《Ember of Invention》


 Chapter 1: The First Big Step

    Lindle kicked off his day with a mix of emotions: the most prominent of which was pain as he accidentally hit his forehead against the top of his bedroom doorframe.


    ¡°Ow! Dammit to the beyond..."


    Normally he was a lot more careful about avoiding it. A few repeated bashings after one of his growth spurts several months ago kept him aware, but today was different. Today he was going to be part of an adventuring party!


    Well, hired by an adventuring party. As a porter, but still!


    He rubbed away the fading pain as a few specks of snow shook loose from the ceiling and landed in his dark red hair, standing up he rapped his knuckles against the frame in annoyance, the ice undamaged from where his forehead made contact. The noise reflected off the sculpted ice walls of his home. He couldn¡¯t wait till the next migration so he could have a bigger door.


    Swallowing his annoyance, he picked up his leather pouch from the floor where he dropped it upon impact, looking inside to double-check that nothing was missing or damaged.


    Vials of various potions and small bags of alchemical concoctions wrapped in cloth gleamed at him. Health, Aura, and Mana potions to refill somebody''s pools in a pinch. Frost resistance potions, everyone would be dressed for the freezing weather, but if a monster with ice magic or powers showed up these would be vital. Smoke and stink bombs, dark vision enhancers, alchemical fire, a couple of different types of antidotes, and even Stat enhancers. Those he had his mother help him with, and even then he had only managed to craft variants for physical Stats like Strength and Dexterity.


    Around the corner in the kitchen, his mom, better known to her neighbors and customers as Alyn Kyte the expert tier apothecary, peeked and saw him brushing off his clothes. "Be careful, Lindle," she cautioned. "It''s great that you''re excited, but it''s also important to stay focused." She gave him a look that was both amused and slightly concerned. Lindle knew his mom had been worried ever since he had told her about the job, but she hid it well behind a lot of encouragement and advice.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry Mom, I promise I¡¯ll be fine.¡± He leaned down and gave her a kiss on the forehead before accepting the large porter pack, custom-made by Mr. Valdison. He slid it onto his back, taking the pack filled with heavy supplies easily. She also gave him a folded package of food, he could smell smoked muskox, his favorite. He gave her a grateful smile in return.


    Lindle and his mom shared a pair of dark green eyes and pale skin, but instead of Lindle''s curly red, his mom kept her blonde hair in a braid. The differences grew with her short stature and small graceful face compared to his awkward teenage one, the beginnings of a beard starting to emerge.


    ¡°Ok, if you''re ready, then it¡¯s time to go, you don¡¯t want to be late.¡± She gave him a hug that he returned before receiving a light push out the front door. ¡°See you soon.¡± Lindle gave her one last wave before turning and running out.


    As he made his way along the path, he passed by the familiar mix of large igloos and tall frozen buildings reflecting the moonlight, his boots crunching in the snow. The distinct aroma of freshly cut wood and herbs filled the air. He caught glimpses of some familiar faces ¨C other children of Crafters ¨C helping their parents set up for the day ahead. Their busy chatter and laughter echoed through the chilly morning air, adding to the frantic energy of this part of Glacerhine.


    Usually, he would be joining them in helping their parents set up their workstations for the day before leaving for lessons together at the Hall. Not today.


    As he left the Crafters corner of the village he saw Humphrey waiting for him, the brown-haired muscular beastman standing with a bow strapped to his back and slightly taller than Lindle, though that was only if you counted his reindeer antlers, which Humphrey had insisted they did. ¡°Hey Lindle, I was just about to stop by and wish you luck, today''s the day right?¡±


    ¡°Yeah. They told me that they were leaving early at the gate.¡±


    ¡°Still unsure how you convinced them to hire you when you don¡¯t even have a class yet.¡± Humphrey said.


    He had received his Ranger class over a year ago and had guided adventuring parties to a couple of places in the Reach before. Unlike most of the other brutish warrior kids, Humphrey and Lindle got along well enough.


    Lindle shrugged. ¡°Soarians like to save money.¡±


    Humphrey scoffed. ¡°That makes sense.¡±


    He had marketed himself as being a lot less expensive than the more experienced hunters to hire, but it had actually taken showing off the wide array of items he was willing to bring along, and his higher-than-normal Health Point and Aura Point pools to convince them. Alchemical materials in Glacerhine were scarce and tough to buy, but his [Apprentice Alchemist] feat had helped a lot in making so many potions despite his small budget limiting what he could afford.


    His bloodline trait had gotten a lot more attention however, raising a few eyebrows when he showed them his status, which he expected, he had never heard of another half-giant before after all, but it did prove he wouldn¡¯t die to a single swipe from a stray monster and could book it even while carrying a lot of weight. He had thought about lying about his age, with his 6-and-a-half foot height he could pass for 15 at least, but his mother had shut that down immediately.


    Mentally he recalled his status.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Name


    </td>


    <td>


    Lindle Kyte


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Class


    </td>


    <td>


    None


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


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Level


    </td>


    <td>


    0


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Health Points (HP)


    </td>


    <td>


    120/120


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Aura Points (AP)


    </td>


    <td>


    120/120


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Mana Points (MP)


    </td>


    <td>


    35/35


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Strength (Str): 5


    </td>


    <td>


    Dexterity (Dex): 3


    </td>


    <td>


    Constitution (Con):4


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Intelligence (Int): 5


    </td>


    <td>


    Charisma (Cha):2


    </td>


    <td>


    Resilience (Res): 4


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td colspan="2">


    Traits


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Bloodlines


    </td>


    <td>


    Feats


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    [Human Blood]


    </td>


    <td>


    [Apprentice Alchemist]


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    [Giant Blood]


    </td>


    <td> </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Skills


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    None


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Techniques learned


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Tier 1


    -[Trek]


    -[Throw]


    -[Power Strike]


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Spells learned


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Tier 1


    -[Produce Ember]


    -[Ice Slick]


    -[Banish water]


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Tier 2


    -[Levitate]


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    ¡°You got that map I gave you?¡± Humphrey asked, snapping Lindle away from his status.


    ¡°Right here,¡± Lindle answered as he patted his pocket. He had been out into the tundra and woods of the Glacial Reach plenty of times - as part of both the migration and on hunting trips ever since he was seven - but it would be his first time without one of the elders taking the lead, so he had Humphrey put together a map for him to follow. He would still be far more used to the area than any of the adventurers from Soarstrum.


    ¡°Ok get out of here then, get those feats you wanted, and try not to die.¡±


    Lindle gave him a thumbs up. Resuming his run he took the side path around the training grounds in the center of the village.


    Feats were, more than anything else, what people his age wanted. It wasn¡¯t uncommon to see a 14-year-old wake up one day and realize they had less than a year before they had to pick a class that would define the path they took for the rest of their lives.


    Everyone had to pick out of the rarest three classes they qualified for when they turned 15, and the best way to control what your options were when the time came was to earn a good feat that was related to the class you wanted.


    Lindle¡¯s clock was ticking, only having three months left until his birthday. He had managed [Apprentice Alchemist], which would usually be enough for the common Alchemist class, but he¡¯d need something a lot more prestigious than that if he wanted to follow his mom''s footsteps considering his... other natural talents. His mood darkened a little when remembering the trait behind all of his currently available class options, [Giant Blood].


    He cleared his head, he¡¯d either earn something going out there, or use the money he was paid to buy better, rarer reagents to craft something more advanced, and he''d unlock a class that wouldn''t force him into the life of a warrior. The system would acknowledge his efforts if he could do something impressive enough.


    Looking up he could see the flurries of snow whirling in the air being pushed away by the village boundary. The weather outside the grove wouldn¡¯t exactly be pleasant but the moon was clear and bright and this close to The Border that was the best you could ask for.


    He saw the gate marking the entrance of the village, and the group of four standing around in front of it were immediately noticeable. It was fairly hard to miss adventurers.


    Rosato, their leader and the one he convinced to hire him wore an expensive-looking set of plate armor with a set of arms that marked him as a knight. Based on the fox tails Lindle had assumed he was a beastman of some kind but apparently he was something called a kitsune, which he said was different. He was leaning against the gate with his arms crossed.


    His cousin next to him, Dorothea, seemed a lot more impatient compared to her stoic cousin, pacing back and forth and leaving an imprint in the thin layer of snow. She was with Rosato when Lindle got the job and introduced herself as a wizard.


    An older-looking halfling wearing cleric''s robes and armor, a symbol of the polar gods hanging from his neck, had his eyes closed and hands clasped.


    Their last member, a tall thin man whose features he couldn¡¯t distinguish behind a mask covering his mouth and nose, was the first to spot Lindle as he approached, tapping Rosato on the shoulder.


    He moved off the gate to greet Lindle. ¡°There you are Lindle. Everyone, this is Lindle, he¡¯ll be our porter for this quest.¡±


    Not trusting himself to not put his foot in his mouth trying for a witty introduction, Lindle just nodded and gave a small wave.


    ¡°This is Father Dalison, he¡¯s our healer.¡± The older halfling took Lindle''s hand and shook it, looking up at him kindly.


    ¡°Please, just call me Chip.¡± Lindle gave him an affirmative grin, trying to ignore the intrusive thought of lifting the tiny man off his feet as he shook his hand. The halfling was a third his height and a fifth his size. It was kind of jarring to think he certainly had a higher strength stat and could put Lindle in the dirt if he was somehow rude or stupid enough to try.


    He had seen what had happened when one of the warrior kids attempted to intimidate one of the other halfling adventurers who passed through the village.


    Rosato then gestured to the masked man. ¡°And this is Theodore, he¡¯s our scout.¡± The polite Soarian way of saying he was the rogue. Theodore gave him a nod but didn¡¯t say anything. Not a social butterfly, but Lindle didn¡¯t have much room to talk there.


    ¡°If you''re ready, then let¡¯s push off and get this quest started," Rosato said, his voice carrying authority.


    They walked ahead, Lindle moving into step behind them after a moment as they crossed the gate. As they exited the groves protection the temperature dropped like a stone, everyone shivering as they bundled up, boots crunching in the now much thicker layer of snow. Lindle covered his face with his furs. As he looked at the Reach ahead, the snowy landscape shining in the bright moonlight, excitement once again bubbled up inside of him.


    Pulling out his map he took the lead. "Follow me everyone, I''ll get you to the ruins in no time!" His voice felt louder and filled with confidence now. It was time for him to prove himself and take the first step down his own path. He had studied the map for hours, plotted their route, and stocked up on every potion and alchemical tool he could need.


    He was ready, this was going to be great!

 Chapter 2: Followed By a Hike

    After the first three hours of walking, it was clear that the other adventurers weren''t sharing Lindle''s enthusiasm.


    Sure they had started the journey full of energy from a long night''s rest and confidence borne from their experience. All of them had Journeyman classes, so at the bare minimum that meant they were over level 20, at most twice that number. They weren''t strangers to combat or long traveling, but it was clear none of them had done so in the Glacial Reach before, most likely they came to Glacerhine through the Wolven Caravan instead of on foot.


    The Reach was equally beautiful and hostile. Perpetually covered in thicker snow than anywhere else in the continent, it would be fairly easy to sink an entire person Lindles size down into the freezing mush from a wrong step. Large spires of dark blue crystal covered in a layer of ice dotted the landscape down in the plains, Lindle steered the group clear of those.


    Even from the impressive distance Lindle kept between them, everyone could see one of the massive Apex beasts crossing the plains, standing out clearly against the white. Only during a migration protected by the highest leveled people in Glacerhine would it have been safe to cross through one of their territories.


    The wood wasn¡¯t entirely to easy to travel through either, with tall black trees with branches that blocked out most of the moonlight and they would need to traverse winding hills instead of flat ground. But the steamheart trees kept the snow from being too deep and none of the monsters inside were big or powerful enough to overpower a Journeyman party.


    The path Lindle led them down wasn''t along any of the migration routes, but he still had been a part of every migration and countless smaller trips through the Reach since he was seven. He knew how to identify the best paths across snow supported by roots and ledges over the larger rock formations. Like every Glacian, Lindle had been trained to use [Trek] since he was a child, cycling his Aura points through his legs to preserve his stamina.


    A testament to their much higher physical stats, the adventurers kept pace, but no one foreign to the Reach traveled without a local for a reason. Lindle tried to keep this in mind as Dorothea grumbled under their breath, both kitsunes picking themselves up after stumbling down a hill for the umpteenth time.


    Rosato was a lot more stoic about it, but his expression held some obvious exhaustion and frustration. Rosato''s heavy armor wasn''t doing him any favors, and Dorothea simply had much less stamina than her companions despite her much lighter load.


    He looked at Chip, the halfling the epitome of patience as walked alongside him, and Lindle tried to copy his attitude. but their slower-than-expected progress grated on him a little. He knew it was unfair to compare given their minimal experience and his lifetime of it, and no one had actually complained aloud either. He had known going into this how tedious traveling with Soarians would be. Pushing away the uncharitable thoughts with a mental sigh, he pointed out the nearest steamheart tree. "Let''s take a quick break there."


    Dorothea gave a loud sigh of relief as Lindle said the word break.


    Rosato looked up to the pillar of steam flowing from the top of the tree and disappearing into the sky. ¡°We passed by a couple of those, what are they?¡± He asked.


    ¡°Steamheart trees,¡± Lindle answered. ¡°They suck up snow and boil it in the trunk until it comes out the top as steam. They keep the forest from freezing over and make for good stopping points.¡±


    Lindle led them stumbling to sit down among the tangle of roots reaching over the snow. Everyone sighed in appreciation and surprise as they felt the heat emanating from the tree wash over them.


    Sliding off his pack, he distributed rations for everyone. Handing Rosato the dried fruit who then passed it along. Everyone mumbled out thanks as they started eating.


    An unfamiliar voice joined them. "Thank you boy." Lindle had to stifle a bit of surprise as he looked up from his food and saw Theodore with his mask slightly up, mouth exposed. Not only had this been the first time the man had spoken to him, but if Lindle was honest he had forgotten the man was with them. Lindle looked at the snow around the rogue''s feet. No prints...


    Lindle looked at Theodore again. His voice was a lot more melodic than he expected. Beneath the mask, he could see a bit of stubble and pale skin, but nothing distinctive. "You''re welcome." He answered.


    Lindle felt slightly embarrassed as he nursed his meal, trying to enjoy his dried muskox as the party descended into conversation. A guide who forgot about one of his employers couldn''t really be called a very good guide. The man apparently was just too quiet compared to the others, which Lindle guessed was part of his job, but he didn''t want to leave him behind to freeze if he disappeared into a snowbank just because Lindle didn''t pay attention.


    Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.


    Tuning back in, it seemed like the adventurers were in a much better mood now that they weren¡¯t trudging through the snow.


    "Come on Rose, you know I wouldn''t drag you all the way out here if I didn''t know this was a good pick," Dorothea said.


    "And I''m just saying this isn''t the first time a place you were sure was elven turned out to be a bust," Rosato responded, giving his cousin a teasing grin.


    Dorothea pouted. "This time I got a really good source on this. You were with me Chip, back me up!"


    The halfing chuckled playfully. "I''m not sure, Dorothea, considering your track record..." Dorothea turned her glare on him. Chip raised his hands in surrender. "Yes yes, I was there and they were a trustworthy resource."


    Dorothea gave Rosato a smile of satisfaction. "See? "


    "Fine. But if this turns out to be another bust I''m reserving the right to veto any more expeditions like this for the foreseeable future." Rosato said.


    ¡®Look on the bright side, you would have a lot more time to ¡®research¡¯ with that cute librarian boy between quests if we stuck close to the city.¡± Chip chimed in.


    Lindle didn¡¯t really know what a librarian was, but he supposed they had to be attractive, based on the way Dorothea blushed before hitting Chip on the shoulder.


    Lindle watched the byplay for the next few minutes until everyone finished. Abandoning the warmth of the steamheart, the group in much higher spirits now they continued on their trek.


    This time Lindle tried to keep a closer eye on Theodore. Paying attention now, he saw that he definitely left no footprints or made any sound walking in the snow. If whatever let him do that meant his weight didn''t press into the snow as well, Lindle figured he would actually be the least at risk of dropping into a snowbank.


    They continued trudging through the snow, Lindle leading the group through the forest. Even the common black pine trees grew to towering heights and size, but they left plenty of space to navigate through. After another hour Lindle stopped the group, noticing something as they walked into a small clearing of snow, moonlight streaming brightly down along the black pines.


    He approached one of the pines. He could see the damage marring the bark, part of it chipped away and pushed in as if something big and sharp had rammed it from the side, it looked recent.


    "Wooly Razorbacks." He informed the group. Lindle recognized the way they marked their stomping grounds.


    The party looked between themselves, their expressions turning serious. Rosato spoke up. "Monsters?"


    Lindle nodded as he responded. "They''re giant boars. About my height, shaggy fur, but very sharp to the touch. They travel in packs and are extremely aggressive, it looks like one recently expanded their territory and we''re in it."


    "Threat level, any magic?" Dorothea asked.


    Lindle thought about the times he had seen a Razorback on hunts. "A single one can be dealt with by a warrior with an apprentice class, but they can still gore someone with their tusks with a good hit. They rely purely on physical stats and don¡¯t have any real magical abilities, but they are resistant to blunt force. An entire pack is a lot more dangerous, but a party of people at least level 15 can take them if they''re smart about it."


    Rosato contemplated for a moment, which Lindle was glad to see. Even if everyone in his party were a full tier above apprentice, rushing into a fight was never a good idea in the Reach. He had heard stories from Humphrey about parties who went after any monster they could find for more XP. ¡°Theodore, do you think you can check to see if they''re ahead of us?"


    "I can, "Theodore affirmed, his melodic voice slightly muffled by his mask. Making no further noise, the man leaped off the ground before Lindle could react up onto one of the branches of the pines. He leaped again and disappeared up into the trees.


    Lindle and the rest of the group waited in tense silence, their eyes scanning the snowy forest around them for any sign of movement. Minutes crept by, the only sound being the gentle rustling of the wind through the trees.


    Finally, Theodore reappeared, landing gracefully in front of them. Lindle couldn''t help but feel a twinge of surprise as he once again noted the absence of footprints in the snow beneath where Theodore had landed. He also couldn''t tell from which direction he appeared.


    "There is a pack of Wooly Razorbacks approaching us from the west," Theodore reported calmly, his voice carrying a soothing quality despite the gravity of his words. Lindle saw Dorothea and Rosato exchange worried glances while Chip''s brow furrowed in concern.


    "How many are we talking about?" Rosato asked, his hand going to the hilt of his sword and bringing out his shield.


    Theodore responded immediately, "More than two dozen, less than three. We have less than a minute."


    Lindle heard a noise and looked west as the noise of dozens of loud hooves crunching in the snow got louder and louder.


    "Godsdammit, looks like we aren''t avoiding a fight. Everyone get ready." Rosato rallied everyone as Theodore drew a pair of daggers and Dorothea brandished a wand at the approaching pack.


    Chip spread his hands and spoke in a language Lindle didn''t understand, but recognized from some of the other Soarian holy men in Glacerhine. Warm golden light spread over Rosato and Theodore.


    As he watched the adventurers get ready, putting themselves between him and the coming danger, Lindle heard something from his left. Spinning rapidly he looked in time to see several Razorbacks emerge from around the wide base of a tree that had concealed their approach with violent squeals into the clearing. One of them heading straight for him.

 Chapter 3: Random Encounter

    "CRAP CRAP CRAP"


    Snow scattered into the air everywhere as Lindle ran and dove for cover behind the scarred tree, putting it between him and the danger as the sounds of combat erupted, the squealing of the giant wooly razorback chasing him getting cut off with a yelp as Rosato slammed his large metal shield into its face.


    Lindle scrambled to his feet and peeked around the thick trunk of the pine tree, watching as the knight engaged the monster. He hadn''t even seen the man move from his position. His armor flashed as the kitsune expertly blocked blow after blow of the monster''s furious tusks, driving the oversized beast to the ground and dispatching it with a single stab to the neck with his longsword.


    Around them, the other three adventurers fought the rest of the monsters'' pack. Dorothea impaled one beast with a swarm of summoned shards of ice as Chip fired rays of glowing holy light from his hands that burned and blinded. Theodore cut up the boars in a hard-to-follow blur with a pair of daggers, bleeding out a group of them at the same time and keeping the attention off the two spellcasters.


    Rosato turned and gave Lindle a scan, searching for injuries, but Lindle had managed to move before they could get fully surrounded. Lindle gave him a thumbs-up to show he was fine.


    The warrior nodded before he turned, rushing back to rejoin his companions and repeating the shield bash maneuver on another wooly razorback that hadn''t seen him coming.


    Lindle took the opportunity to reach inside his alchemy pouch with his hand and mentally grab hold of his Mana Points at the same time. He was just here as a porter, but he wanted to help, and moreover, danger like this was half of the reason he was out here in the first place.


    Killing monsters before you got a class was one of the more common methods of gaining a feat according to the adventurers he had questioned, they had told him stories of taking down a monster as children and earning the feat that gave them access to their first classes. What was important was that for each of them, the way they beat the monster influenced what kind of feat they received.


    If he could use one of his more dangerous potions on one of the razorbacks and kill it, he might be able to get a feat relating to combat alchemy and unlock a class to match. Of course, he didn''t want to die in the process, so he had come up with a plan.


    Lindle watched as the party kept the focus of the boars on them, one of the razorbacks slamming into a tree, wood shattering in a spray as a chunk was taken out of the large pines. He was big and strong for his age, but Lindle couldn''t match these things physically. If he got close, at best, he could make a good distraction for a few moments getting trampled before his HP stopped holding him together and he ended up like one of the toys they gave to the tamed wolves back home.


    Lindle suppressed the invasive mental image, it wasn¡¯t the time for dark humor. He finished forming the mana structure, aligning his points in a shape he had practiced over and over and connecting them with mana lines. Whispering the name of the spell to himself to reinforce the connection between the spell''s concept and the structure as he ignited the spell structure to release the spell effect. "[Levitate]."


    He felt a sense of weightlessness overcome him as he started floating, gravity no longer holding him down. Kicking off the ground at an angle to gain height, he stopped against the side of one of the pines, holding onto a branch.


    He picked out one of the boars bleeding out but still standing as it prepared to charge Dorothea, her back to it. Lindle pulled out a vial of alchemist''s fire. Taking aim, he started to cycle his Aura Points through his arm. He wasn''t as good at learning Techniques as spells, they involved a lot more instinct, but he still took the time to learn [Throw].


    He launched the vial at full force. It flew fast and in an unerring straight line, shattered against the skull of the razorback. Now exposed to the air, the alchemical fire burst forth violently, knocking the boar to its side squealing as flames covered its body.


    Lindle tried to hide a wince as he heard its pained shrieks. He didn¡¯t particularly have the stomach for violence, but he took a deep breath and calmed his nerves. He watched as eventually the boar expired after over a minute, he kept an eye on the rest of the fight, but it seemed that the adventurers had it handled.


    With him out of danger, Rosato had taken the majority of the monster''s attention and killed them one after another, his sword carving out big bloody lines and slamming aside boars several times his weight. The kitsune knight''s face was one of total focus as he barked out orders to his teammates. The spellcasters were blasting out destructive spells of holy fire and dangerous-looking constructs of ice. Lindle didn''t even see Theodore except for a few moments when he appeared on the back of one of the boars before disappearing, the boar slumping over dead.


    In just a few minutes a herd of over 30 razorbacks were decimated. Some of the less injured boars ran but nobody gave chase. Wiping his longsword clean in the snow Rosato looked at the base of the tree Lindle floated by. "Lindle?"


    "Up here!" Lindle answered, waving as the party saw him.


    Rosato''s eyebrows shot up in surprise as he looked up at Lindle hanging from the tree branch, a smile growing on his face. "Taking a page from Theodore''s book huh? Good thinking there kid, come on down," he called out. Lindle grinned down at him, feeling a rush of pride at the compliment.


    Lindle pushed off the branch and floated towards the ground, slowing himself down as he touched the ground and letting the spell end, landing with a crunch in the snow. As the adrenaline from the battle started to fade, Lindle''s hands shook slightly from the lingering tension. He took a deep breath, trying to steady himself. The aftermath of the fight was a chaotic scene, with scattered bodies of the fallen razorbacks lying in the snow.


    The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.


    Dorothea brushed off bits of snow from her robes, walking over to Lindle with a smile. "Was that a [Levitate] spell?" she asked him, her eyes sparkling with approval. "I didn''t know you were training to be a mage."


    "Ah... I''m not, I just learned a handful of tricks here and there." Lindle answered awkwardly. "I don''t have enough MP to be a mage..." Lindle could feel his mostly empty MP pool inside him, that one spell having taken up over half his points.


    When he was younger Lindle did have dreams of casting powerful spells and summoning spirits like the shamans and druids, but no one had ever taken interest in him as an apprentice. No point in training him to learn spells if he was destined to be a destructive and powerful warrior right? [Levitate] had taken a lot of time and effort to learn, especially out of a scroll by himself, but the sheer utility of the spell made it worth it.


    He had a lot more appreciation for the versatility of alchemy and other craftwork his mom and her colleagues did now. Transforming a pile of reagents into a bottle of stored potential with his own hands had a certain satisfaction.


    Dorothea''s face fell in exaggerated disappointment, but she smiled and gave him a pat on the shoulder. Rosato approached and spoke. "That''s right, you want to be an alchemist of some kind right?" He pointed a thumb at the smoking corpse of the razorback Lindle had bombed with a knowing smile. "Did you get the feat you wanted?"


    Lindle chuckled, feeling even more awkward now. "You could tell?" Rosato gave him a laugh. "Most of us have done something similar, and I''ve met a few battle chemists before. Go ahead and check." Lindle gave him a grateful smile.


    He turned around and pulled up his status. Ignoring his stats he went to look at his feats and see if a new one had appeared. In the traits sections of his status, he could see the three traits he already had.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Traits


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    - Giant Blood (Bloodline).


    The blood of Giantkind runs through your veins. Increase base HP and AP pools by 50%. Decreases base MP pool by 50%.


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    - Human Blood (Bloodline).


    The blood of humanity runs through your veins. Increase the effectiveness of all stats by 10% when working in tandem with those you consider your community.


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    - Apprentice Alchemist (Feat).


    You have demonstrated your competence as a student in the art of alchemy. Increases the amount of finished product you can produce when performing alchemy by 50%


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    At the bottom of the page, he could see a fourth trait.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    -Alchemical Bomber (Feat)


    Alchemical products crafted by you, when thrown, are more powerful. Such alchemical products can affect your target through skin contact even if they normally need to be delivered by another method to be effective, if such products already function through skin contact, their effects are enhanced.


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    He got one! And a powerful one at that. But more importantly... Lindle opened up his class selection status.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Class Selection


    (Only the 3 rarest classes that you qualify for will be available for selection).


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    - Giant Champion


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    - Jotun Shaman


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    - Colossal Barbarian


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    Disappointment flooded Lindle''s body. No change. His shoulders stiffened, as a hint of familiar anger also appeared inside him. It was bad enough that every time he saw his reflection he knew he was looking at the spitting, if much smaller, image of his father, but because of his blood, he would most likely be stuck with a class that put him on a path similar to that of the man that had abandoned him and his mother.


    No, Lindle shook his head. He still had a few months until his 15th birthday, and they hadn''t even reached their destination yet. There were still plenty of chances to qualify for a class that would let him pick his own path.


    Taking a few deep breaths, he dismissed his status and turned back around, seeing the glow from Chip''s hands begin fading as he finished healing Rosato and Theodore. Lindle hadn''t seen anyone get injured, but he supposed with their higher Health Pools any bruises or scrapes were much less noticeable. HP would keep your body together and functioning when you got hurt but afterward it was important to take care of anything that might lead to infection or be exploited as a weak point.


    Chip raised his hands towards Lindle when he approached, the air felt noticeably warmer around the glow, it felt oddly homey. "Are you in need of some healing my boy?" Lindle was a little curious, he''d never needed magical healing before, but he heard that depending on the method it could feel really nice. But that wasn''t a reason to waste Chip''s magic. "No, I got up there before anything touched me."


    Chip laughed, his smile turning a little knowing after Lindle''s slight hesitation, why were all adventurers so perceptive?! Oh, wait. Their Dex stats were all in the 20s or more.


    "I''m glad to hear that my boy, much smarter than these fools throwing themselves into danger and needing me to fix them afterwards." Chip said.


    Rosato got up from his kneeling position giving Chip a fond smile. "Oh shut it." He turned to Lindle and spoke. "If you''re ready, we''re ready to continue, how are we doing on time?"


    Lindle nodded and pulled out his map again, slightly more crumpled now after being shoved hastily into his pocket. They had been trekking for several hours now since they had left Glacerhine, taking the route through the taiga forest. The moon was on its way down in the sky, giving them only a few more hours of moonlight.


    Luckily this was the first encounter they had since leaving, so they had actually made good time. ¡°We should be another six hours from the ruins if we continue along this way at our current pace, and we can set up camp there.¡± He pointed out a nearby area at the bottom of a cliff that would provide cover from the worst of the elements and wasn''t inside any known monster territories, Humphrey had helped pick out some locations that would be safe to hunker down in when dark fell.


    Rosato took a look and nodded in approval. ¡°That seems good, we¡¯ll set up camp and delve into the ruins early tomorrow.¡±


    Dorothea deflated a little, a disappointed look on her face. Rosato put a hand on her shoulder. ¡°I know you¡¯re excited, cousin, but it¡¯s just too dangerous to delve exhausted and at night.¡± Lindle just observed silently. Rosato gave him an encouraging smile. "Let''s push on."


    Lindle gave him a smile back before leading the way again, the three... oh wait, he looked back again and firmly counted Theodore, four. Four adventurers followed him as they walked through the snow.

 Chapter 4: Campfire Story

    There had been a close call with another herd, likely riled up by the thinning of their rival''s numbers, but as the adventurers got used to traveling through the Reach, they made better time than Lindle had expected and managed to avoid another fight. They reached their planned campsite just as the moon began dimming, twilight falling across the Reach.


    Lindle led them into the clearing set against the cliff face in a small alcove in the rock. A thicker patch of trees covered the entrance. Together it should provide a decent hiding spot from anything wandering through the forest and flying overhead, allowing them a fire.


    Lindle set up the tents while the others got settled. When he went to start collecting wood for the fire Chip stopped him, giving him a kind smile. ¡°Excuse me son, if you don¡¯t mind.¡± The older halfling gripped his amulet and sang a small hymn, and a woodless bonfire appeared in the middle of the camp in a swirl of flame, its fire glowing a richer and golden color that Lindle wasn¡¯t used to. Chip made a sign with his hands, mumbling something he couldn¡¯t hear before speaking again to Lindle. ¡°Hestia''s grace will keep us warm for the night.¡±


    Lindle thought back to the list of Soarian deities he had been taught. Hestia was supposedly the goddess of hearths and food so he supposed that was who the cleric worshipped then this kind of spiritual magic to summon a bonfire made sense. The small school in his village the Soarians had set up alongside the lessons the children received from the shamans made sure to teach them about each of the Polar gods. Most of his peers didn¡¯t pay attention to the Soarian lessons but he found the material covered interesting.


    As the heat from the holy fire spread across his face he felt the soreness in his muscles and the hunger in his stomach fade slightly.


    ¡°Her fire will nourish us as we rest, but do still please enjoy some food.¡± Chip gestured to his bag and Lindle went to grab the rations, handing them out to everyone. The rogue took his meal silently and disappeared into his tent, his white-furred long coat rustling, but the others took seats around the fire and began talking.


    Lindle took a look at his tent but decided to join them this time. He was never very good at small talk but he wanted to try. This group had been a lot more personable with him than he had expected, most of the other Soarians who arrived were pretty intimidating, but these three had been nothing but nice to him. Even Theodore had been¡­ well he had been intimidating too but not in a malicious way, the man was just quiet.


    He took a moment to observe them, the cousins conversing together with some drinks from their sacks while Chip performed a small religious-seeming series of hand gestures over his food before eating it with a peaceful expression on his face. His light armor glinting in the firelight. Chip felt a lot more relaxed than the other priests from Soarstrum who took up a more permanent residence in Glacerhine. They always gave off an intense presence so Lindle didn¡¯t speak to them much outside of lessons.


    Lindle took a seat next to Chip, eating silently for a few more moments until he blurted something out. ¡°So you all do this often?¡± Chip turned to look at him with a raised eyebrow. Lindle winced, that sounded weird. he rephrased. ¡°I mean your group¡­ adventuring, exploring old ruins or fighting monsters.¡±


    Chip smiled, mercifully not laughing as Lindles cheeks filled with red. ¡°Yes, you can say we do this often.¡± Chip gestured vaguely ahead to the others and our surroundings as he responded. ¡°It¡¯s certainly not what I expected to do at this point in my life, but I really wouldn¡¯t trade it for anything else, the adventure, the journeys we¡¯ve gotten to experience.¡±


    ¡°It sounds like you really love it...¡± Lindle said. The halfling seemed a lot more impassioned now. The way the priests had talked about Hestia, it sounded like she would be worshipped by people a lot more prone to settling down. ¡°Isn¡¯t Hestia the goddess of homes? It seems like a career that would take you away from yours pretty often.¡±


    Now Chip chuckled. ¡°Would you like to know how we all got started on this path? Our story is one that is best shared from the beginning.¡± Chip¡¯s eyes sparkled with mischief, as if he relished the idea of sharing tales of their beginnings. Lindle nodded, genuinely curious.


    Chip leaned back comfortably, his face taking on a reminiscent expression as he began, ¡°Well, it all started when Rosato and Dorothea were just kids, a bit younger than you. Back then I was much closer to what you might expect. A humble priest of the local church, tending to the faith. And those two were the local troublemakers who needed to get their bumps and bruises healed every time they went on an ¡®adventure¡¯.¡± He shook his head with a grin. ¡°Some things never change.¡±


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    Both Rosato and Dorothea had turned their attention to the conversation at this point. Rosato chuckled at the memory before speaking. ¡°We were quite the troublemakers back then.¡±


    ¡°Still are!¡± Chip said mirthfully. ¡°Though now it¡¯s more monsters and dungeon zones than escapades making a nuisance of yourselves throughout the neighborhood.¡± The warmth of the fire seemed to grow as Chip continued. ¡°One day however, the injuries were a lot less benign. They stumbled into the church covered in bleeding cuts and wearing the biggest grins.¡±


    Lindle looked at the cousins, Dorothea gave him an unashamed grin, while Rosato awkwardly rubbed the back of his head. ¡°We stumbled into a small goblin nest. I had some swordsmanship techniques under my belt and Dorothea knew some combat spells. We were young and dumb, and we probably should have just alerted the local guard.¡±


    ¡°But we got some really good feats and class options too!¡± Dorothea added. ¡°I¡¯ve got no regrets, we wouldn¡¯t be here otherwise.¡±


    ¡°That is true,¡± Chip said, ¡°but there are safer and smarter ways to unlock your base class.¡± He gestured to Lindle. ¡°I would have much preferred if you had followed young Lindle¡¯s example here instead.¡±


    Lindle shuffled, he supposed Rosato had shared what he was doing with his companions. He spoke up. ¡°At that point though, you were already a priest right? It seems like Rosato and Dorothea already wanted to be adventurers from the start,¡± Lindle looked at them, and they both nodded affirmatively. ¡°How did you join them?¡±


    ¡°Well it started because I wanted to keep them from killing themselves!¡± Chip laughed. ¡°That day I told them if they were so dead set on risking their lives that once they got their classes they would take me along on their first few quests so I could keep an eye on them.¡±


    Dorothea chimed in again. ¡°It was pretty embarrassing, almost like taking your dad with you to kill monsters.¡±


    Chip shrugged. ¡°Embarrassing or not, I saved your hides more than once. Thing is, the more I went along with them, the more I enjoyed it. One day I just decided to join them officially. Exploring and helping people, I touched many more hearths out in the world than I would have tending to just my own, and eventually, this group became my new home.¡± Chip raised a finger to the holy fire they were centered around, a wave of warmth washing over them all.


    Lindle contemplated silently as Chip continued the story. He wasn¡¯t sure what he had expected, but this group of adventurers seemed to have a way of life that Lindle had never considered. As he listened to their stories, he felt a twinge of envy. Not just for their exciting lives, but for the bond they shared.


    Lindle hadn¡¯t considered much outside of his path. He didn¡¯t have any close bonds on the level these three seemed to share. Lindle had always felt some disconnect with most people back home. Never really connecting with the other craftsman children, though he had never worked up the courage to figure out if it was because of his heritage, but he suspected. Once it had become clear he didn¡¯t possess any interest in joining the hunters and warriors most of the warrior kids had stopped interacting with him.


    He had a few friends, and he always had his mother, but observing the cousins closely, noticing the ease with which they spoke and the shared humor that accompanied their anecdotes that looked deeper than even most families he knew. He looked at Chip, he looked relaxed and easy-going. The way the fire danced in his eyes and the way he looked at the cousins, it was clear he had found his purpose.


    He had never really let it bother him before, but the idea stuck with him now. Alongside that the clear purpose they had also struck him. But before he could get too melancholic, Lindle shook it off, he would have the chance to take a better look at what he wanted when he was back home, hopefully either one step closer or ready to take his own path, the rest could follow after.


    By the time Chip wound down, Lindle was holding back yawns. He was tired, but he did have one more question. ¡°What about Theodore? You never mentioned him, did he join your group later?¡±


    ¡°Ah, well Theodore isn¡¯t really part of our group. He¡¯s just joining us while we¡¯re in the Reach.¡± Rosato answered.


    Lindle blinked and looked at the tent of the man in question. He felt a strange feeling he couldn¡¯t identify for a moment.


    Rosato continued. ¡°We¡¯ve met a few times over the years in Soarstrum, but he¡¯s mostly a solo act, so it was quite a surprise when he joined us when we were recruiting for a scout. A good one though, he¡¯s one of the more talented journeymen scouts and most of them get snapped up by various groups while they¡¯re still apprentices.¡±


    Lindle felt some more curiosity growing inside him, but another yawn escaped him before he could come up with another question. Chip gave him a smile, standing up and patting him on the shoulder.


    ¡°Come now, we need our rest for tomorrow,¡± Chip said.


    Everyone followed Chip''s lead and stood up as the halfling shooed them all into their tents. Lindle felt the exhaustion weighing down on him. As he made his way to his tent, the crackling of the golden fire behind him slowly faded into the background as Chip sat back down, looking into the fire.


    As he nestled in his bedroll, Lindle''s mind was abuzz with thoughts of the day''s events and what would come next tomorrow, slowly falling into sleep.

 Chapter 5: Foreknowledge

    Lindle''s steps pounded in his ears as his feet beat into the stone floor. He ran past grey-blue walls and strange glowing white lights. Small people no taller than his hips ran past him in the opposite direction, their voices all yelling unintelligible words, faces obscured and details obscured aside from being clothed in flowing white cloaks.


    Everything was indistinct and blurry, a strange stew of noises and colors. The screeching of some terrible beast cried out over and over. He dodged and weaved past the crowd, sprinting faster and faster, but the hallway kept going and going.


    He had to go faster, he needed to get there now or everything would be lost.


    Finally, after what felt like ages, Lindle rounded a corner and came across a door with no handle. He slammed both palms against the door, reaching out somehow and twisting something inside the door. An overwhelming essence that felt both foreign and familiar. A feeling that somehow was of entrances, of journeys, of separation and connection, before everything started shaking and suddenly-


    Lindle shot up from his bedroll, he looked around frantically for a few moments. He heard the sounds of Dorothea and Rosato talking outside of his tent. Lindle sighed, falling back. He had overslept, that was embarrassing. He got out of his bed, he needed to help prepare breakfast.


    ***


    The adventurers stood ready, peering into the opening in the cliffside leading down into a ravine. Lindle felt the pressure of the dungeon zone pouring out from the cave, he wanted to turn away, but the adventurers didn¡¯t seem bothered, so Lindle kept still and tried to ignore the feeling, but it was hard.


    People had said dungeon zones were places where the system had focused its attention, locations that it had marked as offering both danger and opportunity to encourage growth. He could feel the weight of that attention on him now, all the energy he held in his body buzzing anxiously as if he were on a stage about to conduct a speech in front of everyone in Glacerhine while overdosed on Aura potions.


    Theodore said something to Rosato, which Lindle didn¡¯t catch, but the kitsune nodded before the masked man disappeared into the cave.


    Lindle forced his way past the discomfort to try and spot Theodore as he left, but he had already slipped into the shadows of the tunnels. Lindle flinched when Rosato placed a hand on his shoulder.


    ¡°It¡¯s rough huh? Dungeon Zone pressure is a bitch at first, you¡¯ll get used to it.¡± Rosato said, giving Lindle an encouraging smile.


    Lindle gave a small grin, trying to steel himself. ¡°Thanks. Where¡¯s Theodore going?¡± He asked.


    ¡°He¡¯s gone ahead to scout the area, make sure there aren¡¯t any nests or traps that¡¯ll surprise us when we head straight in,¡± Rosato answered before his expression turned serious. ¡°I also wanted to take this chance to get you up to speed on how we¡¯re going to do things down there. Listen very closely.¡±


    Lindle blinked, before nodding his head.


    ¡°Down in a dungeon zone, things are different. The system twists what¡¯s down there, turning centuries-old rusted traps into perfectly functioning death pits. Monsters warp in unpredictable ways compared to what you¡¯re used to. One second you can be walking safely down a corridor and the next you can be fighting for your life through a gauntlet of monsters waiting to ambush you from nowhere.¡± Rosato said. ¡°The important thing to remember is that in a dungeon zone, what the system wants is for you to be challenged. It won¡¯t pull its punches, and it won¡¯t hesitate to kill you if you aren¡¯t careful, but there are rules to delving, and if you stay smart and listen to everything I tell you, you¡¯ll come out the other side fine with enough reward to be worth the risk.¡±


    Lindle absorbed the gravity of Rosato''s words, feeling a mixture of excitement and dread churning in his stomach.


    ¡°Rule one is always, unless you have a sneak skill or technique, you never split the party. You stick with the group. No dividing rooms to look for loot, no staying behind to catch your breath while the rest clear the next chamber full of easy monsters. The dungeon zone will always punish you for it. Stealth powers are the only exception, and gods help you if you get caught by anything or let it up because the dungeon will throw danger at you like you¡¯ve insulted its mother and spit in her eye.¡±


    A chill went down Lindles spine. The dungeon could get angry? Lindle spoke up. ¡°The inside of the dungeon changes if it catches you by yourself?¡±


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    Rosato nodded, before tilting his head and making a ¡®sort of¡¯ gesture with his hand. ¡°Usually, if you¡¯re there to delve the dungeon by yourself, without any kind of group to be separated from in the first place, you¡¯re fine. That¡¯s why the rule is ¡®never split the party¡¯ instead of never be alone. But yes, the dungeon will change to become more deadly, new traps, stronger monsters, ambushes.¡±


    ¡°How can it tell the difference? Is the dungeon aware?¡± Lindle swallowed nervously.


    ¡°No one really knows for sure, and it¡¯s not really my wheelhouse. Dungeon zone theory is something Dorothea is interested in, my focus is just knowing enough to survive and keep the group safe,¡± Rosato explained. ¡°But one thing is clear - the dungeon zone reacts to the presence and actions of delvers. It adapts and based on the challenges it faces, warping whatever the original area was to create an environment where you either grow or die.¡±


    Lindle gripped his alchemist pack tightly as he took another look into the cave.


    ¡°Next thing is fighting as a party. You¡¯re just here as a porter, but if you¡¯re going to contribute the dungeon will know, so you need to know how to work in a party.¡± Rosato point at Chip. ¡°You stick next to him. Chip is our healer and one of our blasters, so he stands behind me and Theodore and away from whatever we¡¯re fighting. He¡¯s the center of our group. Whenever someone uses a spell or a skill, we call it out. If you¡¯re going to throw another one of those vials, you call it so we can get out of the way.


    Lindle nodded. ¡°I can also throw healing potions or buffers.¡± Most of the vials he had prepared weren¡¯t meant to be thrown, but it was just glass, he could throw with enough strength to shatter it without hurting the adventurers and take advantage of his new feat.


    Rosato grinned. ¡°Really? That¡¯s amazing. That¡¯s not something all adventurer alchemists can do. Anything in there with a name that doesn¡¯t make it immediately obvious what you¡¯re about to throw does?¡±


    Lindle shook his head. His mother didn¡¯t bother teaching him any of the pretentious-sounding concoctions he saw traders from Soarstrum peddle, according to her they were all too niche or specific to be useful outside of extremely rare situations. He knew the practical stuff. Lindle ran Rosato through the list of things he had prepared.


    ¡°Good, if we need something, we¡¯ll call it out. When it comes to healing, leave it to Chip, he¡¯ll tell you whether or not to give us a healing potion.¡±


    Lindle wasn¡¯t sure why the distinction between buffs and healing, but he absorbed the information nonetheless. Rosato ran him through a few more basic rules, and quizzing Lindle to make sure he remembered. Fortunately, he had always had an exceptional memory. Lindle took great pride in his high Int stat.


    A lot of it boiled down to keeping a chain of command and a healthy line of communication open. In combat there wouldn¡¯t usually be a lot of time for questioning so if another adventurer shouted a plan to follow, unless someone had a very good reason not to do so it was good form to always go along with it. There were also some parts about respecting the dungeon structure. It would tolerate some destruction, but if someone started tunneling through walls or floors, the dungeon would get lethally hostile and fast.


    Eventually, Theodore reappeared from the cave. The party conversed for a few moments as Theodore gave his report, laying out a plan before they all got into marching order and began descending into the dungeon zone.


    The air inside of the cave felt warmer as the dungeon pressure increased. Lindle forced his way through it, heart pounding as the light from the moon outside faded.


    Chip gave Lindle a reassuring smile as he raised a hand, another hymn spilling from his lips as the golden flames ignited in his palm. Pushing the flame away it floated up and forward above the group, casting enough light to see by. Feeling the heat against his face again, the feeling it gave off felt different from last night. The bonfire made him feel relaxed and comfortable, instead, now Lindle felt his stomach settle, everything coming into focus just a bit more.


    Lindle wondered why Chip seemed to need to chant for some of his spells but not others. He didn¡¯t seem to need to when fighting the razorbacks, but he did so now and back at camp. Spellcasting didn¡¯t tend to need verbal components as far as Lindle knew. Maybe he didn¡¯t need to chant, it could be religious reasons as a cleric.


    As they traversed the underground, deeper and deeper, the adventurers surprised Lindle with their sudden transformation into expert spelunkers. It was a complete change from their performance above ground in the snow, as they climbed and navigated down ledges and around the uneven stone terrain. His cheeks burned each time they had to wait for him to catch up at the bottom of a steep stretch or across an unstable section.


    Thankfully, the tunnels eventually leveled out, and they emerged into a larger carven. The weight of the dungeon pressed against them, but Lindle''s eyes were drawn to the entrance of the dungeon - a colossal edifice of stone but not one made out of the same rock as the cave around it, as if it had been swallowed by the earth itself.


    As Lindle¡¯s eyes adjusted to the dimmer light of the large cavern, he could make out more details. It was a building, similar to the greater ice houses in Glacerhine but formed out of blocks instead of being carved or sculpted. Moss and vines covered the walls and gate, the smell of mold and mildew filling his nose.


    Lindle observed the gate itself, it was massive, the handles at eye level to him. Despite being covered in vines, it seemed untouched by rot and age like the crumbling rock around it was.


    Rosato raised a hand, and everyone stopped. Creeping up to the gate, he placed a hand atop it and looked back at them. Seeing everyone else return a nod to him, Lindle nodded too. Rosato gripped the handle and pulled.

 Chapter 6: Behind Door Number One

    The heavy gate creaked open, revealing a large dark hall lined by tall pillars dimly lit by Chips flames. The golden light casting long shadows against stone walls covered with colorful, if very dusty and tattered blue and green banners heralding some long forgotten people. Piles of rubble and debris littered the room, the air filled with dust stirred up by the door.


    It was a beautiful and yet hauntingly sad vision of a place once majestic fallen to ruin, and Lindle would have given it his full appreciation if it wasn¡¯t for the massive monster in the center of it, frozen mid-sniff and staring at him.


    It resembled the Iceshell Pangolins that burrowed out in the hills, but this thing was a full head taller, making it twice his height on its hind feet. It¡¯s scales, instead of being simply coated with ice, were instead formed completely out of wicked-looking crystals that trailed down into a thick and flat tail and displayed a massive pair of shining crystalline claws. The only natural weapon it seemed to have that wasn¡¯t made out of crystal was a set of tusks, unimpressive compared to the rest of its body but it still looked capable of impaling Lindle if he got close.


    Around him, the adventurers had also frozen stiff, eyes locked with the pangolin.


    ¡°I thought you said there weren¡¯t any monsters right at the entrance!¡± Rosato whisper-hissed out of the side of his mouth at Theodore.


    ¡°There weren¡¯t when I looked. ¡± Theodore responded, his hands slowly going to his knives.


    Lindle unconsciously took a step back down the stairs, and the Pangolin reared up.


    The adventurers sprung into action. Theodore and Rosato drew their weapons and ran forward as Dorothea and Chip simultaneously raised their hands and cast spells, speaking the names aloud this time.


    ¡°[Icicle Nail]!"


    "[Burning Thorn]!¡±


    Two giant spikes formed on either side of the monster, one of ice and another that looked like a sharp piece of wood ablaze with Chips golden flames, and a moment later both smashed into the pangolin''s back at the same time. The fire spell scattered off the monster''s crystal scales but the ice spell penetrated into it and then shattered. The monster roared in pain as some of its crystal scales cracked.


    Dorothea shouted. ¡°It¡¯s weak to ice!¡±


    ¡°Got it!¡± Rosato shouted back as he charged head-on as the pangolin was distracted. ¡°[Cold Blade]!''¡° Mist began falling to the ground from his sword as ice formed around his blade, giving him extra length as he stabbed it into the pangolin''s body.


    They had a formation planned out in advance to test for elemental weaknesses? That was an impressive level of coordination. Wait, no, now wasn¡¯t the time to stand around doing nothing like an idiot. Lindle looked around and saw Chip ahead of him, both casters moving into the room as Rosato got the monster''s attention. He made his way next to Chip as he cast a buffing spell.


    ¡°What should I do?¡± He asked.


    Chip looked at him for a moment before snapping his head back to the pangolin. ¡°Stay behind me, keep something ready to protect yourself. Don¡¯t throw anything dangerous unless Rosato is clear,¡± he responded.


    Lindle hesitated for another second before nodding, getting into position behind Chip as he cast another spell. He rummaged around in his bag for anything that seemed useful, but he couldn¡¯t think of anything. He didn¡¯t pack anything centered around freezing monsters, what in the Reach was weak to ice?! Nothing else in his pouch could pack enough punch to hurt a monster this big.


    Feeling a bit useless Lindle stood back and watched.


    Chip had switched to casting mostly defensive and supportive spells on Rosato. The kitsune locking down the monster with savage stabs to its underside, blocking or dodging its retaliatory swipes.


    Dorothea hurled one spell after another, each burst of magic leaving frost creeping up the crystals and cracking, leaving openings in the pangolin''s defense that Theodore exploited with only a seconds delay. Each time the monster tried to turn its attention to its attackers, Rosato bashed it¡¯s head with his shield or landed a heavy blow with his sword.


    The adventurers fought tirelessly and left wounds that looked devastating, but the monster continued just as tirelessly. Unlike the Razorbacks this monster clearly had a wealth of HP to allow it to keep fighting under the focused assault.


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    Reaching up a claw it brought down on Rosato, pinning him in place as he used his shield to stop it. As it pressed down on him, Theodore appeared from the side with his dagger aimed at its neck. As he leapt into the air Rosato shoved the pangolin off of him with a grunt. As his target moved positions the pangolin twisted with the motion and turned his back on the rogue.


    With a swipe of its tail it knocked Theodore out of the air with a devastating blow. the rogue flew back into the wall with a gasp, all the air forced out of his lungs as the wall shook.


    Chip turned to Theodore and cast a healing spell. ¡°[Life Gift]!¡± As healing energies surrounded the rogue Chip turned his head and shouted at Lindle. ¡°Use a strength enhancer on Rose!¡±


    Startled into action Lindle reached into his pouch and grabbed the potion. Cycling his Aura he activated [Throw] and lobbed it at Rosato. ¡°Rose! Strength Buff incoming!¡±


    Seeing his potion fly through the air, Dorothea cast a new spell. ¡°[Haste]!''¡°


    As the potion shattered against the back of Rosatos armor, both buffs activated on him simultaneously. With a roar the knight blurred past the pangolins claw, slammed the flat of his shield against its chest, and heaved, flipping the giant monster into the air.


    Lindle stared in shock as Rosato then leaped into the air after the pangolin, impaling it with his oversized sword of ice, causing the both of them to go flipping through the hall. Falling to earth on its back, shattered crystals going everywhere, the pangolin shrieked.


    ¡°What in the beyond¡­ my potions aren¡¯t anywhere near that powerful!¡±


    ¡°Hestia is also the goddess of hospitality, one of my divine boons allows me to double the effects of buffs that a number of my allies receive.¡± Chip answered, smiling as he watched his friend.


    Rosato pulled his sword out of its chest, raising it above his head, Lindle could see his tails unfurl and fan out as he spoke. ¡°[Foxfire: Burst]!¡± Plunging his sword into the pangolin all the way to the hilt, a sudden burst of heat and purple light burst inside the pangolin''s body.


    It struggled for another moment before slumping to the ground, lifeless. Rosato pulled out his sword, the ice that covered it earlier melted away. Sliding to the ground he called out. ¡°Status check?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m good on MP.¡± Dorothea answered.


    ¡°Same here.¡± Chip said.


    ¡°I was down a quarter of my HP, but I¡¯m mostly good now.¡± Theodore added. Just a quarter? That blow could have knocked Lindle down to 0 if he was in Theodore''s place.


    Rosato nodded and then looked at Lindle expectantly.


    Lindle was still looking at the corpse of the pangolin, the amount of force and power higher-level people and monsters were playing with was terrifying up close. He had only ever seen the elders battle against the Apex predators in the distance, but the gap in ability between him and people with classes was sinking in. His mom was a similar level to these adventurers but he had never seen her do anything like this before. Was that a difference between adventuring classes and combat classes?


    After almost a minute his gaze shifted and he saw Rosato still looking at him expectantly. ¡°Oh! sorry. Yeah, I¡¯m all good, I used just the one potion.¡±


    ¡°Good! Check around the room for anything interesting or valuable and then let¡¯s continue.¡±


    Everyone started searching the room around Lindle. Sifting through the rubble around behind the banners. Lindle didn¡¯t see how they could go from fighting to looting so fast. His heart was beating out of his chest.


    Taking a minute to calm down, Lindle edged his way over to the corpse. Climbing to the top, he looked to see a mass of charred flesh where its chest used to be. Whatever fire resistance it had clearly hadn¡¯t protected it from Rosato''s last attack. His stomach wriggled uneasily and Lindle looked away, sliding back off of the corpse.


    As he got back on the ground, his foot sent a shard of crystal sliding away. Looking down he saw all the shattered crystals littering the floor. He kneeled down and picked one up, looking at it closely.


    ¡°Hey are these valuable?¡± He asked.


    Dorothea looked up from her rubble pile and answered. ¡°Not really. Dungeon monster materials are rare and can be useful, but considering it was weak to cold¡­¡± She shrugged. ¡°I doubt anyone would find something like that useful on the surface.¡±


    That was true. The monster had been tough, but considering how easily the crystals cracked after being exposed to Dorotheas or Rosato''s ice they were frankly worthless. Most things in the Reach were heavily attuned to frost as an element. Just taking it outside of the warmth of the dungeon into the Reach would probably cause them to weaken.


    Still, he wondered if they had any alchemical properties, it could be interesting to experiment with them. ¡°Is it okay if I take some for myself?¡± he asked.


    ¡°Yeah it¡¯s fine.¡± Dorothea answered dismissively, going back to searching. ¡°You¡¯re the one carrying most of the stuff after all.¡±


    Lindle gathered up a bunch of the crystals and shoved them into his porter bag. They were a little heavy but they didn¡¯t add too many pounds, he could handle it, though sadly he couldn¡¯t fit any of the larger spikes through the opening.


    After another few minutes, with clear disappointment in his voice, Rosato called off the search. ¡°This is the first room, so it makes sense, but I hoped that the dungeon would leave something here with a big monster like that around.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t think this was where it was supposed to be, maybe it followed my scent here after I scouted the area.¡± Theodore suggested.


    Rosato sighed but acknowledged the point. ¡°There¡¯s nothing for it then. We go deeper.¡±

 Chapter 7: Insight and Knowledge

    Everyone had gotten back into marching order as Theodore took the lead into the extensive hallway. ¡°I¡¯ll keep an eye for traps, I didn¡¯t see any when scouting but the dungeon may have warped again now that we¡¯re all inside.¡±


    Lindle looked around them with suspicion. The hallway was tall and rounded at the top, but a lot of the ceiling and walls were caved in, leaving giant piles of rubble that they needed to navigate around.


    As they traveled the hallway stretched on and on, the length feeling unnatural to Lindle. Their pace slowed to a crawl as Theodore scanned every bit of flooring before they continued. So far this dungeon didn¡¯t seem to place a heavy emphasis on traps, but aside from the first one, there hadn¡¯t been any monsters either.


    Lindle kept glancing up, the ceiling was far up, but as time passed it felt lower and lower. A tension crept up his shoulders and back. There really wasn¡¯t a lot of room down here. How did adventurers come down into places like this so often? So deep underground at the mercy of the dungeon zone. Who knows when it could decide to drop all those tons of rock down on their heads?


    As they went deeper into the dungeon Lindle tried to distract himself by focusing on the details of the dungeon around him. This was apparently supposed to be a research expedition, though clearly the prospect of loot was a big motivator too.


    Lindle inspected the hallway as they walked, but he was having trouble figuring out what kind of place this was supposed to have been. There were carvings etched into the walls at certain points, and the area may have been decorated, but it was clearly old and had been heavily damaged. The symbols that were still visible were unreadable to Lindle, it was clearly a language of some kind but he only knew how to speak and write in the common language of the continent, Helvetician.


    Lindle looked back for Dorothea. Maybe she would be willing to tell him about what he was looking at, she was a mage and the shaman apprentices usually loved showing off their knowledge. Seeing her, the kitsune mage was clearly having the time of her life. As Theodore and Rosato walked at the front of the group, acting as a vanguard, Dorothea darted from wall to wall, noting down everything she could see in a leatherbound journal. She chatted excitedly to Chip, the cleric nodding indulgently as she pointed to a series of symbols carved into a wall.


    ¡°See? I knew it! This was an elven ruin.¡±


    Lindle looked at the symbols. ¡°How does that tell you this place was elven?¡±


    Dorothea paused and looked at him in slight surprise. Had she forgotten he was here? Her face split into a wide grin before she answered. ¡°Lindle come here, I¡¯ll show you!¡±


    Lindle approached and crouched down next to her as she pointed out one of the symbols. ¡°This is the elven symbol for insight! It¡¯s been found in a number of other confirmed elven ruins, places usually of spiritual importance or learning.¡± She then moved to a different set of symbols laid out on the other wall, half covered by debris. ¡°This symbol means knowledge. I¡¯m betting this place was a kind of elven academy!¡±


    Lindle tilted his head in confusion. ¡°An academy? Is that some kind of elven word?¡±


    Now Dorothea matched his confusion. ¡°What? You don¡¯t know what academy means? It¡¯s just another word for school.¡±


    Lindle looked around. ¡°A school? But it¡¯s so huge! The school back in Glacerhine the church set up is way smaller than this, why would they make it so big?¡±


    Dorothea hummed. ¡°Well compared to Silent Owl Academy in Soarstrum, this place isn¡¯t as big, but we haven¡¯t explored much of it yet.¡± she huffed. ¡°I just wish it wasn¡¯t so run down. So many of the carvings are illegible.¡±


    Lindle felt a sense of curiosity and awe well up inside him. A massive elven school buried underground for¡­ well spirits know how long! That had to mean it held at least some old knowledge that they might uncover.


    She scraped away some of the stone to try and uncover more of the symbols when suddenly it shifted inwards. Lindle, Chip, and Dorothea all froze. Dorothea pushed at some of the debris and it gave. She shouted in excitement. ¡°There¡¯s an opening back here!¡±


    Theodore and Rosato both stopped their forward march to join the rest of them. ¡°Rose, move these bricks.¡± Dorothea commanded hastily.


    Rosato complied, pushing aside massive chunks of rock. As Chip moved his floating flame closer, Lindle could see it illuminate a hidden space. Unable to stay still as a rush of excitement grabbed him, Lindle joined Rosato and started picking up rocks to move out of the way.


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    As they worked together, quickly they opened up enough space for everyone to walk through, revealing a giant room.


    The giant room was filled with rows and rows of towering shelves, reaching towards the ceiling. Books of varying sizes and colors lined the shelves, some stacked in piles on the ground. The shelves were dusty and some had collapsed, scattering old books across the floor.


    ¡°A library!¡± Dorothea gasped breathlessly.


    ¡°A library? Like a librarian? I heard you guys mention something like that earlier.¡± Lindle asked.


    Dorothea''s gaze was momentarily ripped away from staring awestruck at the area to Lindle with a mix of confusion and¡­ some pity? ¡° What are they teaching you at that school? I¡¯m going to have some words with the church in Glacerhine when we head back. A library is a wonderful place where people store books and knowledge and librarians are people that manage it.¡±


    She stepped forward, her face alight with excitement. ¡°Don¡¯t you see? We just stumbled on a treasure trove! No one¡¯s ever managed to find more than just a handful of elven texts before, and we found a wagonload! If we could study these we could fully translate their language, we¡¯d learn so much about the elves!¡±


    Dorothea practically vibrated with exhilaration, her fingers itching to grab the nearest book and start reading. Her energy was infectious. Chip looked around in awe, a reverent expression on his face as if he were in a sacred place. Rosato''s eyes gleamed with greed at the potential knowledge and loot they could find. Their energy was so infectious, that Lindle started feeling excitement at their discovery alongside them. Theodore''s words, however, brought all their excitement crashing down.


    ¡°We can¡¯t touch or read these.¡± He said, kneeling down next to one of the scattered books.


    ¡°What? Why?¡± Lindle blurted out.


    ¡°These books are all cursed.¡± Theodore stated plainly. ¡°Dorothea, come over here and look at this with your mana sense.¡±


    Dorothea rushed over and inspected the books. ¡°He¡¯s right¡­¡± Her voice dripping with despair. ¡°These books all have a curse on them that will activate if moved or touched.¡±


    ¡°Can it be dispelled?¡± Rosato asked.


    ¡°I couldn¡¯t do it.¡± Dorothea responded, her fists clenched in frustration. ¡°It looks like it used to be a security system that the dungeon zone warped. Only people with permission could touch these books and remove them from the library. If any of us tried a lethal curse would be put on us.¡±


    Lindle winced. To come across something clearly so rare only to be denied stung. He looked around as the adventurers fell silent, the weight of their discovery now feeling like a burden. ¡°If people with permission can take the books, would there be some way of gaining permission?¡± Lindle suggested.


    Everyone looked at Dorothea as she stared at the books around them with a fervent intensity, using whatever magical sense she had to discern the nature of the curse and the mechanics behind it. Several minutes passed, but no one said anything to disturb her. Rosato had a look of clear resignation on his face, but Lindle didn¡¯t want to give up just yet.


    Eventually, Dorothea looked away from the book, tentative hope blooming on her face. ¡°I think there might be a way. From what I can tell what the dungeon warped was the lethality of the curse and the strength of the binding, but the identifier for who qualifies as an exception to the curse wasn¡¯t changed too much. If this place is a library it might just be a case of finding the equivalent of a library card or whatever the students used to check out books, and we¡¯ll be protected. If we can bring the books outside of the dungeon zone the enchantment should fade and the books will be safe for everyone.¡±


    She got up, a sense of determination coming over her. ¡°This must be the challenge of the dungeon. If the books were unsalvageable it wouldn¡¯t have kept this room preserved and warped the curse this way. I would bet anything it¡¯s hiding the cards somewhere or keeping them as a reward.¡±


    Rosato looked hesitant. ¡°I don¡¯t know¡­ it feels like a stretch.¡± Dorothea fixed him with a hard stare.


    Lindle shuffled a bit before piping up. ¡°It couldn¡¯t hurt to check right? If we look and don¡¯t find them, we can just continue as normal.¡±


    Rosato sighed but nodded. ¡°That¡¯s true. Fine, we can look for a card. But I only want Theodore poking around near the books, we can¡¯t risk anyone touching them by accident.¡± Dorothea smiled and gave her cousin a brief hug.


    After making it clear that no one was to leave the room, Rosato split them up to search the library. With Theodore the one at least risk he looked among the shelves. The rest of them poked around the desk and counters.


    Lindle put his full focus on the task. He searched diligently, his giant frame carefully moving debris and ruined furniture into a small pile. He had come on this quest for his own reasons, but he didn¡¯t want his newfound companions to leave disappointed. The Soarians had been far kinder to him than Lindle had expected.


    Lindle grabbed another chunk of collapsed wood to move when the rubble shifted, sending several stones falling to the ground in a loud crash, echoing through the library. He winced and went to apologize before he felt the dungeon pressure suddenly increase. The weight cut off his apology before he could speak, looking around he could tell the adventurers felt it too.


    Rosato¡¯s eyes widened, and Lindle was close enough to hear him as he muttered the words ¡°quiet in the library¡± to himself before he quickly drew his sword. ¡°Everyone get ready!¡± He called.


    Around them, the scattered piles of books they had left untouched began to shudder.

 Chapter 8: Quiet in the Library

    A flutter of paper echoed a hundred times filled the library as dozens of books took to the air, flapping their pages like demented birds. A chaotic whirlwind of paper and ink surrounded everyone as they tried to draw their weapons and ready spells, but they were all wildly out of position and unprepared.


    Dread filled Lindles heart as a flock of books flew into Chip, lifting the halfling off the ground and back into the counter Lindle stood behind. The curse! Was he-


    Dorothea shouted above the chaos, interrupting his thoughts, her voice barely audible over the loud flapping of the cursed books. "They aren¡¯t cursed! They¡¯re fake!¡± A spray of cold magic burst from her hands, freezing the books and causing them to fall to the ground and shatter. Her magic senses must be able to see the difference, though Lindle wondered why she hadn¡¯t seen them before, perhaps they were hiding under the cursed books.


    Lindle leaped over the counter to help Chip stand up as Rosato swung his sword to start cutting through the books. Chip got to his feet with a wince, putting a hand to his chest and healing himself.


    ¡°Those forsaken things hurt.¡± Chip called out. He raised a hand, light shining as he prepared to blast them. ¡°[Funnel-¡±


    ¡°No!¡± Dorothea stopped Chip with a death glare. "I swear to every god below the moon and beyond if you destroy all of these books Chip!"


    ¡°You also might burn down the library with us in it.¡±Rosato chimed in with a flat tone.


    Chip aborted the spell hastily. ¡°Apologies!¡± He changed priorities and placed a hand on Lindle. ¡°You¡¯d think I¡¯d have more chances to use fire in a place like this¡± The cleric muttered to himself. ¡°[Hestia¡¯s Protection].¡± He cast on Lindle. A blanket of soft-looking ethereal flames climbed Lindles body. ¡°We¡¯ll draw their attention, go help Theodore, we need to regroup.¡±


    As if to punctuate Chip''s words a loud crash came from across the room as Lindle saw one of the shelves topple over, the rest of the area obscured by the other shelves and the flurry of vengeful texts. Lindle nodded to Chip and ran to find the rogue as the halfling went to support his companions


    The room was filled with a cacophony of sounds - the whooshing of the flying books, the clang of metal against paper, and the crackling of magical energy. Moving as fast as he could, Lindle pumped his legs across the perimeter of the library, dodging piles of cursed books and dive bombs as the adventurers drew the dragon''s share of the flock''s ire.


    Rounding the corner Lindle skidded to a stop as a massive wooden claw smashed into the bookshelf in front of him. Lindle watched as a massive wooden humanoid attempted to smash its oversized forelimbs into Theodore as the rogue danced in between his legs, attempting to score a cut with his daggers, but it didn¡¯t seem like he was doing much.


    The massive construct was almost as tall as the library as it crouched down. Its face was smooth and seemed carved to resemble that of a person, with a flowing beard of moss and flowers hanging from it. The rest of its body was bare.


    ¡°Quiet!¡± the thing demanded. Its voice was a raspy whisper of creaking wood.


    Lindle started rummaging through his pouch for something useful with gritted teeth. He couldn¡¯t use fire for the same reasons Chip couldn¡¯t, he had no magical poisons capable of harming a being animated entirely out of wood, and he couldn¡¯t throw accurately enough to hit Theodore with a support potion. His alchemy was useless!


    Wait¡­ his alchemy was useless.


    He reached inward for his MP, forming the construct. Luckily it was much easier to cast tier 1 spells than it was to cast tier 2, a simple two-dimensional pattern. ¡°[Ice Slick]!¡± Lindle yelled out for Theodore¡¯s benefit. As the construct took a step a patch of ice formed underneath its foot and the construct slipped. Tumbling it fell with the force of a tree to the floor.


    Ever the opportunist, Theodore leaped onto its head and stabbed one of his daggers into its neck. His blade sunk in, but a moment later it attempted to swipe at him and Theodore jumped away to land next to Lindle.


    ¡°What the hell is that thing?¡± Lindle frantically asked as the construct attempted to get up.


    ¡°My skill says it''s called The Librarian,¡± Theodore answered, his masked face not turning to look away from it.


    That¡¯s a librarian?! What in the beyond had Chip and Dorothea been talking about!? It wasn¡¯t attractive at all!


    ¡°It¡¯s stronger than Journeyman tier, I can¡¯t hurt it. It seems weak to fire but we can¡¯t use any while we¡¯re here or we risk destroying the books, and I¡¯m pretty sure that¡¯ll trigger the curse on them.¡± Theodore continued. ¡°We need to run.¡±


    ¡°Running sounds like a fantastic idea,¡± Lindle replied, eyeing The Librarian warily as it struggled to get back on its feet. The massive creature let out a low groan, its wooden form creaking with the effort. ¡°We need to regroup with the others and make a break for it.¡±


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    Lindle and Theodore started running, the rogue easily outpacing Lindle as they retraced Lindle''s path. He could see the party taking out the remnants of the attacking flock of books. ¡°We need to leave now!¡± Lindle cried out to them.


    Lindle could see the others look at him in confusion before their eyes widened and they started running towards him. Towards him? Why would they be¡­


    Lindle turned around in time to see The Librarian''s claw, its hand larger than his torso, smash into him.


    It felt like being hit by a building. Lindle was sent flying across the room, crashing into the same counter with a sickening crunch. Unlike Chip, Lindle smashed through the furniture. Pain shot through his body as he struggled to get up, his vision swimming. The others were shouting his name, but their voices sounded distant and muffled. Everything was going black¡­


    As he tried to push himself up one more time, Lindle saw his HP.


    HP: 7/120


    If it wasn¡¯t for Chip''s spell and his giant blood trait¡­


    Lindle felt an instinctive flash of anger as he remembered that damned trait. Using the moment of clarity, he pushed through the pain and managed to start standing on shaky legs. As the adventurers ran to his side, he could feel the warmth of Chip''s healing magic enveloping him, providing some relief.


    Rosato grabbed him and helped him the rest of the way up, wrapping Lindle''s arm around his shoulders. He started to drag Lindle away from the Librarian to the exit of the Library, but the Librarian crouched down on all fours and leaped like a dog to cut them off. Was that how it caught up to Lindle?


    It tried to continue forward menacingly, but Dorothea pointed her wand at it. ¡°[Binding Ice]¡±


    Ice froze its limb to the floor, causing it to stumble. It struggled, the ice immediately beginning to crack. They turned to look for another escape route.


    ¡°There!¡± Lindle pointed to a door towards the back of the library.


    Everyone ran for it, Lindle and Rosato bringing up the rear as Theodore kicked open the door. Behind them, The Librarian shattered the ice holding it with a low moan. ¡°Quiet!¡± It raced for them as Rosato jumped for it, lifting Lindle like he was a child as they made it through the door.


    The Librarian smashed into the wall behind them as they landed safely inside and Theodore shut the door, Lindle turned and watched with his heart beating for it to cave, but the dungeon held firm. Everyone sighed in relief. The Librarian scrambled and moaned, but it couldn¡¯t get inside.


    Lindle reached into his pouch and pulled out a healing potion, Pulling off the top he drank deeply, sighing as he felt his pool of Health Points throughout his body refill, the influx sealing his wounds and repairing his body. Lindle had never been so low on HP in his life before. He had never noticed it before, but he had felt¡­ cold, numb, even apart from his injuries without the energy of HP filling his body, a meager 7 points holding him together and away from death. Lindle shuddered


    Rosato placed a comforting hand on Lindle''s back. ¡°You okay Lindle?¡±


    ¡°Yeah¡­ I¡¯m fine.¡± Lindle answered, getting to his feet and looking around.


    They had taken refuge in what seemed like a small office space. There was a large dusty desk with some chairs taking up the center of the room, worn down shelves occupying the walls filled with old and decaying books. The rug they stood on was threadbare and rotted, barely clinging to its last fibers. Despite its age everything in here seemed extremely expensive.


    As everyone took a moment to breathe, Theodore started scanning the handful of books. ¡°No curse here. Maybe these were personal copies?¡± Dorothea started greedily shoving the texts into her bags. No reason to not grab these just in case Lindle supposed.


    ¡°Report?¡± Rosato ordered as he slumped into one of the chairs in front of the desk.


    Chip took a look around the party and Lindle. ¡°We all seem ok on HP, but I¡¯m running low on MP.¡±


    Dorothea echoed the sentiment, and Theodore and Rosato said the same for their AP respectively. Lindle started to go through his bag for some restorative potions, but Chip waved him off.


    ¡°It¡¯s fine, we¡¯re safe for now so we can take a short break to refill the old-fashioned way. No need to start building up toxicity when those potions would be more useful in the middle of a fight, which we might need if we have to fight our way out.¡±


    Lindle sighed, but he understood. He was feeling more and more like dead weight, even if it seemed like this group was more than capable of carrying it. He had felt so sure of himself coming out here. Weeks of work put in filling his bag so he could show his worth, to the system or himself he wasn¡¯t sure, but compared to Chip he was just a poor backup when it came to support. Sure he knew they had plenty of levels on him, but he couldn¡¯t just be good for his age, if he was ever going to be more than what his blood said he was good for, he had to be exceptional.


    Pushing the thoughts away, Lindle took another look around the room. On the wall behind the desk, there was a kind of indent as the wood was replaced by stone. Lindle frowned, the shape looked like a kind of really tall door, even though it was featureless and had no handle, it was¡­ familiar.


    Walking around the desk and past the adventurers, Lindle approached the ¡®door.¡¯ Someone asked him a question, but their voice faded into the background as he placed a hand on the door. There was¡­ something swirling inside of the door. The texture, or maybe its taste, was strange. Somehow feeling like entrances, journeys, separation and connection all at once. Without really thinking about it, Lindle moved something in his chest to match that flavor, and everything started shaking.


    The faded questions behind him changed to yelling, but he still couldn¡¯t really make it out.


    One moment Lindle was there as Rosato reached for him, and the next he was somewhere else.

 Chapter 9: Spirited Away

    For a single moment, Lindle could sense absolute nothingness. No touch, no sight, no sound, it was as if he was floating through an endless absolute void. And then suddenly, he landed on his feet.


    Lindle reached out blindly, he wasn¡¯t in a void anymore, but it was pitch dark and he couldn¡¯t see. He fumbled for a moment, calling for the others. ¡°Rosato? Chip? anyone?¡±


    What had happened to him? That door, he couldn¡¯t focus on anything else as soon as his attention landed on it. Was it a trap? Lindle shook his head, he needed to focus. No one was answering his calls. If he was alone then he needed to find a way out.


    The first thing that he had to deal with was this darkness. He hadn¡¯t prepared any glow bottles, a decision he now regretted. So much for being prepared for everything. After casting [Ice Slick] earlier he was fairly low on his MP, but he needed light. [Produce Ember].


    A small flame came to life in Lindles hand. After seeing things from the light of Chip''s golden fire for a while now his own looked painfully mundane and small, but that didn¡¯t really matter, it gave enough to see by.


    He was in a big semi-circular lab of some kind, filled with dust and cobwebs. There were various tables pushed up against the walls or forming islands, it was awfully cluttered. He was lucky that he hadn¡¯t walked into something in the dark. Some were filled with glassware that actually seemed familiar to Lindle, as he approached one, it resembled the more complex alchemical equipment that his mother broke out for higher-tier potions.


    It kind of looked like there was high-tier equipment for a lot of different craftsmen classes in here now that he thought about it. He recognized a tanning station in the corner and a small forge in the other. It was as if someone had taken the workshops of a dozen different crafters and mashed them together in the same room. There were even a few stranger ones, such as a witch''s cauldron and a sacrificial altar. Lindle avoided that one. He didn¡¯t have anything against witches, the ones in Glacerhine were pleasant enough, but after the library, he was wary of curses.


    Lindle poked around, but there weren¡¯t any exits, not even any strange stone ¡®doors¡¯ in any of the walls. There were a few cabinets and drawers under the tables, but most of the ingredients had rotted or gone bad. Clearly, no one had been in this workshop for a very long time. Lindle tried to push down a flare of anxiety in his stomach. He would be fine, who would build a workshop with no exits?


    Unless the dungeon had warped this place as some kind of sadistic trap¡­


    Even if he couldn¡¯t find a way out he was sure the adventurers would find him.


    But they¡¯re still trapped in that room because of The Librarian. And I¡¯m separated from the others. Just like Rosato warned me against.


    Lindle ignored the thought, taking a few deep breaths, and kept looking, keeping his gaze pointed away from the ceiling. Negative thoughts weren¡¯t going to help him. Besides, this place was pretty interesting. It was a thousand-year-old workshop, he could distract himself for a few minutes. He was sure there were things in here that Dorothea would love to check out.


    Lindle poked his head up over the desk. Towards the center of the back wall, there was a station that seemed bigger and in a lot worse shape than the others. While the others were worn down by age, that station appeared physically damaged, with burn marks and cracks in the stone desk. Lindle looked it over, it looked like some kind of pottery studio. There was a wheel, and kiln attached, with several tools hanging on racks and scattered around. No clay, but Lindle didn¡¯t really know how long clay lasted.


    He leaned down and shined his light into the kiln, looking to see if anything was inside.


    Fire. Awake.


    Lindle fell back and scrambled away from the open kiln, as one after another, the thoughts slammed into his mind. He stared wide-eyed as from the kiln as the small pitch-black creature slithered out from the entrance. Its entire body was composed of a dark inky substance, its head formed vaguely the shape of a flattened pair of vulpine ears and canine muzzle on its thick tube-like form, but it was hard to pin down any other defining shapes in the amorphous body. It was all one big black mass, so Lindle couldn¡¯t make out a face, but it seemed to be looking at him, having stopped moving after poking its upper body outside of the kiln.


    Lindle tried to calm down. It wasn¡¯t very big, he could likely fit it in both his hands if it curled up. He tilted his head as he inspected it, and it tilted his head in turn, copying his movement. Was it a mimic of some kind? Lindle had been told those were slimes, but it wasn¡¯t transforming or attacking him. He cautiously got up, holding out his hand to keep the spell fire between him and it.


    The thing''s face turned to follow the movement of his hand. It was interested in the fire? It looked curious. Fire was one of the things it said? He heard? Could he communicate with it?


    Lindle searched for the words. What do you say when confronted with a strange pure black melted monster that could talk?


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    ¡°Good morning! My name is Lindle, what¡¯s yours?¡±


    Lindle promptly shut his mouth. He kept his expression still as he temporarily disassociated to avoid the pure rushing awkwardness flooding his body. This is why he had only ever earned one point of Charisma. The other thing he had heard was the word awake, so he just blurted out the first thing he thought of, and well, if it was a demon of some kind Lindle suppose he just offered it his soul by giving it his name. That would probably be appropriate.


    The two just stared at each other, as the small creature seemed to cringe slightly away from him. At least that meant it could understand him? The creature opened its mouth. Oh, it was about to talk after all!


    A garbled mess of noises, screeching, and something like steam whistling came out of its mouth all at once. The creature shut its mouth and looked away quickly. Now it seemed embarrassed? Wait, that wasn¡¯t right. Lindle was awful at picking up cues. There was no way he could interpret something as inhuman as this. He could¡­ literally feel the embarrassment radiating from the creature, and he had felt the curiosity and cringe too!


    ¡°Looks like we¡¯re both having trouble with our words. Are you okay? What are you?¡±


    The creature looked at him again. It started slithering the rest of the way out of the kiln and onto the floor, approaching him. Lindle stood still. He couldn¡¯t sense any hostility, it seemed more expectant? It was an odd experience, but it wasn¡¯t unpleasant. It crawled up to him and looked up, asking and waiting. Lindle shifted onto his knees. Slowly, he reached out with his other hand and pressed the tip of his finger to its forehead.


    Unfinished. Fire. Please.


    The foreign thoughts slammed into his mind again, but Lindle withstood them better this time. It was¡­ unfinished? And it needed fire? The last thought at the end had hammered home a sense of desperation. Now that Lindle could touch it, the creature''s body felt familiar¡­ was it made out of some sort of clay? It was kind of wet.


    ¡°You want the fire?¡±


    Lindle could sense confirmation, so he lowered the hand he was using to hold [Produce Ember] and watched as the creature shoved its head into the fire.


    ¡°Wait be-¡± Lindle cut himself off as he watched as relief came off the creature in waves, it looked perfectly content and happy in the fire, curling up to get as much of itself in the flame as possible. Lindle tilted his head, it looked kind of cute like that. The creature turned its head, another emotion coming through, annoyance.


    ¡°Oh. You can sense me too?¡±


    It nodded, and Lindle¡¯s cheeks flushed red. Well, that was great. Another heavy thought came Lindle¡¯s way.


    Finish?


    This time, the thought felt like a question. ¡°You want me to finish you? Isn¡¯t the fire enough?¡±


    Lindle could feel a yes coming from the first question and a no from the second. So it needed the fire, but it wasn¡¯t going to finish it, whatever that meant. ¡°I don¡¯t really know how. I¡¯m sorry.¡±


    There was confusion now, the creature tilting its head.


    You Crafter. Sense Ethos.


    It was getting more specific with this strange thought communication as time went on. ¡°Well, I want to be a Crafter, but I won¡¯t have a class for another few months. And what¡¯s Ethos?¡±


    Now it was confusion. It pointed the tip of its tail toward itself. When Lindle still didn¡¯t understand, it seemed to start concentrating, and Lindle felt something different.


    This.


    Deep in Lindles awareness, Lindle felt the same thing he felt when he touched the door, some overpowering underlying something of him, but instead of at the door when Lindle twisted it to match the inside of the door, Lindle now felt it inside of him as it was, both blank and yet entirely encompassing of him. It reminded him a little bit of Mana and Aura as it sat inside of his pools, blank, needing to be structured and attuned, but this thing, Ethos, wasn¡¯t confined to a pool, it was everything outside of the pools and still inside of him.


    Lindle¡¯s eyes reopened. He hadn¡¯t even realized he had closed them. Looking back down at the creature in his hand, he could see it differently now. It was made entirely out of this Ethos material, but it was unfinished, just like it had said. It looked raw somehow.


    ¡°Woah. That was¡­ strange.¡± He finished awkwardly. Lindle coughed. ¡°So you¡¯re made out of Ethos, and you¡¯re unfinished. You need someone to finish making you. I think I understand that, but even though I can see it now, I still don¡¯t know how I can finish making you.¡±


    It seemed to stop and think for a few seconds before answering.


    Become Crafter.


    Lindle smiled ruefully. ¡°Trust me, I would like nothing more, but it¡¯s not really that easy for me. Unless I can figure something out by the time I turn 15, I¡¯m going to be stuck with some stupid giant warrior class.¡± As Lindle spoke, he felt something tingling in the back of his mind. The system? It usually only called attention to itself like that when Lindle had a pending status change he hadn¡¯t seen yet, like when he earned a stat point or¡­


    Lindle rushed to open his status and look at the feats menu.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    -Ethos Attuned (Feat)


    You have attuned to the underlying essence behind reality. You can now sense Ethos present in the world around you.


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    His eyes flew over the feat and its description before he opened up his class option page.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    <table style="width: 90.0273%">


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td style="width: 98.3406%">


    Class Selection


    (Only the 3 rarest classes that you qualify for will be available for selection).


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td style="width: 98.3406%">


    - Artificer


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td style="width: 98.3406%">


    - Giant Champion


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td style="width: 98.3406%">


    - Jotun Shaman


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>

 Chapter 10: Nothing to it

    Lindle stared in shock at the class selection screen for what felt like forever. A new class, and no sign of any giant theme or relation as far as he could tell. Lindle¡¯s class selection page had displayed the same three options for the past several years, with some variations like when he first learned magic unlocking Jotun Shaman. He had been so excited and then so disappointed that even a path relating to spellcasting had been corrupted by his heritage.


    Giant classes were just so rare that any variant of a class he would qualify that existed would overtake almost any but the most exclusive of classes. Giants weren¡¯t known for their dedication to alchemy or the arts, besides ones requiring raw strength such as smithing, so Lindle had hoped if he could find a rare enough alchemy class without a giant variant, he could finally go his own way. And he finally had! Artificer.


    ¡­


    Wait, what was an Artificer? Lindle had never heard of an artificer before. All Lindle really knew was that he had unlocked it by getting the feat to sense Ethos, and he wasn¡¯t completely sure what that was either. His first thought was that it was a crafting class because that was what he had been working towards, and a bit based on what the little guy in his hand had said, become crafter, but that didn¡¯t confirm anything.


    Lindle blinked, remembering the small creature still in his hand. He looked back down to see it staring at him, a mix of impatient and slightly confused emotions flowing off of it. Lindle guessed he had been staring at his class selection page for longer than he thought.


    ¡°Sorry! I was looking at my status. I got a feat for seeing Ethos and a new class unlocked! Do you know what an artificer is?¡±


    It seemed to give the equivalent of a sigh.


    Crafter


    Lindle smiled, relieved. ¡°I was hoping, but can you be more specific?¡±


    It now looked confused again.


    Crafter


    Lindle furrowed his brow. ¡°No, I don¡¯t mean what kind of class, I mean what kind of crafter? Is it alchemy?¡±


    Ethos Crafter


    That was both specific and not all at once. ¡°Ethos. Like what you¡¯re made of? That means I can help finish you when I get my class?¡±


    It radiated that sense of confirmation once again. That at the very least was good if that meant Lindle could help it, even if he wasn¡¯t sure what exactly else he could do with Ethos specifically. He would be able to make little clay animals? Well, not animals, since it could sort of talk like a person.


    ¡°Oh yeah, that reminds me, what¡¯s your name? I asked earlier but you didn¡¯t really answer me.¡±


    It shook its head.


    Unfinished.


    ¡°I assume that doesn¡¯t mean your name literally is unfinished?¡± It gave him an unimpressed look. ¡°Yeah, sorry.¡± Lindle laughed awkwardly. ¡°So you weren¡¯t given a name because you were never finished?¡± It confirmed that thought with a nod.


    That seemed actually pretty sad. Lindle didn¡¯t know how long it was down here, but it had to be hundreds of years at the very least, and never having even a name all that time.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry. Would you like me to give you one?¡±


    NO


    Lindle flinched back at the sheer vehemence and fear in that thought. So far, it hadn¡¯t bothered sending full thoughts across to answer yes or no questions, yet this time, the idea it had shared had been absolute.


    ¡°What? Why don¡¯t you want a name?¡±


    Danger. Unfinished.


    ¡°It¡¯s dangerous for you to have a name before you¡¯re finished?¡± It nodded. ¡°Why?¡±


    It seemed to be struggling to respond. The thought was complicated, too many layers and ideas jumbled together to express in the simple form of communication they had established. It looked at him helplessly when Lindle shrugged, unable to parse it.


    ¡°It¡¯s okay. I guess I don¡¯t have to know right this second. But I can¡¯t call you nothing. It¡¯s going to be months until I get my class and can finish you, and that¡¯s assuming I¡¯ll be able to do it right away.¡±


    It shrugged, giving Lindle the emotional equivalent of a ¡®why not?¡¯


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    Lindle tilted his head. ¡°I can call you Nothing?¡± It nodded. That felt¡­ impersonal, and potentially confusing. But Lindle guessed that was the point. If having a name was dangerous to it, impersonal was better.


    ¡°Fine, nice to meet you, Nothing?¡± He said hesitantly. They both waited, seeing if anything would happen, but Lindle guessed it had worked as a non-name because Nothing gave him a feeling of contentment and friendliness.


    Lindle smiled back. This was amazing. He had finally unlocked exactly what he wanted, and made what seemed like a new friend. Coming to the dungeon was really¡­


    Oh, wait¡­ He was still in the dungeon.


    Lindle looked around.


    And he was trapped in a secret workshop, separated from all the adventurers who were protecting him. Crap. Well, wait, maybe Nothing could help? There had to be a point in the dungeon letting Lindle access this place, and if it wasn¡¯t a trap, nothing in here had to try and kill him after all, maybe finding Nothing was like a secret reward?


    Though of course the trap might just be that he starved to death, but there wasn¡¯t really a point in assuming that was the case.


    ¡°Hey Nothing, do you know how to leave? There aren¡¯t really any exits and I really don¡¯t want to die in the dungeon before I can get my class,¡± Lindle asked, trying to hide the note of panic creeping into his voice.


    Dungeon?


    ¡°Yeah? The dungeon we¡¯re in right now? You didn¡¯t know?¡±


    Nothing shrugged.


    Asleep.


    Lindle blinked. When Nothing had said awake, Lindle guessed he didn¡¯t realize that Nothing might have been asleep the entire time his home had been a dungeon zone.


    ¡°Well, it¡¯s pretty dangerous, so I¡¯m trying to find a way out. Do you want to come with me? I mean, I can¡¯t really fix you if I¡¯m back home when I get my class and you¡¯re still here¡­¡±


    Will Come. How Enter?


    ¡°Oh um. Well, I put my hand on this weird stone door in a wall, and I¡­ guess did something with my Ethos and I appeared in here. I didn¡¯t really do it on purpose though. And I can¡¯t see any more of those doors.¡±


    Look with Ethos?


    Oh! Lindle hadn¡¯t looked around using his new feat except for himself and Nothing yet. Lindle concentrated. It was a strange feeling. This Ethos sense almost faded into the background when he didn¡¯t focus on it, it felt like it was giving him the exact same information he would get from simply looking at something using it. The Ethos of the floor was just floor, the idea of the floor popping into his mind, just the same as the concept of a floor in his head he thought of when just looking at it with his eyes or other senses.


    Some things were different though, Nothing and Lindle himself he had already seen with his Ethos sense in a new way, but also his pouch. Lindle could sense Ethos swirling inside of his potions and bombs, the ideas behind their purpose and identity as alchemical tools felt the same as the mundane objects around them, but there was also something special about them that made the Ethos inside of them active or denser. Lindle would need to run some tests later to see why that was, but he needed to focus on the other thing he could sense.


    At the far back of the room, Lindle could now see the same sense of connections and journeys he had felt on the door from earlier. It was Ethos, but far denser and more active than any other Ethos Lindle had senses, but he was having a hard time picking apart what else he was sensing in it that felt different aside from that, but it was different, complex and structured in a way that reminded him of a spell structure.


    Lindle stood up with Nothing in his hand. ¡°I can sense it now. The same kind of Ethos that brought me here is over there.¡± Lindle felt Nothing send him encouragement. He walked over and placed his hand against the wall.


    ¡°Oh, before I try and get us out, I came here with a couple of other adventurers. I thought I should warn you before you see each other, but they¡¯re really nice. Do you want to meet them?¡±


    Lindle felt Nothing begin contemplating, curling even further into the spellfire Lindle kept burning in his palm.


    Safe?


    ¡°Yeah, they¡¯re really strong. They¡¯ve been protecting me. We¡¯ll be safe with them.¡±


    Nothing thought for a few more seconds, before giving Lindle a nod. Lindle smiled encouragingly before he turned his attention to the Ethos in the wall.


    There still wasn¡¯t any door, but maybe it was just the exit to the door and it was on the other side? Lindle could still sense the Ethos there, and as he touched it, Lindle could feel his Ethos press against it. They waited for a moment, but nothing happened.


    Lindle had done something with his Ethos to make the door move him, hadn¡¯t he? He had made the flavor of his Ethos match that of the door, sort of like a key fitting a lock, or a password. Lindle felt around inside of his Ethos before he had somehow grabbed it. Lindle could move his Aura and Mana Points around, so he assumed it would be similar, but Ethos didn¡¯t seem to gather together into individual points like Aura or Mana. Honestly, he was just guessing, but he didn¡¯t really have any better options, so he tried anyway.


    Lindle recalled the same mental exercises the shamans had taught him in order to take hold of the points of energy inside of his pools and tried to control his Ethos. As he did, it seemed like he just pinched a small part of it and the rest remained unchanged. Maybe if he treated his Ethos all as one big point? He took a deep breath and took hold of all of his Ethos at once, thinking of everything he was, holding it all together, pushing it against the Ethos of the door, and he tried to copy it. He let the door act as a guide, holding the flavor of it in his mind.


    It was slow, and he lost hold more than once, but eventually, he felt something between him and the door snap into place. He was thrust into the strange absolute void again, but now instead of completely nothing, he could feel Nothing in his hand press against him, against his Ethos? Lindle snorted at the irony of feeling Nothing instead of nothing before the world reappeared.


    He landed back in the library office, hand pressed against the door. Lindle pulled it away quickly, disconnecting his Ethos, and looked around. He could see Chip, Dorothea, and Theodore all staring at him. Directly behind him, with his sword raised and stopped mid-swing before he could hit Lindle was Rosato.


    Lindle shrunk back, before raising a hand and awkwardly waving before he could stop himself. ¡°Hey guys.¡±


    Nothing raised a black pseudopod and waved too.

 Chapter 11: Unsplit Party

    The group of adventurers and Lindle stood in silence for a few seconds looking at each other. Rosato slowly lowered his sword, a look of confusion on his face as he glanced at Lindle, then at Nothing. ¡°You disappear into a wall for several minutes saying nothing, then reappear with a black slime in your hand and you say hey?¡± The knight didn¡¯t seem amused.


    Lindle grimaced. ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I don¡¯t really know what happened. When I saw the door earlier it was like I couldn¡¯t control myself. Before I knew what was happening I just sort of¡­ was on the other side.¡± Lindle looked at the sword in Rosato¡¯s hand. ¡°Were you about to attack the door?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s a door?¡± Rosato responded. ¡°When you disappeared, we tried to get you back. None of Chip¡¯s or Dorothea''s spells did anything, I was going to break it down.¡±


    Lindle was glad he managed to leave in the nick of time then. He had no idea if he would be able to leave if the door was destroyed. He could have been trapped back there¡­ forever¡­ Lindle shuddered.


    Rosato sighed. ¡°What exactly happened? And who¡¯s your¡­¡± Rosato gave a wary glance at Nothing and Lindle could see him tighten his grip on his sword. ¡°Little friend?¡±


    Seem Distressed.


    Lindle looked down at Nothing as they seemed to shrink down into Lindles hand, lowering its pseudopod. Nobody else seemed to react as Nothing spoke. Was it because he was the only one touching them? Lindle hadn¡¯t been touching Nothing the first time he heard them speak though.


    ¡°I got control of myself when I was on the other side. There¡¯s some kind of big hidden workshop back there. I found Nothing,¡± Lindle pointed at them in his hand to hopefully avoid the confusion, ¡°and they helped me get back out, they¡¯re¡­ I don¡¯t really know what they are, but they¡¯re nice. I even got a new feat because of them!¡± Lindle gave them all an excited smile.


    They all exchanged looks with each other. ¡°That¡¯s great, Lindle,¡± Rosato said. ¡°Real quick though, do you mind if Chip makes sure you¡¯re unharmed?¡±


    Lindle frowned in confusion. They all didn¡¯t seem as happy for him as he thought they would be. ¡°Um, sure? My HP is fine though. I didn¡¯t get hurt at all going through the door.¡±


    Chip stepped forward and smiled at Lindle reassuringly. ¡°Just to be sure.¡±


    Lindle was still a bit confused, but he let Chip raise a palm to him and cast a spell. After a few seconds, Lindle didn¡¯t feel anything, but Chip turned to the others. ¡°All clear.¡±


    Everyone sighed in relief and Rosato sheathed his sword. Lindle blinked. ¡°What was that about?¡±


    Chip gave him a much more genuine smile. ¡°Sorry Lindle, just mentalism protocol.¡±


    ¡°Mentalism what?¡± Lindle hadn¡¯t heard of anything like that before.


    Dorothea answered for him. ¡°In some dungeons, there¡¯ll be monsters that like to use psychic magic to mind control delvers.¡±


    Rosato shrugged. ¡°You say you lose control of yourself and you come back with a slime of some kind in your hand. We need to check to see if it isn¡¯t puppeting you around.¡±


    Theodore patted Lindle on the shoulder and Lindle flinched. He hadn¡¯t even noticed the rogue standing next to him. If he really had been under the effect of mind magic would Theodore have¡­?


    Chip saw the look on his face and hurried to add. ¡°I have spells to cleanse corruption like mentalism. The boys would have just restrained you while I tried to cure you.¡±


    Lindle sighed and collapsed into the nearest chair, taking the big one behind the desk. Lindle supposed he wasn¡¯t enough of a threat to them in a scenario like that, still, that certainly had put a damper on his excitement.


    What happen? Safe?


    Lindle looked at Nothing. ¡°You didn¡¯t hear them?¡±


    Not understand them.


    ¡°You don¡¯t understand Helvetician? I¡¯m speaking it though.¡±


    Nothing gave the equivalent of a shrug in response.


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    ¡°What¡¯s happening? Are you talking to it?¡± Dorothea leaned down next to Lindle and stared at Nothing.


    ¡°Yeah, we¡¯re talking. I don¡¯t know why none of you can hear them though, and Nothing says they can¡¯t understand any of you either.¡±


    ¡°Fascinating.¡± Dorothea brought her leatherbound notebook out and started writing something down. ¡°Sounds like some kind of psychic link. Some mentalism spells allow people to communicate across language barriers. Ask them if that¡¯s what they¡¯re doing.¡±


    Lindle relayed the question, and Nothing shrugged again. ¡°Nothing doesn¡¯t really know. They told me they¡¯re unfinished, so they don¡¯t know much.¡±


    ¡°What does that mean? They¡¯re some kind of slime golem that wasn¡¯t completed?¡± Dorothea asked.


    ¡°Maybe? But they aren¡¯t a slime, I think, they¡¯re made of Ethos.¡±


    Dorothea looked at him blankly. Lindle looked at the others, who also didn¡¯t seem to have any signs of recognition on their face.


    ¡°Ethos? What¡¯s that?¡± Dorothea questioned.


    ¡°I was hoping you all knew. Nothing told me about it, and now I have a feat that lets me sense it. It¡¯s this weird kind of energy in everything, it¡¯s like Mana and Aura, but it¡¯s different and kind of hard to describe.


    The pencil dropped from her hand as she stared at him in shock. ¡°A third energy type¡­¡± the mage said breathlessly. She started muttering to herself. ¡°This is incredible¡­ If the guild wasn¡¯t going to come here before, they certainly will now.¡± She looked up and looked victoriously at her cousin. ¡°Another bust huh?¡°


    Rosato rolled his eyes good-naturedly. ¡°Yes, yes. I just had to open my big mouth right before we landed on a goldmine.¡± He looked at Lindle and smiled. ¡°Sorry for not congratulating you before. A lot of this is going over my head, but this feat has to be a good one, between the forest and now I¡¯m assuming you¡¯ve gotten what you wanted?¡±


    Lindle¡¯s earlier excitement rekindled. ¡°Yep! A new class just shot to the top of my selection list. Does the name Artificer mean anything to you?¡±


    Like before there wasn¡¯t much recognition on anyone¡¯s face.


    ¡°Artificer¡­¡± Rosato hummed to himself. ¡°No, I¡¯ve seen a few rare classes but I¡¯ve never heard of one of those before, but the name does sound a lot like Artifacts, maybe it has to do with them?¡±


    ¡°What are Artifacts?¡± Lindle asked.


    ¡°An Artifact class?¡± Dorothea''s face was in her hands. ¡°Well, I suppose we could just add another thing to the pile, though I wouldn''t be sure. Artifacts are a special kind of magic item only found in dungeon zones. They¡¯re extremely rare. Finding one can set an adventurer up for life and potentially generations after.¡± She looked at Lindle. ¡°I seriously doubt your class will be able to do something as insane as creating Artifacts if that¡¯s what you¡¯re hoping for, that isn¡¯t just a rare or new ability, it¡¯s like expecting a primary class to allow you to fight with the strength someone 3 or more tiers above you.¡±


    ¡°What can Artifacts do?¡± Lindle asked.


    ¡°Artifacts are¡­ Well, they don¡¯t have a defined set of rules for what they can do, but they¡¯re all insanely powerful. The headmaster at Silent Owl Academy has one of the only confirmed ones on the continent and his can manipulate time. It makes him likely one of the most powerful people in the world.¡±


    Lindles eyes widened in shock, looking at the others to confirm, and they nodded.


    Dorothea continued. ¡°They aren¡¯t items that are enchanted to have magical effects. They are magic itself, somehow pressed into material form. She put a hand to her chin and considered. ¡°Maybe it¡¯s a kind of scouting class? You did unlock it after finding a secret room. Being able to track down hidden locations in dungeons that may hold artifacts would be incredibly valuable.¡±


    Lindle shook his head. ¡°I don¡¯t think so. Nothing said that it was a crafting class for Ethos. I¡¯m going to use it to finish making them. Whatever that means.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know what that means¡­ You¡¯ll be able to make things like them, then?¡± She looked at Nothing, who stared at her curiously. They had been content to be quiet, as everyone discussed. ¡°I have so many questions.¡±


    "And I think they¡¯ll need to wait for later.¡± Everyone looked at Theodore as he interrupted. ¡°This honestly all sounds very exciting, but I would like to remind everyone we¡¯re still trapped in a dungeon with a massive monster a tier above us outside, and we¡¯re getting close to the limit of what the dungeon will tolerate us sticking around in one spot. What are we going to do?¡±


    Rosato considered. ¡°Honestly¡­? I think we should try and leave the dungeon.¡±


    Dorothea started to protest, but Rosato interrupted her. ¡°For now. I think we¡¯ve already discovered enough to realize this dungeon isn¡¯t normal. Aside from what we''ve discovered, that monster outside isn¡¯t right. An enemy an entire tier above us nowhere close to the boss room? Even if we beat it, that doesn¡¯t bode well for what we run into next. It¡¯s too dangerous to go alone, and especially with Lindle here.¡±


    Now it was Lindles turn to start protesting but he was stopped as well.


    ¡°Look, this place may be too dangerous for us to go deeper, and you still don¡¯t have a class. With what we¡¯ve discovered, there¡¯s more than enough motivation for the guild to send a lot more people down here from Soarstrum. We¡¯ll still get credit for the find and we can even lead the expedition. Besides, how were we going to take all these books out of here anyways by ourselves?¡±


    Dorothea¡¯s and Lindle¡¯s protests both died. Despite Rosato''s analysis of the risks not being certain, what was certain was that there were hundreds of books right outside, and there were only five of them. How were they going to extract all of them out of the dungeon and across miles of snow and monsters in the Reach?


    ¡°Okay, fine,¡± Dorothea huffed.


    ¡°But how do we get past the Librarian?¡± Lindle asked.


    Librarian?


    Lindle looked down at Nothing. ¡°You know something about the Librarian?¡± He asked. Everyone looked at Lindle and Nothing. They hadn''t been saying much, getting only one-half of the conversation must have been confusing.


    Like Librarian. Is Kind.


    Lindle could feel Nothing emanate pleasant nostalgic emotions, but they didn¡¯t convey anything in particular.


    ¡°The massive wooden monster?¡± Lindle furrowed his brow as he tried to imagine how something like that could come across as kind. Maybe it was built alongside Nothing?


    Wood? Can see?


    Lindle looked to the others. ¡°Is it still outside? Nothing wants to see the Librarian.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s been prowling outside the door, I¡¯ve tried to sneak outside but it can sense me somehow,¡± Theodore answered. ¡°It doesn¡¯t try to attack unless we try stepping outside, so I can crack it open a bit.¡±


    Lindle nodded, relaying the plan to Nothing, who seemed confused about why it was necessary but agreed. Theodore silently cracked open the door and held it, ready to shut it at the first sign of danger. Lindle wondered if his ability to walk through the snow silently extended to creaky doors.


    As he opened the door Lindle held Nothing so they could both see outside, where the Librarian stood silently, its carved face trained on the door. Nothing stared at the giant monster for a few seconds.


    Anton?

 Chapter 12: Skedaddle

    The Librarian stiffened. Where before its long wooden limbs hung and swayed from its body, it had now gone completely still. Lindle looked back at the adventurers, their eyes trained on the Librarian, but still not reacting to Nothing.


    Anton?


    Nothing repeated themself, and Lindle watched as the Librarian flinched, suddenly backing up until its back hit the closest bookshelf.


    ¡°What¡¯s happening?¡± Lindle whispered to Nothing. ¡°Why is it acting¡­ afraid?¡±


    Don¡¯t know. Feels like Anton and has Anton¡¯s Face, but Anton was not¡­ this.


    The Librarian, slowly as if presented with a predator it didn¡¯t wish to startle, retreated against the length of the shelf, continuing until it could go around the corner, peeking its head around it as if the shelf could shield it from Nothing.


    What happen to you Anton?


    The adventurers watched with shock as the construct, a hulking source of fear and danger, now appeared to be cowering. ¡°What is going on Lindle?¡± Rosato whispered to him.


    ¡°Nothing tried to talk to it, and it started acting like this. They¡¯re calling it Anton.¡± Lindle responded before turning his attention back to Nothing. ¡°Who is Anton?¡±


    Anton was librarian, he was kind man, friend, not big wooden golem. Something happened to him.


    ¡°How¡­?¡± Lindle felt his head buzz with questions, Lindle looked up at the construct. He had said Anton out loud, but it didn¡¯t have any further reaction. ¡°Maybe it just has Anton''s face carved to look like him?¡±


    No. He has same Ethos, has changed, but is Anton¡¯s Ethos.


    Lindle furrowed his brow, before concentrating on his new sense. Around them, he felt five new sources of what he was calling ¡®active¡¯ Ethos, four of which being the adventurers, all intensely complex swirls of Ethos like Lindles, but far brighter and denser, and the fifth being the Librarian. The Librarian was an overwhelming bonfire of power and energy compared to the torch that were the adventurers and the spark that was Lindle. He winced and immediately shut off his Ethos sense.


    Lindle couldn¡¯t really tell anything from observing the Librarian¡¯s Ethos that supported Nothing¡¯s claim, but he supposed it didn¡¯t disprove it, which was enough for now. ¡°Nothing says that this thing is, or I suppose was a person named Anton.¡±


    The adventurers exchanged looks, concern and confusion on their faces. ¡°I¡­ don¡¯t even want to think about what that could mean, so I won¡¯t,¡± Chip said.


    ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter.¡± Theodore cut in. ¡°We can get all our questions answered later, but right now this is an opportunity to escape. If it doesn¡¯t like them,¡± he gestured to Nothing, ¡°then we use that to get the beyond out of here.¡±


    Rosato nodded. ¡°Theodore¡¯s right. Lindle, can you tell Nothing we¡¯re going to try and leave and to them to keep that thing away?¡±


    ¡°Yeah¡­ okay. Nothing, I¡¯m confused too, but I think we need to leave. I¡¯m sorry about your friend, we can come back in the future to try and figure out what happened to him.¡±


    Nothing didn¡¯t respond for a little while, before slowly they nodded.


    ¡­Okay. Anton, we come back for you.


    The Librarian flinched again, slinking back. Everyone stood and watched it for another minute to see if it would do anything before they slowly stepped outside the door. Lindle kept his hand with Nothing aloft facing toward the golem as they walked across the library. Nobody made a noise as they made their way to the exit, stepping out into the hallway. They looked inside, but the Librarian didn¡¯t appear.


    Still feeling a mix of relief and unease, no one seemed to know what to say now they were out of harm¡¯s way. Lindle looked down towards the hallway into the darkness. They had only explored a few rooms at what could generously be called the entrance of the dungeon. What else could be hidden down here?


    With one last look, everyone turned around and went back the way they came. The group moved cautiously, their steps muffled by the thick layer of dust that covered the ground. Everyone seemed unsettled by what they witnessed. Lindle didn¡¯t know much about dungeon monsters, but the way that the Librarian had acted had creeped Lindle out, and the idea that according to Nothing it had been a person¡­


    Lindle noticed that the dungeon pressure seemed to lighten rapidly as they walked toward the exit. As if the dungeon was losing interest in them now that they had decided to no longer take part in its challenges. It had mostly faded into the background without Lindle realizing it after everything that happened, but he felt unburdened as it faded away.


    They exited the academy doors with little fanfare and climbed back through the cavern to reach the surface. It had been awkward doing so while one hand was occupied with Nothing and keeping the spellfire alive, but with Rosato¡¯s assistance they managed.


    As they finally got back under the moonlight, the chill of the Reach wrapping around them, Lindle felt [Produce Flame] reach the end of its lifespan, the spell sputtering out. Nothing radiated emotions of sudden panic as the fire disappeared.


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


    ¡°Oh crap.¡± Lindle started fumbling around in his potion bag for a Mana potion. His Mana pool had essentially been running on empty after he cast [Produce Flame]. Everyone else looked at Lindle with confusion as he took a swig and recast the spell. Nothing slumped in relief once the fire was back.


    ¡°I¡¯ve been meaning to ask,¡± Dorothea said. ¡°Why are you holding Nothing in an open fire?¡±


    Lindle relayed the question, having forgotten to ask Nothing why it had asked for fire when they first met after everything else.


    Fire keeps me¡­ malleable. Give me energy while being unfinished.


    ¡°The kiln you were sleeping in didn¡¯t have any fire?¡± Lindle questioned.


    Was hibernating. When awake need fire or else I harden and complete without being ready.


    Lindle noticed that Nothing seemed to be getting more verbose as they communicated more. Maybe they were learning the language, or their connection was deepening somehow. More questions for later.


    ¡°Well I won¡¯t be able to keep [Produce Flame] active the entire trip back home. It¡¯s several miles of hiking to get back to Glacerhine and I don¡¯t have the MP or enough potions for the way back.¡±


    Will sleep then when fire run out again.


    After answering all of Dorothea¡¯s questions Lindle led them all back to their camp and started packing everything up. Once everything was safely stowed away, Lindle opened one of the pouches in his pack for Nothing to sleep inside of. They hadn¡¯t complained about the cold of the Reach so far but it couldn¡¯t hurt to give them a warm place to sleep.


    They got started on the return home. The uneasiness of the dungeon eventually going away as Lindle¡¯s accomplishment really started sinking in. He finally did it; a class that would allow him to follow a path of his own without being tainted by his father¡¯s blood. None of the giant classes Lindle had available had ever really felt like something he had earned for himself, even if he had been okay with living under a constant reminder. Now though, he had exactly what he wanted.


    He had so many questions about what exactly Artificer was, and how it interacted with Ethos, but he could wait to do some more research and interrogate Nothing for what they knew once they were safely back in the grove. Lindle could tell he was distracted by his own thoughts, if they weren¡¯t following the path they had taken already they probably would have gotten off track several times. In this case, the adventurer''s relative clumsiness yesterday was actually handy, there were plenty of tracks to follow strewn throughout the wood.


    He let himself go mostly on autopilot as the hours passed, only really tuning back in to make sure they safely passed through razorback territory. His mind was more occupied with experimenting with his new Ethos sense.


    So far he could only perceive the Ethos in things a couple of feet away from him, but he could sense things without needing to face or look at them, which could be handy just in general. He was able to visualize what he was sensing a lot better if he was looking at or touching it at the same time though. He had interpreted Ethos as a flavor before¡­ maybe if he tasted something while using it?


    What he seemed to be able to tell when sensing something¡¯s Ethos was information about it¡¯s identity, at least that was the most clear when looking at mundane things. Trying to sense the snow around him, his Ethos sense reported back information that unequivocally told him that the Ethos in the snow was just being snow, or more accurately, it was focused on the idea of being snow. It didn¡¯t move, it didn¡¯t emit any kind of energy, it was just still and contently being snow.


    Things got a bit different when he tried sensing his gear again, more specifically his alchemical products. The Ethos inside of them was more active, swirling ironically like a liquid in a container, though not in just the actual liquids like the potions, but also in the powders. Taking the time to observe how it acted, Lindle got an impression of containment, like it was full of energy ready to be activated, with a vague hint towards the various ingredients in each one, though he could only recognize that since he remembered picking them out for the potions himself. If he took the time to practice though, Lindle bet he could use that to puzzle out the ingredients in a potion he didn¡¯t know the recipe of.


    The hardest thing to parse out with his sense it seemed, was living things. They felt like living flames of endlessly varied colors and sensations. The only one he could completely understand without feeling any strain when he focused on it was his own, though Lindle couldn¡¯t tell if that was because it was his, or if it was tiny. Over the trek, Lindle tried pushing his sense over each of the adventurers.


    Rosato¡¯s was tall and felt solid, it was a strange purple-pink wound up tightly and contained, only for that feeling of pressure to periodically let it shoot out a powerful jet of flame and heat into the air and lower that intense sensation, the cycle building again.


    Dorothea¡¯s was energetic and cool, but not chilly. It was a refreshing bright blue that constantly shook and darted around the space that was Dorothea¡¯s presence. It was paradoxically hungry and content at the same time like it was eager to consume whatever it could, but also like it was happy as it was.


    Chip¡¯s was tied for the strangest seeming Ethos. It heavily resembled the golden holy flames that the cleric had summoned, warm, sheltering, and protective. It also, however, branched out beyond the boundaries of Chip¡¯s own presence. Five tendrils of golden flame spread out, the two thinnest and weakest ones reached out in Lindle¡¯s and Theodore¡¯s direction, two far stronger ones formed a bridge between Chip and the two kitsunes, and the last one was a massive ethereal pillar of energy extending into the sky, quickly leaving Lindle¡¯s ability to sense. Notably that tendril seemed to not entirely be made out of Chip¡¯s own Ethos, but it was mixed with another, though it was very similar. Lindle felt confident in guessing that it was somehow representative of Chip¡¯s connection with his goddess.


    Theodore¡¯s Ethos was strange in a different way, a shadowy, almost inverted flame. It blanketed light and heat instead of emitting it, seeming to shy away whenever the other adventurers got near, but not in a timid way. It smoothly avoided attention and interaction. It didn¡¯t reject the tendril of connection coming from Chip, but it didn¡¯t acknowledge or seem to interact with it either. Lindle couldn¡¯t even perceive the tendril if he looked for it when starting the search with his attention on Theodore¡¯s Ethos.


    It was all very metaphorical and honestly hurt his head to wrap around what he was observing, needing constant breaks from looking at them all. It didn¡¯t give him much information either compared to how much clearer looking at objects were, but information was information, and it was good practice.


    Just like that, after a few hours and good luck, they were just a few minutes away from Glacerhine, stepping onto one of the snow trails back home. As he told everyone that they were nearly there, Rosato stepped up next to him and stopped him with a hand on his shoulder.


    ¡°Before we get back, we¡¯ve been talking and decided something.¡±

 Chapter 13: Homebound

    Well, that was ominous wording. Lindle recalled stories of less savory adventuring groups attempting to threaten or attack Glacerian guides in order to avoid paying, usually survivors of said experiences simply abandoned them to freeze or starve in the Reach.


    Obviously that wasn¡¯t the case here, he trusted Rosato and his group after spending the last two days with them, and even if he didn¡¯t there was clearly no good reason to risk anything this close to town. Still, Lindle raised an eyebrow at the phrasing, and Dorothea sighed behind Rosato and gave him a light shove. The knight looked confused before he realized how he had sounded and winced.


    ¡°No it¡¯s not anything bad, it¡¯s about everything we found. We¡¯re going to call in the guild to explore the dungeon and get everything inside, but we think it might be a good idea for you to stay quiet about your new class and Nothing.¡±


    ¡°What? From how Dorothea talked it had sounded like people would be interested in learning about what Ethos and my new class can do.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s true,¡± Dorothea responded, ¡°but they might be too interested if you know what I mean.¡±


    Lindle didn¡¯t, and his confusion showed on his face, so Dorothea continued.


    ¡°The big thing is your class. If I was right and your class really has something to do with Artifacts, it¡¯s extremely valuable, maybe dangerously valuable. If the wrong people learned about that, I can think of a few who wouldn¡¯t mind doing some unpleasant things to keep that kind of power to themselves. Even if they can¡¯t have it, it¡¯s very unlikely they would let you live in peace, especially with you being so young.¡±


    Lindle frowned. ¡°Well, no one like that lives in Glacerhine. Shouldn¡¯t I be safe then? And we don¡¯t even know for sure my class works like that. All I know is that it¡¯s a crafting class that should let me work with Nothing, and he isn¡¯t an Artifact.¡±


    Dorothea hummed. ¡°Honestly? He might be. There¡¯s no telling with Artifacts.¡±


    ¡°But that isn¡¯t the point.¡± Rosato cut back in. ¡±As long as there¡¯s a chance, you shouldn¡¯t risk calling attention to yourself about it. Nothing and Ethos are both things people might be interested in, but the fact that they¡¯re unknown means they don¡¯t have a reputation to catch the wrong sorts of power-hungry attention in and of themselves, but they will draw attention to you, especially once Glacerhine starts filling with researchers. Do you understand what I mean? It¡¯s probably best to let everyone focus on the dungeon until you have a better understanding of what your new class and Ethos are capable of.¡±


    Lindle thought about what they said. He couldn¡¯t deny the urge to go around and tell everyone he could about his success had been powerful, but if he had found something valuable, that probably wouldn¡¯t have been a good idea. Glacerians were a very communal people, sharing resources and capabilities as efficiently as possible was how they survived each migration through the Reach, but his mother had told him people who lived in cities like Soarstrum acted differently. She always seemed very contemplative about her experiences before she lived in Glacerhine, so Lindle knew little, but it hadn¡¯t seemed like many of her experiences had been positive. Things were already going to be chaotic enough. Lindle didn¡¯t want dangerous people setting their sights on his home because of him on top of that.


    ¡°Okay. If you think I should keep quiet about Artificer, then I won¡¯t spread it around.¡±


    Rosato smiled and put a hand on Lindle¡¯s shoulder. ¡°Thanks Lindle. I¡¯m not saying you can¡¯t tell anyone, but just try to keep it on the down low. None of us want to mess up what should be the biggest moment in a young man¡¯s life.¡±


    Lindle nodded. As they continued back home, his thoughts switched back and forth between excitement and anxiousness. A lot of things were going to change in Lindle¡¯s life now, but the first thing that was going to happen he knew for sure. He had a lot to tell his mom.


    ***


    Lindle felt weirdly nervous walking up to his front door. The moon above nearly dimmed all the way as night fell. He had only been gone for about two days, and he had done nothing wrong, but he still felt nervous.


    Their group had separated after they had gotten back to Mr. Dalton¡¯s Inn. They had a lot of reports to make and send back to Soarstrum to get their plan started. Lindle didn¡¯t actually know much about how adventurers worked when it came to being organized. They had seemed like they were just wandering bands of people who took quests and explored to Lindle, but there was apparently some level of oversight in the form of an adventuring guild that directed jobs from people and other guilds to parties, and managed adventurers regarding larger scale events like a dungeon raid.


    Lindle had gotten his pay, but he hadn¡¯t even bothered to count it before heading straight home. Now he was just looking at the familiar door of ice. Before he could hesitate anymore, he threw the door open.


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    ¡°Mom! I¡¯m home!¡±


    Lindle heard his mom in the other room before she came rushing to him, wrapping him in a big hug as he leaned down and hugged her back tightly.


    ¡°Lindle! You¡¯re home! Earlier than I expected too. How did it go? Were you hurt?¡±


    She leaned back and inspected him, searching for injuries.


    ¡°I¡¯m fine Mom, but a lot happened. I have a ton to tell you.¡±


    Lindle walked inside and unpacked all of his things. He left most of it in his room, but he took his pack with Nothing sleeping inside with him as he sat down at the dinner table, mom bringing him a muskox sandwich. After he had happily filled his stomach, they sat down together as Lindle started telling her about what had happened from the beginning.


    His mom was a good listener, attentive and not interrupting him as he told her about all of the adventurers and the trek to the dungeon. When he told her about the razorbacks, she smiled proudly.


    ¡°Clever boy, that halfling is right. Let the muscleheads soak up the injuries, you can get better prices selling them healing potions.¡±


    When Lindle got to telling her about the dungeon, she seemed just as interested as Dorothea had been, which had surprised Lindle. He never knew his mom had any interest in dungeons, but he tried to answer all her questions with as much detail as possible. He skipped ahead in the story to tell her that they were putting together a big expedition to raid it, gauging her reaction, and he didn¡¯t miss the hint of interest in her face. Lindle didn¡¯t know how he felt about the idea of his mom taking part.


    Pulling back to what happened in the library, Lindle took a deep breath and told her about everything that happened with the Librarian. Well, almost everything. He left out the part where he had almost died. If she noticed his slight hesitancy when he decided that, she thankfully didn¡¯t comment. The next part was a lot more important anyway.


    Lindle described what had happened when he was taken away by the stone door. He grabbed the pack from the ground and opened it up.


    ¡°When I was in the workshop, I met someone.¡±


    ¡°You met someone? In a dungeon?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, they¡¯re great! You¡¯re going to love them.¡± Lindle reached inside and cupped Nothing¡¯s sleeping form. Their form was a lot more solid and lacking the shiny fluidness they had when awake, they resembled a hardened clay sculpture. She looked at him in confusion as he pulled them out and held them out to her to see. ¡°Meet Nothing Mom.¡±


    His mom looked at him silently for a few seconds, unimpressed, and Lindle stayed quiet, holding back a smile. Just as he was about to crack and explain, his mom¡¯s expression suddenly changed, her eyes narrowed and she focused on Nothing.


    ¡°What the¡­ Lindle are you messing with me? Because if I¡¯m not wrong, you¡¯re holding some kind of homunculus.¡±


    Lindle blinked. ¡°What? I¡­ Okay I was, but I didn¡¯t expect you to be able to tell they weren¡¯t a sculpture. What¡¯s a homunculus?¡±


    His mom studied Nothing, leaning over the table. ¡°They¡¯re artificial beings, like golems and constructs, but unlike those things, they¡¯re also living creatures at the same time. I¡¯ve never even seen one before, just stories. I wouldn¡¯t even know this was one if it wasn¡¯t for my skill.¡±


    ¡°That makes sense. I didn¡¯t know that, but I found them in the dungeon. We talked and he helped me escape, and some other things too.¡±


    ¡°Talked?¡±


    ¡°Oh yeah, one second.¡± Lindle cast [Produce Flame] and flames burst to life in his hands. She flinched back.


    ¡°What are you-¡± She stopped herself and watched in wonder as Nothing unsolidified, turning back to their awake inky form, seeming to stretch before looking around.


    Hello. Where are we?


    ¡°Hey Nothing, we¡¯re in my house. This is my mom, say hello.¡±


    Nothing turned to his mom and gave her a little wave.


    ¡°Amazing,¡± His mom whispered. ¡°He understands us?¡±


    ¡°Not exactly, Dorothea said we might have some kind of psychic bond, so we can understand each other, but they don¡¯t seem to understand anyone else.¡±


    When dreaming, I focused on language you think in. Think may be able to learn with practice.


    ¡°Really? That¡¯s good. Nothing says they might be able to learn the language from me with some practice.¡±


    His mom rubbed her chin, a wide smile blooming over her face. ¡°This is incredible Lindle, being bonded to a homunculus is said to be incredibly rare and valuable. They¡¯re said to be powerful companions to crafters. With a homunculus, I think you can finally get a class you want.¡±


    Lindle smiled even wider at her, trying to keep his voice casual. ¡°That makes sense since Nothing already helped me unlock one.¡±


    His mom stared at him for even longer this time, jaw dropped. ¡°You¡­ did?¡± She leaped from her chair and wrapped him in a massive hug. ¡°Lindle! You say that first next time! I¡¯m so happy for you!¡±


    Nothing yelped and held onto his palm as Lindle slid backward in his chair, laughing, hugging her back.


    Careful, please!


    She let him go. ¡°Tell me everything! What class did you get?¡±


    "Okay, it¡¯s called Artificer, but I don¡¯t actually know much. I need to ask Nothing more, but let me start from the beginning.¡±


    Lindle told her about how Nothing had shown him Ethos and helped him use it to escape, and how he had gotten a feat for it. He tried to explain it a bit more, telling her about what he could figure out from testing it on the trek back. Artificer, he knew even less about, but he told her about what the adventurers had speculated, and that they recommended keeping it secret with the guild coming to Glacerhine, which his mom approved of. He also mentioned what Nothing had told him about being unfinished and how being an Artificer meant he could finish him.


    ¡°Speaking of,¡± Lindle trailed off and turned to Nothing. Now that you¡¯re awake, can you tell us what you know?¡±

 Chapter 14: When You Grow Up

    What do you mean?


    Lindle relayed what Nothing said for his mom¡¯s benefit, resigning himself to the role of translator for the length of the conversation, repeating what each of them was saying aloud at the same time, before responding.


    ¡°When we were in the workshop, you didn¡¯t finish telling me what Artificer did, you just said it was an Ethos crafting class, but I don¡¯t know what Ethos even is.¡±


    Nothing seemed to hesitate, though Lindle didn¡¯t sense any hesitation to the idea of answering the question, it was more like it was struggling to find a good way to answer.


    Not easy to answer. It is called the essence behind reality, Was told it was the identity of things made into energy, but don¡¯t know a lot.


    ¡°Aren¡¯t you made out of it? How do you not know a lot?¡± Lindle questioned.


    Just because am made of it doesn¡¯t mean I understand it. Do you completely understand how your body works? Or can you completely define Mana or Aura?


    ¡°That¡¯s fair,¡± his mom mused. ¡°It¡¯s too much to assume that you would be able to define a form of magic. What can you tell us about it? What can it do?¡±


    Usually Ethos doesn¡¯t do much. Aura and Mana make changes in the world, Ethos is made from the ideas of something, and Ethos then supports the object in being that idea. Doesn¡¯t take much for a rock to be a rock though, so the Ethos usually isn¡¯t needed.


    ¡°I¡¯ve noticed that the Ethos in some things act differently from each other. The Ethos in my potions and in people is a lot more active than in other things.¡±


    That is because people and your potions are magic. They need magic to still be themselves, so the Ethos in them is more active and powerful.


    Lindle furrowed his brow. ¡°Magic? My potions are alchemy, not an enchantment or spell.¡±


    Nothing shook their head in the negative.


    Not magic as in Mana, magic, any magic. Techniques, alchemy, enchanted or enhanced objects, monsters, spells, skills, traits, anything magical.


    Lindle and his mom exchanged glances, confused. Some of those things were just normal, not magic. Nothing sighed, emanating slight amounts of frustration, before they seemed to remember something.


    The system.


    ¡°What about the system?¡±


    Imagine everything in the system. A rock does not need the system to be a rock, but if it needs the system to be itself, it is magical. You use the system to get skills or traits, and that makes you magic, and you use a skill to make potions, or you magic plants or animals as ingredients. They are magic. If they have magic, they are what Artificer¡¯s call fabled. Fabled things are what Artificers can craft with.


    Lindle blinked. ¡°Wait, I can only craft using things with active Ethos? What would that even let me make?¡±


    Anything. You can craft Anything with active Ethos.


    Lindle paused for several seconds before his mom prodded him to repeat the last thing Nothing said.


    ¡°Anything? How does that even work? Is the system going to give me a crafting skill that works with anything magical? Or I guess fabled?¡± Lindle asked. A crafting skill was the first skill any crafting-type class gave. The skill would make a person better at their craft, pushing the limit of their ability higher than was possible without.


    In a way. Specifically, Artificer will give you a skill that lets you take the Ethos in a fabled object and harvest it, then you will be able to craft using that Ethos and make a new fabled object.


    Lindle¡¯s eyes went wide. ¡°Harvest? As in make Ethos physical? Is that how you¡¯re made out of Ethos?¡±


    Yes. But am not finished, need you to finish me so I become real. A fabled creature.


    "A homunculus?¡± His mom asked.


    Yes. That was what my first maker was making me into. He never finished.


    "Your maker? What happened to him?¡±


    I don¡¯t know. One day he did not return to the workshop. I waited, but I started to fall apart, so I went to sleep and waited. I dreamed for a while, but eventually, I stopped dreaming too.


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    ¡°What was his name? Was he an elf?¡± He was sure Dorothea would like to get an account of an elf, even if secondhand.


    The others called him Eddy. My maker was not an elf. But some of the other people who helped him were. They talked to me sometimes. Anton was one of them.


    Lindle could sense Nothing start to drift towards melancholy, so he changed the subject. ¡°So what else could an Artificer do? Could they make artifacts?¡±


    Oh? They mentioned the word Artifact sometimes, but I don¡¯t know exactly what they meant by it. Perhaps it was a type of fabled item?


    Nothing seemed to shrug.


    I was told I was to be a helper of a kind when crafting, so my maker liked telling me things when he molded me, but I am not an Artificer myself. I know not what the limits of the class are.


    Lindle frowned. To him, it sounded like Nothing had information about crafting with Ethos, but regarding his class directly they knew little, which might be a problem. When it came to someone''s first class, they spent most of their time following the advice of the people who had the class before them. Skill choices, what Feats to aim for and how to get them, instruction on useful Spells and Techniques. Even if no one who had the exact same class was available, there was at least someone who had advice on something similar. If Lindle was working blind, that could be trouble when figuring out how to bring the best out of his class. Primary classes were the foundation for all other classes and advancement a person took for the rest of their life. A bad start could be crippling.


    The three of them continued talking into the night, but eventually Lindle¡¯s exhaustion caught up to him. His mom had ushered him off to bed, giving him another hug. Lindle placed Nothing on his nightstand where they returned to their sleeping form, and Lindle drifted away as well.


    In the morning, they all helped Lindle put a plan together leading up to Lindle¡¯s birthday. Lots of families did this once someone had decided on a class they were happy with choosing. Though he couldn¡¯t keep casting [Produce Ember] for Nothing forever, so they lit the fireplace and placed them inside. Maybe Lindle could buy some sort of lantern to hold Nothing in if he wanted to take them around the village.


    According to Nothing, since Lindle wouldn¡¯t be able to harvest or manipulate Ethos until he had his class, he would be best served focusing on his Ethos sense and practicing molding his own Ethos like he did to use the door. His mom had raised concerns, but Nothing told her Lindle wouldn¡¯t be able to make any permanent changes to his own Ethos. It was something Artificers did in order to better interact with outside Ethos, so learning it now would make it much easier due to him not needing to split his attention on more skills to practice with.


    Outside of that, Lindle also now opened up the bag of coins he had gotten as payment from the adventurers. Emptying it all out onto the table, Lindle counted out 15 gold coins and 50 silver ones. It was the most money Lindle had ever had to himself in his life. Sure his mom had a profitable craft and had given him pocket change for assisting, but this was money he had earned wholly by himself and it was a lot of money. Most people might make half a gold piece from a week of labor, which was worth around 5 silver coins. Even in Glacerhine where making a lot of money wasn¡¯t a big focus since people tended to not spend tons of money between themselves and instead most of it was for trading with outsiders.


    Adventurers in comparison worked with astonishingly high amounts of money, earning and spending gold like copper, at least the successful ones did. The majority of the more powerful potions his mom sold went to the adventurer market, so Lindle had probably seen more gold exchange hands firsthand than most people in Glacerhine under level 20. Even after selling his services at half the usual rate, Lindle now had a much larger budget to put towards his personal preparations.


    Sure his mom had money, but he had to rely on himself to get his own funding. The system tended to be finicky when it came to rewards if you relied on unearned support.


    The first thing he would have to buy was equipment to learn pottery. At first he had wanted to gather up magical regents and monster parts, and when Nothing had told him that he would have to learn sculpting, he had been confused. They reminded Lindle that the station Lindle had found them in was a pottery studio and Nothing¡¯s Ethos body resembled clay. Apparently pottery and artificing had a lot of overlap, as the physical process of both arts had a lot in common. Pottery wasn¡¯t very common in Glacerhine but Lindle bet he could buy some supplies from a merchant or sculptor.


    As Lindle put together his shopping list, his mom asked him a question that had him pause.


    ¡°So, did you put any thought into what you want to do once you¡¯ve gotten your fancy magic class?¡± His mom had said it casually, but he knew her. She had been just as concerned about Lindle¡¯s prospects and future as he had been. She had never dissuaded him from wanting to be different from his father, but she didn¡¯t feel the same about the man as Lindle. Lindle almost never asked about him, so she didn¡¯t talk about him much, but when she did, Lindle knew she still loved him, as if he had never abandoned them.


    No matter the reason, she knew Lindle would never accept a class that he qualified for because of him, and had been just as invested in helping him as he was, perhaps even more so, because apparently she knew she would have to remind him that his life would continue after he got his class.


    What did he want to do with himself? He had told himself he would consider what came next after he had finally stepped foot on the path he wanted when he was out in the Reach with the adventurers. Well, he had gotten there. Sooner than expected, and in a different way as well, but he was there.


    He had been happy to follow in his mother¡¯s footsteps, but he had stumbled into what felt like an opportunity to pursue something greater than he could ever imagined. After delving into ancient ruins, and discovering strange never before-heard of magics, would he really be content to be a simple merchant or crafter, selling his wares?


    Traveling with the adventurers had been¡­ exciting. It wasn¡¯t the violence or danger, but the wonder he had felt, the excitement from discovering something amazing. To be honest, he had felt special after finding Nothing and getting the opportunity he did. He had the chance to do something great with Artificer and Ethos, but in order to do that¡­


    Lindle looked at his mom, waiting patiently for him to answer.


    ¡°I¡­ want to push my path, I want to become a wayfarer.¡±

 Chapter 15: Prep Time

    Now it was Lindle¡¯s turn to wait for his Mom to answer, shifting as anxiety started to bubble up immediately after he closed his mouth.


    Pushing the path was a saying that applied to people who were before all else, working towards advancement in the system, there were a few variations on the phrase, Soarians called it wayfaring, but the meaning was the same. The obvious example was adventurers, who worked to put themselves in new and challenging situations such as dungeons to reach the highest tiers to gain the best classes the system had to offer, but the method was technically irrelevant, as long as their intent was to push the limits of what was possible for them to achieve.


    Almost everyone grew up entertaining fantasies of becoming an unstoppable level 100 warrior, or an archmage with tier 10 spells that could reshape reality, but as people grew up, the harsh reality of life set in. Eventually, it became too dangerous to earn enough XP to level up in any reasonable amount of time. People had lives and responsibilities outside hunting down monsters or conducting crazy experiments, jobs, and families that were for the most part routine. People would still earn XP as they lived according to their class but the flow would slow as they grew up.


    The Apprentice tier period of someone¡¯s life passed by easily enough, but Journeyman was where things really slowed down. The vast majority of people lived for decades slowly accruing levels in their Journeyman class. Rosato and the others had all been adventurers for years, leveling up at a rate tens of times faster than average and yet they were all still in their journeymen classes, though as far as Lindle¡¯s could tell, they could be close to crossing over into Veteran.


    Lindle had always figured he would be happy doing things the traditional way, apprenticing under his mother until he either inherited or opened an apothecary of his own, just as long as he got to do it under his own merit. But now, with his curiosity about what exactly he could be capable of, what he could learn or discover, he couldn¡¯t imagine spending decades waiting. Maybe it was just the novelty, or the adventurers had rubbed off on him, or maybe he was just looking for a new goal after spending so long on the previous one, but Lindle wanted to see where he could go with this.


    Eventually, his Mom smiled and sighed to herself, shaking her head. ¡°You let them out on their own just once, I swear. If that¡¯s what you want Lindle, then I expect big things. Just promise me you won¡¯t run off out into the Reach or to the big city with a ragtag group of wannabee adventurers as soon as you turn 15.¡±


    Lindle blushed. ¡°Yeah of course! I mean¡­ honestly, I¡¯m not entirely sure how I¡¯m going to go about it.¡± He shrugged. ¡°It¡¯s still a crafting class, I might just focus on getting strong enough to go back to that dungeon with everyone else, if there¡¯s as much to find down there as they think then it¡¯s a really good opportunity for me.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m sure,¡± his Mom smiled again, but softer this time. ¡°but after?¡±


    ¡°¡­Yeah, after.¡± He repeated. When it came down to it, Lindle doubted that he would be able to find any other chances for real growth as an Artificer in a place like Glacerhine. When it came to crafter classes, Lindle¡¯s mom was the highest one he knew of for a reason, it simply wasn¡¯t as suited to or valued as highly in the harsh and resource-sparse environment of the Reach. She had gotten the majority of her levels before joining Glacerhine.


    ¡°My son, suddenly so ambitious,¡± she teased. ¡°Well I suppose that doesn¡¯t change the plan for now, so after will need to wait for after, you got some shopping to do, and I need to open the shop.¡±


    And that was that. Following the list they had made, Lindle found the market and started making purchases. It took a while to find some merchant potters to sell him their extra pieces of equipment, it wouldn¡¯t be much, but it would be enough to practice with. He probably bought all the clay they had brought south with them, it wasn¡¯t exactly a commonly used resource by the locals considering the climate.


    After securing that, Lindle started buying samples of various reagents. He only bought one of each, he wasn¡¯t going to use them for his alchemy, but instead to train his Ethos sense. A Steampine, a Iceshell pangolins scale, Woodstalker root. He aimed to buy items that each would have distinct elemental affinities for him to practice distinguishing, water, ice, wood, things such as that. Sadly anything fire-related was notoriously hard to find.


    Purchasing the scale, Lindle remembered the dungeon variant¡¯s crystals he picked up, still in his pack. He¡¯d have to add them to the list for sensory practice. Magical monster parts and herbs were more expensive, but since nothing he was buying was anything he intended to use for ingredients or ritual components he was able to haggle for the worst or smallest parts of each batch. Even being armed with a healthy amount of gold pieces wasn¡¯t an excuse to not be efficient, his instincts after years of assisting his Mother during working hours wouldn¡¯t allow it.


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    Lugging everything home, he realized he¡¯d need somewhere to practice. Luckily this was also something money could solve. Space was at a premium in Glacerhine considering they had to fit everyone inside the cold-repelling border of the grove, but considering his home doubled as his Mom¡¯s storefront it was large enough that it had enough free room behind it that he could hire one of the shamans to create a small extension to the house out of ice for him to use.


    The rest of the day was spent with him setting everything up to turn the extension into a workshop. Adding another small fireplace allowed him to move Nothing into it, and they directed him to where to place everything.


    This feels familiar now


    Nothing looked over the new workshop, eyeing all the pieces of equipment placed together, especially the kiln.


    ¡°You¡¯re picking up Helvetician quickly.¡±


    Haven¡¯t had much else to focus on. Your mom spoke to me some even though she couldn¡¯t understand me, I also listened in on her while she sold to her customers. She¡¯s nice, kept my fire warm.


    ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s her. Did you get enough to follow when they talked?¡±


    Give me another few days. I should know the language as well as you can by then. Maybe I¡¯ll try to learn to write next so I can communicate with her more directly.


    Nothing¡¯s gaze didn¡¯t shift, and Lindle looked at the kiln too. ¡°Is this okay? I don¡¯t want to give you any unpleasant memories, being trapped for hundreds of years in the dark¡­ I can take you back to the other fireplace.¡±


    It¡¯s fine. Like I said, I was asleep for most of it, so deeply I didn¡¯t even dream. Besides, I was supposed to be a homunculus, a workshop, even a small one like this, is where I feel at home the most.


    Lindle felt a cozy comfortable feeling through his bond with Nothing. They settled in the flames, wrapping some of their body around the firewood without smothering any of it, the flames didn¡¯t even seem to register their presence.


    This is good, it¡¯s a reminder that I¡¯m finally going to be finished and get to fulfill my purpose to be a crafters companion.


    Lindle felt slightly conflicted at that last statement. ¡°Purpose? You don¡¯t have any other wants? You don¡¯t need to be my companion if you don¡¯t want to you know, you¡¯ve already helped me a lot.¡±


    Nothing sent him amusement.


    One of the first conversations I had with my maker was a lecture on the nature of free will. I was made to be perfectly content by the act of fulfilling my purpose and I can choose to be happy in doing so. This is what I want, and I don¡¯t have any notions of being restricted by that, so please do not worry.


    ¡°Huh¡­ that sounds like a good idea. I wouldn¡¯t have thought to do that.¡±


    It¡¯s okay, I would have told you about the process when you start making other fabled creatures. You¡¯re quite a while away from having to worry about being able to do that though.


    Making fabled creatures¡­ Lindle didn¡¯t know how he felt about being able to create more life like Nothing, but they were probably right, he was just getting ahead of himself.


    He picked up the iceshell scale from the storage shelf. ¡°So how does this work? I focus on the Ethos in this and try to pick out the bits that mean ice?¡±


    Essentially. Almost nothing in nature is purely defined by one concept, the Ethos you wish to harvest will always be interwoven with all the other concepts present in the material. This scale is attuned to the ice element, but it will also have concepts of protection, life, growth, or any other number of imperceptibly small concepts. You can choose to use or ignore them, but being able to perceive the difference is vital to not corrupt your creations with unintended ideas.


    Lindle concentrated, activating his feat and focusing on the scale in his hand. He felt the swirl of Ethos in what Nothing had said made this scale Fabled. He took the idea of scale into his mind, trying to bring only one facet of the Ethos to his attention at a time, but it was difficult, they all melded together and constantly shifted. Lindle could clearly sense the ice aspect in the Ethos, it was one of the dominant traits, but he couldn¡¯t separate it from the others, the other aspects kept shifting to his attention just to dart away again. Compared to his Aura or Mana, Ethos wasn¡¯t cleanly separated into individual points of energy, and he couldn¡¯t frame his state of mind into controlling his own personal Ethos either this time.


    He couldn¡¯t tell how much time it took until he finally let go of the sense, sighing in frustration as he put away the scale. Looking outside, the moonlight had faded completely as night had fallen.


    It¡¯s okay, we have time. You can¡¯t expect to master something like this in just a few hours. I¡¯ve been told lots of Artificers spent months training to develop the feat in the first place.


    Lindle shrugged. ¡°I apparently got it after just a few minutes of trying, so I guess I was hoping this would have been similar.¡±


    I still don¡¯t understand how you did that in the first place. Are you sure you¡¯ve never heard of Ethos before? No weird encounters with anything like it before coming to the dungeon?


    ¡°Nope,¡± he shrugged again. ¡°It¡¯s like I said, I¡¯ve never heard of it before, and neither had my mom or the adventurers. I wasn¡¯t even really in control of myself when I used the door the first time, I just tried copying the feeling to do it again. I¡­ ¡° Lindle paused, that didn¡¯t feel entirely true. Even when he opened the door the first time, he had a strange feeling of deja vu when he did so, but he didn¡¯t know why.


    He shrugged again.


    That is a shame. Perhaps your first few levels in Artificer will help, your Intelligence stat may just be too low to recall it.


    ¡°Hey! My Intelligence is fine!¡±


    Nothing sent him another bout of amusement.

 Chapter 16: Milestone

    Almost two months into his training after Lindle arrived back home from the dungeon, he got a date for his milestone rite from one of the shamans under the Glacian elders.


    Considering how close it was getting to his birthday, this would be considered pretty late, but it was understandable considering his circumstances. The milestone rite was a rite every child in Glacerhine went through when they were 14, coming up on their 15th birthday when they received their class and would be considered an adult. It also acted as graduation from the general schooling they received from the shamans and Soarian priests.


    Each generation of 14-year-olds would go through the rite together as one large group, where they would complete the trial, and would then engage in celebrations and enjoy themselves free from most responsibilities, until their birthdays. The issue though, was that Lindle was the only 14-year-old in the village who would be turning 15 this year to take it.


    In Glacerhine, the one thing everyone lived to prepare for was the migration. The grove they lived in would keep out the bitter cold of the Reach and let them sustain a population despite the climate, but its power never lasted. Every few years the grove''s power would wane, and everyone would pack up, dismantle their spell-grown ice homes, and as one they would migrate across the Reach to the next grove to reform Glacerhine, moving in a long cycle around the Reach.


    It was a harsh journey, one that infants were almost always guaranteed to not survive. To avoid constant tragedies, Glacians refrained from having children unless right after they finished a migration so they would have time for the child to grow as old as they could before the next migration. Because of this, Glacians tended to congregate into very distinct age groups, with everyone in a generation having their births all within just a few months of each other.


    Lindle¡¯s mom, however, was not a Glacian. She settled in Glacerhine in the middle of the lifespan of the grove the village was using at the time, while she was pregnant with Lindle. This led to Lindle being born ¡®out of cycle.¡¯ Apparently no one had believed he would survive experiencing his first migration as young as he was, but opinions had shifted after he grew to be just as big as children twice his age when it rolled around. Giant blood, if not for anything else, made for tough babies.


    This made for an awkward spot when it came to where to place Lindle in the village''s social structure, as each generation tended to be treated as a collective for events such as the milestone rite. He was as big as the children in the generation older than him, and he had proved to possess an above-average talent when it came to developing his Int stat, so they grouped him with them.


    Growing up around children all 2 years older than him had been a confusing time, especially when it came to schooling. The lessons hadn¡¯t been the difficult part, even if he was younger, compared to the average he had done very well. It was the social aspects that had the other children run rings around him, giant¡¯s blood didn¡¯t make him mature any faster after all.


    Most people didn¡¯t want to make friends with the strange alchemy-interested child who was both younger than them and a foot taller at the same time. Especially some of the warrior boys, who, after discovering his instinctive distaste for violence despite his size and high Strength stat, had found him an easy target. The girls¡­ the less said about the girls the better. They were simply too confusing to Lindle. It was a miracle he had earned a single Charisma point at all.


    He had still made some friends, by a loose definition of the word, such as Humphrey.


    That is all to say, Lindle couldn¡¯t exactly go through the rite with them all when they approached unlocking their classes. So for the last two years, he had been left in a strange kind of limbo, attending lessons with the younger generation but not being apart of it. When it came to his milestone rite, Lindle honestly wasn¡¯t even sure he would get one. They were intended to be large group affairs, as the youth of that generation were sent out into the Reach and given a task to prove themselves, forming strong bonds as a community. As time passed, he essentially gave up on receiving one and forgot about it. He had thrown his focus into learning as much alchemy as he could, forming plans to earn high-power feats.


    This meant that Lindle and his Mom were both surprised when he was told he was being summoned to the White Hall to be told the details of his ceremony. He was still covered in clay from his practice that morning as the shaman left and he turned to look at his Mom.


    ¡°Did you know anything about this?¡± Lindle asked.


    His mom shook her head. ¡°First time I¡¯ve heard of it too.¡± She paused. ¡°Well, I¡¯m happy that they finally came up with something for you, even though I¡¯m not happy it took so long. You¡¯re a part of this community too, and you deserve a ceremony just as much as anyone else.¡±


    Lindle shuffled awkwardly, not really knowing how to feel about it, nodding mutely.


    His Mom sighed. ¡°Go clean up, you can¡¯t meet the elders all messy like this.¡±


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    ¡°Oh yeah, good idea.¡± He rushed back to his workshop where Nothing was waiting for him curiously in the fireplace.


    So? What was it?


    ¡°I¡¯m being summoned to the White Hall. I¡¯ve got to meet the elders about my milestone rite.¡± He grabbed a rag off the wall and wiped himself off a bit before he started putting away his supplies. ¡°Sorry, I think we¡¯ve got to cancel practice for today.¡±


    That¡¯s a shame, you¡¯ve been showing real improvement. I think you¡¯re really getting somewhere with your sculpting.


    They both looked where a malformed half-finished sculpture of a miniature Sickle Lynx slumped sadly on his table. It looked at Lindle forlornly, as if it was asking its creator why it had been forsaken.


    ¡°Real funny.¡± Lindle disposed of it, putting the thing out of its misery as Nothing chittered mirthfully through the bond.


    Oh I apologize. It¡¯s really not that bad for how long you¡¯ve been practicing, you¡¯re getting a good grasp on anatomy.


    Since one of the first things Lindle was planning to tackle was finishing Nothing, it was important that he knew how to sculpt his body so that the homunculus didn¡¯t die immediately of structural errors once they were no longer made out of Ethos.


    So I assume this is a coming-of-age commemoration of some kind? Congratulations. I would be happy to attend if I can.


    Lindle paused. ¡°I¡­ well the first part is a trial of some kind, so I don¡¯t think I¡¯ll be able to bring you along, but afterward there is an actual ceremony. Maybe Mom can hide you and bring you along somehow? It¡¯ll probably be private enough.¡± He added that it would only be that way for him in his head. He could see Nothing turn their head as they sensed his emotions.


    I see¡­ I will be happy to do so then. I will see if your Mother has any ideas.


    Nothing hummed to themself as Lindle finished putting everything away. After taking a shower and putting on a slightly nicer outfit, he left for the White Hall.


    Guided by years of habit he made his way out of the Crafter''s corner, he could see the White Hall long before he arrived. It was the largest building in town, a massive snaking hall of ice that surrounded the heart of the grove, creating a U shape.


    The shamans held lessons here, but Lindle had only rarely been in the elders section at the head of the White Hall. Walking inside he saw the various leaders of the village walking around, conversing with each other, the room was abuzz with activity. Usually, that wasn¡¯t the case at this point in the Grove''s lifespan, but the adventurers had informed Glacerhine about the coming dungeon raid after they had sent off their report along the Wolven Caravan back to Soarstrum.


    When Lindle had asked how they had reacted, he had been met with various grimaces and winces. The elders had not been happy about the fact that they would be receiving a large influx of people, especially adventurers.


    There usually was a few parties of them in the village at any one time, engaging on dungeon runs and monster hunts depending on where in the Reach Glacerhine was that year, and trade was a constant between them and Soarstrum, not to mention the missionaries, but the raid would represent a sizable amount of powerful people coming in all at once and putting a strain on resources. They still had a few months to prepare, but Lindle was happy that they had decided to keep his involvement in the dungeon''s discovery quiet.


    ¡°Ah, there you are.¡±


    Lindle flinched a bit as the old woman next to him spoke, not having noticed she was there. He really needed to pay more attention to his surroundings, being snuck up on constantly by Theodore whenever he was with the adventurers was enough. She peered closely at him, narrowing her eyes and clutching a weathered nobbled cane.


    ¡°Lindle Kyte yes? The half-giant boy.¡±


    Lindle frowned, but he nodded respectfully. ¡°Yes ma¡¯am, I was called about my milestone rite?¡±


    She chuckled with laughter, her wrinkled skin creasing, hobbling away to a side room and gesturing for Lindle to follow her. ¡°Ma¡¯am he says, so polite to a frail old woman. I suppose you¡¯ve never met me before. You may call me Madam Holly.¡±


    Lindle paused before falling into step before her. ¡°Madam Holly¡­ the Madam Holly?¡±


    ¡°Oh none of that.¡± She wagged a finger at him playfully. ¡°I am simply an old woman who is here to talk to you about your milestone rite.¡±


    Lindle bit his tongue. He supposed if one of the only Veterans past level 50 in the village told him not to ask her why she was the one to talk to him, then he supposed it would be rude to do so. Even if she was famous for single-handedly fighting off Apex monsters half the size of the village by herself, but maybe that was even more reason to listen to her requests.


    They both entered a small room where the buzz of the main hall quietened down. Madam Holly turned back to him and took a seat on a chair with an exaggerated sigh. ¡°Much better, best to relax these old bones.¡±


    ¡­ Lindle just nodded again. ¡°So¡­ about my milestone rite. What¡¯s going to happen?¡±


    She smiled at him. ¡°Ah, it is quite the predicament you¡¯ve put us in. None of the other old codgers were really sure what to do with you, most were ready to simply allow your birthday to pass by and pretend all was well. But bah! Traditions are important, we can¡¯t have you gain your first level without becoming an adult first, it would make you some kind of overgrown child. Well¡­¡± She arched a brow and looked up at him. ¡°More of one at least.¡±


    Lindle frowned again. ¡°That¡¯s¡­ kind of you? So¡­ will I be taking a trial by myself then?¡±


    ¡°Of course not!¡± Madam Holly scowled at him. ¡°The entire point of the trial is that it represents us surviving in the Reach as a community and being responsible for one another. Doing it by yourself would miss the entire point.¡±


    "Oh. But everyone from my age group already took it, and there isn¡¯t anyone else in Glacerhine old enough to take it with me. ¡±


    Madam Holly gave him a big toothy grin. ¡°Of course there is, silly boy, you can take it with me.¡±

 Chapter 17: Overgrown Child

    Lindle and Madam Holly looked at each other silently for several moments. He didn¡¯t say anything as the seconds dragged on, and she didn¡¯t either, refusing to even drop the grin. A minute passed.


    Eventually Lindle gave up. ¡°I don¡¯t get it.¡± He flatly stated.


    Madam Holly wheezed and slapped her knee. ¡°I was hoping that I¡¯d get a good reaction out of you, but that was fun in its own way. I can tell we¡¯re going to have fun together.¡±


    Lindle raised an eyebrow. His earlier nervousness at meeting with someone with her reputation was slowly fading away. ¡°So were you joking then?¡±


    ¡°Not at all!¡± She chuckled. Still seeing his confusion she waved him down to take a seat. He did she started to explain. ¡°You and I,¡± she gestured between the two of them mockingly, ¡°will form a group and take the trial together.¡±


    Almost another minute passed with him staring at her before she sighed. ¡°Boy, you don¡¯t need to just stare at me like a rock whenever I say something. I won¡¯t bite your head off if you tell me what you think.¡±


    Lindle puffed out his cheeks and blew. ¡°Well¡­ Okay? That doesn¡¯t seem like it should work. For several reasons. I mean, you¡¯re an elder. The rite is meant for a group of unleveled children to take, we¡¯re not allowed to take any adults or outsiders with us. You¡¯re¡­¡± He hesitated, but she grinned and gestured for him to go on. ¡°Too old.¡±


    She chuckled again, and Lindle was glad to see he had read the mood right. ¡°Normally you would be right! But let me correct some misconceptions you have. The milestone rite is for any Glacian child to take as a group. However, and this is the part you¡¯ve gotten wrong. It¡¯s not that adults aren¡¯t allowed to take the rite, it¡¯s that no one is allowed to take the rite twice and that a Glacian is only considered an adult by tradition once they take the rite.¡±


    ¡°I¡­¡± Lindle paused, recalling what she had said about not taking the rite making him an overgrown child. And if she was suggesting she take the rite despite saying no one was allowed to take it twice¡­ ¡°Wait, you¡¯ve never taken the milestone rite before? So you want to take it with me?¡±


    ¡°Really made those Intelligence points work for it did you?¡± She smiled. ¡°It¡¯s a bit of an open secret that I¡¯m by definition the most powerful child in the village, though clearly one you¡¯ve never heard.¡±


    ¡°But how?¡± Lindle asked. ¡°You¡¯re famous, and one of the migration leaders. How could you never have taken it before?¡±


    She shrugged. ¡°Simple. I was born out of cycle like you, and just like you they didn¡¯t know what to do with me, so they just pretended like nothing was strange and life moved on.¡±


    Lindle frowned. Logically he knew some other people must have been born out of cycle like him, and he had even heard about some being born, but the sad truth was that the cycle was in place because without it people simply didn¡¯t survive their first migration. ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡±


    ¡°Bah. Honestly, it¡¯s not that big a deal. Sure I angsted about it when I was a little girl but people stopped caring once I actually grew up and anyone who gave me grief about it learned how to behave themselves after getting knocked around a little.¡± She smiled as if she was fondly reminiscing. ¡°Really it¡¯s a wonderful excuse to let loose and have some fun acting young. My husband certainly doesn¡¯t mind.¡±


    ¡°Oh. Apology rescinded?¡± She laughed again so Lindle continued. ¡°Then why do you want to take it with me after all this time?¡±


    ¡°Well even if it doesn¡¯t matter to me, it¡¯ll still matter to you for a good few years to come. When I heard one of your old teachers mention it, I figured it¡¯s as good an excuse as any to finally get it done. It¡¯s not as if you have any other options.¡±


    So essentially it was a random whim, but at least it was a kind of a nice one.


    ¡°I guess¡­¡± Lindle had really mostly forgotten about taking the trial in the years after everyone else had taken it, but at the time, the feeling of being left behind had run deep, and now that it was at the forefront of his mind again, he couldn¡¯t deny that it had ever really gone away, just hidden behind everything else. ¡°Okay, fine, yes. I still am not sure that completing the trial hiding behind someone over level 50 is really in the spirit of the rite though.¡±


    ¡°Who said anything about letting you depend on me? This is supposed to be a group activity you know. I¡¯m sure I can lure over enough monsters that you can fight your fair share.¡±


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    Lindle started sweating and Madam Holly laughed again. ¡°Oh, this will be fun. Now I¡¯m joking. Well, about the attracting a horde of monsters part, not about you pulling your own weight. Might be a good chance to whip you into shape, maybe earn you a good feat, most do during their rite.¡±


    Lindle didn¡¯t stop sweating. ¡°I already have three¡­¡± He muttered. It was well known that feats got progressively harder to earn the more of them you got during each tier, including before you got your first class. On average people would earn three, Lindle didn¡¯t want to know what she could have planned that would earn him a fourth.


    ¡°Ah, a challenge aye? I¡¯m a bit excited now. I¡¯ll need to pick out somewhere nice and challenging.¡±


    Lindle fumbled over his words. ¡°Well I¡¯ve already picked out a class. A crafting one, so I don¡¯t want to earn anything that could make me lose it, or not fit my build.¡± Lindle doubted that a feat he could earn from risking his life against a giant monster or whatever else Madam Holly might have in mind for him would net him something rarer than Artificer, never mind three sometimes that would push it out of his options, but he didn¡¯t mention that.


    She paused. ¡°A crafter?¡± She looked at him up and down, raising an eyebrow. ¡°Are you sure?¡±


    He frowned and nodded. He had faced a lot of pushback once he had shared that he had no intention of pursuing a martial class as he grew up, as well as some mocking and accusations of cowardice from the other children, but he hadn¡¯t ever had any thoughts of changing his mind once he had made it up.


    Scanning his face, Madam Holly shrugged. ¡°It¡¯s your choice. Hmm¡­¡± She put a hand to her chin and considered. ¡°In that case¡­ a man¡¯s got to be able to gather his own supplies, yes I do believe I¡¯ve got an idea.¡± She cackled to herself a little.


    That didn¡¯t seem good. He opened his mouth to speak, but she cut him off.


    ¡°You go on home. As the eldest in our little group, as is tradition, taking charge of planning how we undergo the rite falls to me, pending the approval of an elder of course.¡± She smiled innocently as if she wasn¡¯t an elder and capable of approving her own plan. ¡°I¡¯ll come find you the day after tomorrow so we can leave. Ah, let me escort you out.¡±


    ¡°Wai-¡± Before Lindle could say anything else the world blurred as one moment Lindle was in the room, and the next Lindle was outside the White Hall, a flurry of snow kicked up around him. People glanced at him standing dumbfounded but continued on their way. Did she just grab him and move him outside before he could react? he looked around for her, but the most powerful child in the village was nowhere to be found.


    ***


    ¡°So yeah, I have no idea what she¡¯s planning, but if I die in two days that¡¯s going to be why.¡± Lindle finished his story to the trio of adventurers.


    They were all sitting at one of the booths downstairs in Mr. Dalton¡¯s Inn. Rosato and Dorothea were both nursing drinks as Chip had a glass of juice. Theodore was out on a solo monster-hunting quest. They all exchanged glances.


    Rosato spoke first. ¡°Are you going to be okay? You¡¯re making this sound kind of dangerous. You don¡¯t need to do this if you don¡¯t want to. You¡¯re planning on leaving sometime in the future anyway right?¡±


    Lindle had shared his general plans with the adventurers, who had been happy to support Lindle in his goal to become a wayfarer for his class. Generally speaking, they were all wayfarers as well, even if Chip was reaching an age where if he didn¡¯t advance tiers soon it would probably mean retirement from adventuring.


    ¡°Well yeah, but it¡¯s not like I want to leave forever or cut ties or anything like that. This is my home.¡± He sighed. ¡°And yeah, I¡¯m probably being a bit melodramatic, she¡¯s one of the migration leaders, I don¡¯t think she would actually risk my life or anything. I do want to do this, it¡¯s just probably going to suck.¡± He sulked a bit. Once he had finally unlocked Artificer, he had been looking forward to a few months to dedicate to exploring Ethos and preparing for his class risk-free.


    Seeing that he wasn¡¯t being pressured against his will or at serious risk, an amused smile came over Rosato¡¯s face and he patted Lindle¡¯s shoulder sympathetically. ¡°In my experience, high-level individuals can be quite a handful when they hit old age, they tend to find interesting ways to amuse themselves.¡±


    ¡°Ah. I can¡¯t wait to become an old lady Veteran.¡± Dorothea sighed dreamily. ¡°The fun I could have messing with apprentices by acting the eccentric old witch. You¡¯re so lucky Chip.¡±


    The halfling snorted and shoved her, causing her to almost spill her drink. Chip turned to Lindle. ¡°As long as everything¡¯s alright, all you wanted was to blow off some steam?¡±


    ¡°Yeah. But I also wanted to invite you all to the after-ceremony. The rite itself is for Glaicans only, but afterward, there¡¯s a small ceremony to celebrate. Usually it¡¯s a big affair involving the families of everyone who participates, but if it¡¯s just going to be me and the old lady I think it would be nice if you all came. Theodore too.¡±


    The adventurers all smiled and nodded. Over the past few months, they had all talked regularly between the quests they took and Lindle¡¯s practice with Nothing. Outside of his Mom and Nothing he couldn¡¯t really think of anyone else he wanted there.


    Maybe he could invite some of his old school friends like Humphrey, they had all drifted apart once they passed their rites and gotten classes, but perhaps he should do it anyway.


    For now though, Lindle had to get ready for another trip into the Reach, this time with a crazy old lady who could beat a Frost Wyrm to death with her fists.

 Chapter 18: Fetch Quest

    Lindle had never believed in karma before, but as he started to crest the cliff edge, sweating and gasping for air, he was starting to think this was retribution for his uncharitable thoughts toward the adventurers back on the trek to the academy dungeon.


    For all that he thought he knew about traversing the Glacial Reach, Madam Holly had apparently somehow divined from the universe that this was something he needed to be humbled about since she had insisted they take one of her usual paths for traveling through the Reach instead of the common hunter or migratory paths. It would take them to their destination much faster. One of the easier ones, she had promised.


    Apparently ¡®easy¡¯ for her was easy because she had physical stats dozens of times higher than his. She wasn¡¯t wrong that it was a shortcut though, one straight through one of the beyond damned mountain ranges.


    He had climbed cliffs, jumped massive gaps, and ran dozens of miles, all while she forced him to keep to a pace meeting her standards. The worst part however was that she wasn¡¯t doing any of it with him, instead, she latched onto his back like a damned macaque several minutes after they left the village, telling him that it wouldn¡¯t do to force such a frail old woman to keep pace with a big strapping young man as himself. It had resulted in another staring contest for a few minutes but he gave in. She was small, but combined with the weight of both of their supplies it added up.


    He had been burning Aura points using the [Trek] technique and unstructured bursts of raw strength for hours just to meet her standards for time. His reserves were big, but he still needed to consume several Aura potions as he ran, which Madam Holly had begrudgingly allowed only because he had made them himself.


    The only benefit of traveling this way was that he didn¡¯t have to worry about monsters. Any that showed up Madam Holly had just stared at menacingly and flared her Aura, causing them to run away. Which was both good and terrifying, since the monsters in this part of the Reach were higher level than most in the woods were.


    Lindle currently was lying flat and burying his face in the snow next to the cliff edge, cooling his overheating face and body. On his back, Madam Holly sat and hummed peacefully to herself. When she hadn¡¯t insisted that he get up and continue moving after several seconds like how she had been doing for the past several hours, Lindle got up on his knees and looked back at her in confusion.


    ¡°Hm? Oh feel free to catch your breath, we¡¯re almost there now.¡± She said nonchalantly, sliding off his back and onto the snow. Lindle heaved in relief and took out another Aura potion, taking big gulps as he downed it. He was almost out now, so he hoped that she didn¡¯t insist on the same pace heading back. Looking around, the air was too thick with falling snow for him to make out much of anything.


    ¡°And where exactly is here? You still haven¡¯t told me what I¡¯m doing for my rite.¡±


    ¡°What we¡¯re doing for the rite.¡± She said with a wink. When he looked at her blankly she hid a smirk and waved him off. ¡°Mentoring is as much an act of adulthood as anything else, if I did any of the fighting or traveling it would be something I¡¯ve done a thousand times before, it wouldn¡¯t be much of a rite of passage for me then, wouldn¡¯t it?


    It would actually be sort of logical reasoning if she wasn¡¯t smiling cheekily as she said it. ¡°Fighting? Are you going to make me fight a monster? I thought I told you I was going to be a crafter, not a fighter or hunter.¡±


    ¡°I remember, I¡¯m not that old. I said that a man¡¯s got to be able to gather his own supplies, didn¡¯t I? It¡¯s not my fault most of the time you have to kill or fight off a monster to get them.¡± She gestured away from the cliff into the wall of snowflakes. ¡°Down there is a pass that is one of the prime spots for a particular magical object that¡¯s used as an ingredient, those Soarian merchants go crazy for the stuff. I think nabbing some should qualify as a good enough challenge for the rite.¡±


    Lindle pursed his lips. Material gathering actually was a relevant skill for some crafters to have, especially for a wayfarer. Many crafters just paid for adventurers to gather valuable supplies from the Reach, but it tended to get expensive. His mother could afford it, but with the more unique circumstances around Artificer, getting them himself might be better. the system tended to offer better rewards to crafters who sourced their own supplies, so he would level up faster this way too.


    This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.


    ¡°What is this object specifically? I can¡¯t get something if I don¡¯t know what it is.¡±


    Madam Holly shrugged. ¡°If you want to be a crafter so badly, you should be able to find and identify it on your own. You¡¯ll know it when you see it. Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll keep anything too dangerous away from you while you search.¡± She gave him a pat on the back and pushed him slightly forward.


    Lindle sighed, even if that was true he wouldn¡¯t be able to find anything here if he couldn¡¯t see more than a few feet in front of him through the falling snow. She probably expected him to take hours stumbling through the pass until he came across it or the snow eased up. However, if seeing was a problem, he had a solution for that. Lindle activated his Ethos sense. Immediately his awareness of Madam Holly¡¯s presence skyrocketed, but he did his best to block it out, if he didn¡¯t, it was even more painful to behold than the Librarian had been.


    Instead, he spread his sense outwards. In the past few months, Lindle had done a lot to practice with his new sense, one of the things he had learned how to do was to extend it away from him. The specifics of what he was able to sense dropped drastically after a few feet, but he would still be able to vaguely make out the presence of something and its direction from him even if he couldn¡¯t see it, especially if that thing was magic.


    In front of him, he felt the presence of several sources of active Ethos that Nothing would call fabled. Crunching through the snow Lindle went deeper into the pass. This area seemed to be sandwiched between two ridges with rocky outcroppings on either side. He followed his Ethos sense like a compass to each source that called out to him.


    The first few fabled objects he found were just some faintly magical flowers and herbs growing out of the side of the mountain. He pocketed them, but they weren¡¯t anywhere near valuable enough to be what Madam Holly meant. He had taken to collecting anything that he could to stockpile for his birthday, though he didn¡¯t let his alchemy get rusty either. Lindle had been worried that his years of training in alchemy would go to waste since Artificer was a completely different type of crafter, but Nothing had reassured him that it would remain a useful skill for him to have once he had his class.


    After a few more minutes of Lindle making beelines for the closest source of active Ethos and a few more false finds, this new one seemed much more powerful. Lindle grinned to himself. Madam Holly had probably expected him to get lost long enough for a wandering monster to pass through and give him a fight for her to watch, but if he retrieved what he needed quickly enough he would avoid any danger.


    Picking up the pace, this object seemed like it was fairly far high off the ground. He approached and walked up to a large stony outcropping reaching up into the air, he looked up but he didn¡¯t see it. Grabbing onto the side Lindle started climbing, at least his muscles were warmed up for it, and without the Madam¡¯s weight on his back now.


    He scrambled up quickly, grabbing the ledge and pulling himself up. Looking around he saw a gathering of ice crystals in a circular formation. Getting closer, he got a better grasp on the type of Ethos he was sensing. There was a heavy amount of the Ice element coming from it, but not from the ice itself. He guessed that whatever the fabled object was it was inside the ice and growing it around itself.


    Getting closer, Lindle looked inside, pushing aside loose ice shards to find what was inside. He felt his fingers brush against something other than ice, and he grabbed it, pulling it out.


    Looking at his prize, Lindle froze as in his hand, he held a large egg, the shell white with blue speckles. It gleamed under his Ethos sense with dense ice energy, as well as being distinctly reptilian. It reminded Lindle of somewhat of Ice Wyrm scales he had sensed on sale in the market.


    Knowing that her stats were high enough to hear him, Lindle spoke aloud. ¡°So that¡¯s what you meant by fighting.¡±


    Behind him, he heard a loud clap and felt a burst of wind, the thick cover of snow all blowing away as the air cleared, the whole pass now visible. Looking back, he saw Madam Holly standing atop one of the ridges looking down at him, her hands together in a clapping motion. ¡°Clever boy.¡± She praised, giving him a cheeky grin.


    Below her, now revealed and looking around wildly in confusion with its two heads now that the snowfall was gone, was a white and blue speckled zmey. One of the smaller cousins of dragons, the wyvern was only the size of a snow panther or dire wolf, but they were extremely deadly.


    Madam Holly reached down and grabbed a rock, winding it up, she threw it before either Lindle or the zmey could react, ricochetting it off the opposite ridge before the rock flew back past Lindle and into the zmey¡¯s right forelimb, a loud crack as it¡¯s bone snapped. Roaring in pain, it looked up to where Lindle was on the outcropping, its eyes snapping onto the egg he was still holding.


    She gave him a thumbs up. ¡°Softened it up for you partner!¡±


    Lindle stared at her, she looked back unrepentantly without changing expression.

 Chapter 19: Red Handed

    The zmey roared in fury as it started rushing towards Lindle. If Madam Holly hadn¡¯t broken the forelimb attached to the wing he was sure it would have flown for him and he would really have been screwed, but at the very least he had a few moments before it climbed up to him.


    He supposed that was the point, this was a test, at least it was Madam Holly¡¯s idea of one. If she hadn¡¯t blown away all the snow he might have had a chance to just sneak away with an egg without risking a fight, but she also injured it, giving him a chance. Well fine, if she wanted him to prove he could handle himself when face to face with a monster even as a crafter, he¡¯d play along. Of course, however, he wouldn¡¯t play fair.


    Lindle stuffed the egg into his alchemy pouch and pulled out some alchemist¡¯s fire. Concentrating on his Mana Points, Lindle cast [Levitate] on himself. He tossed the potion into the nest and pushed off the outcropping floating backwards into the open air. As the zmey crested the ledge, it scrambled towards him, but he floated out of reach of both head¡¯s bites.


    One of its head turned to inspect its nest and the bottle he had left inside it. Smiling, Lindle cast [Produce Ember], taking the ball of spellfire that appeared in his palm and throwing it. The head that had still been focused on him jerked backward in alarm and moved out of the way, but it wasn¡¯t Lindle¡¯s target.


    The spellfire hit the nest and the potion ignited. Empowered by Lindle¡¯s [Alchemical Bomber] feat, a massive fireball washed over the monster. The head poking its face into the nest was now mostly a charred mess as burns covered its face and neck, as both heads roared in even more pain.


    Lindle pulled out two potions, a Mana potion, and a frost resistance potion, taking both in quick succession. Casting a tier 2 and a tier 1 spell one after the other had left Lindle with only 5 mana points. He had taken a lot of potions today, and he would be reaching dangerous levels of toxicity soon, but he was an alchemist¡¯s son and apprentice with giant blood, he had a higher tolerance than even some adventurers.


    The uninjured head snarled as Lindle drifted further out of reach, it couldn¡¯t fly to him and maul him like Lindle knew it wanted to, so when it started sucking in air, Lindle readied himself and crossed his arms to protect his head. The zmey¡¯s frost breath washed over him, stinging shards of ice cutting him alongside the deeply chilling air, causing masses of ice to grow over his body, but the frost resistance potion protected him as planned. What Lindle didn¡¯t plan, however, was to start sinking back towards the ground.


    Lindle looked down in panic as zmey crowed in triumph and rushed at him. The ice! They hadn¡¯t been on his body when he cast the spell, so they still weighed him down. It wasn¡¯t a lot, but any weight added to his body was enough to bring him back down with [Levitate] unlike the superior [Fly] spell.


    Lindle touched down on the snowy ground at the same time as the zmey, the monster scrambling for him. Fumbling in his pouch he pulled out a potion and pouch of smoke powder. He closed his eyes and slammed the pouch into the ground, the smoke bomb obscuring him from view as the monster dived into the cloud. Lindle rolled out of the way as the zmey barreled past him.


    It started looking for him as Lindle winded up the potion in his other hand. He couldn¡¯t see any better than the monster, but it was close enough for his Ethos sense to tell him where it was. He used [Throw] and smashed the potion against its flank. It roared again, it was probably going to launch another frost breath, which would blow away the smoke, but it started gagging.


    Normally the kind of poison Lindle had used would need to be ingested to work, it was actually used as a purging agent while diluted, but his [Alchemical Bomber] feat didn¡¯t care about that He wished it good luck trying to use a breath attack while violently ill.


    It was a little more vicious than Lindle liked being, and it was only defending its egg, but if he couldn¡¯t take out his frustrations on Madam Holly a monster was a convenient stand-in.


    The monster was lashing out wildly now, and Lindle had to keep backing up to avoid its claws and two sets of teeth. It was certainly much faster than him, but between all its injuries and being blinded he was managing to keep up, especially weighing practically nothing with [Levitate] still active, but he would be forced to leave the cloud soon where it would see him.


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    It got lucky with one of its swipes across Lindle¡¯s arm, knocking him away and making him spin several times through the air. Lindle hurriedly canceled [Levitate] and landed on his feet, skidding to a stop now he didn¡¯t weigh as much as a feather. He was out of the cloud now and having felt the impact, the zmey followed him. It stared him down as it approached, this time not charging mindlessly.


    It hurt and sick, but it was getting wise to his tricks. Zmeys were considered one of the stupidest of the draconoids, but as a whole, the creature type was smarter than most other monsters. The burned head looked at him hatefully, it probably had taken a huge chunk of its HP to keep itself functioning with all that damage, which gave him an idea.


    Lindle cast [Produce Ember] again, and both heads locked on to the flame in his hands and paused, likely remembering the fireball from earlier. Without alchemist¡¯s fire, he couldn¡¯t do nearly as much damage with a tier 1 utility spell as he had, but the zmey didn¡¯t know that. He subtly reached down into his pouch once more and brought out a boosting potion. Not needing to check for what he was looking for was very handy.


    He reared back and threw the ball of flame high, and as both heads followed it, for the first time Lindle closed the distance himself. He squeezed the strength-boosting potion in his hand until it shattered, the effects applying to him through his skin. Lindle might have preferred to stay back out of danger, but after the dungeon and deciding he wanted to join his friends in the raid, he didn¡¯t want to be useless in a fight again, and the simplest solution he had come up with for a way to contribute when everything else would be wasteful or get in the way, was to just be prepared to get his own hands dirty and hit the problem. Every Health Point mattered.


    Lindle gathered his Aura in his fist and activated his least used Technique, [Power Strike]. His empowered fist slammed into the burned head, sucker-punching it. The head whipped back and flew to the ground, not getting back up. The other head snaked in to bite him, and Lindle raised an arm to catch it, fangs biting down on his arm. He screamed in pain and raised a foot, activating [Power Strike] again and stomping down on its broken forelimb. It released his arm as it screamed too.


    Lindle took a step back and held his arm wincing. It didn¡¯t feel broken, but no matter what, this thing had levels and he didn¡¯t, any injury it landed was going to cost a lot of HP. He didn¡¯t want to take another healing potion just yet, he was too close and running close to his limit. The zmey started to approach, but it swayed and gagged. Fighting through heavy nausea via poison after losing half its brain power had taken its toll.


    Taking advantage Lindle swung again. Unlike Mana Lindle had plenty of Aura to use [Power Strike] again and again. He focused his punches on its head over and over. It clawed at him, but its muscles lacked the strength to push him away or do more than scratch him, so he just kept punching. He fell into a haze, focusing on nothing but killing the monster in front of him.


    He didn¡¯t know how long it was when he stopped mid-punch, no more Aura to fuel his technique. He looked down at the monster he had been kneeling over, it¡¯s head a battered mess, already dead. Lindle backed away and sat back in the snow, breathing heavily as he looked up into the sky. He held up a hand and looked at the blood covering it.


    He grimaced, this was another reason why he had no desire to lean into the advantages of his giant heritage. He probably would have made for a fantastic barbarian, it had been one of the giant classes that had been offered to him for a reason, but he absolutely hated the lack of awareness that came with the haze of a fight once he was close and personal. But it had been useful here, as long as Lindle got to spend most of his time submerging himself in the wonders of crafting and not bloodshed, he would grit his teeth and do what he needed to do to survive when it happened.


    Looking back down, he saw Madam Holly leaning over the zmey corpse. She whistled. ¡°Impressive job. I didn¡¯t expect all that there at the end considering how much you seem to like your little tricks, but I suppose even brainiacs like you crafters can see the use in a good beating. I would be a bit more careful with your crafting materials though, usually, you tend to want them to be in better shape after you get them.¡±


    Lindle groaned and got to his feet, all the cuts on his body and his arm aching. He reached into his satchel and pulled out the egg, thankfully unharmed. ¡°I kept it safe.¡± He hadn¡¯t found any other eggs in the nest, he didn¡¯t have much time once the zmey had seen him, so if there were when he blew them up it would be a shame, but the one had should be enough for the purposes of the rite.


    Madam Holly chuckled. ¡°You thought I meant a measly egg?¡± She gestured to the zmey corpse next to her. ¡°I would argue an entire zmey¡¯s worth of materials is worth a lot more than their eggs. Heads are a bit of a mess but it¡¯s mostly in one piece, so I think you¡¯ve done enough to count as far as material collection goes.¡±


    Lindle closed his eyes and held his face in a hand. ¡°You said I was supposed to collect a magical object.¡±


    She smiled. ¡°A monster corpse is a magic object.¡±


    So if he had just taken the egg and ran to safety she probably would have turned him around and made him fight it anyway. Lindle sighed.


    Madam Holly clapped her hands. ¡°Alrighty, let¡¯s drag this puppy home!¡±

 Chapter 20: Flow

    Thankfully Madam Holly didn¡¯t immediately force Lindle to drag the zmey corpse all the way home. After pointing out how late it would get if they ran for another several hours back, his injured state with low HP and nearing potion toxicity, she had mercifully conceded that they would be better off setting up camp and heading back in the morning.


    Most rites took course over multiple nights anyway, Madam Holly had joked ¡°It might be seen as odd for us to come back without spending a single night out in the cold. They might think we failed!¡± Speaking with a grin, amused at the idea that people would think that a high-level Veteran would fail a trial meant for children. Lindle doubted most people in Glacerhine even knew that they were out on their milestone rite, Lindle had only told his friends and family. The other elders would know obviously, though Lindle wondered if Madam Holly had told anyone else. She did mention a husband, perhaps he would be at the after-ceremony.


    Lindle set up camp while Madam Holly constructed an ice box to put the corpse inside for the night. She simply ripped out and shaped some stone from the outcropping where it had made its nest with her hands and filled it with snow.


    ¡°Shame you poisoned it, we could have had some draconic meat for dinner. We¡¯ll have a Butcher remove it and eat it for the ceremony instead.¡± She said casually as she stuffed the zmey¡¯s body into the icebox.


    Lindle nodded as he tried to start the fire, both of their tents ready behind them. Chip wasn¡¯t with them this time and he didn¡¯t want to waste Mana, so he was using a flint and steel. He grumbled to himself as he failed to hit the right spot to make the sparks land in the firewood. Dexterity was his second lowest stat, he never managed to raise it above 3 despite years of alchemy practice, just average. He simply wasn¡¯t as precise with his hands, too thick and large. He could only hope that once he started gaining stats from levels instead of natural development Artificer would provide a decent amount. Crafting classes usually did as far as Lindle knew.


    Madam Holly hummed and watched him struggle as she sat down on the other side of the fire pit. She didn¡¯t offer help, which he was grateful for. She was amused for sure, he could see it on her face, but at least she didn¡¯t insist on making it worse. When he eventually got the fire going and sat back in the snow she hummed again.


    ¡°So, not a big fan of zmey¡¯s? A bad experience with an ambush or something?¡±


    ¡°Huh?¡± Lindle looked up at her. ¡°No not really, never even saw one up close before today.¡±


    She raised an eyebrow. ¡°Really? I could have sworn you were doing your best impression of a berserker rage back there. I said I admired the hustle, but I don¡¯t think rage training is something most crafters learn, up until then you were doing pretty much what I expected one do to do in a fight.¡±


    She was referring to the training some of the prospective barbarian classtakers took growing up. Anger was a powerful thing, if someone was planning to lean into theirs for the rest of their life in a fight then the village martial instructors taught them how to access it more readily as well as control it. Eventually, they would be able to mix it with their Aura into their muscles to push past the limits of their physical stats to [Rage]. His giant blood meant he could do the first part of slipping into it quickly naturally, but not with any of the control, lucky him.


    ¡°Yeah¡­ no I¡¯m not trained in that, it¡¯s just something that happens. I try to keep my distance in a fight usually.¡±


    She tapped her chin and grinned. ¡°I know some pretty good [Rage] techniques that could come in handy for you.¡±


    He grimaced. ¡°I would prefer to not get so angry in the first place. I hate how I feel when it happens, I would much rather be able to keep myself under control.¡±


    She tilted her head. ¡°Control huh?¡± She seemed to consider something for a few seconds, glancing at his hands. ¡°In that case, how about a technique that¡¯ll help you do that and give you more time to think in a fight?¡±


    Lindle blinked, suddenly a lot more interested.


    She grinned, reading his face. ¡°I thought so. It¡¯s called [Flow]. You can think of it almost like the inverse of a [Rage] technique. I learned it from a wayfarer from across the ocean.¡± Lindle noted that she used the term wayfarer like the Soarians did.


    ¡°What tier is it?¡± Lindle asked. ¡°I¡¯ve learned some tier 1s before.¡±


    ¡°You know tier 2 spells but not any tier 2 techniques? With your Aura reserves?¡± She sighed dramatically. ¡°It¡¯s only tier 2, so hopefully it won¡¯t take you too long to learn. We have time to kill.¡±


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    Well, of course, it was only tier 2 to her, with her levels she probably knew tier 7 techniques, but at least it wasn¡¯t tier 3. That was the real first leap in difficulty.


    ¡°The first thing you¡¯ll want to do is draw out your Aura points up from your pool and into your brain. [Flow] is a sustained technique so don¡¯t just take the pattern and use up all the points at once.¡± Madam Holly proceeded to instruct Lindle on how to form the pattern of points. Pushing his Aura to stimulate his mind and perception. When [Flow] was active, she told him that it would slow Lindle¡¯s perception of time and enhance his sense of clarity. With enough proficiency in it, she told him it was possible to overclock the technique and cause everything to seem still while he thought.


    ¡°I use it sometimes to think up good insults mid-conversation with Elder Fogarious.¡± She snickered.


    They continued the practice as the moon started dimming in the sky. Luckily the weather had been clear, Lindle didn¡¯t want to experience a storm while high up in the mountains. He didn¡¯t spot any monsters either, though if it was because of Madam Holly or that they were inside the dead zmey¡¯s territory he wasn¡¯t sure. There was no sign of its mate either, but there were weird rumors about zmey mating habits, so he didn¡¯t know if its absence was normal or not.


    Lindle¡¯s large Aura pool meant he could throw a lot of points at practicing the technique over and over, taking rests to eat and let his pools refill and injuries heal. It was more expensive as a tier 2 in terms of points, but since he wasn¡¯t managing to activate and pay the overtime cost of keeping it active and just attempting to form the initial portion he could manage. He had felt like he was getting a pretty good grip on it several hours in as the moon started the dim before Madam Holly paused mid-sentence and looked towards the cliff they, well actually, Lindle climbed up.


    He stopped trying to form the technique and looked as well. ¡°What is it?¡±


    Madam Holly didn¡¯t say anything for several seconds as she looked at the cliff edge before a small grin spread across her face. ¡°Why don¡¯t you go take a look over the side of the cliff Lindle?¡±


    He narrowed his eyes. ¡°Why?¡±


    ¡°You can¡¯t expect a frail old lady like myself to go and be checking over the sides of suspicious cliffs when a strapping young dragon slayer such as yourself is here with me.¡±


    He didn¡¯t budge. ¡°First of all, zmey slayer, you could get me roasted for implying anything else, and second of all, why is it suspicious.¡±


    She shrugged and popped a ration into her mouth. ¡°Old lady hunch.¡±


    He sat still for several more seconds, but it was clear she wasn¡¯t going to say anything more. Lindle sighed and got up, heading for the cliff. If she had sensed something and was making him go look it probably wasn¡¯t dangerous. He paused. Wait, no, she would definitely send him if it was something dangerous like a monster. He rephrased in his head, she wouldn¡¯t send him if it was anything likely to eat him before she could get a good laugh in and then save him. He started walking more quietly.


    He activated his Ethos sense as he crept closer, but he didn¡¯t get anything. The Ethos of things like people or monsters didn¡¯t seem to radiate as far as other kinds of magical objects as it seemed from his inability to notice the zmey earlier, but it was worth a shot.


    He got on his knees, ready to spring back with a potion ready, as he poked his head over the side of the cliff and looked down. What he was expecting to see was some kind of monster climbing up, maybe a dire mountain goat, those were terrifying. What he did see, however, was very different from a mountain goat, though to him probably more dangerous. A teenage girl.


    ¡°Thalia?¡± He shouted down towards the girl climbing up the cliff.


    She looked up in surprise. He recognized her from among his former classmates. Thalia was almost two years older than him but still a lot shorter, with straight black hair going down her back and amber eyes in the mask-like marking on her face. Her raccoon tail swayed in the wind behind her. She was wearing warm clothing with symbols of various animals and spirits over them.


    He hadn¡¯t seen Thalia much ever since her own milestone rite, the two of them didn¡¯t interact much when they had lessons together. If he could remember correctly she had been learning magic and wanted to become one of the druids. Judging by the necklace with the circles mark around her neck she had succeeded.


    ¡°Lindle!¡± She sighed in relief. ¡°Thank the gods you¡¯re still alive.¡±


    Lindle reached down a hand and she grabbed it, letting him help her the rest of the way up. ¡°What do you mean still alive? I¡¯m fine, I was with Madam Holly.¡±


    ¡°Exactly! When I heard you were going with her for the milestone rite I got worried and followed your trail all the way out here. Are you okay, has she made you do anything crazy?¡±


    Lindle blinked. ¡°Oh. Well, it wasn¡¯t pleasant, still healing up from fighting a zmey, but I¡¯m alright. We¡¯re going to go back in the morning. How did you even know about it?¡±


    Thalia spread out her hands and cast a spell, soft green light washing over Lindle''s body. He felt the injuries that hadn¡¯t healed yet close up as his HP refilled. ¡°She wouldn¡¯t stop talking about it, she was giddy about it for the last two days.¡±


    Linde¡¯s face bunched up in confusion. The two of them heard footsteps in the snow next to them before he could say anything, looking over to see Madam Holly smiling cheekily at them both.


    ¡°How sweet of you to show so much concern my dear Thalia. I feel flattered by your confidence in me.¡±


    Thalia huffed as she looked up at her. ¡°Hello, Grandma.¡±


    Grandma?

 Chapter 21: Grandma

    Lindle looked between the two women in confusion. Observing their faces side by side he could see some resemblance, but between the raccoon mask on Thalia¡¯s and wrinkles on Madam Holly¡¯s, it was subtle.


    Madam Holly had mentioned a husband on their first meeting, but with her personality, he had never considered she would be a mother, let alone a grandmother! Lindle looked at Thalia with a sudden burst of sympathy, the change in his expression causing both of them to look at him.


    Thalia sighed, but Madam Holly¡¯s smile grew even wider. The woman truly had no shame. She turned around and walked back to their fire. ¡°Come! Join us for dinner.¡±


    Lindle and Thalia exchanged looks before standing. ¡°Thanks for the healing magic, and for coming to check on me.¡± He thanked her.


    ¡°It¡¯s fine, I wouldn¡¯t have known what to do with myself if I didn¡¯t at least try to help. I still have nightmares about when she took me out for ¡®survival training¡¯. She shivered to herself.


    "I mean, like I said, it sucked, but I wasn¡¯t in any real danger¡­ right?¡±


    Thalia hesitated. ¡°I mean, at least not any permanent danger?¡± She said that in a concerningly uncertain tone. ¡°Permanent physical danger.¡± She said with a bit more confidence.


    ¡°That¡¯s very reassuring. If it makes you feel better I think I¡¯m past the worst of it.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, you said something about fighting a zmey?¡±


    ¡°Yeah. It was pretty rough, but Madam Holly crippled it before setting it loose on me.¡±


    Thalia winced apologetically. ¡°Sorry I didn¡¯t get here sooner.¡±


    Lindle waved her off. ¡°You¡¯ve already done your rite, this is all weird enough, but at least I want to pass it in a way that counts if I can¡¯t do it normally.¡±


    ¡°I could¡¯ve tried to convince her to do something a little less crazy than dragging you out into the mountains to fight a monster.¡±


    He raised an eyebrow. ¡°Successfully?¡±


    She sighed. ¡°Probably not. Honestly, it sounds like she was taking it easy on you. She picks people to mess with, or ¡®train¡¯ occasionally, usually only after they¡¯ve gotten a few levels though. I¡¯ve seen her do worse when she knows they can survive it.¡±


    Thalia tilted her head in curiosity, a look of realization on her face. ¡°Usually it has to do a lot more with their class though, I thought you wanted to be a crafter, an alchemist or something?¡±


    Lindle and Thalia hadn¡¯t been close enough for her to know about the troubles he had in getting said class, but everyone¡¯s class goals had been public enough in their school group. He wasn¡¯t going to be an alchemist anymore, but he wasn¡¯t going to correct her about the assumption, everyone who knew about Artificer had decided that letting everyone believe he was going to be an Alchemist would be the easiest cover story.


    ¡°Pretty much. This is apparently a kind of test to see if I can ¡®gather my own crafting materials.¡¯


    Thalia rolled her eyes. ¡°Grandma can spin anything into a reason for fighting monsters. I¡¯m pretty sure the only reason she decided to become an elder is so she can fight the Apexes every migration.¡±


    That made sense, nothing about her had really seemed the wise leader type.


    They started walking to the fire, where Madam Holly looked at them both cheerfully, popping more rations into her mouth. Lindle was certain if she had been able to sense and identify Thalia as she climbed up the cliff she had to have heard everything they had talked about, but Thalia didn¡¯t seem concerned about it so Lindle didn¡¯t comment on it.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry to have wasted your time dear granddaughter, if I knew you wanted to come along to watch I would have brought you along with me, I¡¯m sure Lindle wouldn¡¯t have minded the extra weight.¡±


    Thalia looked at him questioningly and Lindle sighed. ¡°She made me carry her the entire way here.¡±


    Thalia¡¯s eyes light up in realization. ¡°So that¡¯s why there was only one set of tracks.¡±


    Lindle paused and looked at Madam Holly in alarm. ¡°You aren¡¯t going to make me carry you and her back, are you? I¡¯m almost out of Aura potions.¡±


    Madam Holly slowly grinned and Lindle started to sweat before Madam Holly burst out chuckling. ¡°No, I think we¡¯ll travel back on our own feet. Really what kind of grandmother do you think I am, letting a young man carry my precious granddaughter in his arms for hours.¡±


    Both Lindle and Thalia blushed and before he could protest about saying anything carrying her in his arms Madam Holly laughed again. ¡°You¡¯ll be occupied carrying your prize anyways.¡± She pointed back at the icebox holding the zmey corpse. He had almost forgotten about it. Even at a normal pace if he had to carry something definitely several times Madam Holly¡¯s weight down the mountain¡­ Lindle groaned and fell back into the snow. Thalia reached over and pat his shoulder sympathetically.


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    The rest of the night was spent with them finishing their dinner and Madam Holly taking Thalia aside to talk among themselves, Lindle taking the opportunity to squeeze in some more training with [Flow]. By the time Madam Holly had declared it was time to rest he had felt like he might be able to partially activate its effects, but it had yet to appear in his status, meaning the system didn¡¯t think he had truly learned it yet.


    As the most well-rested Madam Holly had taken the first watch, telling Lindle he would have the last watch, which his exhausted body was thankful for. Thinking back to the dungeon, Lindle realized the adventurers hadn¡¯t set watches, perhaps Dorothea or Chip had spells set to act as an alarm, or perhaps Chip¡¯s magic kept them protected somehow, Lindle recalled from one of the Soarian priests that certain gods such as Hestia or Hermes were able to grant blessings that created safe havens when resting. Lindle¡¯s sore body certainly missed Chip''s magic now, Thalia¡¯s healing had filled up his HP but it lacked the soothing and strengthening effect the high-level cleric''s spells had.


    The night passed without incident, and in the morning Thalia helped Lindle strap the icebox containing the zmey to his back by summoning some vines.


    ¡°Forgot to mention it last night, but congratulations on joining the circle.¡± Lindle gestured to the necklace. The druid circle were the most powerful spellcasters in Glacerhine and tended to only take people with the most talent for druidic magic.


    Lindle was a fair hand at puzzling out the mindsets and Mana point shapes required for most spells even without a lot of Mana to work with, but even the basic tier 1 druid spells taught in class had stumped him. Ironically enough this had surprised his mother, who had told him that most giants apparently had an affinity for nature magic when he told her about lessons that day. It had killed some of his enthusiasm for learning it afterward, but being good enough to join the circle and gain the right class for it was still admirable.


    Thalia smiled. ¡°Thank you. It was tough but I think it was worth it.¡± She looked at her summoned vines proudly. ¡°Something about it just feels right.¡±


    Lindle nodded. ¡°I get what you mean, I¡¯ve been preparing to take my first level for the past few months, I can¡¯t wait for it to happen.¡±


    ¡°The other girls always did talk about how much you were into making things.¡±


    Lindle raised an eyebrow. ¡°They did? Why?¡±


    Thalia looked away and shrugged. ¡°You came up in conversation often enough, I don¡¯t really remember the reason.¡±


    That seemed like concerning information, Lindle wasn¡¯t sure he wanted to know now. He changed the subject back to her new status. ¡°What is it like being in the circle? I¡¯ve never really talked with any of the druids before.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s really interesting! I¡¯m still an apprentice so it¡¯s mostly instruction and seeing where I want to specialize with my journeyman class before I can take on any official duties. I¡¯ve been helping raise the latest wolf litter!¡± She smiled fondly. ¡°Do you have any plans for when you get your class?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s sounds great. For me¡­ well I¡¯m still going to train with my mom for a while¡­ but I was thinking I might leave and push my path. Be a wayfarer.¡±


    Thalia frowned. ¡°Really? You¡¯re leaving Glacerhine?¡±


    Lindle nodded. ¡°Yeah, I made some friends with some adventurers, when the whole dungeon raid thing is over they said they were willing to help me out.¡±


    ¡°Huh¡­ I guessed I just assumed you¡¯d probably take over your mom''s shop. If that¡¯s what you want to do I¡¯m sure you¡¯ll do fine.¡±


    Before either of them could continue talking they heard Madam Holly shout to them from near the cliff. ¡°Hurry it up! I¡¯m not getting any younger!¡±


    Sighing, the two of them joined her and started down the cliff. Lindle had been right in that the extra weight of the ice and corpse on his back was worse than carrying a small elderly woman, but at least he was doing the worst part of the journey at the beginning and they were going down instead of up.


    He kept his Aura use to a minimum, only using [Trek] as he scrambled down. Madam Holly obviously did the entire journey effortlessly, mostly concerning herself with scaring off any monsters. The zmey he had fought was a weak tier 1 monster compared to most of the inhabitants of the mountains, he wondered how she had picked out the location of its nest ahead of time.


    What had really captured his attention was how Thalia traveled down the mountain. Even compared to Lindle with no levels she probably didn¡¯t have much more strength and Aura to use for psychical activities as a Druid, so instead of relying on her body, she used one of her Druid Skills, wildshape.


    At apprentice tier, she couldn¡¯t turn into truly powerful beasts, but Lindle was still surprised at seeing her transform into a snow leopard, it being the first time he had seen a druid transform up close. Full body transformations were usually the work of high-tier spells, wildshaping being the most famous exception he knew of.


    Druids seemed pretty unfair now that he thought about it, being able to completely ignore their weak physical stats by turning into beasts while still retaining the power of a fully dedicated spellcaster. Of course, Thalia couldn¡¯t do both at the same time, but he knew after she leveled up in the future her power would likely be fearsome.


    He watched her leopard form climb down the mountain with feline grace as Lindle struggled with a massive weight, feeling fairly jealous. At least druids couldn¡¯t also intrude on his domain as a crafter¡­ He had heard rumors of some being able to do alchemy by growing their own magic herbs¡­ okay so his domain with Artificing was safe, that was something at least.


    A few hours later they were down the mountain. They moved at a much more manageable but still grueling pace back to Glacerhine. He had hoped Madam Holly would show consideration with her granddaughter here, but she had been as much of a slave driver to her as she had to him.


    Eventually, Lindle and Thalia were both panting on their hands and knees inside the gate, safely back in Glacerhine. Thalia had run out of charges for her wildshape skill an hour ago and had needed to use her limited Aura reserves to keep up for the rest of the trip.


    Madam Holly grabbed the icebox off of Lindle¡¯s back and heaved it over her shoulder. ¡°Come on, we still have a ceremony to attend!¡±


    They groaned in response as the elderly evil chuckled. They stumbled to their feet and after her to Mr. Dalton¡¯s Inn.

 Chapter 22 : Steaks

    Lindle and Thalia had managed to scrape together some energy by the time the three of them walked into Mr. Dalton¡¯s Inn, the Slumbering Scale. There were no real rules for where the ceremony after people returned from their milestone rite had to take place, but when it involved most of an entire generation of people all at once and their families the only place in Glacerhine that had the room was the White Hall.


    Since the only people participating this time around were Lindle and Madam Holly however, and the hectic atmosphere at the White Hall currently, Madam Holly had instead rented out the inn instead.


    Waiting inside for them was a small crowd of people talking and lightly drinking. Of those who were there for him were Lindle¡¯s mom, Humphrey, whom he had managed to corner after inviting the adventures, said adventurers, including Theodore, who must have returned from his quest and accepted the invitation since Lindle left. He didn¡¯t spot Nothing, but the homunculus could just be hidden away somewhere where they could watch.


    The only other person he recognized by face was Mr. Dalton, who was playing host behind his bar. The red-scaled lizard beastman was a former adventurer who had settled down in Glacerhine after meeting his wife. The rest of the invitees were a mix of humans and raccoon beastman he assumed were his self-proclaimed ¡®partners¡¯ family.


    The last person in the room wasn¡¯t really an invitee, but one of the other elders here to officiate them having passed the rite, an older human man holding a staff with a thick blue crystal as it¡¯s head and wearing ornately decorated robes that marked him as a shaman. Not having been engaging in conversation, they were the first to notice the three of them. Madam Holly shot him a lopsided grin, the shaman giving her a resigned look back. He coughed and thumped the butt of his staff against the ground to get everyone¡¯s attention.


    The conversation filling the inn trailed off as everyone turned to look at them. Seeing their gazes Thalia awkwardly shuffled to the side, waving to him as she went to join her family. They all gave her a quick look over, audible sighs of relief echoed from the family as they saw checking in on grandma hadn¡¯t resulted in anything more than exhaustion.


    Lindle shot a look at Madam Holly, who didn¡¯t seem bothered by the reputation she had in her own family. They stood as a pair in front of the shaman, who started the ceremony.


    ¡°Have you completed the trial set for you?¡±


    ¡°Yes, we-¡± Lindle said before Madam Holly gleefully dropped the icebox to the ground with a thump, opening it up and showing the balled-up zmey corpse to the elder and the group of people behind him.


    ¡°Yes! Lindle did very well as you can see, I helped.¡± She repeated proudly.


    Lindle closed his eyes, leaned over, and slowly closed the lid of the box displaying the proof of their completion. Lindle¡¯s mom and friends looked confused, but Madam Holly¡¯s family looked unphased.


    The shaman sighed to himself, saying nothing for several seconds before continuing. ¡°Very well, then you have both proved yourselves as capable of thriving in the wilds of the Glacial Reach as a member of our community. I, Elder Galeomin, with my authority as an elder, will pronounce you having passed your Milestone Rites.¡±


    Taking out a set of pendants, he walked up to each of them. His expression was resigned as he put the first around Madam Holly¡¯s neck, but it softened when he walked up to Lindle. ¡°Congratulations young man. For once I am glad for her meddling, that it has allowed you to receive what should have been guaranteed to you.¡± He spoke in a low tone of voice as he put the pendant around his neck. Lindle nodded, a bit awkwardly, but gratefully. Despite everything and his future plans, Lindle was happy he got to experience this.


    He felt a sudden tingling at the back of his mind as the system alerted him. Blinking in surprise he looked around, as both Madam Holly and Elder Galeomin nodded expectantly. He opened his status.


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    You have received 1 point of Charisma!


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    Hunter Gatherer (Feat)


    This novel''s true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there.


    You have proved your battle prowess when in pursuit of fueling your craft. When you are fighting against a guardian or protector of something you intend to use as crafting material, you will receive the [Resourceful Hunter] buff. You will also not harm or reduce the quality of the material you intend to collect unintentionally.


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    A new stat point was unexpected, it would probably be the last point he would gain from natural development before getting his class, he hadn¡¯t expected it to be for charisma either. Did he get it because of an increase in cultural standing? Charisma was a strange stat, the one Lindle probably understood the least. The shamans had explained that Charisma had an effect on how willfully he could control his soul and move it in tune with his actions, which had an effect on his ability to interact with other souls. Lindle didn¡¯t really get it, but essentially it was a stat, at least in part, that functioned relative to others and not just himself.


    As for the feat, well, it looked like Madam Holly had hit her goal right on the mark. It was a feat that encouraged Lindle to go out and find his own crafting materials by hand. He would need to experiment with what exactly it could do though. That would have to wait for later though, as now that the ceremony was over, there was still a celebration to get to.


    Lindle closed his status and Elder Galeomin stepped away. Around them, everyone cheered and started a round of applause. Lindle blushed and smiled as Dorothea gave a loud whoop, while Madam Holly received the applause more theatrically with exaggerated bows towards her family, but Lindle thought she seemed genuinely happy to have finally gone through with it. Even with what she said about it not being a big deal to her, Lindle suspected it was still a happy moment for her.


    She turned to Lindle and put a hand on his shoulder. ¡°Congratulations partner. Go on and enjoy yourself.¡± She picked up the icebox and called out to Mr. Dalton challengingly, placing it on the table. ¡°Got some dinner for you to cook! Zmey meat should be an interesting challenge for you, if you¡¯re up for it.¡±


    The innkeeper looked inside before wolfishly smiling. ¡°You¡¯re the one paying, I won¡¯t say no if you also want to provide the food.¡±


    ¡°Make sure to remove the poison in it and try and pack up all the valuable parts for the kid over there when you got the meat sorted.¡± Madam Holly looked back at him cheekily. ¡°My bad, not a kid anymore.¡±


    Lindle waved her off as he walked up to his mom. ¡°Neither are you!¡± Madam Holly started laughing as his mom pulled him into a big hug that he happily returned, around them the adventures and Humphrey gave him congratulations and pats on the back.


    They delved into the festivities, a bit of music beginning to play from somewhere Lindle couldn¡¯t source as he shared everything that happened with on the rite. Telling them of the grueling trek and the fight with the zmey. He also didn¡¯t bother to hold back his thoughts on Madam Holly, the adventurers nodding knowingly as their guesses and theories on the nature of the high-level elderly had been backed up.


    ¡°So?¡± Humphrey asked. ¡°How does it feel? Feel all grown up now?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t feel that much different honestly.¡± Lindle shrugged. He really wasn¡¯t sure what he expected, there was a literal tangible difference since he gained a stat point, but all he was really feeling was his sore muscles. ¡°Maybe when I become 15 I¡¯ll really feel it, with my class and all.¡±


    Everyone around him laughed. His mother most of all in particular. ¡°Yeah, it¡¯ll feel different, but you¡¯re not going to feel like an adult for a long time yet even then.¡± She said. His mom looked around wistfully. ¡°I can¡¯t tell if your leaving is going to make that happen sooner or later, people here need to grow up a lot sooner than where I did, but clearly that didn¡¯t matter much to her.¡± She pointed to Madam Holly who was dancing with an old raccoon beastman, she was pulling him around but he had a wide grin on his face to match hers.


    She continued. ¡°I think making your own way is going to matter a lot more than you think, but I know you can handle it. Either way though, you¡¯re still always going to be my son¡±


    There were a few lighthearted jeers as more drinks were brought out. Laughter and chatter filled the air as the evening wore on.


    Once people had separated back into individual conversations again he had discreetly asked his mom where Nothing was. She pulled out a small black lantern with tinted glass hiding the inside on a hook, telling him they had managed to build a little alchemical lantern and squirrel him away inside. It wouldn¡¯t produce any smoke and was a lot more subtle than a torch or casting spell. It was off for now but Lindle could take Nothing with him and turn it on to have a conversation away from where everyone could see.


    Thanking her Lindle did just that, excusing himself to go to the restroom and switching on the lantern once he was in the side hall out of sight. Nothing woke up swiftly.


    Lindle! I take it you¡¯ve completed your ceremony? Congratulations.


    ¡°Thank you. I¡¯m sorry you couldn¡¯t see it.¡±


    It¡¯s alright, I don¡¯t need to, I can feel how you feel about it. That¡¯s more than anyone else gets to commemorate the occasion with you. It¡¯s wonderful that I can join you even now as I am.


    ¡°Well don¡¯t worry, soon enough you¡¯ll be finished and we won¡¯t need to carry a fire around whenever we want to talk.¡± He said.


    I¡¯m looking forward to it. But for now, this is your night, go, have fun, maybe take a nap, you feel very tired. Actually, really tired, and sore too. What did she do to you?


    Lindle laughed and shared the story again with his friend until Mr. Dalton announced that the zmey steaks were ready. Bidding Nothing bye he turned off the lantern and joined everyone to eat.


    It was very delicious.

 Chapter 23: Starting Line

    The party had lasted into the night, though Lindle¡¯s memories of it had rapidly blurred the later it had gotten after Madam Holly broke out the mead.


    Lindle couldn¡¯t really imagine his own mother challenging him to a drinking game, but apparently, Madam Holly¡¯s sons and daughter were used to it, with him and a big chunk of other guests being dragged into it. When Lindle had looked to his own mother for help she had simply checked that Chip was able to heal him if he got sick and then joined in herself.


    His shocked look had been met with a shrug and a declaration that she had been responsible as a mother for nearly 15 years, and now that her child had grown up she was free to celebrate herself. She had also whispered to him that she had already prepared a large stock of hangover cure in advance, anticipating that she¡¯d make a good number of sales tomorrow.


    Of course, the alcohol¡¯s potency was scaled to everyone¡¯s respective levels and tiers to keep things fair. He had never been one for drinking, but between his size and alchemically tested constitution, he had pushed his 3 points of Constitution further than was considered possible. He remembered lasting longer than Dorothea, Humphrey, and some of Madam Holly¡¯s sons to some very loud and raucous cheers.


    Things had gotten hazy after that, but apparently, he had bowed out a little before Rosato did and promptly passed out. He had learned that in the end it had come down to his mother and Madam Holly, with the elder winning by a shockingly small margin to her own delight.


    Lindle wasn¡¯t sure how he should feel about the fond way his mother recounted the rest of the night running rampant with the elder as she made him breakfast and a hangover cure, the idea of Madam Holly and his mom becoming friends sent a shiver down his spine.


    The looks on various people¡¯s faces who had shown up later to purchase hangover cures, proving his mom¡¯s prediction right, did not reassure him either.


    He had resettled into his routine of training with Nothing, with some added additions. Madam Holly showed up to his house a few days after the ceremony, where she had a friendly conversation with his mom and then dragged him out to the training grounds. He had assumed he would finish his training with [Flow] on his own, but she had fully burst out laughing in his face when he said so, telling him that they would be doing this every few days for the next month. No one she had decided to train ever got away with just a single off-the-cuff lesson. Even when Lindle had learned it well enough for the Technique to appear in his status screen, she had moved on to teaching him just the Technique to more¡­ practical training.


    With a non-combat class he would have practically no direct combat-oriented skills to defend himself with, so in places like the academy dungeon, being able to activate [Flow] in time could be a matter of life or death for him. Lindle had to get very used to her ambushing him and being able to activate the Technique in time, even outside of practice when he was just out of the house, using the slowed perception of time to move out of the way or block, or else he receive a sharp flick to the nose.


    It wasn¡¯t all bad though, time at the training ground meant he got to see Humphrey more often when the beastman practiced his archery Techniques, their interactions since were mostly relaxed conversations or quiet companionship during rest periods, as well as Humphrey venting about some of the adventuring parties he had taken guide jobs for. He didn¡¯t have the greatest opinion of Soarians, especially with a massive group coming in the future for the raid. Considering he was friends with the party that was responsible for that, he had mixed feelings about that, simply telling him that Rosato¡¯s group was pleasant and not much more than that.


    When Thalia showed up at the training ground with her grandmother, it was a pleasant surprise that turned to dread fast when Madam Holly told him she was there to practice healing as she helped him learn the ins and outs of [Hunter Gather]. After a bit of experimenting, they learned that they could make the feat activate if she took a magic object he could use as crafting material, a Windsworn Elk antler, and told Lindle that he could have it if he managed to get past her and grab it, essentially treating it as a prize and her as the ¡®guardian¡¯.


    Once the qualifications of the feat were met, Lindle felt he could activate the buff. Doing so had been an extremely strange experience, for both her and him. Lindle felt his awareness of her rise, meanwhile, she had told him that she felt her ability to focus on him had somehow weakened. The big thing however was that Lindle felt a large surge of power in his Str stat, more than twice that of what he felt when he drank a strength-boosting potion, and she said she had felt her¡¯s drop a slight amount.


    Lindle had opened his status to try and see if the system would share the specifics of the buffs now that it was active.


    [Resourceful Hunter]


    Levels the playing field slightly between the user and the protector. The user steals some of the protector''s primary ability and focus.


    Of course, even with the buff active, Lindle didn¡¯t manage to get past Madam Holly and snag the antler, but after Thalia healed him, she had her granddaughter take her place to try and guard the antler from him. Lindle had activated his stat and felt his Int stat, to much a lesser degree, gain more power. Thalia had then transformed into a Dire Wolf and once she had transformed, he felt the Int buff fade and be replaced by a surge in his Str stat again.


    That time Lindle had gotten much closer to grabbing the antler, but Thalia still had levels and he didn¡¯t, without any potions to help even with the buff he got pinned by a giant wolf and gave up. Thalia had said after that her Int and then Str stats had felt weakened while also reporting that it had been hard to focus on how exactly to take Lindle down.


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    One more test with Humphrey and an increase in his Dex stat later, they had determined that the feat had essentially let Lindle temporarily drain a portion of whatever the highest stat was of whoever his feat designated as the ¡®protector¡¯ of the item he wanted. It didn¡¯t seem to be a big enough percentage to beat any of them, but Madam Holly had told him that against monsters and with a group backing him up it was a powerful ability.


    Even with all the combat practice Lindle was getting now, he didn¡¯t slack for a minute on crafting. He had spent hours shaping clay, making mock versions of monsters, weapons, tools, simple statues, anything he could. He probably was singlehandedly fueling the clay market in in Glacerhine.


    He had tried to get rid of his early attempts, but his mom had taken to collecting them with Nothing¡¯s, proudly displaying them in the house and some of her clients. It was both embarrassing and yet gratifying, so he couldn¡¯t tell her to stop. According to both of them it was important to keep reminders of where you started in your craft. He did wonder what some of the people who didn¡¯t know about Artificer like Madam Holly or Thalia thought he was doing making so many sculptures when he was apparently going to be an alchemist, but there was nothing wrong with a sudden artistic passion, even so close to his first level.


    Practice with his Ethos sense had gone steadily, being able to sense the different types of Ethos hidden in his increasing stockpile of fabled items. Searching for the idea he wanted and holding the Ethos representing firmly in his mind had taken weeks of practice, but Nothing was a patient teacher and eventually, he had told Lindle he was ready. Not a moment too soon as well, because his birthday was right around the corner.


    The night before the clock ticked over into the 18th of Niopont, Lindle, Nothing, and his mom all waited in anticipation. Their house was likely one of the only ones in Glacerhine still with its lights on. Before night fell the day had been filled with friends and acquaintances stopping by and wishing him well. Even Madam Holly had been uncharacteristically serious, the moment only lasted for a few moments though before she warned him to not select the wrong class by mistake.


    For what may be the last time at level 0, Lindle opened his status sheet.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Name


    </td>


    <td>


    Lindle Kyte


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Class


    </td>


    <td>


    None


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Level


    </td>


    <td>


    0


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Health Points (HP)


    </td>


    <td>


    120/120


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Aura Points (AP)


    </td>


    <td>


    120/120


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Mana Points (MP)


    </td>


    <td>


    40/40


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Strength (Str): 5


    </td>


    <td>


    Dexterity (Dex): 3


    </td>


    <td>


    Constitution (Con):4


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Intelligence (Int): 5


    </td>


    <td>


    Charisma (Cha):3


    </td>


    <td>


    Resilience (Res): 4


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td colspan="2">


    Traits


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Bloodlines


    </td>


    <td>


    Feats


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    [Human Blood]


    </td>


    <td>


    [Apprentice Alchemist]


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    [Giant Blood]


    </td>


    <td>


    [Alchemical Bomber]


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td>


    [Ethos Attuned]


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td>


    [Hunter Gatherer]


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Skills


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    None


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Techniques learned


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Tier 1


    -[Trek]


    -[Throw]


    -[Power Strike]


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Tier 2


    -[Flow]


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Spells learned


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Tier 1


    -[Produce Ember]


    -[Ice Slick]


    -[Banish water]


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Tier 2


    -[Levitate]


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    After 3 months, it had both changed very little and changed very much. Even just a single point in Charisma represented a lot more than the expansion in his capabilities and 5 more points of Mana, and though he would have preferred giant¡¯s blood not to be there to halve it, the bloodline trait no longer was going to define him, and the first step on that path was going to start now.


    As his birthday arrived, he felt the system call out to him, a ping of attention far stronger than any he got for stat increase or feat. He went to open his class selection page, grinning to hide the spike of anxiety that suddenly, somehow, for whatever reason despite the fact that he had checked almost every day Artificer would be gone.


    But there it was, clear as the moon on a cloudless day.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Class Selection (Now Available)


    (Only the 3 rarest classes that you qualify for are available for selection).


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    - Artificer


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    - Giant Champion


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    - Jotun Shaman


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    Taking a deep breath and fighting off a million intrusive thoughts telling him he was about to mess up his future via misclick, Lindle slowly raised a finger and selected Artificer, and suddenly everything changed.

 Chapter 24: Long Night

    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    You have leveled up! Gained 1 level in the [Artificer] Class.


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Stat gains (Level 1 bonus applied): +5 Con; +3 Str; +5 Dex; +6 Int; +5 Res; +2 Cha


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    New Skill: [Artifice Crafting]


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    [Artifice Crafting] (Skill)


    You now have the capacity to shape and craft Fabled Items. Gain the ability to harvest raw Ethos from the world, shape them, and then solidify them into something new.


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    Lindle gasped deeply as he felt an overwhelming rush of energy flow through him, the power of his stats all expanding, half of them more than doubling instantly. Lindle had been told that the first level in a class always came with a big influx of stats, but he hadn¡¯t really understood the implications, how could he? He had never earned more than 1 stat point at a time before, and now he was getting multiple in every single one at once.


    He closed his eyes as he tried to wrangle the overwhelming sensation and bring it under control, ironically enough he felt his increased Resilience stat assist him, soothing the overstimulation until his mind and body began to calm. He even started drawing on the mental exercises Madam Holly taught him for [Flow], breathing deeply before eventually he felt normal again, the power flowing through him settling down into a tranquil normality.


    Lindle opened his eyes and looked at his hand, opening and closing them. He in fact, did feel surprisingly normal, the initial rush had been a lot, but now the increased power inside of him felt natural. He pressed a finger down on the table, trying to do so normally, and it didn¡¯t feel like he was pressing down with any more strength as he did before uncontrollably. In the back of his mind however, he was aware that he could, easily as breathing, draw on his Str stat and just somehow, press down more, ramping up any of his natural abilities as far as any of his increased stats allowed.


    It was a strange difference between how he had felt when his stats increased growing up, but it wasn¡¯t unpleasant, just more separate, more deliberate.


    His increased stats weren¡¯t the only changes he felt, all of his point pools had expanded dramatically. His Mana pool still was pitifully small, but it had still doubled in size. His HP and AP pools however had ballooned to containing over 200 points each, his HP nearly at 300 now. Far less mentally stimulating than the stat gains had been, but it did give him an odd feeling of an almost full stomach carrying around so many more points, each point in turn also containing more power because of his various stats.


    The last change was the quietest, his new skill, [Artifice Crafting]. It simply was a part of him now, as if he had been born with it. It wasn¡¯t like a spell or technique, where he had needed to learn and train to understand them, it felt more like [Hunter Gatherer] did when the qualifications to activate its buff were met, it was just something he could do now.


    The skill seemed to be closer to an active one than a passive one, which was odd for a crafting skill but made sense if it was something that was physically impossible for him to do without it. Activating the skill, he felt the sensation of his personal Ethos swirling in his body, similar to all the training he had done to bring it under his control, but now his Ethos did something it had never done before. It flowed inside of his body to his hands under the skin, and partially solidified. It was an invisible change to his eyes, but he could feel it with his Ethos sense.


    From the new awareness coming from the skill, Lindle could tell that what his Ethos had done would let him touch Ethos in a way he couldn¡¯t have before. He rubbed his fingers together, feeling his Ethos collide with each other when his hands touched. He reached into his pocket, searching for any loose materials he had stuffed in there, and pulled out a greenheart root, a basic ingredient for healing potions.


    Lindle focused, holding it in his palm with one hand, and with the other, he grabbed at the root with his skill. Instead of touching the physical root, his hand instead touched the root''s Ethos. Pinching it with his fingers, he pulled, dragging the Ethos out of the root.


    Lindle looked with awe as he held in between his fingers a glob of physical Ethos, the same black color as Nothing¡¯s body. Wait, Nothing.


    Lindle blinked and looked up to his Mom and Nothing looked at him with amused faces, though only Lindle would be able to read the face Nothing was making as amused. He had completely forgotten they were both there, having ignored them for several minutes.


    ¡°Having fun?¡± His mom said.


    We didn¡¯t want to interrupt you.


    Lindle blushed as they both laughed.


    This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.


    His mom wiped away a tear as she looked at him proudly. ¡°It¡¯s fine Lindle, I was the same way on my 15th birthday. It¡¯s a lot right?¡±


    He nodded, looking at his hands, seeing the black-as-night glob of Ethos in one hand, and the root in his other. The way it had changed was almost as fascinating as the raw Ethos he was holding, the greenheart root was no longer green, now a dull grey color, shriveled up and shrunken. Under his Ethos sense, it registered as completely mundane now, and when he shifted his hand, it crumbled slightly. He rubbed it with his thumb and it broke apart easily, turning into a pile of dust.


    He looked up at his mom and Nothing as the urge to keep interacting with his new skill threatened to take all of his attention again, wondering if he should stop and say something.


    His mom hid her smile with her hand, laughing again slightly. ¡°Really, don¡¯t mind us, this is a huge moment for you, enjoy it.¡±


    Lindle smiled gratefully. She held out Nothing in their lantern and placed them on the table next to Lindle. Lindle held his hands up to them to show the Ethos and dust pile.


    ¡°I did it! I harvested some Ethos from a greenheart root. Is this what happens to fabled items when they lose their Ethos?¡±


    It can depend, seems like you took out everything the root had to offer. Some items might just turn into mundane counterparts if you leave some Ethos behind for them in the future, but yes it is common for them to crumble to dust.


    Lindle tilted his head. ¡°Was I too rough with it? It came out really easily, can I just rip out the Ethos out of anything magical this way?"


    It is fine, though you shouldn¡¯t expect it to be that easy to harvest everything. The stronger the Ethos the more it will resist being taken from its material form.


    Lindle eyed the pile of dust in his palm. ¡°Should I keep this? Can it be used for anything?¡± Nothing chuckled at the question.


    You have quite literally already taken everything useful to you from it already.


    ¡°What about throwing it in a monster''s eyes?¡±


    Nothing did the equivalent of rolling their eyes and now it was Lindle¡¯s turn to chuckle, blowing the dust from his palm away and turning his attention to the small glob of Ethos in his hand. Lindle moved it around in his hand, rolling it into a ball as he felt his Ethos collide against it.


    He compared it to Nothing¡¯s body. Visually they were extremely similar, but up close he could see that Nothing¡¯s body had much more depth, his Ethos much more complex, powerful, even more developed, with subtle but varying shades of black at different points, the Ethos representing various concepts and types he couldn¡¯t fully identify. The greenheart root Ethos was infinitely simpler, a mostly homogeneous mass that carried the idea of mostly plants, with a secondary idea of healing and perhaps what he thought of as alchemy?


    What should he do with it? Really he could do anything he supposed, he was free to experiment as he pleased, the material was nothing valuable so it would be no big deal if he wasted it. Stockpiling plenty of cheap magic materials for him to gain experience with was the plan in the first place. But if he made something with it, it would be his first Artificer item ever and he wanted that to be special. He looked up and saw his mom watching the two of them. He looked at Nothing, who sent him feelings of encouragement.


    Looking back down, he began to mold the Ethos clay. Taking his own Ethos in his hands and the months of practice, he twisted it to take the shape of the life aspect, luring out the same aspected Ethos in the clay and bringing it to the forefront. He rolled it out and flattened it, creating a small disc shape. He poked a hole in the center and thickened the outside to create a ring. He took the plant aspect and modified it, shifting it slightly to the idea of wood instead of plants in general.


    He changed the shape around to make sure it wasn¡¯t lopsided or too large for a few minutes, but when he was happy, he activated the last part of his skill to solidify the Ethos.


    There was a sense of heat as the Ethos shimmered and shifted in his palm. It slowly morphed from being black and clay-like into solid wood, and once the transformation was completed, he held a small wooden ring with a green line running across its circumference.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Heartroot Ring


    Effect: When wearing the ring the wearer will receive a small boost to their natural HP regeneration and the effects of Health Potions they drink.


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    It was a success! Lindle held up the ring in triumph, smiling at the effect as it seemed to be exactly what he wanted. His mom gazed at the ring with wide eyes, her eyes moving in a way that let him know she was reading the same thing he was.


    ¡°It has a status? I¡¯ve never seen an item with a status before, the system can appraise items if you have the right skill but this is something different. It¡¯s amazing.¡± She turned to Lindle and grinned, opening her mouth to congratulate him, and froze when he held it out for her to take.


    ¡°Lindle I can¡¯t just take that, it¡¯s your first item.¡±


    He shrugged. ¡°I made it for you.¡±


    She tried to refuse, but Lindle was insistent, and eventually, his mom accepted with a sigh, putting it on her finger and looking at it before shaking her head.


    ¡°Well, I still think you should keep it for yourself, but thank you. What now? I¡¯m assuming you aren¡¯t just going to head off to bed now are you?¡±


    ¡°Nope! Too much to do for that now! I got to test a lot more things out.¡±Lindle grinned wildly, picking up Nothing¡¯s lantern as he started moving swiftly to his workshop.


    ¡°I thought so.¡± His mom said behind, sighing and looking at the ring, tilting her head and looking at it closer, she hummed to herself curiously. She took out a health potion and looked at it for a few more seconds, before turning around to head to her alchemy lab. ¡°Me too.¡±

 Chapter 25: Early Artificing

    Lindle was a whirlwind as he jumped between different shelves and cases in his workshop, unsure just where to start with as the growing pile of materials and preserved reagents on his work table grew.


    Nothing watched him, amusement emanating from their goopy form as their small head followed him back and forth.


    Calm down Lindle. Remember to start small.


    Lindle stopped with a sheepish grin. ¡°Sorry, just excited.¡± He looked around. He¡¯d been stockpiling anything he could sense Ethos in for the last few months, but now that he finally had his class, instead of rows of scales, hides, herbs, and feathers, he saw an endless amount of magic items.


    He let out a deep breath, he couldn¡¯t get ahead of himself. He had been an Artificer for less than an hour and he was acting like he was a master craftsman ready to outfit an army. Like Nothing said, start small.


    He took a seat at his work table and picked through the pile. He eyed various ingredients both with his normal senses and his Ethos one. Combined with his new skill, he could feel the Ethos brimming inside of each item, and he knew he could try to pluck the clay out of any of them, but some would be easier than others. It was an aspect of the Ethos he hadn¡¯t been able to clock before, but some felt sturdier, or was it stickier, than others.


    Well he still had the Heartroot Ring fresh in his mind, so he would see what he could make out of other alchemical herbs. The idea of turning ingredients for what would otherwise be a one-time consumable into a continuously usable item was amazing.


    He grabbed a blackbell blossom, the flower had an affinity for darkness magic and was one of the ingredients for a darkvision potion. He sensed its Ethos and found similar aspects in its Ethos to the greenroot that he expected such as growth and plants, as well as the minor alchemical bent to its flavor. Instead of a main aspect toward healing though of course, its Ethos had a clear leaning to the idea of darkness. Concentrating Lindle activated [Artifice Crafting] and coated his hands with Ethos, reaching into the flower and pulling out the black clay.


    He tilted his head as the former flower crumbled to dust, looking at the physical Ethos. ¡°Hey, Nothing?¡±


    Yes Lindle?


    ¡°Is there a specific term for when Ethos is in this state? When it¡¯s clay versus when it¡¯s inside of something?¡±


    Oh, I¡¯m sorry Lindle. I suppose there would be no reason for you to have known all the technical terms. When Ethos is tangible and removed from a fabled object it is referred to as Pelos.


    Lindle thanked Nothing and turned his attention back to the Pelos in his hand. The shape would be easy enough, he could just make another ring, not like he could make much else with how little of it the flower had given him. The real question was what did he want it to do?


    The heartroot ring had come easily, he had wanted it to heal, so it was simple to simply let that aspect of the Ethos dominate the form, and when he thought about giving it to his mother, the alchemical undertone had come to the surface as well, and he simply allowed the two aspects do what they did naturally. When it came to something like darkness it felt like it wouldn¡¯t be as simple.


    He mulled it over as he molded the Pelos into a disc. The blackbell that he had taken it from was meant to be used in darkvision enhancers, so maybe he could simply try to make it easier to see in the dark? Maybe, but it didn¡¯t seem like the best way to use it, blackbell was an ingredient in the potion, but it was only part of a more complex recipe that allowed someone to see better in the dark. Lindle simply couldn¡¯t visualize achieving the same effect with just purely the darkness aspect of its Ethos. Being able to see in the dark was almost an opposite effect to the idea of the dark.


    He should try and think simpler. Perhaps enhancing the darkness around someone would work better. Making things more powerful wasn¡¯t complicated, it was simple addition. He brought the dark aspect of the Ethos to the forefront, making his intent clear. For the structure, instead of telling the plant aspect of the Ethos to shift towards wood, he allowed the original idea of the blackbells structure as soft plant material to remain.


    Activating the solidifying portion of his skill, Lindle watched as the Pelos transformed into a ring made out of black plant material.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Petalshade Ring


    Effect: When wearing the ring the wearer can deepen the shadows in their immediate vicinity a small amount for a limited period of time.


    Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings.


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    Lindle smiled at another success. The effect wasn¡¯t powerful, but it undoubtedly was what he had been going for in concept. Perhaps Theodore would like it? He couldn¡¯t deny the primary use he had been imagining for it was related to stealth, though the rogue probably wouldn¡¯t need it. Even in broad moonlight, the man was able to completely disappear, shadows or no.


    Actually, even before he thought about giving it to someone else, Lindle should try it himself. He hadn¡¯t actually tested his first item before giving it to his mom. Sliding the ring around his finger, Lindle noticed that even though it was made out of soft plant material, it wasn¡¯t too bendy or soft, it remained solid enough to function as a ring without stretching or risk of ripping. That wasn¡¯t something he had intended to do. Were there aspects to its Ethos he had been adding unintentionally because he knew he it was going to be a ring? Or did becoming a ring add some kind of ring aspect to its Ethos all on its own?


    As soon as the ring was in place, Lindle felt a new piece of information slide into his mind. It was similar yet much subtler and simpler than his skill. He just knew he could now will the ring into activating. He looked at one of the shadows cast by Nothings lamp, and he held his hand with the ring near it, and then activated the ring. Immediately he noticed the shadow get darker, as well as some other shadows around him. Moving the ring around didn¡¯t change anything, but which shadows that got darker when he moved his entire body away did change.


    At this point, Lindle had a massive smile on his face. This was exhilarating! So many ideas to test, so many ways to create something simply and purely magical. He put the ring down and went for something else in the pile. Something bigger.


    Still keeping in tune with the plant theme he had decided to start with, Lindle pulled out a branch from a Wretched Willow. They were plant monsters deeper in the black woods that posed as trees near Steamheart trees before swiping their branches like claws. They enjoyed sucking the nutrients as well as leftover Mana and Aura points of their kills through their roots. When adventurers or hunters brought back branches they were used occasionally for wands or staves for apprentice mages. Generally speaking they weren¡¯t specialized or aspected towards any traditional element, but Lindle could sense aspects towards the idea of violence, stealth, consumption, and growth in it¡¯s Ethos.


    Lindle activated [Artifice Crafting] for the third time that night, and tried to pluck the Pelos from the branch. This time, however, it hadn¡¯t come out as easily as before. The Ethos resisted his pull, frowning, Lindle tugged harder, straining slightly, until eventually, he had a moderately-sized chunk of Pelos in his hand, the branch crumbling to dust. It scattered around his work table. He swiped it into a small waste bin.


    You¡¯re going to need a way to get rid of that dust. It tends to pile up over time.


    Lindle shrugged "Don¡¯t think I can just dump it outside though. People are gonna wonder why we have black dust spreading around the house. It can wait for later.¡± He ignored Nothing''s doubtful look as he got to work with his new chunk of Pelos.


    He rolled some of the Pelos out into a rod, creating a one-handed grip. He then started molding out the rest to form a flat head. The real challenge was trying to create a sharpened edge with clay. If he hadn¡¯t been practicing with real clay to create mock swords and other weapons it would likely have taken him much longer to pinch out the edge and with as much patience and efficiency as he did. It still took him close to half an hour and probably wouldn¡¯t be anywhere as close to sharp as even a moderately dull sword, but that was okay, he wasn¡¯t crafting a weapon after all.


    Molding something at this size took much longer than the rings had taken, but compared to carving something out of wood and then enchanting, it seemed like Artificing had an advantage over many other crafting disciplines when it came to speed. At least at early levels, Lindle had heard stories about how quickly high-level crafters could churn out quality items.


    Eventually, Lindle had his finished object, setting it to solidify.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Hungry Trowel


    Effect: When tending to plants the User may feed Mana Points into the Hungry Trowel to cause plants to experience an enhancement to their growth as they consume the Mana Points.


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    Taking inspiration from the Wretched Willow''s ability to sap points away from their victims, Lindle had focused his intent on the consumption Ethos and combined it with the growth aspect. The trowel was completely made out of wood, he had been right that it was easier to make the finished object out of the same material as what he had taken the Ethos from.


    Lindle¡¯s confidence was soaring as he had placed his third item next to his second, ready to continue even further, but he paused as he sensed his own Ethos while searching for his next target. He activated his skill again and watched in concern as his Ethos traveled to his hands slower and less steadily as it had before.


    Before he even asked, Nothing answered his question.


    It¡¯s Ethos strain. Don¡¯t worry, it¡¯s not permanent or damaging, I would have stopped you far before it got to that point. It¡¯s just a side effect of your Ethos interacting with a lot of other sources of Ethos quickly when you use your skill. It¡¯ll recover on its own with rest.


    Lindle sighed, it was likely too much to ask that he could use [Artifice Crafting] over and over freely. ¡°Should I stop?¡± He didn¡¯t want to, but he wasn¡¯t silly enough to risk damaging his own Ethos or whatever the consequences of this would be.


    You can continue. In fact, the more you practice, the more you¡¯ll be able to use your skill without strain. I¡¯ll stop you when it¡¯s too much, just don¡¯t use anything as large as that branch again, smaller chunks at a time are less straining.


    ¡°Great.¡± Lindle cracked his knuckles. ¡°I have a few more ideas I want to try.¡±

 Chapter 26: Warm Up

    As Nothing had predicted, his waste bin had quickly filled with black dust over the next few hours, some of it that had missed the bin now spread across the floor of the workshop. He¡¯d be upset with himself later when he had to clean it up, but for now, he was still locked in on the latest chunk of Pelos in his hands.


    He was carefully molding the physical Ethos into the shape of a bracelet, keeping the design simple as he tried to imbue it with magic inspired by the materials he had harvested it from. According to the Soarian merchant he had bought the skin from, Trapster Frogs had the ability to make every part of their body incredibly sticky, which meant people would then sell their skin to use as a kind of adhesive. He wanted to see how he could translate that ability into an item.


    Lindle had been searching for traces of ¡®stickiness¡¯ ethos hiding inside of it, but it hadn¡¯t proven easy. A lot of the aspects had been unfamiliar to Lindle, he didn¡¯t know if he was looking at stickiness, frog ethos, or some third thing, though, he didn¡¯t even really know what a frog looked like. His mental image was just too unclear. Materials from the Reach were something he had worked with for years as an apprentice alchemist, he already had firm mental concepts of them all in his mind and had practiced learning for months to identify their aspects.


    He sighed as he failed to come up with any good way to finish matching the right Ethos to his intent, and he activated the final part of [Artifice Crafting]. Lindle watched as the Pelos in the shape of a bracelet lost its luster and crumbled into black dust. His Ethos sense let him see it empty of Ethos and disperse into the air.


    It wasn¡¯t the first time he had failed that night, after his early successes he got confident and experimented with trying to create items with more esoteric effects, the failures crumbling into dust all the same. It wasn¡¯t only if he couldn¡¯t match the correct Ethos that he experienced a failure if the Pelos wasn¡¯t put into the right shape, or if he didn¡¯t correctly convey his intent to the Ethos in straightforward or simple enough way, the Pelos failed to solidify and the Ethos scattered. It happened less when he was working with something he was familiar with, but he failed sometimes even with items he was used to.


    Of course, they weren¡¯t all failures. He had amassed a small pile of mostly rings, a few bracelets, and even an amulet, all with minor magical effects. Jewelry seemed like a safe structural starting point to stick with when it came to magic items. They didn¡¯t need to have any functional purpose except to give their magical effects to their wearers. He didn¡¯t know if making them look nicer would have any effect on their magic, but they seemed to work fine as long as they were still usable.


    As the Ethos strain got worse however, it more often using his skill resulted in a failure, not to mention the mental exhaustion that came from the mental part of piecing out all the various aspects, as well as the normal physical exhaustion from staying up this late. He let out a yawn as he wiped the black dust into the nearly full waste bin.


    I believe it¡¯s about time we called it quits for now Lindle. You¡¯ve done an admirable job, but your Ethos is close to your safe limits.


    Lindle paused for a moment. ¡°One more?¡± He felt Nothing look at him disapprovingly, but after a few more seconds as Lindle waited, Nothing eventually relented, emanating exasperation.


    One more. Make it quick.


    Lindle smiled and snatched out one of the more valuable items he had in his collection. It wasn¡¯t valuable due to how rare it was, but because how difficult it was to collect, inner core wood from a steamheart tree. As he experimented and had gotten better at reframing how the Ethos of something would be best turned to a magical effect, he had an idea rattling around in his head, and he certainly didn¡¯t want to lose the inspiration after falling asleep.


    Lindle activated his skill, and with a slightly hefty tug, brought out the Pelos from the wood. He winced, Lindle could almost feel his Ethos reach unhealthy levels of strain as it sluggishly flowed through his hands. This would definitely be his last use of his skill tonight, success or failure.


    He started molding the Pelos first as he tried to make his intent and desires as clear as possible in his mind before he pushed them onto the Ethos. He kept the structure simple as he created another bracelet, the amount of core wood he used created too much Pelos for a ring, but was decent enough for a slightly thick and flat bracelet. Given the extra room, he decided to use his pinky to draw a few simple swirls and shapes into it. Given how symbolic Ethos seemed to be, it certainly couldn¡¯t hurt.


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    Unlike the other times he used plant material, he almost completely ignored the life and plant aspects of the Ethos except to allow it to act as the structure for simplicity. Instead, he focused on the water and fire aspects he felt existing powerfully in its Ethos and brought them up to the forefront. Additionally, instead of trying to come up with a more basic elemental effect based on the two aspects, he took both of them and attempted to widen them.


    He didn¡¯t want simple fire or water magic, he wanted something broader than that. It was different from something like shifting from genetic plant material to wood, it was attempting to branch out to include all the similar aspects of Ethos while still containing the core idea of the original object, and attempting to do it to do both at the same. It was by far the most challenging way he had attempted to use Ethos, but his idea was so strong in his mind that once he got going, he only built momentum.


    After many minutes of effort and checking his work, Lindle felt confident enough to solidify the Pelos. He watched in anticipation, hoping he wouldn¡¯t get another pile of black dust, but a second that had felt like an eternity, the Pelos transformed into a humble but pleasant-looking wooden bracelet.


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    Hotpond Band


    Effect: When wearing the band the wearer can rapidly heat up liquids on or near their person while also increasing the wearer''s resistance against hot liquids.


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    Lindle¡¯s eyes practically gleamed as he read the description. He immediately put the bracelet on. It might seem like a niche ability, but being able to easily and quickly bring something to boiling could be very very useful, especially for an alchemist. Of course, it was a matter of scale, if what it meant by heating up topped out at a pleasantly warm drink it would be limited, but based on the amount of energy the Ethos Lindle sensed in it compared to everything else he had made, he was confident he had created something that could come in handy.


    Even more pleasantly though, was the tingle that came with the system notifying him about a status change.


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    You have leveled up! Gained 1 level in the [Artificer] Class. (Level 2)


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    Stat gains : +1 Con; +1 Dex; +2 Int; +1 Res


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    Lindle wanted to let out a whoop of celebration as he felt the increase in his stats, far less stimulating than his 1st level. This time it was actually almost pleasant. He let out a heavy yawn before he could do anything though, and he felt Nothing staring at him with annoyance. He remembered the ¡®quick¡¯ part of what they had said, which is to say he didn¡¯t remember that before while he was distracted.


    I believe I made myself clear earlier. I would appreciate it if you went to sleep now before you pass out and hurt yourself.


    Lindle quickly nodded his head. ¡°Yes, I¡¯ll do that. Good night, thank you, for helping, and everything, and-¡± Lindle rambled slightly before he cut himself off, caught up between wanting to share about the Hotpond band and his level-up, but his brain felt just a bit too scrambled. He just nodded again and went to his room to promptly pass out.


    In the morning Lindle was much more acutely aware of his tiredness after he had pulled what essentially had been an all-nighter and only getting an hour or two of sleep.


    On his mother¡¯s face, he saw similar signs of exhaustion that he recognized from other times she had stayed up late in her laboratory, but she had higher stats to deal with it unlike him, so she still gave a pleasant smile and good morning like always before pouring him a drink with a small alchemical pop to wake him up.


    Once Lindle wasn¡¯t dead to the world, he brought out the fruits of his labors, the small pile of wooden jewelry alongside a garden trowel didn¡¯t seem like much visually, but she reacted enthusiastically as she read all the descriptions, and Lindle and Nothing explained how he had crafted each of them.


    In turn, his mother shared her experiments on the heartroot ring, taking different kinds and doses of health potions to map out exactly how much it enhanced her ability to heal from a potion. To her annoyance, she couldn¡¯t determine how the ring did it, but it seemed like the ring resulted in a 5% boost in effectiveness, regardless of how powerful the healing potion was.


    To most people it might have been concerning to think their mother had continuously drained her HP in order to heal herself over and over, but, well, his mom was the best in the village for a reason. At this point, even Nothing was used to living in a house with a pair of alchemists only after a few months. The class did provide decent constitution increases after all.


    Lindle was just happy that Artificer seemed to provide a similar stat spread based on the stats he had received from levels 1 and 2. According to Alyn Kyte, you couldn¡¯t call yourself a true crafter without being able to safely engage in a little risk when experimenting.

 Chapter 27: Growth Spurt

    Lindle and his mom were gathered around a series of small pots in the living room they had gathered from his mom''s storeroom, some of which had small herbs and saplings growing in them, and the others holding nothing but dirt. Nothing watched from their spot in the fireplace, lounging lazily in the flames. The homunculus didn¡¯t share in their enthusiasm for experimentation, so they just took the opportunity to laze about. They were always happy to assist if they had questions, but it was unlikely considering how absorbed they were in their tests, not wanting to gain any biases from outside information.


    Mundane plants were difficult to grow in the Glacial Reach and space inside the grove was limited, so most of the plants that could be grown in the Reach were done so using druidic magic and managed by the circle. Magical plants were hardier but required much more energy to grow domestically so they were gathered from around the Reach by adventurers and hunters instead. Everything else was brought in and sold by traders.


    All of which is to say that his mom didn¡¯t grow most of the plants she used as an apothecary herself, but she did keep a few around out of habit, and those were the plants they were going to run some experiments on the Hungry Trowel with.


    Lindle had a notepad ready in hand as he observed a pair of pots as his mom held the Hungry Trowel, one empty and the other with a small sapling. She might not have been a spellcaster class, but just by virtue of her stats and levels, she had many times more Mana Points in her pool than Lindle to use the trowel with.


    Lindle activated his Ethos sense and nodded to his mom. ¡°Ready.¡±


    She nodded back. ¡°Now testing using 10 Mana Points.¡± Lindle couldn¡¯t directly observe his mother''s mana, but he could see the Trowel¡¯s Ethos become a bit more active as its magical effect was activated. His mom dug out the small sapling and repotted it in the other plant pot. He could see as the trowel carried the sapling and load of dirt a small bit of Ethos from the trowel flowed into the mundane plant. Once the plant was securely planted he could see the Ethos expend itself as the sapling grew slightly taller until it was mostly gone, now the tiniest bit more magical but for all intents and purposes it was still a mundane plant.


    Lindle called out and wrote down his observations in the notepad. They had been experimenting with the various effects of his magic items all morning, trying to see how they all worked. Just like when his mom was experimenting by herself, there didn¡¯t seem to be a common throughline by which they all operated in order to achieve their various effects that they could find, the only thing they learned when using Lindle¡¯s Ethos sense was that they used Ethos in some way, which was just as vague and unhelpful as it sounded. Whenever the Ethos in the object moved or activated, the effect that the description said would happen just happened.


    That wasn¡¯t unexpected, no one fully understood exactly how Mana or Aura achieved the effects they did in its entirety either when Techniques or Spells were used, only that they did. But Aura and Mana at least had consistent patterns and structures that could be mapped to various effects when observed, whatever instructions Lindle had given the Ethos when he made the items using his intent were invisible from the outside except for the various aspects, at least for now. It was a bit of a moot point considering the items had status windows, but Lindle still wanted to be able to gain a deeper understanding of Ethos if he could.


    ¡°How about we use a bigger jump in Mana points this time?¡± His mom suggested. ¡°I want to see the upper limits of how much we can make it grow.¡±


    Lindle tapped his chin with his pencil. ¡°Hm¡­ 50 points?¡± So far they had only been testing in increments of one.


    They both agreed and went ahead, watching as the sapling grew noticeably up into the air, a few inches taller and more mature. His mom used a measuring stick as Lindle recorded the change in Ethos used.


    ¡°Did it grow 5 times as much?¡± He asked.


    ¡°A little less than that. Diminishing returns?¡± She theorized.


    Lindle noted it down. ¡°That would be a shame if correct. It looks like we probably won¡¯t be able to grow giant crops just by putting the trowel in the hands of one of the elder shamans or druids, but for the amount of mana that would cost they probably could just cast higher-tier spells that would be more efficient.¡± He also wrote down some notes on his theories for what the difference between the ring and the trowel was when it came to their ability to scale up.


    His mom seemed to consider for a moment, the look in her eyes told him she had an interesting idea. ¡°The trowel does use Mana Points¡­ almost like an infusion¡­ We should see if the trowel has any other limits. I¡¯m using 500 points and a skill, stand back.¡±


    Lindle blinked before slowly sliding back. He saw a flash of Ethos coming from his mother¡¯s personal Ethos as the trowel also flared with energy. As she repotted another sapling, the plant started glowing before growing rapidly, vines bursting out of the bottom of the pot and vines spreading over the lid before the pot exploded. His mom also stepped back before Lindle¡¯s view of her was obscured by the small tree now in their living room. It grew for a few more seconds before thankfully stopping, to which Lindle gave a sigh of relief.


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    Lindle had a basic idea of what the skills his mom''s journeyman class gave did, so he knew that if it the trowel did scale linearly with the amount of Mana used on top of the skill she used they would probably have a full-grown large tree sticking out of the top of their house.


    His mom peeked her head around the tree and gave him a thumbs up. ¡°Skills work!¡± Lindle returned it before he underlined his note about diminishing returns and then wrote down another note about skills working through his magic items.


    What was really interesting was the amount of Ethos coursing through the tree now. There was a lot, but it seemed thin, the majority of it escaping and dispersing away once the tree stopped growing, a small fraction left over. He was about to tell his mom about what he saw before out of the corner of his eye he saw someone step out of the entrance hall.


    ¡°Lindle? Miss Kyte? Are you okay? I heard some-¡± Thalia¡¯s sentence cut off as she rounded the corner, staring at them and the tree.


    Lindle froze and stared wide-eyed back at her, but his mom recovered first. ¡°Hello Thalia, what are you doing here?¡±


    Thalia snapped out of it, blushing guiltily. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I came to see how Lindle¡¯s first level had gone, but the store was closed. I knocked on the door but no one answered.¡±


    Lindle and his mom exchanged glances, they had probably been too absorbed in their tests to hear her, and opening the store had completely slipped their mind. He looked at Nothing, who was trying to stay as still as possible and hiding in the logs for the fireplace to not catch Thalia¡¯s eye and ignore him at the same time, pretending that they hadn¡¯t missed Thalia¡¯s knocking too even though they had even less of excuse then Lindle and his mom did.


    His mom quickly composed herself and smiled warmly at Thalia. "We¡¯re sorry for missing that, just a little distracted. Thank you for the concern though.¡± She shot Lindle a look to be polite.


    ¡°Oh! Yeah, thank you.¡± Lindle hurried to comply.


    Thalia stepped forward, observing the tree with curiosity written all over her face. ¡°What¡¯s with this tree? It¡¯s so strange¡­ Was it just grown? How did you guys¡­¡± She put a hand on it¡¯s trunk, likely casting a druidic spell of some kind. Considering that she knew today was his birthday and being able to put two and two together, Thalia turned to look at him. ¡°Did your new class let you grow a tree? I thought you were a crafter?¡±


    Lindle started to reach for an excuse before he stopped himself. Did he really need to lie about his class to her? The only reason he was keeping Artificer secret was in case it brought trouble when the Dungeon Raid happened and he drew attention from any unsavory Soarians. Thalia was nice, and while they hadn¡¯t been particularly close growing up, they had been hanging around each other a lot more recently, and she had never done anything to make Lindle distrust her in any particular way.


    His mom saw his contemplative look and gave him a shrug, leaving the decision up to him. Thalia looked at him confused as the seconds passed, before he made up his mind.


    ¡°Well yeah, it is a crafting class, but it¡¯s a bit different.¡±


    Thalia raised an eyebrow. ¡°Different? What kind of crafting class lets you grow trees?¡±


    ¡°It doesn¡¯t exactly let me grow trees. I can tell you, but do you mind keeping it a secret?¡±


    The other eyebrow went up, Thalia turning back to look at his mom, who gave her the go-ahead gesture. ¡°Why?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s something we don¡¯t want public when all the Soarians arrive for the raid.¡±


    She tilted her head, curious again. She thought about it for a second before nodding. ¡°Now I really want to know. Fine, I won¡¯t tell anyone.¡±


    ¡°Okay, good.¡± He thought about how he should try to explain it without delving into all the minutiae of Ethos and everything else. ¡°Um¡­ to put it simply, it¡¯s called Artificer, it lets me make magic items.¡±


    ¡°Magic items? Like what? I¡¯m still not seeing how that led to the tree or why it¡¯s showing up so weirdly on my spell.¡±


    ¡°Well, I made a magic item that let me, or I guess my mom in this case, grow a sapling into a tree.¡± He pointed to his mom, who held up the Hungry Trowel and showed it off.


    ¡°So you can make magic gardening tools?¡± Normally it would be easy to take that as dismissive, but considering how suddenly interested she looked, he bet the idea appealed to her more than it would to most people.


    ¡°Yeah, but a lot more than just that. I can make lots of different things. Like this.¡± Lindle lifted his sleeve to show the Hotpond Band to her. ¡°Or even crazier things, like Nothing.¡±


    ¡°You can make¡­ nothing? What?¡± Her face scrunched up in confusion.


    ¡°Wait, no, I mean¡­ Nothing why don¡¯t you say hi.¡± Lindle gestured to Nothing behind her in the fireplace, who had relaxed once they realized Thalia was being let in on things. In a moment that reminded him of when they met the adventurers, Nothing raised a pseudopod and waved.


    Thalia, who hadn¡¯t seen Nothing in the fireplace behind her the entire time she had been there before turning around, still confused for a moment, before looking down and seeing a small black creature waving a pseudopod at her, shrieked.

 Chapter 28: Lotus

    Once they had calmed Thalia down and reassured her that, no Nothing wasn¡¯t a monster sneaking up on her, Lindle and her sat down by the tree with Nothing¡¯s lantern in his lap as he filled her in to a greater degree. Lindle¡¯s mom had left them to it, going to open the store, better to be a few hours late than to miss a full day''s worth of profits.


    ¡°So you found them in the dungeon, but they aren¡¯t a monster,¡± Thalia confirmed after he gave her an abridged version of the story.


    Both Lindle and Nothing nodded in unison. ¡°Nothing is a homunculus. They¡¯re like artificially made helpers for crafters. Oh, but Nothing is unfinished, which is why they¡¯re kind of goopy and can¡¯t speak normally.¡±


    ¡°Well, I guess that¡¯s okay?¡± Thalia seemed a little unsure but gave a little wave to Nothing. ¡°It¡¯s nice to meet you Nothing?¡±


    Nothing returned the wave before curling back up in their flames.


    I¡¯m happy that she doesn¡¯t seem too disturbed by me. I do hope everyone else I meet is as polite as the people you¡¯ve introduced to me so far if we¡¯re going to keep informing people.


    Thoughts of Thalia¡¯s grandmother flashed through Lindle¡¯s mind. He wasn¡¯t sure how she would react to Nothing, but he had a good guess that being polite was one of the less likely possibilities.


    ¡°Huh, your class seems a bit weird. I don¡¯t really see how being able to make little creatures like Nothing connects to making magic bracelets and gardening tools.¡±


    ¡°Artificer is kind of about making magical things in general, it lets me take something called Ethos out of already magical stuff like monster parts or herbs, and then I sort of mold it to turn it into something else.¡± Lindle made a vague gesture with his hands as if he were crafting.


    Thalia leaned back and hummed, an impressed look on her face. ¡°That sounds really useful. Just magic items in general is a really broad specialization for a class.¡± She looked at the tree and put a hand on it again. ¡°And you made an entire tree grow in your house after having it for less than a day. I¡¯ve had my class for months and I¡¯ve only learned a spell that could make plants grow that fast in the past few weeks.¡±


    ¡°Well, it more was like my mom did it, and she used 500 MP and a journeyman class skill to do it, so I wouldn¡¯t call it that impressive.¡± Lindle picked up the Hungry Trowel from where his mom had left it on the table and handed it to Thalia, who looked down at it and blinked in surprise when she saw the status screen appear.


    ¡°An item with a status screen? Is it alive? like Nothing?¡±


    ¡°I- What? No, it¡¯s just a trowel. I think it¡¯s just how items I make work.¡±


    ¡°Well however it works, this seems really useful. Why are you keeping it secret?¡±


    ¡°Well, Rosato said there was a risk that if certain people in Soarstrum heard about my class, they might cause trouble. So they don¡¯t want anyone coming on the raid on the dungeon to learn about it since they might send word back.¡±


    ¡°Rosato? That¡¯s the adventurer with the fox tail right? Wait, is the dungeon that the Soarians are going to raid the same one you found Nothing in?¡±


    ¡°Yeah.¡±


    Thalia let out a puff of air as she giggled for a second. ¡°Oh wow, Humphrey would not be happy with you if he knew that you¡¯re why the Soarians are coming.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s not just because of me.¡± Lindle defended himself. ¡°The dungeon was all weird even without me finding Nothing, full of books and high-tier monsters.¡±


    ¡°Do you think he¡¯d be any less annoyed with that excuse?¡± She said with a smirk. Lindle could see a hint of Madam Holly in the expression and he scowled, not being able to refute what she said. She chuckled again when he remained silent.


    ¡°Fine fine. Well you¡¯re not going to be an alchemist, what are you going to be doing?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m still going to be a wayfarer, remember?¡±


    Thalia frowned and looked to the side. ¡°I almost forgot about that, you didn¡¯t really go into why, are you sure?¡±


    ¡°I mean, yeah. I want to get as many levels as possible, I don¡¯t want anyone to be able to go after me for my class.¡± Lindle shrugged. ¡°More than that honestly, I want to see what I can do with a class like this, I like discovering things a lot more than I thought I would.¡±


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    Thalia looked back at him. ¡°Well, you seem serious enough about it. So you¡¯re just going to keep crafting items to get as many levels as possible until the raid happens?¡±


    ¡°Pretty much. Maybe go hunting or take some jobs with adventuring parties to get materials.¡± It might be nice to try to out [Flow] and see if it did as Madam Holly promised and helped keep his instincts out of the equation in a fight. It would also probably be a waste to not take advantage of [Hunter Gatherer], which probably was Madam Holly¡¯s whole motivation in making him get it, but it didn¡¯t make it any less true.


    Thalia seemed to think about something for a few seconds, a shy look on her face. ¡°Do you¡­ have any items that could help with druidic magic? My spellcasting during lessons isn¡¯t as impressive as some of the other students. I can pay you, I have some gold saved up.¡±


    ¡°Wait wait.¡± Lindle stopped her. ¡°I don¡¯t really have anything like that, but I¡¯d be happy to try and make you an item that helps you with your spellcasting, I don¡¯t need any gold.¡±


    She raised an eyebrow. ¡°Really?¡±


    ¡°Yeah. We¡¯re friends, I¡¯d feel weird making you pay for something like that. I¡¯d get XP from making it anyways.¡±


    She laughed. ¡°All crafters make XP when they make something and they still charge for their work Lindle. I pay whenever I buy something from your mom¡¯s store, even when it¡¯s one of your potions.¡±


    Lindle shrugged helplessly. ¡°It¡¯s just different, I don¡¯t know why. Look, how about this, you could help me go hunting for materials instead sometimes.¡±


    She considered and nodded. ¡°Fine, that works for me.¡±


    Lindle got up and gestured to his workshop. ¡°You want to watch while I make it?¡±


    Thalia blinked and stumbled to her feet. ¡°Wait you¡¯re going to make it now?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, no reason to wait. So?¡±


    ¡°Yeah of course I do!¡±


    They grinned at each other as Lindle picked up Nothing¡¯s lantern, walking to his workshop together.


    ¡°Hey, anything I should use in particular for some kind of spellcasting item?¡± Lindle quickly asked Nothing.


    Hmm. Well, you want it to be a focus of some kind. A wand or a stave maybe, though the latter would be too big for now. You could make it jewelry but it¡¯s less likely to be specifically for spellcasting that way. Try to use a material that naturally uses Mana too.


    Lindle nodded and started going through his shelves for something that fit the bill, Thalia looking around curiously at the wide variety of items he had stockpiled.


    Try not to overdo it by the way, you¡¯re mostly recovered from the Ethos strain, but just be careful for now.


    ¡°Okay okay, Fine.¡±


    Thalia looked at him in confusion for a moment before seeing he was talking to Nothing, not saying anything, but she kept an eyebrow raised.


    If he was doing something for Thalia specifically, it would make sense to go with his tried and true strategy of using a magic plant or plant monster of some kind. Druids didn¡¯t only cast nature and plant based spells, using many more elements of nature, but it did represent a sizable percentage of the types of spells they learned.


    Lindle picked out one of the more powerful items he had, Lotus Keepers used mana to create a domain where they took command of and manipulated the plants around them to attack intruders. They were extremely dangerous, but their petals could be used for powerful arcane potions, so Lindle had bought one extra for himself for a discount when purchasing for the store.


    The oversized petal was dark pink and wider than both of his palms put together, but thin. He took a seat and Thalia started looking over his shoulder as he activated [Artifice Crafting].


    He plucked the Ethos from the petal and Thalia made a small gasp as it crumbled to dust. He took the flat mass of Pelos and started to roll it up into a rod. A wand would be an easy shape, so he put the majority of his focus on picking the right aspects. He ignored the aspects of defense and territory and pulled the nature aspect to the forefront.


    Alongside it, Lindle focused on the aspect of Mana and magic present. It was a bit odd to Lindle that Ethos could include an aspect of Mana or Aura, but it did, so he made it the dominant aspect of the wand, using the nature aspect to create a small twist to it and act as a secondary.


    It seemed to work well enough for the Hotpond Band, so Lindle took his pinky to start putting in a basic artistic design. He needed to use the nail to get a precise enough line, but he made a nice looking series of flowing lines from the base to spread out and circle at the tip. For the structure, he tried a mix of the Lotus Keeper¡¯s petal and a shifting towards wood, feeling it was more appropriate for a wand than the soft floppiness of a flower petal.


    He made sure to make his intent known to the Ethos, conveying the idea of a wand, before solidifying the Pelos. It transformed into a small dark pink rod with the designs he engraved in wood.


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    Lotus Thorn


    Effect: Increases the power of Spells cast by the user through the wand a slight amount. Spells with aspects of plants and nature are amplified by a much greater amount.


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    Thalia looked with wonder as Lindle presented the wand to her, reading the wand¡¯s status. ¡°This is amazing¡­ just being able to throw together something like this.¡±


    Lindle smiled, hiding a wince as he sensed his Ethos near its limits from strain again. It didn¡¯t hurt, but he definitely probably wouldn¡¯t be able to make anything else for the next few hours. The wand was certainly on the level of the Hotpond Band, and it seemed not letting his Ethos recover in its entirety before straining it again cost a lot more than otherwise.


    ¡°Come on, I know how you test it out. You¡¯d be doing us a huge favor if you could get rid of that tree in the living room.¡±

 Chapter 29: Tree Time

    Thalia and Lindle spent a while shooting off spells through the Lotus Thorn. He tried to record some notes about how much the wand amplified Thalia¡¯s spells, but she was a lot less precise with her spells and Mana than his mother, so he wasn¡¯t able to lock down any exact numbers.


    So far he wasn¡¯t able to find matching numbers either between his various crafted items when it came to their effects and the language describing their effects in their statuses. Words such as small, slight, or minor were common, but they didn¡¯t correlate to any consistent percentages as far as he could tell from one item to another. Perhaps it was just a case of his own control when crafting them.


    Still, it was fun to watch Thalia fire off various spells, all of her spells when using the wand had a small increase in their power for sure, but when it came to casting spells that involved plants, he would have sworn that a mage several levels higher than Thalia was must have cast them.


    ¡°You know,¡± Thalia said as she swapped from her normal focus, a small knobbly wand, to Lotus Thorn, ¡°you might have done too good of a job making this. If I use this during lessons it¡¯s going to seem like I improved so much that they¡¯re going to have questions.¡± She cast a spell at the tree in the living room.


    Turns out there weren¡¯t that many spells that druids learned that involved getting rid of trees, most revolved around growing them, and Thalia couldn¡¯t cast any of the more dangerous withering or blight spells. So Thalia was making do with a wood-shaping spell to cut off the branches and shave off pieces so they could get rid of it or carry it out in more manageable pieces later. What was once a small tree was now mostly a stump of peeled-apart wood.


    Lindle tried to repress a smug grin at the compliment as he tossed a few branches into the fireplace. ¡°Couldn¡¯t you hold back?¡±


    He was pretty sure he hadn¡¯t been able to suppress the pride in his voice in its entirety because Thalia rolled her eyes. ¡°Yes, I could, but then I wouldn¡¯t really be pushing myself and getting better, you know, the entire point of taking lessons?¡±


    Lindle frowned. ¡°Oh, huh. Sorry? Wait, why did you want something to make your magic more impressive in the first place if you don¡¯t want to slack off?¡±


    Thalia sighed and fiddled with the wand. ¡°It¡¯s a bit silly, I know I¡¯m doing decent enough, but Narem¡¯s been taking every opportunity they can to outperform me, and it¡¯s getting on my nerves.¡±


    Lindle made a noise of understanding, Narem had definitely been the most talented druid applicant of their cycle. They were the son of one of the Elders in the circle, and between naturally high stats for spellcasting, a well-optimized set of feats, and early training in spells, they were a shoo-in for the circle. None of which would have been reasons to dislike him, it was expected that parents pass down their skills should their children want to follow in their footsteps, except for the fact that Narem was a major show-off and had endlessly gloated about it, thinking his talent gave him some kind of authority over the other kids in the cycle.


    Even Lindle, who had barely interacted with the boy growing up, was painfully aware of Narem¡¯s accomplishments, if only because he wouldn¡¯t shut up about them. In some ways, Narem made Lindle glad that alchemy and other crafting disciplines were so rare in Glacerhine, if he had someone like Narem to compare himself to as a crafter growing up it would have been infuriating. Aside from occasionally proving his superiority when they were forcibly paired up, they just ignored each other. He could only imagine what it would be like for Thalia to have to constantly compete with him even after gaining her class.


    He shot Thalia with a sympathetic look. ¡°I haven¡¯t thought about Narem in months. I¡¯m sorry you¡¯ve got to still deal with him.¡±


    Thalia groaned and flopped over on his couch, burying her face in the furs. ¡°He¡¯s just so smug about everything. Every new spell we learn he just gives me a look when he gets a hang of it faster or makes it stronger than mine. I would love to wipe it off his face just once.¡±


    ¡°Maybe I could¡­ I dunno, try making the wand weaker?¡± He hadn¡¯t done anything like that before, but maybe he could just re-harvest the Ethos from the wand and try to make its effects more subtle. It would have to wait until his Ethos was less strained though.


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    ¡°No!¡± Thalia sat up and held Lotus Thorn away from him defensively. ¡°I can still use it to cast non-plant spells in class without attracting attention to it, it should even us up.¡± She glared at him and Lindle held up his hands in surrender.


    Once she looked sure he wasn¡¯t going to take Lotus Thorn away from her, Thalia relaxed. ¡°Besides, it¡¯s not like I¡¯m only going to use this for something as dumb as showing off in class. No way I¡¯m going to turn down a boost like this to my spells, it¡¯s way too useful.¡± She cast at the tree again, shaving off another chunk of wood, now a pile of logs and branches. ¡°Really, everyone would love something like this, enchanted items are so tough to get all the way out here, even adventurers would want some. You would make a ton of money selling these things. Maybe you could do it anonymously? Hide your identity or sell through someone else?¡±


    Lindle shook his head. ¡°How would I keep something like that a secret? Glacerhine is too small for items as weird as mine won¡¯t be known throughout the entire village. It wouldn¡¯t be hard for people to make a guess that new magic items showing up in the market that none of the merchants recall bringing with them on Wolven Caravan might have something to do with the weird giant kid who is the only person to gain a class in the last year that everyone knows was obsessed with getting a crafting class.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re not that weird.¡± They both blew out a small laugh before she continued. ¡°But you got a point, still a shame though. What are you going to do with all the items you make then? Just let them pile up in your house until you ship off?¡±


    ¡°I didn¡¯t think about that¡­ huh.¡± Lindle did plan on using his items for himself of course, and sharing them with his mom, probably the adventurers too if they had turned out to be strong enough for them to bother with. The way the heartroot ring worked did give him hope that at least some of his items would scale to their user''s abilities in a way that they would. If he was going to make things for Thalia then he probably should let Humphrey in on his class too. Even between making items for all his friends and family, as he leveled up Lindle would still end up making more than they would need, especially as he got better and replaced old items with better ones. Most crafters simply sold everything they didn¡¯t use as they ascended through the Apprentice and Journeyman tiers.


    Eventually, Lindle shrugged. ¡°I don¡¯t know. I have plenty of time to figure it out though, it¡¯s still just my birthday after all.¡±


    Thalia paused for a few seconds. ¡°I forgot that it¡¯s your birthday somehow even though it¡¯s your level 1 day. I guess I¡¯m just used to everyone¡¯s taking place during cycle season.¡± She looked at Lotus Thorn and groaned. ¡°Now I feel even worse about accepting this, you¡¯re basically giving me a gift on your own birthday.¡±


    ¡°Not bad enough to let me take it back though.¡± Lindle cracked, laughing as Thalia held the wand closer to herself and narrowed her eyes at him for a second before she could stop herself. ¡°Seriously, don¡¯t worry about it.¡±


    ¡°Fine, but you¡¯re not spending the rest of your birthday cooped up in your house. We can go out, find Humphrey, and do something fun.¡± She hesitated for a second. ¡°Are you telling Humphrey about your class?¡±


    ¡°Well, yeah, I don¡¯t see why not. I told you, and it¡¯s not like Humphrey is going to tell any Soarians about it.¡± Thalia nodded in agreement at that. ¡°I don¡¯t need to tell him about how it relates to the dungeon and the raid though right?¡±


    Thalia raised an eyebrow. ¡°Probably should, no point in sharing your class with him if you¡¯re going to lie to him about something else.¡±


    Lindle sighed but reluctantly agreed. They cleaned up the rest of the tree, piling up all the logs to use as firewood for the next couple of days and getting rid of the leaves before they went over to the side of the house to enter the back of the apothecary store.


    Lindle could see his mom at the counter talking with Mr. Valdison, the leatherworker seeing them first and pointing them out to his mom.


    ¡°Hey Miss Kyte, me and Lindle are heading out,¡± Thalia called out. ¡°I¡¯m going to borrow him for a bit for his birthday, going to see Humphrey too.¡±


    His mom smiled. ¡°That sounds wonderful Thalia, have fun you two.¡±


    They approached behind the counter and his mom gave him a hug and kiss on the cheek.


    ¡°Sure it¡¯s alright?¡± Lindle asked his mom.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I got enough of your time this morning, the store won¡¯t be anything to worry about either.¡± She chuckled and added in a whisper. ¡°It¡¯s really just been people just wanting to wish you well about your first level, I¡¯ve been mostly just convincing them to buy things while they¡¯re here.¡±


    Lindle laughed as well and they broke off the hug.


    As Lindle and Thalia started to leave the store Mr. Valdison called out to him. ¡°Congratulations young man. Have a good birthday.¡± The leatherworker said that in an odd tone and gave him a strangely sage-looking nod.


    Lindle raised an eyebrow with slight confusion, glancing to Thalia next to him, who gave a small shrug, but he thanked him and they exited out the door. Before they jogged away down the path he heard his mom laugh loudly at something Mr. Valdison said that he didn¡¯t catch.

 Chapter 30: Glade

    Lindle and Thalia dashed through the snow-covered street towards the hunter lodges near the edge of Glacerhine. Looking up Lindle saw one of the Reach¡¯s frequent snowstorms raging outside the protection of the grove. Most of the snow was kept out by the grove, but enough flakes always got through to leave a layer of snow across the ground and over everyone¡¯s homes. He saw some people casting [Banish Water] to clear out places where it had grown inconvenient.


    Almost half the day was already gone after all the experimenting he and his mom did on his items, so Lindle and Thalia decided to use [Trek] and race their way to Humphrey¡¯s house as quickly as possible. The Technique was optimized for use in the snow, but lots of Glacians used it to sprint their way from one side of the village to the other without exhausting themselves when they had the Aura to burn, so they weren¡¯t an uncommon sight.


    Lindle hadn¡¯t properly appreciated it before between all the other things he had to test and play with from his new class, but the increases to his physical stats felt amazing. He felt like his body could do anything as he drew on them to run faster. He was in wonder at the difference just two levels in a crafting class made him feel, no wonder wayfarers wanted to level up as much as possible. Though of course, Lindle supposed he couldn¡¯t count on gaining an increase as large as his first level at once for a while without the level 1 bonus.


    Before he knew it, they had slowed to a stop in front of one of the lodges where Humphrey lived. Lindle hadn¡¯t been to his house very often, so he hesitated a moment in front in front of the door before Thalia took the opportunity to promptly knock on the ice.


    A few seconds passed before an older-looking beastman with antlers and a short beard answered. He scanned their faces for a quick second before smiling. ¡°Hello Lindle, Thalia, you¡¯re here for Humphrey yes?¡±


    ¡°Hello, yeah we are Mr. Anterom,¡± Thalia answered.


    Humphrey¡¯s dad nodded and called into the house. ¡°Humphrey!¡± He looked back at Lindle. ¡°Happy birthday Lindle, congratulations.¡±


    ¡°Thanks Mr. Anterom.¡±


    The beastman walked back inside as his son came into view. Humphrey rushed outside and shut the door behind him.


    ¡°Lindle! Happy birthday! I was at your house earlier looking for you but the store was closed and no one answered the door.¡±


    Lindle winced. ¡°Yeah sorry, ever since I got my class my mom and I got really distracted testing out what I got from my class. Thalia had to go inside to get us before we realized we never opened the store.¡±


    Humphrey laughed, turning to Thalia. ¡°That¡¯s amazing, what did you find them doing?¡±


    Thalia laughed too. ¡°I found an entire tree growing in their living room.¡±


    Humphrey laughed again, but he paused after a moment and raised an eyebrow at Lindle. ¡°A tree? That¡¯s funny, but what does that have to do with alchemy?¡±


    Lindle started to answer. ¡°Yeah about that, my class-¡± He stopped when Thalia cut him off by waving her hand past his face.


    ¡°You don¡¯t have to say it here, come on, I got a good place.¡± She turned around and started jogging away.


    Lindle and Humphrey exchanged glances, as Humphrey looked at him in confusion and Lindle just shrugged before they ran after her.


    Both Lindle and Humphrey followed Thalia as she led them into the center of the village, the deeper they went the more greenery began to sprout up between the frozen buildings and paths until eventually, in the dead center of the village they came to a thick treeline, unlike the woods outside of Glacerhine, these trees and the ground around them were completely free of snow.


    They stopped as Lindle and Humphrey looked hesitantly into the True Grove, stopping outside the edge as Thalia strode inside. Usually, only members of the circle went into the True Groves that generated the protective aura that sheltered Glacerhine. She looked back at them.


    ¡°Thalia?¡± Lindle called. ¡°Why are we going there?¡±


    She shrugged. ¡°It¡¯s private, isn¡¯t it? We can have fun here too, you know, to celebrate. I really wanna show you guys this place.¡±


    Humphrey looked a bit nervous, eyeing the trees. ¡°I know you¡¯re a member now, but are we allowed in?¡±


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    ¡°It¡¯s fine as long as you¡¯re with me, come on, don¡¯t be shy.¡± She teased the two of them.


    They both warily stepped into the True Grove as Thalia waited. When nothing happened, they both sighed in relief. The True Grove wouldn¡¯t be hostile to them like it would to actual outsiders, but it would keep out people it didn¡¯t want around, so it seemed like they were okay to enter.


    As they walked, out of curiosity Lindle activated his Ethos sense. He immediately shut it off as he was almost instantly overwhelmed on all sides by the most powerful Ethos he had ever encountered. The entire Grove was flush with immensely powerful Ethos. He didn¡¯t even get an opportunity to grasp the aspects present.


    Lindle stopped walking and kneeled over as he held his head. ¡°Ah! Ow, crap.¡±


    His friends looked at him in concern. ¡°Something wrong?¡± Thalia asked.


    ¡°I¡¯m fine, just used that sensing feat, got a headache from the Grove.¡± He responded, waving off their concern.


    Humphrey looked confused again. ¡°Sensing feat? I¡¯m still missing context, are you going to tell me what you were going to say about your class now?¡±


    ¡°In a minute,¡± Thalia said, pointing forward. ¡°We¡¯re almost there.¡±


    Lindle took a few seconds to shake off the headache, feeling his increased Resilience stat push away the pain quickly. Once he was ready, they continued walking until they came to a clearing of the trees.


    A picturesque glade lay before them, filled with colorful flowers of all shades surrounding the group and the chirping of birds filling the air as they fluttered from tree to tree. Looking around Lindle could see small, furry creatures scampering about, seemingly unbothered by their presence. Thalia walked into the glade and sat in the grass, a rabbit hopping up to her curiously, and looking up at Humphrey and Lindle as they followed her with an innocent expression, before calmly hopping away.


    Lindle took a second to take it all in, it was hard to believe someplace this beautiful had been this close. ¡°Wow, this is really nice.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re welcome,¡± Thalia said happily as the two of them sat down with her, staying quiet to appreciate their surroundings for a minute before Humphrey broke the silence.


    ¡°So¡­ I think this is pretty private, are you going to fill me in now? Did something go wrong with your class?¡±


    ¡°No nothing like that,¡± Lindle answered, trying to figure out where to start. ¡°Well, so I didn¡¯t get an Alchemist class, my class is called Artificer.¡±


    Humphrey opened his mouth to start asking questions before Thalia hushed him. ¡°It¡¯ll go faster if you just let him go on until he¡¯s done.¡±


    Lindle nodded before he continued. He was happy now that he got some practice running through the relevant parts with Thalia earlier. He didn¡¯t bother going into the technicalities of Ethos and [Artifice Crafting], just showing Humphrey one of his rings and sharing the basics of how his new class worked.


    Humphrey looked over the Petalshade Ring in his hand, slipping it on and off his finger. ¡°This is pretty cool. Why so hush-hush about it?¡±


    Lindle sighed, this was the part he wasn¡¯t looking forward to sharing with Humphrey. ¡°The raid coming up is why. I don¡¯t want word of my class getting back to Soarstrum.¡±


    Humphrey looked up from the ring and frowned.


    Lindle sighed again. He told him what the adventurers Humphrey had met at the party for his Milestone rite had told him about artifacts, and the negative kind of attention a class potentially connected to them could bring from certain people in Soarstrum. When Humphrey questioned why some Soarian adventurers knew in the first place, Lindle told Humphrey the entire story of going into the dungeon. As Lindle talked, he could see Humphrey slowly connect the dots as he described what they had found.


    ¡°Wait. So you¡¯re why we¡¯re getting a ton of Soarians flooding into the village!¡± The beastman accused heatedly as he stood up. ¡°You have any idea what kind of trouble they¡¯re going to cause with so many of them running around?¡±


    Lindle could see the irritation on his friend''s face. Humphrey¡¯s sentiment wasn¡¯t entirely an uncommon one, plenty of people didn¡¯t like how Soarstrum had set a foothold in Glacerhine in the past few decades. Between the missionaries and the school, many didn¡¯t enjoy the idea of their culture being eroded or changed.


    It didn¡¯t help that as many adventurers like Rosato¡¯s group existed that took quests in good faith, there were many that took the remoteness of Glacerhine to act in very distasteful ways and threw the weight of their combat classes around, some of which Humphrey had bad experiences with personally. it was only due to the functional benefits Soarstrum brought through trade, new magic, and unique classes, that the elders allowed them to integrate as much as they had. Survival in the Glacial Reach was difficult enough without turning away help, even if a lot of people thought that help could be a bit obnoxious about it.


    At the very least, Lindle could see that his anger wasn¡¯t personal, Lindle was just receiving Humphrey¡¯s annoyance now that he he presented a target to direct it to.


    ¡°It¡¯s not really my fault, they would have discovered at least part of the stuff we found down there without me.¡± He could see Humphrey was about to go into a rant, so Lindle interrupted him. ¡°Besides! If it¡¯s my fault, then it¡¯s also your fault!¡±


    Humphrey stopped, narrowing his eyes at Lindle. ¡°How is it my fault?¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re the one who made me a map to lead them there, remember?¡±


    Humphrey¡¯s mouth snapped shut as he remembered handing Lindle that map that morning before he left. ¡°That¡¯s not the same! You would have been able to get there even if I didn¡¯t¡­¡± He trailed off as Lindle crossed his arms, letting Humphrey step into the trap he set.


    Humphrey tried to find another argument for a few seconds, but neither of them was a very skilled debater, so eventually, he just crossed his arms too. ¡°¡­Shut up.¡± Humphrey sat back down and sulked.


    Thalia laughed at the two of them as they crossed their arms at each other for the next minute.

 Chapter 31: Advantage on Stealth

    After Humphrey calmed down and let Lindle off the hook for the raid thing, Lindle and Thalia brought him up to speed on everything else concerning the dungeon and Lindle¡¯s new class. Nothing was a bit more difficult to explain without the unfinished homunculus being present, but it wasn¡¯t too long until Humphrey was satisfied.


    The ranger wasn¡¯t especially concerned with the magical implications of his class and Ethos, he found the magic items themselves more interesting, taking the Petalshade ring for a spin. They made a game out of Humphrey using the ring to try and hide while Lindle and Thalia tried to find him. The glade had plenty of shadows created by the foliage for Humphrey to deepen, and combined with a ranger¡¯s stealth Technique, the beastman was extremely difficult to spot.


    Lindle would have wanted to see if he could use [Ethos Attuned] to find him, perhaps through the ring, but he was wary of blinding himself from the True Grove¡¯s Ethos again, so he was stuck stumbling through the brush without any tricks. Thalia didn¡¯t have much better luck despite being much better at moving through the vegetation until she thought of wildshaping into a dire wolf and following her nose.


    They found Humphrey eventually, though it still took the better part of an hour. The ranger was snickering as he emerged from his spot sequestered between a tree and a bush embarrassingly close to their starting spot, the darkened shadows hiding him fading as he took off his ring. They had figured out that Humphrey seemingly thought of Thalia¡¯s wildshape before they did, creating a winding path in circles, but without any other better options they had no choice but to follow.


    ¡°I thought that ring only worked for a ¡®limited period of time¡¯,¡± Thalia complained as she shifted back to her beastman form.


    Humphrey shrugged. ¡°It does, at most, it can stay active for a couple of minutes at a time, I just only turned it on whenever you two got close.¡±


    Lindle and Thalia both groaned as Humphrey laughed as he tossed the ring to Lindle, but Thalia snatched it out of the air before he could catch it.


    ¡°Nope!¡± She said. ¡°My turn next. Stealth techs might be overpowered, but now let¡¯s see you both try and find me.¡± She waited for both of them to turn around so she could hide.


    As they did Lindle glanced at Humphrey. ¡°You know she¡¯s going to turn into something absolutely tiny now right? You¡¯ve got her all competitive.¡±


    ¡°I know,¡± Humphrey said, looking unconcerned. ¡°If she thought Techniques were unfair, she must have forgotten what Skills I get.¡±


    Lindle thought for a second before making a noise of understanding. ¡°Ooooh. Yeah, she didn¡¯t think this through.¡±


    Once they had given her enough time, they both turned back around and Humphrey said his Skill aloud as he activated it. ¡°[Tracking].¡± He immediately walked forward into the brush and made a beeline through the greenery as Lindle followed. Both of them were quickly proven correct as Humphrey found a rabbit hiding under some leaves in just a few minutes, unseeable in a dark patch that Humphrey ignored as he poked her, sending Thalia out into the open.


    What surprised Lindle was that the rabbit had the ring around one of her paws. Thalia shifted back groaning. ¡°How? I thought I would be hidden for at least a couple more minutes.¡±


    ¡°You were trying to hide as an animal¡­ from a ranger,¡± Humphrey said, before pointing down at a nearly imperceptible, at least to Lindle apparently, rabbit print in the ground.


    Thalia facepalmed. ¡°I¡¯m an idiot.¡± Humphrey laughed before Lindle interrupted.


    ¡°Why were you wearing the ring in rabbit form? I thought everything on your person went with you when you wildshaped.¡±


    ¡°It did,¡± she answered, ¡°but I couldn¡¯t activate the ring when it was gone like that, so I had to exclude the ring and stuffed a paw into it to keep using it.¡±


    ¡°Interesting¡­¡± Lindle reached into his pocket for his notepad, writing it down. He didn¡¯t really understand how wildshaping worked, but he supposed Thalia wasn¡¯t necessarily wearing her clothes when she was in animal forms, so she wouldn¡¯t be wearing the ring either anymore. Where did they go? Were they just gone? Maybe he could make something that could be worn comfortably in both her beastman and animal shapes, or maybe with some kind of effect that synergizes with her transformations?


    He snapped out of his concentration as he was tapped on the shoulder, looking up to see his friends looking at him with raised eyebrows and grins, Thalia holding out the ring for him to take. He sheepishly put the notepad away and took the ring.


    ¡°Your turn now.¡± She said cheerfully, her earlier annoyance forgotten.


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    ¡°Oh, um.¡± He looked at the ranger and the druid, and then around them in the dense undergrowth. ¡°I feel like I¡¯m going to be at a pretty big disadvantage.¡±


    Humphrey patted him on the shoulder. ¡°You don¡¯t know until you try, can¡¯t be too hard to do better than Thalia.¡±


    ¡°Oh shove off,¡± Thalia said as she gave him a light push.


    ¡°Fine,¡± Lindle said, putting on the ring. ¡°I¡¯ll consider it a success if you two don¡¯t find me immediately.¡±


    They walked back to the glade and his friends turned around to give him time to hide. Lindle looked around, searching for a spot. He had to try to make this at least a little difficult for them, so far his own magic item had only played a small role in his friend''s ability to hide, though it would at least make it harder to spot him, they both had ways to find him without seeing him. Humphrey would be able to follow his tracks, and Thalia would be able to follow her nose if she wildshaped again, though she probably wouldn¡¯t do it right away since it would be a waste to use a charge of her skill.


    Hmm¡­ Follow his tracks¡­ on the ground. Lindle looked down, and then up at the trees. They were dense with plenty of leaves and branches hiding the moon shining through. It reminded him a little of the woods where Lindle and the adventurers encountered the wooly razorbacks. Smiling, Lindle silently cast [Levitate] and pushed off the ground.


    He hovered up to a tree and grabbed onto a branch, then he pushed off and flew over the clearing to another tree, and then another further away. He nestled himself in the shade against the trunk between some leaves. His smell might tell Thalia that he went up, but if his scent trail was up in the air, she wouldn¡¯t be able to follow it either. He activated the Petalshade ring and the shadows around him deepened, hiding his body in the shade.


    He looked down and watched as Humphrey and Thalia stopped waiting and turned around, striding confidently to the spot he had stood before using the spell. As Thalia stood behind Humphrey, Lindle heard him say his skill aloud again and hid a laugh as the ranger paused, looking around in confusion.


    ¡°Well?¡± Thalia asked him after several seconds had passed.


    ¡°I don¡¯t see any tracks,¡± Humphrey responded.


    They shared looks of bewilderment as they split up to try and find any sign of him. After several minutes of fruitless effort, Thalia turned into a wolf again, attempting to sniff him out, before making confused dog noises that threatened to make Lindle blow his cover as her nose led her straight up in the air.


    Lindle very rarely cast spells when he didn¡¯t need to due to his small mana pool, and Lindle had only learned [Levitate] after both of them had turned 15, so neither of them had seen Lindle use the spell before. Lindle cheerfully watched Thalia wildly attempt to pantomime to Humphrey that he had seemingly floated away into the sky as a wolf. She was probably out of charges at the moment, so if she turned back to a beastman to communicate, she wouldn¡¯t be able to transform back for a while, so they both wasted a minute or two on charades.


    When Humphrey did seem to finally get it, he looked up and his eyes locked on the tree that Lindle had floated up to first. Lindle swore under his breath as Humphrey smiled and told Thalia to turn back. The ranger started scanning the treeline, searching for more clues, and his gaze stopped on the second tree Lindle had traveled to.


    ¡°He¡¯s up in the trees,¡± He told Thalia once she was back.


    ¡°What? We would have heard him if he climbed any trees, and his scent doesn¡¯t go up to any of the trees.¡±


    Humphrey shrugged. ¡°Well I don¡¯t know how, but I see tracks in the trees anyways.¡± He led the way toward Lindle¡¯s hiding spot.


    Lindle waited resigned, but he still had a proud grin when Humphrey stood at the base of his tree and shouted up to him. ¡°How in the beyond did you get up there?¡±


    Lindle let the ring deactivate and climbed down, [Levitate] long since faded. He didn¡¯t have much experience climbing trees, but compared to a cliff face in the mountains it was easy. He dropped to the ground and gave a short bow. ¡°Looks like you were right, I did beat Thalia¡¯s time.¡±


    Humphrey snorted and gave him a short round of applause, Thalia sighed. ¡°I can¡¯t believe I came in last.¡± She gave him an exaggerated dirty look.


    ¡°I¡¯m sure you were just going easy on me because it was my birthday,¡± Lindle said jokingly. Thalia rolled her eyes but smiled.


    ¡°Haven¡¯t answered my question yet.¡± Humphrey pressed.


    Lindle opened his mouth and made him wait for a second to build tension, before simply saying, ¡°I cast [Levitate].¡±


    Thalia blinked. ¡°Where did you learn [Levitate]? That¡¯s not a spell the shamans teach.¡±


    ¡°I got a Soarian mage to show me,¡± Lindle answered.


    Humphrey sighed. ¡°Of course you did.¡±


    Lindle shrugged and they all sat down in the grass of the glade. For a simple game, they had all been using Techniques, Skills, and Spells, so they spent a bit more time unwinding and enjoying the scenery.


    ¡°WeIl, you did better than expected, but I still won, so can I keep that ring?¡± Humphrey asked shamelessly.


    ¡°Sure,¡± Lindle said, taking off the ring and handing it to him. ¡°I can try and make something more specifically designed for you if you want to.¡±


    ¡°You can do that?¡± Humphrey tilted his head curiously, some excitement in his voice.


    ¡°He can. Look at my new wand,¡± Thalia said, taking out Lotus Thorn and showing it to him proudly.


    Humphrey looked impressed as he read the description. ¡°That¡¯s pretty good.¡±


    ¡°Probably not today though, I need some time before I can use the Skill to make anything again.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s okay, I can definitely wait for something like that.¡±


    ¡°If he¡¯s getting one too, he should help us when we go hunting,¡± Thalia said. ¡°It¡¯s only fair.¡±


    Humphrey laughed. ¡°What are we doing? Forming an adventuring party?¡±


    Lindle blinked, looking at his friends. ¡°An adventuring party¡­¡±

 Chapter 32: Birthday Party

    Both of his friends looked back at him, hearing the tone of his voice.


    ¡°Wait, are you serious?¡± Humphrey asked, his face shifting to confusion.


    Lindle shrugged, not entirely sure himself as the thought simply came to him just then. ¡°Well, we could, couldn¡¯t we? If I want to be a wayfarer, I might as well start early.¡±


    Humphrey, who Lindle was just now realizing he hadn¡¯t told about that detail, looked even more confused. ¡°Now you¡¯re going to be a wayfarer? Isn¡¯t that what Soarians call adventurers?¡± He glanced at Thalia, who just watched the two of them curiously, but seeing that she didn¡¯t seem confused either, looked back at Lindle. ¡°Make this make sense to me.¡±


    ¡°Okay¡­ um¡­ So, after the raid is over, I¡¯m going to leave Glacerhine. I want to push my class, and I just really can¡¯t do that in Glacerhine, you know how slowly crafters here level up compared to everyone else.¡±


    Humphrey looked like he wanted to protest, but he grudgingly nodded at the point. ¡°Well¡­ damn¡­ But so, are you just going to run off fighting monsters then? That¡¯s not crafting.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, maybe? I don¡¯t know how much XP I¡¯ll get in combat compared to crafting, but battle crafters do exist out there. But it¡¯s more the opportunities that leaving will have, my class seems like it¡¯s really really broad, if I stay in one place making the same kinds of things, I¡¯ll stagnate.¡± He shuffled a bit. ¡°Besides, I kind of want to do it, exploring with the adventurers was kind of fun.¡±


    Humphrey sighed. ¡°I really shouldn¡¯t have helped you, those Soarians put ideas in your head.¡± He crossed his arms. ¡°Okay, fine, I guess I get it. But back to the first thing, how does that lead to us being an adventuring party? Just because we¡¯re hunting monsters as a group it doesn¡¯t make us adventurers.¡±


    "We could do more than just hunting,¡± Lindle suggested.


    ¡°Like what? Taking quests from our neighbors?¡±


    ¡°We could, we could try exploring dungeons too. I know the rangers keep maps of where they are across the Reach.¡± Lindle was picking up a bit more steam now.


    ¡°I¡¯m pretty sure we¡¯re all a bit low-level for that, especially you.¡±


    ¡°But taking quests and working our way up to the weakest ones would be the fastest way to get XP, I want to be as high level as possible for the Raid anyways, I¡¯m going no matter what level I am at the time, but the higher level I am the safer I¡¯ll be.¡± Lindle reasoned.


    He could see that Humphrey wasn¡¯t a huge fan of the idea, but he wasn¡¯t saying no outright. He just didn¡¯t like the association adventuring had to him. Glacerhine occasionally cleared dungeons when they were along migration routes or were too close to groves, but adventurers had their own way of dealing with dungeons that maximized the benefits in their party formations. The raid coming up was actually a lot more similar to how Glacerhine did things compared to their traditional methods.


    ¡°I think there are some holes in our party we¡¯d need to patch first in that case,¡± Thalia spoke up.


    ¡°You¡¯re going along with this?¡± Humphrey questioned.


    ¡°Why not? I want to see where Lindle goes with this. It sounds fun, and we¡¯d both benefit from the XP too.¡±


    Humphrey crossed his arms even harder, before groaning in surrender and falling back. He still didn¡¯t say yes explicitly, but he stopped protesting the idea.


    ¡°What kind of holes do you mean?¡± Lindle asked Thalia, ignoring the grumpy ranger.


    ¡°Well, aside from the obvious that we¡¯re only three people, and most adventuring parties are four at a minimum?¡± Thalia stated, to which Lindle nodded.


    ¡°Well, I know you need a rogue to deal with scouting and traps, a caster for spells that can deal damage and deal with more complex problems, healer support to act as a force multiplier and a frontline who can occupy a monster¡¯s attention and fight it head to head.¡±


    Lindle nodded again and checked off the boxes in his head as she essentially described Rosato¡¯s party to a tee. ¡°We don¡¯t need to follow the classic party build exactly, you¡¯re correct that we need to be able to at least fill those roles, but I think all together we can cover most of them.¡±


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    ¡°Mhm, that¡¯s right, but I think we¡¯re a bit too generalized though.¡±


    ¡°Huh?¡± Lindle was a bit confused, and Humphrey looked up from his sulking to listen too.


    ¡°Well, Humphrey has the least issues, he can do most of the things a rogue needs too, he can track and scout, and he¡¯s perceptive enough to find traps, but he doesn¡¯t really specialize in it as much, but he can deal decent damage with his bow and has a few spells, so it works out okay.¡±


    Humphrey nodded at her assessment of his class, everyone was a bit different based on their Feats and the Spells and Techniques they knew even with the same class, but she was fairly accurate.


    ¡°Between the two of us though, we need to be the caster, the healer, and the frontline.¡± Thalia continued. ¡°I can be the caster, and I have some healing magic. I¡¯m not really sure what you do, but your potions kind of at least let you work as a support and healer, and you can debuff things with them and [Hunter Gatherer] sometimes too. So we sort of compete for the same jobs, but the real issue is that we don¡¯t have a good frontline.¡± Thalia outlined.


    ¡°You can wildshape in beasts to fight directly though right?¡± Lindle asked though he felt like she was baiting him into helping point out how many different things druids could do. She saw a bit of his expression and covered a quick smug smile.


    ¡°Yeah, I can, but if I¡¯m a beast, I can¡¯t cast spells.¡± She pointed out. ¡°I can only do one or the other, and it¡¯s risky to not have both roles being filled at the same time. To be honest too, just because I can wildshape, doesn¡¯t mean I¡¯d be very good at it either, I don¡¯t get any Skills for keeping monsters occupied, or a lot of Techniques. I could probably maul something, but it¡¯s not the best for fighting in a group.¡±


    ¡°Since when do you know so much about adventurers?¡± Humphrey asked with a raised eyebrow.


    ¡°My grandma talks about them sometimes. She says she hung around a group of them for a while when she was younger and traveling.¡±


    ¡°Really?¡± Lindle was surprised, he supposed the lifestyle fit Madam Holly, but he had never heard anything about it before, all he knew about her before meeting the woman was the various ways she had fought Apex monsters in the Reach and defended the village during migrations.


    Thalia shrugged. ¡°In any case, I think we need at least one other person if we want to do any dungeon delving.¡±


    ¡°That makes sense,¡± Lindle agreed, ¡°but the three of us are enough for hunting some wild monsters. I can make us some magic items and we could track something down.¡±


    They both looked at Humphrey, who sighed. ¡°Yeah, I can see if anyone¡¯s reported anything interesting that we could hunt down. I wasn¡¯t ever opposed to hunting, just making a damn adventuring party.¡±


    ¡°But you¡¯ll do it?¡± Lindle pressed.


    ¡°¡­Fine.¡± Humphrey relented.


    Thalia and Lindle shared a high-five.


    ¡°Wonder where we could find someone that would work as a fourth.¡± Thalia mused to herself, to which Lindle shrugged.


    ¡°Do we have to keep talking about this?¡± Humphrey said. ¡°It¡¯s supposed to be Lindle¡¯s birthday, we should be having fun, we don¡¯t have to figure everything out right now.¡±


    Lindle figured Humphrey had a point. ¡°That¡¯s fair.¡± He looked at Thalia, gesturing out to the True Grove around them. ¡°What else can we do here?¡±


    Thalia grinned. ¡°Oh, there¡¯s something, the older druid apprentices showed this to us.¡±


    She walked up to one of the trees, excitement clear from the way her raccoon tail and ears twitched with energy, putting a hand up to the trunk. Thalia seemed to whisper something under her breath.


    Lindle and Humphrey exchanged looks as they stood up and waited curiously, before pausing as they felt a gust of unexpected cold air. The cold wasn¡¯t something either of them were unused to, but the True Grove was remarkably warm compared to mostly everywhere else they had ever been, so the change was jarring.


    Lindle looked up in shock as he saw dense snowfall around them, the ground around them filling with snow as it covered the plants and trees around them, and as quickly as it came, the snowfall stopped, leaving a layer of white powder.


    ¡°What the¡­¡± Lindle said, looking around.


    Thalia shook some snow out of her hair. ¡°I asked the Grove to let in a little bit of the snowstorm, so I could do this.¡±


    They looked at her confused as she reached down before she suddenly scooped up some snow and nailed Lindle with a snowball before he knew what was happening. As Lindle spluttered and wiped the snow from his face, Humphrey blinked and looked at Thalia.


    ¡°The circle lets snow inside the grove for snowball fights?¡±


    ¡°Yep, though the elders ask we don¡¯t spread that around, apparently we have a reputation to maintain, the True Grove will clear it out soon after we¡¯re done.¡± Thalia cheerfully answered, scooping up another snowball.


    Seeing the danger faster than Lindle had, Humphrey dove for cover, the snowball splattering against a tree. Now recovered, Lindle ran for cover too, picking up some snow along the way. She might have gotten him by surprise, but Lindle and Humphrey were veterans when it came to the village children¡¯s most popular pastime, even if he hadn¡¯t participated in an impromptu snowball fight in years.


    ¡°Total combat rules?¡± Lindle called out. Unlike their improvised stealth game, there was an etiquette to be followed here.


    ¡°Of course,¡± Thalia said, pulling out her new wand. ¡°All Skills, Spells, and Techs allowed, no teams.¡±


    Lindle and Humphrey looked at each other from their respective pieces of cover, there wasn¡¯t any teaming, but considering she had started the game off with a cheap shot¡­


    Lindle activated [Throw] and they let loose at the same time, the first volley aimed directly at Thalia.

 Chapter 33: Black Dust

    After multiple rounds of hard-fought snow-based combat, the three of them had to eventually call a ceasefire once one of the older druids found them in the glade mid-battle.


    There was a close call when they had all almost pelted the man with snowballs on instinct once he had stepped into the clearing. Luckily the druid had smoothly avoided the trio of attacks and had accepted their embarrassed apologies with grace, but he still had ushered them out of the True Grove afterward with a reminder to Thalia to not be late for lessons tomorrow, and another to not invite non-members of the circle into the True Grove without approval.


    It was pretty late into the day when they exited the True Grove, their energy pools near empty and


    they were all simply quite tired, so they decided to just walk back to Lindle¡¯s house. Lindle¡¯s mom had finished closing up the store when they arrived and had invited his friends inside, teasing Thalia about having permission this time.


    His mom brought out a cake while Lindle introduced Nothing to Humphrey. The ranger had been similarly surprised by the little construct on first reveal, but he greeted them and had been quicker to accept their presence than Thalia, though Lindle wasn¡¯t sure if it was because Humphrey had prior warning or if he was just faster to accept things as they were.


    It had been funny when his mom placed the lit candles on the cake, producing a now familiar confused reaction from his friends, where then his mom explained the concept of a birthday cake to them. It was nice to not have to be the one to explain something new for once today. Birthday cakes were apparently one of the few things his mom brought with her from her homeland.


    He wasn¡¯t sure if they did it exactly the same as where she was from, but his mom always put some real effort into his birthday cakes, leveraging her knowledge of alchemy to create candles that threw out multicolored sparks in intricate patterns. The cakes themselves were also, in Lindle¡¯s opinion, the best food in the Glacial Reach. Sugary foods were rare in Glacerhine just in general, and his mom applied her well-trained alchemy crafting skills to her cooking and baking. She simply baked using alchemical materials and gear, which would probably frustrate any actual cooking-focused class user, but the result had them all stuffing their faces with slices of cake so good it was magic.


    The thought of magical food had Lindle pause mid-bite. Could he make magical items that were food with [Artifice Crafting]? Or any consumables in general, such as potions? His focus was quickly sucked back into eating, so he quickly asked Nothing to make a mental note of it before he forgot, which he did before he finished his slice.


    Once they were all thoroughly stuffed, Lindle and his friends wished each other a good night and they each headed home. Lindle felt a strange melancholy feeling overtake him for a moment as they left. Tonight would probably be the last time he got to enjoy a birthday like this, at least for a long time, he didn¡¯t think he¡¯d be able to get one of his mom¡¯s cakes wherever he would be when he turned 16 or older. It had been the first one he¡¯d gotten to enjoy with real friends too, even Humphrey and him hadn¡¯t shared more than some well-wishes growing up each year. It was really typical that the year he had decided to leave the village was the year he had actually solidified their friendship, alongside forming a new one with Thalia.


    Lindle pushed out the gloom-ridden thoughts with a sigh. There was no use dwelling on them, and he was tired and full. He had briefly entertained the idea of going back into the workshop, but a resounding no accompanied by a wave of disapproval from Nothing stopped it before it gained any momentum. His little stunt making Lotus Thorn before his Ethos strain had receded fully necessitated a full night¡¯s rest according to the homunculus, the wand had been a little more powerful than they approved of, but they hadn¡¯t said anything at the time as to not ruin the moment giving it to Thalia.


    Even when you wake up tomorrow, I would still give it a few more hours before you start making things again.


    His mom had just chuckled after she got the message relayed to her too, reaching up to ruffle his hair. ¡°Happy birthday Lindle, get some sleep.¡±


    After giving his mom a hug Lindle returned to his room to do just that. Closing his eyes he drifted off.


    Lindle was somewhere warm, staring down into his hands as black dust slid from his hands. He was surrounded by it, a field of black dust, an entire tundra of black dust. Dunes of black material shifted in the wind as far as could be seen, not that he was looking.


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    Lindle¡¯s eyes were firmly locked on his hands, seeing his own Ethos from inside his hands shining so brightly it was almost blinding, but he didn¡¯t look away. He didn¡¯t want to look around him.


    It really was warm. The heat was flowing up into the night sky from the black dust in waves, so hot that the air seemed to shimmer. Still, Lindle stood, looking down at his hands as the minutes passed.


    Eventually, Lindle heard something behind him, a loud thump of something heavy impacting something soft, before a heavy gust of air exploded past him, plumes of black dust kicking into the air. Lindle finally moved, a heavy slow sigh escaping his lungs. He still didn¡¯t want to move, to turn around and look, but he did so anyway, dropping his hands and letting his Ethos recede from his hands.


    Lindle raised his head, turning around to see-


    Lindle¡¯s eyes snapped open, his heart thumping in his chest. Why was his heart beating so fast? Sweat beaded from his brow that he wiped away, before he looked at his hand, slowly opening and closing his hand until he eventually calmed down. He had been so calm in his dream, but as soon as he woke up he had felt as though he was going to explode from fear for no clear reason.


    Though really, Lindle almost never remembered his dreams, he was surprised he remembered this one so clearly. If he had woken up like this normally, he would have assumed he had some intense kind of night terror, but nothing in his dream had resembled anything that would freak him out like this. He had never had a reaction like this waking up before either. As he thought about it though, there was a strange sense of familiarity too, but he couldn¡¯t recall anything specific, even as he drew on his newly raised Int stat to boost his memory.


    Eventually Lindle gave up trying to figure the dream out, it probably was just a dream. Perhaps he was remembering his dreams now that his Int stat had increased, hopefully he wouldn¡¯t keep waking up like that in the future though. He got out of bed to start his day.


    He helped his mom open the store and they hadn¡¯t been long past opening when some familiar faces showed themselves.


    ¡°Lindle!¡± Dorothea called out to him, rushing up to Lindle after bursting in the door. ¡°You¡¯re here! We looked for you yesterday to see how getting your first level went, but the store was closed and no one responded when we knocked on the door.¡±


    Rosato, Chip, and Theodore all entered behind her to crowd around Lindle, looking at him in curiosity. Well, he assumed Theodore was curious behind his mask, but he was facing Lindle pointedly like the others, waiting for an explanation.


    Remembering why no one had been able to find him yesterday had a small blush spread to his cheeks, as Lindle looked to his mother for help. She was firmly locked in conversation with a customer, who was looking curiously at Lindle and the four adventurers surrounding him, but she looked straight ahead and ignored him, pulling the customer back to their purchase. Apparently, she only felt the need to rescue him if it was from Thalia, but at least she was distracting potential eavesdroppers.


    Lindle looked back to Dorothea. ¡°Everything went fine. Great actually! I got my class. We just got kind of¡­ distracted testing out my new Skill. We forgot to open the store and didn¡¯t hear anyone at the door, we missed a lot of people it looks like.¡±


    The party all gave sighs of relief and Rosato and Chip started chuckling. Dorothea gave a giggle and gave him a sympathetic nod, one that Theodore surprisingly gave him too.


    ¡°Some first Skills can be like that.¡± The rogue said. ¡°You get a lot of energy from your first set of stat bonuses. Combined with certain Skills, you can spend hours playing with it until you drop, ignoring everything else.¡±


    Lindle wondered if there was a story there, but Theodore didn¡¯t elaborate, the masked man falling back into silence.


    ¡°Either way, we¡¯re all glad that you¡¯re alright,¡± Rosato said. ¡°I suppose we didn¡¯t consider it because he couldn¡¯t find your mom either. I¡¯m guessing if she was just as distracted helping you, then what you got was pretty interesting?¡±


    Lindle glanced over to the counter with his mom and her customer, and walked with the adventurers closer to the back, away from the door. ¡°Yeah, it¡¯s called [Artifice Crafting], I spent all night after I got to level 1 crafting items, we were distracted testing them out.¡± He said in an excited whisper.


    ¡°Are they¡­ you know?¡± Dorothea whispered back, hesitant about saying the word aloud. Lindle still didn¡¯t know much about artifacts, but the possibility of his class being tied to them was the real danger that kept him from sharing his class out in the village. It would be pretty ironic if it turned out that there was no connection and he had done so for nothing, Artificer being a complete unknown to them and Soarstrum at large, but it was better to be safe than sorry.


    ¡°I guess I don¡¯t know. Nothing about the skill told me whether they were or not. Here, you can look yourself.¡±


    Lindle took his Hotpond Band from his wrist and showed it to Dorothea. Her eyes widened as she began reading the status that popped up.


    ¡°That¡­ is the weakest Artifact I¡¯ve ever seen.¡±

 Chapter 34: Little Artifact

    Everyone stopped as Dorothea spoke, looking at her as she examined the Hotpond Band with an intensity and excitement that he recognized from the dungeon.


    ¡°Wait what? It¡¯s actually an Artifact?¡± Rosato¡¯s voice rose before he dropped down to a hushed whisper upon saying Artifact, all of their aversions to saying the word momentarily broken.


    ¡°Yeah,¡± Dorothea looked to Lindle, hand outstretched. ¡°May I?¡± She asked.


    Lindle nodded mutely, curiosity filling his face as he took off the Hotpond Band and gave it to her. Dorothea looked over the item again, before showing it to Rosato, the other two adventurers leaning in to read the status too.


    As they read, Lindle made a new mental note. He had guessed that statuses for his items only seemed to show up if someone had possession of the item, or if whoever had possession wanted to display the item to someone else in some way. Judging by the way he could no longer read the item¡¯s status when he looked at it, the idea seemed to have merit, likely because Dorothea wasn¡¯t trying to show Lindle the item, and only was thinking about showing it to her teammates.


    ¡°Well, I¡¯ve never seen an item with a status before, though it is an interesting ability if the description is accurate, it doesn¡¯t seem like something with an enchantment couldn¡¯t do. Why would you believe it to be an Artifact Dorothea?¡± Chip asked.


    Dorothea tapped the top of the band. ¡°The status is why I know it¡¯s an Artifact.¡±


    The rest of them tilted their heads curiously, and Lindle did too. He knew having a status wasn¡¯t normal, even if he hadn¡¯t seen many enchanted items in general, according to his mom their abilities worked like Spells or Techniques according to the system, they could be acknowledged or named, but the system didn¡¯t define their abilities like Skills or Feats in a description, but he she hadn¡¯t known what the difference meant aside that it was because his Skill had made it.


    ¡°I suppose it makes sense none of you know,¡± she glanced at Lindle and elaborated for his benefit.¡± Most people don¡¯t concern themselves with information about them until they find one themselves or they study dungeon theory in one of the academies, no one really expects to find one, they¡¯re just too rare. I haven¡¯t seen it myself, but the headmaster at my old academy confirmed that his Artifact had a status that described it¡¯s abilities for the benefit of the program a long time ago. He didn¡¯t share what his were exactly, but this status matches what it is said he described to look for to identify an Artifact. The only difference, aside from being a lot weaker than I would expect from an Artifact, is that it has only one effect line, and they¡¯re supposed to have five.¡±


    ¡°Five effects?¡± Lindle echoed. How would that work? His items had been able to do more than one thing, but they were part of the same effect. The Hotpond band for example had its main ability to heat up liquids, and it also said that it granted resistance to being hurt by hot liquids. Those were connected by the types of Ethos he used, but to Lindle they seemed like two different abilities.


    As far as he could tell, all Ethos he used when making an item as the primary aspects coalesced together to form the item''s effect, even if it could do more than one thing. He wouldn¡¯t be sure where to even start to add another effect entirely, separate the Ethos somehow? Before he could get too sucked up into theorizing, Rosato interrupted him


    ¡°Even so, it¡¯s still recognizable to someone who knew what they were looking at as an Artifact?¡± The knight asked.


    ¡°Probably, yeah. Even if most people wouldn¡¯t know it, word of an item with a status is odd enough that it¡¯s not impossible that word could get around far enough that I¡¯m sure someone would realize that an Artifact was found.¡± Dorothea confirmed. ¡°There are actually some historical records of that being how Artifacts were identified when adventurers don¡¯t realize they had found one.¡±


    ¡°So keeping quiet about it was the right move.¡± Rosato said, looking at Lindle. ¡°You¡¯ve been keeping quiet about it right?¡±


    Lindle blinked, he had felt like it had been fine when he made the decision to tell Thalia and Humphrey yesterday, but he still felt an unwanted spike of anxiety as if he had done something wrong at Rosato¡¯s gaze. ¡°Mostly yeah.¡± As Rosato seemed like he was about to say something in panic, Lindle hurried to finish. ¡°I told two of my friends yesterday after I got my class, but they¡¯re trustworthy, I promise.¡±


    Rosato pursed his lips, while next to him Theodore sighed and shook his head, and Chip let out a soft series of chuckles. ¡°Friends?¡± The kitsune seemed to search his memory. ¡°Those beastmen you spend time with at that training field? The girl with the raccoon tail and the boy with the bow and reindeer antlers?¡±


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    ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s them.¡± Rosato seemed like he still wanted to say something, so Lindle tried to inject some confidence in his tone. He trusted Rosato and his party, and it was at their own suggestion, but it still was his own secret to decide on. ¡±We¡¯re actually planning on forming our own adventuring party.¡±


    As he said the words adventuring party, he saw a lot of the hesitance bleed away from the adventurers. He knew Soarian¡¯s put a lot of cultural significance on the trust between party members, they lived or died by the amount of faith they had in each other after all . If they saw Lindle¡¯s friends as part of his adventuring party, that would do a lot to put a lot of immediate confidence in them and curtail their nervousness.


    ¡°You know them best, if you say they¡¯re good, they¡¯re good.¡± Rosato nodded. ¡°The important thing now I believe, is now that we know your class can make Artifacts, albeit weak ones, and you¡¯re level 1, what the plan is for you.¡±


    ¡°Same as before, I level up, practice making items, and I join you guys during the dungeon raid.


    ¡°I¡¯m unsure about bringing you back down there.¡± Chip said. ¡°I remember how close of a call it was when the Librarian attacked.¡±


    Lindle winced, remembering how close to death he had come, but he didn¡¯t change his mind. ¡°There are going to be a lot more people coming this time, and I¡¯ll have several levels under my belt by then. Besides, there are probably a lot more Artificer related things down there, I might need to be there to get them, like the door to Nothing.¡±


    ¡°How are you going to do that and keep attention away from your class with all the extra adventurers there then?¡± Theodore pointed out. ¡°The plan is for you to pose as a porter and guide again, not much point in keeping your ability to make Artifacts a secret in town from them if they all see you do something eye-catching in the dungeon directly.¡±


    ¡°Oh¡­ um¡­ I¡¯m not sure yet.¡± Lindle responded. He really wanted to see if there was more to learn about his class and Ethos down there, but doing something like using the door again to that hidden workshop would bring a lot of attention to him. ¡°But we have time to figure something out there. I¡¯m still going either way,¡± he turned to Chip.


    Chip sighed. ¡°Fine, we¡¯ll just have to be careful and prepare thoroughly. As long as you level up enough, maybe make something to defend yourself with.¡±


    ¡°Speaking of which,¡± Dorothea said, perking up in realization, ¡°your skill that lets you make items. Can I see it?¡±


    Lindle brightened with excitement. ¡°Yeah of course!¡± His Ethos had fully recovered after a while of helping out around the store, so he was ready to get back to crafting new items with his Skill. Or new Artifacts, he should say.


    He looked at the other three adventurers. ¡°Do you want to come watch too?¡± They seemed to consider for a moment, but they shook their heads.


    ¡°This is more Dorothea¡¯s thing, your class is exciting, but I¡¯m not really interested in crafting or magic.¡± Rosato shrugged. ¡°Besides, you probably don¡¯t want an entire crowd looking over your shoulder while you work. We have some things we can do, even with the storm keeping us from taking any quests.¡±


    Rosato and his cousin exchanged a few words before they left, leaving Lindle and Dorothea in his mom¡¯s store.


    ¡°Lead the way.¡± The kitsune mage said excitedly, rubbing her hands together.


    Lindle showed her inside to the workshop, where Nothing greeted them from their fireplace.


    Hello Lindle, and Dorothea. Let me grab my writing supplies.


    Dorothea watched fascinated as Nothing extended a tendril outside of the flames to grip a piece of charcoal, writing on a strip of paper meant for them. They simply wrote ¡®Greetings Dorothea.¡¯


    ¡°It is nice to see you again as well Nothing.¡± Dorothea said. ¡°You¡¯ve learned Helvetician remarkably well.¡±


    Nothing nodded in thanks, communicating to Lindle at the same time.


    Are you going to show her [Artifice Crafting] as well?


    ¡°Yeah, my Ethos strain is all gone now, so it¡¯s fine right?¡±


    Nothing inspected Lindle, pausing for a few seconds before nodding.


    Yes, you have fully recovered.


    Grinning, Lindle turned to look over his stockpile of reagents and materials.


    ¡°Ethos strain?¡± Dorothea asked.


    ¡°It¡¯s fine, I just can¡¯t use my Skill too much or my Ethos starts to need time to recover before I can make items again, I did a lot of experimenting.¡±


    Dorothea nodded knowingly. ¡°I¡¯ve done something similar before when I learn a new spell or break through to a new tier. Sometimes my Mana just needs a break no matter how many Mana Potions I take.¡±


    Lindle started picking through his materials, trying to find something that spoke to him. ¡°I¡¯d think potion toxicity would have stopped you before that.¡±


    She shrugged. ¡°It has, but sometimes it¡¯s worth powering through the sickness.¡± She watched as Lindle picked up a flower, and then set it down. ¡°How does your Skill work anyhow? Where do you start?¡±


    ¡°First I need to pick a material, and think of how I want to use the Ethos inside. Any suggestions?¡±


    ¡°Hmm¡­¡± Dorothea walked up next to him, looking over everything he had in consideration. ¡°Well, Chip wanted you to be able to protect yourself, how about this?¡±

 Chapter 35: Protection

    The kitsune mage pointed to a particular object on a higher shelf, following her finger with his eyes, Lindle¡¯s gaze landed on a familiar roll of scales he had laid out on the shelf. It was the scales of the zmey he killed for his Milestone Rite.


    He had many of the draconid parts set away neatly around his workshop. Most of the meat had, of course, been used for the steaks served during his celebration, but the rest were expertly cleaned and prepared by Mr. Dalton and his employees at Madam Holly¡¯s request. He had scales, two sets of fangs in various conditions, claws, bones, and the more valuable organs such as the two draconid breath sacks in cold storage, though considering their ice aspects they probably would have kept outside for a good while anyways.


    They were among the more valuable and Ethos powerful materials he possessed, and he hadn¡¯t touched any of them during his experiments yesterday to not risk wasting them, but he had a lot of scales to work with.


    ¡°Those are scales from some kind of draconid yeah? Those are usually pretty tough, can you make some kind of armor from it?¡± Dorothea suggested.


    ¡°Armor is too large, I can only work with pretty small amounts of material at a time right now,¡± Lindle explained as he reached up to pull off the roll of scales. ¡°So far I''ve mostly been making jewelry, or small handheld objects. zmey scales should have good defensive and protective Ethos to work with though.¡±


    He spread the roll out on his worktable, inspecting the scales and activating his Ethos sense. He could sense various aspects, a trio forming the primary traits for the scales, a protective one, an elemental ice one, and a new one, of power and rage, that he could simply define as draconid. Despite being as solid a contender for dominance as the other two traits, it somehow felt thin, like it was a weaker or lesser version of itself.


    ¡°Yes, Ethos,¡± Dorothea repeated with curiosity coming over her face. ¡°Have you been able to figure anything more about it now that you have your class?¡±


    ¡°Not much, my skill doesn¡¯t let me sense anything new about it that I couldn¡¯t sense before with my feat, but it does let me extract it from objects and mold them, even shift them slightly.¡±


    ¡°Fascinating, solid Ethos, like Nothing? And it shifts based on your Skill? Your intent?¡±


    ¡°It might be easier to show you, but first, I need to make this more manageable, harvesting all the Ethos from these scales at once is definitely more than I can handle.¡± Lindle rubbed his chin in consideration. ¡°Can you pass me that knife?¡±


    Dorothea obliged, and handed him a decently sized knife for butchering animal parts. It wasn¡¯t a commonly used tool, but considering the need to cut apart monsters for alchemical parts on occasion, Lindle had gotten one. Lindle started to cut into the roll, attempting to strip away a long but thin strip of hide while keeping the scales attached. The cut wasn¡¯t perfectly even, and the material was tough, but Lindle drew on his Dex and Str stats to get the job quickly. The quality of the cut shouldn¡¯t matter once the Ethos had been harvested anyways, so it being a bit ragged was fine, even if it did mar the aesthetic of the beautifully preserved roll.


    ¡°Watch this,¡± Lindle said excitedly as he activated [Artifice Crafting]. Even though she couldn¡¯t sense the Ethos traveling to his palm like he could, Dorothea immediately began observing with intention and fascination, giving him a bit of room.


    Lindle gripped the strip of scales and hide and plucked out a long thin mass of Pelos, the black claylike blob hanging from his fingers, and the scales began to dust away. Lindle¡¯s gaze followed the black flecks for a split-second, but he then let it pile onto his desk and held the Pelos in his hand, showing it to Dorothea.


    ¡°This is called Pelos.¡± Lindle said with a smile on his face, as Dorothea peered at the strip of black material, glancing between it and Nothing to compare.


    ¡°Fascinating. So this is Ethos given form. My mana sense is picking up on¡­ something when I focus on it, but it¡¯s not giving me much. I¡¯d love to study some with all my equipment back home, do you think you could give me some sometime?¡±


    Lindle blinked. ¡°I hadn¡¯t considered not using Pelos to make something and testing it yet.¡± He looked at Nothing. ¡°Would that be possible?¡±


    Yes, though it would rapidly fall apart and disperse if not converted into a fabled object after long enough. If you kept it in a flame it would hold for longer, but you won¡¯t be able to harvest any Ethos as powerful as mine, so any Pelos you make would still eventually disperse.


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    Nothing pointed to their own flame for emphasis with a tendril. Lindle nodded and turned back to Dorothea.


    ¡°They say it would be possible, with a flame if you wanted to preserve it, but not for very long, so we¡¯d need to make some preparations.¡± The mage nodded, and Lindle continued. ¡°I don¡¯t mind giving you some in the future, but for now, I have to decide on what exactly I¡¯m going to make with this.¡±


    They both looked at the Pelos in his palm. ¡°It¡¯s got a protection aspect inside, so I was thinking I might make it some kind of toughness item? Perhaps with some cold protection too, like a frost resistance potion, its ice aspect is powerful too, likely because it was a frost type draconid.¡±


    Dorothea tilted her head. ¡°What are the limits for what the effect can be exactly? That seems a bit simple compared to that band on your wrist.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m still not really sure, so far I¡¯ve mostly been using the aspects to try and make the effects do something similar to whatever I got the material I got the Ethos from could do, especially when it¡¯s a more complicated effect. I made the Hotpond Band from a Steamheart tree core.¡±


    ¡°Do you have to? That¡¯s just one way you can make the Ethos behave right?¡±


    Lindle hummed to himself. That was true, making shadows deeper wasn¡¯t something that blackbell blossoms could do, but he still used to darkness aspected Ethos from it to give that ability to the Petalshade ring. Maybe he could create a more complicated effect that the zmey itself didn¡¯t have as long as it made sense considering the aspects he had available.


    ¡°Hmm¡­ protection, cold, draconid¡­¡± He mused aloud. Could he combine those ideas somehow? He could already protect himself from the cold¡­ hm¡­ ¡°Protection from the cold? Protect from cold, granted from cold?¡±


    The Hungry Trowel could create an effect using mana as a resource, could his items use other things as resources? It did seem like it was a bit more powerful than his other items, and if there was something abundant in the Reach, it was the cold.


    The idea gripped him, and he immediately started molding the Pelos in his hand. The physical shape of the item was still a bit nebulous in his head, but if it was something that was meant to interact with the cold, it should probably be exposed. Something on his chest perhaps? He¡¯d seen Soarians wear objects on the outside of their clothes before, pinned to their chests. What were they called, a brooch? Those had always seemed very exposed to Lindle, and that was what he needed.


    He shaped the Pelos into the desired shape, the beginnings of a stylistic dragon scale forming in his hands. As he did so, he called to the aspects held in the Ethos, bringing all three dominant aspects forward, not repressing one in favor of the others, but keeping them equally in the forefront, but with his intent he gave each different purposes.


    To the protection aspect, he charged with function, or perhaps the motivation. To the draconid aspect, Lindle charged the item''s shape and form, it would be made from dragon scale, and the form by which it protected would be draconic in nature. Finally, to the cold aspect, in a similar way he used the consumption aspect from the Ethos of a Wretched Willow, he shaped his intent for the item to draw power from the cold. It had been much easier with the consumption Ethos. The zmey had been aspected to the cold, to being immune to the cold, and creating more of it, not drawing energy from it, and it¡¯s ice aspected Ethos required a lot of intense focus to shape from one purpose to the other, but shift it he did, and eventually, Lindle activated the last part of his Skill.


    In his hand, was a brooch made of zmey scale, a small white needle on the back that looked a bit like bone. Individual scales bent and melded together to form one larger stylistic white scale covered in cracks like ice, a little smaller than his palm. It was the most visually striking item he had made so far, it actually looked like what he would expect a magical artifact found deep in a dungeon to look like.


    -Frostgreed Scale


    Effect: When wearing the brooch, the wearer will be protected by scales of ghostly frost, the amount of and power of the scales are determined by how cold the immediate area around the wearer is.


    -You have leveled up! Gained 1 level in the [Artificer] Class. (lvl 3)


    -Stat gains : +1 Str; +1 Con; +1 Dex; +2 Int; +1 Res; +1 Cha.


    Lindle let out a delighted series of chuckles to himself, smiling widely as both his new item, or he supposed he should call it, Artifact, and his status screen.


    ¡°Amazing¡­¡± Dorothea said behind him, inspecting his hand. Lindle flinched, having almost forgotten she was there. Dorothea looked at him and laughed softly.


    ¡°Single-minded focus is a good trait for spellcrafting, so I imagine it¡¯s helpful for your class too. Just try to stay aware if you¡¯re going to be going into fights and keep that to the workshop.¡± She advised. Lindle nodded with a small blush.


    He held it a little closer to her, and Dorothea let out a low whistle. ¡°That sounds pretty impressive, reminds me a bit of some more esoteric cryomancy spells.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I think for hunting in the Reach, it¡¯s going to be super handy.¡± Really it was almost universally useful. He felt a bit bad just making it for himself.


    Hmm¡­ Did it have to have to only be for himself?


    ¡°Hey, Nothing?¡± He looked down at the homunculus. ¡°Can I make an item I¡¯ve made before? Like, can I make another of these?¡± He showed the brooch.


    If you use the same materials with the same Ethos, and you copy your intent, it should be possible to replicate an effect you¡¯ve made before.


    Lindle smiled. ¡°Well, it¡¯s a good thing I have a lot more scale to work with.¡±

 Chapter 36: Extra

    Lindle cut out two more strips of scale from the roll of zmey hide. He kept the finished Frostgreed Scale in front of him as a potential point of reference as he examined both strips side by side under his Ethos sense.


    As far as he could tell, the smaller pieces were identical in aspects, simply with less Ethos that also had slightly less energy than the roll he had cut them from, so there should be no issues when it came to using the same ingredients.


    Lindle triggered [Artifice Crafting] and harvested the Pelos from the scales, reducing them to black dust as he rolled the black material into a ball. He still felt the same aspects he had last time, so he felt confident he could make another pair of brooches for Humphrey and¡­ Thalia.


    Lindle furrowed his brows as it occurred to him that a brooch might not work for her. He remembered how she couldn¡¯t use the Petalshade ring comfortably while wildshaped, so he assumed this item would have the same issue. He had thought about how it might be possible to create an item that could function in her beast forms stashed away like her clothes, but he still had no idea how to make that happen, and it certainly wouldn¡¯t work for this. She would have the option of simply not using it while transformed, but while in a wildshape up close is exactly when she would appreciate some extra armor, it couldn¡¯t be pleasant to take claw swipes or bites on bare skin, even through fur.


    The only option then would be something she could wear both as a beastman and transformed, for most of her wildshape forms at least. A brooch that pins to clothing wouldn¡¯t work. It would still have to be something exposed too. Maybe an earring? No, he wasn¡¯t sure how a piercing would work between forms, and while her raccoon ears were more exposed than human ears would be beneath her hair, they were much more sensitive too. A ring wouldn¡¯t fit when her hands changed shape, plus the amount of Pelos he was working with was too large for a ring, anything that wrapped around a body part that wasn¡¯t flexible in general wouldn¡¯t work.


    Perhaps a necklace? No, an amulet. Zmey hide was tough and flexible, he could make a strap to hold the main part of the scale that needed to be exposed, so it could stretch to fit whatever shape she transformed into. Lindle¡¯s hands worked to give his idea form, first shaping the majority of the Pelos into a ball shape and creating a long thin flat loop of black clay. Into the main chunk, he tried to imbue the exact same intent as he did the brooch, matching the three aspects of cold, draconids, and protection, with the exception to the strap when it came to the structure, instructing the draconid aspect to not form out of scales, but out of the hide underneath, and to be tough but flexible.


    Lindle finished after several minutes, activating the completion part of his Skill and watching as it transformed into a amulet, almost identical to the brooch, but instead of a small needle on the back to act as a pin, a black leather strap of zmey hide contrasted with the white scales. Lindle gave it a tug, and nodded as it flexed. Perfect. Next he brought up the status and grinned when the exact same effect description and title looked back at him, Frostgreed Scale. He wondered how the names themselves were made, he wasn¡¯t really thinking of them when he was crafting, the system seemed to just pick one that fit with the item. If he tried to make a ring with the word ring in the title, like the Heartroot or Petalshade rings, and then he tried to make a copy of its effect in something like a necklace, would the title be different then?


    He showed Dorothea and Nothing for their thoughts before quickly getting back to the last strip of Zmey scales so he could make Humphrey his item. Both items were fairly powerful compared to everything else he had made so far, and activating his sense, he could see the Ethos strain starting to build up, but even after just 2 levels it seemed to be noticeably slower. He could make Humphrey his item and be nowhere close to his limit.


    Humphrey didn¡¯t really have any issues using a brooch like Thalia, so he supposed he could just make one too, but now that Lindle was in the headspace to consider the item''s physical shape aside from its magical effect, he had an idea for Humphrey that would fit him much better. A wristguard. One for archery.


    A wristguard made of dragon scale would certainly be a lot tougher than the normal ones. Even if the item''s main purpose would be its magical effect, it was a simple bit of utility he liked the thought of. It fit the ranger a lot more than an eye-catching brooch or amulet. Lindle quickly got to work, repeating the same process. He wasn¡¯t sure at this point if it was getting easier or not to create the magical effect, but at the very least he was a lot more certain that he did it correctly when all three aspects were in line.


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    He cheated a little when it came to making the wristguard¡¯s shape, wrapping his own hand in Pelos since he wasn¡¯t sure he could create it freehand. His hands were slightly bigger than Humphreys, but his rings fit both him and Thalia, and the difference in their fingers were a lot bigger than the difference between him and Humphrey, so he figured it would be fine.


    He finished his Skill, and held in his hand a wristguard made of molded white zmey scale and black hide, the main central scale shared with both previous iterations of Frostgreed on the back.


    He turned around to see Dorothea engaged in conversation with Nothing, who responded in writing. On their paper next to their letters was a crude stick person drawing with large triangles on either side of the circle for a head.


    ¡°Interesting¡­ They sound a lot more similar to humans in look than expected, except for the ears of course.¡± The mage said, noticing Lindle was done. ¡°Ah, I was just asking Nothing a bit about elves, we don¡¯t have a lot of records about what they looked like. Apparently they all had extended ears, like some beastmen, but where human ears would be, unlike beastmen, and without any animal counterparts.¡±


    Lindle blinked. He had honestly forgotten that Dorothea¡¯s primary reason in coming to the Reach in the first place was researching ancient elven civilization. He had mostly gotten caught up in preparations for his class and learning about Ethos that he hadn¡¯t really bothered to ask Nothing much about them. He was curious of course, but Lindle supposed they had been just overshadowed in his focus.


    ¡°Huh, that is interesting, I guess I didn¡¯t really realize it, but Nothing might be the last firsthand account of what they were like. You are free to come over and to ask Nothing more about them¡± He looked at the homunculus and added. ¡°If you¡¯re fine with that.¡±


    They nodded.


    It is fine, I am happy to share what little I know. All I know of elves are things I know about the ones that I met personally, I didn¡¯t exactly leave the workshop much while being created. It is quite saddening to hear confirmation that elves seem to be extinct today. I have no idea what must have happened for such a thing to occur.


    They emanated a somber, confused, feeling through their link to Lindle. He wondered, not for the first time, how long had Nothing been down in that dungeon. It wasn¡¯t as obvious since Nothing seemed to have lived a very narrow life as an unfinished construct in a workshop prior to hibernating. They didn¡¯t even recall ever having gone outside before Lindle left the dungeon, but Lindle figured it still had to be an unimaginable feeling to know the world they knew, as small a part of it as it was, had passed them by for as long as it had.


    The feeling from their link passed after a few seconds, Nothing seeming to shake it off.


    Still, if it helps any research about them, I would like to tell her about the details I remember.


    Lindle nodded and looked back at Dorothea. ¡°Yeah, they say they would like to answer whatever you¡¯d want to ask.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s wonderful.¡± Dorothea smiled at Nothing. ¡°Really, thank you.¡± They looked at the trio of items on Lindle''s work table. ¡°So, those are for your friends? Everyone in an adventuring party geared up in artifacts, I can¡¯t say I¡¯m not jealous.¡± The mage giggled.


    Lindle glanced at the rest of the scales he still had on his desk, ¡°I could try-¡± but Dorothea stopped him before he finished speaking.


    ¡°It¡¯s fine Lindle. I won¡¯t say we probably won¡¯t take up an offer for useful items, but we¡¯re tough enough we can afford to wait for you to build up your skills and levels. And we can afford to pay you for it too. You¡¯d be best served focusing on yourself and your friends for now.¡±


    Lindle hesitated, but eventually he shrugged and accepted her words. They were experienced enough adventurers and it was her decision. ¡°If you say so. I was thinking I could get these to my friends, and then we could see about forming our party, officially? I know there¡¯s an outpost of some kind for the adventurer¡¯s guild in the village, but I¡¯ve only really dropped by once or twice.¡±


    ¡°Well I know where it is, I still have time to kill. Your Skill doesn¡¯t take as much time to craft something as I thought it would, I¡¯d be happy to help you and your friends get started.¡±


    ¡°That sounds great, let me just clean everything up, there¡¯s black dust everywhere.¡± Lindle started swiping where the black dust built up on his work table into the waste bin. He frowned as he saw it was now almost completely full.


    I told you that you¡¯re going to need to find a way to dispose of it.


    Lindle looked away from the waste bin, shrugging. ¡°We have things to do, I can take care of it later.¡±


    Nothing sighed and sent him exasperation over their link, to which Lindle ignored. It was just one bin, it would be fine.

 Chapter 37: Cold Shoulder

    Once he was done, Lindle stuffed all three Frostgreed scales into his pack. He might be able to carry around items like his rings or Hotpond Band on his person without anyone paying attention, without the status they were fairly unassuming, if a bit odd on close inspection, a bracelet made out of wood was pretty strange, but his latest items were a lot more eye-catching. He definitely wouldn¡¯t be wearing it unless he was in private or out in the Glacial Reach.


    He and Dorothea said their goodbyes to Nothing and left his house. The homunculus still seemed to be stewing a bit in their own thoughts, so Lindle tried to send over some reassurance and comfort over their link. He wasn¡¯t as good at intentionally conveying emotions or ideas as Nothing, but they seemed to appreciate it nonetheless.


    They made their way down to pick up Humphrey first. Lindle used [Trek] out of habit, almost stopping himself once he realized that Dorothea wouldn¡¯t have the Technique, but she sped up to match his pace before he could. He supposed even as a mage, her journeyman-level stats let her move through the flat ground in town quicker than him easily.


    She skipped up next to him, with an eyebrow raised but a small grin. ¡°This is kind of fun. We don¡¯t get to draw on our stats to move around except outside of cities and towns very often.¡±


    Lindle blushed a bit at moving ahead without warning, but he gave a little nod and smile back. ¡°Really? Why not?¡±


    She shrugged. ¡°High-tier People tend to get harassed about being public disturbances or nonsense like that when they draw too much on their stats or use a flashy Skill or such in public, it¡¯s generally not worth it.¡±


    That seemed odd to Lindle, but he shrugged back and led the mage to Humphrey¡¯s house. When the ranger opened the door, he smiled when he saw Lindle, which fell a bit flat when he saw Dorothea standing behind him.


    ¡°Oh¡­ hey Lindle, what¡¯s up?¡± Humphrey greeted him in a slightly dull tone.


    Dorothea seemed to pick up a bit on the awkwardness, shifting a bit.


    Lindle tried to ignore it. ¡°Hey Humphrey, this is Dorothea, I think you two met during my celebration?¡±


    He nodded, looking at Dorothea. ¡°Hello, the wizard, right?¡±


    ¡°Yep, that¡¯s me, it¡¯s nice to meet you again.¡± Dorothea tried for an inviting smile.


    Humphrey just nodded again. The atmosphere felt stifling as Dorothea sent him glances of confusion at the stiff reaction coming from Humphrey. Trying to cut through it, Lindle spoke again.


    ¡°We¡¯re gonna get Thalia, and see if we can register at the guild outpost, Dorothea wants to see if she can help us out a bit, maybe help us look for a first quest or job.¡± Humphrey¡¯s mood didn¡¯t seem to exactly improve, so he added, ¡°I also made us something, for all three of us. We can test it out at Thalia¡¯s.¡±


    That seemed to get Humphrey excited, his eyes lighting up as they looked over Lindle, searching for the items. ¡°Really? What did you make?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll show you at Thalia¡¯s, come on.¡±


    ¡°Fine, fine.¡± Humphrey reached over and grabbed his bow from his wall.


    ¡°Why are you bringing that?¡± Lindle asked.


    Humphrey raised an eyebrow. ¡°I figured they might want us to show what we can do? If we¡¯re being registered at the guild, our classes and stuff right?¡±


    ¡°Oh¡­ can¡¯t we just tell them and they¡¯ll write it down?¡±


    Dorothea interrupted. ¡°No Humphrey¡¯s right, they¡¯ll want a little demonstration. It¡¯s actually a good thing you¡¯re doing it here, the branch here is so small they don¡¯t have anything or anyone to directly appraise your statuses. Just to see that you have ways of protecting yourself on quests.¡±


    Humphrey looked conflicted as Dorothea agreed with him. ¡°Yeah¡­ You¡¯re going to say you¡¯re an alchemist right? That¡¯s why you brought your potions?¡±


    Lindle blinked, looking down and seeing his alchemy pouch on his waist. He had been keeping his pouch on him every day for lessons with Madam Holly at the training yard out of habit; he had brought it with him when he left the house without thinking about it. The healing and aura potions had been crucial to keep him going under her instruction. That¡­ was probably a good habit to instill in him if he was being honest, considering his plans involved getting in a lot more conflict than a normal crafter class, so he couldn¡¯t be too annoyed that he was being driven to exhaustion often enough that keeping potions on him was an unconscious habit now.


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    Lindle sighed. ¡°Yeah, let¡¯s go with that.¡±


    They ran down to Thalia¡¯s place, which was closer to the center of the village. If he had only been to Humphrey¡¯s a few times, this was the first time he had been to Thalia¡¯s outside of just in passing. It backed the True Grove as one of the homes in the opening left by the White Hall where the elders lived. There were some perks to being an elder¡¯s granddaughter it seemed, the ice that made it up a lot more extravagantly sculpted and with multiple floors.


    Before they could reach it, Thalia opened her door and ran out to greet them. ¡°Lindle, Humphrey! I didn¡¯t expect you guys to come by, I saw you from my window.¡±


    She cocked her head when she saw Dorothea, but gave her a friendly wave. ¡°Hello! You¡¯re one of the adventurers that were at Lindle¡¯s party right? Dorothea?¡±


    ¡°Yes, it¡¯s nice to meet you, Thalia.¡± The mage smiled at the much brighter reception, reaching out a hand to shake, which Thalia took. ¡°You¡¯re a druid correct? It¡¯s nice to meet another caster.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, it¡¯s nice to meet you too. What are you doing with Humphrey and Lindle?¡±


    ¡°Lindle wanted to get you guys registered as adventurers today, so I asked if I could help you get started. But I think Lindle had something he wanted to show you first?¡±


    Thalia looked at him curiously, and Lindle pointed a thumb at his pack. ¡°I made some pretty cool stuff earlier this morning, do you have somewhere we can test them out? In private?¡±


    Thalia glanced back at her house. ¡°Well, my family''s home right now¡­ don¡¯t think I¡¯m ready to go through that conversation, but I know some of the training rooms in the White Hall are empty. No one from the cycle below us is going to be using them today, so we can use the spellcasting room.¡±


    Thalia led them to one of the back doors in the White Hall and all four of them stepped inside. Lindle had a strange nostalgia seeing his old classrooms, Humphrey and him pausing and looking inside as they scanned the rooms, Dorothea joining them if only for curiosity. Thalia, however, seemed unfazed as she walked straight to their destination.


    ¡°Do you come back here a lot?¡± Lindle asked.


    ¡°Oh? Well yeah, I guess, if one of the cycles isn''t around sometimes I do it if I want to be alone. The True Grove is great, but there are other circle members. If I¡¯m here, my family thinks I¡¯m in the True Grove, and everyone else thinks I¡¯m home.¡± Thalia hummed as she opened a set of frozen doors with a small spell.


    ¡°You got access to everywhere huh?¡± Lindle commented.


    ¡°Huh, didn¡¯t think about it that way.¡± She shrugged as they walked into the training room, a simple area except for that it had bare dirt instead of the normal ice flooring and reinforced blocks of ice on the walls and ceiling.


    ¡°So!¡± Humphrey clapped his hands together, an excited look on his face. ¡°Don¡¯t keep us waiting!¡±


    Lindle looked at Thalia and held in a snort, as she looked at him in anticipation, eager but being a lot quieter about it. He reached a hand into his pack with intentional slowness, grinning wider as he pretended to rummage around.


    ¡°Where is it¡­ I swear I had it right here¡­¡±


    Dorothea rolled her eyes. ¡°Children. You¡¯ve got nothing else in there Lindle, don¡¯t tease them that much.¡±


    The snort escaped as Lindle let out a short laugh, pulling out the brooch and holding it out for the two of them to see. ¡°Pushed me over to level 3 when I made it, pretty awesome huh?¡±


    They both made appropriate noises of appreciation as they read the status.


    ¡°Frostgreed Scale. You made this from the Zmey you killed on your rite? This seems like a great way to protect yourself¡± Thalia asked


    ¡°I¡¯m pretty into the same too, I¡¯m almost jealous,¡± Humphrey remarked.


    ¡°Yep! And that¡¯s not all! Turns out I can make multiple items with the same effect, so I made all of us copies!¡± Lindle said proudly. He grabbed and pulled out the wrist guard version of Frostgreed and handed it to Humphrey.


    The beastman looked down at his hands in surprise, before grinning and immediately putting it on his hand. ¡°Hey, this actually fits pretty- woah!¡±


    He flinches as ghostly white scales shimmered into view around him in places over his arms, chest, and legs, hovering a few inches over his clothes. They were almost completely transparent, but they still provided an impressive effect. It kind of looked like he was a lizard beastman instead of a reindeer at certain angles.


    ¡°Oh wow¡­ that looks cooler than I expected it to,¡± Lindle said, walking around Humphrey to get a better look. He poked a finger against one of the scales and felt it stop, though it sunk into the scale. He pulled his finger away, as it was also frigid, the cold biting into his skin, though not enough to hurt.


    ¡°What about mine?¡± Thalia asked, looking excitedly at Lindle.


    Lindle grinned and proudly pulled out the amulet. ¡°I¡¯m pretty proud of this one. It has the same effect as the others, but I managed to make it the strap of the necklace out of hide, it¡¯s stretchy so you should be able to wildshape while still keeping it on.¡±


    Thalia paused and looked over the amulet, scanning the amulet and running a finger over the design of the scale. ¡°This is actually really nice¡­ Thank you Lindle.¡±


    She sounded a lot more earnest than Lindle had expected, so he faltered before quickly nodding. ¡°It''s fine, it was fun to make, I¡¯m glad you like it.¡±


    She put it on and Lindle pinned the brooch to his jacket. They each got their own set of ghostly scales to match Humphrey, though curiously they were in a few different places on each of them.


    Lindle pressed down on some of his own scales over his thigh and felt no resistance as he passed through them. ¡°Cool. The effect isn¡¯t very powerful right now, since it¡¯s meant to get stronger in the cold, like in the Reach.¡±


    ¡°If you want to get colder,¡± Dorothea said, a look like she had just gotten an idea coming over her face,¡± I think I can help.¡±

 Chapter 38: Friendly Frost

    Cold and ice spells were some of the most common types of magic for people to learn in Glacerhine. It was standard practice to learn some spells to manipulate the constant snow and ice that surrounded them at all times, even if you weren¡¯t a spellcasting class.


    Despite this, what wasn¡¯t common was magic to make things colder than they already were. As he watched Dorothea cast a spell that created an aura of cold, the area them now ringed with ice, he could see that even though she had a focus in cryomancy, her understanding of the magic type was different than how Shamans in Glacerhine would understand it. No one in the Glacial Reach would typically need a spell to make things colder.


    As the temperature dropped, all three of them saw the ghostly white scales covering their bodies grow thicker and less transparent, expanding to cover more area. Lindle let out a breath and saw the steam escape into the air.


    ¡°There, it¡¯s not as cold as it is outside right now, but I can see that it¡¯s working already. Don¡¯t want to push too far just for some testing and get you all sick.¡±


    They shivered as they nodded. None of them were wearing the full complement of furs and other cold weather gear needed to travel outside the grove¡¯s protection, so even though they were all used to the cold, it still affected them.


    Lindle pulled on his Con and Res stats to try and ignore it and stopped shivering. He wanted to warm up, but that would probably hurt the amulet''s power. He raised his arm and hit his knuckles against the scales floating over his skin. ¡°Okay, let¡¯s see how much tougher these things are now.¡±


    What followed would probably have gotten them a lot of strange looks if they were in public, as they all pelted each other with various magical and physical attacks. They were all hesitant at first, attacking lightly, not wanting to hurt each other but as the scales proved more and more resilient, eventually they all settled into an orderly routine of measured violence.


    Humphrey volunteered himself to act at their target for most of their attacks, being the highest level of the three of them and having the most HP and Constitution. They had started with simple punches aimed at the scales, which had been stopped without Humphrey even feeling them. When Lindle had added a [Power Strike], his fist had sunk into the scale like before, and Humphrey had to take a step back, but most of the force had dissipated before it could reach him, and Lindle had needed to quickly rip his hand out of the scale, having taken a couple points of damage from the cold to his HP.


    Next they tried several spells to test how the scales reacted to different types of attacks. Thalia used thorn projectiles and vine whips that the scales blocked and froze. When she had used an ice shard spell, the scales not only blocked it completely, they had grown even stronger for several seconds as they did so. However, when Lindle attempted to drop some fire on himself, the scales grew more transparent and weakened for several moments before returning to normal. They still snuffed out the flames before Lindle took any damage, which were only from a tier 1 utility spell to be fair, but it seemed that fire was definitely a vulnerability.


    At that point they were all taking turns firing on each other. Dorothea stood back, maintaining her aura spell and acting as an outside observer while taking notes on Lindle¡¯s notepad which he had lent her. Thalia and Lindle both had arrows sticking out of the scales floating over their shoulders from Humphrey¡¯s bow, and thorns and other pieces of summoned plant matter from Thalia¡¯s spells littered the ground around them in frozen pieces.


    Neither Thalia nor Humphrey were using their most damaging Techniques or strongest Spells, and Lindle wasn¡¯t wasting any potions to throw for a test, but it was still impressive how much damage the artifacts were soaking up from the continuous attacks they were throwing at each other, all of them only needing to take a small break for Thalia to heal the scant few pieces of damage that had gotten through.


    When the time came for Thalia to wildshape into her Dire Wolf form, they all had to stop and stare. The scales over her body gave her wolf shape a menacing sharpness.


    ¡°That¡¯s terrifying,¡± Humphrey said, and Lindle nodded in agreement.


    It was difficult for a wolf to be able to look smug, but Thalia managed, admiring the scales for a second, Frostgreed snugly hanging from her neck. Lindle thought it almost seemed like she was wearing a collar, but he wasn¡¯t tactless enough to voice that observation aloud.


    They went back to attacking each other for several minutes before Lindle called it. ¡°I think that¡¯s enough for now. If this is how well they protect us now, they¡¯re definitely strong enough for fighting monsters in the Reach. Besides, we shouldn¡¯t drain all our pools and Skill charges before we sign up at the guild.¡±


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    ¡°That was more fun than I expected it to be,¡± Thalia said as she took off her amulet after transforming back to normal.


    ¡°Yeah, I feel like I¡¯ve worked out a lot of stress,¡± Humphrey said with a grin at Lindle, handing him the wristband.


    Lindle rolled his eyes as he put all three artifacts back into his pack. He¡¯d give them to his friends to keep later.


    ¡°You kids are weird, but that was interesting to watch at least,¡± Dorothea said, canceling her spell and letting the temperature rise back up to normal. ¡°Those things are going to let you take a lot more risks than most people your level would be able to, but try not to take too many. Too many young adventuring parties die because they think they¡¯re invincible and they push too hard, not realizing they¡¯re over their head until it¡¯s too late.¡±


    She laughed to herself. ¡°Usually it would be Chip that would want to tell you that, but he¡¯s not here right now, so I¡¯ll do it for him.¡±


    Lindle gave her a nod that Thalia echoed. Humphrey hesitated for a moment, but nodded as well.


    Thalia led them back out of the training area the way they came, and they all walked from the White Hall. When they arrived, Lindle could spot the guild outpost pretty easily. Unlike most of the buildings in Glacerhine, the adventurers'' guild hadn¡¯t built their outpost out of ice, instead, they had constructed it out of stone and wood. It seemed like a waste to Lindle, as they would have to abandon it and then rebuild it when the migration came. It would be destroyed when the first major storm without the grove''s protection passed through, so it wouldn¡¯t be here when Glacerhine eventually cycled back to this grove either, but it was their building, so they could do with it as they liked.


    Once they were inside, Lindle took in the outpost. He had been in here when he had been looking for an adventuring party to hire him several months ago, but it was still fascinating, and now he had a new way to see it. Various adventuring groups milled around, and Lindle watched them under his Ethos sense. Their personal Ethos all burned like multicolored flames, his and his friends all burning like small embers compared to the variety of powerful bonfires. What was interesting to Lindle was that even their equipment glowed to his sense. He didn¡¯t see any artifacts, but a good half of the adventurers had Ethos wrapped around one or more pieces of their gear. Enchanted items.


    Thalia poked him in the side, pulling him away from his staring. Humphrey chuckled quietly behind him.


    ¡°Sorry, there¡¯s just a lot of¡­ variety here. Interesting items.¡±


    When Thalia cocked her head, Lindle elaborated. ¡°The enchanted items, lots of adventurers seem to have them here. I would love to get a closer look at one.¡±


    ¡°Oh, that makes sense.¡± Thalia put a finger to her chin. ¡°Hmm, those are hard to find around here, but maybe I could ask my grandma if I could borrow one, I bet she would have one around.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know about asking her¡­¡± Lindle said, before Dorothea interrupted their conversation.


    Dorothea pointed to the counter, where a few guild workers in uniforms talked with adventurers. ¡°You can get yourselves registered there. I¡¯ll get a look at the quest board to see if there are any good first quests for you to take, keep them from being snagged.¡±


    Lindle thanked her as she left, and the three of them walked up to the counter, where the guild worker gave them a professional smile. ¡°Hello, are you here to take a quest or turn one in?¡±


    ¡°We¡¯re actually here to register as adventurers to the guild, the three of us are forming an adventuring party,¡± Lindle responded.


    The worker¡¯s smile faltered as confusion passed over his face. ¡°Register? Here?¡±


    ¡°Um¡­ Yes? Yes, we are.¡± Lindle said after a moment''s hesitation.


    ¡°Ah, of course¡­¡± The worker shuffled through some papers. ¡°My apologies, we mostly get already registered adventurers here, I don¡¯t believe I¡¯ve seen anyone attempt to register at this outpost before¡­ I¡¯ll need to see if we have the necessary paperwork¡­¡±


    He shuffled through some more papers, before excusing himself and heading into the back. Lindle shuffled awkwardly in place as they waited. Some of the other adventurers threw them glances, more accumulating over time.


    Eventually, the worker returned, a small dusty box in hand that they pulled a stack of papers from, a triumphant grin on his face. ¡°It took some digging, but we do have the correct paperwork after all, apologies again for the wait sir.¡±


    He set down the papers and pulled out a quill, reading from the paper aloud to them.¡°If you could give me your names and a general overview of your class and capabilities as a potential adventurer?¡±


    ¡°Um¡­ Lindle Kyte, alchemist, I can throw and use potions at range to support, debuff, or attack.¡±


    ¡°Humphrey Anterom, ranger, I can scout and use archery techniques.¡±


    ¡°Thalia Azeban, druid, I can spellcast and transform into various animals to fight.¡±


    The worker smiled and filled out the forms. ¡°Perfect. I¡¯ll need to ask for a small demonstration of your abilities, but first, you did say you were registering as a party?¡±


    ¡°Yeah that¡¯s correct.¡±


    ¡°Wonderful, have you decided on a name for your party?¡±


    Lindle blinked. They had to have a name for their party?

 Chapter 39: Demonstration

    Lindle glanced back at his friends in confusion. He hadn¡¯t heard anything about adventuring parties having names.


    Thalia had the same look of confusion on her face, but Humphrey seemed less surprised.


    ¡°Would you give us a second?¡± Lindle excused himself before stepping back with his friends. ¡°I didn¡¯t know anything about needing a name, did you guys?¡±


    Thalia shook her head, but Humphrey raised an eyebrow. ¡°Well, I didn¡¯t know a name was needed, but parties I¡¯ve worked for have names for themselves. I just thought it was just a weird Soarian thing. I figured you knew, you hang out with those adventurers often enough.¡±


    Well, no he didn¡¯t, Dorothea and her party hadn¡¯t ever mentioned a group name for themselves. ¡°Nope. I don¡¯t even know what an adventuring party''s name should sound like.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s usually something like the Silver Swords or Companions of the Bridge. It¡¯s usually either something really obvious about themselves or what the name refers to is completely indecipherable, usually some kind of inside joke I guess.¡±


    ¡°That sounds like it could be fun,¡± Thalia said, looking kind of intrigued, ¡°I don¡¯t really know where to start though. Maybe something like¡­ the Glade¡¯s Blades!¡±


    ¡°None of us use swords though.¡± Lindle pointed out.


    ¡°Hm, true. Um¡­ maybe something like the Frost Scaled Hunters?¡±


    Lindle frowned, keeping his voice low. ¡°I mean, it¡¯s an inside joke I guess, but I don¡¯t know how I feel about a name hinting at something we¡¯re trying to keep secret.¡±


    Thalia winced. ¡°Ah, sorry, then yeah I guess it doesn¡¯t work either.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s fine, I¡¯ve got no idea what we could use either. The main thing we have in common that comes to mind is that we all live here, but it feels weird to pick a name based on that.¡± Lindle shrugged. He couldn¡¯t think of any obvious theming between the three of them, and they hadn¡¯t done anything exciting enough to give him any good ideas.


    They both looked at Humphrey, who seemed uninterested in brainstorming a name for themselves and just shrugged silently.


    Lindle sighed. He turned back to the guild worker. ¡°Do we need a name now?¡±


    The worker laughed awkwardly. ¡°Uh, I guess not, if you just want to be registered as individual adventurers. To register a party though you¡¯ll need one. If you don¡¯t have anything in mind yet I can keep the form handy for you?¡±


    ¡°If it¡¯s not too much trouble,¡± Lindle said. If they could afford to take some time to come up with something then it was fine not to officially have a party yet. Theodore wasn¡¯t a regular member of the party he was grouped up with and apparently it was fine for him to take a quest with them.


    ¡°It¡¯s no problem, I¡¯ll go put these away, we can do those demonstrations now.¡± The worker held up the forms before filing them away and stepping away from around the counter. ¡°If you could follow me please.¡±


    The three of them followed the guild worker away from the main room out the back, where a small courtyard had been sectioned off by a wooden fence. It reminded Lindle a bit of the training grounds, but a lot more cramped. Near the back, a small raised podium with black crystals embedded on its surface stood. The guild worker fished around in his pockets until he pulled out another smaller black crystal. Lindle activated his Ethos sense out of curiosity and was a bit taken aback by the power coming off the Ethos wrapped around the enchanted object. It wasn¡¯t just the enchantment, but the material itself seemed to hold decently strong Ethos. It wasn¡¯t anything blinding, but it was certainly notable.


    ¡°Who would like to go first? We can use the Shadow Lantern for your demonstrations.¡± The guild worker asked. He grinned widely and gestured to the podium and the crystals shimmered, a ray of blackness shooting to the front of it to form a vaguely humanoid shadow. ¡°This shadow illusion can act as a target, and it can give me feedback about the amount of power or energy of something that passes through or targets it.¡±


    Lindle was surprised at the display of what sounded like pretty complicated magic just for a basic demonstration, the guild worker caught his expression and rubbed the back of his head nervously. ¡°We don¡¯t get to use it much here, but they¡¯re standard issue at guild outposts.¡±


    Thalia seemed impressed, looking at the shadow with clear interest, while Humphrey crossed his arms with a slight frown. Lindle elbowed him, whispering to his friend. ¡°You don¡¯t need to act like being here is going to kill you or anything, don¡¯t be rude.¡±


    Humphrey scowled for a second, but he uncrossed his arms. ¡°Fine.¡± He called out to the guild worker. ¡°I¡¯ll go first.¡± Humphrey drew his bow and walked out across the courtyard. ¡°How does this work?¡±


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    ¡°Just target and hit the shadow illusion with something you¡¯d use to fight a monster on a quest. Make sure to call out the name of the ability you¡¯re using, like you would in a dungeon.¡± The worker answered.


    Humphrey nodded, nocking an arrow and pulling back, taking aim at the illusion. ¡°[Spinning Shot].¡± The arrow glowed subtly before Humphrey let it fly. As it traveled through the air, it began to spin rapidly, and it passed through the illusion, landing in the fence and digging into the wood for a moment before stopping.


    The crystal in the worker¡¯s hand shimmered, and he nodded. ¡°Impressive for apprentice tier, good job.¡±


    ¡°Is that all?¡± Humphrey asked.


    ¡°You said you could scout?¡±


    Humphrey nodded, and the worker looked down at his crystal, and the shadow illusion disappeared. ¡°If you could, please point out where I hid the illusion in the courtyard.¡±


    Lindle tilted his head and Humphrey began to scan their surroundings. A test for perceptiveness made sense if Humphrey¡¯s role in a party was partially being able to pick out traps as a scout. He wondered if being able to pass certain tests meant anything significant when it came to the guild¡¯s information about them. Perhaps knowledge about their ability to fill a role in a party was useful to them somehow, even if Humphrey failed this test, his ability as an archer should be enough as a damage dealer for killing monsters.


    After a couple of seconds of looking around, Humphrey pointed to a spot behind Lindle. ¡°It¡¯s there, it¡¯s hiding in Lindle¡¯s shadow.¡±


    Lindle blinkled, and stepped to the side, looking behind himself. Sure enough, crouched behind him, the illusion had been lurking in his shadow.


    The guild worker smiled. ¡°You spotted it quickly, perceptive. You definitely qualify for scout work. That should be all I need from you.¡±


    Humphrey nodded and rejoined his friends. Lindle held out a fist for him, which the ranger bumped. ¡°Nice one man, that kind of freaked me out, I had no idea it was there, and you found it super fast.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s nothing,¡± Humphrey deflected. ¡°After that stunt you pulled yesterday in the tree, I¡¯ve had the idea of being more aware of places where things could be hiding stuck in my head. Can¡¯t just rely on my Skills for everything you know.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll go next!¡± Thalia volunteered enthusiastically, walking forward and pulling out Lotus Thorn. The artifact visually wasn¡¯t that different from a regular wand, and its effect wasn¡¯t obvious, so using it here wasn¡¯t a big deal, nonetheless, Lindle did feel a bit nervous at seeing it out in front of someone.


    ¡°Spellcasting, just show me some spells you¡¯d use, call them out, same as your friend. ¡± The worker instructed.


    Thalia cycled through some spells, focusing on plant-based attack spells and sending them at the illusion. [Thorn whip], [Needle Spray], [Entangling Vines] and such. She also threw out some basic elemental spells of ice, wind, earth, and water. The worker seemed impressed by the power of her spells, the important thing seemed to be the variety she had access to, not only asking her to perform attack spells but some utility spells as well. He also asked her to cast a healing spell on the illusion, she had been confused but complied. She had been even more confused and surprised when the illusion seemed to react, a subtle green glow appearing and the crystal in the worker¡¯s hand shimmering.


    The testing was quite a bit longer for her than for Humphrey, but eventually the worker seemed satisfied. ¡°Good job, you seem to have a good set of spells for adventuring. Now, as a druid, you said you could transform?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, it¡¯s a druid Skill with a number of charges per day that lets me turn into beasts,¡± Thalia answered.


    ¡°Could you show me?¡± The worker asked.


    Thalia smirked, before wildshaping into her dire wolf form. The worker let out a short shout of surprise, taking a step back before collecting himself. ¡°That is¡­ impressive. I¡¯ve heard about that Druid Skill, but I haven¡¯t gotten to see it in person since I was assigned here. I suppose you should¡­ attack the illusion.¡±


    The dire wolf let out a bark before trotting over to the illusion, hesitating as Thalia seemed unsure how to go about attacking it, but settling on simply attempting to bite it. Her jaws passed right through, closing with a snap, but the crystal shimmered. Thalia backed away, shaking her head.


    ¡°That should be good, you can transform back.¡±


    Thalia did so, still shaking her head. ¡°Touching that felt weird. It felt like there was resistance, but there wasn¡¯t at the same time? I didn¡¯t like it, almost bit my tongue.¡±


    The worker winced ¡°My apologies for not warning you, that¡¯s normal.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s fine.¡± Thalia waved his apology off. ¡°I think that¡¯s all yeah?¡±


    ¡°Yes, now I just need to test you.¡± The worker gestured to Lindle, who nodded and stepped forward as Thalia walked back, giving him a smile as she passed.


    Lindle trained his eyes on the shadow illusion as he closed with it, inspecting the Ethos with his feat. It was just a strange combination of aspects, darkness, shadow, and mana, and others he didn¡¯t recognize, and even aside from that, it connected back to the podium and the handheld crystal in a way he hadn¡¯t seen before and it was just fascinating. The closest thing he could compare it to was when he saw the way Chip¡¯s personal Ethos reached out and connected outside of itself, but this was still completely different. He wanted to look it over more as closely as he could, see if it could give him any ideas for crafting.


    ¡°Right um¡­ a battle alchemist¡­¡± The worker hesitated, as he between the crystal in his hand and the shadow illusion. ¡°So, the Shadow Lantern interacts with Mana and Aura, but it doesn¡¯t really do anything with potions, so there¡¯s no point in using it for your demonstration.¡± He shrugged and the crystals became inert, the illusion disappearing and Lindle could see the enchantment go inactive as it did before, the connections of Ethos fading away.


    ¡°It¡¯s not as interesting, but I guess you could just show and explain to me the types of potions you have to use.¡±


    Lindle sighed in disappointment.

 Chapter 40: Sounds Good

    It wasn¡¯t like Lindle didn¡¯t like talking about alchemy, but compared to the Shadow Lantern, he felt like his demonstration was shaping up to be much more lackluster than his friends. The guild worker and he were sitting cross-legged across from each other, a line of potions between them on the ground as Lindle described each of their functions one by one. He wasn¡¯t showing off every single one he had, that would take too long and the worker didn¡¯t need the basics such as healing, aura, or mana potions, but he covered enough of them to show he had coverage for a variety of situations.


    ¡°And this is a toxin that¡¯s usually used as a purging agent, it causes gagging even if the monster is hardy enough to resist vomiting.¡± Lindle held out the potion he used on his milestone rite months ago. ¡°In my experience, it can be a good disruptor, as well as prevent breath or other throat-based weapons from being used.¡±


    The worker nodded. ¡°Sounds useful.¡±


    As Lindle put down the potion to grab the next one, he hesitated. ¡°Is this really good enough for me to really become an adventurer? This doesn¡¯t feel like much of a test.¡±


    The guild worker laughed and rubbed the back of his head, a nervous habit Lindle was beginning to notice he had. ¡°Usually, no. In most outposts, they would have someone more experienced or have better facilities to test your potions and personal abilities as a battle alchemist.¡±


    ¡°But you¡¯re still letting me do this as my demonstration?¡± Lindle raised an eyebrow.


    ¡°You and your friends, you¡¯re locals here right?¡± The worker asked. Lindle confirmed with a nod and they continued. ¡°Then just take it as me making a judgment call and saying it¡¯s fine. Like I said before, I¡¯ve never actually seen anyone register at this outpost. Everyone here is either already an experienced journeyman adventurer, an apprentice under them, or a local, and the people here haven¡¯t ever been interested in joining the guild as far as I recall. The glacians here that parties hire as guides have a lower causality rate than the adventurers, even if they¡¯re a tier above their guide. Correct me if I¡¯m wrong, but aren¡¯t you all sent out into the Reach before you even have a class?¡±


    Lindle nodded again. He hadn¡¯t considered it before, but Lindle did suppose the guild would be aware that most people in Glacerhine went out and hunted monsters and experienced danger with or without being a part of the adventurer¡¯s guild. If all he wanted was to hunt monsters, it would be normal for him to just go out and do it.


    The worker continued. ¡°Then yeah, I can confidently say you¡¯re probably more qualified than most new applicants I¡¯ve seen make the attempt to register as adventurers back home even without seeing your skills, just by virtue of surviving growing up out here. I can¡¯t even imagine that whole migration thing you guys do, it seems insane to me.¡±


    It was still less exciting than he imagined, but Lindle supposed the leniency worked out in his favor. If leaning on their lack of resources they had here and the reputation Glacerhine had meant he could register with less scrutiny to his abilities, then he¡¯d take it.


    Lindle still added some actual demonstration to his test, asking the worker to expend some mana and then splashing some potion on his arm to show the effects of [Alchemical Bomber]. After the worker felt his mana pool refill and Lindle explained his Feat, though he didn¡¯t explicitly say it was a Feat, if the worker assumed it was a class Skill then it would help his class cover, the worker laughed, admitting even after explaining his reasoning, he still felt a lot better about seeing direct proof that Lindle didn¡¯t just buy a bunch of potions and memorize information about them to feign tactical knowledge.


    Once he was done, they stood up and the worker dusted the snow off his pants. ¡°Well, I¡¯ve seen everything I needed to. I¡¯ll go ahead and approve all of you as apprentice-tier adventurers.¡± He reached out a hand for Lindle to take, and Lindle shook it. He reached out a hand to his friends too as they approached. Humphrey was hesitant, but he still shook their hand once it was his turn.


    After he had shaken their hands, he led the three of them back inside, speaking as they walked. ¡°By the way, I forgot to introduce myself, my name is Elias.¡±


    Elias got back behind his counter, pulling out three small bronze badges. ¡°Congratulations Lindle, Thalia, Humphrey, you¡¯re now part of the adventurers guild. You¡¯re free to take apprentice-tier quests now, just display your badge. When you have a name for your party, I¡¯ve still got the form ready to finish.¡± Elias gave them a small bow.


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    ¡°Ah, thanks for all the help,¡± Lindle said, taking the badge and looking down at it. There was actually a minute amount of active Ethos present in the badge according to his sense.


    ¡°Yeah, thank you Elias.¡± Thalia smiled at him and then looked at Humphrey, who grumbled out a thank you after a second.


    ¡°Are you going to take a quest right away?¡± Elias asked.


    ¡°We¡¯ve actually got a friend looking at our options for us,¡± Lindle told him.


    ¡°I¡¯ll leave you to it then,¡± Elias said.


    Humphrey and Thalia took their badges and they walked away, seeing Dorothea waiting for them by the quest board, a handle of pages in her hands. ¡°Congratulations you three, I heard you all got your badges, not that I had any doubt of course.¡± Dorothea chuckled to herself as she started laying out pages on a nearby table.


    ¡°Yep, though we weren¡¯t able to register as a party without a name. Why didn¡¯t you mention parties had names?¡± Lindle asked.


    Dorothea paused and then winced. ¡°Ah crap, I knew I forgot something. Sorry guys.¡±


    Humphrey crossed his arms. ¡°All the parties I¡¯ve worked for have names, why didn¡¯t you guys tell Lindle yours?¡±


    Dorothea hesitated, and Lindle looked at her in curiosity. Thalia, who had picked up one of the pages, looked at her too.


    ¡°Ah well¡­¡± The mage sighed. ¡°Our name¡­ is really embarrassing.¡°


    ¡°Huh? What is it?¡± Lindle asked.


    Dorothea blushed, glancing around and switching to hushed tones. ¡°It¡¯s¡­ The Grand Nine-tail Flaming Heroes.¡± Her fox tail began to twitch anxiously.


    Lindle blinked, as he heard Humphrey repress a snort. Thalia elbowed him in the side, and Dorothea hid her face in a hand. As no one said anything for a few more seconds, her tail twitched more.


    ¡°Rosato and I picked that name when we were 15. I hate it, so we don¡¯t mention our party name unless we have to.¡±


    ¡°I see¡­ if you hate it so much, why don¡¯t you change it?¡± Thalia asked.


    ¡°We would if we could, but Chip thinks it¡¯s funny to keep us from changing it.¡± The kitsune hissed out from behind her hand. ¡°We formed the party when it was just Rosato and I, and when Chip officially registered and joined the party, he thought it was ¡®cute¡¯¡± She made air quotes. ¡°Now we can¡¯t change it because it needs to be unanimous for the guild to accept a name change.¡±


    ¡°So if we picked something stupid, I could make sure it sticks permanently?¡± Humphrey asked, snickering. Now it was Lindle who went over and hit him, punching him in the shoulder.


    ¡°Evil, but yeah, basically.¡± Dorothea sighed. ¡°Make sure you pick a name you¡¯ll want to keep, even when years in the future, don¡¯t just pick something you think sounds awesome.¡±


    ¡°What does the Nine-tail part mean though? I don¡¯t get it.¡± Lindle asked.


    Dorothea cocked her head. ¡°Oh, yeah, it¡¯s a kitsune thing.¡± She moved her tail to the side to show it off. ¡°Our tails, unlike fox beastmen, have an innate magic unique to our race. Sometimes we have more than one, and that magic gets a lot more powerful, though it¡¯s rare. Most kitsune fantasize about having more tails, getting a bloodline evolution, and becoming a legendary Nine-tail, the most powerful type of kitsune. They¡¯re mostly myths though.¡±


    Lindle remembered the attack Rosato had used back down in the dungeon, the burst of magical fire he had unleashed inside of that monster. He needed to draw on his Int stat to boost his memory to do so, but he recalled the name of it being [Foxfire: Burst], so he assumed it was related. It had been very powerful. The damage the attack had done to the monster¡¯s corpse still fresh in his mind. Lindle wondered how much stronger that attack would be if Rosato had more than one tail.


    He activated his Ethos sense, and instead of focusing on Dorothea¡¯s personal Ethos, which was centered visually on her chest, he looked at her tail, and sure enough, there was another, smaller core of Ethos active in her tail. It was subtle, mostly overshadowed by her main personal flame of Ethos, and he needed to concentrate hard to peer past the glow to see it, but it was still fascinating. The aspects present, if he had to sum them up, seemed to be almost entirely fox-related. He hadn¡¯t been good enough at picking out details under his sense the first time he had used it around Dorothea and her party members, but he would bet that he would be able to see Rosato¡¯s now too.


    The thought occurred to Lindle, that if he peered close enough to his own Ethos, would he be able to make out giant-related Ethos present in himself? It was sure to be present, he had the bloodline trait, but he still didn¡¯t like the thought.


    ¡°Anyways,¡± Dorothea said, breaking Lindle away from his thoughts. ¡°Enough about me, I picked out some apprentice-tier quests for all of you.¡± She gestured to the pages she had spread out on the table. ¡°There weren¡¯t many to choose from, Glacians don¡¯t put out a lot of jobs that they can handle or hunt down themselves, but there also aren¡¯t a lot of apprentice-tier adventurers here to snatch them up either.¡±


    ¡°Well, we definitely aren¡¯t taking this one,¡± Thalia said, reading through the posting she had picked up earlier.

 Chapter 41: Picky

    As she scanned the quest listing again, the rest of them looked at Thalia in curiosity.


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong with that one?¡± Dorothea asked. ¡°None of the ones I picked had anything that seemed wrong with them.¡±


    Lindle moved over to read the listing. Nothing in particular stood out to him. He wasn¡¯t very familiar with quest postings, but it looked like all the quest asked for was the extermination of a couple of Spearclaw Raptors in order to help disperse a pack of them. That wasn¡¯t uncommon, hunters and hired adventurers regularly culled monster populations if they were too close to the grove or important routes through the Glacial Reach.


    ¡°The quest itself isn¡¯t the problem, it¡¯s who made the posting,¡± Thalia said, pointing near the top of the listing at a blank space where there would normally be a name present. ¡°Clearing the Spearclaws out from that part of the migration route is supposed to be my grandma¡¯s job, I overheard her talking about it with one of the other elders.¡±


    ¡°Why would she be sent out just to clear out some Spearclaws?¡± Humphrey questioned. ¡°That seems a bit beneath her level.¡±


    Thalia scowled. ¡°Because there¡¯s also supposed to be a Spear Tyrant in that area too.¡±


    Dorothea¡¯s eyes went wide. ¡°But that¡¯s not in the listing. If it is your grandmother, isn¡¯t it really dangerous to post a quest for apprentice tiers without mentioning that? People could die.¡±


    Thalia sighed. ¡°No, I know how my grandma thinks. The quest is only for the Spearclaws because she doesn¡¯t want to deal with the small fry. She probably intends on following whoever takes the quest, let the Spear Tyrant scare them, and then jump in to fight it herself at the last minute. I bet she¡¯d be delighted to find us taking this quest.¡±


    Dorothea and Humphrey both seemed shocked, but everything Thalia was saying lined up with Lindle¡¯s experience with Madam Holly. She hadn¡¯t shown up for any ¡®surprise training¡¯ since a little before his birthday, telling him that she was going to give him a bit of a reprieve, but he was still tensing up in anticipation, ready to activate [Flow] whenever they walked outside out of habit. A prank such as that was exactly the type of thing she¡¯d love to pull off.


    Lindle nodded. ¡°Yeah¡­ agreed, veto on that one.¡±


    ¡°She¡¯ll be disappointed, but oh well. She¡¯ll eventually stop lazing around and take care of it if no one takes the bait.¡± Thalia said, putting the page away.


    They both started going back through the other quest postings as Humphrey and Dorothea uneasy looks.


    Humphrey shifted, glancing at Lindle and Thalia. ¡°They¡¯ve both complained about her before, but still¡­¡±


    Dorothea copied him. ¡°I¡¯m unsure if I should still be concerned or not, especially if we¡¯re just going to leave that posting here¡­¡±


    Lindle flipped through some more pages. It was interesting to see what types of quests people were posting, it was a lot more informative than he expected. Seeing what specific things people around the village wanted or needed, as well as giving him a better idea of what monsters were in what places around the Reach. It was almost like being given a detailed report of monster movements by a team of scouts and rangers. Eventually, he came across a quest that made him pause.


    ¡°Oh hey, I found one I recognize too,¡± Lindle said, holding up the page with a smile.


    ¡°Oh?¡± Thalia asked, leaning in and reading it. ¡°Oh hey, yeah that¡¯s your mom. She wants some rare reagents from deeper in the Black Wood.¡± She looked at him expectantly, as if she was waiting for him to do something. When Lindle didn¡¯t do anything, still holding the page, she raised an eyebrow. ¡°Aren¡¯t you going to put it away?¡±


    ¡°Why would I do that?¡± Lindle asked. ¡°It seems pretty doable for us, and we could definitely get some EXP and good materials there.¡±


    ¡°You don¡¯t mind your first quest basically doing some errands for your mom?¡± Dorothea seemed surprised. ¡°That¡¯s a pretty good reward too, you okay taking money from her?¡±


    ¡°Why not? I already do that, she pays me for work in the store. As long as I earn it right?¡±


    ¡°I um¡­ I guess that¡¯s fair?¡± The kitsune shrugged.


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    ¡°Well, I¡¯m not. Don¡¯t think I¡¯m comfortable doing a job and taking your mom¡¯s gold, I¡¯d honestly prefer doing it as a favor to that.¡± Humphrey cut in, letting out a sigh. ¡°This is part of why I didn¡¯t even like this idea, it feels so weird. Can we please just take a quest that doesn¡¯t come from one of our families or someone we know personally?¡±


    Thalia blinked, before she took a good half of the quests and placed them in the veto pile. ¡°What?¡± She said after seeing Humphrey¡¯s exasperated face. ¡°I have a big family, and I know a lot of people.¡±


    ¡°Fine,¡± The ranger said, going up the remaining quests and picking one up. ¡°Here, how about this one?¡±


    Lindle and Thalia crowded around Humphrey to read the paper. This quest was also deep in the Black Wood, one of extermination. It had been noted that necromantic energy had been discovered gathering in the area, corrupting the plants, and reanimating old corpses. It wasn¡¯t a large amount of energy, the hunter likely having found it early before it had time to spread, but it was important that someone cleared out the undead and a spellcaster purified the area.


    ¡°Oh, this is perfect for us!¡± Thalia exclaimed.


    ¡°So I take it you can purify the energy?¡± Humphrey asked.


    ¡°Yeah,¡± Thalia lowered her voice. ¡°With my new wand, I definitely can.¡±


    ¡°I can¡¯t say I¡¯m not curious about what I could gather from something like that/ I¡¯m familiar with a lot of stuff as ingredients that can be found in the Reach, we¡¯ve never had a use for undead before, but now¡­¡± Lindle mused.


    ¡°Undead?¡± Dorothea questioned, overhearing him. ¡°You wanna use undead as¡­¡± She trailed off, looking queasy.


    ¡°Well, yeah. Aren¡¯t you curious about how it could be used?¡±


    ¡°Necromancy¡¯s pretty frowned upon though¡­¡±


    Thalia cocked her head. ¡°I mean, not really? Sure wild undead are big problems, but I¡¯ve never seen anyone have issues with necromancy spells in the circle.¡±


    ¡°Seriously? And the Polar Church let¡¯s it happen?¡± Now Dorothea looked really shocked. She looked between the three of them, and they all shrugged. Necromancy wasn¡¯t exactly common, especially outside of the circle, but Lindle had heard of it before. He knew most Soarians didn¡¯t like it, in class he had even learned that the Polar church directly banned its use for their members, but that didn¡¯t seem to affect many people¡¯s attitude about it in Glacerhine.


    ¡°I doubt they don¡¯t know about it, but that¡¯s seriously not normal for them to tolerate that kind of magic.¡± She muttered to herself, before glancing back at them. ¡°I guess that¡¯s not important now, I can ask Chip later. If you think everything¡¯s fine, I guess you can¡¯t go wrong bashing some skeletons and zombies for your first quest. Not much more classic than that. I mean, there are goblins, but I don¡¯t think they live this far south.¡± Dorothea still seemed a bit nervous, her words rushed.


    ¡°So¡­ yeah. Let¡¯s go take it then.¡± Humphrey said, before walking towards the counter with quest in tow. Thalia and Lindle joined him. Lindle glanced back, and Dorothea took a few breaths, before giving him a thumbs up and then going to put back all the other quest postings back.


    Elias greeted them. ¡°Back already, you got your quest all picked out?¡±


    Humphrey grunted affirmatively and placed the quest on the counter.


    ¡°Wonderful. Just to get you used to the process, can you all please hold out your badges?¡±


    They all complied, and Elias held out another crystal, this one blue instead of black. He waved it against their badges, and then over the quest paper. ¡°There, all done. I¡¯ll list you all as taking the same quest together.¡±


    ¡°Thank you Elias,¡± Thalia said. She gave him a bright smile, and Elias laughed, rubbing the back of his head as his eyes darted away.


    ¡°Just doing my job, it¡¯s no trouble.¡±


    Lindle smiled at him too. ¡°Yeah, but you¡¯ve still been a big help.¡±


    The red already on the guild worker¡¯s face spread a bit more, now fully looking away. ¡°Seriously, please don¡¯t mention it.¡±


    Humphrey sighed, and grabbed both of them, pulling them away. ¡°Come on, we got everything we needed, let¡¯s go.¡±


    Lindle and Thalia were a bit confused by the sudden exit, but they waved goodbye as they left. Dorothea led them to the Slumbering Scale, buying them all drinks to celebrate¡­ well a lot of things, them all becoming adventurers, Lindle¡¯s first levels, and his success with his class so far.


    This time armed with a raised Con stat, Lindle didn¡¯t even feel tipsy once Thalia and Humphrey had said they had enough, so he stopped as well. Eventually, the rest of Dorothea¡¯s party found themselves in the inn as well. They had congratulated the three of them, and Lindle took the chance to confirm Dorothea¡¯s story about their party name. Rosato¡¯s embarrassment and Chip¡¯s uproarious laughter were confirmation enough before they even spoke.


    They all took the time to compare notes and get advice on how to go about the quest. It was a mixed bag since after he had gotten a few drinks in him, Humphrey had become outspoken enough to argue with Rosato when it came to parts the ranger¡¯s experience surviving in the Reach touched on. Luckily Rosato was good-natured enough to debate directly with Humphrey, and Lindle thought the outcome was better for it, Rosato¡¯s experience in working in the formation of varied skill sets of an adventuring party allowed him to immediately apply Humphrey¡¯s knowledge of the location and monsters to his advice, adapting it to their party.


    Afterwards, Humphrey had grumbled, but he seemed to have gained some respect for the kitsune knight, which was in all honesty a big relief to Lindle. Once they had all eaten and drunk their fill, they all went home to make plans and ready themselves for their quest.


    It took about two days for the area outside of the grove¡¯s protection to clear, but once it had, the three of them set out for their first quest.

 Chapter 42: Life and Death

    It only took the three of them a few hours to reach deep enough into the Black Wood for Lindle to feel confident they wouldn¡¯t come across anyone else. They paused for a break next to a Steamheart tree as Lindle dove into his old porter¡¯s pack, pulling out all three Frostgreed Scales and tossing the wristguard and amulet to his friends.


    He pinned his brooch to his chest as he spoke. ¡°Should be far enough out now, no new scouts should be in the area yeah?¡± Lindle directed the question to Humphrey, who had taken out a map to confirm their route.


    ¡°Yep. The rangers are avoiding the area until the undead and necrotic mana are cleared.¡± The ranger slid his wristband on and admired the ghostly scales that shimmered into sight. ¡°Hey, these don¡¯t look much weaker than we tested them out already.¡±


    ¡°Mhm, good, then when we¡¯re out in the deep parts of the wood, it should definitely be enough to protect us from some wild skeletons and zombies,¡± Lindle said.


    ¡°Since neither of you has been that far deep into the Black Wood before, make sure to follow my lead, we¡¯re going to be following the same route the scout that discovered the undead took.¡± Humphrey took.


    Lindle and Thalia both nodded. Humphrey¡¯s experience traversing the Reach outclassed both of theirs combined, and neither of us had a reason to go as far away from one of the groves in this kind of region before as they were going now. Ironically enough, the mountains were usually considered a more dangerous region due to the wildlife. Still, it hardly counted with Madam Holly scaring away most of what made it a threat in the first place while they were there. With Humphrey in the lead, they lowered the chance of stumbling into any dangerous monsters and getting lost. Deep in the Black Woods was where a majority of the Glacial Reach¡¯s ambush predators and dangerous flora hid. With any luck, the undead corruption wouldn¡¯t have spread far enough to disrupt them too much.


    Humphrey¡¯s directions took them deeper, occasionally scouting ahead whenever he heard or spotted something and diverting their path to take them out of the way.


    ¡°You know,¡± Thalia said once Humphrey had rejoined them from one said scouting expedition. ¡°We don¡¯t need to avoid every single monster on our way there. Half the point of doing this is to get materials and XP, with Lindle¡¯s items we can afford to hunt down some stuff.¡±


    ¡°That doesn¡¯t sound very druidy of you,¡± Humphrey teased. ¡°Shouldn¡¯t you be happy we¡¯re preserving the natural wildlife?¡±


    Thalia rolled her eyes. ¡°Spirits, I hate that reputation. The Reach¡¯s monster population isn¡¯t going to just collapse if we cull some extra.¡±


    Lindle raised an eyebrow and Thalia elaborated. ¡°The Circle sometimes keeps adventurers from killing some kinds of monsters or hunting in certain areas in the Reach. Soarians hear the words in harmony with nature and think we¡¯re monster lovers or something. We just know disrupting the natural cycle is more trouble than it¡¯s worth sometimes, the last thing we need is an Apex to go on a rampage when its favorite food source dries up.¡±


    Lindle hummed. ¡°I see. You do gotta admit though, you do sound more bloodthirsty than most druids I know.¡±


    ¡°Shut up.¡± She punched him in the shoulder and then pulled her fist back with a hiss when she hit one of his floating scales instead. ¡°Ah fuck, cold.¡±


    ¡°Well, luckily for us, we can sate Thalia¡¯s bloodlust now. Spotted some of our targets.¡± Humphrey said.


    Thalia barked indignantly while Lindle looked at him. ¡°Undead? But we¡¯re still a while away from where the scout reported.¡±


    Humphrey shrugged. ¡°You know how wild undead are, they spread and try and find corpses to reanimate. Or make new ones. There¡¯s a pack of monster skeletons taking down a white mammoth.¡±


    That made sense, it had been a couple of days since the quest had first been posted, but it was still worrying they had made it this far. He had hoped that they would be contained more by the monster population as they spread. Luckily, it seemed like it was a case of them roaming uncontested unusually far instead of managing to kill and reanimate a large number of monsters. If they were skeletons, that meant those would be old corpses, likely from the original area of the necromantic build-up. Wild undead usually only created zombies from creatures they killed, there weren¡¯t any necromancers to clean and butcher the flesh with them after all.


    They all drew their weapons and snuck forward, the sounds of combat becoming apparent the closer they got. As they crested a ridge and looked down, they saw the fight. Skeletal canine and feline creatures surrounded the towering white mammoth. The mammoth¡¯s usual white fur was covered in red and its breath came out in large clouds of steam. It was clearly exhausted and on its last legs, but wasn¡¯t going down without a fight either, scattered bones of destroyed skeletons dotted the area and several trees had been knocked over as a result of its massive power. The undead were chillingly silent as the mammoth trumpeted with rage and attempted to stomp them into the snow.


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    ¡°Wow.¡± Thalia breathed out as she admired the white mammoth. ¡°Can you imagine having a form like that?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m happy not getting any larger, what? Deciding on one of your new forms?¡± Lindle asked.


    ¡°Maybe¡­¡± Thalia hedged.


    ¡°We need to focus,¡± Humphrey interrupted. ¡°What¡¯s the plan here?¡±


    Lindle scanned the chaos of the battlefield, the skeletons dodging between the mammoth¡¯s legs. ¡°We shouldn¡¯t risk getting in the middle of this, it¡¯s too chaotic and we might get the mammoth angry at us too if we hit it by accident. We should let the mammoth take out as many of the skeletons as it can before it dies, and when the skeletons start attempting to reanimate it, we attack.¡±


    Despite her earlier words, Thalia seemed saddened when Lindle mentioned letting the mammoth die, but she nodded. Druids had spells to pacify and communicate with certain beast-type monsters, but the mammoth was too enraged and close to death already, it would lash out and put their lives at risk if they tried to save it.


    Lindle pulled out a vial of alchemist¡¯s fire. ¡°We take out as many at range as we can, if they close, Thalia, do you have a form that¡¯ll work well against skeletons?¡± Her dire wolf form was strong, but her claws and teeth weren¡¯t the best tool against a foe without flesh.


    Her eyes flickered to Humphrey, specifically to above his head. ¡°Yeah I have something, it¡¯s should let me hold them off as long as you take them out before they can surround me.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll stay close enough to help there,¡± Lindle said. ¡°Humphrey?¡±


    Humphrey nodded, holding an arrow, which when he looked closer, Lindle saw had a small weighty-looking ball tip instead of a point. ¡°Skeletons suck to fight with a bow, but as long as I aim for headshots, I¡¯ll be fine.¡±


    Lindle smiled, pulling out a flask. ¡°I had time to think about that too, so I asked Chip to do me a favor. He says if you coat your arrows in this oil, the blessing he put on it should let them annihilate undead.¡±


    Humphrey looked dubious. ¡°Holy magic? Are you sure that¡¯ll work? I¡¯m not exactly a follower of Hesty or whoever his goddess is.¡±


    ¡°Chip said it would be fine, she¡¯s not going to be watching you or anything, that¡¯s not how it works.¡± Lindle gave him the flask.


    Humphrey still looked doubtful, ¡°Well, how does it work then?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know, I¡¯m not a cleric either.¡± Though at the very least, Lindle knew the not-watching part was true, probably. The Ethos that had filled the oil after Chip had blessed it lacked the connection that the halfling possessed that stretched into the sky to his deity.


    Thalia sighed. ¡°Just do it, worst-case scenario, it does nothing.¡±


    ¡°Fine,¡± Humphrey grunted, getting to work covering his arrows in the holy oils.


    They continued watching the fight. Even in its current state, the mammoth put up a ferocious fight. The beast was most likely at the very peak of what an apprentice tier was capable of, giving the tireless undead a run for its money in staying power as the minutes dragged on. It shattered one skeletal feline latched onto its hindquarters to pieces against a tree while its trunk attempted to squeeze the life out of another, the undead savaging the trunk with its claws and teeth. Despite not comprehending that the skeleton didn¡¯t need to breathe, the skeleton perished nonetheless as its spine and neck were squeezed to dust, but not before more of them tore large gashes into the beast.


    The mammoth was a bloody mess, held together only by its massive bulk and what must have been a bottomless pool of HP, but eventually, after what felt like a lifetime but must have only been a few minutes, the beast stumbled and collapsed, taking one more skeleton as it fell on top of it. The rest of the skeletons descended on the white mammoth, and the beast finally perished.


    The three of them looked in respectful silence, not able to say anything for a moment. Lindle had expected the mammoth to only take out a handful more of the undead, but it had destroyed a full dozen just in the amount of time they had been watching, leaving only ten skeletons left. He couldn¡¯t imagine how many the undead horde had numbered when the fighting began.


    Despite their losses, the undead immediately surrounded the massive corpse, standing completely still as they soaked the area in necromantic energy. They all shook off their reverie.


    ¡°Thalia, when I give the signal, use a spell to give them a harder time when they try to reach us, then join in with ranged attacks.¡±


    The druid nodded, her expression pinched. Lindle felt similar, it had been his idea, but watching that entire fight had still lit a flame of anger in his chest. It wasn¡¯t rational, it would be no different to the mammoth if it had been a pack of living beasts hounding it, by the beyond, Glacian hunters used similar tactics when hunting mammoths, but he hadn¡¯t been able to help but sympathize with the great beast over the lifeless skeletons below. It was a little easier to understand Dorothea¡¯s reaction now when Lindle expressed interest in using undead Ethos. But it didn¡¯t change anything, life and death happened in the Reach every day, it was just going to be a little easier to put his all into this now.


    Lindle cycled his Aura into his arm to use [Throw]. ¡°Now!¡±

 Chapter 43: Skullshot

    On his cue, the three of them acted, but not simultaneously. Lindle had the advantage of being the one to set the others off, his arm already in motion when his friends heard him. Enhanced by the Technique, the vial of alchemist¡¯s fire flew, aimed at the middle of the largest gathering of skeletons on the side of the mammoth corpse closest to them. The vial shattered, and flames burst outward, engulfing several undead. Bones wouldn¡¯t normally be susceptible to being burnt, but undead were notoriously weak to fire, catching flame as if they were covered in oil as the necromantic energy animating them was consumed. Empowered by [Alchemical Bomber], the hungry flames swiftly consumed three of them and their blackened bones fell apart.


    Humphrey wasn¡¯t far behind, likely drawing on his higher Dex stat, letting loose with his bow while Lindle¡¯s vial was still midflight. The arrow slammed into the skull of a skeleton next to the group Lindle had targeted. Between the blunt head and the holy oil covering it, the skeleton¡¯s skull cracked and burst apart with golden light and flame.


    Where most other creatures would react with fright, confusion, or at the very least flinch at the sudden and dramatic destruction of almost half their number, the undead reacted instead with unnatural swiftness and efficiency. Alerted to their presence, the rest of the skeletal beasts began sprinting for them. That was when Thalia finished casting her spell.


    ¡°[Grasping Patch],¡± Thalia spoke aloud for their benefit, pointing her wand at the ground before them. A twisting field of vines and thorns grew out of the snow, the skeletons at the front of the pack getting their feet tangled. The thorns didn¡¯t cut into the bone, but it caused them to stumble awkwardly. The magical vines tightened around their legs, keeping the skeletons in place until they forced themselves free. Instead of running into the spell as Lindle had expected, the rest of the undead split into two groups around the field of vines, sending snow up into the air as the skeletons closed into melee with them.


    Lindle¡¯s eyes widened as they moved quicker than they had when they fought the mammoth. How were they so much faster- the mammoth! He spit out a curse as he realized his mistake. The undead had all leveled up once they had killed the mammoth, probably more than once considering how many of them had died, leaving a much lower number to split the XP. Humphrey and Thalia had bow and wand raised, having expected to be able to shoot down more before the undead reached them.


    Humphrey reacted quicker, leaping backward to dodge the skeleton that pounced for him, claws outstretched as it passed through the space he had been occupying. Thalia attempted something similar but was hit as a feline skeleton caught her with a swipe of its claw, sending Thalia down onto her side.


    The world slowed down as Lindle activated [Flow]. He watched as the skeleton opened its jaw in order to bite down on Thalia¡¯s prone form. Looking down at her, he was happy to see she looked mostly uninjured, one of Frostgreeds scales likely having blunted the impact, but she was still in danger. He spared a glance for Humphrey, looking back and watching the ranger dodging the undead¡¯s attacks, kiting it as tried to fit an arrow onto his bowstring. He would be fine for the next few seconds. Having made his decision, Lindle rushed forward, fist cocked back as he used [Power Strike] to punch the skeleton in the skull, forcing it off of Thalia.


    Using [Flow] in actual combat felt strange. Everything happened much slower, including his own body, but his mind felt sharp and calm. His earlier panic and frustration felt numbed, and as he hit the undead, he didn¡¯t feel the haze of red that he expected to begin to descend. Instead of feeling like he was in a fight, it felt like was working on a problem, like he was still imagining the plan to win the fight instead of executing it.


    Thalia, taking the opportunity he had given her, quickly transformed. Instead of her usual dire wolf form, the druid wildshaped into a new shape. She grew, standing taller than Lindle, even discounting her new massive antlers, into a megaloceros. She shook her head wildly, taking the skeleton Lindle had punched with her antlers and sending it sprawling to the ground. Unlike the unfortunate skeleton, Thalia managed to follow up successfully, putting her hoof to its skull and crushing it.


    It seemed like Lindle could still be taken by surprise even with [Flow] active, staring up at Thalia as the giant elk was covered in floating white scales for a moment. Luckily, that was only a subjective moment, and he refocused. He turned away, trusting her to be able to take the remaining skeleton facing her. He saw Humphrey, now being attacked by two skeletons and dodging with everything he had as they attempted to maul him, unable to get a shot off. Frostgreed absorbed a few blows as Lindle thought quickly. He gathered his mana points and cast a spell on his friend.


    ¡°Humphrey! Jump!¡±


    Humphrey¡¯s gaze flickered to him, not understanding, but he complied, and [Levitate] kept him from coming back down. The pair of undead tried to get to him, silently jumping but unable to reach Humphrey. The ranger looked confused for a second, but a grin spread across his face, and he quickly pulled an arrow back, and sent it rocketing down, blasting apart a skull. A second arrow did the same to the other skeleton.


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    Humphrey laughed. ¡°Haha! I could get used to this!¡± He drew another arrow, firing down at the skeletons still struggling to get out of Thalia¡¯s spell and swiftly blowing apart their skulls with holy golden flames.


    Lindle counted nine skeletons and turned around to see Thalia destroying number ten, trampling it back to death. She turned around, looking around and seeing no more undead, and transformed out of her megaloceros form.


    ¡°I think that¡¯s all of them.¡± She scanned the area again. ¡°Where¡¯s Humphrey?¡±


    ¡°Up here!¡± Humphrey called down. ¡°Look at¡­ me¡­¡± He trailed off as he noticed that he was still slowly floating upwards. ¡°Lindle¡­How do I get down from here?¡±


    Lindle deactivated [Flow], getting an idea and attempting to keep a straight face. The spell allowed the caster to slowly pull the target up or down, and he had already done that to keep Humphrey from floating off into the sky at the same speed he had jumped at, but Humphrey didn¡¯t know that.


    ¡°I¡¯m gonna need to turn the spell off! Brace yourself!¡± Lindle shouted up to Humphrey, pretending to go to the ground below the ranger to test if it was soft enough to drop him onto.


    ¡°What!? No! Don¡¯t do that!¡± Humphrey shouted back. Swiping his arms as he tried to swim back to the ground.


    Thalia walked up next to him, a look of concern on her face, drawing her wand. ¡°Should I¡­¡± The concern faded as she saw him holding back snickers. She sighed, putting her face in her hand.


    Lindle watched Humphrey flail wildly for a few more seconds. ¡°Ready? Three, two, one!¡±


    Humphrey closed his eyes and curled up, bracing himself for impact, and Lindle, instead of dismissing the spell, began pulling Humphrey back to the ground. He held the position for a few moments, before opening an eye and looking around in confusion. Realization grew on his face and he glared down at Lindle, uncurling and crossing his arms.


    ¡°You¡¯re a dick.¡±


    Lindle snickered and brought him back down to the ground, dismissing the spell once both feet were safely on the snow. ¡°Sorry, it was too good to pass up.¡±


    ¡°Well, turnabout is fair play, so just watch your back,¡± Humphrey warned.


    Thalia rolled her eyes. ¡°Boys. We¡¯re supposed to be on a quest. Can you please take this seriously?¡±


    ¡°Ah¡­ yeah. Sorry.¡± Lindle apologized more genuinely. He looked around at the scattered bones. ¡°That was actually closer than I expected. Is everyone okay?¡±


    Humphrey shook his arm. ¡°I took some hits, your magic scales helped a lot, but I¡¯d still appreciate some healing.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll take care of it,¡± Thalia waved Lindle off as he started to reach into his pouch for a healing potion. ¡°I got plenty of Mana left, don¡¯t waste the potion.¡± She pointed her wand at Humphrey, and green energy flowed up from the ground and wrapped around his body, seeping into him as her spell healed him.


    The three of them spread out. Humphrey went to retrieve his arrows and started looking for the path the undead used to get here. Thalia got to work dismissing her [Grasping Patch] spell, untangling the vines and returning them to the earth, And Lindle started inspecting the remains of the undead under his Ethos sense.


    It was interesting, undead Ethos was in some ways similar to draconid Ethos in that there seemed to be a faded overarching aspect that seemed to encompass undeath in general. It felt weak, in the same way he suspected that the draconid Ethos from the zmey had been weak because it was a weak example of the type, but no less potent than the other most dominant aspect present. There was also a skeletal aspect, and a secondary aspect of beasts and what he suspected the species the creature had been in life, due to this aspect being different when comparing the feline and the canine skeletons. Overall, skeletons seemed to have a much simpler set of aspects in their Ethos compared to most materials he had worked with before. If he wanted to make an artifact out of one, he¡¯d likely only have the undeath and skeletal aspects to work with.


    One interesting thing to note however, was that when it came to the skeletons that Humphrey had slain, the undeath aspect was almost entirely gone. He only noticed it because he was expecting it to be there after inspecting the skeletons Thalia had killed first. The holy magic on Humphrey¡¯s arrows seemed to have almost burned the aspect of undeath away. Lindle wondered if the Ethos of the skeletons he had burned using alchemical fire experienced something similar.


    Lindle rushed down the ridge, passing Humphrey as he peered into the woods. He kneeled down next to the trio of skeletons he had gotten next to the corpse of the White Mammoth and activated his Ethos sense. Lindle froze, as he did confirm that the aspect of undeath in these skeletons was weakened, though not to the same degree as the ones hit with holy magic. More importantly, however, was that he could sense the powerful aspect of undeath present in the white mammoth''s corpse. An active aspect of undeath.


    Humphrey approached Lindle. ¡°Hey, found the trail- woah!¡± He shouted as Lindle shot to his feet and grabbed his friend, pulling him away.


    ¡°Move!¡± Lindle shouted.


    The ground shook as the white mammoth shifted, opening its eyes.

 Chapter 44: Viking Funeral

    Humphrey struggled against him slightly before he realized what was happening, but when he made eye contact with the mammoth, he quickly joined Lindle in gaining as much distance as possible.


    They ran towards Thalia, who approached for a second with concern on her face before going wide-eyed.


    ¡°Do something!¡± Lindle shouted at her. They needed to take it down before it absorbed too much necromantic energy. If it regained all of its previous abilities combined with a zombie¡¯s endless endurance they were in a lot of trouble, a peak apprentice undead wasn¡¯t something they could beat without someone likely dying in the process.


    Thalia pointed Lotus Thorn at it, but she hesitated, indecision crossing over her face. She eventually cast something, it was likely only two seconds, but it felt like an eternity before vines sprouted from the snow, wrapping around the mammoth¡¯s legs and attempting to keep it from getting up, but the mammoth ripped the plants out from the ground as it stumbled to its feet.


    Lindle cursed. Most spells a druid of Thalia¡¯s level would be able to cast were less than effective on a zombie with that much power and strength. Fire magic would do it, but powerful fire spells were notoriously rare and difficult to learn without holy magic. Lindle and Humphrey both slid to a stop alongside Thalia.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know what to cast,¡± Thalia said with an apologetic note in her voice.


    Humphrey turned around, swiftly pulling out an arrow and shooting at the mammoth. A burst of holy flames impacted against its side, but it kept moving. The arrow itself fell into the snow, not impacting past the mammoth¡¯s white and red blood-soaked fur. The holy flames were quickly snuffed out by the necrotic miasma it was emitting.


    ¡°I¡¯m an idiot, I only coated my blunt arrows in that oil,¡± Humphrey grunted.


    The mammoth trumpeted, an awful ragged version of the noise it had made in life, but still thunderous, and it charged through the snow at the trio. Lindle activated [Flow] as it started to eat up ground, looking around and trying to think of a plan.


    ¡°Into the trees!¡± Lindle called, the others following him as they ran into the densest part of the treeline. Lindle had seen how the skeletons tried to swarm and kite the mammoth, but it had far too many successful kills for him to feel comfortable mirroring that strategy.


    Humphrey let loose another arrow as they ran, hitting its chest before it followed them. The mammoth veered to the side, charging into a tree and knocking it over, but at the very least slowing it down. Lindle threw a bottle of alchemist¡¯s fire, the flames valiantly attempting to catch but getting snuffed out even faster than Humphreys.


    Lindle glanced at his friends, alarm radiating off both of them. Lindle felt it too, but while [Flow] was active, it felt far away. He was aware of it, but it didn¡¯t seem to be affecting his thoughts for now, so he took the extra seconds to think as quickly as he could. This thing wasn¡¯t something they could kill normally. It had too many levels on them and was frankly a terrible match-up for their group, it was immune due to being undead or too bulky for most of their magic and ranged attacks, and no one would survive up close. It would outlast them too. Usually, hunters this outclassed would retreat safely until the monster lost interest, but an undead would never stop hunting their prey, and as a mammoth, it would be able to track them for miles. Trying to shake it would mean either abandoning the quest entirely or having to fight it anyway when they were exhausted and it being even stronger if they were unsuccessful.


    No, what Lindle needed to do was think of solutions. They wouldn¡¯t need to burn through its massive bulk or HP pool if they could burn the necromantic energy animating it before it was completely absorbed. The issue was they couldn¡¯t create flames, holy or otherwise, strong enough to overpower the miasma so that it could start consuming. He still had the flask of Chips blessed oil, could he ignite it? It wasn¡¯t in a breakable bottle like his bombs, so he wasn¡¯t sure, he would have to somehow cover the mammoth in it. Was there any other way to give their flames enough power? Or fuel?


    He looked at the tree the mammoth had knocked over. Wood was fuel. Setting the trees on fire? It would be difficult too due to the snow that covered them, and getting the undead close enough to a flaming tree would be next to impossible, it would have to be practically covering the undead for it to work.


    The thought of the mammoth being covered tickled something in his memory, and he immediately drew on his Int stat to bring it forth. He remembered a particular spell he had seen members of the circle cast during the last migration, and he got an idea.


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    Lindle whirled to Thalia. ¡°Do you know the Barkhide spell?¡±


    ¡°What?¡± She looked back at him in confusion. ¡°Yeah, but it''s not going to be any good if it hits us.¡±


    Humphrey fired again, nailing the mammoth in the face right over one of its tusks with another holy burst, delaying it for another few seconds, but it started to build up speed to charge them again.


    ¡°I don¡¯t want you to cast it on one of us,¡± Lindle pointed at the mammoth and pulled out another vial of alchemist''s fire. ¡°I want you to cast it on that.¡±


    Thalia still seemed confused for another moment before understanding bloomed on her face. ¡°The spell requires me to touch my target.¡±


    ¡°Crap. Okay.¡± Lindle looked at the mammoth again, at the tusk that Humphrey had shot the base of. ¡°Then move back, and get ready to cast it when I say.¡±


    Thalia nodded, and Lindle spoke to Humphrey. ¡°We gotta make it ram straight into something!¡±


    Humphrey nodded, holding his arrow. ¡°Got it.¡±


    They slowed down, and the mammoth bore down on them. At the last second, Lindle yelled ¡°Scatter!¡±


    Humphrey and Lindle ran one way, and Thalia transformed into her dire wolf form and leaped the other. Focusing on the two of them, they burned aura to keep the gap from closing, running towards the hardiest-looking trees they could see. Lindle looked back at the mammoth and focused on its tusk. He thought about how powerful of an artifact he could make from its ethos, as crafting material, and he activated [Hunter Gatherer].


    Lindle felt a massive surge of strength, though not to the level he had gotten from Madam Holly, it was surprisingly close. He doubted that the mammoth had as close of a Str stat to her as that implied, but he didn¡¯t have time to question it. Just as importantly though, the mammoth lost some of its ability to focus on Lindle, so when he used his newfound buff to Str to move to the side and run alongside the monster, its focus remained on Humphrey.


    As Humphrey ran past the tree, the mammoth attempted to move around it, but Lindle didn¡¯t let it, ramming his shoulder as hard he could against the mammoth''s side to make it run headfirst into the tree. There was a loud pair of cracks that filled the air, as the tree splintered and burst into pieces, and the mammoth¡¯s tusk that had caused that cracked at the base.


    Taking the opportunity, Lindle cycled Aura for a [Power Strike] and hit the tusk as hard as he could. With a portion of the mammoth''s own strength behind him, it snapped off and flew off into the snow. At the same time, Lindle yelled, ¡°Thalia!¡±


    Dashing in from the other side, Thalia left her dire wolf form mid-jump, her hand outstretched as she slapped the mammoth¡¯s side, casting her spell. The mammoth shuddered as bark began to cover its body, the normally defensive spell now being used to give them an opening. Thalia and Lindle began to move away, but the mammoth lashed out. With his buffed stat, Lindle got clear in time,  but Thalia wasn¡¯t as lucky. The undead trunk hit her from the side and sent her flying through the air, sending her straight into a tree where she slumped down to the ground.


    ¡°No!¡± Lindle screamed. Even through [Flow], he felt some rage enter his mind, and he cycled aura for [Throw], launching the vial of alchemist''s fire straight into the mammoth''s head. At the same time, Humphrey¡¯s arrow landed. As both flames ignited against its body, instead of being snuffed out, the flames caught onto Thalia¡¯s spell, the miasma attempting to snuff them out, but the fires spread more and more. The mammoth trumped its awful call again as the fire spread across its body until eventually, the miasma itself caught fire. The flames jumped in intensity with a roar,  the flames leaping up in the air.


    Lindle didn¡¯t bother to watch the mammoth struggle wildly, running around it and pulling out a healing potion as he sprinted to Thalia¡¯s slumped form. She was unmoving and her eyes were closed. He slid to a stop next to her and immediately poured the healing potion all over her face, trying to get as much of the potion to her body as quickly as possible.


    She didn¡¯t move for a heartstopping moment before she started coughing, spluttering as she looked around wildly, stopping when she saw the slowly collapsing burning mammoth.


    ¡°Hey, hey,¡± Lindle got her attention. ¡°Are you okay? How''s your HP?¡±


    ¡°I¡­ I think I¡¯m good.¡± Her gaze unfocused as she checked on her Health Pool. ¡°I¡¯m missing a bit over half¡­ but I think I¡¯m fine.¡± She tried to move and winced. ¡°Everything hurts though.¡±


    ¡°Hold on, don¡¯t move.¡± Lindle pulled out another potion and handed it to her. She drank gingerly, and sighed in relief as new HP filled her body to take the burden off her injuries


    Humphrey kept his bow trained on the mammoth, not shifting his gaze until it stopped moving, the flames lowering until it became evident the only thing still burning was the wood covering its body. Lindle felt the buff to his Str stat disappear and he called over to his friend. Once he was satisfied, the ranger lowered his bow and ran over to Lindle and Thalia.


    ¡°Are you okay?¡±


    ¡°Yeah¡­ I think I need a break though.¡±


    They all looked at the burning corpse.


    ¡°Yeah,¡± Lindle agreed easily. ¡°I could use one too.¡±

 Chapter 45: Fire Break

    Lindle, Humphrey, and Thalia sat back against the tree, watching the white mammoth corpse burn, flames licking into the sky. The miasma had been consumed quickly enough, but the mammoth had a lot of bark left to feed the flames. Thalia could have dismissed the spell, but no one voiced a suggestion to do so. Between evidently being in white mammoth territory and the undead no predators would approach the area for a while, and since wildfires were practically impossible to start in the Glacial Reach, they all simply sat and enjoyed the moderate increase in warmth.


    Several minutes passed before Lindle broke the silence. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, this is all my fault.¡±


    Thalia¡¯s gaze shifted from the corpse, eyeing Lindle. ¡°What? No it¡¯s not.¡±


    ¡°It was my idea to wait until the mammoth was dead. It was my idea for you to cast that spell. It was my idea to even come out here in the first place.¡± Lindle shrugged. ¡°You got hurt. I don¡¯t see how it¡¯s not my fault.¡±


    ¡°Well maybe consider that those are all ideas we agreed to? The barkhide spell worked, and so did your artifact.¡± She thumbed her amulet. ¡°You weren¡¯t being stupid, unless you think I¡¯m dumb enough to do whatever you say regardless if it made sense or not.¡±


    Lindle looked away, and Thalia hmphed. ¡°That¡¯s what I thought.¡±


    ¡°Then why was it so close? This is supposed to be easy, people go hunting out in the Reach all the time, we picked an apprentice-tier quest and prepared for it for hours, but that still happened.¡± Lindle asked, pointing to the mammoth.


    Humphrey sighed. ¡°You guys realize it¡¯s always been this dangerous out here right?¡± When Lindle and Thalia looked at him, he continued. ¡°Neither of you have left the grove before without someone from a higher tier watching out for you. You guys know the land and the monsters, but you don¡¯t know the danger, not really. That¡¯s fine, it¡¯s actually the point, it¡¯s why the hunters always travel in large groups, we know how to survive out here, that¡¯s always been our first priority.¡± Humphrey gestured to the three of them. ¡°The real difference now is we¡¯re acting like adventurers now, not hunters. We¡¯re a small group of three, not a full party of at least ten. That¡¯s why the crazy bastards do it, the fewer people, the more risk they take, the faster they level up.¡±


    Lindle pursed his lips. The Reach had always been something he knew was dangerous, but he was realizing now that it hadn¡¯t ever been something he had ever been truly afraid of. Even when his life had been in danger all the way back down in the dungeon, there had been the security in knowing that there were stronger people around to rely on. It hadn¡¯t been until he had seen Thalia get seriously hurt that he really grasped that taking the adventurer approach meant facing danger head-on, maximum risk for maximum reward, and not just for him, but for his friends too.


    Lindle opened his mouth, but Humphrey cut him off before he could say anything. ¡°I didn¡¯t say that so you could throw yourself a pity party. Even in hunting groups or during the migration people still die, you just can¡¯t prepare for everything.¡° Humphrey rolled his eyes. ¡°I can¡¯t speak for Thalia, but even if you didn¡¯t realize all that, what I¡¯m saying is I still did when I agreed to all this.¡±


    Thalia spoke up, looking contemplative. ¡°I probably don¡¯t understand to the same degree as Humphrey, but my grandma¡¯s said similar things to me before. I knew this was going to be dangerous, I just trust both of you enough to take that risk.¡±


    ¡°I¡­ thanks, guys,¡± Lindle responded lamely after several seconds, not fully sure what to say but grateful nonetheless.


    Thalia patted his shoulder. ¡°If it makes you feel better, there¡¯s no way you could¡¯ve known that the mammoth would reanimate that fast.¡± Her face scrunched up in confusion. ¡°It shouldn¡¯t be possible for something that large and high level to absorb enough uncontrolled necromantic energy that quickly after death.¡±


    ¡°Oh?¡± Lindle questioned, happy to change the subject. ¡°I mean, I know wild undead flood an area with miasma to raise corpses, there were a lot of skeletons around that were destroyed before we arrived, maybe they were still putting enough into the area to raise the corpse faster? Or maybe the mammoth absorbed a bunch of it before it died so it didn¡¯t need a lot of time? It had been fighting for a really long time.¡±


    Thalia shook her head. ¡°I¡¯m not an expert on necromancy by any means, but that¡¯s not really how it works. You can¡¯t absorb miasma while you¡¯re alive from wild undead like that, that kind of thing needs a necromancy class or magic, and when an undead is destroyed, most of its miasma dissipates pretty fast.¡± She hummed and tapped her chin. ¡°Maybe if the necromantic energy animating the original members of the horde was a lot stronger than expected?¡±


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    ¡°Wouldn¡¯t that mean those skeletons would have been higher level though? They didn¡¯t have any flesh, so they had to be part of the original horde.¡± Lindle asked.


    ¡°Hm, not really. The level an undead is raised at is usually gated by the quality of the body, especially for wild undead. Everything becomes easier, leveling up, speed of reanimation, stat growth, if you have powerful quality miasma on hand, but you can¡¯t just make a level 20 from a level 5 corpse right away. If that¡¯s what happened here, then whatever created the miasma must have been pretty high level, and it¡¯s been mostly unused animating a ton of low-level corpses.¡±


    ¡°Not an expert, huh?¡± Humphrey said, raising an eyebrow.


    Thalia crossed her arms defensively. ¡°What? I don¡¯t even know any true necromancy spells. It¡¯s just kind of interesting, so I paid attention during lessons. Undead have their own kind of weird ecosystem.¡±


    Humphrey shrugged with a smile. ¡°Not going to complain. Sounds handy to know.¡±


    ¡°If the origin point is going to have more powerful miasma than expected, does that change anything about our plan?¡± Lindle asked.


    ¡°Well¡­ I guess we shouldn¡¯t let anything living nearby die if we can, because it¡¯ll reanimate really quickly, or at the very least destroy the body right away, though it being more powerful might actually have worked in our favor, I imagine it would have been easier for everything near the origin point to sense it and then run before the skeletons found them.¡± That did explain to Lindle why there weren¡¯t any other zombies this far away, only skeletons. Thalia thought about it a little more before continuing. ¡°I guess the main thing is that it¡¯s going to be a bit tougher for me to purify the origin point, I¡¯ll need to make the spell stronger than expected.¡±


    ¡°I know something that would probably help with that,¡± Humphrey said. They looked at him, seeing his eyes were looking down at the empty space ahead of him. ¡°I mean, leveling up is most of the point of taking quests like this after all.¡±


    Lindle started as he suddenly noticed the tingle at the back of his mind. He groaned and put a hand to his face. They just killed a bunch of monsters and a partial zombie of a peak apprentice tier, and he was only level 3, of course he had leveled up.


    Lindle raced to pull up his status.


    -You have leveled up! Gained 2 levels in the [Artificer] Class. (lvl 5)


    -Stat gains : +2 Str; +2 Con; +3 Dex; +4 Int; +2 Res; +1 Cha.


    His eyes widened, feeling the raising of his upper limits as he took in the double level. Killing the skeletons must have taken him to the edge of level 4 and the mammoth must have pushed him all the way over to 5. Even more important however, was the new skill he had gotten.


    New Skill: Ethos Ignition


    -Ethos Ignition (Skill)


    Ignite your Ethos to do more than mold harvested Ethos. Flames created from your Ethos will be able to force separate Ethos to combine.


    Lindle immediately pulled the new lever in his mind as soon as the knowledge he could do so entered his mind. In a similar manner to when he used [Artifice Crafting], Lindle¡¯s Ethos flowed from his core to his hands, but instead of forming a layer around his skin, it moved out of his hand into the space above his palms, where it suddenly ignited. A pair of large blue flames flared to life in his hands, making the flames he could summon when casting [Produce Ember] look like small candles. Lindle smiled as he felt the flames, an innate understanding telling him that they were made as much of him as any other part of his body. He made the flames dance around his fingers.


    Thalia raised both hands as she let out a whoop. ¡°Two levels! How many did- whoa.¡± She paused as looked at the flames in Lindle¡¯s hands. ¡°What is that?¡±


    ¡°I got a new skill!¡± Lindle said cheerfully, and then he blinked. ¡°Wait, you can see these? They¡¯re made of Ethos.¡± Thalia hadn¡¯t been able to see when he was using [Artifice Crafting]. He looked at Humphrey, who nodded to confirm that he could see it too.


    ¡°Yeah¡­ wow¡­ It looks kind of strange, but it¡¯s kind of pretty.¡± She waved a hand from around it and tilted her head curiously. ¡°It¡¯s not hot though.¡±


    ¡°Really?¡± Lindle buried his hands down in the snow and watched as the flames passed through the snow without getting snuffed out or any of the snow melting. ¡°Weird¡­ I¡¯ve got to test this out when we get back.¡±


    Another thought compared to Lindle. ¡°Wait, did you both get two levels too?¡± Both Humphrey and Thalia nodded. ¡°But you¡¯re both like 7 levels above me.¡±


    ¡°If you just hit level 5, then 8.¡± Humphrey corrected.


    ¡°If you both got enough XP for that, I should have gotten more than 2 levels.¡±


    Humphrey snickered. ¡°You don¡¯t have a combat class, what did you expect?¡±


    Lindle sat there, having completely forgotten somehow that being able to gain XP from crafting meant that he got less from killing monsters.


    He tried to put his head in his hands again, only to startle himself as he had forgotten his hands were on fire. Humphrey¡¯s snickers devolved into full-blown laughter.

 Chapter 46: Origin Point

    The three of them wrapped up their break not too much longer after that. They took a few minutes to get used to their increased stats. The increase in power felt natural, but they did need to feel them out to know how the numbers translated physically. Only Lindle got a new Skill and after some very hesitant testing, it didn¡¯t seem like he could burn anything with it, so they held out on more tests since it didn¡¯t have any obvious combat applications yet.


    The real puzzle had been the loot Lindle wanted to bring. He had looked over the Ethos of the mammoths corpse, finding the undeath aspect burned away, but there still being quite a few interesting aspects he wanted. Extra interesting was the mammoths tusk he had broken off before they set the zombie alight. He had targeted it in order to activate [Hunter Gatherer] after all, and present in the tusk was the aspect of undeath. The issue, of course, was how large his desired prizes were. Just the tusk was as long as he was tall. He could carry its weight, but it could prove unwieldy to carry for the rest of the quest. Even so Lindle was resolved to hold onto the tusk. The corpse itself they had to leave behind for at least until they came back this way, hopefully, if no predators returned they could take some pieces home, but Lindle stubbornly spent several minutes figuring out a way to tie the curved piece of ivory to the side of his pack.


    Once he was done they continued on their way, following the tracks of the skeletons Humphrey had found earlier. The longer they walked the more evidence of the undead showed itself. At first, it was simply the physical signs of their passage as they hunted the living and tore through the flora, but after enough time the signs of persistent miasma were visible in the plant life and air. A sense of rot filled the area, leaking freely, and the flora was all wilted, most of the greenery turning to a sickly yellow. To Lindle¡¯s Ethos sense, the air itself lit up faintly with aspects of undeath. It wasn¡¯t too long after that they came across the source.


    Humphrey found it first, taking the lead as he did before to make sure they didn¡¯t stumble into any dangerous undead and finding a clear path for them to take. Luckily the only obstacles were scattered skeletons, the majority of the horde seemingly spread out in search. Lindle saw the crack in the earth that was the source, clouds of miasma leaking from the large T-shaped fissure. In the snow around the crack, there were dozens of smaller holes, which must have been from all the various skeletons under the earth which the leak reanimated first digging themselves free.


    Humphrey whistled. ¡°Definitely bigger than other ones I¡¯ve heard of, the corpse must have been a big one.¡±


    Lindle and Thalia nodded. Necrotic wellsprings appeared when, as far as anyone could tell, a large and powerful monster died and the necrotic energy that was generated as a result of their death was trapped underground. Their corpse would slowly generate more and more necrotic energy until the earth couldn¡¯t hold the miasma anymore, and it would burst, raising any of the available corpses in the area and creating wild undead. It took a very high-level monster corpse in order to create a wellspring, so they weren¡¯t common, but it was impossible to know how many said wellsprings were buried across the Reach. At the very least, they were less common the further away from the Border you were. This was unusual due to one this powerful appearing a good distance away from the Border even being visible, but it wasn¡¯t unheard of.


    Thalia measured up the area of the crack. ¡°Around what I expected, I¡¯ll probably need to add another tier to the spell, 3rd tier is doable for me, just let me get set up.¡±


    ¡°Gonna need any help?¡± Lindle offered as Thalia opened her bags, taking out her ritual supplies.


    Thalia seemed to think for a moment before handing Lindle a sack. When he looked inside he saw it was filled to the brim with little mushrooms.


    ¡°Help me sprinkle these around the wellspring. I¡¯ll try and make the ritual boundary, and you just fill the inside with as many mushrooms as you can, throw a few down into the crack for good measure, but spread them out as much as you can.¡± Thalia pulled out another sack of what he presumed were mushrooms. ¡°Hopefully I brought enough, but just to be sure.¡± She turned to Humphrey, ¡°Keep an eye out for undead, when I start casting the ritual¡¯s life energy might attract them and it won¡¯t be good if I¡¯m interrupted.¡±


    Humphrey put a hand to his chin and looked around. ¡°Got it. I¡¯ll get up high for a better view.¡± The ranger walked up to one of the nearby trees, its leaves wilted and dead-looking, but it didn¡¯t seem to have rotted too much. He leaped up, grabbing onto one of the branches and started climbing.


    Lindle and Thalia got to work filling the area with mushrooms, with Lindle trying his best to just spread the mushrooms across the zone she encircled as evenly as he could. When he ran out, Thalia simply pulled out another sack.


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    ¡°This is a lot of mushrooms¡­ I expected there would be some more variety when it came to a real druidic purification ritual.¡± Lindle commented.


    ¡°It¡¯s not a particularly complex one, it¡¯s not even really a ritual to purify the area. It¡¯s more of a growth ritual.¡± Thalia responded, finishing her circle of mushrooms.


    The particulars of druid spell rituals weren¡¯t widely spoken outside the circle, but Lindle knew enough to make a guess based on the clues. ¡°So¡­ you¡¯re just going to grow a bunch of mushrooms over the crack?¡±


    ¡°Kinda! More like just a few really big mushrooms. And those mushrooms will then consume the miasma and convert them into something healthier for the area.¡±


    ¡°I guess I have heard that the necromancy-focused druids in the circle always have a lot of mushrooms on them¡­ why mushrooms?¡±


    ¡°Mushrooms aren¡¯t really plants. They don¡¯t grow using moonlight, they eat things like animals, usually corpses. They¡¯re really good for safely handling necrotic energy because they don¡¯t wilt in it like plants do and magical variants can eat or store it instead, so some druids grow them on their clothes for safety when they use miasma constantly.¡±


    ¡°Are you sure you aren¡¯t an expert in this stuff?¡± Lindle teased. ¡°You aren¡¯t going to start growing mushrooms over your clothes right? I might be able to make you something for that.¡±


    ¡°Shut it.¡± She rolled her eyes before she paused. ¡°¡­ If you do make something like that¡­ I wouldn¡¯t say no¡­ It could be cool, just to study.¡±


    ¡°Ha, I knew it!¡± Lindle crowed.


    ¡°I said shut it.¡± Thalia snapped. ¡°The important thing is that the mushrooms are going to plug up the crack and eat the miasma until the wellspring eventually runs dry.¡±


    ¡°You know, a priest would probably just purge the area, they really don¡¯t like leaving any sources of miasma around,¡± Lindle said. Dorothea¡¯s reaction back in the guild hall had him thinking back to everything the Soarian priests and teachers had told their class, trying to see if there were any other large discrepancies in how they thought and the way things were done in Glacerhine.


    ¡°Yeah, but this way seems a lot less wasteful. Now the miasma can be used to help repair the damage it did to the area until it dries up. I very much doubt Soarian holy magic works very well when it comes to repairing nature.¡±


    ¡°Good point.¡± Lindle conceded.


    They finished scattering the mushrooms and Thalia drew Lotus Thorn. As she drew a deep breath, a thought occurred to Lindle.


    ¡°Hey, if mushrooms aren¡¯t plants, is Lotus Thorn¡¯s effect going to work on this?¡±


    Thalia froze, blinking several times before looking down at her wand, no doubt reading over its status. ¡°I¡­ hope so?¡± I don¡¯t know how this thing works. I didn¡¯t test any mushroom spells with this before.¡± She frowned. ¡°I was pretty confident that between the buff and casting at 3rd tier would be enough, but now I¡¯m not sure.¡±


    Lindle hummed. ¡°Can I take a look at it?¡± He held out a hand and Thalia raised an eyebrow, but handed him Lotus Thorn after a moment. He held back a smile at the possessive look on her face.


    ¡°You aren¡¯t going to mess with it or anything right? I don¡¯t want you to break it or something.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s fine, I¡¯m not going to try and change it.¡± He¡¯d want to ask Nothing how to do so safely first before messing with a finished artifact. Instead, he looked at his artifact under his Ethos sense, inspecting the aspects present. He focused on the primary plant aspect he had made dominant when he crafted the wand, trying to get a deeper sense of what it encompassed. A lot of his practice with Nothing before he received his class had boiled down to sharpening his ability to perceive and comprehend Ethos, and he got a certain feeling as he inspected the plant aspect.


    Lindle handed the wand back. ¡°Try casting a small spell with mushrooms.¡±


    Thalia seemed curious, but she complied, pulling out one of the few left mushrooms they had and pointing her wand at it. After a moment it suddenly grew in size, apparently more than she expected because it more than filled her palm and she fumbled it, the enlarged mushroom falling to the snow.


    ¡°Huh. So it does work on mushrooms? Why?¡±


    Lindle shrugged. ¡°I think¡­ it¡¯s because I thought mushrooms were plants when I made the wand?¡±


    ¡°That¡­ can¡¯t be how it works¡­¡± Thalia screwed her face up in confusion.


    ¡°Nothing mentioned that Ethos works a lot based on interpretation, and I could mix up aspects if I¡¯m not completely through when I¡¯m crafting. I guess my interpretation of plants included mushrooms when I made the wand.¡±


    "That¡¯s super weird. Is it a good thing or bad thing for you to better understand things like that then?¡±


    ¡°It can¡¯t be a bad thing¡­¡± Lindle hesitated. ¡°I¡¯ll ask Nothing when we get back.¡±


    ¡°Hey!¡± Humphrey¡¯s voice rang out and they both flinched, looking around. ¡°Are you going to do the ritual or not!¡±


    They looked up and saw Humphrey looking impatiently down at them in his tree, his antlers littered with dead leaves and small twigs.


    ¡°It¡¯s really uncomfortable to fit my antlers through the branches up here!¡±

 Author Note (Temporary post to be taken down later)

    I mentioned last chapter I''d be going on a break soon, I got some information about my family''s travel plans this morning so I guess I''ll be going on that break now.


    This break shouldn''t last long, I''ll be getting back to posting chapters while still out of the country, likely a week or a little more. I''ll probably drop any of the backlog I build up on my patreon right away and then get back to regular uploads here


    Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author''s preferred platform and support their work!


    If you have any story suggestions or such for the story, direction or anything like that, I''d love to hear it as well while I''m making or redrawing future plans for story direction.


    Just wanted to apologize for this interruption, hopefully things will get back to normal and with more quality soon.

 Chapter 47: Shroom To Grow + Second Story Teaser Chapter

    The two of them emptied the last sack of mushrooms and Lindle stepped back as Thalia drew her wand. She took a deep breath, closing her eyes before pointing Lotus Thorn ahead. There was silence for a few moments before the druid began to mutter under her breath, and under Lindle¡¯s Ethos sense, he saw a large knot of life ethos grow inside of her, traveling from her center where her personal Ethos burned up to her wand. Passing through the artifact, it somehow grew in depth, an extra layer of power added to the blob of energy, before being expelled into the air and settling over the small field of mushrooms, perfectly in line with the circle Thalia had made. The area glowed, and as one, the mushrooms all began to grow.


    There was a look of intense concentration on Thalia¡¯s face, but so far the ritual seemed unexpectedly basic. It just looked like she was dumping a bunch of life Ethos over the mushrooms. Thalia had said it wasn¡¯t going to be particularly complex, but aside from sheer power, this honestly seemed simpler than casting a normal spell, controlling his mana to cast a normal tier 1 spell was less straightforward.


    Ah, mana. Lindle would have let out a sigh to himself if he didn¡¯t care about disrupting Thalia. Lindle couldn¡¯t see mana, he could see the Ethos inside of the ritual, but his feat and the mechanics of the spell worked on different layers so to speak. He had gotten used to thinking in terms of his artifacts and ingredients, so because he could sense the spell, he had attempted to inspect it in those terms, but all he could tell was that its Ethos was aspected towards life, without the intentions he pushed into his artifacts. The fact that he could sense a spell at all was useful, he hadn¡¯t thought to test doing so before, but he¡¯d have to remember that he¡¯d likely be blind to the internal workings of any spell or aura technique aside from his own. An aura sense or a mana sense, like Dorothea and he assumed Thalia had, was useful for identifying the nature of a hostile spell or technique. Seeing the outside world in terms of Ethos would be like seeing everything written in a completely different language to what was common, at the very least it was a very intuitive and symbolic one.


    Lindle was jolted from his internal musings as he heard Humphrey let out a low whistle, a signal they had agreed on earlier. He looked up to his Humphrey gesturing ahead with an arrow nocked. Lindle frowned. Undead were already converging on their location, attracted to the mass of life energy Thalia¡¯s ritual was creating, though he didn¡¯t seem alarmed, so it couldn¡¯t be an overwhelming amount. He fingered his pouch, debating on whether or not he rush out to intercept before they got too close. He didn¡¯t want to leave his friend''s side, but Humphrey was much better positioned to keep watch over her without anything sneaking past.


    He pulled out a Str enhancement potion and started running in the direction Humphrey signaled. Seeing his intentions the ranger quickly held up three fingers. Good, he could handle that many. Lindle poured on the speed as he drew on his Str and Dex stats, running past the wilted trees. It wasn¡¯t long until he spotted a flash of bone white against the sickly green brush and grey-brown trees.


    Lindle activated [Flow] as soon as he saw the monsters, taking the time to figure out what he was dealing with. Three undead, one of which being a familiar feline skeleton, but accompanying it were two zombies, likely early victims of the horde when they first burst out of the ground. An elk, its antlers reminding him grimly of Humphrey¡¯s but since it was one of the common species instead of a dire it would be easily handled. Lastly a Wooly Razorback, the biggest threat of the trio, but one he could take without issue if he took down the other two quickly. They were moving at a steady pace, but not fast enough to indicate they had noticed any prey yet.


    The trees were a bit too bunched together and soaked with miasma to make him comfortable using a fire bomb, luckily he had built up a good bit of momentum, and he had a good idea on how to use it. Lindle downed the potion and began sprinting even faster, channeling aura to his legs, not for [Trek], but to use [Power Strike].


    When the sound of his footsteps reached the undead, they had only begun to turn slightly in his direction before both of his boots slammed into the skeleton¡¯s neck and ribs, shattering bone as he dropkicked it to the Beyond.


    Lindle was ready as the two zombies immediately charged at him, tusks and antlers lowered to gore him. Leaning on his Dex stat and [Flow] he twisted before he hit the ground and leaped to meet the zombie elk, stopping it as he grabbed it by the antlers and allowed the Razorback to rush past him. He pulled and twisted the elk¡¯s neck, a grotesque crack ringing out, and grimaced as it continued to move. HP would have prevented a fatal injury like that in the first place for a living creature, but on an undead it simply allowed it to remain animated. Lindle pulled it by the antlers, bending the neck at a horrifying angle as he brought his knee up in another [Power Strike]. Blood covered his knee as the zombie slumped over, shattering its head having caused its HP to bottom out.


    Lindle turned around to see the zombie Razorback coming back towards him. The last time he had seen one of these giant boars charging at him, Lindle had fled, but this time he held his ground. Idly he tried to target it with [Hunter Gatherer], but he didn¡¯t feel any real motivation to make use of any parts of the zombie, so no surge in any of his stats appeared, but that was fine. He eyed the Razorback''s tusks as they bore down on him, but when it came to tusks, Lindle¡¯s was much bigger.


    Taking a few subjective moments to make sure the angle was right, Lindle dropped to the ground on his side, bracing the mammoth tusk strapped to the side of his pack against the ground, the tip pointed straight at the zombie, allowing it to impale itself on its own momentum. It struggled for a few seconds before expiring.


    Lindle smiled as he deactivated [Flow], standing up and pulling the corpse of the mammoth tusk before he started running back to rejoin his friends. With how he had gone about destroying the undead, he had a bit more fun than was strictly necessary, but after how nearly disastrous fighting the mammoth had been it had felt nice to take an easy victory. Not everything had to be done in the most efficient way possible, though that did sound like something Madam Holly would say. Maybe she was rubbing off on him.


    Once he got back, he saw Humphrey give him a thumbs up from his perch with an amused grin, which Lindle returned. He had likely been able to see Lindle¡¯s fight. The ranger followed up by holding up a finger and pointing an arrow in another direction, which Lindle took to mean there had been another undead, but he had taken care of it.


    It seemed like the only things around were stragglers, good for them, but Lindle did find it a bit worrying how far spread out that meant the undead were. Taking care of the wellspring meant that the undead would weaken and limit the number of corpses they could raise severely, but it was starting to look like it would take a lot longer than expected to clear the undead from this section of the Black Wood entirely, probably several days to track down each one. That was much longer than they had planned on the quest taking, between their limited rations and the increased risk from more undead like the White Mammoth potentially appearing, Lindle figured their best option after Thalia finished would be to head straight home and report that the wellspring had been stronger than reported and that it was likely that there would be small groups of undead wandering around the forest. The quest should be considered complete once the wellspring was gone.


    Speaking of which, where before the wellspring had been a large bare crack in the ground covered in small shrooms, there were now mushrooms almost as tall as Lindle sprouting in front of Thalia, filling the crack and covering the withered trees and snow in a dense miniature forest. His eyebrows raised in surprise at the explosive growth, and in real-time Lindle could see the miasma and Ethos aspected with undeath get sucked into the mushrooms, getting converted to life energy.


    For the next few minutes, Lindle watched, keeping an eye out for danger, but most of his attention was consumed as the mushrooms spread beyond the ritual circle Thalia had drawn and filled the area with life. Even the trees regained their natural color and splendor as the mushrooms grew around them.


    Eventually, Thalia stopped chanting and the mushrooms stopped growing, the flow of life Ethos Lindle could see coming from her wand cutting off. Humphrey quickly, and loudly, his antlers rustling as they banged against several rejuvenated branches, climbed down to join them, both the ranger and Lindle looked around them and at her in awe.


    Thalia turned around to face them, her lips quirked upward in a prideful smile at their expressions, but with a raised eyebrow. ¡°I know I said to make sure I¡¯m not disturbed, but I meant make sure nothing attacks me. You guys didn¡¯t need to stay completely silent the entire time. It was honestly kind of creepy.¡±


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


    ¡°Ah¡­¡± Lindle wasn¡¯t sure what to say to that.


    Humphrey opened his mouth to talk, but immediately inhaled some of the spores Lindle noticed were beginning to fill the area and bent down into a sneezing fit. ¡°Ah-choo!¡±


    Lindle felt his nose begin to run, and he started wiping at it furiously.


    Thalia rolled her eyes. ¡°Come on, let¡¯s get out of here.¡±


    <hr>


    Chapter 1 of Necronomics/Bohemian Necromancy


    Today was the day I planned on dying, but it seemed like I might get killed before that could happen.


    The timing was horrible really. How would you react, if, while you were eating lunch, a trio of strangers burst into your room, pointed weapons at you, and declared that your evil schemes were at an end, before launching spells and arrows at you? Well, I reacted by dropping my sandwich onto the ground as the wards built into my cloak and mask flared to life, protecting me as I stood frozen in shock before I regained my wits, diving for cover before they could be overwhelmed.


    I mourned my sandwich as I hid behind the large stone coffin I¡¯d been using as a kitchen counter for the last few months. I hadn¡¯t been planning on eating again after today for a very long time, if ever, so I had used the last of the food I¡¯d been saving for a special occasion. I¡¯d even used real beef and honey!


    A bit of frantic laughter escaped my lips, my body shaking. I just almost died, and I was thinking about my lunch.


    ¡°Surrender foul necromancer!¡± A loud confident voice boomed out across the room. I peeked my head over the altar, seeing the heavily armored man standing in the center of the trio pointing a mace at me. ¡°Submit to the gods¡¯ judgment, and they may take mercy upon your soul.¡±


    We stared at each other for several seconds, before I slowly shook my head no. The other two, a slender-looking man wearing chainmail and holding a bow, and a short woman in leather armor and a cloak with a mage¡¯s staff, lowered their weapons slightly in confusion, but the man in the center simply narrowed his eyes, a look of anger coming across his face. ¡°So be it!¡±


    He gripped an amulet around his neck and closed his eyes, muttering to himself. My eyes widened as I sensed a horrifying amount of radiant energy gather around him. Instead of waiting to see what he was going to do with it, I immediately turned around and ran. A blinding gold beam of light and radiant energy slammed into the altar seconds later, blowing it to bits.


    My initial shock blossomed into full panic as I sprinted down the dark stone halls, lit only by flickering blue lanterns. The church knew I was here, and they had sent a paladin! How?! Why?! I had been so careful. I never attacked anyone with undead minions or tried to take over any villages. I haven¡¯t even raided any local cemeteries for corpses! I sourced all my bones and parts from an abandoned underground catacomb deep in the swamps that only I knew about.


    My underdeveloped muscles started to ache as I continued running, but I didn¡¯t dare stop. They¡¯d be right behind me, and with how painfully unfit I was they¡¯d catch up in no time. I¡¯d have no chance if they caught up to me, so I needed to slow them down.


    I turned a corner and headed deeper into the catacombs, reaching the room where I kept some of my old experiments. I gathered a bit of my magical energy in my hand before snapping my fingers. It wasn¡¯t a true spell, but a signal I had prepared ahead of time.


    Around me, ancient skeletons stirred to unlife, pale blue flames appearing in their eye sockets, clambering off worktables and crawling out of the comb-like storage shelves. On each of their skulls were scribbled numbers ranging from 728 to 852.


    ¡°Hold them off,¡± I said gasping. ¡°Delay them for as long as you can,¡± I ordered the skeletons. They moved to obey wordlessly, streaming back into the hallway behind me as I continued running. That would buy me some time, but not a lot. A horde of basic skeletons would barely faze a paladin, he¡¯d tear through them like paper, but I didn¡¯t have anything better.


    Not that I wasn¡¯t a good necromancer, I considered myself pretty talented when it came to magic, I¡¯d just never needed a reason to keep any powerful combat undead around before, that wasn¡¯t exactly my focus. I was a researcher, not a stereotypical raider, I wasn¡¯t planning to raise an army. I knew enough magic to defend myself, and necromancy in general was pretty lethal to living creatures, but against a group of trained warriors led by a paladin? Nope, absolutely not, I¡¯d go down in ten seconds flat.


    If I was going to survive, I had only one choice, I needed to die. And then undie.


    I reached my destination, slamming the doors shut behind me, activating the wards, and then layering another few wards on top of that with some hasty spells. This room had been a chapel of whatever faith had built this place, repurposed for a new cause, though one I wasn¡¯t sure the original owners would approve of.


    Around me, the collection of months and months of continuous research filled the room. Books of my notes and old grimoires lay open side by side next to walls worth of magical calculations. In the space where the church pews had been, I had dug two large trenches, filled with black blood, or as it was colloquially known, oil. At the back of the room on a stage was a massive ritual circle, in the center of which was an altar covered head to toe with runes I had made.


    I hastily rechecked all my notes and made sure everything was in place. I had planned on going through the ritual with the gravitas and caution it deserved, but now I was on the clock, so I¡¯d have to hope that the older me hadn¡¯t messed up somewhere. I grabbed the vials of my own blood I had saved up and poured them all into the bowl atop the altar. The minute holes in the bottom of the bowl leaked my blood into the grooves I had carved.


    I then pulled out a much larger potion bottle, filled with a vile-looking swirling substance. I took off the stopper, plugged my nose, and began chugging.


    To anyone familiar with necromancy, what I was doing might be recognized as the beginnings of the ritual required to ascend to lichdom, but they might note that there were several things off about my ritual. For one, there were no screaming victims surrounding me for me to sacrifice their souls, I had no idea why the grimoires I had read specified that they should be screaming, I didn¡¯t look too deeply into that part. There also usually would be profane symbols dedicated to various dark gods and other entities liked to sponsor new liches, Nyxatoth was a popular choice. In their place, however, the symbols seemed to be a lot closer to those used by light-aligned gods, like Haldrios. Most important, however, was the lack of anything that seemed like an obvious soul cage.


    Traditionally, achieving lichdom would involve me ripping out my soul and stuffing it into a receptacle infused with the souls of my victims so it would be capable of holding it, keeping my essence safe and sound, and granting me new undead bodies each time my old one was destroyed. I had felt I could do better than that. Plus I had ethical and logistical concerns about the whole sacrificing a bunch of innocent people¡¯s souls thing, so I had come up with a different idea. There was something a lot more powerful and much more plentiful I could use to power my ritual instead, and I knew for sure it would be able to contain my soul, in fact, it would become my soul.


    I tossed aside the bottle, my face scrunched up in disgust as I tried to ignore the taste and focused, placing both my hands on the desecrated altar. I poured every drop of my magical energy into the glowing runes as I began casting. In front of me, the black blood bubbled and steamed as it was rapidly consumed to help me fuel the ritual. A black haze began to fill the air.


    ¡°Gods above and below, hear me. My name is Ozymandias, he who would be lord of the dead, gaze upon me and tremble as I ascend beyond death and make myself its master.¡±


    Words continued spilling from my mouth, the ritual itself made me sound like an arrogant narcissist, but some arrogance was probably necessary for what I was doing, and the ritual reflected that. I simply had to hope my spell would allow me to back up the hot air I was spewing and any deities that happened to be listening wouldn¡¯t be offended.


    I was halfway through the ritual when I heard thumping at my door. I sped up. The thumping got louder as the doors shook, my wards keeping them together. My words began feeding into each other into a single continuous noise, the deep and dramatic voice I had practiced in the mirror for weeks breaking into a high-pitched squeak.


    ¡°Beholdmypoweranddespair!¡±


    I finished the words and scrambled for the last thing I needed, and by far the most important piece of the ritual, my athame, when the doors exploded. Stone and wood shrapnel filled the air and a particularly large chunk of door flew straight at my face. My wards attempted to hold it back valiantly but were overwhelmed and I was sent twirling to the floor.


    Dazed, I felt something warm begin running down my face from my forehead. I felt upwards and my hand came away bloody. Numbly I realized my mask had fallen off as well. I looked around but didn¡¯t see it. I did, however, spot my athame on the ground, the blade seeming untouched by all the dust and rubble, the silver steel and feathered design of the hilt as pristine as the day I had found it.


    I reached for it when I heard footsteps behind me, and a gathering of magical energy indicating a spell.


    ¡°Stop! Turn around and face me.¡± A woman¡¯s voice commanded me.


    Slowly, I rolled onto my back to see the woman pointing her staff at me, a fire spell ready to burn me to ash.


    ¡°You have nowhere to go, surrender peacefully and-¡± Her red eyes widened in shock. ¡°You¡¯re¡­ just a kid?¡±


    I was 19 thank you very much, I thought somewhat hysterically, though my fear kept me from speaking the words aloud. It wasn¡¯t my fault food wasn¡¯t readily available to me after my village ran me out after I had tried to bring my dog back to life as a child.


    ¡°What are you doing Sybil!¡± The paladin marched up to her furiously. ¡°End him now!¡±


    The mage, Sybil, hesitated and turned her head to look at him. ¡°But¡­¡±


    Their distraction bought me just enough time to break out of my fear. I grabbed my athame.


    ¡°No!¡± The paladin roared, and raised his mace, glowing with radiant power to smite me. Too late.


    I plunged my athame into my own heart, and the world burst into a swirl of black and white. Then I died.

 Chapter 48: Very Serious

    They made record time getting back home, Humphrey leading them back the way they came before night fell. Lindle did grab some of the mushrooms before they left though. He wanted as many aspects to choose from as possible to test [Ethos Ignition] with.


    Their first priority, however once they arrived in Glacerhine, was to report to the adventurer¡¯s guild. Elias had seemed just as concerned that the undead weren¡¯t wiped out, letting them know that the outpost would put out a general call to adventurers to be on the lookout for roaming undead and that they would pass on the information to the village rangers. With the wellspring purified Elias declared their quest complete anyway, and handed over their reward. It was about the same amount of gold as he had received from his cut escorting Dorothea and her party, but only before being split three ways. Lindle mentally remarked that Journeyman quests must have payouts larger by an order of magnitude if adventurers could afford to pay the equivalent of an Apprentice quest just for porters. He told Thalia and Humphrey to make sure to keep their versions of Frostgreed hidden somewhere, and with a tired high-five, they split off and made their own ways home.


    Lindle felt pretty exhausted once he arrived home, cleaning himself before collapsing in bed. The next day he sat down with Nothing and his mom, showing them his new skill before drafting out a plan for the foreseeable future. Ever since his birthday, Lindle had split his time between celebrating with his friends and experimenting with his class and levels, but now that had gotten his first five levels, it was time to focus and create a sustainable routine. They only had a few months before the raid on the dungeon, and even less before the first of the Soarian adventurers started trickling into Glacerhine.


    If Lindle was going to be prepared he¡¯d need to maximize his time and do several things. Learn how to craft the most potent artifacts he could, and raise his level, but the first thing on his list was finally finishing Nothing. Nothing had told Lindle that it had been okay to prioritize other things first, but as soon as Nothing had confirmed for him that [Ethos Ignition] was the last skill necessary for their completion Lindle had insisted they do so as quickly as possible.


    Of course, that necessitated Lindle familiarize himself with the skill first.


    Start small. The less Ethos strain crafting an artifact causes, the more practice in a day you can fit in before you need to recover.


    Agreeing, Lindle¡¯s first attempt was going to be made only using some simple magical herbs. A greenheart root, the same herb he had used to make his first item, and a purifying peony. That was a plant grown by the druids in the inner grown that worked well as a general anti-toxin. Activating [Artifice Crafting], Lindle harvested the Pelos from each plant, creating two small piles of dust for the bin. Idly Lindle pressed the two globs of Pelos into each other. Despite being as amorphous as wet clay, the two globs refused to meld together into a single mass, simply deforming but remaining distinctly separate.


    He felt for the Ethos inside each of them, the heartroot the same as before, and the peony having an interesting mix of aspects, medicinal, but in the sense of purification and removal of foreign and harmful elements without aspects of strengthening of health or repair that the heartroot had.


    As Lindle activated [Ethos Ignition], that changed. Blue flames erupted across his hands and engulfed the lumps of Pelos, and as material sagged in his hands, melting like wet clay, he felt the aspects in the Ethos grow more malleable. Grinning, Lindle mashed his hands together, the Pelos of each plant smooshing against the other, and unlike before, they mixed. Massaging the Pelos, he rolled and crushed it until it was a single solid mass. At the same time, he sent his intent inward. He could instinctively sense that he could either keep the aspects separate, making an item that took advantage of multiple aspects, or he could smash them together, fusing them into entirely new aspects. Interestingly enough, the identical aspects of each plant¡¯s Ethos, like the plant aspect, seemed to fuse together without his input, increasing their prominence, but not by too much.


    For this first test, Lindle decided to keep the aspects separate, since that seemed like it would end with the simplest result. Keeping both the healing and purification aspects in the forefront of his mind, Lindle molded the Pelos into a ring and completed the artifact.


    A ring similar to the one he had given to his mother lay in his hands. Made out of wood with a green line running through it, though it did seem to also have some white cutting through it at various points.


    Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Heartpure Ring


    Effect: When wearing this ring the wearer will receive a small boost to the effects of both Health Potions and Antidote Potions they drink.


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    Lindle tilted his head. If he recalled correctly, the Heartroot Ring had an identical benefit when it came to drinking health potions, but the boost to natural regeneration was missing. Instead, a benefit to the effects of antidotes was present.


    Lindle grabbed another pair of herbs and repeated the process, but this time, when he used [Ethos Ignition], instead of keeping the healing and purification aspects separate, he forced them to fuse. What was left was an entirely new aspect that seemed to have the traits of both yet was neither. It was¡­ healing through purification? Well, that seemed a lot more specific and complicated than its parent aspects, but perhaps that was normal for ¡®child aspects.¡¯


    Lindle sculpted another ring, trying to keep his intention for the item as similar to as before as possible. A new ring appeared in his hand once he finished, though it looked a lot different from before. It was made out of wood like the other two, but the green was no longer a simple straight line, but a repeating helix pattern with steaks of white and now red forming simple shapes he hadn¡¯t intended to create covering most of its surface. Its status was no less interesting.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Pure Heart Ring


    Effect: Whenever the wearer of this ring resists or is purified of a toxin, they will receive a temporary boost to their HP regeneration.


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    That was certainly different, yet similar. There was no ¡®small¡¯ or ¡®minor¡¯ in the description, so despite arguably being more conditional, this artifact already showed its effect was noticeably more powerful than most of his previous creations, and that was using some very weak crafting material.


    That didn¡¯t mean there wasn¡¯t some cost to it however. Lindle could notice the effects of Ethos strain creeping up on him. It had seemed that using [Ethos Ignition] increased the amount of strain caused by crafting substantively.


    Lindle continued performing more experiments, creating more variants of the ring until Nothing called it for the day. Lindle¡¯s new routine would involve him not crafting any more than it would take for the strain to recover in a days time.


    He had planned after that to head out to the training grounds to find Madam Holly and let her know that whatever reprieve she had granted him could come to an end. Despite the joy in his suffering she seemed to have, she was still by far the best possible teacher he could have for things outside of his class, so he had resigned himself to a return to form.


    He needn¡¯t have bothered, however, since as he left his workshop, he found Madam Holly and his mom sipping tea around the table.


    ¡°There you are, you¡¯ve been quite the busy badger, haven¡¯t you?¡± Madam Holly winked at him. ¡°It¡¯s rude to make an old woman wait you know. You¡¯re lucky your mother is always such an excellent conversationalist.¡±


    Lindle wasn¡¯t sure he liked the sound of that. He looked at his mom, who whistled innocently. ¡°Oh, you know how it is. Things have gotten quite exciting lately since your birthday. It¡¯s nice to sit down and swap stories once in a while.¡± She sipped her tea.


    Madam Holly chuckled. ¡°I remember when my oldest got their class, things changed so quickly around the house.¡± She wagged a finger at Lindle, adopting a croaky lecturing voice. ¡°I know it¡¯s tempting to throw everything to the wayside, what with your fancy new skills and stats to play around with, but remember to spare some time for your dear old mother.¡±


    They both tittered playfully as Lindle sighed and took a seat. ¡°I will.¡± He said if only to allow them their fun and get it over with quickly, even if he did mean it.


    ¡°In all seriousness Lindle, congratulations.¡± She gave him a slight nod.


    ¡°Thank you Madam Holly.¡± There was a note of sincerity in her voice that made him sit up straighter.


    ¡°Now that you have your class and are officially an adult, I feel like it¡¯s time we had a talk.¡± She looked at his mom. ¡°Alyn, would you mind?¡±


    His mom nodded with a smile. ¡°Not at all. Here, let me refill your tea and I¡¯ll go reopen the store.¡± She filled Madam Holly¡¯s cup and poured Lindle one too before leaving.


    Once they were alone, they sat in silence for a few moments, the veteran tier elder looking at him with a pleasant expression. Feeling anxious, Lindle brought his cup up to his lips.


    ¡°So, Lindle. What are your intentions with my granddaughter?¡±


    Pffffbt. Lindle¡¯s eyes bulged as he turned and sprayed the contents of his drink. He coughed. ¡°I- What? I never- Thalia. We-.¡±


    He saw the barely restrained mirth on her face and stopped himself. He wiped his face clean and pointed accusingly at her. ¡°That was evil, pure evil.¡±


    Madam Holly laughed, wiping a tear. ¡°Ah, now that was a good one. I knew I¡¯d be able to get that kind of reaction out of you eventually.¡±


    ¡°I thought this was going to be a serious conversation,¡± Lindle complained.


    She tutted and shook her finger. ¡°Ah, but it is, after all, what else is an old woman supposed to think when a boy starts giving her granddaughter fancy jewelry and other magical presents?¡±

 Chapter 49: -Conversation

    Lindle froze. Maybe it was he still was riding on the adrenaline Madam Holly¡¯s joke had caused, but for the first time, Lindle seriously drew on his Charisma stat, allowing for the increased self-awareness and control to work towards keeping his face blank, activating [Flow] to give himself more time to thin-.


    Madam Holly snapped her fingers, startling him and breaking his concentration right before he began using his Aura points. She rolled her eyes. ¡°By the spirits you¡¯re jumpy, your hearts about to jump out of your chest. I can¡¯t say you don¡¯t have good instincts when it comes to deception though,¡± she gave him a wry smile, ¡°most people need a few tries before they figure out how to use their Charisma to do anything but avoid stumbling over their own words in front of their childhood sweetheart, good, that¡¯s good. You¡¯ll need a lot more points before you can start fooling me of course. I wonder if I should warn my granddaughter that you¡¯ve got a talent for lying though.¡±


    Lindle hesitated before releasing his hold over his stats and Aura. There wouldn¡¯t be any point in attempting direct deception on someone as perceptive as Madam Holly. The fact that she could apparently hear his heartbeat was a bit terrifying, but even now, she didn¡¯t feel overtly threatening.


    ¡°I¡­ um¡­ me and Thalia aren¡¯t like that..¡±


    She rolled her eyes again. ¡°Yes Lindle, I know. Fine, I¡¯ll be straightforward. I¡¯m here about the magic items you gave Thalia.¡±


    ¡±Ah¡­ did she show you them then?¡±


    ¡°No, but like I said, you¡¯d need to be much higher level to hide something from me, especially if you lived under my roof. At first, I was happy not to comment about the wand, I figured it may have been an enchanted item you got from that dungeon or those adventurers you stick around, an expensive present but harmless, but when she tried hiding that amulet last night, I got curious. Imagine my surprise when a status screen appeared when I picked it up.¡±


    Lindle raised an eyebrow. ¡°You went through Thalia¡¯s things? What, when she was sleeping?¡±


    ¡±Yes,¡± Madam Holly replied shamelessly, breezing past the topic. ¡°I¡¯m no mage, but I¡¯ve never seen an enchanted item like those things before. I also got to thinking about the timing, appearing right after you got your class. If it was something you found or bought, it wouldn¡¯t make sense to wait until after you received your class, it also didn¡¯t help that I seemed to recognize scales belonging to a certain zmey, that tells me you probably made them. They certainly aren¡¯t anything an alchemist could craft, but that would mean you didn¡¯t pick alchemist as your class as you lead me to believe.¡±


    She sighed and straightened up. ¡°At that point, I realized whatever I was looking at, if I was going to fully understand instead of making assumptions, I¡¯d need to ask you directly.¡± She gave him a look. ¡°I¡¯m not going to force you to tell me anything you wish to keep private Lindle, but if it¡¯s going to involve my granddaughter, I¡¯d like to know.¡±


    Lindle hesitated. He didn¡¯t have a lot of experience when it came to keeping secrets, but he knew it became harder to keep the more people knew it, but out of everyone he knew, Madam Holly was probably the last person on his list of people that he trusted that still didn¡¯t know. He wasn¡¯t really doing a good job of keeping it from anyone who knew him anyway, so if anything else, he might as well get her help in keeping it from those who didn¡¯t. Most importantly, she was the most powerful person he knew, and if anyone could help him if his class did land him in trouble, she could. Mind made up, Lindle nodded.


    ¡±Yeah, you¡¯re right. It¡¯s not an enchanted item, it¡¯s called an artifact. I made it using my class.¡±


    Madam Holly¡¯s expression shifted. ¡°Really? No offensive Lindle, that ¡®Lotus Thorn¡¯ seemed interesting, Thalia certainly seems to love it, but it didn¡¯t seem like an ancient weapon of legend.¡±


    ¡±You¡¯ve heard of artifacts?¡±


    ¡±A long time ago, yes. I¡¯m no scholar mind you, but they crop up from time to time in dungeons and word travels far when they do.¡±


    ¡±Well, yeah, that makes sense. Apparently mine are a lot weaker because I¡¯m an apprentice-tier artificer. But it won¡¯t always stay that way. You said yourself they attract a lot of attention, and if people heard that someone had a class that allowed them to make them¡­¡±


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    ¡±Certain folk would do a lot of things to get their hands on you while you¡¯re weak¡­¡± Madam Holly finished her sentence with a scowl. ¡°I can certainly think of some people that wouldn¡¯t mind attacking Glacerhine to get their own personal artifact generator.¡±


    Lindle winced. ¡°Yeah, so that¡¯s why I¡¯ve tried to keep it quiet. Rosato told me with all the Soarian adventurers coming in for the raid, if word got back to certain nobles I¡¯d be in trouble.¡±


    Madam Holly laughed harshly. ¡°Soarian nobles would want you, true enough, but they would probably be least of your troubles. They¡¯d at least want to keep it discreet. Some groups would simply try a full-on assault of the village.¡±


    ¡±What? Really?¡±


    ¡°Well, if the stories I¡¯ve heard are true, a good artifact can be enough to decide the course of a faction war. A Veteran with an artifact suited to them could defeat a high-level Hero in most circumstances. That¡¯s a very high gap to not just close, but utterly surpass. There are a lot of monsters out there who would do a lot for that kind of power.¡±


    Lindle shifted uncomfortably. He hadn¡¯t considered the idea that his class could potentially put the entire village in danger. ¡°Oh. Well, I was planning on leaving Glacerhine after the dungeon raid, so you don¡¯t have to worry for too much longer.¡±


    ¡±Huh? Lindle, I¡¯m not going to stop you if going on the Path is what you want, but I¡¯m not going to push you out, or let anyone else do so.¡± She shook her head. ¡°Despite everything else, you¡¯re one of us, and we have ways of protecting our own.¡±


    ¡°I¡­ appreciate that.¡± Lindle looked away before changing the subject. ¡°Anyways, I unlocked the prerequisites for artificer when I was in that dungeon, and there¡¯s probably a lot more down there to learn about my class, so the plan¡¯s been to get strong enough down there that I¡¯m not a liability.¡±


    ¡°Yes, you ran into a Veteran tier monster quite early on if I recall. You¡¯ll be hard-pressed to survive just staying out of the way with that amount of power being thrown around.¡± It said something about the way she thought that she didn¡¯t bother suggesting he not go, even without the additional context of Ethos and the doors only he could access, she assumed he was going into the dungeon. ¡°I assume that¡¯s why you¡¯ve registered at the adventurer''s outpost?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I actually got two levels back to back, reached level 5 yesterday. Thalia and Humphrey got a level each too.¡±


    ¡°Quests are one of the fastest ways to build up XP in a hurry, but levels aren¡¯t everything, you don¡¯t want to level too fast and have a weak foundation influence your options when you pass over to the next tier.¡± She mused.


    Lindle nodded. ¡°I¡¯ve been getting better when it comes to crafting fast, and I can get money and XP from quests, but for everything else, I wanted to ask if we could resume my training. Feats, Techniques, mentoring, I think you know when it comes to everything there you¡¯re my best option.¡±


    Madam Holly smiled. ¡°It¡¯s not often anyone I¡¯ve trained asks to come back after I¡¯ve let them go. I figured you¡¯d slow things down once you¡¯d locked in your choice as a crafter, not speed things up. It helps now that I know a bit more about what your actual build is going to be, even if I don¡¯t know how a class that allows you to make artifacts even works.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s kind of complicated to explain, the long and short of it is that I can extract some kind of energy from any kind of magical material and shape it into items.¡± Lindle slid off the Hotpond Band from his arm and handed it to Madam Holly.


    While she looked over it curiously, he continued. ¡°It¡¯s called Ethos, you¡¯ve heard of artifacts, have you heard of Ethos before?¡± He looked at her face for any hint of recognition, but she shook her head.


    ¡°I¡¯ve traveled to a lot of places, but I¡¯ve never heard of any kind of energy called Ethos before, but like I said, I¡¯m no scholar.¡± She slid the band onto her wrist and gestured to her half-full tea, watching as it rapidly heated up, filling with bubbles. ¡°Oh, how fun!¡± She picked up the cup and drank the boiling liquid with a satisfying sigh.


    ¡°...But yeah,¡± Lindle spoke after a moment, ¡°There doesn¡¯t seem to be a lot of limits to what I can make, it just depends on what materials I can get my hands on.¡±


    She hummed. ¡°That seems broad enough that I can¡¯t think of many things I can teach you that directly synergize with your class, but on the other hand,¡± her laidback smile took on a hint of a vicious edge, ¡°that just means I don¡¯t have to work around any demanding class requirements or Skills. If I think about these things as mini Skills, It¡¯s almost the other way around. If I teach you a Technique or lead you to a Feat, you can make an item custom-made to work with it, can¡¯t you?¡±


    Lindle didn¡¯t like the way she was rubbing her hands together, but he nodded anyway. ¡°Yeah, I hadn¡¯t thought about it that way, but I guess you''re right. I¡¯m still working my way up to weapons though,¡± He added quickly, ¡°It gets more straining to craft with size, I need a few more levels before I can get any real practice making weapons.¡±


    She shrugged. ¡°You¡¯re quite attached to those potions of your anyways, you do well enough with hand-to-hand that keeping your hands free in order for them isn¡¯t an issue. In fact,¡± she snapped her fingers, ¡°Oh yes, you¡¯d be quite well suited for a style an old friend of mine showed me a long time ago, quite the grueling one though, but I¡¯m sure you can handle it.¡± She went back to rubbing her hands together, cackling as she fixed him with a far too eager gaze. ¡°You, young man, have a lot of work to do, but don¡¯t worry, this old lady will be right there with you.¡±


    Lindle sighed.

 Chapter 50: Downtime

    Introducing Madam Holly and Nothing to each other had been an interesting experience. She had been less interested in the implications of their existence than his mother and the adventurers, taking their strange amorphous body in stride, finding the unfinished homunculus charming. When they had explained the details of being a homunculus and Lindle finding them in the dungeon, she had been amused by the idea that she was meeting someone technically older than her, and yet also from a certain point of view also a child, if you considered becoming finished a form of adulthood.


    Nothing had told Lindle later that his complaints about her seemed overblown, much to his exasperation.


    After giving her a much more detailed explanation of Artificing, together with Madam Holly, the three of them worked out the details of Lindle¡¯s training for the foreseeable future. It wasn¡¯t a rigid schedule, simply an outline of how much time he should spend on certain activities combined with times that would be convenient for Madam Holly to dedicate to him. She was an elder after all, and despite how much responsibility she, proudly, worked to avoid, as the raid approached she¡¯d need to spend more and more time preparing the village as a whole. Monster hunting in one form or the other, keeping anything dangerous away from Glacerhine or the route the Wolven caravan used. As well as bringing in edible monster meat to boost their reserves.


    His mother came in later to give her two coppers, mostly when it came to rest days and how Lindle wouldn¡¯t be missed too often working at her store.


    Lindle couldn¡¯t say the next several weeks passed by in a blur, but certain portions did appear more as repressed memories than anything else in his head, so that might be a similar if inaccurate comparison.


    Those days mostly consisted of his dedicated training with Madam Holly. It had been similar to when she had taught him [Flow], but instead of one straightforward mostly mental Technique, she was teaching an entirely new fighting style combined with three distinct Techniques.


    She called it ¡°The Flinging Ape.¡± Lindle had detected a hint of laughter when she had told him that, making him suspect she wasn¡¯t being entirely honest or that there was a joke going over his head, but he didn¡¯t comment on it.


    The style had two distinct forms, the first focused on creating distance from foes in melee by leveraging Lindle¡¯s height and the length of his arms to keep enemies at bay, as well as always keeping at least one arm in position to quickly reach into his pouch to use a handheld object in a pinch, and then rapidly retreat or maneuver into a more advantageous position.


    The second form focused on keeping Lindle mobile while also constantly being able to throw objects. The idea there was that he¡¯d be able to always be just out of reach while flinging potions or bombs.


    Like any good martial style, the cornerstones were the Techniques the style was built around, and this style had three. [Savant Toss], [Repelling Knuckle], and [Primeval Climber]. The first, [Savant Toss], was almost like an upgrade to his basic [Throw] Technique. It involved Lindle imbuing some of his Aura Points into a small object he intended to throw, allowing him to throw it with an enhanced trajectory and force. Unlike [Throw] however, Lindle maintained a modicum of control over the aura in the object, and with some simple gestures, he could cause the object to veer in a new direction, allowing him to adjust his aim mid-flight.


    [Repelling Knuckle] doubled as both a combat and a movement Technique. It increased the amount of force his fists could deliver by a small amount, but by pushing Aura out in a burst on contact, it would wrap around and fling away targets, allowing him to push away enemies. If he hit the ground instead, he could invert the way his Aura traveled, targeting himself and allowing him to essentially leap large distances quickly.


    [Primeval Climber] reminded Lindle a bit of [Trek] since it was sort of a passive effect, though it affected all of Lindles limbs instead of just his feet. It had two main effects, the first allowed Lindle to redistribute his weight across his limbs, giving him a supernatural amount of balance, and the second created a kind of clinging field around his arms and legs, his Aura giving him more leverage on things he attempted to grip. These two effects combined to allow Lindle to maneuver his body and climb insanely easily in a way he had never been able to before. He had never felt clunky, but now he could easily climb up buildings and trees that would have needed [Levitate] to scale with practically only one limb, hand or foot, as long as he was constantly moving. The technique had amazing unexpected synergy with the spell as well.


    That is to say, he didn¡¯t get good with any of them overnight. It still took Lindle weeks and weeks of work to gain any amount of proficiency with the Techniques and when it came to the fighting style as a whole, Lindle would still be considered a novice. That was also skipping over the fact that the training itself was grueling.


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    Half of learning most Techniques wasn¡¯t just the mental manipulation of Aura, but also mastering the associated physical motions. On days he spent with her, Madam Holly had Lindle throw punches over and over until felt like his arms would fall off. She made him punch rocks, ice formations, trees, restrained monsters, Humphrey, himself, and her. The last was of course the most painful target, and he had flung himself unintentionally more often than not.


    Throwing practice for [Savant Toss] wasn¡¯t as painful as [Repelling Knuckle], but Lindle still had to practice throwing objects of varying size, weight, and shape for hours on end. Unlike [Throw], that Technique wouldn¡¯t force his projectiles into a rigid straight trajectory until its power ran dry, he had to control everything manually.


    For [Primeval Climber] they spent a lot of time in the Black Wood, where his training mostly consisted of staying in the trees as long as possible as Madam Holly tried to knock him to the ground. It certainly took the rank of the most stressful type of training. Having Madam Holly chase him through the trees once he had graduated from simple thrown objects had been nothing short of terrifying.


    Compared to all of that, crafting was practically a semi-daily vacation. Where Madam Holly¡¯s training had exhausted his body and emotional capacity for terror and frustration, artifice crafting only strained his Ethos and creative energy, which was unfortunate but at the very least was efficient in allowing him to not overwork any one part of himself.


    Over the weeks, after he had felt like he had gotten the most practice possible from using minor magical herbs, and as his ability to absorb strain improved, Lindle transitioned to using more Ethos powerful material to make larger and stronger artifacts, with a focus on using [Ethos Ignition] to combine aspects from multiple sources. He had formed a habit of having a powerful primary source of Ethos and using something weaker as a secondary source to change the first source''s aspects.


    For Humphrey, he made Lynx Prints, a pair of boots with a powerful silencing effect that also made him and his tracks harder to notice. He also made several simple magical arrowheads from various fangs with penetrative effects. The ranger had told Lindle that he felt kinda awkward about the increased praise he had received from the other rangers over his apparent jump in skill.


    Thalia received Decomposer''s Palm, a glove made from bones of the undead they had fought as well as some powerful magic mushroom she had found growing in the inner grove. Likely grown by a necromancy-focused druid. It would allow Thalia to replenish MP from the small amounts of miasma given off by dead creatures and plants, as well as provide a boost to necromancy spells, which she had taken to learning despite the relentless teasing Lindle and Humphrey gave her.


    Rosato and Dorothea had also finally taken Lindle¡¯s offer of magical items, though they insisted on paying. Lindle had attempted to persuade Chip as well, but he had conceded after Chip pointed out that he doubted Lindle would be able to craft an artifact using a ¡°holy¡± aspect of any kind. Nothing and Lindle had concluded he had been right after several hours of brainstorming and testing. It was mostly an issue of materials. extracting the Pathos out of objects Chip had blessed yielded no discernable holy aspect, and there was no other source he could think of to make one. Theodore on the other hand simply refused, not unkindly, but he didn¡¯t offer any exact reason either.


    Lindle of course made himself artifacts for his personal use as well. His favorite were his new Alzmeymical Gloves. A pair of gloves made from the breath sacs and scales of the Zmey he killed months ago, which allowed him to spend MP to empower alchemical reactions.


    Despite his very full and busy days, his first priority over practically everything else was finishing Nothing and giving them a complete body. With each item he crafted, he improved his control over Ethos. Finishing Nothing wasn¡¯t only just a matter of his skill, he also needed certain materials. As they designed a final body for Nothing to inhabit, they also detailed which aspects they would need, and Lindle researched which magical materials or creatures would most likely have one''s powerful or specific enough.


    Every so often he went on quests with Humphrey and Thalia to earn gold that he needed for purchasing anything he or Humphrey couldn¡¯t or didn¡¯t want to collect themselves. The gold from Rosato¡¯s and Dorothea''s commissions also went to this cause.


    The quests also came with the added bonus of gathering XP. After level 5, Lindle¡¯s rate of leveling slowed a fair bit, but between the quests and constant crafting, he climbed up to level 9. Meanwhile, both Humphrey and Dorothea had hit level 15 and gained their fourth class Skills, but hadn¡¯t managed to level up past that yet. They had also earned at least one Feat each, but despite Lindle''s best efforts, he hadn¡¯t gained one.


    Madam Holly had even taken to writing Lindle a list of extra tasks for him to attempt on each quest he had gained, but even with the self-imposed challenges, nothing had changed. Eventually, she concluded that Lindle must have been extremely close to earning a different kind of Feat, and he simply wouldn¡¯t qualify for any other while the system considered Lindle in the middle of earning the first one. Lindle had never heard of that being how Feats worked before, but he didn¡¯t question her experience.


    After nearly two months, Lindle had collected everything he needed to finish Nothing, but his friend had insisted that before Lindle made the attempt, he had to do one last thing to prove he was ready. Lindle was going to craft his most powerful artifact yet, combining multiple sources of Ethos with the most Ethos-dense item he had, the tusk of the White Mammoth.

 Chapter 51: Cumulative Crafting

    With a heave, Lindle dropped the mammoth tusk onto his worktable. He eyed the couple hundred pounds of ivory. With Aura and his Str stat, it wasn¡¯t anything more than slightly uncomfortable to lug the weight around, though as his Str started to lag behind his classes primary stats he wondered if he¡¯d need to start thinking up solutions to deal with equipment weight issues in the future.


    Either way, the entire tusk was above his limit for the amount of Pelos he could manipulate, but after his constant crafting and his Res stat reaching 18, he could handle its density. The solution then, was that he simply had to break off another piece of the tusk. He didn¡¯t have a Str buff from his feat this time, but he did have tools and time to work at it, so after a few minutes of sawing, he had a much more manageable tip of the tusk to work with.


    He held it out to Nothing for verification. They had a much more mathematically precise understanding of Lindle¡¯s limits, and Lindle wanted to eke out as much power as he could from the tusk.


    It looks good. You have the other pieces ready?


    Lindle nodded. He patted a canine skull lying on his table. Despite being far weaker in almost every way than the mammoth tusk, Lindle had felt it was important to remember that the mammoth had lost to the skeleton pack, not the other way around. There was valuable inspiration there he would use when plucking aspects from its Ethos for fusion. That wasn¡¯t all however, he wasn¡¯t just using two sources of Ethos for this artifact, he was going to use three. Untying a sack next to the skull, Lindle revealed a zmey heart.


    All the pieces of the zmey he had killed months ago that he deemed valuable had been nearly used up over time, but he had saved the heart, and he had gotten an idea that made him feel using it now was a worthwhile expenditure.


    That¡¯s a lot of Ethos to be working on all at once. Still going to keep what exactly it is you¡¯re making a surprise?


    ¡°Yep,¡± Lindle replied, ¡°You knowing what it is in advance so you can give me advice through it would defeat a bit of the point of this being a test. You''ll be too busy yourself to talk me through finishing you after all.¡± He put in a slightly joking tone in his voice. Lindle had thought the idea of a test of his Ethos control while crafting before Nothing allowed him to finish their body a bit silly at first, like he was back in lessons, but he did realize it was a good idea after some thought.


    Fair enough. You can¡¯t blame me for wanting to be sure though. You mess it up, well¡­ Bad things happening is an understatement.


    The homunculus shivered anxiously at the thought, curling up from their spot in the fireplace. Lindle tried to reassure them with a smile.  ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I understand. Just watch, if this doesn¡¯t convince you I can do this, nothing will.¡± He winked, and the homunculus nonverbally sent him groans and exasperation.


    Lindle cracked his fingers and examined all three objects, all of them swirling with Ethos under the gaze of his feat, then he activated [Artifice Crafting]. He harvested the tusk first, leaving the glob of Pelos unmodified as he harvested the skull and then the heart next. He had an order in mind for the best way to make this work, so he placed the heart¡¯s Pelos in the fire with Nothing. Just like fire kept Nothing¡¯s unfinished form stable, flame would keep Pelos stable while he wasn¡¯t manipulating it with his skill.


    He then activated [Ethos Ignition], blue flames flaring into being over his hands and melting the two chunks of Pelos before he brought them together, massaging them together. As his hands worked, Lindle began working on his chosen aspects. The mammoth¡¯s tusk was the core of his planned artifact. He brought its primal aspects of strength and power to the forefront, alongside the undead aspect it had gained on its first death. The most difficult aspect to call upon was a very specific part of the aspect¡¯s identity as a mammoth, its trumpeting call he had heard while it fought the undead pack. Isolating it into a single aspect apart from everything else took time, but he eventually managed it.


    The skull was simpler in comparison, but he pulled a similar trick in isolating a specific piece of the canine aspect, its identity as a pack animal. Apart from that, he didn¡¯t promote any other aspects aside from its general undead aspect. From both the tusk and the skeleton, he didn¡¯t use any aspects of their undead species, zombie or skeleton. Thalia hadn¡¯t displayed any interest in controlling minions yet, so using them would be a waste. He allowed the two undead aspects to fuse into greater prominence without change while he took the pack aspect and inserted it into the tusk''s pelos.


    Once he was satisfied all the desired aspects had solidified, he reached back and retrieved the heart Pelos. It melted in his grip while Nothing backed away, both of them careful not to let the unfinished homunculus touch him while his skills were in effect.


    He added the heart¡¯s pelos to the combined mass and massaged once more. In the heart¡¯s Ethos, he felt around for the right aspects. Madam Holly had told him about dragons during their training sessions. The intelligent ones tended to be arrogant beyond reproach, but almost all true dragons, no matter the species, had powerful abilities that tended to allow them to back up their arrogance. One of the most famous of them was Dragon Fear, an unnatural dread placed into the hearts and minds of foes by a dragon''s presence. Even the zmey, one of the lowest of dragons, had this heritage, and as Lindle delved into the draconic aspect of the heart, he found it, drawing it to the surface.


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    From the zmey heart, Lindle plucked another more familiar aspect of frost. He didn¡¯t attempt to modify it much compared to when he crafted Frostgreed. In actuality, Lindle was attempting to replicate how he had promoted frost as he had when he made Frostgreed and its copies, wanting the aspects to be as similar as possible.


    He gathered all the disparate aspects into a single mass of Pelos, listing them, they seemed like a gathering of random ideas. Undeath, Primal Power, Mammoth Trumpet, Pack, Dragon Fear, and Frost. That was, until Lindle began fusing them together.


    The order would be important, so Lindle closed his eyes and concentrated. First, he took Dragon Fear and Undeath, fusing them together. Shivers ran down his back as he mentally verbalized the concept as the wails of the dead. Then Lindle took that fused aspect, and melted it into Mammoth Trumpet, infusing the effect to the cause. Lindle then combined together Pack and Primal Power, fusing the White Mammoth¡¯s immense strength with the power of a pack working in concert. Lindle didn¡¯t melt this dual-fused aspect to the triple-fused aspect however, instead, he took Frost, and used it as a bridge between the two, connecting it to both, but not allowing them to merge together. That aspect would be infused with both ideas, adding a deadly chill to the trumpet¡¯s identity, and adding the power of cold to the pack.


    Minutes passed as Lindle worked, visualizing his intent harder than he had ever done before, finding thematic bridges and identifying shared ideas between various aspects. Convincing each aspect to allow the other to influence their behavior, and solidifying the Ethos¡¯s identity into a multifaceted but ultimately straightforward idea, allow them to achieve a unified result. Lindle had no idea how long he had spent in his own little mental world, but when he emerged from it, his hands had already started forming the artifact''s physical shape, his own mental idea of his final creation reinforced so many times in his head that he had begun molding the Pelos unconsciously. He deactivated [Ethos Ignition] and got to work.


    It wasn¡¯t a very complex one, in fact, it would resemble the tusk it had started as, but it had a key difference. He had taken the curved piece of ivory and had hollowed it out. He was, after all, making a warhorn. Most warhorns were made out of horns, not tusks, but it hardly took a large leap of the imagination to make the switch. He carved intricate symbols along its length, imagery of skulls and claws hunting a great mammoth, and he formed banding and a hand strap to be made out of dragon leather, and a mouthpiece he imagined as bone white and cold to the touch.


    Eventually, Lindle beheld the finished form in his hand, and with a deep breath, he triggered the final part of [Artifice Crafting].


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    Wildhunt Warhorn


    Effect: The user may blow this horn to sound the howl of the wild dead. The temperature will drop drastically and all enemies within range will experience the Frozen Fear debuff. The user and all allies the user designates as in their ¡°pack¡± within range will temporarily receive a boost to their physical stats and a large boost to their resistance to all Cold and Miasma effects. This horn will require a cooldown between each use.


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    With an exhausted sigh of victory, Lindle leaned back and held up his newest and greatest creation in triumph. He admired it for a few moments. He hadn¡¯t really appreciated art much before, but after a while, he had found it easier to put more of himself into his creations when he put effort into their physical forms and not just their special effects. He had no proof, but he got the feeling that they were all the stronger for it.


    He held it out for Nothing to look over. They put a tendril to the horn and their expression, inscrutable to anybody except him due to their connection, shifted to surprise.


    Large boost? Drastic? Artifacts don¡¯t use wording like that unless their effects are really powerful. And those two effects, honestly I wouldn¡¯t expect a single artifact to do both of those things unless it was Journeyman tier.


    Nothing leaned closer, no doubt inspecting the internal work Lindle had done on the Ethos now. They had much better senses for inspecting his finished artifacts than Lindle had.


    I see. And let me guess, the temperature effects are to pair with Frostgreed?


    Lindle grinned and nodded. They tilted their head and pulled their tendril away.


    And to top it off, the effect was so powerful that it needed a cooldown. I hadn¡¯t expected you to make a cooldown artifact for a long time.


    They shook their head, disbelief clear over their bond, but overshadowing it was a clear note of pride.


    This is something I wouldn¡¯t expect from the most talented apprentice I had ever met Lindle. Whatever doubts I had, they¡¯re gone now. You''re more than ready to finish my body.


    Nothing sent him a mental smile, waiting for Lindle to respond for several seconds before a look of confusion overtook them.


    Lindle?


    They looked away from the artifact to see Lindle slumped over his desk, fast asleep once his mental exhaustion had knocked him out cold.


    Ah. Well, I should let him sleep I suppose.


    They peered up to see the piles of black dust covering the rest of the desk. Then they looked down to see the already full waste bin overflowing with more black dust.


    Now¡­ how am I going to clean this up?

 Chapter 52: Craft Mastering

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    -You have leveled up! Gained 1 level in the [Artificer] Class (lvl 10)


    -Stat gains : +1 Str; +1 Con; +1 Dex; +2 Int; +1 Res; +1 Cha.


    -New Skill: Craft Mastering


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    Craft Mastering (Skill)


    Empower your creations through your higher understanding of crafting. Sufficient mastery of a crafting discipline will allow you to enhance the item identity Ethos of artifacts that belong to that discipline. The degree of enhancement is dependent on your understanding of your craft. Enhances the item identity Ethos of non-artifacts you create as well.


    Crafting Masteries


    Alchemy: 5


    Cooking: 2


    Pottery: 1


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    Lindle reread the description of his newest skill again, a contemplative look on his face.


    What¡¯s wrong? I didn¡¯t think you¡¯d have a problem with this skill.


    Lindle looked at Nothing and shook his head. ¡°No, it¡¯s not that. I¡¯m just confused by it.¡±


    Why?


    ¡°I mean, I guess I don¡¯t know what it means. Isn¡¯t Artificer about crafting artifacts? If I¡¯m understanding this correctly it seems to work based on how well I make non-artifacts. How does that work?¡±


    Ah, I see. You mean you thought Artificer was only about manipulating Ethos when it came to crafting.


    ¡°It¡¯s not?¡± Lindle raised an eyebrow


    Nothing shook their head.


    Artificer, as my creator explained it, is a class centered around the creation and transformation of both the physical and the magical. Even though the main method an Artificer uses to create by manipulating Ethos and Pelos allows them to ignore most physical obstacles and necessities in the crafting process, that doesn¡¯t mean one should neglect understanding the physical forms of artifacts that house their magical powers.


    ¡°Their physical forms?¡± Lindle sat rapt with attention, glancing over to see Wildhunt Warhorn lying on his table. He looked over the imagery he had carved into its sides.


    Yes. You¡¯ve partially started figuring this out already, but you¡¯re not there exactly. This is where Item Identity Ethos comes into play. You created a very powerful magical effect in your item, but how much thought did you put into making your warhorn a functional warhorn?


    ¡°I¡­ huh?¡± Lindle cocked his head in confusion. ¡°You mean, how well does it make noise? How does that matter?¡±


    Not much. For the warhorn at least. In a fight, I¡¯d suppose you would care more about the magical effect than its utility as an actual warhorn in most circumstances. But what if you did? And more importantly, what about when you start designing actual weapons like swords and axes, or making armor? Will they just be stylish but nonfunctional vessels for magic?


    Lindle put a hand to his chin and considered. ¡°I don¡¯t know, I hadn¡¯t really thought about it, but I definitely don¡¯t want that.¡±


    Exactly. Item Identity Ethos is the part relating to your creation''s function as a tool. How well does a sword you create that spits fire act as a sword, sharp and well-balanced? Does an armor artifact that redirects damage back onto an attacker also redistribute force well? Pelos needs to be sculpted like clay and you can¡¯t do the same actions an actual blacksmith would in the forging process when you make an artifact out of metal, so instead you must do so mentally, imbuing your understanding into the Item Identity Ethos. In order to further your understanding however, you must craft without Ethos as well, and that¡¯s where this skill comes in. It creates a synergy between your artificing and your mastery of other crafting disciplines. Once your mastery of a discipline reaches a threshold, your skill will add it to the list and empower everything you make, artifact or non-artifact, that would benefit from your mastery.


    A memory started to itch at the back of Lindle¡¯s mind, and he thought back. Back in the hidden room he had found Nothing in, there had been rows and rows of different workstations that different types of crafters would use. ¡°So the better I get at crafting something the normal way, the stronger any artifact I make becomes if I use my knowledge of a craft to design its physical body?¡±


    Stronger in the sense that it will perform its mundane function better. The magical effects you create using aspects won¡¯t be directly affected, but a sword will cut sharper, armor will protect better, and even jewelry will be more aesthetically pleasing. It¡¯s not just your artifacts too. I assume your highest-ranked discipline is alchemy right? That means your normal potions and any potion or other alchemical artifacts you create will be stronger too. How high is it?


    Lindle glanced at the screen. ¡°It says five next to alchemy. Wait, alchemy artifacts?¡± Lindle¡¯s gaze whipped back to Nothing. ¡°Wait, I can make potion artifacts? Why didn¡¯t you say anything?¡± He hadn¡¯t mentioned it before, feeling like it would come off as ungrateful, but he had always felt a bit sad knowing that his skills in alchemy would quickly become irrelevant as he gained levels in artificer. Without the right skills from the right class it just wouldn¡¯t be worth his time to continue despite all the hours his mother had spent teaching him.


    You didn¡¯t know? I thought you just didn¡¯t think it was worth it to create consumable artifacts. Most artificer apprentices didn¡¯t bother mastering things like potions, since they still cause some Ethos strain to make but get used up immediately instead of something permanent like rings or weapons.


    Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.


    Lindle calmed down, thinking it through. He supposed that was fine, his normal alchemical items had done the job so far, and making them was a lot of how he filled his time recovering from Ethos strain. Strain was an eternal problem when it came to deciding what he should spend time on crafting, but he had figured he had spent his time wisely. Adding potion artifacts to the list of choices would have probably just made things more complicated. After making something as Ethos dense as the warhorn it would be some time before he could craft again, and once he did the next thing he was going to work on was Nothing¡¯s body, but now that he knew he could, he was definitely going to experiment with alchemical artifacts at some point


    ¡°Nope, but I guess it¡¯s not a problem. It makes trying to pass alchemist off as my class now easier, plus it¡¯s gonna be a lot of fun seeing how much it affects my regular potions too, especially with my gloves.¡± He grinned and looked down at the pair of zmey leather gloves he had taken off before crafting.


    -Alzymchical Gloves


    While touching an alchemical item with one of these gloves, the user may expend MP to charge the item. Alchemical reactions will then be enhanced by a degree determined by how much MP is spent. Too much MP being spent may risk destabilizing the alchemical item.


    ¡°How much does Craft Mastering enhance stuff?¡±


    If I recall correctly, each rank translates to a 5% increase in power.


    So his potions and bombs were around 25% stronger. How would his gloves increase that? A couple of tests had shown his most basic health potions could handle around 10 points of Mana and restored close to 10% more HP, and his stronger potions only being able to handle a few points more. Was the boost multiplicative? Could they handle more points of Mana on top of being stronger?


    Lindle couldn¡¯t resist the urge to rub his hands together in anticipation. He definitely wanted to show off some new tricks to his friends now. Maybe he could pull off a surprise on Madam Holly.


    Anything else pass the threshold on the mastery list?


    ¡°Just pottery and cooking, surprisingly enough. Pottery is ranked 1 and cooking 2.¡± Lindle wasn¡¯t sure how he was considered good enough at cooking for the system to acknowledge it. His mom had taught him the basics and it was similar enough to alchemy that it wasn¡¯t difficult to pick up. It certainly didn¡¯t feel like he had trained more to learn cooking than pottery.


    Considering how much practice you put in over the last few months pottery better be on the list. I don¡¯t want my finished body to come out all deformed just because you couldn¡¯t make an arm indistinguishable from a head.


    Nothing passed on an amused feeling over their link.


    Pottery is common for apprentices to pick up since it¡¯s the closest mundane skill to artificing. Even if they neglected everything else for that skill if they didn¡¯t have a single rank of pottery my master had some very harsh words for them. He even kicked someone out over it once. Cooking is a pleasant surprise though, you should make the attempt to nurture that more often.


    ¡°I¡¯ll keep it in mind.¡± Lindle stood up, stretching out his stiff limbs. Sleeping over his desk wasn¡¯t pleasant, but a light draw on his constitution stat made him feel better. He picked up Wildhunt Warhorn and stashed it in his bag. ¡°I¡¯m going to go show this to everyone and my new Skill.¡± Madam Holly had another training session later today planned.He had turned to leave out the door when Nothing spoke.


    Oh? If you¡¯re leaving the village, do you think you could clean this up and take it with you? You¡¯ve built up quite a lot of black dust. Sometimes it gets into the fireplace and is fairly unpleasant.


    Lindle paused and grimaced. Looking back to see all the black dust piled up at the back of his table and underneath it, as he had started to do once his wastebin became full.


    He had meant to take care of it at some point, but figuring out where to safely stash a bunch of eye-catching black dust in a white snow-covered village had made it easy to put off. Now Nothing was pulling out the guilt trips. He could feel the amusement but he was still being honest. Lindle sighed. ¡°How am I supposed to take it all with me? Pile it all into my bag? That¡¯ll take forever.¡±


    Nothing shrugged.


    You¡¯re the one who let it build up so much. Now, I think I¡¯m going to take a nap.


    The homunculus curled up in their fireplace.


    Lindle sighed again, resigned as he got down on his knees and started shoveling.


    ¡ª---------------


    Lindle¡¯s current status


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Name


    </td>


    <td>


    Lindle Kyte


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Class


    </td>


    <td>


    Artificer


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Level


    </td>


    <td>


    10


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Health Points (HP)


    </td>


    <td>


    555/555


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Aura Points (AP)


    </td>


    <td>


    540/540


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Mana Points (MP)


    </td>


    <td>


    200/200


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Strength (Str): 16


    </td>


    <td>


    Dexterity (Dex): 20


    </td>


    <td>


    Constitution (Con): 18


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Intelligence (Int): 20


    </td>


    <td>


    Charisma (Cha): 11


    </td>


    <td>


    Resilience (Res): 19


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td colspan="2">


    Traits


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Bloodlines


    </td>


    <td>


    Feats


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    [Human Blood]


    </td>


    <td>


    [Apprentice Alchemist]


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    [Giant Blood]


    </td>


    <td>


    [Alchemical Bomber]


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td>


    [Ethos Attuned]


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td>


    [Hunter Gatherer]


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Skills


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    [Artifice Crafting]


    [Ethos Ignition]


    [Craft Mastering]


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Techniques learned


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Tier 1


    -[Trek]


    -[Throw]


    -[Power Strike]


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Tier 2


    -[Flow]


    -[Primeval Climber]


    -[Savant Toss]


    -[Repelling Knuckle]


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Spells learned


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Tier 1


    -[Produce Ember]


    -[Ice Slick]


    -[Banish water]


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Tier 2


    -[Levitate]


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>

 Chapter 53: Reason for Cheer

    ¡°So, didn¡¯t think I¡¯d need to cover hiding bodies in the lesson plan, but if you want to branch out into it I can give you a few tips.¡±


    Lindle nearly fell over into the snow pile he had created as Madam Holly snuck up behind him, the grey-haired woman peering into the hole he had dug curiously. When all she saw was a mass of black dust, she looked at him with a raised eyebrow. ¡°Haven¡¯t heard of trying to bury a body after it¡¯s been incinerated before.¡±


    Regaining his balance quickly, he shot a mild glare at her. ¡°It¡¯s not a body, it¡¯s a by-product of my crafting skill. It was building up in my workshop, and I needed someplace to dump it.¡±


    Madam Holly hummed. ¡°Well, it does stand out, but I doubt anyone is going to see you with a ton of what looks like ash and magically figure out what your class is. It¡¯s been a while since I¡¯ve managed to get the jump on you this badly. It truly that important that you hide this?¡±


    Lindle made a so-so gesture. ¡°Part of it is that I¡¯ve just been distracted lugging a pack full of nothing but black dust into the woods, knowing that it¡¯s going to get into everything that I put back inside later. I then spent half an hour digging a hole. The other part is that I¡¯m not sure how worried I should be, which makes me more nervous.¡±


    Madam Holly made an understanding ah noise and gestured for him to continue.


    Lindle tried to put his thoughts in order. ¡°I mean¡­ I have no idea what would or wouldn¡¯t tip someone dangerous off about my class. It could be totally unknown, and it would take me waving around an Artifact in people''s faces for anyone to come looking for me, or it could set off an alarm bell the moment some Veteran or noble hears word of a weird amount of black dust is rumored to have been found.¡± He shrugged. ¡°None of the Nine-tail adventurers have heard anything about it. Is it a secret? Is it a total unknown?¡±


    ¡°And if you don¡¯t know where the threshold for failure is, you play it safe and hold back as much as possible, all the while wondering if you¡¯ve already crossed it.¡± She continued his thought process.


    ¡°Yeah¡­ I guess it just doesn¡¯t feel real. The threat, I mean. Sometimes I¡¯m worried I¡¯m going to bring down something devastating on everyone I know, but most of the time I can¡¯t really feel the danger, and then when I realize that I get paranoid that I¡¯ve been careless and I¡¯m worried again.¡±


    Madam Holly shrugged, giving him an unbothered smile. ¡°No one expects you to fully grasp your situation just because someone else told you that you were in danger, Lindle. The fact that you¡¯re aware of your ignorance instead of assuming you¡¯re in control is better than most your age, and quite frankly, many much older than you would handle it.¡±


    Lindle wasn¡¯t sure how to respond to that, so the two remained in silence for a time as Lindle worked to bury the dust. Eventually, Madam Holly got impatient and slapped the snow pile, somehow shoveling the entire pile into the hole in a controlled wave of aura.


    ¡°That looked like some kind of variant of [Repelling Knuckle],¡± He observed.


    ¡°Good eye.¡± Madam Holly confirmed, ¡°Technically a higher tier version, but they¡¯re flexible if you¡¯re willing to waste the points. I take it that that¡¯s the technique you want to start with today?¡±


    Lindle sighed but settled into the first form of the stance the elder had taught him, priming his aura as his hand hovered over the warhorn on his belt.


    She hummed curiously as she looked at the Wildhunt Warhorn, body entirely relaxed. ¡°Fancy looking thing. Let¡¯s see if it helps you last a little longer than usual.¡± She grinned toothily. ¡°Hold me off for¡­ let¡¯s say a full minute this time without going into the trees, and I¡¯ll hold off on ambush training for the foreseeable future.¡±


    Lindle immediately activated [Flow] to give himself a few seconds to strategize. Survival training was designed to give Lindle a way to protect himself in melee long enough for his party to rescue him or escape, so Madam Holly would simulate those conditions with a fierce opener, then try and whittle him down with her speed and strength (held back massively of course) advantage before, knowing her, switching things up right before the end.


    This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.


    With a vague plan in mind, Lindle lashed out with a [Repelling Knuckle] immediately in Madam Holly''s direction. She was already moving in his direction, but before she closed the distance, a burst of aura burst from his fist in a net-like structure to blow her back. Forcing the aura to travel through the air weakened the technique a lot. It was designed to move through physical objects he hit, but it would still slow her down to buy him another two seconds.


    Lindle backpedaled quickly as Madam Holly tore through the aura net and reached him. Her small hands moved in a blur even under [Flow] as he moved to block and parry with practiced motions. His only advantage over his teacher was his size and height, and he leaned on that as hard as he could to hold her off. Even without aura flowing through them, her fists felt like tiny hard metal hammers as he kept [Repelling Knuckle] flowing through his hands, bursts of aura countering the force of her blows.


    Every so often Madam Holly let the full technique wrap her up and fling her away before dashing around to charge him from another angle. Lindle winced as a particularly savage blow broke through his guard, feeling his HP drop several points. He dropped, rolling with the hit to strike the ground and inverted the technique, aura flowing over his body as it dragged him away in a burst of speed. A disorienting experience that would have likely unbalanced him without [Flow].


    As much as he loved the technique, between the heat of battle and slowed subjective time, the end of the minute was still several agonizingly slow seconds away. Madam Holly let out a short mocking laugh in a span of a second, watching him as he landed. Did she¡­ laugh in fast motion so it wouldn¡¯t sound slowed down to him under [Flow]?


    Before he could get too distracted, she blurred in a burst of speed. Eyes widening as Lindle lost track of her, Lindle spun and dodged in a random direction, grabbing the warhorn in the same motion. Luckily, he had called the attack correctly, as Madam Holly hit the space he was just in from above, giving him just enough time to bring the artifact to his lips and blow.


    The temperature dropped, a burst of snowflakes streaming into the air as the haunting trumpet of a mammoth filled the air. If not for the increase in cold resistance he felt fill his body, similar to the experience of downing a potion, Lindle would have likely started shivering uncontrollably. He felt the draw on his physical stats lessen as their energy swelled, allowing him to pull on them more.


    As for Madam Holly, with his heightened Dex stat, he was able to watch the minuscule shift in her expression to surprise as she froze, an outline of icy blue energy covering her from head to toe. The wind howled with malicious intent, and even as the artifact''s user, Lindle still felt a sliver of fear go down his spine as the energy it released directed itself at his mentor.


    He looked in slight awe at the Veteran tier warrior the Wildhunt Warhorn had successfully restrained. Not for long however, as with a flex of force and aura, Madam Holly twisted, the blue energy around her shattering like ice before she dived at him like a spotted leopard.


    Stumbling backward in surprise, Lindle brought up his arms to cover himself and closed his eyes, bracing for the hit.


    ¡­


    Lindle waited, but nothing happened. Hesitatingly, Lindle opened his eyes and lowered his guard. A sharp pain flared between his eyes as Madam Holly flicked him.


    ¡°Come on kid, I taught you better than to close your eyes like that.¡± She reprimanded him.


    Lindle hissed in pain as he held his face. That flick had taken close to 50 HP! And that was with his physical stats from the warhorn still buffed.


    ¡°Sorry, sorry.¡± He rubbed his face. ¡°I was caught off guard, I thought the Wildhunt Warhorn would only slow you down, not stop you completely.¡±


    She held out her hand, and Lindle handed it to her, letting her read the description. She whistled. ¡°Frozen Fear, huh? I figured it was a debuff like that. I had to use one of my Skills to break out of that early, and not one I got from my Apprentice class either. You¡¯ve gotten a lot better.¡±


    She tossed it back to him, Lindle catching it with a smile at the praise. ¡°Thanks, Nothing told me it¡¯s a big jump in the types of things I can make. I should be able to finish their body now.¡±


    ¡°Really?¡± Madam Holly happily smiled. ¡°How wonderful. Everyone¡¯s growing up one after the other.¡± Her smile gained a cheeky edge. ¡°I hope you¡¯ve been taking my suggestions under advisement.¡±


    Lindle coughed. Madam Holly had some¡­ creative ideas for when it came to Nothing¡¯s body. He didn¡¯t care what she said, a crafting companion didn¡¯t need anywhere near that many claws and muscles. Or three forms of breath weaponry.


    She laughed. ¡°I¡¯m sure Nothing will be happy with whatever you end up making for him.¡± She gestured for him to follow and they set off walking.


    ¡°Well, that aside, a win is a win, so we can take a break from melee combat for now.¡±


    Lindle blinked, before realizing she was right, technically he had lasted a full minute, Madam Holly only breaking out of his artifacts hold a mere second before the 60th second. He grinned and did a little cheer under his breath.


    Looking up, he realized they had reached the edge of a cliff. Ahead, he spotted a flock of flying Talonjays. To their side was a pile of shattered boulders.


    ¡°Your goal is to hit the entire flock out of the air before they dive-bomb you,¡± Madam Holly cheerfully instructed. ¡°No moving from this spot, and only using these rocks and [Savant Throw].¡±


    His cheer faded.