Chapter 30: One Drop At A Time
Riveria taught Isaac a great deal about how he would have to behave during the expedition. For more than an hour, he patiently listened to the normally a lot more taciturn elf's explanations.
Honestly, most of the information he got were the very basics of the basics. As long as he diligently followed the orders he would be given and did his best, he would be perfectly fine. Although he wouldn't get to personally fight against the monsters the expedition would encounter on its way towards the deep floors, at least in most circumstances, he would still be able to gain valuable insight into how other adventurers dealt with them as well as into the general layout and environmental hazards of the dungeon itself.
As he had been aware of most of the things Riveria told him, most of his time spent in her study didn't feel particularly productive. Still, the sheer amount of effort the elven beauty put into making sure he was aware of all the possible dangers he could face during the expedition made Isaac show a rare, genuine smile when he thought about this part of the conversation in private later.
At the end of this part of their discussion, it was decided that he would have to meet up with the group of supporters, led by Line Arshe, within the next three days to get to know the people he would be working with and to be assigned his specific post. Depending on what the senior supporters would determine, he would have to either help with the wagons or to carry a lot of heavy backpacks.
Admittedly, Isaac didn't 'need' to go on this expedition. It wasn't necessary for his strength to grow. In fact, it would even hold him back, more than a little. Then why was he going? Because he wanted to. Ever since he had read the DanMachi novels, he had wanted to participate in an expedition, just to experience it once. Additionally, Ais would be going as well. That alone would have been reason enough for Isaac to go.
Before he left Riveria's study, Isaac didn't forget to consult the wise elf about whether there were any safe places Kalin and Mina could stay at in the future. Because he had already explained that he didn't plan for them to join the Loki Familia, Riveria couldn't allow the two to simply live with the others at the Twilight Manor, even though that would be the safest option available. Instead, akin to a seasoned realtor, she introduced him to some promising property.
Although the main manor wasn't an option, there were a huge number of other, smaller buildings that were part of the Twilight Manor complex and therefore protected by the same magical formation. Because there were only a few hundred members in the familia and the grounds could easily house thousands, the vast majority of these buildings were empty. Therefore, Isaac could rent one of them to house his students. The rent wouldn't be cheap, though, at 50.000 valis per day.
While that might have seemed like a ridiculously high price in the past, Isaac could easily afford such expenditures nowadays. More importantly, the rent was mostly just a formality. After all, a familia couldn't just let outsiders live under their own roof and offer protection without getting compensated for their troubles. Otherwise, the number of people who would want to enjoy their free service would be ridiculously high. Still, the aforementioned offer was an exception. Not everyone would be allowed to rent part of the manor grounds.
Another point Isaac was made aware of was the status Kalin and Mina would enjoy while living at the house he would rent. The formation protecting the manor grounds would classify them as 'guests', which would put them in the same position Isaac had been in when he first came here. Although he had been able to enter the main manor without a problem, as he had been accompanying an Executive like Ais, Isaac's students wouldn't enjoy these privileges. A vast majority of the manor's grounds would be off limits to them, the formation itself barring their entry if they weren't in the company of a Loki Familia member. Such company was also required if they wanted to leave the Twilight Manor again.
Now, while that might seem excessive at first glance, it was actually very reasonable. Even most familia members had restrictions placed upon exactly when they were allowed to leave, so simple guests certainly wouldn't be in a better position. Such relatively strict regulations also ensured that guests wouldn't be able to steal from the manor or get away with most other crimes. At least not without notice. Additionally, familia secrets would be strictly guarded, as simple guests wouldn't even be able to approach areas containing more sensitive information.
By the time he left Riveria's study, Isaac truly felt a little exhausted from the excessive amount of information he had been bombarded with. If it had all been stuff he hadn't known, that would have been something to celebrate. But as it had mostly been things he was very well aware of…
Thankfully, he was easily able to relax by spending time with Ais and her friends. Admittedly, the latter hadn't really been necessary, as they just exhausted him a bit more, but at least today's dinner had a relatively calm atmosphere, with not many people paying attention to him.
At around 8:30 p.m., Isaac found himself staring up at his dorm room's ceiling distractedly. He had already parted with Ais for the night and because Jakk had entered the dungeon for some pre-sleep training an hour or so earlier, he was all alone… well, if he ignored the lazily snoring Averin.
It would be a lie to say that Isaac wasn't weirded out by Averin's behaviour by now. If it had only persisted for a day or two, he would have just categorized it as a simple quirk of this subordinate of his. But the sheer lack of energy and sleepiness ever since the rooster hadn't been able to enter the dungeon for a few days was more than just suspicious. Even though there didn't seem to be any danger to his life so far, Averin did spend less and less time actually awake, so Isaac decided that he would take him with him during tomorrow's nightly AP grind. There was no chance the two of them could be observed by others during that time and it would help Isaac validate some of his theories.
Even after thinking about Averin's apparent problem for a short while, there were still a few hours left until Isaac actually had to get some sleep. To avoid getting bored and wasting time, he finally decided to start his research related to this world's magic. Or to be more accurate, the energy which this world's magic system used: mana.
Ever since he had gotten the falna and started to accumulate excelia, he had noticed an intangible energy accumulating in his body. Strangely enough, it didn't seem to have any physical presence whatsoever, as Isaac couldn't detect its location when concentrating on even the most miniscule parts of his body. He was honestly a little perplexed by this, as many of the worlds he had thought about visiting in the future had their respective energy literally flow within the bodies of their inhabitants. The DanMachi world, however, didn't seem to follow this trend. There were no magic circuits, no meridians, nothing he had ever read about.
Because Isaac originated from a world wholly without 'fantastical' elements or an energy like mana, grasping how to even interact with it and locate it within his body proved to be a tough hurdle. For an entire hour, Isaac had been closing his eyes and trying to understand the concept, mentally experimenting. His penultimate experimental trial involved scouring his own soul for any sign of the mana, which also turned out to be a dead end. Of course, nothing in this world would be even remotely able to affect his transcendent soul. He had known that from the start, yet he still thought it was worth it to at least check.
Thankfully, this finally gave him a push in the right direction. Because his soul could be considered another 'layer' of his being, Isaac tried to see whether any new layers had been added to his physical body. To his surprise and delight, there was indeed a new one.
In his old world, there had only been the physical body, a single layer. But here in the world of DanMachi, for some reason, a layer beyond his physical body, which completely overlapped with it, existed as well. Around the chest area of this second layer, there was a completely stagnant 'lake' of mana, waiting for him to interact with it. Frustratingly, as it had no physical form, Isaac wasn't accustomed to controlling this part of himself whatsoever.
As he didn't want to 'cheat' and brute-force this problem with the power of his transcendent soul, Isaac just relied on his current physical and mental capabilities. The latter were quite restricted by the former, as, well, he had a brain. While that might sound weird at first, one had to take into account that Isaac hadn't been restricted to the computing power of a brain while in his soul state, therefore just having a brain again was already quite the handicap. Amusingly, the very magic stat that caused mana to accumulate in Isaac's body's second layer also further refined his brain and nervous system, so he was now capable of vastly superior feats of mental gymnastics compared to his original world's self.
Over the next half an hour, Isaac started to lament that he didn't have a single Magic skill, or spell, in his Status. If he had one, he would only have to recite the respective chant and observe the changes the mana in his second layer would undergo. By emulating that, he could easily learn how to control it without the spell as a trigger.
Still, after trying a plethora of different approaches and continually increasing focus, the stagnant lake finally showed a few ripples, before a single 'drop' of mana started to extricate itself from it. Without letting the momentary happiness rattle his mind, Isaac continued to concentrate. Very slowly, the drop followed along invisible 'channels' that Isaac hadn't been able to perceive previously. After it had finished cycling through his second layer once completely, Isaac opened his now slightly bloodshot eyes, panting and sweating heavily.
He had been wrong about his initial assumption. DanMachi's mana was very similar to what had been portrayed in the cultivation novels he had read previously. Still, the amount of focus needed to even move a miniscule part of this new energy was maddening. If he hadn't already reached Level 2, Isaac was sure he would be nursing a strong headache right about now.
Nonetheless, a confident glint appeared in his eyes, as he slowly recovered from the exhaustion. Now that he had taken the important first step, there wasn't really anything that could prevent him from unceasingly climbing higher and higher. Sure, he would most likely have to put in a ridiculous amount of effort, but so what? Although he had been 'blessed' with an unnatural amount of intelligence when he was born, Isaac had never been particularly talented at anything. In fact, he only advanced quickly because of the inordinate amount of effort he put into all of his research. Even when he wasn't really interested in something, he would still focus all of his attention on it and spend all of his available time on it, until he arrived at the goal he had set for himself.
Now that he finally had a chance to research something fantastical, something he had given up on in his original world, as it simply didn't exist, a certain fervor could be seen in Isaac's eyes. Even Ais, who had seen him show the largest amount of genuine emotions and expressions ever since coming here, would be very surprised if she saw his current state.
Like a starved man eyeing an all-you-can-eat buffet in the middle of a desert, Isaac began to cackle happily, while he really had to hold himself back from drooling. Before he had taken his first step in controlling this new energy, he was able to easily put the research off for later. But now that he had his first taste of something that could potentially be something he was truly interested in? There was no way he would let simple mental exhaustion restrict him.
Although he only had a little more than half an hour before he needed to sleep, that time was plenty. Slowly but surely, nursing a continuously worsening headache, Isaac moved two, three, then four drops of mana at once along the invisible channels of the layer he now called his 'mental body'. The speed at which he was able to circulate the mana also slowly started to pick up, filling him with an unfamiliar, incorporeal warmth, which he had never felt before.
Even after Isaac simply fainted a few seconds after he hit the thirty minute mark, the broad grin on his face didn't lessen. The vast majority of his mattress was completely drenched in sweat and a few drops of blood had dripped out of his nose thanks to the extreme headache. If anyone had nothing better to do than to open his eyelids now, they would be shocked to see that his sclera was almost entirely red from being bloodshot.
The last mana drops circulation Isaac had completed was with 15 drops. With every single drop representing a single one of his magic stat points, that meant he was only able to control an extremely small amount of it, less than one percent. Nonetheless, it was a first step, so even when his unconscious mind was plagued with headache-induced nightmares, Isaac's smile didn't fade for a single second.
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The dungeon's 19th floor was still part of the middle floors, although it was part of a new section stretching from the 19th to the 24th floor, called the 'Large Tree Labyrinth'. All of the dungeon's surfaces, which on previous floors had been made from different kinds of stone, were now made from wood, making it seem as if one was inside of an enormous tree. Compared to the floors leading up to the 18th floor, this one was a lot more spacious, with caverns hundreds of meters large. It wasn't easier to navigate than previous floors, though, as the paths connecting these caverns got even more confusing and seemingly random. There were lots of trees growing everywhere, giving monsters plenty of hiding places and further confusing unprepared adventurers. The lighting of the floor was provided by phosphorescent moss this time around, which shone in a slightly dim, blue light.
According to what Isaac had been told on the way here, the monsters on these floors were almost all poisonous, so it was highly recommended to have the 'Abnormal Resistance' Development Ability. Because he was absolutely sure that monsters on these floors wouldn't even be able to scratch him, Isaac decided that he didn't need to worry about this. But even if he, for some inexplicable reason, was actually harmed here, he was sure that his system would simply allow him to purge the poison immediately. Just like when it had informed him about Loki's blessing and the invasion of her ichor, he would be presented with a choice.
This morning, Isaac had gotten a little bit of an unpleasant surprise, although he had been somewhat expecting this development. Even though it was still early when he wanted to make his way to the dungeon, around 5:30 a.m., both Tiona and Tione were already up and waiting for him. According to their words, Riveria had told them to keep protecting him every single day for now, until he wasn't in danger anymore. Because Ais was only allowed to enter the dungeon relatively rarely, as she had a habit of going out of control very easily in the past, making it hard for anyone to drag her back home again, she had to follow strict rules to forcefully get enough physical and mental rest.
While he truly appreciated Riveria's kind intentions, as simply giving him free bodyguards wasn't a bad deal by any means, Isaac was a little bit annoyed about his bodyguards being the two Amazonesses. Tione wasn't a problem, but Tiona was. She had gotten excited too easily when he conducted his monster species research, which really wasn't something he wanted to deal with. He had originally planned to dive into new floors today but he almost decided against that when he saw who he was stuck with for the foreseeable future.
Thankfully, he wasn't alone with Tiona, so there was an easy solution for the troubles he feared he could face.
By the time the group of three had reached the 19th floor, it was already 8 a.m.. After taking a short few moments to familiarize himself with the new environment, Isaac swiftly focussed his gaze upon the nearest monster. Before he hurried off, however, he left behind a few words, directed at the elder of the Amazoness twins.
"If Tiona loses control, please help her snap out of it."
This was the compromise the three had agreed upon on their way here. Even the feisty Amazoness was well aware of how disruptive and inappropriate her behaviour could be if she lost control of her instincts. So after Isaac had politely asked her to restrain herself and let him fight in peace, Tiona had assured him he wouldn't have to worry. Still, only a fool would enter a battle without a back-up plan. That's where Tione came into play.
Now that Isaac was already charging at his first test subject, however, he didn't have time to think about such relatively inconsequential matters any longer. What he had set his predatory gaze upon was an almost two meter tall black beetle walking on two legs. It was called 'mad beetle' and primarily attacked with its sharp mandibles, uncharacteristically strong arms and the sheer weight contained in its carapace, which it used to ram others with. Just like every monster that appeared on this floor, it was a Level 2 monster, with its stats reaching up to G-250, which equaled 1850 Level 1 stat points.
While it was a little amusing how an insect of pretty basic and boring design was even stronger than monsters based on the mythological creature that was the Minotaur, it truly didn't pose any challenge whatsoever to the Level 2 Isaac. Its stats were so low that he wouldn't even gain any excelia from slaying the monster. Still, just like always, he dutifully researched the new species without a hurry. Of course, he blissfully ignored how in the distance, Tiona's breathing had gotten a little bit rougher when she saw him brutalizing the poor arthropod.
According to what Tione had told him on the way here, there were five other monster species that could be found on this floor, although one of them was extremely rare, so Isaac didn't bank on running across that one anytime soon.
The second species that got blessed with a thorough scientific examination today was the bugbear. Its body looked pretty similar to a minotaur's, even though its humanoid form had even more impressive muscles. But instead of a bull's head, it sported a bear's one, while its fur was a lot thicker. With its stats reaching up to F-300, aka 1950, it wasn't much of a threat. To Isaac's delight, however, it recovered from injuries extremely quickly, which enabled him to complete his research on the species while requiring a lot less specimens.
As for the third species, they could practically only be encountered in groups - the lizardmen. Although their stats were the same as the mad beetles', G-250 / 1850, with four or more of them acting at once, they posed a significantly higher threat to normal adventurers. They had glistening red scales and, as was quite common by now, a humanoid body. Still, they didn't wear any armour and only used very basic weapons made from the surrounding wood. Of course, the monster spawn rate on this floor was ridiculous, so it was quite hard to only attract the attention of a single monster or group of monsters at once. During Isaac's research, he often attracted many other monsters that had heard their comrades' screams of pain and terror.
The species that had interrupted his research the most often was the gun libellula. It looked just like a huge dragonfly and although it was 'only' about half a meter long, it was the most annoying enemy on this floor, by far. It shot projectiles that looked very similar to needles out of its abdomen from a safe distance, which could easily poison an adventurer or even take their life if they weren't careful. They weren't much of a threat because their stats only reached up to F-300 / 1950, but Isaac didn't look kindly upon fools who would dare to make his research last a little longer. Needless to say, they were put through even more thorough examinations by the time he was done with his other experimental subjects.
There was another, albeit quite a bit rarer, flying monster on this floor, the firebird. As one would expect from such a genius name, it was… simply a red-feathered bird that was able to shoot flames from its beak. Sure, it was almost a meter tall, with a wingspan of more than three meters, but it really was just what Isaac had expected when he first heard the name. No surprise whatsoever. Honestly, Isaac truly looked forward to exploring parts of the dungeon that weren't explored yet and discovering unknown monster species. That way, he could name them himself. While he didn't have the most confidence in his naming sense, he was sure he could come up with slightly better ones than whichever unimaginative adventurer had stumbled across almost every single monster he had encountered in the dungeon so far.
As a side-note, the rare firebird's stats reached up to F-350 / 2050 and actually gave Isaac an extremely small amount of excelia. He couldn't help having a contented smile play on his lips when he finally earned a single stat point after reaching Level 2.
The last new monster species on this floor was quite common, but truly imposing nonetheless. Although its name, mammoth fool, didn't sound very imposing or ingenious, it was fitting. The about seven meter tall, red-furred mammoths were even more dimwitted than a simple goblin. They were probably the most unintelligent creatures Isaac had encountered ever since coming to this world. He had a hard time imagining a seasoned adventurer losing their life to such simpletons. Still, as mammoths had been an extinct species in his original world, Isaac could at least appreciate their imposing looks and dangerous, spear-like ivory tusks. Their high endurance stat of F-350 / 2050 was completely wasted on the seemingly brainless monsters, though.
When Isaac finally finished his monster species research on this floor, he was honestly impressed with Tiona. Although she had gotten progressively more excited the longer she saw him battling, moving about in the chessboard-like world she couldn't comprehend, the chipper Amazoness hadn't charged at him again. Although he had been researching monsters for almost two hours, she hadn't become a problem. By releasing her accumulated excitement by beating up 'innocent' monsters every now and then, Tiona stayed remarkably calm. Now that he had confirmed that he could place more trust in her in the future, Isaac gave her an appreciative nod, before he charged ahead again, instantly slaying any monster he came across. Only the flying monsters took a few seconds longer to deal with, because of their vastly superior maneuverability.
As he had no need to hold himself back any longer, Isaac quickly made his way through multiple caverns and pathways, until, ten minutes later, he finally found a staircase leading further into the depths. Considering that it would take him almost fifty minutes to get here from the entrance of the 19th floor, he showed a solemn expression. If he continued like this, he would only be able to probe into the next floor for less than half an hour before having to turn back to make it to the surface in time to teach his students. The increased floor sizes really started to show at this point.
Thinking about a system feature he hadn't used until now, Isaac looked at the Amazoness twins with a deeply contemplative look on his face.
'There is no risk. It's time to use it.'
CREATORS' THOUGHTS 
Shiro_the_Hero
Shiro_the_Hero I honestly can't really wait for Isaac to get his 10k AP. I really want to write about his ichor upgrade xD But hey, at least I was able to show a little bit of how mana will work in this world of mine (and some more about Isaac's character). \o/
No worries btw, the expedition won't hold Isaac back much, there's an easy solution to all the problems :)
Also, in case anyone's curious: this is the 6th day since Ais has peered into Isaac's past. Only a little more to go :3
Gosh, I really do love to ramble, eh? Anyway, I hope you've had a great 2020 so far. I got Eresh (in FGO) with my GSSR pull, after not getting her with 1420 SQ and 122 tickets before. From hell to heaven :D I really didn't expect to get her xD I statistically had a ~98.59 % chance to get her before with those SQ and tickets... and I didn't get her. Less than 3% chance with the GSSR pull? Eresh comes home \o/
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