I was drained by the day's events, but now that the situation with Megiddo-san was finally settled, I headed back home. Afterward, I visited Iris-san’s bar to consult with her and Alice—the closest thing I had to experts on the subject—about the Heart Tool I’d recently awakened.
"How does it feel intuitively? You should have a rough grasp of its limits by now, shouldn't you?" Iris-san asked.
"Yeah. I can only manifest Memories once a day for about fifteen minutes... That's a pretty short window, right?"
Having awakened to the Heart Tool called Memories, I now understood its basic functions. It turned out I could use its power to summon the friends from my university research club—the ones who had fought alongside me during Shiro-san’s trial.
However, even if I wanted to call them out just to catch up, being limited to one person for fifteen minutes a day was unfortunately nowhere near enough time for a proper conversation.
Hearing my concern, Alice and Iris-san both shared a look of nostalgic amusement.
"Ah, Kaito-san, that’s just how it is in the beginning," Alice said.
"Precisely," Iris-san added. "Even for us, maintaining a manifestation for more than a few minutes was a struggle when we first awakened our Heart Tools."
"Is that so?"
"Yes. A Heart Tool’s performance isn’t dictated by the user’s Magic Power Amount. It’s more about its Mastery. As you hone it, the tool itself evolves, and the duration and potency of its effects will grow. In my case, I use Hecatoncheir to sustain the form, but with a tool like yours, it should eventually be possible to summon a large number of people with almost no time limit. Once your Mastery improves, you’ll be able to call multiple people for extended periods as well."
"I see. By the way, how exactly do I increase my Mastery?"
In other words, my Memories was currently at Level 1, having only just awakened. By raising its Mastery, I could extend the usage time and increase the number of people I could summon at once.
The fact that it didn't rely on my own raw magic capacity was a godsend. Even with my pathetic levels, I could draw out its full potential just by putting in the work.
"Repetition is the key," Iris-san explained. "Manifest your Heart Tool every day, even if only for a few moments. In the world we came from, those who awakened to a tool would train exactly like that. Through constant use, your Mastery will gradually rise, and in some cases, the Heart Tool itself will evolve."
"Oh, so Heart Tools can actually grow too."
"If you want a clear example, look at the Ultimate War-Form. That’s a kind of trump card that only manifests once your Mastery reaches its absolute zenith," Alice noted.
Hecatoncheir’s Ultimate War-Form was, if I recalled correctly, a terrifyingly broken ability that allowed Alice to evolve infinitely by incorporating the power of her bonds. However, she couldn't use it whenever she liked because the activation conditions were so incredibly strict.
"Come to think of it, does your Apocalypse have an Ultimate War-Form too, Iris-san?"
"It does... but mine is difficult to manage. For starters, I cannot activate it alone."
"It awakened when we were fighting these monsters called the Seven Star Magic Beasts," Alice chimed in. "We were total weaklings back then compared to now, so it was a hell of a fight. I’ll spare you the long version for now, but the form only triggers when the two of us hold Apocalypse together."
"Heh, that sounds pretty cool."
It sounded like a supreme form forged by the bond between the two of them. Though, considering Iris-san called it difficult to handle, the activation conditions were likely very limited.
"As for the effect, I can imbue Apocalypse with abilities I’ve borrowed through Hecatoncheir," Alice continued. "For example, there’s a Heart Tool that allows one to attack every opponent in sight simultaneously. If I transfer that power into Apocalypse, Iris can unleash a simultaneous barrage on every target in her field of vision. Since we can imbue multiple abilities at once, the possibilities are endless depending on the combination."
"Though, as I said, it requires both of us to be holding the weapon, which makes it cumbersome. That is simply the nature of an Ultimate War-Form—they grant immense power in exchange for demanding requirements. I imagine it will be quite some time before you reach your own, Miyama Kaito."
"And since yours hasn't manifested yet, even my Hecatoncheir can't predict what form it will take."
I had to admit, having that kind of evolved power sounded exciting, but there was no need to rush. My first goal was simply to summon Arisa or the others long enough to actually sit down and talk.
"So... what do you two think of my Heart Tool overall?"
"It’s broken," Alice said bluntly. "As far as buff-types go, it’s easily top-tier. It’s only possible because your mental strength is so off the charts, but the sheer scale of the stat increase is terrifying. Once your Mastery goes up, the range will expand too."
"The fact that it lacks a physical form is a major advantage as well," Iris-san added. "Normally, if a Heart Tool takes a hit, the user suffers mental backlash. But since yours is incorporeal, there is no such feedback. It is a shame the buffs do not apply to you personally, but as a support tool, it is remarkably potent."
"Wow... hearing that from you two makes me pretty happy."
When it came to combat, I had always felt like I had zero talent. Even if it was just in a support role, being evaluated as 'powerful' by these two made me genuinely glad.
If I could use this to power up Bell or Rin as well... I really was becoming more of a Monster Tamer every day.
Serious-senpai: "It really is a rare sight to see Kaito get such high, unconditional praise for his combat prowess."