Chapter 13

Next Day.

Ingrassia's grand library.

As a wise man once said. 'The power of money and connections can get you anywhere'—not a direct quote, quoted by someone, but undeniably true in both the modern and medieval worlds.

The grand library sprawled before him, resembling more of a modern-day library than a medieval one, with women and children bustling about like maggots.

"Library, what's your verdict?" Igarashi inquired of his non-sentient unique skill, scanning the rows of shelves to decide where to begin his search.

[Processing…]

[The library functions are ready.]

'Good.' A grin crossed Igarashi's face as he headed for shelves of books before him.

Unlike before where he had to spend days or weeks, this time, all he has to do is flip the pages.

The contents are already being recorded by the library. And their contents will directly be sent to his brain, via the library— (warning, incoming brain rot, not lobotomy, but brain rot for him, for reals).

'I really have to thank Yuuki for the pass.' While he was supposed to accompany Shizu, he suddenly had a change of plans.

Rather than bothering later, he could come here first and get what he has to get done.

Then, for the rest of their stay, he could accompany—no, that's not it.

For the rest of their stay, both could have as much time to themselves. 'After wrapping up here, I should head over to the adventurer's guild.'

[Your current understanding of the world has increased.]

[Your current understanding on this world's magic system has increased.]

'Ugh.' Igarashi winced slightly, as he found a nearby seat, taking some seconds to pause.

While allowing the library to do the work of sending the information directly to his brain.

He doesn't have enough processing capabilities to comprehend them all at once, even with parallel processing. However, thanks to that—

[Your current understanding on this world's magic system has increased.]

'I'm starting to understand.' His comprehension of magic continues to grow. 'Why didn't I think about it before! I was following the rules of this world, but I forgot one fundamental thing.'

[Your current understanding of this world's magic system has increased.]

'Magic depends on the user itself.'

'In essence, magic can be likened to science! Its concept is simple, yet incredibly difficult to grasp.'

[Your current understanding of this world's magic system has increased.]

'There was no need to strictly adhere to this world's rules, as my little understanding of combustion was what enabled me to wield fire magic in the first place.'

[Your current understanding on this world's magic system has increased.]

'Because of the other information I received, I got it mixed up. In essence, simply visualizing it is enough, but if that doesn't work, additional understanding is necessary.'

[Your current understanding of this world's magic system has increased.]

'Moreover, most inhabitants of this world are clueless about what science is, so they lack existing knowledge.'

'They have to figure it out themselves, which is why no matter how much research one conducts, they must understand how the phenomena work before they can effectively utilize it!'

[Your current understanding on this world's magic system has increased.]

[Acquired Extra Skill: [All of creation].]

—[All of Creation]:

[An extra skill that allows the user to comprehend anything as long as they have basic understanding of it and it is perceivable to the user.]

Igarashi panted lightly, feeling the strain of his increased mental processing power. His nose was slightly bleeding from the intensity of overusing his brain power.

By recalling all previous memories stored under the [Archives: Science] and comparing them with how [Magic] works in this world, Igarashi reached his own conclusion: "They weren't different."

At its core, the principles may not be fundamentally distinct, or they might be more intricately connected than initially thought.

However, Igarashi's personal understanding was the key to unlocking the effectiveness of his magic.

[Extra Skill: [All of creation] has been integrated with Unique Skill [Librarian].]

[Your understanding on certain subjects will increase.]

[Your understanding of science has increased.]

[Your understanding of everything around you have increased.]

[You now require basic understanding.]

Igarashi rested his head on the desk, his mind buzzing with a clamor akin to bells ringing in his ears. 'Give me a break.' He was processing an overwhelming amount of information, particularly from his previous world.

'Uh. I'm tired, I'm hungry…' Despite not even two hours passing since his arrival, he was already feeling the strain.

He had breakfast before coming here, but with thought acceleration and parallel processing...

...What seemed like a short span was actually much longer for him.

Thought acceleration amplified his cognitive speed manifold, while parallel processing allowed him to simultaneously analyze his knowledge of this world's magic and the science from his previous knowledge of science.

Consider this: just as certain substances can alter the colors of flames, making them appear magical.

To the ignorant, it might be magic, but to the knowledgeable ones, they would have a general idea, something was applied, they might even know what was applied.

And the same is true with magic.

'That being said, I can't simply create various types of magic at will, yet.' Igarashi pondered, rising from his seat.

'My original reason for coming here was resolved sooner than expected. I'll use the rest of my time to enjoy this place.' Despite feeling a bit unsteady, Igarashi made his way to the counter to check out.

His unsteady gait drew curious stares from the librarian and others in the library...

Little did they know… His brain had been deep fried, by him trying to understand the true essence of rct—Ahem, magic. Yes magic!

Exiting the grand library, Igarashi found himself swaying, relying on buildings for support as he made his way across the streets. 'Feels like I could pass out at any moment.'

'Have I sustained brain damage like this?'

'If so, I might actually be cooked.'

Lost in thought, Igarashi felt a tap on his back, followed by someone supporting him and a sweet scent filling his senses. Tilting his head back slightly, he offered her a wry yet embarrassed smile. "Ah…"

"Your nose… it's bleeding." Shizu's voice held a soft sigh as she calmly observed, before continuing...

"...Though this is not what I was expecting. What happened to you?" Her tone was stiff, with a somewhat different tone than the usual.

But Igarashi didn't even have the processing power to process it.

"I fried my brain… probably… possibly." Igarashi didn't have an excuse for himself, nor could he even think of coming up with one, he had no choice.

"Haah, is that so?"

"I'm sorry, didn't think it would result to this."