Chapter 0149: Restrictions on Revival Items in Other Worlds
The next day, just as Hayashi was agonizing over how to ask Heathcliff to stay behind alone in this world to oversee its inhabitants—at least ensuring they wouldn't start another war for a few years—something pleasantly unexpected happened.
"Hayashi, there's something I'd like to discuss with you," Heathcliff said seriously as Hayashi entered the dining room. "This world has stabilized for now, and I assume you're planning to leave soon?"
"Uh, yeah, that's the idea. Why do you ask?"
"Well, I'm currently researching the fusion of magic and technology, and I need a suitable place to conduct my experiments," Heathcliff explained, interlacing his fingers on the table. "While a new world is tempting, it might interfere with my research. So, I'd like to request staying in this world alone for a while—though I'd need to keep my lab and Violet's mechanical factory here. I'm not sure if—"
"Absolutely! No problem!"
Before Heathcliff could finish, Hayashi excitedly grabbed his hands and shook them up and down like a long-lost friend. "Don't worry! Sky City was designed with modularity in mind—I'll detach your section and place it, along with Violet's factory, on the plains! I'll even leave you the Angel Guard, the Demon Guard, and half the maid team! How's that for generosity?"
Oh, and I'll "thoughtfully" let Antilene know where your lab is and ask her to take good care of you. Rest assured (thumbs up).
Heathcliff: "Huh?"
Damn, I walked right into that one again!
...
...
Above the plains of Migina.
"For now, this will have to do."
Hayashi crossed his arms and looked somewhat innocently at Arceus behind him, saying, "No choice, this thing is just too big. If we try to take it to the Shokugeki world, it probably won't work."
Currently, the Interdimensional Gate was still fixed-point—meaning "wherever you leave from is where you reappear next time." And the last time Hayashi left the Shokugeki world, he had been in the Nakiri Family's courtyard. So if he brought Sky City back there, the entire city would probably see this floating "Sky City" in the sky.
That would definitely cause a huge commotion—definitely not ideal.
"No matter," Arceus said, gazing curiously at the scenery of Sky City. "I'm quite intrigued by this structure—and it really is beautiful."
Absolutely!
There was no denying it—Heathcliff, the obsessive world-builder who single-handedly designed all of Aincrad, had gone all out when given the chance to materialize Sky City for real. The result was nothing short of a masterpiece—especially the gardens, which even made Arceus feel a twinge of inadequacy.
"If you like it, you can stay here for a while," Hayashi, with a bird perched on his head, chuckled and patted Arceus's side. "Oh, and I brought some items from another world for you this time. Wanna check them out?"
"Sure—"
A glimmer of anticipation flashed in Arceus's eyes.
Last time, the materials Hayashi had brought from the Konosuba world had indeed helped him gain new insights, deepening his understanding of the rules.
"These are all items from the game, and they're within our usage limits—" Hayashi said, pulling things out of his travel backpack.
"First, potions. The red ones are health potions, the blue ones are mana potions. Their effects range from minor, lesser, normal, greater, to superior."
"Next, magic storage items. This weapon stores the low-tier spell Flame Vortex, with a recharge time of about twenty hours. This amulet stores a Magic Resistance effect, capable of negating spells up to the fifth tier, with a recharge time of thirteen hours. This ring stores a short-range teleportation skill, max distance 200 meters, recharge time one hour—"
"Then, special items. This staff has a built-in Resurrection spell, with a cooldown of 3,600 days. It can revive any being whose soul still exists, regardless of conditions—though if the target refuses resurrection, the spell fails and the cooldown still applies."
"A ten-year cooldown? What kind of garbage is that?" Ho-Oh scoffed, wrinkling her beak in disdain. "Come on, you've got me! With my Sacred Ash, I can revive ten, a hundred, whatever—no problem!"
Hayashi rolled his eyes and retorted, "Pay attention to the conditions I mentioned. I said regardless of any conditions—meaning, even if Arceus's true form died, I could still revive it with this item. Can you do that?"
Ho-Oh fell into silence. Her power of resurrection was limited to beings weaker than herself. If the target was stronger or equal in strength, all she could do was stare blankly—how embarrassing!
"Unconditional resurrection? That does sound like an incredibly powerful artifact." Even Arceus couldn't help but stand up and approach the staff after hearing its function. "It's like granting me a second life. Thank you for this gift, Hayashi."
"Ah, well, it does have quite a few limitations. Otherwise, I wouldn't be so generous," Hayashi said with a helpless shrug. "To be honest, there are at least a thousand of these staffs stored in Sky City's warehouse..."
"A thousand?!" Ho-Oh's voice cracked. Her bird eyes spun in circles as she muttered to herself, "With that many, the cooldown is practically a joke! That's invincible!"
"It's not that simple—" Hayashi shook his head irritably, trying to dislodge the stubborn bird perched on top. But Ho-Oh clung tightly, and fearing he might go bald from the effort, he gave up on the dangerous motion. "The cooldown isn't for the individual staff—it's for the 'resurrection spell' within this world."
Ho-Oh: "What do you mean?"
Compared to the bird-brained Ho-Oh, Arceus was far quicker on the uptake. After a brief moment of thought, he grasped Hayashi's meaning. "You're saying that whether it's my staff or the ones in your warehouse, as long as one is used 'within this world,' then 'within this world,' all staffs will simultaneously enter a ten-year cooldown?"
"Exactly, 'within this world'!" Hayashi could tell from Arceus' emphasized tone that he understood. "So there's actually a way to bypass this limitation."
For example, if Arceus, Necrozma, and Eternatus all died at the same time, one could resurrect Arceus in the Pokémon world, then travel to the Shokugeki world to revive Necrozma, and finally head to the Cooking Master Boy world to bring back Eternatus—this way, all three deities could be "simultaneously" revived, at the cost of locking each world's resurrection ability into a ten-year cooldown.
"...I see." Arceus nodded slowly. "Despite the restrictions, it remains an incredibly powerful artifact."
"Right? So helping Erina and the others gain some strong abilities isn't too much to ask, is it?"
"Hahaha, not at all!" Arceus laughed heartily. "Would you like the power of Aura? Or psychic abilities? Or perhaps the power of Evergreen? Or even the power of the Wave?"
The last time Hayashi had obtained abilities, he had simplistically categorized them—Evergreen as healing, psychic powers as magic, and Wave as physical. But after experiencing the power of the Wave firsthand, he realized these abilities couldn't be so neatly divided.
Take the power of Aura as an example—it can be used to strengthen one's body, transform into elemental forces like wind, fire, lightning, or ice, or simply condense magical energy for attacks. How it develops depends entirely on the user.
"Let's just ask them directly," Hayashi said, sitting cross-legged on the ground with a smile. "I have no idea what they'll choose—"
...
...
Hisako: "The power of the Evergreen."
Her essence lies in support, and the Evergreen power can amplify her healing and buffing abilities.
Erina: "Psychic power."
The convenience of psychic abilities is too great—Erina can use them to assist herself while cooking.
Yunyun: "Aura."
For Yunyun, the power of Aura effectively helps her better perceive the fluctuations of various elements, allowing her to advance further on the path of a mage.
"Honestly, I get it—" Arceus grumbled, kicking at the grass of the Michina Plains unhappily. "The power of the Transcendent is mainly about establishing long-distance mental links—it's useless in combat. I know—"
Ho-Oh stared at its superior with a sweatdrop expression, thinking internally: Yeah, yeah, you get it, you understand—what's the point of moping like this? Just drop it already with that damn Transcendent power!
Meanwhile, Hayashi stood with his hands on his hips, watching the sulking Arceus with an exasperated smile. "There's no helping it! Sure, long-distance calls with the Transcendent power sound great, but it's completely useless in battle. Expecting people to pick it over other options? Not happening!"
Ho-Oh nodded imperceptibly.
"Hmph, I'm not jealous!" Arceus lifted its head haughtily. "The Transcendent power lets you communicate with me, with Palkia, with Dialga—even command them! You're the ones missing out by not choosing it!"
"Mhm, mhm!" Hayashi nodded perfunctorily, thinking to himself: Like you even need the Transcendent power to command those two goofs, Dialga and Palkia? Aren't they just the kind of idiots Erina could boss around with a ladle and a frying pan?
So yeah, the Transcendent power? Not even a dog would pick it.