Chapter 254

The new skill [Magic Domain Transcendence], capable of temporarily boosting the skill level of elemental magic.

Could it be used to create bodies for Cardina and the others with this enhanced magic?

With this question in mind, Tatsuro was about to activate the skill to find out—but…

"Wait a sec."

"Ugh, what's wrong, Tatsuro?"

Since the task required delicate technique, Ai was hugging him from behind to keep him steady despite the sudden skill level increase. Her confused voice came from right beside his ear.

The others—Cardina and the rest—were equally puzzled, tilting their heads in unison.

"No, I just thought if we're doing this, we should do everything we can first."

"Meaning?"

"I'm thinking we should boost [Dragon Power] even more and increase dragon magic before trying."

"Oh, right! Since we defeated it without lowering its level and got a ton of meat—"

"We can raise [Dragon Power] a lot!"

"Exactly. If we're gonna do it, might as well do it in perfect condition."

"Peewee!"

"Neigh!"

It felt like a bucket of cold water had been dumped on them, but once they heard the reason, everyone nodded in agreement.

So, Tatsuro stored the massive dragon corpse, still lying there, into his [Infinite Item Field].

Then, using [Level Eater], he created numerous 98.2 cubic centimeter blocks of dragon meat—the smallest unit usable—within the [Infinite Item Field].

Meanwhile, Ai and the others quickly set up a kitchen that Tatsuro provided to prepare the meat for cooking.

"Alright, let's use [Level Eater] on each piece."

The meat they currently had was from Levels 1–7, 14, 28, 29, 33, 54, 57, 59, and 64.

This dragon was Level 96.

So, with time and effort, Tatsuro meticulously filled in the gaps for Levels 8–13 and 15–27, completing a full set of meat blocks from Levels 1 to 96.

"…This is… Normally, this would be absolutely impossible. Even with a cheat, I doubt anyone's ever been this obsessive about collecting dragon meat level by level…"

"Using [Level Eater] alone takes a ton of time. How do you keep doing the same task over and over, Tatsuro?"

"It's like my collector's instinct kicks in. If I can do it, I want to do it perfectly."

"Speaking of which, since we're treated as dragons, does eating it even do anything for us?"

"That's part of the experiment. If it doesn't work, oh well. If it boosts [Dragon Power], that's a win."

"Makes sense."

So, to avoid mix-ups, they cut the dragon meat into small, bite-sized pieces. Cardina and the others started from Level 1, while Tatsuro and Ai began from Level 8, working their way up.

As for the taste, the higher the level, the more delicious it felt.

However, Cardina and the other magic-based creatures didn't seem to find it tasty or bad.

Still, it was confirmed that everyone except Tatsuro and Ai acquired [Dragon Eater].

Next, they moved on to whether eating dragon meat would increase [Dragon Power] for Cardina and the others.

"Peewee!"

"Neigh!"

"It's increasing!"

"Oh, it's going up!"

Apparently, even as dragons, the effect applied properly.

Though just bite-sized, Leah's stomach visibly bulged after eating 96 pieces.

Tatsuro and Ai, thinking she could've eaten them over time, were similarly swept up in the thrill of their rising [Dragon Power] and kept eating.

Currently, Tatsuro, Ai, and Leah's [Dragon Power] reached an astonishing 11,400.

For Tatsuro and Leah, this surpassed the combined total of their original Ki/Spirit and magic.

For Cardina, Jeanne, Nana, and Athena, their existing [Dragon Power] increased by 11,400.

"This feels… ridiculously overdone!"

"If whoever made the system exists, they probably didn't expect it to be boosted like this--"

Tatsuro said, staring distantly at the crimson sky.

But Ai and the others seemed accustomed to it, and Leah was already thinking about how to apply her enhanced [Dragon Power] to her blacksmithing.

"Everyone's adaptability is unreal."

"Well, no point worrying about it. Just think of it as a lucky break, Tatsuro."

"Can't undo it now, and I don't want to -- Alright. Stomach's full, [Dragon Power]'s up, let's do this!"

Switching gears completely, Tatsuro readied his staff and activated all twelve cores.

"Here we go."

"Yeah, good luck, Tatsuro."

"Right."

As before, to ensure peak performance, Ai hugged him tightly from behind.

Her encouraging words, so close he could feel her breath, spurred him to activate the skill.

At that moment, Tatsuro felt as if something massive yanked him upward.

But his feet were still on the sand, so he realized the sensation was an illusion.

Calming his rattled mind, he used the vast amount of [Dragon Power] to create an immense pool of dragon magic, crafting a Level 17 [Yin-Yang Orb].

"-The skill level's definitely up. I can tell this thing holds an insane amount of power."

The [Yin-Yang Orb], created at an output unattainable at Level 14, was astonishing even to its creator.

It made him realize he was using a skill level beyond his rightful mastery.

"Yeah -- standing here, my skin's tingling."

"You okay?"

"Yup, I'm fine -- fine."

Guessing it was due to Ai's low magic resistance, Tatsuro turned to Cardina and Leah, who were analyzing nearby.

"Can this be used properly as Cardina's body?"

"Peewee --- Peewee."

"It looks fine to me. The skill seems to fully raise the level by 3 for a limited time, not just a simulation."

Both Cardina and Leah deemed it viable.

So, Cardina began transferring her body to it.

Transplanting data while maintaining the [Yin-Yang Orb], crafted with unprecedented dragon magic, was extremely difficult, taking over twenty minutes to complete the body swap.

Thus, they limited magic transplantation to Dispel Magic, re-transplanting its Level 14 factor enhanced by the skill.

"---There. Done—huh…"

"What's wrong?"

"The effect wore off. One magic update per person per day is the limit, it seems."

With a falling sensation, opposite to before, Tatsuro sensed the boosted levels drop.

Cardina's body then shifted to [True Form].

Her appearance hadn't changed, but her increased power was evident at a glance.

As Tatsuro watched, Cardina tugged at his sleeve with her beak, as if trying to convey something.

"Hm? What's up, Cardina?"

"Peewee --- Peewee."

"Looks like her class changed suddenly, and she gained new skills."

"So jealous!"

"Probably influenced by the body change."

"Let's see…"

To understand what happened, everyone checked Cardina's status.

--------------------------------

Name: Cardina

Class: Swift Blade Dragon

Level: 63

Dragon Power: 13,052

Strength: 913 + 20

Endurance: 623 + 80

Speed: 1,000

Magic Power: 1,580

Magic Resistance: 1,540

Magic Control: 1,697

|Acquired Skills|

[True Form], [Adult Form], [Child Form]

[Spirit Division: Far Sight Near Slash], [Dragon Swift Wind]

[Dragon Flight Lv.12], [Dragon Wing Blade Lv.10], [True Dragon Wing Blade Lv.3]

[Dispel Magic Lv.14], [Earth Magic Lv.10], [Water Magic Lv.10]

[Magic Bullet], [Auto-tracking Lv.3], [Dragon Power Recovery Speed Increase Lv.8]

|System skills|

[Item Box +4]

Remaining Skill Points: 327

|Titles|

[Master of Dispel], [Master of Earth], [Master of Water]

[Amazing!], [Dragon Flying Phoenix Dance], [Dragon Blade Incarnate]

[Deverylute], [High-Difficulty Labyrinth Conqueror]

[Dragon Slayer], [Dragon Eater]

--------------------------------

"She went from just Blade Dragon to Swift Blade Dragon—probably an advanced class."

"And she gained [Spirit Division: Far Sight Near Slash] and [Dragon Swift Wind]. Two skills at once."

"Peewee --- Peewee --- Peewee"

"That's not quite it. The class change gave her [Dragon Swift Wind], and the body change gave her [Spirit Division: Far Sight Near Slash]."

"So if we get our levels raised, we might get similar skills."

While Athena spoke with hopeful anticipation, Leah, who had been analyzing the skill with [All-Seeing Eye], looked up.

"This [Spirit Division: Far Sight Near Slash] -- it's like an item a living being touching the divine realm can create… Like carving out a piece of yourself to craft a spiritual tool…"

Though she understood it, Leah struggled to explain it clearly, her hesitation evident.

But as they say, seeing is believing. Tatsuro patted Leah's head in thanks and asked Cardina to demonstrate.

"Peewee."

Cardina promptly agreed and activated [True Form].

[Spirit Division: Far Sight Near Slash] could only be used in that state.

Then, Cardina focused on spirit division.

Above her head appeared a golden ring, like an angel's halo, with handleless golden daggers fanning out like a sun emblem, floating openly.

"What… is this?"

"Peewee--"

Cardina already knew how to use it and quickly showed them.

First, she used her Level 14 Dispel Magic to scan.

The range was vast—too much for a human mind to process without filtering, Tatsuro thought.

After deploying a large spherical Dispel Magic scan, including the sand, she manipulated the sun-like ring to float before herself and Tatsuro.

When Cardina willed it, the ring expanded to about a meter, and a video appeared within.

"That's us, right?"

"Yeah, real-time footage."

It showed their heads on the beach, as if filmed from above by a video camera.

The footage shifted to the dungeon exit point, then to footprints from their escape from the dragon bones. Then it switched again, zooming in on Tatsuro's face--

"So, within the Dispel Magic's range, it can show anything?"

"Peewee--"

Cardina nodded firmly in confirmation.

"That's handy. Dispel Magic gives rough shapes, but this shows colors, forms, even subtle expressions, so we can plan better against incoming threats."

"Great for finding stuff, too."

"Peewee --- Peewee."

"But that's not all."

Cardina then activated the other function.

The daggers began spinning rapidly along the ring, slicing the sand like a Buzzsaw.

She could enlarge just one dagger or all of them for a wider cutting range.

"And both the ring and daggers have a blade barrier, right?"

"Peewee!"

"So even if you block to avoid being cut, touching it leaves gashes."

When Cardina exerted more power, the rings multiplied like a magic trick, up to five.

They could show different locations or all be used for an attack.

"Any usage limits?"

"Peewee!"

"None, huh."

"But you should be careful not to let them be destroyed. They use a lot of Cardina-san's magic to form."

"Truly crafted by dividing her essence."

If destroyed, they could be resummoned with enough magic, but if destroyed without magic to spare, it could put her at a disadvantage.

"But with Cardina's current power, there's probably hardly anyone who could destroy them."

Thanks to [Dragon Eater], Cardina's [Dragon Power] had surged.

And the other new skill, [Dragon Swift Wind].

A passive skill that doubles speed when not grounded.

In [True Form], it downgrades to [Swift Wind], boosting speed by 1.2 times, but it's still potent.

Cardina was now hard to catch, had a touch-and-cut defense, could unleash waves of [Dragon Power] attacks from the air, could find hidden foes with Dispel Magic, and had tracking attacks.

"But don't get cocky."

"Peewee!"

As if saying, "I know!" Cardina chirped once and returned to [True Form]. (T/N: I think it ought to be returned to Adult or Child form)