Chapter 17: Explosion Magic
The next morning, bright and early, Durin and his team arrived at the grasslands outside the town for the continuation of the shooting.
The vast expanse was still adorned with the giant slime left from yesterday's shoot, lying quietly. However, signs of movement were evident from the grassy patch nearby, indicating its mobility. Lawrence's horse-drawn carriage slowly approached, carrying another giant slime for the scene.
Upon arrival, Durin wasted no time and immediately addressed the group, "Today, we'll shoot the second part of the quest scene. The focus is on showcasing Explosion Magic. Helena, I remember you scored full marks in the fire-based attack magic assessment before. Channel that same energy today. But be mindful of your angles when casting, we don't want to accidentally hit our precious extras— the slimes. I'll capture the impact with the camera."
Excitedly, Helena responded, "Explosion Magic? But that's a wind-fire dual-element spell. You know I can only comprehend the elemental heart of fire. I can't cast such dual-element spells."
"Don't worry, I'll use Windstorm to assist you."
"Really?! Honestly, I've been itching to try out Explosion Magic, the ultimate high-damage area-of-effect spell. And that incantation, did you come up with it? It's so cool!"
"..."
Without further ado, once assured that Helena could easily get into character, Durin opened the lid of the magic recording device and continued, "Anyway, everything else should be fine. You all did great in yesterday's scene. Let's aim for a one-take wonder today!"
With the actors ready, filming resumed hastily. This time, due to Durin's prior warning about potential hazards during filming, everyone except the three main actors instinctively kept their distance.
...
After joining Kazuma and Aqua's team, Megumin decided to showcase her true abilities during their first adventure. So, they returned to the plains with the giant slime to complete the failed quest from last time.
After a satisfying meal, Megumin indeed displayed her strength. While Kazuma and Aqua engaged the enemy, she began chanting: "Darkness blacker than black and darker than dark, I beseech thee, combine with my deep crimson. The time of awakening cometh."
With the chuuni incantation escaping Megumin's lips, elemental flames began to flow over the grasslands. Helena, the actress portraying Megumin, showcased her prowess as an advanced fire mage. Meanwhile, in the distance, Durin assisted by unleashing a gust of wind. After all, true Explosion Magic is a combination of fire and wind elements, and Helena's innate talent in fire magic alone would only result in an amplified Fireball spell.
Seemingly sensing Durin's assistance, Megumin, feeling more confident, hastened her incantation. As flames and hurricanes erupted together, those unfamiliar with magic around them instantly grasped the terror of this spell, hastily retreating.
As the magic incantation gradually amplified, sweat streamed down Megumin's temple, but the terrifying magic bursting from the surging flames brought an unprecedented excitement to her face.
With a dazzling red light flashing at the tip of Megumin's staff, the expanding radiance suddenly converged into a dazzling orb.
Almost simultaneously, Megumin's pupils snapped open.
"Justice, fallen upon the infallible boundary, appear now as an intangible distortion! I desire for my torrent of power a destructive force: a destructive force without equal! Return all creation to cinders, and come from the abyss! Explosion!"
On the plains, a beam of light shot forth like a meteor piercing the sky...
Afterward, the devastating magic took effect. Accompanied by a thunderous roar shaking the air, the most wicked destructive magic flourished on the plains.
Even Durin had to bend down to avoid being blown away by the intense gusts, striving to keep the magic recording device stable.
When the smoke cleared, a crater over 20 meters wide lay before Megumin, demonstrating the terrifying power of the explosion.
"Cut! Zat and Aya, return to position. Lawrence, check if the slime is injured. Helena, how's your mana situation? If it's insufficient, use a mana crystal immediately; I'll reimburse you later."
After everyone followed Durin's instructions, Helena, portraying Megumin, collapsed without hesitation, clearly feeling the strain from casting the Explosion magic, despite her status as a high-level mage.
...
"Excellent, today's filming is over. Once the new actors are in place, I'll remind you of the next shooting session. For now, rest up, maybe even take a trip to Nosrick. If anyone wants to go home early, let me know, and I'll prepare teleportation magic."
In the afternoon, after completing the battle scenes in just one morning, Durin contemplated for a moment and decided to make some adjustments to the plot. Without advanced CGI effects, many of his ideas couldn't be realized, so he had to work with the resources at hand to finish the film as best as possible.
As Durin used magic to help Lawrence move the slime, Aqua, who was still eating her lunch, suddenly spoke up: "Magic is so powerful, can we learn it too?"
Upon hearing her question, everyone's attention shifted towards her, indicating that Aqua wasn't the only one curious about magic.
After considering for a moment, Durin responded: "Not everyone can use magic, but everyone has the potential to learn. It's like how everyone has different levels of intelligence; similarly, everyone has different levels of affinity with the elements. The first step to using magic is being able to sense the elements, which we call Elemental Affinity."
"Elemental Affinity?"
Surprised by Durin's explanation, even Lawrence, who usually wasn't interested in such topics, looked over with curiosity. So Durin straightforwardly said, "Since you're all curious, why don't I test each of you to see if you have the potential to use magic?"