The Mysterious Black Magician

The painting was like a dimensional gate. When Yman stepped inside, another view greeted him. 

He saw mountains to his left with forest on the foot of it, and a wide prairie to his front that runs to his right.

However, he wasn't please by it. Something was bothering him, he felt a tingling and uneasy feeling.

"Sistela, how's our inventory?" He asked. Yman could check it by himself, but it was more convenient to ask his deity than go into trouble checking it himself.

He then scanned his surroundings while waiting for Sistela's reply.

<Partner, everything is unusable not even our potions or the weapons!> Sistela's bemused voice rang in his ears.

Looks like he was right, "I-I see," he said while glancing around.

<You are not surprised?> She asked curiously.

"I am, but I have a gist that it would be like this eventually," Yman replied, then he continued walking towards the canary wheat fields to his right.

It was located about 50 steps away from him. Looking at it from a distance, the wheat grew tall.

<Really, how?> curiously asked Sistela.

"Intuition."

<Eh no way! Are you kidding me?!>

"I have the intuition that my modifying ability will have no effect here," Yman said with a serious face.

Actually, it was more of a danger sensing ability than an intuition.

Maybe it triggered his trauma of being sealed in a confined place when he was abducted. So he had this strong intuition towards the situation that was unfavorable to him.

<Really? How is it possible?>

"Kuku, I also wanted to know about that."

After stepping inside the painting he had a tingling feeling of being constricted in this world. Like he was confined inside a cell again.

'While Miss Ella was making this world, she must be aware of my ability to cancel a spell. So she made some restrictions in this world to avoid cheating. In that case, this world is not an ordinary world, huh. It is prolly made with certain rules if I made a guess.'

Yman couldn't help but feel a chill at this magical skill of hers.

'A world where you can manipulate.'

'Wasn't she a very 'OP' person?!'

'Damn! What a nice ability to have,' He thought.

'Wait….. if she made it with rules, she probably only disallowed my ability to cancel spells.'

He then tried using his [Time Warp].

..…but Yman was still in his place.

No way!

"The time here is unbendable!" He uttered in surprise.

<What do you mean, Partner?>

"N-Nothing, haha."

'Could it be she didn't intentionally restrict my [Time Modifier] ability? It happened because the world itself is intangible?'

Though it was his wild guesses only and not certain.

Yman slack-jawed.

Now his trusted skill was unusable in this world.

'So that's the reason, huh, of why I feel uneasy after entering here,' He thought.

'I am supposed to be the Crimson Canceler, the king of spells! But anyhow, that beauty created a world that could silent my skills."

"....."

Sigh.

He then further scanned his surroundings.

A single tree in the middle of wheatfields took his attention and decided to rest under its shade. He sat with his butt on the ground and leaned his back on the tree trunk as he was mulling.

Yman noticed the sun was set at the angle of 12 o'clock pm. It was also the time outside before they stepped inside the painting. But at this point, the time in this world would then run faster than the real world.

The announcer Mr. Faye already told them that the time here was different from the real world. 1 day here was equivalent to 20 minutes in the real world. And they only had 1 week to complete the mission.

So 1 week in this place was about 2 and a half hours only in the real world.

His eyes wander above and notice some kind of flying objects in the air, about 30-50 meters above the ground.

'Monitoring devices?' He asked himself.

<Those devices will punctually capture every interesting happening in this world to be viewed outside.>

He heard Sistela saying.

"I just hope they censored some stuff, haha," He replied jokingly.

Although, the current time was 12 o'clock. The place wasn't hot. The slight breeze from the mountain was very fresh as it brushed his face.

The scenery was so beautiful.

What a perfect view. If only he had this ability he could slack off all day long. It was in his mind. 

He decided to lay on the ground while using his arms as the pillow. The armor he was wearing wasn't heavy and it was comfortable to wear. Good thing that he wore it. At Least he had the armor.

Looks like, whatever outside their storage the time they stepped in was the only equipment they could use here.

His eyes were peeking under the hood of his black leather armor while staring at the sun rays from leaves crevices. 

A magical sound resounded when he summoned the list of skills he could use.

[Rapid Leap], [Air Dance], and [Healing Spell] was available. He could also use a weak fireball from the Demon's Mana, and some basic magic like [Strengthening].

Only his [Time Modifier] which was from his channeling talent was unavailable because of this weird world.

This world forbids him from using his [Spell Canceler] and [Time Warp]. These two skills were under his [Time Modifier] ability.

And based on the grimoire, the [Time Modifier] was under the [Channeling Talent].

Most of his skill was self-naming by him. Well, since he was the one who created them so it was right for him to name them by himself.

Looks like I needed to learn some skills using my Demon's Mana. He thought.

Haha, even without my [Time Modifier], I still have that Black Mana, or should I call it Black Smoke? Vapour?

No!

The best name for it was— Black Miasma!

Yman's eyes slowly closed, but it abruptly opened when the cute face of his sister appeared in his mind. Ah, he missed her, wondering how was she at the moment.

He couldn't slack off! The prize for this competition was very important to him. One of the ingredients to create the medicine. And a lot of money. Fufu, not just that. He could also get a rank 7 Artefact! He really wanted to own an Artefact.

His eyes squinted when he suddenly perceived some life forms around 100 meters radius around him.

Based on what he perceived, it must be some kind of beasts.

Good!

The most important thing to do in survival like this is to gather enough food first.

He immediately leaped on his feet. Then jumped on the tree branch and took a piece of the branch.

About a 1.2-meter branch that is as big as two fingers.

Yman summoned the crimson mana and enveloped the tree branch, to harden and strengthen it.

He closed his eyes, appearing in his perception about 5 monsters. Based on their auras, one rank B, two rank C, and two rank F, the lowest.

He didn't perceive human presence from his vicinity. Each of them was probably sent at a good distance from each.

He strapped the 1.2-meter branch on his waist.

Then,

Plak! He took another three branches of about 12 inches long each. 

One by one, he fixed them on the gap of his fingers on his left hand and formed like a claw.

He stared at them and thought that these branches weren't good weapons as the tip was not pointed yet.

Flame! He whispered and flicked his fingers at the same time.

The tip of his right index finger had exuded a minuscule flame like a lighter, he then burned the tip of each of the branches.

This magic of creating a small amount of flame was a part of basic magic which was taught in the academy by the elders. Everyone could learn it in a day, but Yman who had no mana at that time failed miserably and became the laughing stock again from others.

He could only feel jealous while watching them succeeded in creating flame.

Good thing that the crimson mana had the affinity of fire. Now, he could create flames as well.

He burned the tips of the three small branches. 

Before the tip completely turned charcoal, he waves his hand to turn off the flame.

Then he scraped them at the tree trunks to sharpen the tips.

After sharpening them. Yman smiled under his hood.

Now the hunt will begin! He muttered.

Sistela remained quiet as she needed to concentrate and appraise what she needed to appraise, and also she needed to concentrate and monitor the demon's mana as it was overpowering her which wasn't good to their resonance if it fully dominated her system.

From the single tree in the middle of the wheatfield, a silhouette jumped higher and threw one branch covered with crimson aura.

Fwoosh!

The branch traveled the space towards the tall grass.

GAaarrrr!

A moment after he threw it, it was followed by a grieving howl.

Though, he noticed it was still alive.

Dang, my marksmanship is still awful in the distance of 50 meters away even after my power ups. He muttered in regret.

He was off a hairsbreadth to directly kill the beast.

After this, he would be back to training his basic attributes again, especially his dexterity.

Currently, he was level 3 and his CE was at 55%. He needed to accumulate more experience to advance his level. Or else he could not execute the full potential of the strength he was holding.

He followed another throw to his left while executing an [Air Dance] to slightly maneuver his body even in midair for a couple of seconds. But it wasn't the same when he used the [Skill Modifier] of Black Miasma, which he could combine the [Rapid Leap] and [Air Dance] to create a new ability which he called [Air Maneuver].

Without wasting time, he followed another throw to his right.

Two consecutive cries followed after.

But before his body descended, a large silhouette jumped from the grasses with a large gaping mouth to bite him.

Yman's eyes glinted.

Plak!

The next second the beasts were sent crashing on the ground when its mouth was hit by something.

It was a sudden downward strike using the 1.2-meter tree branch, in which strengthened and hardened using the crimson mana.

His feet landed about five steps away from the monster with two horns protruding at the side of its face. And two gaping fangs coming out from its mouth. It has jet black furs and stood on its four limbs.

Well, the most striking feature of it was that it was identical to wild pigs.

<A Giant Mutated Boar!>

He heard Sistela's voice. It then followed by the appearance of its red bar above its head. And the number 1900/5000 HP was visible inside the red health bar.

"What a feast! Hehe," he grinned, then used [Rapid Leap].

Plak!

The Giant Mutated Boar failed to retaliate as it was hit squarely in the weak spot.

After killing the boar, Yman also finished the other beasts.

Before his fight with the beasts, in the real world, viewed on their monitors the different battles that are happening at the moment. Especially the battle between the participants.

However, one participant was caught in the camera, lying under the tree in the middle of a grassland.

"Eh? What is he doing?" Ella asked.

"Haha, that guard of yours is a very interesting person, Rea honey," giggled the empress beside her.

"H-He's not my guard yet, Your Majesty— I-I mean Aunt."

"Why is that? He just saved you," the empress said while eyeing her.

"Uh, erm…" Ella was at a loss of words on how to explain their deal.

Currently, they were watching it inside the palace balcony.

Yman was caught in the camera for a moment only. And it was transferred to the beautiful views of the world. Then it was followed by a fight scene from other participants.

Everyone cheered whenever the camera darted to the experts of great noble families from the empire.