Trapped in Another World With No Magic

Daniel walks with the mana detector, listening to the sound produced by a simple acoustic crystal, which produces sound when exposed to “clean” or “refined” mana. Ambient magical energy or “raw” mana has a different wavelength or other attribute that doesn’t trigger most magical crystals. However, the setup of a ‘gathering’ mechanism, which then applies the gathered ambient mana to a series of crystals tied to small radiation windows works to create a visual readout by the number of crystals that begin to glow, as well as the volume and frequency of the sound produced by the acoustic crystal.

Ahok watches from a distance, rather proud of herself, but keeping away from Daniel simply because she’s still instinctively fearful of men after what happened to her.

Daniel walks around the town around the Citadel, which means there is a default higher mana around them. Accounting for this, Ahok added a function that manages to separate out clean mana from raw mana, lighting up the left side of the display when clean mana is present, and the right side for raw mana.

Daniel approaches Geirahoel while pointing the device at her, and she recoils a little, like it’s going to fire something at her, since the sound is getting more intense as the left side glows brightly, with minimal change to the right side.

Daniel hums, “Hmm…” and leaves it at that.

“What?” asks Geirahoel.

Daniel pretends to ignore her, turning away, and almost immediately continuing. The orange dragon immediately follows him, snapping, “WHAT, MUKORI!?”

He turns to her again, and it starts making noise. He replies, “It says you’re too sexy for a measurement.”

The others laugh as she blushes, lost for words as he casually continues on his way. “It’s looking good, Ahok. I’m seeing small changes depending on what’s blocking it, and the filter for clean and raw mana seems to be working.”

“I did my best,” replies the half-goblin magic artisan. “There aren’t any large sources of raw mana in the area, so you’ll have to tell me if it’s not working at all when you go to Mattarglos.” She adds with a hand gesture, even though it’d be easier to demonstrate. “The control knob opens an iris like you said, but I was able to make it work with just one. Each crystal will obviously be scaled down, but in proportion to each other.”

“Perfect,” replies Daniel. “That was the ultimate goal anyways.” She smiles brightly, and he adds, “Great work, Lady Ahok.”

“Thank you, Daniel.”

Ryuogriar, having noticed Neith approaching, clears her throat. “Now then, Mukori, if you are done trying to seduce Lady Ahok, it seems Neith is ready to make his report.”

Daniel smirks at her, but he faces the grey dragon, who approaches and kneels. “Brother, I have returned and finished aiding with triage.”

“How are you?” Daniel looks at the pale grey vein-like patterns on Neith’s jaw near his mouth. He also looks like he has heavy bruising around his eyes, and his hands are being protected by heavy mittens.

“I shall recover, my Liege. Magic healing can only restore so much when dealing with necromancy.”

“Then you should have continued recovering, Onii-chan,” retorts Geirahoel a little sharply. “Rather than presenting yourself in such a state as to worry Mukori.”

“I… understand,” starts Neith, clearly hesitating. He finishes with, “I’ll continue to rest after making my report, Sister.”

“S-Sister!?” snaps the young dragon Empress as the others express surprise. “Wh-Wh-Who gave you permission to call me ‘Sister’!?” She looms over him, angry and embarrassed, but not ready to attack yet.

Suddenly surprised as well, Neith recoils and replies, “I… but, O-...”

Daniel cuts him off, “Before all that, I need to hear the report.”

“But Mukoriii…!” whines the redhead. He distracts her by brushing her cheek gently with his knuckle, saying gently, “Please, Mukori?”

She blushes, glancing around, and finally relenting.

“Fine! Make your stupid report, Onii-chan!”

Neith glances at Daniel, who locks eyes with him. The grey dragon lets it go as well. “As you wish.”

“And please, stand up. That must be uncomfortable.”

Daniel passes the magic device to Bellphine, who takes it to Ahok, who is still standing a few yards away. “I’ll take this to the shuttle for your departure, Daniel,” states Ahok as she leaves the area, and he nods as Neith begins.

“Grendel Six was attacked by something in the woods after eliminating a fairly young drake, from what they described. The unknown attacker was some kind of creature I’m unfamiliar with. Its body was formed of wood, like a treant or dryad’s summon, but I’ve never seen either of those so large and capable of the types of magic we witnessed.”

Gold asks, “Was it a shapeshifter in disguise?”

“I don’t think so, my Lady. It could shift the form of its branches, but it seemed to be in its natural form.”

“And dragon fire didn’t kill it?” asks Ryuogriar.

“No, your Grace. I ensured to incinerate it at full power, and it appeared ahead of the tank.”

“A different one?” asks Daniel.

Neith scoffs, quickly replying, “Apologies your Grace. I certainly hope there’s only one, but it felt like the same one. No difference in appearance from the first time I saw it, similar mana aura, and it didn’t start with any attacks it had tried upon encountering it again.”

Reignleif explains for Daniel’s sake, “Dryads can use magic unique to them to travel through the links between trees in a forest.”

The mechanic nods in understanding. “Do you think the necrotic magic killed it?”

“Apologies, my Liege. I don’t know for sure. To my knowledge, the rest of our trip through the forest was uneventful, though I was in and out of it.”

“I understand. Thank you for aiding Grendel Six. Shek and Skloe are interviewing the survivors and providing housing for them. Grendel Six are resting and recovering.”

“Good to hear, my Liege. If there is anything else I can do…”

“Go rest, Onii-chan,” retorts Geirahoel sternly. “Otherwise, Mukori will be worrying about you, and it’ll cause problems.”

Daniel laughs softly, dipping his head in agreement.

Neith bows politely, and Ryuogriar says, “We’ll look into the identity of the creature when we can consult Doephluev and Senn, who have greater knowledge of monsters, it seems.”

“I’ll give any information I can, your Grace. If you’ll excuse me, I’ll take my leave.”

“Go ahead.”

With that, Neith returns to his quarters to rest, and Bellphine reports, “Y-Y-Your G-Gr-G-Grace, M-Message.”

Daniel looks at her, and she presents a message received from another servant while Neith was giving his quick report. The message is from Hekate, and he takes it from the young Dawnseer. “Thank you.”

She smiles and nods.

Daniel notices that the letter isn’t sealed. He hasn’t stressed it with Hekate, so it’s very possible that she didn’t seal it. There are no obvious signs of wax on the flap side or body of the envelope, but this is a world of mages. He may know very little about magic, but he’s also open enough to accept that just about anything is possible.

I’ll need to check with Hekate when I get a chance.

He reads the letter, and it’s roughly what he expected.

“[Dear Daniel,

Your wife Empress wife Empress needs you back here as soon as you can. It’s not especially super urgent, but we need to talk about Wenlianna and her Great Grandmother. It’s my fault, even though she says it’s not, but I should have thought about it, since it’s really important. But, just come back soon please.

Also, if you’re wondering why I sent a letter instead of using the radio, I thought this might be a better way to tell you to come back. It’s kind of romantic, right? But, you have to reply right away.

We’re looking into Mother’s attack, but we haven’t found anything helpful yet. I’m sorry. I will explain better when you come back, so please hurry. But don’t rush if you’re still working! But, if you’re just messing around with those temptresses, tell them to stop being butts and bring you back. They’re not the only ones who should be allowed to see you every day.

Love,

Your beloved and favorite wife,

Hekate]”.

Daniel scoffs lightly at the letter, and Ryuogriar remarks, “Mother? But, I’m right here.”

Daniel checks those around him. The area he’s in is mostly clear, so he whispers quietly, “I think she means Aramellianna. She’s being cautious.”

Thank goodness. Then, would that mean someone did open the letter? If so, did they really think I wouldn’t notice?

Daniel ponders the implications of the letter being unsealed. It would be an amateur move for a spy to remove the seal entirely and expect Daniel to not check with Hekate.

The other possibility is that because Daniel doesn’t know who he’s looking for, it’s a warning that they know he’s looking for them. Given that the dragon eggs are nearing hatching, it’s the most vulnerable everyone is going to be with a major distraction.

Daniel doesn’t want it to be a secret. He wants the dragons to enjoy the hatching of their eggs. If there is an enemy within his inner circle, it’s going to be tricky to protect the hatchings while also hiding the fact that he suspects one of his closest allies.

Wait! Maybe… Imprinting? Would everyone buy that?

Daniel does his best to not be suspicious. “Alright, Mukoris, I’d like you to join me in my room in a little while. I have to prepare for a meeting with Rikuto before we return to Mattarglos.”

All four of the dragon women, including Gold, grin at Daniel, and Geirahoel says sternly, “You have fifteen minutes, Mukori.”

“Fifteen seems like far too much,” replies Ryuogriar.

Reignleif simply holds his arm, as if to be escorted by him. “I will ensure he is not late.”

Both Geirahoel and Ryuogriar recoil as they stare at the middle Empress with shocked expressions.

“Fifteen minutes,” reaffirms Daniel. “If you would, I would appreciate some snacks.”

This snaps the eldest and youngest Empresses out of their stupor, and they glance at him, and then each other. Ryuogriar replies, “Very well, Mukori. Sister, do not allow him to be one minute late, or we will be coming to find you.”

“Of course, Sisters.”

With that, Daniel and Reignleif excuse themselves to head to the hangar, where Daniel speaks with the workers there. He asks them to order, catalog, and load armaments, exchange items, and a few bottles of wine and rum. Daniel has demon-kin from the Fievegal, especially the dattakoriens, who are searching the areas around the Fievegal to try to find every edible plant possible. He was hoping to be able to find some unique crops to trade with Mornistae to try to de-escalate, even if he would prefer to simply conquer the territory and depose Rikuto in retaliation for Fort Twilight.

But, Daniel knows that revenge won’t bring back his fallen soldiers, especially the ones who had nothing remaining after the void artillery. What it will cause is more bloodshed if the war continues. He doesn’t have to concede, but he needs to be ready to negotiate.

Naturally, that means he will be preparing as many sticks as he is carrots, so there will be the reinforcements for the invasion troops on standby to attack, armed with both the ‘Iron Drakes’ and the ‘Iron Buckrokhs’, as the soldiers have been calling the heavy and medium tanks Daniel had built. The manufacturing teams have been working around the clock with great zeal in order to ensure the Fievegal can stand on any battlefield victorious, and Daniel has a responsibility to protect their pride and honor.

Of course, at about the ten minute mark, Reignleif simply drags him away from the hangar by the arm. Daniel doesn’t object, since he did agree to ‘fifteen minutes’, and he can’t be late.

He should, however, have anticipated what his intended serious meeting with three of his beloved Empresses was going to look like.

When he enters “his” private quarters, he is met with a pleasant smell of freshly baked treats, including various cookies and other confections that were likely stored in void bags shortly after being made, since there wasn’t enough time for them to have been made fresh.

More important than that are two beautiful women waiting on his bed in nothing more than their aprons as they grin at him.

Daniel’s fate is sealed when he hears the door lock behind him.

“I’m so glad you invited us, Mukori,” states Ryuogriar seductively as she gingerly circles her finger around a plate with brownies stacked on it. Her other hand slides across her collar gently to split Daniel’s attention in the middle, while Geirahoel adds a little haughtily, “You’re late. You shouldn’t have even made us wait one minute, let alone fifteen.”

Daniel sighs with a warm smile.

He’d be a fool to believe for a second they wouldn’t take advantage of his invite being as ambiguous as it was.

“Before we get to that, I have one serious question for the three of you, and I didn’t want to chance asking it around anyone else, except maybe Gold, since she would be affected as well.”

All three dragons turn their attention more seriously to him, which reassures him. Even if they corner him and play games with him, they still respect him when he has something important to discuss.

“What is it, Mukori?” asks Reignleif gently.

“With the eggs nearing hatching, I was wondering, do dragon children imprint on the first being they see?”

All three dragons cock their heads curiously. “Imprinting?” asks Ryuogriar, unafraid of looking unsure in front of Daniel.

The mechanic nods. “On earth, there was a concept we called filial imprinting, where hatchlings of various species of egg-bearers, and probably others I’m not familiar with, would become attached to the first things they see, usually their parents, and learn their native behaviors from the object of their imprinting. As such, it’s important for that object to be their parents so they grow up properly.”

“Is that not the same as human children, then?” asks Reignleif pointedly.

“I think it’s a little different for humans, though I wasn’t a parent on Earth, so I’m not sure. I think it’s more complex for human infants, though, since humans are helpless for a fairly long time after birth, and imprint on their parents, but can fairly quickly develop bonds with others as well.”

“Are you implying that dragons are simpler than humans?” asks Geirahoel with narrowed eyes.

“Not at all,” replies Daniel sincerely. “But, if I wanted an excuse to keep everyone else away from the eggs while they’re hatching,...”

All three dragons widen their eyes close to the same time, and he can feel Reignleif’s grip on his arm tighten a little.

“Y-You don’t want anyone else present?” asks Reignleif softly.

He cups her cheek, replying softly and genuinely, “I want to show them off to the whole world. But, there is an enemy among us. I believe someone opened Hekate’s letter and made it obvious in order to threaten me. They know I’m looking, and they know I have no idea who they are.”

“So… if we claim that dragon children need to hatch in isolation with their parents,...”

“Our focus will be on the children. It would be easy to launch a surprise attack,” murmurs Geirahoel, having figured out what Daniel is afraid of.

The Emperor nods in agreement.

“That doesn’t mean we can’t do what we did for the audience with Sundenelle,” replies Reignleif.

Daniel looks at her, and she explains, “After all, if we’re so distracted, but aren’t in the same room,...”

Daniel thinks, realizing quickly what she’s getting at. “Lure them out… That is preferable to just trying to dance around them… Will they really fall for it, though?”

“One way to find out,” answers Ryuogriar warmly. She approaches Daniel and cups his cheeks with her hands as Geirahoel joins her and Reignleif in crowding Daniel. “Now, we have to return to the rest of our family, soon, yes? Come, Mukori. Allow us to take your mind off of all things that are not the three of us.”

The mechanic relaxes and lets his Dragon Empresses take charge and drag him further into his room.

She’s right, but he certainly won’t be getting any R&R for the rest of the night.

***

“Piwo…” The otherworldly mantra continues.

Zuzia continues her hike, navigating with her map. After the last town, she was too afraid of being captured, so she trekked for a few days towards the next small city. She could have probably run the whole way with her fantasy boosts and made it inside of a single day, especially since the days of this world are 29 hours long. It threw her off at first, but she adjusted pretty quickly, and thankfully, Amalaskae seems to have adjusted her phone’s clock to reflect Zenkon’s time.

While it’s fascinating that she’s in a fantasy-type world, she also has to be cautious. She’s not the only one with special abilities, even if she’s not regarding the other two heroes. Just because Amalaskae gifted her a great deal of magical strength and abilities, she’s not invincible.

“Piwo…” groans the Polish woman, still craving one of her favorite leisure-time drinks; a nice, flavorful beer. If she had known she would have to go through chaos right upon her arrival, she would have packed a couple of drinks into her camping gear… Though, she was in the middle of a camping trip when she was pulled into the Divine Realm to be spoken to by Amalaskae.

She finally decides to ask, though she can’t imagine the angel who summoned her is just sitting around waiting for her to do something. “Amalaskae? Can you talk for a minute?”

“Yes,” declares the angel’s voice as she suddenly appears from around a tree just behind Zuzia.

The amber-brunette yelps as she leaps backwards. “Gah! Yeesh!” Once it registers and she can recompose herself a little, she snaps, “Amalaskae! What was that!?”

The timid angel shrinks a little under the scolding, and she murmurs in a mouse-like tone, “I-I… I was just answering you.”

“Ughhhhh…” groans the Polish woman as the guilt trip successfully works, hanging her head back as she slumps her shoulders. “Yes, thank you, but… can you really come talk to me in person every time I ask or need information?”

The angel cocks her head in a very human way. Her bi-color orange and much lighter pink hair hangs cutely in the light. Her expression seems to indicate she never gave it a thought, and Zuzia realizes once more who she is dealing with.

Amalaskae asks innocently, “How else would I talk to you?”

“I don’t know. Maybe like, some sort of magic status window or something. I’d figure you’d even have your own subordinates or something to ‘handle’ me.”

“Why would I reply to you in a chat window in the third person like some sort of celestial paypiggie? That would be insanely impersonal. You’re my treasured first and favorite heroine, Zuzia. So, of course I’ll dedicate everything I can to help you. Th-Though, I might get in trouble if I do it too much…”

“Oh… I…” Zuzia can’t help but blush a little. It’s kind of touching that Amalaskae feels that way. Her grandpa often complained about the rise of cellphones and the internet because people talk to each other less meaningfully. He said it felt empty and lifeless, so he rarely used any of those things, and instead liked to go on trips with Zuzia, and they’d visit towns and villages, meeting random people who could guide them to some of the most beautiful places in the world. “I guess that’s true… I’d feel a little lonely if a message window popped up and said ‘The Summoning Angel is interested in the transmigrator’s desire for beer,’ or something like that.”

The sunrise-haired angel giggles playfully, replying, “Right? And, it’d make me not be a meaningful character for the readers.”

“What?”

“Hmm? I mean if this was a story.”

“It’s… not, is it?” asks the newly concerned Polish woman.

“What? No, no! Um, I just meant that as a joke. Please don’t be worried.” The angel is flailing her hands in a small panic, which is kind of cute.

Zuzia laughs a little, feeling a bit relieved of her frustrations now. “Alright. I’ll let you off the hook for now. But, if this is some sort of fiction written by some rando, I’m gonna be extremely upset.”

Amalaskae simply smiles with her hands interlocked in front of her thighs.

However, the conversation just now causes Zuzia to perk up as she has an idea. “Oh, though, you did say you could get in trouble interacting with me directly, right?”

“I’m supposed to let you act freely, so… It’s frowned upon for me to interact directly with you too much. But, since you’re alone right now, it’d be irresponsible if I were to neglect you. S-So, I think I’ll be forgiven.”

“I see… Then, would we be able to talk on the phone if I just have a quick question?”

Amalaskae cocks her head cutely again, and then she ponders it with her hand on her chin. She leans to the side as if to lounge against the tree, but her shoulder touching the tree immediately causes a calamitous CRACK-KUR-KUR-KUR! that startles Zuzia and throws the angel off balance. Splinters spray in every direction as the rather impressive tree begins to lean, broken just a handful of centimeters below where the celestial’s shoulder made contact.

The young woman reacts somewhat instinctively, rather than really processing the scenario. She lunges a step closer, gripping Amalaskae’s arm and leaping backwards with her, yanking the angel away from the toppling tree as the faint redhead cries out in surprise.

The tree crashes through the branches and limbs of the other trees around it, slamming into the ground with a deep rumble.

What Zuzia didn’t think through is the fact that, if Amalaskae was actually in danger of harm, being an angel that can give out a great deal of magical power to humans, then Zuzia yanking her with that gifted super-strength would have likely ripped her arm out of its socket.

They both stare at the tree, though, and Amalaskae shrinks in disappointment at herself. “S-Sorry…”

“It’s fine.” Zuzia sighs. “I’ve never personally subscribed to the idea that every little challenge is God testing me, but… I suppose I’m not meant to fully understand the wisdom behind your… um… quirks.”

“I… I’m the same…” murmurs the angel distantly.

“Sorry…”

Amalaskae smiles at Zuzia, replying sincerely, “You don’t need to be, Zuzia. It’s my own clumsiness. Um, I think the phones idea will be fine.” The angel gestures with her right hand, and a cellphone nearly identical to Zuzia’s appears, and she taps on it. “Um, c-can… I have your number?”

This surprises Zuzia. “Number? Does my phone even work like that here?”

Amalaskae blushes cutely, and the Polish woman nearly chokes on her own saliva with how suddenly adorable the angel looks. “I… just always wanted to try it.”

“Uh… Right…”

Zuzia pulls up her phone’s number and shows it to Amalaskae, who promptly types it into her phone and hits the call button. Sure enough, Zuzia’s phone rings, and she watches Amalaskae’s face as she answers. “Słucham? [Hello?]”

The angel’s face lights up, and she greets Zuzia in turn. “Zuzia! It’s me! I’m so glad!”

The light-brunette laughs softly. “Me too. So,... this will work, even when you go back to wherever it is you go?”

“Yes! You can call me or message me anytime!” She leans close, saying a little deviously, “We can call this ‘praying’.”

Zuzia can’t help but smirk at her silly guardian angel. “You’re going to get yourself scolded, aren’t you?”

Amalaskae fidgets as she looks away. “W-Well… Until then, I want to be useful to you.” She perks up. “Actually! How about this!? I’ll act as storage for you! You can send me your gear through your phone, and I’ll send it to you when you want it.”

“What if I get separated from my phone?” asks Zuzia.

Amalaskae glances around like she might be being watched, and she snaps her fingers. A light glows from her fingers, matching a sudden glow coming from Zuzia’s phone. She then takes the Polishwoman’s phone, and before Zuzia can object, the celestial woman throws it as hard as she can, which causes a sonic boom. The angel flinches, startling herself from the boom caused by her own strength. Zuzia cries out too late, “Wait! No!” She watches as a tiny glint signifies her phone disappearing into the sky like some sort of anime, and she flops to her knees on the ground. “Y-You…!? Why!?”

“Ah-ah!” replies the angel nervously as she holds her hands up. “Check your pocket.”

Zuzia watches her for a moment, and then she skeptically checks the pocket of her shorts where she normally keeps her phone. She flinches in surprise, withdrawing her phone. She looks it over, but it doesn’t have any signs of damage, and it is still working fine.

“Daniel has a sword that does that,” replies Amalaskae sheepishly. “I don’t know where it came from, and Ryukana wasn’t sure either, but I thought it would be a good idea. You’re the only one who can use your phone, and every time it regenerates, it’ll be back to the way it was before, even if it breaks. But, if you want to hide it, you can open this app, and set a password, which will hide and summon it with me using the password. You can also just tap the app and throw it, and your phone will disappear in case it’s an emergency. That way, you don’t have to worry about anything!”

Zuzia is powerless to resist the angel’s energy. Even if she’s a bit clumsy, she’s obviously trying hard. “Alright. You’ve sold me. So, I have one more question for you.”

“Name it!” replies Amalaskae trustingly.

“What do I have to do to get a beer?”

Amalaskae scratches her cheek as she looks away. “I… I guess I could give you something,...”

Zuzia easily recognizes the hesitation, and she didn’t mean to pressure the angel specifically. “Oh! No, I don’t mean to ask you to give it to me. I just need the nearest location for a beer. I’ll take a lager, ale, stout… anything.”

“Umm…” Amalaskae fidgets as she looks to the side.

Zuzia sighs. “Let me guess, this world hasn’t discovered beer?”

The angel nods quietly.

“No wonder they’re at war with a demon lord. I might become a demon queen myself at this rate.”

“I… There’s…”

Just as Amalaskae starts to say something, Zuzia holds her hand up quickly.

Within seconds, she hears it again; a distinct metal-on-metal strike. Zuzia is no expert, but she has watched enough movies and television to recognize the likely signs of a sword battle.

And then, a scream.

“I gotta go! Sorry! We’ll talk later!” Just as she’s about to bolt, she asks, “Wait, were you serious about storing my equipment?”

“O-Oh! Yes!” replies the surprised angel. She helps Zuzia remove her backpack, saying tenderly as she does, “You make me proud, Zuzia.”

“Thanks. I was given these gifts for a reason, right?” She hugs Amalaskae, surprising the celestial woman. “I’ll make us both proud.”

The angel with the hair of a beautiful sunset smiles and nods.

Zuzia takes off running towards the sounds of battle.

She might not be a superhero from a comic, but she is a summoned heroine for this world.

And, she doesn’t want to ignore people who need help.

***