Obtaining a Blessing
TL/ED: Lolz
[Blessing]
This is an event that occurs when certain conditions are met in artifacts, relics, places, etc., imbued with the power of elemental deities.
In the past, in Fanta X Aca, it had meaning as the only way to obtain ‘power’.
‘Power’ was the ability to accomplish tasks that were difficult for humans to comprehend, using the power of the god in charge of that element.
In Fanta X Aca, it was clearly top-tier content.
As far as known, the opportunity to receive power for a character was a once-in-a-lifetime chance, if you were lucky, twice.
Immediately after creating an account, players would go to the location where they could acquire the [Blessing] of the respective element and, if it was an unfavorable power, they would reset their account, a practice known as “Arunber reset play”.
‘There wasn’t even a known blessing location for the Earth element.’
One of the reasons why it was difficult to obtain blessings for the Earth element was because it was treated as extremely minor.
But to think that the [Earth Blessing] location was buried underground like this…
It was natural that it was not known.
‘Who would think of digging into the ground?’
Ian shook his head and approached the statue.
A small Goddess statue about the size of a forearm that faintly glowed.
It seemed to have naturally taken on that form rather than being created by someone.
Ian knelt down.
It was the motion that appeared when receiving a blessing in the game.
‘Now, what should I do?’
Since it was not a game, there were no buttons. He wasn’t given a status window either.
Should he prove his faith?
Ian pondered for a moment and closed his eyes.
He intended to interact with the abundant Earth attribute mana surrounding him. Just as he was about to channel the element.
—Shoooom
A bright and warm light emanated from the statue and filled Ian’s consciousness as he closed his eyes.
— Children who follow in my path.
A soothing voice that made one feel at ease was heard.
An intangible force gently enveloped his body.
— Hmm, you are special.
Ian felt embarrassed.
Surely, she didn’t know about the possession, right?
He swallowed his saliva.
— You are not walking a path to harm someone but to help. Your broad heart is like the Earth itself, so I will grant you an ability that suits the path you have walked.
Phew, so that was the meaning.
Ian inwardly sighed.
It seemed that being unique referred to Pongpong’s performance.
Well, in order to receive a blessing, only a very small part of a god’s power was manifested. It was an excessive worry.
…Huh?
No, wait a minute.
Then, the next thing the Earth Goddess said, “the path you have walked”. There was no way this was the path Kim Ian had walked. Until now, Pongpong had been the owner of this body.
“…….”
He suddenly felt uneasy.
— I bestow upon you my blessing. Everything you touch will become clean and new.
Why did he always have such a foreboding feeling?
Maybe instincts were a product of human evolution. Ian felt like he already knew the name of the ability the Earth Goddess was about to grant him.
— And thus, I name this ‘Dishwashing’. Dishwashing will purify your mind and spirit, making your surroundings clean and peaceful. In doing so, you may temporarily erase certain characteristics of the subject. If you work diligently, you will be able to use it effectively in various situations.
‘…The power is named Dishwashing.’
Ian was left speechless.
Without a chance to question anything, the gentle light and voice that had surrounded him vanished.
“No, wait a minute!”
He said, but there was no one to argue with.
Silently, Gaia’s statue returned to the earth as well.
“…”
Ian stared in bewilderment at the vanished traces of the Goddess.
“Dishwashing.”
That was the power Ian had acquired.
◆
Staring blankly at the pile of dirt, Ian shook his head.
“It might actually be quite useful.”
No matter how minor the power may seem, it had an absolute value compared to most skills.
Whether it has a use or not was a different question.
‘I just need to think about how to use it.’
In reality, Pongpong’s <Extraction> and <Transformation>, which were essentially high-level equipment, were being put to good use.
Ian was confident he could make good use of Dishwashing too.
“…The only problem is the name.”
In fact, just realizing that the Blessing of Mother Earth existed was a huge benefit.
Now that he knew that the Goddess Gaia’s blessings were located underground, he had the opportunity to acquire other abilities by digging around.
“I hadn’t even considered blessings at all.”
It was always welcome when the number of hidden pieces he needed to collect increased.
Phew.
He sighed and looked around.
The bright light emitted by the Goddess had disappeared, but for some reason, there were still faint glimmers of light.
“By the way, how did I get out of here?”
As he looked around like that, he heard ringing sounds and crashing noises, and even what sounded like a human voice.
What is going on?
— Kyaaaaah!
As he strained his ears, the screams in the distance grew louder.
— Hug!
And then, from the very hole Ian had fallen through, a small child fell.
Silently.
Unlike the noisy screams, it was a perfect landing.
It looked just like a cat.
Ah, it’s a cat.
“Danya?”
“…Ouch.”
Nya.
After shaking off the dirt from its body, the cat, named Danya, opened its eyes wide. Why was it looking at him as if he were a ghost?
“Ian!”
Danya rushed over. With her large pupils, she looked around here and there.
– Thump!
She delivered a punch.
It was soft.
“I was worried, you idiot!”
She stretched out her hand and thrust her face forward.
The body language of beastmen was somewhat dynamic.
It was probably a genuinely angry gesture.
Ian simply apologized.
“Sorry for making you worry.”
“I wasn’t worried!”
She said she was earlier. Do you want to be tsundere or deredere? Just one. Still, he was slightly touched. The hole he fell through was not easy to jump into unless you made a solemn vow.
“Thank you for worrying.”
“Ah, really!”
Punch, punch, punch.
Faster than the eye could see, punches rained down.
Ian focused not on Danya’s soft punches but on the dirt and dust in her hair.
And as Danya’s fist touched his chest.
‘Dishwashing.’
He tested the brand-new ability he had just acquired.
The Earth’s energy generated from his body.
It followed Danya’s hand and spread to her.
“Ah.”
It cleanly removed the dirt and dust.
Sensing something unusual, Danya brought her hand to her own hair.
“…Huh?”
Her eyes widened at the disappeared dirt and dust.
“What was that just now?”
Ian shrugged.
“Just a catching technique.”
“No, how is that a catching technique? It felt like mana appeared inside you just now.”
“You must be mistaken.”
“……”
Danya squinted suspiciously, finding it strange.
“The way you knocked down that giant rabbit earlier and the strange technique just now…”
Hmmm. After a moment of contemplation, Danya furrowed her brows in suspicion.
“…Could you be a genius who hides his strength?”
“Pfft!”
“Why are you laughing?”
Even though he didn’t know a single spell, calling himself a genius? Right now, Ian was more like someone who was improvising and using the abilities that Pongpong had awakened.
‘I need to get stronger quickly.’
Obtaining the first ability was just the beginning.
There was still training ahead and new hidden pieces to collect.
Ian looked forward to Danya’s reaction when he obtained such abilities.
“…You were indeed a genius. Otherwise, you couldn’t have changed so quickly. That means… could I be practically last place in Mezai class? No way…”
Danya was already muttering nonsense.
A smirking Ian crouched down in front of Danya.
“What are you saying? Stop the nonsense and put your foot down.”
“Nyan!”
Did she balance herself with her feet when she fell down here? There were not only dirt and dust but also numerous small scratches on her.
‘Hmm. I wonder if it works on wounds too.’
Ian was grateful to Danya, but she also seemed suitable as a test subject for the ability. Ian used Dishwashing (the ability) once again.
—Shoosh
All kinds of dirt and scratches disappeared magically. However, it couldn’t heal wounds.
‘Dirt and dust can be removed, but it seems it can’t heal injuries.’
While contemplating this, Ian unconsciously patted Danya’s foot several times. It was so small and soft, like a cat jelly.
Of course, the owner of this body couldn’t stay still.
“… Ian, do you happen to like feet?”
“…”
“P*rvert!”
He felt wrong.
He had unconsciously patted her just because she felt like a real cat jelly.
Anyway, after that, things went smoothly.
Danya roamed around, sniffing the air, and found a passage covered in dirt. They followed that path, and when they emerged from the forest, they found the carcass of the giant rabbit they had defeated earlier.
“It looks like this was its home.”
“What should we do with it?”
“I don’t think we can eat it. It feels tainted by magic.”
Danya was considering eating it right away, but Ian had his doubts.
Given its size, it could have been a good source of protein.
The problem was the strange blue mushroom shining on its head.
A bizarre energy continued to emanate from it, spreading throughout the rabbit’s body.
“Hold on.”
Ian’s eyes gleamed.
Could it be that he just needed to cleanse it with Dishwashing?
◆
< Foundations of Reconnaissance and Exploration >
Professor Rowen from the Reconnaissance Department was in a particularly good mood today.
Why, you ask?
Because the arrogant Mezai students were now hanging from the trees in the forest.
‘It’s the first time I’ve seen such a sight in my life as a professor,’ thought Professor Rowen, with a sly smile forming on his lips.
He already knew about the existence of magic-resistant rabbits. That’s why he had organized this sudden practical lesson.
‘There’s no way for the students from the Magic Department to defeat rabbits with magic resistance.’ Professor Rowen knew this from the start.
With the way things were going, not only the Mezai students but also the professors from the Magic Department would be embarrassed for a while.
“Everyone must have had a hard time hanging on to the protection spell. Rest in the shade.”
As Professor Rowen’s words came to an end, the students who had already given up on the practical exercise collapsed in unison.
‘That lady, her face is worth seeing.’
‘That middle-aged lady’s face should be interesting,’ Professor Rowen mused. He was thinking about Professor Violet from the Magic Circles Department. The fact that they had a rather antagonistic relationship was already well-known among the professors at the Lichten Academy.
Professor Rowen couldn’t help but chuckle.
‘But on the other hand, it’s a bit bitter.’
It seemed like there wasn’t a single person who had managed to hit the rabbit effectively. Perhaps they had resorted to emergency artifacts because their attack spells didn’t work?
‘They could have tried using the natural environment to their advantage.’
No matter how frustrated Professor Rowen was, he understood that as an Academy professor, these kinds of lessons were valuable experiences for the students. However, the lack of even an attempt was disappointing.
‘But they don’t even have the guts to try, tsk, tsk.’
This was precisely why Professor Rowen often found it difficult to get along with magicians. When their calculations failed, they tended to give up and rely on brute force. However, in battle, logic and calculations were not always the determining factors. Sometimes, it was the ability to adapt and think outside the box that made the difference.
Even though none of the students in the Priest Department had managed to defeat the gigantic rabbit during their practical exercise, they had shown determination and perseverance, which impressed Professor Rowen.
As Professor Rowen was inwardly pondering these thoughts and simultaneously feeling amused by the situation…
― Grumble
“…What’s this?”
The sound of something being dragged was heard from far away.
― Grumble
― Grumble
The sound is getting closer.
The sound was getting closer. After casting a simple searching spell, Professor Rowen couldn’t believe what he saw.
“Why… is that thing coming here?”
A giant rabbit was being dragged around.
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