Chapter 29: Expedition Preparation, Appraisal
Translator: Soafp
My training in recovery magic took longer than I initially thought.
I had planned to dedicate just a bit of time to recovery magic since I expected that appraisal would be time-consuming.
However, in reality, it took about 15 days, and I couldn’t allocate as much time for my appraisal training as I had hoped.
I would have preferred to finish three days earlier. Nonetheless, recovery magic was extremely useful, and it would be unwise to cut it short.
First, let’s consider the concept of “appraisal” and what it entails in terms of magic or skills.
In this world, there doesn’t seem to be any form of “appraisal” as both magic and skill.
This information comes from my mother, who has the alias of the “Frost Witch” and is a B-ranked adventurer, so it’s reliable.
This means that it’s essential for me to develop my own original technique. The problem is that I have no idea where to start.
Therefore, I’ll begin by thinking about the abilities required for appraisal.
<< My Desired Appraisal Abilities >>
(1) The ability to discern an opponent’s capabilities.
(2) The ability to identify an opponent’s skills.
(3) The ability to recognize an opponent’s weaknesses.
(4) The ability to determine an opponent’s level (LV).
(5) The ability to activate it just by looking at the opponent.
(6) The ability to differentiate between friend and foe.
I wrote down a list of the “appraisal” abilities that I have seen, but not all of them are necessary.
I will narrow down the abilities I need from this list.
(1) I want this ability. It’s essential for appraisal. However, it doesn’t need to provide exact numerical values; a rough idea would suffice.
(2) Skill recognition is not necessary, given that skills don’t exist in this world.
(3) I want the ability to recognize an opponent’s weaknesses.
(4) LV is irrelevant since this world doesn’t have levels.
(5) The ability to activate with a simple glance would be ideal. However, even if it activates through touch, sound, or smell, it’s good enough.
(6) This is subjective and can be judged by me. I don’t need it.
To summarize, I desire abilities 1, 3, and 5. I want the power to discern an opponent’s abilities and weaknesses, and I’d like it to activate as simply as possible, such as through visual contact.
While the challenge seems daunting, I wonder what methods might help me attain these abilities. If I can see a person’s magical power, could I infer their abilities from it?
I decided to consult my mother about this. She was in the living room, so I sat down on the opposite sofa, tried to observe her magical power…
…
Jiiiii…
…She didn’t notice me.
I will just ask her about it.
“Mother, I have something I’d like to ask.”
“What is it?”
“Can you see other people’s magical power?”
“That’s a difficult question…”
“Is it that difficult?”
“In the case of activated magical power during meditation or right before casting a spell, anyone can see it. But seeing another person’s natural magical power is something only people with talent can do. A familiar example would be Ashera.”
“Ashera?”
“That’s exactly why I took her as my apprentice. When Al beat up the kidnappers, she could see strengthening magic in your body.”
Mom began to talk about Ashera’s abilities.
“Ashera is able to see magical power. It’s called the eye of magic.”
“I see. So, she could see my magical power and predict my movements when she had unusual reactions.”
“However, being able to see magical power is a talent. I’ve never heard of someone acquiring it through training.”
“I see…”
“Furthermore, Ashera’s ability is special when it comes to using magical power. Al, can you cast healing or antidote spells on others?”
“I’m not very sure about other people’s magical power, so for now, I can only use them on myself.”
“Ordinarily, like Al, one would need training to be able to cast spells on others. However, Ashera is different. She should be able to use recovery magic on others just like she does for herself.”
“Ashera is that capable?”
“What are you talking about? In combat, once you start training, you’ll be quickly overtaken by Ashera.”
“Aren’t you exaggerating a bit?”
“Not at all. Can you fight Ashera without letting her touch your body?”
“Well, that would be difficult, but what happens if she touches me?”
“If you can see other people’s magical power and interfere with it, it means you can subject them to any poison you like.”
“Poison…”
“During your antidote training, you returned magical power to its normal state, right?”
“Yes…”
“Ashera can do the opposite.”
“…”
“Of course, it’s not limited to poison. While training is required, she should be able to subject others to various status conditions, based on theory.”
“Various status conditions…”
“She’s accompanying us on the expedition. While you’re training in recovery magic, El and Ashera are also starting the basics of combat training.”
“Combat training…”
“El is receiving training in knightly swordsmanship within the Knight Order, while Ashera is likely getting her training from those skilled in hand-to-hand combat within the Knight Order.”
“I see…”
“Al, you can’t just sit around like this.”
That smirk on her face… I want to punch it!
“I understand about El and Ashera. I’ll work hard in my own training to not fall behind.”
“I like that about you, Al. Do your best.”
“Yes. So, let’s get back to the topic… but…”
I asked my mother about how to sense other people’s magic if I couldn’t learn to see it. She explained that even in the case of healing magic, it doesn’t necessarily let you sense other people’s magic.
“Magic, strictly speaking, doesn’t allow you to sense other people’s magic.”
“Is that so?”
“To become efficient at healing, one has to practice healing magic on dozens, hundreds of people. You have to adjust your magic to be more effective each time.”
“So it’s all about efficiency…”
“That’s an interesting way to put it. Yes, you could say that.”
“So, there’s no way to sense other people’s magic?”
“As far as I know, I don’t think so.”
I thanked my mother and returned to my room. I considered using Ashera as a kind of scout or radar. The idea intrigued me.
(Hmm, I need to change my approach. Maybe I need a different perspective? In Japan, we have various devices for medical examinations… X-rays, ultrasound, CT scans, MRI…)
I decided to use the concept of X-rays to sense magic. I channeled magic from my right hand and absorbed it with my left hand. During this process, I placed an apple in front of me for experimentation.
(Hmm, I sense something… it feels promising, but…)
I recognized that there was potential. With more trial and error, I might be able to refine this into an appraisal technique.
I considered this method as my primary option.
Next, I thought about ultrasound. I placed my right hand on the apple and sent magic through it, feeling for the returning magical energy.
(Oh, this is also showing some promise.)
So, I included ultrasound in my first option as well.
(I wonder if ultrasound might be applicable to sonar…?)
I gave it a try. I touched the apple with my right hand and sent out a brief burst of magic, feeling the returning magic wave.
(This is it! Sending out a quick burst of magic makes it easier to sense the returning magic, even more so than X-rays or ultrasound.)
With this as my decision, I hit the sonar on various objects.
I discovered something important. There are things that magic easily penetrates, and there are things that it doesn’t penetrate as well. High magical energy is an example of something that’s difficult to appraise using this method.
This conclusion applied to both X-rays and ultrasound. It seems that it’s challenging to appraise objects with high magical energy using these techniques.
The creature with the highest magical energy around, according to my observations, is near me.
“Al~do~, what are you doing now?”
“I’m using sonar.”
“What is this sonar? Are you listening to me?”
“It’s a technique for assessing an enemy’s condition that we discussed earlier.”
“Who is the enemy!”
“It is you, Mother.”
“I am the enemy??”
“You are not, but I did some research.”
“Haah…”
“What’s the matter?”
“Well, that is good.”
“Is that so?”
“So, did you find out anything?”
“Yes, Mother, I found out that your magical power is significantly larger, about double mine.”
“You’ve determined the amount of magical power… That’s it for now?”
“Indeed, for now, that’s all I’ve figured out.”
“What are you planning to do next?”
“First, I’ll continue with insects and gradually work my way up to trying it on monsters in the end.”
“Monsters… I wonder if there will be a chance to test it during an expedition.”
“I hope so, but for now, I’ll stick to my plan and test it on insects.”
“Alright. Make sure to keep me updated on your progress.”
“I will.”
Even in the fall, insects are abundant. I would catch them and continue to enhance my abilities using sonar.
I muttered to myself with a reluctant look on my face.
“Is killing them really necessary…”
It had been almost ten days since I began using sonar on insects.
Thanks to the sonar’s effects, I learned more about the structure of insects and other details every day.
However, I had come to realize that there were aspects I couldn’t investigate without killing them, like their weaknesses and the patterns of their magical power when they died.
“Insects are one thing, but small animals, large animals, monsters… and ultimately… humans…”
While I had already killed a person at the age of five, it didn’t mean I was comfortable with it, nor did I desire to become accustomed to it.
“For now, I’ll stick to insects and small animals…”
That’s what I told myself. I postponed thinking about it until the time came when I needed to face it.
The preparations might not be perfect, but it should be sufficient.
It was finally time for the expedition to depart.