Fate/Inheritance

None of the trials reactivated once we cleared them. Because of that we can just return back to the room with the most abundant in mana which is the trial of magic to recharge. Due to that, we easily cleared the trial of fog and the next trial that is just similar but with some traps.

But the problem was the 8th trial. The black fog started sealing two of our five senses and the thicker areas takes away sight.

"…Tastes bland" Said the despairing no. 1000. Because the trials do not reactivate, we basically camp in the trial rooms and take out our rations. But due to both mine and Yamada's experience of playing games we instinctively do not try to get out of the trial rooms in fear that it will reset (especially the first trial!).

These simple jerkies that are rations in a fantasy world feels more heavenly compared to the meals we need to duke it out for the meal everyday (we can't take out the food stock in our item box due to being always monitored). With the realization that she won't taste a thing, no. 1000 in her mindless(?) despair quickly grabbed the hands of no. 1 and no. 17 and dashed in front. In panic me and Yamada grabbed her shoulders and was basically dragged through the trial 'literally'.

With zero traps we easily cleared the trial again but the 9th one took out all of our senses, we can't even feel the perception of 'ourselves'. Luckily I had something that can solve this.

[You sure you want to try this one?] Lancer said with a smile from the Reality Marble. Yes, my solution is my Reality Marble, it basically works as an Inner World and if somehow I can project it just slightly higher in output range to how Kiritsugu use his Time Manipulation to the limits this fog can give me… I would basically have my own 'territory' which I can sense myself.

'This would be my first time to do it but let's try it…' I mentally said and thinked of the chant I would use for imaging purposes. If Shirou's Unlimited Blade Works standard first chant is like that…

[Access… Akashik Records!] As the first 'magus' and uses the prana from the Root and especially someone who originally specializes in 'Inheritance' I can access the Root more easily and 'inherit' some knowledge. (but somehow I can't get any 'True Magic' TwT)

[Rebuilt thy world per the Age of Man!] Specifying the age which I belong helps in the imaging stuff. Mud or 'earth' spread around me that has a more decreased amount in Mystery, if I summoned 'mud' from the Age of the Gods I would had surely died. With my perception and mana usage that would last me for a few minutes I 'looked' around me and saw my 'fellow trainees'.

Each of the people with me had different ways in trying to fix this problem. The scary one is no. 1000 who is already staring at the 'mud', Yamada who is sitting cross-legged is starting to 'blend' into nature, no. 17 is emitting mana in a corner finding her own method (surely her aura did not waver due to the 'muds' presence right? No. 1 is absorbing the mana surrounding us thereby decreasing the resistance.

'Hmm? That is a better idea…' I thought of a possibility when I saw No. 1 do his thing. Releasing my Reality Marble, I copied him and tried to absorb the blackish mana around us and let it pass my Magic Circuit to convert them. It felt disgusting at first like shoving something weird in your mouth and the black mana even passed through my 2 magic circles near my heart (which is connected to my magic circuits somehow). It did not increase strangely during our stay here but ignoring those I felt the resistance around me decrease more than ever.

After I felt 'attuned' around me I already noticed them near the big hole in a corner. No. 17 is looking at me with shocked eyes but kept trying to keep it for herself and no. 1000 with curious eyes.

'What was that just now!' She called out telepathically. Raising my eyebrow, I looked at her and tried it also.

'Well I just tried to use a lower-quality 'soil' to perceive the surroundings'. Oh lucky I did it~, well it was true anyway so stop bothering me with those endearing eyes villainess! After dropping in the big hole which is the exit we found ourselves in a cavern with a single door in it. The black fog did not follow us so it felt like something in the 'air' was gone.

After discussing to check the next trial if we want to continue or take a rest first the former won in the voting. So all of us opened the door and what greeted us…

"Hello, my juniors~?"

Slam!

"Let's rest."

"Sounds good"

"Y-yes…"

Came the words of the others while the originally silent types (me and no. 1000) silently nodded.

Preparing our stuff to rest I remembered what I saw in that room.

'JoJo poses are scary in many ways..." I shuddered when I remembered what I saw.

In that wide room, seven individuals are making those infamous poses and was leering at us and among them, the one in the center with a beautiful smile was smaller and younger than we remembered, but was definitely the Intelligence Agency's vice director.

I already got the gist of what would be our next trial is that's why I needed to rest not just my body but especially my mind that was scarred looking at that view!!

"Our Lady Semir who watches over us. Please, let there be a curse on the instructor." I heard the silent prayer of no. 1 besides me and thought…

'Dude the guy is already cursed not to use mana and still not dead yet… What more you can ask for?'

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Extra:

Rising of the Calligraphy Hero (Part III)

"Ah~ I forgot the introductions…I am Abe no Seimei 'just' an omyoji from the land of the Gods! I bring good tidings to the family of Mikado William-kun." He said with a smile yet not a smile look. Standing up in shock I looked at the man who used that name.

"W-what is it dear?" My wife worried at my outburst held my hand for a bit. Thanking her, I quickly got a hold of myself and looked at the man who was smiling from my reaction.

"Does this guy some sort of famous person in Japan dad?" My daughter said confusingly… Sigh for the young generation to not know 'that' name… I'm embarrassed as a father.

"…You two knows who Merlin is right?" I asked the two and they easily nodded.

"If Merlin is the one that symbolizes the 'greatest or famous' Magician of the West the man called Abe no Seimei is considered to be his comparison from the East." I said calmly eliciting a very shocked look from the two.

"Iyaah~ to be compared to that pervert is… should I say humiliating? But yes that's the most appropriate comparison I guess if we talk about our qualification 'reaching' that stage." He said faking in rubbing his shoulders like someone having goosebumps. These… guy.

"Wait what did you said about my son just now!? Is he safe!" My wife said worriedly, even if she is sometimes nonchalant of things it's because she tends to 'physically' throw out her problems if she can't do a thing. Like currently she is temporarily banned in a local dojo because she along with my daughter broke 10 practitioners of their bones there.

"Hmmm~ safe? Yes." He said when he suddenly stared in the air for a second. Was he checking out our son? Sighing in relief alongside the two women in the room. But the next words that came out of his mouth dumbfounded us.

"Well currently he is cursing a certain someone that is training them anyway~." Wait cursing someone!? Who is the bastard that made William curse? Ignoring that individual who pulled of such a stunt my son never cursed someone before in their backs ever (guaranteed by my wife and daughter). In my daughter's words, 'Nii-chan won't do something like that instead, he would either stab them in the back silently later on or show 'em he is better' eliciting again my low esteem as a father. Seeing the two's dumbfounded faces sees that they don't believe him also.

"You don't believe me? Well I guess William-kun is influenced right now by his new 'friends giving him more of the lacking 'emotional' things he lacks." The omyoji(?) said. F-for my son to have friends this brings joy to me more than ever! But the cold words of my daughter echoed out instead.

"Nii-chan has friends? Tell me… was there any females in those 'group' of friend's mister~?" She said with a smile that surely did not reach her eyes. Flinching, the man was startled for a second but he made suddenly a '1' gesture and smiled.

"William-kun currently have 50 female servants and a few romantically interested on him." Did I just saw a fox tail behind him for a second!? Surely this man is actually not some sort of evil fox spirit!

"…!" I suddenly felt a chill beside me and saw for the first time in my life my daughter's face became unfamiliar.

"…T…hat bastard!!!" She said in a bone chilling voice and tried to lunge into the man. My wife quick with her actions quickly grabbed her by the neck and dragged her away into her room. Was it a misconception or not? I felt my wife's steps was lighter than before while dragging my daughter who was murmuring something repeatedly.

"…"

"So… are you really that 'great' personage?" I asked the man who is irritatingly laughing at the situation he just made.

"As I said before don't call me that please I am merely a simple omyoji… no I guess a 'bad' omyoji? Amaterasu-sama is even searching for me right now due to me identifying one of her offshoots ages ago making that lady die." He said with a depressed voice, he got lost in his thought for a second there…

"Well I already paid for some of my punishment there when she punched me 'here' when she was escaping so I would wait for Amaterasu-sama to 'cool' down." He said laughingly while pointing at his groin, twitching with the man's antics I urged him to continue about the thing before.

"Ahh sorry, sorry~ it's just should I say I had not got any kinds of this conversation for a long time especially in this form…" He said waving off his hands for a bit. When he smiled again he said…

"As I said I brought some good tidings to your family…especially you Michiriku-kun, the second Magus of this world~."

Eh… Magus?