
"Plus, his sense of money is really weird."
"His voice, his back, and his cleanly groomed fingertips."
"He's surprisingly stingy with the weirdest things if you think about it."
"But for all that's worth, he's a very kind man."
"Hey, Yukari. Since earlier, you've been saying things that aren't faults of Second-dono――"
"What about my faults?"
"Se-cre...t..."
A voice called from behind Silvia.
Looking over her shoulder she could see Second standing there.
"Well then, I'll excuse myself, I have dinner to prepare."
"Not fair, Yukariiiiiiii!!"