Kiera was about to head south and then remembered it was a whole different world with a different number of suns, so in short— she didn’t know where south was. She could, of course— ask the guide, but she wasn’t without scruples about relying on something outside her perfect control
There were indeed ten suns, but they weren’t simply scattered around— nine of them were arranged in a circle, while the last one was stationed in the circle’s exact center. Therefore, Kiera decided to test whether she could treat this seemingly unnatural form of arrangement as simply a giant sun.
She took a stick and two stones, poked the stick in the ground, and placed one of the stones at the end of the stick’s shadow.
For this technique, she needed to judge the time accurately though— something she couldn’t do without knowing the established laws of this world. Previously, she counted the minutes by Earth's standards out of habit, but now she couldn't make mistakes.
“Guide, how long are the minutes, hours, days, months and years of this world.”
[Period of time known as a ‘minute’ is sixty seconds long, period of time known as an ‘hour’ is sixty minutes long, period of time known as a ‘day’ is twenty-four hours long, period of time known as a 'month' is thirty-two days long, period of time known as a ‘year’ is twelve months long.]
Kiera blinked, speechless by the unexpected similarity, although a year was slightly longer than on Earth, what she cared for now was strictly the exact length of minutes.
Waiting for forty minutes, Kiera looked at the stick's shadow and saw it moved. She took the second stone and placed it on the shadow's tip.
She proceeded to put her toes on each stone with her back facing the stick, now, by Earth's standards, she was facing north.
Meaning, the south was supposed to be the opposite way.
In the worst case, she'd be wrong and would have to resort to the Guide, but she should at least try, right?
...
[Skill upgrade! {Vanishing Step Lv.2} advanced into {Vanishing Step Lv.3}]
Kiera dismissed the notification and vanished from her spot again, appearing twenty-five meters away. She constantly used Vanishing Step on her way to Lanvale's supposed location in order to level it up, without caring about the expenditure of mana, and discovered each advancement upgraded the maximum distance by 5 meters.
Minutes later, she discovered a man-made dirt road and decided to follow it, increasing her hopes that she was correct.
Suddenly, screams of anger followed by the sound of metal clashing were captured by her enhanced sense of hearing. The melody of war originated from a place perceived by her as being hundreds of meters away.
She arrived at the scene in under a minute and hid behind a tree, looking at the ongoing fight. Her sight was welcomed by dozens of armor-clad men fighting each other, some emitting mana and some not. While an array of spells flew in the air— fireballs, earth spikes, water, and even what seemed like the peculiar sword slashes she used to see in particular eastern cartoons.
But what caught Kiera’s eyes most was the frightened-looking and fancy-dressed girl behind a caravan. She was protected by several men that had an identical symbol on their armor, and they were all looking at a duel dozens of meters away.
The duel was the most destructive fight in the whole scene, the two men participating in it moving at speeds far faster than the others with movements far more skillful and deadlier.
The man that Kiera deemed to be the leader of the girl’s entourage wielded a greatsword, while his opponent was twice his size, wielding dual maces.
Kiera could easily distinguish who was about to win the duel even without seeing their levels. The swordsman looked tired and was on the defensive; his armor dented in several places as blood trickled from his mouth.
[Normal Apprentice Magician Lv. 18 (Human)]
[Normal Apprentice Magician Lv. 20 (Human)]
Their levels were far above the strongest magician after the two of them, merely at Lv. 9. Kiera complemented her options, she could either intervene or turn a blind eye, but that girl was too rich looking for her to truly turn a blind eye.
If she helped her, maybe she could demand compensation in exchange, that oversized savage's aura was not threatening anyway.
Kiera decided she should intervene and sprung into action, using Vanishing Step twice to appear behind the mace-wielding man.
Her right arm glowed violet as lightning gathered in her fist before she punched the man in his chest, extracting his heart with a swift motion. The swordsman could not catch what happened before the small girl vanished from his sight, appearing in the middle of the chaotic battlefield.
He saw a violet flash appearing next to each of his enemies before they suddenly exploded into pieces. Within moments, they all disappeared from the battlefield, making way for his gaze to concentrate on a figure that suddenly appeared in the center of the bloody field.
It was a little girl, only about ten years old, dressed in a black scaly dress. Her right palm was coated with blood.
Beautiful violet hair gently fluttered in the wind as her cold violet eyes stared directly into his, prompting his body to shiver under her gaze.
He felt as if a disastrous beast he could not touch eyed him, fear dispelling the years of harsh training, overtaking him.
The man almost fainted when he saw his subordinates raise their weapons, slowly advancing on the girl. With all his remaining might, he shouted, “hold! D-do not attack her!”
He saw the girl grinning, seemingly wickedly, at the sight of his subordinates stopping their march. “At least someone is grateful.”
Her childish voice did not match her cold tone, but it and the word ‘human’ above her head confirmed she was truly a fellow human and not some evil monster in human form. However, he did not dare to underestimate her not only because of the scene she created but because of the overwhelming strength she displayed at such a young age and the fact her level was not shown next to her species.
He threw his prized sword to the ground and saluted to the girl, “Thank you, as the leader of the Viper Mercenary Band, I am grateful for your intervention!”
His men’s eyes widened at his words, seemingly unable to believe the little girl was responsible for their adversaries exploding in front of their eyes. They all took a step back without expectation, giving way to the little girl.
Kiera chuckled in her heart, thinking the fundamentals benefits of overwhelming power here was not different from Earth. As long as you had enough power, you could do what you want.
She proceeded right into business, pointing at the young woman. “You, what is your position and where are you from.”
The girl, who was observing silently until now, flinched. She stepped forward and bowed slightly, “m-my father is the mayor of Lanvale, savior. My name is Olivia Rosewell.”
Kiera raised her eyebrow and spoke, secretly excited in her heart. “So am I correct to assume that you are wealthy?”
“I currently do not have much money savior, but my father truly is wealthier than the common men.” the girl answered, “if you would grace us with your presence in our humble town, I can ask my father to generously reward you for your help!”
Kiera did not hesitate before she gave her approval, “lead the way then.”
The girl’s blue eyes lit up in joy before she instructed the band captain, Dan, to get the caravan on track. Kiera was invited to sit in the most luxurious carriage, which was in the center of the caravan. She was surprised to see they were not drawn by horses but by some of the mercenaries themselves.
“Then again, each of these men is stronger than horses by many times,” Kiera shrugged, she could care less about the disgraceful treatment those men received.
Checking her notifications, she almost laughed in happiness when she saw the harvest of the last ‘hunt.’
[Normal Apprentice Magician Lv.20 (Human) defeated, EXP received.]
[You defeated an enemy sixteen levels above you, bonus EXP received.]
[Level up! Normal Apprentice Magician Lv.5, all battle stats +5.]
…
[Level up! Normal Apprentice Magician Lv.8, all battle stats +5.]
[Skill upgrade! {Destruction Lv.2} advanced into {Destruction Lv.3}]
[Normal Apprentice Magician Lv.9 defeated, EXP received.]
[You defeated an enemy one level above you, bonus EXP received.]
[Skill upgrade! {Destruction Lv.3} advanced into {Destruction Lv.4}]
[Skill upgrade! {Vanishing Step Lv.4} advanced into {Vanishing Step Lv.5}]
[Skill upgrade! {Way of the Tyrant Lv.1} advanced into {Way of the Tyrant Lv.2} +10% bonus.]
[Normal Apprentice Magician Lv.8 (Human) defeated, EXP received.]
[Normal Apprentice Magician Lv.4 (Human) defeated, EXP received.]
…
When she finished going through the notifications, Kiera was joyed to see she reached Lv.10, while her Vanishing Step reached Lv. 6, Destruction reached Lv. 4, and Way of the Tyrant reached Lv.3. She ascertained that killing things higher than her level wielded more experience to skills than simply using them.
She then turned her gaze to the man and woman sitting across from her, their eyes glued to her figure, clearly afraid she’d do something. “Tell me, Dan Livingston, how strong did I seem to you?”
The tall, muscular man slightly jumped when the little girl spoke to him. “A-about the late levels of the Copper Apprentice Rank, I could barely see even your shadow u-until you stopped moving.”
“Hmm, I can skip more levels than I thought. It isn’t only because of the Tyrannical Lightning Body’s buff. I assume the core skills themselves are of a higher grade than normal skills, considering they are absolute attribute’s skills.” Kiera deduced but was not satisfied with merely her own answer, “Guide, explain to me why I am stronger than people my level.”
[The Voidborne {Kiera Ashborn} is the inheritor of the Tyrannical Lightning Attribute. Thus— each of {Kiera Ashborn}’s stat units is three times as strong as a regular magician’s stat unit in the same rank. {Kiera Ashborn} also controls the 1st Tome of the Tyrannical Lightning, a set of Absolute Attribute Skills.]
Kiera exclaimed in her heart due to the primary reason, which was different than what she expected. “It means that my strength isn’t merely 127, but 381, and with the 300% bonus it is around 1,524! That is also why my general stats are so high; they are linked to the battle stats...”
“I guess Strength is linked to Health, Agility to Stamina, and Wisdom to Mana. Looking at the values, by a multiplier of 10. ”
She opened her mouth again after understanding her true abilities, “Olivia Rosewell, would you be as kind as to explain how currency works? You see, I was trained and raised by a secluded magician since my birth, and I do not know the common ways of the world.”
The duo’s eyes widened at her words, fear welling in their eyes. They could only imagine what kind of a monstrous being could train the unusual girl in front of them. ‘Is he perhaps a Diamond Skilled Magician?’ They shuddered at their mutual thought.
“Of course, savior. There are three types of currencies: bronze coins, silver coins, and gold coins. Ten bronze coins are equal to one silver, while ten silver are equal to one gold. A commoner family of the upper echelons has an annual income of about 40 gold. While the average nobles, officials and merchants are far richer.”
‘As expected,’ Kiera nodded and closed her eyes, staying silent for the rest of the ride. Her eyes opening only when she heard the voices of many people in close proximity.
What greeted her eyes was a big city of stone, surrounded by giant walls. Thousands of people walked the giant street; at least 30% of them were magicians.
“Are you sure this is a town and not a city?” she asked the rich girl.
Olivia nodded, “Lanvale certainly is a big town, but it isn’t nowhere as big as a true city.”
Kiera’s mouth turned into an O shape; she wondered, “if this isn’t a city, what is? The activity reminds me of Frankfurt just in a slightly medieval style.”
The carriage continued until it stopped near the gates of a giant mansion in the center of the town. Two Lv.10 Normal Apprentice Magicians acted as the gate’s guards, prompting Kiera to ponder if this Rosewell guy was a mere official or actually a noble.
Dan exited the carriage first, helping Olivia out before offering Kiera his hand. To his surprise, she did not deny the gesture and exited the carriage with his obviously unneeded help.
The two guards bowed to Olivia with a salute, shouting, “M’lady!” respectfully before opening the gate. Entering the mansion, Kiera was stunned by the extravagance in front of her.
The hallway was adorned by two rows of golden statues, its walls by paintings that did not seem like casual art, and weapons of many types. Dan excused himself now that his duty was over, and Kiera was left alone with Olivia, the latter leading her to a staircase at the end of the hallway.
The second floor was not comparable in riches to the first one, but it was still quite artistic in Kiera's eyes.
They stopped in front of a silver door before a powerful voice resounded from beyond it. "Come inside."
She followed Olivia inside, her eyes greeted by a tall, muscular middle-aged man. He had short, smooth black hair, a pair of sharp eyebrows and black eyes that shone with a dangerous light.
Kiera could feel a strong, sharp aura coming from the man. It was dozens of times stronger than Dan’s, indicating the man was on a whole another level.
[Copper Apprentice Magician Lv.19 (Human.)]
Kiera’s eyes narrowed, he was the strongest being she met thus far, but she weirdly did not think she would lose, especially with her trump card— Eruption.
Suddenly, the man’s hidden aura erupted, like a sword leaving its sheath. He gazed intently at Kiera, speaking coldly, “why can’t I see your level?”
The little girl grinned, violet lightning-shape tattoos appearing on her skin as lightning enveloped her body. “Simply because I am stronger, old man.”
Her mana surged like a tidal wave, gradually suppressing the man’s aura. The room cracked under the power of the two opposing forces while Olivia could barely breathe.
Seeing his daughter in such a state, the man retracted back his aura before sitting down. He abruptly let out a burst of amused booming laughter, “interesting! Interesting! You are even stronger than in the report!”
Kiera raised her eyebrow, speechless by the fact this old man knew everything yet still tested her, hurting his own daughter in the process. People of high positions were truly peculiar no matter the world.
He reached out his hand and smiled widely, “my name is Marcus Rosewell; I thank you for saving my treasured Olivia.”
Kiera took his hand into a strong handshake, “Ashborn, Kiera Ashborn.”
“So, Ms. Ashborn, what do you want in exchange for your deed?” he proceeded right into business.
“Money and information, especially information about the core areas of this country and where can I find strong Tier 1 Mana Beasts,” she answered.
“Money you want, and money you’ll receive,” he said, fetching a sack from a drawer in his desk and handed it to Kiera. “Here is 500 gold; I hope it is enough. Olivia, please escort our guest to the house’s library and show her the right books.”
Kiera took the sack in her hand, secretly astonished in her heart at the amount of gold she held in her hands. According to Olivia, it was an amount equal to 12.5 years of a well-off commoner family’s labor. She was even more surprised at the fact that Marcus Rosewell could casually take out such an amount and hand it over without hesitation. “
In the library, she learned that Lanvale was stationed in the western countryside of the Corinth Kingdom, a moderate-sized nation in the western region of what the locals called Darium Continent. Surprisingly, its current king was a magician of the Silver Skilled rank, someone Kiera knew she had no hopes of winning against.
The Corinth Kingdom had several big cities, its capital naturally the largest and busiest. But the city most suited for Kiera’s goals was Ironfront City 5,000 kilometers away. It was the city stationed near one of the most dangerous parts of the Great Ranuros Forest, where high-level Tier 1 and even Tier 2 beasts roamed.
To her surprise, she discovered airships unexpectedly existed; they were powered by mana and could be used for both commercial and military use. Lanvale, fortunately, had an airport because it was a place where many connected flights landed. Otherwise, Kiera would’ve needed to spend weeks in a carriage ride, something she dreaded to even imagine.
Bidding farewell to the Rosewell duo when her business with them was done, Kiera went to the main street and looked for a clothing shop. She did not have to look for long and bought ten sets of simple white dresses and ten sets of white underwear.
Then she went to the airship district and rented the services of a private pilot with her new, impressive purchasing power. His airship was quite small, merely as big as a semi-trailer, but it was enough for her and certainly faster than the normal gigantic ones.
She departed Lanvale in the same evening she arrived in it, leaving behind the first encounter with human civilization she had in this new, strange world.
