I decided to ask the receptionist at the Adventurer’s Guild how to learn attack magic without burning through my SP. I figured I’d bring it up while reporting that the Orc settlement had been wiped out.
"So, I’m thinking of picking up some attack magic. Any advice on how to learn it?"
"Um... well, most adventurers head to the magic shop. You can buy spellbooks there."
"A magic shop! Where is it?"
"If you check your map, it’s right around here. Just look for the sign with the witch's hat."
So you could just buy magic. I was glad I hadn't spent my SP on a whim.
"Heh. I didn't know a place like that existed! I’m going too-ssu!"
"All right, shopping spree at the magic shop! I’ve got the cash!"
I’d been grinding requests at the Adventurer’s Guild like crazy, so I had quite the stockpile of rewards. I’d been treating Tria-chan and the others to meals at the Guild Tavern as well, but that was just flavor text—it didn't cost much. Still, it did raise their Affection Level.
"By the way, to celebrate paying off half my debt, I mash-clicked the button to see how much I could eat at the cafeteria-ssu. My HP started dropping after about ten servings and I almost died, so be careful-ssu."
"Dude. Penpen, that’s definitely going to tank your Player Affection Level."
"Actually, it went up-ssu! She said she was happy she got to eat until she burst-ssu."
"Isn't she just being polite? If she actually bursts, she’ll die, you know? That’s a Lost!"
"Sorry, Pen-chan-ssu! I’ll be careful from now on-ssu!"
Well, regardless, it was time for the magic shop.
I headed there with Penpen. The place was packed with scrolls and books. If it hadn't been for the sign with the witch's hat, I would’ve mistaken it for a standard medieval bookstore.
"Excuse me! I’d like to buy some magic!"
"Hm? Yes, yes... Whoa! Ah, um, please let me know if there’s a specific spell you’re looking for."
Did they just say "whoa"? I could’ve sworn I’d washed up properly after the Orc raid.
"I’m looking to learn some attack magic."
"Attack magic, huh? We have several... but... Ah, wait a second. Um, manual, manual... There it is. Right. Please be aware that you cannot learn spells if your Parameters aren't high enough. No returns—we only offer trade-ins. Please understand that... okay."
What was up with this person? A new part-timer? Well, as long as they sold me the magic, it didn't really matter.
"Tria-shi! Look, they have a Fireball scroll-ssu! We can match-ssu!"
"Matching, huh? Well, as long as I can learn it. How much is this one?"
"That will be three Silver Coins."
"Easy. Chink!"
I had plenty of money left over from the Orc settlement reward, so I bought it. Item: Use... Learned!
"Oh, the scroll burned up and vanished."
"That means it was consumed-ssu. Did you learn it-ssu?"
"Yeah, looks like it. I guess being Level 28 is enough for this. Nice."
I wanted to try it out immediately, but the clerk cut me off. "Please don’t do any test-firing in here."
I wasn't going to.
"Matching, matching~♪"
"Oh, right. I wonder if there’s any magic that would work well against a turtle."
"If we're fighting a turtle, wouldn't electricity be the best bet-ssu?"
"Electricity, huh? I wonder if there’s anything good. Hey, do you have any recommendations?"
"Electricity... Right, just a moment. ...This, this, and this... oh, and maybe this one too? Hup."
The clerk rummaged through the shelves and pulled out three scrolls and a book.
"Um, here we have Thunder, Thunder Bolt, Enchant Thunder, and Tempest."
The prices were 3 Silver Coins, 5 Silver Coins, 10 Silver Coins, and 5 Gold Coins, respectively. The book was Tempest, the 5 Gold Coin one.
That was definitely a high-tier spell. There was no way Tria-chan’s Parameters were high enough for it yet.
"So, Tria-shi, what’s the budget-ssu?"
"My total assets are 8 Gold Coins, so I could buy them all... but I think I’ll pass on Tempest for now. I’ll take the three scrolls."
"Thank you for your business!"
All right, let's use them. Thunder... Learned! Thunder Bolt... Learning failed! Enchant Thunder... Learned!
Well, one scroll was left over. I definitely wouldn't have been able to learn Tempest.
"Looks like my Parameters weren't high enough for Thunder Bolt. Penpen, I’ll sell it to you for three Silver Coins."
"At cost?! Well, fine by me-ssu. Here. ...Learned it-ssu!"
We traded for the three Silver Coins, and Penpen seemed to learn Thunder Bolt without any trouble at all.
"By the way, what’s the difference between Thunder and Thunder Bolt?"
"Let’s ask the clerk-ssu! Hey, what’s the difference-ssu?!"
"Ah, um. Manual, manual... Ah, yes. The Bolt-type has higher MP consumption and higher attack power. Oh, and better range, too."
She was reading straight from a cheat sheet, but I kept my mouth shut. She’d given me a proper answer, and as long as I knew the difference, I was satisfied.
"All right, let's head out and take a Goblin Extermination Request to test these out."
"Then I’m coming along this time-ssu!"
"Th-thank you for your business. Please come again!"
We left the magic shop, headed back to the guild to grab the request, and moved out to the Grasslands.
The Goblins became our sacrifices. Well, test subjects.
I found that magic could be assigned to a Slot and activated by tapping it.
Hyahoo! Magic attacks are a blast! Fireball! Thunder! Enchant Thunder into a combo of kicks and punches!
Goblins were just weaklings, so they died in one hit anyway. But hey, it was just a test run.
I spent the rest of the day annihilating Goblins until I ran out of MP, resting to recover, and repeating the cycle until sunset. Thanks to that, I felt like my proficiency—or whatever the hidden stat was—had shot up. I had no idea how many requests' worth of kills I’d actually racked up.
"Thank you for your hard work... Yes, you’ve ranked up. Both of you. Congratulations, you are now C-Rank."
"Oh, Penpen and I both made it to C-Rank? Yes!"
"Yeah! We did it-ssu!"
We really had hunted a massive amount of monsters. Man, we finally reached C-Rank. I’d officially caught up to my colleague’s Rank. Now I could meet up with him with my head held high. We could finally go adventuring together!