The day after the artifact unveiling and verification trials had concluded, I found myself once again at Evangeline's villa. Our group was smaller this time—just me, Ayaka, Chizuru, Eva, Chachamaru, and Chacha Zero. Negi and the others were absent.
While Ayaka engaged in a light sparring session with Chacha Zero and Chizuru practiced mastering her artifacts and spells alongside Chachamaru, Eva and I stood alone in the front garden.
As for me…
"Alright, you've grasped the theory. Now, show me," Eva commanded.
I nodded and focused my spirit. The spell I was about to cast was one I had only recently acquired; I was far from mastering it. However, it was the most powerful incantation in my current repertoire, which meant its potency as a catalyst for Dark Magic was unrivaled.
"Arianrhod! Come, abyssal darkness; come, blazing claymore. Shadows, hatred, and destruction—the great flame of vengeance. Burn me, burn my foe, for it is the one that reduces all to ash... Abyssal Hellfire!"
The moment the incantation left my lips, a swirl of pitch-black flames manifested in my palm. The dark fire bore a striking resemblance to the flames used by the artificial elemental I had fought within the scroll when I first learned the dark arts.
I gripped the fire in my right hand...
"Fix! Seize!"
I crushed the flames within my fist. Instantly, the Abyssal Hellfire merged with my spiritual essence.
"Activating Armament: Infernal Lotus!"
The unique procedure for Dark Magic—the magical apparelling—was complete. The black flames drifted lazily around my body as if I were draped in a shroud of living shadow. This was my current peak: the "Abyssal Hellfire" absorbed into my own being via Magia Erebea.
"Hmm. I suppose I should expect no less from Axel," Eva remarked, watching me. "To successfully internalize a spell of that caliber in such a short time... impressive."
"Yeah. Since I've absorbed a fire-element spell, the offensive and defensive boosts are incredible. But..."
I kicked off the ground to move, but my speed was barely any different than it was in my base state.
"It seems this form is specialized strictly for power and durability," I noted.
"True, your speed hasn't improved much, but those dark flames have a rather interesting property," Eva said with a smirk.
"...What?"
"Here. Try to land a light punch on my hand in that state."
She held out her palm. Though puzzled, I threw a light jab toward her hand. The moment we connected...
"Wait, what?"
Through the dark flames, I had drained mana directly from Eva's hand.
"Do you see? That 'Armament' will be a nightmare for any mage to deal with," she explained.
She was right. If a standard mage allowed me to close the distance, they'd be drained dry. Then again, it wasn't often a mage would willingly engage in a fistfight. The problem remained: how was I supposed to get close enough to a mage while moving this slowly?
...Wait. Maybe?
An idea struck me. I backed away from Eva to create some distance.
"Song of Battle!"
I tried to trigger the physical enhancement spell, but... nothing.
"Ah, trying to run parallel spells while maintaining Magia Erebea is an incredibly high-level feat," Eva said, seeing through my attempt. "For a novice like you who's only just touched the surface of magic, it's far too soon."
I see. I thought Dark Magic was all-powerful, but it has its drawbacks. I'd hoped Song of Battle could compensate for the Infernal Lotus's lack of mobility.
"...No, hold on."
It was true that I couldn't use "World Magic" like Song of Battle while in this state. But magic wasn't the only tool in my belt. Since coming to this world, I had mastered techniques like Shundo (Instant Movement) and Air Shundo. And more importantly...
"Accel!"
I triggered the Spirit Command, Accel, and kicked off the ground. In a heartbeat, I had vanished from my position and reappeared ten meters away.
"Perfect. I can't use standard magic and Dark Magic simultaneously, but Spirit Commands work just fine."
"I knew you were an outlier," Eva said, looking at me with a mix of exasperation and genuine interest, "but seeing it in action really drives the point home."
"Well, just consider it an 'Otherworlder's Perk'."
At the very least, I had confirmed that my mobility issues in Infernal Lotus could be bridged by Spirit Commands and Shundo. If that were the case, it made sense to make this high-power, high-defense state my "base form" when using Dark Magic.
Just as that thought crossed my mind, I felt a strange, sickening throb deep inside my body—like something fetal was stirring.
...What was that?
"Something wrong?" Eva asked, sensing the shift in my demeanor.
But the sensation vanished as quickly as it had appeared, leaving me feeling perfectly normal. Was it a side effect of the Infernal Lotus? Perhaps, but since the feeling was so fleeting, I decided it wasn't worth worrying about yet.
"No, it's nothing."
"Is that so? Then, to help you get used to that form, how about a little spar?"
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