“All right, if the situation is dire enough for you to evacuate Agripin, I will settle in Gobéliard. However, I want to help, I can’t stay here idly while you are risking your life.” Leyla announced.

Edward smiled. “Don’t worry about me. Now that I am at the predator level I doubt that many things can kill me. As for your help, it is too risky for you to accompany me. However, you can prepare more runes artifacts. Your armor is amazing, and I honestly think the chest plate you lend me before saved my life.”

Leyla’s eyes glowed with pride. “I’m glad to know that.”

Edward continued. “I want you to spread a few more runes booklets to the public. After that, well, I noticed that it is troublesome to bring things with me. I can’t carry much on myself, and there is always the risk of what I carry getting destroyed or lost during a fight. I wondered if you could manage to craft something like a ring of holding.”

“A ring of what?” Leyla asked confused.

Edward brushed his hand against his hair awkwardly. “I don’t know if it is possible. But back in my homeland, I read a lot of stories where the main character was able to carry a lot of stuff inside a ring. The ring is linked to a portable space where you can store a certain amount of stuff.”

Leyla looked taken aback. “A portable space? How do you want me to do that? I wouldn’t even know where to begin.”

Edward sighed. “It’s fine. It’s just a fantasy of mine, I guess. But since I’m used to the concept and the Damkinans are well-versed in magic I thought it would be possible.”

Leyla frowned. “Thinking back, I did see a rune used to stabilize things. It mentioned that it could stabilize spells or even space. I didn’t know what it meant by stabilizing space. But if something like portable spaces exists, it would make sense. Don’t take me wrong I still have no idea how to do that but maybe there is more information in other Damkinan’s books.”

Edward grinned. “You are right. The Damkinans did manage to travel through different dimensions after all. They should have more information about space. I will have to take a look on the way to Agripin. But this will wait, Cornelius mentioned that there is an overabundance of Harpies that I have to take care of first.”

“Be careful,” Leyla warned him.

“I will.” Edward smiled fondly. “Another thing. It’s not for me, but it could help tremendously with the city. The wind runes can generate wind. What if you put them in a closed container with a miniature windmill? I think that with the wind, the windmill would turn nonstop. You will have a continuous input of energy as long as the rune work. The ships wouldn’t need their sails anymore. You could even generate electricity but I’m not sure if this world knows the concept.”

Leyla and Edward discussed some more about this idea, with Edward having to explain how electricity could be generated through movements if you had the right materials. But he had to give up on this idea for now as it was too hard to establish a whole domain of science in a foreign world. It’s not like he could order an alternator, the natives weren’t even aware that copper could conduct electricity. Leyla would look into it but it would take time. For now, perpetual miniature windmills would do. It was basically the reproduction of a turbine without having to use fossil fuels. And the repercussions were already huge.

Edward left, letting Leyla with her head full of new ideas. If they wanted to, Edward and Leyla could become billionaires exploiting those ideas. But they both decided to push Gobéliard’s development instead. The innovations in day-to-day lives would save lives and they would help Gobéliard to fend off the ever-growing monsters.

Edward took some time to rest and to think back about his fights with Quintus and Strobilus. A lot had happened in a single day. He didn’t feel like leaving right away to hunt down the Harpies. He would have to take care quickly of this matter since he still had to leave for Agripin after that. The longer he waited, the more Agripin’s situation could deteriorate. However, there was a fine line between speed and rashness. It wouldn’t help anyone if he ended up seriously injured. The Harpies could wait for another day.

Quintus’ aura was impressive. I knew his aura manifestation would be better than mine, but I wasn’t expecting a five meters long aura blade. Still, this wasn’t his most dangerous move. Although it was impressive, I was able to easily avoid it. It just shows that I have a long way to go, my aura can become a lot more powerful than what it is right now. What was more concerning was his ability to lock me down and stop my teleportation. He wasn’t able to maintain it for long and being at the same level as him I managed to struggle for control.

But if one day a powerful monster uses such a move, I don’t know how I will be able to survive. It feels like the only way to prevail against this technique is to fight head-on. But if my opponent has a stronger aura than mine then I’m done for. Edward frown contemplatively. Until I find another way to deal with this technique, my priority should be to grow my aura.

Then there was Acanthio. He was fighting well and his lightning was particularly annoying. He was using his powers in an innovative way, I have to see if I can develop some tricks of my own with my power. Even though he didn’t have an acceleration power like Quintus, with his enhanced physique and the way he used his lightning he was able to compensate for it. Speed is important in a fight where aura can pierce any defenses not supported by the opponent’s aura. I don’t have to worry about that, this is my strong point. This is how I was able to surpass Quintus and Acanthio.

True to his words, Edward only spent a small part of the night sleeping. By now, he didn’t need that much sleep to feel refreshed. The majority of the night was spent on aura meditation. He couldn’t truly increase his aura through meditation, he needed to kill monsters for that. Only mana could be increased by simple meditation. However, that didn’t prevent him to work on his aura control.

Edward manifested his aura on his daggers, testing the speed of his manifestation. He also manifested his aura on different parts of his body, or on his whole body at once. The recent fights had made him realize any armor was fragile if not reinforced by aura. Apart from that, he tried to control his aura after it left his body. He let blobs of aura separate from his daggers, but it was hard to prevent them from dissipating, let alone control them. Quintus had thrown aura blades at him, but he hadn’t really controlled them, they only flew according to their momentum.

Satisfied with his exercises, Edward got up and headed for breakfast. He enjoyed the local food, he had soft bread with rillettes, and on the sides, he took some thin slices of salmon, the whole accompanied by poached eggs. This breakfast was a reflection of the local specialties, with the majority of the food based on seafood. Travel wasn’t as easy in this world as on Earth and the food choice was drastically reduced, especially with monsters growing more numerous everywhere. That didn’t bother Edward for now, it felt like a vacation testing, and tasting, new food.

Being satisfied, Edward got up and left the tavern, he hadn’t moved to the city hall yet. He didn’t take many things with him. Like he had told Leyla, having to carry equipment was bothersome and he risked losing it in a fight. Besides, as a predator, he didn’t need much anymore. His sleep requirement was greatly reduced, and so were his food and water needs. Having breakfast in the morning was already enough to last him a few days. He only took his armor, his daggers, and the three healing syringes that he carried inside his armor so as not to lose them. He had first bought them as security against Quintus, but he had been lucky enough to not need to use them.

Now let’s take care of those Harpies. Edward thought in a good mood. He headed to the adventurer guild. Since they are handling missions to protect farmers against monsters, and others to hunt said monsters, they should have information about the location of the Harpies. He noticed with a pang of guilt that the inhabitants were still avoiding him, keeping their distance. His position and the fact that he had killed both Quintus and Carlson in a short period of time marked him as someone dangerous rather than someone to ask for help and protection. I guess they will get used to me eventually. It will take time though.

Once he reached the adventurer guild, he asked for the Harpies’ breeding ground, and where their presence was the most important. The receptionist happily gave him all the information she had. The guild was actually happy that he was taking the matter into his own hands. The Harpies’ attacks had escalated despite their best efforts, and a predator actively taking care of the problem was the best outcome they could hope for. Unsurprisingly, the Harpies had wind control as a power. They used it to help with their flight and to hurl wind blades at their enemies.

Edward was surprised to notice that the Harpies attacks were occurring quite close to the city. If the trend continued to worsen, it wouldn’t be long until the first Harpies attacked the city itself. The receptionist had also given him a map of the surroundings with several possible locations as breeding spots. They were all right next to the sea, in a place with high and steep cliffs making their access difficult. I can understand why they settled for only fending back the Harpies instead of destroying their nest. Climbing down a cliff while getting assaulted by Harpies doesn’t seem very entertaining. But my teleportation power should help with that part.

Edward left Gobéliard, heading in the direction of the last attacks. He noticed signs that the surroundings were used by mankind. Several farms were standing outside the city with the occasional windmill. To have better access to wind, and due to a lack of space, such activities had to be relocated outside the city. The obvious disadvantage was being exposed to monsters’ attacks. This problem wasn’t usually this bad, but in the middle of a monster surge, its effects were visible. In certain locations, the fields were left unattended, wild plants overtaking the crops. Claw marks or fissures could also be visible on buildings. With the wind rune application, such windmills could be incorporated inside the city. It’s more complicated with the fields. Maybe some application of both the earth and growth runes could help with that. They would have to build vertical farms to compensate for the lack of space but it could be feasible.