The news of Frieren's party staying in the Underground Kingdom was enough to spread far and wide.
Although communication was not fast due to limited transportation conditions, important intelligence always found ways to take wing—through various familiars, dispatch riders, and even magical means—to reach the hands of various powers at the fastest possible speed.
A series of turbulent events in the central continent was revealed:
The demons had actually conspired to usurp the high officials of the Underground Kingdom, turning an army and several great ministers to their side. Together, they had laid a trap just to besiege Frieren alone.
Such high stakes.
Thinking about it carefully, it wasn't surprising. She had the strength, the power, the influence, and more importantly, a strong will to annihilate the demons. Ever since the battle at the elf village, the two sides had been at odds. They wouldn't rest until one side lost its ability to fight; the conflict was sharp.
On one hand, people marveled that Frieren was worthy of such a grand scheme. On the other, they felt a lingering fear.
Especially the royal families of various countries, who broke out in a cold sweat and no longer dared to stand on the sidelines and watch the show. There was nothing more terrifying than disaster striking one's own head. Will I be targeted too?
"Today they dare to usurp the Underground Kingdom, tomorrow they will dare to usurp us."
"Although we are far from the front line, we cannot pretend it doesn't exist. We must intercept the demon army at the furthest point."
"Prepare the horses! We must visit the northern countries at once!"
"Send a letter to the Magic Association!"
At this point, the royal families of various countries became much more proactive. Even the most complacent king had to consider the survival of his entire family. At the same time, an investigation to defend against demon subversion was launched, and the atmosphere became tense.
Regardless, a large number of human nations had unified their will at the highest level, moving from observation to active response. It was a qualitative leap:
They would join the war.
They understood the principle that if the lips are gone, the teeth will be cold. They could no longer pretend not to see it.
A conspiracy in the Underground Kingdom had united the human high command. Otherwise, disaster would strike sooner or later.
Therefore, all parties actively moved closer to each other, with a strong trend of forming a unified front. And their first choice for a neutral platform was the Magic Association. The organization's reputation had soared. Upholding the principles of teaching, nurturing, and research, they were not interested in politics, making them an excellent choice.
Originally, many regimes were wary of a transnational organization with abundant military force, and had tacitly allowed attacks against the Association. But after this incident, everyone understood that it was very reliable.
Who said the Association was no good? This Association is great!
Especially since even the Underground Kingdom was sparing no effort to promote its virtues, making other countries cautiously reconsider their interactions with it.
Setting other things aside.
At the very least, the two leaders, Serie and Frieren, were trustworthy. As elves, they never pursued secular power, and their style was pure. They devoted themselves to the cause of magic with their original intentions, too lazy to interfere in court struggles.
So, on the surface, the Association "controlled" a large number of powerful mages, but in reality, it extended from their individual persons.
This control did not come from a systemic, disciplinary structure, but was based on the knowledge and grace of Serie and Frieren themselves. Moreover, the two never required their disciples to fulfill any obligations... By any measure, it was not a threatening military force, and its leaders were highly respected.
If they had no power, they would be like the so-called noble ministers. But they just happened to have peerless martial prowess, so they became the first choice for cooperation and backing.
In fact, choice is greater than effort.
If the Underground Kingdom hadn't won over Frieren in time, it would be gone by now.
The powerful and noble began to frequently contact the Association, hoping for joint cooperation. The more they looked, the more they liked what they saw, and they hit it off immediately.
One could imagine that the headquarters was getting busy again.
"Frieren, you really know how to make trouble for me. It was just a visit, but you turned it into a major incident."
Listening to the various reports in the great hall, Serie's face was weary, but the corners of her mouth curled into a smile. After all, it was rare for this place to be so lively. The dull and boring loneliness was more annoying. It was better to have something going on.
Good enough.
Her goal was to spread magic and cultivate disciples. The advertising effect of this incident was too strong. Visitors were endless, and fresh blood was constantly being injected. The benefits were abundant.
Serie had no choice but to take responsibility and join the bustling crowd.
The plan to go to the new elf town was temporarily put on hold. Anyway, she was not interested in the stubbornness and conservatism of her own kind. Apart from Frieren, there was nothing worth seeing. In comparison, the relevant reports on the Underground Kingdom were more interesting.
"The Mirror Demon was annihilated? Another old relic from the Mythical Era is gone. Or did you, Frieren, make some arrangement?"
The intelligence was inconsistent. According to Lernen's secret letter, that thing was now being used as research material.
"Neither of us is the type to sit still, are we?"
Its use was not hard to guess. It would probably be used as a watchdog. It was indeed an outstanding guardian.
So dedicated.
The thing she understood least about Frieren was her passion, enthusiasm, and hope for her own kind. Even though she knew they were a group of the most stubborn people, she was still committed to building them up. Her social skills were stronger than some humans, and she had even infected some of the elves.
In the past, Serie had also tried to promote magic among her own race first. By any measure, it was the most cost-effective. Unfortunately, the two sides simply did not get along.
Yet, a junior was working at it day by day, year after year, cultivating tirelessly, even more so than herself, gradually allowing the elf town to produce mages and warriors.
Admittedly, the demon attacks had indirectly pushed things along, but the foundation was indispensable.
"Perhaps you have changed."
Despite her words, she didn't have the time to run from the north to the northern edge just to chat. It wouldn't be too late to wait for Frieren to build it up a bit more. Now, Serie had a premonition that the elven race would actively participate in the great tide of history...
The Underground Kingdom, the center of the incident, continued its construction with great enthusiasm after bidding farewell to the party. In reality, they had not suffered any fundamental losses.
To be able to preserve the populace in that situation was already good enough. Moreover, they had the great gold mine of the Ruins of the King's Tomb to excavate.
The profits it brought in various gold, silver, and jewels were innumerable.
They had lost face.
But they had won substance.
Everyone believed that with the new queen's diligent governance, they would recover quickly. Not to mention the prosperity of a series of derivative industries such as smelting, lumber, and trade brought by the dungeon exploration. It would be hard to remain poor.
If the demons were smart enough, they should have completely destroyed the Ruins of the King's Tomb, although they were incapable of doing so.
Furthermore, as the only branch of the Magic Association in the central region, it naturally attracted magical talents from all over. The future benefits these elites would bring to the Underground Kingdom were considerable.
"My country will join the Northern Alliance and fully support the fight against the demons."
The queen's decree made the situation even clearer.
The offer wouldn't last forever. The first to join would enjoy the greatest exchange of benefits and become the largest central hub in the unified central region.
A win-win.
The Underground Kingdom could not only guide the fighting spirit against the demons to integrate its own resources, but also stimulate military development. After all, having conquered dungeons for many years, it did not lack a foundation. One must break to create. After breaking, one creates anew. A clear path to rising was laid out.
The united Underground Kingdom inspired the nations of the central continent, adding another fire to the cause of human resistance.
The joint delegation's convoy.
The long journey was coming to an end. For Frieren and her party, the midsummer night when they came was warm, with fireflies dancing.
Now, heading north, it seemed even the seasons were changing faster. The mountains were covered in red, maple leaves dancing wildly. Ginkgo trees bent in the cool wind as if welcoming guests. In the fields beside the road, there were busy figures, the wheat swaying in waves, giving off a unique fragrance.
In the carriage, Flamme, leaning against the window, reached out and caught a withered leaf. It turned to dust in her palm.
Just a slight evocation of her magical attack was devastatingly effective.
"Master, I've more or less digested the power of the blessing." She took a deep breath. "The main feeling is in my physical attributes. Can I learn more warrior skills?"
"Of course, you can."
Hearing this, Frieren closed her notebook and said, "As long as you are willing to learn, I can teach you everything, except for the things that are too dangerous."
"By the way, could this magical power be something Master prepared especially for me?"
"Don't ever think that. Not only is it wrong, but it will also make you waver, thinking it's not your own power, which will doom you to never reach the pinnacle. Remember, I can only make your talent take root and sprout ahead of time. I can't fundamentally transform and enhance it."
"For example, the level of mana you would normally have after 50 years of cultivation, I let you awaken it in advance. It's built on a 50-year foundation."
"Although the description isn't accurate, you can understand it that way."
The case of her direct disciple made Frieren understand that the blessing's manifestation in reality was far less domineering than in the Lands Between. Her observations during this time made her realize that it was a case of a good piece of jade being successfully carved.
And not turning decay into magic, creating a powerhouse comparable to a hero out of thin air.
Good enough.
It was better for Flamme to become stronger through her own power. The so-called blessing was just a process of temporary residence. It was neither pulling up seedlings to help them grow nor overdrawing her potential. In the end, it still depended on herself.
The experiment made Frieren understand that large-scale blessing enhancements were not feasible.
At least for now, two Great Runes were not enough.
Of course, after experiencing her small blessing, the elves, who had accumulated hundreds or thousands of years of mana, became much more active and began to turn their accumulation into power. It was just a pity that the process would take three to five years. In terms of learning ability, they were not as good as humans.
"In short, just train step by step. This expedition was enough to satisfy you, so settle down and carefully cultivate your fundamentals."
"Yes! I want to be a battlemage like you, Master!"
"I taught you warrior skills only to give you experience in dealing with warriors. You don't have to treat it as a primary means. Why are you so interested? What spurred you on?"
She wouldn't oppose it. After all, all kinds of power eventually lead to the same destination, regardless of their strength. The key was that if Flamme planned to take on another major, she would have to adjust her training plan accordingly.
As a self-proclaimed good teacher, she was very concerned about her direct disciple. She had to maintain a one-on-one, absolute elite education.
To have the ceiling of human powerhouses be refreshed at her hands—what a sense of accomplishment. She seemed to understand the feelings of teachers like Serie and Bernahl a little. It was indeed not bad.
"I haven't told you because I've been too busy this month. Actually, it was very difficult for us to fight the Mirror Demon..."
Flamme began to explain.
She described the entire battle in detail.
Including, but not limited to, the copy's masterful use of a rebounding force field, its peerless and invincible swordsmanship, its super-fast reaction time that allowed it to strike both second and first, its resilience stronger than a top-tier warrior, and its near-reversal at the very last moment. It was extremely dangerous. A single mistake would have led to irreversible doom.
Even today, she still felt some lingering fear. Of course, if she had to do it again, she would definitely win. In just one short month, she had become stronger again.
Frieren listened with great interest, not forgetting to comment a few times:
"It would have been better if you had a shield. You could generate one with glintstone and then enchant it with a magic shield. With your other hand, you could use a Soul Spear. Both long and mid-range would be covered. If the opponent gets close, use Night Mist and Invisibility to create distance and continue to kite..."
"When facing gravity magic, you can't just dodge or block. Pay attention and observe. Dodge in the air. If it's rock spheres, you can move flexibly. If it's Starcaller, then use another state to pull hard..."
"Don't easily fight a stronger opponent with elemental magic."
"If you can't win, then run."
Not only did she give tactical support, but she also explained the corresponding spell improvements for that environment, conducting a comprehensive review.
Flamme listened, stunned. Isn't this a bit too insidious?
Is it?
How could Frieren, someone who usually just crushes her opponents in a one-versus-many style, come up with so many nasty tactics? It doesn't seem right at all.
"Are you thinking of something rude?"
Called out, the red-haired girl quickly waved her hands and said, "I just suddenly discovered another side of Master. It's quite a surprise."
"To be honest, I've used similar moves before, and I've even dug up more outrageous tactics," the silver-haired girl said with endless relish. "Because I was very weak back then, losing to everyone I met. I used every means possible just to survive."
"The strong have the bearing of the strong, and the weak have the wit of the weak. The important thing is to think."
"I'm telling you other solutions to broaden your thinking, but I don't encourage them. The most difficult thing in the world is to have seen much but still walk the righteous path."
Frieren gave her answer in a heartfelt tone.
When she first awakened her game magic and entered the world of Dark Souls, even she had been in a pathetic state, stumbling along before gradually making her way. It was an impressive start to her adventure, a journey of struggling for survival.
"If I want to practice different tactics, can I ask the Mirror Demon?"
She glanced at the cloaked mage in the corner of the carriage. To avoid unnecessary curiosity and troublesome questions, she had it dress low-key and follow the team.
Despite this, it couldn't hide its mana.
In other words, a huge mass of mana reaction was blatantly displayed in front of everyone, full of oppressive presence.
"You can."
Frieren gave the Mirror Demon permission, and the latter also nodded silently. Its soul now originated from the copied prototype. You are in me, and I am in you. It would cooperate one hundred percent with any of her decisions, and even retained some intelligent, autonomous judgment.
The ultimate technological product of soul magic was displayed in the white elf.
"Your Excellency President, we're almost there."
After the coachman's reminder, the master and apprentice opened the curtain. As expected, the familiar walls of Northwind Fortress were not far away. Countless citizens and Association staff lined the streets to welcome them.
They chanted Frieren's name until the carriage arrived in front of them, and the main character finally emerged.
Also included were Flamme, Vain, and Lernen. The party was reunited. From departure to return, they had safely and peacefully achieved great deeds. The news had spread like thunder even to the remote edges of the northern front.
"Today is a happy day, so I will now announce something."
The silver-haired elf held up her notebook and said in a clear voice:
"I have brought with me flight magic and offensive magic. They are no longer the exclusive privilege of the demons."
The large venue at the Association's branch.
Ever since Frieren's return and her announcement of the details of some of her magic, a huge number of mages had flocked here. There were countless of them, not only filling the classrooms but also the corridors. Since no classroom could accommodate them, they had chosen an open-air venue for the lecture.
Many had rushed here and were still panting, covered in dust, but their faces were full of hope. The news was too momentous, too world-shaking.
Their first reaction was disbelief, but the announcer was Frieren. Now they had no choice but to believe.
Morning.
Many mages who had traveled through the night had just arrived. The scheduled time was up. This was the "three-day" window Frieren had specially left for everyone. They had finally made it, not missing this first time.
All eyes were on the slowly approaching silver-haired girl.
She wore a simple mage's robe, holding a notebook and a staff in her hand. There were no other extra teaching aids.
Beside her, the only assistant who could cooperate, Flamme, moved a high stool and sat down, holding a piece of chalk, ready at the blackboard.
Sometimes, for efficiency or style, her master would skip the derivation steps, making it much harder to follow the lecture.
Frieren glanced at the red-haired girl, who gave her a thumbs-up. Preparations were complete. Along the way, the two had basically been deducing the magic, knowing the relevant principles and formulas inside and out. Since she had thoroughly researched it herself, it was not difficult to teach it to others.
"Let's begin. Flamme, you write the formulas, I will demonstrate."
Holding her staff, she began to float, rising from the ground until she was ten meters away, then circled the venue once, effortlessly, drawing a wave of shocked gasps. The demons' domain of the sky had been broken, and so effortlessly?
What was more terrifying was that Frieren then demonstrated derivative uses such as accelerated flight, cruise flight, and burst movement.
"In your eyes, it should be a little more flexible than what you've seen from the demons, because I've added some simple applications of gravity magic."
The crowd below immediately looked bitter.
Information about the Mythical-Era Mage was no secret. Everyone knew Frieren's attainments in this area were extremely high.
The destructiveness, suppression, versatility, and lethality of gravity magic shown so far were all top-tier. Once it appeared, it became Frieren's trademark, creating a meteor crater in the Royal Capital. It also became a recognized difficult subject, on par with soul magic, which also came from her.
Can we learn it?
When they saw the simple and easy-to-understand formulas Flamme wrote, their eyes immediately lit up.
"Don't worry, I only added a little bit of principle improvement."
"Of course, if you want to see the effect of a high degree of integration between flight magic and gravity magic, I can demonstrate it now. Those who are interested, pay attention to the amount of mana."
Frieren flew into the sky.
Purple-white mana swirled around her body while also guarding several rock spheres, providing defense, stabilizing gravity, and adding directional anchor points.
The next moment, this meteor circled in the sky, carrying several companion stars like a meteor shower, dragging a long tail of mist behind it.
The commotion was terrifying, but it was fast enough and hard enough. It couldn't be hit, nor could it be broken. And the user could launch an attack from above at any time.
The modified flight magic had become an anti-army magic.
It was very much in the style of this Mythical-Era Mage. But after the demonstration, everyone was still half-understanding. Except for a very few who seemed to be in deep thought, they didn't expect to use it this way. First, focus on floating up.
It went smoother than expected. Soon, mages who could float appeared.
"I can really fly! Not with the help of some vehicle, but pure, free, true flight. We can quickly support our allies!"
"We no longer have to be beaten down from the sky by the demons!"
"As expected of Lady Frieren's improvement. Our magic has taken a big step forward."
Although most of them flew very clumsily, swaying and unstable, they were flying. To be able to leave the shackles of the ground was of historical significance. For humanity, it was a subversive technological progress.
The application potential was immeasurably large. The still-simple form of civilization would probably advance further. At the very least, transportation had become much more convenient.
Frieren unreservedly shared her specific experience and the most detailed simplified popularization process.
Her knowledge from traveling many worlds had given her own magic a higher level of development. By incorporating various elements, flight magic had reached a new level, allowing more people to use it as a means of transportation, connecting various places.
What would the future be like? Would the exchange of technology bring about a new kind of city? Like one she had seen:
Yharnam.
Unfortunately, at that time, she was in a daze, in a dream within a dream, and didn't have time to study its science and technology in depth. Moreover, Frieren was in a terrible state.
She patted her temple, suppressing the thought of the city deep in her dream.
"Since that's the case, let's start the next item."
The second subversive magic was made public, a "Demon-Slaying Magic" or offensive magic, modified from the Corrupt Sage's killing magic.
The formula structure was simplified, emphasizing firing speed, range, killing power, and reaction time. Everything was prepared for slaughter.
Frieren had also mixed in some features from other magics, giving it stronger penetration, scattering, and most importantly, plasticity. In theory, it could be combined with different elements, and even attributes like soul for damage, giving it possibilities.
"Pay attention. For offensive magic, accuracy needs to be improved, but the first priority is speed. High-speed offense and defense exchanges will become the mainstream, because it brings a major change."
"Defensive barriers are relatively insufficient. At least for a period of time, they will lag behind."
"But it's fine. Our main hypothetical enemy is the demons."
While explaining, Frieren did not forget to demonstrate on the spot. Her partner was naturally Flamme, as she was good at defensive barriers and had a high tolerance for error. As a result, the master and apprentice performed a super-high-speed offense and defense battle on the spot, shocking the audience. They never expected a battle to become a pure exchange of offensive magic.
Just as she had said, in the current situation where defense was insufficient, everyone would focus on energy-based, lethal offensive magic.
In the future, barrier arts would develop accordingly, but that was not for Frieren to consider. For now, she just had to cram as much knowledge into everyone as possible, as quickly as possible. After this, she still had to return to the Lands Between to continue exploring.
"Offensive magic is relatively simple compared to flight magic. I'll talk about a few key points below. If you understand them, you can quickly..."
The silver-haired girl explained everything in great detail, and everyone listened attentively.
The scene was very quiet.
But they all knew that a storm was brewing in the silence. Following the announcement of healing magic last time, another great technological explosion had arrived.
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