《The Keeper of the Mythic Forest》 Chapter 0001 At nearly precisely four-thirty in the afternoon, the door to my shop opens and the bell chimes. I don''t need to look over to see who it is, since it''s almost always the same person who arrives at this time on Fridays. That doesn''t mean I don''t look up from my book, though. Just as I expected, it''s Ryan. From small talk we''ve made over the years, I''ve learned that he''s twenty-two years old, about two years older than me. He''s also my oldest customer in terms of how long he''s been coming here, being the only customer who entered on the first day my shop was opened four years ago to still be coming here today. I do find that kind of interesting, since most Awakened who enter Dungeons as much as he does generally start to use much higher-quality potions within a few years. He''s also been Awakened since he was fourteen, or a full four years before I opened my shop. Not only that, but he''s not turned off by my use of traditional alchemy brewing rather than modern. His regular patronage of my shop doesn''t make me unhappy, though, and not just because it helps my shop stay afloat. Ryan''s rather attractive. He stands 5''11" with a strong jawline and is typically in a shirt that fits his lean body well. Today, it''s a black short-sleeved one that shows off the muscles of his arm and when he turns to face me, it holds against his abs a little well; stuff like that has let me know he''s got a six-pack. Those jeans hug his legs just right, too. As usual, his sandy-blond hair is styled neatly and his orange eyes are as full of light and energy as always. That combined with his usual light smile makes him seem as if he''s always amused by something. And as usual, seeing him makes me wonder if I look okay. I''m a little on the short side at 5''7" and have a more slender build, no real tone to my muscles at all. My brown hair is probably unkempt since I know I tend to mess with it a bit while reading, and I know that my lilac-colored eyes tend to draw interest. For my outfit, I''m dressed in a white t-shirt with a light green short-sleeved button-up over it, left unbuttoned, along with a pair of blue jeans and sneakers, though those last two probably aren''t visible from his side of the counter. Not that he''s ever given an indication of being interested in me. I don''t mind that, though, as I have a policy against relationships with customers, even for hookups. Just seeing his attractiveness nearly every week is enough for me. "Good afternoon, Evan!" Ryan greets me with his usual smile. "Good book?" "Yeah," I place a bookmark in. He''s in a chatty mood today. "It''s a fairy tale about a mythical fox named the azulvitt fox." "Azulvitt?" He asks. "''Azu'' is the ancient tongue for ''night'', right?" The book is written entirely in the ancient tongue often found in many Dungeons. This book is a copy of one that was found in them a few months ago. Since it was confirmed to be a book of stories rather than something containing forbidden magics or knowledge, they began printing copies for sale. The copy I have took longer to come out ¨C I only buy ones that have replicas of the pages and covers as well. Rather than a standard hardcover book, this one resembles the original tome, with yellow-touched pages, rougher edges, and a dark blue cover with silver caps on the corners and ends and silver script on the front and spine. Since every part of it was handmade, from the ink to the paper to the cover, it takes more time to produce and I had to order it specially. It''s also not translated, which added to the cost. Every pair of pages has an image as well, with the page pair I''m currently on showing the fox with dark blue fur and silver tips to its ears and tail and its silver paws and eyes standing in a forest, looking toward the reader. "Yeah," I answer. "Its name means ''softness of night''. This seems to be a collection of stories about the azulvitt fox. The one I''m on right now talks about how he guides travelers in dark forests at night to safety, warding off evil spirits. Specifically, it''s a story about him leading a boy who was abandoned by his parents to¡­ I haven''t gotten to that bit yet." Ryan turns his head a little to try and get a better look at the image. "It''s kind of cute," he says. "I found a tome with a similar-looking creature in a Dungeon yesterday. Was a wolf, though. Can''t read the ancient tongue, though, so don''t know what it was about. Maybe another book of fairy tales?" "I''ll keep an ear out for it," I say. "How''d the hunts go this week?" "Not bad," he tells me. "I do need a new ring and some new potions, though. Burned through my whole supply and used up the ring." "Your usual order?" "Yeah," he answers. "A 30oz jar of mana potion with 200 MP per ounce, a 30oz jar of health potion with 200 HP per ounce, and a [Ring of Strength] that buffs the wearer''s Strength by 10%, with a 10-minute maximum. Do you have them in stock?" Very rarely do I not have them in stock, since I know there''s a consistent customer for those each week, but he still asks just in case it''s one of the very rare times I don''t. With Dungeon spawns and the loot amount in them varying from day to day, it''s always possible there''s too little materials for me to have everything made by one of his visits. "I do," I answer. "Sourcing the ingredients for the mana potion was a little hard, though, so the price is increased. It''s not by too much, just a couple of cents per MP restored." He''s also never had an issue with the price increases when they''re needed, but I still let him know anyway out of courtesy. "That''s fine," he says. "I''ll be right back," I close the book and tuck it under the counter, then head into the back to grab the tray with the goods on it. Since I know he comes nearly every Friday and buys the exact same order each time, I make sure to have the entire order ready and on a tray in advance. Two glass jars; one filled with a clear blue liquid and the other filled with a clear red liquid, and a steel ring with silvery runes drawn on it. I bring the tray up to the front and set it down, then enter the goods into my register as he inspects them to verify they''re what he requested. While not necessary here, it''s still good habit just in case someone tries to rip him off, even if it''s someone he trusts. "That will be $4,790," I inform him. "Cash or card?" "Card," he answers. "You can insert now," I tap something on my register, then he inserts his card and enters his PIN. "Alright. Here''s your receipt, Ryan. Would you like a bag for these?" "Sure," he answers. I wrap each jar in some brown paper, then place them into a paper bag and set the ring in, then roll down the top and clip it closed before handing it to Ryan. "Thanks for coming," I say. "Are you doing scavenging again this weekend?" He asks. In addition to running this shop and crafting the items sold here, I also enter Dungeons as a scavenger, or someone who goes in after the hunters leave and gather materials within that were left by the hunters. Some of them are used to make the goods I sell here, others are sold to fund me purchasing the reagents I still need after the scavenging is done. Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon. "Yeah," I answer. "Good luck," he says. "Thanks," I say. "Before you go, mind if I ask a question?" "What''s up?" "Surely you''re past the point where items as weak as what I sell serve you well," I say. "You must have at least a couple thousand HP and MP by this point, right?" That would only be Level 10 for a typical Awakened, but that''s possible within eight years. Not just possible, normal or even low. Someone at that Level would also typically burn through the amount of mana potion he''s buying in a Dungeon run or two. The only thing that I can really think of is that he''s only doing runs as a casual thing and has something else as his source of income. "You''re an alchemist who does alchemy the traditional way instead of modern way," Ryan says. "With consistent results. That speaks to your talents in it. I''d rather support someone like you than a big business which relies on modern tech and methods to produce consistent results." While I''m not an Awakened, I can still view item information for materials brought out from Dungeons or crafted from said reagents. That''s not unique to me ¨C everyone can do that, regardless of Awakened Status. However, being able to see what a reagent has doesn''t mean consistency between brews. Traditional brewing is usually extremely inconsistent, but I manage it with very little variation. Several bigger traditional alchemy companies have tried picking me up as an alchemist because of that, but I want to stay independent. "What you''re getting isn''t really enough, is it?" I ask. "I do have to buy some from elsewhere," he admits. "But I try to stick to the shops which perform traditional alchemy. There''s no heart in products of modern brewing methods. If you ever start carrying some higher-quality stuff, let me know, yeah?" "Will do," I say. "Alright," he smiles. "Have a good weekend, Evan." "You as well, Ryan," I say, then he leaves. Once Ryan''s left, I return to reading the book until five hits. That''s when my shop closes, so I turn off the register, then walk to the other side of the counter and lock the door before activating the security enchantments. My shop is a rather basic one, mainly catering to novice hunters and fresh Awakened. The items Ryan buys most weeks are the highest-quality ones I sell for their types. A regular Awakened stops using those after somewhere between three and six months. As for variety, there isn''t much. The standard stock for my shop are: health potions, mana potions, healing salves, poison-curing salves, poison-curing potions, [Ring of Strength]s, [Ring of Constitution]s, [Ring of Agility]s, [Scroll of Barrier]s, and [Scroll of Fireball]s. If someone pays a premium, I can also do custom orders on scrolls, as I keep a stock of the scroll papers and necessary inks just in case. Right now, I''m in a little bit of a slower period. This happens from time to time, where sales aren''t good and the shop''s earnings are lower than the expenditures. Unlike many beginner-focused shops, I don''t take risks. That means I don''t really have much room for growth and have very small profit margins, but I also don''t have much risk of losing. When business is good, I earn enough that I can make it through rough times. However, it''s not good enough to give me a large buffer. That''s why I opted for the security enchantments that I have. They were something I decided on back when I had this place built as I neared sixteen. I didn''t come from a rich family¡­ or even a real family. When I was twelve, I started work as a scavenger. While other boys would probably have splurged all of their earnings, I saved up so I could start a proper shop. It was a little bit ambitious, but it worked out. Losing everything I''ve worked for isn''t in my plans. While being a hunter sounds fun and exciting, it only sounds like a part-time job to me, and I''m not even Awakened. Alchemy, magical crafting, and reading about ancient texts are my passions. "Haaaaaaaa!" I let out a breath after I finish doing inventory. I''m really going to need to acquire some materials and brew up more potions this weekend. While I have enough materials to last out the week for health potions based on my estimates of sales for it, I''m almost completely out of mana potions and ingredients for those. With inventory finished, I head to my office and calculate sales for today and then the week. Total earnings over weekly costs: -$483.16. It''s a really good thing I make sure to keep some buffer up. This is the sixth straight week. If things keep going this way, though, I may have to make some changes. I''m nearing the end of my buffer with this dry spell lasting longer. Dungeons aren''t going back up in spawn frequency and loot amounts as quickly as they usually do, and that''s affecting my shop pretty bad. I shut down my computer, then make sure the shop is locked up as I exit it, with all windows and doors secured. Then, I head up the stairs attached to the back, onto the patio above the shop. Much like traditional craftsmen, I also live above my shop, with additional storage and crafting space in the basement. Entering my home, I walk to the kitchen to grab myself a drink as I contemplate on what to do for dinner.
Your Awakening Quest is available! Would you like to participate?
Yes No
One day, we might finally understand what triggers the Awakening Quests. Today is not one of those days, so I have no idea why I suddenly qualify for it. At least I haven''t changed out of my work clothes yet. Awakening Quests take place within Dungeons, and we''re transported to them as soon as we accept. Passing into a Dungeon destroys materials not filled with magical energy, such as normal cotton. Cotton harvested in a Dungeon or in an area with a high concentration of mana in the soil and air won''t be destroyed. While the clothes I''m wearing are more on the expensive side than what I should really be buying, I wear them for my shop because of the appearance it gives. Not many novice Awakened know my shop doesn''t do that great all the time, and me wearing more expensive clothes gives the appearance that it''s always doing well. That, in turn, makes the quality of my goods seem higher even when it''s not. I also need them for running Dungeons as well, of course, but it''s essentially the same outfits since I don''t do much fighting. Thanks to this, I have clothes that can survive going into a Dungeon. Once Awakened, I''ll have an easier time acquiring things to produce goods for my shop as well. I empty out my pockets to ensure the stuff that''s in them won''t be destroyed, fix a knife onto my belt, then select confirm in the notification floating in my vision. Based on what I''ve heard before, they''re purely thought-based interfaces and just wanting "Yes" to be selected is enough. The moment I try to confirm via thought, I find myself standing facing a roughly-circular field of dry, hard soil. I''m not entirely sure if the dirt field circular or not since there''s a slight slope up toward the center, which obscures the other side, but it probably is round. The stretch I can see is about one thousand feet or so in width, and there''s a dense fog completely surrounding it. The fog isn''t on the small hill or the field around it, but rather, outside of the diameter I can see. I''ve heard that some Dungeons have fog barriers, when there would logically be land outside of it. Caves tend to not need them, but fields and forests do. Goblins are scattered about the field and hill. Ugly creatures about four feet in height, they''re a common monster in Dungeons. Low-ranking ones have skinny limbs and heads that look too large for their bodies. These ones match that description perfectly, and only wear loincloths as well. Their green skin varies in shade but is medium-to-dark overall, and none of them have quite noticed me yet. When I look more closely, I discover a sort of nearly-invisible barrier surrounding me. It''s bluish-clear and made up of tiny hexagons. That''s probably preventing the goblins from noticing my presence, so that I can take time to process both my surroundings and the message floating in my vision.
Your Awakening Quest will begin in 5 minutes. Difficulty is Rank 5 based on your personal Rank. Your stats are temporarily what they will be if you Awaken. Two of your Skills are available for the duration of this Quest. Complete the task within the time limit to Awaken. Fail to complete the task, and you will not Awaken.
Slay all goblins: 0/200 Time Limit: 4 hours
Available Skill 1: [Magic Missile] Available Skill 2: [Fireball]
I''m Rank 5? That''s the highest Rank out of the possible Awakened Ranks, accompanied by having five Classes and the highest amount of EXP requirements ¨C but also the highest growth rate. It explains why I''m naked right now, too ¨C my clothes can withstand Category 1 Dungeon energies, not Category 5 Dungeon energies. They dissolved immediately upon my arrival. So now I have to kill two hundred goblins while butt-naked. A timer ticks down in my vision, along with a notice that activating any Skill or exiting the barrier will begin the Quest. I decide to wait for it to tick down to give me more time to observe the goblins. When the timer reaches 0:00, a new notification appears along with a 4-hour timer.
Slay all goblins within the time limit to Awaken. Begin!
Chapter 0002 The moment the barrier fades and the notification appears in my vision, I''m casting [Magic Missile]. I can instinctively tell how to cast it, that it costs 5 MP, that it takes 1 second to cast, and that it will travel 14 feet at the most. That''s more than enough to hit the nearest goblin, which is only eight feet away. Though this is my first time casting [Magic Missile], my spell still strikes dead-on where I aimed. I''ve heard from Awakened that the higher one''s Rank is, the more easily they adapt to Skills and aiming their spell Skills. Rank 5s can apparently nail their targets on their first-ever cast. My attack doesn''t kill the goblin outright, but it does blast a small hole into its head before the missile of shimmering blue force fades away. Blood sprays out then begins to flow down the goblin''s green skin, bone and brain exposed through the wound. I did that much damage and the creature just seems a bit dazed. While I''ve heard about such things from Awakened before, I''ve never seen actual fights against monsters, only the aftermath. The same thing can happen for me now that I''m Awakened and have HP, but I don''t really have an interest in getting struck by attacks. Not wanting to let the goblin try to attack, I begin casting another [Magic Missile] immediately after the first one. The creature''s dazed enough that it stumbles around long enough that I can blast it in the head again. I want to hit the same spot as I did before and almost as if respond to my thoughts, the [Magic Missile] I fire off curves a little to strike the creature in roughly the same spot, slamming into bone and brain.
+1 goblin slain!
The goblin drops to the ground and the scavenger part of me wants to cut open its chest and remove the crystal that acts as its heart. Essence crystals contain raw magical essence and can sell for a decent amount depending how strong the monster it came from is. They''re extremely useful in crafting as well, and I make use of them when brewing potions while others might use them to make weapons and armor. This is an Awakening Quest, however, so I can''t bring anything out of here except what I came in with. Even that''s not fully true since my clothes and gear dissolved away¡­ I don''t even have the knife I brought with me anymore! I begin walking, taking down every goblin I come across. The eyesight of basic ones is rather poor, so I''m able to get pretty close without being detected. By the time they do notice me, it''s too late and I''m able to nail them with a [Magic Missile]. That stuns and disorients them enough for me to fire off a second [Magic Missile], which makes the Awakening Quest¡­ ridiculously easy. From what Awakened I''ve spoken with have told me, they''re usually rather difficult. All I''m really needing to do is approach a goblin from behind or the side and fire off a [Magic Missile], and I''m pretty much guaranteed to kill it with my next one. All of the goblins seem to be of the same strength and difficulty, so there''s no variation in that regard, either. As I travel through the field, I confirm that there''s an upward slope toward the center. That doesn''t seem to be anything special, though, so I ignore it in favor of continuing the Quest. At least the air here is pleasantly cool. The amount of movement I''m doing would soak me in sweat if it were ten degrees warmer. Finally, after almost two hours of walking around and shooting [Magic Missile]s, I manage to kill all of the goblins. It probably would have been quicker if I gathered up a bunch and used [Fireball], but I felt like walking rather than moving quickly and trying to group the monsters up. Upon the death of the final goblin, notifications appear in my vision as I appear back home, right where I''d accepted the Quest from.
Congratulations on completing your Awakening Quest! You are now a Level 1 Rank 5 Awakened! Your classes are [Arcane Mage], [Elemental Mage], [Nature Mage], [Sacred Mage], and [Magic Craftsman], and you have 10 Skills! Your HP and MP have been refreshed!
You have 1 Daily Quest still available.
You have 1 Weekly Quest still available.
You are the [Keeper of the Gate to the Mythic Forest]!
I have a Title right from the start? Those are exceptionally rare to earn but I have one from the start. As most don''t talk about their specific benefits, there''s a great deal of mystery around Rank 5s other than that they''re exceptionally powerful. We''re exceptionally powerful. It''s entirely possible that we all receive a Title from the start and no one''s mentioned it, or no one''s believed it. Curious about the Title, I call up the information on it.
[Keeper of the Gate to the Mythic Forest]
The one who holds the key to entering the Mythic Forest, you are able to come and go from it as you please.
According to the ancient texts I''ve read, there are several Mythic Forests. Places filled with magic, in both beasts and plants, though relatively peaceful as well. When I first learned about them, I did some research into them to see where they were located. I was under the impression they were here on Earth but quickly learned that they weren''t and are basically pocket dimensions like Dungeons. They were only able to be accessed very rarely, through Quest rewards. Not many people could actually do that, though ¨C the amount of ambient mana within them is so high that one needs a mana resistance equal to a Category 5-100 Dungeon, or a Dungeon that''s the equivalent in power to a Rank 5 Awakened somewhere in the Level 991-1,000 range. Most people start off with a very low level of mana resistance and can build it up over time. If they go somewhere with too much mana for their tolerance level, they start to feel nauseous, dizzy, and a pressure against all parts of them. Staying in for too long can start to have other adverse affects and cause even harm to one''s body. The lower a person''s tolerance is compared to the mana of the place they''re in, the more quickly this works. For a Category 5-10 Dungeon, it''s straight-up lethal to even set foot inside for most people. Mythic Forests are Category 5-100 based on the reports. That''s not just lethal, that''s the sort of mana levels which would dissolve a person in an instant. The Bureau of Magical Affairs tests people for their mana resistance when they register as either an Awakened or a scavenger ¨C optional for the former, mandatory for the latter. They have setups called "mana rooms", which are twenty-foot-wide cubes filled with mana. It lets them know what level of tolerance a person has for it. To test, a person can either walk in while wearing mana-resistant clothes or just stick their head in. This makes it easier to know who can handle what degree of Dungeon, and they can test from Category 1-1 all the way up to Category 5-10. I didn''t feel even faintly off when I stuck my head into the Category 5-10 equivalent. I do still only go into Category 1-1 and Category 1-2 Dungeons as a scavenger, though. The materials are cheaper in them but I also don''t have to worry as much about people trying to pull crap with me in my shop. If I had to estimate things, the Awakening Quest''s location was the equivalent of a Category 5-1 Dungeon based on the amount of mana I could feel in the air. That fits in line with the monsters within it, even if they were more basic than I would have expected for such a difficulty level. Reaching such an absurd level of resistance for anyone ¨C whether Rank 1 or Rank 5 ¨C to be able to withstand a Category 5-100 Dungeon is so rare that the records we do have claim that the Mythic Forests are called such specifically because they''re mythical. It''s not real, just something people claim exists. At the same time, some reports claim that all Rank 5s are immune to the mana in the air of there regardless of their actual resistance level. This Title window floating in my vision claims that not only is it real, but I can access it at will. One of the reasons they''re believed to be a myth is because they suddenly stopped showing up in rewards around five hundred years ago. Even the longest-lived of people don''t live that long, so there''s no one who''s received it still alive. This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source. After contemplating about it for a few minutes, I decide to try and access the Mythic Forest. If the reports are to be believed, its ambient mana won''t affect me. Even if those reports are false, I''m still certain I''d be immune as its Keeper. The moment I activate my ability to enter the Mythic Forest¡­ I find myself back in the field my Awakening Quest was in. Not just anywhere in it, but the exact spot I''d left from. All of the goblins are gone, though I''m suspecting more time has passed here than I spent between visits as there are small mounds of soil scattered throughout. Those could be from the bodies decomposing. The dense wall of fog remains unchanged, leaving it as exactly as I remember¡­ from both my Awakening Quest and from the one occasion I was in a Category 5-1 Dungeon before. I was hoping I was wrong about that, but now that I''m here without any fights, I''m certain of it. This is¡­ that place. Dungeons can be recycled but I didn''t think that was true for Awakening Quests. In fact, everything I''ve seen said the Dungeons for Awakening Quests are always unique. If this is a Mythic Forest, then something happened to destroy it and eliminate even a trace of its trees. Then, it became a regular Dungeon occurrence until I guess now, when it''s become accessible at will by me. Whatever is going on here, I''m not entirely sure, but I''m going to hazard a guess and say that it''s not restricted to just this Mythic Forest. If such a legendary place is in such a bad state, then I''m sure the others are as well. That would explain why they stopped showing up as special rewards. While I''m not sure what I''m supposed to do as its Keeper, I know that I''ll see if I can''t revitalize this place. It feels wrong to leave it in this state and I want to see it flourishing as it surely did long ago. "I''ll be back," I tell the Mythic Forest. "For now, there''s other stuff for me to do." Accessing my gate, I find myself back home once more. There''s a lot for me to process, so I fix myself dinner as I work on sorting through what''s happened. Most people have more specific Classes than I do, and what Skills we acquire are based on those Classes. A [Fire Mage] will gain Skills related to fire magics, a [Water Mage] will gain Skills related to water magics, and so on. As an [Elemental Mage], however, I''ll gain Skills relating to any elemental magic. Though the only one I have right now is [Fireball]. All of my other Skills relate to my other four Classes. So while my Classes sound generic, they''re the most advanced versions there are. I''ve only met four people with any of those Classes, too. Every Awakened also has Daily Quests and Weekly Quests. The former reset at midnight, while the latter resets at midnight on Sundays. We can only take on one from each of those per time period they''re for ¨C so only one Daily Quest a day, and only one Weekly Quest a week. However, we''re given an option between what we want to do for them. Those options are based on our Classes and can change from day-to-day, though there are two standard ones everyone receives: Fitness Quest and Daily/Weekly Dungeon Quest. Curious about mine, I call up the Daily Quests log.
Daily Quests
Daily Dungeon Daily Fitness Harvest Cleanse Alchemy
Five choices, huh? I''ve heard the actual number available ranges from three to five each day regardless of a person''s Rank, but that it''s always five on the day they Awakened. I flick through the different choices given to me.
Daily Dungeon
Defeat the Queen Hunter Ant in your Daily Dungeon within 4 hours.
0/1 Queen Hunter Ant
Reward: 500 EXP
Daily Fitness
Perform a daily fitness routine.
0/10 push-ups 0/10 sit-ups 0/30s plank 0/5 pull-ups
0/10 squats 0/20 star jumps 0/10 lunges 0/1 mile ran
Reward: 500 EXP
Harvest
Harvest materials to assist in your crafting.
0/2 gallons manaberries 0/10 pounds manacap mushrooms
0/10 gallons mystic spring water 0/2 pounds manasprig leaf
Reward: 500 EXP
Cleanse
Cleanse impurities in contaminated water and soil.
0/1 gallons cleansed
Reward: 500 EXP
Alchemy
Brew up mana potion with 200 MP per 1 ounce.
0/10 gallons brewed
Reward: 500 EXP
[Cleanse] is one of my available Skills, though I''m not sure I really want to use that right now since I''d have to track down soil or water that would qualify for the Quest. For the Daily Alchemy Quest, I don''t have the reagents necessary to brew that much. That''s the amount I was expecting to brew on Sunday, after doing some Dungeon scavenging tomorrow. With harvesting, I''d either have to leave the city and try to find an area that has enough of those, or get lucky in a Dungeon scavenging session. That''s not something I''m interested in dealing with this evening. Which leaves Daily Fitness and Daily Dungeon. I''m in shape even if slender so the fitness stuff wouldn''t be too much of an issue for me. Too much. It would probably push my limits just a little bit. Then again, I did just Awaken, so my stats are a little bit better. I could probably manage it fine. That reminds me, I haven''t checked my Status yet.
Name: Evan Rethe Rank: 5
Species: Human Sex: Male
Level: 1 EXP: 0/18,767
HP: 3,100/3,100 MP: 3,100/3,100
Strength: 10 Constitution: 13
Agility: 10 Dexterity: 13
Magic: 14 Mind: 14
HP Regen: 5% MP Regen: 5%
The Regen rates are per hour while asleep and are equal to a person''s Rank. They never change, as far as I know. My HP and MP will increase by their starting values every Level, while my other stats will increase every Level with some factoring of my Rank and Classes involved. Reaching Level 1 also affects them, which means I am stronger than I was before, though I don''t know what my exact values pre-Awakening were. Mostly, the Daily Fitness Quests are for people focusing on the more physical side of things when it comes to combat, or for who want to improve their stamina. Basically, it''s the System''s way of encouraging us to build up stamina and stay in shape. I could probably do that, but I''m not quite interested in it, especially not with the Daily Dungeon available. Hunting monsters is something which sounds like a side job to me, not a main job. Kills within a Daily Dungeon don''t award EXP, so I''ll only benefit from the completion reward. However, they help give combat experience, and resources from within them can be taken out if one has storage which can withstand the Dungeon''s ambient mana. The Daily Dungeon is based on the person''s own Rank and Level, so I technically don''t have something that works. No item in my possession can withstand such a high amount of ambient mana. What I do have, however, is a Skill called [Dimensional Storage].
[Dimensional Storage] Level: 1
A cubical dimensional storage space where time is stopped, allowing for the transfer of products between dimensions.
Size: 1'' x 1'' x 1''
If I''d had this unlocked before I finished my Awakening Quest, I''d have a lot of essence stones right now as I know that items placed in can be taken out of even Awakening Quest zones. A cubic foot of space isn''t too much, but it will give me enough space to bring out some high-ranking materials I can sell. That, in turn, will let me purchase gear which can withstand the energies of a Rank 5 Dungeon. My decision made, I decide to accept the Daily Dungeon Quest. Upon confirmation, I find myself standing in front of a wall of fog within a dark tunnel. It''s not completely dark, however, as small crystals in the walls of the tunnel provide a minor amount of faint, blue light. A four-hour timer begins ticking down in my vision, informing me of how much time I have left to slay the Queen Hunter Ant. Hopefully, I have enough time I can harvest stuff, too. Chapter 0003 A [Magic Missile] slams into the head of a hunter ant, an insectoid monster which reaches up to my waist in height. It black chitin shatters from the impact of the blow and the creature skitters back a little, then resumes its charge forward. That recoil gives me enough time to fire off another [Magic Missile], whose faint blow glow helps light up these dim tunnels a little as it soars to meet its target. The ant drops to the ground from the impact, and I walk over and reach into the hole in its head, pulling out the green crystal from within. Rather than a crystal for their hearts, ant monsters have them as their brains. It''s fairly large as a result of that, but size doesn''t necessarily equal to strength of quality. It does help some, but a crystal the size of my head could contain less essence than one the size of my fist if its quality is low. The ones here are from what''s equivalent to an early Rank 5-1 Dungeon, so they''re all of a good quality.
Essence Crystal
Tier: 7
A crystal containing magical essence, which is useful in a variety of crafting forms.
The rich green color of the crystal is another indicator of its quality level, as the color is very faint when it''s weak and very strong when it''s high. This one is high enough that the green isn''t faded throughout, though there''s still some fading towards the ends. Ones of an even higher quality, the color is much more bold and there''s zero fading at all. I send the crystal into my storage, then continue walking down the tunnel. The tunnels don''t really have that much in them for me to harvest, though I probably wouldn''t take anything unless I really felt it would be useful. The storage available to me right now isn''t that great so I need to manage it well. It takes me around an hour to locate the Queen Hunter Ant, which is nearly up to my chest in height and surrounded by two dozen normal hunter ants in a large cavern. Upon spotting her, I begin casting another spell. Her bodyguards wait with her rather than charging toward me from the start, preferring to take on the one eliminating their colony in an area with more space rather than in the narrow confines of a tunnel. A tunnel which begins to glow more brightly as a spell takes shape. Three inches in diameter, the ball of flames floating above my right palm creates no heat which I can feel, though heat which I am aware of nonetheless. I''ll be able to feel the heat of the flames once I send the spell forward, but a person''s magic doesn''t affect them with effects like that while still under their control. The ants of the boss fight deciding to stay grouped up is to my benefit, because [Fireball] has a decent range for where I can throw it and a decent radius for its explosion.
[Fireball] Level 1
Conjure a ball of flames which explodes upon impact, incinerating all foes it touches.
Cost: 100 MP Casting Time: 10 seconds
Range: 28'' Radius: 14''
From the entrance to the cavern, I let my [Fireball] fly. The ants don''t attempt to scatter as it soars, only move forward to shield their queen. They''re probably believing it''s just a fire version of the missile spell I''ve been using to take out the others. Upon impacting one of the ants, the [Fireball] explodes and flames swirl around as they expand. The scent of burning ant fills the air, and it''s a lot stronger than I remember. I guess the scent really does dissipate some in the time it takes for hunters to finish their job and scavengers to reach the remains. What ants aren''t disabled from combat because of my attack rush toward the tunnel once the flames fade, only to discover a second [Fireball] forming. They attempt to scatter, except they have the ones still aflame and in pain to deal with. I''m able to finish the cast and send off the next [Fireball], then I switch to [Magic Missile]s, sniping out the ants that are wounded, the queen included. When she dies, a notification pops up, but I wait until the rest of the ants have been eliminated before reading it. The moment she''s dead, the surviving ones able to move charge the tunnel rather than waiting for me to enter. I''m able to take them out one at a time as the not that wide, and they have the corpses of their brethren to deal with. They seem to have forgotten that they can walk on walls, so the ceiling is free of enemies. Upon finishing eliminating the remaining hunter ants, I call the notification back to my attention so I can read it.
Daily Quest Completed!
+500 EXP
You can leave the Daily Dungeon at any time within the next 1 hour. If you have not left by then, you will be ejected by the System.
For a moment, I contemplate pushing my way through the remains of the ants, but ultimately decide against it. My storage is full and while the queen''s essence crystal will be larger, it won''t have enough essence more than the rest to be worth sacrificing ones I''ve already collected. Blue mana crystals are visible in the boss chamber and those sell for a decent amount, but I don''t have something to properly mine them with. Because of that, I decide to exit immediately. The first thing I do after reappearing in my kitchen is to thoroughly wash my hands in the sink, since ant monster juices cover them. It''s not a perfect job but it''s well enough I can put on some new clothes without worrying, then I head back down to my shop and into the workshop portion. I start pulling the essence crystals out of my storage and dropping them into one of the sinks. With a sponge, hot water, and soap designed for cleaning monster gunk off of stuff, I begin scrubbing the essence crystals clean. Most of the crystals are placed into a basket when I finish, to be taken out for sale in a little bit. I keep a few of them, however, as they''ll do quite well for some of my crafting. Those are set to the side in my alchemy station, then I grab the basket and leave. I make sure to lock the doors and turn the security system back on to full, then get into my truck and drive to my preferred loot shop. Upon arrival, I look at the wooden sign hanging beside the door, a board with an etching of a wing, a mushroom, a sprig of herbs, and a crystal on it. Those represent what the shop deals in and is a universally-accepted symbol for "magic loot of all types". Basically, they''ll buy any plants, minerals, and monster parts in their raw forms, regardless of if they came from a Dungeon or from the wilderness outside of society. The Skybound Loot is an old shop that was passed down to the current owner by her grandparents when they retired a few years ago. I''ve been coming here since I was twelve and like the shop quite a lot. They''ve never tried to rip me off whether in buying loot from me or selling me things I need for my shop and the owner is quite friendly. With how late it is in the day, they''re already closed up, with metal shutters pulled down over all of the windows, completely obscuring the inside. I know Cassidy well, though, and send her a text after carrying my basket ¨C which is covered with a thick cloth ¨C up the steps to the front door. Much like me, the owner lives above the shop, and she''ll be getting ready for an evening out at about this time. Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. "Hey, Evan!" Cassidy calls out as she reaches the edge of her upper deck. Cassidy''s a woman in her mid twenties, with long, brown hair, ruby-red eyes, and who''s currently wearing a dress that starts dark red and fades to reds, purples, and white at the bottom. It shows off her curves quite well even without cleavage. The only makeup she wears is some light eye shadow and red lipstick, and a pair of ruby-studded silver earrings hang from her ears. "Hey, Cassidy," I greet her. "Got a few minutes?" "Sure thing," she says. "Give me just a sec to get down there." Cassidy disappears from view and after a few minutes, she opens up the front door of the shop from within. "Would have expected you to be at a club, looking for a hot guy to hook up with," she says as I enter, making sure to close and lock the door behind. "You got called to do some scavenging?" Sitting in a chair in the customer section is a man dressed in dark grey leather armor with black clothes worn underneath, a sword fixed to his hip. He has brown hair and sapphire blue eyes, and is a couple of years older than Cassidy. Unlike me, Cassidy can afford additional employees and even round-the-clock guards. That includes Awakened like George, who''s Rank 3 and fairly strong. His armor and sword are both Tier 8 in strength, meaning they''re from a more powerful beast, Dungeon, or area than the Dungeon I went in earlier. "Awakened," I answer as I dip my head to George. "Did the Daily Dungeon after eating dinner." "Oh?" She looks at the basket, then smiles at me. "So that''s the first loot you''ve earned yourself?" "I''ve killed monsters before," I tell her as she walks around to the back of the counter. "Just not as an Awakened." "Oh, right," she pulls on a pair of snow-white gloves. "I keep forgetting that. You''re always so calm and peaceful, it''s hard to imagine you killing anything. I''m betting you received a Class or Classes related to crafting and got a gathering Dungeon Quest. What''s your Awakened Ra-aa-aaa-nk¡­" As she spoke, I set the basket on the counter and pulled off the cloth on top, revealing the crystals within. Cassidy has to take a few moments to collect herself, then she picks one up and examines it. "Such a deep green," she says. "They''re Tier 7, too? The only times I see ones like this in a Daily Dungeon for a fresh Awakened, it''s for a Rank 5." "I''m Rank 5." "I''m willing to bet that you have [Dimensional Storage], too," she says. "Because you''re odd like that, Dungeon Baby." It''s not often that Cassidy brings that up; usually, I only hear mentions of that from customers at my shop or Awakened at the club I frequent. I''m pretty sure that''s the same reason I have [Dimensional Storage] immediately, too. That Skill is normally something someone has a chance of receiving after their thirtieth total Skill Level. "I do," I confirm. "It wouldn''t have been too feasible to bring out this many otherwise. I don''t earn that much that I can afford gear which can withstand those energies, and my arms can only hold so much." Cassidy snorts and rolls her eyes, then sets the crystal in a wooden tray lined with red cushioning. After booting up the register, she grabs a scanner and turns it on, then slides its scanning panel over the crystal. It uses magic to appraise the item against a database in the system, while also reading how much magical essence is contained within it. I watch as Cassidy scans everything, then she does something with the register before looking at me. "Alright," she says. "The total value of the essence crystals you''ve brought is $44,828.49. Would you like that as cash, deposit, or trade?" "Deposit," I pull out my ID and wait for her to say I can insert it, then I insert it into the card reader. "I''m guessing you''re heading to the Hunter''s Mall?" Cassidy asks. "To get yourself some gear that can handle Rank 5 Dungeons?" "Yeah," I answer. "I''d rather go to Jared''s, but he''ll be closed up by now. I''ll head there Monday after I close up for the day instead." "Oh, so my evening isn''t important enough to be left alone?" She teases. "I just knew you''d not want to pass up the opportunity to get your hands on high-quality materials," I say. "With the shortages and all, your shop is probably hurting as much as mine." Cassidy and I stare at each other for a few moments, then burst into laughter. A loot shop as long-established as the Skybound Drops isn''t going to be affected by lower Dungeon spawns and lower loot amounts from Dungeons as my potions, scrolls, and rings shop. People still travel out of the city to hunt monsters and scavenge materials in the wild, after all. The problem for a small-time shop like mine is that if I can''t scavenge from a Dungeon, I have to buy the goods. That decreases the profit margin immensely. Loot-based shops will always be able to sell what they buy, but they won''t always have what I need or they may have only a low stock of it. "He''s probably having fun getting the twins to bed right now," Cassidy says. "What would you have done if I''d already left?" "Asked if the party was really that important," I smile. Cassidy goes to parties on Friday nights to scout out new Awakened to lure in as customers. They''re thrown by various guilds and companies to try and scout out and win over people who''ve Awakened recently. "Definitely not," she says. "How''s your shop doing? I''ve noticed that there''s been a bigger shortage lately." "I always try to keep at least a months'' worth of full expenses as a backup," I answer. "So I''ve got some buffer, though not for long. This is Week 6 of operating at a loss. Fortunately, I''m still earning some, so it''ll last me a little bit longer. Not too much longer, though." "Going to use some of that cash to buff up your shop?" She asks. "A little," I confirm. "Though after a conversation with Ryan earlier, I''m thinking I might add some potions of a slightly-higher grade to my stock as well. It''s not much different than when this happened a couple of years ago, so if worst comes to worst, I''ll close up a little and do some extra Dungeon scavenging, then make stuff I don''t normally stock." I don''t do that often, but it both saves the shop money and earns it a little bit extra, which I can use to pull through tougher periods like right now. "Knowing you," Cassidy says. "You''re going to want to do tomorrow''s Daily Dungeon and then the Weekly Dungeon tomorrow as well. You might not be feeling up for doing some scavenging after since this is new to you. I haven''t done the transfer yet. Want me to cancel and do some trades? Since you''re Rank 5, that''s the level of material you''ll be receiving and there''s no guarantee you''ll get everything you need." That''s not a bad idea, actually. This will save me some hassle. "Alright," I say. "Do you have everything for making mana potions?" "I do," she indicates the card reader. "Are there any specifics you want?" "Do you have manaberries and manapples?" I remove my card from the reader. "I do," she answers, then checks something on the register. "We have three gallons and four pounds, respectively. The berries range from 10 to 20 MP per berry, while the apples range from 90 to 108 MP per apple." "Alright," I say. "I''d like all of the apples, then. What variety of mana mushroom do you have?" After I make my selections, Cassidy brings out everything I''ve requested to allow me to look over them. The goods are as advertised, so she deducts their costs from my earnings for the essence crystals, then makes the deposit and hands me my receipts. The costs for the stuff to make mana potions is still increased so I''ll need to keep prices up a little next week as well, it looks like. "Are you planning on registering?" Cassidy asks as we load my purchases into the back of my truck. Registering as an Awakened isn''t required, but it does come with some benefits. The most immediate of them is that we''re given money based on our Awakened Rank, which is partially an incentive to register. That lump sum allows Awakened to get started as hunters, though it isn''t required to use it for that. Being registered also allows someone to legally enter Dungeons that spawn within the city limits. Joining a guild is legal without being registered, but doing Dungeon work isn''t. A registered Awakened can also receive discounts at certain businesses. There''s one obligation if someone registers, though: running Dungeons and hunting monsters. If I register as an Awakened and don''t join a guild, which is required to have its hunters run Dungeons and hunt monsters outside of them, then I can be asked to help run Dungeons that spawn in the town or be called in to help with Breaks from Dungeons that weren''t spotted or cleared in time. While those requests can be rejected, doing that too much in a short period of time can result in the Awakened license being revoked. "I''m not sure yet," I tell her as I close the tailgate and check to make sure the cover for the bed is secured. "I''m going to ask some of the freelance fives I know how often they''re called." "Alright," she says. "Good luck getting new gear. And remember, the jumps between the needed Tier for gear is higher the higher than Dungeon''s Awakened Rank. So while Tier 7 gear will do just fine in a Category 5-1 Dungeon, it''ll be destroyed immediately in a Category 5-2 one." "I know," I give her a small smile. "You have fun at the party tonight." Chapter 0004 I go through my gear to make sure everything is ready. A hunter''s pack, a pickaxe, an axe, rope and twine, glass jars, additional tools, and a change of clothes. Everything here can withstand the energies in a Category 5-1 Dungeon, though the quality itself is on the lower side since it''s pretty expensive to buy this stuff and my funds were limited. My current outfit is also made of such materials, and at roughly $10,000 in overall cost, is just "standard" in cost. It''s a plain, light grey t-shirt with a light green short-sleeved button-up over it, left unbuttoned, with a pair of jeans, a black belt, and dark brown leather boots. A knife is fixed onto my belt on my right hip, and that cost me $1,500 by itself and isn''t a part of that approximately $10,000 for the outfit. While I''d like to have some mana potion to take with me into the Daily Dungeon, I don''t have any that would withstand the energies in it. The potions of the quality I have would be instantly dissolved by the ambient mana in the air within them. Fortunately, I''ve topped up what MP I didn''t recover in my sleep last night and I shouldn''t need more than that. I''m currently in the back of my shop even though it''s closed on weekends. Learned that lesson yesterday. Entering the Daily Dungeon from my workshop will allow me to clean off my hands and any loot which needs it without needing to touch other stuff upon my return, since this is where I''ll reapper. "Hup!" I pull on my new hunter''s pack, then access my Daily Quests menu.
Daily Quests
Daily Dungeon Daily Fitness Harvest Scrolls Alchemy
The difference in the Quest names today is that "Cleanse" was swapped out for "Scrolls". Otherwise, they''re all the same basic Quests, though I''m sure the details are different. While I''m only interested in the Daily Dungeon Quest, I still give the others a cursory look just in case they catch my interest. None of them do. The Harvest Quest requires four materials of similar themes, and I''d need to get lucky scavenging in a fire-based Dungeon for those. The Scrolls Quest is for crafting [Scroll of [Fireball]]s, and the Alchemy Quest and Daily Fitness Quest are both the same as they were yesterday. Done checking out the others, I call up the Daily Dungeon Quest.
Daily Dungeon
Defeat the Goblin Knight in your Daily Dungeon within 4 hours.
0/1 Goblin Knight
Reward: 500 EXP
That will allow me to better-deal with my shop''s current lower income. Even if the only things I end up being able to acquire are essence crystals from the monsters, I''ll still earn enough from that to make up for the lack of other harvests. As soon as I confirm that I want to perform my Daily Dungeon Quest, I find myself in a tunnel with stone brick walls. Glass and metal lanterns with glowing crystals in their centers hang from hooks fixed into the ceiling at regular intervals, providing some light to the Dungeon. Greyish-white crystals are fixed into the bottoms of those as well, seemingly doing nothing for now. I begin walking down the tunnel, shooting a goblin with a [Magic Missile] when I come upon it. This one''s dressed in leather pants and a leather vest, with no boots or weapon. Though a more civilized type than the goblins I faced yesterday, it''s body isn''t really any stronger. My [Magic Missile] blasts into its skull, blood spraying out as bone breaks, a hole opening up in its head to expose its brain. The goblin reacts much in the same way as those yesterday did, stumbling and screaming in pain. A second [Magic Missile] puts it out of its misery, then I pull out my knife and cut open its chest to remove the fist-sized green essence crystal that took the place of its heart. I wasn''t able to afford something to clean that off with which could withstand the ambient mana of the Dungeon, so it''s slipped straight into my [Dimensional Storage] and I continue on. Rather than actually pulling it out, I only touch the crystal with a finger to send it in, to minimize how much blood I get on my hands. After killing a few goblins, I come across a room off of the hall I''m walking down. I opt to press my back against the wall and peek inside, the way some of the Awakened I''ve talked with said to do to minimize the odds of being spotted. Four goblins are gathered around a table eating some sort of stew while rolling dice-like bones. Clubs sit against their stools, and the stew pot hangs over a fire on the wall opposite the entrance. While the entrance itself is straight, the room itself is circular with a slight dome for a ceiling. On the left-hand side of the room is a table with various ingredients on it, while the other side has some skulls hanging on hooks. It would be easiest to take out the goblins with a [Fireball], except that would very likely cause damage to the ingredients on the prep table. This being an early part of the Dungeon doesn''t mean that what''s found here is lower in quality than what''s found later. Some of it may actually be worth a lot more than some of the things found deeper in the Dungeon. Having the [Multicast] Skill would make this a lot easier but I didn''t Awaken with it and training to be able to use it is pretty difficult, from what I''ve heard. However, I''m pretty sure there''s a simple solution to this, so I begin casting a [Magic Missile], which I use to nail a goblin in the back of the head before jumping backwards back down the hall a little, another spell forming over my right palm. By the time the goblins have gotten up, grabbed their clubs, and made it into the hall, it''s already been several seconds. I''ve made it thirty feet back as well, and wait until the goblins are about twenty feet away before throwing the [Fireball]. Knowledge of the language of the goblins isn''t necessary for me to understand the "Oh, shit" looks on their faces when they realize what the spell really is. It does, however, let me know that one of them says "Fuckshrooms" when the three-inch orb of flames soars forward. My [Fireball] slams into the lead goblin and explodes into a swirl of flames. Due to the narrow width of the hall, some of the flames flow forward and nearly reach me, but stop about two feet before actually doing so. I can still feel the heat, though, and damn is it hot. The flames can harm me now that I''m not in control of them, too. Noted for future battles in here: back up more after throwing [Fireball]s. The scent of burnt flesh and wood begins to fill the air, then the greyish-white crystals on the bottoms of the lamps begin to glow and the smell fades. Goblins dislike strong, foul scents, so they often have measures in place to eliminate them in places without proper airflow. Goblins have softer flesh than hunter ants and the flames were enough to take out all of the HP of all four goblins. I walk forward and draw my knife, removing the essence crystals from their chests and placing them into my [Dimensional Storage]. In their break room, I examine the goods on the table. There''s several chunks of meat sitting on one end of it and I don''t need to inspect it to know what it is. Dungeons tend to be pretty realistic with some of what they provide, regardless of how disturbing it might be.
[Human Chuck]
Meat from the shoulders and upper chest and back of a human.
[Human Round]
Meat from the upper legs and hindquarters of a human.
I inspect them anyway, just in case it was one of the rare times it isn''t human meat but something actually worth taking. Every now and then, I help scavenge a Dungeon where the hunters didn''t check the meat and it turned out to be something valuable, like a rare boar''s meat. None of the vegetables are worth anything, so I continue making my way through the Dungeon, eliminating goblins, looting their essence crystals until my [Dimensional Storage] is full, and looting the various rooms and chests I come across and putting those goods into my pack. Eventually, I reach the goblin knight, who''s guarded by six goblins with clubs. Unlike the others in here, the goblin knight is wearing leather armor and wields a sword in his right hand while gripping a shield in his left. The room they''re in contains a pile of iron-looking coins and jewels on a table, some weapons against a wall, and another cooking station with a couple of tables set up for eating. The back wall has a few shelves set up against it, but those only contain a few bottles and scrolls, and nothing else. Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon. As with the other goblins here, they all charge at me after seeing me, and I make sure to back up plenty before they''re in range of my [Fireball]. Once the monsters are dead, I step over their bodies and enter the room to examine the goods. The coins and jewels are added to my pack, none of the weapons have special abilities but I do strap a couple of them to my pack, and most of the potions and scrolls are worthless. There''s nothing else for me to do here, so I confirm a desire to exit the Dungeon and find myself back in my workshop. I pull off my pack and start dumping the essence crystals into my sink so I can scrub them clean. While I do that, I examine the choices for Weekly Quests. We''re offered up to five of them a week and they reset at midnight on Sundays, so today is the last day to take on this week''s. There are two guaranteed ones and up to three additional. As with Daily Quests, there''s a Weekly Dungeon and Weekly Fitness Quest. The former is a bigger Dungeon than the Daily ones with its features dependent on a person''s Classes, while the latter is for doing the same exercises as needed for the Daily Fitness on three separate days during the week. I''m only interested in the Weekly Dungeon Quest, so I check out its information. The other three aren''t as important for me as the Weekly Dungeon provides resources directly.
Weekly Dungeon
Slay the Stuncap King in your Weekly Dungeon within 6 hours.
0/1 Stuncap King
Reward: 1,500 EXP
A Stuncap King is a mushroom-type monster, which suggests I''ll be able to harvest mushrooms in the Dungeon. It''s also possible that I''ll be able to harvest materials relating to the stun-type affliction, which in turn can be used to make potions to cure said affliction. Or explosives which stun one''s foes. I''m normally restricted to just what I can fit in my pack, which limits to some degree what I can take with me. However, I do want to grab as much as I can from that Dungeon because of the implied nature of it. The Weekly Dungeon may have a focus on my [Magic Craftsman] Class. After I finish washing and drying the essence stones, I load them up in a box, then take my other loot and put them into boxes. Once that''s done, I load those into the bed of my truck and start driving, making a call as I go. "Hey, Evan!" A cheerful voice greets me, along with a small tink, tink, tink! "Placing a ring order?" "Hey, Cole," I greet the smith who makes the rings I enchant for my shop. "I only sold two this week so I don''t need to make more. Wanted to know if you had something in stock." In addition to making base rings and other items that people can enchant if they want, Cole also makes enchanted items, himself. We''re the same age, and he''s been working in his family shop since before he could even smith, helping with grabbing tools and materials and working the customer side. His talents are quite high and he makes some of the more specialty gear used by higher-strength hunters. "Can see if I do," he says. "What are you looking for?" "A Tier 7 or higher ring with a dimensional pocket enchanted onto it," I answer. "I Awakened to Rank 5 and need some storage for my Dungeon runs." "I''m betting that''s on top of [Dimensional Storage]," he snickers. "Cassidy tell you?" I ask. "Oh, so you tell Cassidy before you tell me?" He feigns upset. "And here I thought we had something special." "We haven''t hooked up in eight months." I met him back when I was first starting to look into setting up my own shop and wanted a good place to supply rings. We became friends with benefits a little before I turned nineteen, and it lasted up until August of last year, for just-under a year. While it was fun at first, we stopped enjoying it and decided to return to being just friends. "Oh, right," he snickers again. "The bracelets cost $7,875 per cubic foot for Tier 7 ones. I know your shop''s got to be hurting, since most of the loot''s getting bought up by bigger companies or held within guilds. The registration package won''t have that much, either. We currently only have ones with sixteen or twenty-seven cubic feet in stock at that level." "Alright," I say. "We''ll have to see how much I can afford. I just did my Daily Dungeon and am on my way to sell loot now. I can probably afford the smaller one." "If you want to wait until tomorrow," he says. "I can get a smaller one prepared. We don''t have any bases for it right now so I have to make the alloy itself, too." "My Weekly Dungeon sounds like it might have a lot of stuff that''s useful for alchemy," I tell him. "So I want it before that resets, since there''s no guarantee that next week''s will." "Got it," he says. "I''ll see you in a bit, then." "See you," I say. "Bye." "Bye!" I pull up to the Skybound Loot a few minutes later and park between some other trucks. It might be early in the day, but that doesn''t mean hunters aren''t returning from Dungeons or outside of the city already. That''s the same reason the hunter''s mall is open at all hours. They even buy loot there, too, but people can get competitive prices from a shop like Cassidy''s. A pair of guards stand outside, one dressed in leather armor and with a sword on his hip, the other wearing a mage''s robe over his clothes with a staff gripped in his right hand, a greyish-white crystal set into the top of it. Inside the shop, another security guard dressed in leather armor and with a sword on her left hip stands, keeping a stern eye on the crowd of hunters in here. There are three registers, though only two with employees behind them, young men who''ve gone through extensive training but are still relatively fresh faces here. "They sold for $2 more each last week!" A man at the front of the line insists. "That''s over $40 more than you''re offering for what I have! You''re scamming me!" The other customer being served at the moment seems to be a lot more rational right now, only inquiring about the price increase for the goods he''s wanting to purchase. I''ve had a few customers get irrational over prices changes or shortages recently, too. Fortunately, most are rational like the second customer. Those still waiting in line don''t have any containers with them, though they''re like me in that they''ve left their boxes and crates and jars in their trucks and will grab them when it''s their turn. That''s the courteous thing to do since if everyone brought their loot in, there would be little space to walk around and it would be easy to "mix up" whose containers are whose at times where the shop is busy. "The current demand for silversong tulips has dropped while the supply has increased," the employee the angry customer is dealing with tells him. "As a result, the price has dropped. With the shortage of-" "Those are just excuses!" The man exclaims, the security guard moving a hand to her sword. "You''re just trying to rip me off! Get me your manager!" The customer''s begun exerting his mana presence in an attempt to get his way. It''s not all that strong, but it can become a problem if the situation isn''t defused quickly. A mana presence puts a pressure on people around and can even inflict nausea, dizziness, and headaches in people who are weaker than the one using it. A strong enough mana presence can knock a person out. "The owner is currently busy," the employee informs him. "That''s bullshit!" The man says. "Get her out here!" "Hey, Jack," I step up to the counter. "Could you let Cass know her brother''s here?" "Cassidy doesn''t have a brother," the angry customer snaps at me. "And don''t cut in front! And she doesn''t like being called that!" The employee''s name also isn''t Jack. While the customer snaps at me, the employee he''s dealing with slips into the back, probably grateful to have a moment away from him. "Wh-hey!" The angry customer''s nostrils flare a little. "That little brat, not wanting to do his job!" "Stop exerting your mana presence," the security guard steps forward, left hand holding her scabbard. "This is your only warning." The other customers move back a bit, and the angry customer suddenly starts looking nervous. "I didn''t-I mean-I-" the customer stammers as his mana presence vanishes. "Do not release it again or you will be removed from the shop," the guard says. "You will not be given another chance." The angry customer stammers some more. "Dungeons are currently in a drier period," another customer speaks up. "All that can be hoped for with those is for them to start spawning more frequently again, and to start holding more loot once more. Because of this, many hunters are leaving the city to try and collect magic plants that can''t be cultivated, only found in the wild or in Dungeons. Silversong tulips are one of those. The supply currently outweighs the demand, so the price has dropped." "But-" "Just accept the lower price," the other customer says. "It''s an eight-week dry spell, so Dungeons should be back to normal in the next week or two. If you''re that hard-pressed for cash, try looking for stuff with a higher demand and lower supply." "Alchemists are in need of materials for mana and health potions," Cassidy says as she exits the back with the employee who''d gone to get her. "The prices for such materials have gone up between five and twenty percent depending on what it is and which loot shop you to go. The dry period for Dungeons is enough right now that even guilds are going to be hurting if it keeps up too much longer. If you want to make money, your best bet is to buy stuff that''s in demand rather than common decorative stuff. Now. If you''ve calmed down, Sean here can finish adding up your total." "Y-yes, ma''am," the no-longer-angry customer says. "Thank you," Cassidy tells him, then smiles at me. "I wasn''t expecting to see you again so quickly, Evan." "I have more loot to sell," I tell her. "A few boxes'' worth." "I''ll take you at the third register," she tells me. "Go grab your things." "Hey!" Another customer protests. "How come you''re letting him cut?" "He''s a VIP customer," she informs him as I head outside to grab my boxes. "They get to bypass the line." Chapter 0005 "That''s impressive," Cassidy says as she examines the goods. "I take it you were able to get a new pack last night?" "Yeah," I answer. "Replaced my gear with stuff that can withstand Category 5-1 Dungeons since I plan on doing those. Space is limited, but it''ll let me bring back more materials than just what my [Dimensional Storage] would. This is just what I was able to take back with me with my space and the pack." "The price on the crystals hasn''t changed," she tells me. "Though it looks like there''s a little bit more?" "Just a few more, yeah," I confirm. "I kept some from yesterday''s, but not any from today''s." "Have you done your Weekly yet?" "Not yet," I answer. "Heading to Cole''s after this to see about getting a storage item. It seems like my Weekly Dungeon will have plenty of materials in it based on the monster I''m to slay." "Good luck," she says. "Let me appraise the crystals, then I''ll start on your other boxes." Cassidy begins scanning each crystal and once she finishes, opens up another box and examines what''s in it with an eyebrow raised in amusement. After a moment, she snorts. "Is there something wrong?" I ask. "No," she smiles at me. "I''m just used to you being a scavenger, and coins are often one of the things looted most by hunters." They''re not the actually-valuable coins, which is why I brought them here. If they were made of gold, platinum, or a metal that''s good for weapons, I''d be taking them to a forge to sell instead. They might be Tier 7, but things like nickle and tin won''t sell too well at even at higher qualities. Rather than weapons and gear for hunters, the metal from those coins will probably be used to make things for a more public use, such as wires or vehicles or something. "There are jewels in there as well," I tell her. "The other box has some potions and scrolls I found in the Dungeon. Not much else was worth too much and I had limited space." Potions and scrolls from within Dungeons can be resold at a shop like mine, if the shop wants to. I don''t sell Dungeon potions and scrolls, though. They can be good for studying as well, and there are plenty of people who will buy consumables from a Dungeon, since they''re generally safe if the item information window doesn''t mention anything wrong with them. With the jewels, they''re all nonmagical so they''re better for jewelry than hunters. There''s no reason for me to keep them and jewelers buy from shops like the Skybound Loot, too. Cassidy examines each coin and jewel, then scans them with her scanner. Once she finishes checking all of those, she begins inspecting the potions and scrolls, scanning them with her scanner, and tapping on the register screen to select finer details the scanner alone can''t do. "Alright," she looks at me. "This was just your Daily Dungeon run, right?" "It was," I confirm. "Can we expect you back later today with more?" She asks. "From your Weekly Dungeon?" "Yes," I answer. "I''m not sure when, though. I''ll probably do it after lunch and come either before or after dinner." "Okay," she says. "The total value of your loot is $264,823.19. Will that be cash, direct deposit, or trade?" While that might seem like a lot of money to people who don''t deal with Awakened or who don''t perform hunts or delve into Dungeons, hunters burn through cash quickly. Most of those earnings will be spent purchasing a storage item for me and some extra containers, for example. "Direct, please," I say. "That will cover a storage item and some extra supplies." I insert my card into the reader and after we finish the transaction, Cassidy hands me my receipt. "Have a good day, Evan," she tells me. "Good luck with your work, and don''t overwork yourself." "I won''t, don''t worry," I smile at her. "I know my limits well. You have a good day." I drive to the Skylock Forge, a large building with a hammer and anvil symbol on the sign outside, with rings, bracelets, and a sword decorating the wood around them. There''s no one in the front area when I enter with the weapons I took from the Dungeon, but it doesn''t take long for a woman to come out from the back. She has crimson eyes and long, dark brown hair that''s fixed up in a tight bun. Meredith is Cole''s mother, and she''s currently dressed in leather overalls with a brown shirt underneath. I wasn''t expecting to see her here, she''s an Awakened and usually takes the weekends off from working both in Dungeons and at the forge to relax. Upon seeing me, a smile breaks out on her face. "Hey, Evan," she says. "Cole says you Awakened?" "After I closed up shop yesterday," I confirm. "Did a Daily Dungeon yesterday and another today. I''d like a storage item before going into my Weekly Dungeon, as it seems like it might have some good resources in it. Cole mentioned you have a two-cube and a three-cube bracelet available? Ones which will survive a Category 5-1 Dungeon?" Two-cube and three-cube being the short names for the spaces. A two-cube space is a cube that''s two feet on each side, while a three-cube is one that''s three feet on each side. "We do," she says. "It''s $126,000 for the two-cube and $212,625 for the three-cube." "The three-cube, please," I say. I want as much storage space as possible to ensure I can collect as much loot as possible. That will benefit my shop the most, even if it costs a lot of money initially. "I''ll go get that for you," Meredith heads into the back, then returns after a minute with a metal bracelet. The bracelet was forged of a dark grey metal alloy and is painted with similar-colored runes and markings. Its form is a slightly-rounded band with a small gap in the bottom, the two ends rounded and almost ball-like, but not much bigger than the thickness of the bracelet itself.
[Dimensional Storage Bracelet]
Tier: 7
A spatial iron bracelet enchanted to contain a storage space 3'' x 3'' x 3'' in size.
"I take it you''re wanting to trade those in as well?" Meredith indicates the weapons. "Yeah," I answer. "Since they''re Tier 7, I figured you''d be interested here." "We are," she says. "Materials that can withstand that level of energy in a Dungeon aren''t common. Even as scrap, you can sell them to us for a decent amount." This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source. After Meredith does her appraises on the looted weapons, how much I need to pay for the bracelet drops by around $25,000. "Thanks," I say as I slip the bracelet on around my right wrist. "Could you let Cole know I said ''hi''?" "Sure thing," she answers. "He got caught up working on something or he''d have been out here to meet you. Have a good day, Evan!" "You as well, Meredith," I say. I leave and drive to the Hunter''s Mall to pick up a few more items, including additional jars, buckets, and some cleaning cloths. Once I''ve purchased everything I need, I return home and pull on my now-empty pack, then access my Weekly Dungeon Quest. The location is a damp forest where a light fog fills the air. Almost immediately, I can see reagents for alchemy. A tree has fallen nearby and mushrooms with blue caps and pale blue stems grow off of it. No monsters are immediately within view, though I cautiously walk around to check that the area is clear and find a large mushroom "growing" behind a tree. It''s up to about my knees in height and has a cap about two feet in diameter. The deep, rich blue of the cap is similar to that of the smaller ones which grew on the fallen tree and a novice adventurer might think it''s just a giant version of those. As an experienced scavenger, I''ve seen the remains of the spellcap lords a bit too much to fall for that. As an alchemist, I know that manacap mushrooms only grow to about two inches at the tallest, their caps around the same diameter as their height at the most. They also don''t have small oddities on the sides of their stems. The spellcap lord opens its eyes the moment I begin casting [Magic Missile], a pair of silver spots on its stem. Both of the oddities I noticed pull away from the stem, revealing themselves to be arms with hands. [Magic Missile]s of the spellcap lord''s own form in front of its hands, cast just a tad bit faster than my own. Or they would be, if my spell didn''t begin casting three-quarters of a second earlier. It slams into the spellcap lord''s cap and the monster finds itself pushed back as it loses hold of its casts, the forming [Magic Missile]s fading. Green blood begins to ooze out of the damaged spot. The monster shakes itself for a moment, its green fluids splashing around as it does. It then holds its hands up and begins casting again, only for another [Magic Missile] to slam into the same spot as the first. My second attack doesn''t push it back as far as the first one did, but it dishes out enough damage to kill the beast. I pull out some rope and tie the remains of the spellcap lord up, hanging it upside-down from a tree branch with a bucket underneath it. Most of the beast is worthless, but its essence crystal and its blood-like fluid both have value. The essence crystal because it''s an essence crystal, and the fluid because it can be used to make a potion which temporarily boost a person''s magical power. It can also be used in making ink for magic scrolls. That shouldn''t take too long to drain so while that happens, I walk over to the fallen tree and examine the mushrooms.
[Manacap Mushroom]
Tier: 7
A mushroom with a heavy amount of mana stored within its cap.
Stored Mana: 3,318
Something I learned when I was twelve is that eating them by themselves is one hell of a trip. For people who don''t have mana on their own, it''s an even bigger trip. That wasn''t something I learned by eating one, but from another scavenger trying to haze me. I think he forgot the part where he''s not supposed to eat them when trying to convince others to. Though I''m curious¡­ are there additional "hidden" benefits to being a Rank 5, even before we Awaken? I did eat one out of curiosity after the other scavenger showed me and I just felt a rush of energy in my body for a few moments before the mana was expelled from my system. After collecting all of the manacap mushrooms on the log, I return to the hanging spellcap lord and check the flow. It''s stopped leaking out, so I put a lid on the bucket and place it back into my storage bracelet. I then pull the mushroom monster down from the tree and untie it and remove its essence crystal. With a blue cleaning cloth in hand, I start wiping the crystal clean of the monster''s fluids. Water forms where the cloth comes into contact with the juices, making it easier to wipe it clean. I dry the essence crystal off, then place it into my bracelet before putting the clothes and twine away and continuing through the forest. A few minutes after that, I come across a bush with yellow berries shaped like lightning bolts hanging from it, another knee-high mushroom lurking nearby. Rather than a blue cap, this one has a yellow cap. Sparks begin to form on the stuncap lord''s cap after it realizes I''m casting a [Magic Missile], the creature peeling its arms away from its sides to hold them out toward me as glowing yellow motes begin to form in front of it. The monster is knocked backwards from the impact of my spell before it can propel its stunning spores toward me, preventing me from needing to worry about their effects. As it recovers from the more physical stun I gave it, I slam another [Magic Missile] into it. The yellowish-green blood-like fluids of the stuncap lord holds different properties from those of the spellcap lord so I set it up to drain over a separate bucket while I harvest the berries.
[Shockbolt Berry]
Tier: 8
A berry containing electrical power, shocking whatever takes a bite of it.
A Tier 1 shockbolt berry holds a lot of punch when bitten, and can even cause a mild shock on contact with skin for the first few minutes after being picked. One of the things I made sure to have in my pack was a pair of gloves good for handling such items, and I slip them on before plucking berries from the bush and placing them into a jar. Were this not a Dungeon, I would be concerned over harvesting too much. Dungeons are magical pocket dimensions created by an unknown force, however, and aren''t real ecosystems. Ones which do reappear have minor changes from the previous time they were run but what''s harvested from them doesn''t affect that. In other words, it''s okay for me to pick the bush clean of all of the ripe shockbolt berries. I continue through the Dungeon after, collecting what loot I can, whether it be from the occasional giant mushrooms or the various plants I find throughout. By the time I locate the boss, I''ve nearly filled up my backpack, my storage bracelet, and my [Dimensional Storage] with essence crystals, berries, mushrooms, herbs, and buckets of spring water. The stuncap king is much larger than the others, reaching up to my chest in height with a cap three feet in width. It''s pretending to be just another oversized mushroom in a clearing with a few fallen trees with mushrooms growing on them, mushrooms growing on the trees around and in the ground of the clearing,some rocks with water bubbling out of them and into a small pond at their base, and bushes with berries on them. I still have room for stuff in my storage but taking out the stuncap king without destroying at least some of the stuff here might be difficult. That makes it a question of what I''m okay with not being able to harvest here, if I don''t want to draw the fight out for too long. Do I really need to be concerned about that, though? This afternoon''s haul is the largest I''ve ever had before and what I don''t sell can be useful for my shop in a big way. I know how to effectively alter the potency of my brews ¨C the reason I get consistent results with the traditional brewing method ¨C so I can use the stuff of a very high quality from here to make much weaker potions. It''s just cheaper to buy the stuff that''s Tier 1 in quality, which is why I usually stick to that if I can''t scavenge the necessary reagents from a Dungeon. I decide it''s not worth it and begin casting [Fireball]. My haul is more than enough to last me some time. The moment the stuncap king notices my casting, it stops pretending to be an oversized mushroom and opens its eyes while pulling its arms away from its sides. Spores begin to float out of its cap to fill the space around it, a dozen spots on its cap glowing faintly as they emit the spores. [Fireball] takes ten seconds to cast but the monster is a decent distance away from me and the monster''s spores take time to drift around. That''s a deterrence against physical attacks more than an attack itself. The stuncap king conjures missiles of electric magic once its spore defense is up, but my [Fireball] finishes before it can start that. I lob it forward as I near the edge of its defensive range, then jump back a few times. Spores burn up as the [Fireball] passes through them, then it impacts the monster and explodes in a swirl of flames.
Weekly Quest Completed!
+1,500 EXP
You can leave the Weekly Dungeon at any time within the next 2 hours. If you have not left by then, you will be ejected by the System.
I watch as the flames fade away, though they don''t do so fully and part of the clearing remains burning. Some of the stuff was untouched by my spell, but I really don''t need more from this than I already have so I exit. Upon arriving back in my workshop, I pull off my pack and set it down, then check the time. The Weekly Dungeon took me around four and a half hours to complete, so I have time to sell my loot and pick up some more containers before dinner. Or I can do an early dinner, then make the transactions. If I sell what loot I''m not keeping and make the purchases first, I can drop all of this off here, then head to a club and get dinner while seeing if there are any good-looking guys who are looking for something tonight. A plan for the evening decided on, I start emptying my pack, bracelet, and [Dimensional Storage]. Chapter 0006 A knock at the back door of my shop draws my attention away from the preparations for today''s brewing sessions. I''m not expecting any guests so it''s strange someone would knock there unless they were trying to scout the place out. That''s especially true since my shop is closed on Sundays. There''s no reason for someone to believe that I''m here apart from those who know I perform most of my brewing on weekends, not weekdays. I walk over to the back door and tap a panel beside it. An image pops up on the panel, showing a woman my age with hair the green of grand oaks in summer and eyes the brown of rich soil. Kelsey''s dressed in skinny jeans and a light green shirt with sneakers to match, her hair tied in a braid. Strapped across her torso is a leather baldric, a staff fixed onto it against her back. The top of the staff has a curved design, with a green-and-brown crystal set into it. "Texting you wasn''t an invitation to come over, Kels," I roll my eyes as I open the door. "I know," Kelsey says. "But I figured, what better way to answer questions than to do it in person? Mind if I come in?" "Sure," I gesture for her to enter and she does, then examines my outfit. "What?" "Do you seriously dress like that for brewing?" My current outfit is a pair of jeans, a medium-dark grey t-shirt, and a medium-light blue short-sleeved button-up over it, left unbuttoned in my usual style. Of course, I''m wearing a belt and sneakers at the moment as well. This is her first time showing up while I''m actually doing alchemy, so I guess she wasn''t aware that I don''t change outfits like they do in modern alchemy labs. There, the alchemists wear lab coats and goggles in addition to gloves and special boots. I don''t really find that necessary. "These are normal clothes," I close the door and make sure the security enchantments are still active. "I only need my gloves for the actual brewing." "Huh," she says. "Mind if I grab a se¡­or not. You don''t have seats in here?" "There''s a chair at that table," I indicate a table outside of the brewing zone. "Just don''t knock over anything there. Those are magic inks meant for scrolls and can be¡­ problematic if spilled." Their lids are on and the jars are sturdy, but I don''t want to risk an accident. Learned the hard way that it''s possible even with strong measures taken against it. Also learned in that incident just how badly magic inks can react with each other¡­ at least I wasn''t hurt. "Got it," she pulls off her staff and leans it against the wall, then moves the chair over as I grab a cauldron and heft it onto the fire pad. "That''s a big cauldron. And you have bigger, too." "One hundred gallons," I say. "And the biggest one there is three hundred. I was buying new tools last night since I''m working with Tier 7 materials today and figured I''d get the full set, just in case." "Working with Tier 7 materials?" She asks. "I take it you wanting to know what it''s like as a freelance Rank 5 is because you Awakened sometime this past week?" Kelsey and I met four years ago, shortly after she Awakened. Rather than meeting through my shop, we met outside of a Dungeon. It was a Category 1-1 Dungeon and she ran it solo, as a Rank 5 can do even at Level 1. There were a couple of porters to collect loot for her at the time, though there was still plenty leftover for scavengers to hunt. I''d been contacted and asked about the scavenger job while she went inside, so I was there when she came out. She was a lot more shy back then ¨C had only just Awakened a few days before ¨C and wanted to be friends with the slightly-older boy who looked like he knew what he was doing. It took some time before we actually hung out at all, but I found out before then that she kept asking if "the gentle-looking scavenger boy with the purple eyes" was going to be one of the scavengers for the Dungeon. That''s what led to me asking if she wanted to hang out one encounter, and we''ve been friends ever since. Since she''s a registered Awakened who freelances rather than having joined a guild, I figured I''d ask her what it''s like. I wasn''t expecting her to come over. "I Awakened on Friday," I tell her as I slip on a pair of snow-white gloves. "Did my Daily Dungeon then, then the Daily Dungeon and Weekly Dungeon yesterday, and my Daily Dungeon for today was before lunch. Going to brew up some stuff using Tier 1 materials first, then some potions using the Tier 7 materials I''ve obtained." "Moving into doing Tier 7 goods as well?" She asks. "Not just starter?" "I can influence the quality of the brews." "Seriously?" "Seriously." "Isn''t that a modern alchemy technique?" "How they do it is one way," I say. "But I do it through a different method." "Are you going to let me watch as we talk?" She asks. "Or do I need to be quiet?" "I don''t need absolute silence," I tell her as I move a crate of apple-like fruits next to my brewing station. "And my brewing technique isn''t a secret or anything. Most traditional alchemists will use similar methods. How often are you called to do Dungeon runs?" "Not very often," she answers. "Most are pretty weak and don''t need a Rank 5 to handle, but I''m also Level 18 at the moment, so that means there are fewer that actually need someone at my level. When we get called in, we get paid just for doing the run itself so they want to make sure it''s someone who could handle it but isn''t too strong unless necessary." "Just for the run?" I ask. "It''s not based on the loot?" "There''s also earnings from the loot as well," she tells me. "But yes, they have to pay us based on the run. That''s based on both the Dungeon''s Category and our own Rank. If they pay a Rank 5 the same amount as a Rank 1, they''d get a lot of backlash so they up the price a bit." "Even for the same Category?" "Well," she says. "A Rank 5 who just Awakened receives as many points into their stats at a minimum as a Rank 1 would have built up only after reaching Level 14, or Level 31 when it comes to HP and MP. We need as much EXP to reach Level 2 as it takes for them to reach Level 12 and then some." Those are all fair points. "In other words," I say as I set down a basket of herbs. "They would be calling in someone who can solo-run the entire Dungeon. Someone who would likely be able to use that time to run something else." "Exactly she says. "Which is why they also factor in our Rank for pay. We''re basically the last resort for weaker Dungeons or Breaks." "Makes sense," I say. "If I registered, how often could I expect to be called in? And how much wiggle room is there on that? I do prefer my shop." "You have crafting-based Classes, right?" She asks. "The odds of it are very slim for craftsmen unless they have combat abilities. Craftsmen tend to not have much fighting ability." "I have [Magic Craftsman] and the four highest mages." "Okay, not what I was expecting," she snorts. "Well, that would normally mean you''d be called in if your abilities suited the Dungeon or Break for sure. Maybe once every three or four weeks? You''d only get a few months'' worth of rejections before they revoke your license for failure to comply with the conditions." "Would me being the Dungeon Baby affect things?" Bad parents sometimes take their children into a Dungeon in secret, then abandon them there after completing it, preventing the kid from leaving. Unlike Daily and Weekly Dungeons, people aren''t ejected after the post-completion timer ends. Instead, they''re obliterated when the Dungeon closes. I was found in a Rank 5-1 Dungeon as a baby, with all of the goblins inside dead. Unlike other cases, mine is surrounded in a bunch of mystery. The Dungeon was barely ten minutes old when the team went inside and no one saw anyone enter ¨C yet every single monster inside was dead. The timer before the Dungeon closed was also fresh, though it was as if the Dungeon was cleared immediately upon appearing. Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit. It''s the one and only case of an abandonment in a Dungeon where everything about it is filled with mystery. That''s led to some rumors that I''m actually a monster in human form, though it doesn''t really stop Awakened from using my shop when they learn about it. "Do you want the honest answer?" Kelsey asks. "I do." "Nope." "Nope?" "I''ve heard enough while working with the bureau," she shrugs. "They''re pretty sure you''re human. Considering all of the resources here, I''m guessing your Daily and Weekly Dungeons are resource-gathering ones?" "They have combat," I say. "But yeah, there''s plenty of resources in them." "That''s because of your crafting Class," Kelsey tells me. "You can expect that to keep happening, so if your interest in registering is for obtaining resources, I wouldn''t stress about it too much." "Okay," I start moving some five-gallon buckets over to the near the cauldron I set up. "Is it okay to ask about your Awakening Dungeons? There doesn''t seem to be much information on them when I look it up, especially not for Rank 5s." "That''s because we can''t talk about them," she says. "We know enough that they''re not typical Dungeons, and they are able to be completed without too much difficulty as long as someone actually tries. People who claim they''re deadly and such are usually idiots who didn''t put much effort in." "Hold on," I say. "Why can''t you talk about them?" "Don''t know," she shrugs. "Some sort of force keeps us from discussing them. We can research similar Dungeons to see if they match any of ours, but we can''t actually reveal information about their setups. That''s why we know that they aren''t typical Dungeons ¨C because no one''s ever found a record of a Dungeon which matched one they did for their Awakening Quests ¨C but really not much more." "Strange," I decide to give it a try. "My Level 1 Awakening Dungeon was the same Dungeon I was found in as a baby." Kelsey stares at me. I stare back. "You''re serious, aren''t you?" She asks. "I am," I confirm. "After I completed it, I received a Title which grants me access to it as I please. It''s apparently a Mythic Forest." "A field of dirt¡­ is a Mythic Forest?" "I think something destroyed it," I shrug, then grab a bucket of low-strength essence crystals and move it to my alchemy work table. "The Title calls me [The Keeper of the Gate to the Mythic Forest] and that Dungeon is where I appear." "That is¡­ very strange," she says. "I''ve never heard of someone receiving a Title immediately, either." "So that''s not a Rank 5 thing?" "No," she answers. "I wonder if it''s related to you being found there?" "That was my thought as well," I tell her. "So you really can''t talk about your Awakening Dungeons? It didn''t seem like anything tried to stop me." "No," she says. "We''re forcibly stopped by some force." "Okay," I say. "Could you show me?" "My most recent Awakening Dungeon," she begins. "Was some hilly fields filled with boars, the boss being a great, flaming bird with two pairs of wings. I didn''t know about the second pair until after I destroyed the first and it whipped those out to keep flying." Kelsey stares at me for a few seconds after. "I didn''t expect to be able to do that," she says. "I swear, Evan, I''m not messing with you. That''s never happened before." "I believe you," I tell her. "I''ve known you long enough to trust you on that sort of thing, Kels. Oh. And heads-up, but I am asking a few different Rank 5s I know about being a freelancer. It''s not me not trusting you, I''ve texted several people already. So if you hear about me asking from one of our mutual friends, that''s all that''s going on." "I figured," she says. "This is the sort of thing you should ask multiple people for information about. It would be strange if you didn''t ask multiple. And if you didn''t trust my answer and wanted verification from others because of that, there wouldn''t be a reason for you to ask me. Or it would mean you don''t trust any of us." "Yeah," I say. "If the general consensus is that I shouldn''t worry about registering, then I''ll stay unregistered." "The main perk to it is being able to run Dungeons," she says. "So that would be EXP and resources for you. You''ll be able to get the materials and sell them as needed from your Quest Dungeons from the sounds of it, so I think the main reason for you would be to get extra EXP." "Advancing quickly isn''t really a concern of mine," I tell her. "I''ll keep that in mind, though." "Alright," she looks at the stuff I''ve moved around. "You only use one cauldron?" "Yeah," I grab an essence crystal which is more faded than not. "In the labs, they generally use multiple pots, vats, or whatever, but traditional alchemy is usually all in one pot or cauldron, rarely in two or more." I begin grinding up the essence crystal with a mortar and pestle, then dump the dust into a glass bowl before grinding up another. This repeats until I''ve filled the bowl with the dust of roughly twenty essence crystals, the powder a pale green. Once that''s finished, I place some reddish-orange crystals beneath the cauldron, then strike a match and touch the flame to one of the crystals. The crystals immediately light, then I use a poker to move them around a little. Opening up one of the buckets, I examine the clear, very faintly blue-tinted water within.
[Mystic Spring Water]
Tier: 1
Pure water from a magical spring, it is infused with magical energy.
Using mana spring water would be better for this, except it''s more difficult to find in lower quality Tiers. Not having that just means I need to use more of some of the other ingredients. I pick up the bucket and pour the five gallons of mystic spring water into the cauldron, then I set the bucket off to the side and dump the essence crystal dust into the water. With a long-handled ladle, I stir the powder into the water until both have dissolved, then add in another four buckets of the mystic spring water. While that heats up, I begin using an apple-slicer on the manapples, which resemble granny smith apples that fade to blue at their tops.
[Manapple]
Tier: 1
An apple with juices filled with mana.
Stored Mana: 93 MP
A Tier 1 manapple of the most common size can hold up to 120 MP within it, though removing the core does reduce that a little. When I slice them, I dump the cores into another bucket. The manapple slices are dropped into a separate bucket from those. After all four pounds of the manapples I purchased are sliced and their cores removed, I use a masher in the bucket to break up the slices further. That''s set to the side, then I pull some herbs out of a basket and set them down. They have slender stems that reach 6" in length, with thin, narrow leaves growing out of it all the way to the tip starting from about half an inch above the bottom, each of those roughly a quarter of an inch in length. The center vein for each of the leaves is blue in a much lighter shade than the green of the rest of the leaf.
[Manasprig Leaf]
Tier: 1
An herb filled with mana.
Stored Mana: 1 MP
Tier 1 manasprig leaves only have 1 MP in them. I scrape the leaves off the stalks and dump them onto a cutting bored, then drop the de-leafed sprigs into the bucket with the apple cores. Once there''s a suitable pile of the sprigs, I chop them with a knife, then scrape them into a bowl. I continue this until I''ve chopped up two pounds'' worth of the leaves. The last reagent for the potion are manacap mushrooms. At Tier 1, they contain up to 500 MP in their caps, which I separate from their stalks. I drop their stems into the dump bucket, then slice up the caps, dropping them into a bucket. With the caps being fairly heavy, ten pounds doesn''t even fill half of the five-gallon bucket. "I need to head out," Kelsey tells me after receiving a notification on her phone. "Shame I don''t get to see the alchemy part, but a Rank 5-2 Dungeon just appeared and I''m the first on the list for them today." "Alright," I tell her as I finish with the mushrooms. "Good luck." Kelsey grabs her staff and leaves while I examine the solution in the cauldron, which is now touched with green rather than blue, but still only faintly.
[Essence Water]
Tier: 1
Mystical water infused with magical essence, it is capable of drawing out magical essences.
It''s ready to go, so I scoop out two cups of mashed manapple and dump it into the cauldron, followed by a cup of chopped manasprig leaves and two cups of chopped manacap mushroom caps. I stir those until the mixture starts to blend together, then I repeat this process, adjusting the amounts slightly as I work. The green-tinted water begins to return to a blue color as I work, and as the essence water breaks down the reagents, the solids fade into nothingness. As a form of magic, alchemy tends to do as it pleases. As I near the end, I determine by the color and smell of the potion that it will be a little too strong for my desire, so I add in a little bit more mystic spring water and essence crystal dust. I continue adjusting things until I''m satisfied, then touch a wand with a greenish-blue crystal at the tip to the fire magic crystals beneath the pot. Each one extinguishes when touched, then I examine the fluid in the cauldron.
[Mana Potion]
Tier: 1
A potion of liquid mana, which immediately restores the user''s MP when consumed.
Mana Content: 200 MP per ounce
After factoring in the essence extraction and what parts of the reagents were liquified and which parts where completely destroyed by the alchemy process, there''s roughly thirty gallons of the potion. I clean up my tools, then transfer the mana potion into five-gallon buckets meant for storing potion. That''s one crafting session down, but I''ve got more to do before the day''s done. My shop will be well-stocked on some things this week. Chapter 0007 I''ve barely made it back behind the counter after unlocking the door to my shop for the day when the customers who had parked outside enter the shop, a small tone sounding out. They''re a man who looks about nineteen and a girl who looks around fourteen or fifteen, mostly likely fifteen. People who Awaken before the age of fifteen are actually rare, I''ve simply encountered a lot of them over the last eight years. At a guess, I''d say they''re siblings since they both have the same dark pink hair and dark green eyes. Neither is dressed in expensive gear, only basic Tier 1 stuff which likely came from the discount section in the hunter''s mall. They must be new Awakened; it''s not uncommon for siblings to receive the Awakening Quest at the same time. With the quality of their gear, they also likely only had their registration bonus to buy things. "Hey, hey!" The girl rushes up to the counter when she enters. "Is it true that you''re the Dungeon Baby?" "Emily!" The man exclaims. "You can''t just ask a question like that!" "A lot of people ask me that," I tell him, then look at the girl. "Yes, I was found in a Dungeon as a baby. We never found out who my parents are or why they abandoned me there. Are the two of you fresh Awakened?" "We Awakened yesterday," the man answers. "Registered a little after, then bought some gear. Only Rank 2, though, so it wasn''t much from the registration package." "It''s all Tier 1 stuff," I nod. "Which was a smarter choice. They won''t be asking you for anything other than a Category 1-1 Dungeon at first, to help you get a feel for things, maybe Category 2-1 as well if needed and they feel you can handle it. Neither of those don''t need any gear higher than Tier 1." That much is something I already knew, since I do get a lot of fresh Awakened here. I even knew most of what my Rank 5 friends told me, though I didn''t expect that Rank 5s weren''t actually called that often. As it turns out, the reason most of them went into Dungeons a lot early on was because they were buying the rights to it. As a scavenger, I have to pay a fee based on the Dungeon''s Category to enter to loot. Usually, I can make a lot more than the fee off the loot I scavenge from it. What I didn''t know about was that the bureau pays hunters for taking on the Dungeons when they contact them for it. Something I did know was that Awakened can also buy the rights to a Dungeon ¨C that''s how guilds gain access to them. Management rights to a Dungeon, or the permission to choose who enters it and what happens with the loot, cost a lot more than either the scavenger fee or the payment to hunters assigned to entry by the bureau. The reason for that is because it means that whoever buys those rights will earn a lot of money in turn as they get first pick on the loot. Apparently, it''s not uncommon for novice Rank 5s to keep buying the rights to Dungeons for their first few months. All of the ones I talked with said it was just some sort of rush or high for them, an excitement within them that drove them to using their abilities more. Once they burned out on that, they calmed down on it. Fortunately, Dungeons are a high enough spawn that it''s not a major issue for them to do that. Or at least, they used to be. If the spawns continue to drop as they have been rather than returning to normal, things might be a little bit difficult. At least there are still Dungeons outside of town and the monsters in the wilderness that people can hunt and harvest from. "Can you guess what we are?" The girl asks. "Our Classes?" "You''ve got a quiver and bow strapped to your back," I say. "So you''ve likely received an archery-based Class, while you," I look at the man. "Have a seven-inch sphere on your hip. A casting focus, so a mage. Since you''re both Rank 2, you''ve got a second Class as well. At a guess, you have either a plant-based or a mind-based Class, while your brother probably has both." "H-how did you figure that out?" She asks. "I''m an [Archer] and a [Thought Seeker]! Though I can only sense minds with the Skill I received from it, not hear thoughts or anything like that. My other three Skills are all for [Archer]. And Nate has [Plant Mage] and [Thought Seeker]! But seriously! How did you guess?" "Hair and eyes, dummy," the man snorts. "Pink hair is common in people with natural affinities for mind magics. Green eyes can be a sign of plant magics." A person''s hair and eyes aren''t always an indicator for what types of magics their Skills will be on, but it can often be a good indicator. When several generations in a row use a type of magic heavily enough, it can cause a mutation in them to make them predisposed to it, or alter their appearance slightly. That affinity can die out over time even if the changed coloration doesn''t. "It''s not always an indicator," I say. "But his orb has a plant focus to it, so that also gave it away a little." "We received a request to help with a Rank 1-1 Dungeon," Nate tells me as Emily pouts. "We were hoping to get some potions with what we''ve got left. The assignment is for in about forty minutes." "What''s your budget?" I ask. "A hundred dollars each," he answers. "We don''t know what the rest of the people going into the Dungeon are, so we were wanting both HP potions and MP potions." That little? A Rank 2 receives $3,000 as their registration package so I''d have thought they would have more. Their gear is pretty low in quality, too. Either they went out and celebrated with it, they put some aside for savings and don''t want to touch it, or they spent it on bills of some sort. "They generally ask for at least two tanks, two close-range fighters, two supporters, and two ranged fighters," I inform them. "To balance the party a bit." "Don''t tanks really only work in video games?" Nate asks. "The way you''re thinking, maybe," I say. "In this sense, a tank is a person who helps draw the attention of the enemy while also making sure the ranged fighters and supporters are protected. Their main goal isn''t to kill the monster but protect the others. The close-ranged fighters use openings created by the tanks and ranged fighters to get in close and strike, while the supporters providing healing support, binding magic, buffs and debuffs, and so on. And tanks will perform attacks if the monsters get close to the ranged fighters and supporters. It''s essentially a difference in active offense and passive offense. "This means the two of you will have a lower chance of taking damage as long as the party is assigned properly," I say. "And they generally have at least one experienced tank and one experienced healer in the group if there are newbies in it, so the risk of you being attacked are low. Health potions aren''t generally needed for ranged fighters to begin with and this reduces the odds even more. I''d still recommend a little bit for each of you, just in case they can''t get experienced hunters in or something unexpected happens." "What would you recommend?" Nate asks. The fact that they let me explain all of this and listened intently is a sign that they probably didn''t attend one of the schools which focused on making sure its students were prepared in case they Awakened. Roughly eight percent of all people Awaken by the time they reach the age of twenty so plenty of schools teach about Dungeons and hunters. Nate asking for a recommendation and Emily nodding her head in agreement is another sign of that, as well as a sign that they''re willing to listen and learn. There''s been a few times where customers haven''t been willing, and I usually end up hearing about them getting into major trouble in a Dungeon or in the wilderness. "The current cost is $0.16 per 1 HP restored due to the current shortage of materials," I say. "At Rank 2, you''ll both have 300 HP and MP. I''d recommend potions which restore 25 or 50 HP per ounce. It''s easier to avoid wasting any if you don''t restore as much per drink, and you probably won''t receive that much damage. What you don''t use for the fight, you can save for the next Dungeon." The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation. "Then we''ll do that," Nate says. "They recommended at the mall that we buy bottles for storing potions in that we could clip onto our belts." "To make it easier to drink, yes," I nod. "They sold them at the mall, but it sounded like you thought you needed to buy them here?" "Yeah," he looks sheepish. "No worries," I say. "I sell potion bottles that can be clipped onto belts, though those cost a little bit more. These aren''t the same bottles they were talking about ¨C these are glass bottles, while the ones they were talking about are plastic ones which resemble water bottles, and which come in standard and sports varieties. Mine are only in a 3oz variety and are more disposable. Tier 1 would be the better ones for you." "Okay," he says, then checks his phone. "We have time to return to the mall before we have to be there." "I wouldn''t recommend that," I say. "Why not?" Emily asks before I can answer. "Tier 1 bottles will run about $40," I say. "That would reduce your available funds down to about $60 each. Just 3oz of the health potion will cost $24. The glass bottle to hold that and which can clip onto your belt would cost you $5. It''s more easily damaged and most people just drop them after they use them, but it will let you spend more on mana potion. Those have a higher price than health potions. "As you can see on the board up there," I gesture up to the board on the back wall which lists my products and prices. "They currently cost $0.22 per 1 MP restored. As you''re both ranged-types, you''ll most likely use a decent amount of mana in the Dungeon run. I would recommend buying 300 MP in mana potions each. "The typical Rank 1 caster and archer who comes here mentions they usually use a little bit more than they expected for their first Dungeon," I explain. "Often up to around 250 MP in Skills. Buying 300 MP gives you an extra twenty percent, just in case. That''s $66 in potions. Adding on a glass bottle for the belt, that''s $71. Combined, what I''m recommending is the full $100, so I understand if you would prefer less than that." Nate and Emily think about it, then step back to talk among themselves for a minute. "We do have a little bit extra," Nate says. "And we''ll be getting paid from the Dungeon and the loot, too. We''ll do as you suggested." "Alright," I say. "Wait right here and I''ll bring those up." I head into the back and portion out the potions, pulling from the relevant buckets to make two belt-bottles of health potions which restore 50 HP per ounce, two belt-bottles of mana potions which restore 50 MP per ounce, and two 3oz bottles which restore 50 MP per ounce. Those are set onto separate trays per customer order, which I then bring up to the front. "Please check to verify these are as you''re requesting," I instruct the customers as I set the trays on the counter. Once they check and confirm these are what they''re purchasing today, I ask if they''re paying together or separately. It''s separate, so I ring up one order first and Nate pays, then I ring up the other and Emily pays. "Thanks," Nate says as Emily grabs her bag and receipt. "Have a good day." "Bye, Dungeon Baby!" Emily waves. "Have a good day," I say as they exit, then I pull out a book and begin reading. No one else arrives until nine o''clock. I don''t need to look at the door when it opens to know who it is as there''s a regular customer who always arrives at almost exactly nine on Mondays. Much like Ryan, he''s a long-time customer of mine and his personality is good, too. He''s not as attractive as Ryan, but he''s still fairly attractive. I look up as Adam approaches the counter. He''s 5''9" and has a lean build, his brown hair styled lightly and green eyes as vibrant and full of energy as always. Fixed onto his left hip is a sword with a brown crystal set into the pommel and a pair of brown and green ones on either side of the crosspiece. His outfit itself is a skintight, dark grey sleeveless shirt that shows off his light muscle definition well, black pants, and dark brown leather boots. The belt around his waist has a variety of vials and other small items fixed onto it, including a knife and some twine. On his left wrist is a black wristband, while there''s a black armband around his right bicep, the latter of which has a pouch attached to it. While I''ve never looked at his gear''s information before, I''m fairly certain he''s not an amateur. Adam''s been a customer here for almost two years now. Much like Ryan, he just keeps coming and placing a simple order. Also like Ryan, I''d have probably asked him for a hookup before if I didn''t have the personal policy against any form of relationship or friendship with customers. He''s attractive and his personality is good so there are no issues there. "Hello, Adam," I greet him. "Hey, Evan!" He greets me. "You''ve expanded your selection?" Adam noticed the increased list of items on the board without even looking at it. I''ve learned that well-experienced hunters tend to notice changes like that pretty easily, so used to observing their surroundings in Dungeons that they do it outside as well. "Yeah," I nod. "I now offer mana potions which can restore 250 MP, 300 MP, 400 MP, and 500 MP per ounce. I wasn''t able to acquire the materials to make health potions, so it''s currently only my mana potions which restore more." With the higher values, I had enough materials from my Weekly Dungeon on Saturday that I had a sufficient amount that I could dilute them down to lower values as I brewed up batches. "Oh, that''s neat," he says. "I might change my order, then." "I wanted to call you about that," I tell him. "I do have your number on record from when you placed an order for later pickup in the past, but wasn''t sure if you''d be okay with that." Some customers might be okay with that, others might not be. I decided it was better to hold off on calling customers I thought might want some higher-quality potions until I knew whether they were okay with it or not. "Ever want to call me about changing your stock," he says. "Go right ahead, Evan! I like supporting the independent businesses out there! Plus, your skill with traditional alchemy is something to envy! Did I ever tell you that I tried it before?" "And nearly blew your face off," I chuckle, then glance outside. "It doesn''t seem as if anyone else is coming. I know it''s normally rude to ask this, but are you okay with me asking what your Rank and currently Level range is?" "You''re right," he says. "It normally is pretty rude, but I don''t mind for you. You''re a great guy and I''m sure you''ve got a reason. I''m Rank 5, Level 17." "Seriously?" "You''ve never looked at my gear, have you?" He asks. "I felt it rude," I say. "I could tell they were high in quality, though." "Started coming here as a baby Awakened," he says. "And thought I''d keep supporting you even once your stuff isn''t that useful for me. Well, it was barely useful back then since I was using Skills a lot and burning through my MP, but you know what I mean." "You still use them, though?" I ask. "They''re gifts for good behavior for fresh Awakened I train," he flashes me a grin. "Some of them don''t listen that well while others actually try to learn. Do one award a week for them." That''s not something I had considered when thinking about reasons he might want to still come here after so long. It does make sense, though, and now I want to know how many of my long-time customers do that. "Okay," I say. "Since it''s hard to be a regular customer here for a long time without having a decent amount of Levels, I assumed there would be hunters of a higher Level or Rank among my customers. This is a product that I''m currently not listing as on the shelf and am only sharing with customers I like." I reach out to set something on the counter, and a 3oz glass bottle appears in my hand. Adam examines it upon seeing the richer blue of the liquid within. His surprise is pretty visible on his face. Whether it''s from the potion or the fact that he''s just learned I''m an Awakened, I''m not sure. It could be both.
[Mana Potion]
Tier: 7
A potion of liquid mana, which immediately restores the user''s MP when consumed.
Mana Content: 3,500 MP per ounce
"The price for these ones are back to $0.20 per MP restored," I inform Adam. "Making the weaker ones actually still costs me more, which is why their listed prices up on the board are higher." The board just states the MP per ounce amounts I can sell, as well as the price of $0.22 per MP restored regardless of that. "And this is something for trusted, liked customers?" Adam asks. "Yes." "How long have you been Awakened?" He asks, and I get the feeling he''s looking at my clothes, which are Tier 7 ones. "And I''m guessing it''s Rank 5?" "Just a few days," I answer. "I was able to acquire the materials for this in my Weekly Dungeon last week. I don''t plan on taking business away from others, just expanding the goods I do sell in case my long-time regular customers are interested." That''s why it''s only for them rather than everyone. If word got out that I was selling potions of too much of a higher potency over what I already sell, I''d begin taking customers away from other shops which might deserve them. "I''m definitely interested," he says. "Damn. A Rank 5 craftsmen. Lucky. My Weekly Dungeon last week wanted me to kill a teleporting spider." "Sounds like a challenge," I say. "Not in the way you think," he chuckles. "My Class build is warrior with a tracker aspect, so I could find her again. The challenge was putting up with having to keep following her around. But it was a guaranteed 1,500 EXP, so it was worth it." "Okay," I say. "Tier 7 mana potions aren''t the only additions to my stock now. Are you interested in the others?" "Definitely," he says. "Whatcha got?" Chapter 0008 Adam examines the array of items I''ve set on the counter, looking more than a little impressed. There are now four 3oz glass bottles set out. One of them is the blue-tinted mana potion I originally shared, one contains another blue-tinted liquid, one contains a yellow-tinted liquid, and one contains a green-tinted liquid. The last three are ones I don''t normally carry.
[Magic Boost Potion]
Tier: 7
A potion which boosts one''s magical power.
Magic Boost: +20%
Duration: 30 minutes
[Stun Resistance Potion]
Tier: 7
A potion which boosts one''s resistance to the stun effect.
Resistance: +20%
Duration: 30 minutes
[Poison Resistance Potion]
Tier: 7
A potion which boosts one''s resistance to the poison effect.
Resistance: +20%
Duration: 30 minutes
The main difference between a ring which boosts one''s stat and a potion which does it is that the ring requires the user to input mana into it to activate the effect ¨C and maintain a steady rate of flow into it. My skill in enchanting is good enough that I can make them cost 3 MP per second, which is pretty high for one who uses a lot of MP for their Skills, especially if they have a lower pool of it. However, the rings are also cheaper and can be used multiple times since all ones has to do is stop putting mana into it to stop the effect. When they do that, what''s left of its duration can be used later by activating it again. With a potion, you have to drink nearly all of the bottle to gain the full effect and it only works once. There''s no stopping it once it''s begun, no "saving for later". Potions don''t just free up one''s mana, they also free up the mental attention and magical ability that would be devoted to inputting mana into a ring. They have to constantly input mana to maintain the buff from a ring. Most Awakened switch to potions once they can afford it. Rings also tend to have an upper limit of around 10% and 10 minutes, maybe 15% and 15 minutes if the enchanter is good enough. The best potions I''ve heard of go up to around 30% and 30 minutes. There''s a big trade-off there, and potions require a more expensive crafting to create, which increases their cost to buy. "Damn," Adam finally says after examining them. "I take it you''re a higher Rank and have several craftsman Classes? Your Daily and Weekly Dungeons would focus on harvesting materials. You''re an [Alchemist] for sure." "[Magic Craftsman]," I tell him. "But yes, my Daily and Weekly Dungeons have a lot of loot compared to the norm, from my understanding." I''ve known about crafting Classes before, but the Awakened who visit my shop are hunters, not craftsmen. The Dungeons from the Daily and Weekly Quests that I''ve heard about were focused more on hunting monsters, maybe with a little bit of loot added in. It seems that for a craftsman''s Daily and Weekly Dungeons, there are rarely any monsters at all, and the Quest is to collect a certain amount of something in a set time frame or locate a specific item. So far, all of mine have been to kill something but were in a Dungeon which contained a lot of resources. I''m sure today''s Daily Dungeon and this week''s Weekly Dungeon will be the same. "That''s your Class?" Adam asks. "Anything else? These," he gestures to the potions. "Imply Rank 5." "Four mage-type Classes, including [Nature Mage]." "You''re ridiculous." "Aren''t you a Rank 5 who''s still going to a starter shop?" "Point taken," he chuckles. "Can I get ten of each of those? And a gallon of mana potion which restores 3,500 MP per ounce?" The boost and resistance potions are sold by the dose, which is 3oz each. Their bottles are designed for fixing onto belts and drinking straight from, though are also often stored in packs when not needed. Starting with Category 3, Dungeons can have environmental hazards which can necessitate needing a resistance buff, not just monsters which can use the afflictions like the stuncap lords from Saturday. "Sure," I put the potions away. "Though there''s more goods in stock." I pull three scrolls out of my [Dimensional Storage]. The paper they were made from was crafted using an older style rather than for common commercial use, so they''re a little bit on the thicker side than printer paper and have rougher, less-even edges. Flax that was separated and beaten in a special treatment solution based on what the scroll is meant for, then screened and pressed into sheets before being hung to dry. While their edges could have been snipped so they were straight, traditional craftsmen like the one who made the papers dislike doing that. Scroll-makers like myself prefer their more natural edges as well. Two of the scrolls have a very faint blue tint to them, while the third has a more vibrant yellow than a more normal faded yellow-cream. The first two have blue ribbons with a blue wax seal keeping them rolled up, while the third has a yellow ribbon with a yellow wax seal keeping it rolled up.
[Scroll of Barrier]
Tier: 7
A scroll which creates a magical barrier when used.
Strength: 12 Magic
Size: 10'' x 10''
Duration: 10 minutes
[Scroll of Barrier Cube]
Tier: 7
A scroll which creates a magical barrier cube when used.
Strength: 12 Magic
Size: 15'' x 15'' x 15''
Duration: 30 minutes
[Scroll of Shock Burst]
Tier: 7
A scroll which releases a burst of electric magic to shock and stun those within its path.
Strength: 12 Magic
While the Strength values themselves can be found somewhat easily due to a lower Tier, the duration I''ve managed for the first two scrolls are in the upper range. However, the Tier itself isn''t common, meaning the options for where to buy them are rather limited. None of my stuff will be useful in his Daily and Weekly Dungeons, but they''ll work for many of the Dungeons he gets called into. The [Scroll of Barrier] and [Scroll of Shock Burst] are semi-common scrolls that can be found, but the [Scroll of Barrier Cube] is rare. There''s only one shop outside of guilds which sells them, according to my research. Now two, with mine. Adam asks for two of each of the three scrolls, then I put my display scrolls away and head into the back to prepare his order. "Thanks for coming," I say after he pays, sliding forward the bag with his purchases. "And remember, I''m only offering the higher stuff to customers I know and trust." "No worries," he says as the bag vanishes, stored away in his own [Dimensional Storage]. "I won''t tell anyone about the really good stuff." While I knew he had the Skill, he''s never actually used it in front of me. That was probably just to show me how serious he is about keeping it hidden. "Thanks," I say. "Oh, and I wanted to let you know that I''m changing one of my rules." "Which one?" He asks. "I implemented the ''no relationships, whether platonic or not, with customers'' rule when I first started," I say. "Partially as a protective measure against customers trying to get an advantage and discount through connections. However, it''s been four years and some customers have earned trust from me. Basically, if someone has earned my trust and liking enough I''ll share with them my more advanced stock, I don''t mind having a non-professional relationship, including talking or hanging out outside of the shop." Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author. Relaxing this policy for long-time customers might work out or it might turn badly, but I''m hopeful things will be fine. The long-term customers I''m going to offer the extra stock list to all seem trustworthy, and most of them do like making small talk beyond just what I find from most customers. It''s given me the impression that they do want to be friends but are attempting to be respectful of my policy. With Adam¡­ I''m also sure it might turn into at least one hookup, possibly even another friends-with benefits. He''s probably not aware that I''ve noticed him checking me out when he thinks I''m not paying attention. "Oh, cool!" Adam flashes a happy smile. "I can give you my personal number, then." The number I have on file from when he''s placed orders for later pickup is his hunter''s number. Many people have separate phones for their personal and professional lives, myself included. We exchange our personal numbers, then Adam leaves, waving as he goes. I return to reading my book. That''s two customers today, so I can probably expect only one more customer in the next three hours, or by the time I close for lunch. Even if I don''t receive any, the purchases Adam made will more than pay this week''s bills for the shop. While it could technically be considered pure profit, I did still have to buy new brewing supplies to handle the higher-quality goods, I still needed the fire magic crystals and dousing wand, to replace jars and bottles that aren''t returned, to sanitize things, pay my own wages, pay for the shop''s power and water bills, and so on. There are also times where I have to purchase additional things myself, such as reagents I wasn''t able to source. The lower-quality reagents for the weaker mana potions I made first yesterday, for example. Or the scroll papers for the scrolls. I don''t make the jars and bottles, either, and I order the bags I put purchases into, the register tape for the receipts, and so on. Making higher-quality goods means spending money on higher-quality supplies as well. The extra earnings will also allow me to upgrade my security system, as I want that boosted even if I''m only telling trusted customers about the more secret stock I now carry. Roughly thirty-five minutes after Adam leaves, the door to my shop opens and a tone sounds out. Will today be a busier day, then? When I look over to see who the customer is, I find myself pleasantly surprised to see that it''s another attractive customer who''s been coming for here for a long time and who''s earned my trust and liking. Rather than his usual outfit of a tight-fitting t-shirt and jeans, Ryan''s wearing a tight-fitting light green sleeveless with dark khaki shorts and athletic shoes. It''s the first time I''ve ever seen him in shorts, and those smooth legs of him just as toned as his torso. Remaining professional, I don''t let my eyes go down to them or the abs that are clearly outlined by his shirt. As much as I''d like to. "Hello, Ryan," I greet him as I place a bookmark in the book. "This is a little bit of a surprise." "I heard you''re carrying higher-quality potions now," he says. "Up to 500 MP per ounce. I thought I''d take a look to see if Adam was pranking me. He does that sometimes." If Adam''s pranking him "sometimes", then they''re probably friends. "You know Adam?" I ask. "Yeah," he answers. "We''ve been called to run Dungeons together a few times. There are a few of us who group up to run Dungeons on our own, too." If that means what I think it means¡­ "Do you mind if I ask your Rank?" I ask. "I know it''s a little bit rude to do that, but the implication there¡­" "I''m Rank 5," he confirms. "Though I''m actually a decent bit higher than him in Level, at Level 28. If you''re selling potions at 500 MP per ounce, I''d like to buy some. I wasn''t buying too much on the old maximum here since I knew your stock was mostly for beginners, but I usually needed to tap into other sources. I''d prefer to buy here if possible, though." "Alright," I check out the window, then look at Ryan. "By the way, since you''re of a higher Rank, and you''re a customer who''s earned my trust and liking over the years, I do have a special stock available to you. It''s something I''m only telling such customers about, and they''re the only ones I''m offering it to." "A special stock?" He frowns. "Is your shop doing that badly with the Dungeon drought?" His tone is more concerned than suspicious. This is something I''ve done before, when I was expecting the Dungeon dryness to last a long time. I didn''t sell anything illegal, just goods with a higher risk on the investment. Ryan was one of the customers I offered the stock to back then ¨C it was actually the same three scrolls I showed to Adam earlier, though at a lower Tier and weaker in strength back then. Adam wasn''t a customer back when that happened as the shop was still fairly new the first time and I only got that worried once more after, when Adam was still a fresh Awakened, so he wouldn''t have known that I do this. "It is," I admit. "But this is actually unrelated. I Awakened on Friday and was able to harvest plenty of materials from the Daily and Weekly Dungeons I''ve done so far. The extra stock is made mostly from materials I harvested. That means the stock might vary from day to day or even week to week, based on what I can harvest, what I want, and what I can acquire from selling or trading the goods." "Oh," he looks relieved. "What sort of extra stock is it? I probably won''t be able to use it due to a difference in Tier needed for the Dungeon Categories I can do, but I do sometimes get called for lesser Dungeons." "They''re all Tier 7," I tell him. "I Awakened at Rank 5. The first of them is this." I summon the bottle of 3,500 MP per ounce mana potion and set it on the counter, and Ryan examines it, looking impressed. "I do want to be clear," I tell him. "That I''m not trying to take business away from other shops, so please don''t feel as if I want you to purchase only from me for when you need such items." "That''s fine," he says. "I prefer the Celestial Droplet over others, so if I can buy stuff here, I''d prefer to do so." "You prefer my shop?" I ask. "Yeah," he answers. "You''re the most likable traditional alchemist within a good distance from home and your skill with it is honestly the best. The scrolls and I rings I buy off of you are top-tier for their Tier as well." The only time he''s ever bought scrolls off of me, it was when I was desperate for cash because of my concerns about the future of my shop. That''s been a couple of years. "Speaking of the rings," I say. "If you''re Rank 5, then I doubt you need them for Dungeons at the Category levels they can handle. Mind if I ask what you do with them?" "Gift them to novice adventurers who do a good job listening when I instruct them while running a Dungeon," he answers. "Same with the potions." Just like Adam does. Now I can''t help but be curious about how many of my regular long-time customers do that. "You''re one of the mentors?" I ask. Some experienced Awakened are asked to mentor fresher ones, but they''re usually older Awakened who''ve been doing it for a couple of decades and might be nearing retirement. "My Classes are well-rounded," he says. "Mostly close-ranged physical with some magic and some ranged physical. It makes me pretty versatile, on top of being a Rank 5. I usually get asked once a week to be one of the experienced hunters in a Dungeon run with some fresh ones." People who are truly versatile in terms of Classes and Skills are actually fairly rare. Often, the Classes tend to focus toward one area ¨C like mine focusing on magic ¨C instead of being spread out. I honestly thought he was just a warrior. "Ah," I say. "With this potion," he indicates the bottle on the counter. "It''s not enough for my real Dungeon runs, but I do training on Monday afternoons, if I don''t have anything else that day. They''ll help with that. Can I get a gallon of it?" "Sure," I answer. "I do have other new products as well, for the exclusive customers." I put the potion away, then show Ryan the next three potions. After those, I show him the scrolls, then grab his order for today and bring them out to ring him up. "Thanks for coming," I tell Ryan. "You''re welcome," he says. "Have a good day, Evan." "Before you go," I say as he begins to turn away, and he looks back to me. "The same customers who qualify for the extra stock, I''ve decided I can relax the non-professional relationship rule with. So if you''d like to be friends or just chat or whatever, want to exchange personal numbers?" "Sure," he sets his bag on the counter and pulls out his phone. "Want me to use a specific image for you, or just what you''ve set?" The message system for phones allows people to set a picture for those in their contact list, but people can also have their own profile image. If someone doesn''t set an image for someone, then the system just uses that person''s chosen profile image. My image for my professional number is a picture of my face with my shop''s sign and name beside me, which is the one he''s seen since business images can''t be given an alternate by the one adding them as a contact. For my personal number, the image is a chest-up shot of me sitting on the deck above the shop, wearing a dark blue t-shirt with a light blue button-up with short sleeves over it, left unbuttoned. It was summer in the picture and the planters up there are filled with flowers and other plants in the image. If I wanted, I could also set an alternate personal image that''s flagged as a mature image, and that would only be visible to those who both I approved to see it and who have set to allow viewing it on my specific profile. That''s not something I''ve done, though my friends-with-benefits all have that perm for me. "You can use another if you want," I pull out my personal phone. "I''ve got some pictures on my profile that you can check out if you want." "Alright," he says. "Feel free to use any from my profile if you want." We swap numbers, then Ryan picks up his bag and wishes me a good day before leaving. As soon as he''s gone, I call up his profile to look at what pictures he has that I might be interested in using for his profile. The one he''s set is just him sitting down, giving a friendly smile to the camera. It only shows him from the chest-up, and he''s wearing a loose red shirt in it. One picture I find in his feed, he''s wearing a pair of black board shorts and nothing else, his shorts clinging to his legs and crotch area due to being wet, his sandy-hair blond darkened from water and orange eyes full of light and a happy smile on his face. His whole body looks wet, probably from the lake he was definitely in, though he''s sitting on a large boulder at its edge in the image. What makes this image interesting is that there''s little chance he''s in a Dungeon if he went for a swim in a lake. Some people will swim in a Dungeon''s waters after they clear the area of monsters, but most won''t bring in swim gear for that¡­ or put their weapons to the side. There''s also a monster in the background of the from-above selfie he took, some sort of sea serpent with wounds on its head and a bit of blood leaking out of it. Ryan''s giving the camera a peace sign while taking the shot with his catch, and I think he''s a little bit insane but also maybe goofy. He went to a lake, cleared it of monsters, then took a selfie with what was probably the biggest bad of it. I set it as the contact image for him and the image automatically adjusts so his upper torso and face are in the shot. I adjust that so that his abs are visible as well, even if it makes the sea serpent more visible, then I make a mental note to ask him about the lake the next time we talk casually. That seems like it might have too much of a story for texting. Chapter 0009 "Good afternoon!" A cheerful voice greets me as the door opens, and I look over to see a regular customer entering. Lana is a warrior-type Rank 1 who''s been coming here for about three months now, so I''ve been expecting her to stop showing up any day now. She''s fifteen years old, and has jet-black hair that she''s tied up in a ponytail and yellow eyes that are as full of energy as usual. While she''s wearing jeans and a pink t-shirt, she also has leather armor over it and her sword fixed onto her left hip. Judging by the blood, dirt, and other grime on her gear, she recently left a Dungeon and hasn''t changed yet. "Hello, Lana," I place a bookmark in my book and close it. "How are you this afternoon?" "Not bad!" She answers. "Just wanted to let you know that while your shop''s helped me out a lot the last few months, I reached another Level today and need some better potions than what you offer." While she probably doesn''t know about the new mana potions I began selling yesterday, telling her won''t change this much. As a warrior, she needs health potions more than mana potions and I don''t have a higher quality of those yet. "Congratulations," I tell her. "Would you like a list of potion shops I recommend for warriors?" "No, thanks," she flashes me a cheerful smile. "I was given several recruitment offers today, so I''m going to check out guilds tomorrow!" "Good luck," I tell her. "Make sure to inquire about the potions allotments for Dungeons, as well as their policies on how much you can purchase per day and week. Some guilds restrict those heavily and you can get a feel for how good they''ll be to you with Dungeons from their answers." "Thanks!" She responds. "I''ll keep that in mind! Have a good day, Evan!" "You as well," I tell her. "And happy hunting." Lana leaves, and I return to reading, up until my phone pings. That''s my personal phone rather than my professional one, so I can make a guess as to who it is even before I grab it and unlock the screen so I can view the notification properly. I have it set to hide notification contents outside of what it''s from, just in case. With my phone unlocked, I''m able to confirm that it''s a chat notification from Ryan, who''s attached an image along with some text. This has become the norm ever since we swapped personal numbers yesterday, him sending me texts and pictures. As has the image he''s set for me changing. We''re able to see what image is set for us by the other person in the actual chat itself, as it shows up beside our messages. It seems he''s switched mine again, this time to one I uploaded last summer, which has me sitting cross-legged on the ground with a towel spread out in front of me, a variety of loot pieces on it. It was after a scavenger run where I''d come across some lucky finds and wanted to share it with my friends, and is in the album only accessible by those I''ve listed as friends on the app. Though Ryan''s snipped it down so it''s only showing me from the torso-up, concealing most of the loot in the image. In the shot, I''m wearing my usual outfit style with a brown inner shirt and light green outer shirt. The message Ryan sent is before the image, and I chuckle a little after reading it. [Ryan]: Might''ve hit it a little too hard The image shows him posing beside the corpse of what looks like a mixture between a bull, a scorpion, and a bear. Its dark grey skin is littered with smaller wounds, and its head is completely smashed in. He was called to do a Rank 1-1 Dungeon run with some fresh Awakened today, and I''m guessing that''s the boss of the Dungeon. I''ve seen them a few times, though I''ve let other scavengers harvest from them as. Their hides are good for beginner armor and meat tastes alright, but I can usually fill my pack with reagents good for alchemy, materials for making scrolls, and metals I find in either scrap items or ore stones. Since Ryan attacked, the fresh Awakened were probably struggling. They were likely the source of the other wounds on the beast while he probably punched its head or something. The outfit he''s wearing right now looks good on him, and is neither his usual outfit when I see him nor the outfit he wore yesterday, which I''ve learned is his training outfit. Brown leather armor over a black, long-sleeved shirt, brown leather gloves on his hands, black pants, brown leather armor over his knees and waist area, and brown leather boots. A belt is fixed around his waist, though it only has a sword and a knife attached to it. Peeking out from under his right sleeve is a bracelet I suspect is a storage item, and a buckler rests on the ground beside him. Looking good as always, though he also seems a bit sweaty despite being significantly overpowered in comparison to the Dungeon he was in. After examining the picture for a few moments, I type up and send a reply. [Evan]: Done for the day or got more? Hunter phones have some functionality in Dungeons, including short-distance communication, but they can''t contact outside in any form. Ryan''s out of the Dungeon now, but he might still have some stuff to do before he''s properly done with the run, such as receiving compensation. A reply comes almost immediately after I respond. [Ryan]: Just exited a minute ago still gotta get paid for the run and loot [Evan]: Cool. [Evan]: Enjoy the rest of the day! [Ryan]: I plan on it! [Ryan]: Going to go home and take a good long hot shower that one was really humid Ah. It was a humid Dungeon. That monster isn''t typically in a humid one, or I would''ve realized it from his damp appearance. I wish him luck, then return to reading. A few minutes later, the door to my shop open, a soft tone sounding out. When I look over, I see another long-time customer entering the shop. All of my long-time customers must know each other or something as she''s the ninth in two days and all of them after Adam has mentioned being told by someone that I sell mana potions up to 500 MP per ounce now. Considering that each of the other eight all confirmed they''re Rank 4 or Rank 5, she probably is as well. Jenna, the twenty-one-year-old customer, has been coming here for about two and a half years now, though she never wears her hunting gear anymore even if she still carries her staff with a greenish-blue crystal at the top of it. Her blond hair has been left down how it usually is when she''s here, her green eyes energetic. "Hello, Evan!" Jenna greets me as she approaches. "How are you this afternoon?" "I''m doing good," I answer. "How are you?" "Fantastic!" She answers. "Is the Dungeon drought still affecting you?" "A little," I answer. "But I Awakened recently and have Daily Dungeons that are helping out. As you can see up on the board, I''ve expanded my stock to include potions which restore up to 500 MP per ounce. I''m not sure yet how long that will be in stock." "Might get some of those," she says. "Do you use the potions you buy here as a reward for newbie hunters who do well in Dungeons?" "How did you know?" Her eyes widen in surprise. "Because nearly every Rank 4 and Rank 5 who comes here and buys the same thing each time does that," I answer. "Just as a way to support a traditional alchemist they like." "Damn," she smiles. "You''ve been asking people, huh?" "You''re the ninth long-time customer to show up in two days," I chuckle. "I rarely see more than three or four in a week, including the one who usually shows up later on in the week. It seems you all know each other." "I did hear that you were carrying stock of mana potions up to 500 per ounce," she admits. "Wanted to see if it was real or a prank." "Another who heard it from Adam, huh?" I ask, causing her to laugh. "You''re a long-time customer who''s earned my trust, so I wanted to let you know that I have additional stock as well. It''s only for long-time customers I like, though, so I do ask that you tell no one." "My lips are sealed," she makes a sealing motion over her mouth. "What''s the extra stock?" Jenna purchases a little bit of everything in the special stock I''m carrying, including three gallons of the mana potion with 3,500 MP per ounce. It''s probably a good thing I was able to make nearly fifty gallons of that by itself. They''re all purchasing one to five gallons of it, and I need some for my Daily Dungeons as well, just in case they take more MP than I can hold. At this rate, I might actually run out of it before the week ends. "In case you were wondering," Jenna says after making her purchases. "I''m Rank 5, too. Level 14, nearly 15." "Good luck," I tell her. "I''ve also somewhat relaxed one of my rules and don''t mind being friends or having non-professional contact with customers who''ve earned access to this special stock, either." "Non-professional?" She asks. "Yes," I respond. "Things like being friends, or just chatting about things, or whatever. Some of them have been sending me pictures of monsters they took down in Dungeons." Ryan isn''t the only one who''s done that. Adam has, two other men have, and a woman has. That makes five of the nine Rank 4 and Rank 5 customers who''ve visited my shop yesterday and today who''ve begun doing that. Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings. "Okay!" She pulls out her phone. "I take it this means personal contact number?" "It does," I pull out my phone. We exchange contacts, then Jenna thanks me for the day and leaves. As she exits my shop, my phone pings with a notification alert. It''s another message from Adam. [Ryan]: Or not [Ryan]: Rank 3-1 Dungeon just appeared so gotta go do that [Evan]: Good luck! [Ryan]: Thanks I continue reading my book until it''s time to close up my shop. Right after I''ve made sure the after-hours security enchantments are active, my phone ring. "Rare for you to call me right after I close up for the day," I say. "Did you get something rare in?" "No," Cassidy responds. "Remember that customer throwing a fit when you came in the other day?" "The one unhappy about the pricing?" "Yeah," she answers. "It turns out that he has the Dark Infection." "The Dark Infection?" I ask. "Are you sure?" The Dark Infection is something which can affect the Awakened from time to time. No one is entirely sure of what causes it, but cases of it have risen in recent years. Those affected start to turn irrational, their anger spikes over even the smallest thing, and they can grow violent toward themselves and toward others. While there is a cure for it, it''s difficult to produce due to needing rare reagents. Most who become affected by it are isolated until a cure can be produced if they don''t progress to a stage where they need to be put down. "Positive," she answers. "His girlfriend was just in here, and she told me while apologizing for what happened the other day. She thought something was wrong when she saw him Saturday evening and convinced him to get checked out. He''s been placed in isolation until a cure can be brewed up, but it might be some time before reagents for it can be located." "Let''s hope it can happen soon," I say. "The amount of cases are rising." "And the Dungeons are decreasing," she says. "The report just came out a little bit ago, but spawns and loot were seven percent lower last week than the previous." It''s still decreasing? "We can only hope things improve," I say. "Hey, something just came up, so I should let you go. Have a good day, Cassidy." "Have a good one, Evan!" I hang up and pocket my phone as I head to my workshop area, reading the notification floating in my vision.
A Special Quest is available!
Slay all of the goblins in the special zone.
Reward: 5,000 EXP
Special Quests are relatively rare, occurring maybe once every seven or eight years for an individual. I''m receiving one within a week of becoming an Awakened, and while Dungeon spawn rates are dropping. Even the rate of Special Quests have been, as they were around once every two or three years just a few centuries ago. While the EXP reward is rather high, Special Quests are known for having disproportionately high rewards for the difficulty of the task assigned. This probably won''t be any more difficult than anything I''ve done so far. I check my hunting pack to make sure it''s prepared, then accept the Quest. Both of my phones are Tier 7 hunters'' phones now, so there''s no reason for me to pull them out and I might even have something to take a picture of in the¡­ This is the Mythic Forest I have a gate to, except it has goblins in it again, just like for my Awakening Quest.
Slay all of the goblins within the special zone.
Slay all goblins: 0/200 Time Limit: None
Where did all of these goblins come from? As much as I''d like to know that, I doubt I''ll receive answers so I get to work on clearing the goblins. They''re all just as easy as they were for my Awakening Quest, and I make sure to collect their essence crystals after downing them. With the storage bracelet I purchased on Saturday, there''s no reason for me to not collect the loot. The moment I complete the Quest, I find myself back in my workshop, a new notification in my vision.
Special Quest completed!
+5,000 EXP
It didn''t let me collect the final essence crystal. I suppose it''s not really necessary since I''m earning more money now than before even with the increased costs I have now. My earnings from the extras are more than plenty. I pull off my pack and access my Gate to the Mythic Forest. When I appear in it, I appear in the same spot I finished the Special Quest in¡­ and find myself face-to-face with a giant worm. The worm is about three feet in diameter with a body which is mostly beneath the soil, a silver-blue in color rather than pink or a shade of brown. Near its head are a pair of silver markings which resemble eyes, and ithas no teeth, meaning it''s not a monster, just some sort of magic beast. One which tilts its head for a moment as I stare at it, wondering what it is and what''s going on. As I do that, an item information window pops up in my vision, despite the worm being a living creature.
Lifeseed Worm
Category: Mythical
A mythical-class creature with the ability to quickly process monsters and purify anything which it consumes, the magic within its body produces extraordinarily fertile soil.
With how dead the soil has been, he might be the only non-monster around. Even the normal creatures that would take care of decomposition might have died off long ago. This guy uses magic to do it, so the soil probably comes out more fertile than most would make. It probably even produces it more quickly, too. "You''re doing a good job," I reach out and touch the lifeseed worm''s head. "Did you take care of the goblins last time?" It lifts and lowers its head a few times, in a nod. "Thank you," I look around. He''s already consumed most of the goblin corpses, which further supports the idea that time is different here. Less time passed between my exit and reentry this time than for the last one, even though I spent a little bit longer between the two this time. Which means that there might not be an actual passage equivalent. How long passes here between my visits might not be consistent. I let the lifeseed worm return to its job as I kneel down and examine a mound created by it eating a goblin. The soil is dark and rich, filled with nutrients. Completely unlike the rest of the soil, including the mounds last time I was here. Enough time must have passed that the nutrients in the new soil¡­ I guess disappeared somehow. Before, the soil wasn''t fertile enough so planting something here would have been pointless. Now, though, there''s fertile soil. It''s possible I can start to revitalize this place, even if just a little. Even a small amount of plants might make a big difference over time as they grow, die, and decompose. If they can decompose. "Hey, Mrow?" I look over at the lifeseed worm, which turns its head to face me. "Would you be willing to deposit your soil at the hill?" I point at the hill. "I want to try something, but it would probably be best if most of the fertile soil is in the same area. Spread out, not piled up." The mythical beast nods again, then begins depositing its newly-formed soil at the hill. As I think about if I should try and leave to grab a shovel and return in the hopes not much time passes, I realize something. The worm responded when I called it "Mrow", and I have no idea why I called it that. I suppose it doesn''t matter, either, even if it does have me curious. It''s probably from [Animal Communication], one of my Skills. Level 1 doesn''t give me much communication ability, but I probably picked up on the name from the worm itself. Once all of the remaining goblins are processed by the lifeseed worm and the new soil deposited on and around the hill, I walk over to it and examine the space. "Is your name ''Mrow''?" I ask, and the mythical beast nods. "Mine''s Evan. Are you able to process plants as well?" It nods. "Okay. I''m going to try and plant some stuff here. Try to take care of it for me in my absence, okay?" Mrow nods, then I walk to the peak of the hill and kneel as I hold out my right hand, activating one of my Skills.
[Grow Plant] Level: 1
Grow a plant using your magical power.
Cost: 1,000 MP Casting Time: 30 seconds
Range: 3.5"
Magic provides everything the plant needs to grow, including the seed itself and all of the nutrients, so no other preparations were needed. The reason I want fertile soil for this is because it gives the plants something for after they grow. A gold-and-green light flows out of my hand once the Skill finishes activating, and it sinks into the fertile soil. From it sprouts¡­ a single blade of grass. It seems that it can only grow a single plant per cast. That doesn''t make me stop, though, and I drink some of the mana potion from the bottle on my hip. After taking on the goblins, I didn''t have much MP left and could only afford one cast. Repeatedly replenishing my reserves will be necessary for me to try this. The bottle holds 32oz of potion, or ninety-six casts of [Grow Plant], and the spell''s effect is based on what can grow in that location and the Magic of the caster. There''s a possibility for flowers as well in this spot, I think. Based on my research into the magic, the spell grows things that are native to the area when it''s health, but only nonmagical plants. I use up half of the bottle on growing blades of grass in a small patch. There was hope for more but it seems there''s not with my current Magic. It''s still a start, however, so I refresh my MP again and use a different Skill.
[Boost Plant Growth] Level: 1
Boost the growth of a plant using your magic.
Cost: 1,000 MP Casting Time: 30 seconds
Duration: 3 seconds Range: 4''8"
Much like [Growth Plant], [Boost Plant Growth] supplies the necessary nutrients via magic so what''s in the soil now doesn''t matter for it. The goal for this is to grow some of the grass tall enough for them to seed so that they can spread more quickly. What surprises me for this is that it doesn''t affect just one plant like [Grow Plant] did. Instead, it affects all of the grass within its range ¨C which is all of the grass that''s here. Three seconds of growth brings the 2" blades of grass up to 5". A second cast brings them up to 8", and there are seeds on them now. I tear off the top 5" of the grass and bury them in the fertile soil, then repeat the process, again and again until I run out of mana. This might not be the proper process, but magic makes it work. Now, there''s a decent-sized patch of grass here. As I worked on this, additional grass sprouted up on its own, and I''m not entirely sure why. I didn''t grow up with a yard so all of this work was based just on what I could conclude from grass and seeds. "Mrow," I say once I can''t use [Boost Plant Growth] anymore, and the giant worm looks at me. "I''m heading out now. I''ll be back again." Mrow wiggles its head in what seems to be happiness, then burrows back into the ground. I access my Gate and return to my workshop, then clean my hands off before checking my phone, having been sent messages by Ryan while I was working on the grass. They consist of an image, a message, an image, and then several messages. The first image is of him sitting on fallen log, a bunch of dead chest-high cat monsters scattered around him, with another that was probably thirty feet to the shoulders right behind him. Ryan himself looks a little bit ruffled, but there''s no new damage to his armor. [Ryan]: Finally done shower time! The image that follows that is blurred with a system message right above it. [Notice]: Ryan Sekirts has sent you a nude image. You will need to confirm if you wish to view it. Since I don''t have my phone set up to allow nudes from just anyone, anyone I haven''t granted permission to send them to me will have that message pop up and the image be blurred. The series of messages which follows that makes clear it was an accidental send. [Ryan]: OMG I''M SO SORRY [Ryan]: THAT WASN''T FOR YOU [Ryan]: THAT WAS SUPPOSED TO GO TO SOMEONE ELSE I''M SO SORRY [Ryan]: THAT WASN''T MEANT FOR YOU I''M SORRY [Ryan]: I put your icon above the icon for a woman I hook up with regularly and that moved her down a spot so you''re in the same spot and I tapped that spot out of habit and sent before realizing I''m so sorry that wasn''t meant for you [Ryan]: I really don''t send that stuff to people I don''t know are cool with it [Ryan]: You and I don''t have that sort of relationship anyway [Ryan]: It really wasn''t meant for you I''m sorry! [Evan]: It''s cool. Accident happen. Going to get dinner and then do my Daily Dungeon. Good luck. I knew he was a little socially awkward, but he really panicked over that. It seems he doesn''t swing this way, which is a little disappointing, though I''m fine with that. Though maybe once I do my Daily Dungeon, I''ll contact one of my regular hookups. Just the thought that Ryan sent me such a pic has me a little excited down there. Chapter 0010 As much as I would like to open the shop early to find out what those three are doing here, I refrain from doing so. Rare is the time I open or close outside of my usual hours as it helps me with tracking time and I don''t want to make an exception even for friends. I''ve always had difficulty with paying attention to time, and developing a rigid schedule for some things was necessary for me to run my shop. So instead of opening my shop five minutes early to find out why Ryan, Adam, and Nick (the friends-with-benefits I met up with last night) showed up before I even opened, I continue checking to make sure things here are presentable. I do sneak a few peeks at the trio as I work, though. Adam''s in what''s mostly his usual outfit, with a skintight, dark grey sleeveless shirt that shows off that light muscle definition of his, black shorts, and dark brown leather boots. No additional gear this morning. Ryan''s dressed in a loose-fitting red shirt and black shorts, along with black, grey, and red sneakers. Unlike Adam or Nick, he looks a little bit ruffled and anxious, and that lets me know that he''s probably here about his accidental send last night. Did that really make him this upset that he came here with two guys who are probably acting as emotional support? Nick looks like he''s doing his best not to laugh at the situation, being the only one between the three who knows I''m really not bothered by the accident. Not because I''m gay, but because I understand accidents happen and he''s known me outside of a professional setting long enough to know this well. Like the other two, Nick''s fairly attractive in the looks department, and he stands 5''10" in height with a slender build. As a tracker who can teleport, he doesn''t have much need for building muscle definition in his opinion. His hair is a dark grey as a result of the strong spatial affinity born from the last eight generations of his bloodline having and using it, and his eyes are a bright orange. The outfit he''s chosen for today matches his own casual norm, which is a pair of jeans and a grey t-shirt, this one slightly close-fitting. When it''s time to open, I unlock the door and almost immediately, Nick is entering. "Morning, Evan!" He waves and flashes a smile. "So this is the inside of your shop, huh?" He''s never been inside of it before, or in my workshop. While I have let him into my home a few times, that''s not part of the shop so he''s only looked in from the outside, and the security enchantments in place block the interior from view while the shop is closed. "It is," I say. "Cozy!" He says as Adam and Ryan follow him in. "So I heard something interesting happened yesterday!" "I''m sorry!" Ryan blurts out. "That was an accident, Evan, and-" "I understand," I tell him as I walk behind the counter. "Accidents happen all the time. You rearranged your contact icons and tapped my name out of habit when trying to tap someone else''s and acted on habit before realizing you were in the wrong chat. That''s part of why I have mine to blur such images, just in case someone does that by accident when I don''t have their profile set up to automatically show them." "I know you said it was fine yesterday," Ryan says. "But I really am sorry, Evan. I should have been more careful and-" "Before this goes any further," Nick snickers. "Evan, part of why Ryan''s freaking out is because-" "Don''t say it!" Ryan tries to interrupt, but Nick doesn''t pause, getting it out at the same time as Ryan''s protests. "-Ryan''s bisexual," Nick gives Ryan an amused look before looking back at me. "He''s worried you''d think he was trying to be a creep who sent it on purpose if you found out." "I''ve known you long enough," I say as Ryan''s face turns scarlet in embarrassment. "To know that was a genuine accident, Ryan." "Some guys react really negatively when they know someone who did that is into guys," Ryan mumbles. "Think it was intentional and stuff, and that it''s me, I dunno, trying to make a move or something. Logic doesn''t exist in irrationality. But it was an accident, and I wasn''t trying to make a move on you or anything." "He''s had a massive crush on a shopkeeper for years," Nick says. "Never actually said who they were, but I''m guessing it''s you." "Nick!" Ryan exclaims. That does explain some things about him, like the slight difficulty with small talk he''s had at times. "Ryan," I say. "Nick is being so bold because he knows something you don''t. While I didn''t look at the picture, the idea of having received one from someone as attractive as you turned me on enough that after I finished my Daily Dungeon and cleaned up, I asked Nick if I could come over for a couple of hours." "You''re into guys?" Ryan asks. "I am," I confirm. "And I do both find you attractive and think you have a good personality." "You do?" Ryan looks uncertain. "I do." Relief fills his face, and he moves closer to the counter. "In that case," Ryan says. "Would you like to go on a date with me?" "I would," I answer. "Friday or Saturday evening works best for me." "How about Saturday evening?" He asks. "Say¡­ five or six?" "I want to try and get both my Daily and Weekly Dungeons done on Saturday," I tel him. "Can we make it six-thirty, to give me enough time to make sure I''m done, cleaned, and ready to go?" "Sure," he says. "I can meet you here." "Okay," I say. "Just head up to the deck upstairs, then. Would you be okay with discussing more about the date and our potential relationship when I''m not working?" "Sure," he says. "And thanks, for not being upset about¡­ y''know." "As I said," I smile. "I know accidents happen and you''re not the type of guy to do that on purpose." Ryan opens his mouth to say something, except all three of them receive pings on their phones. "That''s probably a help request," Adam pulls his out. "For a Dungeon outside of town." "Same," Ryan says. "Same here," Nick says. "I guess they''re getting a bit desperate with the lower Dungeon spawn rates," he looks at me. "I don''t know if you saw the report, but there were seven percent fewer Dungeons last week than the week before." "Desperate?" I ask. "Why would the bureau worry about Dungeons outside of the city limits?" "Resources," Ryan answers as he checks his phone. "Some of the more critical government infrastructure runs on materials harvested from Dungeons in the Category 5 levels. They''re probably wanting to stockpile, so they''re laying claim to Category 5 Dungeons in the area outside of the city as well." "Ah," I say. "And they contacted all three of you?" "It''s a Category 5-2 Dungeon," Nick says. "So yeah, they want all three of us." "Actually," Ryan says. "Mine''s a Category 5-3, so I''ll probably be working with another group." "Good luck to all of you," I say. "Thanks," they say. They all bid me goodbye, then leave. I pull a book from under my counter and start reading while I wait for a customer to arrive. Only a couple show up, normal customers rather than the Rank 4s and 5s that I''ve had showing up in droves the last two days. Find this and other great novels on the author''s preferred platform. Support original creators! About three hours into the shop being open, Ryan sends me a picture of him in the Dungeon, dressed in his delving gear and posing with the remains of a large minotaur, a somewhat humanoid bull beast with dark brown fur. This one is a selfie taken by Ryan rather than someone else, and the minotaur in the picture has silvery horns rather than the normal, pale cream-yellow ones the beasts ordinarily do. As fitting of a Category 5-3 Dungeon, it had a rare variant of minotaur within it. The variant present in the picture is a species which can bend light and metal, and those horns are made of a durable alloy which can sell for a lot. [Ryan]: Check out this big boy! [Evan]: How difficult was it? [Ryan]: Not too bad we had a great party composition We talk for a few more minutes, then he has to stop so he can drive home and wash off the blood of the beasts he fought. Five minutes before I''m to close up for lunch, Ryan returns to the shop. He''s now dressed in his more usual outfit of jeans and a tight-fitting t-shirt, this one orange. His hair''s been fixed and styled lightly, and his usual light smile is back. A pair of white paper bags are in his hands, and they seem to have stuff in them. Empty jars to be returned? He''s never done that before, but that''s probably because he was always giving away the jars. The ones he purchased on Monday were intended for his own use, so it would make sense for him to return them for the slight discount that gives. "Hello again," I say. "Come to make a purchase?" "Not right now," he holds up the bags. "You''re about to close for lunch, right? I brought you something, and thought maybe we could talk while we ate? If you don''t mind, that is." He probably wants to at least discuss how our initial stages will be. The local custom is to go on dates but not be committed ¨C we can see and hook up with others ¨C until we''re certain we want to be in a full, committed relationship. Some people have tweaks to that they prefer, so Ryan probably wishes to discuss his and mine and see how things will go. "Sure," I answer. "We can eat up on the deck once I close up." "Okay," he says. "I''ll see you up there, then." Ryan leaves, and I wait until it''s time to close up, then do that, check the security enchantments, and head up to the deck. In addition to the planter boxes I have up here, there''s also a round table with four chairs around it. Ryan''s taken a seat in the one closest to the house, so I sit across from him and take the bag he offers me. "What do you normally do for lunch?" He asks. "Either fix myself something or eat at the cafe there," I indicate the cafe across the street. "Since I get paid both a fixed wage and commission, I at least earn enough to live off from the hourly rate, then get some extra from commission per item. That lets me buy the tomes and eat out." Ryan looks over at the cafe, which is mostly a soups, salads, and subs cafe. "They have good food," he says. "They opened about three years ago, right?" "Probably to spy on me," I open the bag he gave me. "It''s run by the bureau." "To spy on you?" He asks. "They don''t really care about you being the Dungeon Baby." "It seems every Rank 5 I know is aware of that," I say. "Are you all spoken to about it?" "I was a bit nervous around you when I first found out," he admits. "And asked about it out of fear. They told me they knew you were human. Didn''t know others asked as well. The cafe''s purpose is different." "You knew?" I ask. "About them being from the government?" "No," he answers. "But since I do now, I can tell you what''s going on. You''re someone who draws in those of high Ranks. Some of your customers are unregistered freelancers. Ones who stay for a long time are of a higher Rank. They probably set up the cafe after realizing this to track unregistered freelancers. Not as some sort of foul plot, but in case there''s a situation where they need someone at Rank 4 or 5 and run out of people to contact." "So they''ll contact unregistered people," I say. "Who they suspect are at that Rank and of a certain Level?" "Right," he nods as he starts pulling food out of his bag, and I do the same from mine. "It doesn''t happen often, but they do like to know this sort of thing. There are a few shops throughout the city that have similar draws. For some reason, we''re just¡­ drawn to certain places. There''s a street with clubs and bars that has the draw, and most of the bouncers are from the bureau." The food he brought is a 6" sub for each of us, a bag of chips, a bottle of something to drink, an apple, and a brownie. Ryan''s differs from mine in that he has a lemon-lime soda for his drink while mine is lemonade, but it''s otherwise the same. The paper wraps around the subs and brownies indicate that they''re from a sub shop not far from here. They do good food, and I sometimes walk down there to buy myself lunch or dinner. "I think I know the street," I tell Ryan. "It''s where I met Nick." "The one in the hunters'' schools district?" He asks, and I nod."Yeah, that''s them. So about how things are between us¡­ do you have any tweaks to the norm?" "Not really," I tell him. "I''ve dated a few times, but only went serious once and that only lasted a few months, mostly because he was moving to another city. As long as there''s intent to see if we want to take further steps later, I don''t care much." "I do have a small requirement," Ryan says as I open up my sub. It''s a turkey-and-roast beef sub with lettuce, onion, pickle, and provolone cheese. This is one of the subs I commonly get at that cafe, so either he asked them about my usual order or he remembers from a past time where I mentioned it. Since the odds are greater of it being the latter, just how many small details does he remember from our conversations over the years? "What''s that?" I ask. "I don''t care if you hook up with or date another person," he says. "As long as there''s still an intent to see if we should go further than dating and become official, but I do prefer to know when someone I''m dating goes on another date or hooks up with another person. And I do the same. It''s annoyed a few people, but I feel more comfortable knowing this sort of thing." None of the guys I''ve dated before have had that condition, but I don''t see it as unreasonable. We aren''t committed right now as it''s the early stages, but we do want to see if we''ll work out and be able to go long-term in a romantic relationship. If a partner isn''t able to be honest about who else they''re seeing or meeting up with during the non-committed phase, then it might be difficult to trust that they''ll stay faithful during the committed phase. "Alright," I say. "I can agree to doing that." "Okay," he says. "So you make commission and get paid for working? Aren''t you the owner?" "Yes," I answer. "I receive an hourly wage like a normal worker, plus five percent commission for my crafted goods. That''s standard for the industry and keeps things regulated regardless of how well the shop does." "You can''t just set yourself a salary and stick to that?" Ryan asks. "Isn''t that the norm?" "For an owner who doesn''t craft, yes," I answer. "But to maintain my business license, I''m required to pay at least five percent commission to the magic craftsmen whose goods I''m selling. This is only for the crafted goods sold here, not purchased elsewhere and then sold here. The place I purchased them from has to pay the commission." "So if you buy a magic-smithed ring for $20," he says. "Then enchant it and sell it here for $100, the smith receives $1 and you receive $5? Am I understanding that right?" "You are," I say. "Assuming that the smith receives a five percent commission and not higher." "So then my usual order," he thinks for a few moments. "Earns you a little more than $200?" "It does," I confirm. "Since I put most of what I earn from selling loot when I scavenge back into the shop, that helps me afford extras, such as the ancient tomes I like to read. It also helps cover my bills, though I do perform cost-of-living adjustments and a regular, set raise every six months so it''s not often needed." "How much do the ancient tomes cost?" He asks. "They range from $500 to $15,000 depending on what it is and what''s required to make the copy," I answer. "It''s not often I can afford the more high-end ones." "Okay," he says. "Why does the government require shops to pay commission to their craftsmen instead of set wages?" "To avoid extreme exploitation," I answer. "A couple hundred years ago when society was starting to shift more towards what it is now, shops would pay a set, low wage to their craftsmen while working them to the bone. The shops would earn a ridiculous amount compared to what their craftsmen were earning. It was the cause behind the Alchemists'' War." The Alchemist''s War was a brutal, bloody war that lasted almost six years and stretched across the globe. It started with just alchemists, but other craftsmen joined in to protest their horrid conditions and terrible pay. It started here in North America, but spread across the globe as the craftsmen in other nations learned about it. There are ways to hide things from the System''s informational windows, and that led to a lot of hunters dying. A lot of shop owners, too. An uneasy peace was reached at different times, and this nation''s solution was the mandatory minimum commission. Even guilds are required to abide by it. "I never got to that part in school," Ryan admits. "I didn''t, either," I shrug. "It''s history related to my career field. I learned about it while looking up how to determine my wage." "Ah," he says, then there''s silence for a minute as we both continue eating. "Do you have any questions for me?" "Is there a story behind the picture of you at a lake?" "I wanted to go swimming in an actual lake last summer rather than just a pool in town," he answers. "Since everything outside of society is filled with monsters, that meant killing all of the monsters in and around the lake." That''s a much shorter explanation than I was expecting it to have. "Seriously?" "Seriously." "Okay," I hold up my half-eaten sub. "How did you decide on what sub to get me?" "I wasn''t entirely sure," he says. "But you''d mentioned getting that one during a conversation we had a couple of years ago. I know you might not like it anymore, but-" "No, I do," I tell him. "My tastes don''t change much. It''s good, thanks." It seems he really did buy based off a small detail in a conversation from a couple of years ago. That''s impressive, considering I''ve met plenty of people who would struggle to remember such a detail from a month ago. "You''re welcome," he says. We continue making small talk until we''re done eating, then continue until it''s time for me to head back downstairs to get ready to reopen the shop for the afternoon. "I''ll handle the trash," Ryan grabs my bag as we get up. "Alright," I say. "Thanks for lunch, Ryan." "You''re welcome," he shifts a moment, then sets the bags back onto the table. "Is it too early to kiss?" "No," I tilt my head up as I step closer. Ryan meets me halfway, our lips meeting as well. He slides his hands around my waist as he kisses, pulling me into a hug that I return. His lips taste a little like his soda, and that makes me hope the onion from my sub isn''t too strong. This probably wasn''t well thought out. "Thanks again," I tell him once we separate. "For lunch, I mean." "Glad you enjoyed it," he says. "I''ll see you, Evan." "See you, Ryan." Chapter 0011 The shop is closed and locked up, inventory for the day has been completed, and dinner has been eaten. It''s time for me to do my Daily Dungeon, but I want to check on the grass in the Mythic Forest first to see the progress, so I access the gate to there. When I arrive, I find the grass completely gone, the soil dry and dead once more. The grass must have sucked up all of the nutrients as it grew, then eventually died off because there wasn''t any left. Though it decomposed, I guess there weren''t enough nutrients left for more to grow at that point, and Mrow must not have done too much to help. Or¡­ I look up at the sky, which is covered in thick grey clouds just as it was when I first arrived here. Every time I''ve been here, it''s been filled with clouds. Yet the ground itself is extremely dry. There''s no rainfall, which means those clouds are probably magic, not the result of condensation, and may not even contain water at all. The fog walls technically don''t, either. At least, not any water which can escape them. "Mrow?" I ask, then wait. There''s no response from the lifeseed worm even after a few minutes. He must not be here right now, likely somewhere beyond the fog walls. I''m fairly certain he''s able to go past them and that the Mythic Forest is larger than this smaller space I have access to. If there''s no natural rain, then the water in the area must have dried up. That will reduce the ability for plants to grow and thrive here even if the mana in the soil will provide the nutrients they need. I''m not quire sure why there''s a difference here that makes them need water when [Grow Plant] and [Boost Plant Growth] doesn''t, but maybe the spell structure adds something extra that mana alone doesn''t? That would make the most sense. "Hey, System?" I say. "Was there a purpose behind granting me access to this place? I''m not sure I can do much with this if there''s no water." There''s no response to that, though I''m sure the System has a reason for giving me a gate to here. An idea comes to me, so I leave the Mythic Forest and move some mana potion into my bracelet before returning to the field. When I arrive, Mrow has its head poking up out of the center of the hill, and it lifts up more and gives a small wiggle, then sags its head. My [Animal Communication] Skill is only Level one, but it''s enough that I''m able to understand what the lifeseed worm is trying to say. "You tried your best, huh?" I pat it on the head. "I realized that. There''s enough mana in the soil that it shouldn''t have been a problem for things to keep growing once they started. I''m going to try something, though." Mrow gives me a nod, then I close my eyes and focus. The Mythic Forest I have access to can''t be this small, the stories of them say that even the smallest of them is several miles across. So far, the gate''s only taken me to the same spot I exited from, but that might not be its limit. It might just be the default. One source of water for an area is springs, and I think that''s the best source for me to look for right now. As I access the gate again, I try to focus on traveling to a spring. I can''t travel through the fog wall, but this might work¡­ and it does. Sort of, and only when I push through some sort of block which tries to stop me. I reappear in another field of dirt, though it''s not just flat/slightly sloped like the field I arrive in by default is. Fog permeates the air here, restricting my vision down to about fifteen feet in all directions. There''s magic in the fog, similar to the fog walls that prevent people from entering areas they aren''t meant to be in. This must not be an area I''m supposed to be able to reach, but my gate allows me to access it. There''s a pit in the ground that''s about ten feet at its widest and seven at its narrowest, which is what I actually appeared in. A series of rocks rest against about a fifth of its northern end, and there''s a small channel in the southeastern edge of it. The pit itself is about three feet deep, while the channel is maybe one foot in depth and around two and a half in width. Around the pit, the ground slopes down a little, so the northern edge is about eight inches taller than the southern edge, where the channel out of it is located. This was a spring, and the dip in the ground leading out of it must have been a stream which flowed out, probably to meet up with others and form a river. Water probably once poured out of the northern part and into the pit, filling it up until it reached the stream, then flowed out. It might have even come out of the ground quickly enough that the stream could have filled to the top despite how much water would be leaving the pond at all times. In addition to being dry and empty of water, the dead spring has another change from what it likely once was: monsters. There weren''t any visible when I appeared, but one comes into view as I examine the dry spring. It''s similar to the others I''ve fought, except it wields a club instead of nothing at all. I raise my hand and shoot a [Magic Missile] at the goblin, which raises its club to slap the spell to the side. Its eyes quickly widens when it sees the follow-up [Magic Missile] and though it tries its best to stop the attack, it''s not able to get its club back up in time. My spell slams into the goblin''s head, sending it stumbling back. As that happens, a pair of notifications appear in my vision.
Special Quest Initiated!
Slay all of the goblins within the limited zone.
Slay: 0/53 goblins Time Limit: None
Special Quest Initiated!
Clear the blockage preventing the spring from producing water.
I dismiss both of those messages as I shoot the goblin with another [Magic Missile]. Tougher than the ones I faced in the field, this one takes three shots to the same spot before it runs out of HP and dies, and each shot does more damage than the last due to the attacks entering it more than before. Even damaging the brain isn''t a guarantee to kill thanks to HP. Due to this being part of a Special Quest, I receive no EXP for the kill. No other goblins are visible, either, which gives me a little bit of time. Their vision is probably as limited by the fog as mine is so I can either wait for them to find me or I can try to navigate through the fog to find them all. Or I can make use of another Skill I received upon Awakening.
[Runic Script] Level: 1
The art of creating magics through the runic scripts.
This is a mixture of knowledge I already held and magic I couldn''t access until I Awakened, allowing me to draw runes with my mana to create different effects. Runes are used in ordinary spellcasting ¨C what spell Skills are. Spells have set formulas and the System grants us a shortcut. Following a spell''s formula is rigid, and [Runic Script] is the art of using the non-rigid form of spellcasting. It''s slower than proper spellcasting, but I can tailor things to some degree. I raise my right hand and begin drawing on the air, lilac light following my finger. The runes used outline parameters such as magical effects, range, duration, and more. As I draw, I drink some of my mana potion as this particular spell is taking a lot of MP. When it completes, I thrust a hand forward, and a barrier of white-blue light forms around me, encasing me in a dome seven feet in radius. Violet and pink markings flow across the dome and yellowish ones dance across it light sparks. Some of the effects of the barrier become evident quickly, goblins drawing into view as they charge at me. Drawn here by the mind aspect of the spell, the goblins have lost their reason and see only food before them. Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings. Even if they''re a little bit stronger than the ones at the field, goblins have a naturally low Mind stat unless they''re a special type. The spell is limited by my own 14 Mind, but these ones probably only have around half of that. They can''t resist it at all. The lightning-like markings are the result of another effect I added into the barrier, which is an actual lightning aspect to the spell. When the goblins slam into the barrier in an attempt to eat the food they''re being drawn to, the barrier zaps them with enough electricity to fry them extra-crispy after a few hits. Despite the pain, they keep trying to get at me until they die, unable to resist the mind aspect of the barrier. Eventually, the swarm of goblins stops and the last of them falls.
Special Quest completed!
+5,000 EXP
The barrier still has a few more minutes left on it, but I draw some runic script to cancel out the spell. Using [Runic Script] to deal with monsters might seem effective, but it probably took me more MP to do this than it would have had I just fought them normally. By a lot. Three hits per goblin, 5 MP per hit, that''s around 800 MP just for the strikes, maybe 1,200 when factoring in blocked and deflected attacks. I spent around 6,000 MP on the barrier and another 200 on canceling it. The trade-off for using so much mana and needing to spend a lot of time on writing out the runes is that I don''t have to do anything else, just cast the spell and hope nothing is able to resist its effects or break the barrier. Now I have a bunch of goblin corpses in the pit, though I climb out of it and sit on the edge as I wait. About ten minutes pass before Mrow pokes its head up out of the bottom of the spring''s pit, its maw open right at a goblin''s corpse. I was right. It seems he can tell when there are bodies to process and will show up shortly after they stop dropping. "Hello, Mrow," I say, and the lifeseed worm looks over at me. "Mind dumping the soil you make from them on the ground around outside of the pit?" Mrow gives me a small nod, then gets to consuming all of the goblins. Once it finishes, it burrows back into the ground, the soil where it passes looking undisturbed, as if it had never been there. I hop back into the pit as Mrow emerges outside of the pond pit. An expectation I had was that there was something preventing water from flowing, either from having dried up completely or being blocked. The second Special Quest I received confirms that it''s the latter, at least for this spring. However, the Quest makes it sound as if the spring produces the water directly rather than simply releases it from within the ground. Some of the rocks on the northern side might be what''s causing the block, so I focus on the spell formula for [Telekinesis]. The runes form in my mind and at the moment of activation, a notification appears in my vision.
You''ve unlocked the [Telekinesis] Skill!
While I could move all of the rocks with my hands, I don''t want to have to constantly move from where I''m standing as I do so and that''s a lot of physical activity, anyway. The System wasn''t wrong to focus on magic over physical things for my Classes and Skills, and [Telekinesis] only helps me with that.
[Telekinesis] Level: 1
Move objects using your magic.
Cost: 1 MP per second Casting Time: 1 second
Range: 7''
To avoid a rock slide, and because it would make the most sense for the spring water to come out near the top, I begin by moving the rocks at the very top. Some of them are placed in the pit, others are placed on the ground at the top of the spring. As I move a rock the size of my fist from about four inches down, water begins to pour out as if coming out of a hose. The back wall of the spring is solid stone and there''s a hole roughly 1" in size behind where the rock had been. No notification pops up and the water flow isn''t massive, so there are probably more feeds for the spring. I set the rock down outside of the pit, then begin moving more. Another of the rocks at around the same level as the first one frees up another hole. Just as I remove it, the water reaches my sneakers and I look down for a moment. Maybe standing in the pit wasn''t the best of ideas, so I climb out of it to continue removing rocks. As I work, I realize that the fog is starting to thin out as well. I can see about almost fifty feet in all directions now rather than roughly fifteen. A third hole is revealed as I continue, about eight inches lower than the first two. It''s angled slightly to the right, its stream meeting the stream from the one to its right as they flow into the pit. I continue removing rocks until the entire wall is cleared, the stones either in the bed of the spring or on the ground outside of it now, but no other holes are revealed as I work. The task becomes a little bit trickier as the pit fills due to needing to reach into the nearly crystal-clear water with [Telekinesis], but I manage to do so. Just as I move one of the last six rocks still in their original spots, notifications appear in my vision.
Special Quest completed!
+5,000 EXP
You have reached the EXP threshold to reach Level 2! Your Level 2 Awakening Quest is now available! Would you like to participate?
Yes No
I hit "No" for now as doing so won''t prevent me from taking it, it just gets the message out of my vision. The fog has lightened up to about a fifty-foot visibility and Mrow has finished using his magics to convert the goblins and their loincloths and clubs into fertile soil, then dumping it on the ground around the spring. I continue watching the spring water as it fills up, only now realizing that I didn''t collect the goblins'' essence crystals. I don''t really need to, either, as I''ve obtained quite a few and still need to sell the ones from the last three Daily Dungeons I did. "Thanks for the help, Mrow," I tell the lifeseed worm, which comes over to me and raises its head. "Mind if I take a picture?" Mrow tilts its head to the side, so I show him my phone and explain what it and pictures are. [Animal Communication] isn''t enough for the mythical beast to fully understand me, but it''s enough that it understands that it''s a form of making an image such as a painting or a sketch. The creature apparently knows what those are. I pose next to him and smile at the camera, then snap a selfie of us. Some of my friends will probably be a bit curious about Mrow, but it''s not unheard of for someone to encounter friendly creatures in some Dungeons. After uploading the image to my gallery of friends-only access (it won''t be available to them until after I leave here), I look at the spring. It''s taking a little bit of time to fill up, of course, but it has four holes feeding it. The completion notice probably popped up because I uncovered the final one that was blocked up, not from the waters reaching a certain level. I want to see if the spring water will flow into the stream, and how far the waters will go from there. The spring produces healing waters, so while they''re nearly crystal clear, there''s a faint golden tint to them. This will be useful for potions. Mrow leaves as I wait, and just as the water is high enough to enter the stream''s bed, a new notice appears in my vision.
A new area within the Mythic Forest is available to access via your gate: the Whispering Life Springs!
A vision enters my mind as that notification appears, of a wounded deer with golden antlers and a gold-and-green pelt drinking from the waters of the spring. Surrounding the spring and stream is a forest and lush undergrowth. It''s calm and peaceful in the vision, and the deer''s injuries heal as it drinks. On the northern edge of the pond is a cluster of large boulders that I''m going to assume eventually became the rocks that blocked up the spring''s outlets. Just as quickly as it came, the vision fades away. Now that there''s water here, I''m sure at least this part can become filled with plant life again, so long as monsters don''t begin destroying things once more. Kneeling down, I use [Grow Plant], and a small blade of grass pokes up through the fertile soil Mrow created. I don''t stop with that, though, and use the Skill in several spots, and several different plants begin to sprout. Bushes, flowers, and even some tree saplings form. None of them are magical, but it''s at least a start. Using some of my mana potion is necessary in order to get a good variety going, and I exclusively use [Grow Plant] this time so that I can get as much going as possible. I don''t really know how this whole "growing plants" thing works when magic itself isn''t involved, but I''m hoping the waters here are enough to support everything. "There we go," I stand when I finally finish trying to get plants to grow. "Welcome back to life, Whispering Life Springs." I turn and begin walking down the stream. At this point, the waters are about seven inches deep and they flow several hundred feet until it''s thinned enough to stop. Both of the upper spring outlets were visible in the vision I received, the waters starting about six inches below them. In it, their flows were much greater than they currently are. Considering the spring apparently produces its water rather than simply being water drawn up from the ground, it may take time for the magics to fully restart and flow at their normal rate. Once they do, the waters will probably travel quite far. While the fog visibility is still lighter around the stream that''s formed, it seems that there''s a wall of fog about seventy feet away from the pond and the stream itself, and when the stream ends, the dense wall of fog appears there as well. It''ll probably keep shifting as the stream begins traveling further and further down. I return to the pond and examine it. For a moment, I contemplate going for a dip in it, then decide against it for now. My Level 2 Awakening Quest awaits, and once I complete it, I should be able to do and handle more thanks to increased stats. First, though, I should return to my shop. It''s not a bad idea to find out if there''s anything important to know before taking on the Level 2 Awakening Quest. Chapter 0012 "Hey, Evan!" Nick answers the phone. "What''s up? Wanting to hang out?" I''ve already topped up my mana, so it''s time for me to find out if there''s anything I should know before attempting to advance to the next Level. There are quite a few people I could call to ask about this, but Nick was the first one to pop into my head and his profile image had him available. This probably isn''t the kind of available he was intending. "A little," I respond. "But that''s not why I''m calling. Is there anything important to know for Awakening Quests after the first?" "Hm¡­" he thinks for a few minutes. "Well, it''s a bit early for you to worry about that unless you''re bum-rushing Dungeons and you don''t seem like that type of person, but yeah, there are a few things. First, the zone''s ambient mana level is based on your current Level. As a Level 1 Rank 5 Awakened, that means you''ll need Tier 7 clothes. Your Level 3 Awakening Quest will require Tier 13 clothes." The equivalent is based on ranges of 500 MP, so all I''d need to do is take my MP and divide by that, then round up. It''s the same factor which affects the Tier of a mana potion. Taking on my Level 2 Awakening Quest won''t require me to acquire new clothes or gear, so I''m set for that part. "Alright," I say. "They''re meant to be tasks for you to complete," Nick says. "To prove you''re ''worthy'' of continuing as an Awakened. You won''t lose your Status if you fail it, but you won''t progress to the next Level until you complete it. That means it''s doable with your abilities, you just need to actually put in real effort rather than half-ass it." "I figured that part," I chuckle. "Yeah," he says. "But what it also means is that you can''t use items that do the work for you. No buffs, no restorations, no wand that casts a spell. None of them work. With potions you won''t even be able to get the liquid out ¨C there''s a straight-up magical block on that. If you enter with a buff active, it''s canceled at the start." So bringing in health and mana potion won''t assist me in any way for this. "And you can''t bring items out without the [Dimensional Storage] Skill," he adds. "Storage bracelets won''t work and if you''re holding something or swallowed an item, it''ll be gone when you exit. Only items placed into [Dimensional Storage] will work." If I swallowed an item? Something tells me that he''s attempted to do that to bring something out before. "Okay," I say. "That''s about it," Nick says. "Hey, wanna meet up? I wanna hear about that worm you came across!" We''re able to set up alerts to get notified if someone adds another picture to their gallery, and I know Nick has that set up for all of my galleries. He was probably looking at the image when I called him. "Maybe later," I tell him. "I''ve got some stuff to do right now." "Alright!" He says. "Let me know! See ya, man!" "See ya," I respond, then hang up and pocket my phone before calling up the Awakening Quest to check out its information. Since it seems I don''t really need to do anything to prepare, there''s no reason to delay taking it on. The moment I confirm I want to take on the Awakening Quest, I find myself standing in a field of dirt, but not the same one from my first Awakening Quest. This one is more noticeably a hill, with a slope roughly thirty degrees on the side I''m closest to rather than being only a slight incline. I''m at the peak of the hill, which is around two hundred feet in height and maybe four hundred in width, and the entire zone is maybe two thousand feet across. The top of hill itself isn''t the center of the zone ¨C about fifty feet from the western base of the hill, a short cliff rises up, maybe twenty feet in height. Right at the top of that is the fog wall for that section, stretching right along the slightly-curving cliff. There aren''t any goblins within view from here, but there are other creatures. Nine feet in height, with lean yet muscular builds and grey-tinted skin, trolls roam the area. They have brown hair and eyes, and they''re all dressed in loincloths, much like the goblins I''ve dealt with so far have been. While these trolls are probably low-rank ones seeing as they don''t have weapons, they''re not to be underestimated. They''re slow, but they have a strong regenerative factor and they''re both physically resilient and strong. As I check them out, I realize something. There''s nothing for the monsters here to eat. How are they surviving around here? The same goes for the other areas of the Mythic Forest, as the goblins in those two areas shouldn''t have been able to source food, either. Also, this might be a part of the Mythic Forest considering the common terrain feature. Well, those are things to wonder about at another time as I have an Awakening Quest to do.
Your Level 2 Awakening Quest will begin in 5 minutes. Fail to complete the task, and you will not progress to the next Level.
Slay all trolls: 0/30 Time Limit: 2 hours
There are only thirty trolls here, but they''ll probably take more [Magic Missile]s to kill than the goblins did. They''ll be at least as tough as the goblins, maybe even a little bit tougher, and they''ll have more HP on top of having an active regeneration that means they''ll probably heal up before I can get a second attack to connect. Rather than waiting for the timer to finish, I step through the barrier temporarily shielding me and draw near to one of the trolls. Their eyesight is rather bad so I have to get pretty close, but I''m not in too much danger from doing that as once it has my scent, it starts to follow me. Lacking in intelligence, it doesn''t attempt to run to catch up. My normal walking pace is enough to outdo the trolls so I ignore the one I collect first and keep walking around. After gathering up eight trolls, I begin casting [Fireball] while continuing to walk to ensure they don''t reach me. A single [Fireball] will hold as much power as a [Magic Missile] and costs twenty times as much MP, but it will hit more parts of their bodies than just one and can hit several at once. The radius for it is fourteen feet as well, so I can hit all eight of the ones I gathered up with a single cast. While the spell takes ten seconds to cast, I made sure to walk towards an area where I''d already pulled the troll from to ensure I won''t bump into another. I throw the [Fireball] at the trolls the moment it finishes casting and begin casting a second one. The [Fireball] hits the lead troll and flames erupt in all directions. Deep roars of pain fill the air from the trolls as my flames wrap around their bodies. Now that they''re distracted by the pain and their burning flesh, I stop walking and focus solely on casting the [Fireball]. Then a third. Then a fourth. Then a fifth. The acrid scent of burning flesh fills the air as the monsters burn and I can see their flesh mending before my eyes. However, my [Fireball]s do enough damage with each blast that the monsters'' regeneration rate is overwhelmed and unable to fully heal them between impacts. Five [Fireball]s is all it takes to take out the eight trolls, and I''m sure I could spend all 3,100 MP I can hold on [Magic Missile]s and not take one out due to their recovery and toughness. Using the area-based spell was definitely the right choice. I repeat this process until all thirty trolls are slain, which takes roughly an hour. Between each batch, I also cut out the essence stones from their chests for later use or sale. These stones are roughly the size of the fists of the trolls, their green just as faded as the others I''ve been acquiring in my Dungeon runs. Since I''m evicted from the zone immediately after killing the last of the trolls, I''m not able to acquire their crystals. Nineteen of them was still a pretty good haul, though, and I didn''t need to collect them. To my surprise, there''s more than just the completion notice in my vision when I reappear in my workshop.
Congratulations on completing your Level 2 Awakening Quest! Your stats have been increased and your HP and MP have been refreshed!
A new area within the Mythic Forest is available to access via your gate: the Happy Butterfly Hill!
That''s as much confirmation as any that the zone I took the trial in was within the Mythic Forest I can access. I''m not sure what''s up with its name, but the fact that a new zone is available makes me want to put off doing my Daily Dungeon to check it out again. Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel. I grab my hunter''s pack and make sure to restock my potion a bit since I didn''t do that after my work in the Mythic Forest earlier. Just as I finish that, I realize I haven''t checked out my new Status yet. My interest in the Mythic Forest nearly outweighed my interest in seeing how much stronger I''ve become. Knowing the differences will help me out a little during Dungeon runs.
Name: Evan Rethe Rank: 5
Species: Human Sex: Male
Level: 2 EXP: 0/41,647
HP: 6,200/6,200 MP: 6,200/6,200
Strength: 13 Constitution: 17
Agility: 13 Dexterity: 18
Magic: 21 Mind: 20
HP Regen: 5% MP Regen: 5%
That''s a decent bit of growth and it acts as confirmation that Magic and Mind have the best growth for me, with Dexterity a little bit behind them. At least one stat always has the highest possible growth, so I''m going to assume that Magic does and Mind is a little bit behind it rather than matching with it. The increase to my Magic stat should allow me to grow a little bit more per cast of [Grow Plant] and to boost the growth a little bit more per [Boost Plant Growth] as well. That should help me out some more with growing things in the Mythic Forest. After closing my Status, I try to access my Gate and find more than just a "Do you wish to enter the Mythic Forest" message.
Which zone within the Mythic Forest do you wish to enter?
Great Napping Spot Whispering Life Springs Happy Butterfly Hill
I''m going to assume that the "Great Napping Spot" is the smaller hill where I did my first Awakening Quest in. With that name and the one for the newest zone I can access, there''s an implication that something or someone named the areas and these might not just be descriptors for the zones. The creatures which once roamed the Mythic Forest, perhaps? Accessing the Happy Butterfly Hill, I find myself right back to where I left. The trolls are all gone by this point, and the fertile soil left in their place has already started to dull. It''s been quite a bit since I left here but not quite as long as between my first Awakening Quest and my return. "Mrow?" I ask, then wait a few moments. The lifeseed worm doesn''t make an appearance, so I access the gate to the Whispering Life Springs. Upon arriving, I find the area a fair bit different from before. First of the changes is that there''s no more light levels of fog, with absolute clarity extending to the dense fog wall that''s about ninety feet from the water''s edges. There are plenty more plants here as well, especially around the pond itself. The three tree saplings I sprouted with [Grow Plant] are now more clearly trees, with the shortest of the three, about ten feet from the southwestern edge of the pond, at three feet in height. About three feet from the northern edge of the pond is the tallest of them, at nearly six feet in height. All eight of the bushes that sprouted earlier have grown to between two and three feet in height, and one of them even has berries on it. They''re ordinary blackberries, but they''re quite sweet so I harvest some from the bush, putting them into a couple of jars in my bracelet. I don''t harvest all of them, however, just in case there are other critters around. While I don''t know too much about gardening, I do know that they really need insects to thrive. Unless the magic in the soil here is enabling additional aspects apart from providing necessary nutrients, there are probably some insects around now that weren''t before. That means there might be other creatures as well, ones similar to Mrow in that they can move through the fog wall. Some of those might like the berries. Grasses and ground cover have spread across most of the soil around the pond, where the fertile soil Mrow produced was deposited. More has spread out a little bit outside of that, though it''s not as thick and healthy as the stuff right beside the pond. The same goes for the stuff beside the stream, where fertile soil wasn''t deposited. I snack on some of the blackberries as I travel down the stream, which doesn''t lose its height in the slightest until it reaches a deeper and much wider channel. There''s no other water entering the river, but even without that there''s plenty from the stream to flow down a bit. The fog is clear around the water, but a wall of fog starts up again ninety feet away from the water''s edges on all sides. "Hey, Mrow," I greet the lifeseed worm as it comes up out of soil while I examine the wall of fog where the stream''s water stops. "Do you know the Happy Butterfly Hill?" Mrow tilts its head a little, and I get the impression of confusion. "The last place I took out monsters in," I say, immediately receiving a feeling of satisfaction from the magical worm. "I''m returning there. I want to check something out." Mrow gives me a small message of confusion, then returns into the ground, no trace of its passage visible. I shrug, then warp to Happy Butterfly Hill. Walking over to the western decline, I examine the cliff wall bordering it. There''s a slight curve to it, and rocks in the bed at the bottom. A lot of rocks, which take up nearly the full fifty feet of width between it and the base of the hill. That might be another stream. If that''s the case, then something''s stopped up its waters. Closing my eyes, I focus on trying to access the area where the stream begins. At the very least, one of the areas it begins. There''s a lot of resistance to me doing this, but I manage to push through and enter another zone.
Special Quest Initiated!
Eliminate the dark bramble and allow the spring''s waters to flow once more.
Time Limit: None
I''ve appeared beside the edge of a spring that is filled with waters, though the fog here is dense enough I can''t see the full thing. With the visible distance being about fifteen feet, that means the pond''s larger than that. Covering the pond and even the bit of the stream channel I can see flowing out of it is a dark bramble with an ugly black tint to its green colors. The bramble reaches into the pond as well, and it''s completely blocked up the stream. Not that that''s the only problem ¨C there''s a reason the Special Quest requires me to eliminate the dark bramble entirely. It''s an invasive plant that does more than just grow, it sucks out the water that it absorbs and destroys it. The process is slow and it can take hundreds of years to take over a lake, but even a little bit of it remaining can cause problems later on since it''ll continue to spread. In addition to that, it spreads a sort of magical miasma around. Minor amounts that won''t bother a person without prolonged exposure, but this has been here quite awhile, which is no doubt why the soil here is dead despite water trying to provide nourishment to it. How can I complete this Special Quest if I can''t see the full pond, though? It seems as if the bramble gets higher the further in it goes, but that could also be wrong since I can''t really see too much of it. On top of that, there''s definitely dark bramble in the water. Will [Fireball] be enough? Probably, so I begin to conjure one. The moment it completes, I lob it as far as I can in the hopes that I''m right about the bramble going up the further into the pond it is. Light flashes in the fog and a wave of heat hits me as fire becomes visible for a moment. The surface of the water ripples and the fog grows a little bit more intense, added to by the water evaporated by the spell. This won''t work¡­ "Mrow?" I ask. "Are you there?" Something shifts in the soil behind me and I turn around, finding Mrow poking its head up. "Mind eating all of the bramble there and dumping the fertilized soil outside of the pond here?" I ask. "Or will that make you sick?" Mrow seems to consider things for a moment, then burrows back under the ground. It didn''t really respond to me, so I turn around to face the pond once more. As I try to figure out what to do¡­ the bramble in the water starts moving. Something''s pulling it down, and I''m going to guess that that something is Mrow. After a few minutes, the lifeseed worm resurfaces and starts depositing soil. It''s probably a good thing his magics enable him to process things faster, or taking care of the bramble would be a much longer ordeal. It takes the magical worm around an hour to eat all of the bramble, and the fog grows lighter as he does. By the time he finishes, I can see around fifty feet in all directions and can see that the spring is a pond roughly sixty at its widest and about forty at its narrowest. I can''t see the full pond without standing in the right spot, but its waters are nearly crystal clear. There''s a very faint blue tint to them, almost imperceptible. I kneel down and scoop some of the water out with a hand to examine it.
[Mana Spring Water]
Tier: 7
Mystical water infused with mana itself.
While it''s not too good at restoring a person''s mana directly, this water is useful for brewing up mana potions. It doesn''t state "essence" in it, but it''ll also act the same as essence water does for reagents containing mana. I let the spring water fall back into the pond and as I do that, notifications appear in my vision.
A new area within the Mythic Forest is available to access via your gate: the Pup Leisure Pond!
Special Quest completed!
+5,000 EXP
Okay, that''s an odd name for this place. More important, the second notification reminds me that I still have my Daily Quest to do if I want the EXP from it, and there''s still the hangout with Nick I said I might do. I do want to meet up with him and chat later, so it''s probably best if I get to my Daily Dungeon soon. I don''t have time to use [Grow Plant] enough here to make a difference. The soil might lose its nutrients before then, but here''s hoping the pond''s water helps it stick around for longer. Chapter 0013 Nate and Emily enter the shop just as I make it back behind my counter, the two of them having arrived a little bit ago but waited down at Nate''s truck for me to open. Their outfits are the same as they were when they came in on Monday, though they both have empty reusable bottles clipped onto their hips this time. Nate''s carrying a white paper bag in his hands as well, and I can hear the soft clink clink of glass jars tapping each other. They''re returning the bottles from the potions they''d bought on Monday. That''s rare for a new Awakened. "Hey, hey!" Emily rushes to the counter. "Guess what?" "Emily!" Nate exclaims. "Don''t rush him the moment you enter!" "What?" I ask Emily. "Our first Dungeon went super!" She answers. "There wasn''t much loot there, but we got paid plenty for the job and loot! That let us get some new stuff! Look ¨C we got the bottles you mentioned!" "We were told we can return the jars and bottles that potions come in to shops," Nate says. "Is that right?" "It is," I answer. "You can either get cash for it or a discount on your next purchase." "We''d like to buy more," Nate tells me. "The job paid enough that we can get more, and we''ve got a call for another Dungeon in a couple of hours so we need to be ready for that." "Good luck," I accept the bag from him. "What would you like to buy today?" "Can we get-oh, your prices haven''t really changed since Monday." "If you looked at other shops," I say. "Many of them brew up small batches once every one to three days. Since I have a more limited stock, I usually brew up a single, larger batch of each thing once a week. They buy reagents more often than I do and their prices shift more regularly as a result. My prices only go up during the week if demand starts going up too much." "Oh," he says. "We were wanting to buy 15oz of each potion, each." "At which values?" I ask. "Were the 50 HP and MP potions fine, or would you like to downgrade down to 25 each until you get used to the amounts?" I should have suggested the ones which restore 25 HP and MP on Monday over the ones which restore twice that, since newer Awakened can often drink too quickly and waste some of it. Because they were Rank 2, I''d gone straight to the one of a slightly higher value since they have more HP and MP to start with. "We want to downgrade," he says. "We messed up a bit and wasted some of the potion we had." "And that''s 15oz of each for each?" I ask. "Yeah," he answers. "Yep!" Emily answers. "Will there be anything else you''d like to purchase today?" "Nope!" Emily answers. "No, thank you," Nate says. "And thanks for the advice on Monday." "You''re welcome," I respond. "Let me grab those items for you." "Can you fill up our bottles?" Emily removes one of hers from her belt and holds it up. "For safety reasons, I cannot," I tell her. "I''ll be back in just a minute with your order." I head to the back of the shop and start measuring out the potions they''ve requested. None of the jars I have are designed for 15oz of liquid, they''re either for more or less than that in set values, so I use one 12oz and one 3oz jar for each. Once they''re all measured out and the order placed onto separate trays, I carry them up to the front. "Please verify these are what you wish to purchase," I tell them, then grab another tray from under the counter and place it beside them. "And please place the jars you''re returning on here, out of the bag." While they confirm their potions, I slip on a pair of white gloves and confirm the jars they''re returning are from my shop. Those have a slightly-higher return price than ones which aren''t as I''ll reuse them directly rather than drop them off at a recycling center or the shop they''re originally from. "Why''d you put gloves on to check them?" Emily asks. "Are you looking for damage? "Emily," Nate says. "Don''t pester him, and let him answer one question at a time." "Have you gotten to the part about the Alchemists'' War in school?" I ask. "I haven''t," she answers. "Do people really do that?" Nate asks. "Do what?" Emily asks. "During the Alchemists'' War," I explain. "It was discovered that you can get around the System''s information windows in certain ways. One of them was contact poisons. If the alchemist is skilled enough, it can be invisible to the naked eye and even completely dry. During the war, they would brush the rims of potion bottles with a poison, or the lid of a jar with a contact poison which absorbs through the skin. Quite a few Awakened died before they wised up." It''s one of the reasons the war was as brutal as it was. The potion would read as being exactly what they were, then someone would go to take a drink during a battle and end up dead because of a potent poison they ingested or because of a toxin they absorbed through the skin. Magics within them could make the poisons quite potent as well. "People do that to you?" Emily grimaces. "No," I give her a soft smile. "But the reason the alchemists knew about it back then was because of one of the problems with their working conditions. They would be given a bunch of jars to clean and reuse, but had no protective equipment for themselves, so they''d be in contact with certani things. In a Dungeon, you can be exposed to all sorts of things, including spores from certain types of monsters. Those spores don''t just end up on your body and clothes, they can end up on your jars and bottles as well." I set down the last of the bottles, then hold up my hands to show off the gloves. "These gloves have an enchantment to neutralize such things to ensure I''m safe and that nothing I touch with the gloves after will be contaminated," I tell her. "Not everyone realizes that they got something on their jars and bottles. Even if they do wash them, a lot of people don''t think to clean the outsides of the jars and bottles. They just put them in a bag or a box, get treated for whatever ailment they''re suffering, and recycle the containers or return them to a shop." "So you wear gloves just in case," Nate concludes. "Correct," I move over to the register. "And to answer your other question, Emily, all of the jars and bottles I use here have a special stamp on them. It''s hard to spot if you don''t know what to look for and inspecting the mark itself will let you know it''s from my shop. You can''t forge it, either, as the System won''t register it as legitimate." "You mark them?" She asks. "How come? And how does the info window work? How do they make it so the System registers it as separate from the jar? And legitimate over someone''s forging of it?" "I don''t mark them," I tell her. "The place which supplies them do. Different shops have different preferences on designs, glass clarity, glass color, and so on. The refund and discount is bigger if you return them to the shop they''re originally from, if it has them marked. My jars and bottles might look like normal ones you can get at dozens of shops in the area, but the glass clarity is to my specifications, as are the magical compositions and enchantments. "As for the marks," I think for a few moments. "That one, no one really knows. The System seems to be able to distinguish between legitimately-created objects and fraudulently-created ones. It''s one of the reasons money for most major countries is made with magic paper." "Because it''s something the System can give information on," Nate says. "And will say if it''s real or fake." This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience. "Correct," I say. "Makes it impossible to counterfeit as the System will call it out." The coins and bills are also more durable and last longer as a result, reducing how much is needed to be produced to replace that which is taken out of circulation for damage. "That is awesome!" Emily exclaims. "Indeed," I chuckle a little. "Will the purchases be together or separate?" "Separate," Nate answers. I ring up the first order, then apply the discount from the returned bottles. Nate pays for his, then I ring up Emily''s order and apply the discount for her returned bottles. "Have a good day," I say after handing Emily her bag and receipts. "Good luck with the Dungeon run." "Thanks!" She says. "Bye!" "Bye," Nate says. They leave and I take the trays to the back, bringing the one with the returned bottles to the sanitation station. Those are left in the bin beside it so I can sanitize them when I next do a batch of those. I return to the front, pull off my gloves, and pull out a book to read. No one else shows up until about five minutes to noon. It''s Ryan, and he''s carrying a pair of white paper bags. The shirt he''s chosen for today is green, and it hugs his body nicely. An educated guess says that he''s brought lunch again, which is kind of nice of him. However, I need to remain professional at least a little bit, in case he is here to return jars. I don''t hear clinking so it''s unlikely, but one never knows. "Good morning," I greet him. "Here to make a purchase?" "No," he holds up the bags. "I brought you lunch again, if you didn''t have plans and wanted to eat together again." He seems like there''s something he wants to ask but is holding back. I''m guessing it''s a more personal question and he decided lunch would be a good way to ask. "Sure," I tell him. "I can meet you up on the deck again once I close up for the break." "Alright," he responds. "See you in a few." Ryan leaves, and I wait until noon to close and lock up my shop, then I meet him up on the deck. He''s taken the same seat as yesterday and has one of the bags in front of him and the other at the seat across from him. "Is it okay to ask about the worm?" He asks. "Anything in particular you wanted to know?" I ask. "I already know some about it," he says. "I''ve encountered one before and did a little research back then. They''re mythical-level creatures, which is why they have the silver eye markings. I''ve never heard of one appearing in a Daily Dungeon before, though, and that place seemed too barren to be one for a craftsman." Before opening up my shop this morning, I looked up lifeseed worms and while there weren''t any records calling them that directly, I did find records of them. They''re called "mythic fertility worms" in those and are said to occasionally show up as a friendly creature in Dungeons or in the wild. Despite being just worms and having no offensive capabilities, they''re extremely resilient to harm and have been known to decompose people who are particularly persistent in attacking them. The silver eye-like markings are because they''re a mythical-level beast ¨C all creatures of that level have silver eyes and those without actual eyes have eye-like markings instead. Also silver. That little bit, I did know about. Mythical-level creatures sometimes show up in ancient tomes I read, such as the azulvitt fox. I know Ryan well enough to know he won''t share the truth with others if I give it to him, but I''m not quite ready to start telling people everything. Posting the image probably wasn''t the best of ideas, but I wanted to share a picture of Mrow the way the Awakened I''m friends with share pictures of their kills. "It was a Special Quest Dungeon," I tell him. "The worm showed up and started eating the goblins in there after I killed them. You can''t really see it in the picture, but there''s a spring of life water there. That''s a better base for health potions than essence water." Now that I think about it, less time may have passed between visits to it than I realized. Life water is mainly good or restoring a person''s health, but it can also benefit plant growth as well. It isn''t restricted just to restoring injuries, or it wouldn''t be called "life water". "That can''t be all that was there, can it?" Ryan asks. "For a Special Dungeon Quest? Wait, you already got one of those? It''s not even been a week!" "I did," I chuckle. "And yes, there''s more, but I can''t quite talk about it yet." "Yet?" He asks. "There''s more to it?" "Yeah," I answer. "But¡­ it''s difficult to figure out what can and can''t be said yet." "Alright," he says. "Let''s eat. I got you lemonade again as I''m not sure what else you drink. Couldn''t think of anything else you''ve said." "It''s possible I haven''t mentioned," I tell him. "I do lean toward more fruitier drinks, particularly lemonade and peach-based stuff." We pull our food out of the bags. It''s another 6" sub from the same shop as yesterday, this one with a double serving of roast beef rather than having roast beef and turkey, this time with lettuce, pickle, and provolone cheese. It seems the onion was an issue yesterday, and I find myself smiling a little at the lack of it today. Accompanying the sub is a bottle of lemonade, a small baggie of grapes, a bag of pretzels, and a thick chocolate chip-and-caramel cookie. "The official numbers won''t be out until Sunday, as usual," Ryan says as we eat. "But they''ve noted another drop in Dungeon spawns this week." "It''s still dropping?" I ask. "Down twelve percent from this time last week," he confirms. "The bureau''s already noted a little bit of unease from the public over this, since so much of society relies on magical materials. It''s too dangerous to try setting up mines for ores, for example, and they''d still need to supply potions and gear for the Awakened who protect them." Large-scale farms for reagents aren''t viable as many magical plants have specific conditions they grow under. That means acquiring other magic materials to create those conditions if cultivating them rather than harvesting them in their natural areas, and constantly resupplying said materials. The other option is setting up a farming center in the natural area, which would require constructing walls similar to the ones which protect this city. That would require acquiring the materials used for those, protecting the builders as they worked, having Awakened on standby at all times in the farm in case of a monster attack, and so on. Some magic plants are easier to grow and we do have farms for those within the city''s walls, but most of the farming buildings and ranches are devoted to the more mundane stuff everyone uses. It''s cheaper and easier to set those up as less magic is required for them. Even then, there''s still a degree of magic involved in running them, especially the crop farms. Our society does run on magic, after all. "I didn''t know about unease starting to rise," I tell him. "None of my customers have mentioned it, though I do also have fewer than before as a result of the dryness. They''re not being called as often and some are taking breaks rather than heading outside of the city to hunt. Is the bureau trying to take any measures?" "Some," he answers. "But they''re not quite sure what to do. There''s no record of an actual Dungeon drought but it looks like we''re going to enter one. If this keeps up, they''re estimating that Dungeons will stop spawning entirely within a couple of months. "If that happens," he holds up his baggie of grapes. "The price of even things like these will start skyrocketing. Sustaining the scale of production needed to supply the city will be pretty difficult." Demand for magical materials will increase as well, so Awakened craftsmen will be encouraged to do their Daily Dungeons and sell the excess goods. I''m basically secure because I can keep acquiring more, but that will definitely affects other. The worst-hit hunters will be the weaker ones in lower Ranks. They''re less-able to handle the wilderness than stronger ones and those of higher Ranks. "What about you?" I ask. "I''m pretty secure," Ryan shrugs. "I make plenty already and have a large savings account and I''m able to venture pretty deep into the wilderness to get more materials. Am going to do that after lunch, actually ¨C there''s a mines about a hundred miles north of the city that generates earth magic crystals. A group of us are heading there to clear out the mine''s monsters, and our porters will handle harvesting the crystals and remains while we do that." While we can''t set up our own mines, we can repurpose monsters'' caves and mines by slaying its current residents and harvesting. The initial bulk of what they harvest is usually within the first few hours, then they''ve basically taken all of the monster remains and magic crystals present. An Awakened can only keep watch and fight for so long before they need to rest, and that means getting another group to take over. That increases the cost for protection, especially if you''re calling upon a group of Rank 5s. Staying longer than five or six hours will increase the cost more than the earnings, so they rarely last more than five or six hours at the mines themselves. All of which makes a short, quick expedition the better option than a longer one. "You''re leaving this afternoon?" I ask. "Not earlier today? Wouldn''t that give you more time to return before sundown?" "We''re going with Rank 5 porters," he tells me. "It''s a group we''ve worked with before, and they''re pretty efficient at harvesting magic crystals and monster remains. We''re taking two dozen transports and are expecting to return with them filled after three hours in the mines and surrounding areas." "That''s impressive," I say. "It won''t be enough to supply the city too much," he says. "But that particular mine network grows earth magic crystals at a rate of about six times what the monsters in it can harvest. It''s been about two years since the last time anyone tried to harvest from it, so we''re expecting a large haul." "Earth magic crystals?" I ask. "With the Dungeon drought starting, I can see why those are wanted." Earth magic crystals buried in the ground replenishes nutrients to the soil and boost the growth and bounty of nearby plants. They''re used in making fertilizer and in the crop buildings. While I don''t know exact numbers on this sort of thing, I do know that the haul Ryan''s talking about could probably help supply the city with food for at least six months. "Good luck with that," I tell him. "Hopefully, another city hasn''t set their sights on it." "That''s why we want to move today," he says. "We''re closer to it by far than others, but everyone is suffering. We want to lay claim to the crystals before another city gets it into their head to come this way. We might all be part of the same country here, but the cities still prioritize their own supply over that of others." Which has led to civil wars in various countries in the past. The United Cities of America is one of the few countries that''s more than one city ¨C most cities are independent of each other. Even with us being one country overall, each city still needs to prioritize themselves over their neighbors and allies. "I wish you the best of luck," I tell Ryan. Our conversation switches to other topics after that until it''s time for me to head back downstairs to my shop. "Good luck with your hunt," I give Ryan a kiss. "Make sure to stay safe." "Will do," he warps his arms around me as he gives me a deeper kiss. "Enjoy the rest of your day." Chapter 0014 The soil here at Pup Leisure Pond is still contaminated by the dark bramble, even after the bramble''s been removed. I could use [Grow Plant] in the soil that Mrow created from the bramble, but it wouldn''t do too well. The roots would eventually end up in the bad soil and then the plant would become contaminated and die off. [Cleanse] has an extremely limited range at only a quarter of an inch per point Magic that I have. Mrow can purify things he consumes as he converts it to soil as a part of the magical process he uses, but he doesn''t eat soil itself and only shifts it around as he moves through the ground. The waters here were contaminated by the dark bramble, though it''s flowed out enough since my visit yesterday that they''re purified now. Except the contaminated waters traveled down the river and started affecting the touched soils. That wasn''t something I''d considered when clearing this up yesterday. I probably should have done something to block the water''s flow, then tried to purify the pond before letting it leave. Well, those soils will purify more quickly due to the lesser amount of the contaminants so that''s not as much of a concern. The area around this pond has too much, though. Letting the miasma fade away on its own could take decades. Time might pass differently here than back on Earth, but I''m pretty sure that would still take a long time. "Whoa there, buddy," I quickly reach down and grab the small form darting past my legs. "Don''t jump into the¡­ pond¡­ uh¡­ Flow?" The wolf pup looks up at me as I turn him to face me, his tail wagging excitedly. He has dark blue fur with silver paws and silver tips to his ears and tail. His eyes are silver as well, indicating his status as a mythical-level beast, just like the azulvitt wolf he is.
[Azulvitt Wolf]
Category: Mythical
A mythical-class creature which moves through minds and dreams, guiding those lost within forests to safety.
"Woof!" Flow''s tail starts wagging more excitedly, then he pauses and tilts his head. "Woof?" "Your name is Flow, right?" I ask, and he starts nodding enthusiastically. "Wait, before that-you guys should also-" Before I can try and stop them, the four wolf pups I''d spotted a moment too late charge into the pond, all of them azulvitt wolves. Actually, one of them appears to be an azulvitt fox pup. Maybe I should have put more energy into that, but something tells me the pups would have jumped in, anyway. "Well, at least the water is clean," I say. "But buddies, the soil around isn''t so be careful, okay?" The pups all yip in excitement, then start floating in the water. While I can''t "feel" minds and emotions, I can tell that they''re all feeling content. They didn''t come here to play, they came here to relax. A pup leisure pond¡­ that''s a pretty descriptive name for this place, it seems. "Alright," I set Flow down, and he jumps into the water. "But you''re not really a pup, are you?" Flow looks at me and holds his head up proudly, then swims over to his friends. Where did the pups come from? The fog wall is still here but this place is dead. There shouldn''t be a way for them to survive here, just like the monsters. Then again, they can move through dreams. It''s possible they traveled that way to get here, or to leave. Though whose dreams? It''s probably either the monsters'' or Mrow''s, since those are the only things I know for sure are here. I can only watch the pups relaxing in the pond before my own desire to take a dip is too strong, so I undress and lower myself into the waters, taking a seat in one of the higher portions of it. The pups all swim over to me and relax, though they''re floating in the water rather than swimming. The water is cool, almost cold, but not uncomfortable. It doesn''t take me long to adapt to it. A couple of the pups start to get bored of swimming and exit the pond to wrestle around in the dirt. "Be careful not to eat the soil," I tell them. "It''ll make you sick." Flow gives a warning bark to the pair of pups, who yip back before continuing their wrestling around. As I watch them, a vision of this spring flashes through my mind. In it, the sky is clear and I can see until the undergrowth of the forest is too thick. Immediately around the pond is mostly grass and a few boulders, and some azulvitt wolf and fox pups swim in the pound, sunbathe in the grass, or wrestle around in either the water or on the grass. A full-grown azulvitt wolf, which would stand taller than me were it standing, watches the pups. He lets out a soft woof at the three pups which began wrestling in the waters. They stop and swim out of it to wrestle on the ground. Some part of me can tell that the big one is Flow and he''s shifted himself down into a smaller form right now to go swimming in the pond. The vision for the Whispering Life Springs occurred in the past, as evidenced by the boulders still being whole rather than the rubble they''d become. This one might also have been of the past. If that''s the case, then just how old is Flow? I look over to my clothes and gesture with a hand, using Telekinesis to pull my phone out of my pants pockets and pull it over to me. "Hey, Flow?" I ask the pup, who''s floating right beside me. "Can I take a picture with you?" "Woof!" [Animal Communication] lets me know he was saying I can. Flow repositions himself so that he''s floating on his stomach right beside me and I snap a selfie of us. Then he hops out of the water and transforms to his full size, lying on the ground behind me with his body stretched across, his head to my right. "You want another one?" I ask, and he gives me a small nod. I snap a picture of us like this. As I do, the other pups all get out of the pond or jump up onto him, and they all start climbing on him. Flow lets out a small woof to get them to settle down a little, and I take a picture of all of us. I set my phone down and return to relaxing, and the pups return to goofing around, all of them wrestling with each other now as Flow returns to both his pup form and to floating in the waters. "Hey, Flow?" I ask after a little while. "I need to leave. It''s getting later than I expected and I have some other stuff to do before bed. I''ll need to find a way to clean up the soil so it''s safe for growing plants in, though the Whispering Life Pond has some plants growing there now." According to my phone, I''ve been relaxing in the pond for almost an hour. That''s¡­ dangerously long and I need to leave or I''ll just keep going until I all asleep. Time''s slipping away from my mind again. I climb out of the pond and pull a towel from my pack. One never knows when they might end up soaked in a Dungeon so I always have a towel in my pack. After drying off, getting dressed, and pulling on my pack, I tell the pups goodbye and return to my workshop. I already did my Daily Dungeon Quest and went to check on the different zones I can access so far so there''s nothing else for me to do away from home and the shop unless it''s to try and grow more plants. I want to hold off on that for another day and instead, prepare some more stuff for the shop. While I told Nate and Emily that I usually do my brewing on weekends, I sometimes do it during the week as well. My stock of mana potion is depleting, especially the higher-potency one, but I don''t have the reagents for that yet. I do, however, have some reagents for another potion I can brew up. There''s something else I want to do before that, thought. "Hey, Evan!" Cole greets me as cheerfully as ever when he answers the call. "Want to place another order?" "Yeah," I answer. "I''d like to place an order for two five-cube bracelets at Tier 7." The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. "That big?" He asks. "Those will be nearly one mil, each." While spending almost $2,000,000 is a huge expense I couldn''t have dreamed of before, my Daily Dungeons are quite bountiful. I haven''t sold all of my loot from this week yet but the total value is even higher than that. Gone are the days where I''ll need to invest most of my loot sales into the shop. "My Daily Dungeons provide plenty of loot," I tell him. "I''ll have the funds once I sell them all, though I''ve also earned a bit extra from my shop this week." "I''ve heard you increased your stock to contain mana potions up to 500 MP per ounce," he says. "I did," I confirm. "Will be including something new tomorrow as well. I''ve gotten reagents from my Daily Dungeons every day so far and decided I should expand my stock a little again using some of them." "Oooh," he says. "What sort of expansion?" "Stuff for dealing with poisons," I answer. "Do you know how long it will take to make the bracelets?" "I can have them done in the next few hours," he answers. "Though if you won''t have the money until this weekend, I can hold them until then." "Alright," I say. "See you this weekend." "See you!" Cole responds. I end the call, pull on some gloves, and head down to the basement to retrieve the desired reagents from my storage. Once everything is in my main workshop, I begin working. There are two ways to deal with poisons when it comes to alchemy. The first is through potions, the second is through a salve. A salve is good only if the poison entered through a wound or contact and even then, only if it''s applied quickly and before the poison can spread through one''s body. Because of that, most hunters prefer potions, especially as those are easier to use during a battle. That can make a world of difference if hit with a strong poison magic while fighting. Because of that, I start by preparing an essence water base, though this one has a slight tweak to it over the normal base. I pour in a five-gallon bucket of mystic spring water, then a five-gallon bucket of gold-tinted life spring water from Whispering Life Spring.
[Life Spring Water]
Tier: 7
Mystical water infused with life magics.
After stirring the two waters for a minute, I add in ground essence crystal dust until it''s dissolved, then pour inanother thirty-five gallons of essence water and another thirty-five gallons of life spring water, alternating five-gallon buckets of each. The first of those are mushrooms with pale stems and green caps with black spots, which I''ve stored in two buckets due to the volume needed. These ones are dangerous to even touch, and I wear a separate pair of gloves to handle them, use a separate cutting board and knife to chop them, and separate containers to store them in after I dice them.
[Deatheye Mushroom]
Tier: 7
A mushroom containing a potent poison, quickly eroding the life of those who touch or consume it.
Contact Poison: 1,400 HP per second
Ingested Poison: 3,500 HP per second
Those values aren''t exact and one can lose more or less per second depending on how much was touched or how much was ingested. To make a poison by itself, one would use only the caps. As I''m making a curative, I use both the caps and the stems as the stems contain a neutralizing factor. I chop them finely, filling an entire five-gallon bucket with the pieces. While they took up two buckets initially, that was because of how much air was present in the bucket due the shapes of the mushrooms. Chopped into small cubes, they fit together better and so there''s less air in the bucket. The gloves and tools used for them are set to the side and I begin preparing the next reagent with a fresh pair of gloves and tools. This one comes in a couple of sizable crates. When I open up the first one, a wave of cold air flows out. The crates themselves are made of wood, but the insides are lined with a thin seal enchanted with a cooling magic for preservation. I open up a second, empty cooling crate, then pull the next reagent out of the first one. It''s a lizard with pale green skin and black, lightning-like stripes down its back.
[Leechblood Lizard]
Tier: 7
A lizard with a heart that produces a poison. Contact with the poison weakens one over time, while ingesting it also drains one''s HP.
Poison: 350 HP every second
I cut out the hearts and brains of the lizards and dump them into a bucket, then remove the rest of their guts and dump those into another one. The remaining parts of the lizards are placed into the empty cooler crate. After I harvest what I need from all of the lizards, using the first lizard crate to store the remains from the second one, I reseal the crates, set the gloves and tools to the side, and move the crates to the side. The bucket with the hearts and brains are placed next to the one with the mushroom parts, then I pull out the third reagent. This is a five-gallon bucket filled pale yellow berries resembling raspberries, violet swirls running across them. I didn''t need to worry about them crushing each other as I need them mashed up and the berries have already been washed, dried, and relieved of their stems.
[Neutriberry]
Tier: 7
A berry which neutralizes toxins in those who ingest them.
Potency: 70 Magic
I pour the contents of the bucket into a wooden barrel, then begin mashing them with a tool. Once they''ve been fully converted into pulp, I scrape it back into the original bucket, then check on the cauldron. The liquid inside is clear with a faint, gold-green tint to it.
[Life Essence Water]
Tier: 7
Mystical water infused with the essence of life itself.
Perfect. Now that the base and other reagents are prepared, I begin adding things to the cauldron, stirring as I go. It takes some tweaking, but I manage to receive the quality I''m intending by the time it''s done. The potion lacks transparency and is instead an opaque, rich green color.
[Poison Cure Potion]
Tier: 7
A potion which can cure any and all poison within a person as long as they are no stronger than it, and will reduce the effects of those stronger, regardless of the type of poison or toxin; 2oz dosages.
Potency: 50 Magic
This won''t be too useful in later parts of a Category 5-1 Dungeon, where beasts and plants will be even stronger than that, but its effects will be useful in the earlier stages and in other Dungeons, such as higher-level Category 1 Dungeons. I measure out forty gallons of the potion, of which there''s roughly ninety gallons after the magical process of alchemy does its work. With that measured out, I add in more life spring water, mystic spring water, and ground essence crystals. I have to add in more of the other reagents as well, but end with a Tier 6 version of the potion with the same potency, then a Tier 5. Each time, I measure out some of it, then continue adding to the cauldron to reach the desired Tiers and potency levels until I finish with the last batch. Keeping the same potency was neither necessary nor feasible, as an area with a lower mana level would be unlikely to have a higher potency on its poisons. As such, I dilute not just the item''s Tier and the effect as I work.
[Poison Cure Potion]
Tier: 1
A potion which can cure any and all poison within a person as long as they are no stronger than it, and will reduce the effects of those stronger, regardless of the type of poison or toxin; 2oz dosages.
Potency: 15 Magic
This will give a more affordable dose of the potion to people in weaker Dungeons. After I measure that out, I begin bottling some of each batch of the potion, to have the doses already prepared in case someone wishes to buy them. Some hunters will want larger amounts that they can portion out themselves during a run or hunt, so I also make sure to leave a few buckets of each type for that. I move the new stock into the product storage room, then clean all of the tools, dishes, and gloves used for this. After finishing, I head up to my home and take a shower. As I plop onto my couch after the shower, I check my phone for messages. There are a few of them, including from Ryan. [Ryan]: Back in the city at last! That''s followed up with a picture of him after a shower, his hair still damp. Since he knows I don''t mind the pictures, he didn''t bother cropping it or putting something on for the image. It''s not taken or sent as something suggestive, just a snap of him after his shower, which I like. Though it does make me want to meet up with him tonight, except we have a date on Saturday and while I don''t know about him, I know that I never hook up with someone I''m dating outside of date nights unless we go exclusive. He''d also probably not return the message or say "no" if I asked tonight. About an hour after that message and picture were sent, he sent me another text. [Ryan]: Meeting up with one of my fwbs That was about thirty minutes ago, so he''s probably busy. I send him a picture and let him know I''ve finished working for the day. Should I see if there''s someone available or should I just head to bed? Chapter 0015 Not two minutes after I unlock the door to my shop do two separate trucks pull up. I recognize one of them as Cassidy''s, while I don''t know the other one. That one''s a plain box truck and a pair of men in their early thirties step out of it, both dressed in shorts and sleeveless shirts while carrying with them an aura of "I''ll whup your rear-end if you try anything". Cassidy and one of the men each has a small box with them as they approach, and I doubt it''s to return jars. It''s doubtful Cassidy would even have any of mine in the first place considering most of her customers are selling or buying reagents, not potions. "I arrived first," Cassidy says as she enters my shop. "Please ignore those two." "Cassidy," one of the men rolls his eyes. "I''m sure there''s enough to go around." They know each other but aren''t here together. It seems they know what the other is here for, though. "Well, you can have the leftovers after I''m done," Cassidy tells him. "Evan, as a long-time friend of yours, please let me shop first before the agents." "Agents?" I look at the men. "What would the bureau want from my shop?" This is the first time I''ve ever had agents come to my shop directly. The rare times they buy potions from me, they usually send a proxy to perform the purchases. With both Cassidy and the agents having those boxes, it''s probably not potions they want to buy. "Reagents," Cassidy answers before the agents can start. "Since you haven''t stopped by my shop this week but have uploaded a few images to your gallery, I assumed you were waiting until tomorrow. There are a few things in high demand right now and I was hoping you might have some of them stored up." That confirms my suspicions about what''s in the boxes both groups have. They''re assessment devices and terminals to let them scan reagents and determine the value of them, then pay me for them. "A high enough demand you came to visit me in person?" I ask. "Tomorrow is too long to wait?" "It hasn''t been publicized yet," Cassidy tells me. "But-" "Cassidy, please don''t," one of the agent says with a tone that says he''s only making a token effort as he knows she''ll ignore him. "Only three Dungeons spawned in the city last night," she tells me. "Three. That same timespan normally has at least a hundred." "Only three?" I ask. "Only three," she confirms. "Other cities are reporting the same thing," one of the men tells me. "There was a sudden, massive drop in Dungeon spawns in the evening, then they stopped entirely during the night. That''s why known sources of materials are being approached to ask what they have. While you aren''t registered, we''re aware that you Awakened sometime in the last two weeks and are using that to boost your supplies to keep running. We were hoping you''d be willing to work with us and let us know what you have. There are some materials more crucial to the running of the city than others and while we can obtain some from outside, it''s not as efficient as Dungeons." They''re willing to approach an unknown in the hope of there being something I have to use without knowing for sure what I have. This makes me suspect there''s more going on. "What else?" I ask. "What do you mean?" He asks. "This seems too quick a reaction for it to be just a decrease in Dungeon spawns," I say. "What else is happening?" The two men give each other a look while Cassidy frowns, clearly having not thought about it. "Have you checked your Daily Quests yet?" The man who spoke already asks. "Yeah," I answer. "In addition to the standard two, I have a Quest for harvesting some materials that work for making healing items, a Quest for producing health potions, and a Quest for crafting scrolls that cast [Flamethrower]. One of those is¡­ not like the others." "Your Quests are there?" The other man asks. "What does that mean?" Cassidy asks him. "Er¡­" "Something''s going on with Quests?" I ask. "Awakened are reporting that their Daily Dungeon Quests are missing," he answers. "And their Weekly Dungeon Quests as well, for those who haven''t done them. Rank, Level, and Class doesn''t seem to matter ¨C everyone is lacking them." Something''s happened to put a stop to Dungeon appearances, but it hasn''t affected me. Is it only me, or is it that there just aren''t people who are reporting that they still have the Dungeon Quests? That would make more sense to me if it''s not yet widely known that Dungeons have ceased to spawn. "Yours aren''t missing?" The first man asks. "No," I answer as I move to the register and start tapping a few things. "Both Dungeon Quests are still there. You''re aware that my shop is not registered to sell parts, right?" "This isn''t you selling them," Cassidy tells me. "But those authorized to do so approaching a supplier. It''s legal this way." I pull a pair of tablets out from under the counter and check to see if they''ll turn on and pull up the lists I want them to. These haven''t been used in awhile, but it looks like they''re still functional. "One for each of you," I say. "Discuss among yourselves what on the list you''re looking for. That''s the entire inventory of materials I''ve harvested from my Daily and Weekly Dungeons which I''m willing to sell." "You have it in your register?" Cassidy asks as she takes one of the tablets. "I find it easier to keep track of my inventory of reagents if I store them in the shop''s inventory system," I tell her. "Let me know what you''re interested in." "Okay!" She says as the agents take the other tablet and start going through the list. While they do that, I pull out my phone and shoot off a text to four different people. [Evan]: Are you busy? There''s an almost immediate response from all four of them. [Nick]: Nope! [Adam]: Not at the moment. [Wyatt]: Need security for the shop? Wyatt seemed to instinctively know what I wanted to ask, which suggests he''s already aware of what''s going on and the response to it from the bureau. The fourth response is Ryan sending me a selfie of him still in bed, his hair still a little bit messy and a sleepy look in his eyes. I guess he was still in bed after a late night last night, though I''m glad all four responded. I send the same text to all four in response. This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there. [Evan]: Are you up for coming to my shop and helping out? I need some help with something, including watching a door. All four agree to come help me out and after letting them know it''s for as soon as they can get here, they all state they''ll be here as soon as they can. Cassidy and the agents are still looking through the lists and discussing with each other what they want from them so I probably won''t need to delay them until my friends arrive. Adam shows up first, giving Cassidy and the agents a curious look. "Hey, Adam," I say as he walks up to the counter. "Hey, Evan," he says, then glances at the others. "That''s an unusual sight." "Yeah," I say. "Seems they''re going to different materials suppliers and seeing what they have that they''re willing to part with. I told them to decide who''s getting what. There''s a fair bit in my storage and I want some people I trust to help carry it out and watch the door." "I''m your man for that!" He thumps his chest with a fist. "I''ve got some others on the way," I tell him. "Needed at least two ¨C one to help carry, one to watch the door ¨C so I asked four." "Who''re the others?" He asks. "Ryan, Nick, and Wyatt." "Wyatt Reckart?" He asks. "Or another one?" "Reckart." He stares at me for a few moments. "What?" "Okay," he says. "Let me ask ¨C how do you know him?" Wyatt''s not a problematic person or I wouldn''t have asked for his help. We''ve been friends for awhile, so I''m not sure why Adam seems surprised. "Met him a few years ago," I answer. "I was a scavenger for one of his first Dungeons and he asked if I wanted to hang out after. We hung out a few times, then started dating. We meshed pretty well so went exclusive ¨C couldn''t date anyone else ¨C and stayed that way until September of ''22, when we decided to just switch to being friends-with-benefits." Just as I finish saying that, Wyatt enters the shop. He stands 5''10" with a lean, toned frame, ocean-blue hair, and orange eyes. Wyatt''s wearing grey-and-orange sneakers, a pair of khaki shorts with an orange button-up with short sleeves, the top button left undone. A fang necklace hangs around his neck, a golden rune painted onto the fang. "Hey, Evs!" Wyatt says. "Is it security help like I guessed?" "What led to you two breaking up as boyfriends and going to being friends with bennies?" Adam asks Wyatt, who raises an eyebrow. "I want to know something, I''ll explain in a moment since he seems¡­ oblivious." This has my curiosity piqued, especially since he seems to want to know about our relationship. "Oh," Wyatt says. "As odd as it might sound, I felt inferior to him despite being a Rank 5 Awakened and him being just an ordinary person. Being friends and having sex with him was one thing, but a committed relationship was¡­ weird. Then again, we were barely eighteen when we broke up so there''s also that. We''ve still got the benefits side of things, though. What''s up?" Adam walks over and whispers into his ear, and Wyatt''s eyes widen for a moment. "Wait, seriously?" "Seriously," Adam says. "Nick and Ryan are here. You can confirm for yourself." Nick and Ryan enter the shop, and Ryan''s dressed in his training clothes today. This one is a tight-fitting, blue sleeveless shirt, light khaki shorts, and athletic shoes. All four of them whisper among themselves for a few minutes, leaving me completely out of the loop of whatever is that Adam''s noticed. It''s probably not important, so I decide to ignore it and close the shop for now. I can''t deal with customers with other stuff going on and I''m sure it''s going to take some time. The sales for this will exceed what I normally make in a week, too, so I''ll have plenty to spend on personal stuff and as savings for the shop just from it. I can handle turning not being available for a customer or two. The guys come over to the counter and we chat a little, the four of them telling me about some of their recent runs and missions. Adam asks me about the mythical worm from the picture, causing Nick to want to ask as well. Wyatt already asked me via text and I told Ryan in-person, so those two are the ones who haven''t heard yet. "We''ve come to an agreement," Cassidy comes over to the counter as I finish telling them about Mrow. "Am I hearing right that you encountered a mythical-class beast in a Special Quest Dungeon?" "Yeah," I answer. "Its official name is a lifeseed worm, though the records we have call them ''mythical fertility worms''. I have [Animal Communication] and got that much from it while it was in there. How are the resources being divided?" Cassidy and the agents go through the lists and tell me what they''re obtaining from them, then I take everyone to the back and into the basement, where most of the stuff is stored. Cassidy and one of the agents begin scanning the goods with their devices, and my friends carry everything upstairs, with Adam watching the back door as things are taken out to the trucks. That takes almost an hour and a half and once they finish scanning and moving everything, it''s time for them to pay. "Evan," Cassidy says. "It looks like the total value for what I''m buying from you ¨C including the markup due to the current problems with Dungeons ¨C totals up to $1,172,812.16. For obvious reasons, I can only do a deposit right now." She only has a card terminal, not a case of cash. While she was expecting to spend a lot, she didn''t want to bring too much cash with her. For my safety, not hers. Between the eight of us here, that''s only a large amount of money to me. Her shop has a rather high turnover of inventory so they deal with a large amount of money all the time. The bureau is the bureau, they handle expensive and rare items all the time and so earn and pay quite a lot all the time. The other four are experienced Rank 5s who can earn more than that from a single Dungeon run. Admittedly, all of them probably also spend a large amount of money all the time as well, so they probably wouldn''t keep the full million they''d be paid from their loot. Their gear is expensive and needs replacing often. I''m not going to be keeping all of what I''m earning here since I''ve already decided to purchase the additional storage bracelets. Even with me technically doing less, there''s still a high cost for me to run Dungeons. "Understandable," I pull out my card to insert. After she confirms the transfer and gives me a receipt, it''s the agents'' turn. They''re purchasing a lot more stuff than Cassidy did, including some higher-value items and ores. "That comes out to be $2,214,137.61," the agent handling the transaction says. "Same as with Cassidy, we can only perform the payment by deposit right now." "That''s fine," I insert my card into the reader. "Thank you for the assistance," the agent tells me. "We''re hoping things return to normal soon, though we''ll be sending teams to handle hunts outside of the city as well. If you come across anything valuable that we can use during this period, please let us know and we''ll make sure you''re well-compensated." "Will do," I say. "Have a good day." The agents and Cassidy leave, and my friends all look at me. "What?" I ask. "Nothing," they all answer at once. "Will you guys be fine?" I ask. "With the reduced or possibly null Dungeon spawns?" "We''ve all got plenty of money," Nick says. "And they''ll be contacting us for jobs plenty often, anyway." "We do get EXP from killing monsters outside of Dungeons," Wyatt adds. "And Daily and Weekly Quests are still live, it''s just the Dungeons that are gone." "What''s going on?" Ryan asks, apparently having not gotten the news yet or been told during this, nor having checked his Quests. The first and third parts of that are understandable, since he''d probably barely woken up when I texted him, then traveled straight here. I''m surprised no one mentioned it to him while they were carrying boxes out. He must have been wanting to know what''s going on and I''d thought he''d ask the others while we worked. "Dungeon spawns had a sudden drop again yesterday evening," Adam tells him. "Between ten and eleven last night, only three appeared in the city. And no new ones have spawned since, in or out of the city." "And Dungeons in the Daily and Weekly Quests are missing," Wyatt says. Mine are still there, and I''m wondering if it has to do with having access to a Mythic Forest or being a rather new Rank 5. It''s entirely possible that those of us who are newer Awakened or lower in Level still have access to them for now. I''m not going to mention that mine are still around, though. Mentioning it to Cassidy and the agents may not have been smart since there''s no telling if I''m an exception or not. I trust them not to say anything and I trust these four as well, but the fewer who know, the better. Just in case. "That''s¡­" Ryan trails off. "Huh. They''re gone. Is the System shutting down?" "No one knows," Adam says. "But this is something the various government agencies will be able to keep from spreading around. Too many Awakened in the world, and the internet means that even if one country can silence it, they''d only manage to do so with a complete lockdown on all forms of communication." "Probably best to make preparations," Wyatt says, then looks at me. "You especially, since you''ve only just started doing runs and stuff. People will probably start hoarding stuff soon so you''ll want to get some supplies for yourself stocked up before rationing begins to counter that." "I doubt things will come to rationing," I say. "The Dungeon drought probably won''t last too much longer, and our food supply should be safe for at least a few weeks. I''ll make sure to keep safe, though." "Alright," he says. "Well, I''m going to get going now. See you ''round, Evan!" Adam and Nick bid farewell and leave as well, leaving Ryan and me alone. "I''d still like to make my usual order," he tells me as I open my shop back up. "Since there''s always a chance it''s just a temporary stop and things will be back to normal by Monday." "We can hope," I say. "Let me grab that for you." After I ring up Ryan''s order and he pays for it, he shifts his weight for a few moments. "Is it okay to give you a kiss while you''re working?" "It is." "Okay," he leans over the counter for a kiss. "See you later, Evan." "See you," I return the kiss. Ryan leaves and I pull out a book to read. Today will be either quiet or busy, depending on hunters'' reactions to the knowledge that Dungeons are suddenly no longer available. I''m not sure why my Daily and Weekly Dungeons are still around when others'' aren''t, but I do suspect the drop is only temporary. Not that it''s my business. As long as it doesn''t affect my hobbies and interests, I don''t much care what others do or deal with. Chapter 0016 The discussions this morning and Ryan''s mission yesterday made me think of something. Now that today''s Daily Dungeon of goblins in a cave network is completed and the loot stored back at the house is done, I want to try something. Cole called me while I was eating dinner and offered to bring me my order, so I went to his shop''s website and placed it officially so I could pay that way before he brought it. The bracelets are similar in appearance to the one I''d already purchased and I''m wearing them on my right wrist as well. With them, more options have opened up for me to try and restore the Mythic Forest. Right now, I''m actually kind of wanting to see what the Great Napping Spot looks like, and if it''s really a great place to take naps when it''s fully grown-in. Trying to do that on the dirt¡­ isn''t too fun. After checking to make sure I have everything, I access my gate to the Great Napping Spot, then look around. It''s the same as it was before, but that doesn''t surprise me. The river flowing along Happy Butterfly Hill may have contaminated the soil along it, but that will clear up on its own over time. The area around the Pup Leisure Pond will clear up over time as well, though it might take decades of time within the Mythic Forest. This area doesn''t have a water source yet as far as I can tell so it''s better not to worry about restoring it just yet. That leaves one area to focus on unless I try to gain access to another water source or find a way to bring water to this gentle slope. One thing to take into consideration with the Whispering Life Spring is that even with the life spring beside it, it''s going to take time for it to grow some more. I want to speed that up. All Mythic Forests were reported to be several miles across in size and I can access only three small and one large zone in this one. There''s a significant amount of this land that I don''t have access to yet. Which means there might be caves. Nearly five percent of all Mythic Forests are said to have caves or cave networks where magic crystals grow, including some where an abundance of earth magic crystals can be found. Regardless of what else is going on here, those shouldn''t be affected even with monsters in them. Magic crystals grow from the presence of the related magic as it pools, then concentrates, then crystallizes. The monsters here are weak enough that they probably can''t even affect the mines at the growth rate of the crystals in a Mythic Forest would have. Accessing my gate power, I try to see if I can find mines with crystals. A large amount of resistance pushes at me, which means there probably is some. Does the amount of resistance indicate the distance from my current location? I push through and find myself appearing in the dark, a notification popping up. As I read it, I reach up to a headband I''ve put on and press a button, activating the light magic crystal within it. Pretty much all experienced hunters and scavengers have two of these, in case they end up in the dark. Since I was hoping for this, I made sure to put mine on in advance. The tunnel lights up, showing sparkling crystals all around me even with the visibility of fifteen feet through the fog. They are large and I can feel the immense amount of magic in them. With a wall of fog behind me, I probably won''t be able to see what''s outside but I''m fairly certain it''s dead lands in abundance, just like everywhere I''ve been so far. There might be quite a lot of earth magic crystals here, but I think part of what killed the plants everywhere were monsters trampling them and ripping them out. If that''s the case, then no amount of earth magic crystals in an area will help plants grow ¨C after all, they can''t spread if there''s nothing there. While I can''t see any enemies, I know there are some here due to the message nowfloating in my vision.
Special Quest Initiated!
Slay all of the earthfang spiders within the limited zone.
Slay: 0/7 earthfang spiders Time Limit: None
Reward: 10,000 EXP
Earthfang spiders are roughly the height of a tween boy and have extra-hard chitin bodies. Their webbing is extremely tough and resilient to damage and they''re capable of breaking stone with their legs. The increase to the Quest Reward indicates this might be a little bit challenging, so I want to check to make sure there''s none too close before I start harvesting the earth crystals nearest to me. Even a small harvest of these will help me out with the restoration of the Mythic Forest I have access to. It''s odd that there are only seven of the spiders as they usually live in colonies of about thirty, but the Special Quest only mentions them as the thread. I doubt that would be the case if there were other monsters around. Since the System wants me to eliminate all monsters from the Mythic Forest, I''m sure it would list others if there were more than the spiders. It does seem that the zones each have a single monster type and variation, too, which I find a little bit strange. As I take a step forward, another notification pops up in my vision.
+1 earthfang spider slain
"Uh¡­"
+1 earthfang spider slain
What in the forest? I stand in place and watch as the messages pop up one after another. Every seven or eight seconds, another one appears, until the last of the spiders has been defeated.
Special Quest completed!
+10,000 EXP!
A new area within the Mythic Forest is available to access via your gate: the Sparkly Earth Cave!
That could be the azulvitt wolf and fox pups handling things when considering that Mrow was able to complete a Special Quest for me, but I can''t imagine why they wouldn''t have come to visit me before going to take on the spiders. Something else is going on here, I can feel it. The fog has cleared up to about fifty feet in all directions now, so I walk through the tunnels while remaining alert. This cave network feels familiar to me as I walk and I find myself eventually entering a large cavern where thirty-three web cocoons hang from the ceiling, massive earth magic crystals growing out of the ground, ceiling, and walls of the chamber. Feasting on one of the earthfang spiders is another spider, this one taller than I am with a grey-and-black body and silver eyes and markings on her. Upon seeing me, she gives me a happy wave, then resumes eating. I was right, something else was going on here. The Quest initiated because of my arrival and only registered the monsters still alive at that time. While the remaining spider might be even larger than the ones I was to kill, she''s a mythic-level beast who seems a little on the friendly side rather than a monster. There''s nothing for me to worry about with her. As with when I first examined Mrow, an information window pops up for the surviving spider.
Dreamsoft Spider
Category: Mythical
A mythical-class creature which converts her prey into the finest of silks in a variety of colors.
She jumps down from her food and approaches me as I close the message. I feel no sense of danger from her and when she reaches me, she gives me another wave. A rush of information and awareness enters my mind. An attempt at communication by her, I think. If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation. "Redips?" I ask, and she wiggles her front legs in happiness. "That''s your name?" She wiggles them even more. "Do you mind if I harvest the earth magic crystals from here? The ones growing in these caves are high-quality and can help me in restoring the Mythic Forest." Another attempt at communication by her. "This¡­ isn''t your cave?" I ask, and she nods as more enters my mind. "Oh! You only came here because¡­ of something? Because you could sense Flow doing stuff and wanted to see what was going on. Oh! I get it now." She doesn''t live here but somewhere else, much like Flow and the azulvitt pups. After noticing Flow coming to the Mythic Forest a few times, she decided to visit to see if it had been restored yet. It hasn''t, but she wasn''t going to turn down food as delicious as earthfang spiders. Since this isn''t her lair, she''s not going to try and stop me from taking the crystals. "Alright," I say. "Thanks, Redips." I pull off my pack and pull out my mining tools, then start breaking off chunks of the earth magic crystals to store in my bracelet.
Earth Magic Crystal
Tier: 9
A crystal containing crystallized earth magics. When buried in soil, it bolsters the land''s fertility and boosts the growths and bounties of all nearby plants.
The price on these is roughly two to three times the value of an essence crystal, as befitting of its more specific use and how it''s good for more than just crafting magic items. The description only mentions its benefits to the land but it can be used in magic magic tools, magic weapons, and even act as a focus for spellcasting. Though I am planning on using them for the soil fertility aspect, the same thing which will no doubt drive up their prices beyond that two or three times value over the coming weeks. I use my mining tools by hand at first, but this is far more than I''ve ever mined on my own before so I switch to using [Telekinesis] on the tools. Doing so takes me a few minutes to adjust to but I manage to adapt quickly and begin harvesting the crystals even quicker than before. Once my pack and two new bracelets are packed full of the crystals, I look over to Redips, who''s devouring her sixth earthfang spider. Like Mrow, she''s able to quickly process her food through magic. I don''t see her making her special silk so she''s probably storing it up with her magic, but she''s really going to town on the other spiders. "It was good seeing you, Redips," I tell her as I pull my pack back on, my tools stored away, and the massive spider looks over. "I''m heading out to do some stuff. See you around." She waves to me, then I access my gate to the Whispering Life Springs. The plants here have spread some more and there are a couple of new blackberry bushes, a blueberry bush, and plenty of grasses, herbs, and flowers. The trees have all grown much taller now, and there are a few more trees that have sprouted up in other areas. It''s hard to tell how long it''s been since I was last here as I don''t know the growth rate for many plants and the magics in the water and soil are boosting the growth rates as well, but I do know that this area could use a little bit more help. The amount of earth magic crystals I acquired is lower than what was acquired during the expedition to the mines yesterday the city arranged, but their quality was lower. Ryan told me during lunch that most of the crystals were Tier 2, which they''d expected. That''s still enough to help the city''s crops for six months. While I only acquired around 250 cubic feet of magic crystal rather than closer to three thousand, the quality is Tier 9, or three times as high. The value for those acquired by the expedition was over $110,000,000 in total, while mine is probably around $45,000,000 or so. That''s just a very small fraction of what''s in the caves, though. If I wanted to, I could help the city out a bit with those caves. It would even make me absurdly rich for almost no cost to me. However, I''m sure the city will be fine and that the Dungeons will return, and I''m not really interested in money outside of what lets me continue to run my shop and indulge in my hobbies. Restoring the Mythic Forest so I can see its beauty is more important to me. Why? I can''t really put a reason to it, there''s just a part of me which wants to see it flourish again. I break up the crystals further, into fragments no bigger than an inch, then bury them about four inches deep. I''ve managed to complete about a tenth of the area before a group of azulvitt wolf and fox pups charge in through the fog wall, Flow at the head. "Hey, boys!" I laugh as they tackle me to the ground, jumping on me and licking my face. "It''s good to see you all again!" The pups and I wrestle around and play for a bit and once we''re all out of breath, we relax on the ground, the pups all snuggled up against me. This is pretty soothing and I find myself drifting off to sleep. When I wake, I''m sleeping against Flow in his full size while he watches the pups quietly play. Sitting near the berry bushes is another large azulvitt wolf, this one female. There''s also a large, male azulvitt fox nearby, though he''s not quite as large as the two wolves. In addition to those, there are about four new azulvitt wolf pups, all girls, and three new azulvitt fox pups, all male. Some of the pups are charging toward the bushes right now, and the wolf sitting beside it looks at them and shakes her head a little. It seems like all of the ripe berries have been picked clean and she''s making sure they don''t over-forage. "Hey, everyone," I sit up. At my voice, all of the pups look over and charge toward me. They go to tackle me, except Flow lets out a soft growl, slowing the pups down. "Want to play a game?" I ask, and the pups all tilt their heads at once. I pull a piece of earth magic crystal out of one of my bracelets. "I want to get a bunch of these broken down into pieces about the size of your paws, then buried. But they need to be spread out through this zone. If we can get this done, then the plants here will grow faster and there will be plenty of berries for all." That makes the pups excited, so I pull out more of the crystals and set them down. The pups immediately get to work breaking the crystals apart and running around to bury them. As they work, I can feel Flow''s body shifting up and down a little, and I turn my head to see that he''s silently laughing. "It worked, didn''t it?" I ask, and he shrugs. "Once they''re done, can you take them to the Happy Butterfly Hill? I want to get that area started as well." Flow dips his head to me, then I stand and pull my pack on before warping to my next destination. This area is much too big for just what I have left in my bracelets, so I use one of my tools to mark out an area. With at least some water flowing past it, the soil here''s become a little bit moist and that will let me grow stuff in the zone and not have it all dry out and die off. Most of the area won''t manage well without at least occasional rainfall, but that''s something I can''t handle at the moment so I''ll just do what I can. Just as I finish marking off the area I want treated and removing the earth magic crystals from my bracelets, Flow jumps out of the fog wall on the other side of the river in a long jump that takes him onto the hill. The adult azulvitt fox does the same, and the pups all follow¡­ completely unaware of the river or the need for a long jump to avoid it. Nearly a dozen pups fall into the shallow river and freak out from the shock for a moment before they start playing around. The other adult azulvitt wolf performs the long jump as she exits the fog wall after the pups, landing cleanly on the hill. Flow wanted to mess with the pups and the other adults decided to roll with it. I let them play for a few minutes, then I clap my hands. The pups all run out of the stream and shake themselves off, then hurry over to me. "Same thing as before," I say. "But this time, plant them all around the area within the markings I made in the soil, okay? While you guys do that, I''ll grow some plants. They''ll only be babies so they can''t bear fruit, but this will give more plants and maybe even more berry bushes." The pups all let out happy woofs and yips, then start running around, breaking the crystals and planting them. The adults watch and sometimes nudge them into planting the crystals more spaced out and after I''m satisfied things are going well, I begin using [Grow Plant]. Rather than making a single patch focused around something like I did at the Whispering Life Springs, I create several different patches scattered throughout the marked zone. Some are by the edge of where the river will probably be once it''s full of water, some are further away. This should help it spread more as it grows while I''m gone. "Alright," I say once we''re all done, and the pups run over to me. "Thanks for the help. I''m going to head home and get cleaned up. You all have a good one, alright?" The pups all woof and yip at me in agreement, then I bid farewell to the adults before returning to my shop. I put my gear down and head up to my house to take a shower. Only after that''s done do I check my phone and realize the time. It''s nearly three in the morning and everyone on my contacts list except for Adam is asleep. It seems trying to restore the Mythic Forest is pulling out an old habit of mine. I''ll need to be careful to make sure it doesn''t affect other aspects of my life. Though with how slow business is for my shop even without the Dungeon drought, it wouldn''t hurt to open a little bit later in the day than I already do. I only picked the hours of 8-5 because that seemed to be standard for busier shops. I should head to bed properly now, though maybe Adam would be interested in meeting up and hanging out for a little bit? I''m curious if he''s ever met a mythical beast before. Chapter 0017 Much like yesterday, my Daily and Weekly Dungeons are still available for me to access, though I have confirmation that it isn''t just me. All Awakened under Level 5 who have a crafting-based Class still have access to them. However, the lack of Gates spawning has continued into today. Fortunately for my shop, my Weekly Dungeon was packed with reagents I could use to make both health and mana potions. I can keep my expanded stock of mana potions going, add in some higher-quality ones since they''re from a Rank 5 Level 2 area, and expand my stock on health potions. Some of the additional stock will need to change based on what reagents I was able to acquire this week, but that''s fine. With both my Weekly Dungeon and Daily Dungeon out of the way, I should probably start preparing for my date with Ryan. There are still a few hours before I really need to start preparing for it and I''m not one of those who need to spend hours getting ready. A ten-minute shower to scrub down, then five minutes to get dressed at the most. That''s really all I need. Even if I take a little bit longer, that''s only twenty minutes. Part of me wants to refrain from going into the Mythic Forest to check on things before then just in case I lose track of time, but another part of me really wants to return there today. In the end, I decide to return once I finish unloading my loot from today. With my pack pulled back on, I access my gate and enter the Whispering Life Spring. None of the mythical beasts are here right now, but that might change shortly. I pull off my pack and set it down in a grassy spot as I examine the area. It''s now lush and filled with life around the pond. More than a dozen berry bushes have grown, the trees have gotten much larger, several more trees have grown, and some of them have fruit on them. The area around the stream has grown well, too, and I can see a few trees growing or grown in the space at its edges and toward the fog wall that runs along the stream. The added growth doesn''t seem to be as strong after about a hundred feet down the stream and fades away completely after awhile, but that means that there''s been enough growth here that the plants would have gone past the fog wall around the spring itself if they could. This isn''t just from time that''s passed but a mixture of the waters from the spring keeping the water moist, the magic in the soil helping provide additional nutrients and boosting growth, and the earth magic crystals from last night boosting growth. Some of the things here, I can immediately recognize as magical in nature as well. Those are plants that I didn''t grow with [Grow Plant] but which grew from the magics here. This will help my shop regardless of what happens with the Dungeons, though that wasn''t my intention. I walk over to one of the bushes and examine one of the berries on it. The berry''s golden in color and resembles a cross between a strawberry and a raspberry.
[Regeniberry]
Tier: 8
A berry which heals those who consume it and restores a small amount of HP over time after consumption.
Potency: 1,024 HP
Regeneration: 256 HP per second
Duration: 8 seconds
This is a rarer form of healing item and the higher its Tier, the vastly more potent it becomes. Its base is 8-12 HP, but that range is doubled each Tier up it goes. For the regenerative effect, it''s 2-6 HP per second, doubled each Tier up it goes. Its regeneration effect lasts 1-3 seconds per Tier of the berry as well, so this one hit the minimum on all three aspects of its effects. If it ripens a little bit more, however, those will be even greater. I can use this to produce potions that don''t have as strong of an assumed effect based on reagents, but with a regeneration factor which lasts even longer. A fresh Rank 5 might appreciate being able to recover 500 HP per second for 60 seconds over a potion which restores 3,000 HP at once and 300 HP per second for 30 seconds. The real use for that would be in Dungeons of lower Categories. They''re limited to only Category 5-1 Dungeons from that set, but they can be used in more ranks of the lower Categories. A Category 4-2 Dungeon is roughly as dangerous as a Rank 5-1 one, for example. Maybe a little bit less so. That said, I can''t use these alone to make such potions, so I''ll need to wait until I can acquire other reagents. Considering the nature of this spring, that probably won''t be too long. The plant growth has reached the fog wall now and those look like newer growth plants. Once they grow in, they might contain more items I can use. Some of the herbs growing around the spring might be useful for me, though. Before I can begin looking at those, a notification appears in my vision.
A Special Quest is available!
Slay all of the goblins in the special zone.
Reward: 10,000 EXP Time Limit: 1 hour
That''s a higher reward than when it popped up the same Special Quest for the Great Napping Spot. Either there are stronger monsters there, more monsters there, or it''s another location altogether. One thing I do know is that I have time to clean up the goblins and still be ready for my date, based on that time limit requirement. Which actually makes me suspect that they''re stronger beasts. I doubt the System would give me a Quest beyond my ability, so I accept it and immediately find myself in a pretty curious area. I''m now standing in front of a curved fog wall with about two hundred feet between it and a fog wall in the center. Said second fog wall starts off circular, but I can see from here that it gains a straight aspect that stretches all the way to the edge of here. Looking at that, I realize that the outer fog wall matches that design for a few hundred feet, before curving to meet up with the inner one. Based on the designs of the fog walls, the dimensions of the inner one, and what I was just looking at, this is probably the space outside of the Whispering Life Spring. The System has registered that the growth there is enough that it''s time to clean up the monsters around that zone and let the forest begin growing in more. According to the Special Quest, there are only a hundred goblins here.
Slay all of the goblins within the special zone.
Slay all goblins: 0/100 Time Limit: 1 hour
I step through the barrier and begin casting [Magic Missile], the spell punching straight through the nearest goblin''s head when it fires. These goblins¡­ they''re the same strength as the ones from my initial Awakening Quest, aren''t they? That means this is even easier than I expected. So why the higher EXP reward? By the time the last of the goblins here have fallen, I''ve come to a conclusion about the Special Quest: the higher EXP reward is because it''s to expand flourishing area around the Whispering Life Spring. For whatever reason, the System considers doing something for that purpose to be worthy of a higher reward. Rather than teleporting me away when I slay the last of the goblins here, there''s simply a notification appearing in my vision, a Mrow popping up out of the ground, and the inner fog wall vanishing, revealing the Whispering Life Spring just as I''d expected.
Special Quest completed!
+10,000 EXP
"Mrow, wait," I say as it goes to eat a goblin. "I want to harvest the essence crystals." If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. Mrow looks at me, then swallows the goblin. I should have collected them while I was slaying the goblins, except I didn''t want to have to deal with them potentially attacking me while I did that. The assumption I had was that since I was already in here, I''d just be teleported into the Whispering Life Spring and could return before Mrow showed up. "Mrow¡­" I guess he doesn''t want to wait. "Can you at least dump the soil near to the plants?" I ask. "I want the fertilized soil closer to it. The stuff here''s still pretty dead." Even in the section right beside the fog wall. Either that prevents stuff from spreading out, or the monsters were somehow affecting it. Mrow slides over to the former boundary and as it passes by, releases the fertile soil. I should probably start harvesting essence crystals, except he''ll be faster at grabbing them than me and the essence crystals aren''t a necessity for me. As the lifeseed finishes depositing the soil, a sparkly green crystal pops out. "You can separate the crystals?" I ask Mrow, who nods. "Oh! Thanks, buddy. Can you do that from now on?" Mrow nods, then returns to work. It amazes me that even without [Animal Communication] at only Level 1, the mythical beasts seem to be able to understand me just fine¡­ as long as they have words and terms that mean the same thing. Chances are, they can understand people on their own and so my Skill only needs to work for me to understand them. I walk back to the spring and kneel beside it to inspect one of the herbs. It''s leafy and resembles a cross between basil and a poppy, with a pair of circular leaves, inside of which grows more ovular in alternating pairs. The veins of the leaves are golden in color and shimmer faintly in the grey light of the Mythic Forest.
[Nullileaf]
Tier: 8
An herb which nullifies toxins within those who ingest them.
Potency: 63
At Tier 8, they''ll have a potency of 56-96, or significantly higher than what someone could reasonably expect to encounter in a Dungeon. It''s one of the very few herbs which can survive in areas with extremely high levels of magical energy, however, which means that it''s a crucial ingredient for potions intended for those going into the most dangerous Dungeons. I can dilute its effect down to a more reasonable amount and extend its use to more than one potion. That will help it last for my shop. Just the two plants I''ve examined alone have already confirmed that the more this forest returns, the more powerful and rare brews I''ll be able to make. This is a Mythic Forest, a realm which grows the most powerful and rarest of reagents. Long before I have access to its full two or three miles of space, I might be one of the few shops in the entire city which can brew potions for the most powerful of Awakened. Which isn''t really my goal, it''s just a bonus. My goal is the same as what the System seems to want: to bring this Mythic Forest back to life. If I''m right and all of the Mythic Forests have ended up in this state, the System might even have others doing this for those. Not that anyone has talked about it, if so. I''ve looked on the net and there''s not a peep about anyone having access to a dead Mythic Forest. They might be like me and just haven''t told anyone, or it''s possible I''m the first to be given this and the System wants to focus on one Mythic Forest at a time. "Hey, Flow," I say as the pup walks over, then plops himself beside me. "Leaving the pups with the others?" The azulvitt wolf gives a quiet and tired woof, then laps up some of the water from the pond. "I''m not sure if the earth magic from the crystals is used up or not," I tell him. "But as you can see, the good area around the pond has cleared up a bit. Next time I''ve got plenty of time, we''ll get more from the Sparkly Earth Cave and get the pups to break and bury them so this place can grow a bit more." The help from the pond probably won''t stretch too much further so the growth will likely be slower further out, but I''m sure it will water at least to the new boundaries. Past that might be tricky, but I''m not sure how to get rain to start happening. I do still want to try as much as I can, though. I''m sure the water problem will fix itself after awhile. The next step might be to work on opening up more water sources, if I can. That should begin the condensation cycle in full for here. While this place is its own little realm, I''m sure there is a rain cycle that happens. It''s not a Dungeon so it doesn''t just disappear after it''s used, it continues to exist when people aren''t inside. "Hey," I rub the wolf''s head after he woofs again. "Are they at the leisure pond or the hill?" The impressions and images I get from him indicate that the others are the Pup Leisure Pond right now and he came to take a break. "Alright," I say. "Working on the plants for there will be part of the next batch of crystal planting sessions." He gives me another woof, then I check on more of the plants, plucking an apple from a tree to munch on as I do. The apple''s not a magical one, though I''m sure a magical apple tree will grow in at some point. "Hey, Mrow?" I say after I finish the apple, and the lifeseed worm looks over from where it''s processing a goblin. "Catch!" I flick my wrist and send the apple core to him, and the lifeseed worm darts forward, snapping it out of the air. "Thanks, bud," I pull on my pack. "I''m going to the Happy Butterfly Hill now, you two. I''ll see you later." I access my gate there and find the hill covered in grasses, flowers, bushes, and a couple of trees. The entire zone hasn''t flourished like the former smaller zone of the Whispering Life Spring, but the section I had the earth magic crystals planted in is full of life now. That''s extended out about twenty to thirty feet past that as well. Another new creature has appeared. This one looks like a wolf pup as well, with night-black fur covered in gold and silver sparkles reminiscent of the night sky. His paws, the tips of his ears, and the tip of his tail are all silver in color at first, but become gold at their very tips and on his toes. Unlike mythical creatures, his eyes are amethyst in color. The way he jumped upon noticing me, I definitely startled him a fair bit. He''s at one of the bushes, eating the blackberries growing on it. There''s quite a bit of the juices on his maw and plenty of the berries missing. While he''s clearly not a mythic beast and he''s not any type of magic creature I''m aware of, I get the feeling he''s not a monster. "Don''t eat all of them," I tell him as I walk over. "You''ll make yourself sick, and you''ll over-forage, too. Leave some for others, and don''t eat the unripe ones." The pup sighs and I scoop up him, realizing that he seems to be extremely sticky not just around the mouth and paws, but even a little in his fur. With him not being a monster yet being here, I''m sure his fur isn''t supposed to be coarse, either, so that might be from stuff that got stuck in the stickiness. He struggles for a moment before giving up, allowing me to carry him over to the stream. "Let''s clean you off," I tell him, and he huffs. "Don''t be like that, Aster. Always a messy boy, aren''t you?" Aster groans as I realize that once again, I''ve picked up a creature''s name without realizing it. I didn''t inspect him yet so I do that as I set him by the water.
Aster
Category: Messy
Make sure he cleans at least once every fullest moon or he might get very sticky. Make sure he''s not sticky when he climbs on you. Keep honey out of his reach. Lick extra well if he gets into it.
"Um¡­" That seems more like someone''s personal notes on Aster. The licking bit is particularly telling, but the part about keeping honey out of his reach is as well. The way it''s worded seems less professional and more like notes. Which implies that there''s something which uses the System as a note system¡­ and they can edit informational windows. Whatever that being is, I''m sure they''ll come to me on their own at some point. "Get in the stream," I tell Aster as I set down my pack and start undressing. "You need a good scrubbing." Aster huffs and I finish undressing, then sit in the shallows of the stream and pull the pup over to me. I try washing him off with just the waters here, but the sticky stuff is apparently dried on and not from fresh berry juices. It seems I''ll need soap to clean him with. How does his fur not look sticky and covered in dirt and probably other stuff? It looks extremely clean despite the state it''s clearly in when touched. "Alright," I pull him out of the stream, then stuff all of my things into one of my bracelets. "We''re going somewhere else to clean you off. You are super sticky and need soap." I pick up the sticky pup and access my gate. While I''m sure I can use it to bring others with me, I''m not completely certain about that. It''s called a "gate", however, and that''s why I suspect I can. Rather than using it to return to my workshop, I focus on my home. There''s nothing that says I have to return to the exact spot I left and I don''t want to dry off only to get back into the shower. There''s a little bit of resistance from the gate, but I find myself in my bathroom at home, Aster still held against my chest. "Whooooa." "What was that?" I look at the pup. "Woof!" I narrow my gaze at him. He just said "whoa". Then again, it could just be a similar sound since it''s mostly just an exhaling of breath. "Alright, sticky boy," I say. "Let''s get you cleaned up." Chapter 0018 "How many more times do I need to scrub you?" I ask Aster, who woofs in response. I''ve thoroughly scrubbed his fur five times and the water still isn''t running clear at the end of the scrubbing. Aster tries to run to another part of the shower, tail wagging, but I grab him and pull him back to where I''m sitting. Sometimes, having a shower big enough for several people to fit inside can be a bad thing, and I''m learning that now that I''m attempting to clean a magical pup that wants to dash back and forth under the water. It''s a waterfall-style shower, which is part of why I gave it so much space when I had the house built. From the impressions the wolf has given me, he loves playing in waterfalls as well¡­ which apparently isn''t enough to clean off his fur. Sighing, I squeeze more shampoo into my hand and start scrubbing it into the wolf''s fur. He sits and lets out a soft rumble noise that gives me an impression of contentment. As much as he wants to run back and forth under the water, he also likes getting scrubbed like this. "Give me a paw," I say, and scrub the paw he offers to me. "And another. Alright, time for a back paw. And the other. And your ears. Now let''s do your tail. Flip onto your back so I can do your tummy." The soap still turns a little bit brown from this, but not very much. I rinse him off, then scrub him a seventh time, the bubbles remaining the pale green-white they normally are this time and the water runs clear when it comes off of him. "Alright," I scratch behind his ears. "You can do your thing while I clean myself, now." I clean myself off and rinse, then step out and dry myself off before shutting off the water and letting Aster out. He tries to charge out but I catch him in a towel and start drying him. The small wolf lets out a soft rumble as I do that and I can feel the happiness in his mind. Either he''s aware that I have [Animal Communication] or he''s able to do some degree of that kind of communication with a person on his own. Either way, he''s definitely making sure I can tell that he''s enjoying this. With both of us clean and toweled-off, I use my hairdryer to finish the job for my hair, then use it to finish drying Aster. "Alright," I say as I hang up my towel. "I''m going to get dressed, then I''ll take you back to the Mythic Forest, okay?" Aster woofs, runs in a circle, then vanishes. He can teleport? Why is this a surprise to me? The Mythic Forest is a limited space that seemed to be completely dead, yet the azulvitt pups were able to show up, Redips came to visit, and even Aster appeared. Mythical creatures ¨C and whatever sort of beast Aster is ¨C can clearly come and go from it as they please. Just as I go to exit my bedroom, Aster reappears with a blackberry in his teeth. He shows it off to me, then swallows it. That seems to be him letting me know he can go there on his own, and it seems that there wasn''t a large time difference in the fifteen seconds he was gone. "No making a mess in my house," I tell him. At least he''s not sticky again. I reach down and rub his very soft, silky fur to confirm that. All he did while gone was grab the berry and return. If I''m right, then the time he spent there probably matches up with the time here. The same as when I''m there. Time seems to pass at the same rate between the two while I''m in the Mythic Forest even if it''s faster there when I''m here. I really want to know what''s going on, but I don''t think I''ll receive an answer to that anytime soon. The fact that time seemed to match up when Aster was gone only adds to the mystery. What happened to the Mythic Forests, how monsters can survive there without food, why their mana levels are so low, why time passes at inconsistent rates between the two places, how the mythical creatures can come and go as they please¡­ those are all things I want to learn the answers to. Hopefully one day, I''ll receive those answers. For now, I should prepare for my date. For it, I select a pair of purple boxer-briefs, over which I pull on black jeans. After I slip on some black socks and a pair of sneakers, I pull on a grey t-shirt, then a light purple short-sleeved button-up, which I leave unbuttoned. It''s my usual outfit, except with black jeans instead of blue. I always match my underwear to my shirts. While this is a date, it''s not one with a formal dress code. I let Ryan plan it out so I don''t know what we''re doing aside from nothing requiring formal wear. Ryan''s already assured me of that, but I already suspected it before then. Everyone I''ve gone on dates with, whether in just the early stages or who I progressed to exclusive status with, has preferred dates that are more casual rather than fancy. Most of the people I''ve hooked up with long-term was the same way as well, even if we never went on dates. As I finish dressing, there''s a knock on the door. A quick look at the time reveals it''s six-thirty, or time for Ryan to be here. When I answer the door, I find Ryan dressed in black jeans, a tight-fitting blue-grey shirt, and sneakers. His hair''s been slightly styled and those orange eyes of his fill with happiness upon seeing me. We''re both dressed about the same as normal, but I don''t mind that. Ryan''s wearing a trio of storage bracelets, just as I''m still wearing mine. This is my first time seeing his in-person, though. A quick glance shows they''re each three-cube, but a much higher rank at Tier 250. They''re intended not just for his Category 5-3 Dungeons but potentially for Category 5-4 ones as well, based on that quality Tier. He can''t survive in a Dungeon that difficult due to its ambient mana, but it seems he''s preparing for it now that he''s nearing that Level. "Hey," Ryan says, then quickly pulls me in for a hug and a quick kiss. "Sorry¡­ was that too fast?" "No," I return the kiss. "Just surprised me for a moment." "Okay," he gives me another hug, then steps back. "Do you want to know what I planned, or-" "Woof!" Aster greets him. "You tamed something?" Ryan asks, looking down at the pup. "Did you leave town?" Monsters in Daily and Weekly Dungeons can''t be tamed, only ones from the wild or normal Dungeons. Since Dungeons have stopped spawning, leaving town is the only route he''d know about for me to tame something. "No," I answer. "I''m not quite sure what he is, but his name''s Aster. He was pretty sticky when I found him so I cleaned him up and told him he was good to go, but he just left and came right back." "Woof!" Aster confirms. "Ah," Ryan looks at Aster again, then at me. "I''m okay with him coming with us if you are." "Sure," I say. "I think he''d follow us, anyway." "Woof!" I wait for Aster to exit my house, then I close and lock the door. "Do you want to know where we''re going?" Ryan asks. "Or would you prefer to be surprised?" "I don''t mind either way," I tell him. "Just as long as I''m not party to anything illegal." "We can walk to the first place," he says. "And the weather''s nice. Do you mind doing that?" This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it. I checked the weather earlier and there''s no forecast for rain, just a clear and sunny rest of the day and a clear night. Considering I don''t see Ryan''s truck here, I''d probably have to be the one to drive if we didn''t. While I don''t mind that, I also don''t mind going for a walk. "Not at all," I say. "Let''s go." Ryan and I begin walking with me on his right, and he slips his right hand into my left as we walk. "How''d your day go?" He asks. "Did you get your Dungeons done? I heard that it''s all with a crafting-based Class who''s under Level 5 who still have access to their Daily and Weekly Dungeons." "I did," I tell him. "Can restock my shop tomorrow and add some extras. There''s enough reagents to make potions for resisting the cold, and I was able to put in an order to get scrolls so I can make [Scroll of Flamethrower]s, too. There won''t be too much of a market with those right now, but scrolls last a lot longer than potions before losing their effects." "Some of those who can handle Category 5-2s have a job they''re being asked for," he tells me. "They''re leaving on Wednesday, and it''s to an area with a lot of plant monsters. That might actually be useful for them. They''ll need something for the earth-based monsters as well, but I know the bureau''s looking into a supplier." "You''re one being called?" I ask. "No," he answers. "Adam, Kelsey, and Wyatt are among those called for it, though, and we all talk with each other." "Ah," I say. "What''s your favorite part about being an Awakened?" "Honestly?" He asks. "Yeah." "Getting to kill monsters." "Seriously?" I ask. "Yeah," he chuckles. "I honestly love the thrill of getting to take down strong beasts that put up a decent fight. Not dominating a fight with absolute superiority ¨C though that part''s not bad ¨C but when I find myself actually challenged when facing off against a monster. "That''s not all I like it for, though," he says. "I like seeing the different environments, especially the ruins. Not as much as taking down tough monsters, but it''s still nice. Most of those are clearly not human ones, so it makes one wonder: are they based on civilizations from other worlds? I like seeing their designs, even if I don''t quite understand their language. It''s taking me awhile to learn it." "We''re not alone out there," I say. "The mythical-level beasts supposedly have their own realm, but I don''t think that counts. Some of the ancient texts I''ve read, though, indicate there are others. And when the designs of ruins are looked at more closely, we can actually group them into nine categories." "Really?" "Yeah," I answer. "Mostly by which reagents can be found growing in them. They can be divided into nine distinct groups based on this, with each group having three to five different architecture styles for a total of thirty-nine unique styles." "Seriously?" "Yeah," I answer. "Manapples, for example, can only be found in two of the nine groups. Emberries can only be found in one of them, and only in two of the different architecture styles for ruins. Using reagents-based data, they''re able to guess which of the nine groups Dungeons without ruins fit into." "Huh," he says. "I never noticed there were similarities like that." "How often do you actually pay attention to the loot you get from them?" "Not much," he answers. "So I guess that''s probably why. I can usually guess that there''s going to be certain things there based on some of the monsters, though. I take it even they fit into the groups?" "Yeah," I answer. "Goblins show up in all nine of them, but minotaurs only show up in one. It doesn''t get taught at the academies, though, as the notices at Gates tells you the environment and general monster type." "Which gives people information before even entering what they need to prepare for," he says. "We''re going left here. It also doesn''t really matter what loot a Dungeon has when we go in, since either we or the scavengers grab pretty much everything. I take it the groupings are mostly used for those who study them?" "Yeah," I answer. "Does it affect other sorts of loot?" He asks. "Such as the ancient tomes? You read plenty of those." "It does," I confirm. "Generally speaking, which of the groups and subgroups Dungeons fit into have similarities in the contents of the texts found within. However, the majority of ancient tomes come in one language, and most of the text in the ruins are written in it as well. From time to time, there''s one written in another language. They''ve logged a total of more than fifty unique languages found in Dungeons over the last several centuries." Some of them have so little text and context clues that could be used to understand what they say. They''ve only managed to start interpreting eleven of the languages outside of the one commonly referred to as the ancient tongue. "What do you think about them?" He asks. "Think they''re based copies of parts of other worlds? That''s the theory I''ve heard the most." "They could be," I say. "I''ve heard some theories that they might actually be portions of other worlds that are sectioned off and reused after said worlds fell to their own monsters." "I''ve heard that theory, too," he says. "But since they all use the same language¡­ that doesn''t seem too plausible." "Unless some external force is altering things to make them more uniform," I say. "And the exception are just the ones which slipped through the cracks. But honestly? I think it''s more that the System is generating the Dungeons based on various civilizations throughout the universe, but not as copies or segments." "How come?" "Just a feeling," I shrug. "Nothing concrete. With the languages that don''t match into the ancient one, it could just be the System attempting to give us a little bit that''s ''from'' those civilizations it''s borrowing from. Why? I don''t know. Are we going to Greenmarket?" That''s not the official name for the location, but it''s what most people call it. I can see it from here, three rows of canopy tents set up near the edge of the large park in our district. The tents themselves are provided by the city while the vendors vary from day to day, with the tents being rented out with a permit. Most of the vendors are selling food, either fresh fruits and vegetables or to-go foods, while others sell trinkets, handmade crafts, and the like. The two outer rows of canopies face inward, while the middle row is two rows put together, facing toward the outer tents. With two walking paths between them and dozens of stalls, there are plenty of things to look at there. It''s often a busy market at peak hours and with the time being close to quarter ''till seven, there are plenty of people there right now. Not enough to be cramped, though. Most of them are parents taking their kids for an evening trip to the park and stopping in for food or to look at what goods can be found right now. This might be his dinner plan for tonight, which is a pretty decent one. Even if the food vendors can change day-to-day, there''s always something good. As for its unofficial name, that''s partly because of the greenery around it, and partly because the covers for the tents are all green in color. "Greenmarket" is used for it enough that I doubt most people even know that''s not its real name. "Hope you don''t mind," Ryan tells me. "You''ve mentioned it a few times before and they do often have good food." "They do," I agree. "Let''s see what they have." We enter Greenmarket and look at the different stalls, until one catches my attention. They sell a circular to-go plate which comes with a portion of meat, a portion of rice, and a portion of salad. The meat''s a marinated beef, while the rice is plain and the salad is leafy but with some other veggies sliced into it into either chunks or thin strips. "Hey, Thomas," I greet the man in his mid-forties working the station. "Hey, Evan," he says. "How''s it going?" "Not bad," I say. "How about you?" "Not too bad, not too bad," he glances around, then watches as a nearby visitor walks away, leaving enough space for him to say something quietly. "Have you heard about what''s going on with Dungeons?" Thomas mainly uses meat from magical beasts hunted either in Dungeons or outside, though he''ll use ones from ranches within the city if he can''t source from monsters. "I have," I answer. "I''m guessing it''s affecting your supply?" "A little bit," he says. "I''m using varyihn beef from a Dungeon this week but once it''s gone, I''ll have to resort to the ranch-grown bulls for awhile unless the external hunts are good. Prices are going to go up soon on everything else." Varyihn beef comes from minotaurs, so I''m surprised he was able to get his hands on a batch of it since I''m sure the demand on it was pretty high. Minotaur beef is difficult to come by even when Dungeons are at a normal rate and it''s a good quality with a nice flavor. He wouldn''t lie to me about the origins so I know it''s true. "Might be one of the ones I took out the other day," Ryan tells me. "Oh?" Thomas looks at Ryan. "You a hunter, then? I wanted some of the beef from a particularly rare minotaur that was in there but alas, all of that beef was bought up by others before I could get my hands on it. The price was a bit too high for me, anyway." "I am," Ryan pulls out his phone and calls up the photo he took of him posed with the minotaur. "That''s me after taking down a rare specimen the other day." "Nice, nice," Thomas says. "Do you boys want something?" Ryan and I don''t need to get food from the same vendor and I do like supporting Thomas. It''s been awhile since I had something from his stall here. "Sure," I tell him, then look at Ryan. "No need to get the same thing as me, if you want something else." "It''s fine," he says. "I''m open to trying it. Two plates, please." "Wait, no, I can pay-" "I''m paying," Ryan says as Thomas gets to work preparing our plates. "That''s $20," Thomas says after packaging it up. "You want them in a bag?" "No, thanks," Ryan tells him as he inserts his card into the reader. Thomas finishes the transaction, then hands us the plates and a receipt. "Enjoy your food," Thomas says. "It was good seeing you again, Evan." "You as well," I say. "And good luck with your stock." Ryan and I leave Greenmarket and start looking for somewhere to eat, eventually settling on a table near the small lake within the park. It''s got a good view of the water, which has a small flock of ducks swimming on it near to the shore and a few kids are playing in the shallow part of it while their parents watch from nearby tables. Chapter 0019 "That was pretty good," Ryan says as he grabs our trash to throw away. "I haven''t tried his stall before, but I''ll make sure I do again." "He knows what he''s doing," I agree. "He sometimes gets a permit to go to longer-duration Dungeons to set up for when the hunters and scavengers to come out." Obtaining one of those permits isn''t easy. If the bureau is going to authorize a food stall at a Gate because of how long the run could end up being, they''ll make sure there are high standards for it. Hunters who just spent six to twelve hours in a Dungeon will often be on the agitated side and will want good food. The bureau will prioritize that over someone just wanting to make money. Unlike some hunter agencies in the world, ours tries to take care of its Awakened and make sure they''re happy, within reason. Making sure they have good food after a long day of hunting is one of those things that are considered to be within reason. I think there are only four restaurants and meal vendors in this district able to get such a permit. "That''s pretty impressive," Ryan looks over to the lake as he dumps our trash into a can. "Going to call Aster?" Aster took off while we were eating and is playing with some of the kids in the lake, happily barking and chasing after them, splashing around with them. Some of them had one of those small fabric pool balls that they''re using to play keep-away with Aster right now. "He''s neither my pet nor my familiar," I say. "All I did was clean him up because of how sticky he was. If he wants to do other stuff, it''s not my place to stop him." "Are you sure it''s safe?" "He''s not a monster," I shrug. "And he is a rather powerful beast. If he wants to do something, I can''t actually stop him." While I don''t know exactly what the pup is, he''s able to come and go from the Mythic Forest as he pleases. That alone indicates he''s likely something very powerful ¨C on the level of a mythical beast at a minimum. Then there''s the fact that something able to edit the System''s informational windows did so for him just to make notes about his behavior. Not even the mythical beasts I''ve come across so far have had their information changed. "Plus," I add. "I already told him to go home after I cleaned him off and he left and came back. And he can teleport." "Seriously?" "Seriously." "Damn," Ryan says. "I guess it''s fine. You won''t get into trouble if he does something, will you?" "He''s neither my pet nor my familiar," I say. "So I don''t hold responsibility." Technically. I''m certain Aster will be fine, though, so there''s nothing for me to worry about. "If you''re sure," Ryan looks hesitant. "Anyway, our next stop is this way. Come on." We resume walking and he takes my hand into his again as we do. This walk is a bit quieter and we enjoy the scenery as we go. With limited ability to enjoy nature in the wild, most of the cities across the globe include a decent amount of nature within them. Trees lining the center of the streets, with bushes and flowers and grasses between them. More flora planted along the sides of the streets adds to the view while providing additional homes for insects such as butterflies, which can be seen fluttering around as we walk. It doesn''t take us long to reach our next destination, as it''s a large stone building facing the park. The library/bookstore combination was built with the intention of allowing people a quick path to somewhere scenic to read their books so they built it at the park''s edge, facing part of the forested area with walking trails and part of the small lake. The section of road in front of it never had trees planted there to allow for the park view, though the other flora still remains. "Here?" I ask as Ryan starts to lead me up the steps to the grand building. "Yeah," Ryan says. "Come on." We enter the library and start to pass by the front desk, but I stop to greet the worker there. "Hello, Cynthia," I say. She''s in her late forties, and has grey-touched blue hair and blue eyes, while dressed in the green polo and khakis of the store''s uniform. I''ve been coming here long enough that most of the staff knows me by name, and I don''t want to ignore her just because I''m on a date. "Hey, Evan," the clerk greets me. "What brings you in tonight?" "Me," Ryan answers. "We''re heading into the bookstore section to look at some books." Please don''t let this be him wanting to buy me something. "Oh," she says. "That''s nice. By the way, who''s this?" Rather than looking at Ryan, she''s looking at Aster, who Ryan only now notices has rejoined us. The pup is dry once more, so he probably used his magic to dry himself off after leaving to rejoin us. Either that, or someone at the park did. "This is Aster," I pick the pup up. "He''s not a pet or familiar, he''s just following me around this evening. Aster, say ''hi''." The library and bookstore permit pets and familiars within reason and as long as they''re well-behaved. Aster fits into neither of those categories, but I''m sure they''ll be fine with him. "Woof!" Aster wags his tail. "He''s cute," she says. "Reminds me of a beast in one of our books." "A beast?" I ask. "Yes," she nods. "I don''t remember much about it, you''d have to ask one of the employees. The one I''m thinking of is a bear, but he has a similar coloration and markings as it." There are far more texts here than I''d ever manage to read in a lifetime, so I''m not surprised there are creatures I haven''t read about. If the other one isn''t from an ancient tome, I''m even less likely to have heard about it. "I''ll check that out, thanks," I tell her. "No problem," she says. "Good luck with your search." I set Aster down, then Ryan and I pass through the library with its shelves, tables, and seats. We pass by a desk at the back section of it and into the actual bookstore section, which has considerably fewer tables and seats. Though we''re wearing storage bracelets, no one attempts to stop us as we walk. As with basically every shop that deals in anything remotely magical, the building has powerful enchantments on it. Some of them completely block a person''s ability to access a pocket space such as in our bracelets or the [Dimensional Storage] Skill, so they don''t need to ask us to leave the bracelets behind. No one would want to, considering their value. If something went missing ¨C or the bracelet was never returned ¨C it would cause a massive legal headache. "I''ve been trying to learn the ancient language," Ryan tells me. "And while I''ve picked up some, I was curious if there''s anything you''d recommend I get. No limit on this." "You want your first date with me to be help getting books?" "First official date," he says. "We''ve had the little lunch dates. But yeah. It''s something which interests both of us, right?" The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation. "Sure," I say. "Are you good with getting three books, or just one?" What I would recommend differs based on that, with the three books being the superior option. "Whatever you think is best," he answers. "Alright," I say. "Let''s go over here." I lead him to some shelves and scan the titles before tapping on the spine of one. It has a deep blue cover with text in both English and the ancient tongue on it announcing it as a translation guide for the two. The tome''s fairly thick and is one of three copies on the shelf, all of which have a label beneath them announcing their price as $150. While it''s fairly high in price compared to more normal languages, that''s because of just how much is involved in even writing a proper guide for it. A $5 book won''t cut it and even the cheapest version of this costs $50. "Do you have this one?" I ask. "No," he answers. "I do have a translation guide they recommended me, though." "They probably recommended that one," I point at a book several titles down. "Generally-speaking, that one''s better for newbies. I prefer this one as a recommendation though even if it''s more in-depth. Plus, you''re smart enough to understand it." I pull it off the shelf and hand it him, then take him to another section, where children''s stories are stored. We pass by the normal children''s stories and enter a section with replicas and imitations of ancient tomes, both in their original language and translated. For ancient texts which have a little bit higher of a demand and cheaper production cost, they''ll sell them in a normal store rather than require them to be specially-ordered. This is especially true for ones which have been out for longer. Some of the tomes here aren''t actually copies but compilations of stories taken from various tomes. I look through the various tomes until I find what I''m looking for. "These two," I indicate two nearly-identical tomes. Their covers are the same, bound in snow-white leather with silver caps and deep blue writing. One is written in English, the other in the ancient tongue. Their price to purchase is $1,300 each so it might be a little bit more than he''s willing to spend, but if it is, then he''ll probably let me know the limit on that and I can make choices accordingly. The reason I''m picking them instead of a cheaper pair is because I do feel they''re better for those learning the ancient tongue over most of the cheaper ones. While their stories were compiled from various texts found in different Dungeons over the course of centuries, this latest edition including a new story discovered last year, the writing is pretty similar between each tale. That makes it easier to pick up the patterns and words when reading. "They''re children''s stories about a kingdom of frost," I explain. "Each featuring one or more of five beings: a frostwing falcon, an icesoul wolf, a winter leopard, a snowstice tree, and a young boy." "It looks pretty thick," he says. "It is," I tell him. "There are thirty-four stories in it and five hundred fifty-nine folios in the version with the ancient tongue, which is forty-six folios longer than the translated text." "Folio?" Ryan frowns. "Front and back of a page," I tell him. "Each sheet. The average story length is around eight folios, or sixteen sheets, and usually contains an image on every page pair that takes up either all or a significant part of a page, to go with the story that''s being told. These were also designed to imitate the style of the ancient texts, though they of have some at a lower price point if you don''t want the replica method." "I don''t mind that," Ryan says. "I''ll take them if you think they''ll be good." "They will," I pull the tomes off the shelf and set them onto the one he''s already carrying. "If you can read a story in both languages, it''ll help you learn the one you don''t know." "Since I''ll be able to see what it''s supposed to be," he says. "Instead of needing to constantly look it up." "Right," I say. "Also, those four creatures are all mythical beasts. The boy isn''t, and is usually portrayed as being around ten or eleven. In his tales, he usually gets help from one of the four while their tales might only include them and no people." "That sounds neat," he says. "Let''s look for something for you now. Want to see about that text the clerk mentioned?" Since he said we''re getting something for me, the implication is that he''s going to buy it for me as well. "You don''t need to do that," I tell him. "I know," he says. "You can pay me back by reading some of these stories to me." "Alright," I chuckle. "I''d do that anyway." "I know," he winks. "Let''s find an employee." "There''s one in the next aisle," I say. "I can hear them stocking shelves." We walk around the aisle to find a worker in her fifties, her hair completely grey, though her orange eyes are still full of energy. "Hey, Abigail," I say. "Good evening, Evan," she greets me, then looks at Ryan. "It''s Ryan, right? You were in here the other day looking for a book on the azulvitt fox, right?" I raise an eyebrow at Ryan, who gives me a sheepish look. "After I left your shop last Friday," he tells me. "Since I''d found an ancient text that had a similar creature, I figured maybe I could learn a little bit about it. But that one wasn''t listed as available yet, and you were reading about a similar creature, so I figured I''d see if I could get a copy made. Learned I had to order it." "Ah," I say. "Did you?" "Yeah," he answers. "It should arrive in a few weeks according to the tracker." "They do take time," I nod. "How can I help you boys today?" Abigail asks. "I see you''ve already found some books. Learning to read the ancient tongue?" "Yeah," Ryan answers. "Evan''s recommended these to me for it." "Not a bad choice," she says. "Did you have any questions?" "Yeah," I point at Aster. "This little guy''s following me around, and Cynthia mentioned you guys have a book with a similar creature, but she wasn''t sure which one. The beast was a bear, though." "A bear¡­" Abigail starts thinking. "Maybe it''s¡­ come with me. I think I know which one it is." She leads us to another part of the store and pulls a few books off their shelves to quickly skim through them, then repeats that a couple of times. "Ah-ha!" She exclaims. "I remember now! This way, boys!" Abigail leads us to yet another part of the store before reaching up and grabbing a thick tome from an upper shelf. It''s got a cover that''s a deep purple, with golden metal caps on the corners and spine and black writing in the ancient tongue. "We have it in English, too, if you want," she says. "Though I know you prefer ones originating from ancient texts to be in the ancient tongue and as much a replica of them as possible. This is a compilation of stories found in various texts and speaks of a group of god-like beasts. Not many people ever look at this tome and new stories involving them are even rarer. I think we''ve had this copy on the shelf longer than I''ve been alive." "No one really looks at it?" I ask. "Yeah," she shrugs. "Most of what we get from the ancient tomes which reference them are inconsistent, more akin to folklore and journals without certainty. The only thing that''s common between them is that they''re called the Celestials and are agreed to have unlimited magical energy and power. They can''t agree on their forms, their specific abilities, or even if they can communicate like people or not." That explanation is enough for me to know why it''s never been suggested to me before. I prefer reading stories that tell proper tells and which make sense, or tomes which are informational guides about creatures and places. "And people generally want stories and compilations which make sense," I say. "Rather than ones full of speculation and inconclusive information. I take it that $9,000 price tag is from the materials the book is made from?" "Right," she says. "While the stories were often found in journals and diaries found in Dungeons, the topics of the tales are usually found in ones with more expensive pages, inks, and coverings. The leather is made from the hide of an iceheart bear that was stained to the amethyst you see now. The pages, inks, and metal are all equal to that. We do have them in a lower price point, however." "This one''s fine," Ryan says. "Add it to the pile." "Ryan-" I start to protest. "It''s as much for me as for you," Ryan tells me. "After hearing what she said, I''m a bit curious about those creatures. I will admit, though, but you''re probably going to have to tell me what it says." Abigail places the tome on Ryan''s stack. "Good luck seeing if there''s information about the little guy in there," she tells me. "Like I said, it''s pretty inconsistent. I haven''t gone through the full tome before, so I couldn''t tell you anything more than there are multiple creatures with his coloration and patterns within it." "You''ve looked through it?" Ryan asks. "We have a basic copy of every text we carry," she explains. "So that copy is still considered new, even if it''s been around for decades. The one I looked at was in English, too." "Oh." "Did you boys need anything else?" She asks. "No," Ryan tells her, then looks at me. "Unless you wanted something?" If I say there is, he''ll probably try to buy it for me. I do have a wishlist of texts I plan on ordering in the future so I could accept that offer now. However, Ryan''s already spending a lot of money on this date and I don''t want to have more spent on me. It''s his money to spend as he pleases, but he''s already going further than I''m comfortable with. If he bought something from my list, it would go beyond the level of discomfort I''m okay with. "Not tonight," I say. "Alright," Abigail says. "Enjoy your night." "You as well," Ryan tells her. "See you," I say. Ryan and I head to the counter to pay for the tomes, and he carries them until we''ve exited the building. Now that we''re outside of its protective enchantments, he places them into one of his bracelets. "It''ll start getting dark soon," he says. "But I have a lantern in one of my bracelets. Do you want to get dessert and find a spot at the park to read some of the fairy tales at?" "You want to do that for part of our date?" "I don''t mind it," he tells me. "I''ve heard you''ve got a nice story voice, too, and kind of want to hear it." It''s impossible to know who told him that considering that I do readings at the library and have for years. Hundreds of people have heard my reading voice so it could be one of our mutual friends, it could have been someone at the bookstore when he was there last week, it could have been something he came across online, or something else. Not that it matters, as I don''t mind reading to others. "We can do that," I tell him. "If you''re okay with any kids passing by wanting to sit and listen in with you." "I''m sure there won''t be that many." Chapter 0020 "-and the boy waved goodbye to the icesoul wolf who had helped him through the blizzard. The wolf dipped its head to him, then faded into the snow as if but a memory. Later, when the blizzard had ended and the boy was tucked in for the night, he wondered if he might ever see such a great beast again." As I finish the translated tale, the children who''ve gathered in front of me begin clapping. The lantern is closer to me, to illuminate the pages of the book better. That lights me up well but the small audience is a little bit outside of its range as it''s a lantern only meant for a small space. With the thick clouds which have begun to form overhead and them sitting a respectful distance away, most of my audience is cast in shadows. Ryan joins in, his applause more soft than the children''s. He was sitting beside me, but moved in front once the children began asking their parents if they could sit and listen. Now, he''s got children grouped up to either side of him and a few in front. One of the kids even climbed up into his lap to listen in, and that one''s clapping quite enthusiastically. Seeing the kid climb up into Ryan''s lap was kind of funny, but years of telling stories in the children''s section of the library kept me from losing my composure. Ryan looked absolutely clueless about what to do when the four-year-old decided he was a seat. Colby usually picks either my lap or his dad''s at the library, but it seems Ryan works fine for the purple-haired boy. Aster sitting in my lap is probably the reason Colby picked Ryan tonight. This is his fourth time hearing that same story from me this year, but he claps just as enthusiastically as always, his grey eyes filled with excitement. "Are you gonna read another, Mister?" A six-year-old girl asks once the clapping stops, and several of the other kids start asking. "Not tonight," I set the tome down beside me. "I think your parents might want to take you home before it gets too late. But see the library over there?" I point at the library. "They do readings for children''s stories, fairy tales, and more every Wednesday at seven in the evening. I''m the one doing the reading this week, and I always read translations of tales from tomes found in Dungeons. If you ask your parents, they might take you to listen this week." Now that story time is over, the parents and older siblings start collecting their kids, several of whom immediately ask if they can come listen to me on Wednesday. Colby remains on Ryan''s lap as the others leave, then gets up and walks over to me, his dad watching from a distance. The kid looks down Aster for a moment, then looks at me. "Aster?" I rub the pup''s head. "I think Colby wants to know if he can pet you." "Woof!" Aster softly responds. "Go ahead," I say as Ryan shifts over to sit beside me. "You know him?" Ryan asks. "I babysit him sometimes," I explain as Colby starts petting Aster. "He''s a bit shy, so I was surprised when he climbed onto your lap. His dad''s a Rank 5 from another part of the city. Hey, Barry." "Hey, Evan," Barry says as he sits with us. "Is his fur soft, Colby?" Colby nods to his dad, not taking his hand off of Aster. Barry is the one Colby draws his appearance from, with the two having the same deep purple hair and grey eyes. Barry''s dressed in black shorts, a grey sleeveless, and sneakers, an outfit his son''s imitating. The last few times I''ve seen them, Colby''s been dressed as a little mini-Barry. Something I''ve learned is very much on Colby''s end. He''s entered the phase of wanting to be just like his dad. "What brings you to this district?" I ask. "Colby asked if we could get that book so I could read him that story," Barry chuckles. "This is the only store which has it in stock right now. Wasn''t expecting to see you sitting out here, reading it to a group of others." "That''s my fault," Ryan says. "I''d heard about him having a good reading voice and wanted to hear it¡­ and didn''t believe him when he said it would draw a crowd." "They stopped announcing who the reader is at the library because of him," Barry chuckles. "And being a little bit more strict about the section''s guest limit, too." Which will probably be reached on Wednesday since I mentioned I''ll be there, so I''ll let the staff know so they''re prepared. I''m not forbidden from telling, they just ask I don''t do it too often and give them warning if I do. They understand I might sometimes reveal it in a situation like this. "Those aren''t just rumors?" Ryan asks, then leans back a little. "Well, after hearing your reading voice for myself, I can understand. It''s rather nice. There was something soft and soothing about it as you read the story." "And you couldn''t help but hang on to every word," Barry smiles a little. "Even if most of the story wasn''t full of action or danger. Name''s Barry." "Ryan," Ryan introduces himself. "You''re from another district? Can''t be too close to this one, I know almost all of the Rank 5s this half of the city." "Colby and I live on the other side," Barry tells him. "I moved there a few years ago, after his mom passed away," he ruffles his son''s hair as his son manages to move Aster so he can sit on my lap and the pup can sit on his. "Her parents have been helping me with taking care of him." "So you grew up around here?" Ryan asks. "In Green Hill District," Barry names the district directly north of this one. "Evan and I started as scavengers at the same time, though I usually went for meat while he preferred reagents. I don''t know if we ever ran the same ones." "I think we have a couple of times," Ryan says. "I do remember a purple-haired scavenger with grey eyes from a few of them years ago. Still a scavenger?" Some eye colors are on the rarer side, such as grey and purple. People tend to remember those of us with them a little bit more easily as a result. "A hunter now," Barry says as Colby looks up at me. "I Awakened not long after his mom passed." They talk a little as I pick up the book and open it up to show Colby the pictures. The kid turns his attention fully to the book to examine the pictures as I slowly flip between the pages. "We should get going now," Barry says after a few minutes. "Come on, Colby. Let''s go get our copy of the book." Colby holds his hands up and out, and I move the book to the side so that his dad can pick him up. As he does, Barry whispers in my ear. "Are you two dating?" "Early stages," I whisper back. "This is part of our first date." "Sorry for intruding," he says, not whispering as much now as he stands, Colby held against him with his arms wrapped around Barry''s neck, head resting on his father''s shoulder. "No worries," I say. The author''s tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. "It was nice meeting you," Ryan tells him. "You two have a good night," Barry says. "Colby? Do you wanna say bye to Uncle Evan?" "Bye," Colby softly waves to me, then gives Ryan a wave. Barry leaves, and Ryan takes the book and places it into one of his bracelets before sitting beside me. "You really do have a nice reading voice," he says. "Thanks," I lean my head against his shoulder. "If you want to stay here a little bit longer, we can. Or we can leave now and be in shelter before the rain starts." "The rain?" He looks up. "Hm¡­ maybe forty minutes or so? We''ve got time before we''d need to leave to avoid the rain." "So you want to stay?" I ask. "Maybe a few more minutes," he looks around. "Before we go, I wanted to ask you about expectations and stuff." We''re both already aware that there''s going to be sex once we go to either my place or his so I''m sure he''s not wanting to discuss that expectation but something else. That''s just a part of dating and we''ve already discussed that side of things for this part of our relationship. There are a few different things which I can think of that he might be wanting to discuss right now, but I''m not sure which it is. "What sort of expectations?" I ask. "Three things in particular," he says. "First being about what happens after sex. I know some people have different rules for it depending on if they''re single, dating, or exclusive and wanted to ask about your preferences." Oh. This is something I pretty much never think about until it actually comes to that, but it''s probably good that he''s thought of it now so that the expectation for when the time comes is the correct one. "I don''t fall asleep with someone unless I''m in an exclusive relationship with them," I tell him. "Sex is more for bodily satisfaction than emotional for me, while sleeping in the same bed with someone I''m interested in is more for emotional comfort. It''s a bit too intimate for me unless I''m exclusive." "Fair enough," he says. "I prefer to snuggle at night even in the non-exclusive dating period, but am okay if you don''t want to do that until we go exclusive. That leads to the second part. Do you have a period of time you prefer to be non-exclusive before deciding that we''re a good enough match to go exclusive or that we won''t work out? I don''t really have that, it''s more of a ''when it feels right'' to me." "I cap it at three months," I tell him. "If I haven''t determined that the relationship is working and it feels like we''re a good fit by then, then I doubt we will. So no more than three months. "However," I add. "I''ve been¡­ informed that I apparently stop hooking up with others when I start to develop those deeper feelings. And I don''t realize it. So if you notice me not letting you know I''m meeting up with others for a week or two, it''s not that I''ve stopped telling you, it''s that I''ve stopped being active with others." "I''ll keep that in mind," he says. "Third of them is something I have an expectation of. If I ever do something which crosses a line or makes you uncomfortable, let me know." "Same applies to you," I tell him. "That''s sort of a given." "Nick and Wyatt," he says. "Both said that you''ve never vocalized if something made you uncomfortable, they always had to ask." So he''s talked with my exes about dating me, then. I use my left index finger to draw a line in the air, a trail of golden light following after it. In the light of the lantern, I can make out a small frown on Ryan''s face as I make a second line about six inches below the first. "Think of things as a scale," I point in the section between the two lines. "If something is a little bit past my boundary, it''s above the first line. It''ll bother me in the moment but not long-term, so I won''t say anything. "When something goes above that line, however," I point above the line. "That''s where it''s bothering me too much or making me too uncomfortable. Not a single person I''ve ever been in a romantic relationship with has crossed that second line. When they ask me, it''s usually something that''s gone above the first one but isn''t at the second. That''s why they''ve never had me say something directly ¨C they''ve never gotten to the point where it''ll bother me long-term or really make me uncomfortable. "It''s a trade-off," I tell him. "Or a compromise, I suppose. I''m able to put up with a little bit of discomfort or bother when it''s minor and won''t last very long." "Alright," he gives me a kiss. "Want to head to my place or yours?" Since Ryan didn''t drive to my place, one of us will definitely need to walk back on their own after, since the incoming rain was unexpected. There was nothing in the forecast about it but we can both tell there''s going to be plenty. I''m not sure what Ryan''s thoughts are, but I have an easy solution to it using the truth. "I never have sex in my house unless I''m official with someone," I tell him. "It''s¡­ a weird hangup, I guess." "It only takes about ten minutes to get to my place from here," Ryan stands, then extends a hand out to me. "We didn''t get dessert before reading. Want to get something for the way there?" He lives that close to me? Even if it''s in the opposite direction from as my place, that''s still not too far. "Sure," I accept his hand after nudging Aster off of my lap and he helps me to my feet, then he turns off the lantern and puts it away. "From one of the vendors or somewhere along the way?" "There''s a good ice cream spot," he says. "It''ll add a few extra minutes to the trip, but they''re pretty good." I think I know the place he''s talking about, and they do serve rather good ice cream. "Alright," I say. Ryan takes my hand into his as we walk, reaching the ice cream store a few minutes later. They''re open twenty-four hours so we didn''t have to worry about that, and we order a pair of cones to go. As with everything tonight, Ryan insists on paying for it, then we eat them on the way to Ryan''s place. I got mine with chocolate, caramel, and sprinkles, while Ryan got his topped with chocolate, strawberry sauce, and nuts. Aster seems disappointed that he didn''t get to eat anything, but Ryan ordered a small cup of strawberry sauce for him to enjoy once we''ve arrived at our destination. The building Ryan lives in is a high-end ten-story apartment complex where each floor is an apartment with a small lobby the elevator lets out into. Ryan lives on the tenth floor, which apparently comes with exclusive access to the roof, which has a pool. "And that''s only for the top-floor resident?" I ask as I close the door behind me once we''ve entered. "Yeah," he begins removing his shoes. "Though every apartment comes with a balcony on the northern end, set into the building. That has a hot tub for the resident to use. But the rooftop is exclusive for the resident of the top floor." "How''d you swing this apartment?" I ask as I set my shoes beside his. "I''d have thought something like that would get snapped up by someone wealthy as the place got built." "That''s exactly what happened," he chuckles. "This place was finished when we were sixteen, and the owner had a preference for active hunters. When I applied and requested the apartment with access to the roof, I was the only Awakened to have applied for an apartment here. That put me right at the front of the line for this one, and being Rank 5 ensured I stayed there." "Oh," I say, and he pulls me in for a kiss. "Woof!" Aster starts running in circles around us. "Let me get his treat," Ryan chuckles, then pulls out the container and opens it up. "Slowly, little guy." Aster ignores that and gets right to work lapping up the sauce and strawberry bits in the container. Once he finishes, I pick him up and look at Ryan. "Mind if I wash his mouth?" I ask as the pup licks his lips. "Go ahead," Ryan chuckles. "He really likes that, doesn''t he?" An idea comes to me. While I can''t find anything on mythical beasts having informational windows, Aster seems to be something else entirely, with a different set of rules regarding him. "Check him like he''s an item," I tell Ryan, and a moment later, Ryan''s eyes widen. "I''ve¡­ never heard of that before." Since he can see the informational window for Aster, that means it''s not restricted to just me. The windows I''ve seen for mythical beasts¡­ could it be that the reason no one else knows about them is that they can only be viewed in a Mythic Forest? That would explain why I can see those ones but there''s not a record of such a thing. It''s possible those who discovered it just kept it quiet or weren''t believed. As such a thing wouldn''t have been easily verifiable, it wouldn''t be in any normal record about Mythic Forests or mythical beasts. "Me, neither," I say as we move to the kitchen so I can use the sink in there. "But it seems that a being with access to the System''s informational windows used it to take notes on Aster." "If they''ve done it for one," Ryan says. "They might have done it for others." "Yeah," I say. "But since we''ve never heard of it before¡­ it might be only for creatures in that book." Ryan pulls out the tome we got at the library, the one which might have information about Aster in it. "Do you want to see what it has to say about him?" Ryan asks as I finish washing and drying the pup''s mouth. The fact that he''s asking that now makes me a little bit glad, even if we came here to have sex. It means that''s not all he wants to happen in his home, and I don''t have an issue with doing other stuff. We''re spending time together, and that''s what matters here. "Sure," I look down at Aster. "What do you say, little guy? Want to see what Dungeons have to say about you?" "Woof?" Aster tilts his head to the side a little, his tail wagging. "He has no idea what we''re talking about," I tell Ryan. "Apparently, he didn''t pay attention while were in the library." "Alright," Ryan chuckles. "Let''s sit on the couch." Chapter 0021 "Okayokayokay!" Ryan laughs. "Maybe don''t read it in the ancient tongue!" I laugh as well while Aster lets out a few happy yips. Ryan asked me if I could read the section on the beast most similar to Aster in the ancient tongue, and I don''t think he was prepared to not be able to understand me. He has admitted that he''s barely begun to understand it. "So¡­ what does it say in English?" Ryan asks. "Everything, or just the part I read?" I ask. "Both." "The summary of the part I read," I say. "Roughly translates to ''As with all information contained within this journal, these are merely speculations, hearsay, and tales which I have learned.'' The part of that states that the first section regards what the tales are consistent on between all Celestials." "The common factors between them," Ryan says. "Right," I say. "Then we''ll go to the section on the wolf pup with the starry pelt. Aster, want to join us?" Aster tilts his head to the side for a moment, then runs up and jumps onto the couch. He then climbs onto my lap and curls up with his head facing the book. Upon seeing the image on the page ¨C a wolf larger than the size of the trees in the background and with a coat of purples, oranges, and pinks reminiscent of sunrise and sunset ¨C he tilts his head a little and looks up at me. "This is the start," I tell him. "We can look at the section on that big guy later. Tonight, Ryan and I want to see what the Dungeons'' books and journals say about your kind of Celestial, alright?" "Woof!" Now that we''re all ready, I begin translating more of the passages here, quietly so I can just summarize them for Ryan. "It looks like," I say. "Hold on¡­" "What?" Ryan asks. "This isn''t just a text on stuff found in tomes and scrolls and such in Dungeons," I tell him. "It contains records from people who''ve actually encountered Celestials." "As in¡­ people from Earth?" "Yeah," I answer. "It leads into the next part. According to this, a Celestial is always spotted when those who could enter a Mythic Forest did, though they''ve also rarely been spotted here on Earth. Even more rarely than mythical beasts. It looks like they suspect the Celestials live in the Mythic Forests." That might explain why I encountered Aster within the Mythic Forest, except it doesn''t explain why it took me so long to encounter a Celestial within it. I don''t think Aster had actually been in the forest until I spotted him. Which suggests all of the Celestials left it at some point. "Are you from a Mythic Forest?" Ryan asks Aster, who gives him a happy woof, his tail flicking up and down a little. "Uh¡­ well, I can''t speak wolf." "He is," I say. "To add in something, I was in a Mythic Forest when I came across him earlier." While I currently have no plans to bring Ryan to the Mythic Forest, I don''t think it would hurt to mention that I''ve been in one. I''ve known him long enough to trust that he won''t go spreading it around. At most, he might ask questions and I''ll just honestly answer that it''s dead. "Lucky," Ryan says. "There wasn''t anything in the one I went to." That''s¡­ not what I was expecting. "You were in one?" I ask. "Last Friday," he nods. "I''d gotten it as a reward a couple of days before but waited to go in until then. It was completely dead. No plants. No animals. No water. Just dry soil for miles. The remnants of what were probably rivers, streams, and a lake. And¡­ monsters. Goblins, to be specific. They were roaming around all over the place. That''s not really how Mythic Forests were described when I researched them to find out what to expect." It granted him access to one as a reward, which means others likely have been as well ¨C they either didn''t report it or weren''t believed. That''s the only thing which would make sense as to why I couldn''t find anything about them. "Whatever''s happening with the Dungeons," Ryan says. "It must be related to the Mythic Forests as well. If the one I was granted access to is dead, then they all might be." A process which began centuries ago in our time. Until about sixty years ago, the rewards for Daily and Weekly Quests were multiplied by half of one''s Level, then it became set at the base reward. Mythic Forests stopped being a reward five centuries ago, so they probably started dying sometime around then. "And you didn''t see a Celestial when you were there?" I ask. "No," Ryan reaches over and rubs Aster''s head. "Didn''t even know they existed until this evening." When I looked up Mythic Forests, there was no mention of Celestials, either. I didn''t look too deeply, though, so it could just be that I missed the mentions of them. "Woof!" Aster says, then puts a paw on the picture of the big Celestial. "Alright," I say as Ryan chuckles. "I''ll get back to reading. Let''s see¡­ all Celestials seem to fit within ''clans'' based on their coloration. All known Celestials of a clan seem to have a similar age when they''re spotted. If one of a clan is an elder among its species, all those spotted from that clan are elders. Those within a clan also have similar characteristics." "That much we learned from the worker at the store," Ryan says. "Yeah," I rub Aster''s head as I read more of the passage. "It''s assumed that the different clans have rules for when members can make themselves known, though of course, they don''t know for sure." "Sounds plausible if all of a clan are the same age when spotted," he says. "Right," I continue reading. "All Celestials wield aether, the origin of all energy forms of the universe. Whether they simply have a vast amount of it or unlimited, it''s unknown. No journal, tome, scroll, or other form of mention of them ever gives a limitation to how much they can do, but the clans seem to have preferences for their magics. Some Celestials were known to speak in the languages of those they encountered, both in findings within Dungeons and in encounters by actual people." "Some can talk, then?" Ryan looks at Aster. "Can you talk?" "Woof!" We both chuckle and Ryan gives Aster a light rub on his side. Aster lets out a soft rumble of contentment, then looks at me before putting a paw on the picture of the big Celestial again. "He really wants us to read about the big one," I say. "We can do that after this part," Ryan says. "Save the bit about Aster for later." "Alright," I say. "Let''s see¡­ there''s not much else that''s conclusive about the Celestials as a whole. So they fit within a few clans, all of which seem to have preferences for magics to use but might not be limited, wield aether in what may be from an unlimited pool of it, and potentially reside in the Mythic Forests. Or at least, they formerly resided in them." If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. A series of images, impressions, and emotions enter my mind, transferred in a clear and concise manner by Aster. In a way which suggests he''s fully aware of how to effectively communicate with someone. "Not really?" I ask. "Celestials visit the Mythic Forests, but they never lived there?" "Woof!" Aster nods. "He only nodded," Ryan says. "Wait. Did you use [Animal Communication] to get that?" "No," I answer. "He used it on his own," I scratch behind Aster''s ears. "Seems he knows how. Let''s see what the part about the big guy says." Aster''s tail begins flicking excitedly as I locate that section, which turns out to be the first one after the part about all Celestials. The first page has another image of the massive wolf, which still stands taller than the trees. The pup puts his head on the picture and lets out a soft whine. "What is it?" I ask, and he looks up at me but doesn''t answer. "Alright, then¡­ let''s see what the book says is known about him. It says¡­ there''s one Celestial which is believed to actually alter its height to be as small or as large as he likes. "While multiple Celestials with his coloration have been spotted," I continue as I look through the pages. "They are the only one to consistently speak with people. He is the only one to consistently speak with people and is often seen watching. "This next bit is a story given in a journal," I flip to the next page, where an image of a giant wolf and a human-sized bird with the same, dawn/dusk coloration is split between the two pages. "Found within a Dungeon, it claims that the Awakened Emezunvet achieved the rare feat of being granted access to a Mythic Forest for a second time, forty years after the first. In both visits, he saw two Celestials of different clans ¨C except he saw a dusk clan one in each. "This here," I move a finger under the words. "Says that ''and when he later spoke of the encounter, Emezunvet claimed the great dusk bird spoke with the same voice as the great dusk wolf.'' That tale is all that''s on this page. Well, summarized." I flip the page. "Hold on," Ryan says. "There was more?" "Yeah," I say. "But I''m guessing it''s stated again. Yeah, right here. It seems that this tale of Emezunvet is one of the main bases for the belief that those with that coloration are the same creature, the other being that he''s apparently been seen shifting his form. "Here," I tap a section of the page before the tale. "It says that the other Celestials seem to defer to the great one. This is most common among those of the starry hides, who need only a glance from him to calm down. Have you ever met him, Aster?" Aster lets out another soft whine while sending me a message. This time, it''s a memory of him climbing on the fur of the great Celestial, who''s resting in the shade of a tree on a hill. If it weren''t for the fact that Aster is smaller than one of the ears of the other Celestial in the memory, I wouldn''t think the other was large at all. But that scaling indicates that the other one must be several hundred feet in length in the memory¡­ and the tree it was nestled between the roots of must be absolutely immense. That memory fades as another one rises, this time of Aster sitting on a dirt slope, staring toward the center. That slope¡­ it''s the Great Napping Spot. In the second memory Aster sent me, he''s not a wolf pup. From what I can see from Aster''s perspective, he''s a bear cub in the second memory. I don''t want to voice that in front of Ryan until I have more concrete confirmation, but if that memory is correct, that means that it''s possible the Celestial clans aren''t clans at all. Rather, the Celestials themselves shift their forms, just as the great one is believed to be able to do. Their personalities and minds remain the same between the forms, which is why they have similarities between them. "Something happened to him?" I ask, and Aster lets out another soft whine, then looks up at me and starts wagging his tail a little. "I don''t mind you hanging out with me." "Woof!" "So then," Ryan says. "They''re the same beast? Did Aster just tell you that?" "Not quite," I say. "He showed me a memory of him climbing on the bigger wolf. Aster? Are these the same beast?" I point at the picture on this pair of pages, which is of the Celestial with a rabbit form, then flip back to the previous page and point at both the bird and the wolf forms. "Woof!" Aster nods, his tail wagging even more excitedly. "You''re going to have to stop that!" I laugh as I grab his tail. "You''re whacking me with this!" "Woof!" "I''ll take that as a confirmation," Ryan says. "Same here," I say. "I think Aster wants to look at the pictures on his own." "Woof!" Aster nods again. "We can move to my room while he does that," Ryan suggests. "If you want." It seems it''s time for the next part of our date. "Sure," I pat beside me on the couch. "Aster, move over so I can get up, yeah?" Aster gets off my lap and sits while staring at me expectantly. I get up and put the book down so he can look at it, and the page flips on its own back to the previous one as the pup lies down. While the pup gets to work looking at the pictures of the big boss of the Celestials, Ryan and I move to the master bedroom. The moment the door is closed, Ryan pulls me in for a kiss. "Before we get started," Ryan says. "I want to know what it is you prefer for sex. What you''re comfortable with, preferences, and so on." "Giving oral," I tell him. "Receiving it, on-fours, and on-back. I do prefer giving oral first, and on-four as the first or only anal. Receiving oral isn''t a necessity for me, and I can cum from anal, though it''ll usually take about three rounds, depending on how long and good they are. I still enjoy it quite a lot, however. No slapping or chocking or anything like that. What about your preferences?" It can''t be all about mine here. "I''m open to most positions," he slips his hands under my outer shirt as he slides them onto my sides. "Though I do generally prefer ones that let me kiss or hold close. We can do on-fours first, though." Ryan kisses me as he takes off my outer shirt, then he pulls my inner one off as well. I pull off his shirt, then rub his abs a little as he undoes the button and zipper of my pants. They''re so firm; I''ll definitely be touching them more when I''m on my back. A moment later, I''m stepping out of my pants as Ryan rubs my crotch through my underwear, which he promptly removes along with my socks. His touches are soft and gentle, yet sure and confident. I kiss his stomach as I move to my knees, Ryan gently stroking my hair as I pull his pants, underwear, and socks off together. His dick is just as large in real life as in the pictures andat 8.7" long and 2.3" thick, it''s quite the sizable weapon. Rather than taking it straight into my mouth, I stroke it a little as I lick and suck his smooth balls. When I move to his dick, pulling back the foreskin and taking only the head into my mouth, Ryan lets out a soft moan. I focus on only the tip for a few minutes, glad Ryan''s enjoying it. It takes me a minute, but I manage to work his dick all the way in, my nose now pressed against his smooth crotch. While this is a pretty tight fit, I manage to keep my teeth from touching him, something I''m sure he appreciates. When I pull back so only the tip is in my mouth, I look up to see Ryan''s expression and he''s looking down at me with those beautiful orange eyes of his, his mouth slightly agape as he takes short, pleasured breaths. "That felt amazing," his voice is barely a whisper, then lets out a soft moan as I go back down. It takes only a few minutes for me to bring him to the edge, and not much more before he reaches his peak. Shot of shot of cum blasts into my mouth and once his orgasm comes to an end, I stand and go for a kiss. Ryan wraps his arms around me and kisses me deeply before picking me up and carrying me to his bed. After making sure I''m braced well while on my arms and knees, Ryan lubes up his dick, then begins to slide it into my ass. Once the tip is in, he moves his hands to my hips, adjusts his grip, and begins to slowly slide in the rest of the way. I shift my body a little bit lower as he does that, then moan softly at the sensation as his dick rubs against my prostate. Ryan begins thrusting, keeping a firm grip on my hips and waist at first. He switches to holding my sides after a few moments, continuing to adjust until he gets comfortable. His soft moans, his grip on my sides, his dick sliding back and forth inside of me and rubbing my sweet spot, it all feels amazing. He quickly figures out a good pace, alternating between slow and long thrusts and short and fast ones, his prior orgasm extending how long it takes for the next. I''d like for him to switch to full speed after a few minutes but this feels too good for me to want to interrupt. When his second climax ends, Ryan pulls out of my ass and I get up and turn around, which he turns into a kiss as he lies me on my back. He adds a little more lube to his dick before sliding it back into my ass, moving my legs past his sides and holding my thighs. Ryan returns to the rhythm he used before once he finds a good position, though with longer fast periods, much to my enjoyment. Through it, he alternates between being bent down and kissing me, his arms resting on the bed beside my head while I rub his back and hair and being more in a kneeling position, holding my legs while either straight up or only bent slightly over. In the latter position, I either hold his hands or rub his stomach and chest. They feel nice, especially his abs. Sometimes, he holds onto my sides as well, his body half-bent over me. That''s the perfect position for us to maintain eye contact, which I enjoy quite a lot. His almost seem to shine golden as he nears his climax again, at which point, he bends down and starts kissing once more. I reach up and grab his sides, enjoying the feeling of his lips against mine and his dick filling my ass with its size. At his third climax, Ryan stops thrusting in favor of only kissing. Then, he slowly pulls out and kisses down my chest until he reaches my dick, which he takes the tip of into his mouth after pulling back my foreskin. While on the larger side, my dick is smaller than his at 7.9" in length and roughly 1.9" in thickness. With expert care, he teases and stimulates it until I reach my peak, soft gasps escaping me with every pulse. After my climax ends and he''s swallowed every drop, Ryan kisses his way back up to me and locks lips with mine, then turns me onto my side so he can snuggle me from behind. "Ryan-" I begin. "Just for a few minutes," he murmurs. "I always shower after." "Alright." Being held like this by him is a pretty nice way to rest. If I''m not careful, I might fall asleep. Chapter 0022 "Aster," I sigh as Ryan and I enter the living room. "Don''t get into other people''s stuff." The pup''s lying on the floor right now, an empty jar of grape jelly beside him. The wolf lets out a sad and low-energy woof before a page of the tome he''s looking through flips a couple of times to show him another picture of the wolf form of the big boss of the Celestials. "I''ll replace that," I tell Ryan. "He''s not mine, but he probably wouldn''t be following me around if I hadn''t come across him and cleaned him up." "It''s fine," Ryan says. "You can clean his mouth again if you want." I pick Aster up to clean his mouth at the sink; the pup should learn how to eat without getting his food past where his tongue can reach. That aside, shouldn''t a creature with nigh-unlimited power be able to pull the jelly off with his magic? "There we go," I say as I dry off Aster''s maw. "You should really be cleaner when you eat, buddy." "Woof¡­" "I think that''s enough of looking at your friend," I tell him, only to immediately be sent more communication from him. "I would think that still counts as a friend, Aster. He cleans you up, climbs on you¡­ wait. Is he the one who gave you item information as a note?" "Woof," Aster nods. "What did he say?" Ryan asks, and I glance at him. "Not about the Celestial big boss being the one who changed his description, that was obvious. The other bit?" "Oh," I say. "I think the rough translation is¡­ ''he''s not my friend, he''s my king''. Well, it was more ''not friend, king'' in image and emotion form with a few memories added in. Several of which were of the big boss cleaning him or him climbing around on the big guy." Aster''s tail wags a little. "So the big boy is their king, then," Ryan looks at Aster. "And he''s just¡­ gone?" Aster sends another message this time, and Ryan''s expressions suggests he received them. It seems the King of the Celestials vanished a very, very, very long time ago and none of the Celestials know why. At least, Aster doesn''t think any of them know the reason. "Could he have died?" Ryan asks. Aster scoffs and sends us another message. Celestials can''t die. They''re eternal beings who outlive universes. He also once contemplated reincarnation before remembering that Celestials don''t possess souls, they simply exist. Which might explain why they don''t change in personality or grow. They simply are. "Whoa," Ryan clutches his head as he stumbles back a bit. "I think I need [Animal Communication] to fully understand that. The most I could understand was that they''re eternal, not immortal." "That''s about it," I say. "Aster, buddy, do you remember what the big boy was doing before he vanished?" Another message, this one a little bit easier to understand. "He was¡­ observing people?" I ask, and he sends me more. "Oh, okay." "That one didn''t come to me," Ryan says. "It seems the King of the Celestials was trying to better understand mortals," I say. "Aster said that the last thing he can remember the big boy doing was¡­ I think he said that the big boy said he was going to go watch them more closely?" Aster nods. "Could he have turned into a person to observe without being noticed?" I ask, and receive another message. "That''s what you and the others think, but none of you can find him on any world. He''s just vanished." Aster nods again, then sends another message. "He wants to go to bed," I say. "I should be going now, but I guess this was pretty informative. And the evening was nice, Ryan. Could we go on another date next Saturday?" "Same time?" He asks. "Yeah," I answer. "Sure," he says. "Before you go, I might have something for you. Do you cook?" If I''d known he was going to give me a gift after the date, I''d have made sure to bring something for him as well. "A little," I answer. "I''m admittedly not very good at cooking. That''s a pretty different field from alchemy." "Here," he holds out his hands, and a small cooler appears. "It''s meat from the silver minotaur. Several cuts of it. They gave me about thirty pounds of it." On top of buying an expensive tome for me, he''s gifting me meat from a silver minotaur. Normal varyihn meat is a little expensive, but silver varyihn is even more so. The quality is much higher as well. "My cooking skills aren''t quite up to par for that," I tell him. "I''d still prefer some of it goes to you," he says. "You can feed it to Aster if you''d prefer. I''m¡­ sure berries aren''t the only things he likes." Aster looks a the small cooler, then looks up at me as his tail starts wagging a little. I''d like to turn this down, but I''m starting to suspect I''m going to be the substitute dad for Aster for awhile. He probably only likes sweets and high-quality meats. Ryan probably gives some of the meat he receives from hunts and Dungeon runs to his friends already, anyway. This is just adding me into the circle. "Alright," I say. "Thanks, Ryan." I shift Aster so I''m holding him with only one arm, then take the cooler and send it into my storage. Ryan offers me the tome as well, since he can''t actually read it and will need me for understanding what''s within. "I can drive you home," Ryan says. "It''s getting pretty late and even if you''re an Awakened, that won''t help with the rain." "No worries," I tell him as I readjust my grip on Aster. "This little guy can teleport, so I''m sure we''ll be able to get to my place quickly. Here, kiss?" Ryan steps closer so we can kiss. "Good night," I tell him once we do. Rather than asking the pup ¨C who I doubt would actually teleport me if I asked ¨C I access my gate and first travel to the Great Napping Spot, then use it to appear in my bedroom. Once there, I shift Aster back to one arm and pull out my phone to take a selfie to show Ryan I made it home safely. [Ryan]: I forgot you mentioned he can teleport! [Ryan]: That must be pretty convenient [Evan]: Not sure if he''ll do it every time, but I''m glad it worked. A little white lie for now, but me having regular access to a Mythic Forest is something I want to keep a secret. Letting him know I went into one earlier was fine since it could be assumed as a one-off thing. Regular access is an entirely different beast. Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. I might be attracted to Ryan, but that doesn''t mean I need to tell him everything. I want to try and restore more of the forest before even considering letting someone else know I can come and go as I please. "Before you go wherever you go to sleep now," I tell Aster. "I want us to go back to the Mythic Forest. I have some¡­ questions. And theories. First, though, I want my gear." Rather than using the Mythic Forest to travel quickly, I head outside and deal with the rain for a couple of minutes to enter my shop. Once the door is closed and secure, I set Aster down and check my pack to make sure it''s stocked again. I move things into my bracelets and pick up Aster, then take us back to the Great Napping spot. "This hill," I say. "It''s where that massive tree once stood, isn''t it? The one from your memories?" "Woof," Aster confirms. "And after your big friend disappeared, that''s when this Mythic Forest started dying?" "Woof," he confirms. "How long ago was that?" The answer to that is ''many sleeps''. No matter how I try to get a better answer out of him, I quickly realize that Aster probably has a worse sense of time than me. The best he can give me really is ''many sleeps''. A creature who can travel between worlds, dimensions, planes, and realms probably struggles to keep track of time since they aren''t only in a single location with a set day or seasonal cycle but many with them. I set the pup down and look around as he paws at the ground mournfully. The King of the Celestials isn''t dead, he''s just missing. Most of the memories Aster gave me ¨C and even the drawings in the tome ¨C depict him as lying down or sleeping. "Aster," I say. "What are the odds that he decided to take a nap outside of here and is just¡­ asleep somewhere? Time moves differently in here, so what might be a normal nap for him in here might be a very long time outside. If he took a nap like that outside, an even longer time would pass in here." Aster contemplates that for a few moments, then lets out a long, depressed breath as he flops himself onto the ground. I''ll take that as a yes. "Alright," I say. "Can you use your powers to help this place out? It needs plants and water again, and seems to take care of the rest once there''s some there." Since insects must be helping out in the zones I''ve worked so far, there''s other magic at work as well. Magics which help generate smaller things like necessary insects once there''s plants for them to live with. Aster looks at me, then sighs before sending me another message. His king created this place so that the mythical beasts and other Celestials couldn''t affect it with their powers. It was meant as a garden for himself and he later opened it up to mortals like myself and Ryan. Since the powers the System granted me work on the forest, he must have made an exception either for mortals or for Skills. Things which neither mythical beasts nor Celestials are or possess. Another explanation is that the System itself has some authority in this place and has granted me the ability to affect it because it wants me to restore the forest. I''m trying my best without knowing that, but there are limits to what I can do. Even a stretch of land a couple of miles across can take awhile to restore. The fact that I can leave here and let time pass more quickly so nature does its work in the zones I''m restoring will speed things up by a bit but I''ll still need other zones. What''s more, I don''t think the Mythic Forests are actually a couple of miles across. I think there are fewer of them than are believed, they just get divided up into smaller zones when used as a reward. Each of the Mythic Forests which take place in tundras might all actually be the same one, just different parts. Same for those on snowy mountains, or those in a desert. The records we have on Mythic Forests make mention that there has never been a case of one displaying traits of two zones in even minor ways, so it probably is just what I suspect. If they were all connected to each other, then there would be transitional zones as well. That works in my favor a little as I doubt I could do anything to restore the entire thing if all of them were connected. I don''t have reason to doubt the System gave me full access to this Mythic Forest, so I might have a stretch of land thirty miles or more to restore. That''s something which I can easily check. "How good are you with distances?" I ask Aster, who then sends me a response which seems to suggest he can use dozens of measurements for distance. "In miles, please, how far away from here is the Sparkly Earth Cave?" Thirty-eight miles to the north, set into a series of small hills and cliffs. A river flows down from the hilly zone in the image Aster gave me, and I now have a new goal. Though this place is bigger than I expected. In all of the memories he gave me of this hill with the tree, there''s a massive lake surrounding it. The best way to give this forest a kick-start on restoring is to get that lake filled back up with water. In theory, that will get the condensation cycle restarted properly. "Hm¡­" Aster looks up at me as I muse. I need to make sure of things first, so I begin drawing magical runes in the air with my right index finger, lilac light flowing after it as I shape the spell. This one is significantly cheaper in terms of MP than the one I used before and I don''t use even half of my reserves. Upon completing the rune casting, I let the spell seep into my body. My body feels lighter now and I hop a little. Rather than dropping back down to the ground, I remain floating at the peak of my hop. Okay, it works. It won''t last forever, but it should last long enough for me to do what I want to use it for. Closing my eyes, I focus on accessing the gate and pushing past the resistance. This one takes me almost a minute, but I feel the shift as I pass through. When I open my eyes, I find myself floating above the cloud walls and ceilings. Far above it, as my destination was "not far below the sun or moon" and that''s apparently pretty high up. I can almost touch the magically-generated "sun" here, and I don''t feel any actual heat emanating from it. The King of the Celestials probably used his magic to regulate the environment while having the sun at the top of the pocket dimension to imitate how things are outside. He even colored the horizontal cloud wall stretching out past the "sun" blue to help imitate the blue skies outside. That does bring up the question of if the clouds change color when night falls, if night even falls here. The individual zones of the Mythic Forest below me are easy to pick out, as their cloud walls seem to have domed tops. There are more than a hundred different zones here¡­ as the Mythic Forest seems to stretch about forty miles in all directions. At the very edges of it are cloud walls which stretch all the way up to the sky much in the same way as they do in Dungeons that are open all around. Those must be the absolute borders of this place. I use my gate to return to the hill, where Aster''s turned onto his back and is just lying there in sadness. The pictures of the King of the Celestials must have really sent him into a down mood. Dealing with that can come next. "Aster," I say as I draw some runes to cancel the float spell. "I just went above the clouds and saw an immense cloud wall at the edges in all directions. What''s beyond that?" Aster sighs a little in sadness, then flips over and turns around to face me. Images and memories pop into my head, messages from the pup. Nothingness lies beyond the cloud wall, a blackness as far as the eye can see. Water flows out of it in a few spots but quickly disappears into the void. The pup makes sure I know that anything which enters it is destroyed. Though he also lets me know that there are passageways through the void, passageways created by the King of the Celestials himself just for the mythical beasts to use to get from place to place. Aster is very clear that he can travel through the nothing on his own but enjoys using the passageways to chase after others. That''s why he came back here ¨C he was following the scent of Flow and the others in one of the passageways to see if he could surprise them. Their trail took him to Happy Butterfly Hill and he got distracted by the berries. Which is when I showed up and distracted him further. Remembering why he came here seems to have perked the pup up and bit and he runs in a circle, yipping, before vanishing. I''m going to hazard a guess and say that he''s gone to locate the others. I''m not entirely sure the reason why I was given access to this Mythic Forest, but I do still suspect that it''s to try and restore it in the absence of the King of the Celestials. It may even be a task issued by the King of the Celestials. He disappeared after letting the others know he was going to take a closer look at mortals. The access granted to this place to me might be one of his ways of doing that. Suspecting this won''t change my behavior. The reason I''m working toward restoring it is so that I can see the beauty of the Mythic Forest in full. To do that, I need to get the water cycle rebooted if it''s possible to do so, and I think the best way to do that is to get that major river flowing from those hills again. That much water would likely be a massive boon to everywhere it flows past and if water does evaporate here ¨C there''s no guarantee that it does, considering the nature of this place ¨C then it would bring rains as well. Though there''s the possibility that evaporation doesn''t occur here, considering the temperature is probably regulated by the magic of the forest and the sun is fake.However, whether or not there''s a water cycle doesn''t matter ¨C what matters is the presence of water itself. "For me to restore things," I muse aloud. "I need to get the main river running through this one flowing again. That means opening up its source waters."
A Special Quest is available!
Slay monsters in the special zone.
Reward: 5,000 EXP
It''s pretty obvious that my verbal musings triggered this Quest considering the timing. Chances are, it was issued as a way of allowing me a reward for rebooting the river, which means the river''s path itself is probably filled with monsters. Either the Special Quests are suffering from the System shutting down and that''s why the EXP reward is so low for such a large space, or it''s less "kill all of the monsters" and more "kill enough monsters, repeatedly". I''m leaning towards the second option and it''s one which will award again and again with the main river itself being the special zone. Another possibility would be that it''s only a section of the river, I suppose. I''ll start on it tomorrow. If I start working on it now, I won''t want to stop until I pass out and starting tomorrow will allow me to rest up beforehand. Chapter 0023 Waking alone is what I expected to happen, but Aster apparently returned after I fell asleep last night and is now curled against my chest. While I do normally sleep on my side, I''m going to hazard a guess and say that he moved my arm so that I was holding him. The pup probably really misses his king and likes that I''m caring for him in a similar manner. Sort of. I''m just cleaning him up after he gets sticky. As I stroke his fur and snout, I feel something sticky on his maw again. There''s a chance that he got into my jams, syrups, and/or honeys. I''ll probably need to wash my sheets and blankets now that he''s gotten them sticky with whatever he ate. The pup really needs to learn how to eat more cleanly, but I doubt that''s ever going to happen considering the King of the Celestials put notes into his information to clean him up. If a being such as he couldn''t get Aster to change, it''s doubtful the pup ever will. A gesture of my hand and a small use of [Telekinesis] pulls my phone to me as I pull back the blanket a little so Aster''s visible. I snap a quick picture and upload it to my profile, but also send it to Ryan. [Evan]: Morning! I think Aster got into my food during the night. His snout''s still got evidence on it. I slip out of bed without waking the pup and head to my kitchen to prepare breakfast. Exiting my room confirms that he got into my jams, syrups, and honeys. All of them. Their jars are scattered across the floors of my living room, dining room, and kitchen, licked completely clean. After moving the empty containers to the counter for washing or recycling, I take a picture of them to send to Ryan with a message letting him know I found further proof, then prepare breakfast. Aster comes out of my bedroom, stumbling around slightly in his tiredness. "You should ask before getting into people''s food," I tell him, and he gives me a small yip. "Did you have fun playing with the others?" "Woof!" His tail starts wagging. "Alright," I say. "I don''t have sweets for you to eat, but I do have some minotaur meat. Want that?" "Woof!" I pull out the small cooler and look at the packaged meat within. The minotaur probably had two or three hundred pounds of viable meat and it looks like Ryan gave me around five pounds of his portion of it. After unwrapping a steak from the minotaur''s back, I set it on a plate and set that on the ground. "Hey, eat slowly," I say as Aster dives to the plate and begins tearing off a chunk of meat to eat, using his forepaws to hold the rest of the meat in place. The rest of the meat is placed into my fridge with the cooler returned to my bracelet to later return to Ryan. I finish fixing myself breakfast and eat it, and as I''m putting our dishes in the dishwasher, my phone beeps. [Ryan]: Morning [Ryan]: He should get better at hiding the evidence That''s followed by a shot of him still in bed and on his back, his blanket pulled down to his stomach and left arm tucked under his pillows. It''s a pretty nice shot and I want to stare at it a little more, but type up a response instead. [Evan]: He liked the varyihn meat you gave me; had some for breakfast. Him, not me. [Ryan]: Neat! Make sure to save some for yourself [Evan]: Will do. By the way, I won''t be responsive until lunch. Have some stuff to take care of in the morning. [Ryan]: Good luck With that taken care of, I head downstairs to prepare for my Daily Dungeon. When I check to take it on, however, I spot something surprising.
Daily Quests
Daily Fitness Harvest Alchemy Rings Scrolls
There''s no Daily Dungeon ¨C but I have the maximum possible amount of Daily Quests. That means it wasn''t sacrificed as a trade-off for the potential repeatable Special Quest I was given yesterday. From what I heard when I looked it up yesterday morning, everyone still had the minimum to maximum number of Daily and Weekly Quests when their Daily and Weekly Dungeons didn''t show up. If mine''s gone as well now, that means even craftsmen under Level 5 have lost theirs. My main reason for doing those was to obtain the reagents contained within, but I suppose that won''t be possible now. I might need to do some trips out of the city to acquire some, though the Mythic Forest will help provide me materials as well once I''ve restored more of it. Fortunately, I have everything I need for this week''s crafting. That gives me time to restore more of the Mythic Forest I have access to and potentially find a location which grows reagents for mana potions and build that up some. Aster didn''t come down with me and I''m sure things will be fine if I leave the pup be, so I access my gate and travel straight to the Whispering Life Spring to check on its progress. The plant growth here has spread a little bit but not massively. It''s expanded maybe three more feet out rather than spreading all the way to the edges. Earth magic crystals will definitely be needed to make things grow faster. More water would be beneficial as well as the pond can only do so much. My next stop is the Happy Butterfly hill, which is about the same as I left it, with maybe two or three more feet of growth out and a starry-furred otter swimming around in the river flowing past it. The soil for Pup Leisure Pond has improved in quality but isn''t quite ready for plants yet. None of the mythical beasts I''ve encountered seem to be anywhere right now. That''s fine, though, since they have their own things to do as well. All of my checks are done, so I access the Special Quest and immediately find myself standing in front of a fog wall in a ravine with a rocky bed and walls which range from ten to twenty feet in height. It''s around sixty or so feet in width and has a sort of arched fog roof to it that stretches from side to side. The bed of the ravine has some slight slopes and dips, making it deeper toward the center than at the edges, and I can spot a few small holes in it as well. Roaming about in the ravine ¨C or rather, the bed of the river ¨C are goblins and trolls. Since I have a few more minutes after examining my surroundings before the semi-transparent Quest-start barrier around me fades, I look at the notification floating in my vision.
Slay monsters within the special zone.
Goblins: 0/100 Trolls: 0/10
Boars: 0/5 Time Limit: None
Reward: 5,000 EXP
Note: The reward will be received each time a threshold is met.
That confirms my suspicion from last night ¨C that it''s a repeatable Quest. Whatever the boars are, they''re probably a fair bit tough and fast considering they''re monsters rather than normal ones. I should avoid taking them on until I gain another Level at the minimum. It would be better to gain two or three before then based on my knowledge of weaker boar monsters, but I might not be able to avoid them. That said, they''re probably further upriver as I don''t see any right now. With the light fog and the curvature of the riverbed, I can see about two hundred or so feet away. I step through the barrier and cast [Magic Missile] straight into a nearby goblin, ending its life immediately. The next goblin requires two [Magic Missile]s to slay, but the one after that only requires one. Trolls will take too much effort for me to take on right now so I focus on the goblins. It''s a pretty good thing the trolls have terrible eyesight as that makes it easy to avoid drawing their attention. This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it. Running through the dry river might not be a bad idea, except the rocks in places make it a little bit unstable and it''s not completely flat, either. The small dips and scattered holes would easily twist my ankle and while I could just drink a health potion to fix that, I don''t want to need to so I walk as I work. Almost an hour after I begin, I''ve slain enough goblins to meet the threshold three times.
Special Quest completed!
+5,000 EXP
You have reached the EXP threshold to reach Level 3! Your Level 3 Awakening Quest is now available! Would you like to participate?
Yes No
If this Awakening Quest is anything like my last one, it''ll take place here in the Mythic Forest so I won''t need to worry about my bracelets being destroyed by the mana in the air during it. There''s still that risk, however, so I put them into my [Dimensional Storage] along with my phone. My clothes won''t survive if the Quest isn''t in here, but that''s acceptable. Though I''ll definitely need to acquire new gear again. I wasn''t expecting to need to already. The moment I accept my Level 3 Awakening Quest, I find myself on a stretch of land around a thousand feet long and about four hundred feet in width, though more oval than rectangle. As with all of the zones of the Mythic Forest, it''s surrounded by dense fog walls. As with my Awakening Quest and Level 2 Awakening Quest, there''s no fog within the zone itself. This zone seems to be segmented a little bit. What looks like a pond stretches a significant portion of its southern half, with slopes along the sides around three-quarters of the way north, going from north to south. It also slopes down into the pond''s bed as well. At the slopes up, the pond area itself is split, with the northern quarter about fifteen feet or so taller, and the two sections of the pond narrowing at the join so that it''s only about seven feet in width. The upper section''s water would cascade down into a small, rocky basin about three feet lower than it, which then flows into the lower pond in a fall around two feet in height, judging by the ground to the sides. I can just picture this place when it''s alive. Trees and bushes growing densely close to the part where the two pond sections meet, more of them growing scattered throughout the zone. Grasses, flowers, reeds, and more growing around the pond in the other areas with a small clearing to the forest on the northern end, which slopes up a little to a higher elevation than the pond for the northern quarter. Right now, however, there''s none of that. It''s just dirt and rocks and fish-like monsters I recognize as icthinios swimming through the air. They''re about two feet in height and three and a half in length, not including their fins. These ones have greenish-blue scales and fins with a paler underside. If there was more than just the grey light filtered through the fog wall ceiling, those scales would shimmer lightly.
Your Level 3 Awakening Quest will begin in 5 minutes. Fail to complete the task, and you will not progress to the next Level.
Slay all lake icthinios: 0/200 Time Limit: 3 hours
Lake icthinios are the weakest of the water-type icthinios, and this Quest was probably chosen since I''m strong enough to handle them. I get to work on killing the icthinios, blasting a [Magic Missile] into the head of the nearest one as I draw close. That''s not enough to kill it and the beast turns to face me, an orb of water forming in front of its mouth. A second [Magic Missile] soars forward and punches through the orb, bursting it before slamming into the floating fish''s head. My third [Magic Missile] finishes off the last of the monster''s HP, the beast dropping to the ground.
+1 lake icthinios slain!
The alchemist in me doesn''t want to let valuable material go to waste, so I hold off on taking on a second beast until I''ve harvested not just the fist-sized essence crystal from within it, but attempted to salvage their gills. Unfortunately, the gills on this one were destroyed by my attacks, so I''m a little bit more careful for the next one and manage to save one of the organs.
[Lake Icthinios Gill]
Tier: 9
A gill from a lake icthinios, the water and air magics within allow the beast to breathe both water and air.
I can use these to make water-breathing potions. A single one of these can make around ten of those potions and it''s difficult to get my hands on more than three or four of them at a time. The potions won''t last too long as they''re just from the lake variant, but even ten minutes is plenty of time at times. The gill is placed into one of my bracelets, after I slip the three of them back on. I return to slaying the lake icthinioses and harvesting their essence crystals and gills until I remember that I''ll likely just end up back in the Mythic Forest. With no time difference occurring after, I can just return here to harvest stuff. Some of them manage to fire their water jet blasts before I can burst their bubbles, but I have enough warning to move out of the way in time. This would be a different story if there were two of the monsters close enough to force me to take them on together, but I don''t need to worry about that. I pick up the pace a little and finish off the lake icthinioses a little before the three-hour mark is up. It''s a good thing I stopped collecting parts, or I wouldn''t have finished. This Awakening Quest might have been partially testing my ability to resist the craftsmen nature in me. Rather than being teleported away, I just receive the notification alerting me to the end of the Quest and a location notice.
Congratulations on completing your Level 3 Awakening Quest! Your stats have been increased and your HP and MP have been refreshed!
A new area within the Mythic Forest is available to access via your gate: the Floaty Fish Pond!
Now that I know about the King of the Celestials, I''m fairly certain it''s him naming the different sections of the Mythic Forest. This one has a name which indicates icthinioses normally live here, except Mythic Forests shouldn''t have monsters. A non-monster version of them, then? I doubt mythical beasts in their form would simply reside here. Aster made it clear last night that the Celestials don''t reside here, so I doubt a mythical beast would outside of Mrow, who may only be here because of the free monsters. Speaking of the lifeseed worm, it pops up out of the soil just as I think about it. If it was able to arrive so quickly after¡­ that means it was aware of my presence doing this. Why did it wait until after the Awakening Quest ended? Because it had to. The System must have kept it from entering until after the Awakening Quest concluded. "Hey, Mrow," I say, and the lifeseed worm looks at me. "Can you hold on? I want to harvest their kills, scales, fins, and essence crystals. Not all of them, though, as that would be far too much. Just the ones on this quarter of the zone, alright?" Mrow looks at the icthinios it was about to consume, then at me, then at the icthinios again before sinking back down into the ground. It rises up out of the soil closer to the pond and consumes the remains of the monster it popped up by. While the mythical beast gets to work on that, I get to work on my own harvests while checking my Status to see my new stats.
Name: Evan Rethe Rank: 5
Species: Human Sex: Male
Level: 3 EXP: 0/66,389
HP: 9,300/9,300 MP: 9,300/9,300
Strength: 17 Constitution: 22
Agility: 17 Dexterity: 25
Magic: 31 Mind: 28
HP Regen: 5% MP Regen: 5%
These stats would have made killing the lake icthinioses doable with a single [Magic Missile], though it wasn''t impossible at my stats as a Level 2 Rank 5. As the Rank 5s I know said, the Awakening Quest is fully possible as long as I try. I could have completed it in less than half the time had I just run through the area, firing off [Magic Missile]s as quickly as the one-second cooldown would allow. I take a step toward the last of the monsters I took down but don''t make it to the beast as a shimmer forms in the air around fifty feet away. A moment later, an ichtinios with teal, blue, and green scales with a silver shimmer swims out of it, its eyes silver orbs. Water lightly sprinkles from its fins as it swims through the air toward me, the mythical beast giving me a curious look as another swims out of the shimmer in the air. That must be an entrance/exit for one of the passageways Aster told me about, though I doubt these are the "floaty fish" the King of the Celestials noted about this place as they''re mythical beasts rather than normal ones. The second mythical beast to exit the path looks at the dead itchinios and gives a wiggle of happiness while I inspect the first one to see the System information on them.
Springscale Icthinios
Category: Mythical
A mythical-class creature whose scales and fins generate a small amount of water as they swim through the air.
"Hello," I greet him. "Your name is¡­ Elacs?" The springscale icthinios in front of me ¨C which is about fifty percent bigger than the others ¨C gives a nod before swimming around. He then promptly opens up another passageway and leaves through it, the others following him out. Five of them in total came through the first one, which fades after the last exits it. That was¡­ strange. They must have come here for a reason. To kill the lake icthinios. Since the local monsters were already taken care of, they promptly left after. "A shame, really," I say. "The water coming off their scales would probably help fill this place up over time. Don''t you think, Flow?" "Woof!" Flow responds, then gives me a confused tilt of his head when I look down at him. "What?" I ask. "Woof?" "It was just a guess that you''d shown up," I tell him. "Did you have fun hanging out with Aster?" He sends me an image of him in his adult form being climbed on by the pup while trying to shake him off. That''s filled with a sense of annoyance but resignation. It seems to be a recurring incident between the two of them and he''s given up trying to stop the pup. A mythical beast versus a Celestial¡­ not a great matchup. I feel a little sorry for the guy. "Good luck," I tell him. "I''m going to harvest some materials before heading home for lunch. You can hang out if you want, Aster''s probably off doing whatever it is that pup does. He was an otter at Happy Butterfly Hill a few hours ago, but I''m not sure if he''s still there or not." Chapter 0024 I dip my quill into an inkwell and once it''s drawn in some of the reddish-orange ink from within the small glass jar, I pull it out. The gold-yellow shaft of the quill being so thin as to nearly be translucent makes it easy to tell how much ink is inside, the vane itself nearly the same color as the ink. With quill and ink ready, I begin drawing on the blank, orange-tinted scroll in front of me. The first part of the process to craft a magic scroll is to draw the center point, which defines the core aspects of the spell and provides connections to the rest. Sitting on a stand is a piece of paper with the scroll spell drawn on it in black ink and pressed between two thin pieces of enchanted glass to keep it upright and flat as I use it as a guide. It''s always better to draw it on a plain piece of paper, with normal ink, first. This is especially true if it''s a spell I''m not used to making. Once I finish the core section, I begin working on the portion which stores and regulates mana. That forms a sort of ring around the central portion and is important for the scroll to work. Every part of it is, but this is the most volatile part as it contains the fuel. Spell scrolls aren''t activated by the user supplying the cost. Instead, they''re activated by unrolling the paper after it''s been sealed once. The ink used for this section looks the same as the rest but contains a massive amount of mana. That necessitates drawing the section swiftly but accurately to ensure minimal leakage before it''s completed and the storage aspect properly begins. I finish the mana storage and regulation section and use a separate quill for the other ink for the scroll as I start outlining the parameters of the spell. The central portion defines the core aspects, but the area around the mana storage and regulation is what actually creates the parameters. Direction, magic type, shape, distance, strength, and more. Last but not least, I create the final ring around the spell circle. This will stabilize the scroll so that it lasts a long while instead of simply activating. It also sets the parameters for what can activate the spell. Once all of that is done, I bind the scroll with a reddish-orange ribbon and seal it with matching wax.
[Scroll of Flamethrower]
Tier: 1
A scroll which unleashes a jet of flames to incinerate all within its path.
Strength: 20 Magic
This will conjure a flamethrower which flows ten feet in distance when activated. I set the scroll to the side and begin working on a second. It takes me seven minutes to make one of the scrolls thanks to my experience crafting scrolls in general and I want thirty of these. That time should reduce a little as I get into the patterns during this work session. "Stay off the table, please," I say during my seventh scroll, and Aster gives me a curious look from where he''s positioned to jump up. "If you shake the table or my hands, or knock over the inks, it could cause a disaster. This is delicate work." Aster lets out a soft whine, then walks over and curls up against my left leg. I''m not sure what he was doing all day, but it seems he''s decided to return here. Once I finish the batch of scrolls, I clean up my station and move the scrolls into the shop''s stock room, then log them into my database. The next task for me is to prepare a batch of low-level scrolls for my stock. It''s one I''ve made more than a hundred times, so I already have a template created. I place it between two sheets of glass and set it onto the stand, then head into the basement to grab the appropriate scroll papers before returning to my scroll desk. "That''s alright," I tell Aster as I sit down, and the mouse-form Celestial gives a happy squeak before coming out from behind the inkwells he was peeking out at me from between. "Just make sure you don''t move too much." "Squeak!" A mouse''s squeak doesn''t normally sound that much like the word, but I decide not to let the pup know and instead, begin work on this next scroll. With how often I''ve crafted this scroll before, it takes only three minutes for me to make each one. Even with the quicker work pace, I manage to craft them flawlessly. This one''s page is a pale, cream color with brown ink. Nothing too telling of its design, but many scroll shops catering to novices sell them. It''s considered an essential for newbie teams.
[Scroll of Near Paths]
Tier: 1
A scroll which reveals the layout of the area around its activation.
Strength: 15 Magic Distance: 45''
While this might seem like it''s not too useful due to that lower range, this kind of scroll is often used by newer adventurers still learning how to spot the actual entrances to hidden passages. Usually, it''s used when they''re certain there''s a path in the area, and this scroll will even "highlight" on its generated map the locations of the triggers for the hidden passages, if there is one and it''s within range. I craft fifty of these scrolls, then begin working on another, similar one. The paper and ink are identical in appearance but slightly different as this spell is more potent and has a little bit more nuance to it.
[Scroll of Near Paths]
Tier: 3
A scroll which reveals the layout of the area around its activation, with its strength dependent on the Magic of the one who activates it.
Cost: 50 MP Distance: 3'' per 1 Magic, up to 50 Magic (150'')
I don''t need to bind these with a brown ribbon and wax seal like I did the other one, but I do so anyway. It helps the scrolls keep longer and avoids accidental activations. "These scrolls are meant as cheaper alternatives," I tell Aster. "To slightly-more experienced parties who can afford them. If I were to make one that can go up to fifty yards on their own, the cost would be $675 for a Tier 1 one. Instead, this one is only $45 at Tier 1." "Woof?" He must have forgotten that he''s a mouse right now. That actually sounded like a proper dog''s "woof", too. "It''s usually better to do something like this as a ring or bracelet or other object," I tell him. "But either way, it''s cheaper to create an object that uses the user''s own power and MP to activate after a certain level of power. Let me get these put away and logged." After I do that, I check the time and notice that it''s nearly nine in the evening. "Whoops," I rub the mouse''s head. "I got a bit too absorbed in my work today, after brewing up potions and new inks. There was one more scroll I wanted to craft a batch of, if I had the time, but it seems I don''t." "Squeak?" Aster tilts his head to the side. "I can make one to show you, though," I tell him. "I''ll be right back." I retrieve a single sheet of the correct lilac-colored scroll paper from downstairs, then return to my workshop and spread the scroll on the table. This is one I''ve crafted enough to have the pattern memorized, though it takes me almost twenty minutes to create it. Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website. A much more delicate technique is required, especially since the ink I brewed up for it earlier is a lot more potent than I normally make. I do have several of the lower-level version of this scroll in stock, so this was just meant as an addition to my higher-level stock. When I finish drawing with an ink which resembles liquid lapis lazuli, I present the scroll to Aster.
[Scroll of Find Friend]
Tier: 9
A scroll which reveals the location of a friend, with its strength dependent on the Magic of the one who activates it. The user must clearly visualize the friend they wish to locate.
Cost: 2,250 MP Distance: 10'' per 1 Magic
Not all of my trusted customers and friends are a high enough strength to be running Dungeons of a higher Category than this can survive in. This is something those of a lower Level would find useful ¨C for a comparatively small cost in MP, they can find missing allies in a Dungeon or out in the wilderness. Important, if said ally might be wounded or trapped. This one also includes the map-creating feature of the last two scrolls I crafted. Once activated, the runic pattern on it will change and a map will form on the scroll with highlighted markings showing the missing friend, as long as they were visualized properly. I can make one which updates itself automatically over time and lasts for up to half an hour, except those require even more expensive papers and inks and will cost the user must more MP as well. This one will cost almost $4,000 to buy, which isn''t really much when compared to saving someone''s life and how much would be earned from such a hunt in the first place, should someone be running up against monsters worth the scroll''s Tier. Looking at Aster and how sad he seems, an idea comes to me. With how much I''ve earned this past week from my hourly rate, commissions, and selling of loot, I can part with this scroll for free and not take a hit to my finances. "Here," I push the scroll toward Aster, who sniffs it for a moment before looking up at me with his purple mouse eyes. "I''m not sure what the upper limit on range is for this as it never mentions, but I''m sure you''ll be able to see if your king is nearby with it. Just¡­ use mana instead of aether, alright? It won''t be able to work if you use aether instead." As a Celestial, he uses aether ¨C which is what all magical energies of the universe originate from. That''s a bit too strong for something like this and would simply destroy it when channeled inside. I''m sure that even a child as ancient as he must be knows how to convert it into mana, though, so the scroll should be fine as long as he does that. Aster nods, then transforms back into his pup form before placing a paw on the scroll. The blue markings glow, then fade away as the paper takes on the appearance of a starry sky, a violet dot shining in the exact center of it. Did¡­ it just work to span a part of the universe? I was expecting it to cover maybe the city at the most. There''s not a chance the scroll could span part of the universe on its own, something else must have affected it. The only obvious explanation is that Aster did. He lets out several happy barks, then picks up the scroll in his mouth and vanishes. Once he''s gone, I begin cleaning up my supplies. That scroll actually working is surprising to me, but so is the fact that Aster seemed to have never done something like that before. If the King of the Celestials is missing, then how could a scroll like that locate him? The other Celestials have surely looked for him using their powers before. Unless¡­ Aster is one of the few who didn''t think of something like that and he''s just never tried before. He does seem to be more of a child, and the magical communication he uses has a more childlike feel to it. It might be possible that Celestials with older minds have thought about it in the past with varying degrees of success. Since the scroll was clearly altered in some way by the pup, I''m not sure how well it will have actually worked. As I finish cleaning up, Aster reappears, holding in his mouth a small, clear jar containing a bundle of fur ¨C fur with the dusk-like appearance of the pelt of the King of the Celestials.
[My Fur]
Tier: ¡Þ
I gave this to Aster. If you are not he, please return it to where you found him and make a tribute in high-quality meat and sweets. Especially meat. Do not touch without permission. You have been warned.
If the notes on Aster were just a sign that something is able to edit the informational windows, this one''s a blatant statement that the King of the Celestials can edit them as he pleases. He''s just straight-up giving a warning in this one''s informational window. "That was a short trip for you to see him," I say. "I''d have expected you to hang out with him for awhile. Maybe climb on him a bit." Aster sighs, but his tail starts wagging like crazy as a message comes to me. Not an image of the King of the Celestials, but a memory of him appearing somewhere, ready to play, only to find the small jar with the big boy''s fur in it. Which means that my scroll probably couldn''t detect the King of the Celestials directly. More than likely, he knew it was getting used since he''s watching me and deliberately allowed it to locate that little bundle of fur so that Aster would know he''s around. "Is it okay if I touch the fur?" I give Aster a slight rub on the head. "Or is that not allowed?" The lid of the jar unscrews and plops onto the table. I''m going to assume that''s a "yes" so I put my hand out to confirm. Aster turns his head so that the opening of the jar is facing my hand, then tilts the jar a little bit to let the bundle drop onto it. It''s incredibly soft and feels unlike any fur I''ve ever felt before. I''m barely able to register that before I''m flooded with memories and knowledge. The universe, in its vastness. All which exists within and outside of it. The pathways which travel through the universe, connecting the various worlds, realms, dimensions, planes, and other together. Animals and monsters of all varieties, from the smallest to the largest and the weakest to the strongest. Peoples of a wide variety, including humans, elves, beastkin, and fairies. Universes forming and ending. The creation of the Mythic Forest, of a pocket dimension in a place which never existed until then, with not even a nothingness or void present. An island which came to be and an immense tree grown from it, nearly a thousand feet in diameter and several miles in height. Of a lake which formed around it, rivers and streams flowing into and out of it. Magics mortals could only dream of flow through my mind, knowledge of techniques no human should ever know. The power to create and destroy in absolutes. How to alter anything without knowing the science between the two and have it work as if the change were natural. The flow of time and its secrets, knowledge which allows one to live outside of it. The images and memories and new information all continue to flash by, picking up speed over and over until they suddenly stop, the last memory feeling much more slow than the rest, as if watched in real time rather than a quick flash. In this one, I''m staring up at an immense beast with lilac-colored eyes and fur in oranges and yellows and pinks and purples, reminiscent of the skies at dawns and dusks. It lowers its head toward me and I lift up my hand, touching its muzzle with my tiny baby hand. We''re on a field of dry, dead dirt with a faint fog all around and thicker fog in the distance, the corpses of goblins scattered around without a mark on their remains. Just as quickly as the flood of memories and knowledge came, it disappears. I don''t retain any of the knowledge I suddenly acquired through the rush, just a lingering awareness of what I did know. Most of the memories are gone as well, but the remnants of them remain. Along with the awareness of just how vast existence itself is¡­ and that Celestials can exist outside of it, as illogical as that sounds. That last memory, though¡­ was that me at the time I was found in the Dungeon? Or rather, right before then? Something about that memory felt more personal than the rest, as if it were my own rather than that of another being. If I''m right, then I''ve actually met the King of the Celestials before. He felt¡­ almost fatherly in the way he moved during the memory. I look at Aster, who''s moved the fur back into the jar and screwed the cap back on. Him moving it must have been what cut off the flow of knowledge and memories. While I don''t still have the magical knowledge I received during that flood, I do know a few things now. One of those is just how much power the Celestials have. A being with a childlike mind like Aster''s, but the power to alter matter on a fundamental level, is dangerous. Yet he uses it to change his form and travel between worlds and dimensions and such. I suppose his interests are more in eating and playing than causing problems or creating universes. "The King of the Celestials," I say, and Aster looks up at me with a slight tilt of his head. "He''s a very kind being, isn''t he?" Aster nods, his tail wagging happily. I think my encounter with the big boy is why I survived in the Dungeon I was abandoned in ¨C he may have been the one who killed the goblins and shielded me. I''m feeling a bit dizzy, though, so trying to remember more about our meeting will have to wait. Food and rest is more important. "Come on, Aster," I say. "Let''s head up to my house now." Chapter 0025 "Good morning," I greet Nate and Emily as they enter my shop moments after I open it for the day. "How are you?" "Doing awesome, Dungeon Baby!" Emily exclaims as she nearly skips her way over to me. "Since we don''t have Dungeons to do, Nate and I are going to head out of town and hunt some monsters outside!" "Be careful," I tell them. "You''re much more likely to run into monsters of varying strengths outside since that''s wilderness rather than a System-generated combat zone." "We will," Nate tells me. "We wanted to stock up on potions, if you''ve got them. And Emily, stop calling him that." "But it''s what he is!" She protests as Ryan enters the shop. "Oh! It''s the trainer! Hi, Trainer!" It seems they''ve met Ryan before, though I don''t think they ran a Dungeon together based on what I''ve been told about their separate Dungeon runs. I''m a bit surprised that he''s here right now as it''s even earlier than when I expected him to show up to purchase stuff for training, if he were going to do that again today. "It''s Ryan," Ryan corrects her, then looks at Nate. "You two heading out of town?" "Yeah," Nate answers. "Came to stock up on potions." "I''d recommend having a party," Ryan says. "Most of the monsters nearest to the city are weaker, but they can be more numerous in Dungeons and you can run into some stronger ones. A party will make things safer in general. You''ll want a degree of balancing similar to what your initial Dungeon run with a guide had ¨C two close-range fighters who deal damage, two ranged fighters for damage-dealing, two supporters, and two people who can draw monster attention and tank damage while others recover and regroup and get into better strike positions, but also to protect the ranged fighters and supporters. If you can, join a group with some stronger members just in case something goes wrong. You can ask at the bureau for recommendations and they''ll list some trusted parties." Even off-duty as a trainer, he still wants to make sure people are preparing properly for their hunts. I kind of want to kiss him right now but refrain from doing so. Not in front of customers. "Thanks," Nate says. "We''ll keep that in mind. You buy from here? Isn''t this a beginner''s shop?" "I''ve known Evan since before he opened the shop," Ryan explains. "Came to check how it''s doing with the decreases in materials." A lie, since he knows from our discussions this past weekend I''m not affected yet and probably won''t be for at least another week or so. It''s probably to avoid mentioning the higher stock I carry. "I can help you if you''re ready," I tell Nate and Emily. They purchase some health and mana potions, then leave, and once they''ve left, Ryan looks at me. "You okay?" "Yeah," I answer. "Why? Did something happen?" "Your goodnight pic last night and good morning pic this morning," he says. "And now. You look a little bit dazed and out of it. Those two probably wouldn''t have noticed it, but I''ve known you for about eight years now. Something''s wrong." He picked up on something being off when I was sure I wasn''t showing it. That''s kind of impressive. "Is it really that obvious?" I ask. "Maybe not to others," he says. "But I''m sure any of your close friends would know. Half of our mutual acquaintances asked if our date went badly and wanted to know what I did." I''d uploaded my wake-up picture with Aster this morning to my profile rather than only sending it to Ryan. Nothing too low down was visible so I felt it was safe, and my feeling about becoming a substitute dad for Aster seems to be proving true. The pup''s even currently curled up at my feet rather than being off doing whatever it is he does. Glad to hear everyone has my back, but they needn''t have worried. "I''ll tell you later," I tell him. "It''s¡­ a bit much to handle. I can give you a short version, though. You know I was found in a Dungeon, right?" "Yeah," he answers. "The one and only Dungeon baby to never have any trace of their family found." "I have a decent memory," I say. "And can remember being found in the Dungeon. Nothing from before that, though, including who my parents were." "Did you learn something?" He asks. "Or remember?" "Remember," I answer. "Specifically¡­ I remembered meeting the King of the Celestials. He was there. Before I was found." Which also implies there''s a chance that he erased my memory of meeting him for some reason. I don''t want to say that out loud right now, though. That''s really something for a discussion when we have more time and I''m not running my shop. Also for after I''ve processed it some more. "Oh¡­" "Yeah." Ryan''s quiet for a few moments as he tries to process that. "Evan?" He says. "Yeah?" "Your shop might be rather dead this week," he tells me. "And you''ve basically done nonstop work since before we met. This might be the perfect time to give yourself a break." Where is this coming from? "If I give myself a break," I tell him. "I''ll want to get lazy. It''s why I fill my days with stuff to do. Just having the shop open, even on days where no customers come in, gives me something to counter that. It''s why I spend the shifts reading if no one''s here." "There have been zero new Awakened in the last three days." Silence hangs in the air for several long moments as I process that. "What?" "Awakening Quests are still there," he tells me. "But Level 1 Awakening Quests aren''t happening. There hasn''t been a single report of a new Awakened in three days. Coupled with the lack of any Dungeons, and a starter shop will probably lose money by being open. Taking the week off might give you the break you need to process what you remembered last night. You really do seem out of it, Evs." Processing that I''ve met the King of the Celestials and that he''s potentially erased my memories from before I was found shouldn''t interfere with my work. That''s something I can focus on after work. "It''s not that bad," I tell him. "I''ll be fine, Ry, don''t worry." "Evan," Ryan says. "When you served Nate and Emily, it was less like you were working and more like you were going through the motions." "I''m-" The door opens and in walks Nick. "Oh, hey, Ryan!" He says. "You here to check on Evan, too?" "Yeah," Ryan says. "You doing okay?" He asks me. "You looked a bit dazed in your most recent picture and I can see you look it a bit in real life." "He''s not," Ryan says before I can respond. "He remembered something from before he was found in that Dungeon as a baby and it''s shaken him up a bit. I''m trying to convince him to take a break for the week, especially considering that the shop will basically be dead for it, but he''s resistant." "He''s that way," Nick nods, then looks at me again. "You got a familiar? Who''s the pup from the pics? His fur looks pretty neat." "Not a familiar," I tell him. "An ancient cosmic beast with the ability to use aether as he pleases but who also has the mind of a pup. I ended up in a Mythic Forest on Saturday and found him in there. He was all sticky, so I cleaned him up and he''s decided to hang around me. And he''s down here." I reach down and pick up Aster to set on the counter, the pup shifting into a seated position once he''s on it. "His name''s Aster." "Have you ever heard of the Celestials?" Ryan asks Nick. "Celestials?" Nick frowns. "The word rings a bell, but only a small one. I think I heard about them a year or so ago? I''d gotten a reward that let me enter a Mythic Forest and I wanted to look up what those were. I think Celestials were mentioned in some obscure text I came across as possibly being inhabitants of the Mythic Forest. I dunno. The one I entered was just dead. Dirt and nothing else. Not even water in the dirt. Also fog." The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings. That''s two Rank 5s I know of who went into a Mythic Forest and found it dead. One is chance, two is coincidence, three is a pattern. Since I have met two who have and there are plenty of Rank 5s in the world, then, I''m sure of it: it''s still been used as a reward, its dead state just hasn''t been noted in the records for some reason. "First I''m hearing of it," Ryan says. "And we talk a lot." "Well, yeah," Nick says. "It''s so different from¡­" he glances at me. "Ah." "Ah?" I ask. Nick and Ryan look at each other, then shrug before looking at me again. "What Adam noticed the other day that made him so amused," Ryan points at his eyes. "Is the eye color of the three people he''d learned you''d had romantic relations or interest in. We''ve all got orange eyes." "You seem to have an attraction for demigods," Nick says. "Exclusively romantically interested in us." There being demigods is news to me. I know about the gods from tales but not as facts. This isn''t something these two would lie about, either. Well, Nick might use it as a joke, but I can tell from his tone and expression that he''s serious. "Demigods?" I ask as Aster lies back down, apparently not interested in this discussion. "You''re children of gods?" "No," Nick says. "Demigods are a bit different in reality from stories and such. Actual demigods are reincarnated gods. We''re technically immortal, but we can reincarnate ourselves as we please." "To make sure you don''t get the wrong idea," Ryan says. "When we reincarnate, we initially lack our memories and personality from our past lives. We know we''re something more, but that''s it. When we''re around fifteen or sixteen, we start regaining our memories." "However," Nick says. "We don''t gain the minds of our past lives. That''s not until we return to full godhood. So think of us as just normal people, but with a little bit extra knowledge. Ryan and I are just a pair of twenty-two-year-old guys." "Including mentally," Ryan adds. "So you''re not dating someone who''s thousands upon thousands of years old, or anything like that." "You don''t have your godly powers, then?" I ask. "We do but don''t," Ryan says. "We do in the sense that we could use them if we wanted to. However, that comes with the caveat that the moment we tap into them, we return to our godly states." So treat them no differently than I did before. "What were you gods of?" I ask. "Or do you have god names I might know?" "Gods aren''t really gods of things," Nick tells him. "Some people might attribute us to certain things or aspects, but that''s a mortal thing. Gods are people who ascended past mortalhood. We learned how to harness mana in its truest state and developed the ability to wield it in an unlimited amount." "Mana, not aether?" I ask, which causes Aster to sit up and puff out his chest. "Not really heard of beings who can wield aether itself," Ryan tells me. "Not as their own fuel, at least. We can at least tap into it a little bit in our godly states, but that actually damages us." Aster now looks really smug. "Stop that," Ryan rolls his eyes at the pup. "What?" Nick asks as Aster snickers. "Wait. He can use aether?" I guess he already forgot that I mentioned the pup''s abilities. "All Celestials can," I inform him. "At least, according to a tome Ryan bought during our date. It''s their native energy source. Ryan, if you knew reincarnation was a thing, how come you didn''t suggest that maybe the reason his king is missing is because he''s been reincarnating himself over and over? Didn''t think of it?" Since I met the King of the Celestials as a baby and Aster has acquired a bundle of the big boy''s fur more recently, he''s probably back to his normal form now. However, reincarnation might explain why he''s gone "missing" and can''t be found. They''re looking for a Celestial but he was a mortal. "His king?" Nick asks, and we fill him in on what we learned from the tome and Aster. "Huh. Yeah¡­ I don''t have any memories relating to the Celestials apart from what I learned as a mortal." "Me neither," Ryan tells him. "I asked a couple of others already, and none of them know of Celestials. It''s the only thing we''ve learned of that''s consistently missing between us. Might not be the only thing, but it''s the only one we''ve confirmed. Their king might have made sure we don''t remember for some reason." For what reason would he do that, though? "As to your question," Ryan looks at me. "The reason I didn''t mention it is because it hadn''t crossed my mind. Aster doesn''t have a soul, so I just assumed all Celestials don''t. You need a soul to reincarnate." "No soul?" I look at Aster. "You don''t have a soul?" Aster shakes his head. "Now that I''m thinking about it," Ryan says. "It explains why the tome claims the ones from the same clan are all the same in personality. It could be that they''re all the same beast, just in different forms." Rather than explaining why it would make sense for that, he just raises an eyebrow at me, probably wondering if I know about whether or not Aster can shapeshift. "He can shapeshift," I tell them. "He was a mouse last night so he could watch me make scrolls without shaking the table and I''ve seen him as an otter as well." "Right then," Ryan says. "Souls are what enable people to change. It''s where the core of our personality is located. Without one, your personality remains the same. Eternally. And no, Aster isn''t the first soulless beast I''ve met. Elementals lack souls as well. That''s part of why I didn''t think anything of him lacking a soul." Aster sends me a message which I''m pretty sure translates into "elementals are yummy". I give him a light flick on the nose, causing him to huff and plop himself onto the counter, legs and tail spread out. "Do I want to know?" Ryan asks. "He likes how elementals taste." "You have [Animal Communication]?" Nick asks. "Yeah," I answer. "That''s another thing," Ryan says. "[Animal Communication] might be required for their own communication attempts to work. It''s probably designed to facilitate communication between all beings and so bypasses the differences in minds between souled beasts and soulless beasts. That''s why I was pained when he sent me a message ¨C my mind is too incompatible with his because mine has soul aspects in it." "Huh," I look at the pup. "Aster, do all Celestials lack souls?" He sends me a response. "That''s a ''yes''. Aster, does this include your king?" Aster turns his head to me and nods. "So he can''t have reincarnated?" I ask, and he nods again. "So he''s just really good at playing hide-and-seek?" "Arf!" His tail starts wagging, then he stands up and vanishes. "I think he went to go play with some friends." Ryan frowns for a moment, then glances at Nick before looking at me again. "You know," he says. "I wonder¡­ Wyatt mentioned the reason he broke up with you was because he felt a little bit inferior to you." "I''m no god," I hold up my hands. "I''ve never even felt as if I''m something more than a person. And my eyes are purple, not orange." "Maybe," Ryan says. "But Nick, do you get that feeling?" "Yeah," Nick says. "It''s why us dating didn''t work out. And I know he wanted to go from bennies with Cole to boyfriends, but Cole felt he wasn''t worthy. I was curious about you after realizing his romantic inclination toward gods." "Same here," Ryan says. "But I''m willing to give it a try," he looks at me. "You''re always so calm and peaceful, and your presence often calms down those who rage. The only times I''ve seen it not is when they were infected by the Dark Infection. Even then, prolonged exposure does seem to calm them down." "Er¡­ are you suggesting I''m a Celestial?" I ask. "Or the big boy himself? Didn''t we just establish that''s not possible? Besides, I''ve met the big boy ¨C and Aster''s confirmed to me that there''s only one of each coat pattern." Nick looks like he wants to say something, but Ryan beats him to speaking. "Not that," Ryan says. "You have a soul, anyway. Just a thought I had because of the topic, but not actually related to it. Godhood is a state of transcendence. We transcend via magical ability and become capable of using mana in an unlimited amount. Your general calmness¡­ I''m now curious if maybe you''ve transcended via the mind." "I''ve not heard of such a way before," Nick says. "But¡­ that''s actually a good point. You''re still mortal, but maybe your mind is advanced beyond ours. That would explain why we have an inferiority complex when it comes to you." "It can''t be that bad," I say. "And I''ve always been on the calmer side. It''s probably more just laziness than anything. I can''t be bothered to deal with more bothersome emotions." Snickering draws our attention. While Ryan and Nick seem confused, I look down at Aster. He''s curled up as if asleepbut his entire body is vibrating from his snickers. I nudge him with my foot and the pup stops snickering as he opens his eyes and looks up at me, then he closes his eyes and rests his head back on his tail. I noticed the pup returning a few moments after he left but didn''t comment about it. That was probably just him imitating hide-and-seek for whatever reason he had. "Aster?" Ryan asks. "Aster," I confirm. "Not sure what that was about. Back to the topic, though. As I said, my calmness stems more from laziness than anything. The whole reason I fill my day with things to do is due to my laziness as well. I''d quite literally just relax and sleep all day if I didn''t busy myself." My napping with the azulvitt wolves and foxes the other day was me forgetting to push back against that nature. I quite often wish to just lie down and relax or sleep and that setting was far too good to pass up. As the Mythic Forest is restored more and more, I might have more of those occurrences. "Another thing," I say. "You said that godhood is a state of transcendence. Would that not make me a god if I transcended via the mind?" "No," Ryan answers. "Godhood comes from transcendence of magical ability and power. I''ve not heard of transcendence via other methods as reality, but it''s possible that doing so might yield other results." "It''s just laziness on my part," I tell him. "Probably too lazy to transcend," Nick snorts, causing us to chuckle a little. "The reason you''re resistant to taking a break," Ryan says. "It''s because you feel you''d struggle to return to this if you did?" "A bit, yes," I answer. "What do you think friends are for?" Nick asks. "If you need help getting your ass back in gear after a break," he punches his left palm. "We''ll kick it for you!" "Adding to that," Ryan does his best not to snort. "You sort of just ''went through the motions'' with the transaction you already had. It was a lot different from how you normally serve customers. You probably do need to take some time off. You''ve never taken a vacation before, anyway." "I''ll be fine," I tell them. "I promise." Aster jumps up onto the counter, sits down, and stares at me. I rub his head. "Peer pressure doesn''t work on me," I tell him. "All of you, I promise. I''m fine. No customers simply means more time to read, that''s all. Having the expanded stock and having the income from what Daily Dungeons I''ve done has built up extra funds to ensure the shop doesn''t go broke during this drought even if I keep my normal hours throughout." "You think it''ll end?" Ryan asks. "I do," a thought comes to me. "I think I''ll be taking that break. Not for processing last night''s discovery, however. You''re right that there likely won''t be many customers now, especially considering how things have been the last few weeks. There''s something else I can do to take up time as well." "Alright," Ryan snorts. "Let us know if you need help with anything," Nick says. "And if this place isn''t open again next week when there''s no good reason not to, you can bet we''ll be at your door to drag you out of bed." "Arf!" Aster jumps to his feet. Ryan chuckles. "If Aster doesn''t do it for us." Chapter 0026 The only Celestial I know seems to be terrible at telling time and the fact that the Mythic Forests seems to exist within their own time cycles probably doesn''t help them with that. They might not live here but I''m starting to understand that it''s something like a garden for them. Around five hundred Earth years ago is when Mythic Forests stopped being known as rewards from the System, but that doesn''t say much for the length within them. To Aster, that period of time is just "many sleeps", but so is the time between winters and the time it takes for summer to end. During downtime after Ryan and Nick left my shop earlier, I did a little bit of research and found that all decreases in the System began sometime after that last record of the Mythic Forests. Some of it could just be shoddy record keeping from before the 1500s, but probably not all of it. From what I was able to find, there are no records of any significant dips in Dungeon appearances until around three or four hundred years ago. They then slowly became more frequent, leading up to the current situation. Awakenings also slowly became more rare percentage-wise. Even the amount of loot found within Dungeons slowly decreased. If my suspicions are correct, the System drew its power from the Mythic Forests, which the King of the Celestials probably regulated or restored somehow. That energy is nearly gone, so the King of the Celestials decided to hold off on replenishing it until after whatever it is he''s doing with me finishes. That''s just a theory, however, so it could be something completely different. Whatever is going on, I''m certain it''s tied into the Mythic Forests and their states. The King of the Celestials might be waiting on fixing everything just for the sake of observing mankind. If he''s like Aster and has a laziness which exceeds mine on top of that, he probably doesn''t really perceive time properly. That might even explain why the time of this realm passes inconsistently when I''m not around. The sooner I get a decent amount of this Mythic Forest restored, the better things will be outside. I don''t really care about that too much, but I do want to see this place''s beauty. It''ll open up more resting spots until the King of the Celestials cuts my access to here, too. As much as I don''t want to walk dozens of miles to kill monsters, I should at least do part of the Quest for the river. That will boost up my Levels and power, enabling me to handle more of the Mythic Forest with ease. Once I feel comfortable with my Level, I''m sure it''ll be fine if I head to the hills and open up the water source there. That''ll just drown the rest of the monsters and eliminate the remainder of the work. A little bit of effort for a lot of work. If I''m lucky, that should also deal with monsters in the bed of the lake. I access the Quest and let it take me back to where I ended my last walk in the river. There don''t seem to be any new monsters back the way I''d started yesterday, so I continue walking forward. As with yesterday, I only take on the goblins and avoid the trolls. Higher stats means stronger attacks, and [Magic Missile] now takes out these goblins with a single shot each. That speeds the trip up a little bit, though it still takes me nearly two hours to reach Level 4.
Special Quest Completed!
+5,000 EXP
You have reached the EXP threshold to reach Level 4! Your Level 4 Awakening Quest is now available! Would you like to participate?
Yes No
There''s no reason for me to delay the Level 4 Awakening Quest and doing so would just slow down my goal of restoring the Mythic Forest, anyway. I accept the Quest and find myself in an unfamiliar zone. Only after I arrive do I realize I didn''t bother putting away things I didn''t want to risk being destroyed, but it''s worked out. I should definitely make sure to do that in the future, however, as my gear is a fair bit too expensive to have to replace every time I do an Awakening Quest and will only grow in value as I acquire higher-strength gear. As with the first three Awakening Quests, this one takes place in the Mythic Forest as evidenced by the dead and dry soil making up the ground and the fog wall which surrounds and covers the zone. What makes this Awakening Quest unusual over the last two is that it''s just a circular space around five hundred feet in diameter. No hills, no slopes, no signs of it being the bed of a lake or large pond, no indication it might be part of a river, nothing at all like that. There''s also only one monster in here, a goblin wearing boots, pants, a jacket, and gloves all made out of leather, and a wooden helmet. Rather than being barehanded or wielding a club, he holds a shield in his left hand and uses a rusty sword as his weapon. The goblin rests both of his hands on the hilt of the sword, which is pointed straight into the ground as he waits. I guess there''s a reason it''s not too high of a quality weapon, if he''s going to treat it like that. Underestimating him because of his stance and treatment of his sword would be a bad idea, though. A Level 3 Rank 5 is already stronger than many lower-tier Awakened. Though I''m only Level 3, this enemy is one which might be found near the end of a Category 1-6 Dungeon, or the equivalent of a Rank 1 Awakened in their upper Level 50s in terms of strength itself. This being a solo fight means the individual monster is most likely more of a boss beast than a normal mob one. The Awakening Quests suggests that as well.
Your Level 4 Awakening Quest will begin in 5 minutes. Fail to complete the task, and you will not progress to the next Level.
Slay the goblin knight: 0/1 Time Limit: 15 minutes
Despite the strength of the monster being above any I''ve faced since becoming an Awakened, I''m not too concerned. All Awakening Quests are something which can be completed within the time limit and with time to spare. That''s been made quite clear to me through asking friends and from my past Awakening Quests. Using [Fireball] would probably handle things quite well, but I might need to use two of them thanks to its Constitution and likely high HP count. That means I''d need to move around to take on the beast. Same for if I used [Magic Missile], as this one is tougher than the ones I''ve been facing off against and so wouldn''t be downed with just one or two shots. Fortunately, I have an option which won''t require me to run around the place. I hold my hand forward and begin shaping a spell I''ve never cast before. As with [Telekinesis], however, it''s one I''ve learned the formula for and so doesn''t take much effort for me to cast. When the spell completes, the runes form in my mind and a notification appears in my vision.
You''ve unlocked the [Flamethrower] Skill!
The moment I began casting the spell, the barrier around me disappeared and the goblin knight began his approach. It doesn''t manage to reach me, however, as [Flamethrower] only takes five seconds to cast and the goblin''s not that fast. He starts off just walking at first, then begins to run after a few seconds. Those few seconds were more than enough to give me plenty of time to complete the spell before the monster drew too near. I keep the jet of flames up as the goblin begins to scream, the monster''s pained cries fading after about ten seconds. Six seconds after that, a notification appears in my vision and I reappear in the riverbed. The first thing I do after realizing the Awakening Quest completes is cancel the spell. Apparently, spells I''m actively casting don''t get interrupted by the transfer. That sort of makes sense since I''m not actually "affected", my location is simply different than it was before. Now that that''s done, I read the notice in my vision. The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.
Congratulations on completing your Level 4 Awakening Quest! Your stats have been increased and your HP and MP have been refreshed!
No new area has been unlocked, which means I might find myself facing a goblin knight in that zone again at some point, wherever it might be. The System or the King of the Celestials or whatever must be only unlocking "key" locations for me. That zone might just be some random spot of the Mythic Forest which had something worthy of being a Level 4 Awakening Quest, even if it was technically easy. Though it only concluded as fast as it did because of me deciding to officially learn the [Flamethrower] spell. It was one I looked up to help deal with the trolls here as it will probably cost me significantly less MP to use that for thirty seconds at Status Level 4 than to cast [Fireball] two or three times. While the latter would work for groups, I don''t want to have to bother rounding up enough trolls to make it worth doing so. Adding in other monsters like goblins to the mix only makes it more risky as well. Deciding to test out my [Flamethrower] theory now rather than later, I approach the nearest troll and unleash oneupon it. The higher power of the flames and my ability to sustain it enables me to kill the troll in around thirty seconds, or the cost of a single [Fireball]. The trade-off to that is that I have to actively keep the spell running and I have to keep backing up as the troll pushes forward through the flames even as its flesh burns off, up until it''s not able to walk any more. Now that I can handle the trolls with ease and the goblins are still one-shot kills, I''m able to reach Level 5 in roughly an hour and a half. There''s roughly one troll for every seven or eight goblins, so I''m able to reach the thresholds for that one much faster than for the goblins. It''s still the goblin threshold which puts me to the limit for the Level, an additional notification popping up as the last goblin for the set drops to the ground.
Special Quest Completed!
+5,000 EXP
You have reached the EXP threshold to reach Level 5! Your Level 5 Awakening Quest is now available! Would you like to participate?
Yes No
I''ll do this now to get it out of the way, then return home to fix myself lunch. Before accepting, however, I make sure to strip down and put everything into my [Dimensional Storage], but also make sure to restore my MP as I want to be at full for the Quest. Only then do I accept the Level 5 Awakening Quest. Upon confirmation that I wish to take it on, I find myself in another plain zone. This one is fifty feet in diameter and no distinguishing features for the space. There aren''t any monsters here, but the soil seems to have some sort of contaminant, judging by the tinting in the dry dirt. Also by the notification in my vision.
Your Level 5 Awakening Quest will begin in 5 minutes. Fail to complete the task, and you will not progress to the next Level.
Cleanse the surface soil: 0%/85% Time Limit: 2 hours
The first four were all combat ones, so I''d forgotten that I could receive ones not related to that since I have Classes not related to combat. This one is just for cleansing the land, but it''s probably not that simple. A circular space fifty feet across seems like it would be simple to do, but [Cleanse] has a spherical effect area. I can''t just cast it, then cast another next to it, and so on and so forth. Instead, I need to overlap the cleansed spaces to maximize how much of the land is actually covered. I''ll also need to make sure to cast it on the ground so that the most space possible is cleansed. That''s the real challenge here ¨C since I can''t recover MP using mana potions while in an Awakening Quest, I''m stuck with just the 12,400 MP I have. [Cleanse] costs 50 MP so I can do quite a few of them and there''s room for error, meaning the limitation isn''t based on my pool. It''s based on how much space I cover with each cast. Is this Awakening Quest truly random, though? Or is it the System''s or King of the Celestials'' way of letting me know that I''m able to take care of the soil at the [Pup Leisure Pond] now? That''s not important right now, so I get to work on cleansing the soil. The spell has a radius of 11.25" at my current Magic, or 0.25" per 1 Magic. That''s not quite twofeeteach cast and the spell takes five seconds to cast. When factoring in time moving around, this won''t be a quick trial. There''s not really time to waste, here. Well, there is, but I don''t want to push things too close. The sooner I can finish here, the sooner I can start cleaning up the [Pup Leisure Pond] and have a new place with a scenic view to relax in. I cleanse four spots in a slight overlap, then a fifth in the center. After a few runs of that, I realize it would be more efficient to just have the circles'' edges touching and do a fifth in the contaminated center of that. Almost an hour and a half passes before I manage to finish the Awakening Quest. As with before, I find myself right back in the riverbed with only one notification in my vision the moment I do. Not that I have time to process the message, however, as there''s a situation going on here. I dismiss the notice ¨C it''s no doubt the standard Level-Up one ¨C as I walk over to the source of the commotion. "Arf arf arf! Arf arf arf! Arf! Arf! Arf!" Aster is here and he''s barking at a nearby troll while running around it in circles. The troll is trying to follow the pup, except it''s too slow and Aster keeps changing directions. I get the feeling that the pup is just harassing the troll out of boredom¡­ but it also means he can enter the Special Quest zones when Mrow doesn''t seem capable of it. Or maybe Mrow can, just not while I''m here? Now that I think about it, the remains of the goblins from yesterday are gone. He was definitely here at some point between my first two visits. He was also in the one at the Pup Leisure Pond, so it could just be related to if there are monsters present or not. Though Aster probably has more travel permissions than the lifeseed worm since he''s a Celestial, too. The pup keeps repeating his barking cycle, with two sets of three followed by three individual ones. He''s not just running around the troll, but jumping back and forth as well. It''s definitely some sort of harassment. I try to pick him up, but he just jumps out of the way while giving me what looks like a grin before continuing his dashing around the troll, which has now spotted me and has decided to change its target. I take several steps back as I raise my right hand up to cast a [Magic Missile], which blasts a hole into the troll''s chest. I''m still not strong enough for that to kill the monster when taking into consideration its regeneration factor, but it''s enough to make the troll stumble back. Also to cause the pup to let out an unhappy whine, which I ignore as I cast a [Flamethrower] and begin to incinerate the monster.
Special Quest Completed!
+5,000 EXP
Oh, right. I was at nine trolls already. "Come on, Aster," I pick the pup up. "How come you were taunting him instead of killing him?" Aster sends me a message that''s more clear than before. He was bored while waiting for me to finish, as the System was blocking him from entering the Awakening Zone.
You''ve reached Level 2 in [Animal Communication]!
It seems being a passive recipient helps with that, or maybe just talking to animals will help give the Skill some experience. Either way, I''m grateful things are going to be a little bit more clear when I talk to him and the others from now on. "Boredom is no reason to bother others," I scold the pup, and he sends me another message. "You''re not able to kill? Redips was killing spider monsters and she''s just a mythical beast. And I''m fairly certain the springscale icthinios kill the lake icthinios regularly." Now that I''m thinking about it, Redips probably visited here regularly and I misunderstood her message. She wasn''t checking out what the others were doing, she came to hunt to clear out monsters. Flow must have been doing that as well and then noticed that something had changed. Mythicals have been killing monsters here all this time. "Hrm¡­" he lets out an odd partial whine, then another message comes as his tail starts wagging. "Wait," I say. "So it''s within restrictions?" Aster nods. The restrictions he gives me seem to suggest that he can only kill "similar" types of beasts here, and only monsters. Spider-type mythical beasts can kill spider-type monsters, wolf-type mythical beasts can kill wolf-type monsters, icthinios-type mythical beasts can kill icthinios-type monsters, and so on. This is also something that didn''t start until "many sleeps ago", long after the Mythical Forests died off. Aster isn''t sure why, but the King of the Celestials probably implemented it at some point for some reason. Maybe people aren''t the only beings he''s observing? He might be observing the mythical beasts as well, to see what they do. After all, Aster can''t kill anything here because there are no monsters which really fit into the same "type" as Celestials. As much as he''d like to just wipe out all of the monsters within the land. He lets me know that if it were up to him, he''d simply wipe out all of the monsters and make sure no more ever appeared while he waited his king''s return. "That''s kind of sad," I tell him, then hold him against my chest. "Let''s head back home, you are sticky as can be again. Better not have gotten into someone''s stuff again, little guy." He sends me a memory of him in a bear cub form inside of a very large beehive, lapping up honey while ignoring the stings of angry bees. At least he didn''t steal it from people this time. Chapter 0027 Upon reappearing in my bathroom, I set Aster in the tub and pull my phone out of my storage. I let it pop out onto the counter since my hands are sticky, but it pings multiple times immediately after that happens. Pulling it out was in case someone tried to contact me while I cleaned up Aster but it seems someone tried while I in the Mythic Forest. Either several someones or one person several times. It''s probably nothing but I want to check in case there was an emergency of some sort. "Stay there," I tell Aster, then wash my hands so I don''t make my phone sticky. There are a few messages, including from Nick asking if I wanted to hang out, Wyatt checking if I''ve got plans since he heard I decided to close my shop for the week, Kelsey asking if I wanted to go to a Monster District with her, and more. The most recent ones were just a minute ago and are from Ryan. [Ryan]: Didn''t think about it earlier [Ryan]: Did you make sure to eat lunch [Ryan]: Guess you aren''t home or at the shop if you haven''t had lunch yet I got you something It''s really sweet that he''s checking to make sure I''m eating lunch and I''m happy that he''s a little concerned for me. Not in a "he should be worried about me" sort of thing but that he actually cares enough to be in the current situation. Mentioning that I busy my day to avoid my lazy nature probably had him worried I got so lazy with the day off that I forgot to eat lunch. I did almost forget, but only because I was busy. While his concern isn''t needed, it''s still touching. [Evan]: I''m home and haven''t had lunch yet. Was going to do that after cleaning Aster. He''s all sticky again. Are you still nearby? [Ryan]: Just got to my truck so be there in minute Oh, duh. Those texts were recent enough that he was probably still waiting to see if I responded. "Stay," I tell Aster, who plops his butt onto the ground. "Good boy." I head to my front door, then wait for Ryan to knock. When I open it, he starts to say something then pauses and stares. That stare lasts longer than it takes for me to examine him. As always, he''s looking pretty nice. It''s only as I take in his outfit, which is the same as he wore when he stopped by earlier, that I realize just how much I must have been out of it. He''s looking pretty handsome and I hadn''t even noticed this morning. Today''s outfit consists of dark blue-grey shorts and a grey sleeveless with a slight metallic sheen to it that fits against his body quite well. He''s got his hair styled up a little and those beautiful orange eyes of his contain their usual light. "Yes?" I ask after he spends a few moments longer just staring at me than could be considered normal. "You''re naked." While I could have put something back on at any point in the four minutes since my Level 5 Awakening Quest, there wasn''t much point to it. The Quest itself risked destroying my clothes, then I had to stop Aster from harassing a monster. After that, I was talking with him, then brought him here to clean him up. A minute later, I''m talking to Ryan but will be returning to the bathroom once we finish. "Aster''s sticky enough I figured it''s easier to give him a shower than try to just wash him in the sink," I step to the side. "And some of it''s coating my arms and on my chest, as I''m sure you can see. Come on in." "Aren''t you worried about someone seeing you?" He glances behind himself as he enters, though also glances at my chest and the small chuckle lets me know that he hadn''t noticed the honey stuck to it during his staring. "The deck has privacy enchantments woven onto it," I inform him. "It creates an illusion of an empty deck to those who aren''t on it or in the house and prevents our voices from being heard off of it. The audio portion is always on unless I want to talk to someone off of it, while I turned on the visual one before answering the door." "Oh," he says. "There''s one of those on the roof of the apartment building, just didn''t think of it being small-scale." This sort of enchantment is usually found in more high-end places, such as a roof with a pool. It allows for things like tanning and nude swimming without fear of being peeped on by creeps. The enchantment itself is technically expensive, but I had enough money when having the shop and house built to buy the materials needed. A large portion of the cost comes from the installation of the enchantments itself, which I could do on my own. "Unconventional, I''m sure," I say. "But I put it in myself so the cost was a fair bit lower. I do like to tan a little sometimes and since I don''t have a yard, this was the only spot I could do it unless I went somewhere which allowed nudity." "That''s neat," he says. "Come on," I beckon and start walking towards the bathroom. "I do need to wash Aster up before he gets into more stuff. I was doing something and he decided to shift into his bear cub form and raid a very large beehive. You can wait out here if you want, or come join us." "I''ll join you," Ryan follows me and looks around once we''re reached the bathroom. "Nice. You went for luxury, I see?" His eyes are on the separate bath and the spacious waterfall shower. The bath is only used for relaxing in, as is the norm for when they''re separate like this. It''s more square-circle shape rather than rounded rectangular also tends to be for ones used for relaxing than washing. "The number of times I''ve fallen asleep in there is beyond counting," I say, causing him to chuckle. "Ready for your washing, Aster?" The pup actually stayed in place this time. I was half-expecting him to have vanished somewhere while waiting for us but he choose to stick around for some reason. "Woof!" "Ryan''s decided to join us in here," I tell him as I enter the shower. "Are you okay with that?" "Woof!" his tail wags. "Alright," I glance at Ryan. "You going to sit out there and talk, or come in here and help? No pressure for either one, it''s up to you." "I''ll come in," he undresses and enters the shower. I turn on the shower as he does that and sit down. The water temperature is already to my preferred temperature immediately thanks to the magitech behind it so I don''t need to bother with adjusting things. Ryan tests the water temperature for a moment and nods, then sits down. "You know you''re supposed to eat the honey, not get covered in it, don''t you?" Ryan asks as I wash the pup''s face and he washes the pup''s tail." "Woof!" Aster starts wagging his tail again. This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it. "Hey!" Ryan laughs. "I can''t clean it when you do that!" That only makes Aster''s tail wag more. I scrub the pup''s cheeks clean, then get to work on his body as Ryan wrestles his tail into getting washed. Aster starts to want to wrestle while we clean him, which makes it take longer than necessary, but I''m glad the pup''s having fun. We rinse the three of us off, then exit the shower and dry off, first using towels with drying enchantments on them, then a hairdryer for our hair and the pup''s fur for good measure. "How do you feel?" I ask Aster as Ryan and I start getting dressed. "Woof!" "You should really stop getting yourself so covered in sticky stuff," I tell him. "That''s not good for you." Aster just shrugs and lets out a breath in response. Once we''re dressed, we head out to the balcony and Ryan pulls out two bags of lunch and looks at Aster. The pup shamelessly stares back with expectation on his face. "If you ate that much honey," he says as we sit down. "I''m guessing you''re pretty full, right?" "Woof!" Aster shakes his head. "You''re not?" Ryan asks. "You want something to eat?" "Woof!" "How about some varyihn beef?" Ryan asks as a plate with a some chunks of meat appear in his hands. Aster goes nuts over that, causing us to chuckle a little. Ryan sets the plate on the ground and Aster dives to it and starts eating. "Figured he''d enjoy that," he pushes over one of the white paper lunch bags. "Our sandwiches are from the place down the street, the one I ordered from the first time." "Thanks," I open up my bag and start pulling out food. "And thanks for being concerned. I did almost forget, but not quite. Just got a little bit delayed due to what I was doing." "I''ve kind of always wanted to eat lunches with you," he confesses. "But your ''no friendships with customers'' rule prevented me from asking once you opened the shop. Before then, I guess it was mostly nerves? We kind of talked about why earlier." "That feeling of not being worthy," I say. "Right," he says. "And related to me being a demigod, there''s something I wanted to mention." "What''s that?" I ask. "I''m able to sense not just souls," he says. "But mana as well. Most demigods are good with it to some degree. It''s been obvious you''re getting a lot of EXP somewhere¡­ but you definitely gained a Level since I saw you earlier¡­ twice. Did you go into a Monster District and push yourself to an insane degree? Though I don''t think there are any Monster Districts which would allow for that much EXP to be earned, not for a Rank 5." Monster Districts are former inhabited districts within a city. This one has only three out of the nearly thousand districts of the city, as they don''t occur very often. Rarely, a thing called a Monster Egg will form. It''s a mass of tangled cord-like energy streams that are black and red with a same-colored mist flowing off of them. They produce monsters and then fade from sight, but they''re not gone. Once they appear, they''re always there. Monsters living near them never need food or sustenance, and the Monster Eggs will reappear from time to time to spawn more monsters. Which actually explains the Mythic Forest''s monsters. The Great Napping Spot must have had another spawn session after a few days of me being outside of it, which is why more goblins were there. It''s also how the monsters don''t need food to survive. With mythical beasts regularly showing up to kill off the population of monsters, such as the springscale icthinios taking out the lake icthinios, the Mythic Forests aren''t simply packed full. However, they''re regularly reappearing. No one knows what causes Monster Eggs to appear, nor do we know how to get rid of them. I guess even the Mythic Forests aren''t immune to their appearances. And when they appear, they drain the land of life, dry up water sources, and more. It wasn''t monsters that killed off the Mythic Forests, it was Monster Eggs. The King of the Celestials must be getting rid of them as I clear up zones, and he''s probably enabling water to form again when I complete Quests relating to making water flow once more as well. Here in the city, hunters can get a permit to hunt within a Monster District. Once the eggs appear, the district it''s in is evacuated of all residents and put under the strict control of the bureau. They regulate who can pass through its gates and ensure the protective magics on the district''s boundary walls are stable while also making sure monsters don''t breach the gates. Going into one as a hunter would help explain my burst in Levels, but he''s right in that they don''t have enough EXP to boost me this fast. He must have a passive sense for the mana in people as I doubt he was just checking mine for whatever reason. I did know people can sense mana and that some people are more sensitive than others. The reason I can perform such precise control over my alchemy is because of my own innate talent for sensing magic and mana. Sensing more than just the ambient levels in an area requires conscious effort from me, which is probably why I didn''t think others would have noticed mine. "Know how we think the King of the Celestials is missing because he''s observing humans?" I ask. "Yeah." "He''s been issuing me random Special Quests a lot," I say. "It''s what I was referring to this morning, when I said I had stuff to do. Some of it is hunting monsters, some of it is stuff like cleansing contaminated soil. I''ve been growing plants as well." This isn''t quite the truth, but there''s enough there for me to be fine with it. I do want to hold off on telling him everything until things are more confirmed and the Mythic Forest is more ready for guests¡­ as I''m hoping I''ll be allowed to take people with me there later on. I do want to show it to Ryan once I''ve restored enough of it for the place to be truly scenic. "I see," he says. "I hope you''re not stressing too hard with the Special Quests." "They''re all fully optional," I tell him. "And I''m taking a lazier approach to some of them. I''m partially curious about what the King of the Celestials is doing and hoping that he''ll tell me if I do enough." Mostly, I''m just wanting to see what the Mythic Forests look like once they''re restored. The more I work on the one I''m assigned to, the more I think I''ll have to reach a certain point before their master restores it the rest of the way. He''ll probably only let me see them in their full glory if I do a good enough job. "Do you have a favorite part so far?" "Meeting Aster," I say, and the pup looks at me. "Yeah, little guy. I love meeting you the most from everything there. Other than you stealing all of my jams and honeys and such, that is." Aster huffs, then lets out a sound that sounds like a snicker before he returns to eating his lunch. Ryan and I make some small talk as we eat our own lunch, the topic drifting away from my Special Quests to some hunter gossip. It seems some of the lower-strength guilds have noticed the bigger shifts in things and are now trying to recruit the new Awakened who became such before the Awakening Quests ceased. But they''re acting desperate and it''s turning the hunters off. "The bigger guilds aren''t recruiting?" I ask. "They generally prefer more background to go off of," he says. "Even if someone has rarer Skill types. They''ll also be less-affected since they''re more established and have bigger reserves. Their members can leave the city and gather more materials more easily as well." "Ah, right," I say. "What about you? I know you''re pretty wealthy on your own, but will you be alright when shortages start, if people start panic-buying?" "Is your visual barrier still up?" "It is." Ryan reaches towards his bracelets and another one appears in his hand. Items with storage spaces can be stored inside of others, unlike in some fictional stories I''ve read. In reality, there''s no issue with it because the space taken up by a bracelet isn''t affected by the space enchanted into it. That pocket dimension takes up no real space. It''s like putting a jar into a box. They''re both a form of storage container and yet the jar fits in just fine. Ryan wouldn''t have asked me about the visual barrier before pulling that out without a reason, so I check its information.
[Stasis Storage Bracelet]
Tier: 21
A temporal-spatial iron bracelet enchanted to contain a storage space 9'' x 9'' x 9'' in size. All items stored within are held in a temporal stasis, keeping their state unchanged while within.
That is a ridiculously expensive bracelet per cubic foot and it''s a nine-cube one. The lower Tier for it is probably because that''s as expensive of one as he could afford even with his funds and ifhe supplied the raw materials for its creation to help cut down the cost. "You''ve got that stocked up?" I ask. "Nearly to the brim," he tells me. "I''ve built up the stores over the years, mostly in case of an emergency. Mostly the last few years. A city in Europe fell about three years ago and that made me a little bit paranoid. An extremely high-rank monster appeared and destroyed the city''s barriers and walls." "I didn''t hear about that," I say. "Though I don''t pay much attention to foreign news." "To avoid mass panic," he says. "They kept it out of standard news here. It''s a rare occurrence, but I wanted to be prepared just in case something happened here and it was awhile before I was able to get to another city. The only reason I could afford this bracelet was because I supplied the ores and crystals needed for its crafting and the reagents for the enchanting. That cut down the cost quite a lot." Just as I suspected, then. The bracelet vanishes back into his others. "I''ve accepted now that there''s no reason to be paranoid of something like that," he tells me. "But realized that it''s also good to be prepared just in case of a food shortage. If the Dungeon Drought lasts long enough to start causing them, I''ll be good for awhile. I can even help you out some, if you need it." "I probably won''t," I tell him. "But if it comes to that and you do help, I''ll appreciate it. Just make sure you take don''t run out of it for yourself." "That''s one of three of those I had made," he chuckles. "If I run out of food while feeding two people, you know the world''s ending." "Let''s hope it doesn''t come to that," I say. "Let''s hope." "Woof!" Chapter 0028 While I did get stronger from my Level 5 Awakening Quest, I don''t think trying to use [Cleanse] here at the Pup Leisure Pond is a good idea just yet. The Skill will probably be effective here, but I''m still far too weak to cover a decent area.
Name: Evan Rethe Rank: 5
Species: Human Sex: Male
Level: 5 EXP: 0/119,459
HP: 15,500/15,500 MP: 15,500/15,500
Strength: 29 Constitution: 38
Agility: 29 Dexterity: 47
Magic: 66 Mind: 56
HP Regen: 5% MP Regen: 5%
Some quick mental math says that I''ll only cover a spherical zone around 16.5" in radius. The Pup Leisure Pond zone itself isn''t all that large, only about seventy feet at its widest and around ninety at its longest. With the pond in the center being roughly forty at its widest and sixty at its longest¡­ there''s still quite a lot of contaminated soil to cover. One thing I could do is just touch edges of the circles together and let the untouched parts "seep" into the cleansed areas so that it reduces down and fades from the soil naturally more quickly, but that would still be a fair bit tedious. It would probably be better for me to wait another couple of Levels before I actually attempt to clean up this zone. While the area I have access to isn''t large, there''s no doubt more contaminated soil outside of it. I would need to cleanse that area as well to really let this soil recover. The contaminates from outside this smaller zone would just seep into it otherwise. Honestly, it''s that bigger portion that''s making me doubt doing it now. Covering two and a half feet of space each cast would actually let me do a decent amount of this zone even if it''ll take me awhile. I just don''t feel like putting in that much effort when I''ll have to redo it again later when the contaminates enter back in from the uncleansed zone. "What do you think?" I look down at Aster, who looks up and tilts his head at me. "Think I should wait until I''m a little bit stronger and can use [Cleanse] on a bigger area at a time before cleaning this up? Less work for more benefit, and all that?" Aster paces back and forth a little as he contemplates the answer, then sends me a message confirming that the easier path is the better one in his opinion. "Thought so," I say. He follows that up with a message letting me know he''s sad it''ll have to wait for more sleeps before he can hang out here again. That''s accompanied by a memory of him getting thrown into the pond by the King of the Celestials for getting too rowdy while the big boy was trying to nap. "Trying to dance on his head while he was trying to sleep probably wasn''t a smart idea," I tell Aster, who nods in agreement. "By the way, you''re missing whiskers. Forgot to mention that during the shower, but I noticed it when we woke up. They were there before." Wolf whiskers form on Aster''s snout as I finish talking. "There you go," I say. "Let''s head to the Whispering Life Spring. There''s probably not much more I can do for it right now, but I want to give it a check anyway. My gut tells me we''ll encounter others there." We head there and find Flow in his adult form lapping up water, a few azulvitt wolf and fox pups wrestling around in the grass and flowers. There''s not a concern of them doing too much damage to the plants here with how much mana is in the soil. That should bolster recovery as long as whatever really caused the plant death for this place actually has stopped affecting it. Aster barks a few times and joins the other pups in their play as I walk over to Flow. "Hey," I give him a light scratch on the head as he lies down beside me. "Thought I might find you here. Can I ask a favor?" Flow tilts his head to the side a little. "I want to grow more plants at Happy Butterfly Hill," I explain. "But to do that, I need to plant more earth magic crystals. Do you think I could borrow the pups for that?" He gives me a dip of his head to confirm this, then sends me an inquiry. "I''m not sure yet how long it''ll be," I tell him. "I need to grab the crystals as well. Should I just come here to let you know when I''m ready?" He nods again, so I give him another scratch, then head to the Sparkly Earth Cave to begin collecting earth magic crystals. The ones I harvested have only slightly grown back, but there are plenty more than those. Many of them are quite large in size as well. As with last time, I use [Telekinesis] to control my tools to mine more quickly and more efficiently. My own Strength value is likely more than enough to do things quickly now but that''s more effort than I need to exert so there''s no reason for me to. Other than to conserve mana, but it''s not as if I''m short on mana potions right now or anything. I will probably need to restock my personal supply from the shop after today''s run, but that won''t be a problem if my theory is right. Once the crystal harvest is finished, I quickly mark out the section at the Happy Butterfly Hill. The zone itself is about four hundred feet along the side of the river, but the river isn''t straight and curves a little so there''s more space. The first zone I planted in was about fifty feet along the border of the river and ended about thirty or so away from this. Thanks to water in the soil from the river letting plants thrive beside the river and the time that I''ve spent away from here, plants can thrive in a larger area than in the other zone I''ve grown them in. These ones have spread to cover an additional seventy feet from the original space along the side of the river, though it''s only spread about fifteen feet from the edge of the patch furthest from the water. I ended the original zone about thirty feet from what I''m figuring is the southern border of here, so it''s gone all the way to there on that side. Taking both of those into consideration, I mark this planting section out to be roughly the same size as the last one, starting ninety feet north along the river from where the first one ends. If all works out, then the two sections should meet during the time that I''m not here and this entire section of the river will be thickening with growth. Growth which seems a bit odd to me. The berries don''t seem to have spread too much but I thought blackberries liked to spread. Perhaps it''s a "restriction" in place on the Mythic Forest, sort of like who can kill what? A mystery to ask the King of the Celestials, when I meet him. With the zone marked out, I head back to the Pup Leisure Pond and let Flow know I''m ready, then return to the Happy Butterfly Hill and begin pulling out earth magic crystals. When the pups arrive this time, they all make sure to jump over the river instead of into it. The exception to that is Aster, who transforms into an otter as he dives into the water. He starts playing in it while the pups try to decide between joining him and helping me. The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. Flow must send them something, as they all suddenly turn to face me at the same time and a feeling of satisfaction comes from the more mature wolf. "Remember last time?" I ask, and the pups give me happy yips. "Same thing. Break these crystals down and plant them in the soil, but spread out a little. Only in the sectioned-off zone. Okay?" The pups bark in confirmation, then get to work. Flow supervises them and makes sure things are broken up and planted properly, and I get to work on growing plants in spots where the crystals are buried. For the first few patches, I just focus on using [Grow Plant] followed by [Boost Plant Growth]. The latter isn''t really necessary now as I''m now strong enough with magic for [Grow Plant] to grow them up to 8" all on their own now, giving them full seeds for me to tear off and bury a little. Even some of the flowers grow to their full size and others will no doubt do so in time. This isn''t enough for me. I want fuller patches with less work, which is why I still tear off the seeds and bury them once I''ve grown five blades of grass in a spot. That lets me use [Boost Plant Growth] to build up the patch further as it boosts both the blades already grown and the seeds I''ve buried. Even the flowers grow a fair bit larger from that, which I''m not complaining about. As always when using [Grow Plant], I just focus on letting whatever will grow to do so. No real direction for the Skill other than what it contains innately. It picks something random from the nonmagical plants which grow in the spot it''s used in when the place is in full health, so nothing grown is bad for the area. For the fourth patch, however, I focus on attempting to direct the magic into growing a bush. The names for the different zones no doubt represent what the King of the Celestials associates with each section so this is one which butterflies enjoy Some bushes do attract butterflies and this area seems to have a liking for them when considering all of the ones which have grown in the other planted sectioned. As the spell works¡­ a blade of grows shoots up from the soil. That''s not quite the same thing but I''m not disappointed. This will take some adjusting. After a few more attempts, I give up for now and decide to make this a full grass patch. That requires me to try and make the spell grow only grass for ten casts in a row. It seems to be doing a flower once every eight or nine based on the first few patches so I''m sure I''ll know if I succeed or not once I hit ten blades of grass. Focusing on the Skill, I try to guide it into growing grass as I go for the fifth one and not only does a blade of grass grow, but a deeper understanding of the magic the Skill is for enters my mind as a notice appears within my vision.
You''ve reached Level 2 in [Growth Plant]!
So that''s what it is¡­ I can''t guide the magic into a specific type of plant even in the broader categories unless the Skill itself is a decent Level. Grass is probably the only thing I can intentionally grow at Level 1, while Level 2 might include flowers. The new information I received doesn''t explicitly tell me what I can grow, but it''s made it clear that the Level does affect it to some degree. The only other effect from the spell gaining a Level should be its casting time reducing, but I want to double-check so I call up the Skill menu for a quick look.
[Grow Plant] Level: 2
Grow a plant using your magical power.
Cost: 1,000 MP Casting Time: 27 seconds
Range: 16.5"
Just as I expected, the only thing which changed was the casting time. The range at which I can cast the spell is dependent on my Magic, so that wasn''t affected by the Skill increasing in Level but by me doing so. I close the window and tear off the seeds from the grasses, then plant them around their parents. Just before I cast [Boost Plant Growth], an idea comes to me. If I gained a Level in [Grow Plant] by focusing it on growing a specific type, then I could possibly gain a Level in [Boost Plant Growth] by focusing its effect on a smaller area. Instead of its massive range, I shrink it down to contain just this one spot. Affecting the other patches I''ve already grown sounds good in theory since it helps them spread some on their own as well, but gaining a Level in its Skill is pretty important for more efficient work. "Although," I look at Flow, who''s still in his adult form and has laid down a few feet away from me. "I probably should''ve just waited to use [Boost Plant Growth] until after I''d done enough patches to fill in its full range, huh?" Flow snorts in response. Every time I''ve cast it so far, several of the patches were within its range rather than just one due to how far the spell reaches now. That''s made all except the last one I actually cast it at grow decently. They haven''t reached their peak heights so they aren''t spreading yet, but there are plenty more seeds I could grab and bury. That''s not for now, though. I return my attention to the patch of grass and buried seeds and focus my mind on the Skill. Reduce it down from taking up nearly four dozen feet to less than one. Concentrate the power which goes into it to a smaller space and¡­ unleash! The gold-and-green light which flows out of my hand for this cast isn''t quite the same as normal. Rather than being more diffuse, it seems more concentrated, more bold and bright. A deeper understanding of the magic at work enters my minds as a notification appears in my vision.
You''ve reached Level 2 in [Boost Plant Growth]!
The prior casts of this brought the grasses in the prior patches to about 6" in length for the specific ones it was growing, and then up by another 1-2" after that. This cast brings the targeted grasses up to about 9" in length by its end. That doesn''t seem properly proportional, but there''s likely a limit to what it can do. Once the three seconds of duration ends, I check the Skill menu for the new information, just to double-check that the changes are as I expected. Only the casting time and duration should have been affected for this one.
[Boost Plant Growth] Level: 2
Boost the growth of a plant using your magic.
Cost: 1,000 MP Casting Time: 27 seconds
Duration: 6 seconds Range: 22''
While the duration went up from the Skill''s Level improving, that didn''t affect the cast already in progress. All future casts having that extra three seconds will be a big benefit, however, as it will make the spell work more efficiently on things which require greater work, such as bushes and trees. With how much mental effort it takes to improve just one Skill and with having already boosted up two Skills, I decide to take a break from working on that and just focus on growing more plants. This time, I do things a little bit more smartly and use [Grow Plant] to get plenty of patches started. The seeds from the grasses are ripped off and planted when I finish the patch, then I move on to the next. Only once a sufficient amount of patches are ready do I use [Boost Plant Growth]. Doing it this way saves me almost fifteen minutes just on the casting time alone. That does mean that each patch only receives the boost once, but it saves me mana and time so I consider that a fair trade. Things will grow more while I''m not here as well so it doesn''t matter too much. I look around at the newly-planted section once I''m done. There are now roughly fifty patches of grass with a flower or two in each. Several spots grew bushes on their own, and only one tree sprouted here, on the upper end of the slope of this section. This zone is starting to look more like a proper "butterfly hill" and things better continue that way. If the water cycle does exist here and that''s how the areas not super close to the water sources and rivers get fertilized, then I hope I''m able to get that going soon. I still really want to know how things like that work here, but answers don''t just appear out of thin air. Though now that I think about it, I do have someone I can ask that isn''t going to misunderstand my question and think I''m asking if he wants to play in water. "Hey, Flow?" I look at the wolf, who''s supervising the pups and otter playing in the river. He glances in my direction. "Do you know if it ever rains here?" I ask. "If there''s a proper water cycle? I know the sun is fake, but-" An answer comes before I can finish my question. Impressions and memories. He''s apparently asked the King of the Celestials about this before due to him noticing it sometimes rain or mist or fog throughout the Mythic Forest. The answer is that there is a sort of a water cycle, but he''s not sure how it works and the big boy''s explanation made his head spin. "Thanks," I tell him, and he nods and returns to watching the younger ones play. Now that I have a proper confirmation for that, it''s easy to assume that getting the big river restarted is definitely important for me to grow plants further away from the smaller river than just where its waters reach. I''m not going to work more on that today, though. Today''s had more than enough active work for me. It''s time to relax until dinner and there''s a large wolf that probably won''t mind me using him as a pillow again. Chapter 0029 "Aster?" I mumble as I start processing things upon waking up, and the pup just gives me a low rumble. "If you''re going to get yourself sticky, please clean off before getting in my bed. No getting into my bed while sticky, alright?" He must have left again while I was asleep because he was not sticky when we went to bed. Considering that it''s not just his snout this time but probably his entire body based on me feeling it on what''s pressed against me and under my arm, he probably dove snout-first into whatever it is he decided to eat during the night. "Awwwww." "Come on," I pull my blanket off of us. "Go to the shower, and I''ll get these in the wash." Aster vanishes and I strip my bed and put everything in the washer, then head to the bathroom. The pup''s turned on the shower and is shifting his body in a slight dance while having just his head under the water. "Cute," I chuckle. "But you''re not off the hook. You get into my bed while sticky again, and you''re sleeping on the floor from now on." Aster gives me a disappointed look, then I wash us both up, dry us off, and bring him to the kitchen for breakfast. He''s served some varyihn beef while I heat up a portion of a strawberry danish, which I wash down with a glass of milk. "You ready for another day of work?" I ask Aster after getting dressed and ready to return to the Mythic Forest. The pup vanishes and I chuckle a little. That was definitely him escaping "work". If he''d come, I''d probably have more work wrangling him than he''d actually do. I access my gate and head straight to where I left off in the river. A few more goblins have shown up and just as I start to aim a spell at one, I realize something and quickly set an alarm on my phone. Just in case I lose track of time. This should make it easier for me to eat lunch at an appropriate time rather than forgetting. Today''s monster-clearing session begins and I face little difficulty in it. [Magic Missile] can fly up to 66'' now thanks to its flight range being 1'' per 1 Magic, and [Flamethrower] now takes out the trolls in about fifteen seconds. Even though my Magic didn''t go up quite by half when I reached Level 5, the difference between its power and the monsters'' Constitution makes it easier for the flames to burn them. Even with all of that, reaching the EXP threshold for Level 6 still takes me more than an hour. I make sure I put my things into my bracelets and those into my [Dimensional Storage] before accepting this time. When I appear in the Level 6 Awakening Zone, I find Aster chasing a herd of boars across the several-thousand-feet stretch of dead dirt. That''s confirmation Aster''s able to be in the Awakening Quest zones, though I''m not sure if it''s more that he''s allowed or if it''s that the System couldn''t evict him or change the location. The King of the Celestials might have also simply allowed him to remain here regardless of the normal rules since the pup can''t kill anything. The horde itself consists of about thirty boars, so I won''t be able to take them all on using just [Magic Missile], and boar monsters are naturally-resilient to fire magics'' more potent effect. Piercing power is the best way to go for boar-type beasts, especially ones with earth- or metal-based affinities. The brown and grey coats of these ones indicates they''re stonehide boars and so would need piercing-type attacks for the most efficient work. I know the spell formula for [Magic Spear], except that unless I maintained control over it, I''d only be able to take out one at a time as well. Manipulating it around to pierce into the different boars would take practice I don''t currently have and I''m not sure how well I''d learn it in live combat against roughly thirty boars. I''d probably be fine against two or three, but not two and a half dozen or so. Lightning magics wouldn''t be a bad idea and I do know the spell formula for a few of those. Depending on how well they work, I could probably take out the entire horde with less than 1,000 MP spent. I''ll go with something bigger, though. It''s a more assured victory even if the school of magic is far more complex. The runes for the spell form in my mind as I weave together the spell, which has a fairly lengthy casting time. As I feel it nearing completion, I speak calmly, without raising my voice. "Aster," I say. "Please chase them towards me now." Throughout my casting session, the pup has been chasing the boars back and forth across the strip. It''s around four three thousand feet in length and only around a hundred and fifty in width, so he just teleports to the other side of the herd once they''re about three-quarters of the way through. He appears close enough for them to see him but far enough away that they have time to stop their charge. Once they stop, he resumes barking and running to make them turn around and run again. Him treating them like this has given me more than enough protection, allowing me to cast the spell without risk of me getting harmed. The boars are only halfway across the field right now but Aster vanishes from my sight and likely reappears on the other side of the herd. I can hear his barking and yapping almost immediately and the boars finish their charge, turn around, and start running this way. The boars are about twenty feet from me when the spell completes.
You''ve unlocked the [Gravitational Shift] Skill!
Aster lets out several startled barks as he and the boars suddenly find themselves flying upwards. The pup will be fine due to his nature but the boars won''t and that works for me. This spell has a lengthy cast time and an intense cost.
[Gravitational Shift] Level: 1
Alter the direction of gravity in the chosen area.
Cost: 5,000 MP Duration Cost: 500 MP/second
Range: 99'' Casting Time: 100 seconds
With 15,500 MP, I can cast the spell and then maintain it for around 20 seconds. Since my range is limited, I start making the boars and pup spin in a circle as I make small adjustments to try and make it a cycle. Their speed continues to pick up and I quickly figure out how to make the altered gravitational field I''ve generated actually be circular on its own, taking some mental effort off of me. A few moments before I''m about to run out of mana, Aster turns himself into a bird and just lets himself glide through the zone while letting out gleeful chirps. At the last possible moment, I alter the gravitational field again to send the boars into the ground while maintaining the high speed they''ve built up. This should be the equivalent of falling from three thousand feet if I did things right and¡­ the boars splatter upon impacting the ground.
Congratulations on completing your Level 6 Awakening Quest! Your stats have been increased and your HP and MP have been refreshed!
I find myself back in the monster-infested riverbed at the appearance of that notification, no new zone unlocked. That being just a stretch of land with no notable features, I already assumed it wouldn''t be a new zone for me just yet. No looting their essence crystals, no chance of looting their hides. The latter isn''t really something I was planning on doing since I''ve never really been a beast scavenger before. Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more. "Head to Happy Butterfly Hill and clean the gore off," I say as I get dressed, and Aster lets out some chirps, having joined me just I pulled on some underwear. "Then you can hang out with me as I do some more work. Maybe even help me with the work." Aster vanishes the moment I say that last part, so I suspect I won''t be seeing him again for a little while. I finish dressing and return to slaying monsters. The next bend in the river I turn reveals a boar wandering the path, sniffing some of the stones on the ground. Unlike the ones in the Level 6 Awakening Trial, this one has a metallic hide. These are likely either irontusk or steeltusk boars, which require around 75 or 90 Magic to harm, respectively. After my Level 6 Awakening Quest, I now have 97 Magic so I can handle either one. Without needing to resort to gravity magic, too. At least so long as it''s not a group of them, but this boar is alone. My [Magic Missile]s fly 97'' now so I''m able to shoot the boar from a decent distance. The spell doesn''t have as much effect against the boars as an attack with a sharpened point would, but they''re effective for stunning the beast long enough for me to send a second one forth. Then a third. Then a fourth. It''s the sixth [Magic Missile] which kills the boar, the beast not getting a chance to come after me. I follow that up with a [Magic Missile] to the skull of the goblin which began charging toward me. For a moment, I contemplate looting the boar for some extra money, but decide against it. I don''t know how to properly skin and butcher them, and my storage spaces aren''t large enough to store a beast that''s as tall as I am. Then there''s the matter that mine are ordinary storage spaces and not ones which would preserve the state of the beasts. The meat would start to spoil. Now that boars are added to the mix and I can take on the trolls faster as well, the higher EXP requirement for Level 7 doesn''t take me too much longer to handle than reaching Level 6 did. The moment the inquiry about taking on my Level 7 Awakening Quest appears, I strip and store my things, then accept the Quest. This one takes me to a zone which I suspect is another expansion to the Whispering Life Spring based on the fog wall in the center and its size and shape. This one will expand the space by another five hundred fifty feet in all directions, which is strange. The plant growth has still barely spread past the original fog wall for it, so not much more than fifty feet. Yet it''s already wanting me to expand the zone? I can''t really think of a reason that might be but there must be one if it''s happening now. The monsters in this zone are neither goblins nor trolls, but are still humanoid in appearance. They stand around twelve feet in height with large builds, their green skin reminiscent of their smaller cousins''. All of the ogres I can see wield a thick branch as a club, and the System helpfully tells me how many of them there are.
Your Level 7 Awakening Quest will begin in 5 minutes. Fail to complete the task, and you will not progress to the next Level.
Slay all ogres: 0/21 Time Limit: 2 hours
Ogres can be handled much in the same way as goblins: with [Magic Missile]s to the face. They''re a little bit more resilient and have a lot more HP than a goblin, however, so [Fireball] would probably be better. The main issue for me is that I don''t have someone to draw the attention of the ogres away from me to give me casting time. Aster served that purpose in my last Awakening Quest, but he''s off doing whatever it is he''s doing right now. Them being faster than trolls will also make it hard to round them up for group attacks without me needing to run around and dodge their attacks. A wide-scale attack would be best, but I can''t cast one without someone else to draw their attention away while I work. The moment the barrier disappears, I''ll likely have several of them wanting to attack me. This task seems impossible, but it can''t be. Awakening Quests are always doable with one''s abilities. I might need to think of another spell I could use that has a short casting time but which could¡­ no, not a spell. Not that sort, anyway. Pale purple light trails after my right index finger as I begin drawing runes on the air. The barrier fades and three nearby ogres turn to look at me. This bit of [Runic Script] is significantly shorter than the previous two I''ve used but its effect is still quite pronounced. Upon noticing the first three trolls charging at me, others spotted me and began to charge. Not even the closest of them makes it to me in the four seconds it takes me to quickly write the runes to create a burst of deathly terror all around me upon activation. Adding in a mental compulsion to a barrier with lightning magics is far more difficult than just instilling terror. I have 64 Mind right now and that influences the effect of this spell rather than my Magic. Non-mage ogres tend to have a much lower Mind stat than that and I watch as all of the ogres around me stiffen up the moment the spell activates. They''re also close enough together now that I can [Fireball] a significant amount of them, except I''m a bit too close. The terror burst should last for a bit, so I hurry to a spot where there aren''t ogres and which is also out of the radius of a [Fireball] if it hits the nearest one, then begin casting said [Fireball]. Less than fifteen seconds later, I''m informed that nine of the ogres are now dead. I repeat this process to take out the rest of the ogres in the zone and the moment I finish, the inner fog all fades to reveal the Whispering Life Spring, which hasn''t changed at all since I checked on it yesterday.
Congratulations on completing your Level 7 Awakening Quest! Your stats have been increased and your HP and MP have been refreshed!
That should help me out some more with handling my objectives and even make taking out the boars a lot easier. I call up my Status to check my gains.
Name: Evan Rethe Rank: 5
Species: Human Sex: Male
Level: 7 EXP: 0/175,900
HP: 21,700/21,700 MP: 21,700/21,700
Strength: 50 Constitution: 65
Agility: 50 Dexterity: 88
Magic: 143 Mind: 90
HP Regen: 5% MP Regen: 5%
So this is the point at which my stats start growing quite fast when looking at only Level gains and not the EXP requirements. For some of the Dungeons and some of the monsters in the world, Rank 5s are necessary for handling them. Massive gains like that will be necessary if I ever help out others in Dungeon runs or monster hunts. It may even be necessary for work here. That boost alone will make cleansing contaminated soil much faster and will allow me to cover a significant portion of ground when using [Boost Plant Growth]. As I close my Status, I realize something. "I guess I could''ve used [Flamethrower], huh?" That wouldn''t have guaranteed a win before the ogres shook off the effect of my runic casting, though, and I would have needed to adjust my aim several times. My life would have been more at risk, so [Fireball] was definitely the better option. Since this was just a zone expansion, it seems I don''t get teleported back to the river. I walk over to the grassy section around the small pond to take a look at some of the plants that have grown here. Most are still plain, but there are a few which have healing properties, such as the regeniberries I observed before and some herbs. One of the trees which has grown now has apples on it, their skins pinkish in color with red streaks running across it. Other than that, they look like ordinary apples but I know what they are even before inspecting them in the System.
[Heartapple]
Tier: 7
An apple which recovers a small amount of HP when consumed.
Potency: 1,082 HP
Heartapples are a rare healing reagent and restore anywhere from 100 to 150 HP when consumed, with the recovery range multiplied by 1.5 times their Tier. Their interior is a bold red in color and I know it puts off some people but they really are a good way to recover some HP. They''re also quite useful in making health potions and they''re the last reagent I need to make some strong ones without relying on Dungeons or other shops. Which means, of course, that I can also make beginner-level ones as well. I''m happy this zone is recovering a little and has several magical plants available once again. If things do spread out further like the System or the King of the Celestials seems to be suggesting, then the Whispering Life Spring will be much more beautiful and comforting in no time at all. This is as good a time and place as any to take a break from the morning''s work as well, so I lie down on the grass and close my eyes. Before fully resting, I remember about my phone and pull it from my [Dimensional Storage] to check the time. Good, I''ve still got about twenty minutes before Ryan will probably show up wanting to know about lunch, and my alarm is still set for fifteen minutes from now. If I didn''t bring that out, I might end up sleeping through lunch with Ryan and I don''t want to miss it. Chapter 0030 When my alarm goes off and wakes me up, there''s a noticeable difference in the air and soil of the zone from when I laid down. I''m not entirely sure what the change is but I can feel the difference quite clearly. The mana here is still at the level of a Level 1 Rank 5 Awakened so it can''t be that and I''m not sure what else it could really be. Unless¡­ It''s not just ambient mana I''m sensitive to but all forms of magical energy. That overwhelmed me when I was younger so I learned how to filter them out. There are quite a few different types, and even mana has a few variances. I learned to eliminate the types other than mana from my sensing and turn all of the types of mana into just plain mana to my senses. That makes it much more manageable for just going about my day, though I do sometimes tap into some of those other senses. When I work on making potions and enchantments other than mana potions, I let back in the appropriate energy sense to guide me in making things as precise as possible. Rather than sensing ambient ones, however, I focus it directly on what I''m working on to avoid overload. This is a time to let back in the senses for ambient energies. They might tell me what the shifts are and maybe even what I need to do to help this place grow more quickly. Why I didn''t think of this before, I''m not entirely sure. Maybe because I''m too used to only using those senses for crafting? Sitting up, I close my eyes and slowly let the other senses for energy forms return. I don''t know what the Mythic Forest felt like with them before now but I can compare it to other parts of the forest, if they don''t have whatever this shift is. Something catches my attention and I start filtering back out my energy senses until only the relevant ones remain. Streams of earth mana and water mana flowing through the area, both in the soil and in the air. The earth mana streams are strongest in the soil itself, while the water mana streams are strongest in the pond. Both are found throughout, however. They feel strange, with me focusing on them directly like this. I can feel the way they weave through the area, however. Only through the portions closest to me can I really sense them with strength so I decide to check out away from the pond. I stand and follow one of the streams of water mana away from its origin, which is within the spring part of the pond. The further I walk from the pond, the more unstable the energy flow becomes. They weaken and begin to twist and curl rather than flow and gently weave their way through the land. By the time I reach the fog wall, the earth and water energy flows tangle just a little bit in a few different spots. I let in my senses at those points and find other energy flows tangled in them as well. Wherever the tangles are strongest, the energy flows all but stop and those which continue after are much weaker. "So that''s what''s going on here," I murmur. The energies of the Mythic Forests must have become unstable after the King of the Celestials stopped maintaining them for too long. He likely kept them stable and prevented them from tangling back before he left to observe mankind. Without him doing that, they started to weaken and tangle and that affected the soil, water, and air. Making the place uninhabitable. As I work on a place, he''s probably smoothing out the tangles so that the flows return to normal and the land can recover. Lazy bastard. It''s probably taking him a lot of work to undo those and he simply decided to hire out someone else for the job of planting things and killing monsters. The river must be his way of distracting me for a few days so I stop trying to expand areas or add in new ones before he''s ready. Even with the time difference when I''m not here, it must take awhile to fix the energy flows even for a master of all forms of magical energy. This zone''s energy flows must be doing well enough for him to feel comfortable letting it expand. The size of the expansion might be him trying to say "hey, when places are ready to expand, you''ll know because it''s a big one". Floaty Fish Pond must be getting some sort of nice treatment right now. I''ll check back another day to see if there''s water there. Nothing I can find in the zone indicates that there''s a source for it so I''m not sure how to handle growing things there. If I''m right, then these energy flows are part of how the Mythic Forest maintained itself. The water energy flows most likely actually added water to the soil. I can experiment with that and see if plants will grow up to the points where the water and earth energy flows seem to still be strong, before they start weakening and tangling. The only reason I don''t suspect it''s because of the earth magic crystals I had the pups plant is because it''s not just those that look strong and healthy nearest to the pond. All energy flows near the pond do. Wait. I walk to the nearest tangle of energy flows and examine it with my full sense for magical energies. In a few spots, where the energy flows start to slow, they also start to swell up. It almost resembles what I''ve seen in pictures of Monster Eggs. I follow the streams until I reach the fog wall and when I do, I spot touches of black and red entering them. Just like in Monster Eggs. "So that''s how they form," I muse. Monster Eggs are the results of the energy flows of the universe tangling and becoming unstable. That''s why monsters don''t need nourishment near them ¨C they''re bundles of corrupted energy the beasts can draw from. With the variety of monsters within the Mythic Forest and its current state, I''m guessing this place is more susceptible to them than outside. It''s either that or the time difference within here can be a lot greater at times and that just accelerates the process much faster. I can''t think of another reason why the city would only have three with its immense size if the Mythic Forest has as many as it does. "Oh, hello, Mrow," I say as the lifeseed worm pokes its head out of the ground near me. "Was that the last of the ogres?" The mythical beast was consuming the ogres when I woke and continued doing so over the ten minutes I''ve been examining the energy flows. I turn my filters back on so it''s only mana that I''m sensing as the lifeseed worm fully emerges from the ground. As it slides across the soil, thousands of essence crystals plop onto the ground. Maybe even tens of thousands. "Where did you get all of these?" I ask, and the lifeseed worm turns and makes for the pond instead of answering. At the edges of the plant-filled area, Mrow begins depositing the soil he created from the ogres'' remains, except there''s quite a bit more soil than I would have expected from that. Whatever size his own storage space is must be quite large to house tens of thousands of essence crystals and that much soil. "Wait," I realize. "Have you been accumulating this from my work at the river?" Mrow turns its head and gives me a nod. He''s realized that I generally want the essence crystals and so has decided to not process them into fertile soil. I really don''t need that many, but I guess it doesn''t hurt to have some I can sell for extra money while my Daily and Weekly Dungeons are unavailable. Cassidy likely won''t ask questions about where I get them and just assume I''d left the city do to some hunting. If the bureau learned of it, well, they''re aware that I''m most likely an Awakened of a higher Rank. Rank 4s and Rank 5s can easily collect a lot of essence crystals if they go to the right place outside of the city, so they''d most likely just wonder how I left the city without getting noticed at the gates but not ask more than that. Thinking of being interacting with others reminds me that I haven''t dressed yet, so I do that after cleaning my feet of the soil. With my bracelets back on, I begin putting some of the essence crystals into them. I won''t be able to take them all but I can certainly make quite a decent amount off of the ones I grab. Aster appears when I''m halfway done filling one of the bracelets and he immediately dives snout-first into part of the long pile of crystals. "Whoa, buddy," I pull him out as he starts to roll around. "Let''s not make a mess. Mrow was kind enough to pile them up nicely, alright?" Aster gives me a disappointed look, but that lasts only a moment before he perks up again, tail wagging as he sends me a message. A memory of him playing with Ryan on my deck and getting belly rubs and a dish of strawberry jam. A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. "You want to play with Ryan?" I ask. "No, not quite. You were playing with Ryan? Oh! Ryan''s at my house right now?" I got distracted and lost track of time, didn''t I? Aster decided to play with Ryan instead of letting me know, and he probably got sent by Ryan to see if I wanted lunch. As Aster gives me confirmation that my boyfriend is at my house, I access my gate and return home, then open the front door. Ryan''s outfit today is an orange short-sleeved shirt which hugs him just as nicely as his jeans do, and I take him in for a moment as he takes in my appearance. My current outfit consists of a light grey button-up with short sleeves over a light green short-sleeved shirt and a pair of jeans. "Aster told me you were taking a nap," Ryan says. "At least, that''s what I think him imitating sleeping for a moment meant." "I woke up about ten minutes ago," the pup must have come to see if I wanted to play and found me napping, as I doubt Ryan would have showed up that much before my usual lunch time. "He wasn''t bothering you, was he?" "No," Ryan gives the pup a rub on the head, and Aster''s tail begins swishing from side to side. "We played out here for a few minutes and I gave him some jelly, then asked if he knew when you were going to wake from your nap and if I should come back later. He vanished, and here we are. Would you like to eat lunch? I brought subs." "Sure," I close the door and we move to the table, Aster plopping his butt on the ground as he stares up at Ryan. "Patience, Aster. How''s your day been so far, Ryan?" "Not bad," he answers as he pulls two white paper lunch bags out of his storage. "It''s been a quiet morning for me. That said, when do you do your grocery shopping?" "I get delivery on Sundays," I answer. "Why?" "The major news outlets aren''t reporting anything," he tells me. "They''re under a gag order from the government. All guilds were ordered into silence about the situation as well. There''s only so much which can be done, though." "Sooner or later," I say. "Word''s going to spread about the lack of Dungeons, Daily and Weekly Dungeons, and Level 1 Awakening Quests. We''ve already talked about the panic buying, though? Or did something else happen?" "A smaller online journal posted an article a couple of hours ago," he says. "Mentioning that the government went strangely silent about new Awakenings ¨C they never really talked about them in the first place ¨C and their reporters hadn''t seen any new Dungeons in a few days. Combined with the knowledge that things had already been slowing down, they suspect that Dungeons and Awakenings have ceased entirely and recommend people stock up before shortages begin." "That''s the sort of thing which causes shortages," I say. "And the government is preparing to make sure we have supplies for months out, aren''t they?" "They are," he says. "The earth magic crystals we acquired the other day are already either in storage or being used in the farms. We''re-" "Woof!" We both look down at Aster, who''s staring at Ryan impatiently. "Oh, right!" Ryan laughs. "Sorry, little guy! Here! It''s not varyihn beef, but I hope you enjoy it!" He sets a plate on the ground, then chunks meat plop onto it. "Those are from some mithriltusk boars I fought awhile back," Ryan tells Aster. "So while it''s not minotaur meat, I hope you enjoy it!" Aster lets out several happy barks as he runs in circles, then he starts chowing down on his lunch. "I''ll take that as a ''yes''," Ryan chuckles as he looks at me again. "We should get eating, too." "Is the bureau going to release a statement?" I ask as we open up our bags and start pulling out our lunches. "Not yet," he says. "The journal doesn''t have too many followers and they''re estimating not many will actually start panic buying yet. They plan on releasing the official statement this weekend and are hoping to reduce the amount of panic buys, but know it won''t fully mitigate things for awhile." "The hope is that Dungeons return before then," I say. "And with an abundance of resources, not a light amount." "Right," he says. "Right after the official statement is released is when they''re expecting the panic buys to start. A lot of Awakened are already stocking up because they''re aware of the situation." It''s kind of incredible that so many people know what''s going on as they''re directly affected by it yet word isn''t spreading too fast. Most Awakened tend to lean toward the type who don''t try to cause panics so I''m sure that factors in, as does the bureau making sure the major sources of news keep quiet. Those two factors are definitely a larger part of it, but could something else be at play as well? "If you get a delivery on Sundays," he says. "I''d recommend going by Friday just to be sure. Though I''ve get plenty of fresh produce in my storage so you don''t need to worry about that." Me telling him I''ll be fine probably didn''t fully make him comfortable and he still wants to help me with food during the shortages. "In all honesty?" I ask. "I really will be fine, Ryan. The place the King of the Celestials is sending me to actually has some produce in it. Not just magical ones I can use for potions but ordinary ones. Mainly fruits, but I might be finding vegetables soon." "Alright," he says. "Let me know if you want anything in particular, though. One of my bracelets is just produce. Nothing else, just produce. There''s more in some of the others, though I do have dairy, eggs, and meats as well as sacks of different grains and flours. Also herbs and other seasonings, sugar, and processed things like noodles, jams, pickles, and breads. In a regular storage, I have toilet paper, napkins, paper towels, cleaning supplies, and more. Those don''t really need preservation." "You really don''t need to offer me stuff," I tell him. "I know," he says before I can continue. "But I want to. This is something I''d offer to any of my other friends if I didn''t already know they likely have their own stocks. Maybe not as much as me, but they''re all fairly strong and can sometimes go on an extended job outside of the city or happen into a massive Dungeon which takes several days. We tend to always have a little a little bit of extra supplies." "And they all no doubt know," I say. "So they''re all probably stocking up, too." Aster suddenly starts whimpering and I look down to find his head low and tail curled underneath him. That''s not all I see, as the origin of his worry is not far away. Sitting on my deck is leopard-like creature at full height, her pelt a mixture of light and dark greens while the spots are a mixture of dark and light blues. Traces of purple shimmer throughout her coat, giving it a slightly ethereal look reminiscent of an aurora. Her amethyst eyes stare at Aster with a trace of annoyance, then she turns them to Ryan and me and they soften. "I apologize if Aster has been a bother," her voice is gentle. "His Majesty ordinarily keeps the kit in line, but has been unable to do so for many sleeps now. While I attempt to keep an eye on him, he sometimes escapes my care. This last escape has been particularly difficult to find him again and it''s taken me many sleeps longer than normal. If he has caused you any harm, I offer to you appropriate reparations." Ryan just stares at her, no doubt unable to figure out how to respond to a talking beast, while I immediately realize what''s going on. She''s another Celestial and she''s come for Aster. I give her a quick examination.
Aurora
Category: Graceful
Kind. Enjoys licks on the head and rubs on the belly. Don''t punt into the lake. Is willing to watch the youth when they need watching.
I''m going to guess the King of the Celestials threw her into a lake several times before deciding to put a note in her information to remind himself not to. Asking her about it might not be the best of ideas. Responding to her might be a good one, though. "He''s been fine," I tell her. "Mostly just hanging out with me or playing. He''s gotten into our jams and stuff a couple of times but I don''t think he''ll do it again." "I see," she looks at Aster, who whimpers again, apparently able to feel her gaze. "Aster, have you apologized? We''ve spoken before about you getting into people''s food and that it''s very wrong unless they''ve granted permission. Remember?" Aster whimpers, then crawls over to me and gives me a quite apologetic look. "You''re fine," I pick him up and rub his head. "Like I said before, just don''t do it again, alright? And don''t get into my bed or on my furniture while sticky, either. That''s all." Aster nuzzles me. "I did notice his fur was clean," she says. "I take it you have washed him? Without me doing so regularly, I was concerned that he''d become nothing but sticky again." "He was when we met a few days ago," I tell her. "I gave him a good scrub clean for that, and another yesterday and today." "Aster is insisting on staying with you," she stands and approaches, then gives me a light sniff. "Hm. I see. Do you have an issue with him staying with you? If so, then I will take him back to my domain." That sniff¡­ was she just confirming the scent of the Mythic Forest on me? It''s possible that I have a trace of the big boy''s scent on me as well since he''s observing me so she may have been smelling that. "Did¡­ you just sniff a Celestial?" Ryan asks me. "It''s only fair if she sniffs me first," I say as Aurora lightly tilts her head to the side in mild curiosity. "You smell of fresh-baked berry pies." "I try my best to have a pleasing scent," she says. "Aster is quite insistent on getting to stay with you. Aster, if you didn''t want to get caught, perhaps teleporting in and out of the same location eighteen times in a single sleep was not the best of ideas? It made it quite easy to pick up the traces of your power and follow them back." "Eighteen times?" I look at Aster. "What in the world were you doing?" That''s quite a few more times than I know about. The answer turns out to be that he was trying to convince one of his friends to come visit last night but they were quite reluctant to. "Yes," Aurora says, having apparently overheard Aster''s response to me. "He can be quite shy so I''m not surprised he was resistant to coming. If Aster kept popping in and out of his cave last night, then he might be upset. If you''re okay with Aster staying, then I''ll be off." "I am," I tell her. "He''s nice to have around, and I think I''ll miss him if he leaves." Aster perks up at that. It''s the truth, too. While the pup''s only been here a few days, he already feels like he''s always been a part of my life. "Then I''ll be going now," Aurora says. "I have another young one to check on, thanks to a certain someone. Until we meet again, may His Majesty''s power guide you." She inclines her head to me, then vanishes as if she had never been here to begin with. That eliminates my ability to ask her some questions that I feel she holds answers to, but something tells me I''ll be seeing her again soon. "Celestials can talk," Ryan says, his first words since Aurora appeared. "Some," I say. "Aster doesn''t talk, do you?" I rub the pup''s head as he sends me a "no" through his normal means. "That''s what I thought," I give him a kiss on the head, then set him back on the ground. "Eat your lunch, buddy." Neither Ryan nor I really know what to say next so we just eat our lunch in silence. Meeting a second Celestial was not in my expectations for today and I doubt it was in his. It''s only when I''m halfway through my sub that I realize just how good at holding a conversation she was. She and Aster were having a separate, probably mental, conversation while she conversed with me. Chapter 0031 "Thanks for lunch," I give Ryan a quick kiss after we reach his truck. "You''re welcome," he pulls me in for a hug. "Do you need anything before I go?" "No," I tell him. "Thanks for the offer, though." "Alright," he says. "See you, Evan." "See you, Ryan," I respond. He climbs into his truck, and I wait until he''s driven off before turning around and making my way back into my house. Before I reach the stairs to my deck, however, my work phone starts to ring. I pull it out and find that it''s Kelsey. Considering she was always a friend and not a customer, I''m surprised she''d even think to call this. "Hello, Kelsey," I answer the call. "Everything alright?" "Yeah," she answers. "I heard you made some [Scroll of Flamethrower]s the other day?" "This is for the job tomorrow?" I ask. "I did, but they''re only Tier 1 with a power of 20." "Damn," she says. "Alright, we''ll have to find another supplier. Those scrolls are pretty hard to find." "I''m sure," I tell her. "Good luck with the job." "Thanks," she says. "Have a good one, Evan." Kelsey hangs up and I move my phone into my [Dimensional Storage], then head into my house and stretch for a moment. "You ready for some work?" I ask Aster, who barks a few times and then vanishes. "Didn''t think so." I access my gate and head to the Great Napping Spot and begin sensing all of the energies I can here. Right at the peak of the hill is a mass of energy flows tangled together roughly the size of my torso, maybe a little bit larger. All of the streams are nearly completely black and red but there''s some of their normal colors touched into them as well. Monster Eggs are fully black and red, so this one must be undergoing restoration as well. At a guess, the fact that there''s some proper color returned means that either the spawns here are done or they''ll be much more slow than they used to be. Though now I''m curious about which beasts there are which can hunt goblins, trolls, ogres, and the like. Either some of those types of beasts aren''t monsters or there''s a variety of creature I don''t know of with a humanoid form which has a mythical beast variant. That''s the only reason I can think of to explain why there isn''t a much higher number of said monsters in the Mythic Forest. Now that I''ve checked here, I return to the Whispering Life Spring. From what I could sense at the hill, it''ll be quite awhile before that zone is ready for plants again. Here at the Whispering Life Springs, things seem relatively unchanged in the energy flows but the plants have a quite visibly noticeable change. The grasses around the pond have reached their full height, some cattails have begun to grow, the bushes are more filled with berries and there are now twice as many as there were when I left, and more. Several more trees have grown in varying distances from the pond as well¡­ Which looks bigger. I walk around the perimeter of the pond to check. The shape itself is roughly the same and the end which has the actual spring is in the same spot, but the pond is definitely larger. It was originally only ten feet at its longest and seven at its widest, but it''s now around thirteen at its longest and nine at its widest. The King of the Celestials expanded it by around thirty percent while I was at lunch. I suppose the forest being restored is a good time as any to make changes he wants to make. Though I''m sure he could do it normally as well, so this could just also be a normal thing for him. "Does your inability to kill monsters or make changes to the Mythic Forests also prevent you from fixing the energy flows?" I ask. "It is not often a mortal can tell when a Celestial has appeared," Aurora says as I turn to face her. "Though you didn''t seem to notice me when we met not long ago. At least, not until Aster let out his whine." She''s sitting gracefully, still in the leopard form she was in during my lunch break. "I did notice your appearance," I tell her. "I didn''t have enough time to react before Aster did. His reaction occurred almost at the same instant." "I see," she says. "What brings you here?" "I was granted access through a gate upon my Awakening," I answer. "Just want to see this place full of life again so I''m trying to help with that. I''m certain your king is also using this as part of his observations of people, to see how I do things while he fixes the energy flows." "What reasons he holds for the things he does stands beyond me," she says. "As for your original question, that is something which I cannot answer." "You''re bound?" Some government contracts require agreeing to be bound into silence on something through magic. Subjecting someone to such a bind against their will is illegal and comes with severe consequences, but I know some companies also use them to protect certain trade secrets. Celestials can probably use such binds as well, only on a more efficient level. "Not for that," she says. "Among the variety of people throughout the universes, there are many tales of us Celestials and our powers. Some of them are correct, some of them are false. Aether is to a Celestial what mana is to a mortal or divine power is to a god, with the exception being that we have an unlimited amount of it. There are exceptions to even what we Celestials may do." "And that includes manipulating the natural flows of it?" I ask. "Indeed," she answers. "I can sense the bigger ones fine and some of the smaller ones with effort, but cannot influence them. His Majesty alone knows the art of maintaining them, though I''ve never seen him do it. From time to time, the flows in a place suddenly calm. Though since it can be many sleeps between when I visit a location, it might not be so ''suddenly'' as ''suddenly''." In other words, she doesn''t really know how long it takes the King of the Celestials to fix the energy flows, and she herself is incapable of doing so. The other Celestials likely aren''t, either. "And here?" I ask. "The flows have only grown worse since he left to observe mankind more closely," she answers. "Though it seems he is returning here once more. If he is using you for observations, then I will not interfere. Have a good time." Aurora vanishes before I can ask any further questions. I have quite a few, but I can wait longer for them to be answered. There''s nothing I can do to make a Celestial stay and answer questions and I wouldn''t try to do that, anyway. It''s not my sort of thing. Alone once more, I walk over to a bush which wasn''t here during my previous visit. It''s barely begun to sprout and is growing a few feet from a tree sapling which also began to grow in my brief absence. Both have sprung up in the area of new growth, which seems to be leaning more toward trees than other plants. They''re only around two feet in height but that''s fine since they''ll grow more on their own. This much growth is no doubt because of the soothed flows of magical energy. Though now I''m realizing that the King of the Celestials must have done more work while I was asleep. He took less than fifteen minutes to repair this area that much? Or the tangled sections are a bigger stopper than I thought and he was nearly done untangling a few spots already. I don''t know what they looked like before so I can''t really judge on this that well. If those only took a few minutes to do, then it was definitely possible to fix them during my brief nap. He may have even been working on them while I was doing my Special Quest and Awakening Quests today. I really want to know why he''s not showing himself to me, but I guess I''ll have to wait for answers on that until he deigns to actually reveal himself. It could be to minimize his influence on his observations, I guess. What to do now? Up until yesterday, my schedule only included a few hours of work in here, and I think it would be best to let this zone grow a bit on its own, without my influence, while its mana flows recover. I don''t want to do more combat but I think that might be the best option, either to expand the Pup Leisure Pond to make more space for [Cleanse] to work on, to make available the other side of the river at Happy Butterfly Hill or further up or downstream on there, or to take on more of the larger river. The most effective choice to help the forest recover would probably be the river. It will boost my Level more quickly and enable to me to handle tougher beasts and grow more plants. While it''s faster, it also comes with the downside of being more work in a day. I''m already managing to walk between four and six miles a day along the river but that rate also means it''ll take me until sometime next week to reach the end, if I go the full length. That''s not in my plans but I still need to travel a decent distance to reach my own goal. The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation. Once I hit Level 10 is when I''ll try to take on whatever is at the small lake at the hills. I can probably manage that by dinner today if I don''t waste too much time. As much as I''d rather sit down and relax, I return to the river and continue slaying my way through it. My current level of power makes taking on the goblins, trolls, and boars fairly easy and the main time sink here is the travel itself. The fewer strikes needed for boars now does speed things up a bit, and I manage to unlock my Level 8 Awakening Quest after only a little bit more than an hour. All I need to do for it is take out a goblin knight, which goes fairly quick and allows me to return to the trip. The next two Awakening Quests are pretty standard slay-the-beasts Quests and take me less than an hour each. Neither one is for a new zone but I''m not surprised by that. The King of the Celestials probably does want to reduce how many zones have me going in and out right now. I call up my Status upon reaching Level 10 to check the full changes.
Name: Evan Rethe Rank: 5
Species: Human Sex: Male
Level: 10 EXP: 0/265,096
HP: 31,000/31,000 MP: 31.000/31,000
Strength: 112 Constitution: 146
Agility: 112 Dexterity: 226
Magic: 454 Mind: 252
HP Regen: 5% MP Regen: 5%
Those stats are rather high and with one more Level, I''ll be able to survive entering a Category 5-2 Dungeon, since the ranks for those start at Level 1, Level 11, Level 21, etc. for their equivalent hunters. Now, only Rank 3s in their upper Levels and some Rank 4s are as strong or stronger than I am when looking at those of lower Ranks. My stats aren''t the only change, however. A message I didn''t dismiss yet still floats in my vision.
For reaching Level 10, you''ve gained 10 Skills and Skill Levels!
I review my Skill list to see the changes made. That happens every 10th Level so I can expect it to happen regularly. Based on what is known, the Skills which gain a Level are those which are already close to doing so. An early boost, so to speak. The new Skills unlocked are based on a mixture of a person''s Classes and which of their Skills they use regularly, potentially ones that someone might be close to unlocking on their own. If there aren''t enough Skills to boost or gain, it then looks at those which aren''t close to being Leveled or unlocked and picks the ones that are closest. As a Rank 5, I receive 10 Skill Levels every tenth Level, so there''s a much wider pool for them to get picked from. For me, it looks like [Magic Missile], [Telekinesis], [Fireball], [Flamethrower] [Dimensional Storage], and [Animal Communication] have all gone up in Level. My new Skills are [Multicast], [Barrier], [Gale], and [Vine]. The latter two won''t be too useful for me unless I have plenty of time or am in a group with someone keeping the monsters'' attention on them instead of me. The first two could be useful to some degree, though [Barrier] is a bit more limited. [Multicast] is definitely the most useful for me right now, though.
[Multicast] Level: 1
The ability to cast multiple of the same spell at once, at the cost of extra MP and casting time per additional spell.
Cost: +90% Casting Time: +90%
At Level 2, [Magic Missile] takes 0.9 seconds to cast but still costs 5 MP. Casting two spells at once isn''t really easy and that''s why there''s a Skill for doing so ¨C to make it easier for people to gain the ability to and to improve their ability to more easily. I probably could have learned this on my own, I just hadn''t bothered with it If I cast two [Magic Missile]s at once, they''ll take 1.71 seconds to cast both, but cost 9.5 MP each. The mana cost is of no consequence for me and I generally have two seconds before any risk to myself occurs. Raising the spell up another Level will give me even more time. Raising a hand, I begin casting two [Magic Missile]s at once to test out my new ability. Rather than forming right beside each other in front of my palm, they form about a foot apart with the center of that empty space in front of my hand. The moment my cast finishes, the pair of [Magic Missile]s soar forward, curving outward for a moment before slamming into the edge of the river, right at the stone I''d aimed for around two hundred feet away. Dirt and stone fragments burst outward from the spot, creating a sizable hole in the side of the river. Testing that on a monster probably would have been a better idea, but I don''t think that level of damage is a problem here. If it is, the King of the Celestials will probably fix it. A part of me wants to hold off on taking on the lake at the hills. Something that big just gives me a feeling as if it might be stronger than I can handle right now. That''s not necessarily true, but I still get that feeling. It could also just be how much I did today making me not want to take on such a large project without some proper rest. After spending a lot of time gaining Levels today, I don''t really want to do too much extra work and a place that big probably needs a lot of work. It might be better to wait until tomorrow to take on the lake. As I contemplate what I should do, Aster appears in the distance and starts running around a troll while barking. That answers several questions for me, so I walk over and put the troll out of its misery before looking at Aster. "You never look sticky," I tell him. "But if I pick you up, am I going to get something sticky on me?" "Arf!" Aster happily wags his tail. I still haven''t dressed from my Level 10 Awakening Quest, so I bend down and pick up the pup, finding that he is, indeed, quite sticky. "What did you get into this time?" I ask. Aster sends me a message containing memories of him raiding some jars of honey and jam in his bear cub form. Large jars of them, ones which he could climb into and there still be plenty of room within. They''re made of clay and stored in some sort of dark, stone room. "Those belong to someone, don''t they?" I ask. The next memory I''m given is of him being chased by bearkin. Mostly human in form and not hairy, but they have the ears and tails of bears and are larger in size, the men at least 6''3" at a minimum and with broad shoulders and muscular builds. Four are chasing him, two with spears and two with no weapons, all wearing furs with their breaths fogging in the air. They even caught him and he ran off rather than teleporting. "You liked getting chased by them, didn''t you?" I ask. "Arf!" His tail wags some more and I sigh. "You need to stop stealing," I tell him. "You need to ask first. And apologize to the bearkin for stealing. Make it up to them. Otherwise, no more treats for you from me, and no more sleeping in my bed." Aster lets out a soft whine¡­ and then I find myself in the storeroom he''d raided, where two of the bearkin from the memory Aster sent me are cleaning up the mess he''d made. They''re even dressed in the same furs they were wearing. It must have been in the last ten minutes or so rather than just at some point during my morning work. It''s also very cold here. The moment we appear, the pair of men look at me, then immediately go to put up their fists. "Woof!" Aster barks. "Woof¡­ Woooooooooof!" The jars he''d damaged all repair themselves, then Aster inhales deeply, then exhales. His breath lasts for almost thirty seconds and as he does it, a blue crystal with silver streaking through it forms in the air between us and the locals. They give each other uncertain looks as the crystal ¨C which is a sphere as large as their torsos ¨C forms. The moment it finishes, it lands on the ground with a heavy thunk. A little curious, I give it an examination.
[Big and Sparkly Crystal]
Tier: 9,871,302
Big and sparkly! Hope you like it! -Aster
So the King of the Celestials isn''t the only one who can edit the descriptions. Or perhaps normal Celestials can create descriptions when they make items, but not edit descriptions for others. I''m going to assume the Tier part is just an automated thing he can''t affect as I doubt he would''ve put in some random number. "Aster," I say. "That doesn''t make up for stealing their jams and honey. Decorations are one thing, useful items or replacements are another." Aster sighs, his ears and tail dropping as his head hangs low. Fortunately, the other men now look wary but not potentially hostile. The pup suddenly raises his head and opens his mouth. "Ba! Ba! Ba! Ba! Ba!" With each one of those Aster lets out, a pure mana crystal the size of my fist forms and drops onto the ground. Their blue is deep and rich and a quick check shows that each one contains millions of MP each. Talk about disproportionate payment¡­ I have a sneaking suspicion I know what Aster''s doing. I clear my throat and the men look at me. "I apologize for Asters¡­ behavior," I infuse my voice with mana as I speak in the ancient tongue, my words flowing together in a harmonic, beautiful sound which the bearkin before me aren''t going to hear. "I''m not his guardian, just someone he''s recently found and taken a liking to. He doesn''t seem to understand how society works, and I believe he''s offering those both as payments for what he''s stolen before and for what he wishes to take in the future." "Woof!" Aster nods, his tail wagging. "I also apologize for my attire," I say. "I''d just finished an Awakening Quest without gear which could handle it, found that Aster had just done the raiding, picked him up, and told him to apologize. He chose to teleport me here with him rather than come on his own or allow me to dress first." The way I spoke, with my voice imbued with mana, turned my words into the true ancient tongue. When used, it is understood in the native or natural language of those who hear it, so the bearkin aren''t hearing the ancient tongue but their own language. It''s the same language the System is written in, allowing objects to bear the same information in any language. Aurora most likely used it when speaking with me earlier, and also when speaking with Ryan and me. "And before you try to respond," I say. "I''m not speaking your language but one which is understood as a native by those who hear it. I won''t be able to understand any responses, so you''ll have to address the pup himself. I can speak to any tongue, but he can understand any tongue." Aster nods. The pair of bearkin try to talk with Aster as a few more show up and watch, and it seems that there''s some degree of negotiation going on. While I can''t understand what''s being said, I can tell that it''s mostly Aster trying to convince them of something as he keeps creating more mana crystals and conjuring several various other items. I''m not sure if he''s creating them directly or if they''re from his storage, but they''re definitely on the interesting side. By the time he takes me back to the river, there are forty-two mana crystals, ten new large jars which have "indestructible" in their names, a life-sized plush version of the pup''s bear form, a painted skull of a wyvern, a brown-and-green rug, and a duck. "Ask them in the future," I tell Aster. "Let''s get you home and cleaned up." Chapter 0032 "I''m going out for dinner," I tell Aster as I get dressed. "So why don''t you find something for yourself? Make sure you don''t steal from someone, though." It wouldn''t be a hassle to cook for myself but my estimates on time were off and it''s already past seven in the evening. After spending all day apart from lunch doing work in the Mythic Forest, I want to have someone else cook for me and I know a few places which provides both that and socialization. "Woof?" "I don''t know when I''ll be back," I tell him. "It''ll depend on whether or not I hook up with someone. If I don''t, I''ll probably be back by ten. If I do, it might not be until two or three in the morning." Aster just tilts his head in confusion a little more. I finish dressing, then check myself in the mirror on the back of my closet door. Khakis, with a light blue shirt left unbuttoned over a dark blue t-shirt. It looks good, especially with my own lilac-colored eyes. "Chances are good I''ll be back late," I inform Aster, then grab my old phone from where I''d stored it and check the battery, then take it to the living room and plug it in, the pup following me. "I''m sure you can at least read our numbers, right?" Aster nods. "Alright," I say. "Push this button here and the screen will turn on like this. See? It shows you the time. If you get curious about what time it is and how much longer it''ll be before I get back, you can check this. Keep it plugged in, though." If he doesn''t go off and do his own thing, he might keep turning the screen on to check the time in boredom. Just in case he decides to stick around, I also pull out the tome with information about the Celestials and set it down. "Here''s this as well," I tell him. "Don''t damage it or you''ll make Ryan upset and he won''t get you anymore varyihn beef, alright?" "Woof!" While he can get his own minotaur meat, threatening to not give him any works. I slip on my shoes, then let Aster know I''m heading out. I make sure to lock the door behind me, then get into my truck and drive to the streets with clubs and bars I sometimes hang out at. Sometimes for hookups, sometimes because the food is actually pretty good. The one I pick for this evening is Starry Iris. Upon arriving, I park in the lot and make my way to the dark-blue building, where a line of young men wait for entry. With this district having several academies and universities, there are a variety of clubs and bars catering to various related demographics. This one caters mostly to college-aged guys into other guys, though not everyone in line is going to be gay or bi. Some are probably straight, and I know the bouncer has a wife and two kids. Rather than entering the line and waiting for them, I walk straight up to the bouncer, a muscular guy in his late twenties. His dark brown hair is just barely long enough to show off its wave, the bouncer watching the line with silver eyes. This is a job he does for a little bit of extra income, but he''s an Awakened hunter as his main job. Just in case of a problem, many of the bars and clubs in this area hire strong Awakened as security. It can be necessary when some of the visitors are Awakened, even if most don''t get physical. The odds of someone being infected with the dark infection, or an ordinary person trying to pick a fight with an Awakened, are just barely high enough to warrant extra security. "Hey, Jared," I greet the bouncer. "Hey, Evan," he says. "No queue for VIPs right now, so you can go on in." "VIP?" The first guy in line asks. I look to the questioning man. He looks to be around eighteen, maybe nineteen, so only a year or two younger than me. There''s a small possibility he''s younger, but he''ll get turned away if he is and tries to enter. His hair is a deep purple, while his eyes share a similar silver to Jared''s. His current outfit consists of jeans and a faded blue tee with a grey collar for the top. Most people who come here either dress up a little bit more or go shirtless, but he won''t get turned down for the outfit as there are definitely some guys who''ll want to chat with him. He''s above-average in looks, though he also looks rather nervous. If I''m right, this is probably his first time at a place like this. Some of the clubs like the Starry Iris have VIP lists which exempt members from waiting in line if there are still VIP vacancies open, and it also exempts them from the cover charge. "I''m an alchemist who produces potions which neutralize toxins such as alcohol," I inform the purple-haired man. "The Starry Iris is one of my customers. They buy them and resell them to their own customers who want or need a dose. Makes it so the designated driver can still drink, just so long as they make sure to buy and down one of those potions before they get into their car, if they didn''t bring their own." The dose for the sobering potion is an ounce and I can brew up a hundred gallons in a batch if I want to. It''s relatively low-cost compared to normal poison-curing potions, too, and I don''t try to make too much of a profit on it so it mostly just covers its own costs with a tiny bit extra. Not enough to make a difference for my shop. A club this size might go through a gallon in a day or two depending on how many people actually want to sober up before leaving and usually orders enough for a month at a time. I do those at the start of the month unless I need to brew up a smaller batch sooner if one of my customers had a higher-than-average number of people purchasing it. Even if the Dungeon Drought lasts longer than I''m expecting it to, I should be fine for getting reagents for those. If all else fails, I can probably brew something up using reagents from the Mythic Forest. "We put him on the VIP list for it," Jared tells the younger man as a few guys leave. "He charges a better rate than most and is much closer than many of them. Since he''s so reliable and is a regular customer, we decided he deserved extra permissions. You can head on in, Evan. And you as well, sir. Let me just check your ID and get the cover, and you can enter." I enter the club as Jared deals with the newcomer. It''s not a massive club by any means but has a decent capacity. They can hold up to three hundred people by the fire code but usually limit it to around two hundred to two hundred and fifty outside of special occasions. Most of the lighting is blue with some purple and less green. There are three bars, two dance floors, and two areas with booth seating at tables in addition to several smaller round tables with stools. The club''s pretty full right now despite it being only a Tuesday evening. Most of the guys here are probably students at the hunters'' academy, as they''re more likely to go clubbing and get drunk on weekdays than normal college students. A decent number of them took off their shirts after entering, though they aren''t the majority. Some of them probably came in without their shirts on, which is how Nick likes to show up to this club. I don''t see him here right now but that''s not surprising. He doesn''t go to clubs even if it''s just for food and socialization the night before a mission even though he knows he''ll be fine in the morning and he''s mentioned getting asked for a mission tomorrow. Not the same one that Wyatt, Kelsey, and Adam are going on so I''m not sure what he''s doing, but that''s enough for me to have not expected to see him. As I check out the crowd, the nervous guy from outside enters and immediately starts fidgeting as he looks around. Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions. Which is the reason I didn''t just go straight to a bar and get a drink. Our brief interaction was enough for me to know that he''d need some help relaxing before he could enjoy his night here. "First time in a club?" I ask. "Yeah," he jumps, apparently not realizing I was right beside him. "I''m old enough, it''s just¡­ I don''t-I''m not looking for a hookup. I just wanted to go to a club." So that''s why he''s nervous. He wouldn''t be the first and won''t be the last to be in that situation. "No worries," I chuckle and beckon for him to step away from the entrance "Many of the guys here may have had that at some point. I came because the food is good and there''s always someone to chat with. For me, if something happens then it happens. "As a heads-up," I say. "You''re pretty attractive and so will get some guys coming up to you, but being clearly nervous will actually prevent most from doing so. If you relax and calm down, something to remember is that if someone comes up and chats, they may just want to chat. If someone asks for something more than chatting¡­ just tell them you''re not looking. The club''s pretty strict about boundaries so if someone pushes after you say ''no'', you can tell any staff member and they''ll handle it." They won''t just act on claims alone, but they''ll generally keep an eye out for further incidents. Staff members who notice the pushing will step in even if no signal is given. "A-alright," he says. "My name''s Evan, by the way," I tell him. "Dashiel," he says. "So you''re a regular here?" "Yeah," I beckon for him to follow. "Let''s go to the bar and get something. Protip: don''t eat or drink anything you''ve had your eyes off of. If you turn in your seat to talk to the person next to you, move your drink with you to keep it in sight. It''s very easy for someone to slip something in without being noticed and this helps avoid that. This place doesn''t have an issue with that so you don''t need to worry, but it''s still good practice. And that potion we talked about? I''d recommend buying a dose of it if you start feeling drunk. Drowsiness, loss of coordination, foggy brain, and such are all things someone might feel with alcohol consumption, depending on themselves and the drinks they''re taking in. Nausea, headaches, and weakness are also things to mind and get the dose for." "How come?" He asks. "You''re new to this setting," I say. "And I get the feeling you''re not used to alcohol, either. It''ll make sure you stay safe." Those are also symptoms someone might feel if they''ve been drugged, and the potion I brew up here actually includes a neutralizer for that as well. I wasn''t lying when I said it''s not a concern at this particular club, but it''s something to get into a habit of at any. Most stop once they know their limits or know the difference between feeling drunk for them and something else. The staff here at the Starry Iris will also slip a dose of it into a mix they serve someone for free on the rare occasion they suspect someone''s been drugged. "And if you ever feel unsafe here," the bartender tells us, as we reached it just as I finished speaking. "Just let one of the staff know. Our bouncers are all trustworthy and will make sure nothing bad happens." The bartender looks our age but I''ve heard that he''s worked here for almost six years now so he''s most likely one of those guys who stays looking young for quite a long time. His hair looks as if spun of pure gold, his eyes the gentle but strong purple of irises. As usual, he''s dressed in brown pants and a gold-colored shirt, which has the logo of the club on his left breast, a purple iris with stars on its petals. "Hey, Griff!" I greet him. "Dashiel, this is Griffin. He owns the club and while he''s not officially registered as an Awakened¡­ he''s widely regarded as far more scary than any of his bouncers." Nobody really knows what Rank or Level he is, but he''s used magic to blind people who misbehaved a little too much. Permanently blinded them with a targeted spell which affected no one else. "Nice to meet you, Dashiel," Griffin greets the newcomer. "Know what you want, or want some help deciding?" "I''m not really familiar with drinks," Dashiel tells me. "I mean, I know there are a lot of different types, I just¡­ don''t know them?" "Alright," Griffin chuckles. "Mind if I mix up Evan''s real quick?" "Go ahead," Dashiel says. "Something with peach," I tell Griffin. Griffin gets to work, quickly mixing up a glass of something, which he then hands to me. "No pay?" Dashiel asks as I take a sip. "I thought you''re supposed to pay before getting the drinks¡­" "Normally, yes," Griffin says. "You give us your card and we hold onto it while you''re here, then charge you the total bill for you visit at the end. Or you pay each individual time by card or cash. Evan''s trusted enough that we''ll just open a tab for him and he pays at the end." Dashiel suddenly looks a lot more nervous. "A-are you a celebrity or something?" He asks. "No!" I laugh, as does Griffin. "I''m just well-known in the magic crafting community for some of my talents, but also work as a scavenger and a guide for newbie Awakened when it comes to potions." "Oh," he says. "Wait. Evan as in Evan Rethe? That''s you?" "So you''ve heard of me?" I ask as Griffin laughs and starts mixing up a drink for someone else. "I''ve heard about your shop," Dashiel says. "That you''ve got good prices on potions for beginners and usually give good advice. Also that you''re the only Dungeon Baby whose parents were never located." "Also true," I say. "You at the academy or university?" This is just me assuming he''s in training in case he becomes Awakened. The high school for those doing it is referred to as an academy, and he''ll probably say what he''s going for in university if he''s not hoping to be a hunter. "Academy," he answers. "Oh, but we don''t have classes tomorrow, so I''m not going to get screwed by drinking tonight. And I am eighteen. I''ll be nineteen in September. My birthday''s right after the cutoff so I''m almost a year older than a lot of my classmates." The full explanation probably comes from his nerves. "No school tomorrow?" I ask. "A hunters'' holiday," Griffin tells me. "Celebrated by their schools but not much else. And Dashiel? Some of the guys who come here are famous in various communities. Nick Sugam is a regular here, for example. If you''re nervous about meeting celebs, this might not be the best place to be." Nick is a top-notch tracker, partially because he''s Rank 5. That''s earned him a decent amount of fame among local hunters. Most Rank 5s do end up famous within their communities and potentially in larger areas such as city-wide. This whole strip of clubs and bars is frequented by Rank 4s and Rank 5s. It''s a place they''re naturally drawn to on top of being a place catering to the college crowd. If someone''s nervous about meeting famous people, this is definitely a place they should avoid. "They''re all pretty chill," I tell Dashiel. "I''m sure you''ve heard the theory that a good personality is likely a requirement to Awaken at Rank 4 or 5." "I have," he confirms. "Doesn''t stop me from feeling intimidated at times. And you feel like you''d be someone¡­ superior. So do you." He looks at Griffin. "I kind of am," Griffin flashes him a grin. "I bet you feel that way about folks with orange eyes, too, yeah?" "Yeah." "That''s a rare trait," Griffin tells him. "But considering you have an affinity for [Cosmic Mage], I''m not surprised." "I have what?" Dashiel looks confused as I raise an eyebrow at Griffin. "Isn''t that something only Rank 5s have ever been known to have?" "Who knows, maybe you''ll Awaken and find yourself a Rank 5," Griffin tells him. "I can sense magical power in others to some degree, and even their affinities for magic. The magics relating to [Cosmic Mage] are all there so if you don''t Awaken with it, that''d be a surprise." Griffin being able to sense that is news to me and I consider us good friends. I''m not offended by him not sharing that with me, though, as we all have our preferences for what others know about us. "Let me fix you up something," Griffin says. "On the house for this one." Griffin gets to work and quickly has a glass of something golden-orange in color that he''s setting in front of Dashiel. The newbie takes a sip of it and nods. "This is good," he says. "It''s the Triple Griffin Blast," Griffin informs him. "If you want another, just let any of the servers or bartenders know. Since you''re new to drinking, let me give you a little advice: make sure to eat food as well, and get at least one nonalcoholic drink in every now and then. That''ll reduce the effects of the drinks both now and in the morning without the sobering potion." "Thanks," Dashiel says. "Good luck out there," I tell him. "Don''t be too afraid to approach others if you want to try and strike up a conversation, it''s fine to dance if you want to, and remember what I said about drinks." "Will do," Dashiel says. "Thanks." Dashiel walks off, and I look back to Griffin. "That was a Single Griffin Blast, wasn''t it?" "Don''t worry," he says. "He''ll only get charged for that if he orders more. The others will definitely notice his nerves and just give him the singles. Probably tell him that, too. Triples will be for if he becomes a regular and gets more comfortable and used to drinking. You looking for action tonight or socializing?" "Socializing and dinner," I tell him. "Action if it''s offered and they''re agreeable, but won''t go looking. Am actually a bit tired today." "Heard you''re dating now," he takes my glass from me, as it''s now empty, and starts fixing another drink. "Ryan Sekirts, right?" "Nick blabbed?" "Nick blabbed." "Of course," I snort. "And yeah, but we''re not exclusive yet. Still in the figuring-out-if-we''re-good-together phase." "I''m sure you''ll go exclusive soon," he says. "Want to place your food order here, or going to find a table first?" "I''ll find a table first," I tell him. "Socializing''s always easier if I do that." Chapter 0033 There''s no pup in the bed when I wake, which doesn''t really surprise me. When I finally returned home last night, Aster was passed out in the living room with his nose on a picture of the King of the Celestials in the tome. I put the tome and my old phone away before giving him a pillow and blanket, then went to bed. Either he slept through the night there or he''s out doing something. Hopefully it''s not indulging in his love of sticky sweets via theft but I wouldn''t be surprised if he is. As I start to get out of bed, however, I realize the shower is running. I really hope it''s not been on for too long because there''s only one thing I can think of which would be in there right now and it''s not a person. Upon checking my bathroom, I find Aster running in circles under the water while letting out whisper-like woofs and barks, his tail swishing around in his excitement. "Aster," I turn off the water and the pup gives me an unhappy look. "The water here isn''t free. I have to pay for it." The pup tilts his head and I can feel his confusion at the concept of paying for water. To a creature which no doubt plays in natural water all the time, it''s unlikely he''s ever been charged for the water he plays in. Unfortunately for him, I''m not interested in my water bill going from around $30-$45 a month to several hundred just so he can play in the shower whenever he wants. The small increase it''s going to have with my increased showers to clean off after working in the forest isn''t going to be much but the pup will probably play in there all night many times if I don''t stop him now. Just because I can afford it thanks to my ability to earn more now, that doesn''t mean I want to. "Water in a city like this," I explain. "Has to be transported by pipes and other systems, but also cleansed of impurities and stored. That takes up space and resources, so the companies charge for it to cover their costs. The water purification center that covers the sector this district is in doesn''t charge too much, but some cities have insanely high costs. I do still have to pay some, though. If you want to play with water¡­ it''s better to do it somewhere that won''t trouble people." Aster lets out a sad whine at that. "You''re not in trouble," I give him a light rub on the head. "Let''s get you dried off, then it''s time for breakfast and more work at the Mythic Forest." Aster vanishes before I''m even finished speaking. He wishes to avoid work so much that he''ll not even eat breakfast with me if I mention it now, apparently. Once I eat and dress, I head to the Mythic Forest. I enter through the Great Napping Spot rather than somewhere else as my intention is to go to the lake at the hills and it''s easier for me to enter a spot I haven''t been to if I''m already in the forest. "Arf!" Aster barks the moment he appears. "I thought you wanted to avoid work?" I smile at the pup, just a little. "I''m going to the lake at the hills so I can get the big river started up again." The pup lets out several barks and a randomly-placed woof as he sends me a message. He wants me to fix another area first for some reason. "I''m not sure that''s a good idea," I tell him. "While the King of the Celestials probably assigned me the river to keep me busy for a few days while he worked on untangling energy flows, opening up the big river probably won''t be a problem as it should help with the water issue. Working on zones I don''t already have unlocked won''t be too efficient until after their energy flows start to untangle." Aster tries telling me something but since he''s not using his words, it''s hard for me to understand. Eventually, he gives up and teleports me to the zone. The fog only allows me to see around fifteen feet in each direction so I can''t tell too well what''s here by looking around, other than that the soil is dead and dry at my feet. At least the Special Quest notifications give me information. There are more of them this time than I''ve ever received at once for a zone I haven''t been in.
Special Quest initiated!
Slay all of the starseeker wolves in the special zone.
Slay: 0/53 starseeker wolves Time Limit: None
Special Quest initiated!
Slay all of the goblin cosmic mages.
Slay: 0/183 goblin cosmic mages Time Limit: None
Special Quest initiated!
Eliminate the startusk boars!
Slay: 0/92 startusk boars Time Limit: None
Special Quest initiated!
Eliminate the drought salamanders.
Slay: 0/37 drought salamanders Time Limit: None
Special Quest initiated!
Eliminate the dark bramble.
Time Limit: None
Special Quest initiated!
Destroy the Water-Void Crystal Pillars
Destroy: 0/17 Water-Void Crystal Pillars Time Limit: None
Special Quest initiated!
Clear the blockage preventing the spring from flowing.
Time Limit: None
Those first three monsters are quite concerning for me considering I''m only Level 10. Cosmic-type monsters don''t show up until at least Category 5-2 Dungeons and normally, Category 5-4 or higher. This very likely isn''t a place I could have a hope of cleaning up yet so I promptly access my gate to take to me to the Great Napping Spot. Aster appears a moment later with a very disappointed look on his face. "Aster," I crouch and rub his head. "I''m not strong enough to handle those. It would be better to wait until I''m Level 30 or higher at a minimum to take on those beasts." The pup lets out a confused whine with a slight tilt of his head, followed by an exclamation and a window appearing in my vision.
Goblin Cosmic Mage
HP: 3,300/3,300 MP: 7,100/7,300
Strength: 217 Constitution: 231
Agility: 210 Dexterity: 226
Magic: 401 Mind: 327
HP Regen: 5% MP Regen: 5%
Aster can access monsters'' Statuses? This one indicates a beast I''m technically strong enough to take on. "Is this the Status of one of those monsters?" I ask. "Woof!" Aster nods, tail wagging enthusiastically. "Is this typical for the beasts there?" I ask, and he woofs in confirmation again, his head bobbing up and down more vigorously. "So you were waiting for me to reach Level 10 because I''d be strong enough to handle them?" Aster confirms that as well. It might be better for me to gain two more Levels first, to make slaying the beasts there easier, but also because my physical stats are pretty low. The wolves will have higher physical stats than magical ones, as will the boars. That Mind stat makes it clear that I can''t use a mental attack to my advantage there. On top of all of that, it''s not just a few monsters that I can target and take out. There''s a variety of monsters there in what might be a large zone. I''d have to constantly adjust and adapt my strategy and while Rank 5s are known for being ridiculously strong, I''m not that good quit yet. The fog which is present when I''m somewhere early makes visibility quite low as well so I''ll struggle to deal with beasts coming toward me or casting spells. What are the odds that Aster''s only really looking at the goblins'' stats, too? If the zone has that degree of monster variety in it, it''s probably a merger of several zones and the wolves or boars may be even stronger while Aster only checked the goblins? Aster may have somehow removed the boundaries between different zones, allowing for different strengths to mingle together. Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. Even two Levels probably won''t be enough to guarantee full safety for me. "Sorry, bud," I tell Aster. "That''s just a little too much for me right now. It''ll be better to wait until I''m Level 15 at a minimum, and 20 for a better guarantee of my safety. I doubt even you could distract them that much, not here." Aster whines as his ears and tail droop, the pup looking at the ground. His sadness is so deep I can feel it without him projecting it to me. There''s something special about that pond to the pup. While it would only take a few more days to reach that if I continued in the river¡­ there''s something else I can do right now. I didn''t want to, but I guess there''s no real reason for me to not. If it works. "Let''s go back to the river," I tell Aster. "I should be able to gain another Level or two before lunch, and that''ll give me a better chance, alright?" Aster perks up a little, then teleports us to where I left off in the river. The pup turns into a snake and wraps himself around my left wrist for some reason, but that makes it easier to not have to deal with him running around and potentially tanking one of my spells by accident. By the time my phone goes off, alerting me that it''s time for lunch, I''ve barely finished my Level 12 Awakening Quest. Both of the Awakening Quests for the morning required me to kill monsters in undefined zones which opened up nothing for me. "Let''s return home," I tell Aster, then return to my house. Aster jumps off my wrist as he returns to his wolf pup form, then I open up my door and step outside just as Ryan ascends the steps of the deck. He''s dressed in black shorts and a light grey sleeveless which hugs his body nicely, his skin lightly flushed as if he was working out not long before now. The lack of sweat and slightly dampness to his hair suggests he took a shower before coming, and those beautiful orange eyes of his light up when he sees me. "Hello, Evan!" He greets me with a big smile, drawing closer and pulling me in for a hug and a light kiss. "How was your morning?" "Not bad," I answer. "Aster got a little bit needy, but other than that, things were okay. I''d definitely enjoy things more if I had my shop open, it''d give me something to do that''s not constant work." "Of course," he chuckles. "I brought lunch, if you want." We move to the table and he puts a plate on the ground for Aster, then drops some meat on it. More mithriltusk boar chunks for the pup, and subs with chips, pretzels, and fruit for us people. "What did you do for the morning?" I ask as I take a bite of my sub. "Some training," he answers. "Just came from it, actually. Pushed myself a little harder today since I don''t have anything else to do. The group going on that trip left today." "Yeah," I say. "Kelsey asked me about scrolls, but mine are too weak for where they''re going. I wasn''t able to get materials which work well for taking on an area with Category 5-2 beasts. She did text me later and let me know she found some, though." "That''s good," he says. "I know they were struggling to find fire-based scroll magics but hadn''t heard an update on that." "I wasn''t told the actual purpose of the mission," I say. "Was that classified, or can I know?" "They''re heading up to White River," he answers. "Earth magic crystals are all you need to fertilize soil for crops as their magics simply provide whatever the plants need. Our haul the other day will guarantee our food supply is fine for months. "However," he says. "That''s not the only thing which needs taking care of. We only have about a month''s supply of the magic crystals used for purifying water. Our water purification systems don''t use them exclusively, but they''re a heavy part of it and without more, we won''t be able to maintain the water usage of the city." Tens of millions of people living in one place needs a heavy amount of water purification. Systems without magic involved can''t keep up so water magic crystals are pretty important. "So they''re going to White River to look?" I ask. "What are the chances of them getting enough?" "There''s a little-known cave network mined out by monsters up there," he tells me. "Part of it goes under the river and contains water magic crystals. We''ve known about it for a long time, but you need a pretty strong team to get there and to deal with the monsters outside of it and within. Plant-based monsters can be rather troublesome and it''s not like we can just burn down the forest." A slow and gradual clearing is better and even that comes with its risks. Nature tends to recover quickly because of the magic in the soil and if you don''t put up efficient defenses for your camps or whatever while clearing an area, they''ll get overrun by agitated monsters. The constructions of the cities were gradual processes as a result. Gradual processes with a lot of deaths. "They''ll be gathering other materials while they''re there as well," he says. "Plant magic crystals, which will help with some of the more specialized or nuanced crops, wood, fibers, and reagents that can''t be found easily. But the main one is water magic crystals. Dungeons provide a decent amount, but not enough to build up a massive amount of extra." That''s another change I noticed during my research. The cities naturally used more because they were growing in size and so needed more resources, but Dungeons seemed to always keep up with that. Until around the last four centuries. It could just be that Dungeons weren''t able to provide too much more than they were once populations hit a certain point. They could keep up a little bit but not allow for a significant excess. That affected things when their supplies dropped. This Dungeon Drought is affecting our supply a lot more heavily because the cities weren''t able to build up a decent stock of water magic crystals already so they were tapping into their reserves a little while gathered resources were lower. "That face makes me think you just had an idea," Ryan says. "Yeah," I frown. "Dungeons are no danger to people, right?" "Right," he says. "Either you clear a Dungeon before it expires or you don''t. You either get its materials and some EXP inside, or they''re gone. No one really knows what causes them." "I do," I tell him. "Sort of. The reason they''re ''offline'' right now is because the energy used to create them comes from the Mythic Forests. I''ve heard the theory before, but thinking about it now, after the things I''ve learned this past week and a half or so, has me thinking it''s real. I think Dungeons and maybe even the System exist specifically to help people. It''s known that we can grow stronger without it, but it''s very difficult." "The System''s basically a boost, yeah," he says. "What do you mean, the Dungeons are created from energy from the Mythic Forests?" "Dungeons," I say. "And the System as a whole. It''s the Mythic Forests which provide their energy. With the King of the Celestials missing these past five centuries, the energy flows within the Mythic Forests have gotten tangled up and aren''t flowing properly, so they aren''t able to properly feed the System or go into the creation of Dungeons." "And you know this¡­ how?" He asks. "Remember how I said the King of the Celestials was having me do some stuff?" I ask. "Yeah." "It''s cleaning up monsters in one of the Mythic Forests," I tell him. "And doing some gardening as well. I can sense all forms of energy in the environment if I want to and I used it yesterday and discovered the tangled and weakened flows. I think that''s what causes Monster Eggs ¨C energy flows tangling too much." Ryan thinks on that for several minutes as we eat. "So when you said you met Aster in a Mythic Forest," he says. "You were in there doing a job?" "I was checking on one of the zones I''m tending," I say. "Found him playing in there. That''s also where I met Mrow and the azulvitt wolves and foxes from my pictures." Ryan goes quiet again, deep in thought about something. "So the System was made to help mankind," he eventually says. "And the Mythic Forests as a power source. We could handle monsters in the wild on our own in smaller groups, but society would never develop to its current state without help. The King of the Celestials decided to make the System to benefit people and allow us to get stronger. But since he''s been gone and not regulating the energy flows in the Mythic Forests, the energy powering the System isn''t strong enough to maintain things. That''s what you''re thinking?" "I am." "I''d suspected it might be something like that," he admits. "After seeing the dead state of the Mythic Forests, I''d originally thought maybe it was affected by the same thing that was affecting the System. Then I realized that maybe it was that it was the thing affecting the System." He leans back in his chair a little. "So until he fixes the energy flows," Ryan says. "The System is going to keep shutting down?" "He''s working on it," I say. "I can tell that work''s being done in some of the zones I''ve been in. The whole reason I thought to read the natural energy flows was because of a nap yesterday-" Ryan snorts. "When I woke from it," I say. "Something felt different about the area. I couldn''t figure out what, but suspected it was the natural magics and decided to check on that. When I returned from lunch, the plant growth had spread immensely there. Well, immensely compared to how it had been spreading before." "So he''s working on it, it''s just taking time," Ryan says. "Right," I say. "And I think he''s only focusing on a few areas right now because of that." I tell him about the zones of the Mythic Forest and their expansions, as well as a little about the work I''ve done. "Damn," he says. "And you''re really wanting to skip the work on the river?" "It''s work and just drowning everything will be faster." "You really are a bit lazy, aren''t you?" He snorts. "You want to skip out on what''s essentially free EXP because it takes too long." I shrug. "Still," he sighs. "Wish I could see it, even if it''s still in the early stages." "That''s why I brought this up," I tell him. "Aster''s really insistent on me clearing a zone with cosmic-type monsters and while I could manage it if their numbers were much fewer, I don''t think I have the power to handle it on my own until I''m at least Level 20, possibly higher. It seems to be really important to him, though. The gate which I access seems to be capable of bringing others through it, though I haven''t fully tested it yet." "You''re asking me if I want to come?" Ryan''s eyes widen a little. "Would the King of the Celestials allow it?" "Woof! Woof!" Aster nods vigorously as we look at him. "Woof!" The pup looks at me and sends me a message which is hard to interpret even with him doing it in a way which [Animal Communication] can interpret more easily. "You''ve already gotten confirmation from him?" I ask, and he nods. "Wait, when did you speak with him about this?" Aster thinks for a few moments, then a jar of jam appears in front of him and he pops the lid off and starts eating rather than answering. That better just be from storage he has and isn''t something he just stole. "Okay, then," I chuckle a little, then look at Ryan. "I don''t think they''d be beyond your abilities for sure. If you''re really able to go with me, would you like to come and help? This isn''t me asking as a friend, or boyfriend, or scavenger, or shop owner and alchemist. This is me asking for help from one Awakened to another." I''ve known Ryan for about eight years now and know his abilities and trustworthiness. I did always plan on taking him there eventually, just not before it was restored enough for it to be beautiful. "Help from one Awakened to another," Ryan says. "But also one friend to another. And as one friend and Awakened to another, of course I''ll help. Remember what I said Saturday? I love fighting monsters. If these ones put up a decent fight, then it''ll be even better. It''ll let me see a new environment as well¡­ eventually." I let out a laugh at that last statement. A small part of me knew he''d probably want to help just because it would probably eventually let him see the Mythic Forest in a better state and it seems I was right. "Alright," I say. "Let''s finish lunch, then." Chapter 0034 "So this is the place you were found as a baby?" Ryan asks as he looks around the Great Napping Spot. I told him about more about what I''ve learned and theorized as we finished eating lunch, and my test at taking another person into the Mythic Forest has proven successful. That included about the this zone being where I was found as a baby, and that''s apparently what he''s focused on now that we''re here. He''s dressed in his combat gear as well now, in preparation for potential stronger monsters. It''s designed both for protection and quick movement and looks pretty nice on him. Even the shirt he''s wearing underneath it is armor, and I honestly think that would have been more than enough protection for what we''re going to do but he wanted to be extra certain. If I''ve never taken a hit by anything, then I doubt Ryan would when facing off against what might be the strongest beasts I''ve encountered so far. It''s also possible that everything in the zone Aster wants cleaned up is no stronger than my Level 12 Awakening Quest, though I still want the added protection just in case. Casting times really make for a problem when I can''t ensure I''m not going to be struck. "Right at the peak up there," I point to the top of the hill. "How I ended up in here is still a mystery to me, though." "Is it something you''re wanting to know?" He glances at me. "Not really," I answer, and he starts looking around again. "It''s not something I find important. What matters is I am who I am and will stay that way. If my parents abandoned me, well, they''re missing out on their son and I''m missing out on them, but I''ve developed a life without them." There''s no point in stressing over what could have been if things were different twenty years ago. I''m doing pretty fine without parents and am quite happy with how things are. "I see," he says. "What''s the plan for the zone Aster wants you to clear? You want me to tank the beasts while you cast?" "That''s one possibility," I say. "Though I did some thinking, and while it could just be that I''ve only been in weaker zones so far, everything I''ve fought could be in a Category 5-1 Dungeon except for those. They probably could be as well, just as bosses. It might be easier if you handle all of the monsters, especially since I won''t be able to tell where they are until they''re rather close. I can probably handle the other aspects of the Special Quests." "Okay," Ryan says, then looks at Aster, who''s sitting in his pup form beside my leg. "Ready, little guy?" "Woof!" We appear in a zone of heavy fog. "Oh," Ryan looks around. "When you said there was a fog that restricted vision to fifteen feet, I''d just assumed it was some sort of natural fog. It''s Fog of Obscurity." "Fog of Obscurity?" "A magical fog most commonly found in Category 5-3 Dungeons and higher or equivalent power in Dungeons of lower Ranks," he explains. "It hinders even magical senses for people, though beasts can still tell where people are. They seem to not even notice its presence. I didn''t think to ask, but do you have a spell which will let you draw in monsters? The air feels like a Category 5-1 Dungeon so it''s doubtful any of the monsters will be higher than Category 5-2." I did think about that, but even those would be too strong for me to handle. "I do," I tell him. "Alright," he says. "Mind that I''m able to handle near to the end of Category 5-3 Dungeons, so if we''re right, I can handle everything here and they won''t have a chance to touch you. If you can draw everything in, then that''s the best option." "Okay," I reach out with a finger and begin drawing on the air, a line of lilac light trailing after my finger. "Aster, how wide is this zone you''ve brought us to? It''s furthest point from us." Aster responds with "many steps" before correcting that to "five thousand one hundred eighteen feet and seven inches". That level of preciseness amuses me a little when considering his inability to measure time, but I guess time and space are two different things. The spell takes me around twenty seconds to complete and once I do, a purple shimmer forms in the air around me. I''ve designed it to draw in any beast within six thousand feet of us. The fog walls should stop it from being sensed outside of the zone ¨C and if it doesn''t, it''ll stop them from coming at us. Now that my Mind is at 502, I can affect the goblin cosmic mages, which should have the highest Mind stat of any beast in the Special Quests I was given. Ryan becomes a blur for a moment, then there''s a dead wolf as tall as I am with a pelt similar to Aster''s only six feet from my right. Rather than being fully starry, however, its dark blue, almost black pelt has just a few streaks of silver and gold, with spots of it on the ears and tail, its paws golden.
+1 starseeker wolf slain!
Ryan continues to turn into blurs, either disappearing from my field of view or ending at the corpse of a beast within it. After only a minute, he stays out of my view entirely, though I can occasionally hear the sound of his fists breaking bone or something heavy hitting the ground. "That''s all of them," Ryan blurs to a spot a few feet in front of me just after the last completion notice for the monster-slaying Special Quests pops up in my vision. "You want to do the others now as well?" "Yeah," I answer. "And the fog should lift as well if it''s like the other Special Quests acquired in this manner. You were counting? I know I gave you the numbers, but-" "A little," he says. "But I received the Special Quests upon our arrival here." I really should have thought that would happen, but I hadn''t. The Special Quests are something the King of the Celestials has been issuing to me, so the idea that he''d include anyone I bring in as well hadn''t crossed my mind. "Oh," I say. "I''m not sure what water-void pillars are, but I''m guessing they void out water as their feature." "They suck it in and ''delete'' it from existence," he says. "Or ''void'', in other terms. I''ve encountered them as a Dungeon Quest before, and their ranges were always around twenty to forty feet." He looks around, then scratches the back of his head. "Finding them in this fog will be difficult, though." "Woof!" Aster says, then takes a few steps forward, turns, and looks at us. "You want us to follow?" Ryan asks. "Woof!" Aster nods. We follow Aster and soon reach what can only be the edge of a pond based on the sudden drop. It''s only a few feet so we''re able to go down fairly easily, then we follow Aster about forty feet to a pillar twelve in height. It''s a rounded square three feet in width made of a black crystal with green-blue streaks running through it, and Ryan lets out a whistle. "Biggest one I''ve seen," he says as Aster tells me something. "Aster said they''re spaced around sixty feet apart," I tell him. "But their range is closer to forty feet. They weren''t always this big but grew over time, so he ''convinced'' monsters to block up the spring¡­ wait, you did what?" Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings. Aster''s response to that can only be interpreted as ''it''s complicated'', but the images he sends include him chasing monsters into boulders. That won''t work for removing the obstructions, so we''ll have to do that part entirely on our own. "Can these be destroyed by brute force?" I ask. "Yeah," Ryan answers. "You only need to damage them to a certain point, and they''ll shatter and dissolve. There''s no negative effect despite what it might sound like from their name, so I can just punch them out." Which is exactly what Ryan does to it: punch it into oblivion. Once that one''s gone, we move on to the next. As we do, we learn a few things. The pond seems to be around three hundred feet at its widest, and some of the pillars are in the streams feeding into it or flowing out of it. There''s also dark bramble in the streams, which is where I come in. With my right hand extended, I cast [Flamethrower] to incinerate the dark bramble, then use [Telekinesis] to pull out the parts buried in the ground to destroy those as well. Dealing with the blocks are a little bit more tricky as they''re actually located at the heads of the three streams which flow into the pond. One of them has shattered boulders blocking them up, while the other two have boulders on them. Navigating to them requires exiting the bed of the pond and the streams, as there are small waterfalls at each entrance and at the exit and more small ones along their paths. Dry, of course, but it''s a hassle to climb up each one. Ryan and I double-check that the paths are open and the Water-Void Pillars are gone before moving the stones to clear up the spring openings. I also make absolutely sure every last trace of the dark bramble is gone as well to ensure it won''t regrow and start destroying more water or contaminating the soil again.
A new area within the Mythic Forest is available to access via your gate: the Starry Pleasure Waters!
"What''s that look for?" Ryan asks as the fog lifts, and I look at Aster, who''s looking up at me expectantly. "This is a play zone meant for you, isn''t it?" I ask, and Aster lets out several happy barks as his tail wags. "A play zone?" Ryan asks. "What do you mean by that?" I suppose he didn''t get that notice, probably as he''s not one with a gate to access various parts of the Mythic Forest. "This zone," I say. "It''s name is ''Starry Pleasure Waters'', and we''ve got a starry-furred pup here who was insistent on it getting opened up. Hello, Mrow." Ryan looks over and spots Mrow, his eyes widening for only a moment. Rather than popping up over by the monsters, the lifeseed worm popped up close to us. It''s probably curious about Ryan and wanted to check out the new person here. "He''s a lot bigger than I thought," Ryan says. "Even with the pictures. Wait, hold on. Can we get him to not eat the beasts? They can be pretty valuable, even the goblins have some use with their essence crystals." "Mrow, hold on," I say, and the lifeseed worm looks at me. "What parts from the goblins? Just the essence crystals?" "Yeah," Ryan answers. "The others, we can do their hides and meat, the tusks of the boars, and the fangs and claws of the wolves." "Did you catch all that?" I ask Mrow, who nods. "Thanks." Mrow goes back underground and I look at Ryan. "I''m not sure about the other monsters'' parts," I start walking down the stream, toward the pond. "But since we''re only getting the essence crystals from the goblin mages, he''ll still consume those. He can separate the essence crystals and not convert them. The soil will be deposited around the pond. Or maybe not for this one, he''ll probably dump it in one of the areas I''ve been working at." "Okay," Ryan says. "I want to harvest the materials, they really do sell for a decent amount." "Alright," I say. "You do that, then. Mrow will take care of anything you don''t take, and I''m going to use [Cleanse] on the contaminated soil." "There''s contaminated soil?" Ryan asks. "Yeah," I tell him. "Just a moment and¡­ here. Notice how the soil''s a little bit darker here?" There''s not a distinct line where the soil darkens and I''m pretty sure the contamination actually goes about seventy feet out from the smaller streams, but this spot has soil that''s noticeably darker than further away. "It''s caused by the dark bramble," I tell him. "On top of ''eating'' the water, it creates a miasma which infects the ground. [Cleanse] will take care of it, and my Magic''s high enough now that the spell has a range of about twenty feet. If I shift it into a spherical spell rather than its normal wave, I can do a decent chunk of space at a time." "Oh," he says. "Alright. I''ll go do the harvests." Ryan heads off to do that while I begin casting [Cleanse]. When the spell completes, a golden light shimmers and flows out from the point I cast it at, right at the ground. The soil it touches loses the darker tint to it and returns to the lighter color of its dry, dead self. I repeat this process over and over in different spots to clear up the miasma-filled soil. The dark bramble spread it around seventy feet from where it was and the feeder streams themselves are about seven to ten feet in width at various points. At the exit stream, which is about sixteen feet in width, the amount of dark bramble was enough to influence more than two hundred feet of land in each direction. Fortunately, I''m able to use [Cleanse] for all of that more easily as while the three springs which feed into the pond are flowing, it still takes time for the water to reach this part as it has to fill the lower sections of the pond first. That goes up to twenty feet deep while the pond is only about six feet at the exit flow. I don''t even need to take off my sneakers and socks for this. Ryan looks like he''s made short work of the carcasses of the beasts, though being Level 28 probably helped some as he''s able to move quite fast when he wants or needs. When I approach him, he''s finishing putting stuff into his storage bracelets, then he pulls out a magic cloth to clean off the blood with. "Where''d Aster go?" Ryan asks. "Last I saw him," I point at one of the entrance streams. "He was up that, jumping off the short fall from the spring into the stream, splashing around, then getting out and doing it again. In his otter form." "Okay," he looks around. "What do you think this place looked like before it died? The Mythic Forests have a lot of different types, right?" "This is probably part of the same one I''ve had access to," I tell him. "Which I think is pure forest with waters like these. Since this one was apparently made as a playground for Aster, it probably had a lot of berry bushes and maybe beehives." A vision flashes through my mind, scenes of this area in full growth. The streams at full strength, their waters flowing off short drops to continue down below until eventually reaching the large pond before flowing away from there. The short cliffs and small slopes of the zone covered in ivy and vines, bushes and flowers, and trees of several varieties. Small tunnels which run through the short cliffs and small slopes, a starry-furred wolf pup running out of one during one of the visions. And the plants¡­ they''re clearly magical in nature. The leaves of the trees and bushes, and the petals of the flowers, are dark blues and purples. Many of them have starry patterns to them as well. Even the blades of grass of the zone are touched with a starry appearance, giving the entire zone an appearance akin to the night sky. The thick, lush growth of the Starry Pleasure Waters conceals the sky from view for most of the zone, casting it into a dim or even dark state depending on the spot within it. It stretches much further than the under-a-mile zone we''re in now, maybe four of five miles in diameter based on the aerial view in one of the scenes I''m given. "You okay?" Ryan asks as the vision ends. "You got a strange look on your face there." "Sorry," I smile at him. "I sometimes receive visions after finishing up a place and just got one. It''s of the place in its former glory." I tell him about what I saw and how beautiful it looked. "Damn," he says. "I''ve never seen anything like that in any of the things I read about Mythic Forests. Think this is a rarely-visited area?" "Maybe," I say. "This is a zone which will probably take awhile to restore, both because it''ll need its energy flows fixed and because I can''t use [Grow Plant] to grow magical ones. I''ll have to grow normal ones, then they''ll have to adapt and mutate into the magical ones which belong here¡­ if they even can on their own. That might be something the King of the Celestials can do." "You mentioned about the flows earlier," he says. "They''re all tangled here, too?" "Yeah," I nod. "I checked while I was working on [Cleanse]. There''s one in the pond itself, toward the southeastern edge over there. That''s probably where the drought lizards came from, but I''m not entirely sure." The location would make sense, since drought lizards are common in areas which formerly housed water, such as dry lakes and ponds. In regards to calling something "southeast", I''m basing that my by assumption that water flows south here and a little bit of intuition about the directions of the Mythic Forest. "Another is right over there," I point to my left. "About thirty feet. There are probably others since it''s known that only one type of monster can spawn per Monster Egg, but it''s hard to sense them further out. There should be least two more, though." Ryan puts his cleaning cloth away and looks around again. "Is doing these Special Quests part of why there''s a faster shutdown?" He looks at me. "Draining extra energy or something?" "Considering that the total amounts to less than two million," I say. "And more than that is earned by Awakened killing monsters in less than half a day every day on Earth alone¡­ probably not. My best guess is that the System is designed to operate at a certain level based on how much energy is left, then stop Dungeons and Level 1 Awakening Quests if it dips below a certain threshold. Those probably cost the most energy." "Not further Awakening Quests?" "I didn''t make the System so can''t say for sure," I shrug. "But I''m guessing people aren''t inherently connected into the System and performing the connection costs a lot more energy than just boosting one''s abilities." "That makes sense," he says. "Once a zone''s cleared up like this, you said you start growing plants?" "There''s something else to do first," I tell him. "It''ll make things grow faster while I''m not here." "What''s that?" Chapter 0035 "We had an entire team of experienced Awakened crystal miners," Ryan says. "And none of them used [Telekinesis] to make things easier." We''re currently in the Sparkly Earth Cave, filling up one of his storage spaces with earth magic crystals. I''m harvesting and he''s collecting while Aster is off either doing what I asked him to do or doing his own thing. "They probably don''t mind putting in extra effort," I tell him as my pickaxe breaks off another chunk of crystal. "Magic takes less effort." Ryan snorts as he grabs the crystal to put into his storage. "It''s nearing full," he says. "With how much we''re harvesting, will you have enough time to bury them before you have to get ready for the reading at the library? Or should I come back tomorrow to help?" His confusion is understandable since he hadn''t heard what I said to Aster and hasn''t helped me with this before. The fact that he''s willing to help me with this more is nice, but I''m not planning on relying on him for the restoration project. Working here is something the King of the Celestials asked me to do and I''m not going to ask Ryan to rearrange his own life to help me. "We still have about an hour and a half," I tell him. "And it''s not us that''ll be planting them." "It''s not?" "I asked Aster to get reinforcements," I inform him. "The azulvitt pups like burying them. If the Celestial pup did as I asked, they''ll be meeting us there." "Ah," Ryan says as he puts another crystal into his storage. "There''s so much here¡­ this could secure the city''s food supply for years." "Maybe," I say. "But it''s better to use it for restoring the Mythic Forest. I don''t think the King of the Celestials minds me taking a little bit of stuff for myself and my shop, but mass-harvesting would probably upset him." Otherwise, access to the Mythic Forests would have been more widespread rather than as occasional one-off rewards to Rank 5s. "Fair enough," Ryan adds another crystal to his storage. "My storage is full now, and I wasn''t asking to let me do that. The city really will be fine for awhile and if your theory is right¡­ our resources won''t get strained before Dungeons return." "Assuming the Mythic Forest recovers enough in the next six months," I put my pickaxe away. "Assuming that, yeah," he says. "Though if there are multiple Mythic Forests, and they''re all used as power sources, restoring one might not be enough. If there are different people for different ones, things may restore at different rates." "Possibly," I say. "But we''ll never know. We can''t know until things progress further, and it may not really need that much more. Regardless, I just want to see the Mythic Forests back to their full beauty. Come over here." Ryan steps up to me and I place a hand on his shoulder, then take us to the Starry Pleasure Waters. When we arrive, Aster''s in his bear cub form and playing with the azulvitt wolf and fox pups at the largest of the three springs feeding the zone''s streams and pond. "Hello, everyone," I say, and the pups immediately charge me and start lightly ramming my legs. Something tells me that Aster told them to do that. I crouch and give them all rubs on their heads as Flow switches back to his adult form, the only one of the azulvitt wolves and foxes which didn''t ram me. He tilts his head as he looks at Ryan, probably wondering who that is. "Everyone," I stand. "This is Ryan, my boyfriend. He came to help me clean up this zone of its monsters and other¡­ complications. We just came from gathering earth magic crystals and we need them buried. Same rules as before but this time, do it around the different springs and their streams. Fifty feet out, but not in the streams. There should be enough to go all the way down to the pond itself, then out some. Can you all do that?" The pups all bark in confirmation, then start crowding Ryan and wagging their tails while they look up at him expectantly. That''s too good of a scene to pass up on and I quickly take a picture as he stares down at them. "Just put the crystals on the ground," I tell him. "Unlike Aster, they can actually perform a small amount of influence on the forest and can break the crystals and bury them." "Alright," Ryan starts doing that and the pups begin working on their task. Aster watches them for a few moments, then vanishes. He wasn''t even being asked to help with the work and he''s escaping. "So what do we do?" Ryan asks. "They get buried, and I''m guessing you do the plant-growth thing you mentioned?" "Yeah," I answer as the biggest of the wolves steps up to me. "Once the pups have moved from a spot. Hey, Flow." Flow''s tail swishes as I give him a scratch on the head, then he looks at Ryan again. "We''ve only had one date so far," I tell him and the wolf looks at me. "Though another is scheduled for Saturday. It''s non-committed right now, we''re just testing things out to see if we want to go committed." The azulvitt wolf nods as Ryan gives me a confused look. "He''s talking with you?" He asks. "Sort of," I answer as the wolf looks at Ryan, then gives me a tilt of his head. "No, he doesn''t have [Animal Communication], so you won''t be able to ask him." I''m starting to learn that its description is slightly wrong. It''s a Skill which enables us to receive an animal''s communication methods and understand it to a degree based upon the Level of the Skill. It''s not purely the ability to communicate with them. Without it, that means that those who aren''t able to communicate with words or in a way the person can understand otherwise won''t understand them even if the message is given to them. "Ask me what?" Ryan asks. "About your life as a god," I answer. "He''s curious how much you remember of your old self. Seems he knows you?" Flow nods. That''s the real reason he''d tilted his in head curiosity earlier: he wanted to know what Ryan remembers. "I don''t think I remember any azulvitt beasts," Ryan tells Flow. "My memories aren''t fully back. You can recognize demigods for their true selves?" Flow nods. "Says you''re a combat-focused god who can commonly be found hunting beasts in the divine realm," I say. "You bring him meat from it every few Enkatros months, whatever that means. When you''re in your true form, that is." "Enkatros is another world," Ryan tells me. "I know of it, but not much else. With knowledge of some things ¨C such as other worlds ¨C we''re mainly restricted to what''s known as fact while as demigods. I think their months are a few days longer than an Earth month, though? I wasn''t aware it had life on it, though." This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. Flow gives a confirmation regarding the lengths of the months on that world, making me realize something about him. With [Animal Communication] at Level 3, I can understand him fairly well. "Hey," I say. "Do you know how long ago the King of the Celestials disappeared in Earth years?" Flow thinks for several moments before giving me an answer. While the Celestials seem to be bad at judging time, Flow apparently has a decent grasp of it based on what he said about Ryan''s treat-bringing frequency. He must have just had a difficult time telling me properly when I was at Level 1 in [Animal Communication]. Even at Level 3, I still have to do a fair amount of interpretation on my own. "That''s what I thought," I tell Flow, then look at Ryan. "He says it was around five Earth centuries ago when he last noticed the King of the Celestials, though he''s not fully sure if his estimate is right. He can apparently track time decently up to a century, but not as well after that." "And that''s how long ago you''re estimating the King of the Celestials left to observe mankind?" Ryan asks. "Yeah," I confirm. "Based on my research into the System over the last week and some, the slowdowns and shutdowns on the System began after the Mythic Forests ceased being used as rewards. Or at least, recorded rewards. I''m still unsure about what happened with that, though since Flow saw him that recently, we can conclude that''s when he left." "So he observed mankind for five hundred years," Ryan says as I kneel beside the spring. "And is now doing some sort of test involving the Mythic Forests." "He''ll likely return once his test is done," I say. "For now¡­ let''s see what grows here." I reach out with my right hand and begin casting [Grow Plant], though I cast two of them rather than one. While it costs me 1,900 MP per [Grow Plant] in this pair, or 3,800 rather than 2,000 for both, it only takes 51.3 seconds for the pair rather than the 54 seconds it would take to cast them separately. Not an overall improvement on the time, but it''ll help me with raising [Multicast] up, which will speed things further once that happens. All that grows with this [Multicast] are a pair of blades of grass, except they''re not normal green ones. They''re black with flecks of gold and silver, like stars. "I''ve spoken with other plant-type mages who have that Skill," Ryan says. "They said it can only ever grow normal plants, not magical ones. That¡­ looks pretty magical to me." "Same," I say as I inspect the grass.
[Starry Grass]
Tier: 7
A rare grass which resembles the starry night sky.
"I guess it''s normal grass," I say. "Just a different species of itthan any we know on Earth." I use [Grow Plant] four more times in this location, then do the same about four feet away from there. Grass makes up most of what grows as I work but some ferns and flowers sprout as well. Those also bear the starry name and appearance, just like the grass. Only after a suitable amount of space has plants grown do I use [Boost Plant Growth]. This time, I try to [Multicast] it, though this is mostly to see what happens when I do. The cast still takes longer and drains my mana more, but the only difference in the sphere I create seems to be the intensity of the light. Fortunately, it seems like the plants were treated as if they were hit with [Boost Plant Growth] twice. The level of growth and spread is pretty decent and all of the patches I created are now a good size. I continue working around the streams as the pups work on breaking and burying crystals. Once Ryan runs out of crystals for them to play with, he strips and joins them in the shallow part of one of the streams to play with them. That''s something I want to join in on, but I should at least get enough patches going that they''ll spread to each other and the edges of the crystal-influenced soil more quickly. It''s possible planting the crystals also helps with the energy flows, since the magic within the crystals is enough to last for years with the amount of use it''s seeing here. Having that magic flowing here might boost the strength of the earth mana streams, though I don''t know for sure if I''m right. Eventually, I decide to take a break from the work and strip down to join Ryan and the pups in the water. Ryan''s been jumping around, picking up the pups, and tossing them a little while they playfully nip at his legs and headbutt him. They''re sticking to shallower waters since the pups can run around in that instead of swim, and I decide to sit there and splash at the pups. "Not going all the way?" Ryan asks. I left quite a bit of planted soil untouched by my magic, though I also don''t have enough time to grow plants across all of it, even if I didn''t add in [Boost Plant Growth]. "It''ll be fine," I start messing with one of the pups which ran up to me. "I did a little bit of research on earth magic crystals and with this amount of space and the plants not being harvested, they should keep the soil fertile for years of time. For where there aren''t plants, it''ll last much longer. I''m not sure how much time passes between my visits, but I doubt it''ll be years between when we leave here in a few minutes and when I arrive tomorrow, unless the time difference goes a bit wonky." "You said it''s never consistent?" He asks as he picks up an azulvitt fox pup, then lightly tosses it. "Yeah," I answer. "I think only a year passes at the most between when I leave in the evening and return the next day, but it might be two or three years. Shouldn''t be too much time for the fertilization magic of the earth magic crystals to run out where there aren''t plants." "Okay," he says. "I''m free tomorrow, so if you want more help, just let me know." "You don''t need to help me," I tell him. "I only asked for help now because I wasn''t too sure I could handle this zone without a tank." "I ended up being the fighter," he chuckles. "With you doing a little bit of the tank duty by drawing them in. And I don''t mind helping. I''d like to see this place restored, too. Not just because of the System but because I can imagine it''d be quite beautiful and that''s something I want to see." "It''s sure to be quite nice," I say as he picks up another pup to toss. We keep messing with the pups for a bit and as we do, I notice a fish hanging out a little upstream. It keeps peeking out from around a slight bend in the stream before turning around and swimming against the current to hide itself again, and that seems to happen more if I look directly at it. The fish has lavender-colored eyes and its scales are reminiscent of clouds, with layers of shades of grey, their primary darker color making them more difficult to see in the grey light of the realm. After about ten minutes of noticing the fish, I decide to see if I can call up information about it and find that I can.
Cloud
Category: Bashful
More likely to come out if Aster''s calm or not around. Can more easily lure him out with deer, elk, or moose meat. Prefers moose meat and snuggles.
"Hey, Ryan?" I say. "Yeah?" He looks at me. "In those storage bracelets of yours," I say. "Got any moose meat?" "Yeah, why?" He asks. "If you''re okay with it," I say. "Can we give the pups some as a treat before we leave? It''s almost time to go if I want to shower and get cleaned up before heading to the library." "Oh, sure," he summons one of his food storage bracelets. "No matter how much I tell them I don''t need more meat, they keep giving me some." I chuckle a little as Ryan pulls out the meat, which he slices into smaller chunks with a knife and tosses around for the pups to chase after. He gives me a few pieces when I ask, and I sneakily throw a couple of them towards Cloud when the pups and Ryan aren''t looking. From the corner of my eye, I watch as Cloud swims closer to the small pieces of meat. They''re just a little too big for him, but he fixes that by increasing his size before chomping down on them. Either all Celestials are able to change their size or Cloud has the ability to when others aside from the big boy don''t. He switches back to the size he was in before once he finishes and I make a mental note to ask Aster about the size thing later. Though I''ll omit encountering Cloud when I do, since it seems he doesn''t like being around the pup. "Alright, guys," I say once Ryan and I finish tossing meat for the pups (and the fish). "It''s time for us to leave now. I''ll see you all again, okay? Bye!" The pups bark goodbye as I stand and touch Ryan on the arm, and he slides an arm around my waist just as I take us to my house via my gate. Since we''re wet, I take us straight into my shower so we don''t drip all over my floor. "I saw you tossing meat elsewhere," he gives me a kiss. "But didn''t see anything that''d indicate why when I looked. What was that about?" It seems he did notice. "The real reason for the meat," I kiss him. "There was another Celestial hanging out. He''d been watching us for awhile, just a little out of sight from where you were, I guess. Had cloud-like scales and the name of ''Cloud'', and his description said that he''s bashful and is unlikely to show up if Aster''s around. Also that he likes moose meat and it''s a good way to encourage him to come out." "Ah," Ryan says. "Do you think he''s going to come out and play with the pups now that we''re gone?" "He might," I answer. "Or they might be too much for him and he''s left or is still watching them from afar. I''m hoping I''ll see him again as I work on the forest. For now, though, we should probably get started on the shower so I can get to the library. I''ll be late if we take too long." Chapter 0036 Just as I expected, the section for the youth reading events is quite a bit fuller than normal due to me mentioning ahead of time that I''m the one doing it for tonight. Library staff have already stopped entry to the area as it''s at-capacity for the youth, so their parents have to wait elsewhere and some kids have to be turned away. Small, easy-to-eat snacks have been distributed to the kids, who are quietly munching on them as I enter. Ryan''s allowed to enter with me, and he sits to my side as I sit in the plush armchair meant for the reader. "Good evening, everyone," I say. "Good evening," most of the youth respond, with a few responding with a variant of "Hello!" instead. "My name is Evan Rethe," I tell the children. "And I''m the reader for tonight. This is Ryan, some of you saw me reading a story to him on Saturday. He''s here both to listen to the story, and in case a certain creature shows up." There''s no telling what Aster might do if he shows up, so Ryan will wrangle him if it''s needed so that I don''t need to interrupt my reading. "Hi, Ryan!" Some of the kids wave to him, and Ryan greets them back. "Tonight''s story," I hold up the thick tome I carried in with me; I didn''t want to use a spatial storage in front of a bunch of children since they''d have a lot of questions. "Is taken from a book about storm beasts. This particular tale was found in a Dungeon about eight hundred years ago and has been translated and adapted to our language as best as possible. Is everyone ready to hear it?" The youth all confirm they are, so I open up to the page I bookmarked and begin reading. "For as long as he had lived, a young boy stared out of his home''s window nigh on every evening," I read to the kids. "Save for the nights where the weather would not permit, for he was poor and his family could not afford glass for their windows. When the temperature dropped, or the winds or rains picked up, a wooden shutter was dropped to protect the inside of his home. One clear evening, as he watched the sun set through his window, clouds suddenly filled the sky and a fierce wind kicked up as heavy rains began to fall¡­" I continue reading the story, the children hooked on every word by the time the boy hits the ground. The storm continues for three weeks, continuing each day and night without rest. Crops are destroyed, farm animals die, and many homes are destroyed. The boy''s own parents die from a lightning strike as they attempt to work their farm. Desperate for respite, the villagers offer the boy up as a sacrifice to the gods in hopes that the storms will cease and their land will be healed. Instead of gods, they find a storm-furred wolf appearing, letting out a fierce growl which sends all to their knees. All save the boy, who was tied to a post. The ropes binding him shatter from the magic of the storm wolf, who allows the boy to ride him away. The boy and the storm wolf adventure together after the rescue, the boy turning into a young man and eventually an elder. When he finally decides to return to the village from where he was born, he finds it still covered in an unending storm ¨C though devoid of all people. Many young boys were sacrificed but the gods offered no relief. Leaving the region was nigh impossible due to fierce winds all around it. Those who lived there died, either from starvation or from the force of the winds, the power of lightning, things falling on them, or something else. "''What caused these storms?'' The elder asked the storm wolf, unchanged through their journeys. ''We have seen much these past ninety years, they can''t be natural, can they?'' The storm wolf thought and thought, and eventually gazed out at the relentless wind, rain, and lightning. ''The wrath of the world,'' came the answer. ''It is naught but the wrath of the world.'' ''The wrath of the world?'' The elder asked. ''What brought that about?'' ''It can be hard to tell,'' the storm wolf responded. ''But it was not aimed at you, which is why I chose to save you that day.'' ''Thank you,'' the elder placed a hand on his companion''s head. ''These past ninety years have been the best I can imagine.'' "The two watched the storms," I continue reading. "And as timed passed, the elder sat down and leaned against his faithful companion, with him those past ninety years. He closed his eyes, his breathing stilled, and his body began to fade. So in-tune with his companion the elder was, he turned into a shower of sparks and rain in his final moments, sparks and rains which turned to clouds and joined the unending storm. "To this day," I reach the end of the story. "The storm wolf watches the unending storm from where his friend faded, the storm his companion had joined in the end. The day the storm ceases will be the first and last time he ever sheds a tear." With that, I close the book. It''s not the greatest of stories but that partially results from it being a translation of another language, one not native to this world. However, children often love the tale or I wouldn''t have picked it. My entire younger audience is completely entranced and only at the sound of the book snapping shut are they shaken from it. Even some of the adults watching from the other side of the half-wall around the reading zone were entranced by the tale. Also partially my reading voice. "Thank you all for listening," I say in a calm, gentle voice. "Did you like the story?" Confirmations all around, though a boy about thirteen raises a hand. "Yes?" I call on him. "What''s the moral of it?" He asks. "My teacher says that every story has a moral, but I can''t figure out that one''s." "Not every story has a moral," I say. "This story is just a tale to listen to, something to pass the time. Most of the ones written in the language it''s from are that way. They aren''t there to teach a life lesson, they''re there to entertain. This one is a journey between a boy and a storm wolf and nothing more." "It was a sad ending," a girl about eight says. "It was," I smile. "But happy at the same time, right?" "Yeah," she nods. "Because the wolf got to stay with his friend until his friend died old." I talk with the kids about the story for a few minutes, then it''s time for them to leave. I set the tome down and talk with some of the parents and staff as everyone clears out and while Aster doesn''t show up at all¡­ There''s a pup on the armchair I read from, the tome propped up a little and opened to the story I just read. His fur resembles rain clouds, of varying shades of darker grey. Small sparks dance across his fur as his lavender eyes watch as the pages flip. I avoid looking directly at the pup as he ''reads'' the story¡­ and try my best not to look directly over as a small mirror appears on the armchair. Cloud looks between the book and the mirror for several moments, then his coat lightens to a more gentle cloud-like look, the sparks disappearing. The pages flip some more and his eyes continue to flick back and forth, all the way to the end of the tale. Then he huffs a little and touches his nose to the page. While I can''t see things clearly from here, I can see that the pictures changed and words adjusted as well. Did he just¡­ alter the story? "-and sorry about announcing it ahead of time," I tell Abigail. "I hope it wasn''t too much of a problem." This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings. "Not at all," the elderly librarian smiles warmly. "By the way, how did things go with answers regarding your little pup?" "Not bad," I say. "He tried correcting us on information in the book about Celestials, but it wasn''t completely clear. According to him, though, there''s only one Celestial of each coat type ¨C he''s all of the starry-bodied Celestials that have been spotted." "Oh?" She asks. "Now that''s interesting." "It is," I smile. "Anyway, I should get going now. Just need to grab the tome and I''ll be out. You have a good rest of your day, Abigail." When I mention grabbing the tome, Cloud perks up and looks over, then quickly moves the book back to the position I had it in while the mirror vanishes. A moment later, he vanishes as well. "You as well, Evan," she says. "And have a good one, Ryan." "You, too," he tells her. I retrieve the tome and Ryan and I leave. Once we''re in his truck, I open up the tome to look at the section about the storm wolf. "Rereading it?" Ryan asks as he pulls out of the library''s parking lot. "No," I answer. "I think the Celestial from earlier might be the storm wolf from the tale. He showed up when no one was looking and looked at the story after I finished, and I saw him use his magic to make changes. It looks like he changed all of the pictures of the storm wolf to be a pup, and his version of the ending is a little bit different. The storm was caused by ''the wrath of the world, which can last for eternities unless His Majesty interferes'', and his friend didn''t turn into clouds but simply died, and the storm wolf buried him." "That''s not as fun of an ending," Ryan says. "No, it''s not," I say. "But I guess it''s the real ending." "Guess so," he says. "By the way, Evan, neither of us ate dinner and it''s starting to get a little late. Want to eat when we get to your place? I have some dinner meals in my storage." While I wasn''t expecting him to suggest that, I''m not surprised by it, either. That seems to be the type of guy he really is. All of my past boyfriends were considerate like that as well. If we were out doing something past dinnertime, they''d offer to buy or make me something. "Already prepared?" "You never know when you might need them," he shrugs. "Okay," I put the tome away. "I was just planning on heading somewhere to get food, but we can eat on my deck." Ryan and I make a little bit of small talk after that until we reach my house, then head up onto the deck for dinner. He pulls out a pair of circular to-go plates with a portion of meat, a portion of rice, and a portion of salad in them and sets them down. Two small to-go bowls with grapes and two other berries are added to that, then he pulls out a bottle of tea and one of lemonade. "I offered Thomas," he tells. "The vendor from our last date, about fifty pounds of quality beef in exchange for some cooking with me providing the meat for the dishes. This is a type of fowl from a Dungeon I ran about three months ago. Haven''t tried the dish yet, was planning on waiting until my next expedition or longer Dungeon run, but felt dinner tonight works." I''m not surprised he liked Thomas''s cooking that much, considering that Thomas is one of the permitted food vendors for feeding hunters after a longer Dungeon run. What surprises me is that he went and commissioned dinners from the guy. Is doing something like that normal for those of a higher Rank? "Oh," I say. "I''m looking forward to it, then." Just as we open up the containers to begin to eat, I notice something and look over to find Aurora standing a few feet away. She''s holding Aster with her mouth by the scruff of his neck and the kitten is looking thoroughly upset. "As much as I do not wish to ask you for help," Aurora somehow manages to speak without moving her mouth, but I suppose Celestials don''t actually need to use their mouths. "Would you be willing to take care of Aster for a little bit? He upset one of the other kits and I need to calm him down." Aster struggles to break free but it mostly amounts to him flailing his limbs and striking her with tiny stars. What? Yeah, those are tiny little stars that are shooting out of him and bursting against Aurora''s pelt. She seems completely unfazed and is probably used to that form of protest, but I suspect that if a normal person were to be touched by those, they would find themselves with a new hole in their body. "I would normally ask this of another Celestial," she says. "But he seems to like you as well and I am hoping that being with you will cause him to take longer before causing trouble again." Basically, she''s hoping that his "shiny new toy" is distracting enough while it lasts. I should probably be offended by that but it doesn''t bother me. "Sure," I tell her. "This other Celestial he''s bothering, is he a more shy one?" That could probably be Cloud, and Aster probably went to bother him after noticing the other pup''s presence here. Or I guess the pup''s presence, since Aster is currently some form of young big cat. "The younger ones always are," she tells me. "His Majesty goes to great lengths to help them overcome that and be their true selves. It often takes longer than the lifetime of a world for him to help them overcome their shyness and timidness, and this young Celestial was only born after His Majesty left to examine mankind more closely." If there''s a Celestial the big boy hasn''t met, their System information might reveal the normal information for what a Celestial is, or it might not exist at all. That dismisses the theory of it being Cloud who Aster was bothering. So younger Celestials are always shy until the big boy helps them overcome it? There must be a cause behind said shyness. "Thank you for watching him," Aurora says as she drops Aster, then vanishes. There goes asking her. "Aster," Ryan says as the kitten huffs, and the kit looks at him. "I''ve got some tasty meat and berries if you join us for dinner. Want to join us?" Aster nods, and Ryan puts down a plate with some meat chunks on it and a bowl of berries for the kitten. At a guess, I''d say my boyfriend has started keeping dishes ready for Aster as well. With all of us served, we begin eating. "How was it?" Ryan asks as he collects our dishes after we finish. "Woof!" Aster happily responds, causing Ryan to give the kitten a look that''s a cross between amused and uncertain of how to respond. "It was nice," I tell him. "You really get a ton of meat as payment, don''t you?" "I do," he confirms. "If you can find ores with spatial or temporal magics, and-or magic crystals for those, you can probably get a stasis storage bracelet made for relatively cheap. Maybe a hundred grand or so for one about the size of mine. Would make it easy to keep some food on you even if you''re spending the entire day in the Mythic Forest¡­ or in case you need it for young Celestials." The cost is a bit higher than I''m used to, but I''ve already been spending a lot on things. That''s another practical item as well so it won''t be an issue. "I''ll keep that in mind, thanks," I tell him. "Not sure if I will find them or not, but it might be useful to have one to keep some meat in for the pups." "And food for yourself," Ryan chuckles, then gives me a hug and a light kiss before looking like he wants to say something else. "I''m going to head home now, you have a good night, alright?" "Was there something else?" I ask. "For a moment," he says. "But it''s not important so I decided not to ask. Let me know if you need help tomorrow, yeah?" That transition suggests he was probably wanting to ask about going back to the Mythic Forest tomorrow. "I will," I tell him. "Have a good night." "You, too," he gives me a little kiss, then rubs Aster''s head before leaving. I wait until he''s gone, then pick up the kitten and take him into my house. "Aster," I set the kitten down. "It''s rude to pester someone if they don''t want to play, okay? It''ll make them upset and not want to play with you. Maybe even make them dislike you. Give him time, alright?" Aster sighs, then lets out a resigned woof. We''ll see how long it lasts before he''s bothering the other one with a desire to play again. "Was he the same one you were trying to get to come visit me?" I ask, and Aster nods while meowing happily, apparently finally remembering that he''s some sort of cat. "Maybe the big boy can talk him into visiting, once he''s finished his tests and observations. But give the little guy some time, alright?" Aster agrees to that, and I crouch and give him a light rub on the head. "It''s still a little early," I tell him. "But I''m going to head to bed now. Do you want me to bring out the tome with the pictures of the big boy?" The kitten nods as his tail swishes happily, so I pull out the book and set it down for him to look at. "Good night, Aster." As I head to my room, I take another look at Aster. The kitten''s plopped himself onto his stomach and has the tome open to a page with a picture of the big boy on it. What Aurora said when she brought him over comes to mind. Child Celestials are all extremely shy at first and the big boy spends an incredible amount of time working to bring them out of their shells. Longer than the lives of some planets, due to Celestials not changing easily. No wonder Aster looks up to him so much. He must''ve been shy at some point as well but the amount of time he spent with the King of the Celestials helping him to not be really imprinted on him. The big boy isn''t just his king, he''s akin to being a father to the little guy. And I''m apparently taking over that role until the big boy officially returns. Talk about big shoes to fill. Chapter 0037 The moment I reappear from my Level 15 Awakening Quest, I walk to the edge of the dry river and take a seat with my back against the clay-filled soil making up the sides of the area. There aren''t as many stones on the ground here as there are in other sections of the river, something my bare ass thanks me for. Even though I''m fifteen for fifteen on Awakening Quests taking place here in the Mythic Forest, I''m still being cautious of my things just in case there''s a sudden change in that. That means stripping naked, and I''m a bit tired right now and want to rest before dressing. At least I''m somewhere clothes are optional. As I ate breakfast this morning, I decided against going to the lake and simply drowning all of the monsters in the river. I''ll go with what the King of the Celestials asked and handle the river to give him more time to work on the tangled energy flows in the zones I''ve already unlocked. It''s also guaranteed easier EXP, which will probably save me effort in the long run as well. On top of that, yesterday''s trip to the Starry Pleasure Zone reminded me that uncleared areas I''m not in by Special Quests but by pushing access into has that fog filling it. It''ll be too uncomfortable to go into a zone as big as the hills in the vision with the fog in place unless I weave together a spell similar to the lightning-touched barrier. The chance of something attacking me during that could be high as well. So overall, it''s better for me to wait. Even if it means more work for me. In the three-ish hours I''ve been here today, I''ve gained 3 Levels and cleared about eight miles of the river, give or take a thousand yards. With how many turns it has, the distance itself is also longer than what I''d initially estimated. The hills with the lakes are at the very edge of the Mythic Forest, roughly forty miles from the center. My estimation was that the river goes all the way to the river, so it''d be a little less than forty miles in length. Except I didn''t factor in curves or know that monster frequency would increase the further I go. Pushing myself is the only way I can finish this in a reasonable amount of time. With how strong I am now, I could just run through the river and punch the monsters to death, but that''s even more effort than walking and casting spells. It''s nearly time for lunch, so I think I''ll meet up with Ryan for that, then take a nap after. Since my morning work is done, I call up my Status to check my new stats.
Name: Evan Rethe Rank: 5
Species: Human Sex: Male
Level: 15 EXP: 0/422,580
HP: 46,500/46,500 MP: 46,500/46,500
Strength: 433 Constitution: 562
Agility: 433 Dexterity: 1,075
Magic: 3,118 Mind: 1,395
HP Regen: 5% MP Regen: 5%
This is more than enough for me to one-shot any monster I''ve encountered in the Mythic Forest so far. I''m starting to suspect that it''s currently stuck as the equivalent of a Category 5-1 Dungeon due to the ambient mana levels here so I''m likely not in danger from anything other than very limited zones with stronger monsters, the ones being used for my Awakening Quests. Unless¡­ am I actually still in the Mythic Forest for those? Could the System be creating those Dungeons but simulating the Mythic Forest''s environment now? That would explain the strength difference between the monsters in them and the monsters here. Why that might happen, I don''t know. That''s something to ask the King of the Celestials, if he ever deigns to reveal himself to me. I close my Status and summon my phone to check the time. Still a few minutes before my alarm goes off, so I set it beside me and close my eyes for a few minutes of rest. Once it''s time, I get up and pull on some clothes, including khaki shorts and a light green t-shirt with a grey shirt over, left unbuttoned in my usual style. When I teleport home and step onto my deck, I find Ryan play wrestling with Aster. I take a seat and watch for a few minutes as my boyfriend plays with the young Celestial rather than interrupt their fun. Aster could easily win if he wanted but he''s controlling his strength and speed so that he doesn''t hurt Ryan. He also probably just enjoys chasing after Ryan''s arms and hands to play bite and grab. "Alright, alright, alright!" Ryan laughs. "Time to stop!" Aster stops and gives him a disappointed look. "It''s lunchtime," Ryan says. "You don''t want to make Evan wait longer, do you? He''s probably been hard at work restoring your king''s garden all morning." Aster woofs in confirmation, then runs in circles and looks at Ryan expectantly. "Looks like he wants his food now," Ryan chuckles as he looks at me. "Mind?" Giving Aster his food doesn''t take very long so I''m not sure why he''s asking. Courtesy to the host, maybe? "Go ahead," I tell him. "I''m in no rush." Ryan pulls out a plate with chunks of meat on it and sets it down, and Aster looks between it and Ryan with an "Is this it?" expression. "You can get dessert after you eat," Ryan pats the pup''s head, then stands so he can sit at the table. "And now for ours." He pulls out a couple of white paper bags with lunch in it, the two containing meatball subs with cheese this time. The sides today are cut veggies with dip and dried fruit chips. "Random thought," I say as we eat. "But what''s your favorite monster meat?" "Dragon." "You''ve had dragon?" I ask. "Aren''t those only in Rank 5-11 Dungeons or higher? Or equivalent areas?" It''s almost unheard of for any Rank 5 to reach that high in Level as there are almost no Dungeons that strong and no areas that dangerous. Even when there are, there just aren''t enough Awakened strong enough to handle them. "Sure," he answers. "The bureau gave me a pound of it a couple of years ago as thanks for helping with something. How they acquired it and had it in-stock, I don''t know. It''s pretty good, though." Aster barks an agreement to that while sending me a message. "He says it was given by a Celestial," I say. "In his exact words as translated to actual words the best I can, ''the second-biggest little brother gave them''." "The¡­ what?" "Aster''s trying not to say which Celestial," I tell him. "But I''m guessing it''s the second-oldest Celestial younger than him." Aster woofs in confirmation. "They gave away dragon meat?" Ryan asks, and Aster barks. "Why? Ack! Aster! Don''t send me the message! I can''t communicate in that manner!" Aster snickers as he sends me the message. "He says ''why not?''" I inform Ryan. "To be fair, we don''t know much about the Celestials. They have what amounts to unlimited power, so they don''t necessarily need a reason to do things." "Fair enough," Ryan says. "Changing the topic a little, how did your work this morning go? You gained 3 Levels from what I can tell." "I pushed myself a fair bit," I admit. "Changed plans to just finishing the river. It''s basically free EXP now even if it''s more work, and it''ll ensure I have plenty of power for if stronger things come up. Also, the lakes will probably be filled with fog if I try to go early and I''m not sure I can handle an area that large on my own. That was about eight miles of river I took care of, I think? If I do that this afternoon, and the next couple visits, I''ll probably manage to finish the river." The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation. "The extra stats will help with keeping you unharmed," Ryan tells me. "When you do take on a bigger area." "Probably," I say. "What kind of beef was used for the meatballs? They''re pretty good." "From flying cattle I encountered in a Dungeon at the end of last year," he answers. "Category 4-3, late into the Dungeon. Same meat Aster''s eating, actually." "Made them yourself?" I ask. "Yeah," he answers. "The cheese came from the same Dungeon, there were a few vats of fresh milk we looted. I didn''t make the cheese, though I was given some once it was ready. So you''re planning on heading back into the Mythic Forest for more river work?" "I''ll probably take a nap after lunch," I tell him. "Give me some extra time, and what is it?" Ryan had that same look as last night, the one which says he wants to ask something but is deciding not to. "Don''t worry about it," he smiles. "It''s nothing." "Ryan?" I raise an eyebrow. "That''s twice in a day you''ve had that look when I say something. You can''t expect me to communicate and you not." "No, seriously," he smiles. "It''s nothing, Ev." I raise my eyebrow again, and he chuckles as he sighs. "I''m a big snuggler," he says. "I wanted to ask if I could snuggle you for the nap and had to remind myself you don''t sleep in that way with someone you''re not in a committed relationship with. Same as last night ¨C I wanted to ask about staying over." That''s a lot less serious of a thing than I expected it to be, and it''s just him respecting my boundary on that particular matter. Aster seems to find something Ryan said funny as the pup is snickering now. "Sounds like someone wants normal store-bought jelly for dessert rather than the quality stuff," Ryan mutters and the pup quickly stops his snickering. I can''t help but snort at that as I realize what Aster was snickering about. He sleeps in my bed with me as well. "That''s because you''re kind of like a son," I roll my eyes at the pup. "Not something else." He really does feel like a son to me, too, even if we haven''t known each other very long. The pup grew on me quickly and judging by what was going on when I returned home for lunch, he grew quickly on Ryan as well. Ryan and I switch to talking about his morning, which he spent doing a little bit of training, then training some still-fresh Awakened, then he left the city to pummel a monster out of boredom. After lunch, his plan is to play video games for the rest of the day unless someone wants to hang out. "Speaking of that," he says. "Video games aren''t really something I remember playing in my past lives, and that made me think of something. Nick and I were talking Monday, and he suggested I ask you something." This sounds serious. "Go ahead." "You now know that I''m a god," he says. "And that I''ll eventually move on from being a mortal to return to my divine state. Yet you''re fine with trying to see if we''ll work out in a relationship? The fact that I''m ancient doesn''t bother you?" "Why would it?" I ask. "You''re still mentally the age of your current body. As for eventually leaving me¡­ is there a deadline for you to ascend back to godhood?" "No," he answers. "This body is mortal through and through so I guess technically once it dies." "So then there''s no issue, right?" I ask. "Unless you decide to depart early, of course. There''s potential for us to live out my life together." "That''s true," Ryan admits. "And I do want to correct something," I tell him. "Demigods aren''t the only ones I have a romantic attraction to. There are two other guys I''ve been romantically interested in, but they each turned me down when I asked." "Really?" He asks. "Non-demigods?" "Griffin," I say. "From the Starry Iris. He admitted attraction to me, but said we''d have to wait. Considering that he''s older than he looks and hasn''t aged for awhile, it''s sufficient to say that I''m not really bothered by the idea of dating people with longer lifespans." "Even I wouldn''t try to date Griffin," Ryan says. "Though he does give off that same feeling of superiority as you do, like he''s something¡­ more. I try to avoid him unless his club is the best place for my current wants. You''re right that he''s a lot older than he looks. Who''s the other?" "A guy named Ash," I answer. "Not sure if you know him. He has leafy-green hair and lavender eyes." "Ash," he thinks for a few moments. "Not sure I know him, but I did notice a commonality between those two. They both have purple eyes." "Some guys are just more attractive than others," I shrug. "Ash is the guy who delivers my groceries, and he hasn''t aged a day in the entire time I''ve known him ¨C and I''ve known him practically since I was found in the Dungeon." "He was part of the team?" Ryan asks. "No," I answer. "He just happened to be near the Gate when it formed and stuck around to see what was inside. Saw them bringing a baby out. Looks about our age, too, so he''s probably at least forty even if he''s only mentally twenty-ish." "No wonder you reacted so well to finding out I''m a god," he says. "You''ve crushed on two unaging guys who you know are older than they seem." "If their mental age is close to mine, they''re not really older, are they?" I ask. "No, they aren''t," he says. "And I''ve already been rejected by both of them," I add. "So it doesn''t matter. I''m seeing you now." "Yes, you are," he gives me a happy smile. "I brought brownies for dessert, by the way." A topic change probably means he was getting uncomfortable talking about my past crushes. I''m glad it''s over as well, and we return to eating and making small talk without returning to those topics. Once we finish eating, Ryan pulls me in for a hug and a kiss. "Let me know if you want some help," he tells me. "I''ll just be playing video games, so you won''t be interrupting anything important." "Will do," I kiss him back. "Love you, Ry." "Love you, Ev." Ryan leaves, then Aster and I head to the Mythic Forest. I bring us to the Whispering Life Spring, then strip down and lie in the grass using my hands as a pillow. Aster climbs up onto me and curls up on my chest, and I drift off to sleep within moments. ~~~ I stand atop a cliff at the edge of a wide valley with a river cutting through it near the horizon from my vantage point. A village spreads out beside the river, homes and farms keeping within a mile of the water, a forest not far too the north and cropping up on the other side of the river. Small and cozy it might seem, but a Monster Egg sits only a hundred feet from the sole stone building of the village, pouring out wolves at the moment. My tail swishes a little as I sit on the edge of the cliff, debating if I should put in the effort to fix the energy flows here or just lounge about until my presence mends them. This is a particularly nasty one, it might take a few months if I mend it by my presence alone and that would be a few months of rest. Hold up. My tail? Am I viewing someone else''s memory in this vision? They''re not a beast, the part of them which I can see is a person''s. Human, like mine, including with a slender build similar to my own. A wolfkin with a tail that''s a mix of purples, pinks, and oranges, then. Before I can move deeper with those thoughts, the dream takes over once more, my thoughts becoming second to those of who I am within the dream. My older brother would probably just nap here until the energy flows returned to normal, but I''m not as lazy as he. Fixing this is trivial and would take only a few minutes at the mostand would let me go off to do other things sooner. I have only a limited amount of time to do as I please, so wasting it just resting here wouldn''t be the best of ideas. Not that I need to fix this. I only even noticed this Monster Egg and the twisted energy flows by chance. If I hadn''t, it might never get mended. This world is in an obscure part of the universe and I know my brother prefers to hang out in his own realm. When he''s not hunting me down because I reincarnated myself for the eight hundred and seventy-eighth time out of boredom. One day, I''ll manage to stop my real nature from influencing my reincarnations, too. Maybe it''ll be the eight hundred and seventy-ninth reincarnation where my hair (and tail, if present) doesn''t match a Rift Wolf''s. It probably won''t affect my eyes since that''s caused by something else. Having blue, brown, gold, green, or grey eyes would make hiding among mortals so much easier. It''s a shame those are the only eye colors out there¡­ purple wouldn''t stand out so much if there was a wider variety of them. Nor would my hair color if there was a wider variety of those. I''d probably last longer before Noea found me if either of those were the case. Honestly. If he didn''t want me to reincarnate myself, he should just alter the soul cycle to prevent it from recognizing my soul as a valid soul for recycling. He already made it so that souls which don''t match the energy frequency of the souls of people can''t be processed for reuse so I know he could change it to block mine. It would just bounce out of the system and I''d have to re-form my body. Though I''d also keep all of my memories, which would suck. Part of the purpose of reincarnating myself is to live among mortals as one for a generation or so. Experience things as they are before my memories begin returning like they did a few months ago. Since then, I haven''t attempted to use any of my real powers, remaining limited by the powers of my mortal body. It''s not that I can''t, it''s just that I haven''t really felt like it. This is a case where I do feel like it, and I''m not sure if I should or not. I suppose there''s no harm in fixing up this area, so I tap into my real power and send a small stream of it into the energy flows around me. This little power won''t revert me back to my true self like what happens with demigods when they tap into their divine power, so it''s fine to fix the flows. Weaving my power through the energy streams, I purify them of the contaminating energies, removing their blockages. I also jiggle the streams a little, causing them to untangle. In less time than it takes for me to breathe five times, I''ve fixed the energy flows everywhere within a thousand miles of here. The wolfkin of the areas within that range can handle the monsters now that they aren''t respawning anymore. It might even help them grow stronger. Perhaps I could grant the area this incarnation is from a blessing so their crops grow better and livestock are more healthy? That would certainly boost their strength for awhile. No. I shouldn''t. I can mend energy flows without reverting to my real self but the moment I do something like grant a blessing? That''s too much power and will revert me without a doubt. I do want to stay like this just a little bit longer. Just until Noea finds me again. Chapter 0038 Quite a few things have come up from me remembering an entire life before now, with plenty of things coming up just from the dream which brought said memories back. It''s brought up a lot of new questions and changed my theories about a few things. Trying to dwell on most of that would be too bothersome so I won''t. There are some important pieces of information I have, though. The first of those is that my older brother will probably find me within the next five years and headbutt me back into my real form as he did in that life. I get the impression from the memory of him doing that at the end of that incarnation that it''s normal for him to bring me back that way. It probably doesn''t matter for right now with how far away that is, though, so I won''t worry about it. Well, he might already know considering how things are right now, but that''s another matter. The second is that while I did recover the memories of that life, I''m probably still mentally twenty. That''s one of the pieces of information I acquired from that life ¨C my mental age matches my body in reincarnations even after I start remembering past lives. I won''t remember everything my past lives remembered until I start regaining memories from my real form, but that''s not really problematic. I could use some techniques I used in that life to naturally boost my magical power and energy pools, but I''ll hold off on that for now. I do want to try and live as a mortal as long as possible, now that I know what''s really going on. Mostly know what''s really going on. The third important piece of information is that the Special Quests I''m receiving probably aren''t coming from the King of the Celestials at all but are just something my brother put into the System to mess with me as a punishment for more reincarnations. If I''m right, that was him when I was found and rather than headbutting me back to my real self, he decided to just let me restore his gardens. Something he''s probably not actually having a direct hand in, though he''s still no doubt the one who extended the Whispering Life Spring''s pond. From what I learned from remembering that past life, our very presence cleanses energy flows. My effect is weaker since I''m in a mortal body but it''ll grow stronger as I do, while my brother''s presence should immediately fix an entire Mythic Forest. That''s why things are getting better while I''m here ¨C the aether I''m leaking as I produce it cleanses the energy flows. I''ve hung out at the Whispering Life Spring the most so it''s been affected the most. Meanwhile, my brother is staying outside and looking in, making little changes as I do my own thing but avoiding entering the Mythic Forest directly.. "No, that can''t be right," I muse as I sit up, briefly noting that Aster''s not here. If my brother showed up while I was in the Great Napping Spot at my birth or whatever, then wouldn''t that have fixed the Mythic Forest''s energy flows? So either that was just a copy for a Dungeon and wasn''t actually a part of the Mythic Forest or my brother knows how to stop the aether leak. Something which I think the Celestials don''t have. My knowledge on this part is fuzzy since that past life had the memories of past lives but hadn''t directly dwelled on or applied said knowledge, but Rift Wolves like me and my brother produce aether directly. Celestials have an unlimited pool of it so they don''t produce any, just like gods. The leakage is caused by the production of it ¨C mana leaks out of everyone and everything which produces it as well. Without leaking it, Celestials can enter the Mythic Forest all they want but their presence won''t help it heal. Now that I''ve learned some interesting pieces of information and processed everything that''s important for now, it''s time to do some other stuff. No reason to think on things for too long when it ultimately doesn''t matter. My brother wants me to fix up his forest and I''ll do that just because I want to, just as I did before remembering this information. I pull on some clothes and head to the Pup Leisure Pond. My supply of mana potions is nearly empty and I need reagents to make more. The mana-touched nature of the water suggests there will be mana-filled reagents with which I can make more potions with once it''s restored. While I still need to [Cleanse] the soil within and around the small zone, it probably won''t take more than a day or two of work and departure from here for there to at least be enough reagents for me to use for a first batch. Especially now that I know how to fix natural energy flows. That should definitely speed things up a bit. Upon arrival, I spot something different from my prior visits to the zone. Much like the Whispering Life Spring, the pond has grown in size. The pond is now around ninety feet at its widest and sixty at its narrowest. My brother is clearly doing some work here, that''s for sure. Dwelling on what his goals and plans are really isn''t good to do as I won''t get answers right now and it ultimately doesn''t matter. What I should focus on are my goals. That''s to continue living as a mortal for awhile as I''m quite enjoying it, and also to do some restoration work on the Mythic Forest I''ve been given access to. The soil itself is still fairly contaminated as well, and I might be able to deal with that better if I can access the area outside of this smaller zone. As I think that, the fog wall surrounding the pond fades away and the heavy fog beyond it quickly lifts, starting at the former fog wall and ending at the new one. The zone''s expanded immensely, now around two thousand feet in diameter. No Special Quest popped up yet there are goblins all around. Either the System''s too low on energy to issue new Special Quests or my brother did that just to mess with me. It''s possible he can read my thoughts. Well, it doesn''t matter. Being annoyed over that is pointless and they''re all fairly basic goblins, roughly three hundred of them. Once I slay the goblins, I tap into my sense for energy flows. There are three Monster Eggs here, including one in the pond itself and two in other parts. The two outside of the pond must have both formed the same type of goblins if there were two of them. The one within the pond is likely the origin of the dark bramble, and I can tell that it''s begun to soothe already, probably from my original visit here. While I don''t have full knowledge of how my aether aura works, I do know that I''m too weak in this body for it to do too much. That''s why it''s only areas immediately around where I am which find themselves fixing up a little. I can either stay in this zone for a long while or I can try and fix the flows directly. The sooner the energy flows return to normal, the faster the soil, air, and waters can return to their healthier states. "Don''t deposit their soil around here," I tell Mrow as it pokes its head out of the ground near me. "I need to cleanse the soil first." The lifeseed worm nods and begins working on eating goblin corpses. I undress and enter the pond to get as near to the Monster Egg as I can, though I can only reach about ten feet away from it before the water''s up to my shoulders. Closing my eyes, I feel for the additional energy I remember from my past life. Its feel is different from mana but distinct in my mind. With my past life as a reference, I quickly find the pool of aether within me and how small it is. Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. Nowhere near enough to make drastic changes, but I should be able to fix the energy flows, I think. Reaching forward with one hand, I shift the state of my aether and send it into the energy flows the way I did several times in my past life. Let it flow along the energy streams, destroying the energies within them which don''t belong. I''m not sure exactly how the contamination happens as my past life didn''t have a memory with it but it''s not important for clearing them. Sending aether into the streams destroys the energies within, but the channels themselves remain. With the energy touched destroyed, the pure energy which belongs within the flow can continue along the stream as it replenishes from¡­ wherever it replenishes from. That''s not information I''ve remembered yet. As my energy flows into the tangled web of them forming the Monster Egg, I give it a jiggle by shifting the aether a little. I do that a few times as my magic purges the energies and the channels return to their normal size and release from each other. This step probably isn''t necessary since the energy streams will shrink back to their normal states over time and that will cause them to untangle, but this quickens the process. I allow my aether to spread a little more, but I can''t push it too far. It seems my range for fixing the energy flows is around twenty feet at the most right now. Doing that in all directions took around a fifth of my aether pool, which doesn''t seem to be listed in my Status even though I''ve now wielded it. Beings who use aether probably aren''t supposed to be connected to the System so it''s not designed to track it. My current body isn''t damaged by using it like a god''s would be, and that''s how it was in my last life as well. Beings with a natural affinity for aether must not be able to be harmed by it even if their body is mortal. After cleaning up the other two Monster Eggs within this zone, I begin using [Cleanse] on the soil. Even if I can feel myself recovering my aether right now ¨C unlike mana, which only recovers when asleep ¨C there''s no point in my using it all up for a small amount of space. I took care of the bigger ones and my presence here from time to time will fix up the rest. This area should be fixed up sooner than later now, if my guess is right. Purging contaminates from the soil with [Cleanse] after dealing with the Monster Eggs doesn''t take me too long thanks to having as much Magic as I do now. The contaminated soil stopped around one hundred feet or so from the new boundaries for the zone, so I won''t have to worry about any leeching back in. I warp to the Sparkly Earth Cave to begin mining out some earth magic crystals to use at the Pup Leisure Pond and the moment I arrive¡­ I find several spools of silk in various colors. Very large spools of silk with a note stuck onto one, woven from black silk with silver text written in the ancient tongue. This is for Rethe. If you are not he, leave them alone. If you are he, these are yours. Do with as you please. Underneath that on a separate square of black cloth is a sewn-in image which looks just like my face, Redips apparently wanting to make absolutely clear who she''s referring to. There''s even a silver arrow pointing down to the portrait for extra clarity. Not only can she make the finest of silks in a variety of colors, but she can apparently weave them together into pretty realistic pictures. I put the note and the portrait into my storage, then examine one of the spools. It''s about four feet in height and two in diameter, the threads bound tightly around it and close together. This particular one is the same lilac as my eyes, though there''s also one in apricot, one in a seafoam green, one in salmon pink, and one in sky blue. This is too much for a single storage bracelet of mine, so I store them in two and return to my home, dropping the spools off. The odds of someone finding out about their presence and stealing them is rather slim, but a thought comes to me and I inspect the spool of purple thread.
[Lilac Royal Dreamsoft Silk]
Tier: 1,000,000
The finest of all mortal silks, spun by the Queen of the Dreamsoft Spiders herself and of such a high quality that few can damage it and fewer can handle it.
Even if someone did find out about the silk, they wouldn''t be able to do anything with it. They would need Tier 1,000,000 tools just to cut it. I don''t think there''s anyone on Earth who could handle this silk. What did Redips think I could do with this? Unless¡­ she was able to recognize me as my real self and thinks I have some of my powers from then. Flow recognized Ryan, and he, Mrow, Elacs, and Redips did all seem to be familiar with me. Or at least, they all treated me in a friendly way and I doubt it''s just because they''re friendly. Maybe mythical beasts can perceive souls? It would stand to reason that the Celestials probably can as well and Aster and I know each other either from a past life or from me being his king''s younger brother. It would explain why he''s decided to hang out with me while the big boy''s doing¡­ whatever it is my brother is doing. I decide to deal with what to do about the silk later and return to the Mythic Forest and harvest some earth magic crystals, filling up one of my bracelets with them. Rather than going straight back to the Pup Leisure Pond after finishing that, I warp to the Happy Butterfly hill. Since the pond had contaminated soil, the pups weren''t hanging out at it and if they''re in the forest, I want to recruit their help again to save me some work. They aren''t here at the hill, though the plant growth has spread nicely. From the northern end to the southern end of the riverbank is filled with plants, from grasses and flowers to bushes and vines and even a few trees. It''s spread further away from the water''s edges than it had before, probably from the energy flows healing more. Rather than ending around forty to fifty feet from the edge of the river, it stops around ninety feet away from the edge. With how much time I spent here on two occasions, my presence must have affected the energy flows similarly to at the Whispering Life Spring. They may not have been as disturbed here as badly, allowing things to recover a little bit faster. While there aren''t any pups running around, eating berries, or playing in the waters, there are other animals. Butterflies, to be specific. They come in a few different colors with silver and gold markings, and some flutter from plant to plant while others rest wherever they are. There aren''t too many of them but their presence and the fact that they''re neither mythical beasts nor Celestials indicates that either my brother is introducing animals back into the zones or that they''re forming on their own somehow. I take a quick picture of some of the butterflies, then head to the Starry Pleasure Waters. There weren''t any pups at a snacking area so they might be at an area that''s a little bit more fun than just a pond with a stream. None are here, either, so I head to the Whispering Life Spring¡­ which has increased in size again. It was thirteen feet at its widest and nine at its narrowest after the last change, but now it''s around nineteen feet at its widest and roughly fourteen at its narrowest. There''s now a small boulder collection at the end of the pond with the spring, and it looks like that part has actually increased in height as well so there''s a little bit larger of a drop into the water than before even when not taking the boulders into consideration. It would probably be easier to just change it all at once, but my brother could have originally thought the smaller increase was fine, then later changed his mind and expanded it again. There''s also an azulvitt wolf here. Flow in his adult form, specifically, and he seems to be napping but looks over when I kneel to look at some of the plants. "Hey, Flow," I say. "Taking a break from the pups?" He gives me confirmation of that, letting me know that the other two adults I''ve seen him with are currently watching the little ones. "Got a question," I say, and he lifts an ear up. "Did you recognize me upon seeing me?" The answer to that is that he didn''t, but he''s figured out who I am now. "How did you do that?" I ask. "And how does it differ from how you recognized Ryan, if it does?" He was able to recognize Ryan because he recognized Ryan''s divinity, not by his soul. Recognizing me was a bit more difficult because I don''t have something so easily recognizable and aether reads the same whether in a Celestial or just someone or something with an affinity for it. Well, other than Celestials having infinite pools of it. Ultimately, he figured out who I am because of my smell. It seems that regardless of whether I''m in my real form or a reincarnation, I possess the same smell to him. "But Ryan doesn''t?" I ask. Demigods apparently don''t smell the same between reincarnations, though their real selves always have the same smell when they return to them. "Alright," I say. "Thanks for the answers, big guy. Would you be willing to ask the pups if they want to play ''bury the crystals'' again? This time at the Pup Leisure Pond. It''s grown in size and the zone is cleaned up, so it''s ready for me to start growing stuff there." Chapter 0039 Aster drifts in the pond as I use [Grow Plant] with a [Multicast] around the Pup Leisure Pond. He showed up a few minutes ago and decided he just wants to play in the water by himself as an otter with a ball he pulled out. The pup really finds it easy to entertain himself when no one else is around to play. The azulvitts left only a few moments before he arrived and he seemed disappointed by that, but excited by the increased pond size. While I worked here, I managed to raise [Grow Plant] and [Multicast] by a Level each, which has sped up my work by a decent amount. A single [Grow Plant] now takes 24 seconds to cast instead of 27, and [Multicast] only increases casting time by 80% rather than 90%. Casting two [Grow Plant]s at once now takes me only roughly 43.2 seconds instead of the 51.3 it did before or the 60 it would if I had to cast them individually at Level 1 in the Skill. Casting three of them at once takes me roughly 76.76 seconds rather than the 90 it would if I had to cast them individually at Level 1 or¡­ wait. It would only be 72 seconds if I cast them individually. I should probably try to bring [Multicast] up again so that the cost to cast more at once goes down once more. Doing that math on earlier probably would have made this go a lot faster. This looks like enough plant patches for today, so I use two [Boost Plant Growth]s on the area and watch as grasses and flowers and herbs grow and spread and bushes and tree saplings grow. If the casting time remains consistent, doing three of them at once will probably make it take longer than casting them individually. Once it finishes, I cast the spell in a pair again, watching as everything within its range grows further. With 3,118 Magic, the spell stretches approximately 1,039 feet and 4 inches in diameter. That''s nearly the entire zone from this one spot, though I didn''t use [Grow Plant] on all of it. Just the parts with buried earth magic crystals and the soil which Mrow popped up and spread around after the pups finished playing "bury the crystals". The lifeseed worm must have been watching things and waiting. At least he took back all of the crystals I couldn''t fit into my storage, making me realize how the last dump of them he made must have disappeared. It seems he can take the crystals back and is just holding onto them for me. Even though I really don''t need that many nor can I hold that many. I appraise the area with its new plant life, then cast [Boost Plant Growth] with [Multicast] again. From start to end, I only used [Grow Plant] once per spot and spaced them out pretty decently since I knew that [Boost Plant Growth] would make things grow and spread rather fast with how high my Magic is. Each pair of casts spread the plant patches out by around three feet. None of the patches touch yet but most will after just one or two more casts so I do that. A few spots didn''t have grass, flowers, or herbs grown when I used [Grow Plant] so those ones didn''t spread, but the bushes and trees within them grew quite well. In fact, most of the zone is now filled with young trees, a few of which have fruit on them. Ordinary apples and peaches, since they haven''t taken in enough mana from the soil and whatever else yet to morph into something magical. While I did use mana to make them grow, that was mana converted into magic to supply them with nutrients and accelerate their growth. They''ll need to actually intake mana itself to begin mutating, I believe. "What do you think, Aster?" I ask and the otter transforms into his wolf pup formbefore giving me a woof. "How long do you think it''ll take before it starts giving me reagents for mana potions?" Aster thinks for a few moments, then answers with what amounts to "a lot of sleeps". "I should''ve known that''d be your answer," I chuckle. "Would you mind doing something for me, buddy?" The pup swims out of the pond and shakes himself off, then gives me a curious tilt of his head. "Would you be willing to go watch the butterflies at Happy Butterfly Hill?" I ask. "There shouldn''t be any monsters, but I just want to make sure. Don''t touch them, though, or you might hurt them. I''ll come get you when I''m sure they''re safe, alright?" "Woof!" Aster''s tail wags, then he vanishes. That was easy, and I doubt he''ll realize that I can''t know it''s safe without actually going there in-person. He seems to be mentally around five or so and while he can do some complex reasoning, his mind is pretty simple. "It''s safe to come out," I say. "I don''t have any meat in my storage, though. It''s not designed for storing stuff like that." There''s no reaction, so I start picking some apples, peaches, berries, and herbs. As I do, I occasionally notice a grey-furred wolf peeking out from behind bushes and trees. Cloud''s a little bit bigger than he was last night but not quite to a full-grown size. This might be his real size and if so, then he''s probably a little bit older than Aster in terms of mental and physical age. The small pup size from last night was probably to make it harder for people to notice him. As I observe Cloud, I realize that his pelt doesn''t just look like it has a cloud pattern to it, it actually seems as if made of clouds, sort of like how Aster''s looks like it''s made from the night sky and Aurora''s looks like it was woven from an actual aurora. Three out of three Celestials I''ve personally met recently have rather realistic pelts so I''m going to guess that''s common for all of them. "You can eat some berries if you want," I say after a little bit. "I don''t think you''d get into trouble for that." "No, thanks. I''m not Aster." "Alright," I chuckle at his response. A few minutes later, I notice a grey ceramic plate with a cloud-like pattern to it with lightning bolts decorating it sitting on the ground in front of the pup, who''s eating chunks of meat off of it. At least he brought his own food, unlike a certain other pup who just takes whatever he finds unless he''s stopped. "I''m going to let Aster know I''m heading home," I say after I finish my harvests. "It was nice talking to you, Cloud. Have a good time." "Bye, Rethe," he responds. I head to the Happy Butterfly Hill instead of spending time thinking about why he called me by my last name as it''s probably not important. Upon arriving at my destination, I find Aster chasing after a butterfly with blue and black wings with silver eye-like markings on them. The pup is barking and yipping happily as he chases after the butterfly, which seems to be able to stay just outside of the pup''s reach. Probably by the choice of the Celestial, whose tail is wagging enthusiastically and whose face looks like it''s broken out in a big, happy smile. It''s like when he was playing with Ryan earlier, so I''m going to guess the two are friends and this isn''t just Aster harassing another creature. Or it could be exactly that¡­ either way, I decide to inspect the mythical beast before stepping in.
[Dreamdust Butterfly]
Category: Mythical
A butterfly whose mystical dust can easily put to sleep nigh any being or used to calm and make pleasant nigh any dream.
"Rethe is here," a voice speaks directly into my head and Aster lets out a happy bark before looking at me. "Hello, Rethe. Thank you for restoring the hill a little. It was still barren when I checked a few weeks ago." Support the creativity of authors by visiting the original site for this novel and more. "I take it I''m speaking with the butterfly?" I ask. "Whose name is¡­ Gniw?" The butterfly does a sort of happy flutter as Aster runs to me and rubs his head against my legs, tail wagging happily. "It is," the butterfly says. "Though Aster says your memories are kaput due to you reincarnating. I''m speaking via telepathy. It is good to see you again. The last time we spoke was nearly seven centuries ago in Earth time. That''s where Aster says your current reincarnation is from." My familiarity with the mythical beasts comes from my past lives, I''m sure of it. Me knowing their names upon seeing them isn''t them informing me in some way, it''s me remembering it. "It is," I say. "Did you bring the other butterflies? I didn''t see you around when I was here earlier." "I did not," he answers. "The Mythic Forest is special as decided by the Lazy Celestial. As life returns to it and develops, so too shall new life appear." While he''s not saying it in fully clear terms, I know what he means. Animals and other creatures will simply appear here as conditions become suitable for them to do so again. That was one of the things I''d suspected in the past, this is just confirmation of it. "It was nice to meet you again," Gniw tells me. "As for me, I must leave. Aster, please remember that butterflies are not for eating." "Woof!" Aster wags his tail. "Not for eating?" I ask. "Aster was trying to eat a butterfly?" "He sometimes forgets," Gniw tells me. "So I like to remind him when I see him. I''ll be off now. Goodbye, Rethe." The butterfly flutters off and vanishes, then Aster looks up at me with a hopeful look on his face. He''s asking me to go do more work in the Starry Pleasure Waters. I do still have a couple of hours before I should really be returning home, but there''s something else which is a little bit more important. "I should really be returning to the river," I tell him, and he switches to giving me a pitiful and pleading look. "You do know that normal wolves don''t have that much expression, right?" "Arf!" His tail wags. "I''ll make you a deal," I say. "You get me your favorite food in the entire universe without stealing, and I''ll do some more work in your play area, okay? But that means either taking it from where no one owns it or receiving permission to take it. Understand?" "Arf!" Aster woofs and vanishes. That should give me a few minutes where I can relax, so I sit and watch the butterflies until Aster returns. When he does, the pup runs over to me and lets out a short bark. I hold out a hand and he barks again, a grape-like fruit a little larger than my fist plopping into my hand. Its skin is a swirl of soft purples, oranges, and pinks reminiscent of the big boy''s pelt. Also my real coat, I suppose, seeing as the big boy and I are the same species.
[Large Aetherberry]
Tier: 73,971,832
Despite the name, this berry contains no actual aether within it. A rare delicacy with a flavor unlike any other and just the right amount of sweetness, many young yet powerful beings with a sweet tooth love the berry. This is a special cultivar grown to be especially large without affecting its flavor.
"And did you get permission for this?" I ask. "Woof!" Aster''s tail wags as he sends me a message. He has an entire garden growing these just for himself. That message comes with his memory of trying to pick the best one from the vines for me before settling on what is currently the largest of them. "Did your king make the garden for you?" I ask. "Woof!" Aster nods enthusiastically. I should have expected that. The logical way to reduce the occurrences of a sweets-loving child of extraordinary power stealing sweets from others is to give him his own garden of ones he likes the best. It''s probably more efficient when the king himself is around to stop Aster on the occasions which still happen after and I''m sure Aurora''s had her paws full trying to stop him while caring for the others. "Where''s this garden?" I ask. "Can you take me there?" Aster shakes his head. The garden''s located in his personal realm, which is only allowed to have Celestials in it via an absolute rule created by the big boy. It probably wouldn''t restrict me since I''m the big boy''s younger brother, but it also might since I''m in a reincarnation right now. "Here''s another question," I say as I examine the large berry again. "Did we know each other before I reincarnated? You seem pretty familiar with me, and it''s clear I know some of the mythical beasts." Aster gives me a nod before looking at the berry, then back to me. The message there is clear: he doesn''t want to talk about my past. Either he was told not to by Aurora or he personally wants to wait until I remember things on my own. "Fair enough," I chuckle, then examine the berry again. While that Tier might make it seem like I can''t do anything to it, that''s not actually true. Many items without magic effects can be used and eaten without issue once harvested. A minotaur might require a certain level of might to harm, but once it''s dead, its meat can be butchered and eaten by pretty much anyone. This berry isn''t one I could damage while it was still on the vine but now that it''s off the vine, it should theoretically be fine for me to eat. The same principle applies to consuming potions as well. I take a cautious bite of it and find my teeth sinking into the berry as easily as it would a grape. The interior of the berry matches that of a grape and the flavor of it really is quite good. The aetherberry is fairly filling and once I finish eating it and clean off what juices dripped down, I give the pup a light ruffle of his head fur. "Let''s go to your zone," I pick him up and stand, then take us to the Starry Pleasure Waters. The plant growth hasn''t spread out too far in distance, but the entire section that I''d both grown plants in and had earth magic crystals buried in has filled out nicely. Things will probably go faster if I deal with the Monster Eggs so I''ll focus on those first. It seems to take around an hour for me to recover a tenth of my aether capacity and I only cleared up three Monster Eggs earlier. I have enough aether to clear up three more now and this zone should have four. Before working on any, I walk around the zone and determine where each of the Monster Eggs are located. The first two I clear up are ones floating above the soil, but I want to deal with the one in the pond as well. This would have been a little bit easier if I had remembered things before opening up the springs, but I can make do. I strip and store my things in one of my bracelets, then swim out to where the Monster Egg in the pond is. This one is just-above the bed of the immense pond, which looks like it''s grown to around five hundred feet at its widest. Another expansion of a water source my brother decided to do, I suppose. The point at which the Monster Egg is at is roughly one hundred and thirty feet from the nearest shore, and the bed of the pond ¨C or small lake, I suppose ¨C is about ten feet in depth here. I swim down to the bottom and sit on it, the water as clear as anything, though touched with the grey of the light. Extending a hand forward, I shift some of my power into the energy flows and begin cleansing them. A few jiggles, and the Monster Egg comes undone, the tangled streams releasing from each other and returning to how they should be once more. Just after that happens, something crashes into the water beside me and a starry-furred bear cub sinks down to the lake bed before turning to look at me. I roll my eyes before swimming up, treading water once my head is above the surface. An otter with a starry coat shoots up and looks at me as it turns onto its back. "Do you want to play with me or let me grow some more plants in first?" I ask. "The latter shouldn''t take me too long, and you can play in the water as I do." Aster lets out some happy barks and swims off, then I swim over to the shore with grass and lie down for a few minutes. Every now and then, Aster disappears from view but I can hear him barking at times. It seems he''s running around enjoying himself, playing in the tunnels in some of the other sections of the zone and splashing around in the water from time to time. I''m not allowed to rest for too long, however. Aster eventually comes over and starts nudging me, sending me messages to inquire when I''m going to grow more plants. "Alright, alright," I push him away. "I''ll get to work now. You owe me another large aetherberry when I''m done though, alright?" "Woof!" Aster jumps as his tail wags. It looks like I''m not going to be working on the river anymore today, which is a little bit of a relief. Growing plants is a much easier task and I''ll be able to relax more during it. I really wasn''t looking forward to pushing myself for more monster hunting in the river. What I am looking forward to, however, is getting to crash in my bed once I''m done. Chapter 0040 "I thought I''d find you here," a voice comments from my left. "Deep in books as you attempt to research something." When I look over, I find myself looking into the face of a guy who looks around my age, his skin light and fair, his hair a deep, leafy green, and his eyes a gentle lavender. He''s dressed in a pair of brown shorts and a green sleeveless shirt with matching sneakers. On his left ear is a metal earcuff with a simple band shape patterned with a leaf etched in gold. Ash doesn''t often come into a library or bookstore, generally claiming he holds more than enough knowledge to not need it. He seems to know quite a lot but I prefer not to go to him if I can help it as I don''t want to bother him too much. I could probably have asked him about Celestials but since I found a resource on that, even if it''s not completely accurate, I decided against it. For my current research, however, I''ve become stumped and decided to text him about it as I continued looking. I suppose it''s a big enough thing for him to actually come look for me rather call or wait until we see each other on Sunday. "Good evening," I greet him. "You don''t normally seek me out." "You don''t normally seem so exhausted," he says. "Nor do you normally have a Celestial pup tailing you." I look to see if Aster showed up without my noticing but the pup isn''t here. "I''ve seen him in some of your pictures," Ash says when I give him an inquisitive look. "And noticed his presence a few times. He''s been more excitable than normal lately, too." "You know him?" "For a long time," he confirms. "What has you looking so exhausted on a Friday evening? Aren''t you normally at a club right now?" There''s something a little bit more important right now than socializing or hooking up. I''ll probably head to the Starry Iris after this to get something to eat and do some socialization. "I''m not tired," I tell him. "Evan," he says. "I''ve known you a long time. I''m not referring to physical tiredness. Even a week of nonstop activity would be enough for that. It''s mental exhaustion stemming from boredom, if I''m not mistaken. What''ve you been up to this week? Aster''s not the one draining you, is he?" I forgot how well he knows me. Picking up on that the mental exhaustion came from boredom probably isn''t something just anyone could do, too. Either he has some degree of empathy magic or other mind magic or he knows me pretty well from my past lives and knows how to pick up little clues I might not be aware I''m giving off. One of those possibilities is a little worrying, though I doubt he''s actually in my head. "No," I answer. "His king has been." Ash raises his eyebrows in surprise. Unlike Ryan, I don''t have much hesitation telling Ash about what''s going on so I fill him in. Chances are good he''s cast a spell to avoid us being overheard, so I don''t need to bother with going somewhere else to explain what I mean. Today was spent entirely working on the river and I gained 4 Levels for my efforts but that much work¡­ I just want to take a good, long sleep. Maybe for a week or two. Never again am I going to do fourteen miles of slaying monsters in a single day. That was mind-numbingly boring and frustrating. "So you remembered you''re a Rift Wolf yesterday, huh?" He asks. "That''s why you wanted to know if I knew anything about aether-type beasts?" "Yeah." "You won''t find anything on them here," he tells me. "Aether-type beasts are practically nonexistent in mortal records. Your kind makes themselves known to mortals even less often than Celestials." I can trust Ash about whether or not I can find information here. If he says there won''t be any, then there won''t be any. With no reason to keep looking in the library, I start to leave and head to the Starry Iris. "But not yours?" I ask as we walk. "Not mine," he confirms. "But regarding Rift Wolves¡­ I honestly don''t know much about them. You emit a small aura of aether which affects the energy flows around you, though ''small'' is relative when talking about how much aether you really hold. Your reincarnation doesn''t possess nearly that much but will gain more capacity as your Level goes up. The System performs a permanent and fundamental alteration to your body when it boosts your stats and my best guess is that your capacity for aether is dependent on how resilient your body is to harm. That, or there''s some other factor at play I''ve never managed to figure out." "That''s all you know?" "No," he shrugs. "But it''s not helpful. Rift Wolves come from ''the Aether'', you told me, but you never elaborated on what that was and I never felt it important to ask further of you or the others I know. You''re the only species capable of directly interacting with energy flows and you, personally, are still considered a child among them." Even after reincarnating at least nearly nine hundred times, I''m still a baby to my real species. Something tells me it''s not based on mental maturity but some other factor. "Anything else you can tell me about my species?" "No," he shrugs. "None of the Rift Wolves I''ve met have been very open about your species. The most the others have told me is the same as I told you: you come from the Aether and are the only species able to directly interact with energy flows. I only know about the leak because I''m quite sensitive to energies due to my origins." "Your origins?" "I used to be a tree." Unlike some of my friends, whether demigod or not, Ash tends to be more on the serious and direct side. Jokes aren''t really his thing. Trees are known for being sensitive to some of the natural energies of the world, so whatever he is now, it must have expanded on those sensitivities enough that he can sense leaking aether. "I''m guessing an ash tree?" I ask. "A type of ash," he confirms. "Though not from Earth. Not even from the universe. There are multiple universes out there and I originate from another. The laws of magic and all that are the same between them, though, and there tends to be some similarities. The planet Earth exists in all in some form, for example." His hair shifts as he speak, its tips turning a pinkish-purple color. "This is my normal spring look," he gives me a soft smile. "But I use my power to alter my form further. I was nearing the end of my tree life when I transcended. But not via mana, via soul. The occurrence was rather accidental as while I had a soul, I didn''t really have a mind. Not a conscious one that could deliberately transcend, at any rate. It turned me into a spirit beast, which greatly influenced me. Extended my life span immensely, gave me some additional powers, and altered my mind." "Some of the demigods I know mentioned they don''t know of other transcendent beings," I tell him. "The Lazy Celestial implemented something into the soul cycle so that reincarnated transcended beings won''t remember certain types of beings," he tells me. "Any form of transcendent other than their own is one of those restricted things. Why he chose to do that, I don''t know. Never bothered to ask." Rather than "His Majesty" or "the King of the Celestials", he went with "the Lazy Celestial". His view of the big boy must be pretty different from that of the Celestials I''ve spoken with about him so far. What he said also matches up with one of the things I remembered from before this life, which is that my brother can influence the soul cycle and how it functions. Celestials are clearly one of the things he decided demigods don''t need to know about for whatever reason. "Would he tell you if you did?" I ask. "Probably," he shrugs. "He knows I like collecting information." "Ah," I say. "So transcendent beings can travel between universes?" "Not all," he shakes his head. "Whether you can or not depends on a few things. Gods are limited to their own universe, but mythical beasts can travel through special pathways to go between them. Well, those technically aren''t transcendent beings but I''m including them here anyway. Celestials are immune to the void, and Rift Wolves, well¡­ you''re a different beast entirely and not a type of transcendent. A Celestial needs to actually travel through the void but a Rift Wolf can simply open a rift between two universes and pass through. Sort of like opening a gate and walking through." Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there. He scratches the back of his head as he thinks for a moment. At the same time, his hair returns to its normal green without a trace of pink. "It''s a little unfair," he says. "I often have to guess as to where you''ll be because of that." "You look for me?" I ask. "Sometimes," he shrugs. "We do hang out fairly often. You''re my oldest friend." "Is that why you turned me down when I asked you out?" I ask "Because we know each other from before this life but I don''t remember?" A dark purple cat with green eyes teleports onto the sidewalk in front of us and meows. She''s probably asking for food as she likes to beg from people who are on this sidewalk, though I don''t have anything for her. "Sorry," I say. "I don''t have something for you." She meows in annoyance before teleporting off. "She didn''t even bother asking you," I chuckle. "She won''t," Ash responds. "The one and only time she asked me for something to eat, I teleported her to a mouse. She wasn''t very impressed." "I''m sure she wasn''t," I snort again. "So what lets you go between universes, then? Being a spirit beast?" "No," he answers. "I''m also a Celestial, so I can travel through nothingness. Becoming a Celestial came later." "You were a tree who became a spirit beast, then a Celestial?" I ask. "How do Celestials come to be? They aren''t born?" I''d thought they came to be that way but that''s apparently wrong. "We originate as mortal creatures," he says. "But transcend via aether. It''s typically a long process that requires first developing an affinity for aether by using a small amount of it regularly over an extremely long amount of time. Enough that you build up some resistance to its effects on your body and develop skill with it. Then you transcend through it much like beings transcend into gods through mana. I''ve heard it''s a lot more painful than transcending into a god." "You''ve heard?" I ask. "So there are some Celestials which did both?" "Correct," he answers. "You''re not locked out of one method of transcendence just because you did another, it simply becomes more diffiuclt. The fourth Celestial became a god before he became a Celestial." "Ryan mentioned that using aether is extremely painful," I say. "Causes long-lasting damage, even to gods." "It does," he nods. "That''s why it generally takes a long time. As long as or even longer than the lifespan of a planet. Gods are only technically immortal. Their bodies can be destroyed and they''ll reincarnate, yes, but their souls are also vulnerable and can be destroyed. Being immortal also gets old fast for most. Celestials and Rift Wolves don''t seem to have that issue, but it''s why gods tend to reincarnate, to give themselves something new to do and to experience life for the first time again and again. Many also eventually decide to give up their immortality and become mortal again." "That can happen?" I was under the impression that transcendence is permanent. "Technically, no," Ash answers. "His Laziness is just¡­ built different, as some mortals would say. When a transcendent one wishes to return to the soul cycle as a normal soul, he somehow manages to erase their transcendence. There''s no trace of it left in their soul, and it''s something he can do for any type of transcendence ¨C they all affect the soul in some way." Something he said reminded me of something Ryan and Nick told me. "Speaking of souls," I say. "I was told Celestials don''t have souls by Ryan and Nick, and Ryan''s met two now and hasn''t changed his statement. But if you transcended via the soul as your first transcendence¡­" "When something transcends via aether and thus becomes a Celestial," he tells me. "Their soul changes in a massive way. It loses all traces of its former mortal self, which also makes it incompatible with the soul cycle on a fundamental level. Rather than a life energy soul, it''s an aether soul. That''s also why we can''t reincarnate." It also explains why Ryan can''t sense them in Celestials. They probably have a completely different feeling to life energy souls. "Ah." "He probably said elementals don''t have souls, either," Ash says. "I''m guessing they do?" "They do," he confirms. "They have elemental souls rather than life energy souls. Much like Celestials, they can''t enter the soul cycle¡­ though their souls can be destroyed by mortals and gods and other beings, unlike those of a Celestial. But the nature of our souls also makes us unchanging, which is why our personalities don''t change much. It can take longer than the lifespan of a planet or star for us to change, in some cases." "Like pulling the young-minded ones out of their shells?" I ask. "Like pulling the young-minded ones out of their shells," he confirms. "How do they transcend, if they''re so young?" I ask. "Depends on which one it is," he shrugs. "But it''s generally through pure luck for them. The saplings tend to be withdrawn at first as they have what''s called PTSD here on Earth because of the immense pain it causes, too." That answers most of my questions for now, but I do have one more thing I want to ask before the current discussion is done. "Okay," I say. "Changing the topic a little, but purple eyes are a sign of an affinity for aether, which you can build up to even if you''re not born with, right?" "Right," he says. "It''s the only affinity which directly affects your body, so there''s an immediate change when you gain it, said change being your eyes turning purple. I think it''s as a result of the aether itself that''s flowing through them as the affinity also causes you to start producing it." "So Celstials have purple eyes because they have an affinity for aether," I say. "Not because they''re Celestials." "Correct," he answers. "Unlike the gold of a god''s eyes or the silver of a mythical beast''s eyes, purple isn''t limited to just one type of being so even a mortal can have it. And to answer a question you haven''t asked ¨C the reason it seems there''s only one Celestial of each type is because it''s both rare to happen and because transcendence also affects the body a little. When it''s via aether¡­ that change has some more pronounced effects. I''m not sure what Aster was before he became a Celestial, but you''ve met Aurora, right? I noticed her near your place the other day." "Yeah," I nod. "She''s stopped by a couple of times." "She was a type of light leopard before she became a Celestial," he informs me. "Her pelt changed to that more aurora-like effect you know now from its original green glow when she transcended." "From what you''ve heard or were you there?" "I knew her before she transcended," he says. "She''d come nap in my branches every now and then while trying to if I was in her area. I wasn''t there when it happened, though." "Ah," I say. "So you''re older than Aurora?" "Significantly," he confirms. "I''m the third-eldest Celestial, Aster is the second, and His Laziness is the eldest of them all. I roughly know how each other Celestial transcended, but not how Aster or His Laziness did. Aster''s also the only one whose original species I don''t know. His Laziness is easy since Rift Wolves are already influenced by aether enough that his body didn''t have a visible difference. He looks like every other Rift Wolf I''ve ever met." So he''s met more than two of us, though if he''s as old as he''s claiming, I suppose that''s understandable. "The reason you turned me down when I asked you out," I say. "It''s because you know me from before?" "Yeah," he answers. "Though I wasn''t entirely surprised by you asking. I''ve topped you plenty of times over the eras. Even bottomed a few times, once you were certain you weren''t going to break me in half." "I¡­ what?" I ask, causing Ash to let out the first real laugh I''ve ever heard him do. As he does, the trees near the sidewalk and down the center of the road shift and rustle despite the lack of a wind. A strong scent of wood, earth, and fruit fills the air in the few seconds as he laughs, as if we''re in an ancient fruit grove. All of the plants around us grow a little in the few seconds of his laugh, the grass going from less than 2" to almost 8" in seconds, flowers swelling up in size and spreading, and even the bushes and trees around gain a few feet of height. Then Ash clears his throat and returns to his more neutral expression. The sudden plant growth ceases, though the scent remains in the air. "Sorry," he says. "I try to keep my emotions in check as it tends to influence nature around me if I don''t. To explain why I laughed ¨C you''ve transcended before. Remember how I said that transcendence affects one''s soul?" "Yeah," I answer. "I transcended? In what way?" "There are more than a dozen ways to transcend," he tells me. "All of them affect your soul and body in some form. That effect on your soul affects any future reincarnations as well." "Like the eyes." "Like the eyes," he says. "You transcended via body a long time ago, and it''s why you don''t feel as physically tired as a mortal might in normal circumstances. Why you don''t need to eat as often even though you can, and why your body is so efficient at processing what you consume that you never have to go to the bathroom. These were adjustments made by the soul cycle when you reincarnated as they''re necessary for your soul to be able to be hosted. The stronger a soul is, the more it needs in a body and the less likely it''ll find that naturally." Because the effects from the transcendence occur after we''re formed and born, later on in life. They''re not "natural" features of bodies. "I transcended via body," I say. "And those are the influences on reincarnations, but that''s not all. It makes us extremely strong." "If you had your real strength," he tells me. "Your Strength, Constitution, Agility, and Dexterity stats would have the infinity symbol. You don''t actually have infinite strength, but those who transcend via body might as well. They''re the physical version to the magical nature of gods. When you return to your real form, you''ll have that essentially-limitless strength and nearly-indestructible body back." He thinks for a few moments. "You probably have some hesitations being in charge in your reincarnated form as a result," he adds. "You''re used to being so strong you need the other one to take the lead. That probably stuck with your soul. It wasn''t until I transcended via body that you''d willingly take charge. And the reason I transcended via body was boredom more than anything. With how long my life was and me not being a Celestial yet, I needed something to pass the time." Transcending out of boredom sounds both wrong and amusing. "That''s three transcendence for you?" I ask. "Or more than that? "Only three," he answers. "Each one you do make all future ones more difficult. The only time I''ve known a being to transcend more than three times, they went from a god to a Celestial, so I think that transition isn''t affected as much as other transcendence methods by the difficulty increase. At the very least, their soul only comes off as being a thrice-transcended being." "Was it me?" I ask. "No," he says. "But you know him ¨C it''s Griffin, from the place we''re going to now. When he''s pretending to be human, he likes doing stuff like running a club-type place on some world or other. His current interest is on Earth, though my favorite was when he ran a club for fairies. That was back before this universe formed." Our topic changes away from the stuff I''d been asking about, my curiosities sated for now. As we finish the walk to the Starry Iris, Ash tells me about the fairy club Griffin once ran and some of the wild stories from that time. It seems some fairy types really know how to party. Chapter 0041 No pup lies in my bed when I wake, nor is he anywhere in my home. Aster must''ve woken early and found himself something to do. The only hope is that he isn''t bothering people, but there''s not much I can do if he is. I fix myself a quick breakfast, then dress and exit my house just in time for Ryan to ascend the steps. After Ash and I talked last night and he revealed some things about me, we ate at the Starry Iris and I came home. Just as I got into bed, my boyfriend asked if I wanted to go to the sort-of-a press conference by the bureau this morning. The answer was "not really" due to me already knowing what''s going to happen there, but I decided to go to accompany Ryan since he''s going. "Morning, Evan," he pulls me in for a hug and a kiss. "Morning, Ryan," I respond. "Sleep well?" He asks as we release and make our way down to his truck. "Yeah," I answer. "You?" "Like a log," he responds. "Did you push yourself in the forest yesterday? Your Level went up by 4 and I know it takes a fair bit for that where you''re at." I didn''t tell Ryan about remembering my past life on Thursday, not after nor when we had lunch together yesterday. Part of it was because I wasn''t fully sure of what to tell him and part of it was because I wanted to learn more about my real self first. There are some things I won''t tell him even when I do reveal, like that I seem to remember a different life each time I sleep. "I did," I tell him. "The river''s transitioning away from goblins and into trolls and boars more, so I''m hitting the Special Quest thresholds faster. Did around fourteen miles yesterday, and that''s put me up to around¡­ well, I think my current estimate is around thirty-seven miles of the river taken care of? Could be off as I''m not really keeping full track. I have probably just one or two left when accounting for curves. I could''ve finished it yesterday if I really wanted to, but I wanted to stop after reaching another Level threshold." "Don''t burn yourself out," he tells me. "You''re wanting to restore it to enjoy it, aren''t you? If you burn yourself out, you''ll probably just get aggravated with it." Ryan gives me a sideways glance before snorting. "Then again, you don''t really seem to get truly aggravated," he says. "I take it you''re returning after the announcement, to finish the river and then do the lake?" "Yeah," I answer. "Though I''ll probably check on the Pup Leisure Pond first. As I mentioned at lunch yesterday, it''s a place rich in mana-type plants so I can produce mana potions. Based on how it was when I returned after lunch yesterday, I should have the necessary reagents today." That will let me stock up before the lake, in case that requires more than the 58,900 MP that I now have. "Let me know if you need any help," he tells me. "Or even just want some company, yeah? I''m free today." "I''ll let you know," I tell him. "Small topic change, but I spoke with Ash last night." "Ash is the guy who drops off your groceries on Sundays?" "Yeah," I nod. "I''d contacted him about something I''d remembered on Thursday, and he gave me some answers about stuff. During my post-lunch nap, I recalled an entire past life. My soul doesn''t get wiped between lives. The reason for that is because while I''m not a god, I am a transcendent. You and Nick were right in that I''ve transcended before, but it wasn''t through mind or magical ability. It was through body. The King of the Celestials apparently altered the soul cycle to prevent reincarnates from remembering about other types of transcendence while in their mortal state rather than their transcendent form, and it seems that how and when we remember past lives and our real selves mostly varies based on the type of transcendence we did." Ash gave me a little bit more information when he dropped me off at my house last night, information which Ryan will probably be thankful to know. It''s not forbidden for reincarnates to know about other types of transcendent, they just won''t remember it on their own. I don''t know what my brother''s reasoning was for how he did things, but I''m not going to question it outside of to his face. That will have to wait until I see him face-to-face again. "By body, huh?" Ryan mulls over that as he lets some kids cross the road, then continues driving forward. "I know that having transcended through mana and magical ability causes my reincarnations to have a higher talent for recovering mana and boosts my resistance to curses and the like. Since our recovery rate and such are locked by the System''s allowances, that''s why all gods are Rank 5. What does transcendence via body do to your reincarnations? I can make some assumptions about your real self." "My real self has nigh infinite strength and constitution," I tell him. "And virtually limitless stamina and energy. I''m immune to any toxin as well and don''t need to eat. In a reincarnation, I have a reduced need for sleep but can fall asleep whenever I want, and a reduced need for food and oxygen. I also process food more efficiently and my body eliminates any waste as it forms." "Seriously?" Ryan raises his eyebrows as he takes his eyes off the road for a moment. "How often do you actually need to eat or sleep?" "Depends on how active I am," I shrug. "I''ve gone a month without eating or sleeping before, but I wasn''t really doing much during that time. It was a test to see my limits. Probably could have gone longer, but I enjoy eating and sleep so stopped so that I could." "What did you eat after?" "I was ten at the time," I tell him. "Got myself a big pie and a gallon of ice cream and devoured it all in one sitting, then curled up and took a nap that lasted four days." With brief breaks because I kept getting woken up by people wanting to make sure I''m fine or to tell me to do stuff. I was a pretty stubborn kid and insisted on sleeping more. "I also can''t get sick," I add. "Another perk from being a reincarnated body transcendent." "Damn," he says. "But you''re not super strong or anything like that?" "I would be if I weren''t born into a place with the System," I tell him. "That hard locks our stats such as how strong we are. However, another thing Ash revealed to me last night was that all Rank 5s are transcendent. It''s the only way to let us enjoy our higher abilities through the System. Rank 4s are people whose souls were cleansed, but had nearly transcended at some point before." "All Rank 5s, huh?" "Yeah," I confirm. "Through various methods. There are more than a dozen ways to transcend. And one last thing you might want to know about this topic is the reason you and other gods feel as if Griffin and I are superior to them." "It relates to transcendence?" He asks. "It can''t be just the method, can it? I only feel that way with the two of you. There are other Rank 5s who are body transcendents, right?" "There are," I confirm. "Specifically, it''s the number of times we''ve transcended. Transcending evolves one''s soul, for a lack of a better term. It''s still technically a ''mortal-type'' soul which is why it''s possible to reincarnate. At least, for the first time or two. Ash says that he''s never heard of a triple-transcendent reincarnating once they reach that state. "That evolution is why you have that inferior feeling to me and Griffin," I tell him. "We''ve both transcended more than once. Griffin has three times, though technically four. He can''t reincarnate, either, as he''s a Celestial. Did you ever notice him not having a soul?" That didn''t seem to come up before but it''s a pretty large detail to miss. "I noticed that he''s able to conceal his energies," Ryan tells me. "I can''t feel any energy from him, so just assumed he knew how to conceal that, too. He''s a Celestial?" Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator. "He is," I confirm. "He apparently just likes to run clubs." "How does Ash know all of this?" Ryan asks. "He''s a Celestial, too," I answer. "I''m not, though ¨C I''m something called a Rift Wolf, and we produce aether naturally. That''s why my eyes are purple: I have an innate affinity for it from my real self." "Never heard of those before," he says. "Must be restricted information for reincarnation, then." "Probably," I shrug. "Anyway, Ash is the third-eldest Celestial and Griffin is the fourth-eldest. I asked them about the Celestial Aster was talking about when he said that one had given the government some dragon meat¡­ turns out that it was Griffin. He got bored and hunted a dragon, apparently. As for Aster, he is the second-eldest Celestial." "And their king is the first," Ryan says. "And also my older brother." "Pardon?" He nearly swerves off the road but his Rank 5 Awakened reflexes kick in and he corrects before we''ve moved an inch off course. "Your older brother is the King of the Celestials?" "I think he''s annoyed by me reincarnating a lot." Ryan snorts in response to that. We talk a little bit more about what I''ve learned and remembered the past couple of days, though I do leave out some information. He''s glad to finally know why he and other gods feel inferior to me, though. It''s a matter of how many times my soul has evolved compared to his. Other types of reincarnated transcendent beings aren''t as sensitive to soul influence, which is why it''s mainly gods who feel that way. I didn''t bother asking Ash how many times I''ve transcended since it was obvious and I''d like to figure out the other one on my own. Since triple-transcendent ones can''t reincarnate, but I give off the feeling I''m superior to those who''ve only done it once and are sensitive to souls, that means I''ve transcended twice. Doing it via aether and mana aren''t possibilities since Celestials can''t reincarnate and a demigod nature overrides any other transcendence for how remembering the past works. Transcendence via an element also changes the soul into a different type so I couldn''t have done it that way. Without knowing about more methods of transcendence and their effects on reincarnates, I''ll probably have to wait until I learn more or until I remember directly. Rift Wolves are also immune to that soul influence, which is why I don''t feel inferior to Griffin or Ash. We talk more as we travel to the central district, where the announcement will be made. At the very heart of Central District is a massive park ¨C over two miles in diameter, with the center being a large wooded section with some grassy areas and a lake. I came here a few times when I was little, before I got a permit to become a scavenger. Being a scavenger was easier than going to school and there are some jobs they''ll let children do if they want and can prove themselves at it. Scavenging is one of those since scavengers have an extremely low chance of encountering actual dangers, especially in Category 1-1 Dungeons. The job is also important enough to society that those who perform it aren''t required to attend classes. The announcement is being done near the southern edge of the park, and the stage for it has already been set up. Several Awakened stand at the ready as guards just in case something happens, and I recognize a couple of them. Kelsey stands on the stage in her full armor, staff at the ready. She''s fixed her hair into a tight braid and is scanning the crowd for potential threats to the non-Awakened bureau members around. The rep who''s doing the speaking is an Awakened but not all bureau members are. Nearby the stage but not on it is Barry, who''s dressed in his purple-and-silver robe. Not many mages actually wear robes since they''re generally impractical, but Barry very much prefers it. In his right hand, he carries his mage''s staff, a slightly-gnarled staff with a purple crystal floating above it, several smaller grey ones circling around that. That''s not the same one I saw last time so it''s probably new. Also very high-quality, if it''s got floating crystals rather than attached ones. Held on Barry''s left hip is Colby. The grey shorts and purple sleeveless shirt he''s wearing are probably what his dad''s wearing underneath the robe. He''s even wearing a trio of bracelets made to imitate storage bracelets on his right wrist and a pair of children''s black combat boots. As much as he likes to dress like his dad, he''s not allowed to wear a robe or the leather armor his dad wears beneath it. That disappoints the tyke and I''m sure it won''t be long before my friend starts allowing him to wear imitation ones. "You weren''t called for guard duty?" I ask. "I offered," Ryan tells me. "But they felt it would be overkill to have Rank 5s over Level 20 acting as guards. Kelsey might be the strongest one here right now. On guard duty, that is. And they wanted people who are better at crowd control for normal crowds. I''m good at it for monsters." That makes sense. Awakened aren''t likely to cause trouble without the Dark Infection and the ones hired for guard duty are mostly here to deter normal people from doing anything. If there is a problem, Kelsey can use some of her nature magics to paralyze or sedate. Barry has spatial magics he can use to bend the area around the stage and prevent someone from rushing it or throwing things at it. It''s a real concern that normal people would do that as it''s happened before. There''s been an instigator at some announcements before ¨C not in our city but in others ¨C and the bureau wants to make sure that with an announcement like this, they can have peace and calm to ensure their statements are heard. "Alright," I say. "I''m going to say ''hi'' to Barry and Colby real quick." "Mind if I come with?" "Not at all," I answer. "Come on." We head over to where Barry is and the moment Colby spots me, he waves and starts tugging on his dad''s sleeve. "What''s up?" Barry looks at his son. "Hey, Barry," I say, and my friend looks over. "Oh, hey Evan, Ryan," he says, then looks at Colby. "You wanted to say hi to Uncle Evan?" Colby nods, then reaches out for me. Barry passes his son to me and I bounce the kid a little once I''m holding him on my side. "Came to hear the announcement in-person, I take it?" Barry asks. "Yeah," I answer. "Mostly ''cause Ryan was coming." "They gave us their estimates," he tells me. "Based on some chatter they''ve picked up, they do expect something to happen. Nothing we can''t handle and another with spatial powers is preemptively putting up a warping. They''re a fair bit stronger than me and can do it in such a way that it won''t seem like there''s anything different." Of course someone who found out about the lack of Dungeons who wants to cause problems. At least I know they won''t succeed in anything. "Probably Meredith, then," Ryan says. "She''s the strongest dimensionalist I know and she can do that sort of thing." "That''s her, yeah," Barry says. "It''s almost time to start. Colby? Time to go to Grandma and Grandpa." Colby looks at his dad, then looks up at me and stares. "Or¡­ would you mind, Evan?" Barry asks. "I think he wants to hang out with you." "Not at all," I shift Colby and move him up onto my shoulders, and the little guy holds onto my head while I hold onto his legs for added support. "This will give him a good view." "Thanks," Barry smiles. "He''s been wondering about the next time he gets to stay at your place. You left out in the last pick-up report that you''d let him eat as much candy and ice cream as he wanted." "And cake, too," I add. "We baked a cake and ate the whole thing." "You say that with such a straight face," Barry laughs. "I''m amazed he even slept with all that sugar." "Sugar crashes," I chuckle. "They hit hard. Let''s go find a spot where we won''t obstruct anyone''s views, Ryan." "I''m going to go in place now," Barry tells me. "Talk again after." Barry gives Colby a light tap on the forehead, then heads toward the stage while Ryan and I find a good spot. A few minutes later, a spokesman for the bureau walks onto the stage and the event begins. "Good morning, everyone," he says. "My name is Harold and I am here on behalf of the Bureau of Magic Management to discuss something some of you may have heard about already. For around a week now, no new Dungeons have formed, and no new Awakened have appeared. However-" Harold cuts off as a loud cracking noise fills the air. From the very center of the park, an immense tree grows. Everyone else''s attention turns to it as I make sure Colby doesn''t fall off of my shoulders as he looks up, his grip on me tightening as the feeling of an immense, third-tier soul pushes on him and everyone around us regardless of their sensitivity to such a thing. The tree continues to grow until it''s trunk is around five hundred feet in diameter and more than seven hundred in height. Its canopy stretches hundreds of feet in all directions, shading a significant portion of the park. No leaves of any tree have ever been as true a green as those, and even from here they seem to glimmer in the sun above. That''s an effect caused by the golden veins within the leaves. Spread across the thousands of branches of the great tree are pink flowers, and I''m sure some of them even bear fruit. "Hello, mortals," a deep, ancient voice fills the air as the bark of the tree splits to form a mouth and a pair of lavender-colored eyes. "I am a being beyond your comprehension, one of the managers of the universe itself and a being above and older than the gods, with power far beyond that which even they could possess. "There is no need to panic over the lack of Dungeons and new Awakened," the great tree says. "Continue your lives as normal and ignore those who claim shortages will occur. Anyone who buys in excess over fear will find all they buy rotting as punishment for contributing to a shortage. Do not make others suffer, or I shall make you suffer. Those who attempt to instigate panic and chaos over the changes will find their lives after death even more of a suffering. "This is my law as the First of the World Trees," he says. "Enacted upon this world now." Silence hangs in the air, not a single animal making a peep. Even the wind itself seems to have fallen silent from his presence. "The System will return to full operation soon," the great tree states. "It has simply been shifted into a reduced mode temporarily. Though we could always turn it off instead¡­" He lets the threat hang in the air for a few moments before speaking again. "Abide by this law and none shall suffer." The eyes and mouth of the tree close and return to a state of bark once more. The pressure caused by such an immense tier three soul fades as well, though everyone else is still affected by it. It might take them some time to recover. Should I have brought a chair? Chapter 0042 "What the hell was that?" Barry mumbles. We''re currently seated on a rooftop terrace at a restaurant near the park. Once the First of the World Trees stopped possessing the tree he''d grown in the park, it took a little while for people to start moving around again. Those who began to recover first were Rank 5s, whether Awakened or not. Barry and Kelsey and the others on duty at the time stayed to make sure everyone was able to recover from that, then the two friends of mine among the guards came with Ryan and me to get some food. Colby''s currently sitting on his dad''s lap, staring at the dish of ice cream with berries and chocolate on top that''s set in front of them. Even if everyone has recovered enough to move around, most people are still subdued after an hour. Even the Rank 5s. The five of us are the only ones up here on this terrace right now, so it''s safe to talk about a few things. I''m not really worried, however. Another thing Ash revealed to me last night is that my brother put into place restrictions on who can know what. Quite literally. If someone isn''t supposed to know about something at all, then it can''t be brought up around them. The same restriction set also prevents reincarnations from becoming widespread knowledge even if many people seem to be reincarnates. "That was a Celestial in his true, full form," I answer Barry''s question. "The third of them to come to be. The name he goes by is ''Ash'', the approximation into our language of his original species." "What are Celestials?" Kelsey asks. According to Ash, I took the longest to remember anything out of transcendent ones, which may be influenced by my twice-transcended state, but most likely because of me being a Rift Wolf. That means both Barry and Kelsey already know they''re reincarnated transcendent beings. However, they don''t have access to their knowledge of Celestials from pre-reincarnation. That''s definitely a post-reincarnation learning experience only. "A form of transcendent being above even the gods," I answer. "Though Ash''s presence is a little bit different from the others''. That feeling of absolute superiority he gives would normally only be felt by those sensitive to the influence of a soul and is the result of him having transcended more times than you. However, the reason it was so bad this time is because he took on such a larger form, his soul itself wasn''t as compressed. "Ash has transcended via the soul," I say. "And that boosts the strength and potency of their soul. If he''s in, say, a human form, only those sensitive to the influence of a soul would notice anything when he''s not hiding his soul. His soul is compacted down into it and the vibe it gives off is proportionate to that. But when he takes on a much larger form, his soul is able to spread out more¡­" "Which makes it much more noticeable," Kelsey says. "And that was amplified by his magic filling the air from the growth of the tree as well. It seems to have affected everyone in the district, too, not just those at the park." "The district?" I snort a little. "No. According to what Ash told me would happen, it''ll affect the entire city. And he did that at the central district for every city. On Earth. His voice spread throughout each city, and his magic carried the feel of his soul on it to everyone." All three of the other adults at the table look at me. "Hold up," Ryan says. "Ash told you he was going to do that?" "He did," I confirm. "When we were talking last night, he mentioned his plan to interrupt today''s conference. That is a message broadcast to the entire world." Even if not all cities will actually be fine if the lack of Dungeons goes on for more than a week or two. The only reason cities were able to develop as much as they did was because of the presence of Dungeons. Ash confirmed to me that their purpose is to support society and let them grow more than just hunting monsters and harvesting resources would allow. Our city happens to be located in an area which can support such a large population without Dungeons, as long as actual effort is put in to sustain it. "To the entire world?" Ryan asks. "Wait ¨C you mean that he grew a tree in every City for that?" "Simultaneously." "Damn," Ryan leans back in his seat. "I knew Celestials were powerful, but that''s just¡­ damn. If that''s it feels like when he''s doing it on that scale, what would it feel like if he was fully in one place?" "I''m not sure if there would be a different," I shrug. "I can''t quite put it fully into mortal words, but essentially, his entire being was in each of the trees he grew at once, not split between them. That''s the gist of it but not the entirety." The others think about that for a few moments, then Kelsey frowns. "How come you weren''t affected?" She asks. "Does that mean you''ve transcended as many times or more as him?" "No," I shake my head. "I''ve only transcended twice. Once you do it three times, you seem to be locked out of the soul cycle. The same goes for if you transcend in certain ways, such as via the elements or aether, as it creates fundamental changes to your soul. "In my case," I say. "I''ve only transcended twice, so that feeling of me being superior can be felt by those sensitive to the influence of a soul who''ve only transcended once or never, but it doesn''t give me immunity to those who''ve done it three times. According to Ash, Rift Wolves are completely immune to the effect regardless of how many times we''ve transcended." "What''s a Rift Wolf?" Kelsey asks. "My real species," I answer. "According to Ash, very few people will have heard of us, whether transcended or not. He only knows of three of my kind: myself, my older brother, and one he only met recently enough that I was already reincarnated again. We seem to generally keep to our kind and our friends." "Oh," she says. "What kind of stuff can you do as a Rift Wolf?" "Open rifts between universes," I answer. "And our natural power is wielding aether, not mana or some other form of magical energy derived from it. We produce it instead and can convert it into the others as needed or desired. What about you two? I know that Ryan''s a god, but I don''t know about either of you. Since you know mine, I think it''s only fair." "I''m a nature spirit," Kelsey informs me. "Originated as a tree, actually, and developed a mind over the eras. Transcended via nature. It''s¡­ not very easy for something not a part of it. So plants, boulders, springs, and the like can do it if they either get lucky or develop a mind like I did. Once something does, they become a nature spirit of a type dependent on what they originally were. The Earth term for my specific type is probably ''dryad''." "How long have you known about yourself?" I ask. "Ash mentioned that Rift Wolves seem to take the longest out of all reincarnates to begin remembering, or even to become aware that they''re more than they seem." "Pretty much from the start," she shrugs. "I''ve just sort of always known I''m actually a tree of sorts, though my memories themselves didn''t begin returning until I was around ten." "What about you?" I ask Barry. This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it. He looks contemplative as he stares at Colby for a few moments, who''s finally decided to take a bite of his ice cream. "Much like orange eyes and gods," Barry tells me. "Grey eyes are only found in reincarnates of a specific type. Grey is for mythical beasts, and the two of us are specifically a species of deer similar to elk or moose but not quite. We have a few differences from deer as well, including having large, feathery wings. Our primary magics are force and spatial, which is why we''re born with affinities for those in reincarnations. Colby is my real son and I was planning on returning to my real self, but then he was born. He apparently decided to follow his father into a new life for a little while." Barry snorts and ruffles his son''s hair. "If he was just a normal kid," he says. "I probably would''ve left him with his grandparents to return to my real self. But for my actual son to reincarnate into my mortal son, he had perfect timing on that. We can sort of always tell we''re something more, but don''t begin regaining our memories until we hit puberty and generally remember everything by the time we''re fifteen or sixteen. Well, everything that we''re going to remember. Some information doesn''t come back to us until we return to our true selves. So Colby can tell that he''s not really a human, can''t you?" Colby nods and shoves another spoonful of ice cream into his mouth. The rest of our early lunch is eaten in silence, though everyone seems to perk up a little bit more by the time we''re done. The waitress who comes and checks on us every now and then is still subdued, though. Chances are high that the higher one''s natural Rank, the faster they''ll recover. Ryan covers everyone''s food, then Kelsey and Barry leave, Colby waving to me as they go. "Something seemed like it occurred to you while we ate," Ryan says as we get into his truck. "Is it important?" "Depending on how one looks at it," I say. "Do you know who''s in charge of managing Monster Districts?" "Yeah, why?" I haven''t told him yet that I can fix manipulate energy flows or fix Monster Eggs. "Rift Wolves have the power to deal with them," I explain. "And it''s something I can do without reverting to my true form. I can currently deal with six of them without recovering my aether and there are three within the city. It doesn''t take me too much effort ¨C just a few minutes ¨C so I don''t mind doing it. I think it''d be better to do it now, while everyone''s a bit¡­ affected." Since Rank 4s and Rank 5s wouldn''t have much of a reason to go to a Monster District, those who''ll recover faster won''t be heading into them. There won''t be anyone in them who isn''t an authorized agent of the bureau right now, either, as Ash told me he was going to teleport out any hunters who are in them for safety purposes. The staff maintaining the districts have secure facilities within them and will likely have been in those, so they wouldn''t have been at risk of an attack while affected by the soul of a Celestial. With only staff in there, this is the perfect opportunity for dealing with Monster Eggs within the city and not draw too much attention to myself. "You don''t seem terribly concerned with society at large," Ryan snorts and pulls out of the parking spot. "So I''m sure you''ve got some idea of compensation for the help." If I were a different person, the assumption that I want to do it for selfish reasons might offend me. I don''t really mind the assumption of selfishness when there''s a legitimate reason for it. He''s also not wrong about my motives. "I''ll be hitting Level 20 soon," I tell him. "This afternoon, if I work on the river when I head to the Mythic Forest today. Another Level and I''ll be at the point where I can withstand the energies of a Category 5-3 Dungeon. Clothes can be a bit expensive and I''ve already spent quite a decent amount of money on new scavenging equipment, alchemy equipment, my bracelets, and my clothes. I want some sturdier stuff and can''t afford it off of just my looting of the monsters I''m taking down. Their essence crystals sell for a decent amount, but I need stuff of a higher quality." "Aren''t Rank 5s and up immune to the energies of the Mythic Forest?" He asks. "Based on what I could find in historical records, our gear is never damaged in them." "That might be true," I say. "But with my restoring the forest and its energy flows returning to normal, won''t that mean its ambient mana levels will increase? The quality of the plants I''ll find within will increase and my equipment can''t handle that." Normal people might be able to consume high-strength foods and potions, and we could even use ordinary tools to process them. That last part only holds true for food, however, and it''ll still wear on the equipment over time. The bigger the gap between the tools and the resources they''re using to process them, the faster the wear occurs. When it comes to alchemy¡­ we''re performing magical processes. That wears on things even more quickly and trying to craft a basic potion with non-magical mortar, pestle, ladle, and cauldron would result in all of them being destroyed the very first time. The amount of force needed to break harder magical reagents can be higher as well, so the mortar and pestle or whatever else would also need to be stronger to resist said force. "You really like alchemy and running your shop, don''t you?" Ryan asks. "I do," I confirm. "I find alchemy and enchanting relaxing. Running the shop gives me plenty of time to read as well." Even after remembering things from before this life, my tastes haven''t changed and nor has my personality. I''m still me, I just have additional memories now. There''s still plenty I can learn from reading, and plenty of stories I don''t have memories of reading. "Alright," he chuckles. "By the way, if you haven''t checked your account in the last few days, there should have been a deposit into it." "A deposit?" I frown. "Ry, please don''t start sending me money." "It''s from the loot from the other day," he quickly explains. "That''s both of ours, not just mine. I might have been the one to perform the kills, but you acted as tank and pulled in the beasts." Even if I''m a long-range damage dealer as my typical role, such things aren''t fully set and people can cover more than one area. By drawing the monsters in, I acted as the tank between us while Ryan was the dealer. The reason people usually fall into one role is a mixture of their preferred fighting style and specializations. In a Dungeon or on a monster hunt, it''s better to make sure each person knows what their dedicated role in the battles are. Doing that reduces the chances of getting in the way of others and causing problems, especially when working with someone you''re not used to working with. With teams more used to working together, it''s easier to avoid getting in someone''s way or wasting mana while expanding one''s area as they''re used to how the others act and support and can adjust accordingly. More experience working with others in a variety will help someone learn to do that as well, but it''s not as easy when dealing with amateurs who can''t also adapt, so I''ve heard. "I hadn''t thought about that," I admit. "Was it much?" "Considering what we were working with?" He asks. "Yeah. I didn''t use my sword for the fight both because it was so easy but also to spare the hides. Drought salamanders might be only about three feet in length, but they were strong enough that their hides were Tier 62. That''s $6,200 or so per drought lizard hide. For the starseeker wolves, they were about the same Tier, so $186,000 or so per pelt. Those two alone were about ten mil combined, and that''s the lowest-priced individual item with one that''s not the highest. It doesn''t include the meat, fangs, and claws, nor anything from the boars. Those three also had specialized essence crystals rather than standard ones¡­ and I forgot to ask if you wanted any of those." I''d honestly forgotten there were more specialized types of essence crystals. I always buy normal ones since they''re the most common and the easiest and cheapest to acquire, especially with the cheaper potions I''ve been selling over the years. Since I didn''t scavenge monster parts, I also never really harvested essence crystals until I Awakened. Well it''s technically Mrow harvesting them, but close enough. "What types?" "The drought lizards had fire essence crystals," he answers. "While the startusk boars and starseeker wolves had either fire, water, or spatial essence crystals." "I probably could have used some of those," I say. "But I''m sure I''ll acquire more. Based on the vision I had, the Starry Pleasure Waters are much larger than that zone. Several miles across. Since the Monster Eggs in the section we cleared out seemed to have some degree of influence from the terrain, there will probably be more to acquire." Ryan is quiet for a few moments, then snorts. "The more I get to know you on a personal level than just as a scavenger who I used to see all the time and now a shopkeeper," he says. "The more I''m starting to realize that you really don''t get bothered very easily. You find out I didn''t think about asking you if you needed stuff from the loot and your reaction is just ''eh, I can probably get more'' even though you could''ve used them." "I still don''t have equipment that can process them," I say. "Though the money will help some. Not enough for stuff at Tier 124, though." "You want to stop there?" He asks. "Not go further? I guess because the monsters there are all so weak, and you want to focus on the zones you''ve unlocked right now rather than spreading out a lot more?" "Less of that," I say. "And more that I have a feeling I should just stick to Tier 124 things for now. Another thing I learned from remembering past lives is that I have clairvoyance for past, present, and future aspects, which probably explains those visions. It also manifests as ''gut instincts'' about things, and I don''t think I''ll be gaining Levels again for awhile after I hit Level 20, nor that I''ll be acquiring anything stronger than that for awhile." "Any particular reasons?" Ryan asks. "Just instinct," I shrug. "This isn''t the way back to our district." "It''s not," he says. "Since you want to help with the Monster Districts today, we''re heading to the nearest one. I was planning on calling the guy in charge of them and ask him to meet us there once we finished talking." "Ah," I say. "Well, I think that''s everything on my end, so I guess we can call him now." Chapter 0043 The buildings of the Monster District we''ve entered show plenty of signs of battle. Broken windows, scorched segments, collapsed walls¡­ there are even a few buildings which have fallen over. Throughout the ruins are signs of nature attempting to take over once more. Trees which survived destruction spreading their seeds so new ones sprout up here and there, vines and ivy growing up buildings and rubble, even a pond within view of here, formed where a battle destroyed a chunk of road and the land beneath it and to the side. Moss and algae coats quite a lot of the land as well. Though the natural parts of the ruins aren''t unscathed, either. A few of the trees within view are broken, burned, or even fell over entirely at some point. "A lot of lower Ranks find this surreal," Ryan comments as we walk along the street. "Seeing something so modern also so ruined and overgrown. A place like this, within the great walls of the city. We of the higher ranks are more accepting." "Anything can happen at any time," I say. "Though now that I know what causes someone to be a Rank 4 or 5, it''s understandable. We have past lives to draw on from experience, and some are millions of years old." Ryan''s real self is about three million years old, while I''m not sure how old I am beyond "absolutely ancient". "Yeah," he says. "This district''s Monster Egg spawns a type of jaguar monster, though with the magic in the air here, some from decaying monsters and some leaked from spells in battles, has influenced the soil a bit as well. That''s resulted in normal animals mutating into magical beasts or even monsters. While the bureau knows where a few of those nests are, they figured it''s fine to leave them for harvesting a few reagents." "Do you think they''ll actually agree to this?" I ask. "All you told him was to meet you at the Monster Egg here, not the why of it. Monster Districts do cause some problems in that it reduces living space a little, but I doubt that''s reason enough to want it gone." The fifteen to twenty-five thousand people the district could house without being too crowded is less than a percent of the population of the city, as would be the total population which can be held by all three of the Monster Districts here. Restoring them won''t really be a massive increase in space. Monster Eggs aren''t something I''ve researched too much. I know about them and Monster Districts, but the finer details about how they affect the area they form in aren''t something I needed to know. Not beyond that they spawn monsters and reappear regularly. The memories I''ve regained so far didn''t include more information than that. I probably didn''t really care too much to learn more about them. With what I do know, however, it doesn''t seem like they''re a major concern. "One concern that''s held," Ryan says. "Is additional Monster Eggs forming nearby. That''s happened in a few other cities in the past, where more eventually form close to others which already existed. Manhattan is one example of that ¨C they have a Monster District with two Monster Eggs in it, formed around three hundred years apart. "The first one spawned easy monsters," he says. "A type of lizard which can be found in Category 1-1 Dungeons. The second one spawns a type of floating fish that''s about twice as strong. And normally, Monster Eggs won''t spawn within around fifty miles of another, and a city can expect to have one spawn once every two or three centuries. The thing about the second one in that district in Manhattan is that it''s only a mile from the first and it spawned forty years after one in another part of the city." That''s enough to figure out why he''s confident the bureau will be fine with a Monster Egg being removed even if the district provides some useful materials. "So the concern is that more will spawn because of its presence," I say. "And of stronger ones on top of that?" "Right," he says. "That''s also been consistent for all of the areas where a second one spawned close to another. It was outside of the usual pattern and they spawned stronger monsters. Both also spawn them about thirty percent faster than average." "So if one normally spawns a monster every hundred days," I say. "And a second one spawns after, it''s every seventy days after?" "Correct," he says. "And it''s a further thirty percent faster if more spawn, or every forty-nine days. London has three within three miles of each other. And the typical spawn time for a normal Monster Egg is just a few weeks at the most. And that third one? Also has stronger monsters than the last." The fully tangled energy flows in an area must make it more susceptible to further tangling close by. That''s probably why the Mythic Forests have so many of them so close to each other when combined with the fact that it seems to exist within its own time bubble. Mythical beasts are taking care of the monsters throughout it, but they''re still spawning fairly fast. That makes it all the more important I work on the Mythic Forest more. I want to see it flourishing again, but I also feel like I should relieve the burden on the beasts which have been trying to help it all these years. "Even if it''s hundreds of years later," I say. "They would prefer the Monster Eggs to be gone than to cause another to spawn near them." "That''s the thought," he says. "I know they want the Monster Eggs gone because of the concern another will spawn close by, with stronger monsters than the last. And that''s not all." "There''s more?" "There''s more," he nods. "On a rare occasion, they can upgrade. There''s one in Paris which, about two hundred years ago, went from spawning a Category 1-1 bulls to Category 3-2 elk. This isn''t too common, but they can''t figure out what causes the increased spawn. Some have done the upgrade after just a few years, some centuries, and some never." From something which might have 11 as their highest stat to something with around 70 for their highest stat. That''s a decent jump and would immediately make the normal hunters for the district unable to do so anymore. Now I understand why he''s so confident the bureau would prefer to get the Monster Eggs within the city eliminated. The chance is small, but a Monster Egg can start spawning stronger monsters. If it suddenly upgrades to one which can breach the internal barriers of the city¡­ then around twenty million people will either die or need to do an emergency evacuation. One thing that can be guaranteed with the bureau is that something higher on their priority list than performing research and acquiring materials is making sure powerful monsters do not come near the city. If a Monster Egg is able to upgrade its strength at any time without warning, then they''ll want it gone regardless of the benefits. The risk is too high even if the chance is too low. The rest of our walk to the Monster Egg is performed in silence and when we arrive at the location, there''s no one present so we sit on some rubble to wait. Ryan said the manager shouldn''t be too long as he wasn''t too much further away from here than we were when he made the call. Stolen story; please report. As we wait, I check out the Monster Egg a little. The egg itself is currently invisible but the location it forms in is marked out with some small, bright orange posts and orange markings on the ground. Apparently, being in the same spot as a Monster Egg when it forms is immediately lethal to most people. Marking out the zone it appears in ensures that people can avoid the spot in case it spawns while they''re here. The actual spawn rate is varied, just within a certain range, according to Ryan. I get up and walk around the location of the Monster Egg, examining it with my senses. It doesn''t seem any different from the ones I''ve purged in the Mythic Forest. Roughly the same size and energy intensity, and it''s just a tangled mess of energy flows. Clearing it is the same as clearing one in the Mythic Forest with no extra effort needed. Finished, I return to sitting on the scorched and broken car we''d chosen for our seat. Things seem a bit too peaceful right now for us being in a zone filled with monsters, both natural and spawned. "Odd that there aren''t any monsters nearby," I look around. "Would expect more. Was it recently cleared?" "No," Ryan answers. "I can sense some nearby, but they seem more cautious than usual. I''ve normally been attacked at least once or twice on the way here. Monsters don''t have an instinct which lets them know someone can kill them. Normal ones don''t, at any rate." It could be a result of my leaking aether making them more cautious. Those in the Mythic Forest aren''t, but they''re also much stronger than the ones here. They probably don''t have their instincts screaming at them to avoid me while the ones here might. "Ah." A few more minutes pass before someone approaches us, a man in his late forties with brown hair and flamingo-pink eyes, dressed in a suit. "Frederick," Ryan stands and greets the man as he reaches us. "Thanks for coming out here." "You said it was important?" Frederick looks at me. "And you brought Evan Rethe? I''d heard you begun dating him." He''s probably heard of me because of my Dungeon Baby status, though it''s odd he''d know we''re dating. Do Rank 5s gossip with government officials? Or it could be that the agents at the cafe across the street found out and reported it back for some reason. "We''re dating, yeah," Ryan says. "And no, that''s not why I brought him here. He could handle himself even if something showed up. Old as you are, I''m sure you know about reincarnations of types other than yours?" "So you finally learned?" Frederick asks. "Most gods usually take a little bit longer, if they even stay past their early twenties. Seems most decide to return to their true selves at around twenty-five or so." "Don''t blame ''em," Ryan says. "Evan is a reincarnation of a more rare being ¨C and one which can eliminate Monster Eggs." "Eliminate?" Frederick frowns as he looks at me. "And how can you do that? I''ve not heard of any being which can. Admittedly, there are plenty of gaps in knowledge held by those of us who''ve remembered more and shared, but I''ve never heard of such a being before. Not even the Celestials seem to be able to." So he knows about the Celestials, then. "I''m of a species rarer than the Celestials," I tell him. "Though inferior to them in many ways. I lack their infinite aether, for example, and their true immortality as well. Do you have some method to detect Monster Eggs even when they''re not visible?" That magitech surely exists. "We can," he says. "What do they read as when you detect them?" I ask. "A mass of energy?" "They do," he confirms. "A large clump of an immense amount of it. When they''re about to reappear and spawn more monsters, that level surges. The magitech for it in this district started malfunctioning a little bit ago, though, so they''re attempting to repair it." "Malfunctioning?" Ryan asks. "How?" "Energy flows throughout the universe," I tell Frederick. "Permeating everything. There are many forms of it, all a subset of aether. I''ve only just begun remembering things so I''m not fully sure what causes it, but the energy streams can become contaminated with other energies. When that happens, they start to block up, which expands them. Sort of like a balloon. When they swell too much, they start tangling with others. That is what causes Monster Eggs." Though I don''t fully know the mechanics of the energy flows, as while they weaken after a Monster Egg, they do increase again as the streams continue. The energies are produced somehow, but I''m not sure how. "What my species can do," I say. "Is destroy the contaminating energies, allowing the flows to occur as normal once again. Ryan seems confident that the bureau would prefer them to be gone. At least, the bureau for this city. With the Celestial who appeared having distracted the city, this is the best time for me to eliminate them and not have attention drawn to myself." "We would," Frederick says. "One of the things we''re researching is a way to eliminate them. If you really can do that, it would be appreciated, though we''ll need to go to another Monster District for you to prove that you can. As I mentioned, the equipment for it began malfunctioning a short awhile ago, so we won''t be able to verify whether or not what you claim is possible in this one." "Malfunctioning how?" Ryan asks. "Isn''t it just a specialized energy reader? Those generally don''t malfunction." "Excellent," I say. "As pay for eliminating the three of them within this city, there are a few thing I would like in return. I need clothes, scavenging gear, alchemy tools, and enchanting tools at Tier 124 as a minimum. I have access to a garden which is growing in strength and it''ll eventually have reagents that strong." I really don''t think I''ll have to worry about anything stronger than that, at least not for awhile. "The scavenging gear and alchemy equipment is more important," I add. "The clothes can be ignored if that''s asking too much." "Let me make a call," Frederick says. "Though I''ll need proof that you can do that before agreeing to anything." He walks away and makes a phone call, and Ryan sits down beside me. "It''s odd that it''s malfunctioning," Ryan mumbles. "What happened to it? Did Aster come here because of Ev and accidentally break it?" I don''t think he knows he''s mumbling, and that''s probably not a bad guess. It wouldn''t surprise me for Aster to do something like that based on what I''ve seen of the pup. He does act a bit impulsively at times. "Alright," Frederick returns. "We can authorize the equipment if you''re able to clear the three. We''ll need to go to another one first, then they''ll move its scanners over to this location if you genuinely do remove it." "How are the scanners malfunctioning?" Ryan asks. "Did something break them? Maybe a little pup?" "At 11:46 AM today," I say. "They suddenly detected a drop in the energy clump before it vanished completely at 11:49 AM. Am I correct?" "How did you know?" Frederick frowns. "No one should have spoken about it, much less to a civilian." "It takes me about three minutes to fix them." "Hold up!" Ryan holds back a laugh as he looks at me. "You mean that when you were examining the spot for the Monster Egg, that was you fixing it?" "I figured that since we were waiting, I could get it out of the way," I tell him. "Whether they wanted it gone or not, I was going to remove it. With how powerful I am now, me being here for just a few minutes already weakened it enough it wasn''t going to spawn monsters again for a long time." The only reason the one at the Great Napping Spot did was because I had so little aether between those two Special Quests that it wasn''t enough to weaken the Monster Egg enough to remove its spawning aspect, just slow it a bit. I''ll probably go there and get rid of that one this afternoon since I have enough aether to manage it now. With how powerful I''ve gotten while doing the river work, I''ve effectively rendered its Monster Eggs incapable of spawning again possibly for centuries. At least, the ones in the strip I''ve done the last few days. The earlier ones might regain their abilities to sooner than that, but that''s not really a concern for me. As I grow stronger and gain more capacity, my presence will influence further and further away. Just taking care of parts of my brother''s garden near those ones will clear them up over time. My ability to clear them directly has increased as well. That one seems influenced more by my magical strength than my aether capacity, extending how far out I can reach with it. When I did my first one, I could only clear the streams within twenty feet of me. When I cleared out this Monster Egg, I also cleared out all of the streams within about two thousand feet of it. Even found a spot that may have been starting to develop into a Monster Egg, though I''m not sure how long it would be before that one actually formed. Could be days, could be centuries. It won''t anymore. "Well¡­ thank you," Frederick says. "You''re welcome," I tell him. "Should we leave? I don''t want to wait around if it''s not needed. There''s other stuff I''d like to do today." Chapter 0044 Upon appearing at the Pup Leisure Pond, I find Aster swimming circles in the pond¡­ which has expanded again. It''s now around one hundred and fifty feet at its widest and roughly one hundred feet at its narrowest. The expansion did eat into some of the plants which grew but fortunately, there are plenty more here than just what was around the pond. "Having fun?" I ask Aster, who lets out a happy bark as he starts paddling over to me. He exits the pond and shakes himself dry, the droplets heading in my direction vanishing before reaching me while the rest continue until they hit the ground. "Thank you for your consideration," I kneel down and rub the pup''s head, finding his fur as soft and dry as ever. "So you''re able to do stuff like that, huh?" "Woof!" His tail wags energetically. "I didn''t mention it before I went to bed last night," I pick him up and hold him in my arms, rubbing his head. "But Ash and I spoke last night and he mentioned some stuff. Becoming a Celestial is extremely painful, huh?" Aster''s ears droop and he curls up more as the sadness and fear enter my mind, radiated out of the little pup. "It''s okay, buddy," I stroke his back. "So you had my brother to help you out with things, huh? Ash wasn''t sure how long you were a Celestial for before he became one, and you were the second. Want to share what kind of beast you were before becoming a Celestial?" Aster shakes his head, and I give him a light scratch behind his ears. "Don''t worry about it," I tell him. "You don''t have to tell me if you don''t want to." The pup rubs his head against my chest, then I set him down and start harvesting reagents. The Pup Leisure Pond has begun to grow some more magical plants which I can use in alchemy and I want to brew up more mana potions now rather than later. Having spent the last few hours getting driven around the city to clear up the three Monster Eggs within it made me not want to deal with the rest of the river and the lake itself today. None of the trees here morphed into manapple trees and the current environment doesn''t seem right for mushrooms to spawn so I won''t have those two reagents. There are, however, two things which I can use in their place, and it still has the manasprigs that I prefer to use in my mana potions. The first of the two substitute reagents is the manaberry, which is similar in size to a grape and blue in color, dark blue streaks swirling throughout them.
[Manaberry]
Tier: 7
A berry filled with mana.
Stored Mana: 64
This is the lowest amount of mana which a Tier 7 manaberry can hold, the highest amount being 192. There are plenty of their bushes here, so I''m able to harvest a decent amount of the higher values and there still be enough left over to be considerate towards whatever other inhabitants might spawn or show up in this small section of forest. Manaberries can be substituted in for the manapples, while the other reagent here can act as a substitute for the manacap mushrooms. I carefully uproot a flower with a bunch of thin, branching roots. The roots themselves are pale, off-white with blue streaks running through them. Those roots are also the reagent.
[Manakiss Root]
Tier: 7
The root of a plant which draws in and stores mana.
Stored Mana: 3,500
I could tell from looking at the richness of the blue in the leaves and stem of the flower that it would have a high amount of stored mana, and I make sure to only harvest those with the best. Not all of them have 3,500, the maximum they can hold at Tier 7, but they''re all quite high. One of the reasons they have to be processed with alchemy rather than just consumed isn''t just to draw out some of their latent stored mana not mentioned in the description. No, it''s also because of what earned them their name of "manakiss". They''re a fairly potent aphrodisiac when consumed raw. Alchemy will cause that property to be lost during the conversion process if there aren''t other aphrodisiac ingredients included. With my foraging complete, I pull some buckets out of my storage and fill them with clear water with a faint blue tint which pours out of the springs and into the pond.
[Mana Spring Water]
Tier: 7
Mystical water infused with mana itself.
It hasn''t gone up in quality since I last checked it but I''m not surprised by that. The amount of mana in the air and soil are increasing, but it''s not too much yet. A lot more time and work will be needed before it increases quickly. With my gathering complete, I make sure everything is stored back into my bracelets, then I return to my workshop and pull everything out. The moment I arrive, my phone pings to indicate that someone texted me while I was in the Mythic Forest. I pull it out and find a text from Ryan. [Ryan]: You said you''re going to be brewing up potions instead of running the forest right? [Ryan]: Too much to ask if I can watch I know we''re going on our date later The texts are from just a few minutes ago, and I really don''t mind at all. Why he wants to watch is a mystery to me, but I can ask when he gets here. [Evan]: Sure. Knock on the back door of my shop when you arrive. I go about setting up for the brewing process, then wait for Ryan to knock on the back door. It doesn''t take him very long, and he''s changed outfits in the two hours since he dropped me off at home. Now, he''s dressed in black jeans and a tight-fitting green-grey t-shirt, along with sneakers. He''s styled his hair a little bit differently as well. Already dressed and ready for our date, I''m assuming. He looks pretty nice in that outfit, though he looks good in everything I''ve ever seen him in. "Hey," he pulls me in for a hug and a kiss after the door is closed. "Sorry if I''m intruding on this." "If you were, I''d have said you can''t." "Okay," he chuckles. "I''m just a bit bored and it was either ask my boyfriend if I can watch him brew, play video games, or go swimming." "I beat out video games?" "Always will," he chuckles again and gives me another kiss. "You said you''re only making mana potions?" "Yeah," I answer. "Since the Mythic Forest probably won''t have enough energy to return to normal functioning by Monday, it''ll probably be better to have my shop closed this coming week as well, as much as I''d like to have it open. Since I avoid taking hits entirely, I don''t really go through what health potions I have while I''m completely out of mana potions." This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it. "Alright," he says. "And you don''t mind people watching your alchemy process? I know some alchemists are touchy about it." Some alchemists like to keep their processes secret, as if what they do is truly unique. Some of them might have a technique that they came up with on their own and which isn''t widespread, but I don''t have anything like that. "I''m making basic potions you can find the recipes for online," I tell him. "The most ''secret'' part of my technique is how I manage to get precise effect counts each time with traditional brewing rather than modern. That''s also not really a technique I''d want to avoid others stealing." If others could use it, that means consistent brewing with large batches would become more plausible. That would potentially cheapen potions overall while making it easier to have a standard without dealing with modern alchemy techniques. Cheaper potions means a higher survival rate for newcomers. "It''s one others can''t steal," Ryan says, probably remembering that I''ve mentioned to him before why I can do it. Because of my ability to sense magical energies themselves, allowing me to perform minor tweaks to the recipe as I brew in order to bring the values to what I want. According to him and a few others I''ve asked ¨C both gods and non-god reincarnates ¨C my sensitivity magical energies really is unique. Likely a result of me being a Rift Wolf. "Even if it was a technique someone could steal," I tell Ryan. "I wouldn''t mind others learning it. Anyway, you can sit at the table there, just don''t know over the inkwells. Some of the inks can be fairly volatile." "They aren''t enchanted?" He asks as he moves to my scroll-writing table. "They can withstand a lot of damage," I inform him. "But it''s better to be safe than sorry." "Ah." As Ryan takes a seat, I begin working on brewing a batch of mana potion. The first step is lighting the cauldron I set up, followed by filling it with one hundred gallons of mana spring water. This is naturally-primed for brewing mana potions so I don''t need to infuse it with essence crystal dust and instead begin working on mashing manaberries. Once I''ve mashed up ten pounds of the berries, I set the bucket with that off to the side and begin chopping manasprig leaves. Eight pounds of the leaves are chopped, then put it the side so I can chop the manakiss roots. It''s probably a good thing the manakiss flower grows in dense clusters, because I need quite a lot of their roots for the potion. I begin adding reagents to the heated mana spring water in small amounts, one or two cups at a time. As I near the end, I determine that the potion is a little bit too weak based on its color and smell, so prepare a little bit more of the reagents and add them in. "There we go," I murmur when it''s suitable, then extinguish the crystals beneath the cauldron. "And done."
[Mana Potion]
Tier: 7
A potion of liquid mana, which immediately restores the user''s MP when consumed.
Mana Content: 3,500 MP
"That''s all it took?" Ryan asks as I start cleaning up while the cauldron of potion cools. "Brewing that was a lot more simple than I expected." "Never looked into alchemy before?" I ask. "Never needed it," he shrugs. "Can always afford to stock up on what I expect I''ll need and then some," he pulls out a stasis storage bracelet from one of his bracelets. "This one is filled with potions and salves, just in case. Most Rank 5s who run Dungeons regularly have something like this, especially if they''re past Level 5. Means we really don''t need to learn the art ourselves." That''s pretty convenient. "If you use your sense for energies to help you," he says. "What was the sniffing for? You did some small sniffs throughout and at the end, seemed dissatisfied before adding more." "I judge the strength by color and smell." "Not your sense of energies?" "Not my sense of energies." "Didn''t you say you use your sense of energies to determine?" "I do." "But you just said you don''t." "I don''t." "Now I''m confused." "It''s not the same sense of energies I told you about," I tell him. "I can perceive them in different ways. The sense you''re thinking of is technically through my eyes but isn''t. It''s more of one I feel through my existence, but it''s easier to describe as ''seeing''. However, I can also feel energy flows through my skin, see energies with my eyes, hear them, taste them, and even smell them. The actual ''seeing'' bit is different as it''s more of registering how much is there rather than what is there. Same with all of the other physical sensory parts¡­ though I can also sort of tell what is there as well through them." "That''s confusing." "I can tell how much energy is in something at any given point in time just by looking at it," I explain. "That''s normal, even standard. That''s always on, not something I can turn off. It''s like colors ¨C most people don''t really notice the color of something unless it''s important but it''s always there. In some forms, that energy is more clear than others. Liquid is one of them, though that''s partly because the liquid itself also tends to be darker." "Ah." I don''t think he fully understands, but it''s not really something I can fully explain to him. After all, how do you explain to someone without a sense how that sense works? It would be like trying to explain to someone born without eyes what seeing is and how it works. Aster jumps up onto Ryan''s lap, startling the demigod as he hadn''t noticed the pup''s arrival. A moment later, Ryan''s eyes widen and he starts looking around. His breathing quickens as if he''s become overstimulated but is attempting to resist fidgeting around. "By the Great Flow¡­" he looks at me and his eyes widen even more with his mouth agape. When he starts to look down at Aster, he suddenly shakes his head and blinks a few times. "No looking at you like that, huh?" Ryan raises an eyebrow. "What happened?" I ask. "I think he just let me experience what you''re talking about," Ryan says. "All of my normal senses suddenly became able to detect the energies around me, even in the air. It was¡­ intense. I thought you said Celestials can''t sense energies?" That was directed to Aster, who shakes his head. "But you just let me?" Aster nods. "Same thing as me," I tell him. "It''s my additional sense for energies that they can''t do. He can feel energies around him, and maybe even their types, but not the energy flows themselves." Not quite a good explanation, but this whole thing is already a bit difficult to explain in the first place. It''s not as if I''ve ever had a reason to try and explain it to others before, so that adds to my clumsiness with this. The pup seems to agree with me on that as he nods to Ryan. "So it''s how much is there," Ryan says. "With a touch of what kind, but not fully?" "Something like that," I say as Aster nods. "You can kind of tell that there are different types, especially the more distinct ones there are. And it''s a good thing Aster cut it off before you looked at him." "Why?" "Remember the difference between gods and Celestials?" I ask. "One transcended via mana, the other via aether. Both contain an unlimited amount of their related energy. You tried to look at an unlimited source of magical energy, Ry." "Oh. Right." His cheeks flush a little in embarrassment at the realization. He was already suffering from overstimulation at having a new aspect to five separate senses temporarily available. Then he went to look at something those senses would go overdrive looking at. Unlike myself or the Celestials, he''s not used to such a thing. It would just be too much for him to handle. "But I was fine touching him," Ryan quickly realizes, the red disappearing from his cheeks. "Actually," I say. "You weren''t touching him via your skin. Aster put a thin layer of magic over his fur and skin to avoid direct contact with you while he was letting you borrow his senses." "Woof!" Aster confirms. Ryan thinks about that for a few moments as he strokes the pup''s fur, then he looks at me. "When I looked at you with that sense," he says. "It was like¡­ there was some sort of energy there that was¡­ argh! It''s hard to describe. But it''s like it was more intense than others, even if not higher in quantity." "That''s my aether," I tell him. "Had always just assumed it was my life force when I saw it. Never bothered figuring out what the different energies were before and just assumed that since it was within me, that was why I could detect it when I couldn''t in others." Ryan snorts. "What?" I ask. "Nothing," he chuckles. "And if what I saw when looking around is enough to go by, then thanks, Aster. Looking at an unlimited source of energy probably wouldn''t have been the brightest idea." It would be like having gone from looking at a dying candle to looking at a sun up-close. "Also," I add. "Some Celestials can sense the energy flows the way I can. Aster probably can''t, but Ash, Griffin, and Aurora all can to some degree, even if not as strongly as me." "Oh," he says. "So you''re always seeing the intensity level of energies within things?" "Yeah." "And you didn''t know Griffin and Ash were Celestials?" "Ever put a coat over a lamp?" "No, why would I" "They''re effectively doing that," I tell him. "It makes it seem as if they have no energy at all. They''ve figured out a way to completely conceal their energies ¨C all of them." When I asked Ryan about sensing Griffin''s soul, I hadn''t thought about the fact that souls are another form of energy and would''ve been hidden by that. This ability to sense energies through my five senses doesn''t really let me know the difference between a soul and something else as it''s just detecting energy. "Anyway," I say. "Once I get this poured into some buckets and stored away, I''ll head upstairs and change for the date." "Want some help?" Ryan asks. "With the bottling, I mean." "Sure," I answer. "Let me grab you a pair of gloves." Chapter 0045 When I step back onto the deck, Ryan examines me up and down. After my shower, I slipped on grey boxer-briefs (which he can''t see, of course), black jeans, a light purple t-shirt, and an unbuttoned grey shirt over that. Ryan waited on the deck for me as I prepared and seems to have been entertaining Aster as he did. He''s got a small ball that he''s tossing and letting bounce around a little, the pup chasing after it before depositing the ball in Ryan''s hand. Considering that the ball itself looks completely clean when he does, the pup either doesn''t slobber on things in the slightest or he''s keeping it clean on purpose. "The latter," Ryan tells me when I ask. "I told him I wanted to keep my hands clean for the date when he summoned the ball and tried to give it to me the first time. The slobber on the ball suddenly vanished and hasn''t been back." "Impressive," I rub the pup on the head. "Ryan and I are heading out for our date now, alright?" The ball vanishes and Aster woofs, then accompanies us as we leave. Rather than going for a walk, Ryan leads me to his truck. "It''s not within walking distance this evening?" I ask. "It was going to be," he tells me. "But a Celestial sort of derailed the plans. Most shops are closed right now, and I checked as you were finishing up to see if anything had opened back up. Not much. Nothing that seems right for a full date other than the park, at least." The park being open doesn''t mean the vendors are, however. "So it''s a bit further, then." "My place, if you don''t mind that," he says. "There''s plenty to do there." "Sure." Ryan drives us to his apartment, Aster staring out the window from my lap as we go. He''s so small as a wolf pup that I had to lift him up a little so he could look. It seems he wants to stick to this form instead of becoming something a little bit bigger. Maybe he just wanted me to lift him up so he could look through the window? I wouldn''t put it past the pup. We talk as Ryan drives, mostly him telling me the original plans for the date. He''d wanted to take me to an open-air theater that was going to put on a show at seven, dinner served to the guests, except it''s been canceled as most of the performers aren''t Awakened and are potentially low in their Rank. They''re still affected by Ash''s manifestation. With that out of the way, he looked for alternatives but could only find restaurants as real options. He didn''t want to do that as the entirety of the date before we go to his apartment, so decided that we could just do stuff there instead. "Here we are," Ryan says as we enter his apartment, and Aster lets out a small woof. "You''ll have to wait for food until we eat, too." Aster''s ears droop. I close the door behind me as Ryan sets the pup down, then Ryan goes to his kitchen and begins preparing something for us. As much as I''d like to just watch rather than do work, I step in to help him so he''s not doing it all by himself. Ryan tells me what to work on as he''s the one who knows what we''re making, though it doesn''t seem he needs too much help. Dinner turns out to be some sort of bird monster meat served on noodles and topped with an orange sauce, with a salad for the side. Aster gets to eat some of the meat raw as Ryan and I eat our meals. "That was pretty good," I tell Ryan as we take care of the dishes. "Do you mind if I ask how you learned to cook?" "Some by instinct," he tells me. "Some from learning as I grew up or from other hunters. The instinct, I later learned was part of my real nature leaking through. Even if a demigod only knows he''s something more than he is before his memories start to return, we do still retain some of our skills. Once I started regaining past memories, I also regained knowledge of cooking techniques and other related things, too." "That''s neat," I say. "What''s next? Cuddles and story? Watching something?" "I was thinking we could go up to the roof," he says. "Do some swimming. I have spare trunks you can borrow if you want, though you''d probably need to make sure to tie the drawstring tightly if you want to avoid them slipping off since my waist is a little bigger than yours. Or we could go nude ¨C it''s fully private up there thanks to the enchantments." "A swim sounds nice," I tell him. "And we can go nude." "Alright," he says. "Let''s-" Before he can finish that sentence, we appear in the Mythic Forest, beside the Starry Pleasure Waters. Aster lets out a happy bark and charges into the pond snout-first. When he surfaces, he lets out several happy barks and summons an inflated beach ball which looks made of an odd material. Probably something he acquired from another world. "I think Aster wants us to swim and play here," I tell Ryan. "I don''t mind if you don''t," he looks around. "This place really filled up, huh?" While the entire available zone isn''t covered in plant life yet, the pond itself is now fully-surrounded by plant life, thanks to my work on it the last two days. Well, there wasn''t much work done on it yesterday, maybe fifteen minutes before I gave up on working and went to researching. That''s why I don''t count it as really having worked on it yesterday, but what amount I did do was sufficient to finish surrounding the pond while I was gone. The effect is phenomenal. With plants looking like the night sky everywhere, whether in their petals, their stems, their blades, or their leaves, it looks almost as if we''re in space itself. It''s a comfortable feel and look and I''m sure it''ll only become more so as things grow in even more. "It did," I confirm as I undress. While I simply wade into the water once I''ve undressed, Ryan looks for a spot where it''s less shallow, then runs and jumps in, splashing Aster and me. We start playing with the ball, with Ryan and me tossing it back and forth and Aster jumping up and hitting it with his snout for his own passes. Mostly. A few times, the pup does a sort of flip in order to hit the ball with his tail, the flips sending the ball a little bit further to the side than necessary. They also cause the ball to fly faster, making it harder for Ryan and me to catch or bump back while in the water. This sort of play wears me out a bit so I leave the pond and relax in the grass while Ryan keeps playing with Aster. Even a demigod doesn''t have the stamina to play with a Celestial for long, though, and he pulls himself out of the pond after a bit to lie beside me. I snuggle up against him as we watch Aster continue playing with the ball for a bit. Snuggling up against Ryan is nice enough that I close my eyes and just relax. He''s pretty comfortable. Eventually, Aster decides to exit the pond, run over, and jump straight onto my chest. "Aster¡­" Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more. The pup sends me a message, informing me that one of the other Celestials has invited him over to play. His friend almost never does that and wants it in his own realm even more rarely and so he''ll be gone awhile, "at least a sleep or two". "Alright," I ruffle the pup''s very dry head. "Have a good time." "Woof!" Aster''s tail wags in his excitement, then he vanishes. "Where''s he going?" Ryan asks. "To another Celestial''s personal realm," I say. "Seems he got invited over." "Neat," he says. "Though I hope he doesn''t upset the other guy too much." "I got the impression that it usually takes a day or two before Aster annoys him too much," I say. "Ah." Ryan goes back to looking upward. We can see part of the fog wall ceiling from here, the trees not yet so dense and large that they''re obscuring it from the view of those on the ground. That seems to be holding his attention for some reason, so I close my eyes and relax again. He''s pretty comfortable to snuggle against like this. Every time I open my eyes to look at Ryan''s face, he''s got a contemplative expression, sometimes with a slight frown. "Everything alright?" I eventually ask. "Yeah," he kisses me on the forehead. "It''s not important, so don''t worry about it. If it becomes important, though, I''ll tell you." So it relates to me somehow but doesn''t matter in the now. That''s my interpretation of his response, and I''ll trust him to tell me if it''s important or problematic. I can''t see a reason for him to not otherwise. "Alright," I close my eyes again. After a few more minutes, I see Ryan still having the contemplative look on his face. "You sure you''re alright?" I ask. "Yeah," he chuckles. "It''s more of two things going through my head right now. I''m trying to figure out the fog wall here. Or cloud wall, really. I know that they''re used in Dungeons to block off what would be an entrance to nothingness. In here, though, that''s not the case. This also isn''t a Dungeon, so why does it have the fog wall? Or the Fog of Obscurity?" "That''s an easy one to answer," I tell him. "Cloud''s doing it." "Cloud as in the Celestial?" "Yeah." "Ash tell you?" "No," I answer. "I figured it out on my own. Remember how I can sense energies passively? I could tell there was something different about the fog wall from the start, but didn''t really care. It was almost as if it was an entity unto itself. Now that I know about Cloud, I''ve figured out why ¨C he is the fog wall. Sort of. I think it''s like Ash and the trees he grew but not quite." Realizing this is how I was able to know Cloud was nearby the other day. He''s always here, possibly even when he''s not. I think he can create separate bodies for himself like Ash did earlier, enabling him to be both the fog wall and have the body of a fish or a pup. "So that''s a Celestial''s body up there?" Ryan asks. "Yeah," I answer. "He''s not focusing on this area right now, though. I can tell when he''s looking at a zone directly as his attention isn''t here. As for the Fog of Obscurity¡­ I''m not sure about that. It doesn''t have his magic in it so that''s not him. Could just be my big brother doing it to try and keep me in the areas he wants." "Ah," Ryan''s quiet for a few minutes. "Why do you think Cloud''s creating the fog wall?" "I''m not too sure," I shrug. "Could''ve been asked by my brother to do so, or it could be so I can''t see out of the zone I''m working on to avoid me getting distracted and wanting to clean up a larger area." There''s any number of reasons, really. I''ll have to ask the Celestial himself to know for sure. After a few more minutes of silence, I take another peek at Ryan. He''s still got the contemplative look on his face. Whatever the other thing on his mind is, kit must be pretty big. Speaking of big things¡­ Ryan snorts when my hand find his dick, and he turns his head and gives me a kiss as I start to jack him off. We make out for a minute, then I shift my position so I can start licking his dick. With the two of us alone now and in a date, there are some things I want to do beyond just cuddling. Since he''s done with talking for now, I''m taking over for a little bit. Ryan moans softly as I pull back his foreskin and lick the head, one of his hands moving to my shoulder, rubbing it. I take the tip of his dick into my mouth and slide my tongue across it, eliciting a slightly-louder moan from my boyfriend. After a few minutes of treating his dick to some stimulation, I switch to licking and sucking on his balls while lightly stroking his dick. I alternate between teasing his balls and licking and sucking his dick for a few minutes, then go all the way down on it, feeling it sliding against my tongue and into my throat. Ryan lets out a heavy moan and I pull back so only the tip is in my mouth, then sink back down. His hand moves from my shoulder to my head as he moans again, and my head is where his hand firmly remains as I continue to go up and down on his dick. "Almost-almost there," Ryan moans. "Ev, I''m close! Unh!" He lets out a grunt-moan with each shot of cum which blasts into my mouth, and I pull my head back so that only the tip is inside. I pull down his foreskin again and swirl with my tongue as his orgasm continues, each shot of his cum hitting my tongue and throat with plenty of force. When he finishes, I make sure to clean up every last drop of cum, then go all the way down on his dick one more time before pulling off. I move forward so I can kiss Ryan, our dicks rubbing together as he pushes his tongue into my mouth. His hands wander across my back and down to my ass, then back up. Soft moans escape me from his touch and the feeling of our rubbing dicks, then Ryan surprises me by flipping us over so that he''s on top, all without losing our movements and closeness. After another minute, he gets off of me and pulls something out of his bracelet. A bottle of lube. "You never know when you might need some," he tells me when I raise an eyebrow. "In a Dungeon?" "I''ve gone home with a guy before and he didn''t have any," Ryan tells me. "Now I always carry some." "Ah." I move onto my hands and knees and after lubing up, Ryan starts to slide his dick into my ass. A semi-loud moan escapes him as his dick fills my ass with its size, a soft moan escaping me from the feeling of it sliding in. Once he''s all the way in, Ryan lets out a sigh, then sort-of lies on me from behind, wrapping an arm against my stomach while using his other to brace himself against the ground. He starts kissing my neck as he thrusts, his movements more forceful even if his thrusts aren''t as quick. The slower, rougher thrusts feel just as good to me as quicker ones, however, and I reach up with one of my hands to grab his side as I turn my head so we can kiss. This position is a little uncomfortable but I enjoy it, especially when Ryan slips his tongue into my mouth again. The kiss doesn''t last too long as I need to return to bracing myself with both arms, but my enjoyment doesn''t end. His body against mine, his dick thrusting back and forth in my ass, us having rubbed our dicks together already¡­ it all brings me over the edge and I reach my climax, cum blasting onto the ground beneath me. When Ryan reaches his climax, he pulls out and I lie on my back, the grass soft beneath me. Rather than going for another round, Ryan lies does beside me, allowing me to rest my head on his shoulder as we catch our breaths a little. Well, as he catches my breath. Since he now knows I don''t need as much oxygen as a normal person, I don''t fake being out of breath. "Hey, Evan?" Ryan asks after a few minutes. "Yeah?" "Is there anything interesting you remember from your past life?" He asks. Our date isn''t over yet, and it seems he wants to learn more about me again. I''m happy to oblige as I don''t see the harm in it. That''s part of what this phase is all about, after all. "Sure," I decide to tell him a little bit more than I''d planned. "I''ve remembered a new life every time I''ve fallen asleep after the first came back. The last few were earlier reincarnations than the first one I remembered, so I think that one was my last time. In all of them¡­ people didn''t have as varied of hair and eye colors." "Really?" He asks. "How varied were they? Or rather¡­ what little was there?" "Brown, blond, black, or a sort of rusty-brown/orange color for hair," I answer. "And brown, blue, or green for mortal eye colors, purple for Rift Wolves and I guess Celestials, gold for gods, and silver for mythic beasts." Ryan thinks for a few moments. "I must be too young to have been around for that era," he says. "I wonder what changed." "In the first reincarnation I remembered," I say. "I pretty distinctly remember thinking that it was a shame I was struggling to get my real hair color to not show through in my reincarnations. Remember how the big boy has the pelt of purples, oranges, and pinks?" "That''s a Rift Wolf pelt, right?" He asks. "Yeah," I answer. "And it seems like it pops up in all reincarnations I had before. I was trying to get it to hide so it''d take longer for my brother to find me after I reincarnated. He usually did sometime around my early or mid twenties, it seems. "Anyway¡­ something I thought about in the first life I remembered," I say. "Was how it''d be so much easier if there was a wide variety of hair and eye colors for everyone. It''d make it harder for Noea to find me, then." "Noea being your brother?" "Yeah." "I can see how that''d be useful," he says, then suddenly sits up and stares at me. "Wait. Hold on. Are you saying that you edited life itself just so you could blend in more easily?" "I can''t be a hundred percent certain as if I did, it was probably as my real self and I don''t have those memories yet," I tell him. "But yes, there''s a chance that I may have edited the biology of animals to have hair and eye colors semi-related to their or their parents'' affinities. And in all universes, too." Ryan falls back to a lying position, then lets out a big sigh. "Man, I really picked a boyfriend, huh?" Chapter 0046 "Everything alright?" I ask as I step onto my deck. Ryan texted me as I was eating breakfast to ask if he could come over. He wouldn''t say more than that but his good morning picture made him seem a bit¡­ not his usual self. When I look at him now, he seems that way for sure. He''s dressed in his training outfit ¨C shorts and a tight-fitting sleeveless with sneakers ¨C and his hair is still styled. That''s normal for him and wouldn''t seem off by themselves. Those beautiful orange eyes of his, however, seem a bit less full of energy than normal. That''s as good a sign as any that something is up. "Yeah," he answers. "But also no. It''s about what I was distracted about last night. The thing other than the fog wall, I mean." "That doesn''t sound good," I say. "Depends on how it''s viewed," he shrugs. "That feeling of being inferior to you¡­ it actually bothers me quite a lot. I really like you, Ev. Honestly, I do. But being with someone who I constantly feel like I''m inferior to¡­" he shakes his head. "I can''t do it." I''m really not surprised this is happening since all of my boyfriends or potential boyfriends ended up ending the relationship as a result. There was hope that Ryan would be different, but the rational part of me knew it wouldn''t work out in the end. "Before you respond," Ryan holds up a hand to stop me from doing just that. "I want to say that I do want to be with you. I was thinking of trying to see if I could get used to it¡­ and then I asked you that question after our sex." "About interesting things I''ve remembered from my past lives?" I ask. "It did take you a bit to come up with something to share." It can be hard to come up with something equal to altering life itself in all universes just so I can hide from my brother. He eventually settled on telling me about a little-known world he''d found and likes to visit from time to time as a god. It''s something he''d only remembered yesterday, and was probably able to remember it as a result of it not having any form of intelligent civilization. He seems to like using it for a vacation spot. "Yeah," he says. "The thing is¡­ your powers are rather insane. While you''re no Celestial, you are above me. And like I said, I would actually like to be with you. Based on what you''ve told me, you''re not a committed sort in your real form, but more of a friends-with-benefits type of deal. I don''t think I could handle that while being inferior to someone and I want to think of the long-term." "I''m a bit lost," I tell him. "I know," he takes a deep breath, then slowly lets it out. "I''ve decided to return to my real form and look into transcending a second time. That should put us on even terms." He likes me so much, he''s decided to transcend a second time just so he can be with me long-term rather than just as mortals. That will open up other possibilities for him as well, which I''m sure he''s also thinking about. It''ll be better for him in the long run as well if he really does want to be with me long term. I remembered all of my past lives when I slept last night. Every last one of them, including my life as my real self. I actually know Ryan as his godly self, even if he doesn''t realize it. If I had my tail right now, it would probably be wagging at the news that Ryan wants to go more long-term than our mortal selves could have. The only reason I never did as my real self was because his life is, well, rather short compared to mine. Even gods eventually die for good. Their lifespan is limited to the length of a universe at the most¡­ mine is not. In fact, I can outlive the Celestials and my true self is already older than they could ever be. "You don''t look too bothered," he says. "You''re thinking long-term," I shrug. "And I remembered knowing you last night. You''re someone I''d be happy meeting up with as friends or more throughout the eras. I wish you luck in transcendence¡­ though if you really want to go long-term, become a Celestial. I do outlive universes, after all, and most types of transcendent beings won''t." "I''ll think about it," he snorts. "But something easier might be better. So I''ll see you again in the future, then?" "If you''d like to," I tell him. "Alright," he says, then his body shimmers. His clothes fade away as a new outfit forms on him. This one is a pair of brown cargo shorts with a dark green sleeveless shirt fitting nicely against his body, which has developed an extra layer of muscle. The shirt is tucked into his shorts, which has a black leather belt around it, a sword fixed onto his hip. Dark brown boots cover his feet, and his hair has shifted to almost resemble sunlight, his eyes now metallic and gold. His facial structure has changed a little as well, now that he''s in his real form. It''s the same handsome face I remember him having before this life, now that I have all of my memories back. "Until we see each other again," Ryan gives me a kiss. "Take care, Evan." "Rethe," I tell him. "Hm?" "My real name," I tell him. "It''s Rethe." "You''re Rethe?" His eyes widen. "Oh, damn. I just remembered all the signs of that. Damn, Ev¡­ Rethe," he smiles a little. "Bye, Rethe." "Bye," I give him a kiss, then he fades away. My expression turns serious. "Now I need to have a discussion with a certain pup." I head to the Mythic Forest and check the different zones, except Aster isn''t present. "Hey, Cloud?" I ask after heading back to the Great Napping Spot. "Would you mind letting Aster know I''d like to talk to him?" A few moments of silence pass, then Aster falls out of the sky. "Whooooooaaa!" He exclaims before catching himself. "Clooooooooooooud! Why''d you warp me out of Ardent''s hooooome? He doesn''t invite me-woof! Woof woof woof! Woof woof, woof, woof!" Aster spotted me and switched back to pretending not to be able to speak. "Hi, Aster," I walk over and grab him by the scruff of his neck, then pick him up and hold him in front of me. "You''re a little liar, aren''t you?" The pup tilts his head to the side, feigning ignorance. "When I told you that I was going to observe mankind more closely," I say. "I gave you the right to modify the Mythic Forest so that you could adjust some of the areas to your liking, so you could have more fun. My sense of time was bad enough I didn''t set the reincarnation spell to reincarnate me quickly, so I had to wait the normal five hundred or so Earth years before the soul cycle processed me." My mistake, for not realizing that what feels like a moment to me is actually a really long time for mortals. I did think it was only going to be a short time and that''s the main cause of the problem my garden is facing. "You''re the one who''s been taking care of the more humanoid monsters, I''m sure," I say. "But you explicitly told me you don''t have permissions. Not that Celestials don''t, that you don''t, then that Celestials don''t. Also, you grabbed a jar of my fur that you''ve had for thousands of years to convince me that you''d found me, or that I''d left that behind for you, after you messed with the scroll to make it seem like my real self had been located by it. The other Celestials have simply referred to my real self as a separate being, but you straight-up tried to convince me I wasn''t who I am." The fog wall snickers, probably at Aster receiving this scolding. My real self is the First Celestial, the king of them all. I didn''t alter life so that I could hide from my brother, I created an entire reality so I could observe mortals without him catching me. It''s tucked away in the far reaches of the Aether, that which exists outside of all realities and which all realities exist within. Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. They pop up on their own all the time, and usually wink out after about a hundred billion or so Earth years, consumed and destroyed by the Aether when their boundaries wear enough for it to seep inside. This wasn''t even the first one I created ¨C I goofed that one up a little so things didn''t progress naturally. Using my experience with it, I created this one so that it would be as if a normal reality¡­ just with people and beasts having a wide variety of hair and eye colors based on their magical affinities or their parents''. That also wasn''t my brother I saw when I reincarnated as Evan. That was my dad. He apparently found me and¡­ well, I''ll have to ask him what he''s up to after I finish dealing with Aster. "None of that is really too important, however," I hold him forward so he can look at the top of the hill of the Great Napping Spot. "Aster, what happened to my tree? That thing was nearly indestructible and it managed the energy flows of the Mythic Forest so that I didn''t have to bother. It also managed the System and the soul cycle. It being reduced to dying roots in the ground is causing so many issues for the universe, not the least of which is nearly all reincarnations occurring on Earth for some reason. There aren''t supposed to be that many Rank 4s and Rank 5s on one planet!" "Uuuuuuuuuuuuuum¡­" "Aster¡­" "It was an accident!" He says. "I was playing with my mini-stars and maybe, uh¡­ accidentally broke the tree? But since I could damage it, I figured it was fine. I didn''t know how to fix it and I didn''t know where you were! By the time I realized it was important, it was already dead! I do have lots of monsters to play with now, though¡­" "So that''s what happened?" Cloud asks, still in the fog wall. "After you left, King Rethe, I came here to be some of its clouds for a little while and noticed the tree was kind of just gone and Monster Eggs were everywhere. But I didn''t know where you were. Then a few years ago, another beast which looked like you asked me to do this¡­ he said you''d reincarnated as a mortal ¨C even though that should be impossible since you''re a Celestial ¨C and he''d play with the System a little so that you''d come here and hopefully remember things sooner without him having to force your memories back." That would be my dad, I''m guessing. "Sorry, Majesty¡­" Aster''s ears and tail droop as his entire body goes limp. "I was a bad boy, wasn''t I?" "It''s nothing I can''t fix," I toss him up into the air, and he lets out a startled shout before catching himself. "Cloud? Mind stopping being a barrier?" "Sure," the fog wall vanishes as the Celestial turns himself into a bird, then soars down and lands on the ground in his wolf form. "Hi, King Rethe." "Hello again, Cloud," I give him a light pat on his head. "You''ve been really good. Give me just a minute and we can do something." "Okay," he moves to beside my feet. Aster was probably the one making adjustments to ponds, since I know he has management permissions. This island needs more space but I doubt he would''ve thought to mess with it even if it took me another century to remember things. It''s always been "my" place in the eyes of the Celestials. The reason he felt it was fine to play with his mini-stars here was probably because I''ve let him before. I was always around to ensure the tree was fine and hadn''t thought about that when I gave him permissions to mess with the forest. If I''d thought to adjust the soul cycle''s ability to process a Celestial''s soul or a triple-transcendent one''s soul immediately, things would have been much better. I''d have been back before any real lasting damage occurred and mortals never would have noticed something was wrong. My mistake, and one I''ll make sure to not repeat in the future. One I should fix now rather than later as well. I tap into my true power and my clothes and bracelets fade away. My form rapidly shifts into my real self, that of a wolf thirteen feet in height with lavender-colored eyes and a pelt of swirling soft purples, pinks, and oranges. I shake my head for a moment, then let out a massive howl. Aster yelps a little as Cloud snickers, then I push out with my power. All of the Monster Eggs here are already cleared up and the push with my power eliminates every monster within the Mythic Forest. The sole Mythic Forest. It''s divided into sections based on terrain but they aren''t separate ones. What I had access to as a mortal was merely the central part ¨C where I''ve created zones for each of the pups to have their own fun in. Very few mortals were ever granted access to this part as a reward, usually only those I selected. Other regions were where the rest gained access to. With the same push of power which eliminated every monster around, I also revoke Aster''s right to affect the Mythic Forest, triple the size of the Great Napping Spot and increase the size of the lake around it to accommodate that, and regrow all of the plants of the land, in all sections and climates of it. The sky also increases in height many times so that it''s more than three miles high rather than only a few thousand feet. Water fills in the rivers, streams, ponds, lakes, and so on that are still empty, rather than them needing time to fill back up. I also repair the roots of my tree and regrow it. Its roots spread out to expand to the edges of the island as the tree itself sprouts and grows tall and wide. Now three thousand feet in diameter and nearly five thousand in height, my tree will give even greater shade for me to nap under. I''ve also made sure this one can''t be harmed by the magic of a Celestial¡­ just in case I get too lazy to set how they may influence the forest next time I decide to do something like this. Ash will probably be upset that he did his big announcement for nothing, but that old tree gets over things quickly. I can probably blink and he''ll be fine with his announcement no longer being relevant. Now that my garden is restored and the System is functional again ¨C and my tree Aster-proofed ¨C I make some adjustments to the soul cycle on top of fixing it. For the first of the adjustments, any transcendent one will have a faster reincarnation rather than having to wait the standard amount of time for processing. Second, it can actually handle beings which have transcended three or more times properly. Third, it can handle Celestials better. I wanted to observe mortals more closely and haven''t been able to ever since I became a Celestial before I made a reality for the first time. There''s only so much I can do when I''m still my real self¡­ so I adjusted the soul cycle of this reality to allow for Celestials to be processed. Having never done such a thing before, I made some errors. It wasn''t able to reincarnate me into a body so it simply created a body for me. I was never abandoned because that body never had any parents in the first place. The Dungeon was a replica of the Great Napping Spot''s condition at the time, there specifically for the purpose of being able to deposit my body somewhere since the soul cycle¡­ can''t normally just drop a body somewhere. With the adjustments I make now, reincarnated Celestials can happen in a person rather than needing their body to be created ¨C the soul cycle can now properly adjust a body to handle one. The same goes for triple-transcendent ones. The way I started remembering things wasn''t entirely from me being a Rift Wolf, my Celestial nature affected it some as well. I adjust the soul cycle so that reincarnated Celestials can remember things more smoothly. My recovery of past lives was rather clunky and I don''t want the others to go through that. "Alright," I look at Aster and Cloud, who are looking at me. "I didn''t just reincarnate myself to be closer to mortals to observe them more easily, I reincarnated myself to test something and now, Celestials are able to reincarnate and grow up. Would you two like to?" "Yes! Yes! Yes!" Aster starts jumping around. "I wanna grow up and be big and strong and nom on Ash''s fruit when he bears some! Did you see the peaches and oranges he grew back when-" Aster vanishes and Cloud gives him a startled look. "That''s one down," I say. "What about you, Cloud? Are you happy with how you are, or would you like to start anew and grow up a little more?" "Can I be a wolfkin?" He asks. "Sure," I answer. "Any other requests?" "No, thank you." "Alright," I say. "See you when you return." "Bye," he says, then vanishes. "Thanks for monitoring the soul cycle while I was gone," I say. "I take it that''s why you were nearby when the Dungeon with me in it appeared?" "Yeah," Ash appears next to me, a tree thirty feet in height. "Got confused about the oddness of that soul and went to investigate. Only once I saw you did I realize that it was you. You''ve put a masking factor in for Celestials so that they seem like mortals to those who can sense souls, huh?" "To prevent the soul-sensitive from knowing something was off, yeah," I confirm, then stretch my body. "I wasn''t a mortal as long as I liked and would''ve kept pretending¡­ but it probably would''ve been a year or two before the garden was ready to boot up the System back to full again. That''s not all that long for me, but I didn''t want to subject the various peoples across the universe to its lack for that long." "Will you do it again?" He asks. "Reincarnate yourself, I mean?" "Probably in the future," I lie down. "Though I won''t be giving a certain pup management permissions. Did you know?" "I learned it after awhile," he says. "Noticed that the monsters that didn''t have mythical beasts which could take care of them were disappearing, so I started observing the garden for a bit. Noticed Aster popping in and out and saw what was going on then. Didn''t know that he''d destroyed the tree¡­ I''m sorry. I should''ve paid more attention to him." "It''s not your fault," I say. "By the way, you know my brother and father?" "Your father, yes," he says. "Your brother, no. I met your farther after you reincarnated and he''d mentioned your brother to me. It was your father doing the Quests, by the way. Said he''d hope it would help you remember things after as it was apparently going to take you awhile." Looking at things now, with all the power I have in my real form, I can confirm that. My father initiating those Quests for me is the reason I was able to remember things as early as I did. It seems Celestials would have taken until their late twenties to begin remembering¡­ something I''ve now fixed. "I adjusted the soul cycle to avoid that for future reincarnations," I tell him. "Made it more smooth as well." "That''s good," he says. "Your father says your brother gave up looking for you after awhile and it took him forever to find you. Apparently, there was some infection spreading through the Rift Wolves and he''d put the two of you somewhere safe, where you wouldn''t be affected by it, until he could get rid of it entirely. Then you vanished on your brother for the billionth time and Noea just gave up looking. He only just found this reality right before your reincarnation appeared. Your dad, I mean." A Rift Wolf determined to hide can be hard to track down, I think. Even more so after he transcends via the very force which births them. "I''m sure he''ll make himself known to me soon," I say. "For now, I think I''m going to take a nap. Would you mind reincarnating any of the pups who want to grow up? I''ve given you permissions for that." "Sure," the tree snorts. "Enjoy your sleep, Rethe." Epilogue A mortal just gained access to my garden as a reward for a Quest he performed. I quickly travel from my favorite napping spot to observe him, picking a spot on a cliff to do so. If it weren''t for a special magic I have on my forest ¨C at least, when it''s functioning properly ¨C the mortals who come here are not influenced by the presence of a soul of a higher tier. It''s the same magic I performed to make them and their items unaffected by the high level of ambient magical energy, and which prevents them from feeling its real power so as to avoid overwhelming their senses. What good is a reward if it damages them or their stuff? Or if it overwhelms their senses? The mortal who''s come here doesn''t notice me at first, allowing me to watch him for a little bit. The mortal seems a little bit familiar to me and I examine him a little more closely. He''s a human who looks to be in his late twenties, with purple hair and grey eyes. He''s dressed in a mage''s robe that''s a deep grey with purple and silver markings in the ancient tongue. A reincarnated mythical beast whose eyes shine silver in the right light. With the snow which gently falls in this section of my garden, the light is right for that. Aaaah. Now I remember him. That''s Dashiel, a human I saw while in my life as Evan. It hasn''t been that long since I left, though I suppose it''s probably been around a decade in his time. He probably Awakened shortly after I fixed up my forest as I think he was at the point when we met, he just couldn''t due to the forest''s state. Dashiel received access to the colder part of my forest, to a strip of tundra-like terrain. He examines some of the few plants which grows here and harvests them, but doesn''t over forage. I like it when they''re considerate like that¡­ which all Rank 5s are. That''s why they and they alone are granted access from time to time. The Awakened man explores the section a little bit more, collecting a few rocks, some ice, and some magic crystals. Just before he leaves, he spots me and his eyes widen, mouth now agape. For a few moments, he stares sat me. Then he gives me a dip of his head and vanishes, returning back to Earth. What went through his mind, when he saw me? I''m sure he doesn''t remember me from our short encounters as his real self so unless he reads, he probably doesn''t know of what sort of beast I am. Hm? There''s another transcendence which just occurred, interrupting my thoughts. A body-type transcendence, but they did it as their second one. I stand and stretch and shake off the snow which began to coat me as I watched the mortal, then travel to the part of the universe with the new twice-transcendent one. "Jeez!" He jumps. "Just scare the energies out of me, why don''t you, Rethe." "Oh, it was you," I say. "Hello again, little god." "I''m only little because you''re about sixty feet in height while lying down, Rethe," the god who was known as Ryan in his past life rolls his eyes. "I just managed to transcend a second time. Though it seems I need to do it a third time¡­" Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author. I mask my influence so that he can relax a little. As a triple-transcendent one, my soul is still a higher tier than his. Unlike Ash and Griffin, I actually know how to conceal that effect. "I know," I say. "That''s why I came. Congratulations on that, by the way. You seemed to have been close, to do it so fast." "It wasn''t too hard for me with my past experiences," he says. "Now I''m even tougher and can take on even stronger beasts in the divine realm. Though I''ve been secluded for¡­ awhile now. Ever since I left, my focus has been on transcending via body so I''m not really up to date with¡­ wait. You''re in your real form?" "Figured there was no point staying in mortal form once you left to transcend," I tell him. "If you''ve been in seclusion, then you probably haven''t learned. Not that many have¡­ it''s not as if most could tell the difference and we Rift Wolves are rather rare, after all." "Learned what?" He asks. "As it turns out," I yawn. "I''m the King of the Celestials and we were just getting fooled by Aster. The others never explicitly said the two of us were separate beings. And no, transcending via aether was not my second transcendence. It was my third. If you really want to be with me the way Ash and Griffin are¡­ you''ll need to transcend via aether. That''ll let you survive when this universe dies, too." The god sighs, then snorts. "I take it you''ve fixed up your forest, then?" "I have." "May I see it now?" He asks. "Before I go through the agonizing and likely very time-consuming process of becoming a Celestial?" "Sure." I warp us to my garden and allow him to look around it. He''s quite impressed with the looks of it and once the tour is over, turns to face me. "Well," he says. "Until I''m a Celestial¡­ have a good one, Rethe." I touch my nose to his forehead and he sharply sucks in a breath. Violet lines travel across his body as it tenses up. After just a few blinks, the process is over and Ryan''s eyes have turned from gold to purple, his skin more like marble, and hair as if strands of sunlight itself. He looks at his hands for a few moments, then looks at me with his eyes wide in awe and shock. Then an annoyed expression fills his face. "You can transcend others?" "It''s not that difficult of a process," I shrug. "It''s how Aster turned from an azulvitt wolf pup into a Celestial. He was one of the first of them and was dying in a rather¡­ unpleasant way. Decided to give him a way to never get hurt again." Only a few Celestials transcended on their own ¨C namely, Ash, Griffin, Aurora, and my father. That last one decided to become a Celestial after I returned to my true self, just to show off how much better at magic he is than me. The joke''s on him, though. I''ve still created two entire realities when he hasn''t created one and yet is millions of times my age. "You made me think I''d have to go through millions of years of attempting to transcend¡­" "I never said you had to go through that," I tell him. "Just that you had to transcend again. Since you wanted to, I decided to let you skip the more painful part of it." "Alright," he adjusts his size so that he''s tall enough to give me a proper hug. "Oh, wow. Getting used to this kind of power might take me awhile." "Well," I say. "You have around twenty billion Earth years to do so, and most Celestials manage it much faster than that." "Why that long?" "That''s when this reality will end," I tell him. "And only a Rift Wolf can survive in the Aether. That''s something you must be born as, rather than become. We do still have plenty of time, though. Would you like to take a nap with me? I know a great spot to do so."