Magical Ascencion Chapter 12 (Patreon)
Content
"Herk!" I choked out as Taihou picked me up and squeezed the life out of me while Alice cooly eyed me from behind my other more... Physically inclined stepsister. "You made us worry Jake." Alice noted dully even as Taihou growled in agreement with her face buried into my stomach as she punished me with a back-breaking hug.
I rolled my eyes and then I used a finger and dragged my nail behind Taihou's ear softly making her squeak harshly as I hit one of her most ticklish spots making her let me go and fall back onto my feet. "I got home safely, and I brought you guys some chocolate strawberries from the mall... But you better hurry up before Mother eats them all up." I said with an easygoing smile as both girls tensed at my words about their strawberries.
For whatever reason, both Taihou, Alice and their mother were obsessed with chocolate-covered fresh strawberries. Mother on more than one occasion tanned the girl's backsides for getting into her stash that she kept moving around the house due to my step-sister's own obsession over the things.
"You didn't just get us some!?" Taihou pouted while Alice nodded fiercely making me roll my eyes as I dryly retorted.
"I got a large box for you to share... Now I would hurry up if you don't want her to eat them all out of spite." I said with an evil smile coming to my face as I could more than imagine a mother doing it.
I didn't need to imagine it. I knew damned well, with the way her cold icy blue eyes lit up upon seeing those treats that she was doing horrible depraved things to them. All the while probably getting a kick out of knowing by the time my sisters got there. There would be none left, or maybe, just maybe if she was feeling petty today, only a few that she would deign to release to them, all to watch the sisters that were all but blood, fight over her scraps.
My mother grew up in the definition of poverty and seeing someone fight for their food and resources in her eye's is a sign of growing strength.
Either way, Taihou, and Alice sped off running towards apparently my mother's latest hang-out or hiding spot for her stash, while I returned to my newly repaired bedroom to relax and decompress after the day's events.
While relaxing on my bed I felt Kusanali nudge my consciousness via our connection so I pulled at my magic and with a flicker of a magical glyph she appeared within the magical glyph in her beast form of Kirlia.
"Sup Kusa." I said gently as I picked her up from the edge of my bed and set her short form on the bedside table so she was face level with me as I laid back down.
Kusanali, in the form of Kirlia was... Hard to read her obviously inhuman body language honestly, but with the way she folded her arms over her chest grumpily let me know she wasn't happy and I knew exactly why she was unhappy. "I couldn't summon you in front of a bunch of those monsters... I had a good plan using my spell to lock in my area and killing the monsters that tried to get past the spell." I groaned already feeling a bit tired of being harped at.
But Kusanali rolled her large eyes and then her mind connected to mine through her own strong mental power and the bond we shared as Master and Summon that connected our very souls. "You still should have summoned me, I could have fueled your mana with my own, and my own abilities are perfectly suited for killing large crowds of weaker enemies... Plus momma gave me stuff to kill any meanies down in this lower world who tries to bully me!" She said strongly and I couldn't help but have my lips twitch at the thought.
I was under no delusion that Kusanali, for all her strength and talent. Was in of herself a danger to myself as she had a high-ranked bloodline, her mother was still alive, and for a mother that could drag her husband from this world and tie that man's soul to be accepted into that greater world... She was scary. Much scarier than the average Forbidden Curse Mage at minimum.
"Alright, I will count on your help next time... Actually, I will be counting on you in a couple of days when I have to fight a beast with a team during an exhibition to kinda act as my coming-of-age party." I said with some excitement, at the thought of shining during the event before I realized that regardless it was still going to be dangerous along with the trip in the Great Lake, Forbidden Zone.
Kusanali's eye's widened at the thought and she hurriedly nodded, while I could also feel the glee, at my acceptance and of course, some anticipation come across to me from our bond.
But seemingly remembering something Kusanali used one of her folded-over-hand thingies like a fist and slapped her other palm as though in the remembrance and then she used her own spatial storage which was a necklace that went around her neck to summon a fist-sized dark blue orb of some kind and then she hesitated before glowing brightly and as the bright light faded she had taken back on the human form I knew all to well.
Her taking on her human form was one thing... But I recognized that blue orb all too well with my father's occupation as a blacksmith sorta what she was holding. An Elemental Spirit, and more specifically a water element one.
The biggest issue was the grade of the Elemental Spirit, which was in my eye that had seen dozens of them over the year's at least at the level of Soul Grade, which was below the known peak of Elemental Spirit at the Heaven Level. "Uhh, Kusanali, what's with the Elemental Spirit." I asked frowning as I knew this wasn't so simple as her just giving me a gift for nothing.
And I was right as Kusanali answered wryly. "Sorry Master, but Momma wants you to help me grow rather than sit at home in her palace when you don't have me summoned... So Momma went over and bullied Aunty Amphrite for a water spirit because I know you also have a Water element to go along with that weird Astral element that's your primary element." She explained and I covered my face as I realized what she was getting at.
See, plant monsters for the most part were unlike other beasts that needed both powerful resources, a long time to digest them, as well as a powerful bloodline to follow to ultimately grow strong. Plant monsters only needed two things in life, to set their boundaries in growth. A strong bloodline, and nutrients to fill their bodies.
They didn't need heavenly treasures on their own to absorb... They could just eat other people and monsters who ate or absorbed heavenly treasures and get the same effects with no loss. Which was bullshit!
But it was also a cycle as they would oftentimes shed heavenly treasures that were basically the congealed essence of 'holy shit imma gonna explode from overeating' and beasts and other monsters would eat those and the cycle would continue.
So it was clear, that Momma Kusanali was giving me a somewhat high-ranking elemental spirit so I could help Kusanali start butchering these lower worlds monster's so she could glut upon them more easily as Water magic itself was unless prompted extremely gentle mana that would attract monsters and people alike with its calm aura.
"What kind of Elemental Spirit is it?" I questioned as I took in the dark blue orb that was in Kusanali's hands.
She smiled and held out closer to me so I could see it better as she spoke eagerly. "Seeing as Water Mage's are super duper weak in the lower levels, Momma made sure your water magic wont be useless until you hit the advanced rank... As this elemental spirit is called the Heavy Water spirit!" She said proudly with a smile while my face twitched at that name...
Like Spirit ranked Elemental Spirits were supposed to be cool you know, making your elements at base four times stronger but could go all the way up to eight times stronger with their effect's like one of the somewhat common Wind Spirit grade Elemental Spirits my father worked with to help someone absorb it safely was the Desert Wind Elemental Spirit that would enhance the mage's winds with tiny particles of sand that would basically make their winds into a sandblaster that could give Wind Mages a whole new fighting style in just grinding down the tough parts of a monster easily with their magic.
Seeing my pout at the lackluster name Kusanali snorted and she raised an eyebrow as she sassily said. "Jake, this spirit is perfect for you! It conceptually makes all your Water elemental spells exactly seventy-five thousand times denser! Literally, it makes a single drop of water you fling at high speeds actually have the complete weight and mass of a whole gallon of water! What happens when you are throwing the Novice Ranked Water Shield spell that conjures five thousand gallons of water!?" She demanded and I was floored by that realization.
'Dear gods... I want my own Momma who gives me an OP cheat like that.' I thought steadfastly ignoring my mother's perverted Phsyique that could actually possibly give me that if she gave father such an element, fucked him, and then copied it to give it to me... Yeah, repress and drink bleach to forget that thought. I still hadn't quite forgiven dad for his. 'Hey that element orb is going to make you piss yourself and more with the agony you will face teehee.'
Either way, Kusanali dropped the the orb into my hand and I realized woodenly that even with all the shit dropping into my lap I wryly smiled as I still wasn't as much of a cheat as the MC of this universe Mo-Fan. "So I just need to help you eat some monsters to repay this," I said with Kusanali pouting and rolling her eyes.
"Well... Yeah, but your my Master! Don't make this all business or I will get sad and then I will tie you up in my vines like Momma does to Daddy when she gets angry at him for flirting with the bunny maids!" She said fiercely and I couldn't help but break into hysterical chuckles at the thought of a bustier and bigger Kusanali yelling at some dude for just talking to the maids.
So with the obvious cost laid out for this extra boost to my potential, of which is a cost I was more than willing to pay as she was my contracted monster and partner, I began the absorption of the Heavy Water, Elemental Spirit. And by the gods did it hurt, but nowhere near as much as the summoning element hurt me.