Jackie: Aw shit. Here we go again...
Ric: You say as if you didn't enjoy it.
Jackie: Bitch, I was in the middle of updating absolutely nothing since I have nothing resembling a publishing schedule.
Ric: You also don't have anything resembling proper grammar.
Jackie: I blame America!
Ric: Yeah, yeah. It's never your fault, huh…
Jackie: Yeah, like how it was never my fault our last two colabs didn't shrivel up and die. And on that note, enjoy this brain rotting mess of a fic!
Ric: Sure, blame me. Like you always do. Anyway, there are some notes at the end too.
---
The Alchemist Effect
Chapter 1: About The Consequences Of 2-in-1 Packages
[Richard 1]
It wasn't like they pictured it in books.
Death wasn't neither a bright light, nor a painless drift into eternal sleep. No. It was a constant torture, a prolongated torrent of pain threatening to change my understanding of the word itself. To say that it was cold and dark would be the greatest misunderstanding in all of human history. For it was the drawn out loss of senses, the anxiety in front of the inevitable... It was the slow realization that everything you knew -
life - was getting away from your grasp, and there was nothing you could do about it.
Never before I felt so helpless, so feeble or… scared.
A car collision nearby, probably caused by some drunk murderer thinking that drinking and driving was a good idea, sent one of the vehicles into a building. To be precise, towards a shop from where I was exiting at that very moment. Call it luck, destiny, fate or whatever. None of that mattered when the bumpers of that metallic monstrosity broke my bones and pinned me to the concrete wall.
I want to say that I lost consciousness then and there, but to my great sorrow, that was not what happened. A brief moment of desorientation, before I realized my situation.
There aren't enough words in the dictionary to describe how I felt at that moment..
I don't want to remember it. Not the panic engulfing me when I couldn't move or
feel my lower body. The mind-breaking pain. Those damn assholes looking around and shouting some stupid shit. Worse was those imbeciles calling themselves doctors that affirmed I couldn't take me out without equipment because some hook-like part of the bumper had attached itself deep into my guts. I'll never forgive them for their useless excuse of a first-aid treatment on the spot, nor for giving me a morphine injection while waiting.
Because the injection didn't work. Neither did the first-aid.
In all honesty, there's no shame in myself to admit that I cried, whimpered and begged during the first, eternally long, minutes of my demise. Dying was scary. I wanted to live, perhaps truly for the first time. I wanted to see my family and friends, and apologize for not being the best version of myself. I didn't want to keep feeling how my life and blood was wasting away, drop by drop, falling into the floor to become useless dirt, soon to be cleaned and forgotten in time.
During the whole debacle I did the only thing I could, grasp to my consciousness as tightly as I could, hoping for the best, even if misery had been a bit quicker.
In the end, neither my family or the equipment arrived in time. Surrounded by curious strangers and other useless characters. Feeling how the last dregs of my being were surrounded as by the fingers of a hand - I died alone.
[Richard 1.5]
"You look a bit tired, Richard."
"Your sister died."
"C'mon Ric, you gotta live up sometimes, mate."
"So you're Leguna?"
"So being a lawyer got too heavy and you just quit, is that it!?"
"Man, that's some talent with golems for someone so young!"
"You're a real piece of work, Ric."
"My name is Wilfred Dion, but you can call me Wil."
"I wonder if you will always remain so apathetic…"
"What's your name?"
[Richard 2]
The cold wind was the first one to greet my awakening. As I opened my eyes and the cloudy night sky welcomed me back to life, a moon rising in the horizon.
Alive…
That was the single thought in my mind for a few minutes. Sheer wonder overwhelmed my being as I basked in the happiness of having escaped the cold hands of death itself. My mind was in disarray, my body was hurting and the temperature was far below my preference. Still, I'd have taken such a thousand times over dying.
I stood up, my feet threatening to give up at any moment and several parts of my body protesting against such actions. I touched my body to reaffirm it was there, still in one piece. Something was wrong, but I didn't register it at the moment. I was too drunk in elation to question it. I had to get home or to the hospital first, however I couldn't recognize the place where I was, it was some kind of forest but it wasn't like any-
*throb*
It's a forest devoid of monsters. Relatively close to the Cliffside Church, a couple of days away from Yuidora on foot…
No, wait. Stop. What was that? What the hell is Yuidora!?
*throb*
The workshop city, where I live and-
NO! That's wrong. I'm not-
*throb*
My name's Leguna.
Lies! My name is Richard! That's the name my mother gave me!
*throb*
My parents are dead. That had been so for years.
No. No. No. NO! That's wrong!
I shook my head and started sprinting. Without exact knowledge of what was happening, I forced my legs to carry me forwards.
*throb*
Magic.
That's a myth!
*throb*
Alchemy.
Not a real thing!
*throb*
Mikeldy.
That place doesn't exist!
*throb*
Not earth.
...How?
*throb*
I got into an accident while collecting reagents. A stray monster attacked me.
No… that car… I...
*throb*
*throb*
*throb*
Please…. Stop. I'm ordering you to stop!! I am myself… aren't I?
My useless running came to a stop as I lost my will to keep going. Neither my mind or my heart could take more. Not without breaking. A quick look around told me that I went around more than I could have possibly done before. Even with my - this - body as injured as it was.
The dark clouds had dispersed already and the moon was shining brightly atop the sky. In a last act of defiance, I walked slowly towards a clear nearby.
Illuminated by the moonlight. A single look destroyed whatever hopes I still had.
In front of me was the reflexion of a young man. One of fine but manly features. Raven hair as black as night and exotic, charming, purple eyes.
The legs carrying me on gave up and I fell into the ground. The left hand made its way towards the belt, taking the last couple of vials intact. Those would heal the body and replenish the stamina lost. I drank them both.
I was alive.
Indeed, I was alive… but, I couldn't help but question if I could really say that aloud in my conditions… and worse, to question if
I was the one still alive.
No. That doesn't matter.
*throb*
I am myself. I'm Richard. Not Leguna.
*throb*
Shut it! I refuse to die! Not again. I may have been a waste, a parody of a human being before… But that ends now. I don't care to whom this body belonged before. It's now mine!
*throb*
Sure, keep it coming! No matter how much information you try to fry my brain with, I'll still be myself! For the first time ever, Richard is going all out!
...
The homecoming was a strange affair at best. With each step I took from that forest to the city of Yuidora, my fears slowly became grim determination. With each ragged breath I took, my mind stabilized more. With every ache in my muscles I reaffirmed myself a little more.
I died. Leguna also died. Maybe. He still lives in a way. As a part of me. Complementing my whole.
All I knew for sure was that his body was now mine, even if the memories residing inside were trying to overtake me and merging with my own. However, the throbs eventually stopped messing my head, there was no will behind them, only recorded information.
A blessing, because I was sure to face defeat if the soul of the guy was still intact.
And yet… I was still myself. Greater, even.
Thus, I entered past the walls surrounding Yuidora and walked around the famed city of alchemists. Ignoring the concerned gazes at my clothes (and probably exhausted face too), I made my way towards the workshop I recognized as Leguna's and thus mine.
Mikeldy. Yuidora. Leguna. Alchemy. Magic.
To say that were many things to investigate on would be an understatement. There was much work to do. I wanted to see my family again and I wanted to learn the way to surpass my own mortality….
All of those, however, had to wait until I put myself together. Preferably after a hot bath, something to eat and a good night's sleep.
With that in mind, I collapsed into the bed.
[Richard 3]
Some days passed before I pulled myself together out of that shack.
The weather was what one could describe as 'optimistic', the sun was shining brightly in the cloudless sky, people were going back and forth selling or buying wares, while the sounds of hammering and other industrial noise filled my ears, but I felt strangely content with all of it. Even when the memories in my head screamed that those trivial details were an everyday occurrence, they still felt so natural, yet so new and vibrant… A feeling of being alive and part of the world around me was as uplifting as one could imagine, if not more.
Thus, I spent such a morning inside a bar.
Tian's Bar was one of the most popular bars in the city. Not that the competition was too close. Weird, considering how utterly capitalist Yuidora can be. But maybe because it's one of the oldest and a really relaxing place in general.
"Another plate, Tian!"
"Oh, Leguna, you're finally treating your stomach as you ought to." The man replied cheerfully.
"You bet!"
As they say, hunger is the best condiment for food. I wasn't in the starving phase where I'd swallow my pride and even eat a pizza with pineapple, but it was more than enough to taste most things as delicious. Probably for the best, given that the dishes were made with things like 'werewolf meat' which would have raised some red flags by name alone.
I didn't need more than a couple of days inside Leguna's workshop until I got myself together. Implausible, under normal circumstances, but more than enough when your brain is working at ten times its maximum capacity.
A second chance at life. What a wonderful gift. While I raided Leguna's food supplies, missed deadlines for jobs he took and had a (not) wonderful time digging through his memories, I learned more than a few things. Namely, about the existence of gods, about the role of alchemists, the confirmed existence of souls, I learned about a strange, malleable and fickle but controllable energy called magic, one that worked in tandem with the laws of physics, yet worked on an entirely different set of rules.
Thus, I started experimenting, with pleasant results.
I refused to die once again. At risk of sounding like a third-rate villain, I desired to attain a way to circumvent the destined end of all mortal life. Such was nothing more than hubris, as life itself is cyclical, containing a beginning and end, nothing could ever be truly untouched by death.
But to be human is to be a maker of miracles, a being capable of the impossible.
To avoid death at all costs and perhaps even go back to my family. Those were the goals to strive for.
In one hand my fork systematically carried food from the plate to my mouth, with the other hand furiously scribbling ideas and plans. The lack of manners wasn't something I cared about, but even I realized that what was left of 'muscle memory' in this body made the unsightly ordeal into something almost elegant by movement alone. I may have half-assed knowledge at best from my technologically superior world, but each creation was worth gold if used correctly. More than that, on earth there was an abundance of wild, ludicrous ideas in fantasy stories, books and games. All I needed to do was to bring them to life, test them, refine them and make them useful to my goals.
I would find a way. Even if there wasn't one, I'd just create one myself.
Now… lets see how much I can abuse the mystique of this word to ascend to greatness.
[OoOoO]
[Zachary]
You know something… death is fucking weird. And painful, mostly painful. Getting stabbed in the heart is painful, especially when your dumb, usually passive, ass tries to play hero when your good friend is getting mugged.
I'm scared as fuck, no question. Shit, if my heart had not exploded in my chest due to the knife, it'd be beating like some bongos.
Darkness took me quickly as it does when your heart is FUBAR.
Numbness overtook pain, and fear gave way to apathy.
So, what? I was dying, I was only a matter of time. Hopefully, I could ask Satan for the wifi password before my eternal torture.
[Zachary]
I woke up.
It was dark, cold, the ground was hard. I heard a dripping echo from the stalactites above. I was in a cave of sorts.
My head throbbed, painfully. It hadn't hurt this bad since my wisdom teeth acted up that one December. It was an 8 out of 10 on the "Goddammit, make it stop!" scale of pain. But all it got out of me was a groan instead of a full-on scream.
My chest and left arm hurt like hell too.
I looked down and took notice of the source of my pain. My chest had large claw marks from my right shoulder to the left side of my hip, turning whatever clothes I was wearing into confetti. My left arm looked like it was shredded to pieces, I couldn't even twitch my fingers. I felt fresh blood flow down my face as I stared into the darkness.
Okay, how the fuck was this an 8 out of 10 on the pain scale? I should be in fucking agony right now.
Welp, I'm cold, bleeding out, most likely have a concussion, and I can't even move one of my arms.
As usual, Wil, you are a master-class in decision making…
...Who the fuck was Wil!?
My name is Wilfred Dion, an apprentice alchemist.
I thought I was more than ready to prove myself as a true alchemist, and in the heat of the moment after an argument with my friend, Leguna, I rushed to the nearby cave systems. It was dumb beyond all measure, I knew it, but the deaths of my parents ten months prior hit me hard. It still did. I wanted to do something,
anything to make sure their legacy didn't just go out with a whimper, that they had at least left a son they could be proud of!
I encountered a monster, a four-legged, wolf-like beast, and was mauled rather brutally, until both myself and my attacker fell off a cliff. The wolf broke my fall, and as a bonus, its own life.
Bruh, slow down a second, I need to process this shit. First off, my name isn't Wilfred, it's Zachary. Wait a minute… alchemist? Alchemy? The fuck is this, Fullmetal Alchemist? Oh lord, was I in some isekai shit!? No. No! Noooooooo… Okay, probably. Maybe. Yes! I CAN USE FUCKING MAGIC! MUHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!
Wait... where in the dosh dingle darn am I?
Yuidora, a city famous for producing famous alchemists, and its many advancements in the study of alchemy, and technology.
Shit… we got magic wifi?
No.
Fuck!
The throbbing in my head dulled as I laid there, letting the memories of the one known as Wilfred Dion settle in my mind. I didn't fight it, the kid and I were pretty similar, though he was a good bit more hot-blooded than I was.
Magic, alchemy, a whole new world. A whole new life.
I spotted the dead wolf next to me, and a large hammer on my other side.
A wry, and pained smile made its way onto my face.
"Really, Willy-boy, you were..." I groaned as I forced myself up. "...a fan of Hammer-Time?"
I picked up the hammer, keeping the head of it on the dark cave ground. It wasn't exactly a cane or a crutch, but it'd have to do.
Questions ran through my mind as I began to assess the situation properly, mainly: Why was I in this kid's body?
Did he die or something, and I was thrown in through mere cosmic coincidence? I wasn't as conceited enough to think I warranted the eyes of ROB or, Truck-kun's case, running over my corpse.
Either way, second life or not, I wasn't very comfortable body-snatching some random kid. He had his whole life ahead of him, he was so close to being what he dreamed of...
I sighed. There was no point in bitching about it.
But my softheartedness made me feel like I should at least do something to honor the memory of the real Wilfred Dion.
I picked up a particularly sharp stop from the ground and made my way towards the cave wall. I raised up the stone, and began carving.
R.I.P.
Wilfred Dion
He was an absolute lad.
Welp, it's my finest work yet. A grave without a body in the middle of a dank, dark cave.
I flinched as my arm throbbed in pain. Oh goody, I still have feeling in my arm. Thank the gods for healing potions, if it weren't for Wil's memories, I'd have thought this was a
completely backwater medieval fantasy world and what counted as doctors here were going to saw my fucking arm off.
Now… to get out of here alive to use said healing potions.
…
Coming back to Yuidora was easier than I expected it to be. I ran into no monsters, despite being covered in my own blood. No clue if I have a guardian angel or something, considering the gods are real in this world, that's an actual possibility.
As expected, I got quite a few stares as I made my way back into the city. Looking like a walking corpse will do that to you. A few people actually looked like they wanted to help me, but no one actually approached me in the sorry limp I called a stride.
I all but kicked down the door to what was currently my home, and opened the chest I kept my potions in. I chugged down three of them before my wounds finally healed. Tasty too, better than Kool-aid.
Pain was gone. A small relief, I was still confused…
What do I do?
Who do I talk to?
What can I make out of this mess?
I couldn't go home, that much I knew. No one would recognize me in this body anyway.
Though, becoming an alchemist like Wil wanted to. Hell, I could be one in less than a year if I kept myself from doing retarded shit like that again. I was already apprenticing under a fully-fledged alchemist after all.
From what I could tell from Wil's memories, alchemists were almost like glorified, magic blacksmiths. But they also brewed potions, did architecture… they dabbled in a bit of everything and made sure they were damn good at it all.
I myself did things like study how guns were made and different forging techniques for swords. Do they have katanas here? Eh, they will… just give me time.
Magic was something that I was going to spend a lot more time studying, I always had a sort of fascination with magic. Even though I went with the mofos with the huge swords in most RPGs and whatnot. But I had a sort of particular fun with figuring out how to break the magic systems of whatever setting I was interested in. This world would be no different.
A grin spread itself on my face as I locked the door to my house. It grew more manic as I made my way upstairs, my eyes became unfocused as I thought about the possibilities presented to me.
Wil had some good ideas… but they all felt too small. Too one-note. Not much flare or wonder to them. But while I wasn't a genius of any regard in my world, I didn't need to be to recreate some of the wonders from my world as long as I had magic.
All that time I wasted on random Google searches didn't seem so wasted after all…
I grabbed a notebook and a pen, as well as a few books I had on the topic of magic.
This new world… it was not prepared for the Lovecraft loving weeb that had been thrown into it.
[Zachary]
It had been a few days.
I got yelled at by my master alchemist for doing something retarded, and nearly getting myself killed. Got fired from being an apprentice… so that puts a damper on my plans unless I can find someone else to be my mentor.
Breaking the world… was surprisingly easy. Well, it was less breaking it, and more that I was applying what I knew from other magic systems from fiction worked wonders.
Magic Circles being one of the biggest things. They were how most races in this world used magic. It depends on intent, and mana input, and the complexity of the circle.
The complexity of the circle is where shit got interesting.
Most of them, when you get the concept of it down, wasn't at all complicated. Basic circles were like adding 2+2 advanced shit started throwing things in like division, multiplication. In a sense, magic circles were mystical math problems, but instead of the solution being a number, it was a fireball into the face whatever the fuck pissed you off.
Even the supposedly highly advanced magic circles were easy for me to grasp, even with the disaster known as the American education system.
The main problem was mana input.
I was not someone with a shit ton of mana. Hell, one couldn't even increase the amount of mana they had with training. Sure you could increase your reserves slightly with time, but it wasn't really worth it. You were either born someone with a shit ton of mana, or you weren't.
Then I came across something rather interesting about the modern magic circles.
They were wasteful. Mega fuckin' wasteful.
Through a few modified decision circles, I was able to deduce that the actual amount of mana used in your typical fireball spell was absolutely minuscule compared to the amount actually used in the act of forming the fireball.
So, why is this?
It's because the circle is "open", it's not close off, leading to damn near all the mana needed for the spell to work to escape and be wasted, forcing the caster to use a constant stream of mana for the spell to follow through. Thing was, the time the mana was taken and the spell went through were so fast you wouldn't even know it.
I couldn't form a fireball, even with all my mana, all I got from my attempts was a few sparks. And that shit felt me more drained than a retail worker. I'd know, I was a retail worker.
The problem wasn't speed, it was mana input. Specifically, how to stop the waste of mana during casting? How do you "close" the "open" spell?
It was something that puzzled me… quite thoroughly… for all of thirty seconds.
Changing the equation, and in a way that would funnel
all mana used and leave nothing wasted.
Changing the equation… Well, it was easier than accidentally backing over your kid in your driveway.
The advanced shit got into advanced calculus and geometry at the worst.
And with the horrors of the American education system, and the horrifying realization that, yes, I did, in fact, remember what I was taught in school. I was able to fix the fuck up of this world's modern magic.
And it was made incredibly apparent just how bullshit wasteful the normal Magic Circles were when I went into a forest the next day, chose a particular study looking boulder, and threw fireballs at it for an
hour before I even started feeling the drain.
Then again, this was an extremely low-level spell from a book given to me by my mentor. I'd actually have to get my alchemist license and rank up before I got into the good shit… legally that is. And I wasn't too keen on breaking the law without good cause.
After my fiery evening with a very chard boulder, I was left rather famished. I made my way over to the local tavern, the one ran by Tian, a nice old man that listened to… Wil's troubles every now and then.
This would be
my first time meeting him. That and showing off my new outfit.
Instead of the usual outfit Wil wore, I wore a black coat with long coattails and an embroidered red rose on its lapel. A red tie hung from the collar of my white dress shirt, trousers wore a pair of black dress pants. I wore a pair of black steel-toe, knee-high boots.
...I looked like a business-themed edgelord and it's awesome.
I ran a hand through my hair as I entered the tavern, I didn't tie it in a ponytail like Wil did. It was odd going from black curly hair to blonde straight hair.
There was nothing special about the outfit at all. Hell, I couldn't legally do alchemy yet, I wasn't even sure if pulling that stunt in the woods was legal. I'd figure it out.
"Wilfred! Kid, you finally decided to show yourself here!" Tian, the nice old man at the tavern called out, waving his hand.
I gave a laugh. "Sorry for the wait, I've been a little busier than usual."
"Ha! I guess being an apprentice is tougher than it seems," The elderly man gave a broad smile while nodding. "take a seat, Wil, I'll treat you something today."
I took my seat, and took notice of the person sitting next to me.
Long, black hair, purple eyes, red and white outfit, permanently smug look… basically a bootleg fantasy Lelouch.
"Hey, Leguna, how's life?" I greeted what was Wil's best friend/rival.
"...Wilfred? Is that you? What the hell happened? You look like a guy that never pulls out." Through whatever divine gods of smug he made a blood pact with, Leguna was able to look smug as fuck while aslo looking slightly surprised.
I laughed, not expecting that response. "Pffft, how the hell did I inspire that impression?"
"You are dressed as a washed-up prosecutor. I wouldn't trust you to pull out a chicken out of the oven."
I smirked. "Blame my dad, and yours while we're at it, their pull out game was shit, why do you think we're here?"
"....I'll get some aloe for that kamikaze self-burn." He shook his head in amusement. "Good to see you again, Wil, I feared you would try and do something stupid after our argument. I'm really glad to see you well."
"Oh, I did something very stupid." I admitted, even if it wasn't actually me, it was
technically me. "Went down to the cave system short ways out of town. Got fucked up pretty badly."
Leguna frowned.
"Shhh! Don't say that aloud. Going to the grounds managed by the Guild without being a proper Alchemist is illegal. If you get found out, you can kiss goodbye to your dreams of becoming an alchemist in Yuidora forever." The Lord of Smug took his notes off of the table and into his bag. "You don't seem injured. So I'll take you managed to get back and get healed. Geez. At least tell me you are here because your mentor gave you some days off and not because you got fired from apprenticeship already."
I gave him a wry smile. "Yeah... I got fired."
The guy was at least nice about it though, let me keep the few notes he gave me. It was secret and super illegal, but like hell I was ratting him out. He was always good to me.
Leguna sighed. "Whatever. There's no use in crying over spilled milk. My rank as a Tradesman should be enough to have you as an apprentice. Although I can convince someone else to take you in if you want to. What do you say?"
Just as I was about to answer, Tian came back, two plates of food in his hands.
"Here are your werewolf steaks and mead, kiddos. Enjoy yourselves."
Leguna gave the old man a nod, handing him enough santoreil to pay for both of our meals.
"Thanks, dude, on both accounts." I graciously accepted his proposal.
Leguna looked doubtful at my response, yet smugger than fucking Seto Kaiba.
"Strange. You rejected my offer for help a while ago," He glared at me… while smug. "Something about keeping your pride and whatnot. Very much like you, so...What prompted this change in tune?"
I took a sip of mead. Hmmm, not bad, I wasn't one for alcohol back in my world, but considering the drinking age here is virtually non-existent, I could get used to this.
I shrugged. "An epiphany, I guess. One moment, I was on that prideful streak and being mauled, the next my mind is filled with nothing but the
most ridiculous ideas and the urge to pose at any given opportunity."
He held his glare for a moment longer before shrugging.
"Weird as always. I guess I was an idiot for worrying about you." Somehow, in the short period of time, he was able to finish his meal while I haven't even touched mine. "Finish your meal already. I'll show you my workshop so you can start already."
"Ah, you got it!" I exclaimed joyfully as I dug into my steak… wait didn't Tian say this was werewolf? Eh, fuck it, it's delicious!
In no time at all, that steak was in my stomach and so was the mead.
"Alright, let's go."
Leguna thanked Tian for the meal and opened to leave the tavern, signaling me to follow him. I got up, stretching my limbs, and followed suit. He led me down an ally, a shortcut he'd shown Wil a few times in the past, almost no one goes here.
Halfway there, I felt magic gather behind me, right at the nape of my neck. Shit.
"Don't. Do you think of me as an idiot? Wilfred was an idealistic idiot from the very moment I met him, not even the death of his parents deterred him from his ways. And now he's suddenly changed after a single death-experience? Wanting to strike
poses? You're underestimating the calibre of the people from Yuidora. Even the way you move and react is different. Now, spit it out before I evaporate you.
What are you and what have you done with my
friend?"
A bead of sweat dripped down the side of my face. Well, fuck, second verse, same as the first. But on the topic of people acting differently, he wasn't acting very like the same Leguna I knew… offering me an apprenticeship? Get real, Leguna is just as prideful as Wil was, and while they came to blows a few times, he always respected that pride.
I ducked a fast as I could, watching a magic missile sail over where my head used to be. I lashed out with a kick to his legs, he jumped back.
Our hands were pointed at each other, his was glowing, and mine had an orange magic circle in front of it. It was noticeable that my circle was more complex than the usual fireball spell, almost unrecognizable. But Leguna had his clothes embedded with runes and magic stones, great for rapid casting.
I gave him a smug smirk that matched his level of smugness. "I could say the same about you. Leguna would never offer me an apprenticeship."
"Magic. Wilfred was unable to use it properly and the circle has been modified for efficiency… Still nowhere enough for you to cast more than a couple of times with your paltry reserves." He smugly declared. "Martial arts too, the guy couldn't fight for shit. I'll take a guess and say that you took over his body rather than just faking his image. There's no reason for the overly efficient spell otherwise."
My smug actually surpassed his the moment he made the assumption on how many fireballs I could cast, oh boy was he
wrong. "Guess that means
you took over Leguna's body too, masterful use of his smugness by the way, but I didn't expect this to be isekai battle royal. Want to take this out of town, preferably before we blow up the city?"
"Rather than a takeover, I would call my situation more of a merge. Not something I planned either. On broad terms, I have no intention to fight you unless your goals clash with my own." His hand stopped glowing and he shrugged. "The name is Richard, by the way, even if no one here but you knows that. Take it as a sign of peace."
I held my hand at him for a few seconds before lowering it, canceling out my spell.
I sighed. "Tch. Name's Zachary, some of my friends call me Jack or Jackie. What year did you die?"
"Zachy, huh? You memelord. We know each other."
I blinked. Zachy? Did he just call me… "Ric, you son of a bitch, is that you!?"
"No, is your mom. Of fucking course it is me, you neanderthal."
God dammit, god fucking
dammit!
I threw my hands in the air. "Fuck's sake, not even a week into this bitch and I nearly ended up killing one of my old friends!"
"Nothing new there."
I rolled my eyes. "Eh, fuck off. So, I got knifed in the heart, how'd you die?"
Richard made a strange face, almost like a thousand-yard stare, it was… difficult to look at.
"...Car accident. Let's not talk about it." In a split second, he got smug once again. "Nice magic circle by the way. Efficient and precise. Guess you started studying magic as soon as you came here. Too bad you're also using your lifeforce to supplement it. A bit too shabby for my tastes."
...What? My lifeforce? Goddammit, American education system!
"Shit. Really? I was using my fucking lifeforce the whole damn time!?"
"Duh' As always the finer points elude you." The smug returns. "But it's good enough to have you here. There is a lot of bullshit I have been working on and your help would be appreciated."
I blinked. "So… does this mean the apprenticeship is still on the table?"
"Would you prefer if I bended you over the table? Stop blabbering and follow me. We got shit to get done, and hopefully prepare you for the Alchemist test."
I sighed and shrugged, what's the worst that could happen? Selling illegal aphrodisiacs and sex toys on the black market?
Ha! As if...
Chapter End
Jackie: Yep… it's Kamidori. Hey, hey, Sseth here.
Ric: Given that it's in the same setting as the Ikusa Megami series, I took a peek at it. For the purposes of the fic, how some things work in the canon setting will be changed to better accommodate the story. On that note, while Richard and Zachary will be working together, their respective goals, journeys and planned developments are different.
Jackie: Indeed, now unhand me fiend! I must write lovecratian bullsthi once again!
Ric: Go back to the writing mines, bitch.
Jackie: NEVAH!
Ric: Lastly, a thanks to you, the reader, for managing to pull through our bullshit this time. Hopefully we will meet again in the next chapter.