Ren Isana felt Riveria's gaze and raised the staff in his hand. "Thanks for the materials. I wouldn't have been able to forge a staff like this without them."
Hearing Ren Isana's words, Riveria looked at him with a complex expression. *This guy is truly absurd. Not only is his strength off the charts, but he can even forge equipment. Is he omnipotent?*
"Truly impressive. The quality of this weapon is already among the absolute best," Riveria couldn't help but marvel before taking a few steps forward.
"Next, I will demonstrate my magic for you." Taking a deep breath, Riveria raised her staff and began to chant.
"Harbinger of the end, the white snow. At the twilight hour, let the howling winds blow. Closed light, frozen earth, a blizzard dancing in the sky. Three harsh winters—my name is Alf!" As Riveria chanted, a biting chill descended upon the area.
Three icy blue streams of air blasted forward, coating everything in their path with a thick layer of frost. If cast over a lake, she could have frozen the entire area solid.
"This is my first spell, [Wynn Fimbulvetr]," Riveria explained to Ren Isana as she observed the lingering effects of her magic. The spell released three blasts of freezing air to encase a designated area in ice.
Listening to her, Ren Isana nodded and said slowly, "Please continue, Riveria."
He had already learned it. The effects were undeniably excellent. Having just this spell would have been enough, but if he could learn more, he was naturally more than happy to do so.
"Alright. Next, I will demonstrate my wide-area annihilation magic, [Rea Laevateinn]." Seeing his reaction, Riveria didn't hesitate and proceeded to showcase her second spell.
"Soon, the flames will release the quietly encroaching fires of war... Sword of Surtr—my name is Alf." Riveria chanted rapidly, unleashing a massive fire spell.
The flames materialized out of thin air right in front of them, triggering a colossal explosion. Ren Isana's eyes lit up at the sight, though he quickly furrowed his brow.
Because this was an Advanced Magic spell. As Ren Isana committed the spell to memory, he gained a rough understanding of how Riveria's magic functioned.
*Temperature control, huh? No wonder she uses both ice and fire.* Following that, Riveria went on to demonstrate the rest of her spells.
[Liv Illusion], a support spell that boosted both physical and magical resistance. When the buff was active, a cloak of light would drape over the target's body.
[Veil Breath], a defensive spell. Its effect was simple and brutal—it could block all enemy attacks. A truly game-breaking spell.
And finally, her barrier magic, a large-scale [Spatial Barrier] capable of defending against both physical and magical strikes.
[Wynn Fimbulvetr], [Rea Laevateinn], [Liv Illusion], [Veil Breath], and [Via Shilheim]—these were the spells Riveria demonstrated for Ren Isana.
As for the rest, she held back. She still possessed a healing spell known as [Vea Alf].
This time, Riveria had only shown Ren Isana five spells, and two of them were ones he couldn't use yet. [Rea Laevateinn] and [Via Shilheim] both fell under the category of Advanced Magic.
[Via Shilheim] in particular was a type of Array Magic, functioning similarly to the grand protective formations of martial sects. Ren Isana memorized all of them.
Just because he couldn't use them now didn't mean they wouldn't be useful in the future. He was already highly satisfied with this haul. After finishing her demonstration, Riveria asked, "Well? Which one do you want to learn? I can try to teach you."
In her mind, that was merely a demonstration. If he actually wanted to learn them, she would have to teach him step by step. She just wasn't sure if Ren Isana would be able to grasp them.
Hearing this, Ren Isana had a thought. He nodded and said, "Then teach me [Wynn Fimbulvetr], [Liv Illusion], and [Veil Breath]. The others are Advanced Magic; I won't be able to learn them until I break through to Lv.5."
He decided to "launder" these three spells on the spot, avoiding shocking her too much with his heaven-defying talent. It was best to keep a low profile when necessary. He had to at least pretend to learn them, right?
After saying this, Ren Isana remembered something and immediately added, "In exchange, I can teach you three spells as well."
Ren Isana stepped forward. Riveria's interest was piqued, and she watched his next moves with curious eyes.
"First is this one. It's a spell I created myself, which I've named [Piercing Magic Bullet]. As long as you have enough Magic Power, you can use it like a Gatling gun." As Ren Isana spoke, he instantly manifested a Magic Circle.
He aimed his staff forward. The next moment, a dense barrage of magic bullets poured out, blasting relentlessly into the distance.
This sight instantly left Riveria dumbfounded. She stared at Ren Isana's execution in disbelief.
"Huh?" Riveria's mouth fell open as she watched the overwhelming swarm of projectiles. She was completely stunned. She had no idea how one would even defend against such rapid fire.
"That was full-auto mode. And this is burst-fire mode." After finishing the rapid-fire demonstration, Ren Isana showed off a single-shot mode, acting like a salesman pitching a firearm.
"The defining traits of this spell are its long range, high speed, and strong piercing power," Ren Isana explained to Riveria after the demonstration.
Hearing this, Riveria nodded hurriedly. This spell was indeed fantastic, and she was highly satisfied with it. If she could learn it, she would be able to spam basic attacks from a distance instead of having to run up and whack monsters with her staff.
*This is how a true mage should fight!* Thinking of this, Riveria grew even more curious about the next spells Ren Isana was going to teach her. What kind of magic would they be?
"Next, I'll teach you [Piercing Magic Cannon]. The defining trait of this spell is that the more Magic Power you pour into it, the stronger the destructive force." Ren Isana demonstrated as he spoke.
A Magic Circle formed. The next moment, a beam of light blasted out, striking a nearby hill with a deafening roar. *Boom!* A massive crater was instantly blown into the hillside.
Riveria's eyes sparkled at the sight. This would be incredibly effective against certain large monsters, completely eliminating the need to cast her lengthy, large-scale magic.
After demonstrating this spell, Ren Isana fell into thought. Which spell should he teach her for the final one?
[Flight Magic]? *Nah, forget it.* Ren Isana had no intention of teaching that one to outsiders.
"Ren Isana, if possible, do you happen to have any support-type spells for the third one?" Seeing Ren Isana deep in thought, Riveria quickly asked.
Hearing this, Ren Isana paused. He turned to look at her and said, "Support magic... Healing? Or maybe purification? Something that can clear debuffs."
Ren Isana gave her two options directly, though he figured she wouldn't need [Healing Magic], considering she already knew plenty herself.
"Purification?" Riveria's interest was piqued when Ren Isana mentioned it. If it was healing, she really didn't need it.
"Right, [Purification Magic]. A spell that can dispel all sorts of negative status effects. The more Magic Power you inject, the stronger the effect. I don't know its upper limit." Ren Isana didn't hide anything and explained the spell's mechanics straightforwardly.
"I'll take that one!" Riveria didn't hesitate for a second. She desperately needed a spell like this. Magic that cleared debuffs was incredibly practical.
"Alright, then I'll teach you these three." Ren Isana agreed readily. Since she had made her choice, he naturally didn't mind. In reality, he was making an absolute killing on this exchange.
"Then I'll teach you first." Seeing this, Riveria didn't delay and immediately began explaining the intricacies of casting her spells. Once she finished, Ren Isana put on a show of nodding thoughtfully.
"Learned it. Next." Ren Isana's words instantly left Riveria looking bewildered. She stared at him in utter confusion. *Learned it? Seriously?*
"Is there a problem? I really did learn it!" Ren Isana asked, noticing her blank stare. *Is it really that shocking?*
"Is my magic really that simple? You just... learned it?" Riveria found it unbelievable. *Is he being serious? He's not joking?*
"No, it's quite difficult. Much harder than Ais's, actually. At least with Ais's magic, I understood it the moment I saw her use it. But yours required a whole explanation," Ren Isana explained with a completely straight face.
Hearing this, Riveria fell silent. *Is this what Ren Isana considers 'simple'? Learning it after seeing it once is 'simple', but because mine required an explanation, it's 'a bit difficult'?*
"Don't be surprised. Your magic is roughly equivalent to Intermediate Magic where we come from. For this brat, Intermediate Magic is something he learns the moment he sees it." Right at that moment, Natsuki Minamiya walked over.
Hearing this, Riveria grew even more silent. *Is this the world of a genius? So he's always been like this. If Ren Isana fully matures, won't he be able to learn every spell in the world?*
Realizing this, Riveria couldn't be bothered to dwell on it anymore. Instead, she proceeded to explain the principles behind the other two spells, which Ren Isana learned just as effortlessly.
However, when it was Ren Isana's turn to explain his magic to her, Riveria felt incredibly depressed. In that moment, she felt like a complete magical novice. Ren Isana had to explain it to her several times before she barely managed to grasp one.
Since [Piercing Magic Cannon] was an upgraded version of [Piercing Magic Bullet], it was relatively simple for Riveria. Once she mastered the bullet version, getting the hang of the cannon version was a breeze.
The final [Purification Magic] followed a similar logic. Since she was already proficient in healing-type magic, she picked it up quickly, mastering the entire spell in no time.
"Well, just practice them a lot. If you run into anything you don't understand later, just ask Natsuki Minamiya," Ren Isana said, stretching lazily after finishing his teaching session.
With that, he stored the magic staff in his hand away. Seeing this, Riveria couldn't help but ask, "Is that magic as well?"
*Storing weapons away anytime, anywhere? That magic is incredibly convenient.* Riveria was instantly filled with interest. If she could learn this spell, she wouldn't have to carry her weapon around all the time.
Putting it away right after use—it was beyond convenient. It would also save everyone a lot of stamina during expeditions. After all, when they went on Dungeon expeditions, some members had to carry several weapons at once.
"This is a very basic spell. If you're interested, ask Natsuki Minamiya. She knows it too. Or Yor, or Shizuka Hiratsuka—any of them will do," Ren Isana replied upon hearing Riveria's inquiry.
He directly pushed the responsibility onto the teachers present. He was too lazy to teach it himself and figured it was better to let them handle it. Ren Isana needed to start making his own preparations now.
After all, he had his own business to attend to. He needed to prepare a large amount of purified water and get ready for his upcoming potion-brewing session.
Riveria nodded at his words. It seemed it wasn't a high-level spell; otherwise, Ren Isana wouldn't have spoken so casually about it.
After bidding them farewell, Ren Isana returned to the estate and got to work. Watching him leave, Ais felt a complex swirl of emotions. *What a terrifying talent.*
"Let's head back as well. If you want to learn that spell, I can just teach you. Where we come from, it's nothing more than a relatively common spell." Natsuki Minamiya didn't bother dragging the conversation out.
Sometimes, there was no need to be petty. Based on her observations, whether it was Riveria, Ais, or Lefiya, none of them were the ungrateful type.
Furthermore, both Riveria and Ais were high-ranking executives in the Loki Familia with significant influence. Building a good relationship with them was definitely the right move.
Social dynamics required give and take to foster future cooperation; Natsuki Minamiya understood this perfectly well. A spell that was considered common back in their world was fine to teach.
Hearing Natsuki Minamiya's words, the elves' eyes lit up. *Is that so? If that's the case, then that's wonderful!* However, if they knew that Ren Isana had originally planned to use this exact spell to extort Hephaestus, their expressions would surely be a sight to behold!
Similarly, if Hephaestus found out that Ren Isana's group was now casually handing out this spell for free, she would be incredibly depressed. After all, Ren Isana had fully intended to charge her an arm and a leg for it!
But even if they found out, Ren Isana wouldn't care. After all, they were now allies with the Loki Familia. As allies, exchanging a few things was perfectly normal, right?
While Ren Isana returned to the estate to busy himself with his tasks, Asuna arrived at Miach's Workshop. She handed the list of medicinal herbs directly to Miach and asked, "Miach, we need these herbs. Do you happen to have them in stock?"
Miach took the list from Asuna and quickly scanned it. He then looked at her in surprise. "Who came up with the herbs on this list? Was it that young man who didn't come today?"
With just a glance, he roughly understood what the list was for. Although his Divine Power was sealed, his knowledge remained intact, so he quickly figured out what kind of potions Ren Isana was trying to make.
*He catches on fast. To come up with a recipe this quickly... and it's slightly different from standard potions. Medicine made like this... the flavor will be quite unique, won't it? Do people from other worlds prefer it this way?*
"Yes, he has matters to attend to at the Familia estate, so he couldn't come," Asuna explained politely. Seeing this, Miach nodded and didn't press further.
"I have all the herbs here. What quantity do you need?" After reviewing the entire list, Miach handed it back to Asuna, having already memorized it.
Asuna immediately stated the quantities they required, along with a request for some Antidote Potions, empty vials, and other supplies.
Listening to Asuna list off the items, a flash of realization crossed Miach's eyes. That young man he had only met once was actively trying to help them. For the Miach Familia, fulfilling this single order was equivalent to a whole year's worth of business.
Not to mention, if Ren Isana could come up with a recipe like that, Miach didn't believe for a second that he couldn't brew his own Antidote Potions. Thinking of this, Miach smiled. The notebook he had given away back then was already yielding returns.
"Alright, I'll have someone deliver them to you shortly. You can go ahead and attend to your other errands. It just so happens I was planning to head over and visit your goddess anyway," Miach told the group, deciding on the spot to deliver the goods personally.
Asuna was briefly taken aback hearing that Miach intended to visit, but she didn't overthink it and warmly welcomed the idea. She could sense that this god was truly a good god!