Chapter 106: Combat Magician

A week passed quickly, and Rino found a new use for archery despite not liking it very much. He had to admit that this tool, after all the enchantments, was better than using a staff.

Firstly, the bow allowed him to fire missiles rapidly. It was something staffs could not do because they needed time to convert a mage's mana and amplify using a spell before it could be fired. The spell usually covered a large area and did not target specific regions. However, mana arrows with the help of an enchanted bow could shape raw mana into a basic projectile that erased everything in one direction depending on the mana output.

Rino spent the week firing test shots for his side quest while understanding how an enchanted bow could be used. His bow was fitted with a permanent arrow rest placeholder, and all his arrows were affixed with four feathers because Rino wasn't a fancy archer. The lich also found that he preferred a shortbow to a longbow as it was easier to fire while in mid-air.

For years, Rino never used any magical tools to assist him. He was the only magician back in the previous world who flew around without a grimoire or a staff. The ex court magician's control of magic was better than the guidance of any tool. One of Rino's nicknames was Silent Saint simply because it was impossible to escape when he appeared. The spells he cast were quicker than anyone else in the kingdom, and Rino was a special human weapon the empire used to subdue powerful threats that wiped out whole platoons.

Thinking about it now, the lich found it funny. That world was eventually destroyed by the one they dubbed as a saint but treated like a slave. Even his shadow slaves had it better than him. How detestable!

From all the elements Rino tried imbuing into magic arrows, he found that several elemental magic was simply too dangerous to use. Of course, the most ideal mana arrow would be light elemental, but Rino was now a lich. It did him more harm than good firing that one experimental shot, and he swore never to try it a second time.

Water, wind and earth were less destructive than fire and dark magic arrows. Thankfully, the part of the forest Rino tested his magic shooting was connected to the mana web array. The small forest fire was quickly put out in half a day with the help of every water and earth fae, but the damage could not be undone. A huge patch of the forest was bald because of Rino's destructive testing.

Eventually, Rino could only declare the destroyed forest as the new site to build actual housing for faes so that there was more space for the undead underground. Nobody objected to that project of converting the wasteland into a housing estate, even if it meant that Griffith had more things to do. The pygmy dwarf did not seem to mind and was rather enthusiastic, collecting everyone's opinions about their ideal accommodation.

Rino left that to his capable minions to sort out. With Erika helping with the logistic arrangements and planning for the population, the lich had faith nobody would be dissatisfied.

As Rino claimed his side quest reward, he could finally understand the basics of archery and wondered if he could create an epic weapon suitable for a monarch as an icon. Sure, he was a magician. However, he lacked the need for a powerful wand. Even if Kragami was a fan of staffs, Rino found that old fashioned and redundant. Maybe if he was older, he would find that handy as a walking stick.

Thinking over it long and hard, Rino concluded that he did not mind using a bow as his primary weapon. It was powerful, and combined with his magic, the bow he wielded full of custom enchantments would become something close to god-hurting. He wouldn't claim it as god-killing, but his weapon was close to legendary with the amount of destructive power it had. No living thing in this world would come close to his bow's power.

The term combat magician was forbidden in his previous world as the class between adventurers must be strictly adhered to. Combat magicians mainly were classed as healers, or they had to choose between warriors or magicians. Rino often found that rule stupid because paladins were classed as warriors even when they were healers and magicians. Heck, some of those paladins up in the hierarchy play the role of a party tank in crusades too. If Rino was a one-man army, those paladins were one-man platoons.

Now that he was given a second chance, albeit through forceful means, Rino decided to coin the term combat magician. He might not be good at combat, but as long as he wielded a weapon that wasn't a stick for casting spells, he counted as a combatant.

The daily quest progress was moving very smoothly. Rino checked the window to see what else was still missing. He had approximately three more days to craft everything the quest demanded, and so far, the challenging materials to gather was the wood needed for the longbow.

There simply weren't enough trees with young and supple wood of the same height as a man. Rino was also rather fussy with the bows to be crafted. He wanted each of those twenty bows to be crafted to suit the height of their intended wielder. The shortbows were easier to craft. Fowler's team happily used them for hunting king toads. The stack of cleaned toad skin sitting in the underground storage room was piling up. Rino should use them to create something luxurious later, but he had more important things to focus on for now.

Summoning the four elemental sylphs, Rino tasked them to assist Griffith with his bow and arrow crafting. Even if they had to use nature magic to cheat a little, it was acceptable. Rino had a deadline to meet, and he could do the enchantments later for the bows and arrows.

The elemental sylphs vanished as soon as they received their orders, and Rino looked at his specially crafted shortbow. Aiden wasn't less skilful than Griffith, and Rino liked this artfully carved bow made from willow wood instead of oak.

The night was spent enchanting his bow and testing its new abilities above the clouds. Nobody questioned why there was sudden hail or even lightning that night as they continued to work tirelessly.