Afterward, he went to the Reby Merchant Association.
It was mainly to return a book and borrow some new magic books.
He had already finished reading An In-Depth Explanation of Tier 1 Elemental Magic.
In order to improve his magic, he planned to borrow other magic books.
“Mr. Skeleton, you really shouldn't read these books anymore.”
Watching Li Xiuman browse the bookshelves for magic books, Tedela, who was sitting in the association president's seat, couldn't help but speak up.
“Why?”
“The books I've collected are all bottom-tier.”
“Truly valuable magic books are kept in the collections of nobles and other major factions; ordinary people can't get their hands on them.”
“Of course, I've heard that you can also get magic books and magic equipment from chests inside dungeons.”
“If you just want to read some basic magic books, borrowing them from the public library would be a more suitable and comprehensive option.”
Tedela offered her advice.
So White Bear City had a library.
“Does borrowing books cost money?”
“The Reby Merchant Association will cover the borrowing fees in full for you. After all, you now hold a very large share in this association.”
Afterward, following the address given by Tedela, he arrived at the White Bear City library.
It was about the size of a miniature castle and looked quite grand.
There were even guards patrolling around the library, staying vigilant against book thieves.
The library's collection was extremely precious, and magic books were even more so; any theft would be a severe issue.
After entering the library, he registered for a borrowing card, with books to be returned in five days.
Li Xiuman borrowed Elements of Elemental Magic Circles and a book titled The Art of Burst Magic.
Afterward, holding the magic books, he returned to his home. Wearing his three-piece loungewear set of boxers, a short-sleeved shirt, and slippers, exposing large swathes of his stark white bones, he lay down on the sofa and opened Elements of Elemental Magic Circles.
With just one look, he was completely engrossed until the sky darkened.
He picked up his wand resting by the sofa and gently tapped it against the floor.
Soon, magic stone lamps lit up one by one with a soft glow as if in response, illuminating the room.
Under the gentle light, he read late into the night before marking his page, closing the book, and placing it on the table.
Then, after soaking in the bathtub, he jumped onto the large bed in the basement wearing just his boxers.
Early the next morning, he was once again awoken by a knock at the door.
“Hey! Have you thought of a wish today?!”
Ilu carried her greatsword on her back. Her outfit was different from yesterday's, but she still wore a rather masculine shirt and pants.
Paired with her heroic temperament and a face so beautiful it seemed unearthly, walking down the street, she would probably charm people of any gender.
“No.”
“If you don't have one, let's keep practicing swordsmanship!”
“...”
He was thrashed by Ilu until noon.
Although he was beaten, Ilu corrected his posture and weaknesses as she thrashed him, causing his swordsmanship to improve at a rapid pace.
Once their swordsmanship training was over, Ilu left.
For the rest of the day, Li Xiuman continued reading the magic book he hadn't finished yesterday, studying until late at night.
Leaning over his desk, he opened his self-penned book, The Skeleton's Magic Book. Applying his new knowledge dynamically, he began to modify the magic spells he had designed based on actual combat in the dungeon.
Only late into the night did he finally put down his quill and stop writing.
Sitting upright in the chair, a skeletal frame with ghostly flames burning within it in the dark was an exceptionally chilling sight.
“Time to wash up and go to sleep.”
The next day, knock, knock, knock!
“Got a wish?! If not, we're sparring again!”
The skeleton was toyed with for another entire morning.
However, with his swordsmanship combined with his newly modified spells, he managed to make Ilu sweat slightly. With her cheeks lightly flushed and a few strands of purple hair clinging to her forehead, she possessed a unique and charming allure.
It seemed he had succeeded in warming her up and exciting her slightly.
But on the very next day, she adapted to his modified magic, easily toying with the skeleton once more.
That afternoon, Li Xiuman finished Elements of Elemental Magic Circles. After all, the book didn't have much content.
He had only finished reading it through; he was still far from completely mastering it.
Putting down Elements of Elemental Magic Circles, he opened the other book, The Art of Burst Magic.
This magic book mainly introduced spells with explosive properties, along with the fundamental theory of Burst Magic.
Between the lines, one could clearly sense the author's deep passion and love for Burst Magic.
Li Xiuman studied it meticulously, taking out draft paper to draw magic circles.
He wanted to use his current knowledge combined with Burst Magic to create a new type of spell.
To simulate the effect of gunpowder—this was not difficult.
In the end, he created a new spell.
“Tier 1 Magic, Explosion.”
He tried casting it once, and the effect was quite impressive.
Next, Li Xiuman extended his right arm and activated [Bone Manipulation Lv2] and [Bone Hyperplasia Lv1].
The bone began to twist and grow, slowly elongating into a slender bone barrel.
[Bone Hyperplasia] formed a cone-shaped bone bullet inside the barrel.
Then, a crimson magic circle expanded at the base of the bone barrel.
“Detonate!”
With a loud hum, an explosion detonated inside the bone barrel!
His entire body shook violently as the bone bullet shot out of the barrel like a real bullet.
However, the accuracy was terrible.
He pondered for a moment, then made the inner wall of the bone barrel grow further, carving out rifling.
A Wind Magic circle also opened at the base of the bone barrel.
The accuracy improved significantly, but it still fell short of Li Xiuman's expectations.
He readjusted the length, rifling, and seal, experimenting continuously.
At the same time, to enable rapid fire, he grew a revolving cylinder-shaped chamber at the breech of the bone barrel.
To achieve concentrated suppressive fire, he created several more bone barrels.
Finally, he looked at his left arm.
“Holy shit, a Gatling gun!”
[Ding, proficiency has reached the requirement. Magic Analysis Lv1 has upgraded to Magic Analysis Lv2.]
The flow of mana became much clearer.
The magical knowledge he had memorized over the past few days welled up from his mind, carving itself deep into his soul, thoroughly becoming his own.
Like an Elementalist who had spent decades immersed in Elemental Magic, he could command this knowledge as easily as his own limbs.
A fierce thirst for knowledge surged within his heart, making him want to quickly acquire new information to cover his shortcomings.
Opening The Art of Burst Magic, which he hadn't finished yet, he couldn't stop himself from diving right in, greedily absorbing the information.
His memory had also improved significantly, bordering on photographic.
Even after finishing the entire book, his hunger remained unappeased. He opened Elements of Elemental Magic Circles, which he had already read once, and went through it from cover to cover again. Only then did he feel slightly satisfied.
By this point, the horizon was already beginning to pale with the first light of dawn.
He had about two hours left before Ilu came to toy with him again.
He wasted no time in lying down to sleep, restoring his exhausted Spirit.
“...”
“Knock, knock, knock.”
The knocking woke the skeleton from his slumber. Forcing himself to summon some energy, he pulled open the door.
“If you have a wish, speak up; if you don't...”
“You look a bit drained today.”
He didn't understand how she could tell he was drained through his cloak.
Was this the intuition of a powerhouse?
“I stayed up late last night.”
“What were you doing up in the middle of the night instead of sleeping?”
“...Studying.”
“Do you need to rest then?”
“No, let's practice!”
Making excuses was the first step toward laziness.
To truly master a skill, persistent dedication was absolutely essential.
Li Xiuman raised his bone sword and charged at Ilu.
And then, he was toyed with for the rest of the morning.
Rate on N.U.
