1.49 – Magic

None needed, probably. Sex zombies continue.

Occasional moans and alarm bells echoed out around them. Passed out bodies lay scattered on the streets, but their intersection was clear for now. Maple, Emma, and the four adventurers had a moment to convene.

Thera's plate armor almost made you believe she was something like a [Knight], right until you saw she was holding not a sword, but a long, two-headed...toy. The contrast of that, along with Thera's personality in general, made Maple blink.

The lamia's 'weapons' made her blink twice. Four objects of magical light floated around Sylla, and they were floating. Magic aside, she'd never considered how uncanny that would look in real life.

"What the heck are those?"

"Tools of pleasure, of course. You don't have any?"

Thera answered for Sylla and laughed.

"No, I meant—"

"They're my constructs. I'm a [Cognitomancer]."

Sylla spoke so softly that Maple had to stop talking and lean over to hear her. She hid her human-half beneath the white robe she wore, and while standing still, had a tendency to wrap her snake-half around the staff she carried. Her arms mimicked that aspect, and wrapped around her waist with the staff held between. At the top of the staff was a metal crescent, also wrapping around something; a violet orb in the center.

Maple remembered the last time they met, and had a few ideas for what she wanted her to be wrapped around, but pushed those thoughts aside. She definitely wouldn't say it this time. That had been their weird human's fault, Thera.

"That's a [Mage] of some kind, right? How does that work? Are those spells?"

She was curious. Now wasn't the time, but her resolve to get a new class had been renewed just this morning. Something magical would be her first choice, for obvious reasons, but something like [Waitress] might rank even lower than her existing classes.

[Gardner] was her backup plan. It was easy, seemed like a class with ample room to grow, and Sasha had space around her inn for some potted plants.

Sylla brightened up at the chance to talk about her class. Her coiling, wrapping nature loosened a little. Yet she avoided making eye contact with her current constructs, as if that might make everyone else not look at them too.

"Ah, it is magic, but no actually, it's not like casting a spell. A spell alters reality indirectly, through a kind of language. These are made of mana and belief, or willpower, so anything you want can be manifested. There are pros and cons, but [Cognitomancers] like myself are somewhat rare..."

"Oh, pros and cons like what?"

"Well, it takes a lot of practice. You might be able to make something that looks like a knife, but it won't be sharp unless you really believe it to be, and that can be difficult. Even getting the details just right on a simple object is a lot of effort. Think of it like imagining an apple. You might have a vague image of it, but does the color and texture stay consistent if you rotate it?"

Maple nodded, her imagination wasn't that strong. Sylla's voice grew more confident as she continued.

"It's not quite as difficult as that once you have the object solidified in your mind, but it also requires a finer control of mana than other kinds of magic. It's not a very respected field, among [Mages], but I believe it can be just as powerful."

It seemed powerful to Maple, but she hadn't seen much magic. Maple nodded again, and pondered the information. Sylla shook her head suddenly.

"Ah, sorry. Those were only cons, weren't they? It's really fun. You can do anything, if you practice enough. [Spellcasters] need to memorize complex spells, and those all come from external sources. But cognitomancy is all internal."

"Looks fun. I bet you spent a lot of time practicing those, huh?"

Thera wiggled her eyebrows, indicating her constructs. Sylla covered her mouth and mumbled something. Dort waved the transparent dildo at Thera.

"You're one to talk. Your collection could supply every Mountain Hall on this continent."

"Guilty as charged. But it's only fair I don't get all the heat. Be careful with that, though. No throwing it."

Thera's voice was mostly proud, with just a hint of shame. Maple chuckled, grateful she didn't have any toys to expose the world to. Sylla was the most embarrassed, by far.

"That sounds really cool, though. Could you, um, teach me?"

"Oh, um—Right now? It might be difficult without a book or teacher, but I could get you started, I guess. Can you sense mana yet? Humans tend to be less sensitive..."

Sylla glanced around. It really wasn't the time for a lesson in anything, but the enthusiasm had returned to her voice.

"Um, no? How would I tell?"

Mana hadn't existed for all of Maple's life. Was she even capable of sensing it?

"Here, give me your hand. It's easier to feel foreign mana than your own, so I'll push some in. Try not to reject it, if you can."

At first, Maple only felt Sylla's hands wrapped around one of her own. Then, a slight tingling that may have been hallucinated.

"What am I supposed to feel? Is it in?"

"Hmm. A warmth, maybe? Or a tingling? It becomes more detailed with practice, and lamias are innately more attuned. I don't have much experience not being able to see and feel magic. If you feel anything, try to let it in so that it can circulate."

Maple focused on the tingling, and tried to 'let it in', whatever that meant. After a bit, it spread up her arm, and continued to her chest. When it got to her stomach, it whirlpooled a little, and then spread throughout the rest of her body before returning once again.

It definitely wasn't hallucinated, but the tingling wasn't consistent. It felt like static, and the individual points she felt came and went randomly.

The others stood by, swaying on their feet a little. They seemed content to let Sylla teach for the moment. Dort drank from a waterskin, and Thera and Emma gathered next to Maple. Both of them wanted in on this.

"Sylly penetrates the strange human with her magic, meanwhile her team watches in—envy! Do me next."

"Can't you already sense mana?"

"Yeah, but I just wanted to feel you inside of me."

Thera was rejected, and Emma stepped up next. She patiently held out a hand and Sylla let go of Maple's. The flow cut off, but what she'd already pumped in continued to circulate.

"I don't know what your physiology is like, so tell me if it doesn't feel right. Do you feel anything yet, Maple?"

"I think so. It's tingly."

Emma turned and grinned at her, happy to be part of it. Maple smiled back. She might be able to do magic soon.

"Good. Concentrate on that until you feel it clearly, and then try to sense your own mana. Focusing on the contrast between mine and yours might help. Your body will filter mine out within a few hours, but practice feeling yours every day. Once that becomes easy, you can try moving it and forming a ball to start with. Just don't expel too much, and stop if anything you're doing hurts. How about you, Emma?"

Sylla really hit her stride while teaching. Her voice was louder and finally held a confidence that came from experience. Emma shrugged and pulled her hand back so she could write.

I already could, too. I was just curious. Thank you.

Emma gave Sylla a guilty grin. She knew no one could stay mad at that cute face, the little devil.

"Oh, alright. I figured that might be the case. Good. Maybe you can help Maple later by doing the same thing I just did, but be careful if you do. Use only the tiniest amount, and press gently. You should find a book at some point, if you're serious about wanting to learn, Maple. Just anything on mana control, or magic in general."

"Thank you. It'd be so cool if I could do magic, and maybe finally get a normal class."

Maple was genuinely grateful. She hadn't expected to make immediate progress, or for Sylla to actually teach her. This wasn't much, but it was a clear starting point. She was turning over a new leaf.

"If you do manage to get a class from it, you'd get some Skills that make it a lot easier. Like [Mana Sense—"

Alas raised her voice, cutting Sylla off. She stopped short of sounding truly urgent, but her hand twitched toward her bow.

"We've got incoming."

A crowd of perverts in various states of undress were running toward them. They were different from the ones before. Parts of their skin were red and irritated, and some of the furrier species had patches of hair missing. They clutched themselves and groaned in pain. Some still pleasured themselves, even so, unable to stop.

They were—fleeing, Maple realized. A yellow haze of smoke rolled after them. From within it came a magically enhanced voice, and a rhythmic banging.

"A citywide curfew is in effect. Disperse immediately and return to your homes."

Behind the fleeing crowd was a wall of guards with shields and clubs. Their faces were covered by leather gas masks with glass lenses. They banged their clubs against their shields in unison with each step, creating an urgency to the command. It got louder as they advanced.

Behind the wall of shields, other guards used slingshots to pelt the fleeing crowd with pellets that crumbled into a cloud of dust on impact. That might explain the skin irritation, and the gas likely wasn't pleasant either.

To see and hear them advancing was—scary. A violent reaction, to a mostly non-violent situation. Maple was about to say farewell and leave, but Dort spoke first.

"Looks like the city is finally on the move, but I've never seen weapons like that. We best skedaddle. Which way were you two headed?"

"Not toward them, at least."

Maple pointed toward Shari's and was already fast-walking with Emma. Azure Bond followed, and Thera caught up to Maple. She looked over her shoulder to her team.

"Anyone got a better place we should be? Looks like the city is...handling it now, anyway."

"Not unless one of you owns a house here. This ordeal is going to make finding an inn tonight difficult, isn't it?"

Alas answered, and sighed. She sounded tired—they all did, actually. Dort and Sylla didn't object either. Thera scanned the street for danger while they ran and addressed Maple.

"So what was this about an [Alchemist]?"

Maple explained the anti-horny potions she'd commissioned and that they should be done by now, but left out the other part of her plan. Thera might react too enthusiastically, if she shared too many details. Their pace made her stop talking to breathe every so often.

When she finished, Thera voiced the obvious.

"It's not sounding like she'll have enough to cure the entire city? Or half of it. Or a quarter, or..."

"Yeah, but maybe. And our inn was overrun so we can't really go back there. They even broke a window."

Which sucked for Sasha. Maple wondered where she ended up, and if she was safe. Her window wasn't the only damage in all this, and the city's reaction made a little sense. One of the shops they passed looked like it'd been looted, while others were shuttered or even boarded up. Opportunists abound.

"No telling that this shop won't be overrun too, but we'll get ya there. Ah—one up ahead. Looks like there's no avoiding it. Her. Sylla?"

"On it."

Sylla sent her phantasmal weapons flying toward the nude half-elf, and Maple spoke up quick. Her method was less invasive.

"Oh, wait, I have a thing. [Enhanced Pleasure...]. There, that handles most of them."

The woman collapsed to the ground and convulsed from a powerful orgasm. Maple cancelled the Skill. Actually, was that less invasive? It should be fine if it's only for a few seconds, right...

Sylla recalled her magic toys. They really didn't need the adventurers' help unless there were looters or something. Maple had mixed feelings about them tagging along, though it was nice of them.

She had only whispered the first half of the Skill, and she needn't say it at all, in theory, but doing so made it easier. Even so, despite wearing the heaviest armor, Thera exclaimed with more energy than all of them combined.

"What was that? Did I hear right? [Enhanced Pleasure]? That's a thing?!"

Alas shushed her. Regrettably after she'd already shouted the Skill name. Maple wasn't ashamed of it, but it didn't help that it was unusable. If she explained it in full, and why it was dangerous, she'd be at least implying how she found that out.

She didn't want to be ashamed of it. She grew tired of that. The classes weren't going away, and some of her Skills were fun. Cool, even. People were right to be jealous. She would be the most powerful [Slut] there was...until she got a new class.

Yet, she was already blushing as Emma wrote. It took longer while they were walking and her letters were more scribbled. Maple had enough time to worry over what she would say.

You don't want it. Trust me.

Nothing too revealing, at least.

"Huh? Why not? It sounds great. Let me try it, please? Does it have a limit?"

Emma had really hated it, and that was sad. For once, Maple had been kind of excited and the Skill had betrayed her. She chuckled at the thought of letting Thera try it, but that would be irresponsible. If not amusing anyway.

"I haven't found a limit yet. But...no. I think it might break you. Seriously. Back me up here, guys."

"You're really selling it. I bet it's amazing. Please, just for a minute?"

Maple glanced back to the rest of Thera's team for help. Someone needed to rein her in. How did they deal with this sex fiend everyday?

It was especially annoying because Thera was kind of...hot. Her horny could be infectious to Maple, if she let it. Part of her wanted to see Thera use her Skill for that reason alone, but that was her arousal speaking.

All the naked, horny people running around outside certainly didn't help. Shari better have the potions ready.

Alas slapped Thera's back and pulled her along at a quicker pace.

"Trust the expert here, it's her Skill. Come on, let's keep moving."