If she could understand thirty percent of what he said before, she understood absolutely nothing of what Su Mo said after.
Although it might have been basic theoretical knowledge for Su Mo, and perhaps the original developer of the technique might have understood his line of thinking with some careful thought, Erica could not.
As a mere user of the technique, she herself knew little about the principles of magic, let alone how to improve upon them.
If even Erica looked completely lost, there was no need to even mention the others.
Madoka: "I didn't expect Erica-oneechan to not understand either. Suddenly, I don't feel so bad."
Kanae: "I didn't understand any of it from start to finish, so there's no pressure at all."
Kanae: "Oh, right, what about Little Rin?"
Madoka: "Can Rin-oneechan still keep up?"
According to the classifications of the Type-Moon world, Erica was a "Spellcaster," someone who only applied magic without ever researching the principles behind it.
Compared to Erica, Rin's environment was much closer to that of a pure researcher. If not for her young age, she should have been the one in the group most capable of understanding Su Mo's thought process.
At everyone's call, Rin Tohsaka popped up.
Rin Tohsaka: "I understood the very beginning, so I looked down to take some notes."
Madoka: "And then?"
Rin Tohsaka: "And then, I didn't understand anything anymore."
Even though she had only looked down for a moment, she felt like she had missed the entire history of magical research. When she looked up again, she could barely even comprehend the terms Su Mo was using.
Madoka: "..."
Erica: "..."
Kanae: "..."
In this short lecture, all of them had been utterly defeated.
Seeing their reactions, Su Mo shook his head, not particularly disappointed.
Su Mo: "Given your level of comprehension, for now, you should probably just buy the versions sold in the Group Store. At least those come with a guarantee you'll learn them."
Rin Tohsaka: "I don't know why, but I suddenly have the feeling I'm being treated like a monkey."
Madoka: "Rin-oneechan, is it possible that... it's not a feeling?"
Rin Tohsaka: "Shut up! Don't say it even if it's true!"
Rin covered her ears with both hands, trying to escape reality. She was the magical genius her father was so proud of, not some monkey who couldn't even understand basic knowledge!
Apart from Rin, the others didn't have such a strong sense of pride.
Madoka: "I feel a little bad for the big brother."
Kanae: "Yeah! Lord Su Mo shared knowledge worth thousands of points for free, but I couldn't understand any of it."
To enter a mountain of treasure and leave empty-handed... at this point, they could only blame their own inadequate minds.
Kanae: "I feel so ashamed of my illiteracy."
Rin Tohsaka: "I feel so ashamed of my illiteracy."
Erica: "I feel so ashamed of my illiteracy."
Madoka: "I feel so ashamed of my illiteracy."
Su Mo offered no comment on the group's parrots. He didn't care about a few points, and he was used to the "listening to an alien language" expression on outsiders' faces.
He had seen that look countless times on the faces of scientists from various countries in his own world. There was nothing to be surprised about.
"This dimensional leap technique isn't as difficult as you imagine. The core of the practical application is simply to replace the traditional symbol of Hermes, the caduceus, with the trans-boundary symbol of communication and trade... Forget it, we can talk about this later. There's a more pressing matter to deal with right now."
Shaking his head, Su Mo temporarily gave up on his teaching duties and shifted his gaze toward the coastline ahead.
There, wreathed in azure flames, the Divine Beast Boar, now clearly in a state of utter rage, was glaring at them menacingly.
Hearing Su Mo's words, the others finally noticed that the Divine Beast Boar had freed itself from the sea. Even knowing Su Mo possessed Tier 2 strength, they couldn't help but show looks of concern.
"Lord Su Mo, are you planning to deal with it?" Erica, skilled at reading people, asked.
If the goal was simply to escape, they could use Su Mo's optimized magic to get far away without waiting for it to climb ashore.
"Mhm."
Su Mo nodded slightly, not hiding his intentions.
If he had only wanted to get Erica out of danger, he wouldn't have needed to come personally at all. Simply selling her a life-saving skill would have been enough to ensure her safety.
The reason he had actively requested to come to the Campione! world wasn't truly out of altruism, but for his own purposes.
By analyzing the Boots of Hermes, Su Mo had already grasped the general method for constructing conceptual Spirit Armaments. But even so, that was merely the power of a Saint Magician or a Paladin.
To advance further, he had to personally come into contact with the pinnacle and most mainstream power of this world.
The gods!
The Divine Beast Boar before him was an excellent opportunity. Not only could he test the various powers he had comprehended, but he could also analyze the fundamental nature of a divine being up close. It was a chance to kill multiple birds with one stone.
With this in mind, Su Mo glanced back at Erica and held out a hand.
"May I borrow your sword?"
"Ah, of course!"
At Su Mo's request, Erica unhesitatingly handed over the beloved sword she had carried since childhood. Then, she suddenly remembered something.
"Wait, Lord Su Mo, I don't think you've purchased any offensive-type powers, have you?"
Erica no longer had any doubt about Su Mo's insight. His dimensional leap alone was enough to qualify him as a Sanctuary-level magician.
But with just mana and a dimensional leap skill, he couldn't inflict any effective damage, could he? Could he really subjugate a Divine Beast like that?
Faced with this concern, before Su Mo could speak, someone else explained for him.
Kanae: "Um, Erica, Lord Su Mo did buy an offensive skill. It was the Flame Breathing from my world."
Kanae: "But... a power of that level probably won't be of much use, right?"
As she said this, Kanae herself sounded uncertain. Even if one mastered a Breathing Style to its absolute peak and multiplied its power tenfold, it seemed impossible to contend with a raging Divine Beast. Compared to a god, a human's Breathing Style seemed a little too weak.
Faced with such doubt, faced with such worry, Su Mo said nothing. He simply, silently, grasped the hilt of the sword.
Sensing his will, Erica immediately held her breath, afraid of disturbing Su Mo's performance.
With an earth-shaking shockwave, the Divine Beast Boar, having climbed out of the sea, charged forward once more, vowing to crush the two fleas that had trifled with it into dust.
Faced with the same charge as before, faced with an assault capable of easily crushing mountains, seas, and cities, Su Mo's expression remained placid, his jet-black pupils mirroring all of creation like a mirror.
The moment the Divine Beast Boar charged before him, he gripped the sword hilt firmly and softly chanted words of the same type as a conceptual Spirit Armament.
"Indra, submit your life! Agni, submit your life!"
Violet-white lightning and red fire simultaneously coated his body. Just as he had borrowed the power of Hermes, through the construction ritual of a conceptual Spirit Armament, Su Mo easily borrowed a small fraction of the power of the Thunder God and the Fire God.
The next step, after the buffs, was the explosion.
Secret Technique of the Five Spirits Breathing Style...
Secret Sword: Honoikazuchi [God of Fire and Thunder]!
Azure lightning and blazing solar fire flashed in an intersecting arc. Su Mo's figure had already crossed paths with the Divine Beast Boar. In that moment, time itself seemed to stand completely still.
In the next instant, the Divine Beast Boar, frozen like a statue, completely disintegrated, turning into golden motes of light.
Only then did the tremendous sound of the impact reverberate across the entire island.