Syl

As fun as exploring our new home was, I was chopping at the bit to continue working on the unknown spell I was creating. I was really hopeful that completing it would instantly propel my [Dimension Magic] to level two, and then I could start trying to figure out teleportation like Vee.

"Well, if you're going to do that, I guess I'll start laying some webs," Vee replied.

"Or you can continue the magical wrestling," I offered.

"No, maybe later; I'm not a fan of the headache from the spell backlash," Vee said.

It's not that bad…

But I shrugged and let her do her own thing. Before continuing, I quickly tested [Position] and [Spatial Sense] now that we were out of the prison room and on more stable ground.

The coordinates provided by the spell seemed much more understandable now that we were out of that bizarre room. To my surprise, if I cast it on an object while observing it with [Spatial Sense], it would update in real-time to give its personal coordinates underneath the numbers indicating its position relative to me.

I can see why Vee said these go hand in hand. I can't wait to see what the next spell does to manipulate these numbers; I want to be able to teleport things!

Obviously, I could use [Blink] if I really wanted to, but there was something so much more… personal with casting a spell version of it, in my opinion. At least, that was how I currently felt about it.

While tinkering with the spell, I couldn't help but wonder if there were other ways to perform skill functions through magic itself and, thus, circumvent anti-skills. If someone had the skill [Identity Block], but you cast a spell interpreting the effects of [Identify], would it still be blocked?

Well, I would need many more spell components to do that. Something to potentially look forward to, maybe?

Paeris returned before I completed the spell and placed some books on one of the counters.

"This is just some preliminary information, and I believe Llewel is still searching for more, so do not be too disheartened if what you seek isn't within these. Llewel is also restricted in what he can gather, so you might have to wait till the Mistress finds time to requisition more for you."

"Thanks, Paeris," I replied.

"You're most welcome, Lady Sylthaeryn. If you need anything from this humble servant, you only need to ask," he said with a bow.

I didn't want anything more for him, nor did Vee, as she had already found the food stash. So, I dismissed him because I wanted to continue practicing in peace. He informed us he would be staying in the abode across from us, so if we needed his services, he was mere moments away.

It's a little too close for my liking, but I had expected him to be living with us, so I suppose this is actually better than my original prediction. Anything we do or say is undoubtedly going straight to Loreleia.

Even with the information on the table, I kept prodding along with my spell. Vee eventually started poking through the one book on spider monsters but judging by her lukewarm reaction, this wasn't the type of information she wanted.

When the spell was finally completed, I felt I had grown in my magical comprehension. I have no doubt that if I didn't already have such a high level in [Mana Manipulation], I would have gained a level up for this work, and likewise with [Mana Conception] being fused into [Soul Sight].

Actually, that reminds me that I still need to look for other fusions… I bet I can now get [Soul Sense] and [Soul Vision]!

But I threw those temptations to the side, for now, cast my newly found spell, and targeted a nearby chair. I immediately got a reading of its temperature and the ambient temperature!

Seeing no harmful effect, I cast it on Vee. To my surprise, she had quite a low body temperature.

<Unnamed custom spell has been cast repeatedly. Please name spell.>

I mean, the other one is just called [Position]... so what about temperature?

<[Temperature] spell has been registered.>

I was excitedly expecting more notifications, but to my dismay, I didn't get a level in Dimension, Fire, or Ice magic. I had thought for sure I'd get at least level two for my troubles, but if it was being split into my other categories, then that might explain the lack of a level.

Or maybe I just gained a bunch of experience in information magic? Ha!

"I can't believe you created such a complex spell just to tell the temperature…" Vee grumbled.

"Sure, it's not as glorious and pronounced as a good old [Fireball] spell, but you must realize that what it's doing is rather crazy, right? Like this is something you'd need a skill like [Identify] to use!" I enthusiastically explained.

"Why not just spend the skill point and get it?" Vee questioned.

"Sure, but this way, it cost me nothing!"

"You needed the super rare [Dimension Magic] and two elements… I don't think you can reasonably say it cost you nothing!"

"I got valuable experience in my skills…" I grumbled.

"Oh! Okay, then, that's definitely worth it!" Vee replied, changing her tone. "Does that mean you've got [Adjust]?"

If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

Seriously… We went from [Position] to [Adjust]? Who the hell comes up with these names!?

"Yes…" I replied hesitantly.

"Liar," Vee instantly accused. "The spell is actually called [Positioning]."

"Oh, you've got to be joking!?" I cried out.

"Nope. But thanks for the confirmation," Vee replied smugly.

After venting about terrible spell names, I eventually sighed, "I'm close, though, I bet."

"You'd be even closer if you spent the point," Vee replied.

"Nope. I'll cast [Position] over and over if I have to! Or better yet, why don't you cast [Positioning], and I try to interpret it from your spell? We could even try using [Ritual Casting] to work together!"

"Uh… is that a wise move?" Vee asked nervously. "We are talking about [Dimension Magic] here."

"You said it just changes the coordinates; how bad can it be? And we can cast it on a chair or something."

"I like these chairs, though. What about casting it on this useless book about spiders?"

"That bad?" I asked curiously.

"Terrible! Nothing beyond tier three monsters!" Vee cried in frustration.

"Considering spiders start at tier two…" I mumbled.

"Exactly! Utterly useless! I'm offended they even brought this book to me!"

"Well, they're obligated to help us. I bet we will have better spider books soon enough. Although that doesn't give me much hope on whatever book they brought me."

"I skimmed the one book; it's like a beginner guide to Tamers. Stuff like suggestions for your first companion and how to care for and nurture them…"

"Well, hopefully, it at least lists some skills, and then I can ask someone to share them with me."

"Yeah, there were some," Vee admitted. "Still, it's a poor first showing."

"If we don't find anything, I'll ask Gramps during my next evolution," I offered.

"You'd do that?" Vee asked expectantly.

"Why not? Helping you helps me since we're partners in this. It certainly can't hurt to ask. I'm sure Gramps will be thrilled about a rare evolution or something; he seems determined to get that. Why else would he have changed my experience distribution?"

"I guess I should be thankful my one hasn't done something like that yet. Although maybe she's distracted by how much you're into magic."

"She was tempting me to evolve into a spirit last time. Although I'm pretty glad I've stayed a slime. How else would I get to continue eating cores and adding more powers to my collection?"

"Yeah, yeah, keep bragging… So are we going to try using [Positioning]?"

"It's really called that?"

"Yeah. Makes sense, doesn't it? [Position] gets the coordinates, and [Positioning] changes them."

I frowned but ultimately gave up. At least it was a little better than all the "Create: Ice" spells.

Vee began casting the spell, and I watched eagerly. The once wholly alien Mana and spell constructs were much more understandable to me now that I had the affinity and magic skill and could vaguely comprehend them.

"Okay, so how exactly does this work?" I asked.

"Feels weird for me to be on the teaching end," Vee chuckled. "But from what I've gathered, changing coordinates is hard. Objects are kind of okay, assuming they aren't connected to something larger, but living things are a nightmare!"

"You teleported me fine into your pit trap," I replied.

"Ah! But that was a workaround I discovered!" Vee excitedly explained. "Someone or something entering the portal seems to make it guaranteed, which is why I preferred just assigning the coordinates to my [Rift Thread], which sucked it up like a dry sponge."

"So you can't change my coordinates directly?" I asked.

"Trying to change the coordinates of a dwarf felt like trying to push a boulder up a steep hill. With you, it feels like trying to carry the boulder up a vertical incline."

"Huh… resistances or permissions, maybe?" I suggested.

"Well, it would be pretty crazy if I could just teleport anyone," Vee explained. "And honestly, I've never tried it on myself directly."

"Why not? Seems like the first thing I would have tried."

Vee sighed, "Yeah, because I'm not suicidal? And I had [Blink]; why would I do it through a spell when the skill is instant and safe?"

"Well, you tried out your portals yourself."

"Only after sending countless dwarfs and monsters through them! I had to ensure it was entirely safe before trying it myself. Even then, I was extremely reluctant to do it and would only do it as a last resort. But like I said, making a portal with [Rift Thread] seems to bypass the need for me to change someone's coordinates directly."

"I wonder if I could give you permission to teleport me. Would that work?"

"I'd really not like to risk that right now," Vee whined.

"Okay, okay, something to try out in the future when we feel more confident about it. Plus, I'll admit I don't want to lose another core until I get my food situation sorted out. I'll have to ask if we can go hunting tomorrow."

Vee then began a somewhat lengthy explanation of how she used the two spells. Effectively, she would cast [Position] twice, at the start and end, and then apply the endpoint coordinates to the first one.

I asked how she remembered such a large set of numbers, but surprisingly, the answer was relatively simple: keeping the spell active, and then the subsequent casting of the [Positioning] spell would readily accept the held spell's information.

It was nice to see that the system provided at least some built-in help with the spell or assistance. Honestly, it felt like the bare minimum this unhelpful advanced magic provided.

I wonder how Llewel studied his [Time Magic]? I'd bet that he was picked out and groomed for his position once he was discovered to have it, perhaps getting notes and supplies from predecessors? At least, that's how I'd go about it. They said the Feirelle branch has no Riftmancers, but what about documents? Guess it's another thing to add to our list of requests.

We then went through a lengthy process of trying to assist Vee with the spell, and sadly, this was where we hit a large dead end in my power-leveling idea. As amazing as [Ritual Casting] was, it seemed to provide no assistance to a spell we did not both own.

I could have manipulated the spell directly using [Counter Magic], but that might have led to disastrous results and was something both of us wanted to avoid. Backlash and Mana burning from such a resource-intense school of magic could quite easily put Vee in a dire situation.

This meant that my only option was spamming the two spells available to me—[Position] and [Temperature]—and hoping for the best. The worst part was that I had no idea if the latter would actually give me any experience, but I was desperate to try anything. Hopefully, thanks to my spell discovery and all my experience boosters, I was relatively close to the second level.

While I was spamming away and filling my head with useless numbers, Vee demonstrated the spell to me, and I got to watch in real time as she adjusted the coordinates on the book and saw it appear across the room.

"I bet watching the coordinates change is worth more experience!" I excitedly suggested.

"Sure, we might as well. I don't mind getting some practice myself. I'll also show you how it looks with my [Rift Thread]!"

I instantly agreed, and she smugly told me to cast the spell on it. To my horror, the strange thread seemed to somehow have two entire sets of coordinates on it at the same time, and I couldn't identify which one was, as they both seemed to be updated in real-time as long as I maintained the spell.

"I feel like my brain is going to explode…" I groaned.

"This is the genius of my [Rift Thread]!" Vee boasted. "It can have two sets of coordinates at once. And this is its partner thread, which it's linked to. I'll stop waving them around and let their coordinates settle so you can see where they intersect with each other."

I nodded and cast the spell again while maintaining the first. Having two sets of bizzaro numbers like that floating in my mind was not a pleasant experience.

"Huh… I expected you to lose your lunch," Vee teased.

"I'm a slime; I don't exactly have a stomach," I groaned in response.

It was still highly unpleasant, but my uncomfortableness was soon dwarfed as I received an exciting set of notifications.

<Proficiency gained. [Dimension Magic LV 1] improved to [Dimension Magic LV 2].>

<[Dimension Magic LV 2] spell [Positioning] learned.>

"It really was called [Positioning]..."