Low-Fantasy Occultist Isekai

Hunting down whoever had discarded her family's work seemed to ignite a fire beneath Rhea's feet. She urged them to keep pushing into the night, following the subtle tracks Elia had discovered.

Fortunately, it hadn't rained in some time, so they never lost the trail. However, the group they were following was still ahead, which meant they had to quickly deal with any monsters that got in their way.

Nick didn't mind much, as he needed new targets to test his [Emakimono]. What had initially started as carefully painted tags capable of subtle effects had developed into a real threat over time.

Explosions echoed around them, and flashes of light illuminated the night as they continued marching, ignoring the screeches of the family of goblins that had stupidly chosen to ambush them in the dark.

Nick could have easily crushed them with his wind magic, but instead quickly prepared a few stones with Uruz and Thurisaz burned into their surface.

Technically, his new spell originated from the much more delicate Taoist school of magic, but Nick found that Elder Futhark worked just as effectively, and as long as he infused enough meaning into the carving, the results were impressive.

"A bit brutal, isn't it?" Elia asked as she looked at the mangled remains of the goblins. Her eyes gleamed in the moonlight, and Nick had the distinct impression that she could see every gory detail.

Shrugging, he bent down to pick up another flat stone. "Using lightning magic would have been just as violent, and it's not like tearing them apart with wind blades would have been much cleaner. At least they have a use this way."

He'd quickly abandoned the tedious and much more delicate painting of parchment. Not because it didn't work, as he was sure he could produce intricate effects that his current rough style couldn't hope to replicate, but because the current test was meant to provide him with faster deployment.

He didn't miss the finesse, and he was slowly realizing that while runes and glyphs helped, intent was equally, if not more, important.

I almost feel like I'm missing something. I'm getting the results I want, and yet…