Jack stepped into the training room of the Mirror Space. His shotgun was cradled in his spectral hands.
The room shifted into a training ground suitable for his weapon testing. Like any other place in the Mirror Space, here reality bent to his whims.
It was a sterile training room for ranged weapon test. Long and narrow. All gray walls with echoing silence. Perfect for testing his new toy.
He gripped the shotgun tightly. Its weight was a bit compared to his old shotgun on Earth. And unlike that object in his memory, this wasn't some antique.
It was a fusion of his past knowledge. And this world's twisted rune powered system. Time to put it through its paces.
He loaded the first shell. It was a standard one for the normal bullet mode.
"Alright, let's see what this beast can do." He muttered to himself.
He aimed the shotgun at a dummy target across the room. A faceless construct made from his own will and imagination. He pulled the trigger. And felt the kickback reverberate through his body.
A loud bang. The bullet tore through the air with a sharp crack. Embedding itself deep into the dummy's chest. Leaving a clean hole that smoked at the edges. Effective up to a hundred meters, he noted mentally.
Jack nodded. He was satisfied. This mode was straightforward. Pure power. Long enough range. It was great for sniping opponents from a distance. The penetration was brutal enough to shred armor or rip through a lesser demon's hide.
He fired a few more rounds. Adjusting his stance. The recoil was solid but manageable. Thanks to his high physique attribute.
Next, scattershot bullets. He switched the mode with a quick twist of the mechanism. Feeling the runes shift under his fingers. This was for close-quarters chaos.
He used his will and imagination to create a cluster of smaller dummies. About twenty meters away.
Another loud bang. The blast erupted in a wide spray. Pellets scattering like angry hornets. They shredded the targets into splinters. Covering a broad area.
Under thirty meters, it was deadly efficient, Jack thought. Ideal for clearing rooms or dealing with groups of weak opponents. Anything beyond that, and the spread lost its punch.
Finally, the last mode. The energy beam. No shell was needed. Just a draw on his mana. Jack put his thumb on a small crystalized part of the gun. He channeled his magical energy into the weapon.
He felt the drain like a pull on his energy. Very light. The press the trigger. No sound. But a bright beam lanced out in a straight line. Punching through the target fifty meters away.
Jack smiled in satisfaction. It was twice as potent as a Mystic Scholar's Magic Missile. For the same mana cost. But it had no homing trick. Straight and hit the target. Or missed completely.
"Not bad!" he muttered. "Straight-line limits are a pain. But it's got punch."
He practiced switching modes. Firing physical and magical bullets in rapid shots. Until his mana reserves dipped low. The shotgun was a game-changer. A device suitable for his new human form. As Jack Night, the Steamrune Engineer.
But he wasn't done yet. Three more projects needed to be finished. A hoverboard for transportation. A spatial bag for carrying gear. And a set of handguns as backups.
He had all the needed materials. Mostly from the fusion of the salvaged locomotive parts and other objects.
He had learned all the necessary runes. Thankfully, the Steamrune Engineer used the same runes as those used by Mystic Scholars. There were many of such rune knowledge in his Encyclopedia of Mystic Arts.
"Get these done, and I can walk back into civilization like I own the place." He thought. Already reviewing his mental blueprints.
The hoverboard would use steam runes 'Levitation' and 'Balance' for anti-gravity floating method.
For forward propulsion and control, he would need more intricate combination. Plus a strong enough power source. The end result should be functional. Nothing fancy. Just fast and reliable tricks for getting around this messed-up world.
The spatial bag was a bit trickier. Bending space like his Mirror Space, but portable. He probably needed to use more than twenty runes. And even more powerful power source. And trickier mechanism.
As for handguns? Those were the easiest. They were just smaller versions of the shotgun. For quick draws in a fight. He'd get to them soon.
But first, he needed to keep his Mystic Arts sharp. He couldn't abandon that just because he had a new transcendent power as Steamrune Engineer. Balance was key.
Jack shifted back to his specter form. And exited the Mirror Space. The abandoned Whitecoal Town greeted him. With its usual decay—rusted rails, crumbling buildings, and an eerie silence broken only by the wind.
He needed to practice the new Mystic Art spells in his grimoire:
Past Echo, which revealed echoes of past events from traces of living things.
And Vine Entanglement, which snared targets with thorny vines.
These required real, living objects or beings. His Mirror Space simulations just weren't cutting it.
He floated through the ruins. Invisible and silent. Scanning for practice targets. A few rats scurried in the shadows. It was perfect for Vine Entanglement.
He opened his grimoire and whispered the incantation. It drew mana from his body and the air. And vines erupted from the ground. Wrapping around a rodent.
It squealed and struggled before breaking free.
"Sloppy!" Jack chided himself.
He tried Past Echo on an old wooden beam. Faint images flickered. A worker hammering away. Just a fraction of second before the vision faded.
"Too far in the past. And I need more practice." He noted. Strengthening his resolve to keep practicing Mystic Arts. At least a couple of hours daily.
As he moved further, faint voices caught his attention. People were here? He focused his perception. Multiple voices, the clang of boots, and a haze of energy signatures.
Jack turned invisible and drifted closer. His spectral senses were sharpening. Soon, he saw them. He immediately let out a helpless sigh.
They were here again. Zach and Jerome, the two pompous noble teens he had previously saved from the cursed locomotive-mecha. There was no Ester this time.
They looked no wiser for the experience. Still dressed in their flashy coats and boots. But they had upgraded their entourage.
Twelve bodyguards this time. They were not Hugo and his team. This time, they were all men. And five radiated power. Five were transcendent individuals. Under his [Aura Detection Mode], their auras were blazing orange like beacons in the fog.
Jack quickly analyzed them. One was a Primal Sorcerer, his energy wild and cold.
Another was a Mystic Scholar, with similar demeanor to Dr. Crafton but didn't feel as sincere.
And there was a Steamrune Engineer. A plain and practical adventurer type. This one sporting a cyber-punk mechanical arm that gleamed with runes.
The last two were... bad news. Their classes were shrouded in chaotic energy. Just like Jasmine Moonlake, the disguised form of Queen Mirage. The villainess from Night Salvation Organization.
Jack immediately switched to [Karma Detection Mode]. Other characters in their group were grey. But, for the two, their karma auras was even darker than Queen Mirage's.
Jack hovered nearby. Eavesdropping as they gathered around the spot where the locomotive had been. Nothing remained.
Jack had stripped it clean. Hauling all of its parts into his Mirror Space. The bodyguards weren't fools, though. They scanned the area. Their expressions was grim.
The Steamrune Engineer with a cyber-punk mechanical arm knelt and traced the ground.
"Signs of a major clash here." He said. His voice was gruff. "Two transcendent entities fought. One's gone, salvaged by another transcendent very likely. Recent, too."
Zach kicked at the dirt. His face was red with frustration. "Dammit! It must be that iron monster and that magician ghost. They must have fled away. Can we track them, Mr. Ironfist? I want them destroyed. Completely."
Jack felt a jolt of shock. Magician Ghost? Me? The target of his revenge? I saved their sorry asses. It didn't make sense. It seemed that gratitude wasn't exactly these nobles' strong suit.
"Calm down, Zach." Jerome said in his usual lazy tone.
"How can I calm down? They ruined everything. They embarrassed me in front of Ester!"
Jerome put a hand on Zach's shoulder. "Cool it, Zach! They're gone now. Let's focus on the treasure. We didn't come all this way for nothing."
Zach took a deep breath. And then, pulled out a faded map. Unrolling it with care.
The group shifted. And the five transcendent bodyguards stepped forward. Despite their arrogant attitudes toward the regular guards, Zach and Jerome treated these five with outright deference.
It was almost comical. Zach's voice turned syrupy sweet as he addressed them.
"Mr. Glacier, what do you make of this map?" Zach asked. Handing it to the Primal Sorcerer. A tall, slender man with pale skin and eyes like ice.
Mr. Glacier examined it for a while and nodded. "It's extremely old. Definitely much older than this Whitecoal Town I could assure that. But, I'm not really a master for appraising things like this. How do you think, Teacher Hawdean?"
The Mystic Scholar with a bookish demeanor adjusted his glasses. "Indeed. The map's origin seems to stem from early explorer logs several decades before the Industrial Expansion. It might be a map from the legendary King of Bandits. That torn logo at the top corner seemed to be his. Although I cannot be sure since it was missing some of its part. If we're careful, it could yield artifacts worth a fortune."
"King of Bandits? Richard Arrow? But, didn't he operate in Dalefront Kingdom?" Mr. Ironfist, the Steamrune Engineer, asked in bafflement.
"Wow. I'm impressed, Ironfist." The scholar replied. "Not many people knew the name Richard Arrow. He did take many treasures from Dalefront. But my research found out that Richard Arrow was an alias for Richard Regalson, a noble from our Elrush Kingdom."
"I know that name." Jerome chimed in. "Earl Richard Regalson used to be the mayor of Calmcoast Town about a hundred years ago."
"And Calmcoast was only three days journey from this place." Zach added. Both nobles had sparkles in their eyes now.
Mr. Ironfist chuckled. "And what'll you lads do with the treasure once we find it? More parties in the capital? Or funding your next treasure hunt?" His tone was teasing. With just a slight of respect for the nobles' payment.
Zach grinned proudly. "I don't really care about how to use it. The excitement during the search was the most important for me. Mr. Rook, Mr. Elknight, what about you two? You've been quiet."
Mr. Rook was the creepy one in a top hat and cane. He tipped his hat with a sly smile. "Me? I would be happy if the treasure is a powerful relic. Gold and gemstones aren't really that important for me."
Mr. Elknight was clad in a breastplate. He was wielding an axe bigger than a shield. His vibe was just as ominous as Mr. Rook. He said nothing at all.
...
As the treasure-hunters conversed, they didn't stop walking toward a cliff. Some distance away from the mine's entrance.
Zach and Jerome had found the place marked in the map. They ordered the regular bodyguards to shove aside massive rocks blocking the way.
"Alright, men, move those boulders!" Zach barked. And the guards complied without complaint.
To Jack's surprise, it was real. Behind the moved boulder was a tunnel. The explorers, without any hesitance, entered the tunnel.
...
Jack followed them into the tunnel. Still invisible. He could hear their footsteps. Echoing in the stone walls.
The air grew damp the further they go. After about twenty minutes of twisting paths, they emerged into a large stone chamber.
In the center of the chamber, stood a pedestal. And atop it, a big, luxurious treasure chest gleamed unnaturally.
Unease hit Jack like a gut punch. His spectral instincts screamed danger. The chest pulsed with a wrongness. Like a trap waiting to spring.
It wasn't treasure. It was something twisted.
But the others in the room didn't notice. Zach and Jerome cheered. They rushed forward with greedy eyes.
"Finally!" Zach exclaimed. Reaching for the lid...