Zorian woke up, and Kyrière wished him a good morning in her charming way. Ha, again, it's been a long time, and I'm still a little unused to it.

He was annoyed that he hadn't paid much attention to his surroundings, and that he had been annoyed by the unknown assailants who had attacked him. He thought he would survive all the moments and near-death situations, only to be killed by a simple sneak attack.

While riding the train, he sketches out the blueprints of magical items in his notebook. Most of them are insignificant, like plates that keep meals at a constant temperature, or explosive traps that trigger themselves when certain conditions are met, but he's thinking about designing a practice dummy. He found a combination of altering spells that would allow him to build a dummy out of sawdust and dirt. Then, even if he succeeds, he must devise a protective scheme to etch the dummy's surface so that the dummy doesn't disintegrate when he starts throwing spells at the dummy...... Probably, in the form of an explosion, sprinkled with wooden fragments and shrapnel on him. Maybe he should at least add a self-healing function,

He didn't expect this reboot to complete the project.

This time, Zorian immediately contacted the spider. Once inside the room, he spent an hour crafting a magic missile wand for self-defense, and then quickly walked towards the nearest dungeon entrance.

He tried to perceive their minds with his brand new psychic perception. Sadly, he didn't feel anything except the occasional rat appearance, and—

He stopped, feeling an unusually strong willpower emanating from a rat in front of him. He mentally ordered the floating light to intensify for a moment, only to be disturbing to see a rat disappear from the top of his head.

For a full second, Zorian and the head rat stood motionless, looking at each other hesitantly, as the rat reached out to him with a telepathic probe in an attempt to burrow into his brain. For a moment, Zorian considered trying to cope with telepathy, but then abandoned the idea out of stupidity and risk-taking. He was completely untrained in telepathic combat, and the rat was a head rat. He pulled out his new wand and fired a magic missile at it.

The massive impact slammed into the little creature's body with a loud thud, shattering its bones into a paste.

This one is an isolated scout,

By the time he decided to move on, the cephalic rat's pulpy body was already surrounded by green transparent crawling gel masses. Ooze monsters? They are less dangerous and aggressive than their wild counterparts, and he avoids these things. Acid burns are difficult to heal even with magic

When the matriarch finally appears, he hopes that the matriarch will distill her memory pack into something that will convince her past self faster than last time. The matriarch is a bit aggressive and conceited, but it's nice to be able to talk to people about time loops.

And, in fact, apart from accumulating magical skills, he would have been able to solve the mystery of the time loop without Alanai's help.

-Rest-

He carefully fires magic missiles at the targets in front of him, making them as efficient as possible. He hoped that Thaiwen would offer to help when he saw him practicing, and he was not disappointed. She did, however, attach a condition to her proposal.

"So, all in all, I can take your instruction for free for a month, and in exchange, I can join this sewer of yours?" Zorian asked.

"Yes!" Thaivin said happily, satisfied. Zorian could guess the reason - she had just found a way to force him to accompany her, and all it took was a commitment to do something of her. Willing to do things.

"I don't think it's a problem," Zorian said, thinking to himself what he should do with it. Of course, he could simply stalk them and let them fumble for a while – something that Tevin expects him to do, and he's pretty sure the spiders won't "attack" when he's present. But after much consideration, he decided to go the other way. "I have a request, though. I was talking to a group of sentient spiders living in the sewers, and I suspect they were the ones who took the watch. Before you go in and burn something, I want to talk to them. ”

Tevin glanced at him curiously. "Are you friends with a group of giant spiders that live in the sewers?"

"Almost," Zorian agreed. He would describe the spider as an acquaintance and a convenient ally, not a friend, but she didn't have to know that. "I can keep this secret"

"Don't worry, I'm not a person who likes to make small reports." Thaivin said contemptuously. "Oh, great magician. Do you think they'll give us the watch if we ask for it? ”

"I don't see what they do with pocket watches. But anyway, before you do something, I have a request. ”

"Oh? What?

"Teach me a fire spell that's more destructive than a fire charge," Zorian said.

"How much mana do you have?" Thaiwen asked immediately, not upset by the request.

"Level 12," Zorian said.

"Well, it's a little lower than I thought it would be, but I think it's not bad," Tevin said.

"Preferably something that kills a troll in one hit," Zorian said.

Tevin looked at him like he was crazy. "What? Roach, you're too new to fight trolls everywhere. What the hell are you doing? ”

"Let it be, Thai," Zorian sighed. "Moreover, this is pure self-defense, I will not fight with anything."

"Hmph," Tevin shrugged. "You need some more powerful spells. However, I hope to have an explanation for this soon. ”

"After the summer festival is over." Zorian agreed without a hitch.

"I'll hold on," Tevin said, poking him in the chest in pain. "Now, there are two spells that meet your criteria, although they will only kill the troll if you can hit them in the face with them – the Flaming Arrow and the Incineration Ray. The bolt can be aimed at the target and is cheaper in terms of mana usage. Rays are more destructive, but they also consume more mana, and you need to worry about your target. ”

"Teach me two," Zorian said. This lightning bolt seems to be more useful for someone like him, but he also needs raw power.

"Are you sure you have the skills to shape this, Roach?" Thaiwen asked. "Because even if you fail, this spell won't go away – it will explode in your face."

Zorian snorted contemptuously. "Trust me, shaping skills are not something I lack," he said. He raised his arms into the air with his palms pointing to the ground and used his willpower to make some dust and dirt rise towards the ground. The dry, loose substance covered in the training ground slowly rose towards his hand in the form of diffuse columns, condensing into a rough sphere once it reached his palm.

Once the sphere was the size of the target, he pointed his palm at one of the targets and used his willpower to quickly move the mass of dirt forward, bouncing it towards the target. Unfortunately, the improvised structure was too sturdy and decomposed into dust on the way to the target, so part of the effect was destroyed.

However, this did not impress Thaiwen with the feat.

"Damn, that's impressive," Tevin said. "How can you do that? I don't think I can do that... Of course, it is possible to lift a rock off the ground, but such a diffusion material as soil? This is a fairly advanced exercise. Well, if you're so good at shaping, I think I'll be able to teach you some spells......"

Zorian smiled. It's definitely a good idea.

-Rest-

Over the next few days, Zorian gets a crash course in combat magic. She chose to teach him as many different spells as possible instead of letting him practice a few until he had a firm grasp of them. She claimed that he already possessed the core spells he was proficient at, and that Zorian had better styling skills than her; Every spell she could cast, he could cast too.

Not all the offensive spells she taught him were typical. Some of these, such as the "Spider Crawl" spell that allows him to cling to steep walls and other stable surfaces, the "Feather Fall" spell that allows him to survive a fall from height, or various comfort spells that attenuate extreme temperatures and other environmental conditions, can be classified as survival spells.

Still, Tevin insists that sometimes the environment itself is just as dangerous for the mage as his living opponents, and that he needs to understand the spells if he is going to waltz in dungeons and similar places.

She was also quite shocked by his lack of defensive spells. It's not just that there is a lack of a defensive barrier more substantial than a basic shield, although she's not happy with that either-

Thaiwen claims that they are absolutely essential for mages who want to participate in battle. Knowing that you'll soon be caught in the middle of the fight, you can at least cast some basic wards to increase your spell resistance and counter enemy spells.

However, most of the spells she taught him were various offensive and defensive energy projections, mainly fire and force, and some spells based on cold and electricity. In addition to this, Zorian can now perform the famous Fireball Technique...... Exactly twice before he ran out of mana. Honestly, it's not very useful, but Thaiwen claims that the utility of this spell will naturally increase with his mana reserves.

"Is there any way to speed up the growth of mana reserves?" Zorian asked. "I know artificial growth has bad side effects, but is there a training method that can speed up natural growth?"

Tevin looked at him with a worried expression. "Please don't do that. I never will, and you know I'm not the most responsible girl. Can you wait a few years for them to grow on their own?

"There's always a trade-off between control and power," Thaivin said.

"Wait, you're saying that as my mana reserves increase, I will lose the ability to cast skill-based spells?" Zorian asked, horrified.

"No, no, I'm talking about your natural mana reserve – the innate ability that increases it through regular spell casting. You're only 12 years old, so it's still within expectations. Gosh, I've heard that there was a special level 15 mage who became a great magician, so it doesn't matter if you fall a little. ”

It did make him curious about Zach, who seemed to have a huge amount of influence at the age of 60.

"What about those who are very high-ranked?" Zorian asked. "How high can you reach before skill-based spells become impossible?"

"I've never seen the exact number, but I'm guessing it's about level 20 or so," Tevin shrugged.

"And what about very high numbers?" Zorian asked. "About level 60?"

Tevin blinked, seeming confused by the question. "That's inhumane!" Anyone with such a reserve of mana would have to take years longer than their peers to attain the basic proficiency expected of a certified mage. It could even be up to ten years. ”

Zorian frowned at the thought of Zach's relative failure before the time loop. He thought Zach was just a lazy slacker, but maybe there was more to it? But then again, he felt like Zach was a special case. He has inhuman mana reserves, which are simply beyond the scope of human beings. He could not find any record of such a person in any books, except for myths. But he did succeed in getting certified.

Maybe this is the lineage of the Novita family? Perhaps, this brought huge reserves to their family, but without a serious loss of control.

"But if you're really hungry for a short-term mana boost, then you have to absorb the mana around you faster. I'm sure you know the drawbacks of it as well......"

Personal mana and environmental mana from the underworld. Personal mana is something that all things that have a soul possess in different quantities that are in harmony with the person who produces it – on the other hand, environmental mana is both difficult to control and toxic to living beings. Using it once alone is not enough to kill a mage, but any large, prolonged use can lead to illness and insanity.

Ancient mages believed that the mana around them was tainted by the dragons of the world against humanity and avoided using it, but modern mages have discovered some tricks for using it. One is to use it to power items that don't cause thought corruption or physical illness. The other is to absorb the surrounding mana into the personal reserve, eliminating its toxicity. While the assimilation process was too slow to power the actual spell, being able to recover personal reserves faster was useful enough that the skill was widely disseminated.

Nowadays, every student of magic is taught how to use magic as well as other basics of spellcasting. Being able to recover personal reserves more quickly is so useful that this skill is widely disseminated. Nowadays, every student of magic is taught how to use magic as well as other basics of spellcasting.

"I'm going to get sick," Zorian said. "If I use it all the time, I'm probably going to get angry."

"Okay," Thaivin said. "It's pretty stupid to use raw mana on a regular basis, but if you really get stuck...... Well, it's better to stay in bed for a few days with a fever than to die. ”

"You've used it before," Zorian guessed.

Tevin looked at him in surprise, as if he didn't expect this to happen. "Uh, maybe once? Or twice? She changed her position and looked uncomfortable. But keep silent about this, okay? Most battlemages do it a few times in their lifetime, but guild inspectors don't accept 'everyone does it' as an excuse. ”

"Let's get back to class, great teacher," Zorian said. "Since you're so keen to teach me mana-dense flame magic, how about I hear you're going to cast that flame vortex......"

-Rest-

When the time comes, Tevin and two of her friends ask Zorian to lead the way and lead them to the Spider Territory.

[We meet again, Zorian Kaczynski,] the matriarch spoke to him telepathically. There are 6 honor guards around her, but only 2 are actually visible, while the other 4 are hanging from the ceiling under some kind of invisibility spell. Zorian knew they were there because he could sense their thoughts. [You're bringing in more guests again.] This time it's three people. If this pattern continues, we will have to find a more spacious area to accommodate them after a few reboots. Hah]

[Interesting,] Zorian sent it back. [But actually, this is the group I was in when I first met the spider.] We were looking for a watch that supposedly belonged to you, just like we do now. Sound familiar? ]

Before Zolian could speak, the matriarch began waving her front four legs in the air before speaking.

"What's the matter with the watch?" She asked, turning her two largest, forward-facing eyes towards Thai.

"Oh, now I remember," she said. "While this man is certainly not an innocent passerby, and the 'watch' is not a simple timekeeping device – he attacked our net with a few other thugs and finally dropped his gadget as we chased them."

[He's one of the invaders,] the matriarch told him telepathically, so only he could hear it.

The matriarch was able to participate in two separate conversations at the same time, speaking loudly to Taiwen and her two friends while telepathically conversing with Zorian. Zorian himself was not blessed with the same blessing, and he spent most of his time ignoring her explanations of the Thai language in order to mentally absorb what she had told him. Eventually, she seemed to realize this and shortened her telepathic communication with him, allowing him to focus on what she had been saying to Thaiwen.

“…… So I'm not sure what this device is for, but it's clearly some kind of magical item," the matriarch exclaimed. "It's not much use for us spiders, but we're familiar with trade. Let's exchange something that we can actually use."

"Uh......" Tevin fumbled, looking at him uncertainly. Roach...... May I? You are...? ”

"Yes, I'm happy with that," Zorian shrugged. Although for him, he didn't really owe the matriarch any favors for this matter.

"The Tooth of Victory will go retrieve the gadget." The matriarch said loudly, and one suddenly rushed into the darkness.

"Why did he attack you?" Thaiwen asked. "You seem good enough to me."

"It's a little more complicated than that," said the matriarch. "It is true that humans are in conflict with other sentient races, but that's because most of them are very territorial, murderous, and see humans as food, or all three. There are several species of dragons that live peacefully with humans, the lizardfolk of Blantyre have long been trading partners of human nations, and many of the secession nations bordering the wilderness have made secret pacts with various hordes of spirits and monsters, within their nominal borders. ”

"Although not known, we have been interacting peacefully with humanity for a long time,"

The matriarch said. "Spiders have been living further down the dungeon. When the foundation was laid, several campaigns were launched against local areas of the dungeon to clear the threat lurking within. The power vacuum also allowed a weak race like the spiders to enter the place. As you may know, the dungeon around the cave is the main habitat for magical creatures, and the competition is fierce. Luckily, while we spiders lack the magical abilities of some of our competitors, we prefer to work with humans for mutual benefit. We reached out to a number of humans who were willing to work with us and provided them with information about our common enemy – their strengths and weaknesses, addresses, etc., and information gathering has always been our specialty. ”

"It has been helpful for them to provide information to humans, and in return, they have taught you magic and helped us adapt it. Armed with our own structured magical system, the Alanya have grown in strength and versatility, consolidating their control over this region,

We are the fifth net to occupy this place, and while our position is safe at the moment, any weakness could cause the neighboring net to become ...... Disturbed. ”

"Well," Zorian said. "So, let's say, what if you're completely wiped out by someone, and your numbers are severely reduced?"

"Our neighbors will launch at least a couple of tentative attacks," the matriarch said. "But in any case, my point is that humans and spiders are not, and never have been, enemies. I hope that one day, spiders will be able to walk in broad daylight and on the streets above, like other citizens. Hah"

"Is this your job pitch?" Thaiwen asked. "Do you want to make us your agents?"

"It's always good to have more contact," said the matriarch. "But no, I'm not trying to recruit you. I just sense that you're worried about Zorian's relationship with us, and want to ease your fears a little.

Anyway, the Tooth of Victory will come back with the gadgets, stop it"

Sure enough, the watch came back soon, and she would bite the watch with her fangs when she came back.

Actually with some sort of leather strap full of bags, one of which contained a watch. For a moment, Zorian wondered how they managed to do it, they didn't have anyone to hand it, but then realized he was a little stupid. The patriarch has already said that they have exchanged many things with humans - this is certainly one of them.

They soon said goodbye to the spiders and set out on their way back with the prizes.

Zorian largely doesn't participate in the conversation, studying the device they retrieved from the spider, shaped like a pocket watch, but not a pocket watch. The hands did not move, and the screws that were supposed to make the human winding merge with the case, looking like a mere decorative bulge, in order to make the illusion appear convincing. He tried to channel mana into it, but it didn't work out - the device might require the user to channel mana in a very specific way.

He decided to try something...... Experimental. He squeezed a cloud of mana out of his hand, just as he did when he picked the lock, and guided it through gaps and misplaced seams into the interior of the device. The information he was given, though vague, told him that it was filled with brass gears and crystals. They probably shouldn't be pried open. So how...

Ah, that's the trick! The hands of the clock are not just static – an image painted on a glass cover. Zorian pressed his finger against the glass lid and pushed it into the case. There was a soft clicking sound inside, and when Zorian released the pressure, the lid immediately flew open, revealing a complex interface full of dials and symbols. Very complex interface......

He took this thing apart and saw how it would work in a future reboot.

-Rest-

The work was successfully completed. Zorian chose not to apply a tracking charm to the device because he didn't know how sensitive the device was and didn't want to destroy it. This proved to be a good choice, as as Zorian handed over the device to the man, who immediately cast several diagnostic spells on the device, one of which Zorian knew was a spell designed to detect simple tracking spells. After the deal was completed, Zorian insisted that they shake hands, claiming that in his village, it was a tradition to shake hands after a successful business deal.

The man rolled his eyes and muttered something hillbilly, but gave in to him. Mission accomplished.

After they had a drink together at a nearby tavern,

And the group separated. Zorian immediately descended into the sewers again and returned to Alaneia.

[You're talking about the ward Bible reader?] The matriarch asked. [That makes sense.] He and his friends have been hanging out on the edge of our territory for some time, trying to hide. I'm surprised he hired a bunch of students to get it, though. ]

"yes, I'm not sure what he's thinking," Zorian said. "It seems like a stupid idea to me."

[If all goes well, we'll know in a few days,] said the matriarch. [That said, we have other things that we have to discuss.] I'm sure I told you in a previous reboot that I stumbled upon some very important information. ]

Zorian agreed. "I want to know what that is."

[It's about the intruders.] First of all, your guess is right – they are indeed from Urkun Ibasa. ]

"I knew that," Zorian frowned. "How was it before? Are they for revenge or are they purely opportunistic? ”

[A little bit of both," said the matriarch. [They resent you for your exile, they thought you were weak, and now the division war and crying have wiped out most of your battle mages.] But that's not the important part. The important part involves such a basic question, and honestly, I'm not sure why neither of us thought of it. That is, why did the invaders think that they would be able to conquer Theoria in the first place? ]

Zorian opened his mouth to reply, "With the help of the time loop, uh", but quickly closed it again. According to the matriarch, the invasion was already in the making long before the time loop began. Obviously, someone related to the invasion ended up being taken into a time loop and began to provide them with information, becoming very effective, but before that? If the exact location of the Kooria fortifications had not been known, their initial bombardment would have been much less destructive than it is now.

Without knowing the Academy's ward plan and how to get around it, their attack on this place was actually doomed from the start. On top of that, the matriarch claims that Alanya managed to keep the invaders out before the time loop.

"Maybe they don't," Zorian said. "I mean, want to conquer it. Theoria was very important to Eldemar, but it was not the capital, nor was it its industrial center.

It is home to the Edmar Mage Guild and the most prestigious mage academy in the world, both of which are unlikely to cooperate with the invaders. Most likely, they just want to do as much damage as possible. Keep Edmar's magical powers active while they invade the rest of the world. ”

[Very close,] said the matriarch. [But it's not just a simple distraction.] Obviously, the date of the summer festival is very magical. It's the weakest day of the year, and this year's summer festival is even more special than usual. I'm afraid we spider-people don't know much about astronomy, since we mostly live underground, but apparently this year's summer festival includes some kind of ...... "planetary alignment"? ]

Zorian had a chill down his spine.

This year's plane alignment, marked by several planets aligning with their own, occurs once in 400 years. The last time such an event occurred, a city of mages took advantage of the opportunity to teleport the entire city from Miasina to the southern coast of Artazia, completing the largest feat of transcontinental teleportation ever made.

If anyone wants to fiddle with space and time on a massive scale, now is the time to do so.

"Yes, that can explain a lot of things," Zorian finally said. "Like why the time loop starts now, in all the time. But wait, how does this help them wreak more havoc on the city? Are they trying to teleport the city into the sea or what? ”

[Nope.] First, they intend to summon a large number of high-level demons to aid in the invasion. That's why this attack was carried out, and the demons, especially the high-level demons, were almost immune to psychic attacks and also had a strong resistance to magic. Alanya will soon be slaughtered, and the mages will be too busy fighting for their lives to help the ordinary defenders of the city. These defenders will fight trolls and fire elementals that are immune to firearms, supported by the Winter Wolf and Iron Beak. ]

"That'...... That's horrible," Zorian said after digesting it for a second. "Why aren't they doing it now?"

[They can't, remember?] Nothing is summoned in the time loop. The whole physical plane has been cut off from the spiritual plane,] the matriarch reminded him.

"Oh yes," Zorian said. “

[They might," said the matriarch. [Demons are ultimately a distraction, just like the rest of their troops.] The invasion leadership doesn't actually think they're enough to weaken Kooria, they want it to disappear from the map altogether. No, the real target lies in the area around the hole. While the defenders are busy keeping their lives, a group of mages will hold the place and perform a grand summoning ceremony. ]

"Uh," Zorian muttered. "Let me guess: a very big demon."

[Nope.] They want to summon a primordial god. ]

The blood on Zorian's face immediately vanished. "What!? But...... In that case, the whole city will become a lifeless crater! What about their own forces!? ”

[Consumables,] the matriarch told him bluntly. [Everyone who is important enough is ready to teleport away after the first hint of a successful summoning, and you'll find that the actual invading force is really light for a human mage.] Only a minimal number of Ibasan mages are needed to maintain some control over a variety of demons and monsters. In fact, your prediction of losses is quite optimistic.

It will rampage through Artazia until it finally runs out of power, or until the Artazians manage to organize and a group of mages strong enough to drive it out. Once it's gone, Urquin Ibaza can pounce on it and wipe out the demoralized survivors. ]

It's crazy that they won't work out. Where did they find the ritual that summoned the beginning of all things? But despite this, he had seen the invaders break through the Kooria defenses many times, and could not take them lightly. If they think the plan works, it works.

"Where did they find so many summoned mages?" Zorian asked. "They will be killed by the fury of the primitives before they can escape, because it is so close to it."

[The summoning will be performed by the Celestial Dragon Cult...... You may know its name as "World Dragon Cult". Apparently, in order to summon a "child of a great mother", they were willing to die to each other. They're probably the in-house agents of the average intruder; We had to penetrate deeper into their organization to get more information.

In any case, the no-Ibasans did not want to take the risk and suddenly decided that it wanted to visit their island and fly over. ]

"I bet," Zorian said. "No matter how terrible an invasion trapped inside a time loop is, an invasion outside of a time loop will be even more terrifying. In addition to everything they already have, they will receive additional demonic support, and we will have to spend some time blocking the primordial summoning. I'd say those cultists are completely insane and can't summon a crippled little demon, let alone a damn primitive creature, but the possibility is so catastrophic that we can't afford to risk it. ”

The matriarch agreed. [My original plan was to continue to prevent the invasion from proceeding until the Third Traveler was forced to expose himself, whether out of sloppiness or frustration; Find a perfect counter to deal with an intrusion with multiple reboots; Finally, find a way to break the time loop and really deal with the intruders. The part about dealing with the third time traveler still seems to work, but when we are inside the time loop, it is obviously impossible to find a perfect counter......]

I'm a little upset that the matriarch talks about destroying people's minds, but he has to admit that he doesn't know any other way to deal with the third time traveler. The only other way would be to destroy his soul, which is probably even more morally reprehensible.

"All right," Zorian sighed wearily. "What a day. Do you have any other bombshells to throw at me? ”

[One of the monitor lizards accompanying the matriarch, petite and convulsive all over her body, seemed to be unable to maintain her still, suddenly jumped from the ceiling and landed in front of the matriarch.]

[Hello!] I'm a seeker of novelty and I'm going to be your teacher totally this month! I know you humans have a hard time with our names, so you can call me Novelty. I don't mind! ]

[Does she have a close button?] He asked telepathically.

The matriarch simply responded in a way that was both amusing and satisfying.