《The Ring Master in the Riordanverse》


 Prologue

    I sprint down the sidewalk through the cold air and sending the snow flying through the air with my speed going as fast as physically possible on the most average day I have ever had thus far, looking down at the impossible text as I do so. The text was from my Mother, it read ¡°I am feeling better now, can you come see me?¡±


    When I saw the text I nearly fainted onto my desk in class. My mother has been in a coma for the past year and she wakes up when I am an hour away from school and don''t have my car because I let my friend borrow it for the day? Really?! That¡¯s not to say that I wasn''t happy, I really was, but still¡­


    I saw the intersection ahead of me ¡®I am almost there.¡¯ I thought to myself as I pushed all of my 18 year old body to its limits, muscles burning and lungs straining as I made it to the end of the crosswalk directly before the intersection with streams of cars going at full speed, I planted my feet on the ground, trying to stop my momentum desperately.


    It was then that I saw the dark patch of ice, almost perfectly blending into the concrete and using the snow as cover. Sitting 2 feet in front of me as I tried to stop myself, lest I fall over but it was in vain, I stumbled and nearly fell but caught myself directly on the edge of the black ice on the sidewalk.


    My feet kept sliding without my body, knocking me onto my but. ¡°Ow!¡± I yelled out upon the impact and started trying to get up but only managed to get to my knees before falling again, this time launching myself directly forwards, onto my face and sending me out onto the middle of the street. I looked up just in time to see a pair of headlights cutting through the snow and started to say ¡°You have got to be-¡± before my head was crushed under four thousand pounds of car, permanently ending my sentence.


    Then there were lights, blurred and fragmented as if I was seeing something un-knowable, something that felt familiar yet wrong at the same time. ¡®What happened?¡¯ I asked myself, ¡®maybe this is a dream?¡¯ I proceed to try to pinch my arm only to realize that I didn''t have an arm, or a body. This confused me as I was sure that I had a body and I started panicking.


    Then I stopped and tried to think rationally, ¡®Lets think, what do you remember last?¡¯ I asked myself. At first nothing happened when I tried to recall my memories but then I felt a spark go off somewhere, possibly in whatever is allowing me to think, which began shoving memory¡¯s into my head.


    I was a 18 year old boy called Ardika Ekia and I was coming home when¡­ ¡®I am dead!?¡¯ I thought to myself, emotions flooding my¡­ Spirit? As I tried to comprehend what had happened. ¡®I was killed before I got to see my mother again.¡¯ I thought sadly. Well, if I really am dead, then spirits or something must be real. Perhaps I was in the afterlife? Or possibly in the process of being reincarnated?


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    I then began studying my environment which seemed to be a constantly shifting and changing spiral of colors no matter which way I¡­ ¡°looked¡± wasn''t the best word to use as I didn''t have eyes, perhaps ¡°observed¡± then?


    I don''t know anymore. All I could make out were the constantly shifting lights and the absolute silence that pressed against my senses. I observed this space I was in for a long time, I really couldn''t say how long however, Is time even present in whatever dimension I am in?


    Then finally I saw something new, a rectangle of bright blue light that was gliding smoothly towards me. Or, was I moving towards it? I watched as we drew closer together and then finally connected. There was no impact, nothing seemed to happen. It was as if it was never there. I searched for it with my senses but found nothing, until I observed the point of impact.


    It seemed to be glowing? Then I felt something inside myself, moving around. ¡®Oh God!¡¯ Is it inside of me!? After a few seconds of panic I felt the something inside of me connect to something else inside of me and then I saw something fizzle into existence in front of me, it looked suspiciously similar to the other blue rectangle from before but this one was white in the center and something resembling symbols, that were slowly morphing into words that read ¡°Integrating Complete. Scanning for habitable universes¡­¡± the three dots began slowly blinking, like you would see on a loading page. ¡®What the hell!?¡¯


    My brain rushed into overdrive as I tried to think about what was happening and what that meant, and habitable universes? The blue rectangle flashed and now different words were forming, faster than before, that read ¡°Scanning complete. One Universe compatible. Initializing transdimensional targeting¡­¡±


    Before I could realize what was about to happen, I felt like I was being pulled towards something at incredible speeds. Then as abruptly as it happened, I slammed into something. I wasn''t hurt, in fact I wasn''t sure if I could be anymore seeing as I was dead.


    The blue rectangle appeared again now different words form, even faster than before, that read ¡°Transdimensional targeting complete. Universe shift commencing¡­¡± Then pain flared as I had never felt before, it felt like my entire being was being shoved into a can. ¡®Well I guess that answers my question.¡¯ I thought as I experienced the pain.


    It felt like an eternity of suffering was passing for a very long time. I saw something flash bright orange around and in front of me and then heard something for the first time since I got to this place, a loud sharp crack. Then I felt the pain ebb away a little and I once again get pulled forwards into the unknown, my last thought being ¡®I hope that this universe isn''t that bad.¡¯ instantly cursing me forever.

 Chapter 1

    I come to my senses slowly. Well coming to my senses isn''t the best way to describe what is happening to me, it''s more like my senses are changing into something more recognizable, more human.


    ¡®Well that¡¯s a good sign at least.¡¯ I thought to myself in relief, imagining if I had become a cow or something my new life would be much harder, and possibly more deadly. As if my thoughts were being read by some cruel entity, the pain hit me. I was sure that I had never felt this much pain in either of my lives, even the pain of entering into this new world didn''t compare, though that was a very close call.


    ¡®What the hell is wrong with my body?!¡¯ I thought as all the feelings came to me from my new body. I began to feel my body with my mind. My chest! ¡®The hell happened to my chest!?¡¯ I nearly screamed out loud but my mouth was unresponsive. I started to feel the rest of this body, and I wasn''t liking it one bit. First off, my head was throbbing, second my arms felt like they were on fire, probably broken, and third was my chest! I don''t even know how to describe the pain I felt from there, was I shot over a dozen times or something?!


    Also I recognized that I had eyes now, might as well open them and take a look around and find out what is wrong with my body. Once I open them I am met with blinding light and I blink for a few seconds before seeing my surroundings. ¡®Well¡­¡¯ I thought to myself, ¡®This definitely proves that I am in a different reality. Or at least somewhere I don''t recognize, and definitely not in the same city anymore.¡¯


    I was in an alley, and it smelled a lot. Also it felt to be around 20 degrees here, nothing like the weather I remember was around when I died. On the other side of the alley was a busy street, full of cars and people going about their daily lives, as far as I could tell anyway. Then I looked down at myself. ¡°Shit!¡± I said softly, my chest had a huge bloody crater in it and my arms were twisted at odd angles, they were also nice shades of black and purple.


    I try to sit up and fall over because this body is much smaller than my old one, also lighter so my center of gravity is throwing me off. I start to scream for help as I try to get up once again, managing to get into a standing position and taking 4 painful steps. I am about 5 feet away from the alley¡¯s entrance and people start to notice me. I see the looks of absolute shock on their faces, they probably haven''t seen a man with a crater for a chest walking around and screaming their head off for help before. I can''t blame them.


    Finally someone rushes forward to me saying ¡°Do you want me to call an ambulance?¡± ¡°Yes!¡± I yell back, my voice cracking as I do. Immediately she pulled out her phone and quickly punched some numbers and started talking to someone on the other end hurriedly, but I couldn''t pay attention to her and just fell over where I stood, trying to land as softly as possible while my vision and with it my consciousness faded to black.


    ________________________________________________________


    I wake up, my body feeling completely relaxed and my mind refreshed. ¡®When was the last time I felt this good when I woke up?¡¯ I wondered silently to myself, letting my body sink into whatever that soft thing below me is. Wait¡­ I open my eyes and are immediately blinded by lights. ¡°Where am I?¡± I croaked out, feeling the stiffness and soreness of my limbs and the pain from my chest.


    The pain causes me to remember what happened and I suddenly look around again trying to tell where I am. ¡°Hey honey, How are you feeling?¡± a warm female voice cuts through my pain and I look where it is coming from, it''s a slightly fat woman with a motherly look about her. ¡°Where am I?¡± I ask once again, a little firmer this time.


    The woman smiles a little and answers my question in the same tone as before, calming me down a bit ¡°You¡¯re in the hospital hun.¡± ¡°What hospital?¡± I question again ¡°New York Cornell Presberterian hospital dear.¡± she replies quickly.


    New York? Like, U.S. New York? I thought that this was a different dimension? Maybe I am in a parallel universe? I then realized that I missed what the woman that was beside me was saying, ¡°I¡¯m sorry, could you repeat that?¡± I ask her ¡°I was just asking how you are feeling dear.¡± she kindly tells me ¡°Oh, well I hurt a lot but I think that I am ok other than that.¡± I say, more confidently than I feel.


    She seemed to sense that but she just nodded in understanding, ¡°Good. Now, can you tell me who you are honey?¡± She asks me and I say ¡°My name is Ardika Ekia.¡± She reaches over to a clipboard on a desk not too far away and writes something down. ¡°Now can you tell me who and where your parents are?¡±


    I start to think about what to do, I can''t just tell them that I am from another dimension or parallel universe, they won''t believe me and they might even lock me up so I think that it is best if I just pretend that I don''t remember anything. I look back up at the smiling woman again and say, ¡°I don''t remember.¡± making a pained expression as I do so as if it hurts to think too hard.


    ¡°You don''t remember? What about their names?¡± The woman asks worriedly. I just shake my head no. The woman is looking more concerned now and asks, ¡°Do you remember what happened to you?¡± to which I say, ¡°No I don''t, do you know?¡± This apparently makes her even more worried and she answers saying ¡°No I don''t sweetie. I have to go now, ok?¡± I nod at that and then she walks hurriedly away.


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    The second that she is out of sight, I see a glowing blue rectangle appear in the air in front of me this time without the forming words and instead just them appearing with the rectangle this time saying ¡°Body Creation and Modification complete. Activate Ring Master System Y/N¡±


    I stare at the glowing blue rectangle in front of me for a few seconds thinking ¡®So, that thing is a system. Interesting. Should I say yes?¡¯ I thought very carefully for a few seconds before deciding, ¡®Not yet. I really hope no one can see the glowing floating rectangle.¡¯ and I began to relax into the bed once more. I wonder what sort of universe this is?


    ________________________________________________________


    In the next few days I was really bored, I had to stay in bed for the entire time I was there. Apparently, both my arms were broken, I had a concussion, my chest was caved in with multiple broken ribs and a punctured lung. I spent that entire time being talked to. How I was doing? Do I remember what happened to me? Who attacked you? You know normal stuff like that.


    I also found out more about my new body. For instance, I am still a boy, which is a relief. And I am also 11 years old, and small for my age. I nearly screamed at the injustice of it all once I found out, I have to go through puberty twice!? But on the Brightside, I would probably live longer than if I was, say, an 80 year old man.


    Also, apparently it is the year 2005, June 29th 2005 to be specific. I wasn''t even surprised at this point. I mean, why not time travel along with reincarnation into another dimension? My past world logic is already out the window at this point. Another constant reminder of this is the system message that follows me everywhere but no one else can see it except me apparently, I think it¡¯s probably only me seeing it because the system is showing me it through my mind, which is pretty cool, but also mildly disturbing at the same time.


    When I started to be able to walk around they started to talk to me about where I want to go. I didn''t know so they told me that I would be getting sent to an orphanage the next day on July 30th. I hope that it will be good. Or at least not terrible. I am currently in the back of a black car, getting driven to the orphanage by one of the caretakers with an expression of ill disguised apprehension, and disgust, the car stank. The caretaker looks back at me in the rear view mirror and asks ¡°Are you excited?¡±


    I looked up at her questioningly, did she really think that I would be excited about going to an orphanage? ¡°Listen, it will be great! I have a feeling you will have some fun there!¡± I continue to not answer because I severely doubted her words, this is her job after all, she is getting paid to say that. The woman glances back and frowns at me but doesn''t say anything as she continues to drive.


    The rest of the ride is in silence, but I am fine with that. I just looked out the window at the new city I am in. I never went to New York in my old world so I can''t tell if there is any difference to what it is supposed to look like, but everything looks pretty normal.


    A few minutes later we arrived at the orphanage. It was a small stone building, nothing to fancy. I opened the car door and stepped outside into the warm sunny street, taking in every detail of my new home for who knows how long. It doesn''t look terrible, I think that it has a nice old building charm.


    The caretaker woman brings me out of my reverie with a loud cough ¡°Well? Go on in!¡± she tells me in a cheery voice, a little too cheery for my liking. I quickly walk up the steps to the front door and raise my hand to knock on the stained oak. Before I could knock however the door swung wide revealing an old woman standing in the door scanning me and then looking behind me, presumably at the other caretaker that drove me here. I quickly lower my hand and say ¡°Hello, my name''s Ardika.¡± rather hurriedly.


    The old woman looked down at me and smiled ¡°Hello Ardika, my name is Director Kasandra.¡± ¡®She is the director of the orphanage, better make a good first impression.¡¯ I thought to myself ¡°Glad to make your acquaintance Kasandra.¡± I said out loud.


    At that she looked like she was about to laugh, I frowned internally at that, did I do something wrong? ¡°You have good manners.¡± she tells me while still holding back laughter answering my internal question. Oh, I see what¡¯s going on. It must look strange, an 11 year old boy acting so proper. I let out a sheepish smile, next time I need to try to be a little less formal.


    The caretaker that was driving me walked up at that point so the director began to bring me inside to show the building and where my room will be, what time supper, lunch and breakfast will be at, the usual stuff that I need to know. I was pleasantly surprised when we arrived at my room, it looked pretty good for what I thought a room in an orphanage would be, one twin size bed, dresser, even a desk in the corner. It was perfect for what I needed; to learn and understand this new reality.


    Even my immediate needs were met, I was brought to have supper with the other boys and girls in the building a few minutes after I arrived. They seemed to be happy, so that was a good sign. That supper was a really good one, the food was excellent, it reminded me of going out to eat with my family so it was a little bitter sweet. Then again, when you are used to having an IV drip of nutrients for your food for a week it really isn''t that hard to impress someone by giving them food.


    I even talked to a few people of my new age for the first time, I mean, they thought I acted really weird but that was to be expected for someone who¡¯s mental age is 18 in a 11 year old body. Despite that I still had a good time.


    Immediately after supper I went up to my room to instantly collapse onto my bed, not even bothering to change out of my hospital provided clothes into the orphanages provided PJ¡¯s before I went to sleep. As I lay down on the white mattress I began thinking about my old reality. I wonder what happened when my family heard I died? I didn''t have very many friends, besides Nate. I wonder if they are burying my body now? I started tearing up, I would never see them again. I cried myself to sleep that night.

 Chapter 2

    I opened my eyes, what time was it? I look around for a clock, I remember there was one on the nightstand and I glance at it, then I look back in surprise. It was six in the morning! I never could wake up before eight in my old body. Well, new body, new me I guess. I walked over to the small window in my room and peered outside at the street below, there was a steady stream of cars below, their headlights on full glare, streetlamps casting everything into high contrast. The sun wasn''t even up yet!


    Well, breakfast is at eight thirty, I guess I should do something in the meantime. I started thinking about what I could do but before I came to a decision, I saw the system message blink into existence before me, ¡°Activate Ring Master System Y/N¡± it asked.


    Well, this is as good a time as possible. I guess yes? I was about to say it out loud but apparently the system could read my thoughts because the text inside changed into ¡°Choice confirmed, activating¡­¡± I watched it wearily, what was it doing?


    It blinked out of existence, collapsing into a point of light which faded as if it had never existed. ¡®Well, that pretty co-¡¯ I started to think to myself before I couldn''t think anymore, my head felt like it was splitting open! This was undoubtedly the worst headache I had ever felt, I felt something enter my mind and then¡­


    What was this? I suddenly gained knowledge, the ringing of the hammer on metal, the words that felt like they had the power to change reality themselves, all flitted into my mind, immediately joining my memory bank. Why was the system giving me the knowledge of a blacksmith? No¡­ A Ring Maker. I felt my spirit inside of me, the energy that it releases and stores, wanting to be used, wanting to be imbued.


    I felt the rush of knowledge taper off, the headache fading. I checked the clock, how long had I been absorbing this knowledge? Thirty minutes apparently, I gained a lifetime of knowledge in thirty minutes. Before I could shout for joy, I saw the system blink back into reality saying ¡°Choice activated. To open the status menu, think or say status.¡± Oh, of course there is a status page. Well, I guess I can open it now. ¡®Status.¡¯ I thought, trying to open the status page. Instantly the words on the panel in front of me were pushed to one side and in its place was a menu.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Statistics


    </td>


    <td>


    Passive Abilities


    </td>


    <td>


    Skills


    </td>


    <td>


    Active Quests


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Name: Ardika Ekia


    Physical age: 11


    Birthdate: August 12


    Gender: Male


    Race: Human/God hybrid


    </td>


    <td>


    Adaptation


    Adaptive system


    (You have one free slot, please select one of the following abilities; Heightened reaction time Lv1, Perfect Recollection, Heightened processing speed Lv1)


    </td>


    <td>


    Appraisal (Object inclined)


    (You have one free slot, please select one of the following abilities; Astral form, Soul Forge Lv1, Essence Absorption)


    </td>


    <td>


    (No active quests)


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    I looked over it for a while, my name, age and gender were accounted for¡­ Hang on, Human God hybrid? What does it mean, Human God hybrid? I am part God!? Hang on¡­ this is reminding me of something, one story¡­ No way, not here! There¡¯s actually no way, it''s impossible, it''s not real! This can¡¯t mean what I think it means¡­ The system blinked in front of me with a notification that read ¡°Universe Identified. Current Universe: ¡®The Riordanverse¡¯¡±


    Well shit. I am a dead man, aren''t I? There is no way to survive, not in this universe, not in the Percy Jackson universe of all places. I would get hunted by monsters until the day that I die, either from a powerful creature or from getting too weak in old age. I panicked for quite a while after that, imagining all the ways I could die.


    Ok, that was a dark few minutes, but I won''t just lie down and wait for it. I am a fighter, I am a survivor, I will adapt. Hell, I already have the passive ability for it! I just got to figure out what I need to do to survive. Now that I am thinking straight, I have quite a few options, I could hide my scent that monsters track or even use myself as bait into traps for monsters to kill themselves in. I can survive!


    Ok, first things first, I need to select the free abilities, maybe one of them is useful. Lets see, Passive Abilities are Heightened reaction time Lv1, Perfect Recollection, Heightened processing speed Lv1. What sounds better and more useful now? Well, heightened reaction time could be useful when fighting, but it wouldn''t really be helpful for anything else.


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    Perfect recollection¡­ sounds really useful, I could learn faster, remember what I am taught or read better. It would help with planning for the Percy Jackson plot line or any other story events. Probably the most important so far.


    Heightened processing speed sounds just as useful, it would probably help in fights, when I need to think fast, it would probably help me learn or memorize information faster. Sounds really useful.


    But what is more useful or important now? I think heightened reaction time is probably the least useful, so that leaves Perfect Recall and Heightened Processing speed. They seem very similar in practice, helping me learn faster, but Heightened Processing speed would help me fight better, and Perfect Recall would help me remember the events in the books better¡­ I think that planning and remembering the storyline of Percy Jackson and everything else. I chose Perfect Recollection.


    Instantly the menu updates and shows my new passive ability Perfect Recollection.


    Ok, that seemed to work¡­ Why haven''t I felt any changes yet? Wasn''t it supposed to help my memory? Well, I guess I should choose my Skill. I look them over again, Astral form, Soul Forge Lv1, Essence Absorption. This is going to be a hard choice¡­


    Well¡­ Astral Form could be really useful, I could learn or watch something while my body sleeps, or use it to gather information by going to the place that I want to scout in my astral form. I think that I would probably find some more uses but those are the only things that I can think of right now, especially only by the name.


    Soul Forge, that sounds like it could be some type of realm that I would gain access to, which would be a boon when I try to enchant objects or forge anything really. I wouldn''t have to find a forge for me to use, or find somewhere to enchant my rings. Also it would probably be a good place for training or sleeping in when I don''t have a place to sleep. I really don''t know how that would work though.


    Essence Absorption sounds really awesome, though I couldn''t guess what it would do. Would it make me into a sort of vampire? I mean that would be cool and everything, but if it made me into some power crazy monster¡­ No, I don''t want to risk it, especially when I have no concrete idea what it does.


    So, Astral Form or Soul forge then. Both sound like they would be incredible but right now I think Soul Forge would be more useful, if it does what I think it does, that is. If it is some form of domain or pocket dimension that could be used as a forge, then that would be exactly what I need the most right now, a private place to practice. I chose Soul Forge.


    Again the menu updates and it shows that I now have the new skill Soul Forge. I wait for a second, something is going to happen I know it. The screen blinks with a notification saying ¡°Congratulations, you have selected your new Skill and Passive Ability. You will receive your new Skill and Passive Ability shortly.¡± I read it over, so that''s why nothing happened when I selected my Passive Ability. I guess that makes sense.


    This is going to hurt a lot, isn''t it? I feel energy gathering in my head, I start to feel tingling feelings all over my body, not bad per say but definitely uncomfortable. Then all of the tingling feeling starts to converge into my head, my brain. I feel something in my brain expand quickly, and I was right it hurt a lot.


    My brain felt like it was under pressure, like it would explode, all my blood feeling like it was rushing to my head. Then it stopped, the pressure vanished. I felt great! It was like something that I was supposed to have, that was taken from me was back and I felt my mind expand, become better. I started to feel all of my lost memories come back, like they were always there, waiting to be remembered, to be recalled, and I knew each one for they were part of me.


    Then the feeling vanished. I felt disappointed, it had felt good but I knew that its purpose was achieved. I remember everything and I know it all like I know myself. I nearly laughed as I thought that, I wasn''t some knowledge god now, far from it, but the purpose that I had wanted to achieve was accomplished. I could recall every single page of every book I had ever seen, including the one that I was now a part of. I could recall everything that had ever happened to Percy, every miniscule event, every moment.


    I also recalled the exact time that The Lightning Thief had started off, May 18th 2006, the day that Ms. Fury attacked Percy. Just over 11 months from today''s date. I need to prepare for this.


    I sat down at my desk, thinking that I should start to plan, but immediately after I sat down I felt more energy surging through me. Oh, I forgot I selected Soul Forge too. The energy felt different this time, almost as if it was coursing through my very being, right to my soul. I meditated. Focusing inward I felt my soul shifting, absorbing energy from somewhere, that was why this energy serge felt different, it was being absorbed by my soul.


    Then the surge suddenly stopped and the energy started to focus on a singular point then disappearing, going somewhere. I felt pain in my chest, the energy was causing a rip in my soul!


    I watched helplessly as it started growing, becoming more than a minute point as the pain doubled. The rip started forming something but I couldn''t tell what and as soon as it was completely formed, the energy rushed into it to somewhere else that was growing closer, more connected to the tear and the formation around it and the pain started subsiding.


    Then with a final rush of energy going into the formation, the pain stopped. I felt the new structure in my soul, what had happened? As soon as my attention had turned to the new structure I knew what it was, a gate and it was calling to be opened.


    I sent energy into it, trying to send it into whatever was now connected to my soul through the gate, but the gate intercepted it, absorbing it, powering it. I felt a rush of energy leaving my body from the gate, heading to somewhere behind me.


    I opened my eyes wearily turning around slowly, what happened? When I had fully turned I saw a doorway, made of some white material covered in symbols made of a golden material that was letting off the soft golden white glow of my spiritual energy. Huh, so that''s what it does. That''s cooler than I expected. I guess that I should go inside? I hesitated, reaching out my hand to the doorknob, what would be on the other side? I mean, its name was Soul Forge so maybe a forge?


    Finally I got up from the desk chair and just said ¡°Ok, I can''t just sit here all day.¡± and put my hand on the handle, twisting it and swinging the door wide open, to see what lies beyond.

 Chapter 3

    What met my eyes at first was darkness in what appeared to be a stone room from the little I could see. I wondered where the light switch was, if it had any, as I stepped inside, peering through the darkness. A flame burst into existence on either side of me, revealing torches and a large rectangular stone room with torches along the walls that sputtered to life in succession.


    The room itself was nothing too exciting, just a rough freshly excavated cave look that happened to be a rectangular prism with the one door, besides its size that is, it was really big. If I were to take a guess I would put it at about a side length of 25 feet and a good 40 feet width wise along with being at least 50 feet high, which means that this room is about as big as half of a professional indoor basketball court and at least twice as high.


    I could use this for just about anything! I have more than enough space for just about any form of training I could ever need, along with space for blacksmithing! I was ecstatic at just the size alone but there was more, the room wasn''t empty.


    In the farthest left corner of the room was a workbench with a bar of something silvery on it, an anvil about a foot from the workbench, and some type of forge a small distance away from both facing them along the back wall along with a shelf of various tools. None of them looked particularly well made.


    There was one thing that looked out of place however, attached to the back wall at about head height was an obsidian looking plaque with runic symbols all over it. I tore my eyes away from it. I think that I should probably make sure that I can actually use the forge for blacksmithing and enchanting before I mess with that.


    I walk over to the forge quickly, scanning it thoroughly while referencing my new blacksmithing knowledge while I did. What I discovered was that none of the tools were particularly well made, beside the large Magic Forge that is, which was pretty good but it seemed very basic with only the mortal liquid fire heart option that was built in, and a ingot of Mythril lying on the workbench.


    ¡°A bar of Mithril! This is great! I actually have access to a non-mortal material!¡± I exclaim upon recognizing the silvery bar that was just sitting waiting for me, this is really, really good news for me. Mythril, like the fictional material from my old universe, is used because of its main quality which is that it has insanely high conductivity to almost every energy that makes it one of the best materials for enchanting as enchantments placed on it use 98 percent of the energy supplied to it.


    It¡¯s not all that great for armor or weapons compared to other non-mortal materials however as it is much more malleable than other materials and is more comparable to iron in terms of strength and its ability to hold an edge and is weaker than modern steel from my old world.


    Mortal materials like iron, copper and steel however have dramatically worse conductivity usually using about 0-70 present of the energy supplied, which makes any enchantment placed on it dramatically increase the energy required for it to work.


    This is really good news for me as I need something to practice enchanting on so I can get up to a reasonable level of skill and Mythril is the perfect material for that because I will be able to test the enchantments without wasting energy and time that I could use to practice making enchantments more.


    I shake my head bringing me out of my thoughts, that can wait, I need to make sure that I can actually use the tools I have for blacksmithing first. I look around me, time to inspect the workplace.


    About 5 minutes later when I was looking at the Magi-Forge when a thought occurred to me, ¡®Wait, don''t I have a skill for appraising objects?¡¯ I then called for the stat menu and quickly looked in the skill section which displayed the skill Appraisal that was apparently ¡®Object inclined¡¯. I wonder what I need to do to activate it?


    Maybe I should try to say it out loud? Or perhaps I should just think about the system, does the system control my skills? Maybe it just works like a passive ability? No, nevermind, there''s a section for that and it was clearly in the skill section. I look at the Magi-Forge again, I guess I can just use the trial and error method. ¡°Appraisal.¡± I say out loud while staring at the Magi-Forge, I instantly knew that it worked because the usual blue rectangle blinked into existence reading, ¡°Magic Forge Lv1¡± and nothing else.


    ¡°Ok, it works. That''s good, but can it do the same thing if I think it?¡± I wonder to myself, ¡®Appraisal¡¯ I think to myself while looking at the anvil that was close by. The blue screen blinked into existence again in front of me, it read ¡°Magic Iron anvil Lv1¡± which wasn''t helpful, I knew what a magic anvil looked like, but I wasn''t really expecting it to be. Well, I guess that that might be an over exaggeration, the level of all the things that I appraised are the same as the forge which might mean that all these tools are level one, probably because Soul Forge is level one. But who knows?


    Well, the good thing about being a blacksmith is that I can make my own tools if I have to, so it''s really not a big problem in the long term. I go around appraising the other tools finding out that yes all of them are at level one. Once I had appraised almost all of the tools ending with ¡°Rounding hammer Lv1¡± I decided that I should take a look at the weird runic obsidian plaque on the wall now.


    I walk towards the rounded obsidian plaque stepping carefully around the Magi-forge as I do. It was on the back wall about 10 feet away from the forge which I jog away from, looking at the dark object that I am getting closer to with every step. Once I get within 3 feet of the plaque I stop, inspecting it carefully.


    ¡°Elvish!¡± I say out loud, there''s elvish words carved onto the plaque that translates roughly to ¡°System Store¡± written in the center of a runic ring that spanned most of the entire surface of the plaque and it looked like it curved around the back as well.


    ¡®Wait, how can I read Elvish? Elves didn''t even exist in my old world.¡¯ I thought to myself confused, I thought about this very hard for about a minute before recalling a memory, one of a classroom with a Elvin teacher, my teacher, teaching me how to read. What was that? I have never seen an Elf in my life! Hang on¡­ Was this part of that information dump when I accepted the system? It must have been, but who¡¯s memories did I get? What world was it from?


    I tried to review my memories again, looking for the answers in the recesses of my mind but coming up with a blank. I guess that I only got memories about blacksmithing, enchanting and the Elven language? I am not sure if that''s a good thing or not. On the one hand if I got all knowledge of the person then I would know more which is always a good thing in my opinion but on the other hand if I had gained all memories of that person then their personality would start to influence me because memories form who we are to some extent.


    It¡¯s probably best to just move on for now and come back to that at a later date if I find out more.


    I bring myself out of my thoughts and start to examine the plaque carefully trying to make heads or tails of the runes carved into the stone. Even after a few minutes of staring at it I couldn''t understand a single rune on it. It was extremely complex and as I looked closer, the runes that were carved into the plaque were very detailed in and of themselves. It almost looked as if¡­


    ¡°Amazing!¡± I exclaim out loud, the runes were made up of hundreds upon hundreds of smaller runes! This piece of obsidian has got to be the most complex thing I had ever seen including my new knowledge of runic devices from the system, it was like looking at a supercomputer from the future! I couldn''t begin to imagine the skill it would take to make such a thing.


    I spent the next few minutes examining the device farther, taking in all that I could, trying to figure out what it did. As I was looking at the side of it I found out that it did curve around the back of it because I could see that one of the runes on the side was incomplete, missing about half of the left side. Maybe looking at the back would help me figure out what it did? I reach out, stretching my arms carefully. If I even scratch such a complex object it could break and I would never be able to forgive myself.


    I grasp the plaque carefully with both hands. ¡®Ok, now I have to be careful. I just need to lift it up and-¡¯ It disintegrated in my hands turning into a black cloud of dust that fell onto the ground and into my hands.


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    ¡°NO!¡± I shout as loud as I can, I broke it! I almost started crying, I had broken it.


    I saw a bright flash of blue directly in front of me, I raised my head looking up at where it came from, seeing a bright blue screen expand into existence. It was a system notification that read ¡°Congratulations, you have unlocked the store function.¡±


    I read it again, just to make sure that I had not misread the notification. Store function? Like a System store? Was it me touching the plaque that activated it? The plague did say ¡®System Store¡¯ after all, maybe I hadn''t broken it and it just activated the system store and destroyed itself?


    Well, I guess I am going to get another headache now. ¡®I should probably sit down for this.¡¯ I think to myself and I sit on the cold stone ground in the meditation pose, screwing my eyes shut I ready myself against the pain that was coming. I sit there for a few tense minutes, waiting for the pain to kick in.


    Nothing is happening. I open my eyes, why wasn''t I in pain? After a few seconds of silence and the lack of pain continuing to bring me confusion I stand up. ¡°Maybe system functions don''t give me headaches?¡± I wonder to myself ¡°Maybe it''s in the status menu?¡± ¡®Status.¡¯ I open the status menu and scan everything over.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Statistics


    </td>


    <td>


    Passive Abilities


    </td>


    <td>


    Skills


    </td>


    <td>


    Active Quests


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Name: Ardika Ekia


    Physical age: 11


    Birthdate: August 12


    Gender: Male


    Race: Human/God hybrid


    </td>


    <td>


    Adaptation


    Adaptive system


    Perfect Recollection


    </td>


    <td>


    Appraisal (Object inclined)


    Soul Forge Lv1


    </td>


    <td>


    (No active quests)


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    Nothing is different. Maybe it''s a different menu? ¡®Store.¡¯ I think, trying to open the system store. Instantly the screen shifts and grows into a new screen that looks quite different.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    System Store


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Ring Gold: 0


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Ring Templates


    </td>


    <td>


    Fire Hearts


    </td>


    <td>


    Materials


    </td>


    <td>


    Currency Conversion


    </td>


    <td>


    Necessities


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    ¡®I guess this is the navigation menu?¡¯ I think I''ll look it over. ¡°Ring Gold? What''s Ring Gold?¡± I say and as if answering me the screen shifts to show a notification saying ¡°Congratulations you have discovered the System Store. You can buy a variety of items in the system store with Ring Gold that you can earn by converting currencies, quests and crafting.¡±


    Huh, I guess that it is the currency for the system? The name is a little cheesy but, ok. I wonder what the conversion rates are. I guess I just select it? I reach out and tap the currency conversion button which blinks and expands covering the screen and showing four options: Ring Gold to U.S. dollars, U.S. dollars to Ring Gold, Ring Gold to Golden Drachmas and Golden Drachmas to Ring Gold with the conversion rates of one Ring Gold for every U.S. dollar and 20 Ring Gold for every Golden Drachma and vise versa.


    One Drachma is only 20 dollars? That seems rather cheap, compared to their usefulness and the cost of items in Golden Drachmas. Is this the actual conversion rates or is this just the system conversion rates? Well, I guess I am probably going to find out later.


    What can I buy again? I hit the back button and the screen which brings me back to the navigation menu. Ring Templates first I guess. I punch the Ring Template Button which expands into a very similar screen to the currency conversion button took me to, with different things that I can buy. What I see on this screen is different ring casting molds all about 5 Ring Gold, pre-made rings made of mortal materials that look to be about 10-15 Ring Gold and rings that are made of non-mortal materials that are the most expensive at 100-250 Ring Gold each.


    I am not sure if I am getting a good deal here but 15 Ring Gold/dollars for a gold ring seems really cheap. I am pretty sure that even 250 Ring Gold would be really cheap for one. Could I get rich by selling these at market value and then buying a dozen more with the cash I earn?


    That seems like a smart thing to do, but this world might have completely different prices from my old world, or U.S. currency is worth more than in my old world. I think I will need to research this later, let''s keep looking at the system store.


    I should look at the Fire Hearts next I think. I quickly navigated to the Fire Hearts screen and inspected it carefully for a few minutes. There were at least one hundred different Fire Hearts and they were much more expensive than even the non-mortal material rings with the least expensive being 500 Ring Gold and the most expensive being 2000 Ring Gold. I probably won''t be getting any of these very soon¡­


    I click back to the navigation menu and look at what''s next, ¡°Ah, the materials! Let''s see what we have here!¡± I click the button for the materials tab. My wide eyes are met with the sight of hundreds upon hundreds of materials and a search bar at the top of the screen that wasn''t there for any of the other screens.


    I scan it carefully but it takes a long time, the list of materials seemed to be endless with incredible variety! The prices were incredible too, an example of the prices are a GOLD BAR that cost 40 Ring Gold! I could buy a GOLD BAR for 40 dollars! Gold bars cost well into hundreds of dollars for a single bar in my old universe! If these were current market prices then I¡¯m the president of the universe. I am definitely going to get rich off of this.


    The rest of the mortal materials cost around the same price as the gold bar at around 10-60 Ring Gold but the more expensive mortal materials were interesting and some of them I haven''t even heard off like whatever Durasteel was that cost 70 Ring Gold or even Plastica that cost 60 Ring Gold.


    Then of course there was the non mortal materials that looked to be around 100-200 Ring Gold. I wasn''t sure what the system was thinking with these prices but even 200 Ring Gold for a bar of any non-mortal materials was very, very, very cheap. Hell, a gold bar costs more than that and it is literally useless!


    I don''t think that I will ever have money problems in this new world and I haven''t even gotten the Lotus Hotel and Casino infinite cash card yet!


    I can''t wait until I get my mansion and private jet! Make that mansions and private jets, plural!


    Ok, I am getting ahead of myself. I need to figure out how to survive first. Back to the Store.


    I bring myself out of my reverie and focus back in on the blue rectangle in front of me, still in the materials section. I exit the materials page and check for anything I haven''t looked at yet. ¡°Ah, the Necessities page.¡± I say after looking at it, I wonder what a multidimensional system would consider necessities? I punch the last button quickly and open up the Necessities page and am about to scan it quickly when the thought ¡®I should be fast, what time is it anyway?¡¯ occurs before I can look at anything and then ¡®I really need a watch.¡¯


    The page seemed to be just a list of food items and a couple different basic types of clothes with the normal food costing 5 Ring Gold, desserts costing around 10 Ring Gold and the clothes costing around the same as desserts, a little higher in some cases. But near the bottom of the list there were a few special items that were displayed that caught my attention.


    Their names were: Ambrosia square, Nectar box, Lembas Bread loaf and finally Golden Apples. The Ambrosia squares cost 60 Ring Gold each, Nectar boxes were the same price as the Ambrosia, Lembas Bread loaf¡¯s cost the least of the special food stuff for 20 Ring Gold and the highest price goes to Golden Apples that cost one thousand Ring Gold per apple.


    The price for Golden Apples makes sense as it extends the lifespan of a person by a lot, if my memory is accurate, but 20 dollars for a loaf of bread!? This is the only thing I have seen in the store that seemed to be over charging me for something and not crazy inexpensive. It''s weird that the system chose a loaf of bread to be the thing that the system is charging me more for.


    Or is it just a loaf of bread? Lembas Bread¡­ hang on, that sounds familiar¡­ Oh, I just remembered what it is, nevermind the system is still crazy inexpensive. If it is the same thing that is in the Lord of the Rings that is. I mean, it has the same name so¡­ Probably? I can try it later, when I am filthy rich¡­ and have a mansion¡­


    OK, I am done looking at the store for now. I guess I should go back to my room and start planning my new life.

 Chapter 4

    I step out of the Soul Forge and look around my room, making sure that there was nobody around, before dispelling the doorway. I stepped over to the desk in the corner and looked out the window, the sun was up and the traffic was still going strong along with the pedestrians that occasionally passed. ¡°What time is it?¡± I asked myself and turned my head towards the nightstand by my bed and looked over to the alarm clock that was facing away from me.


    I walked over to the clock and checked the glowing green numbers that told me that it is only seven in the morning. ¡°Huh.¡± I thought that I was in the Soul Forge for much longer than that! I went in a little after six didn''t I? I guess I was faster than I realized.


    I step back to my desk and turn on the lamp, rummage through the main drawer for a second, looking for a pencil and some paper. I found the paper easily as it was sitting near the front of the drawer but I couldn''t find a pencil. I opened the other drawer and saw a bunch of pens ¡°Good enough for now I guess.¡± I commented and brought out the black plastic pen and set it along with a few sheets of paper onto the desktop. It''s time to plan.


    ________________________________________________________


    About an hour later, when my hand was sore from writing for so long, I finished my plan that was written across five double-sided sheets of paper. Well, my plan for this year anyway. I had decided that I shouldn''t make plans for the entire series yet, just me being there could change the plot by a lot, which would mean that my plans would be flawed and would have to be changed anyway.


    I think that my basic long term plan would work out ok though, albeit with a little bit of struggling.


    While I am not just going to tell you the plan, I will say my basic goals which are: To survive, help others survive and make really cool things. Not necessarily in that order.


    First things first however, I need to get into Yancy academy for this year. I mentally review my plan, first I need to figure out who is in charge of where we go to school, I can probably just ask to find out for this step. Second, I need to talk to who is in charge of my education and convince them to send me to Yancy. Lastly, if talking doesn''t work, I need to figure out how to make a mind control ring.


    Just kidding about the mind control ring, I doubt I could make one any time soon, even if I wanted to.


    No, the real last backup plan is to just head to Camp Half Blood early and wait for Percy to show up and kill the minotaur to try to get into his good books and perhaps become friends that way, which would help a lot of my plans. I hope I won''t have to go with this option, it''s not as good a plan as just going to Yancy and getting to know him slower and eventually becoming good friends that way.


    I spin in my chair and stand up to check the time, it''s just about eight fifteen. Breakfast is supposed to be around eight thirty I believe so I got some time until that. What to do¡­ Ah, I should probably do some exercise to test my new body a bit.


    ________________________________________________________


    When I was doing my thirtieth pushup I heard a knock on my door and someone''s voice saying, ¡°It''s time to get up! We are having breakfast now!¡± Ah, finally. ¡°Ok, I will be right down!¡± I answered rather breathlessly, I was really pushing my new body to see my limits. It turns out that my new body, despite being only eleven years old, was as strong, if not stronger, than my old body. This was really weird as I was eighteen in my past world! Maybe it was the half god part of me?


    As I thought back on the exercise the more I realized that this new body was a boon for my survival rates in this new world! Of course, nothing survives first contact with the enemy and it''s better to be cautious, but I was feeling optimistic about my chances.


    I stood up and quickly put on a shirt, leaving for breakfast. I walked through the carpeted wooden hallways towards where I remembered the dining room was located. A few minutes later, after going through a seemingly endless hallway and passing sun filled window after window, I ended up at the dining hall doorway where I froze.


    I could see about two dozen children, going to sit down at a long table that was in the center of the room from what looked like a buffet table piled with food that smelled like heaven when the only thing I had eaten was a little bit of hospital food for the last few weeks.


    I also saw the woman who drove me here yesterday lookup at me as I froze. She smiled at me and said ¡°Come on over!¡± and then she got all of the children¡¯s attention ¡°Hey, everybody! This is Ardika and he just arrived. Say hello to Ardika everyone.¡± The children stopped to look at me inquisitively which caused me to shrink back a little, I wasn''t the best with kids along with being terminally introverted.


    The children apparently thought I was uninteresting after looking me over and turned back to their food or friends. I wasn''t sure if I should be relieved or insulted about that.


    I slowly walked over to the buffet table and grabbed a plate. I proceeded to pile every food onto my plate until I had a stack that was getting hard to carry and then I sat down at the long table. A few people looked at me questioningly and they started to talk to their friends laughing while looking between me and the massive pile of food. I started to eat, the food was amazing, the pancakes were practically melting on my tongue, the fruit was juicy and soft, I felt like I was in heaven with all of the wonderful food that I could finally eat.


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    I groaned in satisfaction, leaning back in my chair. That was amazing. I opened my eyes and looked back at my empty plate that I had practically wiped clean, and looked around to see quite a few people looking at me astonished I just chuckled and told them ¡°Hey, when you can''t eat any actual food for two weeks and you see food, you will understand.¡± as if it was the most common thing in the world. Actually, it might be, for all I know, a different dimension is bound to be different in some way. The monsters and gods might account for that though.


    From the way the children looked, not eating real food for two weeks might not be common though. From their expressions you would think I was a dying man and their slowly edging away probably meant that I didn''t give the best first impression.


    I sighed, well I guess I won''t be making any friends here¡­ I looked around for one of the caretakers, I should probably find out about the school arrangements now that I am full to bursting.


    By the buffet table was the same woman that drove me here, I had lost track of her at some point while I was eating but apparently she is supervising the children. How many people work here? I mean I have only seen two caretakers here so far and someone probably cooked the food so three? That seems a little low¡­ Whatever, I can ask her.


    I stand up and grab my plate off of the table, push in my chair and walk over to the dirty dish pile that was at the other end of the buffet table, close to where the caretaker was standing. I carefully put the plastic plate and cup into the bin and turned to the caretaker, ¡°Hello again!¡± I say cheerfully ¡°Hello to you too.¡± she responds, looking down at me smiling ¡°Do you want something?¡± I nod and say ¡°Yes, I was just wondering about what is going to happen with schooling arrangements¡­¡± I said questioningly, looking for some information.


    The woman looked surprised by that and said ¡°What do you want to know?¡± ¡°Well, everything really. Where am I going to school, where is it, do you know?¡±


    The caretaker seemed to be a little more taken aback at that and continued asking me questions before she finally told me that she didn''t know and that I would have to ask the director who is in her office right now. I thanked her and walked out the door, hurrying down the hallway to her office, thinking over what I was going to say. I stop just before the door at the end of the hall and turn to the plaque which reads ¡®Director Kasandra¡¯ in big bold lettering.


    While I was standing at the big imposing dark wooden door, I started to doubt my plan. Was this really necessary? Ok Ardika, you can do this, it¡¯s just a talk¡­ Just a casual talk. I raise my hand to knock and hesitate slightly before bolstering my courage and knock on the door.


    After a few seconds of silence during which I continued to stand nervously in front of the door I hear a voice from inside saying ¡°You can come in.¡± ¡®Ok, just keep calm and say what we planned, Ardika and you will be fine. Worst that could happen is you have to run to camp sooner than normal.¡¯ I thought to myself as I reached out and grabbed the handle, turning it and stepping inside the office.


    I looked around the office that was sparsely decorated and quite plain with a few shelves that were next to empty, a desk at the far end of the room, and a door behind it. The Director was sitting expectantly behind her desk looking at me. I cleared my throat, looked at her and started to talk. ¡°Good morning.¡± I told her, trying to be polite.


    ¡°Good morning to you too Ardika.¡± She remembers my name¡­ That''s probably a good sign. ¡°I wanted to ask you about the arrangements for school.¡± She looked a little surprised at that but not too much so ¡°What about them do you want to know about?¡± ¡°Well, where am I going to be going to, what type of school is it that I am going to and where is it, are the main questions I want to know right now.¡±


    She took a second to think and then looked up to ask me another question ¡°Why do you want to know right now? School is quite a long way away, you still have a few months until it starts.¡± ¡®Shoot, I need to come up with something¡­¡¯ ¡°Well¡­ I am not really sure, but I feel like I liked school a lot and¡­¡± ¡®Ok, laying the no memory thing this early probably wasn''t the best move right now¡­¡¯ I looked up at her, trying to seem like I was trying to remember something. She seemed to be really surprised, but I wasn''t the best at judging body language so for all I know she sees right through me.


    ¡°Are you sure? Are you remembering something from before the accident?¡± ¡®I think that she is falling for it¡­¡¯ ¡°I don''t know¡­¡± I said, trying to sound frustrated. ¡°It''s just I think that I might remember something about a school¡­¡± I trailed off again making Kasandra sit forward and say ¡°Do you remember what the name of the school you remember is?¡±


    ¡®Ok, here¡¯s my chance¡­¡¯ ¡°I think that it is¡­ Jancy? No¡­ that''s not it¡­¡± ¡°Do you mean Nancy academy?¡± she asked me, my face lit up at the name! She knew Yancy academy? This is great! ¡°Yes, that''s it!¡± I say, relieved. ¡°What about it do you remember? Did you go there?¡± I frown, thinking hard, ¡®If I say yes then she will go asking if I was enrolled there¡­ but how would I remember it if I didn''t?¡¯ ¡°I¡¯m not sure¡­ I don''t think so? I just remember someone taking me there and saying I would be going there some time¡­ and I also remember someone reading me a book there.¡±


    She looked disappointed at that, but I was quick to say ¡°I think that I might know someone that was there though¡­ I remember someone leaving me in a room with someone and being told to be good for¡­ someone? I don''t really remember what their name is¡­¡± At that she seemed to perk up a bit, this was a little easy¡­ ¡°Do you remember what they looked like?¡± she suddenly asked me, ¡°I¡­ A little? It¡¯s a bit hazy¡­ I might recognize them if I saw them, but I don''t know¡­¡±


    She pushed herself back and said ¡°Would you like to go there this year?¡± ¡®Really? That was fast¡­¡¯ ¡°Maybe? I don''t remember a lot about it¡­¡± I told her, trying to not show my excitement and keep the ''child that was trying to remember something'' fa?ade. ¡°Ok, how about I can take you to take a look before school starts, and you can decide then. Ok?¡± ¡®Wow, it was really easy to manipulate her into that¡­ Maybe it¡¯s the young body?¡¯ ¡°Ok, that sounds good.¡± I say and I smile a little.


    ¡°Is that all you wanted to ask me?¡± she prompts me, to which I say ¡°Yes, I think so, goodbye.¡± and I turn to the door, turn the handle, swing it open and quickly leave, shutting the door behind me. I grin widely, that was too easy! Now that that is sorted, I should go back to the Soul Forge I guess.


    I turn back down the hallway, still grinning and I happily jog all the way back to my room.

 Chapter 5

    In my room I started pacing back and forth, thinking hard. ¡°Ok, the first step of the plan is pretty much complete, what to do now¡­¡± I muttered out loud to myself, ¡°First things first, I will need to make some things to help me survive in the short term. Could I make something that would make monsters not able to sense that I am a Demigod?¡± I review my new memories, I need anti-tracking enchantments¡­


    I recall my new memories slowly, searching for what I need. Wait¡­ ¡°It''s an intention based enchantment system!¡± I say out loud, this is very very good for me. I review all my new information on the enchantment system and am slightly disappointed by what I find but anything is better than nothing.


    How it''s supposed to work is you need to imbue spirit energy into the object, causing magic pathways to be made, after imbuing the energy with a very specific intention for what it is supposed to do. Of course it''s way harder than it sounds but that''s the basic overview of it.


    One way that it is much harder than it sounds is the imbuing the spirit energy with the intent, an example of how difficult it is would be if you wanted to make a jacket that has a heating enchantment on it you would need to understand and envision of exactly what you wanted it to do, if you forget anything like for instance, exactly how hot it needs to be, you could find yourself the center of a massive explosion. Or, if you forget to make it so the jacket doesn''t heat up itself or is heat resistant, you could find yourself on fire.


    Another way that it is extremely difficult is that you need to understand exactly what you want to happen, let''s go back to the jacket example, if you simply envisioned the feeling of heat coming from the jacket, it could turn it into a jacket that gives the illusion of heat, while leaving your real body freezing.


    What you would need to do is envision the atoms moving faster close to the jacket and causing the other nearby atoms to increase their vibrating speed, causing heat. This has to be in incredible detail as well. Needless to say, enchanting with this system is very reliant on knowledge and knowing the forces at play. While enchanting you need to be concentrating on all minute details at once over an unknown period of time that could be anywhere from minutes to hours or even days.


    Then there''s the objects you want to enchant, the spirit energy that is used in this enchantment method, is very temperamental. Energy supplied to it that is supposed to activate the enchantments, might just over power the enchantment, or the material itself and cause it to explode in the worst case or just destroy the enchantment on it at best. The solution to this problem is really simple yet difficult, it needs something to act as a funnel, or a limiter for the energy, The only problem with this is that it adds another layer of complexity to the intent imbued into the enchantments, and it needs to be in a looped pattern, like a circle, so it connects back up with itself, to make it not cause pressurized backlog and explode.


    Materials that are good for enchanting using this method are very rare and normal materials usually won''t work right. For instance, if you made the heat jacket out of bear fur, it could cause the enchantment to fail and destroy itself, or be so energy intensive that it isn''t practical. This is why only fur from magical beasts or magic non-mortal metals, like mythril, are practical for enchanting because of their ability to channel or conduct spirit energy, much like how copper is used in circuitry.


    It''s a good thing that I happen to have a bar of mythril, just sitting around on a table in the Soul Forge, and a system store, otherwise I wouldn''t be able to do anything at all with this new knowledge.


    Ok, an anti-tracking ring might be possible, but I need to plan it out very carefully and if my current knowledge on ¡®the scent¡¯ isn''t good enough then I might have to put it on hold for some research and make something else to help me survive.


    Let''s start with a plan¡­ I stop pacing and walk up to my desk, open a drawer and bring out some sheets of paper and a pen. I need to review all that I know about ¡®The scent¡¯ for the first step.


    Ok lets start with what it is¡­ The scent is something that all monsters give off, along with gods and demigods. I start writing on the paper. ¡®Hang on, that''s not entirely correct, Grover said that he could sense Gabe because of how he was ¡®repulsively mortal¡¯ even across a city and after Percy being away from him for months, so that must mean that mortals give off ¡®the scent¡¯ too.¡¯ I start to correct the sentence, but another thought occurs to me, ¡®but then if mortals give off ¡®the scent¡¯ too, then what''s the difference between the demigod scent and the mortal scent? Is it unique to species? Or perhaps unique to everyone, even between species?¡¯


    I think about it for a while before I remember that it is said that the children of the big three gods have a stronger ¡®scent¡¯ than other demigods. ¡®But why is it that stronger, or older, gods produce demigods with a stronger scent? Is ¡®the scent¡¯ directly related to power? Or perhaps it has to do with having a stronger soul aura that comes from more developed and powerful spirits or gods like the big three? If it is indeed just having a stronger spirit aura, then I might be in for some trouble if I don''t do something to help.¡¯ I think seriously, my theory makes sense but if it is true¡­


    Another important aspect of the enchanting system I learned is that by using spirit energy, your soul becomes stronger and produces more energy faster than before. This is why my new theory is very worrying. If stronger spirit auras, or the energy emitted and produced by souls is ¡®the scent¡¯ then eventually, if I practice the enchanting method, I will become like a homing beacon for monsters all over the world. This makes something to hide ¡®the scent¡¯ even more important for my survival.


    As a side note, an important thing to know is that spirit auras and spirit energy are not the same thing. Spirit auras are a different type of energy constantly emitted from souls that usually is undetectable by most things, in the world that invented the enchantment system at least, except by special devices that were made in the world where the enchantment system was made, and were occasionally one of the abilities of strong magical beasts in that world.


    Unlike Spirit energy, which is more potent and powerful while having more of a physical effect on the world and various energies, depending on how it is used, like how it generally affects photons that allow it to be seen in the visible spectrum.


    The thing is, the more that I think about it, the more that it makes sense. With age, the soul naturally develops to become stronger, which means that when demigods are babies, monsters won''t be able to sense them easily, if at all, which is said to be the case until about age eleven, when monsters can sense them and even track them.


    This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.


    Even the fact that underground smells like monsters fits in as well. You see according to my new knowledge, as when a soul loses its body, or in other words the host dies, the spirit energy of the soul and its spirit aura dissipates into its surroundings and flows back into the earth, because of the tiny influence gravity and other more physical forces has on spiritual energies, with time, causing spirit energy to flow and move through the earth currents in the ocean, and making things grow and develop in and on it, as a byproduct.


    Inadvertently causing spirit energy rich areas that causes monsters or magical beasts to develop along with eventually creating non-mortal or magic materials out of mortal ores and minerals over the course of thousands of years in deep, underground places in the earth.


    Perhaps Tartarus is one of those places? Who knows? I guess I might find out later.


    Ok, now I have a working theory that makes sense, let¡¯s write it down. I come back from my thoughts to find that I had started pacing around my room without me realizing. I smile, I guess that some things don''t change. I walk back to my desk and scratch out the first two tries for a definition and start to write.


    ¡®The scent is another term for the spiritual aura made by souls that some magical creatures and monsters have the ability to sense. The stronger the soul, the stronger the ¡®scent¡¯ that is produced and the more monsters or magical beasts can sense it within an area determined the same way. There are multiple kinds or variations of spirit auras made by different beings I.E. Humans have a different kind of ¡®scent¡¯ or spirit aura than gods, demigods or monsters.¡¯


    Once I wrote it down, I looked it over a few times, just to make sure that I didn''t miss anything or overlooked something, using my new knowledge as reference. Before giving a satisfied nod, it is time for step two.


    I stand up again and start pacing, how should I make something that will let me go undetected by monsters? ¡®It really depends on which way I want to go, should I cover up my aura with another aura, maybe a human one? Or perhaps I should make something that would prevent my spirit aura from exiting my body, to eliminate the source?¡¯ I think hard, comparing the pros and cons of both options.


    Ok, if I disguised my ¡®scent¡¯ as the scent of a human, then monsters probably won''t be attracted to me as much as usual which is good¡­ Ok, that was a bad choice of words¡­ Well, some monsters might still come for me, some monsters do eat humans. I would also have to do a lot of research on the differences of auras as well¡­


    But if I just prevented my ¡®scent¡¯ from entering my surroundings, like a small bubble around my body that shielded my scent and kept it inside¡­ Well, first off, that sounds like it might be more energy efficient, especially if I make it circulate the energy through the shield and through itself, as a power source, then I wouldn''t have to purposely channel energy through it, and the strength would increase as my soul develops, making upgrades not relevant as well¡­ This is definitely the better method.


    Now that I have decided on the technical workings, it''s time to get into the specifics¡­ I hate word crafting¡­


    I sit down at my desk and start to write down the method that I want to use, with a high attention to detail I carefully write:


    ¡°A ring that when put on, activates a spirit aura energy attraction system that affects an area of one foot cubed around the ring, for while it stays on the wearer, that only pulls the specific aura of the wearer into the ring, for temporary storage that can be drawn on by any other enchantments on the ring.


    When the first effect is activated, it activates the second enchantment, which causes a invisible and intangible spirit aura energy barrier (Density depending on energy available) to fill the space between one inch and 2 inches away from the skin of the wearer at all times and moves with the body, that keeps the specific spirit aura of the wearer inside said barrier, not letting any of it go through, while also pulling any spirit aura of the wearer, back into the inside of the barrier, not affecting any other type of energy in any way.


    While the barrier is activated, a third enchantment is activated that makes the spirit aura flow around the inside of the barrier in a random pattern.¡±


    I rub my hand and look up from the paper on my desk, it took nearly twenty minutes to write that down and to triple check for any mistakes and oversights, eventually correcting it and adding notes as I went. Ok, let''s go over it one more time.


    ¡°A ring that when put on,¡± This makes it so that it has a activation and deactivation command, so it won''t keep it constantly activated. ¡°activates a spirit aura energy attraction system that affects an area of one foot cubed around the ring,¡± This just makes it a set area, so it wont start sucking all the spirit auras in the world, which would be a bad thing.


    ¡°for while it stays on the wearer,¡± This is just another activation and deactivation command, ¡°that only pulls the specific aura of the wearer into the ring,¡± This is very important, it makes it so that it only affects the wearer, not anyone within the bounds of the ring, I wouldn''t want to steal anyone''s soul aura by accident¡­


    ¡°for temporary storage that can be drawn on by any other enchantments on the ring.¡± This is just so that the other enchantments and effects will use this energy source, not directly from my spirit energy reserves.


    ¡°When the first effect is activated, it activates the second enchantment,¡± Another activation/deactivation command. ¡°which causes a invisible and intangible spirit aura energy barrier¡± This is very important as well, this makes it so that it is invisible, because it won''t interact with or affect photons, and won''t affect anything other than what it is meant to contain, like physical objects, electricity or spirit energy. It also specifies that it uses spirit aura to function.


    ¡°Density depending on energy available¡± just means that with more energy, the thicker and more powerful the barrier is, this is important as more energy will flow into the energy absorber with time, making the effect stronger the longer it is worn, and for when my soul aura gets more powerful. ¡°to fill the space between one inch and 2 inches away from the skin of the wearer at all times¡± is just another boundary, just so it won''t just be some random blob somewhere, like how ¡°and moves with the body,¡± makes it stay around my body, not in a static position.


    ¡°keeps the specific spirit aura of the wearer inside said barrier, not letting any of it go through,¡± is the main effect, to keep my spirit aura in, while also specifying the wearers spirit aura so that it won''t be stopping other peoples spirit auras from entering the barrier.


    ¡°while also pulling any spirit aura of the wearer, back into the inside of the barrier¡± this is just so that if any spirit aura gets through, and my aura that is in the surroundings, to get pulled inside the barrier. ¡°not affecting any other type of energy in any way.¡± is pretty much the same effect as the invisible and intangible effects mentioned in another line.


    ¡°While the barrier is activated, a third enchantment is activated¡± another on and off command¡­ ¡°that makes the spirit aura flow around the inside of the barrier in a random pattern.¡± This is also really important as, if the spirit aura is moving around, it will enter the range of the spirit aura absorber and be used for the barrier effect, causing a steady flow of power.


    I don''t think of anything that I need to change or add during my read through, and I am getting bored of looking at a paper and thinking, so I decide that it is time for some action. Let''s get blacksmithing and make a ring, so I can test this enchantment system!

 Chapter 6

    I stand up out of my desk chair and stretch my arms a bit before closing my eyes and taking hold of the gate to the Soul Forge, causing it to appear in the room directly in front of me. I reach forward and grasp the handle, twisting it and pulling on the ethereal door, opening it, and stepping inside.


    I glance around the Soul forge, seeing nothing unusual I then walk quickly towards the forge in the corner, reaching it after a few seconds of speed walking. I inspected the forge again, looking for specific tools that I will need, checking them off my mental list as I went along. Five minutes later, I had found everything that I needed to make a good ring, along with some that I didn''t even think of, like polish and a magic powered grindstone, for making the finished product look half decent.


    I mentally reviewed the new information on blacksmithing carefully. I would need to do a lot of practice to actually learn what to do for myself, but I think I can make something good enough to enchant with what I got. The blacksmithing knowledge that I gained, didn''t fit with the little I knew about it from my old world, but I never really took the time to learn to do blacksmithing. I doubt it would have helped much anyway as from the blacksmithing I had seen, it had incorporated a lot of power tools, of which I only had some magical counterparts.


    Once I had reviewed the steps to make the ring a few times, I felt confident that I could start my first try. It wasn''t as if I lacked time to make a passable ring after all, I could always melt the materials back down and try again.


    I start to heat up the forge, setting one of the dials to the correct temperature, causing a flame to start to spread within it, slowly heating up the temperature inside the stone forge, casting a flickering yellow glow onto the surroundings and making a cheerful crackle as it did. I watched the forge heat up, while basking in the heat that it was giving off, the heat was currently nowhere near what it needed to be and it already felt at least one and a half times average room temperature is.


    Over the next half an hour, it grew steadily hotter and hotter, making me start sweating at around the first fifteen minutes, until finally a light above the temperature dial blinked on, telling me that it was at the right temperature.


    Ok, it''s time to heat up the mythril until it''s malleable¡­ I take a set of tongs and carefully grip the bar of mythril that was lying in the table close by, and carefully swing it over to the forge, placing it partially inside the forge, into the depths of the roaring fire to soak the end in the heat.


    I watch carefully, waiting for the metal to heat up enough to be split into something that I can use for a ring. Just less than five minutes later, when the mythril bar is glowing a nice deep orange, I reach over and take hold of the tongs. I carefully but quickly stretch out the tongs and grasp the mythril bar firmly and extract it from the furnace, placing it on the anvil in one, less than deft, movement.


    I place the tongs down quickly releasing the mythril bar. Grabbing a chisel and a blacksmithing hammer, I step in front of the anvil hurriedly, watching the metal cool quickly, knowing that within less than forty seconds it would be too cold to work with.


    That is the thing with working with most non-mortal materials, they were insanely hard to work with. An example of this is the speed at which the mythril is cooling, compared to the time it takes to heat up.


    I place the chisel on the end of the mythril bar, holding it tightly with one hand, while my other raises the hammer into the air and send it crashing down onto the chisel, making a shallow indent into the metal. I repeatedly struck the metal for a few seconds before stopping because it was just about too cold to keep working with.


    I had barely managed to get half an inch through the bar, during the first heat. This could be taken as a good or bad thing because realistically, if I was an average child my body¡¯s age than it would be an incredible speed, but with all my new blacksmithing knowledge, I knew that I wasn''t as fast as I could have been and I had hesitated and nearly messed up quite a lot during the process, along with the fact that I was basically superhuman for my physical age, that was pretty abysmal.


    I take the tongs and grip the bar of mythril, placing it in the same place in the forge as before as quickly as possible so it wouldn''t need to take as long to heat back up. Judging by the rate I was working at for the last time, it would take probably around two more heats to separate the small chunk for the ring, which could take anywhere from five to ten minutes.


    Two minutes later the end of the metal was glowing strongly once again, so I took the tongs and maneuvered the bar to the anvil. I happily note that it was still quite clumsy but slightly better than the first time. I grasp the hammer and chisel and position them once again, bringing powerful strikes and bending the metal with every one of them.


    After thirty seconds or so, I could tell that the metal was close to separating, so I took one mighty swing and¡­ I missed it, sending the hammer clanging against the anvil. Immediately afterwards the metal reached the point that it was too cold to work with. ¡°Damn it! I was so close!¡± I yelled out, tempted to hit the anvil again but resisted the temptation as I needed to put the bar back in the forge once again.


    I quickly do so and I wait for it to get to temperature once again while sulking. I knew I was lucky that I hadn''t hit my hand, but I was too angry at myself to feel very lucky, I had wasted an extra few minutes because of a missed swing.


    Three minutes later, I finally split the small chunk of mythril off of the main bar. I carefully move the bigger chunk of the mythril bar away, towards the edge of the anvil. I then start to hammer the rectangular chunk, to try and draw it out into a more cylindrical or a rod type shape.


    After a few heats, I managed to make a rod that was roughly six inches long and just less than an inch in diameter. ¡®Now I have to split it into segments about half an inch, lengthwise.¡¯ I think to myself, mentally reviewing the next step. I take the rod and push it about four inches into the forge, just enough so I can separate at least four sections from it when it is heated.


    About a minute later, it was heated enough, so I took the tongs once again and placed the rod on the table. It would cool even faster now, so I had to be fast. I grabbed the hammer and chisel and made two deep indents that went over half way through the rod before it was too cold again and I had to reheat it up. After waiting for it to heat up for another minute, I brought the rod out again and made two more deep indents along the length of the rod.


    Now onto one of the easy parts. I watched it cool down and then once it was cool enough I brought over a clamp onto the anvil and placed the rod inside, with only the top section above the first indent above the clamp. I smiled, this is the fun part! I grab the hammer again and lift it to the side, swinging at the rod in the clamp, causing the piece above the first indent to go flying off. I placed the hammer down and went to collect the piece of the rod, running over to where it went, I saw it quickly and picked it up, inspecting it.


    It looked alright, I would need to smooth it of course but that was a given anyway so whatever.


    I speed walk back to the clamp on the anvil and place the piece beside the clamp on the metal face. I repeated the process on the other three sections and I ended up with three thin half inch cylinders. I took the remaining piece of the rod along with all but one section and I put it beside the main mythril bar on the table, I then put the clamp back and grabbed the leftover section of rod with the tongs and put it into the forge to heat up.


    I needed to flatten it out a bit, before adding a hole, so this step was pretty simple. I just took the section out of the forge and set it on the anvil then hammered it to be flat on both sides, just in time to be reheated again for the next step.


    While the metal was heating up, I brought a new tool, namely a punch that I measured and found to be just a little too small, then I brought out another, which turned out to be too big. At the fourth punch, I had finally found one that was the right size and placed it on the left side of the anvil, opposite to where I would put the metal disk and directly beside the hammer.


    As soon as I had placed down the punch, I checked the small coin sized disk and found that it was just about heated up so I went and grabbed the tongs, and brought it out quickly and carefully setting it above the pritchel hole that immediately shrank for the heated metal to be placed on the anvil face, with the pritchel hole now just hidden under the edge of the disk.


    What was responsible for the pritchel hole shrinking was in fact the anvil itself. As a level one Magic Anvil, it had several abilities that make it a very useful addition to any forge. One of these abilities are that the pritchel hole, when a small metal object is placed above it that would fall into the hole normally, would change size to prevent it from falling in and making it very useful for small objects that needed to get punched, like a ring.


    Wasting no time, I reached over and grabbed the punch and the hammer that were lying on the anvil, and positioned the punch precisely in the center of the coin shaped piece of metal. I brought the hammer down on the punch and started to make a deep indent into the piece of metal that went deeper with every stroke of my hammer. I spent the next three heats doing this same thing until finally, it was deep enough.


    When I reheated the piece of metal again, I put it upside down this time. I needed to remove the slug of metal that was trapped between the anvil and the punch, so I started hammering the punch on the same point I had started, just on the other side. One more heat later, the slug popped out through the new hole I had made. I waited for it to cool for a minute before picking up the slug and putting it beside the Mythril bar to be rejoined after I made the ring.


    Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.


    I then walked back to the new ring and picked it up and examined it, noticing that the hole was really straight and that the size was just a little too small for my ring finger, but that was a good thing as I had not yet grinded it down or added polish, not that I was planning to polish it, that was pretty unnecessary. It totally wasn''t because I didn''t have any polish.


    I spent the next fifteen minutes grinding away at the ring, making the ring actually comfortable to wear, taking off the sharp edges and causing it to take on a nice silvery reflectivity and shine.


    ¡°Huh, that went well.¡± I said out loud after finishing the filing work. I carefully examined the ring that I had made, looking for any damages. I find nothing but I start to feel proud of my work, my first work as a blacksmith. I put it on and found that it fit quite well and was really comfortable. I decided that I should check what the system had to say about it, ¡®Appraisal¡¯ I thought to myself while staring at the ring in my hand. The blue box spirals into existence in front of me saying ¡°Common Middle grade mythril ring¡±


    ¡°It tells me the rank now? Huh, is that because I made it? Or is it because the tools that came in the soul forge dont fit in the ranking system or something¡­¡± I wonder out loud after reading the appraisal screen.


    The fact that the system shows the ranking of objects now is very important as it shows the progress of skill and classifies the object within seven main ranks: Low, common, uncommon, high, ultra high, legendary and mythical. These ranks are then separated into three subgrades: Low, Medium and high.


    To put the rankings into perspective, low grade objects would be similar to an ancient rusty sword.


    Common grade would be like a new mass produced machine tooled sword made of iron.


    Uncommon grade would be like a brand new sword made of steel that was treated to be even stronger or damage resistant that could have a weak enchantment on it.


    High grade would be like a sword made of extremely high quality tungsten or titanium that was treated to make it even more high quality or a well made enchanted uncommon grade sword.


    Ultra high grade would be like a sword made of extremely high quality tungsten or titanium that was treated to make it even more high quality and enchanted or a powerfully enchanted high grade sword of non mortal materials.


    Legendary grade would be like a well made sword made of non-mortal materials with a complicated, difficult or powerful enchantment.


    Mythical grade would be like a sword made of high quality non-mortal materials that was processed to become even better than normal with a very powerful and very complicated enchantment.


    Of course the ranks that would be granted to an item could vary depending occasionally but you get the general idea.


    Anyways, I was honestly impressed by myself, a common middle rank on my first creation, that was akin to a ring made by a robot, was in my opinion pretty impressive. Admittedly having all the blacksmithing knowledge from another universe helped a ton, but I was still happy.


    I looked up from the ring that I was examining still and specifically to the table, where the other unfinished rings were sitting, calling me to finish them. I sigh, even if my first try was pretty impressive and most likely able to hold a good enchantment, I should try and make some backups now. I rose to my feet and shoved the ring in my pocket, it was blacksmithing time.


    <hr>


    Half an hour later, I was sitting on the stool by the table in the Soul Forge, inspecting the ¡°Common Low grade mythril ring¡± in my hand. I had made two Common Low rings, like the one in my hand, and another Common Middle ring. These would have to do for my first enchantment.


    I put the ring away in my pocket and looked around for a good place to enchant a ring. I need someplace comfortable to sit on or collapse on, possibly. I don''t see anywhere that would be a good place to enchant in the Soul Forge, obviously stone floors and walls won''t work, they won''t be a good thing to fall on if I have to, or sit on either. I think that safety wise, my room in the orphanage is best. On the other hand however, it would be really bad if someone walked in while I was enchanting.


    I weigh my options carefully before deciding that my room was the best choice, safety takes priority¡­ Nevermind, I don''t want to think of what would happen if the ring that I am trying to enchant explodes in the orphanage. I will do it in the soul forge. I will also bring in the blankets and pillow that is on my bed in the orphanage to sit on.


    Ok, lets go. My legs are getting tired from standing for so long.


    I walk to the doorway and then open the door. Once I stepped inside and glanced around to make sure everything was how I had left it, they were exactly the same, I went up to the bed and tore off the blankets and pillow and tied it into a bundle before walking back inside the Soul Forge to get ready.


    I set the bundle of blankets up in the center of the soul forge and unwrap it, to act as a cushion, and place the pillow in the center. I sit on the pillow with crossed legs, I need to arrange my thoughts and know my plan by heart¡­ I forgot the plan on my desk.


    I get up, annoyed at myself, and jog back into my room to get the plan. I look at my desk for the paper with my plan¡­ it''s not there¡­ ¡°Oh, shoot. I had better not have lost it¡­¡± I whisper to myself panicked before looking around the room for it.


    I spent the next five minutes searching my room for it but I didn''t find it, trying to remember where I put it the entire time until finally I remembered, ¡°Oh, I put it inside my desk didn''t I?¡± I walk to my desk and open my drawer, finding it sitting innocently on top of the other papers. ¡°You have got to be kidding me¡­ What a waste of time¡­¡± I grumble to myself, grabbing the page and jogging back to my cushioning in the Soul Forge.


    <hr>


    Ten minutes later, I had learned the entire page by heart. It was pretty easy to remember it word for word, because of the Perfect Recall ability probably, but I still took the time to thoroughly understand it and the intent behind it perfectly on command.


    I placed the page with my writing down beside me and took out a ring from my pocket, the first ¡°Common Middle grade mythril ring¡± I had made. Because of its slightly higher ranking, thinking that it might have a higher chance to be able to handle the enchantment better.


    I started sweating, this next step was very mentally and physically taxing and if anything went wrong¡­ Well I didn''t want to think about it. I think that I will be fine, but still just knowing the possibilities would make anyone nervous. Doubly so for their first time.


    ¡°Come on, Ardika, you can do this!¡± I say out loud, half comforting and half trying to hype me up. I then start to close my eyes to enchant the ring.


    I focus inward, feeling my soul, the energy flowing out and throughout it¡­ I concentrate my entire will onto holding my spirit energy that is flowing inside of my soul. I gasped out loud, it was painful, it felt like every part of my body was being pushed down and all of my muscles strained to keep holding on to the energy flowing inside me, causing microfractures all over.


    While I was in pain, I never let my concentration slip on the energy pushing to escape. It was comforting to know that, while it hurts a lot, the pain was a good thing. You see, all the pressure of keeping the spirit energy inside causes the energy to leak into the body, strengthening it while causing the body to become a little more healthy while causing strain on all muscles all over the body that was more strain than a full three hours of intense exercise for every minute I hold the energy inside.


    I hold the energy inside for agonizing minutes, feeling my soul stretch with the amount of pure spirit energy it is holding inside. It is almost time to start the next step¡­ Ok, it''s time¡­


    I now channel the energy to flood inside the ring, filling it with my intent as I let it out as slow as I can.


    ¡°A ring that when put on, activates a spirit aura energy attraction system that affects an area of one foot cubed around the ring, for while it stays on the wearer, that only pulls the specific aura of the wearer into the ring, for temporary storage that can be drawn on by any other enchantments on the ring.¡± I begin to shakily chant the words in elvish in a deep throbbing base tone, imbuing the energy with the pure intent of my words.


    I feel the energy flow out of my soul, out of every part of my body to surge inside the small ring in my hand. The ring starts to lift into the air, filled with flowing power, making strange glowing red shifting shapes float into the air and into the small shape of the mythril ring floating a foot from my straining body, being gently pushed and shoved in random directions by the red energy impacting it.


    ¡°When the first effect is activated, it activates the second enchantment, which causes a invisible and intangible spirit aura energy barrier (Density depending on energy available) to fill the space between one inch and 2 inches away from the skin of the wearer at all times and moves with the body, that keeps the specific spirit aura of the wearer inside said barrier, not letting any of it go through, while also pulling any spirit aura of the wearer, back into the inside of the barrier, not affecting any other type of energy in any way.¡± I continue, willing the energy to flow into the glowing red ring floating in front of me.


    More red shapes that resemble runes impact the ring, throwing the ring three feet away before being pulled back by my will. The silver ring now had red lines throughout its body, coursing with power, with a halo of glowing red surrounding it.


    I feel my energy quickly depleting and so I continue quickly. If I run out of energy before the enchantment is fixed, it will explode¡­ Let''s not let that happen¡­


    ¡°While the barrier is activated, a third enchantment is activated that makes the spirit aura flow around the inside of the barrier in a random pattern.¡± I chant quickly, my voice straining with the words, squeezing the last few drops of spirit energy out through my body.


    The red runes flow out of my chest, glowing strongly, shooting straight at the glowing red ring. It impacts, this time causing no movement in the ring but causing the glowing red lines to condense, solidify and stop moving. The glow starts fading and getting absorbed into the ring, which is slowly turning back to its natural mythril silver color. It floats back into my hand slowly, the glow to fade while it does so. It lands in my hand, a dull silver ring with new dull red lines that are glowing extremely faintly in the light of the Soul Forge.


    It is done.


    My body relaxes, still very sore but recovering quickly, and I laugh out loud, cackling into the Soul Forge loudly. ¡°I did it! Watch out world, Ardika Ekia is here, and he is here to stay!¡± I shout to the heavens in delight.

 Chapter 7

    After a little celebrating for a few minutes, I eventually decided to actually find out what I had made. ¡®Appraisal¡¯ I think, activating the appraisal ability given by the system causing the bright blue screen to pop into existence reading the words ¡°Scanning¡­¡± with the three fluctuating dots dancing for a few seconds that I spent confusedly looking at the screen. ¡®What is it doing? It never had to do this before, is this because I made it and it is going to give me a more thorough analysis?¡¯ I think to myself while watching the screen questioningly.


    After a few seconds of the screen staying still saying ¡°Scanning¡­¡± It finally changed and new words formed ¡°Scanning complete.¡± which faded, replaced with some new boxes with information on the ring.


    <table style="width: 90.7027%">


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td style="width: 16.7672%">


    Name: Mythril Anti Spirit Aura Tracking Ring


    </td>


    <td style="width: 14.5959%">


    Grade: Uncommon Low


    </td>


    <td style="width: 68.1544%">


    Abilities:


    - Creates an energy barrier that prevents the spirit aura of the wearer from leaking into the air while absorbing a portion of it to power itself in the process.


    -Will prevent most tracking forms that rely on natural spirit aura emissions as the target.


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    ¡°Wow, I really did it¡­ But why is it only giving me a thorough analysis of what I make? That is annoying¡­¡± I brood on that for a bit before pulling myself back out of my thoughts. ¡°Ok¡­ First of all, that is a very long name. Oh, maybe it is an acronym¡­ Masatr¡­ Ok, that sounds cool if you pronounce it like Me-ce-tar¡­ Masatr it is. Masatr, The ring of stealth.¡± I name the ring, like the dork I am and as soon as I say it out loud the screen blinks and the first box changes to say ¡°Masatr, The ring of stealth.¡± instead of ¡°Mythril Anti Spirit Aura Tracking Ring¡±


    Huh, so I can change the name of my creations and it will update the system''s classifications. Good to know.


    I continue to look over Masatr¡¯s evaluation once again and my eyes settle on ¡°Grade: Uncommon Low¡± ¡°Really?¡± I say out loud, surprised at the grade it shows, ¡°Is the enchantment that bad, or perhaps the ring? A fully enchanted ring, made of pure mythril no less, that is only Low Uncommon grade? Am I that bad?¡± I wonder out loud, thinking what could cause it to be at such a low ranking, but not coming up with a reason. ¡°Well, at least it says that it does what I meant it to¡­ But I wonder, what methods of spirit aura tracking would the ring''s effects not disrupt?¡±


    I think over all the information on magical tracking in the books, but I don''t recall anything. ¡°Well, I suppose that there will be some things unmentioned in the books about this world¡­ I should be cautious.¡± I conclude out loud.


    I look around me and ask myself, ¡°What am I supposed to do now?¡±


    As if in response the blue screen suddenly shifts and reads ¡°Passive ability: ¡®Ring Maker lv2¡¯ unlocked.¡± I read it quickly and then gasp at the implications ¡®Does this mean that when I do specific things I can unlock and level up passive abilities that will make it easier to do that thing? That could be insanely useful!¡¯ I think to myself. ¡®Wait, it didn''t tell me what the passive ability does.¡¯ I realize with a panic, what if it just showed my proficiency at things, not helps me improve them?


    Then the screen blinks and updates to show a new notification saying ¡°From the successful completion of a low uncommon enchanted ring you have earned 25 Ring Gold.¡±


    I can earn this much Ring Gold by making things!? If I make one more low uncommon grade item, I would be able to afford a gold bar! Which I could sell and buy something like a bar of orichalcum! The system store is going to bankrupt the world with these prices though, I could probably sell this ring, just based on aesthetics and material alone, for at least a thousand times the twenty five Ring Gold I got for it! ¡°Ha, I won''t ever be able to accuse the system for overcharging me!¡± Ok, well moving on¡­


    ¡°Status!¡± I say out loud, causing the blue screen to blink to my status menu that now has a change to it.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Statistics


    </td>


    <td>


    Passive Abilities


    </td>


    <td>


    Skills


    </td>


    <td>


    Active Quests


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Name: Ardika Ekia


    Physical age: 11


    Birthdate: August 12


    Gender: Male


    Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.


    Race: Human/God hybrid


    </td>


    <td>


    Adaptation


    Adaptive system


    Perfect Recollection


    Ring Maker Lv2


    </td>


    <td>


    Appraisal (Object inclined)


    Soul Forge Lv1


    </td>


    <td>


    (No active quests)


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    Ok, so it shows up on the status menu, but still nothing to show what it does! ¡®Maybe I should just ask the system to show what it does?¡¯ I thought to myself and then directed my thoughts outward, trying to communicate with the spiritual symbiote ¡®Hey, could you give me the descriptions of abilities on the status menu?¡¯ After my attempt at communication, silence reigned for a long few seconds and I felt no response from the system. Not even the screen changed.


    Just as I was about to give up on a response from the system, the bright screen suddenly flashed a notification saying ¡°Do you want to enable heightened description mode Y/N¡± I read the message overjoyed ¡®It responded! I can communicate with it!¡¯ I thought, happy that my attempt at communication worked. ¡®Yes! Please activate heightened description mode!¡¯ I thought to the symbiote in relief.


    The rectangle flashed once again, now saying ¡°Confirmed, heightened description mode activating¡­¡± The three dots began to dance once again on the screen, making me wait with baited breath, watching the screen, waiting for what would happen next. After a few seconds of waiting, the screen updated once more saying ¡°Heightened description mode activated. To disable this feature at any time, say or think ¡®Disable heightened description mode.¡¯ To return to the status menu, say or think ¡®Status.¡¯¡±


    It''s done, now let''s find out what it did¡­ ¡®Status.¡¯ I think, returning to the status menu that is now much bigger with a lot more information on it.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Statistics


    </td>


    <td>


    Passive Abilities


    </td>


    <td>


    Skills


    </td>


    <td>


    Active Quests


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Name: Ardika Ekia


    Physical age: 11 years old


    Birthdate: August 12


    Gender: Male


    Race: Human/God hybrid


    </td>


    <td>


    Adaptation:


    Allows the body to adapt, physically and mentally, to situations and recurring types of injuries faster than normal.


    Adaptive system:


    The system can change to desires and to events, also permits the system to monitor and observe events and actions.


    Perfect Recollection: Increases memory recollection abilities to great extent.


    Ring Maker Lv2:


    Increases mental and physical abilities in the process of enchanting with the Ring Maker system.


    </td>


    <td>


    Appraisal:


    Allows the system to evaluate objects and show the results when the ability is directed to an object.


    Soul Forge Lv1:


    Connects a gateway to the soul to a personal realm that can be summoned at any time.


    </td>


    <td>


    (No active quests)


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    This is¡­ Wow, this changes a lot. The Adaptation passive ability and the Perfect recollection passive ability, along with Appraisal are pretty much exactly what I expected but the Adaptive system is really interesting, the system watches what I am doing along with different events? And it changes to my desires? Does this mean that the system symbiote isn''t alive? Is it a sort of program that follows its code to do what I want? Or am I just reading too much into this?


    Well, what the system is aside, this is really useful! Ring Maker is exactly what I hoped it was! It helps me get better at enchanting! Also apparently the Soul Forge is a personal realm that is connected to my soul. I mean I had already known that it is connected to my soul, but it''s a realm? I thought it might be a pocket dimension, but this is much better! Probably.


    I look around my realm, thinking about what I should do now. Should I do some more blacksmithing? Enchanting is off the table as my spirit energy production is very low now, enchanting is a very hard process, on body, mind and soul and my soul won''t be back in shape enough to enchant for this month at the very least.


    Wait, I forgot something that I had to do¡­ Oh, I should put on Masatr, just in case. I look at my hands, realizing that I was still holding Masatr in my right hand and I carefully slide it onto the index finger of my left hand. As soon as it was securely on my finger, I felt a strange tingling on my arm and I felt reassured that the enchantment is working when it gradually becomes less and less noticeable until I wasn''t sure if I was really feeling anything anymore. If only I could see my spirit aura¡­


    Now, I suppose that now is as good a time to practice my blacksmithing skills as any. Who knows, maybe I will unlock the blacksmithing passive ability?


    I stand up and almost immediately regret thinking about standing up. I was very, very, very sore, all over. I kneel down and start to wrap up the pile of blankets that was on the floor. I need to lie down, but it would be pushing my luck to try and sleep in the Soul Forge.


    As soon as I wrapped up all the blankets, I stood up with the blankets in my arms and I stumbled to the doorway into my room, opened it and stepped into the comforting grasp of my bed with a moan of tiredness, only then closing the gate to the Soul Forge.


    I don''t even bother putting the blankets on my bed properly, or placing my pillow beneath my head, I just throw the big bundle over my body and immediately pass out.

 Chapter 8

    P.O.V. of Director Kasandra


    While I was walking down the dimly lit hallway I paused, listening to the sound of heavy breathing coming from the room nearest to me. I leaned closer to the door, was that someone talking? ¡°Twenty five! Twenty six! Twenty seven!¡± I hear the voice, gasping out between slight pauses, I check the room number on the door and then I slightly relax, he was at it again.


    I continue walking with a slight frown on my face, down the hall and into the kitchen. I take a mug out of the drawer above the coffee machine and carefully set the ceramic below the nozzle and press the buttons, setting the machine to my favorite setting. Leaning against the counter with a sigh, thinking about what I have come to¡­


    The creak of wood announced the arrival of someone through the staff door. I look over, rolling my head towards the person who walked in, seeing Rose standing and looking at me concerned. Rose stepped over to me and put her arm around my shoulder ¡°Hey, what''s wrong?¡± she asked me, concerned. I let out another sigh thinking about my response to Rose, after a second of silence I answered ¡°Am I a failure Rose? Answer me honestly now, you have known me for my entire life¡­ I just don''t know¡­¡± Rose looked at me surprised.


    ¡°What happened?¡± She asked me, sounding worried now, ¡°Is it that new boy?¡± ¡°Ardika.¡± I tell her, ¡°At least that is what he tells everyone¡± ¡°You think he is lying about his name?¡± Rose commented dryly. ¡°I don''t know! That''s the problem! I can''t find anything about him, where he came from, who he is, who his parents are¡­ Hell, it''s like he just appeared in an alley with his chest practically missing and still somehow able to stagger out and get help!¡±


    Rose paused, I could practically hear her thoughts as if they were my own ¡®Kasandra doesn''t know something?¡¯ her surprised face betrayed her.


    ¡°Hey¡­¡± Rose spoke up once again, ¡°you can''t help everyone you know, at least you tried. That boy confuses me too, you know.¡± she finished, at her words I felt a rush of¡­ defeat. No, I can''t fail! I won''t! But what can I do?


    ¡°I have tried everything to find out about this kid, tried every trick I know, I asked every single one of my contacts and you want to know what I found? Absolutely nothing! And then he tries to get me to send him to some random boarding school, trying to trick me into believing that he remembers someone there, which I saw through immediately, and says he wants to go! I just can''t figure out anything! It''s like he was a ghost!¡± I rant to Rose.


    ¡°He seems to enjoy school quite a lot.¡± Rose commented surprised. ¡°What? What did he do to make you say that?¡± I asked her quizzically. At my question she started a little, apparently she was lost in thoughts for a second, and she started her story.


    ¡°Well, a few days ago he found me coming back from helping Billy, and he asked me ¡®Is there a public library close to the orphanage?¡¯ to which I told him that there was. He then asked if I ¡®could tell him the way there¡¯ to which I asked him why he wanted to know. He then told me that he wanted to ¡®go to the library to take some books out.¡¯ I then told him that I could show him the way, and that we could bring the other kids who want to come along too. He seemed like he wanted to go alone, which is ridiculous, but he said yes.¡± She told me earnestly.


    ¡°What did he do at the library?¡± I asked her curiously, she took a moment to think about it and then said ¡°Well¡­ I was pretty busy with the other kids I brought, but I saw him go up to the counter and talk with the librarian for a few minutes, after which it looked like she gave him something, before wandering off somewhere.¡± She told me hesitantly.


    Did he make a library account? Why would he need¡­ ¡°Huh, I wonder what he¡¯s been getting out¡­¡± I said out loud, surprised, to be answered by Rose who said ¡°Well, he brought a bunch of books back with him. I asked him what he got out and he told me that he got a few basic, history, science and math textbooks out. I was confused as heck when he showed me, he must be very dedicated to doing well in school. Way more than I was at his age, sort of reminded me of you used to act at your age.¡± She told me reminiscing.


    I giggle out loud, it was true. I used to spend every waking moment reading something when I was younger, before I found my favorite hobby.


    Also, I could see it a little now. The similarities between us, that is. Albeit, he was very different at the same time. Working out almost all day, when he wasn''t, he was reading or when he vanished throughout the day, when even I couldn''t find him. He even seemed to have a schedule he made up, that I found sitting on his desk. The schedule went like this:


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Get up and do warm up exercise/training.


    </td>


    <td>


    6:00-8:30


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Breakfast.


    </td>


    <td>


    8:30-9:00


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Study/Research.


    </td>


    <td>


    9:00-12:00


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Lunch.


    </td>


    <td>


    12:00-12:30


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    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Defense and attack training.


    </td>


    <td>


    12:30-3:00


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Blacksmithing.


    </td>


    <td>


    3:00-7:00


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Supper.


    </td>


    <td>


    7:00-7:30


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Study/Research.


    </td>


    <td>


    7:30-8:00


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Shower.


    </td>


    <td>


    8:00-8:30


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Get in bed.


    </td>


    <td>


    8:30


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    I had found it a few days ago at about five in the afternoon and it bothered me ever since. There were several concerning points in the schedule, the first was ¡®Defense and attack training.¡¯ Why would any eleven year old boy need to do defense and attack training? Was someone after him? Was it because of what happened in the alley?


    The other concerning point was ¡®Blacksmithing.¡¯ How was he blacksmithing? Where was he disappearing too, to practice blacksmithing of all things? Was someone helping him learn to make weapons?


    Both of the points of concern made me think that Ardika was involved in something dangerous. Was he part of a gang? Was his injury in the ally involved with the gang if he was? I had too many questions and no answers. In an act of desperation I had even tried to follow him to wherever he was ¡®Blacksmithing¡¯ but I never even saw him leave!


    I was watching his window for an hour before I went back inside and found that he had still managed to disappear! His room was completely empty. He had either managed to, without being seen, slip out through the window, which I was watching, or walk out the front door which I was standing in front of.


    He was either very skilled at not being seen, or he knew another way out of the orphanage that I did not. The last option was very unlikely as I had designed the building myself.


    Well, I would probably find out sooner or later. He seems to be a good kid and he always comes back perfectly fine, and with all the time he devotes to training his body and mind, I think he will be ok. At least I can be sure of that much. I just wish I knew who Ardika Ekia really is¡­ I just wish I could help¡­


    ¡°What do you think of him?¡± I suddenly ask Rose after a moment of thought. ¡°I think that he is a very polite and smart young man who has a promising future.¡± ¡°Good, I had the same impression.¡± I respond and then ¡°But, what else¡­ What do you think of his personality? How does he interact with the other children? Has he ever done anything out of character?¡± I ask, extenuating my questions with wild hand movements.


    Rose seemed surprised but answered my questions despite her surprise saying, ¡°Well¡­ He seems to be quite kind, if introverted, and he seems to get along with the other kids well enough when they talk with him. He has never gone to talk with any of them though. And sometimes¡­¡±


    She trailed off, seeming to be trying to put something into words. ¡°Sometimes, when he thinks no one is looking, I can see that he occasionally stares off into nothing. Not that I am doubting his sanity, he is as sane as could be, more sensible than any other kid his age. But when he looks off into the distance, I can see a sadness in him. A deep sadness, one of someone who has known loss.¡± She concluded her speech solemnly.


    ¡°And yet, he claims to not remember anything¡­¡± I say, pondering quietly to myself, thinking hard. So, a boy shows up in an alley, almost dead with his chest caved in. He somehow manages to stumble out to get help and goes to a hospital, where he somehow completely heals over the course of weeks. He then wakes up, claiming to not remember what happened to him or anything that has ever happened to him.


    He then gets sent to my orphanage and one of the first things he does is try to manipulate me into sending him to a boarding school, Yancy academy. Then during the month he stayed here he created a schedule involving extensive amounts of exercise, defense and attack training, and blacksmithing for some reason. And while the time specified for blacksmithing he has consistently managed to disappear from the orphanage, despite specifically trying to catch him leaving!


    Then there is the boy himself. He acts polite and kind to others, is introverted, very smart (Or at least spends a lot of time learning) he knows how to manipulate others in positions of power to get what he wants and he also seems to have experienced a deep and personal loss sometime in his past, pointing to the idea that he might have lied about losing his memories¡­ Yet, why would he lie about losing his memories?


    As I lean against the counter a picture forms in my mind, one of a scared boy.


    ¡°I have an idea!¡± I say out loud, my theory forming in my mind. ¡°Of course you did.¡± Rose told me amusedly, ¡°What if, our young Ardika was an illegal immigrant from another country, he then got involved in some sort of gang, and at some point a very close friend was killed or his parents were killed somehow during this time.¡±


    ¡°Then the gang got into a fight with another gang, and he got involved and that is how he got injured in the fight, which is when he stumbled out of the alley and fainted before being brought to the hospital. And when he woke up, he decided to start over or run away from the gang he got involved with, so he faked losing his memory so they won''t think that he will sell the gang out!¡± I say, proposing my theory ¡°A boy trying to start a better life and leave his old one behind.¡± I finish solemnly with a slight excitement detectible.


    Rose looked at me surprised ¡°I think that fits but¡­ That is a lot of guessing.¡± she told me, giving her opinion. ¡°Well, whether or not it is true, we should give him a good time here.¡± I say passionately, ¡°So, does that mean that you will send him to that school?¡± Rose questioningly asks me. I think about it for all of three seconds before deciding ¡°Yes, I think I will. That school is the only thing that still confuses me, why would he want to go to a boarding school? Why this specific one? I think the best way for us to find out, is to let him go and get the teachers to monitor him for us.¡± I told her.


    ¡°Good.¡± she tells me, ¡°Though, I wonder why he wants to be sent to Yancy Academy, a school for troubled kids?¡± she wonders and then continues ¡°You would think that, with how much he loves learning, he would choose a more challenging school.¡±


    ¡°Who knows? Well, he does, but that''s not the point. We don''t know, and I doubt he would tell us if we asked him.¡± I said to Rose ¡°There are a lot of questions I want to ask, that I know I wont get the truth about from him right now, but I believe that he knows what he is doing.¡±

 Chapter 9

    I wake up early in the morning and stretch, and with a groan I hit the off button on my alarm. It is July thirtieth, thirty two days until the start of school. I check the alarm clock and nod as I read 6:00 AM.


    Not a lot has happened during the past month. I started a training routine, I practiced my blacksmithing, I did some reading, and I did a lot of exercise. Also, I found out that unlocking abilities don''t actually need to be on purpose! A few days ago, I unlocked the passive ability ¡®Speed Reading Lv1¡¯ which does pretty much what you would think it does. It increases the speed I can read and the time it takes to understand information read a little.


    But the important thing is that I wasn''t even trying to get it. I was just casually reading and I got the notification that I unlocked it! This means that I can probably get a lot of abilities to improve upon the things I try, which will help a lot when learning new tricks, which will in turn increase my survival chances. It''s a small thing now, but in the future it might just be the difference between life and death.


    I sadly didn''t get any passive skills for exercising however, so I have to just keep working my muscles to the bone. I roll off my bed and change out of my PJ¡¯s and into my workout clothes. Well, I say workout clothes but I really mean a pair of breathable shorts that are a little small and a t-shirt with the word YOLO printed on it. I don''t have any income to buy actual workout clothes for myself yet.


    I then started doing exercises, pushups, sit-ups, mountain crawlers, war machines, you name it and I did fifty of it. While I was exercising I mentally reviewed my topics of study and compared it to my old world. I haven''t found a single difference from this world and my old world, in terms of mortal history, science and math that is.


    While it is very much a good thing for me, it is also very strange at the same time. I know that I am on a different planet, a different universe, but it feels so similar¡­ it sometimes feels like I could just go to my old apartment and I would find my father and mother eating breakfast¡­


    At that thought I nearly hit my head on the carpeted floor, from faltering during a burpee. I shove the thought aside, I don''t have time for that sort of thing.


    I went through my day as the hours passed, following the schedule as normal. Until I felt a rush of power throughout my entire body, just after two in the afternoon while I was practicing my punches.


    ¡°Finally! My soul has recovered fully! Where did I put that paper?!¡± I said out loud in relief, it had taken my spirit energy production an entire month to fully recover from enchanting Masatr. And it took three entire days for my body to recover to a reasonable level of health where I could do physical activities without wincing at moving my arm or legs a single inch.


    I hadn''t ignored thinking about the possibilities for enchanting a ring though. I had mentally gone through several enchantment possibilities before settling on one and actually making a workable plan for enchanting a ring for it.


    I had placed the enchanting plan in the most secure place in my room I could think of, my desk¡¯s top drawer.


    I had long since memorized and learned it by heart, but having a physical copy as reference was still a good idea. I swiftly walked over to my desk and opened the drawer, shuffling through various papers to find the plan for the MD ring.


    As soon as I had found it, I concentrated on opening the gateway to the Soul Forge. The door appeared and I twisted the handle and swung the door wide open, I stepped inside and looked to the forging area.


    Not much has changed in the realm, so I run through the empty space and rummage through the mythril bits and bobs on the table that were the sacrifices of my diligent blacksmithing practice. I find what I was looking for quite quickly and I bring it into the light, the ¡°Common Middle grade mythril ring¡± reflected the light back at me and captivated me with its shine for all of a second before I went and ran back out of the soul forge.


    I quickly gather all my blankets and my pillow in my arms and walk into the center of the Soul Forge. I place the blankets into a nest for me to sit on, and quickly throw myself into preparation to start the enchanting process.


    Why am I rushing around to start as fast as possible? Well, I have two good reasons for it. One is that the less time I take to enchant a new ring, the faster I can enchant the next one, and the better my soul will develop. The second reason is I was really excited to make this enchantment. It would help a lot with an insane number of things if it worked.


    As soon as I sat cross legged on my pillow in the center of my blanket nest, I started reading my enchantment plan and mentally reviewing everything I had written on the page I was holding in my right hand.


    After a few minutes, I placed the page beside me and held the mythril ring firmly in both hands, it was time to start.


    I start concentrating on my soul, I feel its power flowing inside it¡­ I feel the power it gives off, the power it leaks in excess¡­ I take hold of that power and drag it inside of myself, holding it in, feeling my soul fill and I start to feel the burning of my muscles, the pressure on my entire body, the force threatening to explode out of me¡­ Now it starts.


    As the minutes go by I think to myself, while straining to contain the power flowing through me, ¡®I must hold on¡­¡¯ ¡®Just a little longer now¡­¡¯ ¡®Almost there!¡¯ then I feel my soul come firm, stretched to its limit. ¡®Now!¡¯ I mentally yell as I start chanting.


    I then begin to channel the energy to flow inside the ring, filling it with my intent as I release it as slowly as I can, this will be even longer than my first try so I need to make it last much longer than I did before.


    ¡°A ring that when Spirit Energy is channeled into the ring, it marks the Spirit Energy with the ¡®Ownership¡¯ mark as it passes through, only identifying the spirit energy for further effects.¡± I say in my deepest voice, letting the elvish words flow out of my mouth along with the spirit energy throughout my body, causing the ring to slowly rise into the air from the power flowing inside it.


    Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original.


    ¡°When the Spirit Energy is marked with the ¡®Ownership¡¯ mark, the ring makes a connection between the Spirit Energy that has been marked and the wearer of the ring¡¯s soul using the ring as a medium within a six feet radius from the ring, that allows the wearer to mentally control the positioning and shape of the Spirit Energy within the bounds of the connection.¡± I continue, thanking the elf who made this language so much shorter than English.


    The energy gathered with my intent starts to form the red shapes in the air that impact the small mythril ring floating in the air, nearly causing the ring to go flying away but only causing it to start quivering in the energy¡¯s grip.


    ¡°When the Spirit Energy leaves the ring, the ring makes the Spirit Energy get marked with the most abundant molecular structure of the first one eighth of an inch of matter cubed it passes through, that upon the ¡®Transformation¡¯ signal, will cause the Spirit Energy to turn itself into the specific type of matter it has been marked with, changing the first mark applied into the ¡®Transformed matter¡¯ mark for identification for further effects.¡± I pant out, not letting my voice falter for a second, longest line done.


    The red energy is now forming almost sharp runes now and they impact the ring with all the faster, causing the tiny band to move a foot away from where it was floating before but it rockets back even faster. I can feel the spirit energy flowing into the ring, it is as slow as I can make it but I start worrying that I won''t have enough Spirit Energy reserves to finish. But I will finish! I will enchant this ring, so powerfully it will be a High grade item!


    ¡°When matter with the mark ¡®Transformed matter¡¯ receives the signal ¡®Return¡¯ it will reverse the effect of the ¡®Materialize¡¯ command and turn the matter back into Spirit Energy which then will change the ¡®Transformed matter¡¯ mark into the ¡®Dematerialized¡¯ mark when the effects of ¡®Materialize¡¯ are fully reversed.¡± I chant out, picking up my speed a little.


    This time when the energy starts to go towards the silver ring, I can see that the red energy is forming clear runes that are glowing and shifting constantly. Before impacting the ring and sending it a good three feet away and then disappearing into the silver that is now taking on a slight sheen of red light to it.


    ¡°All Spirit Energy marked with the ¡®Dematerialized¡¯ mark will be pulled to the center of the soul of the wearer and as soon as it enters the soul, the Spirit Energy marked with the ¡®Dematerialized¡¯ mark will be stripped of all marks to be reabsorbed by the soul.¡± I shout out loud, willing my energy supply to keep flowing out and fill with my intent.


    The runes appear in the air and shoot at the ring, leaving a streak of red in its wake, impacting the ring and causing the red hue to get even deeper and making faint deep red lines more visible.


    ¡°When the wearer gives the ring the mental command ¡®Materialize¡¯ the ring sends out the ¡®Transformation¡¯ signal to the ¡®Ownership¡¯ marked Spirit Energy that has also been marked by a molecular structure, within a six foot radius.¡± I continue, my strength and energy almost completely exhausted as I watch the red lines to become more visible and the runes impacting its surface


    ¡°When the wearer gives the mental command ¡®Dissolve¡¯ the ring sends out the signal ¡®Return¡¯ to matter marked with the ¡®Transformed matter¡¯ mark, within a six foot radius.¡± I finish chanting the elvish words, exhausted but relieved. I watch the red runes start streaking towards the silver band that is now glowing red , and get absorbed into the red lines that start to absorb the red glow into itself, condensing and collapsing parts, until the glow fades and the ring floats back into my hand, a silver mythril ring with bright red lines all over the metal.


    My newest creation is finished! I name you the MD Ring, The Material Duplication Ring!


    Now, let''s find out what exactly I made¡­ ¡®Appraise!¡¯ I think, activating my ability. The blue screen blinks into existence. Reading the words ¡°Scanning¡­¡± with the three fluctuating dots moving on the screen I lay back on my blanket nest and relax my body. ¡°Urg¡­¡± I exclaim as I lay back, I hurt all over¡­


    The screen moves with my head so I can still see it and I watch the screen for a few seconds before it blinks and changes into new words ¡°Scanning complete.¡± which then faded, replaced with the boxes with information on the ring, just like with Masatr.


    <table style="width: 90.0541%">


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td style="width: 71.8433%">


    Name: Material Duplication Mythril Ring


    </td>


    <td style="width: 27.9154%">


    Grade: Uncommon High


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td style="width: 71.8433%">


    Abilities:


    - Allows the user to control the positioning and shape of Spirit Energy that has passed through the ring, within a sphere with a six foot radius


    - Upon passing through a material measuring one eighth of an inch cubed, it will be able to transform into that specific type of matter when the command ¡®Materialize¡¯ is given.


    - Matter created with the second ability can be transformed back into Spirit Energy upon the command ¡®Dissolve¡¯ which will then be pulled back into the soul of the wearer to go back into the Spirit Energy reserves of the wearer for further use.


    </td>


    <td style="width: 27.9154%"> </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    I read it through carefully, I feel my mouth curling into a smile, widening with every line I read, only twitching a bit at the rank.


    I did it! As long as it does what it says it does that is¡­ it will allow me to duplicate materials! Unlimited practice material!! Unlimited Mythril!


    A notification pops up on the blue screen reading ¡°Congratulations, you have earned 35 Ring Gold, check the store for the total amount.¡±


    I read it and smiled. I can afford a gold bar now, I think. I just need to find a buyer¡­


    The screen flashes with another notification, this time reading ¡°Congratulations, Ring Maker has leveled up to Level 5.¡±


    Nice! I will be able to make something even better next time! Perhaps I will make a High grade ring next time! Ok, I will need to plan for the next one, but not now¡­ Let''s celebrate now¡­ mentally celebrate¡­ my body feels like it is hating me right now¡­


    Let''s go! Just like that, my biggest issue is solved. You see, I had a stark lack of cash to buy any material for anything. I desperately needed a mortal metal to practice on and metal bars aren''t exactly growing on trees. I couldn''t just go buy some either as I don''t have any money yet. But now, I could go up to a metal fence and with the ring touching it, run some Spirit Energy through it and materialize it in my pocket to keep making more! Another thing is that I could probably make another ring to put connected to the MD ring and use it to create steel or mythril shields to block attacks.


    I will need to test and practice using it a lot though to get to the point of using it fluidly in a fight.


    But now¡­ I need to get to my room... so I don''t pass out in the Soul Forge¡­ This is going to feel terrible.

 Chapter 10

    After two days, I was able to walk around my room without wincing at every step so I decided that I was well enough to start doing some things. And by doing things I mean experiment with my new addition to my ring collection, that has never left my middle finger sense I made it, right beside Masatr.


    My experimenting went a little like this, I put the MD ring so it touches a wall in my room and I run my Spirit Energy through it and into the wall, feeling the changes it goes through while it travels through the wall, eventually I start feeling when it has been fully marked with a material and then I give the command ¡®Materialize¡¯ after positioning the Spirit Energy back through the wall and in various positions, trying to make shapes out of the wood behind the plaster. I usually create something that resembles the shape I am trying to make, but the Spirit Energy is really hard to control and shape with small details, like corners.


    My experimenting was very useful however as I noticed that I was slowly getting better at shaping the Spirit Energy and I found out that I could make the Spirit Energy materialize inside objects. I actually found that out on one of my first tests, where I make a sphere halfway inside a wall because I forgot to move it out of the wall.


    A very interesting thing though is that when I turned it back into Spirit Energy, the wall was exactly the same! Because of my discovery, I theorized that I could fill my bedroom walls with steel to reinforce them, and then dissolve it when I leave the orphanage with no one in the wiser!


    Of course I can''t do that now because my soul is still in the early stage of recovery and expansion, so my Spirit Energy production is abysmal and I can barely make a cube of wood the size of my eleven year old hand every few minutes without dissolving it, but eventually I could if I wanted to.


    In theory, I could build a hut the size of my room made of solid steel with a full bed and desk, in about two weeks from now, if I compare my abilities with the amount of Spirit Energy production to what it will be about that time.


    An interesting thought I had about my discovery is ¡®What if I materialized a hunk of iron inside something? Or if I could just give myself armor plating that is directly fused with me?¡¯ Of course I didn''t test it, I don''t want to accidentally killing myself and I don''t have an animal to test it on at hand. It could be cool though, useful too, imagine if I just make a layer of adamantium, just below the skin¡­


    I would be practically indestructible. Or I could die because of a hunk of metal blocking up something or whatever and preventing me from saying ¡®Dissolve¡¯. I will need to do a lot of testing, if I decide to actually try it at all¡­


    Also another interesting discovery I made is, when I duplicate any material it takes the exact same amount of Spirit Energy in relation to size, volume and mass, except for mythril which costs more than two times the amount of spirit energy as any mortal material. I don''t really know why but I think that it might be because mythril is a non mortal material, and therefore was enhanced by high levels of stagnating Spirit Energy and Spirit Aura and therefore it needs a high Spirit Energy concentration to be created.


    I don''t know for sure though.


    Also a slight mistake when I made the MD ring is that it choses a specific molecule, not an object as a whole. Well, it is not really a mistake, but more like an oversight. You see when I duplicate a piece of wood, it makes a piece of homogeneous wood, without the grain. The grain of wood is very important, and a piece of wood without a grain is slightly weaker overall than a natural one with grain. I mean, it''s not that much of a bad thing, but it looks really weird without the grain as well¡­ I don''t even know how I would change it though¡­


    Well, if I ever decide to upgrade the ring, I will know what I need to change. But, it is good enough for now. I just need to keep in mind its limitations when using it.


    The experimenting phase of testing went by fast, only taking me two days with my normal schedule where I took the time from the blacksmithing practice.


    Today I am taking a small break though, to get my hands on more materials. Or more specifically, to get my ring on new materials. I decided that I would take a walk around the city, and inside some shops, and if I am lucky I will find a construction site where I can sample the building materials.


    My current priorities are metal first and foremost, but I am planning to get wood and stone samples as well. I decide to leave in the morning immediately after breakfast, so after eating a good hearty breakfast and grabbing a small bag, I walk to the front door and am about to open it for my little adventure.


    ¡°Where are you going?¡± I hear coming from behind me, I spin around startled, its Director Kasandra who is standing by the stairs behind me. There is no reason to lie to her right now so I decided to just tell her the truth. ¡°Well, I was just going on a small walk. Maybe some shopping.¡± I tell her calmly, she looks curiously at me and I wonder if I did something wrong for a second before she walks over to me and puts her shoes on, ¡°I will come with you then, it is a nice day this morning. Might as well enjoy it for a while.¡± she tells me.


    Well¡­ I suppose it¡¯s ok, but I wish that I could go alone, it would be easier. ¡°You really don''t have to, I will be back for lunch.¡± I tell her earnestly, she looks amusedly at me and smiles ¡°I know, I could use the break though.¡± Ah well, I can understand that. No harm in letting her tag along. ¡°Ok then.¡± I tell her and shrug my shoulders, I turn back to the door and open it, stepping into the busy street with Kasandra at my back.


    I look around the street and then turn to Kasandra ¡°You wouldn''t happen to know where I might find a Home Depot would you?¡±


    <hr>


    It turns out that, yes indeed she knew where Home Depot was. I nearly laughed out loud when she told me yes, Home Depot is apparently a multidimensional thing. Convergent evolution at its finest. This universe is insanely similar to my old one.


    We spent about twenty minutes where I had to wait up for Kasandra a couple of times from her lagging behind against my walking pace. I wasn''t upset about it though, just a little amused. Some things carry between bodies after all.


    When we arrived at the Home Depot, Kasandra finally spoke up again, ¡°So, what are you looking for? Also, how exactly are you going to pay?¡± She asked me interestingly, I realized that I hadn''t really thought through what I was going to tell her about that part. Ok, improvise. I looked at her and said ¡°Well, I wasn''t really going to buy anything today, I was just planning to take a look and see what the prices look like before I decide later what all I need.¡±


    She looked interested and continued the line of questioning ¡°Good, at least you are putting some thought as to how to spend this money. But, where are you getting the money you are spending?¡± She asks me. ¡®Shoot¡­ Where am I getting this money from? Oh, that could work.¡¯ I think to myself, trying to come up with an answer to her question. ¡°Well, I don''t exactly have the cash right now. But I am going to be getting some soon, I am selling some things I made, to a guy I know. Like these ones.¡± I say to her, holding up my hand and gesturing at my rings.


    She looks satisfied so I give myself an internal pat on the back and we enter the store together. I look around the store, I see a row full of wood and building materials almost immediately and start to walk over to it. Kasandra follows me and I start to think over exactly how I can touch my ring to a material long enough to run some Spirit Energy through it, without being noticed.


    When we reach the aisle, I look around and inspect the shelves carefully. I can see some wooden dowels and PVC pipes a little ways down, I can see several types of steel rods and a lot of planks further down the aisle. Ok, I think I know how I can do this. I start walking over to the wooden dowels, channeling Spirit Energy through the MD ring as I do, careful to not let any energy escape the ring to prevent it from being marked by a molecular structure.


    When I reach the dowels, I reach out my hand and take hold of a dowel, trying to act like I am testing it while I release the Spirit Energy into the wood. A second later I had marked enough Spirit Energy so I forced it back to me and materialized my sample in my pocket. It took about a second to get my sample. Everything is going smoothly.


    <hr>


    An hour later, I had gone through almost the entire store and I felt pretty satisfied with the results. I had collected a total of sixty samples that I had mostly placed in the bag that I brought with me, namely twenty samples of various wood types, nineteen types of metals, ten types of stones and rocks, seven types of fabrics, three types of plastics and a sample of a glass window.


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    My bag was getting quite full though, so I decided that it was about time that I headed back with the mildly confused Director Kasandra to the orphanage.


    ¡°I am about ready to head back.¡± I told Kasandra who was watching me take one last sample of fiberglass insulation foam. ¡°Ok, if you are ready we can go.¡± She responds and we start walking to the exit. ¡°Did you find what you were looking for?¡± Kasandra asked curiously, turning to me as we walked out the exit, ¡°Yes, yes I did.¡± I told her, satisfied with the weight I can feel in my bag as we walked down the busy street to the orphanage.


    <hr>


    My door squeaks open and I step inside, looking around my room for some place to set down my bag of debatably stolen material samples. I step forward into the room and place it onto my desk, where I sit down to begin some experimenting.


    I open the small bag and dump all of my tube-like samples onto the hard wooden surface of the work surface and start to spread them out into six rows. In the first row I placed all of my wood samples, the second consisted of my metal samples, the third had my cloth samples that I noticed looked really interesting as a solid mass without any stitching patterns in it. My fourth had rock and stone samples, my fifth had my plastics and finally the sixth one had my glass and fiberglass tubes.


    I then started Appraising the samples, looking for any repeated samples. I found out that I collected three pieces of steel, two iron and three tin samples for my metal row, three duplicates of fabrics, two duplicates of a type of stone and no duplicates of any wood samples.


    I picked up the duplicate samples and was about to give the command ¡®Dissolve¡¯ when I realized that anything I had duplicated with the ring within a six foot radius would also be dissolved. If I had given the command, all the time I had spent to get samples would be wasted in a second.


    I let out a relieved sigh for remembering that little detail and started thinking about what I could do. After thinking of the problem for a few minutes, I came up with two solutions, well technically a solution and an idea. I could either go inside the Soul Forge and walk seven feet away from the door, or I could somehow remove the ¡®Transformed matter¡¯ mark on the other samples I don''t want to dissolve and render them unable to be dissolved.


    How would I go about removing the mark on the other samples though? I comb my new knowledge on spirit Energy and after a good five minutes of reviewing my memories, I find an answer. I could inject my Spirit Energy into the samples and sort of wipe the mark off of it, like spraying water at a plate to get rid of chunks of food. The only problem is that it will be really hard, as I have never done it before and my soul is still recovering from enchanting the MD ring.


    Well, I can''t think of anything else I can do, until I can enchant my next ring that is. But I won''t waste a month of recovery to make something that I could do on my own. So I will start to practice wiping the mark off of the materials.


    I put the duplicate samples down and grab an iron sample off the desk. I hold it in my hand and I start to concentrate, feeling my soul, the energy that it is emitting, and I start to guide the Spirit Energy into the chunk of iron in my hand. It starts to flow into it, but very slowly like cold syrup. That won''t work¡­ I start to push more energy into the iron and I feel the resistance of the Spirit Energy as the speed increases to something like mildly viscous water.


    When the Spirit Energy enters into the tube I feel resistance, as if something in the iron is resisting the flow of Spirit Energy. That is probably the ¡®Transformed matter¡¯ mark that the ring put on it. I concentrate harder and push the energy out of me and I can start to feel the resistance give a little. Ok, I just need to keep it up for a little.


    Thirty seconds passed and I felt the resistance dissolve in the tide of my Spirit Energy. ¡°That took way longer than I would like¡­¡± I mumble to myself, sensing that the mark dissolved. Well, I have a lot of samples to remove the mark from, I can practice and improve the time it takes.


    Onto the next sample¡­


    Twenty minutes later and I was finished, the marks on every sample, except the duplicates, were removed. The fastest that I removed the mark turned out to be not much lower than my first, about eight seconds shorter towards the end. Well, it is a start at least.


    ¡°Dissolve¡± I relay the command to the ring that is sitting on my finger, causing several tubes to vanish as if they never existed and filling my soul with the Spirit Energy they were made of.


    Disappointingly several chunks of my samples vanished with my duplicates. They were small chunks but it showed me that I had not fully removed the mark on most of them. I need to practice that if I am planning to make things with duplicated materials¡­


    But it is good enough for now, I don''t think that this is a huge problem for my samples.


    Now let''s get started on finishing my samples. I walk over to my desk and sit down. My hand reaches over to a metal sample and I appraise the metal, causing the blue box to appear reading, ¡°Chunk of iron.¡±


    Ok, iron is first then. I send some Spirit Energy into the MD ring and then push it through the iron, marking it with the iron. I force the Spirit Energy to take the shape of a third of the MD ring, fitting snugly around the MD ring¡¯s front side and give the command to ¡°Materialize!¡± and watch the iron mesh appear around the MD ring. I put the Iron sample down, creating another pile for used samples and I inspect my creation.


    My plan was to create a special pattern for material samples to attach to the MD ring so I can create things out of the materials attached without having to haul a bunch of rods with me to do the same thing. My first attempt seemed good and it fit around the MD ring without a gap between them, while also being able to remove it and leaving room for another two sample attachments to be added.


    The way I designed the attachments is a bit like a screw, there is the first attachment, which covers about a third of the ring and has a screw shaped extrusion on the back side of it, which attaches to the middle section, which has an attachment for the last edge section. Letting me attach three types of materials for me to use.


    I nod to myself and I pick up the sample of iron and prepare to create the middle section.


    <hr>


    Two days of hard work later, I finish all the material ring attachments, along with removing the ¡®Transformed matter¡¯ mark on them, and I feel quite happy about it. I can finally create some cool stuff and experiment to come up with some fighting techniques.


    First things first though, I realize that I will need something to hold all the attachments and I start to think of solutions. I pull out three attachments, dark oak, glass and iron and take off the MD ring to attach them. As soon as they are all screwed in, I open the gateway to the Soul Forge. As soon as the doorway appears in front of me, I reach out and twist open the door. Walking inside, I look for a good place to put material samples. I decided to just use the space directly beside directly to the right of the door, a good place for quick retrieval.


    Ok, now I need a shelf. I start to channel my Spirit Energy into the MD ring and then direct the flow into the dark oak attachment, setting the material type. I then direct the energy into the space I decided to use, forming a thin rectangle between the wall and the floor, about six feet high and four feet wide, with about a hundred tubes extruding from that and a wider base for stabilization in the front half. ¡°Materialize!¡± I say out loud, causing the wood to appear in roughly the shape I wanted. It did seem really rough though... I still need to do a lot of practice...


    I put my hand into my pocket and bring out a sample ring of concrete. I reach out and place the ring onto one of the extruding tubes, where it fits perfectly.


    Being able to materialize things makes making things like this a lot easier.


    Ok, it can hold the rings, now I need a way to organize and identify the rings. Lets just create a little plaque that has the materials name, and arrange them into material type rows¡­


    I run my Spirit Energy through the MD ring again, but this time I run it through the glass sample, marking it as glass. I then create small rectangles of glass that are just large enough to hold the names of the materials, placed a inch in the wood and extruding half an inch out of the wood, directly above every tube that is extruding from the main body of the shelf.


    As soon as they are in place, I materialize it. Now all I need to do is create the name¡¯s out of whatever, inside the glass when I have arranged all the samples.


    ¡°Oh, I nearly forgot. I need to remove the mark¡­¡± I say, looking at the shelf with trepidation. This is going to take a long time¡­


    Let''s get started. I concentrate on my Spirit Energy and push it into the wood and glass, straining against the resistance in the shelf that I can feel is slowly dissolving close to me, but my Spirit Energy can''t even reach the opposite side after thirty seconds of the constant flow.


    Twenty minutes later, I finally finished. Feeling absolutely mentally exhausted from pushing my Spirit Energy into something so big, I lay down on the cold stone floor of the Soul Forge. I don''t want to do that again for a while¡­


    Onto a less stressful and mentally intensive step then.


    I stand up from the cool floor and walk back into my room, to get all the ring attachments to start working on arranging everything. Bringing every type of material, a middle section and the two end pieces, for every type of material takes a long time, but eventually I start arranging them into rows, metals on the far left side, wood right from that, stone right from wood, my cloth beside the stone and a rather large section for miscellaneous, like glass, beside that and finally on the fat end I put the plastics.


    When I was finally done and all of the materials were labeled, it was supper time. For reference I started an hour after lunch. I will have to wait to work on building something until tomorrow¡­

 Chapter 11

    The next day, after a big lunch, I sit down at my desk and start to plan out exactly what I want to make for the Soul Forge. Well, it is a pretty big room, more like a floor of a building if I am being honest with myself, so there is plenty of room for whatever. What do I want¡­ something for training would be nice, maybe I could make some sort of gym? I need to find a buyer for the gold bar I can get, so I could get some electric equipment for that, like a treadmill. I pull out the middle drawer of my desk and pull out a paper and pen, to write my planning on.


    ¡°1: Find a pawn shop to sell materials.¡± I write on the left side of the paper and then on the opposite side I write ¡°Plan for Soul Forge modifications.¡± Below that title I write ¡°Gym¡± as a bullet point.


    I think that I can probably include more than just a gym for myself, so let''s think¡­ I could use a dedicated area for fighting training, maybe something like a small arena? Something for practicing fighting anyway¡­ I could make something that I could put away, just in case I want something else to go where I put it.


    I write down ¡°Fighting arena¡± and start to think of something else I could add. ¡°I am thinking too small!¡± I suddenly exclaim after coming to a realization. I was thinking in two dimensions! The Soul Forge is more than two times taller than it is wide, I should use that and add more floors! What I should do is make like, two more floors, one for the arena and the gym along with whatever else I want for training and the other for¡­ Storage? I don''t know, I can decide when I need something or whatever.


    But that still leaves what I want for the main floor. I think hard and eventually I decide that I want to make a small one floor house, with everything walled off to make different rooms, a few bedrooms, a living room, a small library maybe and a large room for the forge.


    I cross out my list and instead write out ¡°First floor¡± and I start to draw a diagram, using the rough measurements of the Soul Forge and I start sectioning off areas, drawing where I want different rooms. I stop and think of how I want to go between floors and eventually decide on a large ramp. I decided on a ramp because I will need to get large equipment into the gym on the second floor, so it was really the only thing that made sense. A large elevator would be nice, but I don''t want some builders coming into the Soul Forge and installing it.


    I eventually ended up with something resembling a floor plan, that while a little rough would be enough for me to build stuff off of.


    I then decide that I don''t really need to plan anything out for the second or possibly third floor, because I don''t really need to design any room placement if it is just one big area with an arena and a gym.


    By the time I finished the design I had another idea. What if I built an obstacle course above the second floor and over the walls, like a full dragon warrior or wipeout style course? That would be great for training! Probably really fun too! Ok, I am doing that.


    I do a little bit of designing roughly what I want it to look like and what I want to include, using three more pieces of paper as I did, before I finish enough that I can start building stuff.


    I flip back to the floor plan for the main floor and summon the gateway to the Soul Forge. I step inside and immediately start going through the material rings on the rack beside the door, selecting the different materials I will be using as I do. ¡°Let me see¡­ Wood flooring, maybe walnut? Ok¡­ and for walls, I think that just the stone that was in the Soul Forge to begin with is fine. For the roof, I think that I can just use walnut and have it in a cross beam pattern¡­¡± I say out loud, deciding on what materials I will use.


    ¡°Hang on, what am I going to use to light up the rooms?¡± I exclaim out loud, I didn''t think about that. I look around the Soul Forge and observe all the torches in the room, emitting a bright light without emitting smoke¡­


    I walk over to the nearest torch that is sitting on the wall, a few feet away from the doorway to take a closer look at it. When I inspect it closely, I notice how it works. It isn''t fire that is letting it light up the Soul Forge, it looks like a gelatinous flickering and shifting globe of some red glowing material.


    It looked very weird and interesting so I decided that I will use it for lighting. More specifically, I will create hemispheres of glass and add an iron mesh around it with this red glowing material inside.


    I take the torch out of the wall bracket it is placed in and turn it upside down above my hand, expecting the red stuff to fall out, but nothing happens. I take another look at the inside of the torch and reach my hand inside, to find out what is keeping it inside. Ok, I will admit that it wasn''t my best idea to put my hand inside a tube with an unknown material that was glowing red, but nothing bad happened and I withdrew my hand. Nothing was holding it in, but I found out that it was very sticky and it had apparently gotten stuck into the inside.


    It felt a lot like jello on my hand, with none of the heat one would expect from a torch and instead a soothing coolness. When I withdrew my hand, I took a little piece out and held it in my hand, watching it ungulate and wiggle around. I just stood there and watched it for a few minutes thinking questions that I desperately wanted an answer too like; what exactly it is, how it got here, where it came from, how did some sort of symbiote soul system thing come into contact with it, what is The System?


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    Before coming to anything resembling an answer I came back to my senses and I walked over to the shelf of material sample rings and grabbed a glass and iron sample and attached it to the MD ring, while being careful not to let the cool jello fall.


    I really need a name for the glowing jello¡­ Fire Slime? Sounds cool, but that also sounds like a slime monster¡­ Cool Flames? Huh, I guess I can work with that, it really does look a lot like flames in jello form and it is a bit cold to the touch. Cool, the glowing jello is now Cool Flames.


    Anyways, once I attach the glass and iron material samples, I start forcing Spirit Energy through the glass attachment and send it out in the Cool Flames in my left hand and form extremely thin, hollow material sample attachments of Spirit Energy inside the glowing material.


    ¡°Materialize!¡± I command, causing the Spirit Energy inside the Cool Flame to turn into a glass construct in the shape of a three part, interconnected ring. I carefully scoop out the glass and examine it closely. ¡°It worked!¡± I said to myself happily looking at the bright red glowing gel that is contained inside the glass shell.


    You see, I had thought about the problem of liquid ring samples for quite a while and, while I had come up with several solutions, this was clearly the best. How it works is really simple, yet difficult to achieve. It is based on the fact that the MD ring needs a set sample size to copy the material, so therefore if something is too small to copy the ring will treat it as if it was not there and go directly through it to whatever is directly on the other side.


    So I did a lot of testing and practice to be able to make an extremely thin layer of Spirit Energy. So thin that the Spirit Energy of the MD ring won''t copy that material and instead copy what is inside the structure, in this case Cool Flame.


    Using this method, I can get liquid or semi solid material sample rings and I can already see that it will be really useful.


    Now, I just need to test it. I carefully walk back to the bracket with the Cool Flame torch and I place the excess Cool Flame that I didn''t use for my material sample rings. I then hold up my left hand and carefully remove the front material sample ring attachment, screwing on the Cool Flame attachment to replace it.


    I concentrate and push my Spirit Energy through the MD ring, through the Cool Flame sample and out into the open air. I notice that as it goes through the Cool Flame and gets marked, it seems to condense and become smaller than usual. Immediately recognizing what that means I shout ¡°It¡¯s a non-mortal material!?¡± I was absolutely stunned at the realization and it made me start questioning how the soul forge was made and where the materials came from.


    Well, unanswered questions aside this could be seen as either really good news or bad news. On the one hand it could be considered really good news because it was non-mortal and therefore, slightly magical and is probably better than most types of natural lighting. But it made it much more energy intensive for the MD ring to duplicate and me to produce in large quantities.


    I mean I am still going to be using it, but it will make it a little more tiring than I expected.


    Anyways, ¡®Materialize!¡¯ I think, sending the command to the ring on my left hand. At once the gel starts to form and falls to the ground with an audible splat. ¡°I keep doing that!¡± I say annoyed and I reach down and peel the Cool Flame off of the ground. It took me about three whole minutes to get most of it picked up and placed into the nearest torch, but I managed to get the vast majority of it eventually.


    ¡®Well the Cool Flame ring samples work at least.¡¯ I think to myself as I stand up from cleaning up my mess. ¡®I just need to remove the mark from the ring samples.¡¯ I think as I sit down, taking the Cool Flame samples out of my pocket and off the MD ring as I do, preparing to wipe away the mark on the samples. I concentrate on my soul, the Spirit Energies I can feel flowing throughout it, and I call out to its power, directing and pushing it towards my targets that I hold in my hand.


    As I force the energy to flush out the mark that is inside it, I feel incredible resistance. Not like the mark is somehow stronger, but like my Spirit Energy is being absorbed and used by the Cool Flame. ¡®Is this because it is a non-mortal material?¡¯ I think, desperately trying to prevent my Spirit Energy from dissolving and being used to power the material, I just need to keep it up. The mark will be erased eventually¡­


    <hr>


    Ten minutes later, the mark was finally removed. During the process, I questioned my choice to use this annoying material for lighting the entire time, but it was my best option. As I placed the Cool Flame ring samples, I thought about removing the mark on the walls, flooring and roof will be an absolute pain, doubly so if the walls turn out to be some sort of non-mortal stone¡­


    Well, it might take a while but it will be worth it. I think.


    I look up at the familiar surroundings of the Soul Forge and look down at the floor plan beside me. Let''s get started¡­


    First thing I need to do is¡­ mark where the walls are going I suppose. I start to go through the familiar action of running Spirit Energy through the MD ring and then I channel it through the walnut wood ring. As soon as I had pumped out quite a lot of Spirit Energy, I started controlling the Spirit Energy and arranging it into a thin rectangle on the floor within the range of the MD ring, which felt really small in the moment as it only extended to less than a sixteenth of the Soul Forge floor.


    As I controlled and formed the floor shape, I left out areas where I was going to place walls, to mark their location, without wasting extra materials and therefore Spirit Energy. I started feeling a headache coming on from my dwindling Spirit Energy reserves as I finished a ragged circle with a roughly five feet radius.


    As I gave the command ¡®Materialize!¡¯ I nearly collapsed from my exhaustion. The amount of Spirit Energy to make something even this big was massive compared to my Spirit Energy production and reserves. It wouldn''t be as much of a massive energy drain if my soul was in a better condition, which means that it will get better eventually, so that is a good thing.


    Right now though, I need to get to my bed¡­ Or I might pass out and hurt myself on the stone floor¡­

 Chapter 12

    As the next two weeks stretched on, I grew into my new schedule of building the Soul Forge. I had changed my schedule after the first two days of working in the mornings, and being absolutely exhausted the rest of the day. So I had taken my paper with my schedule out and made a new one for building my house in the Soul Forge.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Get up and do warm up exercise/training.


    </td>


    <td>


    6:00-8:30


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Breakfast.


    </td>


    <td>


    8:30-9:00


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Study/Research.


    </td>


    <td>


    9:00-12:00


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Lunch.


    </td>


    <td>


    12:00-12:30


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Blacksmithing.


    </td>


    <td>


    12:30-3:00


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Building.


    </td>


    <td>


    3:00-7:00


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Supper.


    </td>


    <td>


    7:00-7:30


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Shower.


    </td>


    <td>


    7:30-8:00


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Get in bed.


    </td>


    <td>


    8:00


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    The major changes I made were the blacksmithing time became shorter and pushed to right after lunch, building took the place during the time I used to do blacksmithing and I removed my nightly study, so I could get to bed while I am tired out from building.


    My new schedule worked out really well and I finished the flooring in the first three days, the walls during the five days after that and finally the roof/floor for floor 2, the ramp and the lights during the four days after I finished the walls. It doesn''t look great right now, like a new house, but I should be getting some furniture and the like soon. I also removed the ¡®Materialized Matter¡¯ mark that was all over everything over the course of the following week, which was substantially easier than when I tried earlier in the month.


    During the time I took building my interdimensional house in the Soul Forge, I had actually made my first weapons. Two daggers with blades made of steel with wooden and leather handles. Along with small hidden sheathes for them I had placed under my new leather jacket I had recently got for this exact purpose, to be able to bring them with me no matter where I go comfortably without anyone knowing.


    Their rank wasn''t much to boast about though, only Medium Common grade. Just kidding! Medium common from non-mortal materials was incredible for an absolute beginner who just started like me! I earned a total of thirty Ring Gold for them as well, so I was pretty proud of them.


    I also started training how to fight with them, which was slow going. That was mostly just because I have very little idea what I am doing though and no one to show me how I am supposed to do it¡­


    As for abilities, I finally unlocked the Blacksmithing Lv1 passive ability when I made my daggers and I leveled up Speed reading to Lv2. The changes for speed reading were immense as my reading speed grew by roughly ten percent, but Blacksmithing only helped a little, making me able to make things a little faster and with more precision, like maybe five percent better.


    But now that you are all caught up, let''s get back to the present.


    I looked around my new house, well technically the first floor of it, with satisfaction. It was finally done, just waiting for my furniture and things for me to move in. I was currently in the entrance hall and was thinking about what I am going to be putting on the second floor. I do want to have something like an arena, but it is going to take a while¡­ Especially if I do add in an elevated obstacle course above it.


    You know what? I am going to do it anyway. I only have just over two weeks before school starts and I need something to do. I might as well just get started. I eventually decided after standing uncertainly for a few seconds, turning to the ramp to my left and starting to walk up. As I walked I thought about which design I had thought up I would use.


    I could just go full Greek and build a small amphitheater with a row of raised seats¡­ You know what, let''s build on that¡­ What if I make a Greek theatre but I make it into a hemisphere instead of a cone shape and only make three rows? That could work¡­ I like it! It is decided then, I will take inspiration from the Greeks.


    I then stopped suddenly on the first landing. Wait, why was I heading up the ramp? I need my materials first!


    I pivot around and jog back down the stone ramp, heading for the material sample rack that I had placed in storage¡­ On pretty much the opposite side of the Soul Forge¡­


    I jog through the entry hall and into the hallway, into the room on the far end of the hallway on the left. My storage room wasn''t very full, only my material storage rack was currently inside, so I continued to jog up to it and took a few seconds to decide on materials. Marble seems like a good choice¡­ you know what? I think I will go all out and get that gold bar now, and put gold inlay into it. Flex my riches to the little guy¡­


    I almost laughed at that, that was pretty much exactly what Pearson said to me in school while flexing his gold watch in school.


    ¡°Ha! Beat this, you stuck up prick!¡± I said out loud, while opening the System Store and checking my Ring Gold balance, seeing my hard earned seventy Ring Gold with a frown. ¡°Ok, seventy Ring Gold isn''t that much¡­¡± Then I smile and open the material screen and click the Gold Bar button, causing forty of my seventy Ring Gold to vanish and a Gold Bar to appear in my hand. ¡°Yes!¡± I shouted, holding the Gold Bar in one hand and raising it into the air with a cheer ¡°Beat this! It feels good to be rich!¡±


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    I then frown, ¡°I really need to find a buyer¡­ I will go around the city and look for a pawn shop tomorrow.¡± I decide.


    Well anyway, let''s get back to building. I start to run my Spirit Energy through the MD ring and then the glimmering golden bar in my hand. I concentrate and start to form the shape of the material attachment rings, feeling the invisible energy move and struggle against my will of its form. All my practice with the MD ring wasn''t wasted though, as after three seconds, I had arranged it into the correct shape and gave the command to materialize leaving all three material sample rings to appear in the air in front of me. Where it fell on the ground with a metallic thump.


    ¡°I keep forgetting about that¡­¡± I groan as I bend to pick it up. As soon as I stood back up again, I grip the gold material ring and I start to wipe the materialized matter mark, pushing a torrent of Spirit Energy into the small ring, removing the mark in about thirty seconds.


    I set the gold bar onto the ground of the storage room and placed two sections of the gold sample onto a tube in the metal sample section of the shelf, keeping the gold material sample in my pocket for my new arena.


    ¡°Hum¡­ I should make the benches a little more comfortable than it would be with just stone¡­¡± I say, thinking about what to do. ¡°I could just make the actual bench part marble with the gold inlay, and make a sort of cushion with fabric and foam. You know what? Let''s add a modern twist to the benches and make them like what you would see in theaters, where they are like padded chairs with a back and an arm rest between seats.¡± I decide and take a look at my fabric samples on the shelf and decide on a nice deep red fabric that is labeled ¡®Red velvet¡¯


    ¡°Nice and soft, I think that this will work ok.¡± I say after looking at it for a second. And for the foam I chose a sample of polyester for it, because I remember something about it being a good choice for pillow stuffing from my old world.


    That leaves me with four material¡¯s for the stands, gold, marble, red velvet and polyester, but I think that something for the floor would be good. Just the wood of the floor wouldn''t stand up to a lot and maybe something that would cushion falls a little would be good. But what would I use?


    I start looking at all my material samples, thinking about which material would be best.


    A fabric would be the best for cushioning falls, but it wouldn''t really work for a sturdy floor that could take a hit if it was thick enough to make a difference for falling¡­ On the other hand, some sort of stone or steel would be best for taking the occasional hit, but if you fell on it it would hurt a lot¡­ I wish I could combine it a little¡­ Oh. I can.


    I can combine stone or steel with a fabric, with the MD ring I can just materialize it partly inside each other. Huh, now that I think about it I haven''t really found out what exactly materializing something inside something else does¡­ I really need to do some testing on that.


    Well, I can do some testing now I suppose¡­ I should do that in my room though. When I am testing something I should check the time just so I don''t accidentally go overtime.


    As for my testing materials¡­ I already have marble and polyester samples, maybe I could grab a steel sample and test those, so I can see if I could use something like I was thinking for the arena floor.


    I seriously need to learn to think ahead a bit¡­


    <hr>


    Two hours later, I had found out quite a lot about the MD ring¡¯s ability to materialize matter inside matter.


    One of the first things that I had tested was what would happen to a marble if I materialized steel in exactly the same shape and positioning as the marble. At first sight, nothing happened to it, but on closer inspection I could see that the marble had taken a reflective metallic hue. The visible changes were far out shown as when I tested its durability and strength, I found out that it had taken some of the best qualities of the materials. You see, when I hit it with a hammer it was completely undamaged. I think that the marble and steel has created a new material that had a high tolerance to pretty much everything that I could throw at it. Also apparently it weighs an insane amount more than just normal marble.


    It is important to know that materials have different strengths, tensile strength, yield strength, compressive strength and so fourth. So steel has different weaknesses and strengths than marble. And because of the size of the material not changing when another material is materialized inside it, I have a theory about what exactly is happening to the material. My theory is that the density of the material has grown making an alloy, because the materialized matter was created between the molecules of the marble.


    This causes the resulting material to be more dense, which makes it stronger and heavier and it takes on the qualities of both materials. So with the marble and steel combination, it took on the different strengths and made the weaknesses of the individual material less pronounced and the final product to be a well rounded material that stands up to most pressures just as well.


    That is really the only things that I had found out about or theorized for my first round of testing. I had tested a few more combinations, until I made an interesting discovery.


    When I tried to materialize polyester into the steel-marble alloy, the entire thing literally dissolved into a fine, almost invisible small powder and exploded.


    I was stunned at this discovery but after calming down and giving the command for all materialized matter to turn back into Spirit Energy, so I wouldn''t breathe it in, I had a theory as to why it vaporized.


    My theory is built off my first theory as to what happens when I materialize two materials, which is that the molecules appear in the space between the original molecules, and I theorized that it vaporized because there was no more room for the third materials molecules and therefore was under too much internal pressure which caused it to expand, shredding itself into particles in the process.


    But really I have no idea. I don''t exactly have something to take a look at what is happening at a molecular level.


    And for my third and final test, I tried to use a combined material for a material ring. It was easy enough to try, and if it works right it will make the construction a lot faster, so I made a steel sample ring and then materialized the marble, making it into the marble-steel alloy. At first, it seemed normal but after picking it up, it weighed a ton. After putting it on, I tried running my Spirit Energy through it and found that as my Spirit Energy went through the material sample, nothing in particular was different that I could tell.


    But disappointingly, when I gave the command ¡®Materialize¡¯ a chunk of steel appeared and fell on the floor with a loud thump. ¡°I hope no one heard that¡­¡± I whispered, the thump was really loud¡­


    Apparently either no one heard or no one cared enough to check what happened, because no one came to check.


    ¡°Why, did that not work though¡­¡± I muttered, looking at the chunk of steel lying on the floor. The second that I started really thinking about it, I realized how stupid I was.


    ¡°It takes the most abundant molecular structure! It can''t copy a pattern of steel and marble molecules and so it took the most abundant, steel! Such a waste of time, if only I had really thought about it more, I would have remembered that!¡± I said scolding myself for not thinking through my test. ¡®Dematerialize¡¯ I gave the command to the ring, to clean up the hunk of steel and the pointless material sample ring.


    After a few seconds of reprimanding myself, I decided that all of this testing was finished for now and I should start to work on a material for my arena floor.


    After half an hour, I had come to a finished product, it started with a one foot cube of marble, and then I materialized three fourths (Heightwise) into the steel-marble alloy and then I added the polyester into the top fourth of the block and a miniscule bit above the block of marble.


    This block that I ended up with turned out to be pretty much exactly what I wanted, as it was hard enough to take a good hit and was sturdy enough for running, but it was also softer and more shock absorbent than marble or steel making it better to fall on than either. It wasn''t perfect though as I found out during testing that the first fourth of the block was weaker than just normal marble, particularly to slashes of my new daggers which left a good half inch gash. It is still quite an upgrade though and if it gets damaged to bad, I can always replace it.


    I looked up from the block of my new creation and towards my alarm clock on my desk, which was turned towards me, the glowing lines telling me that my time for testing was up because it was six fifty four and supper was in six minutes. ¡°Oh well¡­ I can work on the arena tomorrow.¡± I say disappointed, before starting to clean up my room.

 Chapter 13

    The next morning, I wake up feeling refreshed and hop out of bed. The wood floor is a little cold for my bare feet, but I am used to it by now. I quickly check the time on my alarm clock and I see in satisfaction that it is five fifty seven, three minutes before my alarm goes off. My new body is surprisingly good at waking up however so this is a really normal event, and by this point the days where I don''t wake up before my alarm are more abnormal than when I do.


    Well, pondering about my energetic new body aside, it is time for my morning stretches and exercise now. I will just shut my alarm off when it goes off. I take a step and calmly strip down from my PJ¡¯s and put on my workout outfit for the day, just a loose T-shirt and thin shorts that are a little more breathable than my other clothes. I then start to do my stretches in preparation for my morning warm up.


    My stretching routine is mostly based on what little experiences I had in my tenth and eleventh grade yoga classes, just a little arm movements, tree pose, my version of a split, the normal stuff and a hundred other things that I don''t even remember the name of. My alarm goes off somewhere during my stretching, but I just reach an arm over and hit the general area of the off button until it stops beeping at me. My whole stretching routine isn''t that long, only half an hour or so, but what it lacks in time it makes up for in quality and my vigor in stretching every muscle in my body.


    When I finish my stretching routine, sweating all over my body and wiping myself off with a white towel that I took from the bathroom, I start my warm up. Like my stretching, my morning warm up is quite vigorous and usually takes me over an hour to do.


    I took inspiration for my warm up from all the P.E. classes I have ever been a part of and a little from the at home workouts I did occasionally, ending up with a slow progression from a few pushups and jumping jacks, all the way to my proud thirty to forty burpees that I had worked to after all my diligence in exercising myself to the bone over the month I had been in the orphanage and the rings I had enchanted. Sadly, I think that my two experiences in enchanting did my previously puny muscles more good than my diligence.


    I am by no means well muscled now, but no one would call my guns tiny for my age. I don''t really know how they would fare against a monster in a fight though. Maybe I could try and pick a fight with something to get some experience in a few days?


    As I finish up my warm up exercising, I am sweating buckets from every pore and am gasping for breath and I can feel the fire in my muscles that was reignited from the last hour of training. I look up at my alarm clock from my position on the ground where I was lying in exhaustion and see that the time is now almost eight o''clock. Time for my second round of stretching.


    Half an hour later, I wiped myself down with the towel to remove the sheen of sweat rolling down my body from the intense strain and I changed again, into another set of clothes that aren''t as wet. Thank the gods that my sweat doesn''t stink that bad yet¡­ Though, I suspect that ¡®it¡¯ might hit sooner than I would wish¡­


    As soon as I had changed I could hear the caretaker shouting up the stairs ¡°Breakfast is ready!¡± to wake up the majority of the little sleeping children to come and eat. Perfect timing as always. I walk over to the door and open it quickly, running down the stairs as quietly as I can to try to finish eating before the other children come down to eat too.


    I want to get a head start for studying mostly because I am almost done reading the grade four textbooks and I want to make a test from random parts of the textbooks. But the main reason I want to hurry is not to do the test as soon as possible, but because I am making the test I want to make it as fair as possible.


    So of course, because I made the test, I want to try and forget the exact questions, so I will take the test the next day, which will hopefully be tomorrow, and I will have a little free time which I can use to get my blacksmithing set up to get more time to practice after lunch. Yes I know, Despite having a passive ability that prevents me from forgetting anything, I still make my own tests and write the answer sheet. It¡¯s not my best idea, but I don''t have access to the internet for online tests or worksheets that I could have easily found in my old life.


    In fact, my ¡°Studying and research time¡± have pretty much just been spent reading and making little tests for myself. Math is way easier for tests as the textbook I found has small unit tests in the back pages, but science along with history are a pain to try to make tests and do them fairly. Self study is hard, but with my knowledge from going through school all the way to halfway through twelfth grade is a good boost and it was really just relearning or refreshing my memory of easy topics I learned years ago.


    When I had gone down the stairs and into the dining hall, I found out that I was correct in the assumption that no one would be eating yet because the room was absolutely deserted. Not even the caretaker was present. I grin, the first pick of food goes to me! I walk over to the buffet style table and take a plate, silverware, a cup and a napkin and proceed to select my food in copious amounts that fill my plate and then some. Pancakes drowning in syrup, fried eggs on top of the pancakes swimming in even more syrup and fruit of every kind waiting for their time to be thrown in my cavernous mouth.


    I then proceed to the end of the nearest table and start to gorge upon the piles of food on my plate until finally it is wiped clean by my tongue after I had devoured its previous contents.


    I look at the room around me and notice happily that it is still completely empty, besides me of course. I then look up at the clock above the buffet table and I see in surprise that I was actually really fast in eating my breakfast, because it is eight forty five. It took me ten minutes to eat my breakfast from the time I got dished up. ¡°Huh.¡± I said, impressed with myself. Then I stood up and put my dishes in the dirty dish bin at the far end of the buffet table then walked back to my room to get a start on my reading.


    <hr>


    Later that day, at ten thirty in the morning, I was sitting back in my desk chair looking between two papers with my hand writing all over them. One of those papers had the title of ¡°End of 4th grade science exam¡± written on it, while the other had the words ¡°Answer key for End of 4th year science exam¡± at the top of the page. I had just finished writing the science exam and was double checking my answer key, with help from the text book on my lap.


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    On my desk, the history and math tests were sitting on my desk in a pile, with their respective answer keys. The science exam was the last one I had written, and there was only one mistake in the answer key, which I easily corrected with the help of the textbook.


    I set down the two papers with relief as soon as I had went over them for the third time and found nothing wrong with them. I also placed the textbook on top of the other two books that were in the corner of my desk.


    ¡°Finally, I can move onto some funner things! Into the Soul Forge I go!¡± I say happily as I summoned the gateway to my realm with the flow of my Spirit Energy and stepped into the entrance hall of my personal two floor mansion. Now, I actually finished quite a bit sooner than I expected and lunch is at twelve and it is now ten, so what do I want to do now?


    I stood thinking in the entrance hall for a few seconds, trying to decide what to do. My indecision was not from lack of things that I could do, but the exact opposite actually. I could start blacksmithing practice now and forge something, maybe I could make a short sword? Or I could start building my arena? Spend some time training with my daggers trying to unlock a dagger skill maybe?


    After thinking for a few seconds I decided to get a head start on building my arena. My reasoning is that, because my soul is almost fully recovered, there is only a few days to a week until my soul has recovered enough to enchant another ring, which would drag my Spirit Energy levels way down, so I think my Spirit Energy emission rate is high enough now that if I start working soon I could get the arena built by the end of the day if I am lucky and fast enough, and I could possibly wipe the mark out tomorrow or the day after.


    Now that I have decided on what to do, I walk to the storage room to collect my material sample rings. I walk down the hallway and into the room on the left side of the hallway, where my rack full of my materials are. I recall the materials that I had decided on and started to grab one section of a ring for each material. ¡°Gold, marble, red velvet, polyester and.. What else? Oh steel! Right, I think that is everything.¡± I say, checking off my mental list as I go through and select a sample of each material.


    I end up with five materials, but that is fine for now as I just need gold, marble and steel for the stadium portion and then I can change my samples for the floor and seats when I get to them. I take off the MD ring and start putting on the attachments one by one, first the steel, then the gold and polyester last. I place the MD ring back on my finger and adjust it a little before walking out of the storage room and back into the entrance hall, up the ramp and out into the second floor.


    On the second floor I started walking to the far end of the room and then I started making a rough area plan on the ground with the MD ring and then I paused for a second thinking. ¡°You know what? The MD ring just doesn''t sound that great, or really show what you can do with it¡­ Let''s rename it¡­ The Ring of the Creator? No¡­ how about The ring of Creation? That actually sounds way better¡­ Ok, it is decided The MD ring is now The Ring of Creation.¡± I said, thinking out loud.


    Now that was sorted out, I continued making my floor plan, sending my Spirit Energy through the steel attachment and positioning it into the floor in the shape that I want my arena¡¯s stands to be in.


    <hr>


    Half an hour later, I finished my floor plan. I was sticking with my first idea of a Greek theater shape, but I decided to change the architecture a little to lean into something resembling a roman coliseum. Now the time consuming part begins. I started channeling my Spirit Energy through the marble attachment but I also made a stream of it go through the gold attachment.


    You see, I had figured out what I could do for my gold inlay pattern on marble. And it was surprisingly difficult to figure out, and yet so simple that I should have thought of it immediately. What I found difficult at first, was rooted in my first method, which was that I would create a section of marble with random cracks and then materialize the gold inside it, but that method had several problems.


    The first problem is that the result was always uneven on every side with the bumps and cracks being there still, even after the gold was added, and it causes small crevices in the material that no matter how hard I try, I can''t fill exactly flush with the surface. And the second problem is that when I materialize the gold, the marble¡¯s original strength is drastically weakened and it breaks much easier than normal and I can''t even reinforce it by materializing steel inside, because it already had a material materialized inside once and it would disintegrate.


    So I thought and did testing, looking for a solution, until I thought of my new method, which I am now using. The new method is really simple, it is to just push my Spirit Energy through marble and send some through gold at the same time, and then mix the gold and marble energy¡¯s into marble energy with random streaks of gold marked energy throughout the shape I want it to take. It is a little harder than normal shaping of the Spirit Energy, but not by much.


    So using this technique, I started forming the stands. First I started with the general shape of the raised rows of where I am going to put the seats, making them raised up a little from where the fight would happen so no one would be hurting the audience. Then I started with the stairs to get to the seats and the arena. And after that is where I was going to start sprucing it up a bit, with pillars and outcropping patterns to decorate it a bit, but when I walked out of the Soul Forge to check the time, I found that my time was almost up because it was eleven forty five, fifteen minutes before lunch.


    I was slightly disappointed that I didn''t have time to finish the stands, but I almost completed them and it took much shorter than I thought, so I was pretty ok with leaving them until I was done blacksmithing practice at three in the afternoon.


    But I still have fifteen minutes¡­ That is not enough time to make a lot of progress on the arena, and I really don''t want to accidentally miss being called down for lunch. So, what should I do? I sat down in my desk chair and started thinking. ¡°Hum¡­ Well, I am doing blacksmithing next, so what can I do to prepare for that?¡± I said to the empty room, thinking aloud.


    I was planning to work on making detailed and intricately patterned rings today, so I wasn''t sure what I wanted to do ahead of time. ¡°I could make some blank rough rings from gold to work on, to skip the step of shaping the metal into the rough shape of a ring and just get to work on the quality and the carvings I want.¡± I decided after realizing that I still have my material sample attachments on.


    As soon as I had reached my decision, I started running my Spirit Energy through The Ring of Creation and then through the gold attachment sample, marking it. I then started concentrating on shaping the Spirit Energy, I wanted to try and make as good a ring as possible. As I was shaping the Spirit Energy, constraining the wild energy back into the shape of a ring that should fit on my finger, I realized that this might be a bit easier than I thought it would be. ¡°Materialize!¡± I commanded, causing the ring that I had been forming out of Spirit Energy to turn into solid gold and fall onto the hard wooden desk top in front of me.


    I pick it up and inspect it, not only with my eyes but with my ¡®Inspect¡¯ ability which told me the rank was Common Low, which looked accurate. The metal was really warped in some places, but in general it looked and felt really smooth and was mostly even, but that could be fixed in the forge later. All in all, I consider this a great success.


    Now, I still have a few minutes so let''s get to work!

 Chapter 14

    Forty five minutes later, after I finished lunch, I walked into my room stunned at what I learned during lunch. My birthday was yesterday¡­ I didn''t even notice! It completely slipped my mind! I was so distracted by my new situation that I forgot my own birthday. Though I really wasn''t sure how old I was now¡­ I was going to turn nineteen back home, but the system told me that I was eleven years old here, so am I twelve now? I think about my question for a while before coming to an answer. ¡°Well, when you think about it I have lived for a few months, but I am mentally nineteen and physically twelve¡­ Wow I am messed up¡­¡± I said, holding my head in my hands.


    I should be at home right now, moving into a new house, celebrating with my family, but instead I am sitting in an orphanage in the body of a twelve year old in a fictional world¡­ ¡°Come on! Pull yourself together! Be a man.¡± I whispered to myself, standing up and wiping away a tear that was streaking across my face. I pushed my Spirit Energy through the gateway in my soul and watched as it was used to power the structure and opened my eyes to see the door appear in front of me.


    I opened the door, walked to the forge and set the gold rings that I had made this morning down on my work table. I had made eleven of the tiny gold bands before I was called for lunch and they were pretty much the same as the first, mostly really good but some areas that looked warped and shifted in odd ways, like the metal slightly melted in places leaving it disfigured.


    But these disfigured rings actually helped me with my practice today instead of hindering me. This was because I was practicing smoothing metal out and then carving details and inscriptions into stuff, in this case the gold rings, which were great for starting out as they were weaker than most metals by quite a bit and should be easier to shape and engrave onto.


    Because I had quite a lot of rings that needed to be smoothed over before engraving anything, I decided to smooth the rings all out before engraving anything. Not wasting any time, I start heating up the magi-forge and then prepare my tools to start working, rounding hammer, tongs and a selection of gravers for engravings and inscriptions after the smoothing is done.


    I also picked up a thinner mandrel and placed it inside the hardy hole on the anvil, where it fit quite snugly, and I picked up a gold ring at random from the selection on the table. I slid the ring into the mandrel and pushed it down a little, just to make sure that I had a good size of mandrel. The gold ring stopped sliding down almost halfway to the bottom of the mandrel and I nodded, it was almost the perfect size.


    As soon as I had taken the gold ring off the mandrel, I noticed that the forge was ready, so I grabbed the tongs, grabbed the gold ring I had just tested on the mandrel and placed it in the heat.


    Now, because gold is actually quite malleable I don''t necessarily have to heat it up, but heating it up makes the gold more malleable and less likely to crack, along with tougher when I put it through the heat treatment, so it is probably best that I go through that, I don''t want to have to go through and repair more than I had to originally. Especially because I was really only doing this to work on engravings in the first place.


    As soon as the gold turned into a nice golden red color, I knew that it was ready to start. I grabbed the tongs again from beside me and raised them up to pick up the red hot metal. Concentrating now, I carefully took a firm hold on the ring and maneuvered the ring to the top of the mandrel that I had placed in the anvil and lowered it onto the metal cone quickly. Then I dropped it, letting the hot metal slide a little lower down the mandrel.


    I quickly and deftly placed the tongs to the side and picked up the rounding hammer. I turned to the rapidly cooling metal and with my hammer in hand I started guiding the metal, working out the deformities and smoothing the metal with ease. My two months of practicing my blacksmithing knowledge was not wasted after all.


    A minute later I had finished smoothing out the metal rings and when I placed down my hammer I picked up the tongs once more and gently took the almost fully cooled gold with them and proceeded to drop the ring into the large steel bucket beside the anvil.


    This was not an ordinary bucket though as when I had scanned the bucket with my appraisal ability during one of my first practice session, it had told me that it was a ¡°Magic quenching bucket¡± which confused me a little at first as I had no idea what a magic quenching bucket would do.


    When I reviewed the blacksmithing knowledge I was given however, I realized that this bucket would be pretty useful. What my blacksmithing knowledge suggested that the magic bucket could do was firstly, cause a even distribution of heat and cold in the water inside it, causing any metal placed inside cool perfectly evenly which can prevent quenching cracks and deformation, and secondly it suggested that it could also imbue magical properties into the water to help increase the effects of quenching by making the metal harder and more heat resistant.


    When I was testing the bucket I found out that only the even distribution of heat was imbued on the bucket however. That is not to say that it is a bad thing, in fact this is great and will improve the quality of my work a lot, but it was slightly disappointing when I found out that it did not imbue magical properties in the metal quenched in it. I could technically make it have that property myself when I get more practice and make my own personal enchanted equipment anyway, so it''s good enough to start with at least.


    I watched the bubbles rise in droves for the first few seconds but quickly I could see the bubbles petering off and stopping when it was fully cooled. I reached into the magic bucket and drew out the shining gold ring quickly, the water was still really cold. I walked over to the forge and extended my hands momentarily to dry them off and heat them up a bit, before inspecting the gold ring in my hand. The blue screen appeared in front of my face as I activated my ability and as I read it I felt proud, my diligence in training has paid off.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Name: Gold Ring


    </td>


    <td>


    Grade: Common High


    </td>


    <td>


    Abilities: None


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    I had reached Common High with only mortal materials! This was a huge step up from my abilities when making anything even a month ago, where I could only make a common middle grade ring out of a non mortal material, mythril. I looked at my two enchanted rings, seeing all their flaws, bumps and deformations that were the marks of my abilities of me from months ago, then I looked at the gold ring in my hand. It was marginally better made and the gold ring seemed almost perfectly smoothed over, though a little rough than I might see in stores because I did not buffer it or file it down at all.


    I wonder if the grade will improve when I engrave it?


    <hr>


    Half an hour later, sweating all over, I pulled out the last ring from the magic quenching bucket, looked at the gold band critically and then appraised it, ¡°Common middle¡± the blue rectangle declared. I sighed, it seems that I can''t consistently make common high grade objects. I placed the gold ring down in one of two piles of gold rings that I knew to be the common middle pile.


    The common high ring I had made first was one of the few that were not in the common middle pile, but in a pile with five other rings that were in the common high pile. The ring that I had just placed in the common middle pile was actually my last and so, I got ready to start learning engraving. I walked to my anvil and picked the tongs and the rounding hammer up and away from the metal and back away on the tool rack in their respective places. I had already turned off the magi-forge, so I immediately started on the first step of engraving.


    The first step I was going to do this time was place one of the common middle grade rings onto the mandrel, take a pencil from the work table and start drawing what I want to engrave on the gold. What I was planning to make for my first time was actually just a pattern of a thin but tight spiral wrapped around the outside of the ring, instead of anything too complicated.


    When I had finished marking the gold ring, I took a thin grave and started running the steel end over the black lines, pressing down as I did so. I watched and maneuvered the steel graver carefully as it started causing small uneven chunks of metal to be extracted from the gold ring, pushing the pattern to be engraved into the gold.


    When I had finished roughly fifteen minutes later, the metal burrs I had created fell away with a good shake. I looked at the engraved gold ring critically, the engraving did mostly look ok and portrayed what I wanted, but the depth and thickness of the spiral that I was trying to engrave varied a lot, which made it very uneven and rough. All in all, not very good.


    Ah well, I was not expecting to get it right away anyway. Onto the next one then.


    <hr>


    One and a half hours later I had finished practicing my engraving and was looking at what was a common high grade gold ring that I had carved elvish lettering into the band that roughly read ¡°To he that seeks adventure, to them that can see the world, let the truth shine bright and guide your path.¡±


    This was a simple and common elvish phrase to wish someone safe travels and is dramatically shorter than the English version being only five words, it was especially easier to write, if it was not shorter than the English translation then it would have to be way smaller and I doubt that I could make it very legible if I engraved it.


    The engraving was not perfect, but I could see some progress from my first try, as the width and depth was not as varied and the script was quite detailed and compact. But will it be enough¡­ ¡®Appraisal!¡¯ I thought, activating my appraisal ability and causing the bright blue screen to pop into existence. ¡°Yes!¡± I shouted happily, I had done it! Reading the words on the screen with joy.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Name: Engraved Gold Ring of Safe Travel


    </td>


    <td>


    Grade: Uncommon low


    </td>


    <td>


    Abilities: None


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    What I had to do previously to achieve this grade was to enchant a non-mortal material ring, but now I had achieved the same grade from a simple engraved gold ring. I am truly learning fast in the art of blacksmithing.


    Then a soft sound came from somewhere and the information on the screen slid over like it was in a PowerPoint presentation and new words were shown saying ¡°Congratulations you have earned: 22 Ring Gold from making the Engraved Gold Ring of Safe Travel, check the store for the total amount.¡±


    I smiled at the notification, nothing like seeing your money going up to reward your hard work. I spent a few minutes taking in the moment and then I started appraising my other work. Disappointingly, the ring of Safe Travel was the only ring that had breached into uncommon grade, though I could tell some of the later five were close, but not quite there yet.


    A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.


    The first three I had made were the exact opposite however and the engravings actually dragged the grade to common low, which meant that those creations were an absolute failure. Also the first ring was not the only one that awarded me some points and I earned a total of one hundred and eighty two. I have enough for a new non-mortal material to work with just for these earnings alone, and now that I think about it I think that I actually have quite a bit more, but I should check first before buying anything¡­


    ¡°System Store.¡± I say to open the store menu. I watched the blue screen blink for a moment before it changed into the system store home page, allowing me to check my balance. ¡°Two hundred and twelve? Nice! If I am not remembering anything wrong, that is enough for one of almost everything in the store! Hum¡­ I should take a bit to think over what I should get later¡­¡± I say after reading my balance. ¡°Well, I should get moving now though. Lots to do.¡± I decide and straighten up to start cleaning up.


    I was about to call the command ¡®Dissolve¡¯ to clean up my mess, but before I did I decided that I wanted to keep the ring of safe travels. I then spent a few seconds breaking the ¡®Materialized matter¡¯ mark, by flooding the ring with my Spirit Energy and pushing the resistance away. I even took an extra few seconds to make sure that none of the ring would dematerialize with the other worse creations and my mess.


    ¡°Dissolve¡± I said after making sure that the ring of safe travels was protected, causing my energy reserves to shoot up and the metal burrs on the ground, along with the other gold rings, to vanish into the air. I checked the ring of safe travels, just to make sure that it was fine, and found that it was exactly the same as before.


    I walked over to the mandrel that was sticking out of the anvil and picked it up, along with the set of gravers and placed them in their proper spots on the tool shelf.


    Blacksmithing practice is officially over for the day. It is time for me to finish my arena!


    I walked out of the forge and into the hall, where I paused by the storage room before remembering that I had my material rings in my pocket from before lunch and I continued to the entrance hall, up the ramp and to my arena where I looked around, trying to remember where I had left off and what I still had to do.


    After looking around for a second, I remembered that I had just made the general shape of the stands and I still needed to decorate it and add more details to make it seem more Greek architecture with some arches, pillars and patterns carved in the stone. I also needed to make the arena floor and the seats, but I am going to make the details first.


    So I take out and put on the material samples for gold and marble and start channeling my Spirit Energy through the ring of creation and the samples, mixing the gold and marble streams of energy and start creating a grand entrance archway between the two sides of the stands.


    Over the next two hours, I formed an entrance arch around the stairway to the seats and I materialized decorations, arches, outcropping slabs with engravings and a high roof supported with pillars. Of all the things that I had created with the ring of creation, the roof was by far that hardest, I had to build up pillars while I was on top of them, which meant that I had to jump up for each foot the pillars went up by, like I was pillaring in Minecraft, and then I had to form the roof itself from the walls with me standing on top and walking around it to form the entirety of it.


    Of course it was really fun to form it, but I was also kind of afraid to accidentally fall off, or not time my jump correctly, but in the end I finished it without any incidents.


    But building this also came with its problems that I noticed when I had finished the last section of the roof. ¡°How am I supposed to get down¡­¡± I said a little nervously as I looked at the ground from twenty feet in the air on the marble roof.


    I was stuck for a good few minutes, but eventually I decided how to get down. I could have made a ladder or a rope, but no. I decided to do something absolutely stupid, because of course I did.


    I spent a few seconds changing my material sample ring to add the polyester sample and then I started forming my way down. It was pretty complex to actually make however so I spent ten minutes to form it, but once I was done I took hold of my creation and jumped off the roof, clutching on for dear life. What I made was a large fluffy foam mattress. Yes, I made a large mattress and jumped off the roof, holding it to my chest as I hoped it would not flip.


    When I was about to impact the ground I started questioning my sanity, but it was already too late to do anything so I braced for impact. I felt the impact quite clearly, but it was extremely softened by my four feet thick polyester foam sheet, so I was fine. It was actually really fun to jump off a twenty foot high roof holding onto a mattress if I am being honest with myself. It was terrifying, true, but also surprisingly fun.


    Still, I had no desire to repeat that incident anytime soon.


    As soon as I had recovered from the fall, which took about ten minutes, I started on the next part of my arena. The lighting and the floor of the arena.


    For lighting, it was a simple matter of making a steel torch, like the ones that are along the walls in the main area of the Soul Forge, and add a glob of the Cool Flames into it and repeat for about every five feet on every wall. I actually had plenty of practice doing this when I made the second floor, so it went fast, only about half an hour.


    The construction process for the floor was actually easy too all things considered, I just formed a foot of marble mixed with gold like I did for the walls, roof and stands, but I materialized a thick layer of steel on the bottom of the floor, I also added the steel reinforcement to the walls as well, just because I could. Then as soon as the steel reinforcement was materialized, I added the polyester cushioning inside the top layer of the marble floor and a tiny bit above it.


    When I walked over the floor, I found that the polyester had another effect that I did not plan for, it made the floor have way more traction and made it way easier to grip and push off the floor than with just the stone and gold. But besides that it worked as intended and cushioned falls as well as being able to take a hit, it was even better than I thought it would be if I am being honest.


    So with the general building now done, I need to make the seats. Now, I had planned to make something akin to movie theater seats, but I changed my plan a bit. Now that I was looking at where the seats are supposed to go, I think that they would seem really out of place. Unless, I changed them a bit.


    As soon as I came up with a rough design in my head, I started to work. I walked to the stands, took off the ring of creation and removed the material samples, selecting new ones for the seats. I looked between my different samples and I selected a few different ones, the red velvet for the cushioning, marble for the main seat and gold for accenting the design and adding inlays for some decoration.


    I attached the material samples to the ring of creation and I started channeling my Spirit Energy through the ring of creation and the marble and the gold attachments, moving and controlling the spirit energy into the shape I wanted.


    I shaped the chair that I slowly made to slightly resemble a throne, and gave the command to materialize the Spirit Energy. As the seat was created in front of me, I started inspecting my design carefully. ¡°Hum¡­¡± I said thinking aloud ¡°Well, there is plenty of room for improvement. What if I add this¡­¡± I spoke as I started channeling my Spirit Energy once again, this time to add some more details and decoration to the marble throne.


    I spent close to ten minutes just making a good design for my seats, but eventually I finished designing it and added the red velvet, polyester stuffed cushioning to the seat that closely resembles a cross between a throne and a movie theater seat because of the design of the armrests and the cup holders built into the seats.


    With the addition of the velvet padding, it actually looked really nice to sit on along with just plain cool with the red, like what the king would sit on in his castle. I could also see hints of Greek architecture in it too, in the gold accented pediment design in the headrest and the thicker layers of marble creating a strong base, outlined gold patterns on each section of the base. That could just be me though, it¡¯s not like I have anyone else¡¯s opinion¡­


    ¡°Well, I think that this is cool, so let''s use it.¡± I concluded my thoughts out loud, before starting to work on all the other ones that I need to make.


    <hr>


    An hour and a half later, I was done. I had finished building the last seat and I was looking up at the imposing stands and the rows of seats that closely resembled thrones from the center of the arena proudly.


    This was probably the best thing I had ever made. I had done 3D designing quite a lot in my past life, along with making a few small live action films, and I have designed a whole bunch of cool buildings, but seeing something that I had made and designed myself brought to life, filled me with a deep sense of satisfaction.


    Then I heard a beep and a blue screen popped into existence from a small blue point that appeared in front of me. I got a notification from the system¡­


    I looked at the rectangle curiously and read the message with a growing grin, it read ¡°Passive ability: ¡®Builder Lv1¡¯ unlocked.¡± ¡°Nice!¡± I exclaimed, unlocking a passive ability is never a bad thing and it seems to really help a lot with what is in its ability range. The prime example of this is my ¡®Blacksmithing¡¯ passive ability, which even at level one I can feel it practically guide my hand, make it more steady, accurate and it also seems to make metal easier to work with over all.


    Then the system makes another louder noise which alerts me to another notification. I looked up surprised at the screen and read the new notification which says ¡°Passive ability: ¡®Architect Lv1¡¯ unlocked.¡± I look at the screen and my smile starts to grow even farther, two new abilities in one day! ¡°This is great! These abilities should really come in handy when I am upgrading or adding to the Soul Forge! Let''s check what exactly they do first though, before coming to any conclusions. Status!¡± I say, causing the screen to blink once more and turn into the status page.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Statistics


    </td>


    <td>


    Passive Abilities


    </td>


    <td>


    Skills


    </td>


    <td>


    Active Quests


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Name: Ardika Ekia


    Physical age: 12 years old


    Birthdate: August 12


    Gender: Male


    Race: Human/God hybrid


    </td>


    <td>


    Adaptation


    Adaptive system


    Perfect Recollection


    Ring Maker Lv5


    Speed reading Lv1:


    Increases mental speed for processing information read, also increasing reading speed.


    Builder Lv1:


    Increases mental and physical abilities in the process of construction.


    Architect Lv1:


    Increases mental ability to plan three dimensional structures and guides the brain to see what can be improved upon in structures when built.


    </td>


    <td>


    Appraisal


    Soul Forge Lv1


    </td>


    <td>


    (No active quests)


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    ¡°These abilities sound a lot like what I thought they would be, but the Architect passive is surprising¡­ ¡®Increases mental ability to plan three dimensional structures¡¯ sounds like it could eventually let me design 3D models in my brain and it also ¡®guides the brain to see what can be improved upon in structures when built¡¯ sounds interesting¡­ so it points out weaknesses in structures, or does it point out what could be improved to make it look better? Honestly it makes it sound like it is both¡­¡± I said, looking through my two new abilities.


    ¡°Well, looks like building time is over for today.¡± I concluded sadly, I had quite a lot of fun building today. ¡°Actually, what time is it? Maybe there is still time to get started on removing the mark on the building¡­¡± I say somewhat hopeful and I start walking out of the newly built arena and out into the desolate second floor, with a singular rectangle of four feet thick polyester sitting on the floor nearby.


    I laughed to myself as I saw it, it¡¯s the ¡®mattress¡¯ I used to fall off the roof. I walked up to it and dragged it away from the arena, over six feet away to be precise, and I dissolved it, filling my Spirit Energy reserves. I continued to walk out of the soul forge and back into my room until I could see my alarm clock.


    ¡°Wow, lucky I chose to come out when I did¡­¡± I whispered as I saw that the time was seven o''clock exactly. We must have been called to supper already. Well, let''s go eat.

 Chapter 15

    The next two weeks stretched on as I seemed to be finding more and more things to do, mostly because I was trying to keep myself busy to distract myself from the fact that school starts next month, now in six days¡­


    With all my practicing, I managed to do quite a lot however so the work is clearly paying off. I somehow managed to unlock two more skills and get some levels, the skills I had managed to get are called ¡®Dagger Skills¡¯ and ¡®Deflection¡¯. The ¡®Dagger Skills¡¯ ability is a passive that seems to help in the same way that ¡®Blacksmithing¡¯ helps me blacksmith, by guiding me and improving my skill in wielding my daggers. Something surprising though is that it not only helps me fight in melee fighting with my daggers, but it improves my accuracy with throwing my daggers like throwing knives!


    My second skill is a little more varied in its abilities though, ¡®Deflection¡¯ was unlocked when I started using the ring of creation to materialize wall shields to protect my body from ranged weapons. As to how I managed to get the ability in practice, well¡­ To start my explanation, I found a pawn shop. I also sold a ton of gold to get some cash. Well, I sold the original gold bar I got from the system store, and about fifteen High Common grade gold rings that I forged and engraved. I could have probably sold more, but the man at the counter was getting suspicious as to where a twelve year old kid got a gold bar and gold rings, so I just decided to not sell more than ten rings and the gold bar. Not that I really needed much more than what I got, as two thousand dollars is enough for now.


    So, like any kid my age would do with some money, I went on a shopping spree with my new found money. What I ended up getting was a treadmill, a set of weights, a few weight machines and what allowed me to get my second new ability, a hockey phaser that I messed with to up the shooting power. For those who don''t know what that is, like me when I first saw it in the store, it basically shoots balls. And another good thing is that I actually had some cash to spare, specifically almost ten bucks, which I proceeded to convert to Ring Gold to add to my steadily growing balance, which I was saving up. For now.


    When I started messing with it, using my limited tech knowledge from high school, I found out that it was surprisingly clear what I needed to do, almost instinctive for me to turn up the shooting speed. At first I thought I might have been given a skill for electronics by the system, but when I checked I saw nothing. So I have no idea why I seem to have instinctive knowledge on how technology works now¡­


    So I used the hockey phaser to shoot plastic balls at me at insane speeds for me to try and shield myself against, with the ring of creation. At first I got hit a lot, but eventually my reaction times got steadily higher and I was able to see where I needed to create shield walls to stop the balls from hitting me and that is how I got the ability ¡®Deflection¡¯.


    The skill ¡®Deflection¡¯ was a passive ability, naturally, and it has three effects. The first effect is that it gives me a sort of danger sense as to where I need to block to prevent things from hitting me even if I can''t see it clearly, and the second ability is it lets me feel the best angle to have my shield walls at, to prevent damage to myself or the shield.


    The third ability is also really good as well, to quote the system it ¡®Strengthens any shields or objects used to deflect or block incoming attacks¡¯ which I have seen in action. It is pretty apparent when I saw it in action when I started training it as instead of any balls that impacted a shield wall of thin wood, where it would have caused cracks or bumps from the impact, it was just pushed back a bit with no visible damage.


    As for my abilities that I had leveled, I now am the proud owner of level three Speed Reading and level four Dagger Skills. I haven''t leveled up any other skills though. Those new levels are really showing their worth though, as with my speed reading my reading speed went up by at least fifteen present from level one, and level four of dagger skills is starting to really improve my skill in holding at using my daggers, though I feel like that wasn''t very hard to improve on as I had only really just picked up my first dagger a month ago and have had no training or advice from anyone.


    But besides all that, my training is going smoothly and I am feeling way stronger than I have ever felt before, I am also starting to look it too, as I can definitely see some muscle definition on me.


    But, the one thing that I still need is experience. I haven''t fought anything, ever. So, now that I got some skills, I decided to head out into the streets, and leave Masatr at home.


    <hr>


    I looked up into the sky, searching for those damn chicken lady¡¯s. I spotted a black silhouette against the bright blue sky and I knew what it was, a harpy. Almost the second I left the orphanage, I was attacked by the stupid bird. It nearly got me, but because of my Deflection ability, I created a steel wall with the Ring of Creation and it slammed straight into it before flying away again. So of course, I started running after it. Like I have been for the last half hour.


    I am not sure where exactly I am anymore, but I am in some sort of park near downtown, which I can see over the tops of the trees and the park is actually pretty conveniently deserted right now. I watched the black dot as I ran closer, it seemed to be slowly going down in a wide spiral. I got excited as I saw it going down, I only really had my daggers with me so I couldn''t attack it until I got in close, which was hard because it kept flying away whenever I got even remotely close.


    ¡°Ok¡­¡± I said out of breath from running for so long, ¡°I need to change my strategy. Running right at it clearly doesn''t work. I wonder if I could sneak up on it¡­¡± I whisper as I start to walk closer to where it seems the harpy is going to land.


    From what I can tell, it seems to be aiming for a spot in the center of one of the green areas of the park, the area that is hidden behind some trees a few dozen feet in front of me. I start to walk quietly but as fast as I can towards the trees, still watching the harpy. As it was about halfway to the ground, I reached the trees and quickly walked quietly through the trees until I saw a clearing just beyond the first row of trees and what I saw beyond the trees made me freeze. In the center of the clearing was a large outcropping of rock and sitting around and on the rock, was a humongous gathering of harpies. When I say humongous, I mean humongous, there was at least sixty of the ancient demon ladies, probably more.


    There was no chance I could take on a whole flock of the things.


    Luckily, they didn''t notice me because they all seemed fixated on a fight between three of the biggest ones at the top of the rock, over what seemed to be a sack of meat. These three were fighting tooth and nail to claim their prize and I mean that quite literally, as their attacks were usually either swipes with their talons or bites with their long inhuman dagger-like teeth. I started slowly backing off, back to the line of trees, hoping to remain unnoticed, but then the original harpy landed in the center of the flock and I froze again, was it going to alert the flock?


    After a second of nothing happening besides the continued screeches from the crowd of spectators to the fight, and one of the large harpies getting tossed down from the rock, bleeding out from a wound on its neck and the remaining two growing even more viscous in there attacks, I started to continue sneaking away.


    Just as I was about to make a clean break and get away, I heard a sudden silence and I turned around slowly. I met eye contact with the large harpy on the rock, the other contestant in the fight lying on the ground like the first. ¡°Halfblood!¡± The harpy let out a screech, signaling the other bird ladies, who all turned and looked at me too.


    ¡°Shit¡­¡± I mutter as I stand stock-still and started channeling my Spirit Energy through the ring of creation and out through the steel attachment, drawing my two daggers from their sheathes under my jacket into my hands, getting ready for a fight and pushing all other thoughts and worries out of my mind besides survival.


    The Harpies all took flight, flying directly towards me as a swarm, just a few feet away from where I am standing, drawing closer. I felt deflection start to kick in, letting me feel my surroundings and then just as I could feel and see the sharp talons and hungry rabid human-like faces about to hit, I called out ¡°Materialize!¡± causing a wall of steel with two supporting legs at either end to appear less than a foot in front of me.


    I could hear the surprised squawks from the harpies and several thuds as dents appeared in the three inch thick steel wall-like shield in front of me as the shield bucked, close to falling over. I watched as most of the harpies from the flock split before the curved metal wall in their attack path, circling around behind the shield and several more impacting with the trees with a thud, one that had clipped its side on the shield wall even exploded into a golden yellow dust that covered the tree it hit.


    ¡°Dissolve!¡± I shouted, causing the metal shield wall to disappear and fill my Spirit Energy reserves back to the top capacity and causing some yellow dust to fall down through the now empty air, turning around and watching my surroundings carefully to track the positions of the demon bird ladies in my mental map, with some nudges from deflection. The harpies seemed to be in disarray as they probably thought they could take me out in one singular charge, which failed miserably, and were now scattered around in the trees in two distinct groups on the ground at the right and left side behind me and a lot more that sat on the branches of the trees.


    ¡®I can take them while they are in the trees¡­ they have way less maneuverability, their ability to fly will be impeded.¡¯ I thought to myself and immediately acted on the thought, charging at the group of roughly fifteen harpies with my daggers in my hands that were gathering on the ground at my left. As I charged towards the harpies, I felt the positions of all the harpies from the nudges of Deflection. It wasn''t perfect however as I noticed during practice as I was reminded when I got a sudden mental alarm ring out as I could sense the sudden appearance of a flying harpy directly behind me.


    My eyes widened in a fraction of a second and I immediately threw myself to the ground to dodge the attack, which was almost successful. I felt the talon of the harpy cutting into my shoulder right before hitting the ground and cursed as the harpy flew over my head, only for me to see it impact a tree a few feet in front of me, leaving it dazed but surprisingly not that injured. Seeing an opportunity to attack, I scrambled to my feet, lunged and stabbed at the harpy with my daggers, impacting the left wing with one dagger and the right side of the body with the second.


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    I grunted as I felt my daggers experiencing a lot more resistance than I expected and pulled them out fast, leaving a inch deep stab wound in its body and a bloody hole through its left wing behind as I retreated from the range of its mouth and talons. The harpy let out a pained screech and tried to fly away, but it didn''t manage to get off the ground because I had managed to get one of its wings with my daggers. While it was trying to get away from me however, I was not standing around doing nothing. As soon as I judged that the harpy was taken out of the fight, I ran towards my original goal, the grounded flock of fifteen in front of me.


    My shoulder stinging, I charged at the flock furiously yet silently as I could, to not attract the attention of even more of the demon birds from the trees or the other flock a few dozen feet to my right, and while I was charging I was mentally pushing my Spirit Energy reserves into the ring of creation and out through the steel attachment once again. With my silent charge I managed to get within five feet of the flock before one of the harpies saw me and screeched in alarm to alert the others who all hopped on their feet to turn and face me.


    I whipped my daggers in a arc and sliced both sides of the neck of the harpy who was closest and ran at the next one, this time having to stop before attacking as one harpy decided to take into the air and fly at me with talons outstretched, and I once again had a mental alarm blare at me that it was coming at me from the side and harnessed my Spirit Energy from the ring of creation.


    I quickly formed it into the shape I wanted and then I yelled out ¡°Materialize!¡± causing a warped and roughly made bubble of steel with a four feet radius and a small hole at the top for light to appear with me in the center along with three trees that happened to be in the range of my creation, trapping me with five of the demon birds and causing a scraping sound accompanied by six large dented stripes to appear to my left.


    I knew that the bubble wouldn''t last long if the harpies kept attacking it however. Because the size of the bubble was so large, my energy reserve couldn''t keep up and so it had to be roughly an inch thick in most areas. Not very reassuring for protection against the monsters outside. Not that it was my biggest concern right now, that spot belonged to the five harpies in the dark domed interior with me and the injured, possibly dead one behind me to my right.


    The small group that I had trapped myself with, instantly started screeching at being trapped, the echoes causing my ears to start hurting, and while two of the demon bird ladies started scratching the wall with their talons, the other three turned to me and flew towards me talons in front and teeth bared to attack.


    I stood straight with my daggers in front of me as if to try and deflect their attacks, all the while rapidly backing up to the steel wall at my back. As soon as they were getting really close to me, I dove to the left and landed safely on the grass and watched as the three harpies tried to stop themselves from impacting the wall, but they were too close to stop now and as I watched they immediately slammed into the steel and flopped on the ground. I leaped to my feat at once and lunged forward to the pile of dazed harpies, spinning my daggers between my fingers into a reverse grip and stabbing downwards with my lunge.


    Before they knew what had happened my daggers pierced through the head of one and the chest of another, immediately disintegrating both, leaving only one harpy that is now caked in yellow dust.


    I slashed at the remaining harpy, but it managed to throw itself away from me with a flap of its wings, causing a cloud of the golden yellow dust to billow up into my eyes, mouth and nose. I started coughing and rubbing my eyes to try and get the monster dust out of my eyes, while the harpy recovered from its surprise and its collision with the wall. My eyes started tearing up, wiping the dust from them just in time to see the harpy come flying towards me again and I threw myself on my back while it passed over my body, my dagger¡¯s coming up at the last second to impact with the harpy¡¯s belly causing a long scratch.


    The screech of the harpy was loud, but I endured the loud chaotic echoes it caused to roll to my feet again and look to the harpy, seeing that this time it had managed to land before impacting the wall and was lunging at me head first to try and bite me. I raised my daggers up in a cross to my chest and the harpy ran right into them, pushing be back from the force of the impact and from the harpy¡¯s continued bites and scratching, I felt pain in my hand and looked as it bit at my left hand, causing me to drop my dagger in pain as I shouted in rage, pushing the damned bird away and swinging my other fist, still clutching my dagger, and stabbed the side of its head, causing it to disintegrate.


    ¡°Damn chicken ladies!¡± I yelled looking at my body checking my wounds. My shoulder had a scratch and my hand had five distinct puncture marks each about a centimeter deep, completely unusable to fight with, along with some blood coming from a scratch on my chest that I hadn''t noticed. All in all, not a good condition for a fight. I looked towards the harpies that were still desperately scratching at the steel bubble and noticed to my surprise that they were accompanied by a third harpy now. ¡°Where did that come from!?¡± I said surprised, there were only five harpies that I had trapped in the bubble, along with¡­


    I looked closer to the trio and noticed that one of the harpies was covered in blood, that could be clearly seen through the brown feathers and down the left and right side of its neck. ¡°How¡­¡± I muttered, realizing that the third harpy was in fact the one that I had taken out first. ¡°Do they have some sort of healing factor!?¡± I yelled, outstanded and frustrated at the unfairness of the situation.


    I had no time to waste to brood on the unfairness of the situation however as I could see that the spot that the harpies were clawing at was getting worryingly thin, so I sprinted towards the group, a single dagger in my uninjured hand, ready to finish the remaining harpies.


    The first kill was swift and clean, just a upwards stab the the back of the neck to the closest harpy that just happened to be the one that I had injured previously, instantly disintegrating it. Then the fight grew harder as one harpy started biting at me while the other was picking up the pace of its scratching and slowly I could see a small hole in which light was coming through that was growing with every slash of its talons.


    I was at a slight advantage to the harpy that was attacking me as my daggers were long enough to hold it at bay and keep me out of the range of its mouth, but it was still hard to avoid its frantic attacks. I had to dodge and weave around its swift lunges that left no time for retaliation, until I saw an opening as it over extended when I dodged to the side and I stabbed with all my strength into its neck, causing my dagger to lodge three inches into its neck. The stab didn''t kill it instantly however so I was forced into a grapple with the monster to try and keep the monster facing away from me while I tried to dislodge my dagger.


    After a few seconds of me staining not to get bit by its mouth or get clawed by its talons, I managed to yank the dagger out and stab it once again, disintegrating it. I wearily turned back to the spot where the lone harpy was previously tearing open a hole, but I saw nothing. Well, nothing but a harpy sized hole.


    ¡°It got away.¡± I said annoyed. ¡°Dissolve.¡± I said, causing the steel bubble to vanish and my Spirit Energy to fill back to the top once more. I looked around cautiously, but I was surprised that there was not a single harpy in the trees, it was completely abandoned and quiet. I didn''t let my guard down though. For all I knew they could be waiting to ambush me as soon as I left the ring of trees. I didn''t let that stop me from silently making my way to my dagger that I had left in the dirt where I had dropped it and wiping off the monster blood before sheathing it however.


    I kept my other dagger in my hand just in case though, after wiping the blood off of course. I was about to open the gate to the Soul Forge to try and clean up before heading back to the orphanage when I heard a beep sound and the familiar blue rectangle of the system appeared before me with a long string of notifications that I began to read.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Passive ability: ¡®Dagger skills¡¯ has leveled up to Lv7


    Passive ability: ¡®Builder¡¯ has leveled up to Lv2


    Passive ability: ¡®Deflection¡¯ has leveled up to Lv2


    Passive ability: ¡®Evasion Lv1¡¯ unlocked.


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    ¡°Wow¡­¡± I muttered amazed, this was incredible gains compared to what I was used to. I had gained three levels in dagger skills, a level in builder and deflection and I had even unlocked a new passive ability!


    Also I realized that there was probably a reason that I had gotten all these notifications, after I was not fighting anymore. ¡°Does the system not give me notifications during combat on purpose?¡± I said confused, I mean at least the system is considerate in not distracting me during a fight¡­


    ¡°Status!¡± I said to the blue screen, which transitioned to the status page.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Statistics


    </td>


    <td>


    Passive Abilities


    </td>


    <td>


    Skills


    </td>


    <td>


    Active Quests


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Name: Ardika Ekia


    Physical age: 12 years old


    Birthdate: August 12


    Gender: Male


    Race: Human/God hybrid


    </td>


    <td>


    Adaptation


    Adaptive system


    Perfect Recollection


    Ring Maker Lv5


    Speed reading Lv3


    Builder Lv2


    Architect Lv1


    Blacksmithing Lv1


    Dagger skills Lv7


    Deflection Lv2


    Evasion Lv1: Increases mental and physical abilities to evade incoming attacks and allows mental tracking of incoming attacks along with increased accuracy of predicting where attacks are aimed.


    </td>


    <td>


    Appraisal


    Soul Forge Lv1


    </td>


    <td>


    (No active quests)


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    Well, that sounds like it is a lot like Deflection¡­ Hopefully they work together well. Maybe they will add to each other''s abilities, like Evasion¡¯s ability to track incoming attacks and Deflections ability to detect incoming attacks, or Deflections ability to let me feel where I need to place a shield to deflect attacks and Evasion''s ability to predict where attacks are aimed.


    Well, I can try it out tomorrow¡­ I need to clean up and get back to the orphanage¡­

 Chapter 16

    A few hours later I was sitting on my bed in the orphanage, bandages on my hand, shoulder and a bandaid on my chest, thinking. I was going over my fight with the flock of harpies, trying to see what I could have done differently and going over some of the more confusing aspects of my fight.


    The first conclusion on what went wrong was that I had needed to chase the first harpy down, letting the harpy choose the location to fight me, which is how I found the flock in the first place. But how could I prevent that from happening in the future? I really just need to make something to let me either keep something on the ground or close enough to hit with my daggers, or a ranged weapon to attack it while it is in the sky.


    ¡°A ranged weapon would be a good thing for me to have¡­ It would even out my combat abilities to be able to defend myself better¡­ Let''s go with that.¡± I said, thinking aloud and stepping to my desk to start writing down my thoughts. I pulled out a paper and my pen and started writing.


    ¡°Now that is decided, what else did I do wrong¡­¡± I muttered, starting to go through the fight in my head. I chased the first harpy for a while, then I saw the flock and started to try and sneak away. Could I do something to help me sneak around better? Actually, I don''t think I even need to go that far¡­ If I had Masatr with me, I might have been able to avoid the attention of the harpies altogether¡­ Right. I wrote down ¡®Keep Masatr with me at all times, either on finger or pocket.¡¯ That should help avoid detection a little.


    Ok, what should I have done differently in the actual fight though¡­ ¡°Something to prevent injuries would be good.¡± I said, looking down at my bandaged hand. ¡°Maybe I should make some armor after all¡­¡± I muttered, remembering my prior decision to stay quick and speedy to avoid injuries instead of armor. You see, good armor is great for taking blows and slashes, but the drawback for armor is that it is heavy. Really heavy and bulky. Naturally wearing big bulky armor isn''t the only option, there are much smaller lighter designs I could make for myself, but the lighter and smaller it gets the less it can protect me from attacks.


    There are materials that could counteract the weight and size requirements, orichalcum is a prime example of this, along with possibly vibranium which was not part of the blacksmithing system info dump, but my marvel knowledge. In fact, I actually have quite a lot of Ring Gold right now, maybe it is worth buying? I started writing down my thoughts on the paper ¡®Make armor? Vibranium or orichalcum base?¡¯


    For the rest of the fight, I think that I handled it pretty well, besides the times that I got hurt that is, but there was one thing that confused me however. ¡°How did that harpy heal?¡± I wondered out loud, thinking hard. The only times in the Percy Jackson books said anything about a healing factor is during the Heroes of Olympus but that is only because of the doors of death¡­ Surely the plot hasn''t started five years early¡­ right?


    If it has, then I am screwed¡­ But, hang on¡­ This might actually make some sense! You see, in the Percy Jackson universe, there are a lot of discrepancies with how monsters can be killed. Specifically, it is said that only celestial bronze can kill them and send them back to Tartarus, but throughout the books, there are a lot of times that monsters are killed through normal mortal materials, like bowling balls, a car and a car engine. These events are what led me to believe that I could make my daggers from steel, instead of having to wait for some celestial bronze for them.


    However, could this be the answer? Could it be that the reason that it is said celestial bronze is the only thing that can kill monsters, because when they are hit by mortal materials they can heal their wounds if they are not killed quickly enough? I review all my knowledge of the Percy Jackson universe and the more I think about it, the more it makes sense! This could be the answer!


    I frown at my paper after thinking for a few more seconds, comparing my knowledge of the Percy Jackson universe with the help of Perfect Recollection, eventually deciding that it is probably true. This is a major setback for me though. If I have to wait until I find celestial bronze to make my weapons and possibly armor, then I will have to wait for months until I am combat ready.


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    But, will I¡­ Hang on, I remember something¡­ Celestial bronze is not the only material that can kill monsters, imperial gold can do that too, and it is only enchanted gold¡­ Could it be that weapons and materials infused with Spirit Energy can permanently harm monsters? Or maybe they use a different energy for enchanting and is in celestial bronze in this universe? It looks like I need to do some experimenting¡­


    I shorten and write down my thoughts, ¡®Test for materials that prevent healing factor in monsters, find out if Spirit Energy infused weapons will harm monsters. Find monster and capture it for experimentation?¡¯ Is what I put on the paper.


    I start reviewing the fight once again, but I don''t remember anything else that I could have done better, without prior knowledge or training. Well, besides still deciding to pick a fight with the flock of sixty harpies while they were distracted and disorganized in the trees. That was kind of stupid. I probably should have gone around them instead of charging into the center of the flock.


    ¡°Well, I think that this is enough to go off of for improvements for today.¡± I say and put my pen down on my desk. I look down at my bandaged hand and sigh, ¡°I wish I had a healing factor¡­¡± I whisper to myself. Then my brain kicks in. ¡°I am so stupid!¡± I shout out loud and open the system store. ¡°I could have done this hours ago! Urg¡­ All this time spent listening to the questions about how I got hurt was wasted!¡± I say, navigating through the system store page to the Necessities page, looking through the list until I saw what I was looking for, Ambrosia and Nectar.


    They were both a little expensive, sixty Ring Gold for a two inch cubed square of Ambrosia and sixty Ring Gold for eight hundred milliliters, but that was ok for me. I now had a total of two hundred and thirty Ring Gold to spend as I please. The reason that I was calling myself stupid for not remembering these products sooner, was because of their properties. They are a magical healing food for demigods. Absolutely lethal to humans, but they work wonders on demigod wounds. I wasn''t sure what the difference in healing abilities was though, so I wasn''t quite sure which I should buy, or how much I would need to eat or drink.


    ¡°Well, I guess I am guessing then.¡± I say after reviewing my extensive Percy Jackson knowledge, trying to remember if it says what exactly the difference is or how much should be taken for injuries of the size that I have, but finding nothing specific. I reach out and click the ambrosia option, seeing my balance go down by sixty Ring Gold immediately after.


    I waited for the ambrosia to appear, and looked down at the paper on my desk again, thinking about writing to stock up on ambrosia and nectar, but what I saw on my desk surprised me. There was a small ceramic plate with a golden yellow square on it. ¡°Food comes with a plate? Huh.¡± I said to myself, looking at the square of ambrosia on my desk in front of me. I picked up the plate and took a close look at the ambrosia square. As I picked it up, I noticed that it moved weirdly on the plate, as if it was jello.


    ¡°That is interesting¡­ Now that I think about it, there are a few different descriptions of ambrosia, like in the first book it calls it like pudding but it comes in squares in some later parts of the books¡­ I guess if it is like jello then when it is eaten it becomes like liquid? Like pudding, but it can come in squares¡­ Cool.¡± I mused thinking back on the books.


    ¡°Well, I guess I should eat it?¡± I said, a little apprehensively. After all, it says that too much can incinerate demigods¡­ ¡°Maybe just a corner?¡± I decide and pick up the square in my good hand before nibbling on the corner. My eyes widened slightly, it was good. Really good. I take a bigger bite, savoring the taste. I wasn''t quite sure what it tastes like, but it is great, almost nostalgic for some reason.


    I quickly eat the rest of it, forgetting the reason I bought it in the first place and just enjoying it. When I finished, the plate vanished and I relaxed against my desk chair. After a few seconds of relaxation I remembered what I had bought the ambrosia square for and I started unraveling the bandages on my left hand. As I finished unraveling the bandage wrap, I examined my hand, a smile forming on my face once again. My hand was completely unblemished, not a mark on it. My hand had healed! ¡°Wow!¡± I said looking at my hand, ¡°This stuff really works!¡±


    I began to take off the other bandages that were covering my other two cuts, seeing the same healed skin beneath both. ¡°My chance for survival is increasing by the day!¡± I say, amazed and I write ¡®Stock up on ambrosia+nectar.¡¯ and beneath that I write ¡®Sell more gold or things for more Ring Gold.¡¯ on the paper, more as an afterthought, but it is still something I should do before I leave for school at least.


    ¡°What should I do now that I am healed though?¡± I wonder out loud to myself. I think for a few seconds before sighing to myself ¡°I guess I should do some training before supper.¡±

 Chapter 17

    Three days pass in a blur as I prepare for school and for the event that I could feel closing in on me. That event is of course when my soul is fully recovered enough to once again, enchant a ring. After the fight against the flock of harpies, I had done a lot of thinking about what I should do this time as I need to give myself an edge in a fight against monsters. What I decided to make was something that I had gotten an idea for two months ago and now I finally had three good reasons to use the idea, to solve the armour problem, the ranged weapon problem and to test a very important theory.


    On the fourth day of preparations, while in the middle of coming back from an open house at Yancy, I wasn''t surprised when I felt the rush of energy of my soul being fully recovered. ¡°Finally!¡± I whispered grinning to myself in the back seat of the van and already going over the enchantment in my head.


    As soon as we had parked in front of the orphanage, I slid the door open as quickly as I could and practically sprinted to the door, opening it and making my way up the stairs, not hearing Director Kasandra who said, quite amused, ¡°I am not that bad am I?¡± as she saw me rushing inside to get to my room.


    I opened the door to my room and scanned the room quickly before walking to my desk and retrieving my enchantment description paper from the top drawer, bundling up my blankets in my arms and summoning the gateway to the Soul Forge. As soon as the door had appeared in front of me, I reached out my hand and twisted open the door handle and stepped into my own personal lobby room and continued through the Soul Forge until I had reached the spot where I had decided to enchant my ring. It was the living room. My living room was no longer bare and empty as I had bought some furniture for it, namely a small table, two couches and an old coal fireplace/stove.


    I still wasn''t sure what had caused me to buy that stove, but I think that it could be useful in the future, especially with practically infinite fuel because of the ring of creation. I also couldn''t exactly have an electric stove unless I got a beefy generator, which I don''t have nearly enough cash for.


    As I looked through the living room visualizing where I needed to enchant the ring. I stepped over to the table that was in the center of the room and I started moving the chairs and finally the old wood table to the side of the room. Then with a flourish I layed out the blankets in the center of the room and sat down, reading over the paper once again. Just as I felt confident in having known the enchantment by heart and placed the paper to the side I realized that I had forgotten something very important. I dont have the ring I am going to enchant.


    Cursing, I stood up from my lotus position in the nest of blankets and started walking to the storage room. I had made the ring I was going to be using just yesterday afternoon during blacksmithing practice and I was quite proud of it, especially after engraving it. It was Low High grade, made of Mythril and had the elven words ¡°As the flames that forged me, I will shape the formless and give it purpose.¡± Which the system gave the fitting name ¡®The Constructor¡¯ which as soon as I had read the name, I knew that this is the ring I was going to use.


    I reached the storage room and walked quickly to the nearest table and examined the contents of the table, the results of my practice in the forge. I had a dozen of High Uncommon and the same number of Medium Uncommon, but I only made one Low High grade ring that was set apart from the others. I picked up that ring, The Constructor, and started sprinting away to enchant my new tool.


    I entered the living room once again and I immediately started reading over the page once again, meditating on it, understanding and truly learning it. I spent ten minutes before I felt ready to start and I began, causing my energy to flow through me. It felt easier to control than last time and I wasn''t exactly sure why, but I couldn''t dwell on random thoughts. I need to focus.


    Then I started.


    <hr>


    The enchanting went like it usually did, glowing runes of power flowing out of me with my words, sending the mythril ring flying in random directions with every impact and the constant pressure of the Spirit Energy on my soul, mind and body. With the master level knowledge on exactly how to enchant with the Ring Maker method, most things weren''t hard to do in theory, but with my weak soul and body, I was severely limited in what I could actually do.


    So the end result was really close to what I wanted, but not as good as it could have been. I just don''t have the physical or spiritual capability for most of my ideas sadly.


    When I had finished and was about to collapse, I scanned my new addition to my collection and smiled.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Name: The Constructor


    </td>


    <td>


    Grade: Medium High


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Abilities:


    Allows the user to control the positioning and shape of Spirit Energy that has passed through the ring, within a sphere with a eight foot radius relative to the ring. Upon the verbal command ¡®Solidify¡¯ all Spirit Energy being controlled by The Constructor will harden and will gain mass, weight, size and a physical presence for an amount of time dependent on the willpower and mental control of the wearer, forming a construct.


    With the more size, weight and mass the construct has for the amount of Spirit Energy used increases the mental strain to keep the construct formed.


    The mental strain increases over time until the user can no longer sustain the construct when it will dissipate into the environment in an amount of time relative to the amount of Spirit Energy used, size and mass, unable to be controlled by the first effect.


    When the user loses focus the summoned construct will dissipate into the environment in an amount of time relative to the amount of Spirit Energy used, size and mass, unable to be controlled by the first effect.


    When the construct leaves the bounds of the first effect it dissipates into the environment in an amount of time relative to the amount of Spirit Energy used, size and mass, unable to be controlled by the first effect.


    Allows the user to control the positioning of constructs made with the second ability. Force, speed and control based on willpower. Constructs can not be controlled outside of an eight foot radius relative to the ring. </td>


    <td> </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    The description was extremely lengthy, but I couldn''t make it any other way yet. Anything more simple and with less drawbacks would cause the energy needed to be used and time for enchanting dramatically increase.


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    So my only option was to add six drawbacks that would severely affect the usage of my new creation.


    The first drawback is that it can only be created in a set distance, like the Ring of Creation, though I increased the radius by two feet because I felt that a bigger usage size would be pretty necessary.


    The second drawback is that the size, mass and weight are determined by mental control and will power. The reason I added this drawback was not what you would think however, as I could have made the mass weight and size dependent on the amount of Spirit Energy used, but I was thinking long term. You see, in the short term my mental control and willpower will be pretty low, but it will increase over time, with the effect of my constructs being weak at first, but with training as a Ring Maker, my soul, mental strength and physical strength will increase over time. Along with natural development. So eventually I will be able to make a brick wall with the mass two times that of titanium with two times the weight of an elephant and the size of a house that could take days to dissipate.


    The third drawback is that constructs have to be consciously maintained to keep their form. This effect is probably the worst drawback yet, but it is necessary for more than one reason. The first reason that it is necessary is because the difficulty to enchant the ring dramatically increases, but the second is that it gives me a way to make it disappear when it is not needed, which would be a hassle to try and hide or get rid of after I form something.


    The fourth drawback was the mental strain of maintaining a construct increases over time, causing constructs being very hard to keep formed for long periods of time.


    The fifth drawback was when the construct leaves the eight foot radius around the ring, it will dissipate depending on willpower, size, mass and Spirit Energy used to form it. This was something else that was me looking to the future and deciding on, because early on, it will dissipate in seconds, but eventually if I concentrate on forming it, it could be able to survive for hours, if not days. Causing this to be a good way to improve potential power while also decreasing enchanting time and energy needed to make it.


    Finally the last ¡®drawback¡¯ is actually not much of a draw back. It gives me the ability to move constructs with my mind. Of course it has two drawbacks on its own, being dependent on willpower and not being able to leave the eight foot radius around the ring without my control failing immediately. Again, this is a possible power thing. Eventually I could lift a building with a platform construct beneath it, but right now I doubt I could even make one float in the air against gravity and its own weight.


    But I was still happy to succeed in creating my new weapon/tool, despite the immediate problems I will face when I am using it, I know that The Constructor will serve me well for a long time.


    I come out of my thoughts of grandeur and look around the living room, coated in sweat and hurting all over, yet satisfied. I needed to get to my room before I passed out. I stood up, expecting to stumble from the vertigo that I experienced previously when I had practiced the excruciating enchanting method, but I stood up straight, if shakily from my sore muscles. Needless to say, I was confused. Very confused. Realistically, I shouldn''t be able to stand up after an enchanting session for at least a few hours at this point in my development and it shouldn''t be possible to stand this steadily immediately after for at least a year of development if I am truly pushing my body to its limits.


    In other words, according to my memories given to me by the system, this shouldn''t be possible.


    Then I see a blue screen expand into reality with words scrawled across its surface saying ¡°Passive ability: ¡®Ring Maker¡¯ has leveled up to Lv 8¡± and then the screen shifted as soon as I had read the notification saying new words now ¡°Congratulations your passive ability has gained another sub ability, check your status screen for details.¡±


    ¡®Sub ability? What is that?¡¯ was my first thought upon seeing the message and then I realized why I was able to stand, despite the fact that I should not even be able to physically sit up straight. ¡°Ring Maker has improved my recovery time?!¡± I whispered in shock ¡°It can do that?! Status!¡± I gave the command, causing the screen to blink into the status menu.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Statistics


    </td>


    <td>


    Passive Abilities


    </td>


    <td>


    Skills


    </td>


    <td>


    Active Quests


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Name: Ardika Ekia


    Physical age: 12 years old


    Birthdate: August 12


    Gender: Male


    Race: Human/God hybrid


    </td>


    <td>


    Adaptation


    Adaptive system


    Perfect Recollection


    Ring Maker Lv8: Increases mental and physical abilities in the process of enchanting with the Ring Maker system and improves physical recovery time from enchanting with this method.


    Speed reading Lv3


    Builder Lv2


    Architect Lv1


    Blacksmithing Lv1


    Dagger skills Lv7


    Deflection Lv2


    Evasion Lv1


    </td>


    <td>


    Appraisal


    Soul Forge Lv1


    </td>


    <td>


    (No active quests)


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    It took me a few seconds to realize what had changed, but when I was about to give up, I got a prompting from Perfect Reflection, causing me to see what had changed. ¡°The description is different! It used to say ¡®Increases mental and physical abilities in the process of enchanting with the Ring Maker system.¡¯ but now it has ¡®improves physical recovery time from enchanting with this method.¡¯ added to the end! This is incredible! What passive abilities can do can change when it levels up!¡± This is a huge discovery for me, as any passive ability has the possibility to ¡®evolve¡¯ or increase its capabilities. I don''t know for sure yet, but it looks like it could be possible for say, Deflection to just straight up block incoming attacks automatically, or Evasion to automatically dodge attacks that I couldn''t sense in time.


    The possibilities are endless! Unless I was reading too much into this and this was just a one time or rare event. Who knows?


    Anyway, despite the new ¡®sub ability¡¯ of Ring Maker, I still felt like I just fell onto cement in every part of my body, so I need to rest, even if I don''t faint. I started striding stiffly to the entrance hall and opened the exit into my room before walking past my night stand and sitting on my bed before rolling back to lie down with a sigh of relief. I will need to do some testing tomorrow before school in three days and it is going to suck.

 Chapter 18

    I walked carefully forwards into a small alley, stalking my pre- er test subject. I had been scouring the streets of New York for this monster for almost two whole days. I even got a skill to prove it, Tracking Lv1, which basically just helps me track things through small mental suggestions, showing me what to look for and where I should go.


    I got the skill this morning after a few hours of trying to find a monster and it has been actually difficult to use. Imagine trying to hear someone whispering instructions on how to build a nuke from across the street. Hard to understand, very hard to pick up on, and just a pain to try doing what the whispering voice is saying in the first place.


    Eventually I actually managed to pick up on what my new skill was trying to show me, but it took me the better part of the afternoon along with the morning. I was surprised that it took me this long to find another monster, because when I went hunting two days ago, I was almost immediately attacked by the harpy, but the last two days it''s like they all went on vacation.


    I eventually found one though, the one that I am now slowly trying to sneak up on, sending some Spirit Energy through The Constructor that is on my right hand, getting ready to restrain the monster so I can bring it to my lab, which is actually just a cordoned off corner in the storage room.


    My capture tactic for now is to try to sneak up on a monster while wearing Masatr to hide my scent and make a very thick bubble wrap like construct around its body from the Constructor around the monster to try and contain the thing. I wasn''t exactly sure if it would hold for long, but I did some testing after I made The Constructor and found that currently I could make a pair of handcuffs that I couldn''t break with a few seconds of preparation and emptying my newly stressed reserves four or so times beforehand. So it will be hard to pull off in a fight, but it should work on a target that doesn''t even know I am there until I harden my construct.


    In fact the preparation time is so bad that I actually spent ten minutes following the monster before I approached it, just so I could get what I thought was the bare minimum to trap the thing.


    But now I am ready. I think. ¡®Let''s go¡¯ I thought to myself as I stared at the small, dog shaped monster in front of me in the dirty alley, shaping a form fighting casing around the hellhound, compressing it into a five inch thick suit, while it is digging through trash bags and rotting crates.


    ¡®Thank the gods that this thing is a young one¡­¡¯ I thought as I strained my mental muscles to make its cage. Just as I was about to finish the young hellhound stiffened, as if sensing something was wrong, but it was too late for it. ¡°Solidify!¡± I shouted, concentrating on hardening the construct, causing the monster''s new shell to appear around it and giving me a migraine from the command.


    The hellhound barked wildly, trashing its head to try and escape, but my construct held firm. Well, kind of. As I watched with bated breath, I could see the construct shake and then¡­ Oh, yup I am fine. It just fell over onto the ground.


    I chuckled and walked closer to the chained up monster and lifted it back onto its feet, careful to avoid its snapping jaws as I did so. ¡°Wow!¡± I said as I lifted up the monster, ¡°You need to lose some weight!¡± I told the hellhound. It was very heavy, especially for something the size of a dog. It was almost too heavy to carry, and I had the blood of a god flowing through my veins along with doing a strict exercise routine daily.


    Not that that meant much when you were twelve. I might have been strong for my age, but I doubt I could beat most athletically competitive teenagers or young adults in terms of strength.


    Still, let''s get working. No time for idle thoughts, I need to get this thing to the lab. I sighed, summoning the gateway to the Soul Forge in the alleyway, causing the glowing doorway to snap into existence between crates and trash a few feet to the right of me.


    I stepped to the gateway and twisted open the handle before turning to the snarling hellhound, that had somehow fell over again. I chuckled once more before stepping beside the monster and wrapping my arms around the hellhound''s waist and heaving it up into the air with a groan. I wish I could just make the construct float the dog monster inside the Soul Forge, but I haven''t even gotten a construct the size of a penny to float into the air on its own yet.


    Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.


    I heaved and stumbled into the Soul Forge with the hellhound in my arms, struggling against its weight as I brought it through the entrance hall and into the left hallway before stopping in front of the storage room door. That was closed. I grumbled before setting the struggling monster down and opening the storage room/lab door open with a squeak and of the hinges. I winced at the sound of the hinges, I needed to grease them again¡­


    Gritting my teeth, I lifted my test subject into my arms again and walked inside the room. In the room, there are the usual shelves along the left side of the room with the material ring rack, but across the room, I had my lab set up. Well, ¡®lab¡¯ is being generous, it''s just a metal table with a large steel cage along the entirety of the right wall behind the table with a rough door big enough for a huge man to fit through comfortably. The cage is of course what the hellhound is going into, but the examination table was just for decoration. What kind of lab doesn''t have a creepy metal examination table?


    I walked to the table and set the monster down before unlocking the cage door and walking back to the hellhound, avoiding its panicked jaws and ignoring its yelps and barks before placing it in the corner of the cage and quickly walking away and out of the cage and locking the door behind me. I stepped back until I was roughly nine feet away and watched while the construct dissolved before the dog monster started breaking through it and finally shattered its full body straightjacket after less than two seconds and started pacing in its new home angrily.


    ¡°Test subject acquired.¡± I muttered to myself as I stared at the creature pacing around the small interior of the cage, growling at me.


    I need to do several tests on the hellhound, firstly I need to test if monsters actually have a healing factor, and if so, what prevents the healing factor, secondly I want to do some physical tests, just to see how strong it is and some other things. ¡°Well¡­ I guess I should get started¡­¡± I said frowning. This was not going to be fun. For the hellhound that is.


    <hr>


    I sat at the examination table quietly looking over my notes from my few hours of study on the hellhound while said hellhound sat in the corner of its cage, whining in a low tone as it licked at a few cuts.


    My time experimenting on the hellhound wasn''t pretty, but I knew that it was necessary.


    The results of my experiments speak for themselves as to how necessary they were. So it turns out that monsters do have a healing factor, at least when injured with mortal materials. My testing of the healing factor was pretty much just me making small cuts with long thin spears made of various materials, but it was the only method I could think of to test the monster¡¯s healing factor.


    I had tested over three dozen materials on the monsters, and the results were all the same. The cut healed after ten seconds. Except for three notable exceptions. The first exception is mythril, the second exception is constructs made with the Constructor, and third any material that has Spirit Energy flowing through it. Mythril made a lot of sense for me when I was testing it however, as celestial bronze was most likely a non-mortal material, but the other two exceptions surprised me. I hoped that spirit Energy constructs would be able to harm monsters permanently, but I still wasn''t sure why it did, until I found out the third exception and remembered Imperial Gold.


    Imperial Gold, or Enchanted Gold, is just normal gold that was enchanted, and it is used by the Romans to kill monsters. This means that enchanted materials in this world can prevent the healing factor in monsters, probably because of the Spirit Energy inside of it. The going theory is that Spirit Energy or anything with Spirit Energy can permanently harm monsters and prevent the healing factor.


    This is good news for me, as I can use non-mortal materials for my weapons or channel Spirit Energy through a weapon of mortal materials, despite the healing factor and I can just use it against a monster like normal. Though annoying and slightly more costly, both mentally and with my Spirit Energy reserves, it shouldn''t be a problem in the long run.


    It is getting late though, so I need to get going to the orphanage. Especially because the gateway out of the Soul Forge is in an alley several blocks away from it. I have the first day of school tomorrow¡­


    I stood up from my stool and walked out of the storage room with a sigh. ¡°It''s a bit more chilly in here than usual¡­¡± I noticed absentmindedly as I walked out of my lab. Then I walked into the entrance hall and froze before exclaiming ¡°Shit! I forgot to close the door!¡±

 Chapter 19

    The next morning, September first, I was nervous. Despite being mentally eighteen and having already completed all of grades one through the first half of grade twelve, I was still anxious. It wasn''t really the normal first day stress however, more along the lines of ¡®This is the beginning of my new life¡¯ kind of stress.


    I would probably be meeting Percy Jackson and Grover Underwood along with Chiron and a fury this school year¡­ I also need to at least try to become friends with Percy, not that I think it will be hard, the opposite in fact. Given the fact that Percy¡¯s experience in schools and bullies with little friends, if I dont bully him or ignore him and act friendly, I should at least become passing friends with him.


    I stop, and shake my head while packing my clothes. What am I doing¡­ This feels wrong, manipulating someone to be a friend just so I can use them in the future¡­ I sigh, starting to pack my clothes. Well, I can deal with the ethical side of this later¡­ Once I am not in imminent danger from a titan, the earth itself, giants, gods, a giant snake that wants to eat the sun¡­


    Besides, it''s not like I wouldn''t try to be friendly to him if I didn''t know what he will be capable of in the future and the things that will happen anyway, that is pretty much how I became friends with Jake.


    I zip up the small suitcase with my clothes and stand up, walking out of my room and into the empty hallway. From there I walk to the front door, seeing the caretaker lady and Director Kasandra hurrying five other kids to get their shoes on so they can get to the bus stop. Director Kasandra sees me, looks me up and down and smiles at me knowingly then motions for me to wait.


    As soon as the kids in the entryway had their shoes on properly, the caretaker lady walked out the door and I approached Kasandra. ¡°Are you driving me to the school?¡± I ask her, she nods and says ¡°Yes.¡± then tells me and then motions for me to follow her and I carefully but quickly put on my runners and walk out the door, shutting it behind me putting an end to my time in the orphanage.


    <hr>


    ¡°You remember where you are supposed to go for your room key, right?¡± Director Kasandra asks me in the back of her van, causing me to roll my eyes a little saying ¡°Yes.¡± as I did so. Director Kasandra nods and says ¡°Well, I hope you have a good year, I will see you soon.¡± From the look in her eye as she said that, I could tell that she truly meant every word.


    I was actually a little touched by this, I wonder if she is acting like this because of my perceived age, or is she just that type of person? I wonder, before responding with ¡°Thanks, I hope I do too.¡± and opening the van door, before turning back to her and saying ¡°Goodbye.¡± Director Kasandra looked a little confused at the finality in my tone, but she nodded and smiled at me as I closed the door behind me and walked to the main hall of Yancy Academy to get my room number and key.


    Even before I entered the hall, I saw a long line of kids that stretched even outside the building and I joined the end of the line, casually looking around as I absentmindedly twisted Masatr on my finger and took it off, leaving it in my pocket. This was very important for my plan, I couldn''t exactly just leave it on while Grover might be around, I need to make sure that I am recognized as a demigod and not just some random mortal. As the line got shorter and shorter, I saw some signs that were an obvious red flag about the people who go here. School hasn''t even technically started yet and I can already tell that this year is going to suck¡­


    When I finally got to the end of the line, I was met by a nice looking woman who asked me for my name, she searched a long list for my corresponding room then handed me a key for room twenty seven.


    I then walked away from the building and just across the small private driveway to where I knew the dormitory building was, from my tour of the school a few days before. Once I reached the building, I headed inside and looked around the practically stuffed lobby, full of an unnecessary amount of couches, table and chairs, along with several vending machines full of candy and sugary drinks of all kinds. I then moved towards the stairwell doorway on the far wall and walked to find my room.


    Luckily, my room was actually quite close to the second floor stairway and I entered it no problem. The room was actually really nice, two beds, two desks, two closets with shelves beside them and even a bathroom. I set my suitcase on the right bed, claiming it. ¡°Well¡­ Let''s put away all my stuff!¡± I said to myself jokingly as I opened my tiny suitcase with my clothes and various binders stuffed with papers.


    I did bring more than just what was in my suitcase, but I just shoved anything that I might want later in the Soul Forge so I didn''t have to carry everything with me, but there is nothing that I really need in my new room, so I am just going to leave it there.


    This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source.


    I put my clothes into the right side closet and the binders in my desk. Then I sit down on my bed. What should I do while I wait for my new roommate to show up?


    <hr>


    ¡°Flight test eleven!¡± I say to myself as I throw a jumble of paper, elastics and paper clips that I had found in my new desk, into the air. Almost directly after I had thrown the makeshift mechanical helicopter drone into the air, the door of the dorm room opened. My helicopter took offense to that and immediately went soaring off towards the now open door. ¡°Watch out!¡± I yell out to the guy in the door frame as my helicopter flew towards him, on a crash course with this guy''s forehead.


    Not if I have any say about it however. I realized that I still had a pen in my hand from the last time that I had to stop the mechanical drone and I threw my pen at the helicopter. With all my practice predicting incoming projectiles with my two skills, I found myself mentally calculating the best angle and force of the pen to misdirect the helicopter with minimal damage to the helicopter and without hitting the guy with the pen.


    The pen soared through the air and glanced off the helicopter, the pen hitting the right side of the door frame and the helicopter careening into the left side of the door frame with a sad little dull thump and twanging of the elastics in it.


    I grin at my pen throwing skill, but then remember that I have an accidental almost victim from my little drone. I looked the guy over, he was a pretty average looking guy with a less than athletic frame, messy black hair and green eyes. ¡°Sorry about that¡­¡± I told him embarrassedly. ¡°What are you sorry for? That was probably the coolest thing I have ever seen!¡± The guy that I assumed was my roommate said, looking almost awed at me, then the helicopter by his foot. The kid picked it up off the floor and took a look at it before saying ¡°Huh.¡± and handing it to me smiling, seemingly not angry about the helicopter almost smacking his face.


    I took the helicopter carefully then asked the guy ¡°So¡­ this your room too?¡± in a questioning way, looking at him. The guy nodded and said ¡°Yes. I am Percy, what¡¯s your name?¡± ¡®Huh, this might actually be easier than I thought.¡¯ I thought to myself in surprise at my roommate''s identity. While this might have been a surprise, it was definitely not a bad one, so I seized advantage of the situation and told him ¡°I¡¯m Ardika. I am seriously sorry about almost hitting you though, I promise I didn''t do it on purpose.¡± I told him sincerely.


    However Percy just grinned at me, responding with ¡°Seriously, it¡¯s fine.¡± and then he walks to the left side bed, seeing that I have the right side, and he begins to put his stuff down. As he started putting his stuff away, I looked at the little paper and rubber band drone and thought to myself ¡®Well¡­ This looks like it will be an interesting year. Even without all the supernatural stuff.¡¯


    <hr>


    A few hours later, in the middle of fixing another helicopter drone after I had broken it with Percy, a voice rang out in the dormroom and the hallways, saying ¡°Welcome to Yancy Academy students! All students with rooms on the first floor will be meeting in room ten in twenty minutes and will meet with Mrs. Watt there. All students with rooms on the second floor will meet in room thirty in twenty minutes and will meet with Mr. Nicoll there. All students with rooms on the third floor will be meeting in room twenty in twenty minutes and will meet with Mr. Lenwick there.¡± The voice continued along the same lines until floor fifteen, where the speaker shut off.


    As the lady was speaking, I noticed where the voice came from. There is a speaker built into the wall above the door. Seeing the speaker got me thinking about some prank ideas, but right now I think me and Percy should go and meet with the rest of our class. Percy seemed to disagree however ¡°We still got a few minutes right?¡± he said, looking at me for confirmation. I sighed, giving in to the temptation. ¡°Alright, but if we are late to class, I am going to blame you.¡± I said and then got back to fixing my tiny helicopter.


    <hr>


    Twenty minutes later I sprinted through the hallways, Percy struggling to keep up behind me as he followed my jog-sprint to room thirty. Percy and I had lost track of time, and we were late. I knew that I would be late somehow¡­


    We flew past the doors one at a time, 27, 28, 29, 30! We stop in front of room thirty abruptly and I open the door, both of us walk in, I can hear Percy is out of breath but my breath is regular. When I walk in, I see that we apparently got here just on time, as the older man standing in front of a wall mounted smartboard in front of the class. ¡°Sorry if we interrupted anything¡­¡± I said to the man, who was presumably our teacher, Mr. Nicoll. The man frowned at us and said ¡°Good. Now go sit down.¡± to us while glaring annoyed. I mentally cursed my luck, so he was going to be that type of teacher¡­


    Still, I did what he said along with Percy, though Percy looked a little angry about it. We saw two empty seats close to the center of the room and we sat together. ¡°Now that everybody is here,¡± Mr. Nicoll turned and gave us a disapproving look ¡°I am your English teacher, Mr. Nicoll. Today, you will be getting your weekly schedule for classes and then I will give an introduction to this year''s English curriculum. I will then leave and your math teacher Miss Prince and after that you will meet with your science teacher Mr. Earnwell, then your PE teacher Mr. Stine and then you will be talked to by your Latin teacher Mr. Evanescit and finally you will meet your history teacher Ms. Rosenhert.¡±


    (A.N. If any of you got the joke, I can tell that you would or have already passed Latin easily.)


    What followed was the normal very dull and boring talk about what we will be going over in the year, the plagiarism talk, the ¡®good behavior¡¯ talk and all that other stuff. Then we met with the other teachers and my expectations were squashed. They were terrible at their jobs. I could tell, whether from their clear laziness, their almost cruel attitude to the students or just incompetence, it all led me to a singular conclusion. This year was going to suck¡­

 Chapter 20

    A cold feeling is creeping through my bones as I wake up and I shiver as I slowly come to my senses, trying to pull my blankets over myself, only to realize that I did not in fact even have a blanket anywhere near me. I grumble and open my eyes to look around me. I was in my very dim dorm room on my bed. My blanket was lying at the base of my bed on the ground, it must have fallen off my bed. I sigh and roll into a sitting position before looking at my alarm clock on my desk to check the time, I groan once more as I read 6:27. I had really hoped that I could get some more sleep¡­ Ah well. Time to start the day.


    It had been just over a week and a half since I had started school and so far, things weren''t looking up as far as my education. I hadn''t really expected much from this school, but honestly I thought there would be at least one decent teacher, but I was wrong. I will just have to wait for Chiron¡­


    That is not to say that it was completely terrible, there were a few upsides amidst the torture this school was turning into. Percy was a huge one, he was surprisingly fun to hang around and talk with, especially when class and blacksmithing practice was over. Another upside was another boy who approached us at lunch and quickly became friends with Percy and me, his name was Grover. Apparently, he arrived a few days late in school and is in our class. I wasn''t sure, but I suspect that the mist had something to do with that. But, it was reassuring that I didn''t mess with Percy¡¯s life and therefore canon that much as of yet.


    Also, I found out a new little detail about the system almost on the first day of classes. I figured out how the quest system works. Apparently it is a really easy to use system, I just somehow have never been in a situation to activate it.


    I just need to be asked or assigned a task or quest and I will get a notification about receiving a quest and depending on the difficulty of the task, I get rewarded with some Ring Gold. I found this out because both school assignments and daily homework apparently count as a ¡®quest¡¯ to the system. Not that I''m complaining though, it gives me a reason to actually go to school and it pretty much forces me to at least try to get a good grade on my assignments if I want the Ring Gold.


    But all of that absent minded train of thought aside, I start getting ready for my morning workout. For the first few days I was not sure how I would fit in working out into my new routine, until I looked out the dorm window one day and spotted a small forest out the window. Right then I knew what I could do, and I immediately started planning on how I could get inside the forest to open a gateway without anyone realizing. It was easier than I thought.


    I grabbed my morning workout clothes and changed inside the small bathroom before silently moving through the dorm room and grabbed my room key before I headed out the door, carefully walking through the hallway like some kind of phantom. I walked like this for several minutes, walking through the hallways, into the stairwell, through the lobby and out into the chill morning air before abandoning my silent walk and starting to jog quickly to the forest behind the building. No point in trying to keep quiet out in the open, if someone was within hearing range of my jogging, they could see me already, and if not then I needed to be gone before they could.


    My jog slowly became a sprint around the building as I spotted the small forest. At the edge of the forest, there was no trail to follow so I slowed my sprint into a light jog, my brain going over time to avoid the obstacles in the thick forest, jumping over tree roots, ducking low hanging branches and turning my body out of the way of the outstretched branches. A few minutes went by in a rush as I made my way through the tree¡¯s until finally, I spotted a little clearing and I slowed my jog into a walk and eventually stopped inside the clearing deep in the woods.


    Before I could do anything else however, something happened. I heard a pop and a blue screen spiraled into existence in the air before me. ¡°Huh, a notification?¡± I idly said to myself as I saw the rectangle appear and then I began to read the message.


    ¡°Passive ability: ¡®Stealth Lv1¡¯ unlocked.¡± Is what it read, causing me to grow excited. ¡°Wow, it looks like my training method is working out better than I thought!¡± I said to myself jokingly. This was completely unexpected, but this is most definitely a good thing. Imagine how a stealth ability could grow with training! Oh, I nearly forgot to actually check what it does¡­ ¡®Status!¡¯


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Statistics


    </td>


    <td>


    Passive Abilities


    </td>


    <td>


    Skills


    </td>


    <td>


    Active Quests


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Name: Ardika Ekia


    Physical age: 12 years old


    Birthdate: August 12


    Gender: Male


    Race: Human/God hybrid


    </td>


    <td>


    Adaptation


    Adaptive system


    Perfect Recollection


    Ring Maker Lv8


    Speed reading Lv3


    Builder Lv2


    Architect Lv1


    Blacksmithing Lv1


    Dagger skills Lv8


    Deflection Lv2


    Find this and other great novels on the author''s preferred platform. Support original creators!


    Evasion Lv1


    Tracking Lv2


    Stealth Lv1:


    Increases recognition of the best possible way to avoid detection and gives the ability to sense when they are seen while trying to be undetected.


    </td>


    <td>


    Appraisal


    Soul Forge Lv1


    </td>


    <td>


    (No active quests)


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    Huh, that seems like it will come in handy, though I wonder how I am going to properly train it¡­ does it work against cameras? I spent a few seconds before realizing that I was just standing around in the center of the forest doing absolutely nothing. I suppose that it is not time for imagination and wild theories. It is time to train.


    I sent a small stream of Spirit Energy through the spirit construct inside my soul, causing the portal to my personal dimension to appear in the center of the clearing, waiting for me to enter. I stepped forwards confidently and opened the door before walking in like I owned the place, because I did. I chuckled at my little joke and turned to my right and I jogged a little up the ramp to the second floor. When I had reached the second floor, I started stretching in preparation for my workout.


    <hr>


    One and a half hours later I was sweating all over from my exhausting exercise and training routine. My routine today consisted of strength training with my gym equipment, evasion and deflection training in the arena along with some practice fighting with my daggers, namely trying to slice balls that are shot at me and slicing up some dummies I made with the ring of creation in various ways.


    I walk carefully down the ramp to the first floor and then I proceed out the door into the bright forest. Wasting no time, I quickly unsummoned the gateway and then I started to jog through the forest. Back to the dorms we go!


    As I jogged, slipping carefully through the trees, I started to think about my newest ability once more. Maybe I should use it now? Just to try and get a feel for it of course, there is no real need for me to sneak around here with me in a forest, but I think that I should have a go. I slow down a bit, trying to quiet my footsteps but navigate as quickly as possible, then¡­ I can feel it. It''s like my body is guided through the motions and I can feel exactly where I should go to avoid detection and how to do it. Like my other abilities, it is odd but so natural like I have been practicing for a year to do this and it is almost ingrained in my brain.


    I speed up, darting through the woods like a spector darting from shadow to shadow, making so little noise that even I am surprised but finally, I reach the end of the forest and I slow myself down a bit before jogging out of the treeline and through the grass until I reach the path to the school and I start speeding up again, letting my body dart quietly forwards into a sprint where I have to make a conscious effort to keep my feet from hitting too hard onto the cement.


    Barely a minute later, I arrive in front of the main doors of the dormitory and I pull them open and slink inside, shutting the doors behind me silently as I prepare to sneak through the lobby, up the stairwell, through the hallway and into the dorm room. As I make my way through the last hallway, I sense an odd sensation coming from behind me. I curiously turned around looking for what caused the weird sensation, was this one of my passive abilities kicking in? I don''t think I have ever felt that type of sensation before¡­ As I turn around, looking for the source of the feeling, it suddenly stops, and at the same time I realize something. Sneak¡¯s secondary ability.


    Someone was watching me? Weird¡­ I scan the hallway again, seeing nothing. Well, that was odd, but I need to get a shower before Percy wakes up and then head to the cafeteria for breakfast.


    <hr>


    Nearly an hour after coming back from my workout, I am walking to class with a slight sigh of annoyance at needing to go to class, only a little mollified by Percy and Grover¡¯s comforting presence and conversation as we walk through the halls. When we finally arrive at history class, we go and sit in the back of the room like usual and then we wait for class to start.


    ¡°Hello, we are doing our first assignment today so get into groups of three or four.¡± Ms. Rosenhert yelled out at the class as soon as the bell rang out through the speakers, telling us that class is starting. I heard a familiar beep of the system quest announcement and looked at the screen, which basically just said that we will be doing a history assignment and the reward will be thirty Ring Gold. I grinned a little at the reward for the quest, it was the highest reward yet!


    I look at Grover and Percy and we all nod silently, making our group. As soon as the bustle of the other kids making groups settled down, the teacher''s voice boomed out again saying ¡°Now send one group member up to my desk to get your assignment then you can start right away.¡± Then she brought out a small stack of papers by her desk at the front of the class. ¡°I can get it.¡± I said to Percy and Grover, which they agreed to and I stood up and navigated through the desks to the teachers desk.


    I quickly grabbed my paper and started making my way back to where Percy and Grover were sitting, when suddenly I felt a tug on the paper in my hand and a voice rang out from behind me ¡°Hey Arnold, thanks for grabbing my paper!¡± I turned around to see¡­ Ah. Nancy Bobofit was standing behind me, holding the paper that she had grabbed out of my hand. I scowled at the girl, seeing her laughing at my furious expression, then I forcibly calmed myself down. I can get back at her later. ¡°Not a problem.¡± I told the smug little girl and reached back to the teachers desk, got another paper and went back to my seat.


    ¡°Hey, what was that?¡± Percy asked me, gesturing at the surprised Nancy still at the teacher''s desk. ¡°It was nothing.¡± I replied smoothly to Percy and pulled out the paper I had gotten, putting it on our desks, reading it over. Percy frowned slightly, but sighed and looked over the paper with me.


    ¡°A five minute presentation on why world war two started?! Is she serious? We had one lesson on it yesterday!¡± Percy said, looking almost outraged at the assignment. ¡®Great¡­ This is going to take a while.¡¯ I thought, reading the presentation outline. ¡®Unless¡­ Wait! I have an idea!¡¯ I thought to myself, realizing an easy way to complete the assignment. My whole idea was based on three things, I had already learned about exactly why it started, I have the perfect recollection ability and three, I saw a youtube video on exactly why it started a few years ago. This would take a while to write from memory, but I think I can pull it off because the video hasn''t even been thought up yet.


    ¡°Don''t worry, I can write up a script and we can practice our presentation during the leftover time.¡± I said to my friends, who turned to look at me. Percy looked relieved, while Grover looked a little concerned. ¡°Thanks.¡± Percy told me smiling, looking a little relieved, but Grover turned to him and said to both of us ¡°Hey! We can''t just let you do all the work!¡± I smiled at Grover, but then told him ¡°It''s fine! I already have the outline of a script in mind, it won''t take that long.¡± Looking at him reassuringly. Grover looked like he was about to argue, but Percy had given him a mutinous look that very clearly said ¡°Come on, just let him! Don''t do this to me!¡± and he deflated in his seat.


    Chuckling at Percy¡¯s antics, I pulled out a paper and I started writing the script for our totally not copied presentation script.


    <hr>


    At the end of the day, I sighed as I lay back in my bed. It was a rather normal day all things considered, school classes, lunch, school classes and then finally blacksmithing practice in the Soul Forge, which I just came back from.


    But something was pressing on my mind¡­ Nancy. I think that it is time to plan a little revenge. My brain kicked into high gear as I thought about my lesson. I think I shouldn''t over react, justice is never served in an over abundance. An eye for an eye and all that. But what could I do¡­


    Then it hit me, an idea that fit so well that I grinned in anticipation. I should have started earlier, but let''s get building!

 Chapter 21

    Two days of working on my little ¡®project¡¯ later and it was done. Ready for testing. In the Soul Forge I started to pilot my tiny little device until it had ended up on the ceiling and I smiled at how quiet it was, flying up at the ceiling, was a drone. A drone waiting to deliver a ¡®package¡¯. I deftly pressed the big red button on my tiny remote and watched as a tiny opening slid open and watched as the contents of my little device poured out all at once under the area the drone was placed. The contents were actually a special liquid, called concentrated nitric acid.


    Just kidding, I wouldn''t do that¡­


    The liquid was actually something I had seen a lot about as a prank, hair dye in the shower head. Except without the shower head and in a drone positioned over there head that will release said hair dye. Ok, not the most creative, but if I time it right, I do two things. Though, I hope it does work, there are all kinds of things that could go wrong with this, from the drone not working, to it releasing the dye early. It did ok with my first test though. But I still have a few days to get it work right, so I have the time to be careful.


    Onto the testing then!


    <hr>


    A few days later, I walked into the classroom with a grin and my school bag with my binders and something else. My upgraded project. After a bunch of testing, I found that it worked surprisingly well, with only a few small technical issues, so out of boredom, I got an idea. I changed the formula for the dye. Well, technically I just added a bunch of school glue, but same difference.


    That change had caused a whole host of problems, either the dye was too thick and wouldn''t pour out right, or somehow while flying, the dye/glue got into the motors and broke it in mid air. But I managed to get a working product on the due date. That day was today.


    But before I could give out my little payback, there was another project that was due today. The historical presentation. ¡°Are you guys good?¡± I asked Percy and Grover as they looked over the script I gave them, Grover looked like he was about to puke, while Percy let out a non committal grunt as he looked over the paper. ¡°Look guys¡­ It will be fine, just like we practiced!¡± I said reassuringly to Grover and Percy. There was no more time to talk however, as the bell rang out and Ms. Rosenhert stood up at that moment and closed the door, signaling class was about to start.


    ¡°Ok children, we will be starting with our presentations today¡­ As long as you have all finished.¡± Ms. Rosenhert told the class with a glare that said quite plainly that if we hadn''t finished it, we would be in trouble. I actually saw a few people look really nervous about that¡­ Though four days to write and practise a five minute presentation in grade six was a bit demanding¡­ Especially when this school was supposedly supposed to be for ¡®troubled kids¡¯. Now that I think about it¡­ I actually doubt that most of the class did the assignment.


    The teacher didn''t give me any more time to think about that however as she began to call up groups one by one, with only two of them actually having done the assignment on time. ¡°Nancy, Claire and Helina, come up to present.¡± Ms. Rosenhert announced after another group sat down after saying they had not finished it.


    I smiled to myself and I pulled a small controller and my drone out of my bag and set it on the floor stealthily. Once I had placed down my drone, I looked around to see if anyone had spotted me, only to meet the eyes of Percy, who was looking interestedly at me. ¡°What was-¡± Percy started to say, but I started to shake my head violently, causing him to stop. I then started up the drone, and it quietly zoomed to the roof, unnoticed by anybody. I couldn''t turn away from piloting the drone to see Percy¡¯s reaction, but I could hear a slight gasp coming from him as I started piloting the drone, just over Nancy¡¯s head as she walked up in front of the class with her group.


    This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it.


    ¡°It''s 1902, and a young man by the name of Benito Mussolini moves from Italy to Switzerland to avoid military service.¡± Nancy starts saying, causing me to frown, wait a minute¡­


    Another girl, I think her name was Claire, then started speaking, continuing the presentation, ¡°He gets big into socialism, working for trade unions, writing socialist newspapers, advocating a violent overthrow of European monarchies, the whole shebang.¡± The girl said, causing me to go stiff. ¡®THAT WAS MY COPIED SCRIPT! YOU CAN''T COPY MY COPIED SCRIPT!¡¯ I thought in anger at the girls, then Nancy caught my eye and grinned. Not a nice little grin, but a ¡®What are you going to do?¡¯ sort of bragging grin.


    In response I smiled back at her, a big shit eating grin and I pressed the big red button. Suddenly, Nancy was doused in a bright pink liquid. The room seemed to freeze and I quickly piloted my little drone away from the target and onto a high shelf to keep it hidden. Almost as soon as I had safely stowed my drone, Nancy screamed. ¡°ARDIKA! WHAT DID YOU DO!?¡± She yelled out at me, the part of her face that was not pink, turning red with rage. I had to struggle to keep in my laughter at her face, but I had to keep up appearances. ¡°What? How in the world would I do that? I am not some magician!¡± I exclaimed, trying to reason with the outraged pink haired girl in front of the class.


    Nancy didn''t take that well. She shouted at me for about a whole minute before storming off. The class was shocked and even the teacher was too stunned to move. ¡°Ardika, come with me.¡± Ms. Rosenhert said with a coldness in her none that allowed no arguing. I stood up, starting to sweat a little as I followed Ms. Rosenhert outside the classroom.


    ¡°I don''t know what you did, or how you did it-¡± Ms. Rosenhert started saying once we were outside the class, but I interrupted her saying ¡°But I didn''t do anything! How could I have done anything?¡± Ms. Rosenhert gave me a look that I am pretty sure translated to ¡®I know you did it¡¯ along with apparent lingering confusion as to what had happened. ¡°Detention tomorrow afternoon. Meet me here after school then. Get back in class.¡± Then before I could argue anymore, she started speed walking, probably to the office to tell someone what happened.


    I scoffed at the woman that had turned her back on me ¡°That''s the American school system for you¡­ Blaming me for things that I did but they don''t know I did¡­¡± and I turned around and went back into the classroom.


    <hr>


    Things proceeded like nothing happened, I retrieved my drone silently during a presentation, the group Nancy was in were told that they could present after Nancy was ready then the rest of the class presented like nothing happened. Percy kept looking curiously at me during class, but he had apparently decided to talk about it after class because he stayed silent.


    When our turn came, we gave our presentation and handed in the script like the other presenters. It was just plain luck that I had given Nancy the pink hair treatment when I did, otherwise our group would have been called cheaters for copying Nancy¡¯s group, but because we did it first, that probably won''t happen. Probably.


    Nancy never came back though, which I was really glad of, she was disturbing our learning environment after all. With all her magic hair dye appearing in thin air and the shouting. I barely held in a snicker as I thought of that, but held it I did.


    Several minutes later, the bell rang out through the speakers for the second time and we all got up and left the room. As me, Percy and Grover stepped out the door and Percy instantly started talking ¡°How did you do that!? That was insane!¡± he burst into laughter as he talked, I smiled, a little proud of my revenge and proceeded to fill both Percy and Grover in about what I did.


    Grover seemed to be in a state between impressed, shocked and disapproving, but Percy was on the opposite end of that spectrum. ¡°I would hate to get on your bad side¡­¡± Grover said, half jokingly. ¡°Ha! That''s right! You don''t want me to unleash my inner demons on all you puny mortals! Muahahaha!¡± Was my reply with an evil laugh, which caused all three of us to burst out laughing.

 Chapter 22

    A few weeks passed slowly, and it was extremely boring. School was as it ever was in Yancy, strict with a very large amount of work. It would have been more boring if I didn''t have my training to do, or Percy and Grover to hang out with however. Or if it wasn''t so funny to see Nancy, who now had large splotches of bright pink in her red hair.


    The detention that I got from that little prank hasn''t really been that bad either, it was basically just some light reading that cut in on my training time that day.


    Time kept moving forwards though, school and my own training making most days a blur. But my training had shifted a bit after my prank, and I had realized that my instinctive knowledge of technology and mechanics in general was actually more of a powerful gift then I thought that it was when I had first modified the hockey phaser. As for what caused it¡­ I want to be sure before I say anything, so I don''t get my hopes up. I think that I am right, and my thoughts did make a lot of sense though.


    But because of what exactly I was able to do¡­ it did give me an idea of what I should try to train and so I set aside some time to make some designs of things, then I started to build some of them. Building and constructing things was surprisingly easy for me, especially with practically unlimited resources. The things that I started to make and design were more practical then my hair dye drone, so it was slightly less fun however.


    I had made a few fans as a start, with the blades and base made from thinner aluminum that I shaped in the smithy, and the electrical mostly made slowly in sections with the Ring of Creation and some small constructs for shaping some parts. I don¡¯t really know why I decided to design and make fans, but I got as far as my seventh before I decided to start something a little more useful, so I started to think about anything that I really wanted to make.


    It was more difficult than you would think, but I did come up with a small list. Almost everything on that list were things that I would have to wait to try to even think about designing, but there were quite a few things that I wanted to try to make that I could at least attempt to design and construct. Like a motion detector, that I was currently trying to make with huge help from a bunch of videos that I watched. It was a difficult process, but I was roughly half way done making something that could potentially work. Maybe it is a little advanced for now, but I am getting there.


    Disappointingly, I didn''t get another skill from my technology designing, but I think that it is counting to the Builder passive that I had because I got it to level four along with Speed Reading a few days ago.


    Besides the additional direction that my training was taking however, not much had changed. I had a small but more or less steady flow of Ring Gold from the school ¡®quests¡¯ which I was still saving up for something new later. My Spirit Energy was close to peaking again, so I was getting ready to enchant a new ring in a few days.


    The only real problem that I was having, was an increasing amount of odd looks and questions from Percy about where I disappear to in the afternoons. I didn''t tell him what I was doing, mostly just not answering. That didn''t really help at all however, and just made things slightly worse because he stopped asking me but was still suspicious. It made me kind of guilty to be honest¡­


    But I couldn''t just tell him, so I couldn''t really do anything about it and I did try to take my mind off of it with training. The grind is always the peak method of ignoring your problems.


    So that brought me to today, which is the day that I was going to be enchanting the next mythril ring.


    Because of the growing number of rings that I was making, I made this ring with an engraving to make it stand out more. The ring that I finished was actually High Uncommon, which was expected but still a bit disappointing that I couldn''t break out of the Uncommon rank without enchanting yet. The design was a little simple, a mythril band with an engraving of swirling patterns with little stars that looked like they were flowing along with the wind. It was a simplistic engraving however so it didn''t actually look that great compared to what I had thought up.


    I hadn''t decided what to call it yet, so I decided to name it after I enchanted it.


    The enchantment was¡­ a little iffy. The point of the enchantment was to let me see different types of energy, like electrical, the mist, and both spirit aura and energy wherever it was. The only problem with that, was that I didn''t exactly have a firm grasp on energy in the first place and I had to basically take a shortcut to make different energies basically just light up a bit from the perspective of the wearer instead of an actual energy vision or sense. It should work for detecting energy¡¯s though, so I don''t get caught off guard by magic, tech or monsters that I couldn''t see with my eyes, like an X-Ray vision on steroids.


    So with my carefully crafted enchantment in hand, I started to enchant it as I have done several times before.


    The process was as intense as it had ever been, but luckily I managed to finish it quickly and I opened up my status screen while laying on my back to help me recover while groaning a bit.


    This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.


    I looked over a notification and I nearly sat up in surprise, but I stopped as soon as I felt the mussels on my back flair in pain. ¡°I got forty RG for that?¡± I said quietly in mild surprise, a mix between understanding and disappointing. I got more from a higher quality thing, and I got ten less RG than when I made The Constructor so it''s worse than that. Though I was understanding because¡­ to be honest my enchantment wasn''t that great.


    I analyzed the newly enchanted ring while holding it to my eye with shaky hands, noticing as I did that the red markings of runes along its body were strangely patterned to look as if they were also going with the flowing pattern I had engraved onto the ring.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Name: N/A


    </td>


    <td>


    Grade: Low High


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Abilities:


    When worn, this ring syphons off a portion of the Spirit Energy of the wearer to power its other effects while it is being worn.


    A wave of collected Spirit Energy Is sent from the ring and it marks several energy signatures it passes through with a mental marker in the form of a light that is only able to be seen by the wearer and is able to be seen through physical objects. This wave of Spirit Energy has an effective range of 10 feet.


    Energy types that are able to be marked are: Spirit Energy, Spirit Aura, The Mist, Electrical and Divine Energy.


    </td>


    <td> </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    ¡°Ah¡­ I can see why the rating is lower¡­ The amount of description kind of shows that the effect is pretty weak¡­ But from what it says, I guess that it turned out ok?¡± I commented to myself while staring at the screen. I was glad that I had made the floor of the Arena so soft¡­


    ¡°Well, I guess I can choose the name now.¡± I said after I closed the system screen and I started to think. ¡°X-Ray¡­ Magical X-Ray¡­ well, more like an Energy X-Ray¡­ though magic could work. Maybe Mystical Ray? No¡­ let''s just shorten that to Mystic. Easy to say. I name this ring, Mystic.¡± I said thinking out loud, running my mouth as I thought without care.


    ¡®I suppose I can see if it works once I recover a bit.¡¯ I thought to myself before grunting and sitting up in the center of the Soul Forges arena, then stumbling to my feet and staggering off towards the exit to the Soul Forge.


    <hr>


    P.O.V. of Percy Jackson


    Man¡­ this school year was probably the weirdest or the coolest one I have ever had and it was just starting! First off, I was roommates with the weirdest guy. I am starting to think he might be some sort of mob boss¡¯s kid or something too, because he keeps sneaking off every day and he won''t tell me where. Then there are the things that he does seemingly out of the blue. First day here, this guy built a helicopter from paper, string and elastics somehow, then proceeded to throw a pen to deflect it enough that it didn''t hit me when I opened the door. It was crazy! He was like a ninja.


    Then a while later, a girl in our class, Nancy, started picking on him and me. He didn''t do anything at first¡­ then he whipped out a strike drone that he said he made, filled it with hair dye and dumped it on her head in the middle of a presentation she was doing. He didn''t even get caught either. Just told to go to detention because the teacher needed someone to blame and it happened to be him.


    It was at that point that I realized that Ardika was definitely a bit shady. The disappearing act he manages to do every afternoon was just the cherry on top.


    I have been told I have had an overactive imagination, and I somewhat agreed internally, but this was honestly a bit much. I knew most of these kids were rich kids that were sent away from their rich parents, but I didn''t understand why he acted the way he did. It made no sense. My theory of ¡®mob boss¡¯s son¡¯ was honestly starting to feel plausible. Of course it could all be perfectly normal, he might just be good at building stuff, and he might just have a really good aim, and he might have brought his drone along from home, and he might just really like afternoon walks or something, but¡­ I just didn''t think that sounded believable.


    On the other hand Grover was a bit of a rock in that regard, keeping me from ever fully believing all my theories with a casual joking comment.


    I was on my bed in my dorm this afternoon. Ardika disappeared just over an hour ago as usual but I had some studying to do so I stayed in our dorm for some quiet space to myself. There was a latin test coming up, and I just could not get anything straight in my head. Why we even needed latin was beyond me. My head was buzzing a bit, and my eyes were skating over the mess of words and symbols in the textbook but I just could not understand any of this.


    I leaned back on my bed with a sigh of frustration, tossing my book away with defeat. I will never remember why Sextus Propertius was important or what he did, beyond his name was a bit embarrassing¡­


    My eyes wandered across the ceiling out of boredom as I lay on my bed. For all Ardika¡¯s strangeness, he was definitely the most interesting and entertaining thing in this place. He had a good sense of humor, and was a pretty good guy in general. Though sometimes-


    The door opened with a click, as it was unlocked from the outside and I sat up on my bed to take a look, only to be taken aback from the form of Ardika stumbling through the open door and almost banging into the wall as he shut the door with a thud.


    I stared at him with concern, he looked¡­ defeated almost. He was definitely pale as he turned his attention to his bed and he looked like he was sore and in pain as he stumbled into his bed and sprawled across it with a flump.


    ¡°Don''t ask¡­¡± I heard his muffled voice say as his head was laying slumped onto his pillow.


    I gave a sigh. Sometimes he does stuff like this that makes me wonder just who Ardika Ekia really was.

 Chapter 23:

    ¡°Ardika. You got to tell us. You can''t just stumble into your dorm like you got hit by a train and tell us it''s nothing!¡± Percy complained, looking at me from over the lunch table with an expression that mixed the worst parts of curiosity, confusion and just the hint of indignation.


    ¡°He''s right.¡± Grover said absently, sniffing the air with a confused expression.


    ¡°I mean, you disappear every day and then you turn up out of the blue and collapse on the bed, unable to get up until next morning? That''s not ok, Ardika.¡± Percy continued his rant.


    ¡°Absolutely.¡± Grover responded again, with the same vague confused look on his face.


    Percy looked over to Grover, ¡°I mean, Ardika¡­ if you need us to call the ghost busters or something you got to let us know?¡± Percy asked, cautiously and looking at Grover.


    ¡°He¡¯s right.¡± Grover responded again, clearly not listening to anything that was happening around him and causing both Percy and me to crack up a bit.


    ¡°I think that he is a little dead to the world right now.¡± I commented, leaning my head onto my hand to relax my sore muscles as I took a bite of breakfast. It was the morning after I had enchanted Mystic, and while I was recovering from my enchanting quicker then I have before due to getting to level 10 in Ring Maker but I still felt pretty bad. Luckily, we had today off of school so I could spend the time to chill while I recovered a bit instead of forcing myself to go to class this morning.


    Though being questioned by Percy was not the ideal way to chill. Honestly, my guilt is growing by the day at this point. But I can make it, at least until the fury attacks Percy near the end of the year.


    We laughed for a few seconds, and it only increased when Grover didn''t even react at all. Then finally Grover looked around, his expression clearing for a moment as he looked between us. ¡°Hey! What did I miss?¡± He complained to the pair of us, only increasing our laughter, but after he sat back and frowned we quieted down.


    ¡°Ok¡­ Grover aside, I still want to know Ardika. Just tell me what is going on, because I am honestly getting worried for you.¡± Percy said after a moment of silence.


    I gave a sigh, as I felt my pangs of guilt increase and I felt myself about to give in. ¡°Ok, I will be honest with you.¡± I started to speak, my mind racing. ¡°I just pushed myself a little too hard during training.¡± I admitted, sighing as I took a bite of my food. ¡®Not lying, just not explaining to the full extent. I can''t just say I was doing magic, after all.¡¯ I thought to myself internally while I watched Percy, reading his expressions.


    He didn''t look like he bought it one bit. ¡°Training for what exactly?¡± Percy asked, looking me over with disbelief on his face.


    Ok, brain¡­ think¡­ ¡°Sports. I was¡­ um.. Doing exercises and stuff and I overdid it a bit. Pushed myself a bit too far and fell a bit.¡± I lied after a second, halting over my words.


    ¡°Sports? You are planning to get onto one of the sports teams?¡± Percy asked, confused at my response. I gave a sigh and a nod to that, ¡°Yes, I heard that there was a¡­ um¡­ basketball team I could try out for.¡± I confirmed, making stuff up on the spot.


    ¡°Basketball. You?¡± Percy asked, leaning back and looking me over incredulously. ¡°Hey, I will have you know that I am great at basketball. I am going to be the best on the team!¡± I complained, looking at Percy in mock indignation.


    ¡®Ah, shoot. I think I just accidentally forced myself to join the basketball team.¡¯ I thought to myself in absolute panic, but not letting it show at all. ¡®I am not even that great at basketball, either. But I just went and said all that! I am so stupid!!!¡¯


    <hr>


    P.O.V. of Grover


    Ardika was absolutely panicked after he told that to Percy, and I had no idea why. He didn''t show it outwardly, but I could feel his emotions pretty easily. Being the only Satyr in this school was as interesting as ever.


    But this year honestly felt like it was going to end up leaving me in a hospital for being so stressed. First off, I found two demigods were going to this school. Then once I got a good feel for Percy, I realized that his scent was incredibly strong despite the amount of repulsing human aura that was inexplicably coated through it. Then I realized that Ardikas scent was somehow growing over the course of the time he was here until his scent was almost as powerful as Percys!


    Then I woke up this morning and I couldn''t smell him in the dorms. I was absolutely panicking for the first hour while I searched for literally any hint of Ardika, thinking that he was attacked by monsters and kidnaped or something, only to find Percy and Ardika arguing in the cafeteria. Percy told me the story of what happened after that, that he apparently appeared in their dorms, like he was sore and in pain, seeming completely drained.


    And all the while he told me that, I noticed a drastic change in Ardika. His scent was almost completely gone! I could still smell it when I was as close to him as now, but it was so weak that it was almost overpowered by Percy''s repressed scent to the extent that it was practically not there.


    Honestly that was more concerning than the fact that Percy felt like he was almost as powerful as¡­ well, her.


    This was just too much. This can''t happen to me! Not again!


    <hr>


    Ardika P.O.V.


    The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.


    So¡­ I absolutely messed up. I had told Percy and Grover that I was going to be trying out for the basketball team, and then I proceeded to tell them about how ¡®skilled¡¯ I was. Meaning, I had to try out for the team. More than that, I had to get on the team and actually be an important player. That changed a lot of things for me.


    For example, I had to spend the time to build two basketball hoops and install them into the arena so I could have some practice and potentially earn a skill that would make me actually decent at the game. Also meaning I also had to take some time out from my schedule to practice shooting.


    Then there was the fact that the tryouts were happening like next week, and I needed to sign up literally on the same day that I told Percy and Grover I was trying out for the team and even then I got a few side eyes from people because I was signing up so late. Though that might have something to do with the fact that I was not that tall and was signing up for basketball as well.


    It has been two days since that particular event and I was fully recovered enough to do stuff now. But despite being back to normal, I was honestly still stressed about that event. I have never even been on a sports team in my life, and the most experience I had was from gym class.


    So what I was doing now¡­ was trying to forget all about my impending doom by working on other stuff. I was inside the storage room right now, facing a particularly angry caged hellhound that looked pissed at me. I mean, it was pretty justified. I had kept him caged in here for a long time, and barely fed him at that. But it was a monster that had repeatedly tried to unsuccessfully kill me several times now.


    But he is not what I was focusing on right now, what I was focusing on was three objects on the metal table between me and the hellhound''s cage. Mystic, the newest ring, Masatr, and a battery.


    This was a bit of a test for Mystic, to see if I could see my enchanted objects, electricity and finally monsters thanks to my hellhound.


    I took my newest ring off the table and I inspected it for a few seconds before trying it on. The pattern of the runes that the enchanting process normally made seemed the same as ever if I looked close, their shape unchanged, but when I looked at it from a wider perspective it shifted a bit. The patterns of the runes along the ring¡¯s surface seemed to mesh together like the strokes of an artist to form an almost three dimensional artwork of wind that complimented unexpectedly with the engraved patterns I had drawn.


    For all the knowledge that the system put in my head about the enchanting system¡­ I had no idea that this was even possible. Why would the Spirit Energy form the runes in this pattern? Now that I was really questioning my knowledge on enchanting, what exactly do the runes do? Why were they formed? What are the red runes that appear during enchanting? I had no answers. Maybe I would have to find out for myself. Maybe¡­ the system is trying to teach me instead of giving me all I need to know.


    I put the mythril ring on my finger and let the ring''s enchantment get to work. My body instinctively winced at the feeling of some of my Spirit Energy starting to be drained, but I relaxed almost as soon as my body tensed. It didn''t feel bad, nothing like pain or whatever, maybe a little like using a sore muscle a little while after a workout. Like I was almost being strained, but not really.


    Mystic used all of my Spirit Energy regeneration and then some however, so it appears that for now this ring might have to stay out of the way until I know I need to use it in a certain situation.


    Then after a second, I felt the Spirit Energy that was gathering inside the enchanted ring release in a wave of energy all around the ring, going straight through objects in what appeared as a ring of Spirit Energy to my senses.


    Then things started happening as the energy passed through where I couldn''t see it, though I knew from the system identification that it would only go about ten feet away before it starts to dissipate into the air. Suddenly I looked around and suddenly several things stuck out to me. There was a light glow over all the walls, furniture and even the stone floor of the room I was inside, though the light was faint. The next thing that I noticed was that both the battery and Masatr were lit up brighter than if they were both low powered LED bulbs, making it impossible to actually see what either of them were beneath the light.


    The next observation I made was that for some reason, the color of both the walls and Masatr were the same bright red of my Spirit energy, but the light that was being emitted by the battery was a bright electric blue¡­ ¡°The different energy types show up as different colors?¡± I wondered to myself, a bit confused but relieved by that. Confused because I had not written the enchantment to do that, and relieved because honestly a singular color would have made identifying stuff difficult.


    Then my attention was drawn onto the hellhound in my cage as it let out a growl once again, and I got a good look at the effects of my ring on the monster.


    ¡°The light isn''t following the monster when it moves¡­¡± I noticed, as I saw the bright purple result of my ring''s enchantment staying in the shape of the hellhound while the hellhound in question was on the other side of the cell, pacing around. My ring then releases another wave of Spirit Energy and it scanned the area, creating there lights where the new positions of the energy signatures were. It was as if it was making everything almost update around me as the previous light disappeared from my vision and a new one appeared.


    It was similar to as if my vision had an overlay that was tracking different things, but the frame rate was one every four seconds while everything was moving at real speeds around me.


    So it was good for detecting hidden things, traps, and stationary monsters but not anything that could really help in a fight. In fact it would do the opposite and potentially hinder my vision if I look the wrong way and get distracted by a bright light that I could see through people or monsters. So it is a limited tool.


    ¡°All in all¡­ I think that this turned out not that bad.¡± I summarized my test, then winced as my Spirit Energy reserves went down once more and sending a little bit of a pang through my practically empty soul. I took off the ring quickly after that and continued commenting, saying a revelation that was starting to make itself more known as I felt that pang. ¡°I think that enchanting things puts me at a bit of a risk.¡± I started putting words to my thoughts, ¡°If I am attacked by a monster, I cant use any of my rings besides Masatr and I am physically stressed for a few days after whenever I finish on top of my lack of Spirit Energy reserves. I would be practically helpless for a while.¡±


    That thought and realization did stop my thoughts for a bit, making sure to internalize one key thing that I needed to remember whenever I felt like I was ready to enchant another ring. ¡®Plan ahead of time to get somewhere safe before you enchant stuff. Don''t enchant stuff when you know you could be in danger and do not do it when you need something done quickly.¡¯


    That was probably sound advice for future me, so I left it at that and I started getting on with other things. I threw a slab of meat that I had placed to the side into the cage to the hellhound, pocketed Masatr again, and I placed the battery back inside its package that was on a shelf.


    I walked out the door to the sounds of squishing and mushing meat coming from the hellhounds cage, and closed the door with a thud as I walked up the stairs. Back to basketball practice I guess. I suppose it''s about time to stop procrastinating.

 Chapter 24:

    I had four days left to train. Four days until the first day of tryouts, where I would see if I was any good despite my lack of real interest in the sport until I messed up three days ago.


    Those three days were a bit of a rush for me, as I had to make a basketball court in the Soul Forges arena and get a basketball on top of that. I couldn''t practice without either of those. Then I also had the side activity of searching the library for a book on basketball rules and terms. I honestly had no idea about most of that stuff, and if I showed up without at least some of the basic terms that someone who played basketball before would know I would look stupid.


    I ended up finding one, but it was not very useful so I just decided that I would stop looking for another book if it exists and spend my time doing other things.


    My basketball court got installed inside the arena by the end of the third day, as I had taken a bit of time to build it in a way so it could retract out of the main arena to not get in the way when I was not using it. With that finished, I had to turn my attention to the next thing that I needed. A basketball.


    I still had some money from selling my stuff to that pawn shop, so it wasn''t hard to get one if I knew where there was one that was accessible. Only problem is that the nearest place that probably sold basketballs was about half an hour away from the school. So as soon as I finished installing the basketball court in the arena, I took off and out of the school yard while also trying to go as unnoticed as possible with my stealth passive.


    So I ran away from the school through the city and went back into the Soul Forge with a newly bought basketball in my arms. However, when I did that something unexpected happened.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    New Quest: The long game.


    Difficulty: Mid-difficult


    Requirements to succeed: Get picked for Yancy¡¯s junior basketball team during tryouts.


    Rewards if succeeded: One Passive Ability or 100 Ring Gold along with one free level in a Passive Ability of your choice.


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    I got a quest. Apparently the system must have picked up on what I was trying to do and turned it into a quest for me. The difficulty was higher than normal, as normally quests that I get for school are Low grade, Mediocre grade and in one case, Average grade. I didn''t know how the grade system worked exactly, but this was a step up from my usual stuff at least. Maybe a few steps up.


    But with a higher difficulty comes a higher reward apparently. I could get a Passive Ability or a hundred RG and a free level to something! That was a huge step up from my normal 1-60 RG for school work. Of course I would pick the Passive Ability if I succeeded in the quest, as those are turning out to be incredibly more valuable than RG and a level in a Passive combined in my eyes.


    Even more pressure to get on the team. Ok. Fine. That''s fine.


    <hr>


    Four days of intense basketball training followed me receiving the quest to join the team, and by the end of the last training session I could squeak out I had little to show for it. Not none, but a little.


    I had worked out how to use my Passive Abilities to increase my lacking basketball skill somewhat, with Deflection and Evasion becoming almost always on my mind when dribbling and increasing my skill somewhat doing that as far as I could tell. But the trouble with practicing by myself was I didn''t really have anything to gauge on how effective something is.


    I suspected that Deflection would work well to increase my ability to block shots as well but I didn''t have a way to really test that out.


    Aside from those skills helping me along with my defence and maneuvering, my shooting practice was turning out pretty good as well. For the first two days I practiced and was slowly getting better and I realized that while I didn''t have a skill to help my accuracy, muscle memory and technique was probably just as important when learned on their own. Then on my third day of practice, I started to think and I realized a few things which helped improve even more.


    I realized that while I did not have a skill for throwing basketballs, I did have a skill that helped with accuracy of throwing knives.


    For most normal people, I am pretty sure that they wouldn''t be able to find a connection that they could utilize. But after a while of swapping between throwing knife practice and shooting baskets, I started to feel a small connection between the skill and my throwing. I started to actually improve my aim somehow through using that small connection to my Dagger Skills ability. I started to august my aim subconsciously, similar to how my Dagger Skills ability worked.


    Though I didn''t do this practice to gain a level in Dagger Skills, somehow it ended up pushing me to level ten. Then as I was celebrating reaching level ten, I felt something in my mind click and I got another notification on the bright blue screen that popped into existence in front of me that I read quickly. ¡°Passive ability: ¡®Throwing Skills lv1¡¯ unlocked.¡± I read out loud with a grin.


    It turned out that by finding the connection to the system ability through my Dagger Skills ability, I managed to pull off getting myself the ability I was hoping for.


    In terms of system passive abilities, I now had a skill for shooting more accurately, which is Throwing Skills, a skill for evading my opponents, which is Evasion, and finally Deflection which I am pretty sure will help with stealing balls and blocking passes and preventing the other team from scoring. Everything I needed for playing, really.


    The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.


    I just had to translate system guidance to actual playing, and practice to get my physical skills to a respectable level. But on the other hand, I had a single day to test out my newest skill and then it was the first day of the tryouts.


    So I used that one day the best I could. I practiced dribbling and shooting, pretending to be in a match as best as I could. I think I was alright, but the phrase you are your own worst critic and the fact I don''t have anyone to really try myself against really makes anything I personally feel to not be the best estimate. I would just have to wish for some good luck for the tryouts and hope that I get on the team. I really want that Passive for the quest, and honestly it would be embarrassing for me if I fail and Grover plus Percy find out. Also it could possibly make Percy suspicious all over again. I was playing the long game right now and I got to win.


    That last day of practice was honestly the hardest I had ever exercised and practiced anything before, but it came to an end eventually. I walked back to my dorm room in the late afternoon covered with sweat and feeling a little sore from my practice, ready to go to sleep but I knew that I needed supper and a shower first so I dragged myself into my room to do just that.


    ¡°Oh, hey.¡± I greeted the two figures that were sitting in the dorm when I had walked inside, Percy and Grover. They looked like they were both just relaxing together and talking while sitting on Percy''s bed when I walked in.


    ¡°Hey, Ardika. Where have you been? You missed supper.¡± Percy asked, with a concerned look on his face and causing me to blink in surprise. ¡°Really? I missed it? Man, I really need a watch. I must have lost track of time¡­¡± I said, a little annoyed with myself if I was being honest. I was mostly ok with staying on time with when I finished my stuff in the Soul Forge and I haven''t had a slipup like this before, but it was bound to happen sooner or later. I needed to fix that particular problem. Maybe I could make myself a mechanical watch when I have the time.


    With my explanation to Percy and Grover said, and my thoughts sliding away from my tired mind, I went over to my clothes and selected some pajamas. ¡°I am getting into the shower, I need some sleep.¡± I say quickly to Percy and Grover before walking to the bathroom and stepping in.


    <hr>


    I walked out of the last class of the day, which in this case is science class, with Grover and Percy the next day. ¡°First tryout meeting was in just over half an hour.¡± I said to both Grover and Percy with a grimace, ¡°I think I should get going. It''s better to be a bit early.¡± I explain with a sigh.


    ¡°Hey, don''t worry about it. You will be fine. You certainly trained hard enough.¡± Percy said, trying to comfort me while Grover ate an apple he had saved not paying attention. Until Percy bumped a bit into his side and caused him to look up. ¡°Huh? Oh, yes. You will do fine. Good luck with that!¡± Grover said suddenly, looking up to me and causing me to smile a bit. ¡°Well thanks.¡± I thanked the pair with a grin, ¡°I will tell you how it went later. See ya.¡± I said casually and made my way to the gym, feeling just a little lighter.


    The hallways were as packed as usual and the gym was practically on the opposite side of the school so it took some time to get there, about twenty minutes of walking through the crowds of kids in the halls until I reached the gym door and opened it up to head inside.


    It was still a bit odd to be the same height and physical age as a bunch of middle schoolers, but it didn''t really bother me until I looked around and saw some pretty tall twelve year olds that were more than a couple inches taller than me. If I was around five feet three inches now, then most of these guys are around five feet six inches, with a few taller than that. But I mean¡­ height isn''t everything in basketball. Right?


    I only spent a second taking in the people around me, currently seven kids, then I went over to the side of the gym where they were grouped up. There was a table with some paper near there, along with a blank whiteboard on a wall.


    As I approached the group of seven, I looked them over. There was a group of four that seemed separate from a group of three guys, the group of four seeming to be a more athletic group with them clearly having more muscles then the group of three and having the tallest guy. There was a guy with short blond hair and a bit more slim athletic figure, a guy with short greasy black hair who seemed more muscle bound then the blond, a more lanky guy with longer brown hair, and finally a guy wearing what looked like form fitting clothes unlike the rest of the group and who seemed the middle ground in terms of height and athleticism. I think all of that group is in my class now that I think about it.


    The group of three consisted of a taller lanky guy with glasses, a guy around my height with a slimmer frame, and finally a dude with a black New York Knicks shirt who honestly had a bit of a gut.


    As I walked over, the lanky guy with brown hair saw me and nudged the blond guy while gesturing to me, saying something that I couldn''t hear from over here and causing the other guys all to look over with a look of curiosity. Then as I walked closer, the blond guy broke off from his group with a fierce look on his face and walked towards me. ¡°Hey! Aren''t you the guy in my class with the drone that dumped pink hair dye onto Nancy¡¯s head during history class! Arda, wasn''t it?¡± He asked with a hard look on his face and an interrogative tone as he looked me up and down.


    ¡°Well, I am Ardika so close enough I guess.¡± I said with a slight grin, it was honestly always funny when people messed up my name that bad. ¡°And I am not telling if I did that or not, but I am who Nancy thinks did it.¡± I said with a grin, ¡°And she deserved it too. She stole my presentation!¡± I announced to the guy, expecting him to start defending her or start something with me.


    Then the blond guy broke out into a grin. ¡°Really? She stole that from you! HA! Stroke of creative genius my ass!¡± He laughed out, with a relaxed stance. ¡°I get what you are saying too, totally deserved it. Good job on that, best prank that I have ever seen.¡± He complimented easily and waved me over to the other four in his group with an easygoing smile.


    ¡°Well Ardika, my name¡¯s Jay, here are Tom, Vincent and Terry. Guys, this is Ardika.¡± He introduced me to his group, pointing out the black haired guy, the lanky guy with brown hair, and the guy with the most likely expensive, form fitting athletic outfit respectively.


    All of them gave a nod of greeting, which I did as well, but before anyone could say anything the gym door opened with a slam, causing everyone to look to the door. The gym teacher Mr. Stine, who is now my coach I guess, was standing in the open doorway as he looked over to our small group of eight with a scowl. ¡°Only you guys had the decency to turn up on time?¡± He shouted across the gym to us, clearly annoyed.


    ¡°Well, while we wait for the rest of the lazy students you''ll stay here. I need to go search some people out!¡± He shouted to us again and turned around to leave again, walking out the door and letting the doors shut behind him with a thud.


    Jay put his hand on his forehead as the large man made his exit. ¡°Sorry about dad. He is all stressed about the team this year, apparently last year our team didn''t make it through the first game.¡± Jay apologised, causing me to turn to him in confusion. ¡°Dad?¡± I asked, confused. ¡°Oh, you don''t know? My dad is the coach.¡± Jay explained quickly with a slight grimace.


    Well how about that.

 Chapter 25:

    One hour and some minutes later, I was walking out of the gym with a look of something that bordered on boredom.


    After the majority of the people who had signed up for the tryouts had made it, most of them fifteen minutes late and the people who tried to join after that were kicked out for not getting here on time, we all got sat in front of the whiteboard by the coach. By the time that everybody that was participating made it, there were a good thirty guys who showed up, which was not particularly surprising but it was weird once I was there seeing as two thirds of these guys would not be able to make it past tryouts.


    The coach was a bit different from when he normally teached P.E. class, as where he seemed bored and lazy during those classes, he seemed fiery and engaged while he stood in front of this group. He started his speech about the basketball team after that, how we would be the best, how he expected everyone to put in the effort, and then after that he started talking about basketball positions and things.


    I won''t pretend to understand most of what he was going on about beyond the basic jobs of certain groups and people, but it was good to know. Especially when I had the Perfect Recollection passive and I could review it word for word on command. That particular skill made some things incredibly easy sometimes. It would be definitely more important in school if I didn''t mostly already know everything from my self study and having the mind of a eighteen year old who was not half bad during school the first time.


    After that introduction talk we got started with talk of what we would actually be doing for tryouts. On the first day, we would be running. That''s basically it. We would be doing basic exercises for the entire hour. I didn''t know if that was the normal way to go about the first day of tryouts¡­ but it was not what I expected.


    I wasn''t worried about getting through the exercise though. I did not do hours of exercise and training every day for nothing, and that''s not even mentioning the fact that my entire body gets enough exercise for days when I enchant something. I was firmly into what I was pretty sure was crazy strength and endurance levels for the amount of time I had been training, and I was definitely more fit than a good number of people just from a quick glance around. That''s not to say that I had a defined six pack or anything as I only had some faint signs of one showing, but then again I was not on any real diet like some of those fitness freaks that showed up for the team so that could be to blame. Who knows what they are putting in the cafeteria food?


    Then as soon as the talk ended, we had to go to the table that was set up and get a sheet of paper with a number printed on it taped to the back of our shirts so the coach could identify us easier. At least I think that''s why he did it because he didn''t explicitly say. I got the number eight, and then we all got started with our first day of tryouts.


    Running around and doing exercises for the hour that the tryout took wasn''t even hard, it was just boring, so I turned my mind to other things. Other things being me gaining an intrinsic understanding of myself.


    My experience in this world was¡­ well not a lot. My experience in my old world was not a lot either, as I had been a very closed off person. I had never before had a job, or had many friends, hell I have only ever been to a couple tame parties throughout my life. It made me wonder why I had been so¡­ lifeless I guess in my last life. I hadn''t had any particular struggles or major successes in it, I hadn''t really tried very hard on much and even then I never picked up anything substantial in terms of motivation. I didn''t have a goal in my life is what I am trying to say.


    I didn''t have anything to live for, anything to die for or anything to push myself against. I was just¡­ existing.


    And even now, I am not much better. Sure I had plans on what I was going to do and how I wanted to do it, but in the end I didn''t have any particular goals or some strict moral code that I had memorized and am planning to live by. I just¡­ sort of lived life like a plastic bag, floated from one thing to the next. Maybe I gain something along the way, or maybe I get a few cuts, but in the end it was the breeze or my surroundings that moved me around to do things. I hadn''t taken control of my own life.


    Of course I could change, I could have had some epiphany about how I wanted to take control and live my life in some way or the other, but¡­ I didn''t. In the end, I was just one in a crowd of plastic bags and I was fine with that. So what if I don¡¯t have big dreams or aspirations? So what if I didn''t have rules on how I live my life? I could be my own person without these things.


    This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it.


    I could live my life without holding myself down, I could just be a normal guy. A normal guy who has the blood of a god flowing in their veins, but that doesn''t mean I have to change who I am. Sure I might get power, and I probably will if my little plans go as I think they will, but in the end I was always the friendly plastic bag that flowed around from one thing to the next. And maybe that was ok. I didn''t have to change, but I could always grow. Staying true to oneself was a good way to put my sudden philosophical thoughts. I would stay true to myself, and I would do what I could when I could. I didn''t need to be some storybook character or some comic book hero, I could just be me and live my life.


    Well, what my thought process was really like went along the lines of ¡®I wonder what I want to do in life?¡¯ then a few seconds of thinking later I thought, ¡®Eh, who cares. I can decide when I get there.¡¯ Yes, it was really poetic and everything. In my defence I thought better when I was not doing suicides with a bunch of sweaty tweens and was resting comfortably in my bed.


    Well other than that highly insightful moment I had, I did have some more useful thoughts come to my mind while I was exercising during that hour. I got a good look around and what I saw left me a bit confused. While I felt like I was just getting warmed up and wasn''t really feeling like even breathing heavily, a good half of the people in here were looking like they were about to fall over and were covered with sweat and were panting as they moved sluggishly to do the exercises. The rest of the people seemed to be doing better, though there were only a few people who seemed to not to be really pushed, and the rest seemed to be struggling a bit, they weren''t as bad as most.


    It seems that I might have put more effort into my training then I needed with middle school basketball. Though of course I haven''t trained for sports and was instead training for fighting and life and death situations like I knew I would get into, so that was what I needed.


    The coach also seemed to be a bit disappointed with the lackluster performance of the people who were really struggling through this and I could see him cross off something on his clipboard every once in a while, most likely the numbers of some people.


    But from the people who I had guessed would make it past the first day of the tryouts there was a particular group alongside me that seemed to be doing good. It was Jay, Tom, Vincent and Terry, the group that approached me before tryouts started. They seemed mostly ok guys I guess, though I haven''t really gotten to know them enough to really say. They honestly seemed like the most athletic guys in the tryouts and there were only a few who seemed to be around there and my level. There was a clear divide here.


    That was probably just how it was, and it made sense. Not everybody was willing to put in the work.


    Nothing particular happened besides my thinking and exercising during that hour however, so I walked out of the gym a bit bored and without a clear idea of what I wanted to do. I could go back to the Soul Forge and continue with trying to make a motion detector that actually worked. Though, I kind of wanted to relax or try something different for some reason. Maybe I could hang out with Percy and Grover for a bit.


    I started walking casually away from the gym and out of the small crowd of people however, I heard my name get called making me turn around to see Jay standing behind me. ¡°Hey, me and the guys were wondering if you wanted to come hang with us for a bit?¡± Jay asked casually, gesturing to the other three who were standing and talking with each other down just to the side of the swarm of exhausted kids that were exiting through the gym doors.


    I considered his offer for a second. I mean, I am honestly pretty sure that I would be on a basketball team with these guys soon so it would probably be a good thing to get to know these guys a bit. Plus they asked me to go so honestly it would be pretty rude if I didn''t go. Another plus is the fact that I honestly didn''t have any plans in particular.


    ¡°Sure, why not.¡± I accepted his offer with a smile, and walked with him to where the other guys were standing. The stream of students leaving the gym seemed to have ended as I walked over, as I noticed the hallway was mostly empty at this point. ¡°So, what do you guys normally do?¡± I ask once we rejoined with each other, looking around the small circle that we seemed to have formed once me and Jay caught up. The others didn''t really seem to know how to respond to my question, but Jay answered with a wry grin. ¡°Well¡­ how do you feel about leaving the school for a bit to get something good to eat? I could use some ice cream.¡± He asked, with a look that told me that yes, he knew that we were explicitly told we were not allowed to leave the school grounds, and no he did not care.


    I could get behind that though. I didn''t particularly care much about that particular rule either.


    I gave a grin in response to his question, ¡°That sounds as good a plan as any.¡± I acknowledge and as a group we started walking towards the back of the stream of students to head outside and into the city again. Now that I think about it, I don''t think I have had ice cream in this world as of yet. Finally having some would be a good change of pace.

 Chapter 26:

    Me, Jay, Vincent, Tom and Terry walked down the street a few seconds later, though I stayed towards the back of the group and stayed mostly silent with the rare exception of an occasional good joke that was made. I honestly didn''t really know why Jay singled me out to join them, but so far at least it wasn''t bad. I did feel a bit separated from the group, though that was mostly due to not having anything to say to the group to add to any of their jokes or whatever.


    It was at times like this that I remembered why I don''t like being social with large groups of people. But¡­ a decent relationship with the people who are most likely to get on the basketball team, maybe even alongside myself, is a good thing. If I get on the team and there is a good amount of people who very much do not like me, then there is a good chance that I won''t be able to play to the best of my ability and therefore get kicked off the team. It was then that I realized what I was doing here, really. ¡®God¡­ I am doing this for politics!¡¯ I realized with horror.


    That didn''t change anything however, so I just kept walking right along with the kids around me.


    It was this kind of thing that made me think about what I would rather be doing right now. I could be trying to figure out what went wrong with my motion detector that I was trying to make. I could be writing up the basic plan for the next ring I wanted to enchant. I could be hanging out with Percy or Grover. Kind of wish I was with them instead of Jay''s group. At least I wouldn''t have to listen to Terry and Tom one up each other on who was richer or had the best clothes. I will admit that when Vincent tried to get in on the argument by saying he had a mint condition DC comic, that got me to finally give an actual smile.


    Vincent wasn''t happy when the only thing he received for his efforts was an odd look from the pair and promptly got ignored again. He seemed to wilt a bit, but he perked up after a few seconds. I mean, what was he expecting? It was things like this that really showed that everyone is human. I did not expect for the big muscle bound jock guy of the group to have a comic book collection, or an interest in DC while also being in the ¡®basketball/popular/more rich than usual for this school¡¯ group. Of course I can''t say anything. I am learning to be a blacksmith for the gods'' sake.


    Whatever. Humans are weird. That''s not to say that demigods, monsters or other beings aren''t but humans probably take the cake against pretty much everything in one way or another.


    We turned the corner to where the ice cream parlor was visible from and I saw where we were going instantly. The building stuck out quite a bit from the larger surrounding brick stores, because while the surrounding buildings were the definition of normal this one shop looked like a building taken from the 1960s and plopped down in New York. The name on the storefront read Hope Ice Cream. The building was blue and white with a patterned cloth canopy over a few brightly colored benches below. It was like those photos where there is a single person in the focus of the camera and the background is all blurred and had less color, it just stood out and you knew that this is important. The building gives that odd effect, making it stand out quite a bit.


    Just as I thought we would, our group walked right to the odd parlor and we headed inside with Tom and Terry finally stopping their showing off contest with a word from Jay as we stepped inside.


    The inside was just as nice as the outside, with the blue and white sixties theme continuing with a little bit of pink mixed in here and there with chairs and the walls with a black and white tiled floor. There was a shiny counter a few feet away from the entrance and tables with cushioned benches lining the wall with the windows. There was also an old white haired woman standing by the counter wearing a bright pink and blue uniform and a smile as she turned her attention from the crowd of people enjoying their ice cream cones to the new customers, us.


    ¡°Well hello there! Just got off of school for the day, Jay? And brought some new friends too!¡± The woman at the counter, who was named Cally according to her name tag, said enthusiastically like an aunt greeting her niece who stopped by. They clearly knew each other as Jay smiled back at Cally. ¡°Hey, Cally. Yes, we just got off for the day after basketball tryouts. Ardika and Vincent are trying out for the team as well, so we decided to get to know each other a bit over some ice cream.¡± Jay explained, gesturing to me and Vincent as he explained.


    The old woman''s calculating look seemed to almost peirce right into my soul for a split second as she looked at me, then she turned to Vincent and the feeling was gone. It was odd, she kept her smile but as she examined both of us she seemed to have something in her eyes as she looked us over that made me uncomfortable. Then it was gone and the pleasant smile that Cally wore seemed to brighten a bit. ¡°Quite the new friends you have!¡± She said with a chuckle, though my instincts nudged me a bit as she said that.


    It was almost as if she knew something. I mean¡­ she seemed ok? There weren''t any monster ice cream parlors around in the universe according to the books, just Monster Donut and later the gorgons shop, so it was possible that I was reading too much into it. It''s possible that she could be a goddess or a demigod or something though, so I kept my guard up and put my right hand into my jacket pocket to clutch onto my dagger''s hilt but didn''t make any moves.


    I stayed calm and kept an eye on everything. But I could have sworn that the moment I gripped my dagger she gave me a subtle approving nod before she turned her attention back to Jay.


    ¡°I suppose you three want your regulars?¡± She asked with a smile as she looked between Jay, Tom and Terry, who all nodded before she turned back to Vincent and me. ¡°And what do you boys want?¡± She asked me and Vincent with a tilt of her head.


    ¡°Could I have a cookies and cream ice cream cone?¡± I asked with a smile, it''s been a long time since I had even had ice cream so I was obviously going with my favorite one.


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    ¡°Can I have a vanilla cone?¡± Vincent asked after me, with a small smile.


    ¡°Vanilla ice cream and cookies and cream¡­ I think this is the first time I have gotten an order for cookies and cream! Not very popular here for some reason. I will have your orders right up!¡± Cally exclaimed with a smile at me, though her words gave me pause. I wasn''t sure, but I was pretty certain that cookies and cream ice cream was in the top ten most popular ice cream flavours. Maybe it''s not popular in this universe? Or maybe that''s just a New York thing. I honestly don''t particularly care much.


    She served us our ice cream cones a second later however, putting that out of my mind as she lifted up five cones from behind the counter as soon as she had finished speaking. How did she do that? She couldn''t have prepared it in that short amount of time! She must have had it preprepaired. Wait a minute! That doesn''t make any sense either! She said she had never had an order for cookies and cream, so why would she have it prepared behind the counter?


    My surprise at what the woman had just done was apparently not noticed or shared by the other four as they reached out and took their cones in a second, with me only hesitating a second before doing the same and going to sit down at a nearby table with everyone except Jay who stayed behind to pay.


    I took a look at my ice cream cone for a second, a little bit of misgivings on my face at the prospect of taking the treat from this weird place but I licked it anyway and enjoyed the flavour of the ice cream as the other kids did. I waited for Jay to come back as I ate my ice cream. He seemed to be a regular here, or at least knew the old lady, Cally. So I wanted to ask some questions about her, and this place. Something about this seemed off and I do not like that I have no idea what.


    Jay came back after a moment, putting away his wallet as he did while licking at his caramel ice cream cone and sitting across from me at the table. ¡°You come here a lot?¡± I asked Jay curiously as soon as he had sat down, which caused him to look up at me with a lopsided smile. ¡°Not really, I came here a few times with my mom for business stuff. Cally has an insane memory, she remembers anyone who ever came in here and there orders.¡± He said.


    ¡°Impressive.¡± I said, sitting back and licking my ice cream thoughtfully.


    Jay seemed to notice that I was thinking about something, and his smile only increased as he watched. ¡°If you think that''s impressive, then listen to this!¡± He said excitedly and leaning forwards before continuing, ¡°I listened in on my mom talking about this place, and she said that this parlor just appeared out of thin air a year ago! One night this place was just an empty lot, then the next morning this building was just sitting here and all the records of ownership and stuff appeared that morning!¡±


    Now my brain was drawing parallels to the Monster Donut chain, and I did not like it.


    ¡°But that''s impossible.¡± I said continuing to act the part of a clueless kid, because I was, to get some more information. Jay just smirked and raised his hands in defence. ¡°It''s just what I heard.¡± He said quickly and took another lick of his ice cream.


    I didn''t think I would get any new information from Jay, so I licked my ice cream again and continued to think to myself. Monster Donut was a chain of donut shops that was tied to the lifeforce of a hydra, but now that I think back Anabeth did mention that it was an experiment by someone. Could it be that this is another experiment tying lifeforce to a monster? It made some sense¡­ But Percy and Annabeth''s main concern when the chain was the hydra that made its home nearby the locations. Theoretically, the shops themselves could be fine to eat at? It was never mentioned specifically besides some snippets of other people and monsters going to get donuts from the chain.


    ¡®As long as I keep a lookout for monsters that could attack then I could be fine?¡¯ Was my last thought on the matter before I realized how stupid I was being and my hand left the hilt of my dagger to go into the pocket I kept Masatr inside and slipped it onto my finger. ¡®Monsters should sense that I am a mortal now¡­ Though I never gave it a good round of tests to see if it actually works¡­ Whatever. I think it does, and the system said it should.¡¯ I thought with some relief, turning my eyes to gaze around me.


    The kids around me were back to talking and laughing with each other, with the exception of Vincent who was just looking at his ice cream with a frown and a look of confusion. He was probably trying to figure out why the others weren''t impressed by his comics or whatever. The other customers were all doing their own things as they ate their ice creams. Cally was looking at me with an odd expression that I couldn''t place when I turned my attention to her. She was looking at Masatr. Then she seemed to notice my gaze and gave me a nod, her expression changing slightly to show a little bit of respect before she turned her attention to a customer who was approaching the counter.


    She was not a normal mortal. That is for certain. I am sure of it. Too many things are adding up for it to be coincidences. However, no matter what she is, she hasn''t made a move yet. Letting my guard down would be stupid, but provoking her would be stupid.


    I relaxed myself against the padded bench and took a long lick of my ice cream, listening to the conversation around me while I ate my treat with an eye and ear on everything despite the calming and safe feeling environment. Just in case.


    My worries of being attacked seemed to be uncalled for however as we all finished up our ice cream and left to head back to the school and arrived a few minutes later, walking across the open field without a care in the world.


    As I walked back I slipped Masatr back into my jacket pocket and looked over the yard towards the school building and the dorm building. The fields were full of people hanging out in the summer sun, but my eyes managed to make out the pair of forms in the shade of a tree that I recognized as Percy and Grover.


    ¡°I will see you guys tomorrow!¡± I said to the group at large before splitting off to head to Percy and Grover from across the field to sit down.


    ¡°Hey.¡± I said as I walked over to the pair, sitting between Grover and Percy beneath the tree and causing Grover to look up from his snack and Percy to look over at Jay and his group that seemed to be heading for the dorm building. ¡°Hey, Ardika. You just got back from tryouts?¡± Percy asked me, turning his head away from the retreating backs of Jays group to look at me.


    His question caused me to feel a little uncomfortable as I realized that I didn''t even get the chance to talk to Percy or Grover before I left. ¡°No, that finished a while ago. I was just grabbing a treat with some of the other guys who were in tryouts.¡± I explained as I settled down, watching as Percy looked out at where Jay¡¯s group had been again. ¡°Right¡­¡± Percy said, a little more slowly than usual as he looked.

 Chapter 27:

    It was now the end of the week, the last day of tryouts. The days went pretty fast, not much change from the first day of tryouts if I am being honest. Training and school like normal, then exercise with some basketball added in for the hour of tryouts, I talk with Jay and his group for a bit then I go back to my dorms, occasionally with Percy and Grover, to chill for a bit before I head off to the Soul Forge to do blacksmithing and crafting stuff. I finally got a working motion detector on Thursday despite lowering the amount of time I had to mess with that project.


    But now it is Friday and I was sitting in the gym surrounded by the eighteen others who had made it this far in front of the coach before the last tryout day truly started. For me tryouts was a nice experience and I had learned a lot about the game that I didn''t know before, but there were usually around four people who got told they didn''t make the team at the end of every day, which is why there were much less people then when tryouts started.


    ¡°Hello again, kids.¡± Coach Stine announced as he stood in front of the crowd of guys in the gym, standing straight and looking around at us. ¡°CAN I HEAR IT FOR THE LAST DAY OF TRYOUTS?!¡± He shouted unexpectedly, with a wild grin on his face and causing the nervous atmosphere to vanish as everybody gave a combination of shouts and claps. I had to smile at the man''s ability to shift the mood. That was the kind of energy that I was simultaneously impressed with and envied.


    ¡°RIGHT!¡± He called out after the cheers had subsided. He waited a few seconds before readying to continue in his normal voice when he had all of our full attention, starting his instructions for today. ¡°Today is going to be tough for all of you!¡± He announced first, reeling in the mood and looking at all of us individually. ¡°As this is the last day of tryouts, we will be pushing all of you to see just who can be called to be part of the Golden Canons! We will divide into two teams of five and two teams of four and then we can get started!¡± He instructed us, then stepped back and letting us form up our teams.


    From there everybody stood and we all created our groups over the next minute. Jay, Tom, Vincent, Terry and me were all together when we were made to make groups of five so we all just looked between us and gave a nod before standing separate from the confusion as our own group. The five of us were pretty good during whatever drills the coach made us do, and though we haven''t played any actual games or team drills yet I think we would do pretty good. Jay put together a good group.


    Once the chaos subsided and the coach sorted out the last two groups because they, as he said, ¡®Are a bunch of dunderheads who can''t count!¡¯. I do not envy them, at all. I would have definitely been in that group if I wasn''t in Jay¡¯s group.


    But as soon as everybody had been sorted out he began to explain what we would be doing today for our final day of practice. There were four teams with two of the teams playing at any one time, and those two teams would play against each other until somebody gets a point, then the losing team would be switched out with one of the other teams and repeat. Of course he explained that the point wasnt to get as many points as possible, but to show how we handled ourselves on the court with a team that we had to work with. Nobody quite believed him though. As if getting points wasn''t exactly how we were supposed to show our skills.


    Then after he explained everything he told two of the other teams that they were playing first. I didn''t quite remember most of the names of the people on either team, but I recognized that there was a rather good guy named Dev playing alongside another decently good guy named Harry, with them going against Tony and John alongside three others on their team. The teams seemed pretty balanced, with a good amount of people who are better than average and a few more average players per team. I mean¡­ I definitely wasn''t the one to be judging basketball skills, but that''s how it seemed to me.


    Both teams huddled up on the court for a moment while the other two teams that weren''t playing, including myself, went off to the side to watch and wait.


    It only took a minute for the teams to break apart and arrange themselves on the court while the coach walked back in from grabbing a basketball and they all prepared to start the game. Harry approached the center with John coming opposite to him, both being surrounded by their teammates. The coach walked to the center of the gym, both John and Harry crouching a bit to try their best to win the tip off and start with the ball.


    Then it was tossed into the air by the coach, causing both John and Harry to leap into the air with hands outstretched to the ball, John seemed to get his fingers on the ball and started to push it away. But at the very last second Harry got his hand in the way and shoved it back to his team, with a lanky black haired guy that I don''t remember the name of receiving it.


    Then they were off, dribbling quickly down the court with a blond haired guy from the other team keeping close by while the other people. Just as he passed the three point line however, the guy with the ball managed to pivot quickly and lob the ball to Dev who was shouting instructions to the other people as he got them into position. Then Dev passed the ball to a guy wearing white sweatpants with brown hair, who was in just the right position as per Dev''s instructions and received it without any problem. He turned and was about to shoot, but at the last second Tony swiped the ball away and he started dribbling down the court with speed with Harry just behind him as he tried to stop him.


    John was running along to the left of Tony, almost completely undefended as another stocky blond guy tried to defend him but wasn''t doing a great job. I could barely see Tony¡¯s eyes flickering and seeing John, but he kept moving on anyways and was at the two point line in a moment, preparing to shoot from there despite his disadvantageous position. He threw it in an instant and I could tell that it was a good shot, but then Harry leaped into the ball''s path and grabbed it in the air, passing it away to Dev behind him.


    I could see that Tony was angry and he glared around at his teammates as he turned to track the ball. He then yelled something with anger that I couldn''t quite make out, which made the guy defending Dev glance away from him for a split second, but that was enough when Dev went around him and shooting from the two point area and just barely scoring a point for his team.


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    Dev''s team cheered as the ball went in, and the man himself got high fives all around as they grouped together. Tony was pissed as he approached his team and he was yelling a lot about how bad they were. I couldn''t help but notice that he never said he did anything wrong, just everybody else. His team was not impressed by Tony as they went to sit back down.


    ¡°Next team up! Jay¡¯s team get on in there!¡± The coach yelled out as he walked up to get the ball back and start the next game. ¡®Great¡­ Well, let''s hope all that practice and things translate to some skill at the game¡­¡¯ I thought to myself with some trepidation as we all stood up.


    Jay was all smiles though, as he patted everyone on the back as we walked up. ¡°Come on guys! We are going to crush this!¡± He said with a grin as he looked down at the other team on the other end of the court.


    I smiled and stretched my arms a bit to get ready as I walked down to our side of the court. Tom started jogging beside me, before going ahead of all of us. ¡°I¡¯m on tip off!¡± he shouted back to us, and I could see Jay hesitate beside me at his words before he just shook his head with a sigh. ¡°Trust me! That ball is ours!¡± He shouted back as he approached the center of the gym where the coach and the other team was waiting with Harry once again coming up to do the tip off.


    I just gave a slight frown as I saw him running up without asking or anything. I mean, he is exactly the one who I would have recommended to go do it anyways seeing as he was the tallest one of us, but for him to just go do that¡­ Not a great start on team communications.


    Vincent and Terry didn''t seem to think anything of it however, as they went into position around Harry and Tom alongside me and Jay without changing their confident grins whatsoever. Jay recovered from the momentary pause in his enthusiasm quickly however and moved beside Terry towards the back with me on the very right side of our semicircle.


    Then in the next second when everybody was ready and watching, the ball was tossed into the air. My legs and arms tensed as I watched the ball go up, Tom and Harry jumped, then Harry stretched out his long arms and swatted the basketball to his team while Tom barely reached Harry''s wrist from his jump.


    Damn. I winced while already starting to move while keeping my eyes on the basketball that was down the court in the hands of a guy with black dreadlocks who was dribbling his way down the court at speed with Vincent on his way to intercept him. I went to defend Dev, standing in front of him as he tried to escape from my defence, but he couldn''t seem to get free of me even while I was watching the ball.


    While defending against possible passes wasn''t what I had trained Deflection for or even thought would work until just this moment, I could somehow feel openings in my defence against possible incoming balls like a pressure in my mind and I just knew where to move to defend against it. Though that was the most accurate description I could give. How passive skills like that worked was more like instincts being manipulated or amplified than anything like some kind of HUD overlay that one could just show or explain. It''s like I just knew to some extent what I should do and what was happening without using my eyes. It was incredible that the two main effects of the passive weaving together into one seamless feeling or sense like this, a huge step up from normal Deflection training.


    But in the next instant my thoughts on my passive ability were cut off abruptly as Vincent reached the guy with dreadlocks. My thoughts and eyes locked in on Vincent¡¯s initial attempt to steal the ball while the guy tried to evade his reaching arms. Vincent''s arms seemed to blur as he swung them together as fast as he could while the ball was exposed to him, before grabbing and pulling them away with the ball in his hands. ¡°Nice!¡± I exclaimed in appreciation for the clear skill that went into that steal.


    Then I could see Vincent turn towards my voice, and I could see him lining up his shot to pass to my position farther down the court and free of any immediate defenders as Dev was still recovering and racing back to me as he tried to defend me like I was doing to him just a second ago.


    The ball went flying through the air and in my mind I could feel the path that the ball would take while I positioned myself to receive the ball. Then I got a blaring warning from Evasion coming from my left! I could sense that Dev was coming in hot, jumping into the air to catch the ball just in front of me! I was calm though, as I instantly started to feel my Deflection passive kick in when my eyes turned to his hands and I made a jump to follow through with the path to deflect him in my mind.


    My body moved with my hands, with them moving up and deflecting one of Dev¡¯s hands with only a slight adjustment from my passive while the ball was coming in and letting only one of his hands make contact with the ball making it get pushed to my right and right into my waiting hands. Then everything sped back up again and while Dev staggered a bit from not landing exactly properly, most likely from hitting my back as he came down, I was off dribbling hard down the practically open path down the right side of the court to the other team''s net.


    I could hear shouts from both sides, but I didn''t hear anything of value so I just kept dribbling down the court to the three point line where I let myself come to a stop. My Throwing Skills passive activated as I brought my hands to the ball and prepared to throw and I started feeling the trajectory I needed to throw the ball to score, before I moved in the next instant following through and shooting the ball. I held my breath as I watched the basketball start to arc through the air, my mind racing as I could feel my skill send a positive feeling through my mind. Then it went in, and I raised my hands above my head with a loud and relieved ¡°Woo!¡± as I watched the ball fall in. Nothing but net.


    ¡°That was insane!¡± I could hear shouted from someone behind me, as I turned around with a grin. My teammates were jogging their way to me with equal grins on their faces, moving around the still and dejected players of the other team, most of them having that distinct look that people did when somebody did something impressive but they were on the other team.


    What happened next was a round of high fives and a little bit of laughing from my teammates while I was just as impressed by what I did as they were. My pasives were really pulling their weight even while so low of level.


    Dev also walked up with a grin on his face as he approached me. ¡°I got to say, that was impressive. Good game man.¡± He said with a smile, and he put forward an outstretched hand which I reciprocated and gave me a firm shake before backpedaling back to the audience. ¡°I will get you next time!¡± He shouted back with amusement and challenge in his voice. ¡°I doubt it!¡± I called back, with a grin as he retreated. ¡®I doubt it, because I got some weirdass system that is making my mind and body go beyond that of a normal human¡­¡¯ I thought internally with a slight sense of something that I couldn''t quite identify as Dev gave a smirk before he turned back to his team.


    Still¡­ I was probably going to make it on the team this year if I could keep doing stuff like that.

 Chapter 28:

    The air was full of anticipation and nerves the second Coach called everybody over to the side of the gym at the official end of tryouts. I was definitely calmer than most of the kids around me, but I had my share of anticipation and some nerves. This did start out as just a spur of the moment lie¡­ but I think this will be interesting to at least try out. I never did anything like this back during my first life. If I don''t get on the team then honestly I am going to be pretty disappointed, but at the same time I don''t really have the drive to play like some of the guys here did so I would understand and I doubt that not getting on the team would make much of a long lasting impact to me.


    I walked with the rest of the kids and I ended up sitting next to Vincent and Jay, facing the coach from the back of the group and leaning against the wall as I sat down. The coach looked like he was conflicted as he started to pace in front of the group while we all sat down, but as soon as the last guy took a seat he stood still and looked between us with a hard look.


    ¡°This was a great practice today.¡± He started out with a small smile growing on his face, ¡°It has become very clear to me who our team is going to be this year, so I will be calling the twelve of you up right here, right now and congratulate you. For the rest of you, I hope that even if you don''t get chosen for the team this year, you take all that disappointment and you turn that into a firm will to get better, to do better. You might just get onto the team next year if you do, and we will all be here for it.¡± He told us, which made me blink a bit. This guy should have become a writer or something. That was some motivational speech he just gave.


    The other kids around me seemed to agree and a few nodded along with his words. But a second later, everybody stopped and the mood shifted as the coach pulled up the clipboard he was carrying and started reading it.


    ¡°Number one, Dev, come on up!¡± He called out, making me smile a bit as the kid rose to his feet and went to stand beside Mr. Stine. Then he continued listing the people, making them stand beside him and each other one by one. ¡°Number twenty, Tom! Number nine, Jay! Number twenty one, Harry! Number fourteen, Hans!¡± The four of them stood up, Jay giving me and the rest of our group a grin as he walked up.


    ¡°Number four, Terry! Number eleven, Tony!¡± The two of them got up, and joined. ¡°Number twenty seven, Harper! Number three, Roy! Number six, John!¡± They all got up one after the other and walked up, all grinning. That left two spots¡­


    ¡°Number eight, Ardika!¡± He called out, shocking me a bit. I stood up and walked to the front, trying to keep calm but I was still grinning as I walked. I honestly didn''t think I would get on. I pumped my fist a bit once I was standing beside Jay and the others on the team. Everybody that Jay picked out and went to that weird ice cream parlor was on the team. Except for Vincent, but Jay had a great eye.


    ¡°Number two, Vincent! Come on up!¡± The coach said and put down his clipboard as the big guy stood and walked over. ¡®Jay really does have a great eye. If he chose who to invite to join his little group based on who he thought would be on the team anyway¡­¡¯ I thought to myself, a little impressed as I looked between the team. Most of my teammates were people I thought would get on the team, so maybe I didn''t have such a bad eye myself. Roy, Hans and Harper were a little bit of a surprise, but not much. They were pretty good.


    I gave Vincent a grin as he came up and he gave a smile back before he went to stand to the side before my attention was brought back to the coach again as he turned to the group still sitting on the ground. They were not happy, but I could see some dull acceptance in most of their eyes. Only a few were throwing murderous and angry looks our way¡­ That was probably not a problem.


    ¡°So¡­ you guys didn''t make it. You can head back to your dorms now.¡± Mr. Stine said pointedly, his speech about how the people who don''t get in needed to work on their skills already said and now he was now apparently finished with them. They got up without a word and left the gym. I could hear some consoling words between friends in the group when they left the gym, but my attention and sympathy was turned away and back to the coach as he turned to us.


    ¡°Right! Congratulations everybody!¡± He called out with a smile as he looked out at us. ¡°We have some talent and skill in the team this year, so let''s work hard and we can crush everybody! We have a practice every Monday, Wednesday and Friday here in the gym from four to five thirty! Don''t be late!¡± He announced, giving us the plan before giving a smile. ¡°We will talk more on Monday, team. Have a good weekend.¡± He said and waved us away before walking off himself, probably to put away the basketball rack that was sitting in the direction he was walking.


    Then everybody on the team started grinning and letting loose, me included with a grin and accepting high fives all around from Jay''s group and a fist bump from Dev. Chatter started all around me as we all headed to the door, but I stayed mostly silent unless somebody said something to me, observing the way everybody interacted to get a grip on the group''s dynamics.


    Jay seemed to get along with just about everyone and was in the process of trying to form at least a familiarity between everybody somehow. I genuinely don''t understand how extroverts like Jay can just get people talking with each other and just become friends like that. But besides Jay''s stuff, it seemed that Tom, Vincent and Terry (The rest of Jay''s initial group) seemed to be friends with each other now. Roy seemed like a loner, but got in a conversation with Dev pretty easily. Harper and Hans seemed to have a frenemy sort of relationship, while both were friends with John, Harry and Tony. Dev just seemed to be friends or at least friendly with just about everybody.


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    I on the other hand was pretty sure that I was somewhere between Dev and Roy in everything. Sure I knew Jay and his initial group a bit, but I wasn''t particularly socal or anything in the group. I also got along with the others pretty well.


    My thoughts were distracted as I heard Jay speaking up to the group as a whole a few seconds later in the hallway. ¡°Everybody! Celebration in my dorm tomorrow at nine! Mine is room thirty if you didn''t know! Bring snacks!¡± He announced with a grin, raising a few cheers and laughs from the group as we exited the building to go our own ways.


    I started jogging down the grass to a particular spot beneath a tree by the dorms with a wild grin as I saw Percy under the tree. I think this has become his spot somehow.


    He saw me as I approached him and he sat up a bit straighter against the tree trunk, waving me over. ¡°What''s the news?¡± He asked me, tilting his head questioningly as he saw me grinning. ¡°I got on the team.¡± I said with a bit of a surprised laugh as it finally seemed to register in my mind.  ¡°Really?¡± Percy asked, looking at me for a second before grinning himself. ¡°Wow Ardi, that is a huge surprise. You haven''t trained at all!¡± He responded sarcastically before laughing as I sat down beside him and gave him a bit of a shove to the shoulder while smiling a bit. ¡°That''s fair.¡± I admitted, sighing as I sat down.


    Then I paused as I realized what he said and looked over my shoulder at him. ¡°Ardi? Really?¡± I asked, a little hesitantly. That was a popular nickname back in my last life, but I supposed I didn''t expect to be called it here. That''s what Jake and my mom used to call me¡­


    Percy seemed to realize that something was up, probably my face giving it away or something. ¡°Hey, if you don''t like it then-¡± Percy started, only to be interrupted by me as I cut him off. ¡°No, it''s ok man. It''s good.¡± I said firmly, leaning against the tree and looking up into the branches and the sky above. The leaves of the tree were already yellow and starting to fall off. It''s fall now. Almost winter. When did that happen? I didn''t notice¡­


    ¡°So¡­ Celebration? Maybe we could get some good food tomorrow night in our dorm.¡± Percy suggested, bringing me out from my thoughts. ¡°Sorry, I don''t think I can do it tomorrow. I got a celebration with the team that I think I am going to. How about we sneak out later tonight and get some ice cream before bed? I know a place.¡± I responded idly, glancing at Percy over my shoulder. ¡°Just you Grover and me?¡± I prompted as he looked conflicted.


    ¡°That sounds great.¡± Percy responded with a chuckle. I nodded and leaned back against the trunk again, closing my eyes and finally relaxing after the whole tryout ordeal.


    Then I felt Percy nudge me and stand up quickly, causing me to open my eyes and blink for a second before I looked out at what startled Percy. There were a good three guys from the basketball tryouts that haven''t made the cut walking to us from a little distance away. The same guys who looked angry about them not making the team¡­ and were still angry about it judging by their faces and the aggressive way they were walking straight towards up¡­


    ¡°We should go¡­¡± I whispered as I stood up as well, glancing at Percy who was looking a bit confused. It was then that the big guys started running towards us. I nearly drew my daggers from my side at the sight, but I resisted the feeling. Kids might me way more intimidating when they were the same size as you, but they were still kids. ¡°Run!¡± I called out to Percy in an instant, turning and looking the opposite way from the mad kids and seeing the dorm building and the forest area behind it. Forest is better, we could accidentally lead them to our dorm room if we went there.


    ¡°With me! This way!¡± I called out to Percy and we both bolted down the lawn quickly. Percy had not been training for months however, so he was much slower than me. I slowed down to stay just ahead of him, leading the way to the forest without letting him get too far behind me as we ran away from the angry kids that were gaining on us by the second. They might not have made the team, but they were still pretty fast compared to Percy at least. They definitely would catch us if we were playing fair and were heading into the dorm building like they thought. But they were annoyed as we entered the forest, I could hear their shouts and taunts already.


    ¡°I love you guys too!¡± I shouted back sarcastically as we entered the forest¡¯s edge and together me and Percy started to weave between the thick tree trunks, roots and branches alongside the other plants as we made our way deeper into the forest, me guiding both of us into the clearing I found earlier.


    We stopped running as we reached the clearing and I started listening. Percy was panting pretty hard from sprinting here, but I couldn''t hear anything else. They didn¡¯t follow us. If they had, they would definitely not be trying to be quiet and definitely not good at it in a thick forest during fall.


    I gave a sigh of relief and sat down on a log off to the side to recover. ¡°They didn¡¯t follow us.¡± I commented with some relief to Percy, who then gave a groan as he sat beside me on the log. I looked over to him with a grin, and he looked up at me before starting to laugh. I joined in with him as I could feel the relief from the last minute alongside some of the amusement of what had just happened come over my face with a sideways smile.


    Our laughter trailed off soon enough however and I gave a sigh, looking over to Percy. ¡°Hey, sorry about that.¡± I said, wincing as I said it and causing him to look over to me with a question in his eyes. ¡°They were some guys who didn''t make it onto the basketball team¡­ I don''t know why they went after me, but they were pissed off about it.¡± I explained with a scoff at their expense.


    ¡°Ah¡­ No, it''s alright man.¡± Percy brushed off my apology with a little smile.


    It was right then that I heard a Pop! and I looked up to see a system screen appear in the air in front of me with something written across it, but I ignored it and mentally pushed it out of the way. I could deal with whatever that was in a minute.


    I looked up into the bright but cloudy sky again with a bit of a grin.

 Chapter 29:

    ¡°So¡­ You been here before?¡± Percy asked after a second, making me look over to him as he looked around. ¡°Yes, I come here a lot actually. It''s a nice place.¡± I responded automatically, then wincing a bit to myself as I realized that I slipped up.


    ¡°So, you work out here?¡± Percy asked curiously as he looked around the clearing one more time before looking back at me. ¡°Yeah. It''s out of the way.¡± I said appreciatively before smiling to myself, ¡°Plus going and working out in a forest every morning sounded cool when I found it.¡±


    Percy laughed a bit with a nod. ¡°Got to admit, it does sound cool.¡± He commented, though there was an odd edge to his voice when he said that. Before I could do more than glance over at him however, he stood up. ¡°Let''s go.¡± He offered me his hand, ¡°Sitting on a log is getting a bit old.¡± I took his hand and let him help me up, before giving a sigh. ¡°Ok, sounds good to me.¡± I chuckled and started to let my thoughts wander.


    I had a notification from the system to take a look at, though it was probably the rewards for the quest for getting on the basketball team. I really wanted another Passive Ability. They are turning out to be overpowered, though in an odd way. It was like I had trained my mind and body to be great at some things, and on the way I figured out how to harness my sixth sense and instincts to an insane degree. Though when I thought about it, everything that my pasives give me¡­ is at least theoretically possible for a human to do.


    Perfect Recollection, Speed Reading, Builder, Architect, Blacksmithing, Dagger skills, Deflection, Evasion, Tracking, Stealth, every part of those skills are humanly possible. If the sixth sense is taken as fact of course, but now that I have experienced the heightened version the system abilities give me I am pretty sure that I have experienced something similar before.


    The only thing that most people would think doesn''t quite fit that description is the Ring Maker ability, but it uses the natural energies of the soul to work so unless you couldn''t learn to use your souls energy¡¯s anyone could theoretically do it with enough training. It was difficult, but so was learning quantum physics or harnessing the sixth sense apparently.


    So¡­ is the entirety of the system just aiding the learning process of abilities and skills? Instinct, knowledge, muscle memory¡­ That is the sum of what the system did so far as far as I could tell.


    That puts into question how the skills and knowledge were developed in the system, but when I had started learning about ring enchanting I had gotten flashes of memory from the perspective of a student. Is that what the system is doing? It chooses hosts, collects their skills and knowledge before moving onto the next host and letting them develop? It''s an interesting idea. The better the host, the better the system will be for that host and the better the host will be for the system.


    Of course I could be reading into things too much and there were a lot of guesses in that idea, but it doesn''t make a bad working theory.


    Maybe some entity wants the skills and knowledge of the multiverse somewhere, and this system is the collection device?


    I was brought back to reality as I entered the dormitory building and noticed I was alone again. I looked around for a second in confusion, wasn''t Percy beside me a moment ago? I didn''t see him around however, so I just shrugged and headed up to the stairs and into my dorm room. The dorm room was the same as ever, and I went to my bed and sat down to relax with a sigh. I looked up at the ceiling and pulled up the system notification that I had gotten in the forest.


    The blue screen blinked into my vision and I started reading the text that was scrawled across it. ¡°Quest completion requirements met for quest: The Long Game. Rewards available for choice: One Passive Ability or 100 Ring Gold along with one free level in a Passive Ability of your choice.¡± The system notification read out and stayed in my vision, blinking the choice of rewards at me. ¡®Right! I was right about the notification. I seem to be a pretty good guesser lately.¡¯ I thought to myself before taking another look at the screen.


    ¡°Ok, this choice is a no brainer.¡± I admitted to myself without hesitation. I had already chosen what I would choose when I received the quest. The system screen blinked as I directed the system to select the Passive Ability from the rewards. ¡°You have received the Passive Ability: The Long Game.¡± The new screen read out, and my head tilted to the side. ¡°The Long Game? That''s the Passive¡¯s name? That''s weird¡­¡± I commented in confusion. The other Passive Ability¡¯s names were much more straightforward and were named the ability it improved. But The Long Game was different in the way it wasn''t an ability, but more like a title. In fact it was also the name of the quest.


    I opened up my status screen to take a look at the description of the weird Passive.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Statistics


    </td>


    <td>


    Passive Abilities


    </td>


    <td>


    Skills


    </td>


    <td>


    Active Quests


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Name: Ardika Ekia


    Physical age: 12 years old


    Birthdate: August 12


    Gender: Male


    Race: Human/God hybrid


    </td>


    <td>


    Adaptation


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    Adaptive system


    Perfect Recollection


    Ring Maker Lv10


    Speed Reading Lv4


    Builder Lv4


    Architect Lv1


    Blacksmithing Lv1


    Dagger Skills Lv10


    Deflection Lv4


    Evasion Lv3


    Tracking Lv2


    Stealth Lv1


    Throwing Skills Lv1


    The Long Game Lv1:


    Increases recognition of when a person is unconvinced by an act or lie of your construction and increases the ability to recognize possible ways to convince people of a long term lie or act.


    </td>


    <td>


    Appraisal


    Soul Forge Lv1


    </td>


    <td>


    (No active quests)


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    ¡®So it looks like I got a few levels here and there that I didn''t notice immediately, namely Deflection and Evasion. That made sense though, I think my training at basketball using the skills leveled them up.¡¯ I thought to myself as I did a quick scan of the long status screen before I turned my eyes to my new skill.


    ¡°Wow¡­ that is one hell of an ability, but damn it makes me guilty¡­¡± I mutter to myself as I read it over.


    First off, it allows me to see if a lie I made convinced someone or not which would probably be useful when things got started for real. Then it also gave the extra ability to figure out how I could convince them. Though interestingly, the second part says it applies to ¡®a long term lie or act¡¯ rather than an ¡®act or lie of your construction¡¯ which means the two parts would activate in different situations. If I made up a lie that I was a double agent, then both abilities would activate, but if I was lying to the police and I told them I was not involved with something then only the first ability would work. Similarly if someone made up a story to lie to someone then only only the second ability would work. It¡¯s weird that it isn''t more general, like other abilities.


    But honestly the description and type of ability it is, is making me guilty about how I got the ability. Technically¡­ I could say I didn''t lie. I did get on the basketball team because of my training, but that wasn''t why I was training to begin with. It was just lucky my training seemed to be good for getting onto the team. I would have some explaining to do as soon as Percy knew about who he was¡­ I would tell Percy then. I couldn''t do it before or it would mess everything up, but I would be able to do it after. Maybe at camp. Oh, and I guess I will apologize to Grover then too.


    But really, only good things came from the little lie so¡­ It sort of evens out? Then again, Percy wasn''t the one who got the benefits so it doesn''t really excuse anything. Maybe ice cream can balance out those ¡®karmic scales¡¯ the psychics like to talk about.


    I sigh, closing the status menu without a word and blinking at the ceiling. Wait, the ice cream¡­ Wasn''t I supposed to be doing something? Oh, I was supposed to be looking for Grover. Wait, where did Percy go?


    I had been completely in my own little world of thoughts¡­ Seriously, I needed to learn to control that. It''s turning into a problem. I groaned to myself and tried to focus, reviewing my memories to figure out what I had missed when I wasn''t paying attention. Perfect Recollection proved its worth once again as I noticed that Percy quietly walked away, saying ¡°I am going to check the school for Grover.¡± and heading across the field into the school building. Ok, that makes sense.


    I got to my feet and changed out of my sweaty clothes and into some fresh ones before walking with a frown out of my room and towards Grovers dorm room at the end of the brightly lit hallway. I had a reputation of doing things like this in my first life and it sucked.


    Seriously I needed to put some kind of effort in to avoid things like that. This is a world of monsters, though not exactly wild it was still dangerous for demigods like myself. Especially if said demigod was so absorbed in their thoughts that they couldn''t notice that someone that was with them left.


    I reached the end of the hallway and I knocked on Grovers dorm room, bouncing on my heels a bit as I waited to see if Grover was here. The door opened with a dull squeak almost as soon as I had knocked, though to my surprise I didn''t see Grover and instead saw a casually dressed Dev.


    ¡°Oh, hey Dev. I was looking for Grover, he in there?¡± I asked, blinking in surprise as Dev stood in the door frame, looking confused for a second before my words wiped away his expression and replacing it with an understanding expression before he shook his head. ¡°No, he went out for an early supper I think. He is probably still there.¡± He explained and causing me to smile a bit as I heard where he was. Percy would have found him by now then. ¡°Thanks for telling me.¡± I thanked him before taking a step backwards to meet with Grover and Percy. ¡°No problem, see you at the party tomorrow I suppose.¡± Dev said casually before shutting the door as I gave him a thumbs up and started walking down the hallway to the stairs.


    I found Percy soon enough, but he was alone as he walked across the field with a look of mild concern. ¡°Hey, I just met Grovers roommate and he said that Grover went to eat early? I didn''t know you could do that, but did you find him?¡± I asked Percy as I walked along the grassy yard towards him.


    ¡°No, I didn''t find him anywhere.¡± Percy said, looking concerned now as he took a look around the yard. I frowned at that, taking a look around. ¡°Well¡­ you saw him last, did he say anything to you after I left for practice?¡± I asked inquisitively, a little concerned now.


    ¡°I mean¡­ He said his stomach was hurting before he left I guess, but he said he just wanted to lie down for a bit.¡± Percy said after thinking for a moment. ¡°He probably went to the nurse then.¡± I reasoned and exhaled in relief as we started heading to our next target.


    <hr>


    ¡°He went home for the day. He was feeling pretty sick so he got picked up.¡± The nurse broke the news, making me blink. ¡°You can do that?¡± I asked out loud to myself, really surprised by that. The nurse did not respond however, and so Percy and I walked out with a look of confusion and a little bit of worry. Wait a minute, he went home? Grover went home. Home. Grovers home was Camp Half-blood. What was he doing, heading back to camp? Why?


    I stopped myself from thinking too hard about it though as I looked over to a concerned Percy. ¡°He¡¯ll be fine.¡± I reassured Percy quickly, with a smile as we walked to our dorm. ¡°And hey, more ice cream for later right? Or less pressure on my wallet, but whatever.¡± I quipped naturally, bringing a laugh from Percy as we walked and causing Percy to stop worrying about Grover.


    Grover won''t know what he is missing.

 Chapter 30:

    It has been about an hour since supper, and so me and Percy were walking down a street of New York almost an hour before sunset. We were talking about schoolwork, classes, teachers and a few different kids for the last few minutes, mostly just complaining about them to be honest. But as we got closer to the strange ice cream parlor, there was a moment of silence where we just looked out at the bright nineties style parlor. Percy looked like he was interested though a bit confused as he glanced between me and it.


    I just looked at Percy with an amused smile before gesturing to the enticing building. ¡°What do you think? I just found out about this place.¡± I asked, interested in what Percy''s reaction would be. ¡°It''s¡­ Well it''s something, alright.¡± Percy commented as he looked out at it, ¡°It looked like somewhere my mom would have grown up with.¡± He said with a half smile and an appraising look at it. ¡°You would think so, because of the style, but actually it just appeared like this, right here, a year or so ago. It''s pretty new.¡± I commented without much thought, though that caused me to remember why I was concerned about this place to begin with.


    ¡®Why did I even suggest we come here¡­¡¯ I thought to myself in a bit of confusion, and looked back at my thoughts and actions for a second. The feeling I got when I did that was strange. Like there was a slight feeling in my mind that made this place the first thing my brain thought of, like a¡­ mental effect placed on me¡­ Right. That''s not concerning at all.


    ¡°Well, let''s go get some ice cream!¡± I announced despite my better judgement that was telling me to stay away.


    I was fine, and it''s not like I was completely defenceless. I had my daggers attached firmly under my leather jacket and very easy access to the Soul Forge, because I am able to summon a door to it literally on a whim. Though¡­ my mind doesn''t have any protections. Let''s hope that stuff in movies about being able to protect your mind through sheer willpower and determination has some truth to it if I encounter a more malicious mental thingy. Thankfully a mild compulsion to go here when I want to get ice cream or a treat isn''t¡­ all that bad. I mean, it''s morally ambiguous, but it doesn''t have a malicious sort of goal, so it''s fine I suppose.


    Before I could let my thoughts trail off into a spiel about mental influencing though, me and Percy arrived by the double glass doors of the bright and richly colored building.


    I opened the door up for Percy as I walked ahead of him and he walked into the inside of the old style parlor. Then in a flash, I swear I felt an odd feeling that made the hairs at the back of my neck stand on end. It wasn''t from the system''s abilities though. It was too different, more instinctual and less refined than my abilities had ever been even at level one, much less. But it was there, the odd feeling that I was being watched. I took a second to glance around while I put my hands into my pocket and carefully maneuvered Masatr onto my finger while keeping my hands on my two steel dagger¡¯s hilts.


    The street was deserted, and the sky was clear. That made me more uneasy than if I had seen a monster standing a foot from me.


    Then the feeling seemed to fade, and my fast beating heart stilled while I stepped inside behind Percy. He had barely taken a few steps as he looked around, appreciating the ice cream parlor¡¯s interior. My eyes however caught on the old lady at the counter and rested there. Cally and I seemed to share a moment of brief communication. I couldn''t quite tell what she got from my eyes and face, but she nodded and gestured for me to wait before turning to Percy and tilting her head carefully. Then she looked back at me as if asking a question. I gave a shake of my head.


    ¡°Hello there! Welcome back, Ardika. And who might your friend be?¡± She said enthusiastically, and causing Percy to finally look at her in a moment of embarrassment. ¡°Ah, I am Percy ma''am. Percy Jackson.¡± He introduced himself with a half smile as he gave her a nod.


    She seemed to recognize his name somehow, a slight widening of her eyes giving it away. That in turn caused me to widen my eyes as a stray thought caught in my mind on her recognition. Then my thoughts were wiped away as she smiled. ¡°Ah! I knew I recognized that face! You''re not by chance Sally Jackson¡¯s son, Percy?¡± She asked, making me and Percy blink before I gave a slight grin and a small internal laugh at my own thoughts.


    ¡°Uh, yes. You know my mom?¡± Percy confirmed with a slight hint of confusion and hesitation in his voice, and almost causing me to laugh from second hand embarrassment but I held it in with a small snort.


    The glance he gave me didn''t help either and I couldn''t help but smile before he turned back to Cally as she responded with a hint of amusement in her voice and smile of her own. ¡°Yes, she visits me in the afternoons sometimes for her lunch break! She doesnt work far from here, and this place is a good spot for a treat.¡± She explained with a chuckle and waved around to emphasize her point.


    ¡°Speaking of treats¡­ what will you boys be getting tonight?¡± She asked us then, smoothly redirecting the conversation as Percy¡¯s eyes seemed to brighten.


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    ¡°Right¡­ a cookies and cream ice cream cone sounds good!¡± I ordered with a smile, and turned to Percy who looked curious. ¡°What''s cookies and cream?¡± He asked me curiously, which made me blink in mild surprise. ¡°Oh, it''s normal ice cream with chunks of chocolate oreo cookies in it.¡± I responded with a bit of confusion. Is it really this unknown, here in New York? It was very popular back home at least. Maybe it is an alternate universe thing. It''s probably an alternate universe thing.


    Percy ordered the cookies and cream ice cream cone as well and after I paid, we received our cones and both went to sit down at a table, one by the door.


    ¡°Ah, Ardika. Would you come here for a second?¡± I heard Cally ask from behind the counter just before I could sit down beside Percy at the table. I paused, then turned my head to her and gave a nod before turning to Percy and giving him a pat on the shoulder. ¡°Be right back.¡± I told him with a slight edge to my tone that I couldn''t quite repress before I turned and walked to the counter before Percy could respond.


    ¡°What did this place do to my mind? Some kind of magic?¡± I whispered, a little annoyed to the old woman behind the counter who just smiled. ¡°It''s simply a feature of the parlor. I could remove the effect from you and your friend if you want? Though I assure you that it''s entirely harmless.¡± She responded, looking amused. I just sighed. God¡­ this is a situation. I have no knowledge about this at all and whatever this woman is, or this shop for that matter, it''s powerful.


    I slumped on the counter a bit as I leaned forward. ¡°Yes, please. Even if it is harmless, I don''t like my mind being messed with. And I really don''t want the plot to derail because Percy over there gets an ice cream craving during the Battle of Manhattan¡­¡± I muttered to her, and caused her eyes to widen as she smiled curiously. ¡°Battle of Manhattan, you say? So¡­ I suppose you aren''t from around here after all. I had a feeling. Reincarnated with some meta knowledge?¡± She asked me as she leaned forwards herself. I took a lick of my ice cream that was starting to drip a bit while studying her. ¡°Of course. You?¡± I asked with a curiosity of my own as she smirked.


    ¡°Well, it''s a rather long story but I got hired by a friend recently. Got access to his system as well. Though I can''t say I know a lot about this world beyond a few hints from my friend.¡± She responded rather curiously and causing me to tilt my head with a smile of my own. ¡°So I suppose you aren''t from modern Earth? I am from the 2020¡¯s on an Earth a lot like this one without the monsters. I think so anyway.¡± I commented, a bit disappointed and giving her a bit of my backstory and fishing for a bit more information.


    ¡°No, I suppose you could call mine a sci-fi universe compared to here. Spaceships and everything.¡± She explained and making me give an appreciative nod.


    I took another lick of my ice cream. ¡°What are your plans then, Cally?¡± I asked, turning serious for the moment and looking at her intently. She didn''t seem bothered however and gave another of her trademarked smiles. ¡°Oh, I think plans are overrated. But, I suppose the only real plan I have is to serve ice cream and live the rest of my life. I don''t really want to get involved in this world all that much, beyond protecting my parlor.¡± She explained to me, seeming casual but I could see a bit of her truth in her eyes.


    She seemed tired. Like a soldier when they come back from a war and the only thing they want to do is rest. I had a grandpa like that. I could respect that.


    I gave a nod and flashed her a smile. ¡°Well, I can''t say that I am the same way Cal. But I can respect that. Maybe we will see each other around? I don''t think cookies and cream ice cream exists or is popular in this universe, and I can''t live in a universe like this without my favourite flavour of ice cream.¡± I offered with a chuckle and raising a hand to shake.


    She took it with a smile and shook with a nod. I turn to head back to Percy with a weight off my chest. I have been a good judge of character before, and my instincts tell me to trust her.


    ¡°One last thing, Ardi.¡± Cal called out, making me turn to face her again with a tilted head. ¡°If you are up to it, I was wondering if maybe you could deal with the little stalking problem the store seems to have picked up? I could deal with it, but I thought you might want a quest to pass the time.¡± She gave her offer and my face froze a bit. So I hadn''t imagined it after all. Not that I had passed it off as one to begin with.


    The system gave me a notification about the quest as well as I looked it over before I accepted.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    New Quest: Parlor Protection


    Difficulty: Mid-difficult


    Requirements to succeed: Kill the monster or group of monsters that have been watching Hope Ice Cream Parlor.


    Rewards if succeeded: 85 Ring Gold along with three free levels in a Passive Ability of your choice.


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    It''s not a bad quest, and the rewards were pretty good. The difficulty wasn''t that high either, same as The Long Game, so it''s probably not that dangerous either. But did I have the time for something like that? I could do it, of course, but should I?


    I looked back to Cal with a pensive expression. Then I gave a nod, accepting it. I had some free time tonight if I played my cards right anyway. Plus¡­ I think that this could be more than a deal between us. This could be the start of something. Anyone with a system in a world like this is likely to become powerful, even if that system is about running an ice cream parlor. And powerful friends are good to have.


    Cally smiled and gave a nod of her own, turning away and letting me walk back to Percy, taking another lick of my ice cream as I sat beside him again with a bright smile.

 Chapter 31:

    As it turned out, no matter how good an ice cream cone is, walking back to the school always seems to happen rather fast. Me and Percy had a great time, despite the small interruption that was my talk with Cally. We mostly talked about random stuff, but I had fun recounting the last and final games of the tryouts that led me to being on the team. He seemed impressed at least, despite how I kind of felt that it was mostly the system that was pushing me through.


    But after all of that, we had finished our cones and we had to walk back to the dorms. I walked beside Percy all the way to the dorms and saw Percy fall to sleep quickly on the other side of the room while I stayed awake despite how my body was grumbling at me and aching from the day. Honestly, this was probably the most sore I had been in a while¡­ Or at least that''s what it felt like.


    But I had work to do, so around midnight I got up and put on my leather jacket alongside my shoes, making sure that my daggers inside my jacket pockets were easy to slide out as I did. Monster hunting¡­ Honestly not a bad way to spend a night. I just wish I could have felt like I was ready to fight instead of just feeling stiff and wanting to lie down when I started thinking about my body instead of just getting on with jogging down through the stairwell and through the dorms into the grassy field.


    I had a plan in my mind after so much time spent lying down with closed eyes. I had felt something watching me when I entered the shop the first time. So I had to simply use one of my newer abilities to ¡®sneak¡¯ into the parlor and be seen by whatever monster is there. Stealth. I would get a direction from where they were watching the parlor, and I would go from there to find out more.


    I could use the Tracking ability, but I had less trust in myself using it in this situation. It had always felt that it was for tracking down targets that you can''t find through a city, rather than anything like a small park or something. It got a bit annoying when I tried to listen to its hints for anything much other than that. So I would only be using it if the detection part of my stealth passive ability didn''t work well enough.


    The plan wasn''t exactly infallible though. It was midnight, and monsters do sleep. Plus the parlor was closed so maybe they wouldn''t watch it? Well, if nothing comes of the Stealth plan I could start to Track them. Though if it comes to that, I might need to just stake out the parlor tomorrow and wait. Though I could do that, it was Saturday tomorrow after all, I honestly didn''t like the idea in any other way then I would be less tired.


    I controlled my breathing to ignore my body for a few minutes as I started darting along the ground and out into the city through the shadows. It was clearly effective because soon even the chilly breezes that hit my face seemed to disappear for me.


    There were eyes that caught sight of me among small groups of people who were sculking in the shadows, but for the most part I went through the streets without notice with the guidance of the instinct given by the Stealth passive. I contemplated picking a fight with some of the more obvious criminals just to relieve some of the tiredness I was feeling but decided against it. I wasn''t sure whether or not they had guns. And I wanted to get back to my dorms without blood on me. Mostly just because of the blood to be honest.


    I almost made it to the parlor without any issue entirely, but there were two times where I was seen by a gang of teens. Both times they called me out, and both times when I grinned through my irritation with some amusement and drew my daggers out, glinting at the edge of the shadows they decided to leave me alone. That was kind of fun to see them run away, but not really. Though, maybe I was just too sleepy to care. I was always told I was pretty wild at night in my past life. My killstreaks proved it. Video game killstreaks that is. Though maybe in this universe- Nope. Not going there.


    I was a bit unhinged and wild right now, less cautious. But I think I could compensate.


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    That was probably why when I made it to the parlor and sneaked out in front and under a bright lamp post I didn''t feel the sense of being watched immediately. But when I realized what I felt and I recognized where it was coming from I slinked into the shadows again and I seemed to become unseen again as the weird feeling disappeared. I turned my eyes up across the street and I looked out at a small but bright light of a fire coming from an alleyway as a large humanoid shadow slid back into the alleyway.


    I darted out and around the bright spots of light on the street, making my way towards the bright alleyway, kneeling on the hard cold stone and peering around the corner of the brick building it was in between. In the very center of the alley, there was a large trash can that had a fire going, lighting and warming up most of the alley around two large figures. And when I say large, I mean large. They were at least seven feet tall, bordering on eight, and still looked wide and full of muscle. They looked nearly human if it wasn''t for their size and their neanderthal-esc features.


    I silently cursed as I looked them up and down. As far as Greek mythology went¡­ I believe they would be laestrygonians. As much as the system helped¡­ I think I could barely take them on if they were together. I only had daggers after all, and they were made from mortal materials too.


    ¡°Hey Billy, I think we can head back to the others at camp now? It''s too dark to see!¡± I heard the one closest to the fire grunt, complaining and looking annoyed. Billy didn''t seem impressed. ¡°It''s called a gym, idiot! We left camp days ago¡­¡± Billy responded, with a grunt of irritation of his own. ¡°I know that! But nobody is around but a few kids, and they are too small for supper. I am hungry!¡± The smaller one grunted again, clutching at his stomach as if he was starving.


    Billy gave a grunt at that and stood up. ¡°Ok, but if the boss tells us to stay here for another day because of your idiot ass, Bloodfisty, I am going to eat you instead!¡± He threatened menacingly, but Bloodfisty seemed uncaring and they started thundering down the street with the occasional grunt and sniff towards the entrance of the alleyway.


    I took a few dozen steps back and into a dark shadow behind me as they exited the alleyway and started walking around on the street.


    ¡®Their names are¡­ Actually pretty on point for cannibals?¡¯ I thought to myself with amusement as I stayed silent, letting them pass before starting to think tactically. ¡®So, a camp of laestrygonian giants are in a gym somewhere, and for some reason they sent out these two to watch the parlor. Nothing about this makes sense¡­ The laestrygonian giants are usually in Canada as far as I remember from canon? Though maybe that was a joke¡­¡¯ I recall with a scowl noting my lack of information.


    ¡®Something made them come out here, and to the parlor in particular.¡¯ I concluded with a frown. But then I shrugged and peeled away from the shadow I was hiding inside to follow after the retreating backs of the cannibals. ¡®Whatever. Not my problem, I just got to kill them somehow. Reconnaissance for now then.¡¯ I reaffirmed to myself and then I got to work watching from the shadows under the guidance of Stealth.


    Then out of nowhere, Bloodfisty, at least I think it was Bloodfisty, stopped and started looking around while inhaling deeply. ¡°Do you smell that? I think it smells like a demigod!¡± He asked, suddenly seeming excited and making me back away farther into the shadows, glancing down at my hand which I realized quickly had no ring on it. Of course I had forgotten to put on the only shield that prevents monsters from feeling my presence. I cursed to myself in my mind while I slipped a hand into my pocket and then put Masatr onto my finger silently.


    But it seemed that Billy did not sense anything so he gave a light smack to Bloodfisty¡¯s head before turning to walk on. ¡°Come on, you are getting too hungry. It''s your imagination.¡± He told the man with a grunt before starting to walk again with a slightly annoyed Bloodfisty behind him rubbing his stomach and looking confused.


    I gave a sigh, rubbing the now secure Masatr on my finger with my other hand as I collected and scolded myself in equal measure. I had forgotten about my number one stealth tool when stalking monsters. If they had both smelled my aura¡­ I would have to fight them and wouldn''t find out how many of these things are in town and therefore couldn''t complete the quest. One simple mistake¡­ One thing I forgot about temporarily¡­ Well, to be fair I didn''t forget. I simply didn''t think about it. I don¡¯t have the experience to go with any skill I might have. That is my main issue right now and for the foreseeable future. Experience and actual physical plus mental learning.


    I gave a sigh before peeling away from the shadow I was inside, feeling out the area with my passive while I followed my prey into the night of New York.

 Chapter 32:

    I followed the pair of laestrygonian giants through the streets through the shadows, which wasn''t all that difficult really. The cannibals really weren''t all that fast or quiet and with a small nudge from my tracking passive ability I could follow them for hours and hours without once losing them. Thankfully, I didn''t have to.


    I had to stay behind the light of a streetlamp as I didn''t feel or see any actually good places to follow them any farther without being seen, but I could watch and I did watch as they walked across an almost abandoned parking lot and then inside a large dark building with a large flickering neon sign that read ¡°Brocks Gym¡±


    I found out where the camp was then.


    It was still dark, though I could feel that the night was starting to fade and it would in a few hours. I probably needed sleep before I could think about my next move properly. I now had a location, my assault would be legendary!


    Then strangely I got a system notification that snapped me from my thoughts by sheer shock at what it said.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Quest parameters expanded!


    Requirements to succeed: Kill the laestrygonian giants that have been watching Hope Ice Cream Parlor before sunrise.


    Time left: Five hours, thirty two minutes, 27 seconds


    Rewards if succeeded: 100 Ring Gold along with four free levels in a Passive Ability of your choice.


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    The system gave the quest a time limit. It altered the quest, to make it more difficult for me? Was it trying to get me killed? Well¡­ I suppose the choice is mine¡­


    Then I started grinning wildly, a crazy smile creeping up my face. Wild, and untamed. Nah, I was going to finish this shit. It was probably stupid as hell, and I definitely wouldn''t do it if I was thinking straight¡­ But that''s what made me better. It was strange but I felt separate from who I was normally, almost a different person. But I was just tired and extremely energized for no reason, unleashing myself from any stupid thoughts or self reflection. I loved it.


    Let¡¯s go kill some monsters.


    <hr>


    Half an hour was all it took for me to realize how stupid thinking I could run into the gym with daggers flailing and expect to survive no matter how reckless and energetic I was feeling.


    Ten laestrygonian giants. Ten. And the two I was following were the runty ones. I nearly just threw down my daggers and walked out from my position inside the corner of the gym I had managed to sneak into, but that would have got me killed as said monsters were not twenty feet away and sitting by a large fire, not sleeping either. They apparently didn''t really care for sleep, as they were talking loudly among each other.


    I didn''t really pay attention to the conversation, as it was mostly just them complaining how hungry they are to the biggest of the lot who they called Jeff who seemed like the boss, but I still watched and lessened anyways. Eventually however, Jeff snapped out at the other nine in annoyance with a frustrated scowl.


    ¡°Allright, you sorry lot! FINE! We can eat the damn mortals chained up in the back in the morning before you get back to looking for my damn son, damn it!¡± Jeff announced with an unamused groan, letting the others cheer while he swore up a storm that nobody seemed to care about. ¡°But you got to work for it, go patrol or something!¡± He reprimanded harshly and they all started wandering off, some alone and some in small groups.


    I blinked, then my face hardened. Morals. Humans. People. Right. So that''s why the quest was updated? Well¡­ I don''t think I can just go to bed now. I gave an inaudible groan as my mind started turning in my head. Ambush tactics would be necessary¡­ but there was a group of three that seemed to be sticking close to the boss who I doubted I could separate. I needed something. Something with more power than the daggers on my hips. I looked down as I thought, only for my eyes to catch sight of a duly glinting metal ring on my finger as it reflected the light of the fire in the dark gym.


    My rings. God, I really wasn''t thinking straight. I forgot I had enchanted rings. I was a Ring Maker. I had used them in fights every time I had fought a monster even. I had Masatr, which made my aura undetectable to the monsters. I had the Ring of Creation and a hundred different materials. I had the Constructor and its Spirit Constructs. I also had Mystic, which I could use to detect monsters through walls like X-ray hacks. I wasn''t some buff twelve year old with a pair of daggers and some passive abilities to go with them, I had a freaking magic arsenal. Not one as singularly made for hunting or killing, but adaptable enough for a lot when I had the reserves.


    Speaking of reserves, I had about half of my max available after my recent enchanting. Enough for a good amount. Not a lot, but enough for a good amount of things. Like making a sphere of stone appear around a bunch of monster heads for example, or even just brute force channel Spirit Energy through my daggers to kill the monsters better through melee.


    So, strategy and efficiency would be the name of the game for the next few hours. Let''s get a plan together.


    <hr>


    My first priority was to find and rescue the mortals that the boss man said were chained up in the back, so that is where I am now. Behind the gym, standing in the shadow of a trashcan and watching an employee door that leads inside, with the lock ripped out by what looked like a giant hand. The only problem was that the likely culprit of the destroyed lock was sitting guard outside. Well, the laestrygonian wasn''t really guarding anything very effectively by laying down and napping while snoring against the door.


    This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.


    ¡®I suppose the body would be hard to move¡­ Oh! Right, its body disintegrates after it dies. Never mind then.¡¯ I thought to myself with a mental chuckle, sizing it up while I picked my rings free from my pocket and put them on one by one. The ring of creation did not have any attachments¡­ I would have to work around that. Everything else was good though. Mystic started sending thin ten foot spherical pulses, using up the tiniest bit of energy as it ate off my passive regeneration to locate any and all beings within range. There was nothing. Masatr was the same as ever. The Constructor was ready. Four rings in all, and all ready.


    I looked back at the sleeping monster and drew my daggers while stealthily approaching. Stealth, the passive ability, directed me easily and guided my feet to walk in a strangely light but still fast enough to be considered speed walking. That was something that I should probably start practicing without the aid of the system, seeing as my feet didn''t even make a crunch against the loose gravel and cement.


    Then I was upon the soon to be corpse and I quickly lashed out in double opposite arcs with my daggers, slitting its throat with some resistance from its durable flesh. The monster jerked up instantly, its throat gurgling as its dark blood spilled out and started covering itself. Then it turned to a golden sand and blew away into the air, heading back to tartarus.


    I hadn''t expected to feel anything after killing what I knew was a monster, even like how I did¡­ But a chilly wind seemed to rip through my body and a bit of disgust, maybe even horror, ran through my throat into my mouth. No remorse though. I knew what I had killed, and it wasn''t deserving of that. I recovered quickly though, and frowning I started to stalk forward to the door I had been trying to get to. I had people to hopefully save and emotion for people eating monsters to kill.


    My jaw and to some extent body clenched in anticipation for a second after I approached the door, but after waiting a second to see if Mystic would pick up any monsters or people behind the door, which there wasn''t, I swung it open. It creaked. Loudly. I winced at the loud sound of metal scraping on metal, and I almost took an instinctive step back with my mind blaring warnings and caution but I resisted and slipped inside.


    It was dark, and I could barely see anything through the darkness. Only the streetlamp outside shone any light into the storage bay I found myself inside. I don''t know why a gym had a storage bay, but I could see large metal shelves with big boxes on them and a hallway to my left along with a door on the opposite side of the room to the door. And then said door closed with a loud snap, leaving me in darkness.


    ¡°Hey, Killblood, what you doing?¡± I heard grunted in the blackness. I nearly froze as I heard the deep and bloodchilling monster''s voice ringing out, but thankfully my incredibly sleep deprived mind started acting up at the last second and I spit out with the deepest voice possible I replied. ¡°Nothing. Can''t sleep!¡± I called out to the darkness, then hesitated with trepidation. Surely this wouldn¡¯t work¡­ That kind of stuff is only in the movies, right?


    ¡°Allright.¡± Was all I heard in response through the darkness. I breathed a sigh of relief. ¡°I am coming in.¡± He continued after a moment. A bright outline appeared in front of me out of the darkness, covering a standing figure that looked like they were walking. Then that outline updated, closer to where I remembered the opposite door was. I mentally cursed and took quick steps away from where I was standing, into the hallway to my left, before crouching down and pressing my left hand¡¯s knuckles to the ground, pressing the stone with the Ring of Creation. Then I started pumping Spirit Energy through the rings mythril body and then from there directly into the stone, forming a small pool of energy at my feet.


    The door cracked open with a similar creak to the outside door, a harsh cracking and grinding sound punctuated by a sharp squeal. Light flooded the previously dark room in a streak on the floor and walls, revealing the empty room to the laestrygonian outside. ¡°Hey, where are you?¡± I heard the same voice call out, a large shadow stretching into view as it slid into the room. I could only just see the outline of the monster itself because of Mystic guiding my eyes every second or so.


    With my Spirit Energy set to turn into the same stone material as the floor I started to force it to flow up and out of the floor, making it float and twist in the air like a snake. I didn''t keep my entire concentration on keeping it in any shape like I had been doing any time I made something using the rings power, which made it slide through the air faster than normal just trying to keep all the energy together. It slid like a snake through the air, going through obstacles. Then it suddenly encountered a barrier just before where the giant was standing. ¡®Damn! He needs to be within six feet!¡¯ I remembered, annoyed and panicking.


    The giant outline took another step into the room, letting the door close behind him and submerging the room in complete darkness again. ¡°Killblood!¡± He called out once more, but I could hear a note of hesitation in his voice. I ignored it, as I crept to the corner of the hallway into the room towards the magic outline only I could see of the monster''s body, moving my magic forwards with every step.


    Strangely, now that one of my major senses isn''t being used and the world around me was quiet¡­ I could feel a strange feedback with my Spirit Energy that was floating through the air. I could tell where it was without needing to see it. It even helped visualize its shape and its very immediate surroundings in three dimensions. It was faint. Faint enough that I could barely feel it, but barely means I could feel it even as a phantom of a sensation.


    Then I could feel, just barely, when my Spirit Energy touched the monster''s skin. I pushed it forwards, inside the point of the monster that I encountered. From what I could see and feel, it was coiling around and inside its neck. I always wondered what would happen if I did this.


    ¡°Materialize.¡± I calmly pronounced in a low but audible voice, causing the outline to turn to my voice in a millisecond. ¡°Hey, wh-¡± The laestrygonian started to say, only to be cut off and start gurgling. I could see its outline thrashing around, hear clatters and bangs that shook me and caused my breath to hitch, hoping that nothing would hear.


    Then with a huge powerful thrash that hit one of the metal shelves as far as I could tell, it keeled over and fell on the ground with a thump. With a large, metal shelf crashing down on top of it and the floor with a loud bang, sending me into a panic. ¡°Dematerialize.¡± I whispered frantically, and I felt the energy rush back into my soul once more, its job done.


    ¡°Hey! What''s going on in there!¡± I heard a few voices call out in various tones and states of sleepiness from all around.


    I cursed and retreated down the only path that didn''t have a monster calling out from, at a run through the darkness. I fled down the hallway behind me, deeper inside the infested building.

 Chapter 33:

    As I ran, not looking back, I wondered if I had managed to kill the monster with the stone I materialized. If it did, then the rest of them wouldn''t know what had happened. Well¡­ if the corpse dissipated before they arrived. Let''s just assume they know I am here. I nearly stumbled into a wall as I ran. It was way too dark, and I was damn tired.


    ¡®Push through!¡¯ I heard a voice ring out in my dull mind, a hard tone that made me straighten up as I ran. The sleepiness was held at bay, as I let my eyes widen up and let the cool air in this hallway push past me. Then something struck me as odd. That air was a bit too cold. It wasn''t even this cold outside the gym yet. There was also a breeze that seemed to be pushing away into my face. I slowed to a walk, squinting my eyes as I tried to suddenly gain night vision.


    System? No? Fine.


    Since I couldn''t see anything anyways, I closed my eyes. There was a breeze coming from somewhere unnaturally cold down this hallway. I just had to follow it. Even if it turns out to be something like a freezer¡­ hang on. Freezer. Meat locker. Cannibals with people in the back, to eat at sunrise. People in the back freezer. Wait, why on earth would a gym have a meat locker? Maybe not then.


    Anyways, it is down the hallway so it''s where I need to go anyways. They are either down this hallway, in a room leading off of it or something, or with the Lestrigonians. Let''s check here first. Kill the monsters in a bit.


    I roughly followed the breeze down the hallway during the next few seconds. My outstretched hands bumped into a wall a few times, but each time I adjusted myself and walked down the hallway without an issue. I was sure that the hallway was lined with doors here and there, but I went right to the end where there was a door that I ran into. Though, the breeze seems to have stopped, or does not reach  here. Probably coming from a-


    I had opened my eyes when I reached the door, causing me to stop. There was light down here. A small source definitely, only letting me see it was coming from behind a door a few steps down the hallway and to my right. There were also curls of white cold air coming from under the door as well, making the small glow easy to spot and creating the breeze I had felt as the cold air was pushed from under the door, the hum of air ducts or some kind of fan coming from inside audible now that I was concentrating.


    Well¡­ That''s not creepy or ominous at all.


    So, like every idiot in horror films, I walked right up to the door and swung it open without hesitation. With my daggers out too of course. I wasn''t actually stupid. No, I was just special.


    I took a second to look before I did anything, staying beyond the door frame. The light had gone out, and it was black everywhere now. I glanced down at my hand, Mystic was still on my fingers, so if there was anything alive in here it would have picked it up. Unless the room was bigger than ten feet and they were against the wall opposite. But that was plenty of distance if there was a monster in here. Plus, most likely they can''t see me if I can''t see them.


    I walked into the room, paying attention to my feet and trying in vain to see in the darkness as my Stealth Passive guided me silently and letting the door close behind me.


    I needed to see¡­ I bumped into a metal shelf, not hard due to my slow speed, but it was annoying.


    Hang on, back when I was trying to kill that monster by encasing him with the stone and guiding my mana through the air, I couldn''t see anything with my eyes but I could feel¡­ something. Through my Spirit Energy. Like another sense outside my body. One that could feel the shape and texture of objects, what they are made of, without me seeing or being close enough to touch them. So maybe¡­


    As my thoughts started to come to a conclusion, I didn''t realize that this was the very first time I tried to manipulate Spirit Energy outside my body without working through an enchantment. But conflict causes growth. And because of that, when I sent out a net construct made of my Spirit Energy before I cast it into the room, I got a notification from the system and a lot of sensory feedback from my first ever Spirit Energy scan before it dissipated into the ambient Spirit Energy.


    I ignored the system to concentrate on the situation and all the new information I had briefly got.


    It definitely wasn''t that efficient and definitely a little power hungry, but I could feel the room¡¯s shape around me. It was hard to get a feel for what is what, but several things became immediately clear. It wasn''t a meat locker, but it was storage with a very high powered AC, spitting out ice cold air near the ceiling''s numerous air ducts and lots of shelves throughout the room. But the room was clearly pretty big, because I didn''t see any end to the room.


    But I also didn''t see any sign of anything that could possibly cause light. The light that was now gone. Meaning, somebody or something turned it off and moved it away.


    Well¡­ the chances of one of the cannibals sneaking around in the dark and hiding wasn''t all that likely in my opinion. So I hedged my bets.


    ¡°I know someone is in here. I am here to help.¡± I called out in the almost silent room, only the drone of the AC and the air blowing around all over the place.


    I waited a second. Then the outline of a crouched shape appeared a few feet away, behind a shelf that I knew was there now. It looked bigger than me, but that wasn''t saying much when my body is that of an average looking twelve year old boy. They looked human in size, really.


    ¡°Do you have a light?¡± I called out in the direction of the only visible outline, and I could see them stop. They didn¡¯t do anything else though.


    Oh¡­ Well, they are mortals, so who knows what they think is going on. Cannibal organization kidnapping them? I don''t think I wouldn''t trust me if I was in their position.


    ¡°I am not with the monsters that kidnapped you guys!¡± I called out softly, ¡°I am here to take care of them! But first I need to get you guys out!¡± I explained a bit more, a strain of annoyance in my voice. I didn''t blame them, but I am way too tired and pumped up on some crazy energy from who knows where for games.


    The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.


    ¡°How did you get in here?¡± I heard a low voice asking, and I couldn''t quite tell if it was coming from the man by the shelf or someone else in the room with the way it echoed around the place.


    ¡°I killed the guy at the door. And the other guy who noticed. Then ran here from the other, other guys that noticed that. They probably think I left though. It should be safe enough for me to get you guys out though to the exit. Then you are homebound.¡± I explained as quickly as possible, giving them my plan and not holding back a thing.


    ¡°...I believe him. Light please, Izzy?¡± The same guy called out, and suddenly a bunch of activity sounded out from around the back wall and the sides of the room, with the guy that was crouched by the shelf standing up. Soon enough a bunch of people were walking into the range of Mystic and I counted seven outlines total. Most adults, but one seemed smaller than the rest so I put that as a maybe.


    ¡°You killed a few of ''em?¡± I heard called out louder and more confidently this time from the guy, and I could definitely tell that he was the guy who was behind the shelf. ¡°They deserved it.¡± He commented, with a resolute menace in his voice that made me grin. I liked him.


    Then the light came on, revealing things better. It seemed like a small but surprisingly bright flashlight, but in the pitch dark it seemed blinding as it was turned towards my face for a second before turning to the floor. I blinked away the spots as I looked around the room. Seven. Five of them seemed like adults who used the gym a lot, a teen guy who looked like he was heading towards the end of highschool, and a girl who looked around my current age who had the flashlight.


    ¡°Hang on just a second.¡± A guy walked forwards towards the center of the room, sounding stunned. ¡°You''re just a kid. He looks the same age as Izzy! You can''t seriously think¡­¡± He called out, turning to another guy who was probably the same guy that had been talking earlier.


    ¡°How else could he have gotten in here? It wouldn''t make sense for them to send anyone in here. Plus, look at the kid.¡± The guy in question answered quickly and firmly, pointing to me. ¡°He¡¯s got the blades for it.¡± He chuckled, walking up to me again.


    I sheathed the daggers as he mentioned them. I didn''t forget about them until then, but I doubted that I would need them and they wouldn''t help anything right now. ¡°Right. My name is Ardika, and I will be your guide tonight.¡± I introduced myself to the group with a wicked grin, holding out my hand for a handshake. If I could get them to relax now, it would probably help make some things easier. Plus, that was probably the best joke ever made by me.


    The joke got a few scoffs with small grins from a few of the guys, and a small giggle from the little girl, but a good amount of the men and women in the room weren''t amused.


    ¡°Right.¡± I announced after a small moment of awkward  silence, ¡°Before we do this, we need to go over some stuff. First, is anyone injured?¡± They all shook their heads, ¡°Good. Second, before we get a move on, I will need to scout out the exit right now to see what we have to deal with. We don''t want to be too hasty. I should be back in a minute or less, but if you hear me yelling anything then things are worse then I think and I was seen and am leading them away. If that''s the case, then you guys just run down the hallway as fast as you can and get out.¡± I gave them the game plan, and I could see a few frowns but more nods of acceptance.


    It was probably good that it was too dark to really see anyones faces. I did not want to see looks of fear, or worse hope. They would get me in my head and shake me up.


    ¡°Good. Be back in a minute.¡± I confirmed to myself and them, turning around and walking right back out the door to that chilly little room and into the almost completely black hallway. The outlines from Mystic faded away quickly as I took to the hallway with a jog full of nervous energy. Why am I nervous? I shouldn''t be. Awake Ardika, shut up.


    I scoffed at myself in my head, letting my Stealth Passive guide my steps and letting me creep-jog down the pitch black hallway silently. I did have the presence of mind to use the weird new sense net thing I made up to let me see as I went down the hall though, making me able to realize I had reached the end of the hallway really fast, way faster than I thought. Though I did practically crawl down the hall the first time round.


    I didn''t feel any monsters or anything unusual around with my Spirit Sense and Mystic didn''t highlight any monsters around either. Everything was quiet.


    ¡®Is it too much to say that it''s too quiet..? Because honestly this is kind of more scary than it would have been if all of the monsters were sitting around the corner, staring right at me.¡¯ I thought to myself, a bit suspiciously. Mystic wasn''t foolproof, its distance was a huge problem. My own senses, including the weird new one I had just got, were¡­ Not very reliable either. There was a good chance that there were guards around the outside of the door. But what choice do I have but to go for it? I can¡¯t open the door to check without alerting anyone, no matter if anyone was waiting or not. It''s too loud.


    I started jogging back to the hostages again, only the very slightest sound of my shoes making even a hint at my presence within the darkness.


    Now that I got an idea for the layout and I could actually feel my way around, the distance to and from the room was really surprisingly short and I arrived in seconds, opening it and slipping inside into the light again.


    The people were all around the same position, and I could see them breaking apart from one another as they went silent from whispering among each other. One of the men had his arms on the girl''s shoulders as I walked in.


    ¡°I am back, and everything is looking good. I didn''t spot anything immediately around the exit. But it''s still likely that they have the exit guarded on the outside again. So what we are going to do is I am going to lead you to the exit and then you guys run for it while I stay back and kill anything that tries to stop ya.¡± I announced quickly, then spreading unsheathing my daggers and opening my arms wide with a grin.


    ¡°Let''s go.¡± The leader guy said quickly, turning to the others and whispering among them for a moment while I opened the door and led them out into the hallway.


    As soon as we had all entered the hallway, I could see the group start to arrange themselves in some kind of formation, with the girl and two others in the inside of a circle formation while the others looked on guard. Weird.


    Anyway, I sent out pulses of my Spirit Sense net every few seconds, though trying to conserve my Spirit Energy now that it looked like I was probably about to fight. The hallway was the same, as was everywhere else I could feel. I also started sending energy through the Constructor this time, working off of a hunch I got from the last encounter, feeling it would probably be more time and effort efficient in a fight then the Ring of Creation in some way.


    We reached the door soon enough and I stood in front of the door, one hand holding the handle as we got ready to move. I looked behind me for a second. They looked to be arranging themselves in a line, with the man picking up the girl in his arms as he prepared to be one of the first runners in the line. ¡®They are very structured and professional.¡¯ I noted idly with a grin and a nod of approval without a second thought.


    ¡°Go!¡± I said as I swung the door open, flinging myself through with my daggers at the ready as the metal kept screaming at the pushes of the group coming right behind me as we ran into the parking lot in the darkness of night. It was silent, and the lights seemed to have dimmed. I was pretty sure that I could see a fog creeping in through the already thick darkness as well, funnily enough.


    Then roars started sounding out from ahead. ¡°I knew it!¡± I shouted, a wicked grin on my face as my feet pushed off the ground rapidly as I ran naruto style towards the first dark bulking figure in the fog cutting off the group. My daggers spread out on either side of my body, as I ran towards the monster in the darkness.

 Chapter 34:

    David Prince P.O.V.


    As me and my team ran forwards through the foggy parking lot in the dead of night, surrounded by the inhuman roars of things that I knew to be indeed not human, lead by a kid grinning and cackling in delight and he ran towards the roars with daggers in his hands to ensure our escape, I had a moment of some very hard and through reflection on myself and how I got into this mess in the first place.


    Until very recently, I had been part of a spec ops team for the military. Nothing too weird, besides that one time with that governor''s daughter. Then a month after I left, a black suited guy showed up at the door and gave me an offer. To join an organization that I have never heard of and become a leader of another team. I said no of course. But¡­ They left a number. Damn that number. I couldn''t handle a normal job. I realized that I wanted back in a few weeks later, and I called the number.


    And they let me join up with them. From there, I had meeting after meeting with people with so much power and global influence I was shocked I was standing in the same room with them. They gave me presentations and info dumps, one after another. I met founder after founder. Of course I didn''t really believe what they said. Who would? But I went along with it, and even let them drug me up with something they called the True Sight Serum. They said it would let me see through some kind of magic thingy. Like that was real.


    I was told I would lead the first ever team for the organization. They called this organization UMBRA, which I was told was an acronym for United Meta Bureau of Research and Advancement. They named their task forces with that weird name as well. I was the team leader of UMBRA Force One.


    Then they sent me and the rest of the taskforce to New York of all places, where they let us off into the city to get to know each other personally. Everyone had a general profile on their teammates and there were six members including myself.


    Brad Pine, Ex-military from Canada, with a wife and a daughter who was named Becca Pine, and is our resident weapons expert.


    Korkovich Vysotsky, a Russian demolitions and explosives expert, also Ex-military.


    Amy Prichardson, a dubious woman who was some kind of international assassin and criminal before she got mostly rehabilitated and went to work with UMBRA and is our infiltration and stealth expert.


    Lerry Alderson, who was a bit of a younger guy but apparently a tech and hacking genius of some kind and was recently incarcerated and then saved by UMBRA on the condition that he work for them.


    The second dubious choice for the team. Then finally Janice Petro, Ex-military, Ex-MMA fighter and our close combat expert.


    So they let us loose in the city, and we all wandered around the city getting each other''s measure. I got a good amount of glimpses into what the type of people I would be working with were during that time. They all seemed decent people at least, even the dubious ones.


    I even got to meet and have some fun with Brad¡¯s daughter. Who had apparently managed to follow her dad to New York somehow all the way from Canada. She was a smart kid. I could see that she had a lot ahead of her.


    But just as we were about to turn in for the day and head back to base, while we finished our workouts in a basically empty local gym so we could talk freely, a bunch of huge people came inside. That wasn''t much of a concern. Until they ate the guy at the cash register. They ATE him. That''s about the time everyone realized something was up, and when we looked again I kid you not it was like a screen was lifted from in front of our eyes and we were looking right at seven and eight foot tall giant people who looked like ogres with more tattoos then skin. And clubs.


    It was then that I started actually questioning if those presentations about monsters and magic actually had some truth about them. Then we all got our asses handed to us, and when we all thought we were dead and basically fully prepared to sacrifice ourselves to save Brad¡¯s little girl, that sweet little devil angel, an even bigger ogre came stomping in and told them to lock us up in the back instead of killing us.


    We didn''t resist much after that. Fighting through a horde of monsters easily two times as strong as us wasn''t something we could do, but waiting for rescue from UMBRA or even just sneaking out through the building once we were alone.


    We all had a good amount of time to reflect on what we had gotten ourselves into. And with a talk to Becca, who was still with us when we got captured, we realized that whatever UMBRA did with that serum actually seemed to do something. Because as far as the little girl was concerned, we were being locked up by a few ordinary thugs that beat up the cashier and locked us up.


    So we talked and took a measure of the situation for hours, looking for a way out in case help didn''t arrive.


    But help did arrive. And help in this case, was an insane and most likely mentally unstable boy named Ardika with real medieval-style metal daggers coming to kill the monsters with his own previously mentioned daggers. But the thing was, we had taken a look around where they were guarding us. There was at least one of the monsters guarding the only hallway in here. So the thing was; either this kid was with the monsters, or he managed to kill at least one of them already. And the kid didn''t look like a monster, even with that serum letting us see through those weird illusions. Plus, it made no sense for them to try to get us to escape. So¡­ this kid had got in and killed at least one of them with nothing but a few daggers, while we only barely managed to injure one ourselves. Without us hearing it too.


    Amy, the stealth expert who had been getting out of situations like this for decades, didn''t hear the kid coming until he opened the door. And that meant a lot.


    Janace said that the kid''s grip and stance with his daggers was almost professional, and then she dropped the bomb that she suspected that the kid somehow knew where we were in the room before the light came on too. In the pitch blackness, while everyone but me was being deathly silent, with the room was so echoey that it was basically impossible to hear where anything was coming from. But that thought was supported by Amy who said that he was looking in all the right directions from the moment the light came on and he could see. Even at the people behind the shelves when the light came on.


    Brad, me, Korkovich and Larry didn''t have much to contribute after that weirdness. Becca did though, saying that she liked him. That was kind of cute, but also a bit concerning considering the kids general psychotic appearance. Brad didn''t look impressed with his daughter at any rate.


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    Then the kid came back, and he actually managed to lead us through the building without being caught. Amy said she was impressed by his technique and at how quiet he was while basically going at a normal walking speed in runners.


    Then came the whole scene at the door, and the kid actually arranged a semi-decent strategy for escape. Reckless and completely hanging on his ability to clear the way of anything that might want to stop us, but it was honestly the exact same thing I would have done in his place, and he was really confident. It was a weird experience.


    But then here we were. The kid running like a madman, which honestly going by everything that was happening he probably was, to the hulking figure that was cutting us off from escape. Is this freaking normal for people who can see monsters!? Is this going to be a normal workday for us now!?


    I continued running as we enacted our half of the plan that we had constructed in the second before we left the building. Head to the van that was positioned on the next street over, and explain just what the hell was happening as best as we could, and hopefully get some backup on the way while we got our weapons and went back to save that weirdass suicidal, and strangely skilled kid with the daggers.


    We ran in a tight line, and stayed together with Becca being carried by her dad in the middle of the group along with Lerry. If we were intercepted, then our more combat capable people, namely Amy, Janice, Korkovich and me, would be able to divert attention and hopefully let the others get away. It was a bit of a¡­ not very hopeful strategy, but these were monsters that we were talking about here. This was a do or die mission. Or more accurately, run and escape or be eaten by some cannibal giant ogres.


    Funny how our first mission is just trying to run and save our asses.


    I felt my blood pump hot as I checked on positions from the rear of the group. We were all set, running like the wind. Only the kid was faster, and by the time I looked back at the front of the group he was already moving on the attack.


    He got within grabbing distance, and the monster in the form of a man reached out to him to do just that with teeth bared in a grin, but the kid was apparently ready for that. He threw himself to the asphalt beneath the arms in a way that made me wince in sympathy, sliding under the monster''s guard, and then he popped up once again and stabbed forwards into the monster''s chest. That made the thing stagger backwards, its hands coming to its chest, but the kid took a wide step back and something weird happened. Well, two weird things happened.


    The first weird thing that happened was the least clear from my position but I could see it just fine. The gaping wounds left by the kid''s daggers closed up as he took that step back. Full movie style, physically regenerating. Then the most clear and weirder thing happened. The kid shouted something that sounded a lot like ¡°SOLIDIFY!¡± and suddenly there was a glowing ball spreading quickly around the figure''s head.


    I nearly stumbled at the sight, and Brad actually did. ¡°LET''S GO PEOPLE! LETS GO!¡± I roared as everyone faltered in their run at the sight. Of course I was in complete shock. But the thing about me and shock, was that I could deal with that latter. Just focus.


    My shout got people moving, and we got around the monster with the now glowing head that soon did not have a head as it was slashed off by the kids'' daggers while it was distracted.


    The kid seemed delighted for some reason and I could hear a whoop coming from behind us as we ran, followed by bellowed roars of rage coming from behind us.


    But by then, we were past him and quite a bit farther away from anything that might follow despite the insane and possibly magic kid stopping them.


    Then we were on the street, in a more relaxed formation that prioritized speed over anything. This was the home stretch.


    Larry started jogging beside me after we escaped the parking lot, looking at me with no small amount of panic and concern on his face. He was a quiet guy, but when he spoke it was usually something he spent time thinking on. ¡°Am I the only one who is freaking out right now!? I- That kid- Ardika just cast a spell to suffocate a monster and then sliced his head off! We not going to talk about that?!¡± He shouted, looking like he was about to have a panic attack.


    I was about to respond, but Korkovich cut in there, running in step beside the kid as well. ¡°Why so panicked, American comrade? It just magic ball.¡± He said in his heavy russian accent, with a smirk and a joking tone before clapping the young man on the shoulder and smiling. ¡°If ask nicely, he let you play with later!¡± He joked again, grinning wildly and enjoying every second.


    ¡°Eff off, Kork!¡± Lerry grunted out, not amused and a bit embarrassed as he glared at Korkovich. I gave the Russian man a look as well and the man scoffed, still smiling, and jogged farther ahead. I turned to Lerry with a final look of annoyance at Kork.


    ¡°Listen kid, the whole reason we are a thing is to figure out what the hell is going on in this world without us knowing about it. Then we figure out a way to deal with it. We get our weapons, call for backup and then help the kid out! Focus on that.¡± I instructed, and his jaw tightened slightly as he nodded, pushing himself forwards faster along with the rest of us.


    We caught sight of the blacked out van at the end of an ally, just where we parked it hours ago. Everyone all started bolting the last few feet until Brad, still carrying his daughter, reached it and swung it open the doors to the interior while Amy reached along the back to the trunk where the weapons were. I jumped into the van interior while the others went to get weapons, or in Brad¡¯s case talked to Lerry and his daughter into staying together in the van. I closed the door, and I found myself sitting in a seat in the dimly lit van. I took a breath, trying in vain to think things through before I made the call. But I admitted defeat after a moment and retrieved the phone installed under the floor.


    Personal devices weren''t allowed for operatives for some reason, so this was the only phone we would be seeing while we worked. It was black and did not have any dial on it, just a single button that I quickly pressed to connect me to UMBRA headquarters. I placed the phone to my head, and waited.


    It rang once, then a loud click could be heard signaling it had been picked up. I took a deep breath. ¡°This is UMBRA Force One Team Leader.¡± I said quickly into the phone, and I waited. I was sure that this call would be transferred to someone of a higher authority the second I said that. Maybe I could finally hear from the mysterious Director. They were supposed to meet with us tomorrow, for some reason, with our first mission.


    It turned out that my thoughts were actually correct, as I heard the deep voice of a man sound out in a no-nonsense tone and an urgency that caught me off guard. ¡°Team Leader, this is The Director. Why on god''s green Earth have you have been gone for a whole day?¡± He demanded, quickly and I could feel a slight intimidation just with this man''s tone.


    I swallowed that quickly though as I started speaking up. ¡°My team was taken prisoner by a group of cannibal monster people for the last five to ten hours, and we have only recently escaped with the help of a crazy boy with daggers that might or might not be a wizard!¡± I ranted a bit, working myself up as he went dead silent. Then I winced. ¡°Sir.¡± I added quietly.


    The silence continued for a second before I spoke up again. ¡°I think we might need backup sir. I am pretty sure that one of those fuckers healed almost instantly from deep stab wounds when they were attacked by the kid before he chopped its head off.¡± I asked, finishing my ¡®report¡¯ of the current situation and the line went quiet.


    ¡°Back up is coming, Operative. Attempt to contain the threat until they arrive, and aid this ¡®wizard¡¯ if at all possible for your team. If not, retreat and keep an eye on the situation.¡± The man said quickly and decisively, sounding pissed off before I heard a click and the call ended.


    I quickly put the phone down and swung open the van with force, emerging from the vehicle and looking out at the team gearing up around me.


    ¡°Right! Backup is incoming, and we have been ordered to help the kid while we wait for them!¡± I announced to the group and I heard some cheers as they checked their guns and other weapons the sci team had insisted they use. I grinned. ¡®Just wait, kid. Heavily armed help is on the way.¡¯ I said to myself as I went to strap on my own gear.

 Chapter 35:

    I frowned, disappointed as I looked down at the severed cannibal head and the construct that surrounded it. It made for a decent distraction, but covering the head with a construct is just a waste of Spirit Energy. I need to do better. Go for the joints? That sounds like it should be more effective.


    Well, my real thought process took place in a half second and went more like this, ¡®Stupid waste! Joints.¡¯ before I started moving again as the body of the cannibal giant dissolved into sand and blew into the air on a nonexistent wind. Then the others caught up and I could see three large figures in the gloom, their outlines clear but that''s about all I could see with the lights so dim out here and thick dark clouds blotting out the moon and this cursed fog¡­


    Eh, who cared?


    I bared my teeth as I stretched my arms out with my twin daggers, forged by my own hands and bathed in the blood of monsters several times over in defiance to the giant figures that came closer at a bounding run that shook the ground just a bit with each footfall. My bared teeth twisted into a large wicked grin unconsciously as I watched, adjusting my blades and body just little bits with the feedback I gained passively from Dagger Skills accepting it as easily as any thought of my own. It just felt right. I was in a wide stance, with my body close to the ground in opposition to the much larger monsters with my daggers ready to arc through the air and find their marks.


    Then¡­ there. My evasion and deflection passive activated, and I could sense three sets of flying hands and fists coming closer from in front of me. But unlike the easiest path of evasion of backing away to the side, or even the advice of deflection to move my body past the fists coming towards me and guiding it into one of their friends, I slashed my blades in a crescent arc right in front of me, throwing them into the brain of the closest monster and pushing my control over my Spirit Energy to the max as I created curved walls to deflect the blows of the other two sets of hands.


    With my passive throwing ability and the long seconds that their charge afforded me to feel how to throw my daggers and where, they both hit their marks with a thunk and leaving the monster reeling. The strong Spirit Energy constructs also did their jobs well as they were spawned from nothing as I called out in a whisper to my ring ¡®Solidify¡¯ and deflecting the body¡¯s of the monsters around behind me and to the ground with their own momentum.


    Everything seemed to happen so slow, yet so fast as my body moved without any conscious instruction from my inflamed brain at all. I could feel everything around me, and I could feel the weight of every force pressing down on my passives. I was in the zone in a way that I had never been ever before in my life, and I was living. My grin was heartfelt. That should have been concerning. But I don''t think I cared.


    Following up with my initial attack, I pushed myself into the air with a shout and I hit the sturdy body of the giant man-eater with a thump, retrieving my daggers as I clung onto the handle and pulled them down his head carving open his forehead before they fell out and I landed on the ground. I spun, slashing the daggers in a wide arc that let me put my full body behind the swing, carving into its legs before kicking off of it and withdrawing, bringing the body of the monster to the ground with a thud. It collapsed into sand. One down, two to go.


    It seems that the heads of monsters are the most vulnerable. The chest seems to heal quickly, but I suppose the heart or lungs or maybe even kidneys if monsters have those would be secondary weak points. Just like in a human. I learned that all a while ago. I got to test those weaknesses on myself and some bad guys in my past life¡­ without awake Ardika knowing of course. It was all a dream and he has such a terrible memory, after all. Oh how things change¡­


    Sounds were dull, but I could hear roars and shouts that shook the air. Shouts of pain, anger, and violence. Words too, but they were so incoherent and I didnt care to listen as I whipped my body around faster than I probably should have to face the other two threats.


    They were stumbling to their feet, facing away from me. Their mistake.


    I ran tall with sure footing as I watched my surroundings but concentrated on the prone figure that I was aiming myself at. Its position wasn''t ideal¡­ but it would have to do. I pushed myself into the air with as good a jumping form as I could have with all the practice I got with my basketball, my two daggers out in front of me aimed to push the whole weight of my tiny body into the thrust to stab deep where I landed. And so I landed, both of my arms landing on the back of the monster with a thump as the rest of my body fell heavily, but the pain wasn''t all that important. What was important was the thrashing of the monster below me and the deep red lined lines of blood that surrounded where the hilt of my daggers met the bare back of the cannibal.


    I pulled my legs underneath me and then around to hook into its armpits and while keeping a firm grip on my daggers, twisting them to angle in just the right way, I pushed backwards. My daggers carved two deep lines into its back, and I could hear a pop from the giant''s arms as I pushed hard enough to dislocate at least one of its arms. But again it was too late for that to be important as I withdrew my daggers and before it could heal up its large lacerations I stabbed its lower back repeatedly, until I connected with something hard and with a crack its body started dissolving under me forcing me to stand and get a grip on the concrete parking lot before I fell on my butt.


    I turned unerringly and jerkily as I moved my body guided by the multiple senses that pointed me in the remaining monsters'' location. It was faltering as it tried to rise to its feet, but it managed it quickly and it started running fast in the opposite direction of me.


    ¡°No you dont~¡± I said in a sing-song voice as I cackled before starting to jog. It looked back, and I was upon it somehow despite the massive difference in size. I was fast as hell as my small frame packed on with my muscles pushed me forwards. I heard a scream of panic and a few shouts of more monsters a little ways away as their outlines became visible in the darkness. But by then I had pushed my Spirit Energy out through the Constructor and coiling the resulting energy around its knees and completely covering its joints even as I pushed myself to keep pace with it.


    ¡°Solidify!¡± I shouted out, and the monster stiffened as it reacted with a flinch to my voice. Then the glowing material appeared wrapping around its legs and sending it to the ground with its own momentum as its legs couldn''t keep him upright.


    ¡®You know? Enchanted rings are useful at times. But¡­ Using the ones I have in combat doesn''t sit quite right with me. Like they are unwieldy when I use them in this way. Like they don''t want to be used like this? That''s weird.¡¯ I thought to myself internally, glancing at the bands of gold on my hand. The red markings were glowing a bit, and I could feel that strange resistance grow a bit in most of them. The Constructor however didn''t, and I could even feel a hint of satisfaction rise up as it was acknowledged. Weird. I needed to think about that later¡­ This was just too weird. I have no clue how this is happening or why.


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    The Laistrygonian twisted its body as it fell, landing on its back with its large muscled back cushioning the fall as it faced me with its arms outstretched in front of its face. I didn''t need the push of the Dagger Skills passive to notice the huge weaknesses in its position and I thrust myself towards its undefended and immobilized lower body and then like a blender throwing my arms into arcs of power that bit deep into its thighs as the monster tried to desperately shove me away. But I managed to cut off one leg before I was forced into retreat.


    It was clutching its stump of a leg, trying to sit up. I took advantage of its weakness once again. My twin daggers arced into the air as they were released and found their place inside the eye sockets of the Laistrygonian. Its body crumbled into ash, my blades falling to the ground not a step away.


    But while I was slightly off balance and before I could react any farther, I could hear the blare of an alarm going off in my head and I tried to push myself out of the way before a sledge hammer of a fist came at my head from the side. Here are the other four monsters coming. Too late to help, but just one time to get me while I recovered from the last kill.


    I tried to roll out of the way of the fist, but it adjusted at the last second to slam the side of my head. A flash of pain and light lit up on my eyes and I gasped as I felt something pop in my face. Not good. I was sent flying by the much bigger monster and ended up tumbling on the concrete a distance away, slamming and battering my body while knocking the breath out of me.


    I nearly succumbed to my instincts to curl up in a ball and give up right then. I had never been hit like that in my life. Not even Mike Tyson hit like that. It was like getting hit by a freight train, where your entire body couldn''t do anything against the overwhelming force you were up against and your entire body tells you that a thousand times a second as you feel every nerve light on fire. Then everything dulled as I steeled myself with an actually blood covered grin as I raised a hand and snapped my nose back into its proper place without a second thought as the pain dulled. ¡®My skin is cold stone, and my mind was like a fire.¡¯ I repeated the mantra of my teacher that had followed me in the back of my mind for years, beat into me like dust being beaten from a carpet. My grin widened.


    The four remaining monsters that stood between me and my blades stood still, and I could make out their faces. Their huge muscle bound forms didn''t hide the contortions of fear and disgust on their faces and the shaking. The biggest guy of the bunch, that I knew to be the leader of the bunch, took a heavy step forward as he cracked his knuckles to try to appear tough despite his wide eyes and sweating form that glistened under the dull light.


    ¡°What- What are you, kid?¡± He asked, trying to sound menacing but his voice gave him out with a break and a bit of a stutter. I tilted my head, my mind running through strategies and techniques every millisecond and passing them by and refining them by the second as I stalled.


    ¡°I am Volcronic, Ruler of Dark Skies and The Night Breaker.¡± I said in a low voice that nonetheless carried across like a booming growl that it became as I said my name. It was the name that I had used for myself for years, both in and outside the ring when awake Ardika fell away. But tonight¡­ Something stirred as I said that. Something in my body, but also in the energy that makes up my soul. Something¡­ strangely unfamiliar and starkly new, yet natural. Like an old friend coming home. Something in my blood.


    Then it wrapped around my mind and I felt something in my mind solidifying in a way that I had never felt before. I screamed, and so did Ardika in our mind. I clutched my head and fell to my knees, barely noticing the monsters stumbling away in mild panic at the sudden change.


    ¡°I¡­ I am ME NOW! I¡­. I am REAL!¡± I realized with a laugh as I looked around through my eyes, the darkness retreating a bit to my eyes. I¡­ don''t know what I am¡­ I am not Ardika. I was a part of him¡­ and he held me within his mind, holding me in his mind and holding me back without even knowing I existed. The blackness that clouded my vision retreated just a bit until I saw the world for what it was. I wasn''t part of Ardika anymore then he was a part of me now. I tilted my head curiously with my grin on my face as I reveled in the feeling. It was invigorating. Something I didn''t even know was there, burdening my very soul, was gone now.


    I felt the power resting in my mind curiously, and I could feel the darkness come alive in the world around me. This¡­ was new. I loved it. It felt right to me. It was the shadows¡­ the darkness of the world below. And it was mine to control, because it was a part of my very soul and body.


    I felt the power ooze with a thick viscous power that felt like a snake coiling around my being and striping away just a little bit at a time as I controlled it. I smirked at how it snapped, and spread my arms out in a claw shape slowly towards the four huge monsters that were watching with expressions of horror, unable to do anything as their body¡¯s revolted against them with fear. Darkness curled around my body, and I could feel myself rise slowly up into the air even as it sapped my strength. Then it spread through my shadow in tendrils and then the ground seemed covered in them as they seeped from every shadow around me. I grinned, my bright bloody teeth the only part of my body not covered by the darkness.


    One of the monsters in the back of the group broke free from their frozen panic first. They were the first to die, as I reached my hand out and a tendril of shadow from their own shadow grabbed hold of him and shoved him back. Then the other tendrils emerged as the others broke, trying to escape, only to find themselves surrounded by shadows in the darkness of the night that was mine to break. Then the walls of tendrils constricted into a tight circle, pressing down as stabbing into the body¡¯s of the monsters. They were dead and disappearing back to tartarus before I dispelled the spiked shadow trap.


    Blue screens lit up the blackness, and I looked up to find notification after notification. I blinked in annoyance and shoved them out of the way for later as my body sagged to the ground, exhausted while my mind started to fade. But I didn''t let it take me yet as I watched the bodies of the Laistrygonians dissipate in the wind. It was time to head back to the dorms¡­


    I turned around, then blinked in mild surprise as I saw flashlights cut into the dark parking lot and I could hear some low voices and some shouts between the group, all of them weilding guns and wearing dark body armour. Strange.


    They came closer, and I watched them as they watched me and looked around seemingly in confusion.


    ¡°What happened?¡± I heard a friendly but tense voice call out, and I recognized it as the leader-man of the people I just rescued.


    ¡°I killed them.¡± Was my simple answer, and I didnt explain farther as I started to walk away in the direction of the school. ¡°Now I haven''t slept for ages and that took a lot out of me, so I am going to bed.¡± I called out to the people standing behind me without any care whatsoever as I let my mind go dull once again as I focused on nothing but walking back to the dorms through the streets and alleyways without caring about anything going on around me.


    Some sleep sounds heavenly. Then I could let awake Ardika- No, I suppose it was just Ardika now that I was no longer Ardika as well- figure stuff out. That''s what he was best at after all.

 Chapter 36:

    Ardika P.O.V.


    ¡®Oh¡­ Wow¡­ This is the most comfortably I have woken up since my time at the hospital¡­¡¯ I thought to myself, not even opening my eyes as I felt the warm freshness of my body. Everything was cozy. Until I tried to roll onto my side to escape the beam of light on my eyes.


    ¡°OW!¡± I yelled out in confusion as I felt my entire body peel from my bed, everything raw and on fire. Especially my jaw. What the hell!? ¡®Why is it that the only times that I sleep good, is when I am injured?!¡¯ I thought to myself, cursing the world in general as I opened my eyes and looked down at myself in horror. I was COVERED in blood. Absolutely covered. I couldn¡¯t even tell where I was injured under all the blood! And I was still in my clothes from yesterday¡­ My clothes are not going to recover from this. I am going to have to burn them¡­


    ¡°What the hell happened?!¡± I asked myself, looking down at the mess that was covering my body and caking my bed.


    I looked around my room, alarmed at a sudden sound that alerted me. The room was still, and the light of morning was just barely sneaking through the window curtain. But on the other side of the room¡­ Percy was sitting up on his bed, looking over at me in shocked frozen horror.


    ¡®Oh shit.¡¯ I thought to myself as I stared back at him, scrambling to think of a way out of this while I opened my mouth stupidly. ¡°...Hey?¡± I said slowly after a moment. Percy¡¯s eyes rolled a bit into the back of his head and he fell back on his bed with a thump, eyes closed and suddenly fast asleep. ¡®Well¡­ That was lucky.¡¯ I thought to myself as I suddenly scrambled up out of my bed, wincing with how raw and pained my entire body was.


    I ran to my dresser and whipped out a clean pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt before limping a bit to the bathroom as fast as possible. ¡®I need to get clean and figure out what the hell happened this time¡­¡¯ I thought, panicking a bit but with a dull sigh I calmed myself down a bit and went into autopilot as I stripped and sat down in the shower as water fell down on me and my newly red clothes.


    ¡°You know?¡± I sighed in exasperation after a moment of thinking, ¡°I had really hoped this would stop.¡±


    Things like this sometimes happened, though rarely, back home. Waking up with cuts and blood in some places, bruises and even on one rare occasion a sprained wrist. It didn¡¯t go unnoticed of course, so I went to a doctor to figure out what the heck was happening. That was when I learned I had a severe case of sleepwalking and a problem with violent dreams. You can see how that was a problem. Apparently, at night I just get up when I was sleeping and just walk out into the street and get into fights with thugs. And somehow win.


    It''s a condition. A weirdass one, but it was mine¡­ And I had really hoped it would go away. What with the new body and all.


    I had been dealing with it fine, back home. Though restraints to prevent me from getting up without undoing a bunch of straps was annoying to sleep with. That did the trick. Well¡­ most of the time. But for the most part it stopped.


    Apparently, I now had to figure out how to deal with this in this world. And maybe find out who exactly I went on a mass murdering spree against, judging by the amount of blood all over me compared to the small amounts of cuts I had on myself. ¡®Did I bathe in someone''s blood or something?¡¯ I thought in confusion as the shower water turned red the second it hit me, and barely seemed to be becoming clearer as I washed off with frequent winces of pain as I moved. The water of the shower felt refreshing though, so I stayed in it and let my body soak up the water while I tried to clean the blood.


    ¡®Also, what the hell happened to my jaw?!¡¯ I asked myself as I felt it up, feeling flashes of pain whenever I moved it or even touched it. This was less painful then when I had woken up in the body I had now in this world, but seriously this is bad. I turned and looked in a mirror for the first time since I had woken up, and I nearly fell down as I saw my body. The entire left side of my face was swollen and covered with black and purple bruises, nevermind the small patches of what looked like it was skinned by a seriously angry rug made from stone.


    The rest of my body wasn¡¯t all that bad comparatively, but the rugburns seemed frequent and small cuts alongside them and smaller bruises that looked like the ones you get from your entire body falling multiple times.


    ¡®How am I supposed to explain this away..?¡¯ I thought in shock, unable to put my thoughts to words as I felt the raw stab of pain from my jaw as I looked at it from inside the shower. ¡®No, nevermind that. What on earth did I do to cause this?!¡¯ I shoved all other thoughts aside as I thought back to last night as best as I could, closing my eyes as the water rushed over me and even triggering my Perfect Recollection passive with how hard I was trying to remember.


    I went to the parlor, where me and Percy talked over ice cream in celebration for me getting on the basketball team¡­ Wait, something happened before that. I talked to the woman at the counter¡­ we talked¡­ She told me she was a reincarnator, like I had suspected. Then, I got a quest? To kill some monsters that were stalking out the parlor. Right¡­ Things were starting to make some sense. Not good sense, but sense.


    I continued through my memory for a while, and I could see me and Percy in our dorm room¡­ But I stayed awake, planning to continue on with the quest when Percy was asleep. And I stayed awake, until¡­ No, I actually did stay awake? I got up and walked out, walking the streets in a fast paced and stealthy way under the guidance of Stealth. I reached the parlor¡­ where I saw two Laistrygonians stalking out the place. Then I followed them to their base¡­ and things started getting foggy in my memory.


    ¡®What the¡­ That is weird, I can barely remember even with Perfect Recollection?¡¯ I thought confused as I could barely pick out parts of the events past that point, just running, darkness, some weird sensations and my daggers whirling through the air, monsters getting killed¡­ then once I had reached the point where I was about to finish the rest of them off¡­ I couldn''t remember anything. Weird. I mean¡­ clearly I won, so does it even really matter in the end?


    I gave a sigh, my eyebrows furrowed together in lingering confusion. Well, good thing is that I wasn¡¯t sleepwalking? That takes off a good amount of worry. The memory issue is strange, but I was probably just really tired and memory when you are tired gets a little wonky. That''s just a fact that I learned years ago.


    I let out a groan as I looked myself over again, pondering how I could fix this. It was right then that the system decided to pop into existence in front of my eyes once again.


    ¡°You have several unread notifications, would you like to read them now?¡± The system screen that appeared asked, and I blinked. ¡®Oh, I think I vaguely remember getting a notification or two that I might have ignored¡­¡¯ I recall before shrugging it off, then wincing at the action and letting the system notifications to appear, causing the screen to shift.


    ¡°That''s¡­ a lot.¡± I exclaimed as the screen suddenly expanded and more started popping up around me. ¡°Could you order them by the order they were received?¡± I asked the system screens in front of me and, responding to my question, all but one of the notifications vanished. I started to read it.


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    Quest parameters changed due to user¡¯s actions and intentions!


    Name: Cannibal Extermination


    Difficulty: Hard


    Requirements to succeed: Rescue the majority of the humans that have been captured, make all the monsters responsible flee or kill them all and survive


    Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings.


    Rewards if succeeded: 100 Ring Gold along with 2 free levels to a passive ability of your choice and a new skill


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    ¡°...What?¡± I said out loud, before wincing again at the feeling of my sore jaw moving again.


    ¡®The quest changed¡­ due to my actions and intentions? What does that even mean? Because I focused hard enough on killing them, the system changed the quest? And the difficulty! I have never done a quest of this difficulty! And the rewards! TWO free levels to a Passive I choose, a huge amount of RG and a SKILL. I only have two Skills, the Soul Forge and my Appraisal. Both of which are incredibly useful and more powerful by an order of magnitude, despite the daily usefulness of my Passives. If I didn''t have my Skills, I would be way less powerful. Hell, I might not even have any enchanted rings at all! Another one? Yes please!¡¯ I thought in excitement as I finished reading the notification, and before I could do any more the notification vanished and was replaced by another one.


    This one was much less information dense. ¡°You have started forming your first Passive Ability, Spirit Sense. This Passive Ability is currently at Lv 0.1 due to its incomplete status. This Passive Ability has the UNIQUE title. The UNIQUE title means that the ability that it is attached to is new to the system, and rewards will be given for completing any UNIQUE abilities.¡± The system screen told me, and I blinked.


    ¡°What?¡± I said out loud again, this time not even caring about the pain in my jaw that came from it. ¡®I CREATED an ability? Or started to. When the hell did I do this? And ¡°Spirit Sense?¡± What does it do? How did I do that!?¡¯ I wondered in absolute confusion as I looked over the notification with half a mind to ignore all other notifications to look closer at the ability.


    Then I looked over the rest of the notification and something clicked in my mind that I had been wondering for some time now. ¡®I always wondered why the system does what it does¡­ is this the reason? The creation of UNIQUE things? Is this system¡­ collecting Abilities and Skills as it gets different users? It gives rewards for the creation of them¡­ and its entire system is based around progress and growth of abilities and skills. This¡­ Makes sense. Whatever made the system, if it was something that was made technically speaking, was creating a database of skills and abilities through the system and letting it expand and grow across the omniverse¡­ Though I can''t know for sure.¡¯ I thought to myself in wonder.


    Then another screen popped up, replacing the other notification.


    Multiple skills leveled up¡­ Dagger Skills to level 12, Deflection to level 5, Evasion to level 5, Tracking to level 4, Stealth to level 3 and finally Throwing Skills to level 3¡­ ¡®That is the most levels I have ever gotten!¡¯ I thought to myself in surprise as I looked over the levels.


    Before I could dwell on the levels and what the amount of progress I had made could mean however, another notification appeared and I had to stop thinking to read it for a moment distracting me.


    ¡°Quest completion requirements met for quest: Cannibal Extermination. Rewards available: 100 Ring Gold along with 2 free levels to a passive ability of your choice and a new skill. You may accept the rewards at any time.¡± The new screen read out, and I looked at it with a satisfied look.


    ¡®Looks like I did it after all¡­¡¯ I thought to myself, though still with a bit of confusion. ¡®I wonder¡­ How?¡¯ I asked myself again, the confusion of last night still pressing against my mind. I shrugged it off though. The simple answer right now is I don''t know, and I don''t know how I could.


    ¡®Should I accept the rewards now?¡¯ I wondered, looking at the rewards. I shrugged, and accepted it quickly before the next notification popped up for me to read.


    ¡°100 Ring Gold gained.¡± The first read, then it was wiped aside as the next notification arose.


    ¡°What Passive Ability(s) do you want to assign your 2 free levels?¡± The system asked next and I paused to think about it, opening my status screen and taking a look at the levels of my Passives.


    ¡®You know¡­ I didnt think about this before, but it seems that I have a lot of random low level skills.¡¯ I admitted to myself, looking over my list and removing them from a list to potentially level up in my head as I did. ¡®I mean, I have Speed Reading. It''s useful, but also why do I even have it?¡¯ I wondered as I looked it over, internally shaking my head. ¡®The system really does not hold back handing out its Passives. But what is the most important to me¡­ What should I choose to level up?¡¯


    Eventually I settled on a Passive that I have a feeling has been pulling their weight recently and will continue to do it a lot more in the future.


    ¡®I wish to assign both level ups to Stealth.¡¯ I assigned the two free level ups, bringing the ability to level 5 now with a satisfied nod. I had considered adding it to Dagger Skills or even Evasion or another similar ability, but I trusted my instinct and went with Stealth. You could never be too sneaky, especially when you are definitely going to be actively hunted in the near future. And doing the hunting, as proven by last night.


    It blinked an acceptance notice, and I saw the level of Stealth turn to level 5 with the instruction.


    Then the final notification for the quest rewards appeared.


    ¡°As a reward for the completion of a Hard quest, you have unlocked a new Skill. Skill selected due to quest conditions and user activity during quest! You have unlocked the Skill: Hunters Sense Level 1. To see more information on this Skill, open your Status Menu and look under Skills.¡± The system read out, and my eyes locked onto the name of the skill with curiosity.


    I instantly opened the status menu, and looked at the description.


    ¡°Hunters Sense Lv1: Harnessing the Sixth Sense of humanity, you get an instinctual understanding of when you or others are being hunted and roughly where the hunter doing the hunting is located relative to you alongside a strong feeling of when a trap or attack is about to happen to you or others near you.¡±


    ¡®Oh. Huh, that''s interesting¡­ But what is more interesting is it mentions the sixth sense by name. So it is real then? I mean¡­ I kind of already knew that because of the way my Passives worked, but it was always up in the air or whether it was that or just a system thing. Looks like I guessed right them.¡¯ I thought to myself, happy with the confirmation. ¡®And I can definitely see this being insanely important in this world, as a demigod.¡¯ I thought to myself, making me more happy than ever with the Skill.


    ¡®But¡­ Doesnt this description make this seem more like a Passive Ability rather than a Skill?¡¯  I paused, wondering about what the difference between a Skill and a Passive actually is. I had thought that a skill was something that you had to trigger, like the Soul Forge, but this seems like it would trigger automatically like my Passives do.


    Then I felt something that I hadn''t felt since I had gotten the Soul Forge Skill. A strange energy coursing through my soul, and moving deeper into my very being. I watched in shocked silence as I concentrated inwards, looking at the energy coursing in waves and thousands upon thousands of tiny trails of power as they moved into me from somewhere that I couldn''t see. They looked like they were searching for something¡­ Then one of those strings touched something inside my soul and I felt a twinge in my mind itself. It didn''t feel bad¡­ just weird. But I knew this type of weird. This was the same thing I could feel when some parts of my Passive Abilities activated. The sixth sense. I could feel my mind expand and I could start to feel¡­ feelings around me. But I couldn''t tell what was what, it seemed¡­ infinite. Everything was so¡­ full of knowledge. I could sense¡­ everything.


    Then the pain started, my brain getting overloaded with the information in the split second after the euphoric sensation started. I grunted at the pain, recalling the pain that came when I got the Soul Forge and Perfect Recollection. This was just as bad as then, but I could handle myself better.


    Then I could parse through all the foreign sensations, just enough to feel the strings of energy suddenly join with the string that activated this whole thing. They wrapped around each other, again and again. The splitting headache started to die down.


    Then with one final connection, I could feel a pulse in my soul and suddenly it all stopped. I felt like normal again. Nothing seemed to have changed¡­ but now beside the Soul Forge¡¯s gateway in my soul, there were lines and lines of energy curled around a part of my soul, stretching and connecting and stabilizing things that I could barely tell existed with my senses.


    I had never felt my soul like this before either. It was like¡­ my soul was like a puzzle, with all the pieces making up my soul. The part the Skill was wrapped around and channeling through my mind, was the sixth sense. It was limiting it, but tapping into it for me.


    ¡®I guess¡­ This is what a Skill is.¡¯ I thought to myself, still recovering from the sudden gaining of the Skill. ¡®It is the system itself, using itself to enhance or manipulate my soul!¡¯ I realized, as I could feel my Skills inside of me.


    But even with this groundbreaking revelation, the notifications kept coming and I looked up at the next notification before me. The day was only getting started¡­ I hadn''t even gotten out of the shower yet. This was going to be a long day.

 Chapter 37:

    ¡°Who would have thought having access to a system would involve so much reading?¡± I muttered with a small chuckle as I looked to the next screen that popped up before me in the shower, the water still running down my back with a nice cool, but not chilly, feel to it as it ran down my battered body.


    <table>


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    Due to the successful undertaking of a High rank quest in the absence of responsibility, and your determination to complete said quest, your trial period has ended earlier than normal for most users, and you have been accepted by the System. The Ring Master system accepts you, Ardika Ekia and your extended existence, as its host for the foreseeable future. Some changes to system functionality have been altered due to this, to promote higher growth in abilities. Would you like me to outline these alterations for you, Ardika?


    </td>


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    </tbody>


    </table>


    ¡°Me and my ¡®extended existence¡¯ is accepted¡­ Host¡­ Trial period? What trial period?! There was a trial period? And I passed?¡± I asked the air, a little miffed at the sudden information drop. It sounded like there was a trial period, despite me not knowing, and during this the system was supposed to see if it accepted me or not as its host? Honestly¡­ I had thought I already was. Permanently its host, that is. It dug into my soul, and brought me back to life in another universe¡­ As a trial period? I sighed. I was getting ahead of myself, and honestly I should have expected something like this. I don''t know anything about anything.


    All I understand is I know nothing, though I don''t doubt that I will go assuming things in the future¡­ I read that''s the nature of sentience. That we see the world in a neat little frame of our own creation, to make us think we understand what we really can''t even imagine.


    But philosophy aside, what I can understand a little is that the system said that it is going to change some things for me¡­ And I don''t like the sound of that.


    ¡°Let''s see what this is about then¡­ Yes, could you give me the details?¡± I asked the system screen hesitantly, making it blink to its blank state before writing started to fill the screen as it responded to me.


    <table>


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    <td>


    There has been four major changes to system functionality.


    Firstly, the requirements of the acquisition of Skills and Passive Abilities has been heightened by an order of magnitude. This makes more effort needed to gain Skills and Passive Abilities than previously.


    Secondly, requirements to initiate leveling of Skills and Passive abilities have been heightened by an order of magnitude. This makes more effort needed to progress in Skills and Passive Abilities in either the aspect of execution, or theoretical knowledge.


    Thirdly, the prices of items in the System Store have been increased by a factor of 3. This was due to the unexpected amount of Ring Gold you currently have and the speed at which you have been making Ring Gold through numerous ways.


    Fourthly, the gain of Ring Gold for items made has lowered significantly for items below or at the average grade you are capable of constructing, unless said item is significantly different in design then has been produced before. This also divides item¡¯s made into categories to track average quality for items constructed.


    All in all, these changes should push for more growth over time for you and your extended existence and allow higher growth than previously projected before these changes.


    Do you have any questions, Ardika?


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    I took a minute reading everything over, feeling myself deflate and wince at everything. ¡®This¡­ is a major change. Four of them. I suppose that it isn¡¯t that bad to not gain a new Passive Ability for everything I spend time doing, but the levels¡­ The levels really helped me use the information, knowledge and instincts and gain more of it over time. But this change makes it seem like it wants me to actively work out how to do things better, using the information and skill to build what I have before giving me the level up. You know, I didn''t really think about the way leveling up actually did stuff before¡­ But ok, I can see why it changed. It forces me to learn and work stuff out instead of just practicing on using what the system gives me.¡¯ I thought to myself with a mild sense of revelation, looking back at my memories leveling up and using my Passives and Skills with some surprise at the realization.


    ¡®And the Store becoming more expensive¡­ Well I suppose I always knew that the prices were a little too good to be true. And now that I think about it, I haven''t used the system store, or even checked my balance for a long time. I always had what I needed, and the amount of material wasn''t really an issue with my duplication ring.¡¯ I mused. ¡®That doesn''t mean that it doesn''t suck though. Inflation always does.¡¯ I then thought with a little bitterness. ¡®Who knows how much I could have gotten if I had gone shopping before this? ¡­Though I do have infinite money because I can make gold, or literally any other material, don''t I? ¡­And I can take the money I make from the gold and convert that into RG through the system¡­¡¯ I suddenly stilled a little at the implication of the thought. I had probably had this same thought before, but only in passing.


    ¡®How did I forget I have an infinite money glitch?¡¯ I wondered with a little laugh that turned into a painful cough, returning me to the present as I looked at the screen in front of me.


    ¡°Hey system¡­ Will you take it personally if I make large amounts of material with the Ring of Creation, sell them and convert the money I make in large quantities into Ring Gold and use that on the System Store?¡± I decided to just ask, feeling a bit of guilt. It would feel just a little wrong to game the system like this. Yeah, I was never good with stealing or cheating. I always just felt so guilty after. Some things don¡¯t change.


    <table>


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    I recommend that you do not do that. You would cause several problems within the market in the long term using that method and likely be put under observation by mortal organizations if you were found to do this repeatedly. Alongside this, major amounts of money being converted would induce an exponential increase in the exchange rate from money to Ring Gold conversion as the transaction is taking place, with permanent impacts on the exchange rate. Small amounts of money on a regular basis would be the most beneficial, maintaining the current favorable exchange rate. Though it could be to your benefit to open a bank account and save mortal money for mortal transactions such as housing, meals, factory made convenience products and more.


    </td>


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    ¡°Ok¡­¡± I said with a small nod, though the small flash of pain that came with it annoyed me again. ¡®I can see that. The market could be an issue, and large amounts of rare materials appearing out of thin air would definitely be suspicious. Hell, they would probably think I was a thief or something. And the exchange rates increasing¡­ Well that''s fair I suppose. Having thousands of Ring Gold isn''t all that necessary in the first place, though I could use some of the better materials¡­ Though, the bank account and saving mortal money is honestly good advice. I probably would need to do it sometime anyways. Though it''s not strictly necessary for now when I only have small cash after my most recent small sale to a pawn shop and no need for large amounts of money¡­ I suppose it could be better to start earning? I could sell the rings and things I make in blacksmithing practice for a good price.¡¯ I thought, taking the system''s words seriously.


    Then the screen shifted and another message read out.


    <table>


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    It is also recommended that you buy a supply of Ambrosia and Nectar in the System Store as soon as possible and consume some as soon as possible to avoid complications due to injuries within upcoming social interactions and physical activity.


    </td>


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    Now that caused me to pause, and I felt the urge to smack myself in the head though I resisted. ¡°I cannot believe that I didn¡¯t think of that sooner.¡± I groaned out, realizing that I had been in pain longer than I should have been for no reason. ¡®This happened to me the first time I got hurt as well! I nearly forgot. My Perfect Recollection really only pulls its weight when I try to remember something, doesn''t it? It doesn''t help me remember what I needed to remember when I don''t remember that I needed to remember it...¡¯


    ¡°Speaking of the System Store, what is my balance anyways? System, could you open the System Store?¡± I asked quickly in a whisper against the sound of water running down my body in the shower.


    <table>


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    <td>


    System Store


    </td>


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    <table>


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    <td>


    Ring Gold: 485


    </td>


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    Ring Templates


    Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site.


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    Fire Hearts


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    Materials


    </td>


    <td>


    Currency Conversion


    </td>


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    Necessities


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    ¡°Four hundred eighty five?!¡± I whispered, raising my eyebrows and opening my mouth in surprise. Until I nearly choked on water that ran down my face and into my mouth while I was breathing in and I started coughing hard, leaning against the shower wall. ¡®This is enough for almost anything in the system¡­ At least before the price increase?¡¯ I realized with a small start, feeling disappointed. ¡®Man, I could have gotten a whole lot of stuff before the price increase if I had thought to check.¡¯ I thought with disappointment at myself. That seems to happen a lot nowadays.


    ¡®Anyways! Moving on.¡¯ I opened the Necessities tab quickly and navigated to the Ambrosia and Nectar options.


    ¡®The price is now¡­ one hundred and eighty for a single purchase of either. When it used to be sixty. Good news is I can still afford it quite easily?¡¯ I thought to myself, wincing a little. ¡®Now¡­ Ambrosia or Nectar? I believe I got Ambrosia last time, so let''s try Nectar. I don''t remember if there was an actual difference besides what it looked like and its form, so it shouldn''t matter.¡¯ I decided, then purchasing the Nectar and leaving me with a balance of 305 RG.


    On a whim, I reached out my hand like I was grabbing a bottle. It would be so cool if this worked¡­ And a bottle appeared in thin air in my hand! It was in a plastic pop bottle shape, and it was rather large. ¡®This is eight hundred milliliters?¡¯ I wondered, looking at it. It was about the size of two and a half cans, so just a bit larger than a vending machine type bottle. And it was full to the top with a soft gold drink. ¡°This is a lot more than I got for Ambrosia¡­ That thing was granola bar sized. And this is a full waterbottle¡¯s worth. What''s this about? Ambrosia is worth more per purchase because of the amount...¡± I wondered, looking at it and holding it firmly to prevent it from sliding out of my wet hands and falling to the shower floor.


    Then I grabbed the cap of the bottle and twisted it open, stepping to the side of the shower head and the water coming from it. I then lifted it to my mouth and gave it a taste, swirling it around in my mouth before I swallowed with a smile. It tasted like hot chocolate¡­ Which brings me back to going ice skating with my mom and dad when I was younger, and my friends¡­ My smile cracked a little, the feeling of nostalgia and loss starting to crash down. Then I straightened, ignoring it and pushing it out of the way. ¡®Don''t think about that. There is no point.¡¯ I thought to myself with a little annoyance as I did that, taking another sip.


    I felt the pain in my body start to ease, and I looked down to see the small scrapes and cuts that I had all over my body start to heal. Though interestingly, it was much slower then I remembered Ambrosia being. Though it did ease my body a little more than it did, and I was feeling much less feverish drinking it then eating the Ambrosia back then. I sat down on the edge of the shower, watching everything heal and my body returning to normal. By the time I had finished the bottle a two minutes or so later, I was feeling perfectly fine.


    ¡°Is the difference between Ambrosia and Nectar the concentration of whatever does the healing inside of it? It seems like Nectar might be slower to heal and need more for the same amount¡­ Though maybe it''s less localized and more of a widespread healing as well?¡± I wondered, comparing the two experiences I had by running through the experiences I had with them. ¡°It''s as good a theory as any.¡± I decided, looking down at the empty bottle in my hand. But it wasn''t there. I looked around for a moment, and it didn''t fall either. It was just gone. Weird.


    ¡°Ok¡­ Lets get a move on. I still have a full day ahead of me, and no school!¡± I said to myself, getting to my feet and bouncing a little with energy now that I was fully healed up. I turned off the shower, and stepped out, putting on my clean set of clothes over my now blood and wound free skin and clean body. It felt good to finally be this fresh and clean.


    I left the bathroom me and Percy shared, and instantly I realized I had forgotten another thing. My blankets, sheets and pillow¡­ had dried blood all over them. My white ones. I let out a groan, grabbing it up into a ball quickly, looking at Percy to be sure he wasn''t awake yet. Thankfully he wasn¡¯t, so I ran into the bathroom again to try to wash out the worst of the blood. It didn''t work.


    <hr>


    Ten minutes later, I gave up with it and just brought it into the Soul Forge to burn it in my forge before coming back to Percy¡¯s and my room and collapsing on my now bare bed. I would need to ask for more blankets and sheets and a pillow from the school¡­ But not right now. Now, I could take a day off and do some light reading.


    I opened up my status page, noticing that it has grown quite large before doing anything else, just admiring it.


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    <td>


    Statistics


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    Passive Abilities


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    <td>


    Skills


    </td>


    <td>


    Active Quests


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Name: Ardika Ekia/Volcronic


    Physical age: 12 years old


    Birthdate: August 12


    Gender: Male


    Race: Human/God hybrid


    </td>


    <td>


    Adaptation


    Adaptive System


    Perfect Recollection


    Ring Maker Lv10


    Speed Reading Lv4


    Builder Lv4


    Architect Lv1


    Blacksmithing Lv1


    Dagger Skills Lv12


    Deflection Lv5


    Evasion Lv5


    Tracking Lv4


    Stealth Lv5


    Throwing Skills Lv3


    The Long Game Lv1


    Spirit Sense Lv 0.1 (UNIQUE)


    </td>


    <td>


    Appraisal


    Soul Forge Lv1


    Hunters Sense Lv1


    </td>


    <td>


    (No active quests)


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    This is the work of months of work and progress¡­ Though there are a lot of Passives that are severely underleveled, and I haven''t leveled up any of my Skills even once.


    My eyes focused on the Spirit Sense Passive, and I couldn''t help but think about the whole situation last night that led to its creation.


    ¡°Last night¡­ I went through a whole quest, that turned into the highest graded difficulty of a quest I had ever done, I gained a Passive which is a UNIQUE, my first Skill that I earned instead of just being given like with the Soul Forge, gaining several levels, ending the trial period to the system and getting a hundred RG¡­¡± I mused, thinking about all the rewards that I had gotten, then my expression turned to one of deep seated confusion and worry.


    ¡°So why can''t I remember doing it?¡± I thought, thinking back desperately and only seeing flashes of memory, dark hallways and faces, both human and monster, in dimly lit rooms. I remember following two monsters¡­ Then I think I saw them meeting up with a bunch more? And then¡­ I left, and then came back so I could find something¡­ No, some people. I had to save some people before I could complete the quest¡­ And I killed some, running through some kind of hallway¡­ I found the people, and then I led them out¡­ Then we were ambushed? I think the people escaped¡­ But I can''t remember anything after. Flashes of me fighting monsters? I must have killed them but it was all a puddle of confusion in my mind¡­ maybe I saw the people again after I succeeded in killing all the monsters? I seem to remember that I saw them¡­ With guns? What was that about?


    It was then that I heard a knock on my dorm room door, and I sat up, looking at the door with a huge amount of confusion. ¡°Who on earth would be knocking at our door this early?¡± I wondered as I walked to the door, putting my hand on the handle.


    I swung open the door and I looked out into the hallway, immediately seeing a tall man standing there and looking down at me with bags under his eyes. I recognized his face, he was one of the people I saved last night I think? And he was wearing¡­ He was wearing a military-esc uniform, with a logo that I didn''t recognize. It was circular, and it looked a bit like a cross between an eye with the earth as a pupil and a compass. With words around it inside another circle that read ¡®The United Meta Bureau of Research and Advancement.¡¯


    The man looked big too, athletic and strong like a soldier, with brown hair turning gray almost white in places and a kind lined face and blue-gray eyes. I took a step back at the surprise of seeing the man standing there. He took a step back in turn, looking down at me with a professional look on his face.


    ¡°Ardika. Hello again.¡± He greeted me by name. That made me pause. ¡°Hello. Who are you?¡± I asked hesitantly, and confused. I only remembered this man''s face from last night, and a few others. No names, or anything else really. The man however didn''t seem offended by that and gave a small smile, raising his hand for a handshake. ¡°I am David. David Prince. I am here from the organization that I work for, the United Meta Bureau of Research and Advancement. But you can call us UMBRA.¡± He introduced himself, and I took his hand and gave him a shake.


    ¡°We have a car waiting for you, if you would come with us?¡± He then asked me, returning to business. I blinked in surprise at that, a little frozen in surprise though I tried to stay cool on the surface.


    ¡®They know my name¡­ They have a car waiting to pick me up¡­ Why does some shady organization want me to come with them?! Just what the heck happened last night!?¡¯ I panicked inside, while on the outside I tried to remain calm to answer him. ¡°Uh¡­ Sure. Just give me a minute to get ready?¡± I asked, and he nodded while letting me shut the door.

 Chapter 38:

    Before I went and left alone with some shady sounding organization that I may or may not have attracted the interest of while I was asleep, there were things that I needed to do. First, I needed to figure out my angle.


    In a word where things made sense, I would have tons and tons of information to base things on. Sadly all I know is that I probably rescued some people from this organization while I was killing monsters. ¡®But the thing is I don''t know how much they know. Or what they are for that matter, for all I know they could be a demigod organization or something similar. Who knows what could be different from the real world to the books. They were written for teens and kids after all, things could be different in reality.¡¯ I wondered, pacing frantically around the room with my hands on my head.


    ¡®Ok, so I need to play stupid. That''s the only way I can get information about the situation.¡¯ I decided, with a slight twinge of my ego. Though not much of one¡­ I didn¡¯t even know I had an ego.


    Ok, angle decided. I just be me, but clueless. Now, moving onto the more physical preparation.


    ¡°Where did I leave my jacket?¡± I whispered softly, looking around cluelessly before I focused and recalled that I left it hanging in the shower to dry off a bit. I left my daggers in their sheaths inside my jacket as well.


    ¡®You know, I really don''t give my jacket enough credit.¡¯ I mused as I walked in, looking over the leather with an impressed look. ¡®It doesn''t stain at all somehow, it''s put up with everything with barely any ware on it, and it holds both my daggers and my rings perfectly out of sight. I should probably take care of it better¡­ Eh, who am I kidding? If it didn''t get used, it would be useless.¡¯ I pondered as I slipped the slightly wet jacket over my shoulders.


    I gave my daggers a quick check as I drew them before putting them back in silently and digging around in the folds of my pocket for where the rings all pooled together in the pocket after I took them off before I showered. They were right at the lowest corner, just below where the handles of the daggers stuck out from their sheathes inside the pocket. I took them out and put on the Ring of Creation that was currently bare of any material attachments, the Constructor, and finally Masatr. Oddly I felt a bit more sensitive to my Spirit Energy and Aura once I put them on, noticing the slight, almost miniscule cost to keep them all on even when I wasn''t using them. All but Masatr, that felt like a blanket coming over my body and almost holding my energy in. The cost of wearing them slowed down my Spirit Energy and Aura generation, but it doesn¡¯t drain anything.


    I blinked. ¡®Since when did I start feeling my spirit like this? I don''t even have to think about it, it''s just there¡­ Not that I am complaining, this feels¡­ Really good. Things feel a bit clearer somehow? It''s odd though. I wonder what happened?¡¯ I thought to myself, my brows creased until I gave a small snort. ¡°Question of the day it seems¡­¡± I said out loud with a scoff and a sigh.


    I put the only remaining ring, Mystic, back into my pocket. Its energy consumption is really high and it has to be on all the time, and I do not need my own people radar on all the time. And while I may or may not have made a Passive Ability that could replace this ring, I have never used it before¡­ At least not that I remember. So I kept it in my pocket so I could slip it on at any time instead.


    And now¡­ Only one thing left. Percy.


    I went to my desk, hurrying now so the agent guy wouldn''t start getting worried, and I took a pen and slip of paper and scribbled some explanations before taking a piece of tape and attaching my note to the door where Percy could find it.


    Then¡­ I opened the door again and stepped out into the hallway so I was face to face, or technically face to uniformed stomach because of my small size, with ¡®David Prince.¡¯ If that was his real name.


    ¡°You ready, kid?¡± The man asked, looking me over as he took a step back to keep a respectable distance.


    I gave a shrug of mild discomfort at that, looking up at the man with my hands in my pockets, touching both hilts of my daggers. ¡°Yeah. Though I still don''t know what this is all about. Am I getting arrested for something?¡± I asked, trying to play a little more clueless than usual. Not that it is hard, seeing as I actually don''t know anything substantial. I don''t even remember last night when I supposedly met this guy.


    ¡°No, no. Don''t worry. You are not in trouble. You, me and the rest of my team are just going to meet some people and have a talk. And in fact I am here to be your advocate. You can trust me.¡± He explained, waving me down the hallway as he set the pace towards the stairwell that would lead to the exit.


    ¡®Advocate?¡¯ I wondered as we walked, staying just a step or two behind the soldier as he led the way. ¡®And I am going to have a talk with some people. So I attracted someone''s interest. I need someone who is supposedly my advocate because I am going to be interrogated and they need a good cop.¡¯ I realized what he was saying pretty quickly and started to think things through.


    ¡®This is not looking too great. If I can react in time, then I could escape in an instant using the Soul Forge¡­ Though that would only be temporary. I can''t leave through anywhere other than where I entered¡­ But I do have my rings, which would in theory trump other weapons like guns if I could react before bullets were fired. Use the Ring of Construction and even normal concrete and I could shield myself while I¡­ I have no idea how I could escape. I would have to kill them before I could escape an enclosed space like a basement or interrogation room. Then run and go into hiding. When did my life become a spy movie?¡¯ I thought with a small wince. ¡®Also¡­ When did my immediate solution involve killing people? Was there another way?¡¯ I wrestled with myself as I walked down the stairs in silence, trying to school my expression from revealing anything.


    ¡°You look like you are planning escape routes, kid.¡± David commented as he glanced back at me, not even taking a moment to see through me. I frowned. ¡®I apparently don''t have a great poker face.¡¯ I thought to myself ruefully, putting my thoughts out of my mind. I was always good at improvisation anyways.


    ¡°You don''t need to worry, Ardika. You can leave at any time. You saved me and my team''s life, kid, we are not going to kidnap you.¡± David said seriously, slowing down as we reached the door at the bottom of the stairwell and turning to me with an expression I couldn''t quite understand.


    ¡°Right.¡± I told him, trying to reassure both him and myself as I made myself relax just a touch. Though it wouldn''t be anything but plain stupid to trust him, no matter what he says, I wouldn''t want to give up an edge. Underestimating me. I was already in the body of a twelve year old, but if I could seem¡­ scared or something, it would go a long way to that goal. But it''s a little too late now, it would clearly look like an act just because of how I was acting before. Maybe stressed. Well that''s not hard.


    I tried to put a little bit more of my nervous energy into my movements and expression as David opened the door, ramping things up. He gave me a glance, frowned a bit sadly, but did not comment. ¡®...I am being stupid, aren''t I? Am I seriously trying to trick spy¡¯s?¡¯ I thought with a mild sense of irritation. I wish I had a Passive for acting. Hang on, I did have The Long Game. What was the description for that again?


    I went ahead and focused for a second, walking in step with David in the entrance hall to the dorm building steadily towards the exit. ¡®Increases recognition of when a person is unconvinced by an act or lie of your construction and increases the ability to recognize possible ways to convince people of a long term lie or act.¡¯ I thought to myself, then I noticed something.


    ¡®Hang on, aren''t I already doing this?¡¯ I realized, with a small frown. ¡®I don''t feel the Passive activating though. No¡­ I am not quite lying and I am not really doing an act either. This is more like trying to express my emotions in different ways. There is a huge difference, and I think both me and my system knows that. I need to recognize that better. And I didn''t think about this as a long term act, did I? So the other half of it couldnt activate even if my ¡°acting¡± counted. Ok, let''s do this right this time. No time to learn like the present.¡¯ I analyzed, thinking hard before I put my thoughts into action. Though the first step wasn''t a physical change as I kept walking.


    ¡®This needs to be a long term act. Come on, you went through Drama class¡­ once or twice. Character. Ardika Ekia, a kid who is a bit impulsive with possible ADHD, fights monsters, has a¡­ Hero Complex? No, that''s overrated. I will save people and place human life first, but I am selfish and place myself first aside from killing monsters. Maybe I have a hatred of monsters gained from someone dying? And how to explain the daggers¡­ Right, I got them on the streets from a gang. Gang? Maybe a small one that fights monsters? Ok, I was a streetrat until very recently and learned to fight that way. Though that would mean I should have scars, doesn''t it? Wait, I don''t even know if I do have scars. Have I even looked at myself seriously in the mirror lately? Urg. To think, I barely know what my own body looks like. Ah well. Anyways, so I escaped the gang and lived in an orphanage until I was sent to this school. Or no! No, everyone in the gang died and I was the only one left so I ran away to New York and things went from there. Everyone loves a dramatic backstory. Damn! I could be a writer with storylines like this!¡¯ I planned out my character thoroughly with satisfaction.


    ¡®So, Ardika v2, you are going to be my long term act when I am dealing with these guys.¡¯ I completed my thought process, and I could feel something shift as I thought that.


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    Everything seemed to slow down a little as I could feel the shift of the Passive Ability. Unlike my other main Passives like Dagger Skills, which works around my physical body and guides me almost through what I need to do like I had always been doing it, or like Tracking that is like parsing through a whisper in a storm, The Long Game was unique. Suddenly small things in David''s body language started to stick out to me and I could feel what it meant. It wasn''t really in words, but mood and some of his thoughts about me and the situation suddenly became clear. It wasn''t all encompassing, but some I could parse out his thoughts and intentions about me in particular.


    His walk was slow and measured, almost too careful to keep a good distance to me. He doesn''t want me to feel pressured, or get scared off like he believes I might be on edge. Which is fair, and makes sense. It fits my character to some extent as well, so it seems to be working ok.


    Also¡­ Thinking back, he doesn''t leave a certain distance either. That would suggest that he feels he needs to stay close for one reason or another. Protection for my sake? Yeah, that seems about right with the rest of his body. He is looking around and back at me every few seconds and his body seems angled a bit away from me and towards elsewhere with his body in front of me. He thinks I might need protection¡­ That''s not ideal for my character. I could fix that.


    He seems to be a bit comfortable around me, though I can see some tension and stress in his posture. And I think I remember seeing bags under his eyes? He didn''t get much sleep. That''s probably from last night. I barely got any sleep myself. Though now I was feeling like Sherlock Holmes or something, so maybe I wasn''t really comparable to how he was feeling.


    And from what I remember he only seems to glance from the surroundings to my face, barely resting on my hands at all and certainly not enough to show if he was ready to defend himself or even assessing me as a danger. He trusts me.


    That pulled me back to reality with a small shock at the realization. ¡®He genuinely trusts me to not be a danger to him. That could mean he didn''t see me fighting monsters, or he thinks I wouldn''t attack him for some reason. Or both. ¡­But he trusts me. If he was about to attack or lure me into a trap, he would not be acting so calmly. But can I trust him?¡¯ I wondered quietly.


    Then I started feeling the secondary part of the Passive kick in and I adjusted myself a little as I could feel the physical acting part of convincing people of my act kick in. This I was more familiar with, as it felt a lot like the guiding instinct and visualization that came with my Dagger Skills, Stealth or Throwing Skills and more. I was practiced at this point.


    Then the skill¡¯s suggestions faded and I found myself frozen for a split second at the surprise, though I recovered quickly. I creased my eyebrows as I felt the small flash of more suggestions come and go. ¡®This is not normal¡­ Or is this the new normal..? The system did say it would make leveling harder to promote growth, is this something to do with that?¡¯ I thought with concern, though I quickly realized that this just added a small layer of difficulty to using Passives. It was more than manageable, if given practice to learn how to deal with it. I needed to push to grow my skill and adapt. That was a Passive on mine wasn''t it?


    By the time me and David had reached the door and he was leading me outside, I had a little bit of a handle on it. Small shift in my face and tightening it just a bit as if I was suppressing emotion, looking around at everything but particularly David with some caution, shifting my pace to be a bit more careful and just a bit firmer. But making sure the small shifts are just small enough as to almost go unnoticed alone, slow enough so no one would be suspicious.


    David glanced back and while I didn¡¯t react much physically beyond a glance at him back, but internally I was holding my breath. He didn''t seem to react much, though his gaze lingered just a bit longer than before. Then I felt my attention pull to a small expression that flashed on his otherwise rather tired face. Assessing at first, then a little worry combined with acceptance and disappointment. He seems to have bought the act just a bit more, maybe he realized something? The disappointment and worry¡­ Probably from him realizing I didn''t trust him. That''s a bit sad to be honest.


    Whatever. I was ready. Let''s get on with this whole play of mine.


    After that whole thing played out and I was finally ready for whatever was going to happen now, we were near the middle of the open field at the center of campus between the school building and the dorm building and walking steadily without pause or interruption towards the street.


    I doubted that whoever this organization was got direct approval for me to go with them, and I didnt want weird rumors to start about me, so I supposed it was lucky that it was very early in the morning and nobody was around.


    As we walked, I spotted the car that was definitely the one David said was waiting for us. It was solid black with tinted windows, though it wasn''t a car but a van that looked almost like a jeep the size of a larger minivan was designed by a guy who designs tanks and limousines at the same time. I hadn''t seen anything like it before, but it didn''t even stand out unless you were looking. Probably extremely expensive and it looked unique as well, without a logo anywhere on it.


    ¡°That''s your ride?¡± I asked just to be sure, interestedly looking it over as we approached it. ¡°Yes. Mine and my teams ride.¡± David smiled a bit as he turned his head to face me, giving a grand gesture as I spotted movement in and around the van.


    From the sliding doors on the sides of the vehicles and from the driver and passengers seat emerged a combined total of six people.


    From the driver''s seat came a rather stocky man with a bit of a thin beard and a head of dirty blond windblown hair and a lined but soft face with brown eyes.


    Four more came from the sliding doors leading out from the interior of the van, two women and two men. A younger man with short and unkept frizzy brown hair with a similarly unkempt but short beard who was a bit chubby and looked a bit uncomfortable. He stood beside a taller, almost lanky, russian looking man with a black fuzz of hair that might have once been a buzz cut on his balding head with a hard face and was looking bored as he gazed vacantly around. Then came a woman with short reddish black messy hair with bangs that stretched down to the eyebrows that looked a bit on the curling frizzy side, but she had on a lot of dark makeup, dark brown eyes that were almost the same color as her hair, a small mischievous smile, and a very fit slim athletic form to go with it so it somehow worked. And finally from the side door came the second woman that looked almost the opposite of the first woman with golden brown hair tied into a careless braid so as to not get in her way, green eyed with a very hard looking face and muscled body, like a wrestler or mma fighter.


    All in the same UMBRA uniforms as David. Except for the last person to step out of the van, who drew my eye instantly.


    A skinny girl with longer dirty blond hair, soft brown eyes and a round face wearing jean shorts and a light pink T-shirt. She was almost exactly my height as well, which made sense. Because she looked the same age as me. And I am physically twelve right now.


    I stopped as I saw her, just looking at her. She was incredibly out of place, a kid surrounded by big tough military looking people beside a blacked out van. I looked around at all the people once again in confusion.


    Everyone but David and the stocky driver looked amused. David looked at the big driver with a grimace. ¡°I thought her mom would come and pick Becca up by now? You are working, Brad.¡± He asked scoldingly at the embarrassed guy, who was apparently Brad, and gesturing to a now stubborn looking Becca who was probably his daughter. I could see the similarities now that I was looking.


    ¡°She is running late! You know New York traffic is a nightmare, and she just arrived at the airport an hour ago.¡± He explained embarrassedly with a shake of his head, rubbing his eyes with a hand.


    ¡®What..?¡¯ I wondered in absolute confusion as to what was going on, blinking a bit to make sure I was seeing things right. Nope. ¡®Ok, what? I thought these were professionals or something. Who are these guys?¡¯ I wondered, looking up over my shoulder at David.


    ¡°Hello! I am Becca. I like you. You are cool.¡± I turned back as Becca, the little girl, came walking up to me and looked me in the eye with a smile, completely ignoring the adults around us.


    I was caught off guard. And I blinked in surprise as I saw her reaching out to shake my hand. ¡®Wow, this is a first.¡¯ I thought to myself as I instinctively reached out and took her hand. ¡°Hey, I am Ardika. Nice to meet you Becca.¡± I introduced myself in turn, and she shook my hand energetically. Her hands were very soft. ¡°Your hands are really hard.¡± Becca commented, almost as if reading my mind. ¡°Uh¡­ yeah. Yours are really soft.¡± I responded, not quite sure what to do now as I pulled my hand back a bit embarrassedly.


    ¡°Ah, young love.¡± I heard a snicker in a thick Russian accent come from the balding man by the vehicle, and I looked up to find everyone looking at the pair of us looking amused. Though the Russian was laughing openly now as I took an embarrassed step back.


    But Becca spun around and marched right up to the distracted man and kicked his shins hard with her booted foot, making him shout and almost drop to the ground. She grinned and stepped back with a satisfied expression, crossing her arms in front of her as she looked up at the man. ¡°Shut up, stupid! You are making Ardika embarrassed.¡± She demanded of the now quiet man to the snorts of laughter of the others, most particularly Brad and the younger fuzzy haired guy. Though Brad looked more proud of his daughter while the other was mocking the buzz cut guy.


    I just watched on with wide eyes as she turned back to me with a smile.


    Then David broke through the chaos, with a hand on my shoulder. ¡°Ok, this is enough. Ardika, this is Brad Pine, our weapons specialist, his daughter Becca, who is most definitely not supposed to be here,¡± He gestured at Brad and Becca first, ¡°Korkovich Vysotsky, our explosives specialist,¡± He gestured at the still recovering Russian man, ¡°Lerry Alderson, our techie,¡± He gestured next at the short haired younger man who gave me a small peace sign with a small glare at David, ¡°Amy Prichardson, our stealth and infiltration expert¡± he pointed at the quiet short haired woman who flashed me a smile, ¡°and lastly Janice Petro, our close combat specialist.¡± He pointed lastly at the big woman with the braid who gave me a nod of greeting.


    ¡°Hey.¡± I said simply, greeting the group back with a vulcan greeting, just because it seemed fitting to such a weird group. Lerry flashed back one of his own with a delighted smile, but the others didn''t seem to care much.


    ¡°Now, Ardika, The Director is waiting to talk to you inside.¡± He told me and the rest of the group seemed to straighten up a bit, getting serious at the mention. Except for Becca who seemed uncaring as she stood with her dad.


    David walked to the van and opened the door, gesturing for me to head into the seemingly empty dark van. And I followed, stepping up into the van and sitting down with David climbing in behind me as he ducked low to sit before closing the door and causing the interior to go black.

 Chapter 39:

    The interior of the van didnt stay dark for long, as dull interior lights flicked on automatically and revealing the inside in its entirety. The inside seemed to be made to be as multipurpose as possible, transport as can be seen in the two rows of three seats on either side of the inside just beside the door, and in the front of the interior there is a mesh screen just behind a large and surprisingly thin tv just above some kind of computer. Well thin for the time. And there was a phone built into the top of the computer for some reason, which was interesting. One part surveillance van, one part transport vehicle. Hell, looking around I see some hints of moving parts that are covering and holding who knows what in the walls, ceiling and roof. But it somehow looks sleek and clean despite everything shoved into it. This kind of stuff is expensive. Really expensive. The design looked like it was built for everything. If a zombie apocalypse happened, this is the only vehicle I would need to survive for a long time.


    ¡®Just what is UMBRA?¡¯ I wondered not for the first time as I admired everything. I doubted I could come up with a better design myself. In fact, I knew it. If I ever got this good at designing vehicles, I would be a master of it at that point.


    My appreciation and slight awe at the vehicle seemed to fit with the character I built up as well, so I didn''t even try to hide my expression.


    The screen flickered on with a small click, and though it wasn''t dark enough that it was the brightest thing in the van, it cast a glow over everything as my head snapped to it. The image was pretty unclear and dark, but I could make out a dark figure sitting on a chair that was turned to the camera. Like a stereotypical anonymous spy boss silhouette, wearing a trench coat that I could barely make out. He was also bald, and his skin was incredibly dark with the low light where he was sitting and a bit of a backlight as well.


    I nearly burst out laughing as I looked at the sight with a knee jerk reaction that came from watching too many cheezy spy movies, but I kept a straight face as I calmed down. Though with a second or two of looking, I couldn''t help but become deadly serious. The image held a sort of weight that I could feel. Like whoever was on the other side was watching me, and they were powerful. Important. I could almost feel¡­ something. There was an odd sense that I couldn''t place that seemed familiar, but dull and more repressed than anything. I could barely tell it was there. I stayed quiet. ¡®This is the Director. I¡­ understand the team¡¯s reaction outside at the mention of their name.¡¯ I thought to myself as I inspected him. I could feel him inspect me as well somehow, through the camera.


    It was silent for a moment, a palpable pause with a silence that was deafening. Only the low buzz of electronic things working pierced through it, and my own breathing that seemed to echo. I swallowed. I took some comfort in The Long Game as it flashed its pointers out to me, gently guiding my expressions and body language and feeling a bit comforted in it. Like holding a hand.


    ¡°Ardika Ekia.¡± The Director spoke with a deep voice, more of a statement than a question,  tinged with a hint of tiredness. Kind of reminded me of Morgan Freeman, but more no-nonsense.


    ¡°So we finally meet. You have caused quite a storm, you know?¡± His voice seemed tinged with a bit of amusement as he sat back, just watching me. But his question seemed rhetorical as he straightened and leaned into the camera to continue. ¡°I would like you to watch something with us.¡± He announced and we waved his hand at someone in the background, causing a click to ring out in the quiet van and the screen shifted as a video started to play.


    It was pretty low quality, CCTV security camera footage if I was guessing. It showed an ice cream parlor from across a street. A familiar parlor. I hunched forwards a bit, leaning forwards on my seat, my hands moving to my chin as I supported it as I watched with an expression as expressionless as I could. ¡®They got whatever happened on video! Thank god. I would have had a panic attack if I started being questioned on whatever happened.¡¯ I thought to myself as relief and curiosity mixed, my attention drawn purely to the video.


    I could hear a shuffle from David on the seat opposite to mine as he presumably adjusted himself to watch it closer as well.


    The camera view changed and I could see to the end of the road, probably from a building beside the parlor if I placed it right. It seemed early evening, just before sunset judging by the light on the road. I remembered this much at least. This was when¡­ Percy and I went to get ice cream. ¡®Oh shit.¡¯ I nearly winced as I realized what that meant. ¡®They know Percy and I are connected, and I cannot have anyone messing with Percy. I need to protect him and I need to preserve the timeline. Things need to go the way I remember. Everything will fail if I don''t. All my plans.¡¯ I tightened my face just a bit as I saw me and Percy rounding the corner, smiles on our faces and talking to each other enthusiastically.


    I glanced at David, and I could see his eyebrows furrowed as he watched.


    ¡®Right¡­ This might be salvageable with him here. He might hold some sway over the Director and the higher ups of this thing if they think about doing something. Then again¡­ who knows? I will need to do something.¡¯ I thought with a frown as I turned back to the screen, and I could feel a hint of an idea occur to me with help from my Passive that was running at full force. It made sense for me, acting as the character I made up, to be a little overprotective, doesn''t it?


    The video didn''t stop though and no questions were asked just yet, so I kept quiet as I watched. The video cut to another camera from across the street, aimed at the parlor.


    Percy and I walked for a little more, then paused as Percy took in the shop before continuing on our way. I opened the door, then as Percy walked inside I saw me pause. I saw me slowly put my hands into my pockets as I looked around behind me into the empty street. ¡®Right. This is when I put on Masatr, because I felt the monsters¡­¡¯ I noted, remembering that. Though it looks strange from an outside perspective. I could see suspicion and some alarm on my face for a split second, but it was really low quality so just barely.


    Then I seemed to snap out of it, and I saw me turning back into the shop to Percy. I could just barely make out Percy and my figures through the windows of the parlor, talking to Cally. Then we got our ice cream and went to go sit down, before I was called over to Cally and we began to talk. Nothing was clear in the video, but it was clear even just from the body language that we were talking seriously. I saw me slump on the counter a bit. ¡®This is when we told each other about what we were.¡¯ I remembered as I was watching.


    I saw me raise a hand to shake Cally¡¯s hand. ¡®This is when we made the little deal, and then getting the quest to protect the parlor.¡¯ I recalled, watching me walk away from the handshake before pausing, then nodding and heading back to Percy.


    ¡®Ok, so far this looks suspicious as all hell from an outside perspective.¡¯ I thought with a small mix of a mental groan and a laugh. Though with my Passives help, I controlled the reaction a bit to not show it.


    The video sped up from there, going into fast motion and the light slowly came down as me and Percy talked and ate our ice cream. Then we stood up and walked out of the parlor, both of us saying goodbye to Cally before we left and started walking back to the dorms.


    The video paused there, as we disappeared around a corner and I blinked as I sat up again, looking at David first and then back to the screen as it turned back to the dark figure of the Director who was looking at me.


    ¡°Now, Mr. Ekia, I am sure I am not the only one who found this just a little strange, nevermind what happened afterward.¡± The Director told me, as he raised a hand and gave a few gestures to someone off camera again.


    The screen shifted to an image of me looking around at the entrance of the parlor.


    ¡°This¡­¡± The Director drawled a bit, ¡°This looks like you are looking for enemies, Mr. Ekia. Or monsters, apparently. Why is that? You seemed rather chipper before, what is with the sudden change?¡± He asked first, suspicion heavy in his voice as he sounded almost accusatory but curious. ¡°And who¡­¡± The screen shifted to a picture of Percy, making my face harden just a bit, ¡°Is this?¡±


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    ¡°He is not related to this. You will leave him out of this.¡± I said harshly, looking at the screen with a hard expression. I didn''t have to act much to show how I felt about that line of questioning, and I am sure that gave the man some pause. David took a deep breath beside me as well, sounding like he was about to say something but stopping as the Director cut him off.


    ¡°What is he to you, Mr. Ekia?¡± The Director asked me once again, clearly not ready to drop it.


    David had other ideas as I heard a somewhat low but firm voice come from beside me, making me turn to him. He seemed a little on edge as he looked at the screen, talking to the director. ¡°Director, with all due respect-¡± He started, but this time it was my turn to cut him off.


    ¡°No, it is fine. If he wants to ask, he can ask.¡± I told David somewhat coldly, before turning to answer the screen. ¡°He is my friend. And he is the type of person to me that if I find out you are threatening or even talking too, you will wish you didn¡¯t.¡± I said in a low voice, not bothering to veil my threats. Goddamn that felt badass.


    ¡°Woah, woah¡­ Let''s all calm down. We have no intention of threatening anyone.¡± David cut in there again, but I was looking into the place where I saw the glint of the camera poking out from the top of the screen, not breaking eye contact. My face was as deadly serious as I could make it. There was a moment of silence again, both of us in the van waiting and looking at the screen.


    ¡°No.¡± The Director agreed with a hint of respect if my ears weren''t wrong. ¡°I believe we can agree to forget about him, if that is what you want.¡± He said decisively, making me nod, satisfied with that.


    ¡°But on the other hand, I am curious about the woman you went to meet with.¡± The director asked, getting back into the questioning without pause. The screen showed a blurry picture from the security camera again, showing both Cally and my forms through the window. ¡°Calandra ¡®Cally¡¯ Pedinton, according to her license. A woman who nobody knows or remembers, no school records, no travel records, no records of any kind. According to the paperwork, she came into existence just over a year ago and has been running that little parlor of hers ever since.¡± He expounded with a tone of clear exasperation, before the screen switched to his dark form once again as he stared at me through the camera.


    ¡°Quite similar to yourself in that way, wouldn''t you say?¡± He asked, though I could see he seemed to be getting to the point finally.


    ¡°I don''t know about that. Would you like to hear my story, or hers?¡± I replied to his question with a question of my own, a tilt to my head.


    ¡°Let''s start with Ms. Pedinton.¡± He prodded carefully as I thought about my response.


    I leaned forward on my seat, thinking. ¡®Let''s think. So, I am not going to tell them that she came from another world of course, that would be stupid. Let''s keep it vague on that.¡¯ I decided swiftly.


    ¡°I met Cally a few weeks back, I believe. I went and had ice cream at her parlor with a few friends from school. I thought she was a monster at first, but now I am pretty sure she isn''t. Most of what I heard of her was through a friend who heard it from her mom, who apparently had business with Cally in some way. Her parlor seemed to appear overnight about a year ago. But that''s just what I heard. I hadn''t talked with her before that. That video was the second time we met. We had a talk, where we both got to know each other a bit. She told me she has a friend through which she got here and opened her parlor. I won''t tell you more, you will have to ask for yourself.¡± I gave the details of all that I know about her and how we talked.


    ¡®Though¡­ I wouldn¡¯t if I was them. She might not like it.¡¯ I thought with a frown.


    ¡°Actually, a word of warning about her.¡± I said suddenly and seriously. ¡°I don¡¯t know what she is or what she can do, but I am sure that I wouldn''t want to be on her bad side. I would avoid doing anything she might take badly, and I really would not recommend interfering with her parlor.¡± I advised slowly, making sure to communicate that clearly. ¡®I doubt she would appreciate it if I didn''t try to get them to leave her to her business. We other worlders have to watch out for each other.¡¯ I thought to myself.


    There was a pause that seemed heavy in that moment, and I could sense some confusion and worry coming from David. The Director was silently considering my words as he looked on. He finally nodded, accepting it. I relaxed a bit at that, job done.


    ¡°We will make a note of that. Now¡­ I don''t suppose you could explain this?¡± The Director moved on fluently, gesturing once again and making the screen flick back to a recording from a security camera. It was still on the same street that the parlor was on, but way later. Late into the night at that point. The video quality was terrible in the spots the lamp posts weren''t shining directly on, anything in them was invisible. Though there were a few more sources of light in the street, from the buildings and a small light from a particular alley.


    ¡®Oh, this is when I picked up the scent of the monsters. I remember this part, mostly.¡¯ I realized quickly, shifting around in my seat to get comfortable.


    The video continued on for several seconds, and I saw nothing. I wasn''t even sure that the video was playing at first. Then the camera angle changed, despite nothing seeming to happen on the low quality footage. Then from the shadows, I saw a figure emerge out into the light of a spotlight positioned almost directly in front of the parlor. I heard a slight intake of breath from David beside me. It was me, for sure. I was wearing my leather jacket, with my hands in my pockets. I didn''t seem to do anything for a second or two, just looking around aimlessly. Then suddenly my entire body changed, my head snapping to a particular direction as my eyes locked onto something. Then I took a step back in the same second and vanished from view into the shadows.


    ¡®Woah. That looks crazy from an outside perspective. The sixth sense thing I have going really is insanely cool. And a little scary¡­¡¯ I thought to myself, feeling a bit impressed with myself for a moment.


    The camera changed to the street view again, and I watched for signs of me moving around in the dark but I didn''t see anything. Maybe if I could zoom in, but no. Then the camera zoomed into the alley entrance, where a dark figure was causing a black spot by blocking the light coming from the entrance with their body. ¡®That would be me looking in.¡¯ I noticed, watching raptly at the developments.


    The dark figure rapidly retreated from the entrance after a second, disappearing again as something else happened. Two large, absolutely massive dark figures emerged from the alley and started walking slowly away, though I noticed a small flicker of movement behind them that was probably me. Unlike me, the monsters made no attempt to hide as they went. Lights glinted and showed their huge and rough forms. The laestrygonians.


    The video paused as they passed under a lamp post, their blurry and indistinct forms unclear but obviously inhuman under the light.


    ¡°So¡­¡± The Director started with a bit of a drawl again, ¡°These are the monsters that you and our team encountered, correct?¡± He asked to confirm, which I did with a nod. ¡°Now, let''s get into it. What are they, and how did you know they were there?¡± The question that I expected finally came.


    ¡°Laestrygonian Giants, a race of cannibal monsters. They like eating mortals a lot, unlike a lot of other monsters that don¡¯t bother with them. They are one of the worst monsters around in that way.¡± I explained carefully, recalling the descriptions from the book quickly. ¡°As for how I knew¡­ I got a request from Cally to take care of them. She and I both felt it was being watched for whatever reason, and she asked if I could get rid of the problem. I would have probably done it if she didn''t ask, mind you, monsters like that deserve to be killed.¡± I explained as best as I could, trying to stay in character with my explanations and giving a look of disgust as I looked at the monstrous figures.


    The silence in the van turned heavy again, and I could feel a slight hesitation coming from David.


    ¡°What do you mean by you felt it was being watched?¡± The Director asked instead of asking about killing the monsters, to my surprise. ¡®Ah¡­ This is tricky. Clearly something is going on that they couldn''t see just from the video, it was like I suddenly just knew a few times. Well¡­ might as well give them the truth here.¡¯ I thought as I came up with a reply quickly.


    ¡°Have you heard about the sixth sense?¡± I asked first, a bit tentatively and trying to look hesitant and unsure. David looked at me questioningly, but I continued with my explanation anyway. ¡°I could feel them watching, and that night where it was coming from. It''s an instinct. You just know. A lot of people don''t have that, but I knew a lot of people that- that did as well¡­ It¡¯s not as uncommon as you think¡­ But monsters go after us more than other people, for whatever reason. They can smell the difference.¡± I said, making myself choke up a bit as I mentioned knowing other people. ¡®Good going¡­ sell the act of grieving teen¡­¡¯ I congratulated myself as I worked hard to keep my act up. ¡®Damn this is hard.¡¯


    There was a heavy silence and I could see David looking shocked at me, before shaking his head and turning back to the silent screen where the Director was watching us from. ¡®At least he bought it.¡¯ I thought to myself with a bit of satisfaction as I noted his actions and body language. Though the Director¡­ I can''t know for sure, but I think he knows something off. Though¡­ There is something off with him as well¡­ That small feeling, it''s familiar somehow¡­?


    I put it off my mind, I must be imagining it. I just need to keep this up for the next¡­ however long the Director is planning on doing this. I can do that. ¡°Let''s continue then.¡± The Director said decisively, pressing play on the video once again. I watched as the event started playing.

 ANNOUNCEMENT!

    This isnt something that I want to do, but things are happening that happen to be very freetime consuming in my life as of right now, likely until late April. So I am taking a break from writing during that time, but I will be coming back at that time when I settle things down to the point where it is an option again. I am doing this for all my storys. Sorry about this, anyone who was waiting for a chapter!


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