Chapter 52 - How to Use Stone Walls
“Woof!”
“Good, good! I’m going to make food, so just wait a little.”
After all that, the Ancient Ruins were only briefly discussed before I was released.
Perhaps Bell-buchou thought there was too much spoilers, so she only mentioned that there was a door in the back of the cave that only players could open.
After that, Bell-buchou heard Miki was main-tanking in the Kingdom and, well, ‘scouted’ her to play together in IRO. It’s unclear if she’ll become a fixed party member, but they seemed to hit it off surprisingly well, so I’m glad they can enjoy it.
“Ah, sorry about my weird little sister.”
No, not at all. I’m an only child, so I’m a little envious.
“Oh, really?”
Shou-kun always cooks for you, right?
“Yep, that’s right. Today it’s beef stew.”
I’m envious...
Chatting like that, I began to dismantle the tent.
I decided to move our base into the cave, which has a Safe Zone.
For the time being, digging for ore and Blacksmithing were added to my tasks, and hunting is still mainly in the Dense Forest.
I planned to rebuild the makeshift hearths and stone kilns I’d made so far. My skill levels have risen since then, so they should turn out a bit better.
“Alright, let’s move. Lupi, let’s go!”
“Woof!”
I put only the bare essentials into my inventory and left the rest as is.
Well, if the mess bothers me, I’ll just get rid of it later.
It’d be nice to have a path from the cave’s plaza to the Sandy Beach.
“Ah, yeah, that’s true. It’s annoying to push through all the vegetation every time, so once I can make an axe, I’ll clear out at least a small path.”
After that, I thought about the order of things to Blacksmith, starting with a pickaxe.
I had the club that the Goblin Leader dropped, so I should be able to make one if I can craft the pickaxe head.
Next would probably be an axe. It’s essential for cutting wood, according to the Woodcutting skill I researched on the first day, and there’s an axe combat skill, which works out well.
“First, I’ll just dump the luggage inside the cave. Lupi, you can go play wherever you like. Oh, but be careful of Saloon Lizards.”
“Woof.”
Lupi scampered off into the Dense Forest with a look that said, Don’t worry, I’ll be fine. She’s probably stronger than those lizards by now.
The cave wasn’t completely dark anymore, perhaps because the door connected to the Ancient Ruins was left open. My eyes adjusted after a moment.
I’m looking forward to seeing how the Luminous Moss is doing.
“I wonder. It probably hasn’t taken root that quickly... Oh, it seems like it has.”
Before logging out for dinner and IRO, I had tried transplanting some Luminous Moss onto a stone near the Ancient Ruins entrance.
It hadn’t glowed when I transplanted it, and I thought it would take some time, but...
Perhaps watering it helped?
“Maybe. Oh, this is... no.”
I found a skill called Botany in the skill list, but it was currently unavailable to acquire.
You can’t acquire it?
“No. It seems all academic skills are unavailable. There must be some conditions, but for now, moving is the priority.”
So, I took out the luggage I brought and stacked it in one place. Next, I set up a sleeping area near the Safe Zone.
“This should be fine here.”
I used the long driftwood from the tent to make something like a makeshift raft. I had no nails, so I could only tie them with the vines used for traps.
I intended to lay grass on top of this as a mattress, but first, I needed to adjust its position.
“It’s unstable. Well, it can’t be helped since both the ground and this are wobbly.”
Maybe use stones to even out the height?
“That’s the only way... Ah!”
I took out the Grimoire, a spoil from the Goblin Magician, from my inventory.
[Grimoire (Beginner)]
*An elementary Grimoire for Elemental Magic.
Elemental Magic:
Among them,
Creates a stone wall of any desired size.
Alright, alright.
“
A small stone wall, like a block or a brick, formed, exactly as I’d imagined.
Is that magic?
“Yeah. It’s like I made a small version of the Stone Wall magic.”
I gave it a light kick, and it didn’t seem to be stuck to the rock below. However, since it fit snugly against the rock face, it seemed designed to stand properly as a stone wall.
...I don’t think you need that frame you built anymore.
“Right?!”
Perhaps because of its small size, the MP consumption was low. If I line these up, it might become a bed. Though, I also feel like it would be so hard my back would ache terribly.
“No, wait. Do these stone walls disappear over time?”
In RPGs where the field and combat are separate, Earth Walls or Stone Walls created during combat usually disappear after the battle.
If it’s Elemental Magic, someone must have used it. Shall I go look it up?
“Ah, yeah, please.”
Yes!
Mion seemed to have gone to investigate, so I reconfirmed how much MP I had used just now. 10%? No, less than 5%, perhaps.
MP naturally recovers 1 point per minute. The amount I used would recover in a few minutes, but...
Shou-kun, I found it. It seems they remain permanently.
“Huh, seriously?”
Yes. Um, I’ll read out the Strategy Wiki page for Stone Walls.
According to the Strategy Wiki Mion found, it said something like this:
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Elemental Magic. MP consumption: 1 to Unknown.
Listed in the [Grimoire (Beginner)] sold at the Mage Guild.
A magic that creates a stone wall of any desired size.
The default size is approximately character height for height, twice character shoulder width for width, and character thickness for depth. It remains permanently and does not disappear over time.
MP consumption depends on the size created; creating a wall of default size consumes over 100 MP. For comparison, an Earth Wall of the same size consumes about 25 MP.
Its selling point is its hardness, as expected of a stone wall, but it’s almost impossible to move once placed due to its weight, so it is rarely used as a wall.
For purposes like disrupting enemy footing, an Earth Wall is sufficient. Earth Walls also consume less MP, so they should be used instead.
Note: If you try to cast a Stone Wall in a city, guards will come and tell you to remove it. If you cannot remove it yourself, you will need to hire NPC laborers. > Majo Bell’s Stone Wall Incident
The Merchant Guild’s delivery quests ‘Brick Delivery’ and ‘Stone Pavement Material Delivery’ can also be completed by delivering Stone Walls of the specified size.
These are not permanent quests, so it’s a good idea to check when you visit the Merchant Guild.
Related: Earth Wall, Majo Bell’s Stone Wall Incident, Delivery Quests
――――
“The Majo Bell’s Stone Wall Incident really has me curious...”
Apparently, the club president was the one who tried it in the city.
What is Bell-buchou even doing...?