Book 3: Chapter 66: The assassin is fascinated

My power was flowing into Dia.

At last, it was time to give her my skills.

First, I gave her【Rapid Recovery】and【Limitless Growth】.

These were the S-rank and B-rank skills that I chose first for myself.

With these, you could easily qualify as a superhuman.

In particular, the ability to increase your amount of mana was terrific.

I couldn’t imagine how reassuring it would be for Dia to have the same amount of mana as me.

She’d be able to use magic that she couldn’t use before because it consumed too much mana, and her ability to fight continuous battles would also be greatly improved.

There were two more skills I could give her.

For the first one, I chose【Multiple Chanting】.

Increasing your moveset was a huge advantage in battle. The【High-Speed Chanting】skill, which could be used once you had a grasp of its secrets, was also helpful.

For the last one, I chose【Egg of Possibilities】.

It was a skill that randomly replaced your other skills with new ones ranging from S to B rank depending on the path you had taken, your personality and experience.

I was convinced that Dia would benefit from it.

When I gave her the【Egg of Possibilities】, I could tell that Dia’s vessel was full. It couldn’t take any more than that.

This concluded the skill transfer.

Dia wrapped her arms around her own body and collapsed.

[Wow… I can feel the warmth flowing through me. I can feel Lugh’s body heat inside me.] (Dia)

Her cheeks flushed and she let out a hot sigh.

I even found it somewhat sexy.

[With this, you’ve become my knight. Now you have【Rapid Recovery】,【Multiple Chant】and 【Egg of Possibilities】. This calls for a celebration.] (Lugh)

[Um, what’s this?] (Dia)

[A bunch of Fahr Stones.] (Lugh)

[Yeah, I can see that!] (Dia)

What I handed her was a bag full of Fahr Stones.

[Let me tell you the secret of my mana pool. I gave you【Rapid Recovery】and【Limitless Growth】, so the more mana you use, the more your mana pool and mana output will increase, and since your mana will replenish itself a hundred times faster than that of average people, you will quickly be able to use magic again. So from now on, keep that bag on you at all times, and keep pouring your mana into the Fahr Stones.] (Lugh)

[I didn’t know… So you’ve been doing this all the time.] (Dia)

[Yeah, I’ve been doing this since I was a kid. Once you get used to it, you can pour your mana into them even in your sleep. Once, I was so sleepy that I kept pouring my mana into the Fahr Stones until they reached their breaking point, and I almost died when one was about to blow up in my room.] (Lugh)

[You’re scaring me here!] (Dia)

Unconscious actions were a scary thing. Right when I was about to stop at the critical point and move on to the next stone to pour my mana into it, I got drowsy and kept filling the same stone with mana to the point where it was about to explode, and I was awakened by a ringing in my ears warning me of the impending explosion.

If I hadn’t immediately thrown it out the window, the whole house would’ve blown up, not just my bedroom.

[Since it already happened once, I took some measures. It’s perfectly adapted for when I’m asleep.] (Lugh)

I took out a special stone from my【Leather Crane Bag】, of which the storage capacity increased according to the amount of mana you supplied it with.

[Wait… Is that… a Fahr Stone!? But it’s even bigger than you, Lugh!] (Dia)

[That’s right. You remember how I made it possible to magically create Fahr Stones, right? Well, this is the improved version. I made it bigger and doubled the amount of mana stored per volume. Even if you keep pouring mana into it in my sleep, it won’t reach its critical point. Now you can rest easy as you supply it with mana.] (Lugh)

I had a pretty rough time developing this stone, and it was only a few days ago that I was able to create it. Thanks to this, I no longer had to waste my mana in my sleep like I used to.

[Um look, back when I was your teacher, you almost blew up your mansion with an ordinary Fahr Stone, right?] (Dia)

[Right.] (Lugh)

[So what would happen if this stone that’s dozens of times larger and has twice its mana storage capacity ever exploded?] (Dia)

[Who knows? I’m too afraid of the result to experiment. It could blow up the mansion, or maybe even the entire estate. I’ll find the time to go to a deserted island somewhere to run some experiments.] (Lugh)

For instance, the uninhabited island that I once purchased just to experiment with the divine spear【Gungnir】would make a great spot.

Its area of effect was too wide to be used near human settlements.

[I’d be too scared to sleep with that bomb next to me!] (Dia)

Dia was rather seriously angry.

I had to admit, it was dangerous.

I’d better be careful too.

[Anyway, if you have time, try to pour your mana into the stone.] (Lugh)

[Yeah, leave it to me.] (Dia)

As soon as I said that, she began to pour her mana into the stone.

I guess she wanted to try out her new powers.

[It’s amazing, my mana is replenished right after I use it! I’ve got to use a lot of mana and train with it, at least enough to be able to use【Cannon Strike】. I’ll try【Multiple Chanting】later. Although personally, I wish I had gotten【Spell Weaver】instead.] (Dia)

[I’ll just take care of writing the spells.] (Lugh)

I was wondering whether to give her【Egg of Possibilities】or【Spell Weaver】, but since I could handle the latter myself, I gave priority to【Egg of Possibilities】.

One of the reasons was that as far as I knew, if it allowed Dia to develop skills that suited her best, then【Spell Weaver】would’ve turned useless and superfluous.

Though I wasn’t going to tell her that for fear of getting her hopes up only to let her down in case I was wrong.

[With that said, your skill transfer is over, Dia. Tarte, you’re next.] (Lugh)

[Y-yes! I feel nervous.] (Tarte)

[Don’t worry, I’ll be gentle.] (Lugh)

[I will leave it to you!]

Tarte’s expression stiffened, and she squeezed my hand.

I appointed Tarte as my knight, just like I did with Dia.

[Haah… Haah… Lugh-sama… I cannot… take any more…] (Tarte)

[It’s okay, it’s over now.] (Lugh)

Tarte looked more disheveled than Dia.

Her eyes were moist.

Her body seemed to have relaxed to the point where she couldn’t stand up anymore, and I held her in my arms as she leaned on me.

Tarte’s body felt unusually hot.

The skills I gave her were【Rapid Recovery】and【Limitless Growth】. In addition to that, I gave her the S-rank skills【Beastification】and【Egg of Possibilities】.

【Beastification】was another skill I had gotten from Epona the hero.

It was an S-rank skill made for melee combatants, as it turned you into a half-human and gave you overwhelming power and speed upon activation.

It was the best fit for Tarte’s fighting style.

[Tarte, I gave you【Rapid Recovery】,【Limitless Growth】,【Beastification】and【Egg of Possibilities】. Like Dia, you should make a habit of pouring your mana into Fahr Stones.] (Lugh)

[Yes! But this【Beastification】sounds rather scary.] (Tarte)

[Perhaps, but it’s a strong skill. You should give it a try.] (Lugh)

[O-of course! My apologies… for my shameful behavior.] (Tarte)

Tarte pulled away form me in a panic.

She was in such a hurry that she fell and landed on her buttocks.

So I helped her up.

[Do you know how to useBeastification】?] (Lugh)

[Y-yes, for some reason, I know how to use it. Hiyah!] (Tarte)

Tarte activated her skill with a cute shout.

The power of the skill turned Tarte into a beast.

Or rather, it was supposed to.

But what happened was… amazing in many ways.

Seeing Tarte’s appearance, Dia burst out laughing.

[Pfft…! Ahahaha! Tarte, what happened to you!? I thought your beast form would be something more mind-boggling!] (Dia)

[Well, it did make you sort of beastly.] (Lugh)

[U-um, how did it go? My rear feels a little heavy. And my head too.] (Tarte)

When I took out a mirror from my【Leather Crane Bag】and handed it to Tarte, she turned bright red, and her face was shaking with tears in her eyes.

[Eh!? But… Isn’t this different from what we anticipated!?] (Tarte)

[No, it looks really good on you.] (Lugh)

[You look so adorable.] (Dia)

Normally, the user’s muscles were bulging, the fangs were enlarged, and their entire body was covered in fur, reflecting the features of the beast they were modeled after.

However, in Tarte’s case…

[All I gained was fox ears and a fox tail growing out of me!] (Tarte)

That’s right, all she got was black-tipped fox ears and a fluffy, white-tipped fox tail.

She looked very cute.

As a matter of course, due to her large and fluffy tail, her underwear had slipped down, and her skirt was lifted, but she didn’t seem to notice.

…I had better make clothes adapted to her fox tail.

I was okay with seeing them, but I didn’t want anyone else to see.

[I think you look very cute. It suits you so well.] (Dia)

[Urgh… I have mixed feelings about this.] (Tarte)

[Now that you’ve been successfully beastified, why don’t you test your powers?] (Lugh)

[I will try. My ears can pick up all sorts of sounds. I can also feel all the presences around me, and my sense of smell is enhanced as well.] (Tarte)

[Those are all the special features of a fox. Next, try a light jump.] (Lugh)

[Yes!] (Tarte)

Tarte jumped. In one jump, she covered several meters.

[Whoa-whoaaaahh…! How am I so light!?] (Tarte)

She panicked but landed properly.

There was almost no sound when she landed. The softness and springiness of her joints, and the way she cushioned her impact were akin to those of an animal.

Her physical abilities were also greatly improved.

Foxes possessed tremendous leaping ability and flexibility, which explained those results.

Her endurance and speed had probably also increased substantially.

The effects of beastification differed depending on your spirit animal.

Foxes seemed to compensate their lack of brute strength with enhanced speed, leg strength, leaping ability, flexibility, hearing, sense of smell, and presence detection.

It was compatible with Tarte’s fighting style.

…The fact that she looked cute that way was also a good point. I’d better ask her to let me feel her tail later.

[With this, you’re both my knights now. I’ll be counting on you in the future.] (Lugh)

[Yup, leave it to me.] (Dia)

[This new form is a bit embarrassing, but I will do my best.] (Tarte)

The two of them were already dependable as such, and now they had become stronger.

Dia could provide powerful support from the rear lines with her【Multiple Chanting】.

Tarte’s superhuman speed provided by her【Beastification】made her a force to be reckoned with in close combat.

It was all a big power-up at the moment, but they would get even more powerful as their mana pools continued to increase, and their【Eggs of Possibilities】hatched.

In the battle against the demons, they could both fight them while I deployed the demon-slaying field. We might be able to pull off something like that.

I couldn’t afford to lose either.

I would hatch the【Egg of Possibilities】myself and acquire even more power.