Chapter 373

Legendary Resistance was a trait possessed only by legendary creatures. Even young dragons didn't have it.

This meant Anser was now a legendary creature in every sense of the word!

'If I raise my class level to legendary too, wouldn't that basically make me double-legendary?' Anser chuckled.

He had also gained two spell-like abilities: Zone of Truth and Flame Strike.

Zone of Truth was a 2nd-level enchantment spell and a classic spell for both Paladins and Clerics.

Its effect was to create a magical area that suppressed lies. It was commonly used to interrogate criminal suspects and uncover the truth.

Flame Strike was a 5th-level evocation spell exclusive to Clerics, derived from his gold dragon bloodline.

The spell created a brilliant column of flame that descended vertically from the sky to strike its target. The column had a radius of 10 feet (3 meters) and stood 40 feet (12 meters) high. Anyone who failed their Dexterity Saving Throw would take 5d6 (5–30) fire damage and 5d6 radiant damage.

The spell dealt roughly as much damage as Fireball, but struck extremely quickly. Its drawback was its relatively small area of effect.

After entering adulthood, Anser's physical potential had increased, allowing his ability scores to reach a maximum of 30.

He didn't waste his two precious points of True Dragon Power on any other ability score. Instead, he put both into Charisma, raising it to 29.

That was an absolutely terrifying number.

What was Charisma?

Charisma was the manifestation of the soul's radiance. Inwardly, it possessed tangible magical power; outwardly, it manifested as extraordinary influence!

Unlike the massive, intimidating dragons, Anser's Charisma leaned more toward presence, approachability, and attractiveness.

If he didn't deliberately restrain it, enemies would instinctively fear him, while strangers would instinctively trust and admire him—or even become infatuated with him.

Of course, this intangible influence was weaker against those with exceptionally resilient minds, as well as higher-level professionals.

'Being too popular is such a burden.'

The corners of Anser's mouth curved upward, without the slightest trace of distress. Meanwhile, he was already wondering what would happen if an ability score surpassed 30.

It would definitely be extraordinary.

'Next up, 9th-level spells!' He rubbed his hands together and brought up his spell list.

Within the magical system established by the Goddess of Magic, 9th-level spells marked the endpoint of mortal spellcasting. They were immensely powerful and few in number.

There weren't many 9th-level evocation spells: Ravenous Void, Meteor Swarm, and Phoenix Flame.

Ravenous Void was a rare gravity spell. Its effects were similar to Dark Star, but it also included a force effect that pulled in and restrained targets.

Meteor Swarm was purely destructive, boasting tremendous range and damage.

Phoenix Flame was more unusual. It was a self-destruct spell: you died along with your enemies, but then resurrected from the ashes and returned to peak condition.

It couldn't help but remind Anser of the legendary phoenix rising from the ashes.

'Really tempting, but also kind of useless.'

It seemed more like a last resort when there was no other choice. Wouldn't it be better simply to avoid ending up in a situation where death was inevitable in the first place?

'I can always pick it next time.'

This time, he chose Meteor Swarm.

...

Meteor Swarm: 9th-level Evocation

Base Casting Range: 1 mile (1,600 meters)

Using a tremendous surge of magic, the caster creates four blazing spheres of fire and sends them crashing toward four locations on the ground.

Every creature within an 80-foot (24-meter) radius of each impact must make a Dexterity Saving Throw. On a failed save, the creature takes 20d6 (20–120) fire damage and 20d6 bludgeoning damage.

Nonmagical objects within the spell's area also take this damage, and all flammable objects ignite.

...

Meteor Swarm didn't actually summon real meteors. Otherwise, a single one might be enough to devastate the continent of Faerûn.

Although these were artificial meteors and didn't fall from sufficient altitude, their destructive power was still quite respectable. More importantly, you could launch them from an enormous distance, making the spell extremely safe to use.

Still, its deterrent effect was greater than its practical effectiveness.

When a meteor came falling out of the sky, even an idiot knew to get out of the way. Ordinary people couldn't escape in time, but professionals could.

The best use for Meteor Swarm was striking stationary targets and massive concentrations of enemies!

'I still have two more 9th-level spells. I'll pick my Signature Spell first,' he thought.

Signature Spells offered a much wider range of choices. Invulnerability, Foresight, and Wish were all available.

Without hesitation, he decisively chose Wish as his Signature Spell.

Wish was a 9th-level conjuration spell, reputed to be the most powerful spell a mortal creature could cast. All one needed to do was speak their wish aloud, and the spell could alter reality itself.

Its most basic use was duplicating any spell of 8th level or lower, in which case all prerequisites normally required by the duplicated spell could be ignored.

Beyond that, it could be used to Create Objects, Instantaneously Heal, grant Damage Resistance, grant Spell Immunity, bestow Sudden Knowledge, Alter Events, Reshape Reality...

Of these, Reshape Reality was the most common use of Wish.

However, the greater the wish, the greater the chance that something would go wrong. The spell might fail outright, fulfill only part of the desired result, or produce an unexpected outcome because the wish had been worded poorly.

For example, wishing for an evil person to die might send you years into the future, to a timeline where that person was already dead.

Wishing to obtain an Artifact might instantly teleport you to the side of whoever currently possessed it.

Aside from duplicating another spell, using Wish for any other purpose placed an enormous burden on your body, leaving you tremendously weakened and carrying a one-in-three chance that you would never be able to cast Wish again.

While weakened, your Strength score dropped to 3, and every spell you cast caused backlash. The weakness lasted 2d4 (2–8) days, though proper rest could reduce the recovery time.

Anser had long known about its negative effects and wasn't particularly concerned.

Both the upper limits and negative effects of Wish varied from person to person.

He believed in himself.

If the four noble genies could cast Wish without paying any price, why couldn't he?

For his third 9th-level spell, he chose Gate.

...

Gate: 9th-level Conjuration

Base Casting Range: 120 feet (36 meters)

Duration: Concentration, up to 1 minute

The caster summons a stable portal connecting the current plane to a precise location on another plane. The destination can be seen through the portal.

The portals manifested on the two planes each have a clearly defined front and back. Planar travel is possible only by passing through the front of the portal.

Deities and other planar rulers can prevent this spell from creating a portal anywhere within their presence or domains.

When casting the spell, you can speak the true name of a specific creature. The portal then opens immediately beside that creature and transports it through the portal to your side instead.

...

'That's insanely powerful!'

As far as Anser was concerned, this spell was even more outrageous than Time Stop.

Not only could it perform precise planar travel, it could also reach across planes and "grab" someone.

As long as he knew someone's actual name—or even their "True Name"—he could pull them across the planes directly to his side. Only deities and planar rulers could prevent it.

'No wonder true names are so important!'

Anser's own name wasn't a secret, but as long as he hid away in Holrewen, there was no way for anyone else to open a portal within his plane.

That was also why so many top-tier spellcasters liked creating their own Demiplanes to use as lairs.

'Hehe. Let's see who still dares to piss me off after this.' He let out a couple of sinister chuckles.

Next, he chose Enhanced Extended Spell as his enhanced Metamagic ability, allowing him to triple a spell's duration.

The supernatural ability granted by Arcane Bloodline was harder to choose. Neither 8th- nor 9th-level spells were particularly suitable, so he decided to leave that choice open for now.

Finally, Magic Power Control advanced to 9th level, allowing him to effortlessly wield 9th-level spells without fear of the effects of Wild Magic zones.

His Magic Power also increased by 5 points, while his Attack Roll, Damage Roll, and spell save DC each increased by 1.

'My Attack Roll and Damage Roll each increased by one at 3rd, 6th, and 9th level. I wonder if 9th level is actually the limit?' Anser raised his head and gazed into the unknown void.

9th level was the limit of mortal magic.

The limit imposed by the Goddess of Magic.

In the days when the Weave didn't exist—or had only just been born—everyone believed that magic had no limits.

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