> Divulge The Magic Vulnerability Volume 1 Chapter 1">Volume 1 Chapter 1 (2/2)
Using the technical terms of the field, the sword was a Linkage Plug and the crystal tarot cards were a Linkage Monitor.
”Cooling the affected area will dull the pain, so you can combine that with the fever reduction. And that leaves some spare resources, right? Use those to look after my skin and hair. Like I said, recovery magic that accelerates the metabolism will leave me covered in dead skin and filth. And remember, we're about to set foot in that city for the very first time.”
”P-please don't hack my magic like that! Oh, it's so scary!! If you lose control, the recoil goes back to me!!”
”Do I look like the kind of guy that would screw up that badly?”
Ayato winked from the sofa.
Now that magic was easy enough for anyone to use, the people could naturally focus on other things. In ancient times, people had had their hands full simply activating the magic, but now they could find other applications for it. The benefits of that were many and diverse, but there were also people like Ayato Criminaltrophy here.
They were known as Sorcery Hackers.
Instead of using magic themselves, they would infiltrate other people's magic, hijack it, and steal it away.
Pop!!
But his attempt to look cool was ruined by another bursting sound from the blonde girl's chest.
Ayato and Teleria both looked down to a certain point on her body.
Her blazer's chest had been in risqué state already, but now another of the blouse's b.u.t.tons had popped off.
”Wait, how about we have a nice lecture on causality in the field of sorcery? There is no possible causal link between magical recoil and your b.u.t.ton, so I take issue with that suspicious look you are giving me!”
”You're only brining up that complicated magic stuff to hide what you did!!”
”Don't pistol-whip me with your sorcery gun! Did you forget about that long magazine sticking out!? Listen, just bring me the sewing set! I'll fix it for you!!”
”I couldn't possibly make you do that…”
”Are you suggesting you should do the sewing? You have already proven how disastrous the result would be. I am still trying to figure out how you managed to sew my pants and your frilly bra together.”
”Wah! Wahh!! Wahhhhh!!!???”
Before he could continue to pummel her with embarra.s.sing memories, Teleria waved her hands wildly and started searching for the sewing set. But the sewing work here had to be done at the blonde girl's chest, so…
”U-um?”
”Is something wrong?”
The tearful blonde girl weakly protested while pressing her elbows against her sides and raising her lightly clenched fists to shoulder height as if presenting her large chest to him.
”I, um, don't like how you're staring…”
”While it would reduce the effort required for this job if you removed your clothes and let me replace the b.u.t.ton that way, how many mini-times is it until we arrive now? If you want to be half-naked when you first set foot in this city, I won't stop you, but I have a feeling a lot of people are going to very much misinterpret your intentions there. Myself included.”
”Ayato, are you only saying that so you can stare at my b.o.o.bs while you do this?”
”Very much so, yes.”
Teleria did not hesitate to grab the sewing scissors.
”Wait, Miss Teleria! You are being unreasonable! Your b.r.e.a.s.t.s are far too attractive to expect me to act gentlemanly here!!”
”Ah, wh, you can't just spring statements like that on me out of the blue. D-d-d-d-do you really think you can trick me like that!?”
”Can you at least let me know whether you are seriously mad or simply hiding your embarra.s.sment!?”
They struggled over the large pair of scissors for a bit, but Teleria had no chance when she was blus.h.i.+ng bright red and her eyes were spinning in her head. Plus, all the movement was causing her blouse's surviving b.u.t.tons to strain dangerously.
(Ugh. I hate how conflicted I feel when he says things like that… Because I can't deny that it does make me kind of happy.)
”…Fine, just do what you will…”
”Don't mind if I do.”
Teleria tearfully looked to the side while the teenage boy stared at her chest and worked with his hands. The blinds made from thin feathers that had been covering the window must have reacted to her gaze because they folded up to reveal the scenery outside.
She could see a blue planet.
There was already nothing but the color black overhead. At this alt.i.tude, the normal azure color was found below them. It was only the blessings of magic that allowed them to ignore the air and pressure issues.
This was Sky City Celedileka.
It was famous for this view of the sun s.h.i.+ning in the starry sky.
That giant city was a product of either hope or insolence, depending on who you asked. A thick, thick chain had been extended from the surface and it had been gradually lifted higher and higher while the people dreamed of eventually surpa.s.sing heaven itself. Things looked peaceful enough here, but this was closer to being in outer s.p.a.ce than in the sky. Without the Guardian Umbrella, an atmospheric s.h.i.+eld two or three sizes larger than the city itself, the city would have grown asphyxiated and frozen in no time.
”Maybe we should have taken a large airs.h.i.+p instead. I hear those have delicious food, soft beds, tour guides, a bar lounge, and even a casino.”
”Miss Teleria, first of all, we do not have the money. And to any normal person, this is plenty luxurious.”
”Ugh.”
”Plus, airs.h.i.+ps packed full of rich people are the perfect targets for sky pirates. So unless you're hoping to hit on an eyepatch miniskirt girl with a bare midriff and a cutla.s.s, I would suggest avoiding hitching a ride with the rich.”
”I get the feeling someone has been fantasizing about sky pirates a little too much.”
”Besides, a large airs.h.i.+p uses the same theory as this balloon bungalow. You input the destination coordinates into the navigator and it reads the manaflows in the atmosphere to mechanically guide the s.h.i.+p.”
”Eh? But…”
”Yes, the big airs.h.i.+ps will have crew with lengthy t.i.tles like First Cla.s.s Pilot or Engine Maintenance Officer, but the manual controls are only used for corrections in case of emergency. Everything is left to the equipment during ordinary flights. You know how airs.h.i.+ps are sometimes late to arrive for no explained reason? That happens when the navigator glitches and sends the airs.h.i.+p on a long and meaningless detour.”
He fixed one of her b.u.t.tons while talking and used his canine tooth to tear off the excess thread. Although that ended up looking a lot like him shoving his face into her cleavage.
”Ah, hh…”
”Hm?”
”Cough, cough! Nothing, it's nothing! Definitely not your breath tickling me!!”
”Well, anyway, our balloon bungalow does the exact same thing.”
They were not staying in an inn or a carriage.
They were floating at an alt.i.tude of 30,000 esoule[2].
A long, narrow metal container had been modified into a living s.p.a.ce and it dangled from three giant balloons that were injected with the fire and wind elements to provide buoyancy. It would ride the invisible manaflows running every which way through the atmosphere to slowly take them to their destination. That was their mobile lodging facility known as a balloon bungalow.
Unlike a large airs.h.i.+p, they had to supply their own food and do their own laundry. If their navigator glitched and they landed somewhere other than their planned destination, no search team would be dispatched unless they had paid for insurance in advance. The system left a lot to be desired, but it was still a high-level service for air travel. Ayato and Teleria did not usually use something this nice.
They had only splurged this time because they could not have reached their destination otherwise.
”Wow…”
The blonde girl breathed an impressed sigh as she viewed the scenery out the window.
The blue sky that should have been overhead was pushed down below them and stars filled the sky both day and night. That was just how high up they were. A faint aurorlike red fog surrounded a sacred heavenly territory where a clearly artificial piece of land was floating. It was large enough to hold four or five of the royal capitals on the surface. The four outer blocks were colored to match their elements of fire, water, wind, and earth and Light Castle Brightio was situated at the center. That castle was protected by the Free Audience Restriction, an aurorlike barrier created by gathering the four powers of the outer blocks (and its artificial origin meant it s.h.i.+ned brighter than the natural aurora). Legend had it that barrier could keep out any unauthorized intruders, including the divine and demonic.
Overall, it was approximately 100,000 esoule[3] long.
This was the largest sky city within the Selected Kingdoms that bound together the many kings on one of the surface continents.
It was known as Celedileka and that crystallization of human sorcery would be their next stage.
”Miss Teleria.”
”Oh, yes. What is it?”
”I have not yet fixed your other b.u.t.ton and you are still fairly cleavagy, so why are you opening the window blinds? Are you that desperate to show your cleavage off to the world?”
She screamed and threw another slap, which vigorously shook those two mounds and popped off the fixed b.u.t.ton yet again.
A city measuring approximately 100,000 esoule[4] long.
A permanent population of approximately 901,000 and a temporary population of approximately 9.5 million.
This giant city-state is the largest sky city in the Selected Kingdoms that rules the continent. It actually began to float about 40 combo-years ago and it continues to rise bit by bit even now, but the plan is said to have actually begun between 500 and 700 combo-years ago.
An unimaginable amount of time, effort, and money have been invested and carried over through the years for the construction plan to finally bear fruit and give birth to the largest ever floating land made by cutting away a piece of Selected Kingdoms territory. The manaflows in the upper atmosphere are denser than anywhere else, so by collecting the mana, pressurizing it inside tanks, and sending it to the surface, Celedileka provides energy for the entire Static Continent. The sky city is facing many different problems at present, but under the rule of the Celedileka Royal Family that fulfilled the construction plan for generations, it has gained a large enough presence to prop up the industries of commerce, construction, sightseeing, specialized agriculture, and other fields core to the Selected Kingdoms. The sky city is connected to the ground by a thick chain, but this could only have been accomplished on our Static Continent that is the one and only continent to have remained entirely motionless over the many long years.
(Incidentally, the location of the land cut away to create the floating land has been registered as the Static Continent's one and only artificial lake.)
These days, Sky City Celedileka is ruled by a partial parliamentary monarchy formed from the regional royal family and the 160 members of the knight cla.s.s. Thanks to the king's grace, the other cla.s.ses are included in a portion of the governing process, so the city is known for its relatively free and generous character and that may be one of the reasons it is such a popular tourist destination.
It has been suggested that land cut away from the surface is spiritually vulnerable, but the regional royal family has given the Forturiana Church (known for sealing the Demon Lord in the distant past) approval for their Temple Moving Ceremony which will provide state-level protection and solve that problem once and for all.
With the fire, water, wind, earth, and light, Sky City Celedileka is well known for having plenty to see. There is simply too much to see everything in one visit, so savvy travelers will decide on one of the castle towns to stay in and focus their sightseeing in that one area.
You can see a new side to the city with each visit, so you can come back again and again and find new surprises every time.
If you have yet to see Sky City Celedileka then we eagerly await your visit.
Approximately 12 minutes 30 seconds. Approximately 36,000 meters. Approximately 120 kilometers. Approximately 120 kilometers.
<script>