Shades of the New World

Chapter 187: Armor Made of Laser Beams

"Now, you have to think of a way to wrap that layer of defense around your body," Nasst said with a deadpan face.

"Don't tell me I also have to keep it around me at all times?" Evin asked, half-jokingly. 

"Precisely so, that's how we keep ourselves alive, after all," Nasst shrugged like it was the most natural thing.

Evin just sighed, not quite believing what he was hearing. He did a little calculation and realized that a single beam of disintegrating Time beam cost him a 0.2 kg of his 28 kg total. In that case, Evin wasn't really sure how much mana would be used up in total to cover his whole body. Not to mention the fact that he had to keep it up at all times, which would take up a huge amount of lodestones to achieve. 

"Actually it's not as hard as you're imagining it to be. The easiest method would be to simply wear some armor and then cover the more important parts with that beam of yours. Or you could have the beam make a circle around you and it could work as first line of defense of some sorts," Nasst shrugged.

'He's right I don't have to wear a goddamn hazmat suit made of Time energy lasers, I can just have it protect my vitals And if I can manage to curve the line and so it's shaped like a big ring around me, it can cut in half the mass based spells and it can also work as a detector of some sorts' Evin thought.

"I'm actually quite impressed that you were able to create something like this. If you can push this method of yours to the limits it can become an 'Absolute' in the future," Nasst said, stroking his chin.

"What does that mean?" Evin asked, hearing the new term.

"Well, as its name implies it's something that will always do whatever it's intended to do, no matter what. Hmm, have you ever heard of a Dark mage named Relvek?" Nasst asked.

"Oh, yes. I've actually just been thinking that his Dark specialty is very similar to Spell Breaking," Evin answered.

"Good, that makes it faster for me to explain. Some feel that his his ability to turn any spell back into mana is a bit underwhelming, but it can be called an 'Absolute'. No matter what kind of spell he uses it on, it will one hundred percent turn into mana. I've heard that it can even whittle away at World Domains in certain circumstances. I'm sure you can see why it's so powerful now, right?" Nasst asked, to which Evin nodded. A hundred percent success ratio was nothing to scoff at.

"Your disintegrating ray is pretty powerful, but it can still be countered by other methods. For example, since it's technically a Time World Spell, I can use raw mana to break it. Or I could just try use the stupidest method: try and overpower it with my vastly superior mana capacity. Most mages would probably opt to use this method," Nasst said with a chuckle.

"But if it can become something absolute, then it can't be dealt with no matter what" Evin murmured thoughtfully.

"Exactly. But let me remind you that even though we call it 'Absolute', it's just nigh-impossible to deal with. For example, Relvek will still have to bow down before a World Domain from an Authority," Nasst chuckled.

"I suppose that's true," Evin smiled in return.

"As for how to make something 'Absolute' Hmm, the best way is to put limits on it. Let's say someone has an instant death ability, but it can't work unless they keep in contact with their enemy for more than an hour or they could have an untreatable poison of some sorts, but it won't work unless the victim performs a specific set of actions."

It conformed to what Helain told him about making Magical Artifacts, so Evin wasn't completely unfamiliar with the concept.

"I see. Well that's not something I should be worried about for the time being. About keeping a Time energy barrier around me, is this what you meant about peak half-cores and above having a lot of ways to use up their mana?" Evin asked.

"Yes. As you grow older, you'll find countless different methods to keep your mana-core busy. There's a few other stuff aside from just this, but I can't really tell you about them now. But if you manage to find something like this, I recommend you to give it a try," Nasst said with a smile.

"This is also one of the reasons why peak Willpower-based mages are so powerful. After all, they only have to work with one World to work as a defensive mechanism. Sure they'll toll for quite a bit, which would leave them a bit vulnerable, but they eventually work it out," 

"Thank you for telling me all this," Evin said with a small nod of gratitude.

"It's what I agreed to. In any case, now it's just up to you to practice and perfect your method. For now, enjoy your 10-day holiday from tomorrow on. Heh, I tried to extend it to 20 days, but Deminte didn't seem too happy about it, so" Nasst smiled wryly.

'Hmm? I really don't get their relationship' Evin thought about Nasst's over-the-top reaction when he found that Arza was going to study under Deminte. But apparently, he could converse with the woman pretty easily 

'And they didn't seem like they were completely at each other's throats back in Zorrik's office as well'

Evin was a bit curious, but he didn't wish to get to the bottom of this, so he could only smile and thank the elder man.

"Oh, can I also ask you about a World?" Evin suddenly remembered how Nasst promised to tell him about a World after he finished learning about gestures.

"Sure. Which World?"

"The World of Emotions," Evin answered. After he tried out soul magic for the first time, he could feel its slight connection to the World of Emotions, so his interest in the World was sparked.

"Oh, that one's tricky. I don't really know how it's supposed to work more than what the average textbook will tell you, but I can tell you about its users. Most think that it's one of the weaker Worlds out there, but a mage who says that most likely never faced against a Griffin or a proper World of Emotions' expert. The first time someone like that fights the Southern army led by a Griffin, they would be lying on the floor, with their tears running down their faces, helpless to stop the incoming horde of Myrmis from ripping them apart And the worst part is, every one of them have something different or special about them. So, one can't just mentally prepare themselves for one thing," Nasst began with a frown. 

Evin was a bit disappointed that Nasst couldn't tell him about casting Emotions spells, but the topic seemed interesting enough, so he didn't mind and listened attentively. 

"Know that almost always, an Emotions user will be trying to disrupt or make you unstable. They'll try to guess at your past trauma and then flare it up one way or another. So obviously, they are more powerful against some mages than others. Us, Children of the Empress probably perform the worst against them, due to the baggage that is our previous life. But, if you have to fight a Griffin, the best advice I can give you is to try for assassinations," Nasst shrugged.

"And if I'm forced to fight fairly?"

"Obviously, it's not an impossible fight if you have to fight them head on. But one thing you should absolutely avoid is eye contact. It's okay if they can see your eyes, as long as you don't meet their gaze head on. But if you somehow fail to avoid it because of some accident and whatnot, then try your best to run away or hide," Nasst recommended.

Hearing the details, Evin felt it was best if he didn't try to mess with mages of this World, considering the mess that was his mental health. And at this point he had also developed a subpersonality that was Anna. 

"If you want to learn more, well, I can confidently say that you won't be able to find much more in this Tribe. Perhaps you can find on in a Tribe that specializes in such things, like the Setral Tribe But because of your origins, you'll probably have an easier time finding the relevant info in the Academy," Nasst said.

"Thank you regardless," Evin answered and prepared to leave.

"Oh, I've also just heard that the Somaturgy Expert will be coming in a month, so I guess you can be excited about that," Nasst smiled.

"Definitely," Evin replied perfunctorily. 

THIS CHAPTER UPLOAD FIRST AT NOVELBIN.COM