/
CHAPTER 1
The Rotten Dragon that the strongest of all Necromancers, Kirau had unleashed, was about to attack the Adventure City Lunot.
Reito, who knew of this grave reality from his manager in this world, Airis, had realized he would need to train more if he were to defeat this wicked foe.
He had been walking through the streets of the city, searching for a Monster Controller in possession of a Gargoyle. His aim was to purchase a Gargoyle and then spar with it to raise his level.
However, he had been unsuccessful so far. He called Airis.
『Irish!』 he said in falsetto.
『Why do you keep calling me that! Also, you’d make a great girl…』
『Thanks. But I didn’t call to talk about that. Can you tell me the exact position of a Monster Controller in possession of a Gargoyle?』
『Right, right…  So, there’s a blond woman in a tavern near your present location. She is completely wasted. Go there and leave three gold coins on the table and then leave.』
『What, why? We’re not going to wake her up?』
『She is running the Gargoyles through an illegal network. She wouldn’t want to be seen dealing a Gargoyle via legal and formal procedures. She’s not a major criminal in any other way, so we should just pay her and leave.』
『 Won’t she be flustered that there is money just sitting there?』
『 Let’s leave a note that says ‘Thanks for the Gargoyle.’  She’s going to wake up soon, so be careful.』
『Got it,』Reito closed off communications with Airis. He went to the bar with his precious gold currency in hand.
“Just to be safe…”
Before going inside, he used his Assassin skills, “Stealth” and “Seal Presence” along with “Soundless Walk.” He didn’t want to be noticed.
Once in the bar, he found a bunch of thugs hanging out.
“Hey, did you hear?! The legendary Zombie Dragon has been resurrected…”
“That’s just a rumor. Why would that come to attack us out of nowhere?”
“I heard the bastards from the old empire brought it back to life!!”
“The old empire collapsed forever ago…”
“And yet, movement in and out of the city has been prohibited. The merchants are in a riot because they can’t get their merchandise in it.”
Although it was only at the level of rumors, it appeared even ordinary people had knowledge of the Rotten Dragon. Reito gave some thought to that fact as he searched for the Gargoyle dealer.
He spotted a blond woman sleeping in the back.
Reito watched for any movement as he approached the woman. She was an extraordinarily fresh-looking young lady with long ears. Perhaps she was an elf.
Reito pulled a parchment from his breast pocket and tore off the corner. He scribbled a note before leaving it on the table with three gold coins.
He whispered in a hushed voice, “I’ll take one Gargoyle, please!”
“Hnh? Who is that?” the woman shook her ears and woke up, but Reito had already left.
Reito left the bar without being noticed by anyone. He asked Airis for the whereabouts of the Gargoyle.
『Where is the Gargoyle?』
『Can you see that deserted house across from the bar? It’s in that house. They have been put to sleep, so they won’t be violent. It would be best to retrieve one with storage magic before it wakes up.』
『I thought you couldn’t retrieve living creatures with storage magic…』
『 It’s all right. Gargoyle are the cousins of Golem. They are inanimate objects. They both move through a magic stone known as a “core.” The only difference between them is their appearance and the material they’re made out of.』
Reito was convinced by Airis’s explanation and went to retrieve the Gargoyle.
He had gotten to the entrance of the deserted house. He twisted the doorknob, opening the front door without a problem. Reito was relieved that the door hadn’t been locked.
Reito entered the building and communicated with Airis again.
“Is this the right place?”
“Yes, it is.”
After confirming the route, he proceeded on.
He immediately stumbled upon a humanoid stone statue with a goblin’s face in one of the bedrooms. Empty sleeping bags were laid out on the ground nearby.
“Is that it?” Reito whispered before Airis scolded him.
『Shh!! Be quiet…  The Gargoyles have excellent hearing. You will want to make as little noise as possible when you approach them. You have “Soundless Walk,” so it should be no problem.』
Reito followed Airis’s advice and used “Soundless Walk” to approach the Gargoyles.
The Gargoyle’s arm was folded. It looked just like a statue.
Reito used his storage magic.
A black whirlpool appeared above the Gargoyle’s head. Reito just had to toss the Gargoyle into the whirlpool, and it would be stored away in another dimension.
“There we go…”
Reito carefully picked up the Gargoyle.
“Graa…!?” the Gargoyle woke up with weak effort.
But Reito’s efforts were in vain. The Gargoyle had woken up.
“Oh no, it’s awake. ‘Heavy Strike!!’”
“Raa!?”
Reito wound scarlet-colored magic around his right fist before immediately punching the Gargoyle.
The strong blow harnessed the power of gravity to give the Gargoyle a solid punch to its abdomen. It was absorbed into the whirlpool.
“Phew, that was safe. Yeesh. That really hurt…  It was stupid to punch a stone statue with my bare hands.”
『What are you doing? Make your way to the “Black Tigers” At once. It’s safer over there.』
Reito took Airis’s advice and headed to the Guild to which he belonged.
When he got to the Guild, he found his trusty pup Ullr and good friends Kotomin, Suramin, Hitomin (the latter two being slimes), the Elf-girl Erina, and his old friends, Gonzo and Dain there.
Reito joined his friends before inviting Gonzo and Dain to train. They gladly accepted the invitation and went to the sparring grounds with Ullr and the others.
“So this is the Black Tiger’s sparring grounds? Compared to Dragon Fang’s, it’s puny…” Dain jeered.
“Do you guys have a sparring ground at your guild?” Reito asked Gonzo.
“Yeah. Our Guild’s sparring ground is underground and is probably about ten times as large as here. Speaking of which, no one is here right now. Is it always like this?”
“I’m basically the only one who uses this place. Most newcomers can’t handle Bal’s hazing and leave before getting the chance to use it.”
“I bet…  She really doesn’t know how to hold back.”
Out of all the faces in the sparring grounds at the moment, Dain had the longest relationship with Bal. He, too, had once been through the hell of training with Bal. The contents of that training were beyond imagination.
As a result of Bal’s harsh training, the majority of new recruits to the Black Tigers end up quitting in less than half a month. But, those who manage to safely complete her rigorous training establish themselves as fully-fledged adventurers. As a result, regardless of how low the rank of a Black Tiger adventurer is, it’s certain they have great abilities.
“There were five new adventurers who joined our Guild this month, but they all quit immediately. I’m the only one who uses this place, so we shouldn’t be interrupted,” Reito explained to Gonzo.
“I know, but what kind of training do you have in mind? Do you need me and Dain’s strength?” Gonzo asked in return.
“I’m sure you weren’t expecting to have a sham battle with me… I’ll tell you this once but, my Shadow Magic is not suitable for sparring. If I don’t hold back, you’ll be finished,” Dain said.
“Why are you making that dumb pose trying to look all cool when you’re saying such stupid things?” Erina jeered.
“No need to worry. I have different sparring partners in mind…  Kotomin, look after Hitomin,” Reito told Dain to put him at ease. He handed Hitomin to Kotomin.
Reito put some space between himself and the others, activating his Storage Magic. The Gargoyle he retrieved was let out.
The moment it got free, it immediately swooped after Reito.
“Shah!!”
“What!?”
“That was close!?” Gonzo and Dain shouted in concern.
“I’m all right… Ullr!!”
“Woof!!”
Reito called out to Ullr. Ullr used all his might to pin the Gargoyle to the ground.
“Shah!”
While everyone was in shock over the Gargoyle, Reito gave a calm command to Dain.
“Dain!! Bind the Gargoyle with your magic!!”
“What!? I don’t know if I can…”
“Can you do it or not?”
“Of course, I can fool!! Even if we were fighting the rotten dragon, my magic would work… At least, I hope so.”
“I couldn’t quite hear that last thing you said,” Reito pretended not to hear. Dain screamed at the top of his lungs.
“Sh-shut up! I’ve got it, watch this!! ‘Shadow Bind!!’”
The moment Dain stabbed the staff he had in his hand on the ground, his shadow began moving like tentacles.
The shadow moved swiftly, drawing near the Gargoyle. Ullr jumped out of the way, and the shadow entangled itself with the Gargoyle.
The scene astonished everyone. Dain was sweating over his whole body while grasping his staff.
“This guy was a lot stronger than I imagined. It’s going to be hard to beat at my level.”
“…How long can you stop it for?”
“Maybe, 30 seconds more…?”
“That’s pretty long…  In that case, make sure it doesn’t fight back during that span.”
Reito approached the immobilized Gargoyle.
“?” the Gargoyle was puzzled that it couldn’t shriek.
Reito grabbed the Gargoyle with both hands and released the Beginner’s Magic Electric Shock into it.
The high-pressure electric current streamed into the Gargoyle’s head and did a lap through its whole body.
The Gargoyle’s body was made of stone, so it strongly resisted lightning magic. However, through the sheer power of the attack, its body had grown numb. Even within the realm of Beginner’s Magic, depending on who’s wielding it, the force can vary greatly.
“Purupuru. Purupuru!!”
“Suramin and Hitomin are afraid! I’m scared too.”
Gonzo ordered the two trembling slimes and Kotomin to “Get behind me!”
“Don’t mind if I do…”
Kotomin and crew immediately took refuge behind Gonzo.
On the other hand, Dain was struggling since he couldn’t release his Shadow Magic yet.
“Re, Reito!! Are you finished!! He looks stunned. I don’t think you need my Shadow Magic anymore.
“Wait just a minute longer. I’m starting to get the hang of it…  Uff!!” Reito replied and strengthened his electric shock.
After sending the current for a while, he found the perfect time to check his status screen.
“It should be anytime now…  Oh, there it is!! I’ve gotten my dexterity level up to three!!”
“What!? That was fast!”
“How did you upgrade it so fast?” Erina and Gonzo were surprised.
Beginner’s magic was easier to upgrade in general. But upgrading the dexterity this quickly was unheard of. Reito had a natural aptitude for magic and exceptionally high compatibility with lightning magic.
“The speed you’re upgrading at…  I guess that’s what I should expect from the prince of the Baltros Kingdom. Next, pin the Gargoyle down. Now is the perfect chance to use composite magic.”
“Composite magic…  What goes best with lightning magic?” Reito muttered to himself. Erina happened to overhear him, and her eyes lit up.
“Wait, you can use composite magic? That’s an advanced skill. You really are something!!”
“I can’t believe it. I can’t even use it. Although I have Shadow Magic, so I’m all right,” Dain said.
“Lightning Magic has poor compatibility with pyro and aquatic magic…  Wind magic is the most compatible,” Kotomin informed him.
“Thank you!!” Reito was grateful for the advice. He activated Wind Pressure while maintaining his Electric Shock current.
A tornado of electric current formed in his right arm.
“Woah! This is cool!”
“A tornado?”
“Cool!”
Everyone, including Reito, was chiming in with words of admiration.
Reito punched the Gargoyle with his arm that had electric currents surging to form a tornado.
“Take this!!”
“Graa!?”
The part of the Gargoyle hit by the punch caved in, sending its flesh flying everywhere. Its core was exposed. Reito was about to get the core before Airis chimed in, 『Destroy that!! It will boost your dexterity significantly if you do so!!』
The moment he heard her advice, a new technical skill appeared in front of his eyes.
An electric tornado appeared, stretching from his elbow to his left palm.
Reito’s punch destroyed the core that was floating in the air.
Everyone was overwhelmed by the spectacle, but Reito paid no mind and checked his Status Screen. His dexterity had approached level 50. Further, the “Electric Shock” had reached a max dexterity level of 5.
“All right, I was able to reach the limit faster than I thought. I bet I can use this in the future. I wanna give it a spin. Anyone wanna fight me?”
“Are you an idiot! One hit from that, and we’re done!?” Dain replied.
“Even if I’d like to, that’s just too much.”
“No way,” Kotomin said.
“Purupuru” (tremble of fear).
Ullr whimpered and tilted his head to the side.
“You sure? I guess it is dangerous. No worries. I thought of something, though,” Reito said and put his palm on the ground. “Let’s use Earth Block!!”
A three-meter tall mud figure appeared out of the ground.
“W-, what is that!?”
“Is that a golem?”
Dain timidly peeped at the statue, but Gonzo looked at it with deep interest.
Reito used “Ice Block” and froze the mud figure in place.
“All right, that should do it. The shape is a little off, though.”
“Woah! This is awesome!! How did you make that!?” Dain’s eyes were shining as he inspected the figure.
“I’m afraid it’s going to move any minute…  Are you sure it’s safe?” Erina was worried.
“Next time, make a figure of me!” Kotomin chimed in.
“Sorry, I can’t make a human-shaped figure,” he replied.
Gonzo stared at the figure before asking Reito, “Are you planning to use this as a sparring partner?”
“That’s right. Everybody stand back.”
Reito put some distance between himself and the figure before using his specialty strike attack paired with a battle tactic. He was ready to attack. The moment he stepped forward, Kotomin slapped his shoulder.
“Reito!”
“Ha, what!? You startled me! What is it?”
“Where did you put the core of the Gargoyle you destroyed?”
“What…?”
Reito scanned his surroundings to find the core he destroyed from before vanished.
He looked back at the figure he made.
It was moving just the tiniest bit.
“!!”
“Bro, isn’t this figure moving? How cool!” Erina was impressed, but Reito shook his head in confusion.
“What!? I don’t remember enabling it to move…”
The eyes of the mud figure glowed red.
“This is bad!!” Gonzo yelled. He knew about the biology of Gargoyles and immediately moved into action.