《Undersea Reincarnation - [Octopus Monster Evolution LitRPG]》 1.01: Eat or be eaten The fish carefully approached the worm. It had been wiggling for the last few seconds, peeking out of a patch of white sand nestled between a couple of large and flat coral reefs. Henry held still, hidden behind a rock, and watched. A tentacle was lying under the sand, right next to the one he was using to bait the fish. ¡°Keep still. Keeeeep still. And don¡¯t ink yourself again.¡± The fish was really close. This was the closest Henry had gotten to a fish that wasn¡¯t actively trying to kill him in the past couple of days. And he was starving. It''d taken him a while to learn how to control his limbs. How to swim. And how to not squirt ink whenever anything moved in his general area. Or maybe he just ran out of ink. Henry vaguely recalled that octopi had enough for only a handful of ink shots, and their reserves didn¡¯t refill that fast. Anyway, he¡¯d¨C ¨CThe fish darted forward and bit the extremity of his tentacle. The flash of pain didn¡¯t distract him from the plan. The rest of his tentacle surged around the fish, while the second hidden limb made contact. He grit his metaphorical teeth as he tried to activate the suckers and latch on to the fish. ¡°That freaking hurt.¡± The extremity of his bait-tentacle was pulsing with pain, but he could ignore that. It didn''t matter; he was finally about to eat something. He knew he should be able to eat clams and crabs¡­ but he hadn¡¯t managed to crack open the first. And every crab he¡¯d encountered was twice his size and had unnaturally sharp pincers that could probably snip him in half, so he didn¡¯t risk it. Henry didn¡¯t celebrate as he pulled the thrashing fish toward him. He fearfully looked upward, hoping no other predator saw the commotion and was coming to make a meal of both Henry and his newly acquired fish. His monochrome and distorted vision made it difficult to see much. But it seemed safe. He could vaguely see a patch of light in the distance, and he assumed that was the water surface. It didn¡¯t look close. And he didn¡¯t think he could go up there without ending up as a snack for the many large shapes he could see occasionally swimming by. Henry angled the fish toward his mouth, and using his awkward beak, cracked the fish¡¯s brain stem. The prey went still. Now we go back home. The fish was tiny. Around a third of his own size, so it wasn¡¯t too difficult to carry as Henry carefully and slowly made his way back to the empty turtle shell he¡¯d come to consciousness in. After a few seconds of skirting around rocks he¡¯d previously scouted, he was back home. Henry didn¡¯t dare get too far from his hiding spot. Back inside, in the turtle shell lodged between a couple of boulders and stalks of some plant he didn¡¯t recognize, Henry began to eat. He already could taste the fish through his tentacles¨Cwhich was an odd concept to experience and had made getting used to his tentacles even more challenging¨Cand discovered that he couldn¡¯t taste the food with his mouth. Odd. ¡°[So you managed to stay alive? Commendable.]¡± Henry froze. He looked around, then back to the fish he had been chomping on. Was this thing hallucinogenic? ¡°[It¡¯s not the fish.]¡± Henry narrowed his eyes at the fish. He couldn¡¯t speak. Because he had no tongue. Or lips. Or air. But he responded to the voice in his own head. ¡°That¡¯s what a hallucination would say.¡± ¡°[Hah. It¡¯s always a treat when a foreign soul finds its way to this world. It is unfortunate you got stuck in such a little form, though. And in such a dangerous environment. Still, I can¡¯t tell if you¡¯re incredibly lucky or unlucky. It¡¯s rare for the beings you¡¯re inhabiting to make it far¡­ but with a sapient soul within? I wonder¡­]¡± Henry didn¡¯t respond. This was really convincing, as far as hallucinations went. Not that he had that many experiences. Alcohol and weed didn¡¯t really cause such things. ¡°[I¡¯m not a hallucination, Henry. And I believe you¡¯re here because of the shells of those annoying turtles. The multicolored ones.]¡± Henry''s breath caught. More accurately, he stopped inhaling water through his gills. He remembered that. He¡¯d seen the rainbow-shelled turtle and had been in pursuit when¡­ something happened. When he died. It would have made his career to document it. A new, never-before-seen species. But next thing he knew, he¡¯d woken up here. Henry looked up at the inner walls of the shell. He hadn¡¯t known it was the same type of turtle. He couldn¡¯t see colors. He¡¯d just thought it was an ironic coincidence. This is real? That¡¯s a real person talking? ¡°Who are you?¡± ¡°[I¡¯m this world¡¯s System. I usually keep my distance, but you¡¯re an interesting case, so I had to come see for myself. I take care of things. Help intelligent life strive to the top. Give them tools and skills to gain more power. Then I take a small percentage of that. It was supposed to go somewhere¡­ but no one¡¯s come to collect in a while.]¡± If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it. ¡°Sounds like a bank.¡± The voice paused for a moment. Then it spoke, with a curious tone. ¡°[That sounds familiar. But also boring. In any case, being sapient and all, you qualify for a Class independent from your species. And considering you kicked out that poor octopus¡¯ soul when you came in, you also lost the basics. So. Let¡¯s fix all that, shall we?]¡± Henry was about to answer when his body buzzed and he blacked out for a moment. When he came to, there was something displayed over his vision. Status: Name: Henry Dubois Species: Trickster Octopus - Reincarnated Intelligence (F) Class: Undecided - Level 1 Consumption Tokens: 0 Health: 93% Mana: 100% ¡°What do you mean Undecided? And what¡¯s the (F) for?¡± ¡°[F is the classification of your current species. I like the letters more than Bronze. Or Prawn. This world uses more than one type of ranking, but I liked the simplicity of the letters. So I adopted it. As for the Class itself, it doesn¡¯t seem like you have any relevant skill or vocation, and I know nothing about you. Undecided seemed like a fair label.]¡± ¡°I¡¯m a marine biologist.¡± ¡°[Now we¡¯re talking. Let me set that up for you.]¡± Class: Undecided Marine Biologist - Level 1 Henry was about to object again when the voice cut him off. ¡°[Well, it was nice talking to you, Henry. I can¡¯t stay for long, rules and all. We¡¯ll talk again when you rank up. Maybe. Good luck!]¡± ¡°Hey! What¡¯s all this? What¡¯s stats? Hey!¡± He could see¨Cor more accurately, feel¨Cmore options available to him. There were many options to see and filter all sorts of information. Stats, classes, and a few others, some of which he couldn¡¯t read or access. For now he loaded everything, so he could see it in the interface. Stats: Strength: 1 Constitution: 1 Spirit: 4 Perception: 2 Dexterity: 2 Trickster Octopus - Reincarnated Intelligence (F): Skills: Traits: Ephemerals (0/1): None Class: Undecided Marine Biologist - Level 1 Skills (1/4): Traits (2/4): ¡°What is all this? Oh god. Am I in a game?¡± Henry put down the fish and inwardly groaned. Bits of the fish¡¯s blood and viscera filled his turtle-home, and he could taste it through all his tentacles. He swam to one of the two entrances not blocked by rocks and breathed in the cleaner water. He took a quick look outside, just to make sure nothing was sneaking up on him before he looked over his new menu again. ¡°Damn. Is this really a game? This looks like RPG stuff.¡± Well, if it was a game, then Henry got screwed. Because he didn¡¯t see the word ¡°lives¡± anywhere. It didn¡¯t seem like there was much room for mistakes. He glanced around. Overhead, a shark swam by. A striped thing that reminded him of tigers. Henry had never seen a shark with such obvious stripes before. ¡°I don¡¯t think I¡¯m on Earth anymore.¡± This System-business, on top of the fauna and flora he¡¯d been seeing for the last two or three days made it clear¡­ this wasn¡¯t Earth. If it was, it would have to be some obscure, undiscovered ocean. Seeing one unrecognizable organism was something, but more than ten? In two days? Where am I? The System had mentioned the F-rank being named differently¡­ Did that mean there were people around? The thought of meeting people made him chuckle, and a bit of ink escaped him. ¡°Goddamn it,¡± he cursed, waving two tentacles around to get the ink away from him. Even if there were people around, it wasn¡¯t as if he could go talk to them. He¡¯d end up on a grill. Or in a soup. Or fried. ¡°I¡¯d kill for a warm meal right now.¡± Henry extended a tentacle and brought the fish back to his mouth. No matter how unappetizing it looked, he was hungry. Then he paused. ¡°System. Status. Whatever. Come back.¡± The screen popped back up and Henry studied the stats again. ¡°What do you mean 93% health? Am I sick? Is it the injured tentacle? Oh wait¡­¡± He had lost a tentacle yesterday to that damn eel when he¡¯d barged into its burrow. And maybe the fish bite from earlier counted? He didn¡¯t feel injured. Oh well. ¡°Now about these skills¡­ Bite? Let¡¯s test that.¡± He brought the fish to his beak, and thought of the Skill. Nothing happened. He paused and thought for a moment. ¡°Bite?¡± Still nothing. ¡°Whatever. I¡¯m starving. I¡¯ll test some other time,¡± he told himself, and opened his beak to bite. His beak snapped on the fish with a terrifying strength, more than anything he could ever recreate by himself. Half the fish was pulverized, and some¨Cto his chagrin¨Cwas now floating around in his home. But it wasn¡¯t all gone. And then, he got a notification and brought it up. ¡°This should be useful.¡± Dart (F) was copied by Magic Mimic. Add to Ephemerals(0/1)? Henry clicked yes, then he brought up the Ephemerals menu. Ephemerals (1/1): Dart (F): Propel the user forward a short distance. (Time remaining: 28 hours, 8 minutes) He waved the chunks of fish away from his face. ¡°I¡¯m going to need a place to test all of this. And I should actually look into some of the details listed and figure out what they mean. There¡¯s a lot being communicated between the ranks, levels, classifications and those descriptions.¡± Henry hummed, bringing the remaining chunk of fish to his mouth. ¡°First, I should finish my¨C¡± A shadow fell over him. Henry slowly turned and found two bulbous eyes staring at him. A jaw full of misaligned teeth was slowly inching toward him, followed by a long, skinny and smooth body. An eel. The eel. Henry inked himself. Completely on purpose. 1.02: Kicked out Henry shot away from the jaws of the eel as it snapped on where¡¯d been and did the figurative button mashing on all of his Skills. ¡°Ink! Escape! Dart!¡± He smacked into a wall. The water was a mess of sand and limbs. The eel was with him in the turtle shell, but it couldn¡¯t see him. Henry couldn¡¯t see anything either for a few terrifying seconds, then he saw the exit and Darted toward it, releasing Ink Jets whenever the Skill responded to his command. Henry flew out into the clear water and didn''t dare turn back. He cut across the seafloor, trying to create as much distance between himself and the eel as he could. 54%. 50%. His mana percentage, visible in the corner of his eyes, kept dropping with every Skill but he didn¡¯t care. A few seconds later, what felt like an eternity, he chanced a look back. He hadn¡¯t gotten that far from his turtle shell. The eel came out of the shell in a flurry a moment later. It went still, its head slowly tilting left and right, then it stopped. The head slowly turned toward him, and the eel began swimming in his direction. Henry began to Dart away, but his tentacles locked up. Glancing down at them, he saw the sheen of something surrounding them. ¡°For the love of god Dart. Dartdartdart.¡± The eel surged toward him, and Henry screamed inside, letting out another Inkjet to at least give himself a chance. Some cover. And no sooner was he engulfed by the ink, his limbs shook free. Henry booked it. He kept using Dart, rushing over the sea floor and slinking between rocks, praying that nothing was in them and that the rocks wouldn¡¯t fall and bury him alive. Then his eyes landed on a small cave hidden by a stalk of kelp, and he rushed for it. ¡°Please be empty. Please.¡± Henry dove in and winced in preparation for whatever he might find¡­ but there was nothing. He turned, scanning the outside of his hiding spot, and remembered his new Skill. He brought forth two of his tentacles and wrapped them around themselves before using Mimicking Tentacles. ¡°You¡¯re a rock. There¡¯s no hole here. It¡¯s a smooth rock.¡± He left barely a crack to see through as he plugged the entrance to camouflage his hideout, and waited. His mana was down to 26%. Seconds later, the eel came. It hovered up there, a few yards away, head tilting side to side. It swam in a small circle, scanning the area, then its head snapped upward. A fish swimming by suddenly froze up. Henry saw its panicked eyes flutter about while the eel slowly swam up to it and then it was gone. Swallowed in a single chomp. Henry gulped. Mentally. Was that why his limbs had been locked up? Telekinesis? ¡°A freaking eel is using telekinesis?¡± The eel then turned and began swimming away. Henry¡¯s stomach sank as he tracked the predator with his poor excuse of vision. It was swimming in the direction of his shell. ¡°Get away from my home, you snake,¡± he uselessly thought. Henry knew his shell wasn¡¯t an optimal home. It was too big for him. And a hole in the wall¨Clike the one he was currently in¨Cwas a much safer den for a small octopus like himself. He knew that. Rationally. But rationality didn¡¯t prevent the walls from feeling like they were about to fall on him. Or squish him. Or that he wouldn¡¯t be able to move at any second and he¡¯d get stuck in here until he died. Henry was claustrophobic. Which really didn¡¯t mesh with the lifestyle of an octopus. He slowly parted his fake wall and peeked his bulbous head out. The eel had just gone around a recognizable outcropping of rocks. It was definitely going near his shell. Dammit. The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. Henry edged out of the hole, just enough so the wall stopped bearing down on him, and used his tentacles to form a clump of algae-like leaves on top of him. He hoped it looked realistic. So far nothing was nearby, aside from smaller fish that shouldn¡¯t pose a threat to him. But he still kept an eye on the larger shapes. And prayed nothing was lying in wait nearby. He knew how many things could camouflage or hide under the sand to ambush their prey. And with his poor, colorless eyesight it was really difficult to see much. ¡°Would the new stuff help with that?¡± Henry carefully scanned his surroundings again, perched on the edge of his uncomfortable hiding spot, then brought up his interface. Notifications? Mimicking Tentacles(F): Level 1 -> Level 2 Inkjet (F): Level 1 -> Level 3 ¡°Hmm. Let¡¯s see¡­¡± Henry brought up the rest of his screens and read through them for a few minutes. Now that he wasn¡¯t running for his life, he noticed a few options to customize his interface, but decided it wasn¡¯t the best time to get distracted. ¡°Alright. Okay. So Skills level by usage, and I gain levels by¡­ consuming Cores. I don¡¯t remember seeing a Core on the fish I killed, though. Did I miss it? Or did it not have enough power to form a Core? Is that a thing? Also, there¡¯s these stats and empty Skills¡­ where do I get those?¡± Henry waited, hoping for the interface to answer him, but nothing happened. ¡°Hey System, how do I increase my stats? How do I get Skills?¡± You do not have Consumption Tokens to spend. Henry nodded to himself. ¡°Okay, I need some of these Tokens. And I assume I got Dart from the fish I ate. So would I get Telekinesis if I ate the eel? Can I make a temporary skill permanent?¡± You do not have Consumption Tokens to spend. Henry nodded again. This was starting to make sense. But worryingly, it meant he had to go out there and¡­ kill things? To get their Cores? He could gain levels through those, or exchange them for Consumption Tokens. Henry glanced around, then up at the tiny swimming fish. Way above, a dark shadow swam through the stalks of seaweed. It was too far to make out with his crappy eyesight, but one thing was clear; he had to stick to his neighborhood until he could handle bigger threats. He shuddered. What else was there around? Henry struggled to not let his mind conjure gigantic beings and eyes out of the pitch black ocean, trying to bring himself to the present. ¡°Fish. I should do some fishing. And raise my stats.¡± Henry brought down one of his tentacles that looked like an algae stalk and reactivated Mimicking Tentacles. The pigments moved and changed, and the skin itself gained ridges and papules to mimic the segments of a worm. ¡°This is incredibly effective. But I¡¯m still tiny.¡± He looked up and around, then shimmied the rest of himself out of the hole. The world opened up around him and his limbs twitched in relief. ¡°Okay. You can do it.¡± There was still an empty pit in his stomach. If it were hunger or anxiety, Henry couldn¡¯t tell. But the fact was, he still hadn''t eaten much. Because of that damn eel. ¡°You¡¯ll pay for that, eel. And I¡¯ll take your telekinesis Skill from you. Somehow. And I need to increase my Perception as soon as possible. I¡¯m far from being able to fight anything bigger than I am, so I better be able to see the danger coming.¡± For now, he¡¯d hunt some fish, hopefully get some of those Consumption Tokens, then he should start studying the local fauna. If he was stuck underwater, he might as well get acquainted with his neighbors.
¡°Ah¡­ this is gonna suck.¡± A larger than expected fish was swimming closer, occasionally blowing into the sand in search of food. It was alone. But it was almost twice his size. While he¡¯d been waiting, his mana had gone up to 30%, and his health went up to 94%. I should measure that later. For now, he had to focus. It was risky. But fish are dumb. If he played his cards right and brought this one down¡­ Henry slowly exhaled as he examined the surroundings and braced. He wiggled his worm-leg. The fish paused its sifting, then slowly approached. ¡°Here goes nothing.¡± Henry wiggled his worm-tentacle again, and the fish lunged. ¡°Mother¨C¡± The fish bit and pulled, and Henry was violently yanked toward it. The fish started and darted away, but Henry¡¯s tentacle was still in its mouth. And he¡¯d already made contact with another tentacle. The fish bucked and twisted, with Henry holding on for dear life. The tentacle in its mouth was pulsing with pain, but the remaining ones worked awkwardly to grip the fish and crawl toward its head. Seconds later¨Cthat could have easily been a full minute¨CHenry had his beak lined up to the fish¡¯s head. It had finally calmed down. Did it grow tired? Or is it not feeling my weight? No matter. Henry opened his beak and used Bite. The beak closed down with a mighty snap, taking a chunk out of the fish¡¯s tiny brain and eyes, and it went still. Henry looked around through the small cloud of blood and viscera. They were thankfully still low, right next to some rocks where running or hiding was a possibility, and as far as his crappy eyesight told him, he was clear. He felt a notification come in, but that wasn¡¯t what he wanted. He detached from the fish carcass and waited. Barely a second later, the fish gained a hazy sheen that rippled and slowly swirled on itself, shaping itself into a circle. Then the cloud of light lost cohesion, and a gray bead fell to the sand right next to the fish. Henry picked it up with his tentacle. He wondered what color it was. 1x Goatfish Core (F) Consume | Exchange for Consumption Tokens [3] ¡°Yes!¡± Henry wrapped a tentacle around the fish¡¯s tail and dragged it along as he went to hide under some rocks, then exchanged the Core for Tokens. ¡°Let¡¯s see what the menu has for me, then.¡± 1.03: New options Henry clicked the exchange button, his tentacle still wrapped around his meal¡¯s tail. Goatfish Core (F) was exchanged for 3 Consumption Tokens. Immediately, he felt the notification come through. ¡°Should have used Identify on the Core. I need to start using that Skill.¡± Mimicking Tentacles (F): Level 2 -> Level 4 Bite (F): Level 1 -> Level 2 Access to Stat Increase module granted. Access to Skill Acquisition module granted. Access to Trait Acquisition module granted. Though this time, he didn¡¯t get a Skill. Henry took a bite of his fish, feeling grateful for the lack of sensory nerves in his mouth, and waited again. Nothing. ¡°One¡­ no, two possibilities; Either Dart is blocking the new Skill, or the fish didn¡¯t have a Skill.¡± He looked down at the fish. And took another bite. Then another. ¡°Well, if Dart isn¡¯t blocking new temporary Skills, then this fish doesn¡¯t have a Skill.¡± Henry ate until he felt full, then a quick look above told him it was time to leave. A few larger fish seemed to have noticed his meal, and they were circling closer. ¡°I¡¯m full anyway,¡± he thought as he slinked away. He carefully looked into the rock crevices, then entered one that was covered by some anemones. A large dotted rust-red starfish was nestled against it, and Henry decided that would be dessert. ¡°Maybe it has a healing Skill. Those would be important to have, if they exist.¡± Feeling safe and comfortable in the roomy crevice, he started with Stats. What did I say? Right. Perception. And Constitution. The Stat Increase menu listed every Stat, and he had to click on each to get the cost of the increase. Henry was surprised at the costs. ¡°So Perception¡¯s at two, and it costs one Token to increase, while Spirit¡¯s at four, but it costs¡­ six Tokens? So the higher their value is, the more expensive they¡¯ll be to increase. Good to know.¡± He tapped Perception. Increase Perception: 2 -> 3 Increase [1 CT] | Cancel ¡°Perfect. One Perception, please.¡± Light coalesced around him, and Henry flinched. Some ink may or may not have been lost, but that wasn¡¯t the focus right now. The light seemed to intensify, and he thought he could see motes of light drifting toward his eyes. Henry braced for¡­ something. Pain? Pinching? He didn¡¯t know. He did have to close his eyes though, as the light was blinding. He felt a soft heat enter his eyes, then felt an uncomfortable burn. As if he¡¯d opened his human eyes in salt water. The heat spread from his eyes to his brain for a moment, and then it was over. Henry opened his eyes. ¡°Yes! Colors!¡± Henry peeked out and looked around, then his smile faltered. There were colors, sure. But his depth perception was still pretty bad. Everything was still somewhat distorted, and the colors weren¡¯t as vibrant as he knew they could be. He got back inside and popped the menu up again. ¡°Let¡¯s see for another¡­. Crap.¡± Increase Perception: 3 -> 4 Increase [2 CT] | Cancel Henry glared at the prompt with his crappy vision. Did he want to put everything on Perception? Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on. Henry thought about it for a second, then shook his head. ¡°After the next hunt.¡± He bought a point for Constitution, which immediately made his Health go from 90% to 92%. For the last point, he explored the other modules before committing. The Trait Acquisition module was empty, and the Skill module had one item. He clicked it. Acquire Skill: Dart(F) - 10 Consumption Tokens Insufficient Tokens ¡°Fine.¡± Henry scanned the stats again. ¡°What else can I increase¡­ Strength, Dexterity, or Constitution again. If Constitution raised my health, then I assume Spirit does the same for mana. Strength is straightforward. Dex¡­ not sure.¡± He went with Constitution. The same phenomenon happened again, with motes sinking into him. Moments later, his health went up again by another two percent. Henry sighed and looked out. Well, at least he had a path forward. He just had to get out there, and hunt everything he could beat. Though now that he thought of his stats¡­ ¡°What¡¯s the point of class levels? Are they worth investing in? System?¡± Nothing answered him. ¡°Fine. Keep your secrets.¡± Henry looked around his small cave, and decided to rest up. Maybe his health and mana would recover a bit. Then he could go out and hunt. ¡°I¡¯ll come for you, eel. In¡­ god knows how long. But I¡¯ll get there.¡± He felt sleepy. But right before he let his mind drift, he clamped his tentacles around him, and mimicked a rock. Then he went to sleep.
Henry woke up to excruciating pain. He jerked away and reflexively shot a jet of ink, which had the unfortunate side effect of making him blind. His tentacle was burning with pain. When he tried to pull it, it felt stuck in something. ¡°What¡¯s happening?¡± Henry darted toward the exit, expecting to hit something on the way out, but nothing happened. He realized he still couldn¡¯t dislodge his foot. Though from this angle he could see what was causing the pain. ¡°You little shit.¡± Henry dove at the rust-red starfish, beak ready to strike. It had somehow dragged one of his tentacles under its center and begun to munch on it. The starfish didn¡¯t offer much resistance, and a second later there was a beak-shaped hole in its central disk. Which had the unfortunate consequence of shaving off the tip of his tentacle. Henry freed his limb from the starfish and glanced at his health. It was at 90%. The tentacle was still pulsing with pain. A few seconds later his health went down to 89%, confirming his fear. ¡°Venomous. It''s a carnivorous, venomous starfish.¡± What should he do? He looked down at the starfish, and to his shock, horror and fascination, he saw the hole begin to reform. ¡°No way¡­ I damaged the central disk. It shouldn¡¯t be able to reform.¡± The starfish didn¡¯t care for his opinions and continued reforming. The dots on its rough skin were fading, one by one. Then a limb curled, and it began crawling out of the crevice. One millimeter at a time. ¡°Would I adapt? Is this a dangerous venom?¡± An idea came to him. He hated it, but it might help. The pulsing pain was still at the extremity of the tentacle and, having already lost a limb to the eel yesterday, he knew he could stop the blood flow. So Henry brought the tentacle under him, and bit the extremity off. ¡°Damn it. Why the ocean? Why a fucking octopus?¡± Blue blood drifted off the severed limb, and his health dipped by another two percent, but he could feel the burning pain lessening. He glared at the starfish. Then glanced at his notifications. Venomous Grip (F) was copied by Magic Mimic. Ephemerals are full. Replace Dart (F)? ¡°Looks useful,¡± admitted Henry. He glared at the starfish and reached out a tentacle to pull it back. ¡°I¡¯m not done with you, little guy.¡± How did it heal? Was it another Skill? If so, Henry needed it. But could he risk ingesting more of this thing? Well¡­ yes. Probably. He just got confirmation that its grip was venomous. Not necessarily its blood. ¡°Or I can wait for a few hours. See if the bit I already ingested does anything.¡± The starfish slowly curled toward his tentacle, and Henry dropped it in front of him. ¡°You¡¯re a dick. And I will make it quick. But you¡¯re gonna give me your Skills first.¡± Henry wanted to test something as he waited to see if the starfish¡¯s blood was poisoned. He refused the replacement of Dart (F), then went to the Skill Acquisition Module. Venomous Grip was available for purchase. ¡°So I just need to encounter the Skill to get it? Same price too... Good to know.¡± Thirty minutes or so later, his health had gone up by one percent and Henry felt somewhat confident he hadn¡¯t been poisoned. So he leaned over the starfish, and used Bite on one of the starfish¡¯s limbs. He tried to keep the barest piece in his mouth, then swallowed it. He watched more of the white spots disappear from the starfish¡¯s skin and the limb began to slowly reform. ¡°Please give me that. Whatever that is.¡± Then the System answered his prayer. Hoard Vitality (F) was copied by Magic Mimic. Ephemerals are full. Replace Dart (F)? Hoard Vitality (F): Store 10% of your health to be released on will or when severely injured for a burst of healing. Henry looked down at the Skill description, and he couldn¡¯t feel the excitement he hoped for. Did it take the health away to give it back later? It sure looked like it¡­ ¡°Do I want it instead of Dart, though?¡± Henry considered it for a moment, then looked down at the starfish. Should he kill it and take the Core? Henry didn¡¯t feel good about that. It was trying to get away¡­ and it was utterly defenseless. ¡°Yeah. I¡¯d rather go hunt something else.¡± Trying to kill the starfish might take a while, with the many spots he could see remaining, and that felt like cruelty. Henry peeked out of his den and chucked the starfish. ¡°You paid for your freedom with your blood. Don¡¯t be a dick next time.¡± He turned his attention back to his menu, and sighed. ¡°Alright, let¡¯s do some testing.¡± 1.04: One step at a time It took around 25 minutes for Henry to regain 1% of his health back with Accelerated Regeneration. He had realized that even though he had no watch, he could keep track of time through his temporary Skill. He then waited for another increment to confirm his discovery. Because he¡¯d lost track the first time and had forgotten the exact time when he¡¯d started measuring. With his health at 90%, he replaced Dart and triggered Hoarded Vitality. His vision blurred. Henry swayed and had to fight to keep the food in his stomach. ¡°Urgh.¡± 10% of his health was gone. Henry looked down at his tentacles, looking for this miraculous spot of stored health, but couldn¡¯t see it. ¡°With my luck, it¡¯s probably on my forehead.¡± Over the next few minutes the feeling of sickness abated, but not his reservations. ¡°I need to find a healing Skill. Or find a way to make Accelerated Regeneration better. If that¡¯s even possible.¡± He didn¡¯t want to make too many assumptions, but the rankings right next to the Skills seemed to imply the existence of better tiers of the Skill. Did that have to do with the levels in some of them? There was no menu to make the Skills or Traits better, so he guessed he hadn¡¯t satisfied some condition yet. The new menus had only showed up when he¡¯d gotten some Tokens. Maybe the upgrade options needed enough Tokens? Or levels? Henry looked at the Hoard Vitality¡¯s description and shuddered. He had to stock up on health before he went out again. And before its temporary status¨Cwhich showed 21 hours and 19 minutes¨Cexpired. It was the reasonable course of action. But he still hated it. ¡°This will take forever.¡±
By the time Henry came out of his crevice, he had 100% health and four spots, one of which he could see at the base of his frontal tentacle. The tentacle he¡¯d lost yesterday and had spent the last dozen hours watching as it regrew. It was eerie. Also, he realized he didn¡¯t need to inspect his skin to keep track. In between uses, he noticed a new number near the name of the Skill, and saw it update in real-time. Hoard Vitality (F)[4 charges]: Store 10% of your health on your body to be released on will or when severely injured for a burst of healing. (Time remaining: 29 minutes) ¡°Too bad temporary Skills can¡¯t level.¡± In the grand scheme of things, it wasn¡¯t a big loss. He would be using this Skill so much that the four uses¡¯ worth of levels wouldn¡¯t matter. But he¡¯d have to find a better way of using it because somewhere around the three-hour mark, Henry was ready to bash his soft brains on the rock from boredom. He ended up edging closer to the exit and just observed the local fauna, which¨Ceven though it helped stave off the boredom¨Cjust annoyed him even more. ¡°I can¡¯t see crap.¡± Still, that opened up a new option for him. He could maybe roam around¨Csafely and under a camouflage¨Cand watch his neighbors. See how they lived. What kind of Skills they had. All the while, he¡¯d keep using Hoard Vitality until he found something that healed faster. It seemed like there was a pattern to Skills though. Healing skill on a starfish. A speed Skill on a fish. His own mimicking Skill, which strongly reminded him of mimic octopuses. Only the eel didn¡¯t seem to fit, with its telekinesis. ¡°What else is known for their healing abilities? Sea slugs? Jellyfish?¡± Henry wrapped half of his tentacles around him and became a rock that slowly inched its way toward a few lazy fish he¡¯d seen swim close by. He wanted to know more about the big shapes he¡¯d seen swimming far above, but he didn¡¯t dare leave this small area. Not yet. ¡°And I need something better than my legs to catch other fish¡­ like telekinesis.¡± That would be useful. But could he take the eel? No. He knew as soon as the question formed in his mind. He¡¯d need to do a lot more fishing before he could tangle with that thing. Was it even still around? Henry paused, watching the fish swim away from his little corner of the ocean floor. He added another tentacle to his disguise and exhaled. Might as well. Then he slowly rolled toward his turtle shell.
This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.The turtle shell looked like the refracted light from a diamond. Even though he didn¡¯t have a clear vision of it, he could still see the incomprehensible colors as it shimmered in the dancing lights coming down from the surface. Henry marveled. But his excitement was marred by the purple head that poked out of one of the entrances to the shell, which, from this angle, seemed like the posterior part of the turtle. Did the turtle get stuck upside down? Also¡­ the eel¡¯s purple? He wanted to be mad at the beast, but he couldn¡¯t contain his excitement at seeing an animal he¡¯d never heard of before. The eel poked its head out when it noticed a small shoal of thin silver fish swim nearby. A purple hue appeared around one of them, and the rest of the fish scattered while the captured fish was slowly dragged toward the eel¡¯s open jaw. ¡°Fascinating. I¡¯ll still beat it up and take my shell back, but¡­ fascinating.¡± Now that he observed the eel, its ability made a lot more sense. It was mostly opportunistic, and telekinesis fit perfectly with its lifestyle. ¡°Was it kicked out of its home? Is that why it came after me? Or did it smell the fish I pulverized? Oh. One last thing¡­¡± Henry kept forgetting he had Identify. He narrowed his eyes at the eel and activated the Skill. [Telekinetic Eel (F) - Lvl 14] Henry frowned. How had he been able to escape this thing the first time? Was it because he¡¯d startled it in its own home? Or was it the ink? That¡­ could have ended up a lot worse for him. But at least now he knew where it was. He would get his turtle shell back. If somehow he made it back out of the water and back home¡­ he still wanted to have it. Henry couldn¡¯t even muster some humor at such a delusion. ¡°I¡¯m not even human.¡± He still wanted to get the shell back¡­ It was the only thing he still had from when he was human. He¡¯d died pursuing that turtle. Henry looked up and around at the underwater world. It was so¡­ quiet. Eerily lonely and teeming with life all at once. ¡°Did my friends realize I¡¯m gone? Did my dad?¡± He doubted the latter¡­ Not if it¡¯d been only a few weeks. Or even months. He slowly rolled himself back toward his hunting grounds, keeping an eye on potential dangers. He needed to get strong. And then¡­. What? Henry shook his head. ¡°One step at a time.¡±
Henry Identified the third Core he¡¯d harvested since leaving his cave. [Mackerel Core (F) - 4 Consumption Tokens] It had been a productive couple of hours. He managed to bring down three fish, all level 1s. One [Common Goatfish] like before, and two [Common Mackerel]. He¡¯d gotten them with the same technique, by baiting them, then Biting the back of their heads. Now as he sat down in his den, he brought up his interface. He was sitting at 11 Tokens. ¡°Hoarded Vitality and¡­ Strength. Yeah, why not.¡± He would have caught more, but he had less than 10% mana. It seemed risky to be out with reserves that low. At least Hoarded Vitality didn¡¯t consume much mana when used. Barely 1% per activation. He could just¡­ relax while hoarding more health. And wait for his mana to refill. He quickly glanced at his Skill notifications. Mimicking Tentacles (F): Level 4 -> Level 5 Bite (F): Level 2 -> Level 4 Inkjet (F): Level 3 -> Level 4 Henry considered sitting at the entrance and watching the surroundings, but¡­ he lacked the motivation. He felt tired. He brought back the menu, not wanting to see the dark and silent rocks around him. To cover the unbearable quiet, he hummed to himself. An old tune from his childhood that his mom used to hum. Henry wondered if she¡¯d been reborn somewhere else, too.
When Henry emerged from his cave again, the ocean shook. Well, not really. But he did manage to beat up a lot of low-level fish. Enough so that he¡¯d had to scamper away when some larger and more dangerous-looking swimmers came by, attracted by the scent of blood. As he scurried around the rock as a ball of moss, he brought up his upgrade budget and dismissed the level-up notifications of his Skills. He¡¯d gotten a level each, and it seemed like they were slowing down. Probably, considering the ease with which he¡¯d been beating up the local small fish. ¡°22 Tokens? Not bad¡­ let¡¯s spend this, then. Oh?¡± He realized he could buy more than one increase at a time. Increase Perception: 3 -> 5 Increase [8 CT] | Cancel Henry considered getting another two points in Perception, which cost 8 Tokens¡­ but he felt like he needed more health. More safety. ¡°I¡¯d be a lot safer if I could see the danger coming. And small fish are easy enough to catch. Yeah¡­¡± He nodded to himself and confirmed the increase. The magic¨Cor whatever it was¨Csunk into his eyes and Henry stilled. He looked around, amazed at the colors and the clarity of the water. Above¨Cfurther than he expected¨Che could see the surface, and he could make out sharks roaming just below it. Looking back down and around, he could see the kelp forest, stretching away as far as he could see. It seemed sparser here, but that could be a trick of the eyes. Soon, he might be able to go up and see the surroundings. ¡°Kelp forests are usually coastal¡­ I wonder if there¡¯s land nearby.¡± Endless blue surrounded him. And it was terrifying. But at least he could see. ¡°This is almost like my regular vision. Better, considering I¡¯m not wearing any scuba gear.¡± The cost was definitely worth it, and he was tempted to get another Perception point, but he talked himself down. ¡°As soon as it calms down outside, I¡¯ll get back out and hunt some more.¡± In the meantime, he raised Constitution to 5 for 6 Tokens, which left him with 8 Tokens. ¡°Hmm¡­ what else¡­ Yes, that¡¯s perfect.¡± With 8 Tokens, he could get a point in Strength, a point in Dexterity, and bring Spirit up to 5. He nodded to himself, and confirmed them as well. Magic went through him again, and it made him feel more present. Less at the whims of the waves and more ready to face his obstacles. ¡°Speaking of which¡­¡± Henry came up on a crab. It was¡­ smaller than the specimen he¡¯d seen before, but he recognized those sharp pincers. ¡°Risky. But it might have a Skill related to those¡­ Something sharp could save my life.¡± Henry tried to talk himself into it. He looked up and around, and the coast was clear. ¡°Gotta take some risks or I¡¯ll never get out of here.¡± Henry continued his approach as a ball of algae. He hoped those seven healing charges were ready. 1.05: The crab The crab was four feet away when Henry used Identify. [Bladed Blue Crab (F) - Lvl 11 ] Henry paused. ¡°That¡¯s a lot more than me¡­ but maybe it¡¯s because they eat their Cores while I use mine to buy stats? I doubt something like a starfish has access to a complicated store of stats and skills.¡± Henry observed as the crab used its worryingly sharp pincer to pick apart bits and pieces of a small carcass. ¡°Maybe this was a bad idea¡­¡± Then Henry stopped himself. He exhaled. ¡°Come on, Henry. Don¡¯t be a wuss. It¡¯s called Bladed Crab for god¡¯s sake. It definitely has a useful skill. Maybe two. Now¡­. where are the brains of a crab again? Not the center¡­ Around the eye stalks?¡± Henry could picture how he should attack and position himself. But he wasn¡¯t sure he¡¯d be able to do it. One big injury¡­ and I run. He nodded to himself. That seemed fair. The crab seemed to finally notice something going on, and it began to slowly turn. Henry didn¡¯t move. The eye stalks of the crab peered curiously at the bundle of algae for a few seconds, then seemed to think nothing of it and turned back to their meal. ¡°Phew.¡± He could do this. ¡°I can do this. I have enough mana and health. The last hunt cost practically nothing. Even the fish bites weren¡¯t doing much damage anymore. I can do this. And it¡¯ll help me against the eel.¡± Then, before he could psych himself out again, Henry shot forward. The sand surged around Henry and the crab as they rolled over each other. Henry rolled and maneuvered himself on top of the crab, screaming inwardly whenever a pincer got close. Ink may or may not have been expelled, but most importantly his panic didn¡¯t seem to affect the three hearts of his little body. He could think somewhat clearly, which is why his hearts leapt when he finally wrapped two tentacles around the base of the right pincer, successfully hampering it. Then from the corner of his eyes, Henry saw a thin gray line appear along the inner edge of the crab¡¯s left pincer. The edge snipped through the two tentacles like tailor¡¯s scissors through mediocre cloth. ¡°Ahhhh, you dick!¡± Pain filled his mind, but it wasn¡¯t as terrifying as the odd lightheadedness that immediately stole through him. The cloud of churned sand and ink gained a blue hue in some places, but Henry didn¡¯t stop. He couldn¡¯t stop. He frantically worked his tentacles to immobilize the crab, narrowing his focus on his enemy, but he still stole a glance toward his status. 66% health. The cut was deep. The crab had gotten him at the base of the tentacles, even cutting through the membrane connecting all tentacles. Henry activated two of his Hoarded Vitality charges and felt the oddly mute pain recede, just as he finally immobilized the second pincer. Without losing any more time, Henry bit down. The shell cracked, but his beak didn¡¯t get through. He bit again, and it barely got through. The crab was frantically pulling, clacking its pincer on nothing. Henry bit down again. And again. And again. Finally, the crab stopped moving. Henry slowly let go as the Core began to form. He was still bleeding. He looked up, and saw a few fishes peering curiously from afar¡­ then they scattered. Henry¡¯s heart dropped as a red-striped shark slowly circled its way toward the commotion. Henry picked up the Core, and after a burst of Inkjet activated his algae disguise and slowly began to roll away. The shark came down and picked up the crab in a single motion. It crunched, and a cloud of blood and viscera trailed the shark¡¯s swimming path as it went back up. [Riptide Shark (F) - Lvl ?? ] Henry watched, frozen with fear for a few moments, then slowly crawled back to his den.
Support the creativity of authors by visiting the original site for this novel and more. Henry entered his temporary home and dropped Mimicking Tentacles. He sat still for a few moments, trying to recover from the panic. That shark had gotten close. Too close. ¡°I can¡¯t be fighting in the open like that.¡± His camouflage had worked. Or else he wouldn¡¯t be around. But¡­ were there things that could see through it? Could the red shark have smelled him? Maybe it couldn¡¯t tell there were two sources of blood in the area? ¡°Do question marks in Identify mean high level?¡± That was the only reason he could think of. He brought the Core closer. It was a silvery thing; somewhat shiny, like a pearl. He Identified it as well, and his eyes widened at the exchange offered. ¡°23? That¡¯s like¡­ six or seven normal fish. That¡¯s almost what I got for hunting for two hours.¡± So high-level targets gave more? Yeah¡­ that made sense. But it also had been dangerous. Henry decided to finish going through his notifications before he sat down and thought about things. Razor Claw is not compatible. Skill has been adapted to Razor Tentacle. Razor Tentacle (F) was copied by Magic Mimic. ¡°Yes! Exactly what I wanted.¡± He was surprised the crab didn¡¯t have anything else, but this was already a much better haul than he¡¯d expected when he left the cave. Henry moved a tentacle in front of him and activated the Skill. A thin, almost invisible line appeared through the length of his tentacle. He might not even have been able to see it before his Perception update. ¡°Wicked.¡± He disabled the Skill, and took note to test if he could cut himself with it. That would be important to know. ¡°For now, show me levels¡­¡± Bite (F): Level 5 -> Level 6 Mimicking Tentacles (F): Level 5 -> Level 7 ¡°We¡¯ll see what happens at 10. I feel like that might be a condition to unlock something.¡± Which reminded him¡­ His stats were still low and he felt like Hoarded Vitality hadn¡¯t done that much for using two charges. To test it, he triggered a third, leaving him with four. He felt the healing pulse spread through him. It moved toward his injured membrane and lost tentacles, and his health climbed by¡­ 2%. ¡°What?! That¡¯s it?¡± He waited a few more seconds, but the healing effect had stopped. ¡°What a crappy conversion rate. It costs 10% and it gives back 2%,¡± Henry grumbled. But he couldn¡¯t deny it being potentially life saving. He just needed¡­ a lot more charge. And he hoped it would get more efficient as it leveled. Or ranked up. He noticed the other Skills being a little better as they leveled up, but it wasn¡¯t anything game-changing. Inkjet had a bit more ink. Bite seemed a bit stronger, and Mimicking Tentacles took him less time to form the shape he had in mind. ¡°Maybe because it¡¯s the lower rank?¡± In any case, it was time to focus on recovering. And shopping; he had 23 Tokens to spend, and his first purchase was going to be his latest temporary acquisition. Skills (3/4): - Identify: Get basic information about an examined being or object. - Hoard Vitality (F) - Level 2 [4 Charges]: Store 10% of your health on your body to be released at will or when severely injured for a burst of healing. - Razor Tentacle (F) - Level 1: Summon a razor-sharp blade along the edge of a single tentacle. ¡°13 Tokens remaining. I would go with Perception but that¡¯s risky. I need more health. And I need to be able to maneuver easier. So Constitution and¡­ oh wow.¡± The sixth point in Constitution cost 20 Tokens. And so did Perception¡¯s. ¡°That¡¯s more than I expected. Do I invest them in other things, or wait and grab a couple mackerels?¡± He¡¯d feel more comfortable with more Constitution. It hadn¡¯t helped that much against the crab, but against other small fish? They couldn¡¯t injure him with their small bites anymore. He guessed with a high enough Constitution, even the crabs would have trouble cutting through him. Henry nodded. He hated having Tokens sitting idly like this, but he wanted the Constitution upgrade. Once that was done, he¡¯d look into some Class levels. Maybe those had some advantages. But before he could head out, he needed to recover his mana. And his health. Henry looked down at Hoard Vitality and sighed.
Now that he paid attention, he was noticing the effects of his stat increases and his Skill levels. Of course, the most obvious was his vision. He could see very well now. Not too far, because everything became blue when he looked far enough but close by? It was great. Henry sat still, baiting three or four fish all at once with his Mimicking Tentacles, while he himself¨Cand his remaining tentacles that he¡¯d patiently regrew over the last day or so¨Cwere wrapped around his head, making himself seem like a random stone resting on the sand. ¡°Maybe I should have done one at a time.¡± He wasn¡¯t afraid for himself, but he thought he might only hit one of them. As soon as he moved, he assumed they¡¯d scatter. The first fish approached his worm-tentacle and bit. It tried to pull, but Henry found himself able to resist the pull. When the second fish bit another tentacle, he moved. His bitten tentacles curled around the fish, and he activated Razor Tentacle on both fish. One of them was completely decapitated, while the second had a deep gash through its head and gills. The rest scattered, as he¡¯d expected. ¡°Razor Tentacle is expensive though¡­ 9% per activation? It¡¯s effective but damn¡­¡± Henry picked up both Cores and hid under a rock. Increase Constitution: 5 -> 6 Increase [20 CT] | Cancel Henry felt the light sink into him, and he sighed with relief at the odd sense of strength that filled him. ¡°Now, how much is it going to be for the next one? I¡¯d rather be prepared.¡± Henry looked through his Stat Increase menu and his metaphorical eyebrows shot up. No Constitution Stat Increase available. ¡°Huh. That answers my questions, I guess.¡± 1.06: Taking chances Henry stared at his Class Trait list, then at Magic Mimic¡¯s description, then back to the Trait list. ¡°How am I supposed to get a Trait?¡± Henry took a bite of his freshly captured fish as he considered things. In front of him, lodged between some small rocks, three Cores he hadn¡¯t converted yet softly shone in the cave. ¡°It sounds like something Magic Mimic should provide. Which means there must be an upgrade to give me more than temporary Skills. And if my menu isn¡¯t tailor-made for me, then there must be other ways to gain Skills and Traits¡­ even if temporarily. Food? Random magic?¡± Unfortunately, there was no library at the bottom of the sea and no one to ask, so he only had speculations to keep him company. ¡°Well, let¡¯s see what happens with these.¡± 3x Core (F) Consume | Exchange for Consumption Tokens [13] Henry pressed Consume. The Cores disintegrated into puffs of luminescent smoke, and they rushed into him as if he¡¯d just inhaled all three. It felt¡­ somewhat like the boost he¡¯d get from an increase in Constitution. Or Spirit. But somehow deeper and more thorough. Henry basked in the feeling. Soon enough it faded, leaving him with a few notifications. Undecided Marine Biologist - Level 2 achieved! ¡­ Undecided Marine Biologist - Level 5 achieved! 1x Stat point awarded. Undecided Marine Biologist - Level 6 achieved! Henry eyed the notification for a moment and noticed the stat point awarded. After a quick check, he confirmed it was a free stat point he¡¯d be able to assign to whichever attribute he chose. ¡°Hmm. This class name is getting old. Anyway, the stat point. To Constitution you go. To¡­ how do I do this?¡± Moments later, he figured it out. It was in the Stat Increase menu. Obviously. Henry let the surging magic around him cover up his embarrassment. The motes of light appeared out of thin air. They kept appearing for longer than any other instance of stat increase, and then they began approaching him. Henry braced as the magic sunk into him and his limbs. Heat radiated through his flesh, his skin, and then it faded. Henry moved a limb tentatively. It felt¡­ solid. Durable. He had a thought. He lined a tentacle over the point of another, and exhaled. ¡°This might be the dumbest move ever,¡± he thought, then activated Razor Tentacle. Henry winced at the pain, and he saw blood come out of the injury¡­ but the tentacle wasn¡¯t severed. It was cut, yes, almost halfway through. But it hadn¡¯t been severed. Henry looked down at the injury. His health hadn¡¯t even dropped. Not that he could see, which made him wonder if he could see decimals in the percentage. It would be interesting to try and measure this sort of stuff. Focus. Well, his mana and health weren¡¯t at 100%, so he should wait a bit. But it looked like he was about to spend a lot of time outside in the next couple of days. ¡°A few more levels and I think I can take on the Eel. Then I get Telekinesis. And my turtle-home back.¡± Things were looking up.
Things weren¡¯t looking up. Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon. Henry had been able to go on one hunting session and had to cut it short when the sharks showed up. Six hours later, they were still around and no matter how he tried to plan or strategize, he couldn¡¯t think of a way to take one of them out without dying. So he kept creating more Vitality charges and waiting for it to heal back. ¡°Do I need to keep trying to lure something to my den?¡± Being hidden like it was, it made the den safe for him to rest and sleep. But there wasn¡¯t a lot of traffic. He had to swim a few seconds away to get to a more ¡®open¡¯ area where fish could see the bait. ¡°Is it time to try some other spots¡­ no. Absolutely not.¡± He had barely begun climbing the local food chain, and at least he knew a couple of the local players. He had no idea what he would find further away from this immediate area. And with Skills involved? Something could gobble him before he even realized it. ¡°What do I do, then?¡± He looked at a passing red-striped shark. ¡°If I could get my tentacles on top of its gills and cut through them¡­ I could kill it. I don¡¯t know if I could reach both at once. And I don¡¯t know what they can do. And then the other one will tear me to pieces.¡± There¡¯s no way those things didn¡¯t have at least one Skill. Henry sighed. It looked like Hoard Vitality¨Cwhich was already at level 3¨Cwas getting some more levels.
¡°This is crazy. This is so dumb. What am I doing?¡± The last use of Hoarding Vitality must have done something to his head, because this was now the second shark he was barely inches away from. He figured that he could catch a regular fish, put it up on a small ledge on top of some coral, then perch on top of a higher reef, camouflaged, and wait for something to come and bite. He did it two feet away from a new hiding hole he¡¯d scouted. He had to make sure the sharks couldn¡¯t detect him through his camouflage and thankfully, it really did seem that they didn¡¯t see him. Henry bet the dead fish he served them also helped with that. The first shark had been too big to try anything. The second was even larger, and it¡¯d been a challenge not to spam Inkjet and run. The third was perfect. [Riptide Shark (F) - Lvl 19] It was small enough that he was sure he could wrap his tentacles around both gills and Bite through its back. The problem was, he still didn¡¯t know what they could do. Did it have something to do with riptides? He looked up. There were some sharks around, but they were a bit far. They were mostly dark shapes further away in the briny sea, and even his improved perception had trouble making them out. ¡°I could back away. I could do nothing.¡± The shark maneuvered itself to pick the fish. Its gills were a foot away. Facing him. Calling him. ¡°This is¡­ too impulsive. Like chasing the turtle.¡± He took another look around, mind in overdrive. ¡°Safety. Or levels and powers to get out of the ocean.¡± The shark hung still as it bit and swallowed the fish, and Henry let himself drop. His tentacles spread under him and as soon as they touched the slick-smooth skin of the beast he activated his suckers. He expected it to immediately buck and swing¡­ but it didn¡¯t. ¡°I¡¯m too light? Well, I¡¯ll take it.¡± Henry let two tentacles drop on top of the gills, one on each side, and readied himself. Every other tentacle was securing him to his prey¡¯s back. The shark kept working its final meal down its gullet. Henry Bit down with as much strength as he could manage, activating the first two Razor Tentacles in quick succession as he shoved them into the shark¡¯s gills. The shark violently twisted, spreading out a literal cloud of blood all over the area. ¡°Shitshitshit.¡± The shark began to swim away, shaking its head and blindly biting around. Henry¡¯s own Bite barely got through the skin, and obviously it hadn¡¯t reached the spine. But he still hung on, activating Razor Tentacles again once the Skill stopped and continued scouring the shark¡¯s gills. Darker blood surged, and suddenly water slammed into Henry as the world blurred all around him. The water pressure was going to tear off his tentacles. It was barely two or three seconds, then the shark slowed and Henry¡¯s heart dropped as he gazed around the infinite emptiness that spread all around him. The shark twitched once. Twice. Then it went still, blood still steaming out of its torn gills like smoke from a chimney. Henry looked behind, skin crawling. He looked down, and saw nothing but inky darkness. He could see a temporary Skill notification at the edge of his vision, but he didn¡¯t dare do anything. He couldn¡¯t even tell which way was back. Light coalesced around the shark, and a bead of reddish-silver dropped in front of his tentacle. Henry immediately converted it to Tokens and started swimming toward what he prayed was the direction they¡¯d come from. He was pumping his tentacles, pushing water through his siphon when his worst fear came true. A bassy growl filled the ocean. Henry felt his insides literally squirm and vibrate along with it. It kept going, heralding whatever it was that lived here. Henry desperately looked at the temporary Skill he¡¯d gotten from the shark and tried to activate it, but it didn¡¯t work. He tried again, unsuccessfully. The darkness of the underwater world closed in on him, choking the light out of his mind. The ominous growl grew in intensity. It was getting closer. Henry had more than 50% mana. Why wasn¡¯t it working? ¡°Please work...¡± Some light appeared ahead. Rocks. The shallows. Henry chanced a look backward, and his heart stuttered. He could only see a vague outline. He couldn¡¯t see the shark, but he felt the water move around. Buffeted by whatever that was. Henry swam as hard as his limbs could take him, ignoring the pain he could feel through them and through his siphon. He didn¡¯t think it would work. But he managed to activate Identify when he saw the outline, and he didn¡¯t like what he saw. Not one bit. [? (?) - Lvl ??] 1.07: Climbing up Henry was sure that if his tentacles could shake from nerves and fear, they would still be shaking. It¡¯d been close to an hour since he got back to his temporary home. The one he¡¯d taken from the starfish. And he didn¡¯t dare move or make a peep. ¡°There¡¯s a monster nearby.¡± Could it have been a whale? Henry¡¯s sense of scale was off, but he didn¡¯t think so. Also, he¡¯d listened to every type of whale call back on Earth, and that didn¡¯t sound like one he knew. Not even close. ¡°No more shark hunting. Not unless I can block them from running.¡± Killing the shark had been surprisingly easy though, even if he almost got stranded somewhere he shouldn¡¯t be. Well, even more than he already was. ¡°Holy shit.¡± Henry kept staring at the wall for a few more seconds, then shook his head and brought up his new acquisitions. He would have loved to use the shark¡¯s loot as leveling resources, but there hadn¡¯t been time to drag around a Core. ¡°At least the beads always show up nearby¡­ aside from that first fish. Maybe it had to do with me not having the interface back then?¡± Consumption Tokens: 39 Ephemerals (1/1): Riptide Rush (F): Summon a powerful current to propel yourself forward at immense speed. (Time remaining: 12 hours, 7 minutes) ¡°That looks valuable for when I¡¯d like to get out of here. But¡­¡± He was running out of space. If he made that Skill permanent, he¡¯d be 4 for 4 in his Class Skills. What would happen next? Could he replace the Skills? Or were they permanent? ¡°Should I even stay in this area?¡± There was a sea monster a few minutes¡¯ swim away. Should he try to find another spot? And what if he found something else just as big in the other directions? Henry looked down at the Skill and left it in Ephemerals. He didn¡¯t dare use it. It might throw him further away than he intended, and that wasn¡¯t the sort of thing he should be risking. His mana was back to around 60%. He hadn¡¯t been injured, so he was in good shape. Henry couldn¡¯t do much about sea monsters. But he could do something about squatters. ¡°It¡¯s time to go say hi to the eel. After I get some mana back. And spend some Tokens.¡±
Henry had one Token left when he left his den again. The sharks were gone, with only one or two left in the distance. And they weren¡¯t just dark shapes anymore. Henry could see their stripes. And he could identify them, even from this far out. He¡¯d gotten the last purchasable Perception increase. It had been between that or Spirit, but he could wait for his mana to refill while Perception would help him survive. As long as he stopped diving head-first into danger. He¡¯d gotten two more points in Dexterity as well, which made his limbs a lot more responsive to his command and definitely more prehensile. And he took two more points in Strength. Seconds later, he took a last turn and saw his turtle-shell home, radiant in the daylight. ¡°The days are longer in this place,¡± he mused to himself as he closed in on his target. He looked up, making sure there weren¡¯t any new predators around that would interfere with his plan, and stole a glance toward the surface some 50 yards away. Give or take 40. He couldn¡¯t really tell how far it was. He could see it, though. If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. Henry knew there were nights. He¡¯d caught it a couple of times, but without any measuring and testing, he¡¯d say it was¡­ Four hours of night? Maybe less? ¡°Very short nights. I should try to measure it with Riptide¡¯s Timer. Ah¡­ hello, friend.¡± The purple eel poked its head out, and Henry smiled nervously. In his own mind. ¡°Stick to the plan.¡± He swam nearby, not really rushing the eel, and waited. Then his limbs locked up. ¡°Step 1, complete.¡± He felt himself being dragged toward the eel as he curiously peered through the purple hue surrounding him. He saw its mouth begin to open wider, and he readied an Inkjet charge. When he was close enough he let out the ink, then swam right and around, rushing the distracted eel. It immediately turned to face him and lunged. Henry raised two tentacles in response and the eel clamped down on them. Hard. It didn¡¯t hurt much. He could feel the strength the eel was using, but its teeth were barely through the skin. The eel pulled, and Henry was pulled along with it as he slowly began wrapping a tentacle around the eel¡¯s neck. Then the world spun. ¡°A death-roll? Really?¡± Some blue blood seeped from the tentacles being chomped on. The eel managed to tear into his flesh a bit more than with the initial puncture¡­ but that was it. He finished wrapping his tentacle around its neck and activated Razor Tentacle, then pulled it away. Blood surged out of the eel¡¯s sliced throat, and Henry pried his two tentacles out of the panicked eel¡¯s mouth. They were shredded a bit, but nothing that wouldn¡¯t heal in a few hours. The eel floated in front of him, twitching as blood seeped out of its opened neck. ¡°That was underwhelming,¡± he thought as he went into his home, dragging the eel along with him as it went through its final death throes. Its body fell to the sandy floor of the turtle-home, and the familiar sheen appeared over it for a moment before reducing into a shiny violet Core. 1x Telekinetic Eel Core (F) Consume | Exchange for Consumption Tokens [29] Henry pressed Consume as he took a nibble from the eel¡¯s flank. Undecided Marine Biologist - Level 7 achieved! ¡­ Undecided Marine Biologist - Level 10 achieved! 1x Stat point awarded. Telekinetic Eel Core (F) contained significant Spirit Stats. 1x Spirit Stat point awarded. Telekinesis (F) was copied by Magic Mimic. Ephemerals are full. Replace Riptide Rush(F)? Henry approved the replacement, then read through the ability. He bit out another piece of the eel as he confirmed that was the only Skill it had. ¡°I can get stats from Cores? That¡¯s good to know.¡± Telekinesis (F): Spend mana to control the movement of a perceived target. (Time remaining: 17 hours, 27 minutes) ¡°The duration of Skills are all over the place,¡± he thought, then went to his Skill Acquisition menu to double-check everything was still there. And it was. Dart, Riptide Rush and Telekinesis were available for purchase. He¡¯d have to test what happened if he tried to purchase something with three slots full. Once he went back out. He also assigned the point to Constitution. He felt like it was the stat that was keeping him alive at this point. After the light show was over, Henry looked down at the eel and sighed. ¡°You were terrifying. But compared to what¡¯s out there¡­¡± Henry dragged the eel outside for other fish to eat, then went back into the shell he¡¯d woken up in almost a week ago. He gripped the bottom edge with his tentacle for comfort, then peered through the entrance toward the rippling surface. Sooner or later, he¡¯d have to get up there. He wondered if he¡¯d be able to see anything. ¡°I¡¯d be so lucky if I could see land.¡± Then what? It wasn¡¯t as if he could grow legs and go out on land. Henry triggered Hoarded Vitality, then let himself drift into a short nap.
Henry woke up to the sound of nearby thuds. He rose up to the entrance, then poked his head out. A few feet away, two large-ish crabs were fighting over the half-eaten eel he¡¯d thrown out. Around them, smaller fish were darting in and out, nibbling on the dead eel. [Bladed Blue Crab (F) - Lvl 17 ] [Bladed Blue Crab (F) - Lvl 15 ] Henry watched the crabs fight. ¡°I¡¯ll get the winner. But I probably should throw food a bit further away from now on¡­ Yeah. that wasn¡¯t the smartest move.¡± Henry watched the crabs dance around each other. Occasionally, they¡¯d try to angle their pincers to snip the other crab¡¯s arm off but they¡¯d immediately get parried, which explained the noise. After a couple of minutes, it seemed one of them grew tired of the charade and its pincer moved a lot faster than before. It sheared through the second one¡¯s arm and a leg, which forced the latter to back-off. The victorious crab¨Cthe higher level one¨Cturned back to his meal, and Henry slid out of his hiding spot. He circled around, approaching the crab from behind using his siphon. Then he remembered; he had Telekinesis now. After a quick look up to make sure nothing dangerous was roaming nearby, Henry focused the crab and triggered Telekinesis. A purple hue shrouded the crab, immobilizing it. Henry could feel it fight back. Trying to move. And he watched his mana trickle away faster than he expected. Henry rushed forward, one tentacle chopping down with a Razor Tentacle primed, but it barely scratched the tough shell of the crustacean. So he wrapped his tentacles around its arms and used Bite. ¡°Damn, this thing¡¯s tough.¡± A few seconds later, he successfully cracked the shell and bit into its brain. Then he carried both the crab and the half-eaten eel to throw them further away from his home. ¡°Having multiple arms is sorta growing on me. I¡¯d prefer thumbs¡­ but this isn¡¯t a bad alternative.¡± With another tentacle he picked up the Core, and as he swam back home, he wondered what he should do about the fact that his neighbor was a huge monster. 1.08: A swim in the neighborhood You have reached your limit of Class Skills. If you wish to replace a Skill, be warned that you will lose all levels and progress made with the replaced Skill permanently. Replace Telekinesis by Riptide Rush | Cancel ¡°Cancel.¡± Henry looked at his remaining 25 Tokens and sighed. ¡°Why can¡¯t I use these for levels?¡± Nothing answered him. So Henry loaded his Stats and stared at them. Stats: Strength: 5 Constitution: 8 Spirit: 6 Perception: 6 Dexterity: 5 ¡°Fine. Let¡¯s see¡­ Every stat aside from Constitution and Perception costs 20 Tokens to upgrade. Even Spirit. Which means stats from Cores don¡¯t count against the purchase cap. I wonder if it resets somewhere. Would be odd if only the first few stats are purchasable.¡± Henry considered his options. ¡°Strength seems worth it. It helped me keep control of the crab and the eel. And it allows me to hang on to the sharks when they get crazy. On the other hand, some Skills are getting expensive mana wise. Like Telekinesis. Or Razor Tentacle¡­¡± Henry hummed to himself then nodded. ¡°Yeah. I¡¯m getting the last point in Spirit.¡± With that purchase made, Henry was left with 5 Tokens. He wanted to hunt some more sharks, but couldn¡¯t risk being flung into the middle of nowhere along with them. Was there a way he could trap them? Could he immobilize them with Telekinesis enough for them to bleed out? ¡°Worth a try when my mana refills.¡± In the meantime¡­ he could do some fish-watching. And add more charges to Hoarded Vitality. Like a responsible person. Especially if he was going to keep taking risks. Henry sighed, then got to work.
Henry¡¯s second Riptide Shark floated on its back, blood clouding the water around it. Telekinesis worked well on them to keep them immobilized. Though in this second fight, his mana¡¯d been brought down to single digits and he walked away with a splitting headache. Whenever the shark had tried to flail or move, Henry had to burn through his mana to keep them still. It seemed that whenever they tried to force their Skill through, it clashed with Henry¡¯s Telekinesis and he paid dearly for it. It had been perfect to level up Telekinesis. The Skill just hit level 5. Razor Tentacle gained a level as well, but progress there¨Clike most other Skills¨Chad slowed down. Henry identified the core that gently floated down to his tentacle. [Riptide Shark Core (F) - 33 Consumption Tokens] He retreated to a nearby hidden cave, then tapped the Consume option. Undecided Marine Biologist - Level 14 achieved! Undecided Marine Biologist - Level 15 achieved! 1x Stat point awarded. Undecided Marine Biologist - Level 16 achieved! Riptide Shark Core (F) contained significant Spirit Stats. 1x Spirit Stat point awarded. ¡°Nice. But Spirit again? I guess it makes sense, considering how ungodly expensive their Skill is. And that point goes to Constitution.¡± Henry waited an hour or so for his mana to refill while recovering from another use of Hoard. Somewhere along the way, both his health and mana had begun to refill faster. While in the past it had taken something like 25 minutes to refill one percent, now it felt like barely half that. If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. ¡°Time to explore a bit. But not south.¡± South was the deep water where the huge thing lived. West was the kelp forest, east was more shallows and reef, and north¡­ he didn¡¯t know. He hadn¡¯t explored that area much. ¡°I wonder if I can make myself invisible with Mimicking Tentacles.¡± It was a bit dumb that he hadn¡¯t tried much, and to be fair, he wasn¡¯t going to be invisible per se. He¡¯d just do the chameleon thing and take on the color of the surface he was on. Now that he thought about it though¡­ ¡°That might mean I have to recast the skill a lot. It¡¯s not expensive, but it¡¯s not free either. Well. Algae ball it is.¡± Henry looked around, trying to memorize his surroundings. He didn¡¯t want to lose this spot. And lose his turtle-home. ¡°Should I start carrying it with me? Like a hermit crab?¡± Worth considering, honestly. Though its shine might attract too much attention. ¡°I¡¯ll stay close. And I¡¯ll keep the kelp forest in sight.¡± And with that, Henry went to explore. He had to admit, he was pretty excited.
Henry discovered that he could travel for a while along the kelp forest. The reef had gone on for close to an hour as Henry made his way north, carefully keeping an eye out for predators and dangers. ¡°I must have been at the edge of the territory¡­¡± Which had been a good thing. Because Henry was noticing more and larger sharks. Riptides and others. Eels, rays, larger crabs and more aggressive fish. He¡¯d had to ditch the algae disguise after the third butterfly fish came to nibble on him and then got mad when it turned out he wasn''t edible. He was now a rock. Henry finally reached the edge of the reef and his breath caught. A field of golden stalks stretched endlessly ahead of him. It was the same odd glowing algae he¡¯d been encountering for the last few minutes, but he never expected to see so much of it all at once. It was a whole plateau of the things. The ground seemed to slope downward, going on until the glow was overpowered by the briny sea. Then he saw movement. High, high above the field of golden algae, there was a whale. ¡°Whales¡­?¡± There was more than one, and when a familiar call reached his ears Henry decided this trip was well worth it. He wanted to get close, but he eyed the field of stalks with suspicion. It was a prime venue for ambushes, and he didn¡¯t know what lived there. He could see fish hiding in the field, popping out from time to time. But if there were fish, then there must be predators. ¡°Also, it''s not really guaranteed that they¡¯re friendly whales.¡± Henry sat on the edge of the reef, as a rock, staring at the vista ahead, and time passed. He saw what he believed to be some variants of tuna, too far away to identify. He saw a terrifyingly large shark that immediately turned tail when the whales noticed it and blared an aggressive tune. At some point the whales had gotten closer, and Henry saw calves. ¡°This is their calving ground¡­¡± Henry watched silently, occasionally listening to their sing-song calls, and decided that things weren¡¯t as awful as they seemed. He would have never experienced something like this back on Earth. He would have needed to find the site, worn scuba gear, and made all sorts of other preparations, but now? He could just wrap tentacles around the ridge of a stone and watch. He still had to be careful, of course. He was in an environment infested by predators and other dangers he knew nothing about¡­ but he was growing in strength. On his second or third day, the eel would have absolutely killed him. But barely a week later, he was able to dispatch it with minimal injuries. And the punctures healed within the hour. He was killing sharks. As a 20-inch¨Cor maybe 30-inch¨Clong octopus. He couldn¡¯t measure himself very well. His whole perspective was messed up. ¡°It¡¯s odd how most creatures have a single Skill so far, if they even had one to begin with. The starfish did have two though¡­ Does it have to do with how the System does things? Or is this why the System said I was lucky?¡± He guessed he¡¯d find out eventually. Maybe because everything was lower level? Or F-ranked? His neighboring monster had a question mark instead of the letter next to its name, which probably meant there were higher options than F. In any case. There was hope. Maybe he¡¯d eventually find a way out of the ocean and¨C Henry¡¯s thoughts slowed. One of the whales was swimming in a wide circle which should soon put it within Identity distance. Henry excitedly primed himself to see what he could glean from this interaction. The whale was growing larger. More defined as it approached. ¡°Blue whale? No¡­ larger. Sorta resembles a gray whale in shape though. Are those horns?!¡± The whale swam closer, and Henry triggered Identify again. This time, it worked. [? (?) - Lvl ??] That¡­ was concerning. That was the same output he¡¯d gotten from the monster in his backyard. Henry suddenly felt that maybe he should keep his whale-watching from a distance. ¡°Yeah¡­ wait for it to move on, then leave. That¡¯s enough for today. I have a trek home anyway.¡± The whale¡¯s movement slowed. Henry shivered. ¡°It¡¯s just a coincidence, it¡¯s just¨C¡± The thought came to halt as he saw the large eye trained on him as the whale kept moving. ¡°I¡¯m disguised¡­ It can¡¯t see me. It¡¯s a coincidence.¡± Then, to his relief, it fluked its tail then picked up speed. Henry watched it move away, and his limbs relaxed. He hadn¡¯t noticed how tense he was. ¡°Damn. That was scary. What¨C¡± ¡°[What¡­ are¡­ you?]¡± The voice rang his head, overpowering all thoughts. Henry froze. He slowly tilted his head upward, and came eye-to-eye with another whale. It was closer to the surface. But close enough that he could see its eye. No, eyes, as there was a smaller eye above the large one, and it was looking at him as well. A mountain was hovering above him. Seeing through his disguise. And it had asked him a question. And the output of Identify changed. [Whale (?) - Lvl ??] 1.09: The whales ¡°[I sense¡­ your understanding. Answer.]¡± It wasn¡¯t a request. The air suddenly felt thick. Darker. And the eye didn¡¯t seem neutral or curious anymore. Everything seemed to fade around the giant glare that pierced through his soul. ¡°I¡¯m Henry! I mean you no harm. I¡¯m sorry.¡± The ominous air abated, and the giant eye blinked. ¡°[You¡­ have the gift¡­ of mind. I do not¡­ hear the words. But I sense¡­ the intent. Reveal yourself.]¡± Henry dropped Mimicking Tentacles and the air immediately tensed again. ¡°[Deceiver¡­ spawn.]¡± The displeasure of the voice made him quail, and the eye seemed to loom closer. ¡°[Wretch!]¡± The voice boomed in his mind and his vision swam as a blinding headache slammed into his brains. He felt sick. He looked at his health, and found it at 88%. Henry struggled to think clearly. It seemed to understand his thoughts. Not as good as the System, but close. ¡°I¡¯m human. I was not born this way. I swear.¡± The displeasure mellowed, but it was still present, right at the edge of his consciousness. An odd call resounded from the whale¡¯s physical throat, and similar calls were returned from all around them. Seconds later, shapes began to converge. ¡°[Explain, Deceiver.]¡± By the time Henry finished explaining what he¡¯d been doing when he died, the multi-colored turtle, waking up as an octopus, then talking to the system, four whales were surrounding him, with the fifth above. A new voice spoke in his mind. ¡°[You spoke¡­ with the Supreme?]¡± ¡°[You found¡­ a sacred¡­ traveler?]¡± another asked. The hostility was completely gone, and the one that had inflicted the damage spoke again. ¡°[Forgive¡­ my mistake¡­ Henry.]¡± Henry paused in surprise. ¡°You believe me?¡± He immediately regretted saying that. Why was he sabotaging his own damn self? ¡°[We sense¡­ the truth¡­ of your words. We see¡­ your odd nature. The gift of the Supreme¡­ does not lie.]¡± That was cryptic. But okay? Most importantly though, he could ask questions. ¡°Are there humans nearby?¡± He tried to picture a human holding a tool, or sailing a boat like he¡¯d done. An odd call sounded from one of them, echoed by the others, one by one. ¡°[We¡­ don¡¯t understand¡­ your meaning.]¡± Henry deflated for a moment, then rallied. ¡°They live on land. They¡¯re small. They make objects out of wood to go into the sea. They¡¯re smart. They can talk, like you, but with sound.¡± ¡°[Ah¡­ yes. Some live on land¡­ some in the sea¡­ with us.]¡± Wait what? Henry was going to need a follow-up on that, but for now he needed to stay on track. ¡°Are they far? How can I get to them?¡± ¡°[They are¡­ outside¡­ of the Great Current. It is¡­ many cycles¡­ of travel. Many.]¡± Henry¡¯s heart dropped. ¡°You mean days? When the sun comes out and there¡¯s light?¡± ¡°[A cycle¡­ is ten of those days. Yes.]¡± Henry tried to take in what that meant. Many 10-day weeks? How many? ¡°[You are¡­ too young¡­ to leave the sanctuary.]¡± What did that have to do with anything? And what sanctuary? The whales seemed to pick up on his confusion, so another answered. ¡°[The sanctuary is in¡­ the Great Current. To find¡­ those you seek¡­ you need¡­ to leave the sanctuary, then escape the Current. You will not¡­ survive. You are¡­ too weak. Still.]¡± Henry deflated. Then he looked up at the giant whales and asked, ¡°Could you take me out of the Current? Can I travel with you?¡± New sounds echoed between a few of them. Were they laughing? ¡°[You have spoken¡­ with the Supreme. We dare not¡­ interfere¡­ in its designs.]¡± ¡°[But when you¡­ leave,]¡± another one spoke, raising a flipper to point toward the kelp forest, ¡°[go¡­ in that direction. It is the shortest¡­ path. And least¡­ dangerous. Do not¡­ stray. Even we¡­ would be in danger.]¡± If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. A nice way of telling him he was on his own. Henry looked down at his tentacles, then down at the empty fields of gold ahead. ¡°[You feel¡­ loss. We¡­ apologize.]¡± ¡°I¡¯ll have to manage, I guess.¡± Henry wanted to go home. He looked up at the whale. ¡°Can I come back and talk with you soon? Will you still be around?¡± ¡°[Yes¡­ we will be here¡­ for a few more¡­ cycles.]¡± Henry nodded and prepared to head back home. Under a disguise. He wondered if they¡¯d let him bite them to get their Telepathy or whatever it was they were using to speak in his head¡­ but maybe that¡¯d wait for another meeting. Then he looked up at the calves in the distance. ¡°There¡¯s something big that lives nearby. I couldn¡¯t see its name¡­ but Identify didn¡¯t work.¡± ¡°[Yes¡­ we sense¡­ it. It will not¡­ move¡­ if we leave it¡­ be.]¡± Good to know. Henry said his good-byes, then left. Minutes later, he heard the first voice echo in his mind again. ¡°[Good¡­ luck. The Supreme believes¡­ in you.]¡±
¡°I should get my turtle shell and come to this area.¡± Henry slowly made his way back as a rock. He was slightly less worried about the local fauna, but he still had to be careful. Now that he didn¡¯t have five giant whales staring him down, though, it felt like maybe he should have asked more questions. But between the disappointment of not getting a ride and them being massive and intimidating, he ended up wanting to retreat. ¡°I¡¯ll have to try moving the shell. Could I carry it? I¡¯d have to cover it up¡­ Some fish are attracted to shiny things. With kelp? Maybe?¡± Henry hummed. He didn¡¯t have any tools to use¨Cif he could even manage that¨Cto camouflage the shell. He was definitely not leaving it, though. ¡°So I¡¯m in the safe section of this Current? And it takes how many cycles to get through it?¡± Henry should have gotten a figure. But if it was more than three or four, then it wasn¡¯t much of a current. Depending on their speed¡­ ¡°This Current sounds like a sea at least. Probably an ocean. And it extends in every direction from here?¡± Henry arrived home and looked at his shell. He swam around, examining how it was stuck. ¡°I¡¯m curious what a map of this world would look like. And how did you even get stuck like this?¡± He thought at first that maybe the boulder had slid and trapped the turtle. But after examining the position of everything surrounding the shell, it didn¡¯t seem like it. He began working under the shell, digging into the sand to create some space. Which wasn¡¯t easy or effective with his tentacles. Henry then tried to move the sand with Telekinesis. It didn¡¯t work. After searching his surroundings for a couple of minutes, he found a flat enough piece of rock and used Telekinesis on that instead. Thirty minutes later, and after an expensive push down with Telekinesis, the turtle shell was dislodged. ¡°If this was the same turtle I chased¡­. It might have been dead for a while. Now that I think of it, even its bones aren¡¯t around anymore.¡± It was scuffed around the edges, specifically where it had been stuck. Barnacles grew around those spots and along the exits, but they didn¡¯t seem to want to stick on the luminescent bits. So aside from some scuff marks, the colored structure itself was intact. Henry slowly moved across the shell, examining the colorations of every scute. Each had vibrant colors that seemed to vary depending on the angle and light. A spot he would see as red would turn to yellow as soon as he tilted his head or angled the light differently. The whole back of the shell was like that, and it seemed like every color in existence was available somewhere on the shell. As long as you angled yourself right. Something about it was tingling the back of his mind somehow. ¡°What is this even made of?¡± Henry tried to move it with his tentacle¡­ and he succeeded, to his own surprise. ¡°Still too heavy for me to carry.¡± He looked back toward the territory of the whales, then back to the shell. He was going to need some more Strength points, and Telekinesis might end up the first to get to level 10. ¡°This might take a few days.¡±
2 days later. Henry was in a foul mood as he dropped onto the back of another shark. [Riptide Shark (F) - Lvl 26] He stabilized himself and tore into its gills, then immobilized it with Telekinesis before it could activate its Skill. When the Core formed, he immediately Consumed it and popped off the shark¡¯s carcass before its brethren came to eat it. He¡¯d had some concerns about the killing spree he¡¯d been subjecting the local ecosystem to, but then he realized that for every shark he killed, ten showed up the day after. And he wasn¡¯t a safe human on a boat anymore. Taking measures and samples and tracking migrations patterns to safekeep the dwindling population of Earth¡¯s oceans. He didn¡¯t have that luxury here. He was in the food chain. Not on top of it. Short of it was, he wasn¡¯t collecting cores anymore. Not after he lost two of them. And if he found what stole them, he would tear it apart. Henry swam down to his overturned shell and went inside, ignoring the stalks of kelp that came up from each of its sides. On the first day of travel, he¡¯d confirmed that the shell was extremely attractive to every goddamn fish around. So after hiding it, he went and collected long kelp stalks that he wrapped around the shell to keep it somewhat hidden. It had been a massive pain in the ass, trying to tie kelp without hands. Telekinesis helped, but it wasn¡¯t very accurate. Or at least he wasn¡¯t while using it. ¡°I miss having hands.¡± Two Shark Cores. Two. Bundling them under a bunch of algae hadn¡¯t been enough. Something had come in, sifted through the algae, and picked them up. Henry shook his head. He had wanted to collect a few and then decide on how he¡¯d use them, but even though he¡¯d intended to store them for only a few hours, it had been a mistake. He should have just been using them for levels as he went. Or, if he insisted on hoarding enough to splurge, he could have converted everything to Tokens, then sat down and spent it all at once. At least he kept the Skill levels. And he should be getting to the whale territory in a few hours; he could relax then. Find a good spot to hide the shell, and then go pester the Whales for their Telepathy Skill. And kill more Riptide Sharks. Then maybe leave them alone and find something else to harvest. Henry settled down in the center of his shell and watched from a distance as Riptide Sharks tore their own to pieces. He¡¯d be at 29 or even 30 if it wasn¡¯t for that stupid thief. Whatever it was. And his own stupidity for leaving the Cores in his shell. But it hadn¡¯t been all for nothing. Both Telekinesis and Razor Tentacle were at level 9. And he was one or two sharks away from figuring out what happened when a Skill got to 10. He¡¯d head back out once they calmed down. He wanted to get this over with before reaching the whales. It was time to assign his new stat points, so he pulled up his menu and got to work. 1.10: An upgrade ¡°The last shark got me past level 25. And I have two unassigned points. Hmmm.¡± Henry considered his options for second, then came to a decision. ¡°First one¡¯s obvious. It goes to Constitution and makes it a clean 10. Then I should focus on Spirit to get it to 10 as well. So one each.¡± Henry assigned the points. Motes of light appeared around him. It was definitely more than any other instance, but he assumed there would be some warmth and he¡¯d feel better in a few seconds. The light sunk into him, and his limbs began jerking and twitching. The magic seared into his flesh as Henry groaned with pain. The process lasted close to a minute, and it took another minute for the tension and twitching to fully stop. ¡°I was not expecting that. Was the tenth point special or something?¡± Henry pulled up his stats. He looked through them for a moment and grimaced. ¡°I don¡¯t like how I can¡¯t tell where I used a level-point or where I got a bonus from a Core. Weren¡¯t there some customization options somewhere¡­ ah. There.¡± Henry found the option and triggered it. Then he looked closer at the other customizations for a few seconds before deciding that if he was seeing some details, he might as well see all of them. Strength: 5 [1 Base][4 Purchased](1 Purchasable) Constitution: 10 [1 Base][4 Class][5 Purchased](6 Purchasable) Spirit: 9 [4 Base][1 Class][2 Consumption][2 Purchased](0 Purchasable) Perception: 6 [2 Base][4 Purchased](0 Purchasable) Dexterity: 5 [2 Base][3 Purchased](1 Purchasable) Henry squinted as he tried to make sense of it all. [Purchased] was clearly tracking the points he paid for, but not all stats had the same amount of points available for purchase. He studied it for a few more seconds. ¡°Ah, it¡¯s the Base. I can buy points all the way up to the sixth stat point. Then the purchase limit gets reset when the stat gets to 10. Constitution started with 1. I bought 5 points, and I couldn¡¯t buy any more. Now that it has reached 10 with Class points, 6 new points are available for purchase.¡± Henry nodded and focused back on his operations. ¡°Better. I still have 5 Tokens from a few days ago¡­ I should buy the remaining points for Strength and Dexterity and I would need¡­¡± He went to the increase menu and looked for the increases available. He narrowed his eyes. ¡°40 Tokens. Alright. Now, let¡¯s see what¡¯s happening with levels and Skills.¡± Bite (F): Level 5 -> Level 6 Mimicking Tentacles (F): Level 7 -> Level 8 Inkjet (F) - Level 5 -> Level 6 Hoard Vitality (F) [19 Charges]: Level 2 -> Level 5 Razor Tentacle (F) : Level 5 -> Level 9 Telekinesis (F): Level 1 -> Level 9 It felt good to see the amount of progress he¡¯d achieved in a few days. ¡°Telekinesis really leveled fast. To be fair, I¡¯ve been using it non-stop since I got it. It changed everything.¡± Henry dismissed the interface and wondered if anything would happen on a Skill¡¯s level 10. He eyed his health and mana percentages and nodded. ¡°20 or 30 minutes. Then we find out.¡±
This was Henry¡¯s most ambitious target yet. [Riptide Shark (F) - Lvl 37] Riptide sharks reminded him somewhat of Blacktip sharks. They had similar morphologies, aside from the coloration of Riptides, and they were around the same size. The one he was currently looking at was the biggest Riptide he¡¯d targeted yet, and compared to his octopus body, it was massive. But if he were human? They¡¯d be around the same size. Maybe the shark would have 10 or 20 pounds on him. But it wasn¡¯t anything as large as a Great White. Or Tiger. Or even Hammerhead. Still, it could gulp him down in one mouthful. ¡°I¡¯ve done this enough times now. Just stick to the plan. It¡¯s only a bit larger.¡± Henry held off on Telekinesis. It was expensive to use on larger sharks, and he was going to need all his mana to keep the shark still once he lacerated its gills. Which turned out to be a mistake. Henry dropped down from his ledge. And the shark twisted its head away. Henry was surprised by the quick movement, and the surprise quickly turned to stomach-churning terror when he came eye-to-eye with the shark, right before it lunged at him. Henry activated telekinesis and his mind rocked at the feedback from trying to stop the massive shark mid-lunge. Over 30% of his mana was burned instantly, leaving him with blurry vision and a splitting headache. Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. The shark thrashed. Or tried to. Every attempted movement of its great muscular body ate another chunk of his mana. Henry struggled to control his limbs. He swam backward, toward a nearby hiding spot. He didn¡¯t dare use Inkjet. The shark was too close. If he didn¡¯t see it, he couldn¡¯t stop it with Telekinesis. ¡°It¡¯s okay. You¡¯re okay. Just get out¨C¡± A red hue appeared under Henry¡¯s purple Telekinesis. Next thing he knew, the jaws were upon him, and he could barely see as the headache slammed into him much more fiercely. He was on the precipice of blacking out; the only thing that kept him awake was sheer terror and realization of how precarious his situation was. Henry shot an Inkjet and darted left. The shark only had to snap down its jaws. Teeth sunk into him with the crushing force of a vice, and Henry screamed. The Riptide Shark thrashed him around and blue blood surged out of him. Henry desperately slashed with two tentacles at the shark¡¯s eyes, and tried to reach the gills with another, but his angle was wrong. 77% health. It hurt. But the shark¨Ceven though he bit into him pretty deep¨Chadn¡¯t been able to completely tear through him. And the headache was finally becoming manageable. Henry doubled his efforts and slashed at everything his limbs could reach. Razor Tentacle was active on the three tentacles he could move, and Henry dragged the bladed magic on anything and everything he could touch. The shark kept thrashing, biting down as it did, trying to shove Henry deeper down its gullet. Henry tried to keep the panic out and do as much damage as he could, but a thought still crossed his mind. If my head gets bitten down on, I die. 39% health. Then Henry remembered Hoard Vitality. He activated all of his charges, all 19 of them, as he slashed at the shark¡¯s face. Finally, it seemed like he hit something sensitive. The shark spit him out and turned away, leaving Henry floating in a mess of blood and shredded limbs. Three tentacles were gone, while two were shredded and barely responsive. The remaining three had been blades, but the Skill was fading as he was trying to reorient himself. The shark didn''t leave. It circled around, face disfigured with open, bleeding gashes. It kept him on its left flank. Because Henry had gotten its right eye. It was bleeding profusely. Henry watched the shark and waited. His shredded limbs were knitting back up thanks to Hoard Vitality¡¯s charges, but slowly. He was glad the Skill would have activated even if he¡¯d forgotten about it. He never had to use it¡­ so it had slipped his mind. The fact that it softened the headache as well made every painful use of the Skill worth it, and he vowed to focus on creating many more charges through it. Henry felt tingling at the edge of his severed tentacles. 40.... 41¡­ 42% health. 27% mana. Then the shark rushed him again. Without using its Skill. Henry waited. When the jaw was only a second away, he reactivated Razor Tentacle on one limb and put everything he had on Telekinesis. The shark froze mid-bite. Henry ignored the renewed headache, shoving his tentacle into its remaining eye. He forced it as deep as he could. He felt some resistance at first, then he managed to punch through. When he did, he scoured everything he could cut through. Then Telekinesis stopped. He was out of mana. The shark hung in the water, lifeless. Henry looked up and around. Some sharks were coming, but he had a couple of seconds. The massive body of the shark should be more attractive than himself. Henry collected the Core and did the octopus-equivalent of limping his way to cover. He entered the den he¡¯d been trying to get to before the shark had bitten him, consumed the Core, and promptly passed out.
When Henry woke back up, he felt like shit. He glanced at his status. ¡°Mana 18%, health 52%. How long was I out? One hour? Two? I can¡¯t tell¡­¡± That had been too close. He could still feel echoes of that fear. Feel the teeth sink and crush through him. ¡°Careless. Complacent.¡± He sounded like his dad. And it pained him that the voice wasn¡¯t wrong. Henry lay in the roomy space under the rocks, watching small fish swim nearby. One peeked out at him from a bundle of anemone. ¡°If I hadn¡¯t pushed Constitution to 10, I think I would have died there.¡± Henry groaned inside, but he wished he had vocal cords to voice his suffering. It just wasn¡¯t the same without it. He decided to go for another short nap. When he woke back up, he felt more ready to tackle his notifications. He pulled them up and began sifting through them. Undecided Marine Biologist - Level 27 achieved! ... Undecided Marine Biologist - Level 30 achieved! 1x Stat point awarded. Undecided Marine Biologist - Level 31 achieved! Hoard Vitality (F): Level 5 -> Level 8 Razor Tentacle (F): Level 9 -> Level 10 Telekinesis (F): Level 9 -> Level 10 Access to Skill Upgrade module granted. ¡°Good. And I level when I use the charges from Hoarded Vitality? Good to know. Now. Let¡¯s see¡­¡± Henry brought up the new options. It listed both Skills that had gotten to level 10 without further details. He clicked on Telekinesis first and braced at the cost that was about to be thrown his way. Upgrade Telekinesis (F) Pick the focus of the Skill upgrade Potency of the effect Or Improved targeting ¡°Interesting¡­ but where¡¯s the cost? Do I need to click on one? Just in case though...¡± In case the upgrade was free, he should make sure of what he wanted. What if I clicked one option and it went along with it? ¡°Potency or Targeting? I¡¯d love both to be honest. But if I were to choose¡­¡± The image of the shark breaking through Telekinesis with its Skill was too vivid. ¡°Potency. Maybe I can work on targeting by myself? Could I force the Skill to work differently through brute-force? I wonder if that¡¯s possible¡­¡± Henry made his choice, expecting to get a price prompt in response. Something hummed inside of him, and a buzz grew in his ears for a few moments. Then it faded. Telekinesis (F) successfully upgraded to Telekinesis (E) Glancing at the Skill description, it seemed to be the same, aside from a small detail at the end. ¡°I¡¯ll have to test it, I guess.¡± Telekinesis (E) - Level 1: Spend mana to control the movement of a perceived target. [+Potency] Henry looked up at the stone above him. ¡°It was free?¡± Everything so far had cost him something. It was surprising for Skill upgrades to be free. Did it have to do with the fact that he had to level the Skills? ¡°It did reset to level 1, though. Well, I¡¯ll maybe find someone to ask, eventually. Let¡¯s get the second one over with. Then I can focus on resting up.¡± Henry went back to the upgrade menu, and found Telekinesis still listed. ¡°Huh?¡± He clicked it. Improve Targeting of Telekinesis (E) Increase [10,000 CT] | Cancel ¡°There it is. And holy crap that¡¯s a lot of dead sharks.¡± Henry shook his head and opened up his second Skill Upgrade. Upgrade Razor Tentacle (F) Pick the focus of the Skill upgrade Fully transform the tentacle into a bladed instrument Or Improve the sharpness of the Skill ¡°That¡¯s¡­ not an easy choice. Dammit, System.¡± 1.11: The request Henry ended up going with the sharpness option. He relied too much on the flexibility of his limbs when he fought bigger creatures, and he worried that the first option would make his transformed limbs too rigid to use. In any case, it would be available to him¡­ whenever he¡¯d saved up the ungodly amount of Tokens to get the second option. Razor Tentacle (E) - Level 1: Summon a razor-sharp blade along the edge of a single tentacle. [+Sharpness] Which left one point to assign. ¡°More mana. Get Spirit through to 10 as well.¡± There were no twitching tentacles or spasms this time. It was as if he¡¯d just eaten the most weed-laced brownie in existence. And it wasn¡¯t pleasant. It lasted barely for a minute, but Henry was now dreading future threshold increases. He hoped they weren¡¯t every 10 points. ¡°I need to rest anyway¡­¡± Henry found it really easy to fall back asleep. He hoped he¡¯d get to upgrade Hoard Vitality soon. And was definitely going to keep an eye on other animals with regenerative capabilities. He needed something to recuperate faster.
Henry canceled his plans to go see the whales today. They¡¯d said they would be around for a few cycles, so he assumed he had plenty more time to talk with them and ask questions. In the meantime he was a rock, sitting on top of a reef outcropping. He¡¯d come up here after checking in on his turtle home. He would have gone exploring or even hunted more actively, but he was low on Hoard Vitality charges¨Cor more accurately, he only had one charge¨Cand he needed to build a larger safety net before he took big risks again. His eyes followed the unwitting soon-to-be victim as it swam by. [Riptide Shark (F) - Lvl 26] Being safe didn¡¯t mean he couldn¡¯t take the occasional shark when they brought themselves to his doorstep. And he was staying away from the larger specimens until he felt better. At least until he was more confident in his upgraded Skills. Henry waited patiently for the shark to swim close. When it got as close as it would get, which was around 15 feet away, Henry surged up. Telekinesis gripped the shark in an unbreakable grasp. It activated its dash ability, which Henry felt slam into his Telekinesis. He barely felt the backlash. Henry wrapped a tentacle around the throat of the frozen shark. He activated Razor Tentacle, and pulled his tentacle back. The shark throat was cut three-quarters through, as if he¡¯d just sliced through jelly. He backed away, letting the shark bleed out for a few seconds, then collected the Core before heading back down to his perch and disguising himself again. ¡°78% mana. That was cheap.¡± The shark¡¯s corpse slowly sank until it came to rest on a bed of corals 20 feet away. Henry watched its brethren come out of the dark waters, attracted by the smell of blood. ¡°I wish I could collect some samples. Of everything.¡± He looked up at the water surface, far in the distance. ¡°Do you hear me, System? Something to carry my things in would be really appreciated. Just think about it, alright?¡± Henry watched the sharks begin tearing into the carcass with a renewed hope. He¡¯d got his ass beaten, true. But both his main Skills were just upgraded, and they were much more efficient at taking down prey. ¡°I¡¯ll be able to go up to the surface soon. Once I have enough charges. I could go explore the kelp forest as well. Or go further in¨C¡± Something new appeared. A greenish snake-like thing came out of the kelp forest, slithering toward the frenzied sharks at a placid pace. This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source. It was at least 40 feet long. Henry¡¯s eyes were about to pop from his head. ¡°What is that?¡± The sharks, even through their frenzy, dispersed when the newcomer opened its mouth and screeched. [Juvenile Sea Serpent (E) - ??] ¡°That¡¯s juvenile?!¡± The words of the whales were beginning to make sense. What kinds of monstrosities were around? Henry examined the being as it picked up the carcass and swallowed it in one go. It had shiny green scales. Ridges and fins along its back and thick plates along its stomach. Yellow reptilian eyes, and what he believed were back-swept horns? No gills that he could see, though. Or any obvious weakness that he could use to his advantage. When it finally turned away and swam back from whence it came, Henry exhaled the breath he hadn¡¯t realized he¡¯d been holding. ¡°Holy shit.¡±
¡°[You wish¡­ to acquire¡­ our abilities?]¡± ¡°Yes, to communicate with you. And other intelligent beings.¡± This time, three whales had come to greet him. Tideweaver, Deepcaller, and Wavecrest¨Cthe one who he¡¯d first interacted with. They¡¯d told him to wait as soon as he approached the fields of golden algae, as if they didn¡¯t want him to get too close. They had had a strong reaction to his form a few days ago. Maybe they didn¡¯t trust him around their calves just yet. Or maybe it was for his own good. For some reason or another. He found it rude to ask, so he kept it to himself and tried not to think too hard about the fact that they might be able to sense his thoughts. In any case, if they did, they showed nothing of it. ¡°[A worthy¡­ pursuit. The gift¡­ of words¡­ through thoughts.]¡± This one was Deepcaller. He was the nicest one so far. Wavecrest spoke next.¡°[How¡­ would you¡­ acquire it?]¡± Henry stood straight¨Cas far as his soft body allowed¨Cand thought clearly. ¡°A small bite is enough. The smallest bit of flesh from you would allow my Trait to copy it.¡± There was an uncomfortable silence where Henry hoped he wasn¡¯t about to be squished. It was immediately broken by the trilling sounds of their laughter. ¡°[If you¡­ manage to pierce¡­our flesh,]¡± said Deepcaller, ¡°[you are¡­ welcome to¡­ it.]¡± Henry looked up at the three whales, who seemed pretty smug all of a sudden. ¡°I¡¯m not getting anything, am I?¡± Another trill of laughter. Deepcaller raised a flipper. ¡°[Try¡­ here. It is¡­ softest.]¡± Henry wanted to argue that maybe their tongues would be softer, but that sounded like a good way to have his brains turned to mush. He swam for a few seconds to reach Deepcaller, and landed on the extended flipper. Their skin was smooth to the touch. A dull blue-gray with no barnacles in sight, but more scarred than he could have imagined. One couldn¡¯t swim a couple of feet without finding teeth or claw marks. Some scars were closer to craters or deformities. Weren¡¯t they supposed to be tough? Well, he was about to learn for himself. Henry started with his beak, slowly trying to work it through the skin. He twisted around, tried to grip a bit of skin, but nothing would give. He would have had more success biting through a sheet of steel. ¡°Holy shit.¡± Another trill of laughter. Henry activated Razor Tentacle and pressed it against the smooth surface. Nothing. ¡°This is incredible.¡± ¡°[Your wonder¡­ is appreciated,]¡± said Deepcaller. ¡°Can I try one more thing?¡± ¡°[Of¡­ course.]¡± Tideweaver watched silently. She hadn¡¯t said much since telling him her name. Wavecrest spoke. ¡°[We will be here¡­ for a while. You will¡­ have a chance to try¡­ again. We see¡­ that you have already¡­ grown in strength. You might have¡­ an infinitesimal chance¡­ of getting through¡­ our flesh¡­ by the time¡­ we leave.]¡± Encouraging. Also condescending. And probably right. Henry swam to the extremity of the flipper and found the smallest part of it. He had enough Tokens to finish getting the last two stat points. He bought the sixth points for Strength and Dexterity, waited for them to sink through, then wrapped a tentacle around the flipper and exhaled. He activated Razor Tentacle and slowly pulled with every bit of strength he could manage. He felt his limb stretch and burn, and he might have been a second or two from tearing it off his body, but for a moment he thought he was getting through. Then the Skill failed. When Henry unrolled his sore tentacle, there was no mark on the flipper. Nothing. It took him a second to process that. Then he looked up at the giant eye that was giving him an amused side-eye. ¡°I have ideas. I will be back. You¡¯re lucky I don¡¯t have hands any more.¡± Henry swam away from the flipper. He needed something sharp and something to act as a lever. Which might be impossible for him to get. Dammit. ¡°I guess I¡¯ll go train with some sharks.¡± ¡°[Good fortune¡­ in your¡­ hunt¡­ Henry.]¡± They were preparing to leave when Henry had a thought. ¡°Wait. How do you grow in strength? Do you also hunt?¡± They kept swimming away. ¡°[The Great Current¡­ feeds us. We do not¡­ need¡­ to hunt.]¡± Henry watched them swim away in awe. ¡°What an incredible sight. I wonder if this Great Current is made of magic krill.¡± 1.12: Hard work pays off ¡°Riptide Rush and something sharp and durable. Not shark teeth. I feel like shark teeth would break on Deepcaller¡¯s skin. Maybe I could ask the serpent for a tooth? And I¡¯d need another Skill slot for Riptide Rush. Because I can¡¯t afford to lose any of my current Skills.¡± Henry watched the sea serpent swim away again after he¡¯d left it a few Riptides for lunch. It was too soon to target such a creature, but he couldn¡¯t help but be curious. ¡°What does an adult look like? What can they do?¡± So far he hadn¡¯t seen it use any Skills, and Henry was dying to see what they could do. Keeping up his disguise as a rock, Henry pulled up his status. ¡°I have 18 Tokens remaining. Start saving up for Skill upgrades, or get levels?¡± So far today, every shark he got he turned to levels. He kept the fights easy, and tried to work on his other Skills. Like Bite. Which made things awkward, because Bite didn¡¯t have the reach of his tentacles. But maybe its upgrade would be able to punch through Deepcaller¡¯s insanely tough skin. If not, he could maybe save for the second upgrade for Razor Tentacle and see if that worked better. Though it seemed like it would take a while to get that many Tokens. Henry felt that leveling up was a more efficient way to spend his time. Hoard Vitality was a level away from 10, and he was holding his breath for something useful. He pulled up the rest of his notifications. Undecided Marine Biologist - Level 31 achieved! ¡­ Undecided Marine Biologist - Level 35 achieved! 1x Stat point awarded. Hoard Vitality (F): Level 8 -> Level 9 Mimicking Tentacles (F): Level 8 -> Level 9 Bite (F): Level 6 -> Level 8 ¡°What to increase now¡­ Perception? Strength?¡± Henry navigated to the Stat Increase menu. ¡°I wonder if I¡¯ll ever be able to buy more¨Coh. Oh damn.¡± He could buy points for Constitution and Spirit. Now that they passed the 10th point, it seemed possible to exchange Tokens for a point. Only issue was¡­ ¡°What do you mean a thousand Tokens for a point?¡± Henry glared at the menu. He put a point in Constitution¨Cwhich he was glad to see he could still assign points to¨Cvowed to give Perception and Strength some attention soon, then dismissed the menu. ¡°Things are getting too expensive. And when am I supposed to get Traits? I need to ask the whales next time.¡± Henry saw a larger Riptide swimming closer. ¡°I need to start looking for something other than these sharks. Didn¡¯t I see some other shark type near the whales? Oh well¡­ they¡¯ll have to do. And I need to build up more Vitality charges.¡±
The surface above darkened and brightened up again. Henry thought the night lasted three hours or so. He¡¯d been building up charges of Vitality, murdering the occasional shark while he watched his surroundings. He saw the serpent once again. Three dangerous-looking sharks showed up as well. All three E-rank, and he believed they were the same kind that the whales had chased away a few days ago. [Whipcrack Shark (E) - ? ] The single question mark was interesting. Did that mean their level was in the single digits? A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. The sharks were around 15 to 20 feet each and they reminded Henry of a mix of great white and thresher. He was getting nowhere near them until he knew exactly how they fought, and he already had some ideas on how to find out. They ended up heading east again, further down into the reefs and away from the kelp forest. Henry wished he could draw these animals somewhere and take the drawings with him. After they¡¯d left, he saw a notification waiting for him. He excitedly opened it, quickly passing over his new levels. Undecided Marine Biologist - Level 36 achieved! ... Undecided Marine Biologist - Level 39 achieved! Hoard Vitality (F): Level 9 -> Level 10 Bite (F): Level 8 -> Level 9 Upgrade Hoard Vitality (F) Pick the focus of the Skill upgrade Store mana as well as health Or Increase efficiency Henry grimaced. ¡°Both are good. Damn it.¡± An option would raise efficiency, true, but while he was sitting around waiting for his health to tick back up, his mana was often sitting at full doing nothing. ¡°Ah this sucks¡­¡± Henry considered both options for a few more minutes, then decided to go with the mana storing increase. ¡°This just makes more sense¡­ if I¡¯m low enough to need the Vitality charges, I¡¯m going to need some mana as well.¡± Hoard Vitality (F) successfully upgraded to Hoard Vitals (E) The description now indicated that both health and mana would be stored. Henry sighed and was about to dismiss the interface when another message arrived. New Class Trait Unlocked: Recuperative Meditation (F) You have spent hours upon hours recuperating your health and mana, refilling both pools many times over in the last few days. Recuperative Meditation (F): While resting and relaxed, mana and health recuperations are accelerated. Henry¡¯s eyes widened as he read through the notification. ¡°Yes! Thank you!¡± The new Trait went under his Class. Not with his Species¡¯ abilities. And with it, he had two slots remaining in his Class Traits. ¡°Amazing. And perfect timing.¡± Over the next few minutes, he triggered his new Hoard Vitals Skill and tried to relax¡­ but his recovery didn¡¯t seem that fast to him. ¡°Maybe I can¡¯t relax while I¡¯m exposed like this¡­ even if I¡¯m camouflaged.¡± He then went down to his hidden turtle home and settled down. ¡°Inner peace¡­. Inner peace...¡± Saying inner peace didn¡¯t work. But when he really settled down and relaxed a few minutes later, he felt the Trait take effect. Every three or four minutes, a health percentile would tick up. One to two minutes for mana. He opened his eyes after thirty minutes or so and looked at his full health and mana reserves. ¡°I¡¯m going to hoard so much they¡¯ll call me¡­ Uh¡­ whatever.¡± Henry bailed on his crappy joke and began burning through his health and mana. Thankfully, the Skill didn¡¯t make him feel sick as much anymore. Maybe it was the upgrade. Or maybe his Constitution. It didn¡¯t matter. Henry was about to become the next best thing to unkillable.
Three hours later, he had to stop and go outside. He needed to practice meditation. Because sitting there with nothing to keep himself busy allowed some uncomfortable memories and thoughts to bubble up. He didn¡¯t want to think or deal with any of that right now, so he went outside. He¡¯d hunt something real quick, then try this meditation stuff somewhere where he could watch the surrounding ocean and not be stuck in his shell. He still managed to get 4 extra charges of Hoard Vitals, though, bringing his total to 7. With the new charges having mana. That was obvious to Henry, because the spots had a blue-ish center that made him look like a weird offshoot of a blue-ringed octopus. One with not as many rings as nature ordained. ¡°Level 39¡­ I should push for 50. See if anything happens then.¡± Henry settled on his usual spot, overlooking the whale territory in the distance and the kelp forest to his left, and waited. Soon enough some Riptide sharks came around from behind him. Henry caught a couple then set them ahead for the big players. Hopefully they''d come out, and maybe this time they¡¯d reveal something. He wasn¡¯t sure if it would work. He wasn¡¯t sure if any would show up. But they did. The sea serpent appeared first. It undulated toward the fresh meat and was almost upon it when five Whipcrack sharks showed up from the opposing direction. Henry inhaled and braced excitedly. ¡°I wish I had some popcorn.¡± The sea serpent paused in front of its meal and screeched at the sharks. Henry winced at the loud roar¨Chis tentacles twitched and curled up instinctively¨Cbut the sharks didn¡¯t seem to care. They spread out, unperturbed by the serpent¡¯s warning, and got closer. The serpent closed its mouth and Henry thought he could almost see it narrowing its eyes. It coiled around itself¡­ and the back of its throat began to glow. Henry leaned forward. ¡°What is¡ª¡± A Whipcrack suddenly rushed the serpent. Its long tail whipped forward in a loud crack, aiming at the serpent¡¯s face. The serpent jerked its head away and coiled harder. It shook its head then turned to the shark rushing it. It roared, and a beam of green rippling light shot out of its fanged maw. The shark hit by the light thrashed and twitched a few times, then it turned belly up. Unmoving. The four remaining sharks rushed the serpent all at once, and Henry thought that maybe he should back away. If one of those rays came his way, it might be the end of him. 1.13: The Aftermath Henry poked his head out from behind cover and watched the fight rage on. The serpent caught one of the sharks in its mouth and chomped. Henry saw a glow around the teeth, which confirmed a Skill when the remaining half of the shark floated down, cleanly severed from its upper body. Another shark lay dead, caught by a green ray that thankfully hadn¡¯t been shot his way. Two sharks were still alive. One was able to tag the serpent with its tail, causing it to swim awkwardly for a few seconds, as if in a daze. The other shark rushed, suddenly accelerating, and took a sizable bite out of the serpent¡¯s neck. It chewed for a few moments, then turned belly-up as well. ¡°Shit.¡± That meant Henry shouldn¡¯t even think of trying to get a bite of the serpent. Not that he was. But clearly, its flesh was poisonous enough that an E-Rank shark passed out within seconds of biting into it. The remaining shark decided to cut its losses, and swam away. The serpent hissed again, a loud screech which filled the water around them, then it swallowed the two Riptide sharks, the remains of the Whipcrack sharks, and swam away toward the kelp forest. By the time it neared the thicker parts of the forest, its neck had stopped bleeding. Henry stared down at the site of the battle. The remaining tail-part of the shark which had been bitten in half was still there. ¡°The water might still be toxic. But the tail should be safe. No way for the venom to spread through all that without a heart¡­ I can nibble on the tail. Also¡­ did the serpent collect the Cores? How is it getting them?¡± Maybe it had to do with how the whales didn¡¯t need to hunt? Maybe there was a Skill or a Trait that bypassed the formation of a Core? Henry waited a few minutes, enough for whatever toxic compounds to dilute a bit more and just in case anything showed back up, then swam toward the discarded tail. Before more scavengers showed up. A couple of minutes later he arrived, and no shark had shown up yet. The serpent¡¯s ruckus probably scared them away. Henry examined the surrounding space. If a Core had formed, it was probably lost in one of the cracks or under some coral leaves. He couldn¡¯t waste time looking for it. Maybe he could ask the whales about that as well. Henry approached the large, cartilaginous tail of the Whipcrack shark and bit into it. Seconds later, the notification showed up. Tail Whip Skill is not compatible. Skill has been adapted to Tentacle Whip. Tentacle Whip (F) was copied by Magic Mimic. Ephemerals (1/1): Tentacle Whip (F): Strike out with a tentacle to create a sonic boom that stuns the target while delivering a powerful blow. (Time remaining: 11 hours, 54 minutes) ¡°Oh that¡¯s good.¡± This, in concert with Razor Tentacle, might be strong enough to cut through Deepcaller¡¯s skin. Henry paused. Maybe he should make sure the tentacle wouldn¡¯t backlash into his face first. A whipping-blade like that would absolutely slice him in half. No other notification showed up. They just had one Skill? Henry tried a couple more timid bites, but then Riptide sharks began showing up and he decided it was time to leave. ¡°Maybe they also have Bite and that¡¯s why I can¡¯t copy it.¡± It was time to test it out, then head out to Deepcaller before the Skill ran out of time. He hoped he¡¯d get more Skill slots soon.
Henry¡¯s tentacle flashed forward with a terrifying speed. The bladed edge impacted the whale flipper¡¯s skin and bounced off harmlessly. ¡°Dammit.¡± ¡°[You are¡­ getting¡­ close. I could¡­ feel¡­ that.]¡± This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. ¡°Thanks, Deepcaller. I have a couple of questions for you. About classes and powers.¡± Deepcaller had come alone this time. The whale hummed and both its left eyes stared at Henry as he rubbed his sore tentacle. The whipping motion didn¡¯t do it damage¨Cnot really¨Cbut it did make his limb feel numb for a few minutes. ¡°[Questions? Of¡­ course. You¡­can ask.]¡± Henry kept his questions simple. He asked about Traits first and how he was supposed to fill the options he had available. He asked about Trait Upgrades and how to get them, and he finally asked if everybody needed to consume Cores to level. He ended up skipping the question about why some beings had only one Skill. That was one question too many. And clearly the starfish had two, so it probably wasn¡¯t anything too special. The giant eye blinked at him. ¡°[Those¡­ are¡­ many.]¡± The whale went quiet for a few seconds, then its voice echoed in his mind. ¡°[Traits¡­ we acquire in the ¡­ Current. But I know¡­ the flesh you wear¡­ acquires it through bites. The Deceiver obtains its abilities¡­ through blood.]¡± Magic Mimic, Henry thought. So it must be an upgrade. ¡°[Traits follow¡­ our Class. When you ascend¡­ to the next stage, your Traits ascend with you.]¡± Henry nodded along. Answers. Should have asked about this days ago. ¡°[As for Cores¡­ only those¡­ with the gift¡­ of mind¡­ are offered¡­ the choice.]¡± Henry hummed. Those couple of seconds of waiting for the Core to finish forming were not ideal¡­ but maybe they were required to have the choice between consuming and converting a Core to Tokens? ¡°Thank you, Deepcaller. Your answers are very helpful.¡± ¡°[You said¡­ there were beings¡­ like us¡­ where you came from. Did they¡­ have the gift¡­ of mind?]¡± Henry looked up at the massive, telepathic whale and sighed. ¡°I don¡¯t think we know for sure. We know their brains are developed and they communicate with each other, but we can¡¯t communicate with them. I don¡¯t think they¡¯re as intelligent as you are, though.¡± Deepcaller was quiet for a moment. ¡°[We will¡­ be here¡­ for one more¡­ cycle. Then we will¡­ say our¡­ goodbyes.]¡± Henry rocked at the news. He¡¯d known they were going to leave soon¡­ but they were also the only intelligent being he was able to speak with. He took comfort in their presence. He was going to be left alone? ¡°[You should¡­ hurry. You will not¡­ be able¡­ to pierce¡­ my skin¡­ by¡­ swimming¡­ in your own¡­ sorrow.]¡± Henry shook his head at that. Even through the anxiety and worry, he chuckled. Who would have known he¡¯d ever meet telepathic whales with a sense of humor.
Henry stayed nearby and hunted Riptide Sharks. He still had to isolate them, because he couldn¡¯t freeze two of them at once with Telekinesis. When he wanted to recuperate, he just swam around the reef and explored, trying to identify everything he would meet. He was still on the hunt for something to heal faster, even though it was less of an emergency now with Recuperative Meditation. [Common Starfish (F) - Lvl 1] Henry continued his swim. He¡¯d had the chance to test out Tentacle Whip a bit more, and it was extremely efficient when mixed with Razor Tentacle. Terrifyingly so. Unfortunately he couldn¡¯t level it just yet. And he was about to lose access to it. ¡°Less than an hour,¡± he said to himself as he consulted the Skill description. [Fishbane Sea Cucumber (F) - Lvl 3] Henry stared at the black and yellow sea cucumber, then shoved it away with Telekinesis when it tried approaching him. It might have miraculous healing abilities, but he wasn¡¯t biting into that. That thing was only missing a skull and crossbone pattern on its back. Henry swam further away, going back up to his perch. He wanted to reach level 50, and he was getting close. Though in the meantime, he had some points to assign. Undecided Marine Biologist - Level 40 achieved! 1x Stat point awarded. ... Undecided Marine Biologist - Level 45 achieved! 1x Stat point awarded. Undecided Marine Biologist - Level 46 achieved! Henry gave a point to Strength and a point to Perception, as promised. He waited through the process, and was gratified to notice his vision extending slightly farther. Nothing dramatic, but anything helped. He checked his updated stats for a moment¨Cand activated another option he found when he looked for it¨Cbefore going over his Skill levels. Stats: Strength: 7 [1 Class] [0 Purchasable] Constitution: 11 [5 Class] [6 Purchasable] Spirit: 10 [2 Class] [2 Consumption] [6 Purchasable] Perception: 7 [1 Class] [0 Purchasable] Dexterity: 6 [0 Purchasable] Hoard Vitals (E): Level 1 -> Level 2 Razor Tentacle (E): Level 1 -> Level 2 Telekinesis (E): Level 2 -> level 3 ¡°Good progress.¡± From now on, he¡¯d focus on Bite and Mimicking Tentacles, getting them to 10. And hopefully by tomorrow, he¡¯d hit level 50. With that, Henry activated Mimicking Tentacles and waited.
It took close to six hours of on-and-off fighting that was slowly making Henry sick to his stomach. ¡°I should change targets soon,¡± he thought to himself as he swam toward his turtle-shell home. He doubted his own impact on the Riptide Shark population would be that pronounced in the grand scheme of things, but it was starting to feel a bit much to him. Still, the results were undeniable. And they helped alleviate the guilt. Undecided Marine Biologist - Level 47 achieved! ... Undecided Marine Biologist - Level 50 achieved! 1x Stat point awarded. 1x Class Skill Slot added 1x Class Trait Slot awarded Mimicking Tentacles (F): Level 9 -> Level 10 Bite (F): Level 9 -> Level 10 ¡°I¡¯ll build a memorial for you somewhere, Riptide Sharks. But you guys almost killed me as well, so¡­ yeah. Now, let¡¯s see.¡± 1.14: A surprising development Henry started with his new Slots. ¡°Still can¡¯t use that new Trait slot. But I now have a spot for Tentacle Whip.¡± Henry purchased Tentacle Whip. It was a synergetic Skill and he wanted it in his arsenal. He then dismissed the level-ups, quickly putting his new point into Strength. ¡°If I¡¯m ever getting through whale skin, I need Strength. Now, for the main course.¡± Henry pulled up the first Skill upgrade and immediately noticed the difference. ¡°No options this time?¡± He couldn¡¯t even read anything. He just had to trigger the Upgrade. So he did. Sub-skills unlocked for Bite! His mind and body buzzed in a familiar manner when he approved the upgrade. Once the process was over, he finally had access to the updated description. Henry started reading, and his mouth dropped. ¡°Holy shit.¡± He had been hoping for something good, but what he got was much better than anything he¡¯d expected. Bite (E) - Level 1 F-Rank: Your bite inflicts more damage. E-Rank: Temporarily gain an aspect of your target''s bite. Aspect is available until used. Maw of the Trickster: Store anything you can fit in your maw in a private storage dimension. Maximum volume: 5L ¡°Why is this so much better than my previous Skill upgrades? Is it because these are my own Skills?¡± Henry hummed. The new abilities did seem like they fit the general theme of Magic Mimic. Was he getting better upgrades because his species¡¯ Skills were synergizing with his own Trait? He re-read Maw of the Trickster; if he could smile, his cheeks would be hurting by now. He still couldn¡¯t store his turtle shell, but everything else? Cores? Samples? Anything he found interesting? Into the vault they¡¯d go. ¡°Thanks, System.¡± The volume limit seemed fair, and he hoped it would get better as the Skill leveled and if it did, he¡¯d eventually be able to store the magic-turtle shell. Maybe. ¡°Just gotta be optimistic.¡± Henry immediately pulled up his next Skill, hoping to see something as impressive as Bite¡¯s upgrade. He wasn¡¯t disappointed. Sub-skills unlocked for Mimicking Tentacles! Mimicking Tentacles (E) - Level 1 F-Rank: Your tentacles can mimic shapes and lifeforms somewhat accurately. E-Rank: Temporarily mimic some of the physical properties of recently ingested prey. Alter Physique: Gradually increase or decrease your overall size and mass over the course of a few hours. Maximum mass: 5 kg. ¡°I might be able to store the turtle shell after all.¡± Henry sat down and re-read everything new he¡¯d gotten. ¡°This changes everything. I need to take my species¡¯ abilities a lot more seriously.¡± Henry triggered Alter Physique. It gave him some small feedback, and he felt like he could vaguely set his desired size, so he tried pushing it as much as he could. He just wanted to know how large he could get. Weight meant mass, and mass meant more exerted force. Plus, he could always reduce his size again. ¡°I hope it¡¯ll increase fast with levels. Same with Maw.¡± The Skill began slowly feeding off his mana, and a slight tingle went through his body before fading away. Henry still reeled at his new abilities. ¡°Are my Skill upgrades always going to be this good?¡± He looked down at Inkjet. ¡°What about you? What will you be able to do once you¡¯re upgraded?¡± Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings. He needed to start working on Inkjet as well. He glanced outside, and even through the excitement at the new Skills he could feel fatigue creeping in. And he remembered that his time with Deepcaller and the whales was limited. ¡°I¡¯m going to be alone.¡± He shook his head. Every day that passed, he was getting better and better at braving this ocean and surviving within it. He was adapting. ¡°Eyes on the prize. Once I¡¯m out of the water, I can worry about everything else.¡± Henry looked around his turtle-home and out into the reef. He nodded to himself. ¡°A quick nap. To rest, and so Alter Physique can finish its work. Then back to hunting.¡±
¡°Not bad. I¡¯d say¡­ 30% or so?¡± He hadn¡¯t thought of taking measurements before going to sleep, but when he woke up, he noticed how everything seemed tighter around him. Henry examined his tentacles, their lengths and thickness. ¡°20 to 30%.¡± He hadn¡¯t gotten big enough for his home to trigger claustrophobia, but it was enough to make him feel slightly uncomfortable. ¡°So. What¡¯s the plan?¡± He could go and explore the reef a bit further. He might encounter those Whipcrack sharks and whatever else lived in that area. Or he could head to the kelp forest. ¡°The serpent lives there¡­ and that thing¡¯s venom is terrifying.¡± Henry paused. He could steal its bite. But he didn¡¯t think he could survive biting into that thing¡¯s flesh even if he managed to bring it down. ¡°Shouldn¡¯t I have some ability to resist poisons? Aren¡¯t octopi in general good with this sort of thing?¡± He examined his abilities for a few minutes. ¡°¡®Accelerated Regeneration: Recover from injuries and ailments faster.¡¯ That should help with venoms and poisons. And I did get a Trait for having used Hoard Vitality so much. Maybe I¡¯ll get something for toxins if I train myself?¡± Henry considered it. He should probably build up some more Hoard Vitals charges before he tried playing with dangerous toxins. Maybe he should keep it to weaker stuff? ¡°Maybe I could find that starfish again. It hadn¡¯t been too powerful. I should start slow.¡± Henry nodded to himself. ¡°The reef. I¡¯ll do some exploring there. Work on Inkjet¡­ and see what I can find. Also collect some Cores with Maw.¡± That one Skill might be what he was most excited about. How much would he be able to fit within it? ¡°One way to find out¡­¡±
[Riptide Shark (F) - Lvl 61] ¡°Last one. But this one is massive.¡± The Core popped out of existence as soon as it came in contact with his mouth, and Henry swam away from the fully decapitated carcass. Whipcrack sharks descended from the surface. ¡°Damn. They¡¯re almost never alone.¡± Henry looked away, leaving them to their meal. He slowly swam through the reef, squirted ink in the face of a telekinetic Eel that tried to stop him, and dove down when he saw a starfish. [Spike-crowned Starfish (F) - Lvl 6] ¡°Is this like the crown-of-thorns starfish? It has a few levels¡­ Well. One way to find out. I should have enough health charges in case anything goes wrong.¡± Henry put a tentacle on the starfish. Before he could force one of the thorns through his skin, the pointy bit exploded outward. It didn¡¯t pierce his skin. ¡°Damn,¡± said Henry. He looked down at his tentacle and sighed as brought it up to his beak. ¡°Ah, this sucks.¡± He bit his skin open, then he lined it up to another spike. When the mechanism triggered, it barely stung. Then he felt a familiar burning sensation settle in. Henry activated Mimicking Tentacles, becoming a ball of algae, and waited. ¡°Let¡¯s see what happens.¡± He watched the local population while the venom tried¨Cstruggling¨Cto work its way up his tentacle. It felt a bit numb, but so far he hadn¡¯t even lost any health, so he wasn¡¯t worried. Henry picked one of the venomous spikes and crunched it with his beak. ¡°Hmm.. no Skill.¡± His mouth tingled as he watched the surroundings. This area seemed to have some dangerous denizens. There were the Whipcrack sharks, all of which were E-Rank. There were larger Riptide sharks. The crabs were present as well, and definitely larger, and the telekinetic eel he¡¯d seen was the third he¡¯d found in the last hour. ¡°I was probably lucky to wake up near that monster¡¯s territory. It seems like most locals knew the area was bad news and stayed away.¡± The venom stopped burning after a few minutes. When Henry examined the area in question, it was spotless. ¡°I guess I do have some mild resistances. Or I can only be poisoned by something with a high enough level.¡± Henry considered making another donation to the serpent to lure it out, but it might have gone elsewhere. And what were the odds that he¡¯d be able to instigate another fight between it and the sharks? ¡°Probably better odds if I just go there and try to track it. Plus, there isn¡¯t much around here other than Riptides that I can easily kill. Maybe there¡¯s something good to hunt over there?¡± Henry hummed, watching the Whipcrack sharks roam far above. They¡¯d already finished swarming over the Riptide, and nothing was left. ¡°Barely 5 minutes and they cleaned it up.¡± He eyed the sharks. ¡°If I can get on one of their backs, I could use the usual trick. The problem is getting out of there after.¡± He shook his head. They were swimming too far up. ¡°There must be an easier target around.¡± Henry kept his algae disguise and began swimming back home, keeping an eye out above him and on his surroundings. Halfway through, he noticed a peculiar spot he must have missed earlier. He slowed down, and would have frowned if he¡¯d had any eyebrows. It was a soft patch of sand, but no fish were around. Neither big nor small. Then someone stepped out from behind a rock at the edge of the patch and Henry¡¯s blood froze in his veins. ¡°Henry?¡± the voice echoed out of the luminescent figure. ¡°Is that you?¡± His mother smiled up at him and opened her arms invitingly. ¡°I missed you so much.¡± 1.15: The Flatfish Henry had never had the chance to hear those words. Not since his childhood. And his memories from then were foggy at best. He stared coldly down at the figure that kept repeating the same two or three sentences over and over again. His tentacles shook and his thoughts were frantic. But he knew this wasn¡¯t real. There are telepathic whales. This is clearly a trap. Something¡¯s picking stuff out of my brain to lure me down there. His mom looked exactly like the picture he¡¯d had of her. Whatever this was, it was showing him something he wanted to see. He had a couple of guesses. Even though he knew this was nature, and this was probably a predator doing its thing¨Cjust like he¡¯d been doing since he came to consciousness¨Cit still unnerved and ticked him off all at once. Anglerfish. Or something like that. Henry wanted to feed it to the sharks. [?] He tried identifying it, but it seemed like the Skill failed when he targeted his fake-mother. Henry swam away, then came back two minutes later with a large goatfish. His fake-mother showed up from behind the rock again, and he chucked the goatfish onto the sand. The dead fish hit the sand, and nothing happened. Henry left for ten minutes and came back with a Riptide Shark. This time, before the shark even hit the seabed, something surged out from under the sand. [Lurelight Flatfish (E) - ? ] ¡°There you are.¡± It was an oddly translucent¨Cand large¨C flat angler-fish looking thing. It opened a large mouth and began working the shark down its gullet. He couldn¡¯t see the lure itself anymore. Probably the product of a Skill. Henry glared down at the fish. He wanted its levels. He wasn¡¯t sure he wanted the Skill it was using. And he didn¡¯t like that the impulse to cut the anglerfish in half was being pushed forth by emotions. So far he¡¯d mostly been hunting and preying on the local population out of necessity. He needed to get stronger to survive in this ocean and to have a chance of getting out. His wanton killings were spurred by the need for survival. Not glee at hunting living beings, and not out of spite or anger. This felt different. The flatfish was almost done swallowing the shark, and Henry floated around its hunting grounds. ¡°I¡¯m not going to find an easier E-rank predator to kill. And it¡¯s not as if it was innocently living its life.¡± He tried to push down his reservations. This was clearly a predator that tried to lure him personally. Henry activated Razor Tentacle and the gray bladed-magic shone under his now larger limb. The eye of the fish flicked to him. Henry whipped his tentacle, hitting the flatfish over its upward-facing gills. His tentacle barely cut through the skin. ¡°Henry, stop.¡± The image of his mother reappeared. She was crying. ¡°Please, stop. Don¡¯t hurt me.¡± Henry activated another Razor Blade and shoved both bladed tentacles under the flatfish¡¯s protective membrane, into its gills.
With the Core (E) secured, Henry swam back to his home. Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings. He traveled slowly, stopping a couple of times to examine some particularly vibrant colors or a fish he hadn¡¯t seen before. He paused for a moment along the way to watch the light of day above and try to forget what the flatfish had shown him. Henry hadn¡¯t gotten its Skill. He was happy it hadn¡¯t been transferrable. He didn¡¯t feel he could turn his nose up to Skills at this point so he had bitten into the flatfish. But he hadn¡¯t gotten a notification. The ability was probably a Trait, and Henry couldn¡¯t steal those yet. It was for the better. He didn¡¯t want to have a Skill like that. Rationally, it was an extremely impressive specimen. It used a fascinating and effective strategy. Getting your target¡¯s brain to do your work for them and lure them into your trap? Genius. Emotionally? Henry fucking hated that fish. His skin was still crawling from the experience. He wanted to forget the encounter, and for a moment he considered visiting the whales. But he would have to explain his sour mood to them. Because of course they¡¯d pick up on it. He turned his attention back to the new Core. And how many Tokens it was worth. ¡°Probably because it¡¯s E-Rank.¡± He didn¡¯t expect other E-Rank monsters to be as easy to bring down. He got lucky by exploiting a weakness, and even then it had been a tight fit. The flatfish¡¯s scales had been insanely tough; if Henry hadn¡¯t known about the gill trick, he wouldn¡¯t have been able to kill it. Henry entered his turtleshell home, spat the core back out and Identified it. 1x Lurelight Flatfish Core (E) Consume | Exchange for Consumption Tokens [2340] ¡°How many levels is that going to be? How much longer until I can leave?¡± He needed to be able to reliably hunt E-ranks soon. With them he¡¯d get levels faster. Buy stat points. Even the upgrades for Razor Tentacle or Telekinesis shouldn¡¯t be too tough to get. ¡°Consume.¡± The Core dissolved into a sandy cloud of smoke and rushed into him, filling him with so much strength and vigor he felt he could wrestle a serpent. Moments later, a deluge of notifications filled his mind. Undecided Marine Biologist - Level 51 achieved! ... Undecided Marine Biologist - Level 77 achieved! 5x Stat point awarded. Lurelight Flatfish Core (E) contained significant Constitution Stats. 1x Constitution Stat points awarded. Razor Tentacle (E) - Level 2 -> Level 3 Telekinesis (E) - Level 3 -> level 4 Tentacle Whip (F) - Level 1 -> 3 Henry looked at the notifications and nodded. It might be worth trying to track down more of these flatfish. He assigned two points to Strength and brought it to 10, then brought Perception to 10 as well. His eyes burned and pulsed with pain for a few seconds, as did his flesh. He felt stronger than ever. And he could taste. With his mouth. The salty taste of the ocean brought up some nostalgia from where he¡¯d grown up and from his last few days on the ship. Stats: Strength: 10 [1 Base][4 Class][5 Purchased] (6 Purchasable) Constitution: 12 [1 Base][5 Class][1 Consumption][5 Purchased] (6 Purchasable) Spirit: 10 [4 Base][2 Class] [2 Consumption][2 Purchased] (6 Purchasable) Perception: 10 [2 Base][4 Class][4 Purchased] (6 Purchasable) Dexterity: 6 [2 Base][4 Purchased](0 Purchasable) With that done, Henry decided there was still daylight to burn, and he went back out hunting.
The bad news was that Henry found no other Lurelight flatfish. The better-but-not-fully-good news was that he was able to lure a better target away from the rest of its school. [Whipcrack Shark (E) - Lvl ?] The shark tore off a piece of a Riptide, causing the sand around the carcass to surge, clouding everything behind a screen of yellow and white dust, but Henry¡¯s improved vision wasn¡¯t bothered. He watched the shark have its meal from only a couple of feet away. Without ceremony or much pep-talk, Henry dropped his disguise and swam closer. He immobilized the shark with Telekinesis. The shark immediately pushed against it, and Henry¡¯s head began to pulse. So he opted for the safest and quickest method to bring it down. Tentacles to the gills. Henry tore into them for a few seconds. When he felt he¡¯d done enough, he backed away. He looked the shark in the eye, finally letting go of Telekinesis before a vein burst in his brain. He didn¡¯t run. He wasn¡¯t running. Not today. The shark jerked around with its mouth open, probably trying to inhale but not getting enough oxygen because of its destroyed gills. Then it half-turned and whipped Henry with a crack that made his whole world lurch. Henry¡¯s saw double for a few seconds, but kept his eyes on the shark. It hurt. But not as much as he¡¯d expected. And his healing charges were ready and untouched. ¡°84%. That¡¯s fair.¡± The shark was growing lethargic as it tried to swim away. In the distance, Henry saw a few more sharks begin swimming their way. As he stopped it with Telekinesis, he wondered if the other sharks came because of the blood or the noise of the Skill. He took a bite of the shark, then swam away. 1x Whipcrack Shark Core (E) Consume | Exchange for Consumption Tokens [3360] Henry dove down into a crevice to watch the remains of the Whipcrack shark be devoured, then hit Consume. Undecided Marine Biologist - Level 78 achieved! ... Undecided Marine Biologist - Level 92 achieved! 3x Stat point awarded Whipcrack Shark Core (E) contained significant Dexterity Stats. 1x Dexterity Stat points awarded Bite: Bite of the Whipcrack Shark acquired ¡°More Tokens than the flatfish, but less levels earned.¡± Henry quietly watched the sharks cannibalize their own. Some smaller fish approached the frenzied sharks and nibbled at the bits flying outside of this small area. The ocean didn¡¯t care. Henry bet there were hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of creatures being devoured right this moment. His eyes landed on the shark he¡¯d just harvested for levels, then he looked away and assigned all three stat points to Constitution. He wasn¡¯t going to be one of the victims. 1.16: A friend It had taken Henry almost a week to get to level 50. Barely a day later, if not merely hours, he was advancing on level 100. All thanks to two E-Rank Cores. Now he just needed a third, but he was having trouble getting another Whipcrack shark to come down alone. He¡¯d waited in his crevice as they devoured the dead shark, trying to reach a meditative state to replenish his health and mana faster, hoping one of the sharks would lag behind. But they didn¡¯t. It was as if they knew they were in danger, and they decided not to stick around. Somewhat like what they¡¯d done against the serpent. Fascinating. But also a pain in his tentacles. He kept trying to lure them down with the unwilling donations of Riptide sharks, changing spots now and then, but they always came down three or four at once. His mana and health were back to 100%, and he itched to use them. At this point, even two at once would have been an interesting challenge. ¡°Come on, damn you.¡± He served them another Riptide and waited behind a nearby rock. He hoped only one or two would show up.
An hour later, Henry threw the towel and went to visit the whales. ¡°[Henry¡­ it is good¡­ that you came.]¡± Deepcaller didn¡¯t have to come from afar this time. He was already nearby, and as Henry swam up to get closer, he noticed there were more whales around than usual. They were usually more spread out through the territory, but this time it looked like they wanted to stick closer to each other. The ones he¡¯d spoken with before were close by, and so were the calves. Henry tilted his head backwards and looked Deepcaller in the eyes. ¡°What¡¯s going on? Is there something dangerous around?¡± ¡°[No. But circumstances¡­ have changed. We have¡­ decided¡­ to leave¡­ early.]¡± The understanding trickled down from his mind and made his throat close up. He took in the whales as they swam around and realized the familiarity of the scene. It reminded him of the anxious energy of a home before someone left for good. Had they been about to leave without saying anything? Henry shook his head and breathed deep. The odd numbness that stole over him cleared out a bit. ¡°They owe me nothing,¡± he told himself. ¡°[No¡­ Henry. I would have¡­ called¡­ before¡­ leaving. We are¡­ preparing. Waiting¡­ for the¡­ right¡­ moment.]¡± Henry looked away from the knowing eyes. It was embarrassing how easily they could see through him. A high mournful note came out of Deepcaller, and it was picked up by a few nearby whales. ¡°[Are you¡­ ready¡­ for another¡­ try?]¡± Henry almost said no. He¡¯d known they were going to leave, but this felt sudden. He needed to process things, but he didn¡¯t want to sour the goodbyes. He didn¡¯t want to be that person, so he swam up. Henry landed on Deepcaller¡¯s flipper and exhaled. ¡°Do it for Telepathy. And whatever other Skills they have.¡± He began with the whip and blade combo. He hoped his increased size and strength would help, but his tentacle barely left a dent. ¡°[Close.]¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine,¡± Henry told himself before repositioning. He wrapped his tentacles around the edge of the flipper, and bit down with his newly upgraded Bite. He worked on positioning his beak right, tried to work the sharp bits through, but it didn¡¯t work. He used Bite of the Whipcrack Shark. For a second, Henry felt the tremendous speed and bite strength of a shark overlapping his own small beak. The Skill crashed against Deepcaller¡¯s Skin with an impact that made both himself and the water around him shudder. You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author. The whale¡¯s flipper was completely unharmed. Henry chuckled as he swam away from the flipper. A small part of him still wanted to rage or crawl in a hole and cry for a few minutes, but he just laughed along with Deepcaller. The only people he could speak to were leaving. He was about to be alone. Deepcaller made an odd call that Henry hadn¡¯t heard before, then spoke. ¡°[You are¡­ growing strong¡­ with tremendous¡­ speed. Do not¡­ worry. I am¡­ sure¡­ you will¡­ grow strong enough¡­ to stand atop¡­ the waves¡­ like we do.]¡± Henry smiled inwardly. ¡°Thanks, Deepcaller.¡± He didn¡¯t want to ask again. They¡¯d told him no already. Deepcaller¡¯s eye gazed at him, and melodious call came from the whale. ¡°[Our journey¡­ is much more¡­ dangerous. Believe¡­ me.]¡± He paused for a moment, and Henry noticed a calf arrive and nuzzle under Deepcaller¡¯s flipper. The other whales had grown quiet. ¡°[This¡­ is my¡­ child. His skin¡­ is soft. Do you¡­ wish¡­ to try¡­ on him?]¡± It took Henry a second to understand what Deepcalled was saying. When he did, the answer came out of every one of his cells. ¡°No.¡± The words left his mind before he could even reason it through. ¡°Never. You are the closest thing I¡¯ve made to a friend in this world. I would never hurt your kid.¡± Yeah. Hunting sharks for levels was tolerable. Taking out some anger on a flatfish that used his deceased mother¡¯s image to lure him into a trap was uncomfortable, but he could also justify it. Hurting a baby whale to get a Skill? The child of a whale that had been nothing but friendly to Henry? He¡¯d rather die again. Calls resounded all around. Those Henry learned to associate with laughs. ¡°[I told them¡­ you were¡­ a friend. That you¡­ would not¡­ hurt¡­ a child.]¡± Henry frowned up at the horned whale, then his frown turned to indignation. ¡°This-you¨Cyou were testing me?¡± ¡°[Yes.]¡± Henry spluttered at the honesty, and then remembered he was talking back to a literal whale. He sighed, then shook his head. ¡°Well, it was nice knowing you. Do you have any more tips for me? You said to cross the kelp forest, right?¡± Another chuckle from the whales at his reaction, then it was Wavecrest who answered. ¡°[Yes, the sea¡­ of green. Travel through¡­ until the sea of flames. Be wary¡­ of the heat¡­ and teeth and scales. Past it¡­ you will find¡­ the current. Do not enter it¡­ until you rise¡­ at least twice from now.]¡± ¡°You¡¯re talking about ranks and classes?¡± ¡°[Yes¡­ you are on the precipice¡­ of an advancement. You need one¡­ preferably two more¡­ before entering¡­ the Great Current,]¡± said Deepcaller. Henry nodded dutifully. ¡°I¡¯ll keep it in mind. What ranks are you guys, by the way?¡± Another chorus of chuckles and Deepcaller¡¯s voice echoed. ¡°[Grow strong¡­ and you will learn¡­ yourself.]¡± ¡°Fine.¡± ¡°[Be wary¡­ of those you seek. You are¡­ a mere¡­ beast¡­ to them. You will¡­ be hunted¡­ and consumed],¡± said Wavecrest. Henry nodded soberly. ¡°I assumed as much. Thanks for letting me know.¡± ¡°[Henry¡­ catch],¡± called out Deepcaller. Henry turned to the whale, and saw its smaller eyes glowing purple. He tensed, then saw a similar light appear at the edge of Deepcaller¡¯s flipper. It was far, but Henry could still make it out. The light coalesced, focusing on a small part of the flipper. Finally it separated, and slowly moved toward Henry. As it came close, he saw the piece of flesh in it. ¡°[A gift. I hope¡­ you will¡­ make good use¡­ of it.]¡± A small lump of crushed, bloodless flesh, barely a couple bites¡¯ worth, floated in front of him. Henry decided to immediately store the flesh in his Maw and save it for when he¡¯d have the ability to get Traits. The gift disappeared before it could touch his tongue. ¡°Thank you, Deepcaller. I will wait for my next rank to use your gift.¡± ¡°[We wish you¡­ luck.]¡± ¡°[We pray¡­ the Supreme¡­ watches over¡­ you.]¡± ¡°[Goodbye, friend Henry.]¡±
Henry ended up taking a step back to let the whale finish their preparations in peace. Somewhere around dawn, Deepcaller made an echoing call. They all slowly turned and began swimming away, deeper into the field of golden algae they¡¯d been residing in. Different calls and chants filled the ocean, and Henry watched from afar, sitting on a rock outcropping. ¡°What an incredible sight.¡± When the whales finally disappeared beyond the horizon, and when the empty field became unbearably quiet, Henry headed back to the reef. He traveled cautiously, close to cover. But he didn¡¯t feel the need to scurry and hide in the shadows anymore. And Henry wasn¡¯t going home until he caught a Whipcrack shark. He wanted his rank-up. And he wanted his Traits. Henry found a new hunting spot and set down some bait. ¡°I promise you¡¯re the last Riptide Shark I use as bait,¡± he said to the decapitated shark before swimming a few feet away. He glanced back. ¡°One or two more. Tops.¡± Ten minutes or so later, he was able to lure one of his targets alone. [Whipcrack shark (E) - Lvl 5] The shark began tearing into the dead Riptide, only a couple of feet away. ¡°I can see their level now? So it¡¯s a level difference thing? That¡¯s what¡­ 12 levels away? Hmm¡­ I¡¯ll double check with other sharks later. For now¡­ Telekinesis!¡± Henry popped out of the sand like a murderous gopher, and stabbed the frozen shark in the gills. 1.17: The home stretch Henry was pulling his tentacle out of the scoured gills when he saw movement above. With his Telekinesis still in use, he had no option but to use Inkjet. A cloud of black ink bloomed around him for a moment before it was partly blown away by the shockwave of a cracking tail right above his head. Henry used Inkjet again and rolled out of the ink as a rock, then he finally confirmed what he thought was happening. Two more Whipcrack sharks had arrived, merely seconds after he¡¯d attacked the first. ¡°I haven¡¯t isolated it after all. It was their vanguard.¡± The second shark whipped the dissipating ink, and Henry held still. The sharks roamed around him, while their scout twitched a couple of times before it went belly-up. Henry gave it a few more seconds. He wasn¡¯t afraid. They were smart, but not smart enough to suspect a rock. He just wanted to make sure there weren¡¯t more about to show up before he tore these two to pieces. ¡°You guys are the new Riptides, then.¡± Henry waited for the first shark to circle closest before he unrolled his tentacles and surged forward. He immobilized it and shoved a bladed tentacle into its gills. The second immediately moved toward him and cracked him with its tail. The shockwave was extremely uncomfortable, but Henry had gained a few more levels since the last tail-attack. The three extra Constitution points at least halved the damage from the tail attack. Still, he filled the space with ink, and slunk down to the sand again, freeing the second shark so it could bleed out. Henry made himself into a rock again and watched the agitated third shark. It spun left and right as it swam around, and Henry waited. He was confident in taking a tail-attack but he didn¡¯t need to risk getting bit. The shark did a couple more laps, then it swam away. ¡°Huh. I¡¯ll take that, I guess.¡± He dropped his disguise, picked up the two Cores, and swam home. He was about to rank up. And the System might show back up. He had to be ready. A Riptide shark rushed him from above, and Henry gave it a mouthful of ink before diving into the network of crevices in which he hid the turtle shell. ¡°I promised your kind peace, you dick. Don¡¯t make me regret it.¡± Henry zipped into his home and came to a stop on the seabed. He spat out one of the gray cores in front of him. ¡°I¡¯ll leave the other in Maw. Maybe this one¡¯ll be enough. I could use the other for Tokens.¡± Henry looked at the core for a moment, then exhaled. ¡°Here we go.¡± 1x Whipcrack Shark Core (E) Consume | Exchange for Consumption Tokens [2908] ¡°Consume.¡± The Core dissolved into gray smoke, and rushed into him. Undecided Marine Biologist - Level 93 achieved! ... Undecided Marine Biologist - Level 100 achieved! 2x Stat point awarded. Bite: Bite of the Whipcrack Shark acquired Mimicking Tentacles (E) - Level 1 -> 2 Inkjet (F) - Level 6 -> Level 8 Razor Tentacle (E) - Level 3 -> Level 4 Telekinesis (E) - Level 5 -> Level 6 The magic of the Core seeped into his flesh, and Henry waited. He looked up and around, then narrowed his eyes at the quiet space. He was about to speak when a new interface popped in front of him. Congratulations. You qualify for a Class evolution! Calculating Evolutionary Points¡­ Triumphed over a predator more than 25 levels above your own. Triumphed over a predator more than 50 levels above your own. Triumphed over an E-Rank being as an F-Rank being. Attacked a Bahamut Whale to collect a tissue sample and was not reduced to mush. Unlocked a Trait within a week of class assignment. Calculating results¡­ 5x Evolutionary Points granted! Access to Trait Upgrade module granted. The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation. Henry couldn¡¯t help but feel some pride at that. But before he could bask in the praise for too long and wonder too much about the new menu he had access to, another prompt showed up. Select one of the following Class Evolutions: Stalking Threat: A Class for the hunters of the ocean. You have proven yourself a ruthless predator; hunting, trading blows, and triumphing over beings stronger than you. - This Class will empower offensive and stealth abilities. - Focuses on Strength and Constitution - 4x Skill slots and 4x Trait slots (half on Class Evolution, half at level 50) Surviving Opportunist: A Class for the opportunist who waits to strike and thrives in the shadows. - This Class will empower stealth and regenerative abilities. - Focuses on Spirit and Constitution - 2x Skill slots and 6x Trait slots (half on Class Evolution, half at level 50) Telepathic Scholar: A Class for those who wish to observe and learn. The Telepathic Scholar has an easier time befriending sapient beings and fading into the background when required. - This Class will empower psionic and scouting abilities. - Focuses Perception and Spirit - 4x Skill slots and 4x Trait slots (half on Class Evolution, half at level 50) Henry peered at the description. His eyes were drawn to the last option, but he knew that wasn¡¯t something he could take. These oceans weren¡¯t the place for scholarly pursuits. Not as the main focus. Taking that path would be akin to bringing a book to a knife fight. Nevertheless, he noted the nature of the class. Considering every notice he had received so far, meeting and befriending the Bahamut Whales was sort of a big deal. He eyed Surviving Opportunist next. It was the safest option and mainly how he¡¯d been surviving so far, but he didn¡¯t like the part where he would be scurrying about in the dark. It meant that he¡¯d be waiting for opportunities to fall into his laps; as much as he sometimes played it safe, he wanted to create his own opportunities. He didn¡¯t want to spend the rest of the year in the ocean. Plus, what would happen if he ever got cornered? What would happen if his stealth and regeneration failed? He might not have the strength to break through. That left the Stalking Threat. The proactive option. The straight and short path out of the ocean. Henry looked up for a moment, and saw the water surface in the distance. ¡°I¡¯d be committing to being a butcher.¡± He knew he wasn¡¯t being fair to himself. If he hadn¡¯t killed all those Riptides, he might have already ended up as a meal to something else. Or he would probably be wasting away under a rock. He wasn¡¯t a human back on Earth anymore, trying to find ways to safeguard the oceans and reduce humanity¡¯s impact on its biodiversity. He was part of this ecosystem, and this was the proverbial jungle. It was eat or be eaten. Still, he wasn¡¯t really a predator. He wasn¡¯t killing those sharks to eat them. He was killing them for their levels. ¡°I¡¯m providing an easy meal to other opportunists?¡± Henry ruefully shook his head. ¡°I don¡¯t really have a choice do I?¡± The whales had told him he needed to at least go up another class¨Cif not two¨Cto get through the Great Current. And the direction they pointed him in was supposed to be the safest stretch. To have a chance at leaving this ocean, he would have to swim through a sea of blood. He studied the classes again. Was that all there was for level 100? It wasn¡¯t clear what empowering abilities meant, or what focusing on stats would do. But the extra slots would be nice. ¡°So what¡¯s a marine biologist? Back in your world?¡± Henry¡¯s head whipped around. Sitting on the ground behind him was a miniature man wearing long, flowing gold robes. He picked up a handful of sand and let it flow out of his hand, then grinned up at Henry. ¡°You seem to be struggling with your class choices. I even sense a bit of confusion? Maybe disappointment? I have to admit, you definitely have been more decisive since I last saw you. And I¡¯m glad you¡¯re still alive.¡± ¡°Thanks,¡± said Henry mentally. He glanced at his options and decided to say it. ¡°It doesn¡¯t feel as strong for a level 100. Maybe because I¡¯m not understanding the benefits?¡± The man nodded enthusiastically. ¡°That¡¯s fair. Think of it like this. In your case, a class is a reinforcing frame around something with more power and potential than most have in this world: your species. Classes let you customize aspects of and add power to what¡¯s already there. And you get access to many more stats than any octopus has ever gotten. Don¡¯t focus on the class itself. Focus on the ensemble. As for the benefits, you¡¯ll get some free stats every tenth level, and some Skills and Traits will be strengthened. Maybe even evolved. We¡¯ll see when you pick, won¡¯t we?¡± Henry nodded as he examined the man from a distance. He was hearing him with his physical ears. Clearly. Underwater. ¡°Are you a god? The whales referred to you as Supreme.¡± The man shuddered. ¡°The Bahamut Whales? Interesting folk. And no, I¡¯m not a god. That¡¯s why I stopped talking to the locals as much, to be honest. They keep praying to me and building temples and asking for favors. I don¡¯t know when or how it started, but it got out of hand real quick.¡± Henry recalled the first prompt. He couldn¡¯t believe he¡¯d forgotten the details about Deepcaller¡¯s species. Bahamut Whales? The not-god shrugged and smiled. ¡°I answered your questions. How about you do the same? What¡¯s a marine biologist?¡± Henry sighed. ¡°Someone who studies marine organisms and their interactions with the environment. We conduct research. Study ecosystems, behaviors, and our effect on the oceans of the world. To advance our understanding and our conservation efforts.¡± The man flattened down the sand around him with a hand, slowly smoothing it down. ¡°You haven¡¯t been doing all that well on the last part, huh.¡± Henry glared at the tiny man who gave him a wide, shit-eating grin. ¡°I know.¡± The man shrugged and leaned backward. ¡°If it¡¯s of any help, the residents of this world call the beasts that can kill and eat them monsters. That seems to help them in not having as many reservations as you seem to be having. When it comes to wars between themselves though¡­¡± Henry nodded. He didn¡¯t have much to comment on his own struggles, but there was something else he could ask about. ¡°How far is the closest inhabited area?¡± The man stood up and dusted off his golden robes, then shrugged. ¡°Not that far. But then again, I wouldn¡¯t take my perspective for such a thing. Do you realize it feels barely like a couple of seconds since I last saw you? My frame of reference will only confuse you. You got some advice from the whales, right? Just do what they said. They¡¯re living much more in the present than I am.¡± What kind of bullshit answer is that? Henry Identified the man. [Nice Try (Not a god) - Lvl 0] The man pointed two fingers at him and winked. He stretched for a second, then clapped. The gesture made a sound underwater and that was more disturbing than anything else. ¡°This was fun. I guess I¡¯ll see you in a few more seconds. Or maybe never.¡± ¡°What are you? I mean, you¡¯re sapient. You sound like a human. But you¡¯re doing things that just seem¡­ impossible.¡± The tiny man began walking toward the entrance of the turtle home. Upward, at an angle. He put his hands on his hips and glanced back at Henry with a wide grin. ¡°Maybe I¡¯ll tell you. In three or four meetings,¡± he added, and pointed to Henry. ¡°So make sure you stay alive!¡± The man sighed and shook his head. There was a wistful smile on his lips when he looked back up. ¡°I should do this more. See what the people of this world have been up to. It¡¯s been a while¡­ Anyway, good luck!¡± Then the robes swirled in on themselves, and a golden tiny shark came out of the bundle of dissolving clothes and swam out of the shell. Henry poked his head out, but as expected the man was nowhere to be found. Henry went back in and settled down on the floor. ¡°I¡¯m getting too used to this.¡± Henry shook his head and focused back on his Class selection. With the explanation from the system-man, he felt better about his options. He would have liked getting this explanation on his first day. Henry breathed in deep, and nodded. ¡°Survive now. Regret or re-evaluate later.¡± 1.18: The Stalking Threat Class Stalking Threat (E) was selected. Bite is empowered. Maw of the Trickster¡¯s growth rate increased. Mimicking Tentacles is empowered. Alter Physique¡¯s growth rate increased. Razor Tentacle, Telekinesis, Tentacle Whip are empowered. Synergy detected! Recuperative Meditation will be merged with Accelerated Regeneration. Synergy detected! Razor Tentacle will be subsumed as a Subskill of Mimicking Tentacles. Progress and rank of Skill will be set by Mimicking Tentacles. Upgrade in 3¡­2¡­1¡­ Sand rippled around him, and the water grew turbulent. Motes of light began materializing, many more than any other instance so far, and Henry braced as he bewilderedly looked around. ¡°Wait wha¨C¡±
Henry opened his eyes. ¡°¨Ct¡¯s happening?¡± He looked around and slowly picked himself back up. He¡¯d been lying on the sand. And the interior of the shell seemed a bit tighter. ¡°I got bigger? At least I can control it if I need to.¡± The algae outside was a bit disturbed, but other than that it seemed like nothing had happened. As if there hadn¡¯t been a mini-magic storm building up when he passed out. Henry stared at the notifications and nodded to himself. ¡°Never do this outside. Got it.¡± He saw a few notifications waiting for him, so he brought them up. Class rank-up completed. Species rank-up completed. Trickster Octopus (F) evolved into Mature Trickster Octopus (E). All base stats increased by 2. Accelerated Regeneration and Recuperative Meditation successfully merged into Accelerated Recovery. Henry¡¯s inexistent brows shot up. ¡°That¡¯s¡­ 50 levels¡¯ worth of stats. Damn.¡± Next, he pulled up the updated Trait. Accelerated Recovery (F): Recovers from injuries and ailments faster. While meditating, health and mana recovery are sped up even further. ¡°Traits are still F-Rank. Wait a second¡­¡± Henry pulled up his new menu and looked at his available options. He immediately clicked on Magic Mimic. Upgrade Magic Mimic (F) Yes [1 Evolutionary Point] | Cancel ¡°I¡¯ve got¡­ five of those. Alright.¡± Henry paused before accepting the upgrade. He was going to, obviously, but something else came to mind. ¡°I got those for taking big risks¡­ does that mean I have to keep doing that to keep upgrading my Traits?¡± He wasn¡¯t shying away from the challenges, but it meant this wasn¡¯t anything like regular Skills. He¡¯d have to be very deliberate about which Traits to upgrade and which ones to not touch. ¡°Unless there¡¯s other ways of upgrading Traits. Or other ways of getting these Evolutionary Points.¡± Problems for later. Henry accepted the upgrade and waited. His body began buzzing and tingling, similar to when his Species Skill had upgraded. Moments later, it was over. Henry pulled up Magic Mimic again to examine the differences. Magic Mimic (E): By sampling the tissues of a magic-empowered being, a Skill or a Trait can be temporarily copied. Only one of each can be remembered at a time. ¡°And that¡¯s how I get Traits.¡± Henry took the time to upgrade Accelerated Recovery as well, then pulled up his whole status to see how much it had changed. He squinted his eyes as he studied his details hovering in his mind¡¯s eye and grinned at his improved stat breakdown. ¡°Yes¡­ give me all the stats.¡± Status: Name: Henry Dubois Consumption Tokens: 79 Evolutionary Points: 3 Health: 100 Mana: 72 Stats: (2 assignable) Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author''s preferred platform and support their work! Strength: 12 [3 Base][4 Class][5 Purchased] (6 Purchasable) Constitution: 17 [3 Base][8 Class][1 Consumption][5 Purchased] (6 Purchasable) Spirit: 12 [6 Base][2 Class][2 Consumption][2 Purchased] (6 Purchasable) Perception: 12 [4 Base][4 Class][4 Purchased] (6 Purchasable) Dexterity: 9 [4 Base][1 Consumption][4 Purchased] (0 Purchasable) Mature Trickster Octopus - Reincarnated Intelligence (E): Skills: Bite (E) - Level 1 Mimicking Tentacles (E) - Level 2 Inkjet (F) - Level 8 Traits: Ephemerals (0/2): None Class: Stalking Threat (E) - Level 1 Skills (4/7): Traits (2/7): ¡°Lots of changes. Class Skill and Trait slots went up by two. The Class-Empowered tag showed up. Nothing is Lost¡¯s title and description has changed. And most importantly, this fusing business. So if a Skill or Trait are close enough to a species'' ability, they can be merged? That¡¯s¡­ very good to know. Does that mean anything I do with Razor Tentacle will now level-up Mimicking Tentacles? Seems like it.¡± Tentacle Whip wasn¡¯t merged, though. After he thought about it, it made sense. Razor Tentacle was altering his limb, which was in line with Mimicking Tentacle. He hummed. ¡°Alright. What else¡­ oh. Do I lose the upgrades? Dang. That rigidity upgrade would have been nice to have. Oh well¡­ I¡¯m sure I¡¯ll eventually encounter something that does the same.¡± Henry sat down on his tentacles and took a moment to appreciate his progress over the last month. Or more like, two or three weeks? ¡°The days are kinda melding together. But this is good progress. And I still have some perks to go through. But before that¡­ can I upgrade a Trait beyond E-Rank?¡± He tried with the Accelerated Recovery, but got a ¡°requirements unmet¡± prompt. Henry shrugged with two tentacles. ¡°Alright. I¡¯ll try again in a few levels.¡± That one in particular was worth upgrading as far as he could possibly manage. In the meantime, it was time to see what Bahamut Whales had for him. A layered piece of gray and red popped in front of him. Deepcaller¡¯s gift. Henry examined it for a moment, and his brain showed him a close up of where the piece had been taken from, then it overlapped a picture of a fingernail on top of it. ¡°Ugh. Dammit brain. Don¡¯t overthink it. It¡¯s barely a bit of skin.¡± He paused and would have thrown up a bit in his mouth if he could. ¡°That made it worse.¡± He braced, then tried to bite off half of the piece. It felt like trying to chew through a tractor tire. He shoved the whole portion into his mouth and swallowed it whole, hoping the magic would come through. A few moments later it did. Telepathic Message (F) was copied by Magic Mimic. Telepathic Sense (F) was copied by Magic Mimic. Mimicking Tentacles: Resilience of the Bahamut Whale acquired. Ephemerals (2/2): Telepathic Message (F) - Skill: Send a telepathic message to a target you can see. (Time remaining: 21 hours, 42 minutes) Telepathic Sense (F) - Trait: Vaguely sense nearby mental signatures. (Time remaining: 19 hours, 11 minutes) ¡°Oh man¡­ this was worth the wait. Was that how the whales found me the first time? Theirs must have been at a higher rank. And I get their resilience? I wonder how long that¡¯ll last. Or how effective it will be.¡± Henry was immediately on his way to purchase both Skills and add them to his arsenal when he saw the prices. He glared at the prompt quietly. Acquire Skill: Telepathic Message (F) - 10,000 Consumption Tokens Insufficient Tokens The Trait was at the same price. ¡°Dammit, System.¡± He popped his second Whipcrack shark core and converted it to Tokens. ¡°With the Riptide tokens¡­ and this one¡­. I have 3837 Tokens. Hmm. I guess I can take the new class for a test-run. Yeah. One last big fight in the reef. Then I start moving.¡± Henry swam back out and began making his way toward his new hunting grounds. ¡°So the System can manipulate what is shown in Identify? That would be a¨C¡± Henry stopped and looked down at his tentacles. ¡°Wait. What do people see when they Identify me? Does it say octopus?¡± Henry thought about it for a second, then shook his head. ¡°The whales would have recognized my species when we first met¡­ no? Unless my disguise hides me from Identify?¡± Henry rubbed the back of his head. It felt weird doing that with tentacles, so he dropped his appendages around him. ¡°How did I not think of this? Who can I ask?¡± Henry continued swimming. ¡°I¡¯m gonna have to figure this out before I approach anyone.¡± He glanced up. ¡°System?¡± He waited for a moment then shook his head. ¡°Dang it. I should have asked. But then again, I might have not gotten an answer from him. Maybe I can ask him on the next class upgrade¡­ Unless I meet some new sapient species before that. If they¡¯re friendly.¡± Henry arrived and looked up. Above, a few Whipcrack sharks were roaming. One of them veered down and snapped its tail into a shoal of bluefish, stunning¨Cand vaporizing¨Ca few of the small fish before it swallowed them. ¡°A Skill to lure my targets down would be nice. Though¡­ If I could attract a few down, I could train up Inkjet. The earlier fight worked pretty well. Hmmm¡­ what if¡­¡± Henry swam upward for a couple of seconds. His eyes landed on the closest shark. ¡°[Hey! I¡¯m food! Come get me!]¡± The closest shark¨Caround 30 feet away¨Ctwitched and grew agitated. Henry spread out his tentacles and made himself bigger. ¡°[Over here!]¡± The shark¡¯s eyes finally faced the right direction, and it began swimming down. Two more sharks followed. Heny grinned nervously. ¡°Alright. Let¡¯s do this. Let¡¯s see what these empowerments can do.¡± 1.19: Inkjet Henry¡¯s blood rushed through his larger frame as he swam down. He looked back at the first shark rushing him and his bladed tentacle flashed at its face. The large predator was winding up to tail-slap him, and he expected his Whipping Tentacle to cut somewhat deeply into its side. Enough to stop it or distract it. He hadn¡¯t expected the tentacle to meet the gray sharkskin and sink through it as if it was made of jelly. Henry¡¯s tentacle cleanly cut three quarters of the way through the shark¡¯s side, almost decapitating it. Henry went still for a half a second. ¡°Holy shit.¡± He pulled his tentacle out and darted under the bleeding and twitching shark, disappearing into a cloud of ink. Two consecutive cracks resounded behind him and partially dispelled the cloud of ink, but Henry was already gone. He hit the sand with another Inkjet and rolled out of the ink screen as a rock. ¡°Didn¡¯t expect them to catch up so fast. Now though¡­ I¡¯m on familiar terrain.¡± Two more sharks circled aggressively. Henry gave it a couple of seconds, then froze the closest one and whipped out with another sharp tentacle. This time, he tried putting some extra weight into it. Henry¡¯s class-empowered tentacle sank deep¨Cbut not fully through¨Cand the third shark¡¯s tail caught him from the side on a raised tentacle. The shockwave made his eyes quiver. ¡°Ugh.¡± The sensation was in the top three of worst sensations he ever experienced. Right after getting munched on by a shark and putting on a wetsuit without lubricant. As for the tail, it barely did 1 or 2% damage. It was annoying more than anything else. He shot another cloud of ink to keep things hectic, then glanced at his stats to make sure he was safe mana-wise. With that done, he faced the approaching¨Cstill uninjured¨Cshark that had just tail-whipped him. Henry saw it start building momentum to whip him again and surged forward. Right as it faced left, he froze it with telekinesis, coiled a bladed tentacle around its neck, and tightened. The blade sank deep and blood rushed out, filling his mind with the taste of blood. But the method was too slow, so with another tentacle he razor-whipped it through the head to put it out of its misery. Henry glanced around at the three dead Whipcrack Sharks, then down at his tentacles. He almost went to collect the Cores, then remembered he didn¡¯t need to anymore. He looked up and saw a few more descending, so he hid into a cloud of ink and disguised himself as a rock near one of the dead sharks. Henry stared at the dead sharks, remembering how they tried to fight the serpent and even managed to deal damage to it. Compared to those sharks, these almost seemed like low-level Riptides. ¡°Were they always this weak?¡± His bladed tentacle seemed sharper as well. Terrifyingly so. The only reason he hadn¡¯t been able to fully cut through the sharks was Tentacle Whip. He could feel it lagging. On the other hand, Mimicking Tentacles was definitely responding quicker to his will. He brought up his notifications, and realized he had a couple of stat points he hadn¡¯t assigned yet. ¡°I¡¯ll do that when I get home.¡± For now, he had some mana to burn. His health was sitting at a very safe 98% and he felt confident he could get himself away if ever he got into serious danger. Now that he could take a few hits without being blown to bits, the value of Inkjet was coming to light. Before this day, he hadn¡¯t dared take on more than one enemy at a time. But now that he did, camouflaging and Inkjet were synergizing pretty effectively. And using the Skills intensively was bearing fruits. 3x Whipcrack Shark Cores (E) were collected Mimicking Tentacles (E) - Level 2 -> 3 Inkjet (F) - Level 8 -> Level 9 ¡°One more level and I get the upgrade for Inkjet.¡± He looked up and saw four more sharks approaching. ¡°Should be able to afford the new Skills after this. Alright. Here we go.¡± Henry watched the sharks cautiously circling above the bodies and had a thought. ¡°I should definitely carve out a piece of them for dinner. And for their Traits, if they¡¯ve got any.¡±
¡°What a day.¡± Henry swam into his turtle shell home and immediately slumped against the wall. ¡°I¡¯d kill for a bed. And a hot meal.¡± He looked at the shark filet he¡¯d dragged along back home and sighed mentally, bringing it to his beak. He chewed. And tried swallowing the bits fast without letting them linger too long in his mouth. He¡¯d gotten mouth taste buds recently, thanks to the increases in Perception, but somehow that made things worse. Random raw fish with thick skin did not taste that great. Especially when it was mixed with saltwater. That didn¡¯t bother him too much on its own, but it was most certainly not pleasant. He pulled up his notifications as he chewed his bland, cold, salty dinner. If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. 4x Whipcrack Shark Cores (E) were collected Mimicking Tentacles (E) - Level 4 -> 5 Inkjet (F) - Level 9 -> Level 10 ¡°That¡¯s 7 new Cores total.¡± Henry glanced down at his limbs. It had been so easy to fight them off. ¡°I guess I could do this again tomorrow. Though now it¡¯s feeling a bit like bullying Riptides.¡± On the other hand, getting into extended fights was doing wonders for his Skills. ¡°Even Mimicking Tentacles got another level. Which makes Alter Physique¡¯s limit¡­ 30 Kg. Nice.¡± After beating up the four sharks, Henry had called it a day. His mana was low, and it just felt bad. ¡°Alright, let¡¯s see what Inkjet¡¯s got for me.¡± Henry triggered the upgrade of his last Species Skill. His body buzzed with the magic, and his tentacles twitched with excitement. Inkjet (E) - Level 1 Henry whistled. No noise came out, and it just made the sand under him fan out. ¡°I know I said it before, but I seriously need to focus more on my own Skills. The gains with every upgrade so far have been amazing¡­ Is it always going to be like this?¡± Henry studied the rest of his Skills. ¡°Inkjet should get a workout whenever the fights last more than a few seconds. Mimicking Tentacles is leveling just fine and might be the first to hit level 10 in E-Rank. That leaves Bite.¡± Henry hummed. ¡°A bit tougher to level¡­ but it should be easier if I start using those temporary bites more often. I should also get back to working on venoms and poisons. Or filling up on charges from different monsters. That ought to help level it up. As for the other empowered offensive Skills¡­ they¡¯re better. By a lot. Only the whip is still weak, but that¡¯s probably because of its rank.¡± Sleep began to hound him, but he wanted to deal with the new cores. Then he could rest. ¡°Alright. Erm¡­ ah. Here it is.¡± Henry clicked the notification about Cores, and all 7 popped in front of him. The turtle home shone with silvery light, and Henry took it in for a moment before using Identify. [7x Core (E) - 26,331 Consumption Tokens] ¡°Damn. That¡¯s a lot of Tokens.¡± Henry shook his head. As much as that number was massive compared to everything he¡¯d seen so far, it wasn¡¯t that much compared to his new costs. ¡°If I get the telepathy Skill and Trait, I¡¯ll be barely left with 10k. Barely enough for a second upgrade for Telekinesis.¡± Henry looked at the Tokens for a moment then reached a decision. ¡°Telepathy can work as a lure. And I need something to communicate with intelligent life as long as I have no lips and tongue. Telepathic Sense will be useful for whatever can hide from my regular sense. The rest¡­ Stats. Yes.¡± Henry pulled the trigger on the two telepathic purchases, which left him with 10,168 Tokens. He already had two unassigned Stat points, and he put both in Spirit. It had begun lagging, and his recent scuffles had gotten his mana dangerously low. For the remainder of the tokens, he went with two more on Spirit for 3,000 Tokens, three on Constitution for 6,000, and one on Strength for 1,000. His body buzzed painfully for a few moments as the magic sunk into him. Considering this was pushing Constitution to 20, the effect was more pronounced. Once the process was over, he stretched his tentacles and felt a well of strength and durability in every limb. Almost as if every inch of his skin had flexible metal plating under the surface. He felt¡­ good. He glanced down at the rest of his stats. ¡°Stats are way more expensive now¡­¡± He triggered Alter Physique and pushed it to its maximum. He still glanced around and hummed. The weight difference shouldn¡¯t make him too large for his home¡­ but just in case, he leaned closer to the exit. Then he glanced at his stats after the changes. ¡°Huh. More points I can buy in Constitution¡­¡± Stats: Strength: 13 [3 Base][4 Class][6 Purchased] (5 Purchasable) Constitution: 20 [3 Base][8 Class][1 Consumption][8 Purchased] (9 Purchasable) Spirit: 16 [6 Base][4 Class][2 Consumption][4 Purchased] (4 Purchasable) Perception: 12 [4 Base][4 Class][4 Purchased] (6 Purchasable) Dexterity: 9 [4 Base][1 Consumption][4 Purchased] (0 Purchasable) Henry nuzzled in his corner as his eyes began to droop. He felt great, but the day had been long, and the process of increasing his stats seemed to have taken something out of him. ¡°Next class rank up might take a while¡­ Things are so¡­ expensive.¡±
Henry carried his algae wrapped turtle shell above his head as he slowly used the rest of his tentacles as legs. He came to a stop a few yards from the first few stalks of kelp and put the shell down, then took one last glance at the reef. ¡°So long, sharks. And thanks for all the levels.¡± He looked down at the shell, then up at the uneven ground of the kelp forest. ¡°I wish I could store this thing in Maw.¡± He¡¯d gotten a bad surprise after his nap. The increased growth rate of Mimicking Tentacles, coupled with his slightly increased size after his Evolution, made it so that when he woke up, he found himself literally stuffing the turtle-home. He could now increase his size to around 7 or 8 feet long from head to tip, but at this moment, he was around half that. A more reasonable travel size. Next time, he was going to try and focus his weight in his tentacles. For now, he wanted to fit into his shell to sleep and hide when he needed to. And it was a lot easier to camouflage and be stealthy when he was smaller. He didn¡¯t feel like he could just grow large without a care. Someday, something impossibly powerful like Deepcaller would target him, and that would be a dumb way to die. Though the turtle shell was bugging him now that he was moving. ¡°Either I rank up Mimicking Tentacles until I get large enough to swallow it, or Maw hopefully gets better and easier to use when Bite upgrades. In either case, I need to work on my own Skills.¡± Henry picked up his portable home and went back under it. He began walking and hopping forward, keeping an eye on his surroundings through both eyes and his vague and barely useful Telepathic Sense. He¡¯d yet to feel anything from it other than small pings whenever he scared a nearby fish badly enough. ¡°That¡¯s going to take some work.¡± He could upgrade it with his Evolutionary points¡­ but those seemed limited and precious. Until he figured out a way to get them more regularly, he¡¯d be smart about using them. Around an hour of careful travel later, Henry found a spot with enough surrounding landmarks to hide his turtle shell. As he settled it down between a couple of rocks, he looked around. Wherever he turned, he saw green. Tall stalks with reddish bulbs that looked like viscous fruits hung at somewhat regular intervals all throughout the stalks. Fruits of some sort. ¡°Or the eggs of some very organized fish.¡± The water was a bit murkier than the reef, and his landmark was a tall, pointy cliff that reached pretty high. It had been mostly rocky so far¨Cwhich was really making him think there was land nearby. ¡°Were the whales wrong?¡± Henry wrapped his tentacle around one of the thick stalks of kelp next to him, then morphed his remaining tentacles into similar leaves. He couldn¡¯t shift the shape of his head, but he found he could spread the pigments to at least take the same color. ¡°I can¡¯t stay in this area for long or I¡¯m gonna lose the shell. And I need to keep an eye out for the serpent. Or serpents. For now, though, let¡¯s take a look at the surface.¡± 1.20: The world above Henry¡¯s head broke through the water surface, and he shivered when he felt the cold air touch his skin. ¡°Air. Finally.¡± He couldn¡¯t breathe it. But it felt good against his skin. The sun blinding him though? Not as much. Henry squinted around. ¡°I can¡¯t see anything¡­ is it the light? Why is¡­ why¡­¡± Henry dropped his tentacles. He turned around, breathless. Then he looked up. ¡°...Holy shit.¡± Far above, taking nearly a tenth of the sky, was a planet. He could see continents. He could see parts that were darker than the rest, where the sunlight couldn¡¯t reach. Henry strained to glean more details, but the serpentine golden light that connected this planet to the next made it difficult. Far, far away, beyond the horizon, he could see the wall of light that made up the light bridge, surrounding him in every direction. His thoughts stuttered as he tried to comprehend what he was seeing. A solar system with two inhabited planets. Maybe more. And the bridge of light connecting them. Henry realized at that moment that when the whales had told him he was trapped in the Great Current, they hadn¡¯t meant a regular ocean current. But a current of golden light that connected two planets. ¡°No. Fucking. Way.¡± Henry reeled for a few seconds more before he snapped himself out of his daze and dipped back underwater. He examined his surroundings for a few moments and checked his camouflage, then popped back out of the water and stared. His mind trembled. ¡°This is incredible.¡± He peered at the horizons, and after a couple of minutes he could see a section where the wall of light seemed softer. ¡°That¡¯s probably the direction Deepcaller and the others told me to go. The shortest path out.¡± Henry slowly looked back up at the world above. He could only stare. A few minutes later, after marking the direction he was supposed to travel to, he dove back underwater and followed the kelp plant back down. He kept surveying his surroundings. It took him a few moments to snap himself back into the present. He examined this section of the kelp forest and what he saw bothered him. ¡°I can¡¯t stay here.¡± First of all, visibility was awful. He would struggle to find targets or lure them. He would be at risk for ambush because there must be predators around, but so far, he only saw a few more Riptides. He didn¡¯t trust Telepathic Sense that much yet; he was sure there were other things living around. Maybe this area was quiet for a reason. It reminded him of the spot he¡¯d woken up in and why that place had been deserted. So Henry swam back to his landmark, picked up the turtle shell and, after glancing in the direction he¡¯d come from, moved on. The thought that something dangerous was living nearby was making his skin tingle.
An hour or so later the kelp forest grew a bit sparser, and his surroundings became much more lively. The sea floor became somewhat reefy again, with a lot of dark rocks and growing corals. Whenever there were some sandy bits, kelp stalks took root. Riptides were here as well; mostly F-ranks, but he saw a few E-ranks. Henry put down his turtle-home, and as he made himself into a rock something pinged near him. He looked at the shell, thinking a rock or something dislodged when he put it down, then saw a green and white banded quill. By the time he realized he was under attack, pain flared in one of his tentacles. ¡°Ouch!¡± Henry shot ink and swam down toward the rocks. At the same time, he ordered a clone to swim upwards. The tentacle was pulsing with pain, and a familiar burning sensation was making his limb throb. ¡°Damn that hurts.¡± This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source. He took a glance behind, and saw nothing. He kept his eyes peeled as he looked around, until he found a nice hiding spot under two dark rocks. Camouflage hadn¡¯t worked. Or at least, whatever saw him was smart enough to see through it. Or maybe it had seen him before he began the process of disguising himself. He looked down at the quill. It was the same as the one that had hit the turtle-shell. Henry gingerly touched it, wincing at the pain. A glance at his health confirmed it was venomous as he saw his health tick down by a full percent. ¡°Damn¡­ I did say I wanted to work on venoms and poisons, but this is a bit soon. And how is this thing doing that much damage? At least it barely got through the skin.¡± He ended up disguising himself again, because that shouldn¡¯t hurt, and finally began to relax when he saw how slow the venom was progressing. It was costing him around 1% health every minute or so, and he could feel the toxin slowly flow up his limb, but it was nothing alarming. It was painful though. Henry hadn¡¯t been stung by a lionfish in his past life, but from what he heard about it, this was the sort of pain he imagined it would feel like. A stabbing, twisting pain. Like someone slowly turning an uncomfortably warm auger under his skin, but as much as he could feel the pain, his high Constitution was keeping it under control. It was creating a buffer between the pain and his mind. ¡°I don¡¯t think it¡¯s barbed¡­ so I could just pull it out. Or wait it out and give Accelerated Recovery a chance.¡± Henry winced. It hurt. But his body seemed to be fighting off the venom well enough, and getting better with toxins was on his to-do list. The same way he got his first Trait through Hoard Vitality, he was positive that sooner or later he¡¯d get something for venoms as long as he worked on it hard enough. ¡°A few days ago, this would have ruined my day.¡± Henry suffered through the burning pain and tried to keep himself calm. He slowed his breathing, and with his eyes open, he tried to relax. ¡°I still have enough charges in Hoard Vitals. This is as good a time as any, I guess.¡± Henry watched the outside world above. Sharks and various shoals of fish swam around. At some point a blue crab walked by, then continued on. Accelerated Recovery kicked in at some point, and the pain of the venom slowly but surely was pushed back enough for him to stop losing health, somewhere around the 85% mark. Then the shooter swam by. Or one of its kind. [Lionfish (E) - Lvl 9] Henry followed it with his eyes as it kept swimming. It stopped and shot at a grouper who suddenly changed directions. The lionfish swam after it, and Henry smiled inwardly. ¡°Oh buddy. You¡¯re gonna pay for that. And you¡¯re going to help with my toxin resistances. Congratulations, you guys are the new Riptides. A bit more dangerous than them, though.¡± It was interesting how this one was just ¡°Lionfish¡±. No odd appellation or variants. Henry blinked. ¡°This is a whole other world. With a second planet. So why are these species so close to Earth¡¯s?¡± So far, everything aside from the serpent shared the features and names of species he knew from Earth. There were variations, like the Riptides or the Bahamut Whales or even his own species. How come they were so similar? ¡°Is it a parallel universe thing? Are these lionfish also invasive?¡± It was uncanny. ¡°This is a question for the System.¡± He paused for a moment. ¡°I should give him a name. Or ask him.¡± Thirty minutes or so later, he pulled out the spine and waited for his health to fully tick back up to 100%. He looked outside, then exhaled. He was ready to get some hunting done. Henry swam out slowly, disguised as a rock, and headed back to his turtle-home. On the way, he kept an eye out for predators and for more lionfish. And the spiky fish were not difficult to find. They seemed to infest these areas. Whenever a shark or anything large enough swam by, lionfish would come out of the woodwork, spines blazing, shooting venomous darts at everything that moved. Henry made sure his shell was still safe, then found his first victim. ¡°I shouldn¡¯t touch it. So Telekinesis, then¡­ hmm. It¡¯s very spiky.¡± He examined the lionfish as it traced the reef above him. Similar to the species he knew from earth, it had spines along all of its fins. It also had extra spikes under its stomach and under its mouth which looked like a beard. Its dorsal spines extended forward to include all of its length, with the first spine popping right above its eyes. ¡°Damn. Okay. I need to immobilize it and aim for the side of the face. Or gills. Though¡­ will Telekinesis stop its darts if it starts shooting? And is it shooting the ones on its body or are they being created by the Skill?¡± Well. It¡¯s not as if the venom was going to kill him. Henry began swimming upward toward the lionfish after checking nothing was creeping around. As soon as the fish¡¯s eyes swiveled toward him, he activated Telekinesis. He immediately felt the feedback of the lionfish fighting to free itself. [Lionfish (E) - Lvl 13] Henry grit his teeth and learned that the darts were being blocked by Telekinesis; he could feel each one of them pinging against his Skill and slowly empowering the headache that was building up. He activated the Razor and worked his tentacle around the spikes. ¡°The upgrade to make Razor Tentacle rigid would have been useful here.¡± He cut its gills on one side, and as he was cutting the next one the lionfish began shaking violently, even through Telekinesis. Henry stopped and swam away, eyes still on the lionfish. He grimaced from the migraine, and he readied an Inkjet to shoot and run. But right before he released Telekinesis, the lionfish broke through it. A blinding flash of pain slammed into his mind, punctuated by four envenomed spikes. The lionfish had violently detonated into a cloud of green blood and a storm of keratin shrapnel. Henry''s vision swam. His tentacles and body spasmed from the burning pain of the venom. One of the spines had gone through his stomach. It took him a moment to regain control of his limbs. ¡°Safety. Get¡­ to safety.¡± He struggled to swim. Even his breathing was ragged. Henry slowly made his way home. He already felt feverish. In pain. And his mind reeled. An exploding venomous grenade hadn¡¯t been on his list of possible outcomes. 1.21: The Lionfish鈥檚 venom ¡°Don¡¯t sleep. Don¡¯t go to sleep.¡± Henry lay slumped against one of the inner walls of his home. Panting and dizzy, he glanced at his health and triggered three charges of Hoard Vitals. His health stopped ticking down for a few seconds, then it went down to 27%. The mind-numbing pain had receded for a few moments before it came back with a vengeance. And it kept going. ¡°I should have used the temporary resilience¡­ but I had no idea they could explode like that.¡± Henry pulled himself together and gingerly sat up, then checked his notifications. The Core was worth 9380 Tokens. Not enough for a Constitution point, so he consumed it and tried to calm down. The magic rushed into him, and he felt better for a moment before the searing pain came back. Stalking Threat - Level 2 achieved! ¡­ Stalking Threat - Level 6 achieved! 1x Stat point awarded. He added the stat point to Constitution. Even though his health was at 24%, he felt much, much, worse. ¡°Calm down. Breathe in. Breathe out.¡± Henry¡¯s limbs were shaking. He looked down at the three spikes. Two were in a frontal tentacle¨Cone of which had cracked under his skin¨Cwhile the third had fully pierced through another limb. The fourth was behind him, through his stomach. He realized they all might be difficult to remove. Compared to the one he¡¯d been hit with earlier, these had all punctured deep. He was almost sure he¡¯d lose less health from cutting off his two affected limbs rather than trying to take the darts out, potentially increasing the amount of venom in his system. Henry activated the Razor on one of his limbs and pushed it against the tentacle with two spikes. He groaned with pain, eyes closed. He struggled to cut through it. Probably because of his high Constitution. Ironic, really. After a few seconds that felt like hours, he severed the tentacle. Henry panted for a few seconds, then moved on to the next one. He looked down at the spike. It had gone fully through, so maybe it wasn¡¯t worth cutting the whole limb. He pushed it all the way through and out. By the time he was done, his health was down to 18%. He felt cold. Henry struggled to get up, but he couldn¡¯t leave his bleeding limb near him. So he pushed it down and out of the mostly blocked exit, then gave it an extra shove with Telekinesis before collapsing again. ¡°Disguise.¡± Henry¡¯s breath was shallow as he camouflaged himself. He activated three more charges of Hoard Vitals, then felt anger at himself for not having spent more time building charges. He only had two left. His health went back up to 20%, but it was struggling with the venom that had made it into his system. The backlash of Telekinesis had mostly faded, and now it was mostly the dizziness, nausea, and the pain from the lionfish venom he had to deal with. And the last spike in his stomach. ¡°Should I remove it? What if it makes things worse?¡± Henry closed his eyes and tried to ignore the pain and fear. He needed Accelerated Recovery to work faster. He should have worked harder on finding a dedicated healing Skill. Or on building up more charges in Hoard Vitals. ¡°Calm.¡± 19%. At least the venom¡¯s effect was slowing down. ¡°I¡¯m okay.¡± Henry kept his disguise up and tried to relax. He was unable to suppress spasms caused by the pain, and he knew he vomited once or twice, but he tuned it out. He only focused on the health displayed in his status, and on his breathing.
Somewhere along the first hour the venom stopped draining his health. Within the second hour the pain mellowed, and Henry found himself breathing deeper. His health began to tick back up. His severed tentacle was tingling, and a quick peek told him it¡¯d started to regenerate. Around the fourth hour he was up to 60%, but it struggled to go higher. He assumed it was because of the spine still embedded in his stomach. Henry examined it for a bit, checking to see if it had fully pierced through. It hadn¡¯t, so he slowly began to pull on it. It was a nauseating, painfully queasy sort of pain that would have had him in a cold sweat if he hadn¡¯t been underwater. When he was done, his health had dipped back down by around 8%. He discarded it in a corner, then went back to meditating. When he reopened his eyes, he was at 87% and his severed tentacle was mostly reformed. The pain was mostly gone, so he finally breathed out and leaned against the turtle shell wall. ¡°That was too close. And all that damage was done through the second threshold of Constitution. Another probable death escaped just because I prioritized it.¡± He checked his notifications and was glad to see his close call came along with some good news. Hoard Vitals (E): Level 2 -> Level 3 This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it Telekinesis (E): Level 6 -> Level 7 Mimicking Tentacles (E): Level 5 -> Level 6 New Trait Unlocked: Toxin Resistance (F) You have been exposed to and healed through powerful venoms. Octopuses are innately resistant to toxins, but this Trait will prime your body to handle stronger toxins better. Toxin Resistance (F): Enhances resistances to toxins. ¡°I wonder if that session with the spiked starfish helped in getting this.¡± Henry examined his healed limbs and rolled a tentacle in front of him. ¡°The resistance should make the next fights easier.¡± He shook his head. He was still struggling to understand how lionfish were able to punch through his skin. Even the Whipcrack Sharks¡¯ attack barely made him dizzy, and that was before he got to 20 in Constitution. Henry glanced outside. Riptide sharks were peacefully roaming, and other fish were swimming around, as usual. ¡°Further exposure to venoms might strengthen it. But not right now.¡± He stealthily swam up to the area in which he fought the lionfish and tried to find it, but there was nothing. ¡°Other fish probably nibbled on it.¡± Henry settled down on a rock, as a rock, and checked his stats. Both health and mana were high, but his charges of Hoard Vitals were low. Too low to be out and about. And he still felt off from the whole experience. ¡°Alright then. I guess it¡¯s time to build up some charges.¡± Henry settled near his shell, lured a simple fish for dinner, then went home. As he was about to enter, he felt something ping his telepathic sense. Henry looked back, alarmed. He scanned his surroundings, but couldn¡¯t see anything. And the source of whatever Telepathic Sense had picked up was gone. He slowly swam inside and kept his eyes peeled. The emotion had felt unclear at first. But then something came through. Something familiar. And worrying. Curiosity.
Henry couldn¡¯t relax with his eyes closed. And he might not be able to sleep any time soon. He picked up one of the spikes of the lionfish he¡¯d removed earlier, then bit into it. It was crunchy, but it also caused a stabbing pain in his mouth. Mild, compared to the initial stabs, but still painful. He had retrieved his severed limb, took out the spines, then threw the limb out. If he was sitting around, he might as well work on his resistances. He didn¡¯t get a notification this time, as his Skill had already soaked in the flesh of the lionfish. This was just to work on his resistance. Hopefully his theory will be confirmed soon. In the meantime, he checked his old and new¨Cand for some, unexpected¨Cacquisitions. Inkjet: Poisoned Ink (Lionfish) acquired Mimicking Tentacle: Venomous Spikes (Lionfish) acquired Venomous Spine Shot is incompatible. Accelerated Spine Regrowth is incompatible. Piercing Projectile (F) added to Ephemerals. Spiteful Detonation (F) added to Ephemerals. Synthesizing ability from unused material¡­ New Trait Unlocked: Venom Production (F) Venom Production (F): The salivary glands can now produce venoms after sufficient exposure. Available venoms: None. More Skills and Traits. ¡°What projectiles am I going to use the Piercing Projectile Trait with? And Spiteful Detonation is just wasted space. In what scenario am I going to blow myself up? At least Venom Production¡¯s useful. Especially if I get my hands on some good venoms. Like the serpent¡¯s.¡± Henry didn¡¯t know incompatible abilities could result in a new ability like this. He remembered how an incompatible ability would be adapted to him, like Razor Tentacle or Tentacle Whip, but an ability so different it couldn¡¯t be adapted? That was new. Though the incompatibility in this case made sense. An octopus¡¯ skin was somewhat soft; spines would be really out of place for him. Then again, Mimicking Tentacles was able to copy the spines. ¡°Probably because my Skill only mimics the appearance, while those Skills and Traits need something real to work with.¡± Henry dismissed the miscellaneous menus and glanced at the entrance. Whatever had been outside hadn¡¯t shown back up on his wonky telepathic radar, so, once again, Henry triggered Hoard Vitals and kept his eyes vacantly staring at the entrance. He exhaled, and sunk back into a half-wary, half-meditative state. Half a minute later, his Trait activated. Either his nerves were fried enough, or he was getting better at finding the right meditative groove for Accelerated Healing to kick in. Maybe trying to stay calm when venom was running through his system helped. Being poisoned and stabbed was generally a bit more stressful than a potential stalker in his area. But it wasn¡¯t far off. His health ticked up to 95%, and he activated Hoard Vitals again. ¡°This one¡¯s the ninth.¡± The world outside was growing dark, and he could see some luminescent shapes swimming in the distance. Identify wasn¡¯t telling him anything, so he kept studiously building his safety net. He needed to work more on his defenses. Find Skills and Traits that would synergize with his own core abilities. There would always be a surprise ability he couldn¡¯t prepare for, and he couldn¡¯t keep getting caught off guard like this. Especially if he¡¯d been half-assing his preparation. The couple of instances he had tried to work on toxin resistance had helped in the end. If he hadn¡¯t put himself through some exposure therapy with the first lionfish, he might not have unlocked the Trait in time. It worked out, but he needed to put his back into getting stronger. He needed to start leveraging his abilities and strengths better. His eyelids felt heavy. Henry kept his breathing even, which unfortunately was making him sleepier. His health and mana ticked back up, and they were almost back to full when something flared in the foggy range of Telepathic Sense. Curiosity. Again. A shiver went down his back. It felt closer, and even though he kept his eyes on the unblocked exit, he could see nothing. Was something about to try and come in? Henry pulled his tentacles closer. Whip and razor? Wait for a visual for Telekinesis? He tried to decipher whatever Telepathic Sense was sending him. It was often a mess of impressions and mostly nothing, unless an emotion was powerful enough. And if he detected anything recognizable, it was really hard to pinpoint a direction. Which made it even more surprising when he felt the burst of curiosity again. Above him. Was it the turtle shell that was attracting the stranger¡¯s attention? It was camouflaged and on its back, so the colors shouldn¡¯t be visible. Henry approached the entrance, primed to strike if anything showed up, and slowly peeked his head out to see if something was above him. Nothing. Henry was slowly backing inside when an oddly familiar call reached his ears. A sharp feeling of alarm reached Telepathic Sense, which made Henry flinch and furtively look around. ¡°I hate this. I want to disable this Trait, but I most certainly shouldn¡¯t.¡± The call was echoed a few more times, coming from different directions. Henry peeked outside, camouflaged and keeping still. He waited for any other telepathic signals, but there were none. Only repeating calls, some of which were drawing near. The Riptides were getting agitated. Henry watched a lionfish swim down to the rocks and disappear between some thick kelp stalks. The call grew louder. Henry braced, eyes peeled. Then a snout emerged from behind a barely visible boulder far ahead. A dark and fluid figure followed, effortlessly gliding through the water and around the stalks of kelp. It opened a large, fanged maw and called again, and more gray and brown shapes appeared out of the deep green waters. One passed nearby, a black-spotted specimen of at least 12 feet. [Echo Seal (E) - Lvl ??] ¡°That looks like a leopard seal. A large one. And seals usually live on land¡­ is there land nearby?¡± As Henry backed away from the entrance the head of the nearest seal snapped to him. It smoothly zoomed toward him, like a murderous dog who just heard the squeaking of a chew toy. Henry would have pursed his lips if he had any. ¡°Dammit.¡± 1.22: The Echo Seal Henry stood still against the furthest point from the entrance as the seal approached. He triggered Alter Physique and started pushing his size upward. If there was going to be a fight, then some extra mass would help. He just wished he could increase his size faster. With his Mimicking Tentacles¡¯ level, he could push all the way up to 43 Kg. He felt like he wasn¡¯t even at half of that. So it would take a while. The seal made a couple of sharp trills while turning its face left and right, and Henry realized what it was doing. ¡°Echolocation? Seriously?¡± He kept still. He was still mimicking a rock, tentacles wrapped around his body, and tried to change his color to blend in better. But as the seal got closer and closer, he knew he was made. He had moved too much. The seal knew there was something around. Henry cursed. A lot of people associated seals and baby seals with cuteness and circus acts, but Henry knew better. Especially if this kind had anything to do with leopard seals. Those things were killing machines. They preyed on other seals and anything else that moved. They were apex predators. And Henry knew they preyed on his kind as well. The seal was now above his turtle shell. It nudged it a few times, and Henry cursed again as his home moved around him. ¡°This is happening I guess. And that settles it. I¡¯m not moving from this area until I get enough levels to store the shell. At this point, it seems like I¡¯m going to be vulnerable whether I¡¯m large or small, so I might as well have the size to defend myself.¡± The seal seemed to stop for a second before it tried again to roll the shell. ¡°I could try to chase it away¡­ otherwise I should kill it quickly.¡± Henry grimaced inwardly. He had no qualms about killing lionfish or sharks. Murdering seals didn¡¯t feel great, though. The seal finally found the entrance, and as it pushed its snout in, it made one last call. An echo to confirm his presence. The seal immediately grew excited, trying to reach deeper, its fanged maw wide open. Henry pumped its face full of lionfish venom, using the one Inkjet charge he had. The seal recoiled violently, eyes squinted shut as it swam away. He waited for a few seconds. ¡°Damn. Should have tried biting it first. May¨C¡± The seal rushed back in. It seemed like it had gone up for air, and now it looked aggravated. The teeth appeared sharper. The eyes narrower. More intense. And there was an odd sheen to its coat, as if a soap bubble had been shaped and layered all over it. Henry unrolled his tentacles and began making plans. ¡°Eyes. Nostrils. Throat.¡± The seal pushed its snout into the turtle-home¡¯s entrance and Henry¡¯s bladed tentacles whipped forward. Two tentacles aimed at the seal¡¯s eyes, but the mammal tilted its head down instantly. Henry¡¯s blades hit the coat of the seal at an angle and just slid down the head of the seal, barely cutting into its fur. The seal twisted and bit into his extended tentacles. It pulled him out, gnashing its jaw as it did. It stung. The teeth definitely punctured his tentacles in a couple of spots, but that was it. ¡°A double question mark beast barely bites through, but that level 10 lionfish pincushioned me.¡± Henry would have shaken his head if he wasn¡¯t busy using the momentum of the seal¡¯s thrashing to begin coiling his tentacles around its neck as it whipped its head, trying to sever the limbs in its mouth. He kept an eye out for other seals. The seal began to thrash harder. Henry lined himself to its neck. ¡°It¡¯s you or me, buddy. And I¡¯d rather stick around.¡± Then he bit down using Bite of the Whipcrack Shark. A ghostly jaw bit down along with him and blood surged out of an oversized bite mark, but not as much as he¡¯d expected. He saw the notifications come in, having gotten some flecks of blood and skin in his mouth, but the Bite of the shark¨Cand his own¨Cstruggled to get through the oddly sheened coat of the seal. The seal raised its head to screech an echoing call, and Henry knew he was now on a timer. ¡°Dammit.¡± He turned the four tentacles he had around its neck into blades, immediately losing a good chunk of mana in doing so, and began constricting. ¡°I need more strength.¡± The seal thrashed and bit down, trying to pull him forward, but it still hadn¡¯t managed to fully sever his limbs. Henry winced at the pain, but he continued digging his blades into its neck. He used Bite again, hoping to find a jugular and sever it. The seal swam up, trailing blood while Henry chewed, eating through both the seal¡¯s neck and his mana reserve. Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on. ¡°Come on. Come on come on¨Cthere.¡± He found it. His beak sliced through the vein like butter, and blood surged around him. Their coat was incredibly hardy, diminishing everything he tried, but once he was through, the seal wasn¡¯t that tough. Henry looked up, continuing to tighten his blades as he did. A new seal was rushing toward him, and Henry decided it was time to let go. He hoped the seal didn¡¯t have a healing ability and would bleed out. Henry hopped off and dove down. The second seal pursued. Henry squirted ink behind him and used an Ink Clone, which brought his mana under 40%. Usually Telekinesis cost the most, but he¡¯d been using his Skills pretty liberally, so he couldn¡¯t fight this second seal. They were tough to damage, and he didn¡¯t know how many more would show up. An inky-black octopus¨Cidentical to Henry in all but color¨Cshot to the right before diving to the rocks as well, limbs moving with unnerving realism. The seal followed for a moment before it made a trill sound and stopped. Its head whipped back, and Henry cursed. He swam around a rock, scanning the sea floor, then found what he needed. Henry dove down into a crack, barely getting in when the new Echo Seal slammed its jaw where he¡¯d just been. It tried to push its head through, but the rocks were too tight. Henry pushed himself deeper, trying to not think about how tight this crack was. The seal made a couple of trills, then a louder call made it look up for a second. It looked back down at him, then swam away. Henry immediately swam closer to the exit. The walls were closing in on him. When he knew for sure the seal was gone, he exhaled. ¡°That went alright.¡± 1x Echo Seal Core (E) was collected. Echolocate is incompatible. Slick Coat (F) was copied by Magic Mimic. Ephemerals are full. Bite: Bite of the Echo Seal acquired. Bite (E) - Level 1 -> 3 Mimicking Tentacles (E) - Level 6 -> 7 Inkjet (E) - Level 1 -> 2 ¡°I guess that¡¯s fair, considering I don¡¯t have vocal cords. And Slick Coat¡­ that was the defensive effect they had? Skill or¡­ yes. A Skill. Alright. Now how about the Core¡­ 21,560. Nice. Really nice.¡± He could get some levels for it, and it should net him a few, but that was also a nice chunk of stats. ¡°Replace the detonation with Slick Coat for now and test it later. More defenses can¡¯t hurt, but my offense is lagging. So¡­ Strength? Strength and mana? More Constitution?" That would give him the tools to get more seals. They couldn¡¯t do that much damage to him, apparently. If he could dispatch them quickly, then he could fight off more than one at a time. Then with those cores, he could go up in levels. If he recalled correctly, every tenth level he¡¯d be getting some extra stats from his Class. ¡°Though couldn¡¯t I just do that right now? And if I hit level 50, I would get some more slots. I could try to go for achievements then?¡± Henry paused, then shook his head. ¡°No. That¡¯s half-assing it. Again. I should be leveling my Skills. Getting new abilities and improving my stats before I go for levels. Having a low level will make getting Evolutionary points easier, and I need those.¡± With that decided, he turned to the stats. ¡°How much is it for Strength points?¡± Henry checked his menus and did some quick math. ¡°That¡¯s¡­ 3 Strength points for 14k. Next Spirit point costs 3k. Constitution¡­ 9k. Hmm. Oh. Perception¡¯s cheap. Yeah. That¡¯s worth more than just getting the levels I think.¡± Henry ended up getting 3 Strength points, 1 Spirit and 2 Perception, which left him with 1728 Tokens. He waited through the usual light show, then pulled his updated stats. Strength: 16 [3 Base][4 Class][9 Purchased] (2 Purchasable) Constitution: 21 [3 Base][9 Class][1 Consumption][8 Purchased] (9 Purchasable) Spirit: 17 [6 Base][4 Class][2 Consumption][5 Purchased] (3 Purchasable) Perception: 14 [4 Base][4 Class][6 Purchased] (4 Purchasable) Dexterity: 9 [4 Base][1 Consumption][4 Purchased] (0 Purchasable) The seals hadn¡¯t come back and it¡¯d been at least a dozen minutes, so Henry slipped out of the crack he was resting in and swam back to his shell. His movements felt powerful. His eyes could see deeper, with more details. ¡°I should give Perception more love. But almost everything¡¯s worth investing in, to be fair.¡± When he arrived, he found the turtle shell dislodged from where he¡¯d secured it, and it was laying flat on the sandy seabed. A gray and blue striped fish was peering curiously at him from within. ¡°It¡¯s nice, isn¡¯t it.¡± Henry put a tentacle on the wilting kelp that he¡¯d wrapped around it and sighed. The fish hid inside, and Henry looked around. He was outgrowing the shell, and it was¡­ affecting his decisions. Negatively. But he didn¡¯t want to discard it. ¡°The whales said it was a ¡®sacred traveler¡¯. Even the System seemed to know about them. It¡¯s how I arrived here.¡± Logically, it was too valuable to abandon. It must be some kind of treasure. And if he abandoned it in the middle of the ocean, he¡¯d never find it again. But the strongest impetus was his attachment to this shell. It was the last thing that connected him to his old life. ¡°Hmm. It is a turtle that has traveled worlds though.¡± Henry eyed it for a few seconds. A bit of red and purple from the multicolored underside was visible from this angle. He scooted lower, then hovered closer to the edge and gingerly bit into the ridge of the plastron. It was like trying to bite through metal. He tried a few more angles with no success. Initially careful not to damage the shell, he quickly picked up the pace and put more strength into his bites, wondering why he hadn¡¯t tried this before. After a couple of minutes, he concluded that it wouldn¡¯t have mattered anyway. With a sore jaw, he sat back down on top of the shell, his tentacles splayed around it as they tingled and grew, and looked down. ¡°I¡¯ll try again in a few levels, I guess.¡± Henry glanced up at the darkening sky above. He should probably get up there and check if there was anything nearby the seals could be living on. He didn¡¯t expect any civilization around, but he should be careful of that, still. The whale¡¯s warning was still fresh in his mind. Two slots were empty in Skills and Traits each. He should look into filling those up as soon as possible, potentially with Skills that would mesh well with his core abilities so that they might merge once he got another evolution. ¡°About that¡­¡± He checked if he could upgrade his E-Rank core Traits, but they were still locked. ¡°Dang. Alright.¡± Henry swam up and considered in which direction he should explore for a new temporary home, then remembered his reserves of hoarded health were still low. ¡°Come on Henry. Learn from your mistakes.¡± Henry swam down and picked the shell up¨Cthe gray fish zipped out of it¨Cthen headed back to the crack he¡¯d found earlier. He put the shell near the entrance, then slipped through. It was uncomfortable, but it should last for a couple of hours. He pushed Alter Physique to the maximum size, then triggered Hoard Vitals. ¡°After this, I¡¯m hunting some lionfish. Or some seals.¡± The goal was to store the shell in his Maw. And Mimicking Tentacle was progressing fast now that Razor Tentacle was part of it. ¡°60 Kg for the 7th level. I¡¯m getting massive.¡± Henry inched a bit closer to the exit. Soon enough, he wouldn¡¯t fit anywhere. 1.23: A new paradigm ¡°That¡¯s land. Well. Island. And it definitely doesn¡¯t look that safe.¡± From afar, Henry couldn¡¯t see much but a greenish pebble in the distance. A green-covered island with a smoking peak. ¡°Volcanic island. Is this what the whales meant by sea of flame?¡± Henry considered it for a moment, then dove back down and made sure nothing was about to bite into him. He wasn¡¯t comfortable being this large. A 60 Kg octopus¨Caround 120 pounds¨Cwas massive. He was easily around 9 to 10 feet tall, so wherever he moved, he felt exposed. He¡¯d tried to alter his general shape or put more weight in his tentacles, but the Skill didn¡¯t seem to allow for that. He just grew larger, keeping the same proportions. ¡°Maybe something I¡¯ll get in a future upgrade.¡± Henry swam back down to the sea floor and started roaming. He took the shape of a rock and hopped forward, keeping an eye out for anything he could catch. And for anything that might be following him. That thing he¡¯d detected right before the seal arrived yesterday might still be around. And he still didn¡¯t know what it was. ¡°23 charges of Hoard Vitals should be good to do some hunting, right?¡± There were some Riptides and some common low rank fish around. He saw a lionfish chase after a Riptide, but he didn¡¯t feel like dealing with them right this second. He wasn¡¯t underestimating those things again. Henry eyed it and those sharp spines it was shooting at the poor Riptide. ¡°It¡¯s probably the Piercing Projectile Trait that made them so dangerous.¡± He studied his surroundings. The area was sparser when it came to kelp stalks. Brown rocks covered in coral and other reef denizens were ubiquitous, and among them was a pretty large black stone boulder that he now knew was the result of an eruption. The turtle shell was hidden under it, in a small crevice he¡¯d dug out into the gravel and sand. It was also a few yards away from a crawl space under one of the larger reefs, where he¡¯d slept last night. ¡°I could head toward the volcano. In stealth-mode. Maybe get some practice with Slick Coat. Hmm.¡± The problem was that if there was trouble, he couldn¡¯t run and hide. At this size, he couldn¡¯t hide in small burrows and dens. Anything he fit into would be large enough for some predators to follow. Not large ones, but he wouldn¡¯t be that protected. He knew he could probably fit in very small spaces, because that¡¯s what octopi did in the wild but¡­ ¡°Nope.¡± Maybe if he ever got a Trait that could shut down claustrophobia. In the meantime, he was sticking to spaces where he could stretch his tentacles a bit. Henry shivered. Just thinking about enclosed spaces made his skin crawl. ¡°Focus.¡± So, he could roam in the island¡¯s direction and hope for a seal or two to come toward him, and could ambush them. He wanted to test Slick Coat before the Ephemeral expired. He didn¡¯t want to waste the slot if it was underwhelming. Henry nodded to himself, then dropped his disguise and glided over the seafloor, toward the island.
It took around ten minutes for him to hear the first seal call. Henry dropped to the sea floor and looked for something to hide near, then melded into a boulder and waited. This area was thick with kelp. Which was good. It meant he wouldn¡¯t get bogged down by multiple seals. Well. Maybe not if they only relied on echolocation. If they used their eyes while hunting, though, then the cover should work to his advantage. Henry began moving one of his tentacles; sometimes slow, sometimes fast. He waited for close to five minutes until one of the calls began getting closer. He exhaled, and didn¡¯t suppress the shiver. ¡°I can do this. They don¡¯t deal that much damage. And I¡¯m strong now.¡± Those three points weren¡¯t the only thing making a difference. When Henry had pushed his weight and size to the maximum of Alter Physique, he realized he¡¯d been hobbling himself and his stats. To test it, he had tried to lift a small boulder that morning. Nothing too large¡ªhe estimated it to be around a hundred and fifty pounds and didn¡¯t expect to do much with it. He had been able to lift it. With only two tentacles. Something he wouldn¡¯t have been able to do if he¡¯d been smaller. Henry spread his awareness to his massive tentacles and felt the strength residing in each and every one of them. This was going to be the first time he fully tested his martial abilities. The seal got closer, and Henry picked up his pace. He kept moving his tentacle and watched as the seal crept closer. ¡°Sorry buddy.¡± Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there. When the seal got within a couple of yards, Henry detached from the rocks, dropping his disguise as he attacked. The mammal immediately lunged, activating its coating Skill as it did, and Henry whipped a bladed tentacle forward to meet its charge. A tuft of fur and a cloud of blood were the result. The coat had deflected most of the attack, but the impact was powerful enough to throw the seal backward. It backed away and swam around him, eyeing him warily. Its fangs were visible, and it clearly had no intent of backing away. It was hunting as well, and Henry had a bad feeling. Right as he put his mental finger on the Telekinesis button, the seal sent out a call. Telekinesis cut it off, but the damage was done. Henry darted forward and coiled a thick tentacle around its neck. He pressed hard, then activated the Razor. Blood surged out of the seal¡¯s neck and Henry winced as it fought back against Telekinesis. Soon enough, its movements flagged. Then air bubbles escaped from its mouth, and the shiny coat faded as the seal stopped moving. Henry looked down at the limp corpse and felt something gnaw inside of him. Guilt. ¡°We¡¯re both predators. They tried to get me yesterday, and I¡¯m getting them today.¡± 1x Echo Seal Core (E) was collected. Henry unrolled his grip, then looked down at his thick tentacle. ¡°Night and day.¡± He really had been hobbling himself. More calls were surrounding him, and Henry glanced at his mana bar. ¡°96%. Spirit stats are worthwhile as well. I wonder if my size affects my mana,¡± he mused as he blended with the rocks again. Expecting more than one to show up, he activated Slick Coat as well. The mana gushed out of him and a film spread all over his skin. ¡°Jeeez. That¡¯s almost 10% of my mana!¡± Henry couldn¡¯t focus on the changes the Skill made around him, but he could feel how the water felt softer and warmer on his skin. Half a minute later, the first seal arrived and rushed to the dead one. It made some calls and two more joined it. They went up to the surface for air, then they all came back down and began searching, making trilling sounds. Henry didn¡¯t wait for them to find him. As soon as the first one got near, he froze it and quickly wrapped a tentacle around its neck before releasing Telekinesis. These things could fight back, and he could feel the strong body batter against his Telekinesis. He did notice something though; the water barely slowed his movements. The Slick Coat made his tentacles fly through the water like it was air. Henry¡¯s bladed tentacle slowly and inexorably dug into the seal¡¯s neck. Blood welled out and spread around his tentacle¨C And the seal slipped out of his grip. Henry blinked, then cursed as all three seals surrounded him, one of which was slowly bleeding, dyeing the water around him red. ¡°Whip is bad here. I have to immobilize them with Telekinesis. Or use multiple tentacles and Bite.¡± Henry sent an Ink Clone forward, then rushed back toward the one he¡¯d already injured. It lunged at him, and Henry immobilized it and climbed over its back. He was larger than it was. Maybe not in weight, but the seal was definitely smaller than him. That was an odd realization. Henry didn¡¯t waste any time and bit down. He struggled to Bite through the coat, but he kept at it while the second seal went for his stomach. Henry felt it bite and pull at him, and the movement made his vision oddly distort, but he knew it wasn¡¯t doing much damage. Actually, it wasn¡¯t doing any. Slick Coat wasn¡¯t holding up well against its attack but combined with high Constitution, he could barely feel the pain. Further away, the Ink Clone had already dissolved. The seal that had chased it was coming back. Henry dug down harder with his beak and used Bite again. The Skill broke through the coat, and blood surged out of the frozen seal¡¯s neck. Then the next Bite snapped its spine and he could let it go. In the meantime, the second seal was chewing and pulling on his stomach as if he was a chew toy. Henry had already begun wrapping two tentacles around his attacker and two more joined the effort, while he held the rest up in front of him to defend against the third. His vision pulled down. ¡°You¡¯re¡­ annoying.¡± Henry had enough of a grip now to try again. He used Razor Tentacle on three different spots, hoping the two extra around the seal¡¯s waist and paddles would secure it while he cut its throat open. Then the third seal made another call, and Henry cursed.
Henry was readying himself for another scuffle when more reinforcement calls sounded somewhere far to his left. A couple of seals that might have come toward him began swimming in the same direction, and Henry followed them with his eyes. He released the seal under him, letting it bleed down to the shallow sea bed. He looked around, trying to regain his sense of direction. He found the set of rocks he¡¯d come around, then another black boulder he memorized for reference, then it clicked. ¡°Northeast from my home-base.¡± But before he began following them, he converted one of the Cores into Tokens and bought Slick Coat. It was mana-expensive and not that effective compared to the seals'' version, but he could see it improving with levels and potentially merging with Mimicking Tentacles. For that fact alone, it was worth taking. With that done, he began swimming toward his home, keeping an eye out. He was curious as to what the seals found. Whatever it was, he was thankful. He hadn¡¯t been in that much danger, but it certainly saved him a drawn out fight. Well. It could have been bad if a dozen or two more seals had shown up. They were annoying to fight. They kept calling for help, and if there was a whole island of them, they¡¯d wear him down. It was something he should keep in mind for the next time he encountered them. Maybe he should even stay away until he was able to cut through their coat faster. Henry kept gliding along the seafloor. When he was halfway back to his home, he veered toward the calls. He quickly checked his notifications as he swam, and was pleased at his progress. 3x Echo Seal Cores (E) were collected. Bite (E): Level 3 -> Level 4 Mimicking Tentacles (E): Level 7 -> Level 8 Telekinesis (E): Level 7 -> Level 8 Tentacle Whip (F): Level 3 -> Level 4 Henry considered pushing his weight up with the improved Alter Physique Skill, but he had to be careful with his mana. Plus, it would take a while to gain the new 24 Kg anyway. He had mixed feelings about that part. On one hand, he¡¯d get larger. And become more of a target. On the other hand, he¡¯d be more tenacious and he¡¯d be able to hit harder. Well, not as if he had a choice. And he had picked the Stalking Threat Class instead of Surviving Opportunist, so he should live like it. Barely minutes later, he came upon a familiar scene. He immediately forgot about his misgivings when he saw what had riled the seals up. Henry grinned as he took in the fight ahead of him. ¡°Hello, you.¡± [Juvenile Sea Serpent (D) - Lvl ? ] 1.24: The skirmish ¡°Well, they might not be the same serpent. Though this one¡¯s using venom as well.¡± The serpent slapped one of the seals trying to grab onto its tail and bit down at another that tried to reach its neck. The seal dodged down and the fangs missed. Henry wondered if the seal coat would have stopped them. The serpent wasn¡¯t much longer than before, but had definitely grown in circumference. Its spines were sharper. Its scales had a vibrant jade-like sheen to them. The serpent opened a fanged maw and spat out a green ray which dyed the water it shot through a baleful green that slowly spread out like smoke. The two seals swam out of the affected water, unharmed. The coating Skill was pretty effective against the serpent. Henry eyed the spines of the green reptile¨Cwas it even a reptile? It definitely looked like one. ¡°And I wonder if those things are venomous.¡± Henry paused. ¡°Do I want to fight this thing? I mean, it¡¯s a guaranteed Evolutionary point on the next rank up. It does seem dangerous, though.¡± The serpent screeched at the dozen seals surrounding it. ¡°What if it¡¯s intelligent? Would I kill it for its Tokens if it is?¡± Henry watched the fight rage on from his flat gravely seat and looked through his interface for quick purchases he could make. ¡°Telekinesis¡¯ targeting upgrade is possible, but I don¡¯t think that would make much of a difference. And I feel like trying to stop the serpent would give me an aneurysm. What are we working with¡­ I have 11,068 left from the other core, and the three seal cores are worth 88,360 Tokens. Damn.¡± That would be a nice chunk of levels and stats. Which might be the efficient choice. But as he had decided previously, the huge level difference would pay off when he got to his next evolution. The level difference would net him at least one extra point for evolving his Traits later. Maybe even more. On the other hand, the Class levels weren¡¯t going anywhere. Hell, he¡¯d get them and more by consuming the serpent¡¯s Core. That thing would most certainly have extra stats on top of the levels. ¡°Well, Constitution hasn¡¯t failed me yet. More points invested there won¡¯t hurt.¡± Henry exhaled, hoping to calm the sense of trepidation that jolted through his nerves. He converted the remaining cores to Tokens. He looked at the prices and sighed. ¡°Those are a lot of zeros. Is there an option to round these up or something?¡± As soon as he finished speaking, his eyes were drawn to a customization option that he was sure hadn¡¯t been there before. He clicked it. Enable Ranked Token Denomination View your Tokens by rank. Rounding can be disabled separately. Example: 1102 F-Token = 1 E-Token Yes | No ¡°Sure.¡± Henry accepted the prompt and the prices became much more manageable. The fight ahead continued to rage, but he wasn¡¯t in a rush. He would go after whoever survived. It was ruthless and opportunistic, but he wasn¡¯t one to turn his nose up at a free buffet. Henry started with the first Constitution point for 9 E-Tokens. The next one cost 15, so he decided to go all in. He got the second point, then the third one at 30 E-Tokens. The next one cost 1 D-Token. ¡°If 1 E-Token is around 1000 F-Token, then 1 D-Token is¡­¡± Henry began making the simple conversion and bailed halfway through when he realized it wasn¡¯t anything he could afford right now. ¡°Alright then. I have 55 E-Tokens left.¡± With those Henry got two Strength points and one Spirit. As he confirmed the changes, he realized his mistake; the lights might give him away. Henry thought about it for a moment, then mentally shrugged. ¡°I¡¯m about to throw my hat in the ring anyway. It shouldn¡¯t matter if they think someone else is around.¡± A few seals turned toward the coalescing lights, and Henry noticed the serpent glancing his way as well, but all they could see was a large boulder that seemed to be attracting lights for some reason. This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. After a couple of seconds they turned back on each other. Henry watched as he waited for the changes to fully take effect. Then, because he knew how dangerous what he was attempting was, Henry decided to invest one of his Evolutionary points in Toxin Resistance. ¡°Can¡¯t be safe enough. Especially with something a rank above my own.¡± After a few minutes, the seals became less interested in the fight. A few were hovering further and further away, and with every seal that died or got seriously injured their hesitation to attack grew. The ones who got hit by the ray attacks had convulsed, their defense overloaded, while those touched by the runoff had lost their luster and were forced to wait further away until their Skill recovered. The battle was about to end, and the serpent was winning. It was in control, balefully glaring down at the seals as if they were merely gnats that dared stand in its presence. ¡°It¡¯s strong. But it can¡¯t have unlimited mana. I doubt that¡¯s even possible.¡± Henry eyed it. He wanted the Skill levels he¡¯d get from such a battle. He wanted its Core because he knew it would be a launchpad, rocketing his abilities higher and pushing him closer toward his goal of eventually finding civilization. Henry loved oceans, but he also liked to have a warm meal and sleep in a comfortable bed at the end of the day. He wanted the achievement of besting such a monster¨Cand this time, the term applied. It was a monster out of maritime legends. Still. Even though Henry wanted the levels, he felt a bit iffy about attacking it. What if it was intelligent? What if it was merely defending itself? The two times he had met this serpent¨Cif it was the same specimen¨Cit had been mostly responding to hostilities. So Henry would give it a chance. If it was intelligent enough to communicate or understand him, he¡¯d maybe leave it be. If it was hostile and tried to go for him, then he would fight. ¡°And if it goes bad¡­ I skedaddle,¡± Henry told himself, trying to speak over the voice telling him that running might not be an option. He knew he could win. Or at least he¡¯d have a real good shot, but he would be injured. And he¡¯d need to recover. Its poison¨Cor venom¨Cwas terrifying, but with Toxin Resistance in E-Rank and with so much invested in Constitution, Henry thought he could take a few doses of what it could dish. Though he should try to end it as fast as possible, and to do that, he decided its throat was the spot to target. Its back had too many spines and there was no way those things weren¡¯t dangerous, while its underbelly was mostly smooth. He might get pricked through the tentacles while attached to it, but that should allow him to stay away from its mouth and its death rays. Some new calls began to spread between the seals, with most of them backing away. It looked like they called a retreat. Henry waited for them to swim away¨Cwhich barely took a minute¨Cthen dropped his disguise. The serpent¡¯s eye immediately swiveled to him. Henry swam forward then upward until he was facing the serpent, not allowing the monster to look down at him. When he got within 30 yards, the serpent¡¯s mouth opened up and a hiss filled the surrounding waters. Henry stared back at the serpent. ¡°[Do you understand me?]¡± The yellow slitted eyes narrowed. The lips pulled back further, revealing his mouth full of needle-like fangs that were most certainly similar to a snake¡¯s. It didn''t seem to understand him. And for the first time since getting the Trait, he got something useful out of Telepathic sense. A clear and obvious emotion: Greed and hunger. Henry didn¡¯t waste any more mana trying to communicate and got ready. A sickly green light shone in the back of a purple-pink throat. Henry disappeared into a cloud of ink and dove down, simultaneously sending an Ink Clone upward and to the right. The serpent tracked the clone and shot its green ray, pulverizing the clone to nothing. It stared for a second before it caught the movement. By then, Henry was almost upon it. He triggered Slick Coat, and immediately regretted it. He forgot how expensive it was. He began swimming up toward the serpent¡¯s neck when a rope of sinew and scale slapped him back down to the seabed. Henry slammed against the rocks hard, but not as hard as the impact of the tail had been. His world was upside down for a moment, but as brutal as the hit had been, the damage hadn¡¯t been too bad. Barely 4%. It definitely stunned him for a second though, even through the protective effect of Slick Coat. Henry disappeared into another cloud of ink and sent a clone forward. The serpent screeched at it and almost shot before it realized it wasn¡¯t the real target. At the last moment its head swiveled. The serpent spat out its ray and Henry scrambled to get out of the way. He barely had time to hide in a cloud of ink and swim away in hope it would miss. The water was lit green near where he¡¯d been, and the green magic shone through the ink like thunder through clouds. Henry thought he was safe when he felt a burning sensation in his gills. The Slick Coat had lasted no longer than a soap bubble. ¡°Shit. The runoff from the ray.¡± Henry circled around the serpent, eyes peeled, and assessed the damage. He could feel the poison in his system. It made him feel uncomfortably warm. Some of his muscles began to twitch, but it was mild. His health dipped by a few points, but it was already slowing and the effect began to fade as he swam. ¡°Neurotoxin? Maybe.¡± He was right. His stats and resistances were pulling through, though he hadn¡¯t been hit by the main attack. Henry and the serpent eyed each other. Henry prepared his Skills. The serpent coiled and pulled his head back. The familiar green light began to collect. Both were readied for the second salvo. Henry exhaled. The ray might not be a death sentence, but Henry couldn¡¯t afford a direct hit. And he would have to be careful. He¡¯d only taken a whiff of poison, but he could still feel it in his system. Mostly neutralized, but that wouldn¡¯t be the case if he got a larger dose. Henry circled closer. The serpent aimed. Then all hell broke loose. A/N: Updated stats didn¡¯t fit in the chapter, so here they are: Strength: 18 [3 Base][4 Class][11 Purchased] (0 Purchasable) Constitution: 24 [3 Base][9 Class][1 Consumption][11 Purchased] (6 Purchasable) Spirit: 18 [6 Base][4 Class][2 Consumption][6 Purchased] (2 Purchasable) Perception: 14 [4 Base][4 Class][6 Purchased] (4 Purchasable) Dexterity: 9 [4 Base][1 Consumption][4 Purchased] (0 Purchasable) 1.25: The gambit Henry dove low, making his skin pitch black as he sent a clone above the green ray. He was ready to trigger Bahamut Whale¡¯s Resilience, but held off on it. He assumed it wouldn¡¯t stay on for long, and he had to make the most out of the single charge. The serpent shot its ray at the clone, and Henry summoned two more clones. He sent one circling to the right, one to the center, then he circled left around the serpent. The monster looked at everything approaching it, then it did something Henry hadn¡¯t seen so far. ¡°What¡¯s this now?¡± The serpent shut its jaw. The green light intensified for a moment, then it spat down a ball of green light in front of it. A wide green detonation rocked the middle clone, shoving Henry away. His skin burned as the wave of green magic washed over him while, on the other side, the second clone dissolved as well. His eyes burned. He held his breath but knew some of the stuff had gone in. Henry¡¯s insides seized for a moment. His muscles wanted to stay locked, but it thankfully didn¡¯t last. Toxin Resistance and his Constitution were working overtime. He used the same formation again, but stayed further away from the clones. Henry glided toward the serpent, watching it as it prepared the same attack. Henry activated five charges of Hoard Vitals, feeling the healing magic course through him, alleviating the cold grip that threatened to lock up his muscles. His mana reserves refilled as well. ¡°Good thing I got the mana upgrade.¡± The Ink Clones were costly, but this fight might have already been lost without that Skill. He couldn¡¯t have approached the serpent otherwise. The serpent took the bait and aimed at the two clones¨Cthen its eye flicked left, right before it spat the poison bomb at the clones. Henry dove, dodging the tail that whipped toward him. ¡°Smart bastard. But I got you.¡± Henry spread his tentacles and pushed himself forward with his siphon. His tentacles hit the throat of the serpent and the suckers activated. He spread his grip around the throat as he gingerly tried to not get his tentacles impaled with its back spine. The serpent whipped back, trying to dislodge him. Henry tightened his grip, and with two tentacles he¡¯d left free, he whipped the throat above him with Razor Tentacles. One tentacle skidded, another lodged into the serpent¡¯s scale. Henry cursed as the world turned upside down. Of course, it wouldn¡¯t be easy. Henry eyed the tight scales under him. They were only a bite away, but the thought made his hearts beat faster. ¡°Too soon.¡± He didn¡¯t want to use Bite. What had happened to the Whipcrack shark was still fresh in his memory, and he didn¡¯t want to push his resistances to the point where they would be overwhelmed. Henry dislodged his stuck bladed tentacle as the serpent continued thrashing, and he began whipping with both tentacles, again and again. The serpent roared. Henry continued, barely making a dent through the scales at first, but with every impact, he could feel them give a bit more with every slash. The serpent stopped thrashing, then slowly unrolled upward, lifting its head. Henry looked up¨Cwithout stopping his attacks¨Cand saw the green light shine through the long fangs. The green hue grew brighter. Then the reptile tilted its head back and to the side, and poison spilled from between its fangs like molten metal. The blobs of luminescent green oil rolled down the serpent¡¯s neck, some adhering to its skin, while others free-fell toward Henry. Henry used his Slick Coat and triggered the Resilience of the Bahamut Whale. His skin grew taught and hardened. It took a familiar gray shade, and even his hits seemed to dig through the scale faster. Henry slashed at the throat. The scale finally ripped, exposing pink, green-veined flesh. The serpent flailed and roared, moving Henry away from the free-falling poison, but he knew he wasn¡¯t out of danger just yet. Henry saw a blob of venom roll along the serpent¡¯s scale toward his face. He pulled together the dregs of mana he had left to push it away with Telekinesis, but all it accomplished was spreading the venom thinner Henry squeezed his eyelids shut and held his breath, tilting his face as far as he could from the serpent''s neck without detaching himself. He couldn¡¯t let the liquid get to his mouth. He began tasting blood from his bladed tentacles, so he continued digging. ¡°I can¡¯t¡­stop¡­now.¡± The concentrated poison touched some of his tentacles first. Slick Coat held for less than a second before it disintegrated, and the liquid felt cold as it coated its way down. A moment later, the cold faded. He couldn¡¯t feel the water against his skin. Then the spasms began. Henry continued to dig into the serpent¡¯s throat, tasting its blood on his bladed tentacles. His health began to plummet faster and faster. He used five charges of Hoard Vitals, pushing back against the numbing and muscle-locking toxin, and replenishing some of his spent mana. The green liquid fell over the right side of his face. His eyelid spasmed and opened enough for the toxin to get through. It didn¡¯t burn, but the light immediately distorted, and a second later, he could only see a muted gray from that eye. Feeling the toxin reach his other eye, he squinted as hard as he could, hoping to minimize its effects. Thankfully, the serpent couldn¡¯t endure the pain any longer and whipped away, shaking off most of the toxic substance from Henry. Some residue still clung to him, but at least he wasn¡¯t completely covered anymore. Henry tasted more blood around his bladed tentacles. His limbs began to tire and spasm. His skin burned, but he persisted in digging through the serpent¡¯s now-softened skin. The scales no longer blocked him. He needed to breathe. He couldn¡¯t tell how long he¡¯d been hacking at the serpent¡¯s neck, and he was surprised at how long he could hold his breath. Probably because of his Constitution. But the timer was ticking and holding on to a flailing 40-foot monster was taxing him. Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation. The water surrounding him was probably unsafe. Henry kept slicing with two razors. Blood was flowing, but the serpent was still writhing. ¡°21% health.¡± Henry activated five more charges. Blood kept gushing; finally it surged out and spread enough for him to taste it with all of his tentacles. He couldn¡¯t hold his breath anymore. His limbs ached. He hadn¡¯t noticed because of everything that¡¯d been happening, but he couldn¡¯t feel three out of the six tentacles he¡¯d used to attach himself to the serpent. The serpent spat more poison rays at the sky and ocean floor in its panic as its blood gushed out. Henry kept his gills shut until his brain forced them open against his will, and the poisoned blood rushed into his gills. His innards flared with pain, and his awareness swam. He couldn¡¯t see anything, one eye was shut, another saw only gray, but the world began tilting and turning. Sounds echoed. Even his muscles relaxed. Henry activated all remaining charges of Hoard Vitals. However many he had left. The serpent was moving less. Henry¡¯s limbs were leaden. They weren¡¯t getting a lot of resistance anymore, but to be fair, he couldn¡¯t feel them that well, anyway. He kept cutting. Again. And again. And again. In Henry¡¯s dread-filled daze and single-minded focus, something broke through. Henry continued slicing and vaguely tried to understand what it was saying. 1x Juvenile Sea Serpent Core (D) was collected. Henry slowed his tentacles. He tried to relax the others and detach, but they refused to obey him. Everything was oddly muted around him. He felt sleepy. He felt sick. Really sick. Henry looked at his health and mana through his interface. Alarm nudged him, but he wasn¡¯t panicking like he should. 8% health. 7%. 6%. He didn¡¯t overthink it. He chose instinctively and consumed the new Core. That was the only way out. He hoped it worked, because he couldn¡¯t see the usual light. His second eye wouldn''t open. Maybe it got injured. Henry waited, hoping the magic would do its job. Tremors shook his body and a new wave of pain entered his limbs. It felt oddly therapeutic. It was as if the pain was shaking the tension loose and burning the venom away as it sunk into him. Strength entered his body and Henry felt his mind wake from its toxin empowered stupor. A bunch of notifications floated up his interfaces, but he couldn¡¯t focus on them as pain continued flaring all over his body. Bile rose up his throat, and he felt himself vomit. With every second, more fortitude and vitality entered his flesh, and it made him feel worse. More poison was entering his gills, but it wasn¡¯t as bad anymore. Probably because it got diluted. ¡°Ouch. Crap. Shit.¡± Henry breathed out, struggling to crack open his shut eye. It was swollen for some reason, but he managed to glimpse his surroundings. The other eye still saw only gray. He was lying on the seabed, still attached to the dead serpent. The water was tinted red, and wisps of blood still flowed out of the monster¡¯s butchered throat. He couldn¡¯t see it very well from this angle, but he could see shredded flesh floating out of the injury. Henry tried to pull his tentacles away from its back and from under its body. The top ones came back, while from the three trapped under its body only one came out. When he tried to pull the others, he felt pain. ¡°They¡¯re stuck in the spines, aren¡¯t they¡­¡± Henry sighed and looked up. The cloud of blood was clearing out. His health was up to¡­ ¡°19. What?¡± Henry pulled his notifications and his jaw dropped. Stalking Threat - Level 7 achieved! ¡­ Stalking Threat - Level 53 achieved! 9x Stat points awarded. 5x Strength Stat points awarded. 5x Constitution Stat points awarded. 2x Class Skill Slots added. 2x Class Trait Slots awarded. ¡°Gambling worked I guess. Strength passed 20. And I¡­ also passed 30 in Constitution? When? Oh¡­¡± Juvenile Sea Serpent Core (D) contained significant Constitution stats. 1x Constitution Stat points awarded. Juvenile Sea Serpent Core (D) contained significant Spirit stats. 2x Spirit Stat points awarded. Juvenile Sea Serpent Core (D) contained significant Strength stats. 1x Strength Stat points awarded. His health was above 20%, and he decided it was time to free himself from under the serpent. Already, his blinded eye began seeing vague shapes and colors. With his improved strength, Henry pulled. Hard. He grimaced at the pain as the spine tore into his limb, then the spine broke. A few moments later, his tentacles were out from under the serpent. The end of them were gray and numb, but it was nothing he couldn¡¯t heal once he got some rest. ¡°Now let¡¯s see¡­ Skills.¡± Toxic Ray (F) was copied by Magic Mimic. Added to Ephemerals. Superior owned Traits analyzed by Magic Mimic. Trait Evolution Unlocked: Toxin Resistance (D) Trait Evolution Unlocked: Venom Production (E) Mimicking Tentacles (E): Level 8 -> Level 10 Inkjet (E): Level 2 -> Level 5 Tentacle Whip(F): Level 4 -> Level 10 Hoard Vitals (E): Level 4 -> Level 6 Slick Coat (F): Level 1 -> Level 3 Telepathic Message (F): Level 1 -> Level 2 Bite: Bite of the Sea Serpent acquired Inkjet: Poisoned Ink (Sea Serpent) acquired Mimicking Tentacles: Scales of the Serpent acquired. Venom Production (E): Sea Serpent Blood acquired. Venom Production (E): Sea Serpent Bile acquired. That had been dangerous. More than he¡¯d expected. But the gambit paid off extremely well. ¡°Magic Mimic has more functions than what is described in the Skill. And Mimicking Tentacle got to 10. Along with Tentacle Whip. And I might get a chance to test all of this.¡± Calls had begun echoing louder around him, but Henry wasn¡¯t worried. The seals had been barely able to injure him before the massive boost he¡¯d just got, so even though his health and mana were low, he didn¡¯t expect them to be able to do much. While he waited for the seals to get there, he triggered Tentacle Whip¡¯s upgrade. Upgrade Tentacle Whip (F) Pick the focus of the Skill upgrade Added weight Or Increased speed Henry took the weight upgrade. He waited for the Skill to finish leveling up as he floated up and watched the seals come out of the green-gray horizon. With every second, the sight of his blinded eye was getting better. He looked down at the throat-torn serpent, deciding he would harvest a few parts of it. To work on his toxin resistance. To see if there were any other Skills or Traits he could get out of it. Though to be fair he¡¯d probably ingested everything he could or needed to through the blood he¡¯d bathed in. The seals surrounded him. Henry looked down at the two necrosed or dead extremities that had been impaled on the serpent. Henry lifted both, then sliced them with a third tentacle, cutting through the dead flesh like a scythe through dry wheat. With that done, he looked up at the seals as they bared their teeth at him. ¡°[Leave.]¡± Henry sent it to the largest seal. What he assumed to be their leader. The seal twitched at the noise. Then it attacked, and Henry whipped it with a blade-less tentacle in the face. His large tentacle impacted the 14-foot seal with a crack that burst its protective bubble and completely killed its momentum. The seal laid limp for a few seconds. Then it woke up, startled. The seals stared at him. Henry stared back. Henry raised two tentacles and glowered at the seals. He looked at the one just slapped and spoke again. ¡°[One more time. Leave.]¡± A new notification arrived, and Henry carefully glanced at it. Then he couldn¡¯t look away. Congratulations! A new option has been added to the potential species evolutions. The leader made a throaty call, and all the seals attacked. 1.26: An unexpected guest The seals took the hint around five minutes later. They¡¯d been relentless. Henry tried for a while to shove them and knock them away, but that seemed to only make them bolder. So he began using a bladed tentacle. Nine cleaved seals later, they called a retreat. Henry panted. They hadn¡¯t injured him, but he was tired. And low on mana. ¡°Upgrade Mimic, then I head home.¡± He glanced down at the serpent¡¯s carcass. ¡°And that, I guess.¡± Henry triggered the Skill upgrade, and the familiar lights appeared. He waited as the magic worked for a dozen or more seconds, then it faded. He loaded the new description. Mimicking Tentacles (D) - Level 1 Henry examined the changes and smiled to himself. Then he paused, and cursed. ¡°And I just used the Bahamut¡¯s resilience. Dammit. I could have kept that permanently!¡± The upgrade had a lot of interesting details, though. And Alter Physique allowing him to adjust his proportions was welcome news as well. ¡°I might finally be able to store the shell. Especially with that weight limit. Jeez.¡± The Skill¡¯s upper weight limit was close to five hundred pounds. And the last¨Cnewest¨Csubskill filled him with hope. ¡°Shapeshift. It¡¯s limited to limbs for now, but eventually¡­¡± It would be his key to stepping on land. Maybe. But before that, it should allow him to go around many of his limitations. Henry read the skill and hummed. ¡°Could this allow me to fly? I could make myself smaller, leave two large tentacles, and shape them into wings?¡± It sounded possible¡­ but difficult. The Skill said familiarity and practice were key, and the physiologies and mechanics of biological flight were not easy to mimic. ¡°Worth a try, though. Once I¡¯ve recovered.¡± Henry glanced down at a limb and was about to test Shapeshift Tentacle, then remembered the state he was in. ¡°Low health. No mana. And no charges on Hoard Vitals. I shouldn¡¯t be out here.¡± Over the next few minutes, Henry collected some meat from the dead seals and a few samples from the serpent. With Razor Tentacle now in the D-tier, cutting through the serpent wasn¡¯t as difficult as it¡¯d been when the monster had been alive. He stored everything in his maw, then began swimming back home, gliding stealthily along the seafloor. As he swam, he looked back at his long tentacles and considered that he hadn¡¯t pushed his size up for a few skill-levels now. ¡°If I keep increasing in size, how am I supposed to sleep? Am I supposed to sleep out in the open?¡± Technically, if he was large enough, he could. He could start mimicking a large boulder or a reef. But would he keep the camouflage as he slept? He hadn¡¯t tried that yet. He wasn¡¯t sure if it would work. ¡°Keep the current size, camouflage in the burrow, sleep, then see what happens when I wake up.¡± In the meantime, he converted the seal cores into 242 E-Tokens. The plan was still to buy every stat point he could afford, upgrade his Skills, then maybe look for another D-rank target. ¡°Downing the serpent unlocked a species'' evolution. So if I find other interesting monsters, it might unlock more.¡± A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. Henry hummed as he approached his small territory. Daylight was refracting strongly near it. ¡°So it won¡¯t be a class evolution at 100? Or is it going to be both? And what¡¯s a species evolution going to entail? Maybe¡­ I¡­¡± Henry narrowed his one functional eye. That wasn¡¯t daylight. He slowed, landing on the pebbly seabed. Henry shifted his colors to match his surroundings and slowly approached his burrow. The light was coming from his neighboring burrow. The one he¡­ stored the shell in. ¡°Goddamn it.¡± Henry surged forward and came face to face with a vaguely turtle-shaped ball of light. He tried to reach into it, but the light seemed to rebuff him. He used Identify, hoping it would give him something he could work with. [Morphing Hermit Crab (E) - Lvl 100] ¡°Oh, I don¡¯t like this. What¡¯s happening? [Hey! Get out!]¡± Henry was torn. He didn¡¯t want to lose his shell, but he didn¡¯t know what would happen if he tried to forcefully interrupt whatever was happening. It might blow up in his face, and he wasn¡¯t in the shape to take that kind of risk. On the other hand, he was curious. Incredibly so. From the name of the species he was looking at, it seemed to be fusing or evolving by using his turtle-shell. What was that going to create? If he was understanding things correctly, the turtle was from another world. It traveled through realities. And it somehow had carried his soul here. Henry raised a tentacle hesitantly. He had tried to bite into it and it had been tough, true. But he thought he¡¯d have time to try again. Maybe he could have cut a small piece off and safekept it in maw. But the fact that it had been his home and his last possession from his world affected his perspective. Even though he thought of it as a treasure, he didn¡¯t associate it with Skills and Traits and all that. ¡°I didn¡¯t think it was going to get taken over¡­¡± As he considered risking the backlash from stopping the process, the light started to fade. Henry triggered Identify again. [Chimeric Hermit Crab (D) - Lvl ? ] He stared at the resulting being. The shell was mostly there, but its form had slightly morphed and condensed to take the shape of a rainbow colored scotch bonnet shell of around two feet high and wide. Though this one didn¡¯t contain a sea snail, but a vibrant red colored hermit crab with two stubby pincers. Its black eyes stared at him, then slowly slunk back into the new home it had appropriated. Henry narrowed his eyes at it. He reached out, then the crustacean clacked its pincers. The audacity of this crab. ¡°[You stole my home. Find another.]¡± Two eye stalks peeked out at him, then the crab moved. Henry watched as it fully turned away, then dragged something over. It was an empty shell. Shaped exactly like the one it was wearing now, but smaller. The crab pushed the shell toward him. Henry looked down at the shell by his tentacles. ¡°[I don¡¯t¡ª]¡± Henry paused. His eyes slowly widened as he looked at the crab. ¡°[You understand what I¡¯m saying?]¡± The crab raised its arms, then lowered them. Its eye stalks twitched, then it rubbed at them with its stubby pincers. Oh. ¡°[Raise that pincer to say yes, and that pincer to say no. Do you understand?]¡± Henry waited for the crab to move, but it didn¡¯t. He sighed inwardly. ¡°What did I ex¨C¡± ¨CThe crab raised its right pincer. Henry stared at it. ¡°You understand what I¡¯m saying? Do the gesture twice.¡± The crab raised the right pincer again, lowered it, then raised it one more time. Henry sat down on his tentacles as he tried to process what he was seeing. Had it always been smart? Was it the evolution? ¡°[Did you understand things before the evolution?]¡± The crab hesitated for a few seconds. Then raised a left pincer. Henry raised a tentacle to his head, and the crab flinched, hiding. Henry eyed it. ¡°[Are you scared? You shouldn¡¯t be. I won¡¯t hurt you. I¡¯m annoyed you took the shell, but I won¡¯t hurt you for it.]¡± The crab slowly came out, staring up at him. It was large for a hermit crab. But Henry was massive. And he was about to get much larger once he had the mana to push his physicality higher. A hermit crab had taken over the turtle shell. Henry chuckled inwardly and shook his large head. He looked down at the crab. ¡°[Do you like meat?]¡± The right pincer shot up. Henry grinned, spat out a couple of seal cuts, and put them before the crab. It picked up one and started munching. Henry eyed it and its new shell. Whatever magic the turtle had, it was probably still around. Once he was friendly enough with the crab, he¡¯d ask it for a spare leg or a tiny chunk from the turtle-shell. Or maybe it would decide to upgrade one day. ¡°[Do you want to stay with me?]¡± The crab stopped eating and looked up at him. It hesitated, then raised its right arm. Henry exhaled, relieved. ¡°That makes things easier.¡± He liked the little crab, but he wasn¡¯t letting it roll away with his shell. It was a lease. Until further notice. Henry watched it munch on the seal and got himself one as well. He eyed the red meat for a second. ¡°Can this give me parasites?¡± Henry sighed, then brought the seal meat to his beak. If there were things in the meat, he hoped they would be dealt with by his Constitution. And it wasn¡¯t as if he had a lot of options. What was he to do? Starve? ¡°Herbivores often carry fewer parasites. But there¡¯s practically none of those in the ocean.¡± Both Henry and his new renter sat near the burrow, munching on seal meat. And for a moment, he was able to relax. 1.27: The hermit crab When Henry swam back to his burrow, the crab followed him. He didn¡¯t mind. That would let him keep an eye on it, though it kept waving its pincers, clearly trying to say something. Henry wanted to sleep, true, but how often could one have a conversation with a hermit crab? ¡°[You¡¯re trying to say something?]¡± Right pincer, yes. ¡°This is going to be rough. [Is it about me?]¡± Left pincer, no. Henry started to suggest different subjects, until they landed on classes. ¡°[What about classes?]¡± The crab pointed at him. Oh. ¡°[Do you see Stalking Threat? Or do you see Octopus? Click once for the first, twice for the second.]¡± The crab clicked once, finally answering the question Henry had. ¡°So you have Identify as well?¡± The crab raised the right pincer in agreement, then pointed to itself. Henry paused. ¡°[You want me to Identify you?]¡± Yes. Henry did so. ¡°[Oh! You got a Class? You didn¡¯t have it before?]¡± [Shelled Nomad (D) - Lvl ?] The crab indicated yes. Then it pointed to itself again. Henry frowned inwardly, but did as asked. [Chimeric Hermit Crab (D) - Lvl ?] ¡°[You can switch them?!]¡± Henry immediately went into his interface, and after looking for a few seconds, he found nothing that could do the same. Nothing obvious at least. Henry looked down at the crab as it waved its arm around. ¡°[Do you have the menus as well? To buy stats and Skills and stuff?]¡± The crab froze for a moment, then it slowly lifted its right pincer. This was incredible. ¡°[We need a better way to communicate. Do you have something that lets you learn Skills and Traits? I can learn things by eating from them.]¡± The crab paused, and slowly slinked into its shell. Henry tsked and shoved it gently with the tip of his tentacle. ¡°[I¡¯m not going to eat you. Relax. Maybe a leg if you lose one naturally.]¡± It came out quickly and raised both pincers as its eyes and legs danced. It took a moment from Henry to register. ¡°[You were joking?]¡± Right pincer. Henry shoved the smug crab again. ¡°[Haha. Funny.]¡± The crab then scuttled out, got its old shell, tapped it once, then tapped above its head with a gentle ting, then looked at Henry expectantly. ¡°[You get Skills and Traits from the shells you inhabit?]¡± Right pincer. ¡°[Interesting¡­ Do you have to fully move into them? No? Hmmm. I wonder¡­ Maybe I can shapeshift a shell-like thing and give it to you? Do you think that would work?]¡± The crab lifted both pincers. Unsure. It oddly looked like a shrug as well. ¡°[We¡¯ll try, I guess. After I get some rest, though.]¡± Right pincer. Henry kept Alter Physique inactive, then remembered. ¡°[I¡¯m going to change my appearance. Let me know if it changes when I¡¯m asleep, okay?]¡± Right pincer. Henry eyed the crab as it picked up a stone and turned it around with its pincer. Then it examined its pincer. ¡°Amazing. Was this because of the turtle shell? Actually¡­ should I trust it?¡± The crab was intelligent. And it was a stranger. A cute and funny one, but it would be incredibly stupid for him to die in his sleep because he trusted a being within 15 minutes of meeting it. Henry closed his eyes but didn¡¯t go to sleep. He transformed himself into an algae-like plant, complete with ridges and discolorations, then relaxed. His eyes felt heavy, but he resisted and instead, he meditated. Within minutes, Accelerated Recovery kicked in. A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation. He could hear the crab picking up things, taking a few steps here and there, softly clicking its pincers from time to time. After a few minutes of observation through Telepathic Sense, Henry knew this hadn¡¯t been the odd presence he had felt recently. He didn¡¯t know why exactly. It was just a feeling, like seeing a silhouette from afar and recognizing the person, even though the person¡¯s features were too far to pick up. Still, he stayed vigilant, and as he relaxed, his health and mana began to rise.
After a couple of hours of meditation, Henry was almost back to full and he allowed himself a short nap. When he woke back up, it felt like an hour or two had passed. The crab was sitting at the entrance, watching the outside world. ¡°[Did my colors change when I was asleep?]¡± The crab jumped and Henry saw a white-blue light near its mouth that quickly faded. It raised a left pincer to say no. ¡°[Sorry. Give me a few more minutes, I have some stats to assign.]¡± With that, Henry loaded up his menus and got to work. ¡°First things first, buy everything.¡± Henry started with Skills. He bought the Telekinesis targeting upgrade first. Then Tentacle Whip¡¯s speed upgrade. He looked at his list of Skills and Traits to see if anything was worth buying permanently. As his eyes roamed the list, he noticed something. ¡°Riptide Rush and Dart are gone? I guess they don¡¯t stay permanently¡­¡± Dart was nice, but not a game changer. Riptide Rush was also interesting, but he could always get it back. There were Riptides around. ¡°Poison breath. I mean ray. Do I want that?¡± It was powerful. And he already had some Skills and Traits linked to toxins¡­ but he wasn¡¯t sure about that being his speciality. ¡°There¡¯s some light affinity with Bite¡­ in the sense that I need my mouth for both. Maybe it could get subsumed as well?¡± Henry decided to buy it. Worst case scenario, he could replace it if it ended up being disappointing. ¡°What else¡­ Piercing Projectile and Spiteful Detonation¡­ Still no. Shapeshift might work with those but that¡¯s a reach. That¡¯s about it, huh. Next outing I should start collecting samples and finding new Skills and Traits. Haven¡¯t really done much of that lately.¡± Next, he moved on to his Stats. ¡°Dexterity¡¯s still under 10. Let¡¯s fix that first.¡± With that done, he examined everything else. ¡°Constitution points are too expensive. I got some to buy in Spirit, and a lot more in Perception and Dex.¡± As a first pass, he bought 2 Spirit points, 4 Perception and all 6 Dexterity points for a total of 163 E-Tokens, leaving him with 50 E-Tokens. ¡°A nice round number. I¡¯ll keep those around in case I get a Skill or Trait to buy. The next points all cost D-Tokens anyway. Now for the points to assign, I can round up Perception and get it to 20. The rest goes between Spirit and Constitution. Three each.¡± Henry confirmed everything, and the lights began to collect. His eyes and skin burned more than usual as they were pushed into the next threshold. With Telepathic Sense he caught a vague impression of wonder from the crab. When the changes were over, Henry unrolled his tentacles and slipped out. It felt¡­seamless. His limbs were responding to his command faster, without the wasted movements he got used to. ¡°Should have done this sooner.¡± He pushed his size to the maximum, and nudged the Skill to enlarge his mouth and tentacles the most. He had things to test. Mana rushed through his body, and he felt the Skill begin to work. It felt more intense than he was used to. ¡°It might work faster now.¡± He pulled his stats to take a look before he moved on. Stats: Strength: 24 [3 Base][9 Class][1 Consumption][11 Purchased] (6 Purchasable) Constitution: 33 [3 Base][17 Class][2 Consumption][11 Purchased] (12 Purchasable) Spirit: 25 [6 Base][7 Class][4 Consumption][8 Purchased] (6 Purchasable) Perception: 20 [4 Base][6 Class][10 Purchased] (6 Purchasable) Dexterity: 16 [4 Base][1 Class][1 Consumption][10 Purchased] (0 Purchasable) The crab stepped after him, and Henry saw light reflect over the gem-like turtle shell. ¡°[Did you get something from the shell? Like Skills and Traits?]¡± The crab moved its arms, seemingly in thought, then raised both. ¡°[You don¡¯t know?]¡± It raised a left pincer then looked around before glancing down to the ground. It put down a pincer, looked up to Henry, then slowly moved its pincer in a line. After a second or two of movement, it lifted the pincer and tapped it down on the end of the line. ¡°[It takes time?]¡± Right pincer. Henry stared at the crab. ¡°[You¡¯re really smart.]¡± Right pincer. Henry shook his head and chuckled. ¡°[What should I call you? Do you have a name?]¡± The crab hesitated then clacked both pincers. ¡°I don¡¯t know what that meant. [My name is Henry, you can¡¯t see it with Identify. A name is a sound we use to tell each other apart. Not the Class, and not the species. Do you have one?]¡± A sad left pincer. ¡°[Do you want one?]¡± Fast right pincer. ¡°[Let¡¯s see. Do you have something in mind?]¡± The crab shrugged, then stepped a bit away. It pointed to its mouth, and light began to collect. Henry¡¯s eyes widened and he tensed involuntarily. A small stream of blue-white bubbles formed and shot forward. Henry stared at the attack. The bubbles reached a boulder and every one impacted with small implosions. The boulder was pulverized. The crab pointed at where the bubbles had flown, then back at itself. ¡°[That¡¯s¡­ you want the name of those? Bubbles?]¡± The crab seemed to mull it over. Then pointed at its head. ¡°[Shell? Shelley?]¡± It continued pointing at random things for a while, then pointed at Henry. ¡°[You want names from me?]¡± Yes. Henry considered the crab for a moment. ¡°[Barry? Sebastian? Wait. Those are boy names.]¡± Henry took a minute to explain what he meant, after which the crab shrugged. ¡°Right. Hermit crabs can be intersex. Is that the case here? No matter.¡± Henry focused back on the matter at hand. ¡°[Alright, I¡¯ll list some and stop me if you hear a name you like. Kirby, Krabby, Seamore, Sheldon, Barry, Claws, Mabel, Maurice¨C]¡± The crab lifted a claw. ¡°[Maurice?]¡± Right pincers, then the crab¡¯s limbs all danced as it scuttled around Henry¡¯s growing body. ¡°[Well, nice to meet you, Maurice.]¡± Maurice clacked both pincers and glanced around. Then back up to Henry. It lifted both arms in doubt. Or maybe in a question? ¡°[Are you asking about what we¡¯re going to do? If so, I want to go explore a bit. I get Skills and Traits from things I eat. I¡¯m still not ready to fight anything big, but I can go around and catch a few things. I also want to test something with a Skill I have.]¡± Maurice raised a right claw and began scuttling forward. Henry watched the crab move ahead of him and grinned. ¡°This is a nice change. Good thing I didn¡¯t stop its evolution.¡± A/N: Maurice the Chimeric Hermit Crab / Shelled Nomad has joined the party! 1.28: A casual exploration Without the turtle shell slowing him down, Henry swam at a leisurely pace, brushing against the kelp stalks. Occasionally he ripped a few when they got entangled in his limbs as he spread them around to push himself forward. Henry was now around 25-feet long, from head to tentacles. His thick, long limbs easily made 80% of his size, while his head, stomach, and beak took the rest. He crested over the surface and glanced at the volcanic island, still far away. He lifted his forward tentacle to let Maurice see. ¡°[That¡¯s the island I mentioned. The seals are probably there. And hopefully more.]¡± The hermit crab shook both pincers in excitement. Henry had him cupped in a forward tentacle, with a couple of suckers sticking to the shell for extra safety. Maurice was a bit slow, so Henry had decided to just carry him. That way Maurice could see everything, and Henry could see the crab¡¯s gestures and signals. Right now, he didn¡¯t need to see Maurice¡¯s wonder. He could feel it through Telepathic Sense. Right before leaving the burrow, Henry had asked the crab if it was okay with him sensing his emotions and intentions through his Traits. He needed to practice with the Trait, having seen what the whales were capable of. But it somehow felt intrusive¨Ceven though it hadn¡¯t when the whales had done it¨Cand he¡¯d feel better after asking permission. True to form, Maurice couldn¡¯t care less. It seemed exciting to him, even. Henry assumed because it would let the crab get his points and questions across much more easily. Henry dove back down, scanning the rocky and dark seabed for a nice spot to land. He watched Riptides scramble away, and even saw a few lionfish eye him as he passed, but they didn¡¯t take shots. ¡°What a nice change of pace.¡± A few interesting-looking reefs caught his eyes, so he dove and landed on the seabed, kicking up a large cloud of dust and small rocks. Henry put down Maurice, and both examined their surroundings. Sunlight filtered through the green-hued waters, casting a dazzling array of patterns on the vibrant coral formations. Multicolored fish darted in and out of the crevices, their scales reflecting the light in a mesmerizing dance. Anemones swayed gently with the currents, their tendrils waving like delicate fingers. Henry glanced down at Maurice, who was already approaching a familiar-looking starfish. ¡°[Let¡¯s see if we find interesting specimens. I assume you¡¯ve got good defenses?]¡± Maurice raised his right pincer twice. ¡°[Good. Do you have a way of signaling me? We should still stay close. But just in case.]¡± Maurice seemed to think about that for a moment, then stepped away from the coral covered rock and faced upward. The space around his mouth shone blue, then a small bubble floated slowly. It flew, seemingly unaffected by the water, and when it touched a stalk of kelp it imploded with an audible thud. Maurice looked up to Henry, held both pincers above his head, then spread them. ¡°[You can make big bubbles? Will they be loud enough?]¡± Right pincer. ¡°[Gotcha. Okay, stay safe, and signal me if there¡¯s trouble.]¡± Henry swam up, eyes still on the curious hermit crab, then took in the surrounding waters. ¡°Any time now.¡± He was being followed. He knew he was. Whatever thing had been roaming around him the last few days was still nearby. He had detected it as he was swimming, furtively popping into his radar then disappearing. Henry¡¯s eyes roamed, then he swam low. He kept an eye on Maurice, just in case the crab was attacked, and decided to run his test. Now was as good a time as any. Henry saw a foot-long blue and white dotted fish swim out of one of the countless crevices of the reef formation. It panicked when it saw Henry looming there like a sea monster, but before it could make a break for it, he gripped it with Telekinesis. If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it. [Blue Grouper (F) - Lvl 6] ¡°I¡¯m almost sure you¡¯ll be fine. But in case you¡¯re not¡­ well. Sorry. I guess.¡± Henry brought the fish to his maw, and it disappeared. ¡°Now we¡¯ll see if you¡¯re still alive after a few hours.¡± Henry looked back toward Maurice and quickly found the rainbow shell slowly climbing over the reef, stopping from time to time to sample the yellow and white corals. He wanted to make sure he could carry the crab safely, mainly because he didn¡¯t want it to get hurt. As for his shell¡­ He felt conflicted about that. Maybe someday the crab would let go of the shell for something bigger, as hermit crabs are known to do. But if it didn¡¯t? Well, Henry wasn¡¯t about to rip his new companion out of its new home. It was smart. Insightful. Even funny. But it also felt like a child, and forcefully tearing it away from something it had bonded with was cruel. Plus, it seemed that Maurice had a Trait similar to Henry¡¯s. ¡°I can just wait for it to lose a limb or molt, and I¡¯ll get whatever it gets from the turtle shell.¡± It was simple, really. There was no need to¨C Something pinged him through Telepathic Sense. Henry slowly turned. He was 99% sure their stalker was close. And behind him. Sparse stalks of kelp undulated as far as he could see. Small fish swam around. Some by themselves, some in schools that darted and dipped whenever something moved toward them. Henry¡¯s eyes tracked every single movement. His significantly improved perception helped as well. He tried to detect any taste with his limbs as he scanned the empty waters behind him. Then he saw it. A large patch in the water that was barely more opaque than everything else. Henry¡¯s skin crawled. Something invisible? The patch began to move, and he tracked it with his eyes. Identify returned only as a question mark. The same way it had done with the flatfish¡¯s illusions a while ago. Henry activated Telekinesis in the general area of the barely visible shape. Thanks to Telekinesis¡¯s new upgrade, he needed less precision. And he could lock a space, instead of a single target. The spell took hold of something, and Henry felt like he just got punched in the temple. He grimaced. His head pounded, but he didn¡¯t let go. ¡°Late E or D, most probably.¡± Anything higher would have broken through already. He was confident he could fight off whatever this was, or run from it. He wasn¡¯t keen on fighting, per-se, but this thing¨Cwhatever it was¨Chad been stalking him for a while now and he was frankly sick of it. This might scare it away, at least. Henry poured his mana into Telekinesis, readying a strike. He couldn¡¯t use Telepathy without a target, but what he did instead was push himself off the reef with his limbs. Then his target decided to drop its camouflage. The being appeared as if an invisibility cape was ripped away from it, and Henry started. He recognized what it was. He used Identify anyway. [Juvenile Trickster Kraken (D) - ?] It was rust-red and almost twice as large as he was, though its arms were thinner. Henry believed they¡¯d weigh about the same, or he might be a bit lighter, but not by much. Its skin was rippling and flashing with deeper shades, a behavior he¡¯d read about in a past life. An intimidation tactic. Henry released Telekinesis. He couldn¡¯t hold it for much longer, anyway. The giant octopus stared down at him, then the alarm he sensed from it began to mellow. At the same time, the colors began to fade and lighten. Instead of the deep red, there were now blue deep blue stripes that reminded him of zebras. It hovered, examining him as well, then it began to approach. Curiosity again. This was the stalker. Henry backed up. It followed. ¡°[Back up,]¡± Henry warned as he darkened his skin. The kraken froze and its color began to deepen as well. It didn¡¯t seem intelligent. Well, not exactly. It was smart, but not sapient. Not like Maurice or himself. So whatever this kraken wanted, Henry was pretty sure he wasn¡¯t interested. There weren¡¯t a lot of reasons why an octopus would pursue another. Either it wanted to eat him, or worse. Henry backed away slowly. He wasn¡¯t sure he wanted this fight. He had barely a handful of Hoard Vitals charges. And this thing could literally throw anything at him. Especially if it evolved like he did. It would have all sorts of Skills and Traits he wasn¡¯t ready to handle. ¡°I guess I know what my next evolution might be though¨C¡± A thud. Not too far behind him. Maurice. Henry swam toward the sound, eyes still on the kraken, and he cursed when it followed him. It wasn¡¯t being aggressive. Still worrying, but not the highest priority. Henry turned and swam quickly toward the sound. He crested a reef and saw Maurice hiding in his shell. Multiple limbs wrapped around the hermit crab''s shell as the predator tried to get to him. Another predator that was oddly similar to the stalker still pursuing Henry, aside from its massive size. It was easily twice as large as him. A bubble flew out of the shell¡¯s entrance and hit the overside octopus point-blank. The flesh tore out of the monster¡¯s limb. Then Henry watched it re-knit itself as he rushed toward them. Henry had a single thought as he readied a sharp tentacle. ¡°Looks like my prayer for healing Skills is finally answered.¡± [Juvenile Goliath Kraken (D) - ?? ] 1.29: A lunch-break A stream of imploding bubbles tore chunks off of the underside of the cephalopod. It flailed its limbs and raised the one gripping Maurice to bash him against the rocks. As Henry approached, he couldn¡¯t help but tense as the goliath kraken grew larger and larger in his vision. It was easily twice as large as Henry. Its skin was pebbly and rust-red. In comparison, Maurice was barely a multicolored bead held by the extremities of the kraken¡¯s arm. It knew there was magic in there, because there weren¡¯t any nutrients Maurice could provide to something so large. Henry whipped a barely visible tentacle forward. His 20-foot-long limb tore the water with pinpoint accuracy, and the bladed magic bit deep into goliath kraken¡¯s arm. But not fully through. Thankfully, Maurice picked up the slack. The hermit crab sent out a stream of bubbles which impacted the bleeding tentacle with a series of bursts that finished severing the limb. Maurice and the arm dropped to the coral-covered rocks, and the kraken flailed in pain. Blue blood streamed in the water and to Henry¡¯s arms. It tasted familiar, but he didn¡¯t let that distract him. Henry picked up Maurice and the severed limb with ease, then swam away, pumping the goliath¡¯s vicinity with a cloud of ink. He summoned a clone and sent it swimming past the goliath¡¯s head for good measure. This wasn¡¯t a good fight to get stuck in. That thing could be anything from level 10 to 99, and Henry was out of Hoard Vitals charges. It would be incredibly risky to try and fight it. Plus, there was another kraken around. If the second one decided to get aggressive, both Henry and Maurice would be cooked. Henry pumped his arms and glanced down at Maurice. The crab wasn¡¯t terrified, but it was wary. It was fine though, so he stole a glance backward. Nothing was following. Nothing that he could see. Henry didn¡¯t stop for a few minutes. He darkened his color as much as he could, then with a cloud of ink, sent two clones left and right while he himself dipped down to a reef formation. He gripped on to it and made himself part of the natural formation after tucking Maurice and the severed limb under an outcropping. He watched the water above, and he thought he saw the transparent shape of the trickster kraken chasing after one of the clones. ¡°Or I¡¯m imagining it.¡± Henry looked down at the severed arm¨Cwhich was almost twice as large as Henry¡¯s own limbs¨Cthen at Maurice. ¡°[You okay?]¡± Right pincer. Henry exhaled. ¡°[It was odd how I hadn¡¯t encountered any octopuses since I woke up here. Now I know where they are.]¡± Maurice pointed to him, then back to where they came from as the blue hue showed up around his mouth. ¡°[Are you asking to go back and fight?]¡± No. ¡°[Why it attacked?]¡± Yes. Henry eyed the hermit crab and mostly felt confusion from it. ¡°[You haven¡¯t met any of my kind before?]¡± No. ¡°Oh, boy.¡± Henry sighed, glanced up and around, then leaned down to face the crab. ¡°[I wasn¡¯t born like this, that¡¯s why I can talk. You, I think, became smart because of the turtle shell. The krakens we met aren¡¯t smart. And octopuses¨Cor krakens¨Cusually eat crabs like you. They usually eat whatever they can get their arms on.]¡± Maurice shuffled in place. Henry tried to pick up on its feelings, and he thought he felt understanding, mixed with worry or nervousness. The crab looked down at the severed limb and pointed at it, then raised both pincers. ¡°[You want to eat?]¡± Maurice hesitated. He lifted the right pincer, then lifted both again. ¡°[Why I dragged it with us?]¡± Yes. ¡°[I can copy Skills and Traits by eating, remember?]¡± Understanding dawned on the crab. It scuttled closer, seemingly done with its questions, and pinched some meat off. Henry inched closer as well, then bit into the meat. The bite was chewy. A bit tough, but it definitely didn¡¯t taste bad. This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience. ¡°I guess this isn¡¯t as disturbing as I thought it would be.¡± Henry watched the surroundings for a bit. This area seemed lively, with large crevices and high reefs. An ideal spot for monsters who liked to hide and ambush. ¡°To think I just wanted to relax and explore the area. Then boom. Krakens.¡± Henry swallowed and watched as Maurice continued to nibble on the oversized piece of meat. Its pincers weren¡¯t having much trouble cutting into it, and Henry didn¡¯t see any skills. ¡°Hardy little fella.¡± Seconds later, Magic Mimic sent a notification. Regenerate (F) was copied by Magic Mimic. Added to Ephemerals. Superior Trait analyzed by Magic Mimic. Sample insufficient. Henry waited for a few seconds. Then took another bite, hoping that would count as a sample for whatever Trait was being analyzed, but nothing showed up. ¡°Superior Traits¡­ Could it be Magic Mimic? Or a recovery Trait? And how come that¡¯s all I¡¯m getting?¡± Henry considered everything¨Cwhatever little of it¨Che¡¯d learned so far. Classes seemed to be exclusive to sapient beings, and if the goliath kraken had started as a trickster octopus, it should have more Skills. Though without a class, Magic Mimic might work differently for unawakened monsters. But if the goliath hadn¡¯t started as a trickster octopus, which might explain why Henry hadn¡¯t gotten more than one Skill from the meat, then the stalker most certainly had. That one could turn invisible. And it wasn¡¯t camouflage. Mimicking Tentacles didn¡¯t allow Henry to go translucent. So there must be a way for monsters to affix their copied Skills and Traits somehow. Without a Class. ¡°Speaking of¡­¡± Henry immediately paid for the Skill and added it to his collection. Regenerate (F) - Level 1: Spend mana to restore your health and recover from ailments. ¡°You and I are going to become the best of friends.¡± Henry paused and shook his head. ¡°Why am I talking to a Skill¡­¡± He shifted his focus back to the question at hand. There wasn¡¯t enough data to confirm his theories, but he could always try and ask. Henry glanced down at Maurice. ¡°[Maurice, were you capable of getting abilities from shells before your last evolution? When you didn¡¯t have a class?]¡± Maurice stopped eating and seemed to freeze for a moment, then hesitantly lifted a right arm. The left arm followed suit. Henry guessed it wasn¡¯t sure. He tried to detect Maurice¡¯s thoughts, but the emotion was muted enough or complex enough that he couldn¡¯t really put his finger on it. ¡°[You don¡¯t remember?]¡± Right pincer. ¡°Hmm¡­¡± A few minutes later, Maurice seemed to be done eating, so Henry ate more liberally from the remaining tentacle as he considered what they should do next. ¡°I can start moving toward the Current and stop at the island, but if there are D-grade krakens around, it might be good to hunt a few. Especially that goliath.¡± The trickster kraken could be a target as well, but it showed no hostility so far and that made him a bit squeamish. ¡°I doubt it will stay friendly, though.¡± Sooner or later, it might try something and get aggressive, at which point he felt he could retaliate without compunction. He just felt bad killing something that was only being friendly. Or only harmlessly-creepy. Henry glanced down at Maurice. ¡°[You interested in hunting some krakens?]¡± Maurice looked up, considered it, then raised a right claw. ¡°[Good. You can be my bubble-gun. And when things get hectic¨Coh, right¡­]¡± It¡¯d been close to twenty minutes. Long enough for a test. Henry spat out the blue grouper. It immediately tried to dart away, but he caught it with Telekinesis. Maurice peered curiously at the fish as Henry examined it. It was fine. Healthy. Undamaged. Henry let it go, and watched the fish swim away then dip into a crevice. ¡°[I¡¯ll test this some more, but I got a solution for us when things get a bit crazy. I have a Skill that lets me hide things in a private space. I can hide you when we have to be careful. That way you¡¯re safe.]¡± Maurice pincers danced above his head. The note Henry got was clear this time. Amusement. ¡°[What¡¯s so funny?]¡± Maurice pointed at him with its right pincer, then lowered his left pincer until it almost touched the seabed. Then the crab pointed at itself and raised the left pincer higher. Henry narrowed his eyes at the smug little crab. ¡°[You¡¯re saying you¡¯re higher level so you don¡¯t need my help?]¡± Right pincer. ¡°[I saved your shelled butt from the kraken.]¡± Maurice pointed at its own mouth. ¡°[Yeah, sure you helped, but I did more damage. And I swim faster.]¡± Maurice threw both pincers up, then scuttled away, seemingly done with the conversation. ¡°[Listen here you little¨C]¡± A shadow fell over both of them. Henry looked up to see the trickster kraken hovering above them. Before he could react, it lunged toward Maurice and picked the crab up. Henry slashed at it. His bladed tentacle cut into one of the kraken¡¯s arms, but before it fully pierced through, he felt a familiar resistance and cursed. ¡°Slick coat. High level, too.¡± The octopus brought Maurice to its beak and Henry was about to shoot it with Toxic ray when a series of implosions threw the octopus away. Blue blood surged out of the trickster kraken and a cloud of ink bellowed. It dropped Maurice, but Henry wasn¡¯t letting it leave this time. He soared above the ink cloud and locked it with Telekinesis as it began to turn translucent. In the end, the trickster kraken wasn¡¯t that friendly. And it couldn¡¯t be trusted. ¡°[Maurice, hit it!]¡± Henry grit his teeth as the juvenile kraken battered itself against his Telekinesis, and Maurice started blasting. 1.30: Hostility A quick stream of a blue-white bubbles flew toward the black-striped kraken. Henry watched carefully. When the bubbles were about to hit the shimmer of his Telekinesis, he dropped the Skill. The kraken¡¯s arms spread wide as it prepared to propel itself away, spitting out a cloud of orange-tinged ink that made the bubbles pop on contact. A few of Maurice¡¯s bubbles flew through, untouched by the strange ink cloud, and hit their target. The kraken jerked and recoiled as chunks of its flesh were torn out of its arms and stomach. After a few tentative movements, it managed to drift away from the path of the remaining bubbles. Henry braced, telling Maurice to wait, and they both watched the kraken. The monster stared down at them, its limbs shuddering with pain and leaking blue blood. Henry didn¡¯t need Telepathic Sense to guess the mood of the kraken. Its skin was darkening. The stripes began turning an ominous yellow hue that seemed to dance along with the large yellow eyes glaring down at them. It floated above them. Not swimming. Not attacking. And when Henry met the kraken¡¯s eyes, his stomach clenched. Why was he feeling so much hostility from something running on instinct? It wasn¡¯t sapient; he was almost sure, so why wasn¡¯t it running or attacking? This wasn¡¯t the behavior of a simple monster, and that unnerved him. The yellow eyes turned black. The color spread from the eyes to take over all of its body and then¡­ it dissolved. Henry watched, eyes wide, as the cloud of ink slowly dispersed, carried away by the ocean current, leaving nothing behind. ¡°[Maurice, keep an eye out. I don¡¯t think it¡¯s over.]¡± Henry swam closer to the hermit crab, and they both furtively squinted and peered around. The waters were quiet. The sparse stalks of kelp gently swayed along with the waves. Henry could hear some faint seal calls, but nothing else moved. All the while, one thought kept repeating in his head, and he didn¡¯t want it to be right. The kraken had dissolved. Like it had been made of ink. It may have been an Ink Clone.
After a few minutes passed with nothing jumping on them, Henry picked up Maurice and moved further toward the island. The water tasted like sulfur and the seabed rose, while the kelp grew thicker. It grew up to spread along the water surface, making the water dark and green. Henry kept sending Ink Clones in random directions, taking sharp turns every few minutes, hoping they weren¡¯t being followed. His mind whispered to him he was, so he continued swimming. He knew he ought to stay close and hunt some krakens. There were Cores and powers to gain, but the last encounter had unnerved him. He wanted to find some place to collect himself, recover, prepare, then try to face the trickster kraken. If it really had been the one that¡¯d been stalking him for a few days, then either it was tracking him, somehow, or it had a way of finding him. He didn¡¯t like either of those options. Before Henry could continue his train of thought, Maurice lifted both pincers and Henry tensed. ¡°[What¡¯s going on? Do you see it?]¡± Henry was ready to lash out at anything that moved, but Maurice lifted a left pincer. Then, with its right, it pointed downward and to the left. ¡°...What is that?¡± Henry swam low, closer to the odd stony perch, and looked down. It was as if they were hovering above some sort of underwater canyon. Luminescent spires filled his vision, stretching forward into the deep, dark waters. Every hundred feet or so there was a spire, and something seemed to move within them. This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. Peering over the ledge from which they watched this odd place, Henry first felt the water warm up, then noticed the repeating marks on the rocky bed. It was everywhere. As if something had¨Cwith endless patience¨Ccarved out the stone and rocks to create this trench. ¡°[Do you know what did this?]¡± Maurice was staring at the spires. It lifted a left pincer for no, without looking away, and Henry felt wonder from the crab. Henry glanced behind, then let himself drift down to approach one of the spires. The water warmed up even more. The spires were large. Easily around 50 feet high and 10 feet wide at their base. They looked like they had been made of molten glass that¡¯d been spat out one layer at a time, causing the structure to have an oddly dovetailed pattern. As he got close, he noticed tunnels running up and down the glass-like spires. A liquid, red-hot, was flowing up along the construct, cooling off, then flowing back down as gray-tinted metallic liquid. Henry used Identify. [Glass Cooling Tower] ¡°[What in the¨C]¡± The words caught in his mind when a red hue approached from behind an even larger spire. Henry braced, ready to run, and pointed Maurice in its direction. A blue light began to collect around the hermit crab¡¯s mandibles. They both held their breath. Waiting. And then¡­ An ant stepped out. Henry lowered Maurice as he took in the nonsensical vision. The ant was glowing red. Water rippled around it, boiling away and drifting up. When it walked, its feet never left the stony seabed. Its large head swiveled and flattened, and short antennas twitched. It looked like a soldier-ant, around four feet long, and it froze when it saw them. [Lava Soldier Ant (E) - Lvl ??] The ant lifted its head and screeched. A second later, more screeching sounded from the other spires, and red lights began appearing all around them. ¡°[Time to go, Maurice.]¡± Henry picked up the crab, beginning to swim up, and came face to face with a large black beak at the center of eight tentacled arms. ¡°Shit¨C¡± Henry pushed against the beak with Telekinesis and threw himself back, whipping with a bladed tentacle as he did. His bladed arm cut fully through one of the kraken¡¯s limbs, but one of his got bit right as Maurice spat out his imploding bubbles. A searing pain pulsed in Henry¡¯s limb and he grimaced. Meanwhile the kraken got pelted by the bubbles before it dissolved into ink again, but they weren¡¯t out of the woods yet. Shards of glowing objects were flying up and around them, and Henry didn¡¯t want to get hit by any of the lava ants¡¯ projectiles. Henry carried Maurice above the ledge and went back to the kelp area, then a minute later flopped down to the sandy bed. He grunted at the venom pulsing in his limb, but it wasn¡¯t too dangerous so he left it for Toxin Resistance. He put down Maurice, and looked down at the concerned crab. ¡°[We¡¯re not going to be left alone for a bit, I think. We¡¯ll need to start sleeping and resting in turns.]¡± Maurice shuffled in place, looking around, then raised both pincers hesitantly. ¡°[Hmm¡­ Not sure what you mean. You don¡¯t understand what resting in turns mean?]¡± Maurice raised both pincers, expressing doubt, so Henry explained the concept, after which Maurice agreed to the decision. ¡°[First, we need to work on communication, so I¡¯m going to try making you something with shapeshift. Hopefully, we can transfer Telepathy to you.]¡± With Maurice posted up to keep watch, Henry brought the tip of an intact limb in front of him and began considering how he should go about it. It wasn¡¯t guaranteed that he''d be able to shape and compose the tentacle like he wanted to, but if this Skill allowed him to play with organic matter, then he should aim for bone, or keratin. He hoped the skill didn¡¯t need his control on the molecular level because, if so, he was screwed. Henry exhaled, then activated his Skill. A world of possibilities exploded in Henry¡¯s mind. It was as if he just plugged into an encyclopedia of knowledge, but it wasn¡¯t any information he could use. An endless amount of options, of organic compositions and customization flashed through his mind in a fraction of a second, and he couldn¡¯t even remember what he¡¯d been planning on doing. He was bombarded with the possibilities that Shapeshift Tentacle allowed him, and then¨C He was kicked out. Henry found himself panting, with his limb still held in front of him. He tried to put it down, but his limbs weren¡¯t obeying him like they should. He was woozy. Looking at his stats, his health was fine. Above 90%. But his mana was down to 30%. Henry blinked dumbly at the value he was reading, then turned to Maurice. ¡°[Was I quiet for long? Has been long since I got started?]¡± Henry felt a burst of surprise from Telepathic Sense. Maurice slowly turned to him, then lifted a left pincer for no. Henry sighed. ¡°[The Skill¡¯s difficult to use. It used up most of my mana just to access it. I guess I froze up, and I ended up wasting it. We¡¯ll try again once I recover my mana. Are you okay with keeping watch?]¡± Maurice was quick to agree, so Henry tried to meditate. He couldn¡¯t allow himself to get too low, not when they were being stalked. Henry eyed the crab, and then the calm dark green waters around him.¡°Should I start working on the next level 100? I already maxed the stats I can afford. I probably could still get some achievements for more Evolutionary points. But¡­¡± He was happy with the serpent achievement. He would totally have gone back for the Goliath kraken, but this stalking kraken was worrying him, and the more he thought about it, the worse it got. He was 99% sure those had been Ink Clones. His own Skill, at E-Rank, could only summon clones with the consistency of smoke that could only distract. If this was an Ink Clone Skill that summoned D-Rank copies that could fight and use Skills¡­ Henry had to tread lightly and he had to prepare. Sooner or later, the original kraken was going to show up. And that didn¡¯t feel like a fight he could win just yet. 1.31: Arts and crafts ¡°Having someone on watch seems to deter the kraken from sending its clones.¡± Henry bit into the flank of a seal as he watched the half-obscured light of day. It had still attacked once, though, at night. But they¡¯d been able to react quickly enough to beat the clone. And when Henry had been about to bite the clone, it dissolved. Another concerning fact to add to the list. Maurice poked an inner arm, and Henry unrolled his tentacle to let the crab out. ¡°[Good morning. There¡¯s food],¡± said Henry as he pointed to a seal lodged under another tentacle. Maurice began trudging toward the dead seal, then paused and turned to Henry. He lifted a right pincer, which Henry had learned to interpret as the crab asking if he was okay. ¡°[I¡¯m good, ready to get it right this time.]¡± Maurice lifted his right pincer and waved, then turned to the seal and dug in with enthusiasm. Henry would be lying if he said the crab¡¯s trust didn¡¯t feel good. ¡°Just you wait.¡± Over the last two days since settling in this area, Henry had been trying over and over to create something useful with Shapeshift Tentacle. The fact that he could only use it once every few hours made climbing the learning curve slow. He looked sideways at the pile of discarded limbs. Some were barely changed, but with every iteration he was getting better at shaping and changing the limb¡¯s composition. Reverting the changes was mana-intensive as well, so he opted to sever the limbs and regrow them instead. The last couple were almost shell-shaped, but that hadn¡¯t been enough for Maurice¡¯s ability to work. One ended up too thick with the interior too small to be used as a hermit crab home, while the second had been too holey and uneven. Henry waited for Maurice to finish eating and went through his plan for the new trial. ¡°Test number¡­14. Shape the tentacle in a cone beforehand, make sure there¡¯s space left in the center, then turn the whole thing to bone.¡± Bone was easier to create than keratin. Tougher, as well. Maurice finished a few minutes later and scuttled close. Henry picked the crab up, carefully wrapping the extremities of his arm around the hermit crab¡¯s shell, then put Maurice down. He examined the mold he¡¯d created and gingerly nudged his limbs around, making slight adjustments, sealing off bits here and there, then¡­ it was ready. ¡°[Here goes.]¡± Henry activated the Skill, and this time he kept his focus on the limb. He ignored the countless possibilities that flashed in his mind, the overwhelming sense of control the Skill baited him with, and ordered the cells of his prepared limb to turn to bone. He started at the tip of his tentacle and slowly worked his way back. The top of the future shell turned from clear orange to off-white, and the color bled through his tentacle. As it did, he lost feeling from the transformed flesh, but he kept his focus and didn¡¯t contract or move. The world fell away as he narrowed all of his senses onto the task at hand. Once he got to the size he wanted, he let go. Henry closed his eyes for a moment and waited for the bout of dizziness to fade. Using large amounts of mana taxed him. Glancing at his stats, he knew he¡¯d just burned through 87% of his reserves. Henry grimaced and glanced around. ¡°[I¡¯m low on mana. But I think we got it this time.]¡± Maurice warily eyed the waters around as he approached, but Henry felt the excitement well within the crab. The bone-shell looked good. There were some small imperfections, but no holes outside of a very respectable entrance at the bottom of the conical shape. Or more like it would be, once they cleaned out the remaining flesh that was left within. Henry severed the tip of his arm. The damage didn¡¯t even register. If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. He looked down at Maurice. ¡°[What do you think?]¡± Maurice scuttled around the bone-shell, touching and tapping it with his claws every few seconds. He turned to face Henry and raised a decisive right claw. Henry pumped a tentacle in victory. ¡°[Alright, let''s¨C]¡± Maurice didn¡¯t wait for him. His right pincer tapped the freshly made shell, and sand rippled away from the sculpted bone. White light began to drift off the surface of the conical shell. It flowed along the pincer, up to the multi-colored shell where it sank through and disappeared. The process took barely seconds, and when it was over, the bone-shell looked¡­ gray. As if the light was sucked out of it. Maurice stood still for a few seconds, then slowly turned to the octopus. Henry held his breath, waiting, and then a small tentacle grew out of Maurice¡¯s claw. The crab and Henry stared down at the twitching tentacle, then Henry burst out laughing. Which, for the first time in weeks, made him squirt a bit of ink. ¡°[You got shapeshift! That¡¯s good. It means this works, and we¡¯ll be able to get you telepathy.]¡± The crab pumped both pincers up, and the tentacle at the edge of his claw waved around. Then the crab lowered his arms, and with the left, snipped the right claw off. ¡°[Wh¨Cwhat are you doing.]¡± Maurice raised his remaining claw, still holding the severed one, and approached Henry. As he did, the stump began to glow softly, and the limb began growing back. ¡°[You got Regenerate as well?]¡± Maurice lifted his severed claw, then, when the crab was close enough, he put down the claw in front of Henry. Raising his slowly reforming claw, he went back to his post. Henry looked down at the tiny pincer and the still-twitching mini-octopus leg. ¡°[For me?]¡± Maurice waved his stumpy right arm. Henry slowly picked up the tiny morsel and popped it into his mouth. It was crunchy, and thanks to it, he obtained the bubble gun, an incompatible Skill, and an interesting defensive one. The issue now was that he only had one Skill slot left. Henry thanked the crab, then went back to meditating. As for which Skill to keep, he decided that would be a nice problem for later.
Four stupidly optimistic seals later, or to be more accurate, around ten hours¡ªgive or take two¡ªanother test was about to take place. Henry went through the process as usual, while Maurice stood guard. He found it easier to get Shapeshift Tentacle to do what he wanted now, so the whole thing barely took ten seconds. When he was done, something new happened. ¡°[I got a notification. Here, hopefully you¡¯ll get it this time,]¡± said Henry as he chopped off the tip of his arm and gave it to Maurice. He pulled up his notifications and skimmed over the level-ups in Mimicking Tentacles and Regeneration. New Traits Unlocked: Mana Conduit (F), Condensed Mana (F) You have spent days channeling large quantities of mana in seconds, refilling your reserves, and doing it all over again. Your mana affinity has improved through your frequent and intense exposure, and these Traits will allow more efficient usage and storage of your reserves. Mana Conduit (F): Your abilities are more efficient with mana. Condensed Mana (F): The mana running through your being is more concentrated, letting you do more with less. ¡°That¡¯s really nice. It should help with training up Regeneration and Shapeshift.¡± Henry turned back to Maurice. ¡°[Any luck?]¡± Maurice looked up to him, and in response the crab opened its mandibles and spat out a stream of black ink. ¡°[That¡¯s more useful than you think],¡± said Henry as he readied himself for another shapeshifting procedure. He was getting better and better at them, and any time now the Skill should¨C ¡°[I¡­ know. I know.]¡± Henry jumped and slowly turned to Maurice. The octopus stared at the crab for a few seconds, then he asked, ¡°[You got it?]¡± In response, the crab raised a right pincer. ¡°[Yes! I can spEaK!]¡± Maurice¡¯s voice was oddly shrill and echoey, but not unpleasantly so. It sounded a bit like a kid¡¯s voice through a modulator. ¡°[Why can you speak? Where are you from? How come you¡¯re so big? Why are the ones like you attacking us? Did you see those ants? Do you think they can make glass shells? Can we go¡ª]¡± Maurice had so many pent-up questions that the stream of telepathic bombardment lasted for nearly a minute. And the crab didn¡¯t need to breathe, so that wasn¡¯t an issue. Henry had to step in after a while because he was forgetting the questions as soon as he got hit with three more. ¡°[First rule of communication: when you ask a question, give me a chance to answer. Because I don¡¯t remember a tenth of everything you just asked. Alright? Let¡¯s try again.]¡± Maurice straightened up and seemed to inhale. ¡°[Where are you from?]¡± Henry eyed the crab and noticed the twitching limbs and the tip-tap of its many legs. Then, as expected, Maurice resumed the barrage of questions. Henry sighed, letting the crab get the questions out of its system as he planned the next step of their journey. With both of them able to communicate, fights should become easier, and Henry decided it was time to push for the next rank. He just needed to refill his charges and prepare a bit, then head out toward the territory of the goliath kraken. Maurice never stopped talking. At this point, it was a mishmash of questions and statements about everything and anything. ¡°At least I¡¯ll have someone to bounce ideas off of. If I manage to get a word in.¡± 1.32: On the move When it came to permanently acquiring the Skills he got from Maurice, Henry decided to go with Arcane Fortification. It was a Skill that, once enabled, would reinforce his flesh by consuming small amounts of mana. The second Skill, Hermit¡¯s Hoard, had been incompatible. As for the last Skill, it had been the imploding bubbles. Henry would have gotten it as well, but he was out of Skill slots. He could have replaced Toxic Ray, but to be honest, neither of the two abilities were his style. Henry felt that his strength was best expressed through his arms and physical abilities. A novel concept for him, for sure. Being into the fray, fighting, and triumphing over his challenges in such a visceral and decisive manner was intoxicating. It felt good. It mattered, when compared to his old life¡¯s challenges and what they took in mental effort, compromising, and maneuvering to reach his goals or to just not be stepped on. Nowadays his problems could be resolved by cutting them apart. Literally. And currently, his problem was getting to the next rank and being ready for whatever the stalking kraken threw at them. Or he would, if they could find their quarry. ¡°[Do you sense it? Maybe it left. Do krakens stay in place often? You wouldn¡¯t know, I guess. You weren¡¯t born one. What are humans like, by the way? Do you have multiple arms as well? What am I saying; everyone has multiple arms.]¡± ¡°[Maurice?]¡± The hermit crab¡¯s eye stalks turned to look at Henry from his usual perch. Somehow, their travel situation reminded Henry of motorbikes with sidecars. The cheerful voice rang in Henry¡¯s mind. ¡°[That¡¯s me!]¡± ¡°[What did we say about communication?]¡± Maurice rubbed his pincers together in thought. ¡°[One question at a time?]¡± ¡°[Yup. Otherwise I just can¡¯t answer you.]¡± They swam quietly for a few seconds, and Henry felt a memory crawl out of his subconscious and sink in his stomach. He reminded himself of his father. Henry turned to the quiet crab. ¡°[Snakes don¡¯t have arms. Serpents either. Or worms. There¡¯s a few more.]¡± ¡°[Oooh. A serpent like the one you beat? You sure it was¡­ umm¡­ like me?]¡± ¡°[D-Rank?]¡± ¡°[Yes, that. Are you sure it was D-Rank and not like you?]¡± Henry slowed down and fully faced the crab. ¡°[Why do you keep asking me that?]¡± Maurice''s eye stalks shifted away. Then they turned back. ¡°[What¡¯s land like? Are there shells there? And if humans live on land, can they go in the water? Can humans swim?]¡± Henry rolled his eyes and smiled at the blatant subject-changing technique. ¡°[Yes. Humans go in the water once they learn how to swim. And land¡¯s like the bottom of the ocean. Sort of. Without the water.]¡± Maurice oohed, and Henry scanned the sea floor for movement. They were swimming circles around the reef in which they¡¯d met the Goliath kraken. So far there was no trace of the monster, only a few Riptides and other low-level denizens. ¡°[Keep an eye out for caverns. Or large dens,]¡± said Henry after a few moments. As he spoke, he glanced above and around for something camouflaged. Henry wondered if there was a clone watching them right now. It hadn¡¯t attacked while he¡¯d stocked up on Hoard Vitals charges, but he knew that as soon as they engaged with the Goliath¨Cif they found it¨Cthe clones would show up. Just as it had when they were attacked by the ants. Which reminded him, they were going to spend some time there soon. Henry wanted whatever abilities they might have, and so did Maurice. In the meantime, he glanced toward the crab. ¡°[Remember the plan?]¡± ¡°[Yes. We find the kraken, I kill it, then I take the Core and you can have the rest.]¡± Henry considered chucking the crab down and letting him fend for himself¨Cand it was himself, not itself, or herself. That had been Maurice¡¯s declaration after the crab had deliberated with his newly gained voice, right after he finished burying Henry in questions. Henry poked the crab with the tip of his arm. ¡°[Not that. That¡¯s not the plan I¡¯m speaking of. And I need the Core, remember? I need to get to D-rank as well. I meant about the clones.]¡± ¡°[Oh. We don¡¯t use everything so we¡¯re ready if it attacks?]¡± Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author. ¡°[When it attacks. I¡¯m sure it will.]¡± Finding the last area they saw the Goliath kraken at, Henry swam in wider and wider circles, studying the seabed and reefs for any spot that the juvenile kraken could be. Around ten minutes later, Maurice stopped mid-sentence¨Ca feat Henry hadn¡¯t known the crab was capable of¨Cand pointed down at a deep hole under a particularly large reef. ¡°[Maybe there?]¡± Henry slowed and eyed the large hole, then nodded. ¡°[Yeah. I think it would fit. Or there might be something else in there.]¡± Henry swam down, breathing slowly, and tried to feel for thoughts and intents through his telepathic Trait. As soon as he sat on top of the reef, behind the entrance, he felt it. Annoyance. ¡°[It knows we¡¯re here,]¡± said Henry. He turned to Maurice. ¡°[You ready? Remember, the brain¡¯s right above the eyes. Focus your bubbles there.]¡± ¡°[Yes. That¡¯s the thinky-part, right?]¡± ¡°[Right,]¡± said Henry as he eyed the drop. They needed to confirm it was their target first; if it was, then maybe keeping it trapped in its den was best. Henry paused and brought Maurice closer to his face. ¡°[Can you see in the dark?]¡± Maurice''s eye stalks turned to Henry, then leaned over to look down, then back to Henry. ¡°[...I don¡¯t want to answer that.]¡± ¡°[I¡¯ll pull you up really fast. Just pinch my arm if you see it. Or if you see anything move.]¡± Maurice seemed to squirm a bit and even slowly receded within his multicolored shell. ¡°[Okay.]¡± Then the crustacean popped back out. ¡°[This is like a job, right?]¡± Henry eyed the crab and felt the anticipation emanating from him. As if he¡¯d just laid a trap and was watching him about to step on it. It was his turn to not want to answer a question, but he wanted to move things along. And he¡¯d be lying if he said the crab wasn¡¯t entertaining. ¡°[Yes. It¡¯s a job, I guess.]¡± The eye stalks bobbed. ¡°[That means I get something for doing a job, right?]¡± Henry stared back and resolved to tell the crab less about how the world worked in the future. ¡°[I¡¯m lowering you now.]¡±
Maurice was having the time of his life. Its life? Neither of them sounded bad, really, though he opted for the first option. Henry had explained some of that stuff early on. Back then, though, most of it flew over Maurice¡¯s head. Now that he had settled into his new cognitive abilities and could understand nuance better, he could ask for all the clarifications he could ever want. Henry was very helpful. Very knowledgeable as well, though it took him effort to keep up with the blitzing speed at which Maurice lived life. He often asked Maurice to slow down and ask questions one at a time, but that wasn¡¯t how Maurice did things. ¡°I¡¯m just gifted. Not everyone¡¯s as lucky as you are, Maurice.¡± Maurice kept his mind busy as the tentacle lowered slowly over the den¡¯s entrance. ¡°Maurice. Maurrice.¡± He liked how the r¡¯s rolled in his mind. He snipped off a bit of coral and munched on it. It wasn¡¯t bad. But meat was better. The dark cavern extended ahead, and Maurice peered in. His pincer was already wrapped around Henry¡¯s tentacle, ready to pinch. As his eyes adjusted to the darkness, he noticed a few things. The den was bare. Mainly sand and gravel with the reef-stone on top. Dug recently, he concluded. And then, yellow eyes. Red skin. Maurice pinched. It was stronger than he intended and he expected blood to flow, but there was none. Which ground one of his trains of thought to a halt. ¡°How is Henry so strong? He¡¯s a lower rank than me. This is crazy. And amazing.¡± There were so many things to see and discover. Answers to find. Maybe that¡¯s why he¡¯d gotten his class? Henry explained that nomads were people who traveled and lived in many places. That matched the understanding Maurice had gotten from the description, though he hadn¡¯t had that many words to describe his impressions at first. And it fit who Maurice thought he was perfectly. The yellow eyes surged forward right as Maurice was pulled away. He tried pinching again, a bit stronger. It still didn¡¯t break through. ¡°Incredible.¡± Maurice was finally above the reef, and Henry¡¯s large shape loomed over. He¡¯d grown a bit in the last few days. Thanks to all that work making shells. ¡°[Ouch. Stop it. Did you see it?]¡± Maurice¡¯s right pincer twitched before he remembered he had a better way to communicate now. ¡°[Yes! It¡¯s in there. It¡¯s coming out.]¡± Maurice felt anticipation and excitement from Henry, which echoed his own feelings. Henry was easy to understand. Often. Sometimes his intentions and feelings got complicated and Maurice struggled to understand them, but in moments like these? As easy to see as the sun in the sky. One of his eyes looked up, and yes indeed, the sun was easy to see. It made Maurice trust Henry more. That hadn¡¯t been an issue when Maurice had just come to consciousness, but the more he thought of it, the more he was sure he¡¯d been lucky. Any other being might have turned Maurice into a snack. Instead, he found a friend. The Goliath kraken swam up and faced them. It was twice as large as Henry, and even Maurice couldn¡¯t see its levels. If he¡¯d been alone, he wouldn¡¯t have tried this fight. At all. The kraken swam toward them. Even the sun disappeared behind the monster, and Maurice stopped himself from hiding within his shell. ¡°[Let¡¯s do this,]¡± said Henry. Maurice shivered, then aimed. ¡°For friends. And adventure. And tasty meat. And maybe more shells? I should ask Henry to find me better shells. Maybe a glass shell from the ants? Henry would¨C¡± Blood surged as Henry cut into the kraken¡¯s eye, missing the target he¡¯d talked about. Maurice missed as well. The kraken had lifted a wall of flesh to stop his imploding bubbles, then quickly healed the damage they''d dealt to it. Maurice shut down all of his different thoughts but one. It was time to focus. 1.33: Enemy ¡°[Keep firing!]¡± Henry drove a bony spike into the blood-red kraken¡¯s brain while another cut into its eye. None of it was enough. The damn thing refused to die and now it was trying to drag them along as it ran to god knows where. ¡°[I¡¯m low on mana! You said to save mana for after!]¡± Henry cursed, but didn¡¯t insist. He was okay in the mana department, but this fight had been incredibly expensive. He hadn¡¯t been hurt much thanks to his own defensive Skills, but they struggled to put this thing down. It seemed like while Henry focused on variety and versatility in his skills, the goliath kraken¡¯s main focus was ¡®don¡¯t die.¡¯ That and strength. Henry had quickly learned there was no point in trying to overpower this thing. Just keep Slick Coat going to slip out of the monster¡¯s grip and keep hurting it. At least until it ran out of mana. A spike of bone through the brain? Healed in seconds. Poison? Healed in seconds as well, though the Goliath was struggling more and more with that. Its skin was pocked with Henry¡¯s envenomed bites. Having to use Shapeshift Tentacle had been the highest expense of mana, but it was necessary. Maurice had covered for him while he¡¯d latched on to the giant and transformed the extremity of one of his tentacles, but even then he was still above 50% mana. All thanks to his two new Traits. ¡°[Next time we¡¯ll work on giving you the mana Traits. Keep an eye out for clones.]¡± Henry cut into the kraken¡¯s brain again. Gripping on the fleeing kraken with his arms, he filled his mouth with the Serpent¡¯s Bile and used the Bite of the Sea Serpent in concert, sinking his beak in and tearing viciously into the gaping wound he¡¯d just opened. The flesh pulsed with sickly green light and the kraken flailed in pain. Henry kept Maurice close to his body and sliced at the trunk-like arms that tried to pull him off the kraken¡¯s stomach. Henry dug in with his bladed arms even more and bit again, adding more venom. The kraken¡¯s limbs flailed, and a shudder went through them. The kraken slowed. Its movement became an uncoordinated stuttering mess. And finally, after a fight that had lasted way longer than Henry had expected, a welcome notification came through. 1x Juvenile Goliath Kraken Core (D) was collected. Henry let go of his grip over the kraken¡¯s stomach and floated down for a moment, panting and sore. Then he looked around. He didn¡¯t recognize the area, so he swam up. Some sharks began approaching the kraken¡¯s corpse, but they couldn¡¯t finish it before Henry went back to collect some of it, though he was running out of space. He¡¯d kept some of the serpent¡¯s flesh, but he hadn¡¯t gotten much extra out of it after his test. He took a small sample. Henry was about to breach the surface when he saw the moving shape. Correction: shapes. They were still far, and the distance made picking up details impossible even though the water was pretty clear, but with every second, their color deepened. Maurice began tapping on his arm. ¡°[Henry. Hey Henry. I think something¡¯s coming.]¡± Henry¡¯s mouth would have been dry if he¡¯d been on land. The shapes were clear enough now. He dove down to the reef and camouflaged, then glided away. Without stopping, he consumed the Core. Light began to collect as Henry pumped his arms and looked back. Krakens. Three of them. One had recognizable colors, and two looked different. Distinct. Maurice seemed to shrink within his shell. ¡°[I think you were right.]¡± For the first time since meeting the crab, he felt fear from the crustacean. A deep, primal thing that made Henry¡¯s skin feel cold and clammy. ¡°[I wasn¡¯t right enough. I underestimated it.]¡± Henry saw the notifications from the core consumption roll in and dismissed them. He tightened his grip on Maurice, pumping his arms faster. Henry looked back. He couldn¡¯t see the shapes from this angle, and for a moment he hoped he¡¯d be able to lose them. That hope shattered when looked forward again. High above, two clones shed their camouflage. The malevolent eyes of the black, yellow-striped kraken peered at him. One clone swam down to intercept while the second kept watch. He wasn¡¯t getting out of this without a fight. The clones¨Cor whatever created them¨Cwere done playing. Henry activated Shapeshift Tentacle on a second limb. The end of his tentacle bulged and calcified, a bony spike jutting out of it. It wasn¡¯t as even or straight as he wanted, but it would do. This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience. With that done, Henry prepared to dump all of his free stat points into Constitution, then checked and made sure Slick Coat and Arcane Reinforcement were on. Finally, he brought Maurice to his face. The crab was nervously clacking its pincers, half hidden in the multicolored shell. ¡°[I think you should go into my Maw, Maurice.]¡± Maurice peered at Henry, then up at the two krakens, content to wait. Henry felt a mix of fear and frustration from the crab. It peered back at him. ¡°[Why aren¡¯t we running? We could just leave! Why have we stopped?]¡± Henry felt like Maurice knew why. Still, he nodded up toward the two krakens. ¡°[I don¡¯t think there¡¯s anywhere we can run. It¡¯ll just tire us out, then attack when we think we¡¯re safe. I don¡¯t think it ever stopped watching us. And now it decided it¡¯s a good time to really try to kill me.¡±] To Henry it was clear; the clones had it out for him. Ever since he¡¯d attacked it when it tried to take Maurice. Maybe there was more to it, but he couldn¡¯t tell. Still, this thing was nursing a grudge, and it was smart enough to strategize and plan. If he were to survive, there was one thing left to do. Henry confirmed his stat point choice. He looked down at Maurice, wincing as the magic burned its way into his skin. Into his muscles and nerves. ¡°[So¡­ The best way out¡­ is through. No matter how long the¡­ fight lasts, they won¡¯t kill me. So I¡¯d like you to be safe.]¡± The crab¡¯s frustration and fear slowly turned to worry. ¡°[You¡¯ll be alone. And I can¡¯t help if I¡¯m not here.]¡± Henry¡¯s heart twinged at that. He looked up to see the approaching krakens. One was a clone, which he dismissed to focus on the other two. One had glowing blue lights dancing along its body. It was smaller in size than the clone, but not by much. The second clone was gray, with veins of glowing red along its skin. Like a rock with lava coursing through its veins. Henry tapped the crab on its shell. ¡°[You¡¯re out of mana. If you get hurt, you might not be able to heal yourself. Please, Maurice.]¡± Henry couldn''t force him and didn¡¯t want to. He¡¯d had time to test Maw¡¯s interactions with living beings, to really make sure it was safe, and he noticed that it was difficult to force something alive in if it were powerful enough. Maurice, as a D-rank being, wouldn¡¯t go in if he didn¡¯t want to. The crab looked down at its claws, and Henry braced when he felt the growing ball of frustration and shame building up in the crab, and then¨C The pincers dropped limply down in front of the crab. [¡°Okay.¡±] Henry felt horrible. Right before he placed Maurice in his Maw, he got a last message. ¡°[If you¡¯re really in danger, bring me out. And leave some cores to me. Promise.]¡± Henry chuckled. ¡°[I promise I¡¯ll leave you half.]¡± And with that, Maurice went into the Maw of the Trickster. The weight of the crab¡¯s existence dropped like a bowling ball in Henry¡¯s storage. ¡°Oof. That doesn¡¯t feel great.¡± Henry watched the krakens finally arrive as he wiggled, trying to get used to the odd weight he felt in his soul. He started with the gray kraken. It was around the same size as the clones, with lava-like veins of red coursing through its body. Its eyes blazed orange, and the water seemed to boil around it. ¡°Looks like I need to spend some time near the ants after this.¡± [Juvenile Stoneskin Kraken (D) - Lvl ? ] The second was smaller. It was almost translucent, with an electric-blue dancing pattern across its skin. It had ten arms, two of which seemed to be made out of magic. Its eyes were a rainbow of color, and they shared the malice emanating from the clones. [Juvenile Arcane Kraken (D) - Lvl ?? ] And of course, the clones. At least, what he assumed they were. They all had the exact same readings. [Juvenile Trickster Kraken (D) - Lvl 4 ] ¡°[Can¡¯t fight your own battles huh? Had to go and bring help?]¡± The kraken¡¯s arms twitched and then, a hoarse voice filled his ears. ¡°[you¡­ nOt¡­ liKe¡­ us. You¡­ eNeMy. diE. ¡­DiE.]¡± Henry was wide-eyed for a moment. This hadn¡¯t been expected, but it didn¡¯t change much. The kraken was right. They were enemies. So Henry started by attacking the one he expected to be the most annoying to deal with. Henry whipped his bone-flail at the arcane kraken. Its magic limbs swelled and interposed to stop his attack. As his bony extremity shattered through the blue limbs and smacked the kraken on the side of the stomach, Henry grimaced at the oddly cold sensation then grinned. ¡°That¡¯s a nice Skill you brought here. Would be a shame if I took it.¡± A/N: Stats and notifications: Stats: Strength: 27 [3 Base][12 Class][1 Consumption][11 Purchased] (6 Purchasable) Constitution: 43 [3 Base][27 Class][2 Consumption][11 Purchased] (18 Purchasable) Spirit: 26 [6 Base][7 Class][5 Consumption][8 Purchased] (6 Purchasable) Perception: 20 [4 Base][6 Class][10 Purchased] (6 Purchasable) Dexterity: 16 [4 Base][1 Class][1 Consumption][10 Purchased] (0 Purchasable) Notifications: Stalking Threat - Level 54 achieved! ¡­ Stalking Threat - Level 87 achieved! 7x Stat points awarded. 3x Strength Stat points awarded. 3x Constitution Stat points awarded. Juvenile Goliath Kraken Core (D) contained significant Spirit stats. 1x Spirit Stat points awarded. Mimicking Tentacles (D): Level 2 -> Level 3 (391 Kg) Bite (E): Level 4 -> Level 6 (490 L) Tentacle Whip (E): Level 1 -> Level 3 Hoard Vitals (E): Level 6 -> Level 7 Slick Coat (F): Level 3 -> Level 7 Telepathic Message (F): Level 4 -> Level 6 Arcane Fortification (F): Level 1 -> Level 3 1.34: Low Quick note: A couple of things I need to go back and clarify. The krakens are 5 total: Two variants, and three Trickster clones. Second point: They are giant octopuses, and not any other cephalopod. Henry dodged back and away from the ghostly limb and disappeared into a cloud of ink. Globes of molten rock followed, turning the ink orange as they flew through. One of them hit one of his tentacles, and Henry cursed. The projectile stuck to him and his skin sizzled. It was incredibly painful, but as soon as he swatted the hot material off Regenerate healed it. The crater of charred and bleeding flesh quickly re-knit itself, and the dead material floated away a few seconds later, revealing unblemished skin. ¡°Fuck that hurts.¡± Henry flew out of the cloud of ink toward the closest clone and cut it down. It defended with an arm, and even though Henry fully cut through it, he was off target. ¡°I need to invest in Dexterity. My aim is better, but this still isn¡¯t enough.¡± The clone tried to flee, but Henry wasn¡¯t letting it go. He needed to get rid of them, because whenever he tried to attack the other krakens, the clones would hamper him with Telekinesis. Telepathy wasn¡¯t the only thing the clones had. He hoped it wasn¡¯t him who¡¯d given it both Skills. Speaking of, he felt a wall of force close up around his body, but Henry quickly summoned more Ink and broke through. Two Razor Tentacles whipped forward, both aiming above the clone¡¯s eyes in quick succession. This time he hit his target, and the clone burst into ink. Henry panted, glancing at his mana for a second before surging toward the next clone. ¡°23%. Slick Coat¡¯s fine. And I still have Scale of the Serpent.¡± He was running out of mana, and he¡¯d only brought down one clone so far. He¡¯d been so busy dodging and evading their attempt at bogging him down that he hadn¡¯t paid that much attention to his mana. But then again, his main attacks weren¡¯t costly to use. ¡°Just need to figure out how to use the bone-spike better.¡± That one was only useful to push into an eye or a brain. Using it with Tentacle Whip was extremely underwhelming, unlike the flail. ¡°Speaking of¡­¡± Henry whipped his flail-limb. The ball of spiked bone flew, cracking the clone right between the eyes. It dispersed into ink as well. ¡°One left,¡± thought Henry, looking up at the remaining clone. The clone glared down at him, and its voice came through again. A scratchy and breathy thing out of nightmares. ¡°[nOt¡­. From us. Thing. You. Die. ]¡± Henry suppressed a shiver. ¡°[You¡¯re getting better,]¡± he said as he swam up to approach the remaining clone and evaded the hail of molten rock. He glanced down and his thoughts stuttered. The Arcane kraken was gone. In a panic, he summoned a cloud of ink around him. As it spread he watched the ink flow around a large familiar shape. The Arcane kraken. It was right next to him. The jellyfish-like kraken shed its camouflage, and a wave of blue light swelled around it. It pushed away Henry¡¯s cloud of ink, leaving both of them exposed. Henry pulled back his arm, ready to slash the monster right between the eyes when his limbs locked. He spared a glare upward at the clone and readied an Ink Jet, only for another wave of blue to spread out of the Arcane kraken. As it passed through his skin, he felt the Skill slip his control, as if he¡¯d tried to turn a doorknob with a freshly oiled hand. ¡°What¡­¡± If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. Before he could try again, a translucent limb rushed toward him and Henry braced. He wasn¡¯t worried about the impact, but he expected something special out of the ghostly limb. The limb wrapped around his stomach. Slick Coat immediately failed. Next, he felt cold tendrils sunk into his flesh, like feelers, and something began to seep out of him. It took him a second to realize what was happening. When he did, he struggled harder to free himself from the kraken¡¯s grip and the clone¡¯s Telekinesis. ¡°Mana thief. And how is the fucking clone maintaining Telekinesis?!¡± Henry summoned a clone and sent it toward the yellow-striped kraken. When his clone obstructed him from the hostile clone, Telekinesis faded. Henry didn¡¯t dare use his own Telekinesis because of the cost and backlash, but somehow, the clones were managing to be a massive nuisance with it without much effort. Henry immediately wrapped his arm around the ghostly limb and activated Razor Tentacle. The Skill died within a second, but that was enough for it to dig deep into the ghostly limb. The kraken¡¯s limb flailed as a second ghostly limb approached Henry, but he was already using every last bit of strength to free himself. To make matters worse, the third kraken was approaching and the space between its arms was glowing dangerously hot, as if it had a miniature sun hidden down there. Henry wanted none of it. All of his arms flew at the Arcane kraken. Some sharpened with Razor Tentacle, some only using Tentacle Whip to stun and hurt, and finally, the flail, which was doing the most damage as there was nothing to cancel. It was transformed flesh, not a Skill. The hail of attacks was finally too much, and the kraken loosened its arm to defend its face and eyes. Henry had burst one of its eyes and cut it open all over, but this monster could heal as well. Intensely blue light surged around the ruined organ and cuts. When it faded, the multi-colored eye was back. Henry was free, but the ordeal had been costly. ¡°Down to¡­ for god¡¯s sake.¡± Henry was down to 3% mana. He used half of his Hoard Vitals charges and his mana went back up to 14% then sent another clone upward and followed suit. He wanted to finish the Arcane kraken, but the lava-wielding one was on his heels and at any time he could get ensnared by Telekinesis again, so the hostile clone had to go first. In the next second, Henry realized something and cursed himself before turning back and rushing the Arcane kraken. ¡°No. Killing the last clone¡¯s useless. More could come at any moment. Or it might be the last.¡± The Stoneskin kraken spread its arms and a half-foot wide cylinder of molten rock flew toward Henry, who ducked and veered right. The flow followed him, and Henry had an idea. Before the Arcane kraken could move out of the way, Henry froze it. Compared to his previous experiences, he didn¡¯t get a headache. Instead, he felt the Skill be absorbed. Eaten from within. Dissolved. ¡°Fine exchange by me.¡± Henry continued his path upward and then veered down at the last moment. The attack of the Stoneskin followed, only to meet the Arcane kraken¡¯s frozen form. ¡°5%.¡± The Stoneskin kraken cut off its flow. Its mouth was dimmer, but so was the ruined form of the Arcane kraken. It wasn¡¯t dead, but its flesh was ruined. Its internal organs floated, some squirming, some burnt to a crisp. The blue hue surrounding it faded. The ghostly limbs were gone, but two new ones were slowly forming. Its eyes were dimming. Up above, the clone was rushing toward them. Henry looked up at it. ¡°[One down.]¡± ¡°[STOP!]¡± Henry whipped a Razor Tentacle point blank, right above the Arcane kraken¡¯s eyes, and prayed this wouldn¡¯t be a Goliath kraken do-over. Blue blood flowed, and the kraken¡¯s limbs jerked while its translucent skin suddenly grew white and cloudy. 1x Juvenile Arcane Kraken Core (D) was collected. Henry couldn¡¯t bask in his victory. Two molten projectiles hit him in the stomach and he screamed inwardly. He was about to swim down when Telekinesis locked his movement, and more burning hot projectiles sunk into his flesh like he was made of butter. He summoned an Ink Cloud and Telekinesis failed, after which Henry dove down. He gingerly picked the hardened¨Cbut still hot¨Cpieces of rock out of his flesh and resisted activating Regenerate. He was still above 70% health, so this wasn¡¯t about to kill him. A lack of mana, though, would make things difficult. ¡°Fuck. FUCK,¡± Henry cursed as he circled around, evading the projectiles of the Stoneskin kraken. He was too low on mana, and Slick Coat already failed. Arcane Fortification would fail soon if he didn¡¯t expend some more Hoard Vitals charges, and then he guessed the projectiles would start doing a lot more damage. Reluctantly, he activated the remaining five charges and brought himself back to 12% mana before rushing the Stoneskin kraken again. The monster, seeing him coming, spread its tentacles and spat out a hail of molten rock that forced Henry to veer around. When he felt the familiar magic try to ensnare him again, he hid in a cloud of Ink. ¡°You¡¯re close enough, let¡¯s put my theory to the test.¡± Henry suddenly swam up at the clone and whipped his bone flail. The clone blocked it with Telekinesis, but not the second arm that cut through where its brain was supposed to be. The clone dissolved into ink, and Henry didn¡¯t wait; he immediately turned his attention back to the Stoneskin kraken. Henry circled closer and closer, and he was about to test his attack against this specimen when his limbs locked again. The hail of projectiles didn¡¯t stop. Henry had half a second to see yet another clone above them before he was drowned in a world of scalding pain. 1.35: Krakens Henry whimpered in pain as he slowly let himself sink to the seabed. Every moment was agony, and he was out of mana to heal his burnt skin. He¡¯d expended the last of it healing one of his eyes. A few feet away, a kraken was slowly sinking along with him, its cracked, stony forehead bleeding freely. The glowing heat was still emanating from it, but Henry knew it was dead. 1x Juvenile Stoneskin Kraken Core (D) was collected. His bone-flail was broken. It had taken at least six full-strength swings to get through the incredibly tough skin of the kraken. All the while playing hide and seek with the hostile clone, because every time it had the line of sight, it would ensnare him and he¡¯d eat more molten projectiles. The last one had been particularly painful. The Stoneskin kraken had sprayed him with a cloud of ink that might as well have been pyroclastic flow. His skin had seared as the heat cooked through his flesh, and both eyes had popped from the heat. The pain had been unimaginable. Still was, but it was getting better by the second. ¡°Makes no sense how things could still be that hot underwater. Must be the magic.¡± With the Stoneskin dealt with, he¡¯d turned his attention to the hostile clone. But it was already gone. ¡°Probably camouflaged and watching. Preparing for the next assault.¡± He didn¡¯t have the mana to go after it. He was completely spent. Being completely out of mana felt weird. The only thing he could compare it to was a mix of mild dehydration and motion sickness. He wasn¡¯t about to conk-out, but it didn¡¯t feel great. Henry meditated for a few minutes, enough to regain some mana and to iron out the last touches of his plan, then went and grabbed some meat from the Arcane and Stoneskin krakens. Next, he found a spot near a reef and settled down. He was sure he was being watched, so a high enough spot to see incoming danger was more important than hiding. Lastly, he brought out Maurice from Maw of the Trickster. The crab popped out of thin air and looked bewildered for a moment. ¡°[What¡¯s happen¨Cwhat happened to you?]¡± Maurice scuttled over and took Henry¡¯s ruined flesh in. His pincer extended, as if to touch, then jerked back. ¡°[Are you okay?]¡± Henry was going to wave the crab¡¯s concerns away, but his arm was still painful. ¡°[I¡¯m okay, don¡¯t worry. Just low on mana to heal all of this. Now, do you want the Arcane Core or the Stoneskin core?]¡± Henry quickly explained the differences to Maurice, who nodded along, still worryingly examining Henry. The crab peered around when Henry mentioned that the clone might still be nearby, then rubbed his pincers together. ¡°[Can I have the Stoneskin? I didn¡¯t help much.]¡± ¡°[You helped with the Goliath and you got nothing for it. And you¡¯ll need levels. We¡¯re going to the main kraken after this. I think I know where it is. And why it hasn¡¯t shown up itself yet.]¡± The core appeared in front of Henry. It was metallic gray, with lines of red that matched the looks of the monster it came from. Maurice tapped the core, and the object exploded into smoke that rushed into the crab. Maurice froze for a moment, then his annoyed voice came through. ¡°[I got penalized. It said I didn¡¯t contribute, so the core¡¯s value was reduced.]¡± Henry frowned. ¡°[I didn¡¯t know about that¡­]¡± Maurice grumbled, and Henry continued to rest for a moment, slowly healing his burnt skin. After a few minutes he spoke. ¡°[We¡¯ll get some rest and then we¡¯re going hunting. Also, keep an eye out. I¡¯m taking my evolution. If anything happens, just get to safety, okay?]¡± Maurice looked up from the meat he was examining. Henry sensed a spike of worry from the crab that immediately got him on edge. ¡°[What¡¯s wrong, Maurice? You see something?]¡± Henry looked around, but he couldn¡¯t see anything. Looking back at the crab, he found him rubbing at his eyes. The crab hesitated for a second. ¡°[I¡­ I think evolution will be painful. But I¡¯ll keep watch. Of course. Just¡­be okay?]¡± Henry paused, alarmed. ¡°[What do you mean?]¡± ¡°[I don¡¯t remember. I just remember feeling relief when I woke up. And being scared and in pain.]¡± Henry looked over at the crab as he shuffled uncomfortably, then reached over and gently tapped him on the head with an arm. ¡°[Stop worrying. And I¡¯m sorry I reminded you of that. I¡¯ll be alright, okay? Then we can beat up the kraken sending the clones. Okay?]¡± ¡°[Okay,]¡± said Maurice as he posted himself nearby, starting to pick bits off the meat while watching the surroundings. Henry caught him peering at him every few seconds. Henry smiled inwardly. ¡°[I¡¯m okay Maurice, I promise. And I¡¯m about to be even better in a few minutes. No matter what.]¡± That seemed to help a bit, so Henry turned his attention inward and got to work. ¡°Evolution first, or Skills first.¡± The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings. An Evolution first would allow him to free up slots and pick a direction for his abilities. At this point, it was clear he was about to become a juvenile kraken. On the other hand, he might miss out on some synergies from the krakens he¡¯d just killed. ¡°No, that¡¯s not good. Skills first.¡± Henry had put the meat of the krakens into two different piles that Maurice and other small fish kept stealing bites from. He wanted to think of himself as a kid in a toy store, considering the possible abilities he was about to get, but the image of raw flesh and bloodied organs really didn¡¯t mesh with that image. Henry sighed and started with the Stoneskin kraken. He cut some of the monster¡¯s innards¨Cbecause the skin was too tough to cut through¨Cand bit into it. A bitter taste hit his tongue, quickly filling his senses with the taste of charred meat and sulfur. Henry looked down at the piece of meat. It was definitely tasty, and somehow tasted almost cooked. ¡°Nice change from the usual raw meat.¡± Molten Projectile (F) was copied by Magic Mimic. Ephemerals are full. Inner Furnace (F) was copied by Magic Mimic. Ephemerals are full. Mimicking Tentacle: Resilience of the Stoneskin Kraken acquired. Ink jet: Pyroclastic Ink acquired. Superior Trait analyzed by Magic Mimic. Sample insufficient. Useful abilities. And both were Skills. Henry was almost sure the kraken got them from hanging around the lava ants. Though so far, none of them seemed compatible with his current core abilities. In any case, he¡¯d be storing some of the kraken¡¯s meat for later, just in case. He tried a few more bites, gaining no extra abilities, and then moved on to the Arcane kraken. He assumed he shared too many abilities with these krakens, which was why he wasn¡¯t getting as many abilities from them. This one immediately made the insides of his tongue and esophagus tingle, as if the meat was full with tiny bolts of electricity. Superior Trait analyzed by Magic Mimic. Magic Mimic upgrade unlocked. Arcane Arm (F) was copied by Magic Mimic. Ephemerals are full. Dispelling Bubble (F) was copied by Magic Mimic. Ephemerals are full. Mana Sight (F) was copied by Magic Mimic. Ephemerals are full. Bite: Mana Draining Bite acquired. Ink jet: Dispelling Ink acquired. Henry¡¯s eyes opened wide. ¡°Yes! And Arcane Arm could become part of Mimicking Tentacle. Dispelling Bubble¡­ I don¡¯t think so. Let¡¯s check the upgrade, though.¡± Henry opened his Trait upgrade menu, and was surprised at the price required for upgrading Magic Mimic. It required Tokens. A lot of them, for sure. But still. Simple tokens. ¡°100 D-Tokens is a lot though¡­ ¡± Henry exhaled. He¡¯d be getting a lot of them soon, anyway. ¡°Alright¡­ now for Skills. I guess I¡¯ll replace Toxic Ray. I haven¡¯t even used it once. And I still have some serpent meat in case I want it back. And I can buy Mana Sight. That¡¯s a Trait, and it seems like it would synergize with Mana Conduit and Condensed Mana.¡± Henry replaced the Skill and bought the Trait, and with that done he was ready for the next step. There was still one empty Trait slot, but this wasn¡¯t the right time to optimize every little detail. ¡°But no invisibility, huh. Odd. Still, that sounds like a Skill, and I don¡¯t have a space for it, anyway.¡± A quick check on Maurice showed the crab liberally eating from the remaining Stoneskin kraken. He shook the bites a bit before gingerly putting them in his mouth. ¡°I feel like he¡¯d love spicy food.¡± Henry consumed the Arcane kraken¡¯s core, and notifications started flying at him. First were the levels, which got him to level 100, followed by his gained stats points. ¡°2 Strength, 2 Constitution, and 3 free points.¡± Congratulations. You qualify for a species evolution! Congratulations. A new class has been unlocked. You qualify for a class change! Calculating Evolutionary Points¡­ Triumphed over a predator more than 50 levels above your own. Triumphed over a predator more than 100 levels above your own. Triumphed over a D-Rank being as an E-Rank being. Triumphed over three D-Rank beings as an E-Rank being. Indirectly caused the enlightenment of a non-sapient being. Calculating results¡­ 11x Evolutionary Points granted! ¡°Good. Next.¡± Select one of the following Class Evolutions: (New) Krakenbane Wanderer: A Class for the traveling hunter of the deep. A terrible enemy to the feared and sometimes worshiped krakens of the abyss. You walk with purpose and confidence where none dare to tread, wielding strength and resilience forged in the darkest depths. - This Class will empower offensive and traveling abilities - Focuses on Strength, Spirit, and Constitution - 4x Skill slots and 4x Trait slots (half on Class Evolution, half at level 50) Henry examined the remaining options. They were the same as last time. Exactly the same, in fact. ¡°The new class is a straight upgrade. Three stats boosted instead of two. And I like the name. Fitting. Very fitting.¡± He made his selection, and the final menu opened up. Select one of the following Species Evolutions: Trickster Kraken: An elusive monster with versatile abilities and terrifying intelligence. Can create illusions and mimic the abilities of its prey. Arcane Kraken: A mystical creature that can dispel abilities, drain mana from others, and summon magical limbs to aid in combat. Goliath Kraken: A massive, behemoth-like kraken with unparalleled regenerative abilities and resilience. Blightbringer Kraken: A harbinger of death, the Blightbringer Kraken spreads a toxic miasma and injects venom with every strike, leaving a trail of corpses in its wake. Mesmer Kraken: An enigmatic predator that uses psionic abilities to entrance and crush its prey. ¡°So many options. No Stoneskin kraken though¡­ Maybe I needed to consume the core? No matter. I wouldn¡¯t have picked it.¡± Henry hummed, then re-read everything again. ¡°Let¡¯s see¡­¡± A/N: Reminder of the previous classes(that are still available to be selected): Stalking Threat: A Class for the hunters of the ocean. You have proven yourself a ruthless predator; hunting, trading blows, and triumphing over beings stronger than you. - This Class will empower offensive and stealth abilities. - Focuses on Strength and Constitution - 4x Skill slots and 4x Trait slots (half on Class Evolution, half at level 50) Surviving Opportunist: A Class for the opportunist who waits to strike and thrives in the shadows. - This Class will empower stealth and regenerative abilities. - Focuses on Spirit and Constitution - 2x Skill slots and 6x Trait slots (half on Class Evolution, half at level 50) Telepathic Scholar: A Class for those who wish to observe and learn. The Telepathic Scholar has an easier time befriending sapient beings and fading into the background when required. - This Class will empower psionic and scouting abilities. - Focuses Perception and Spirit - 4x Skill slots and 4x Trait slots (half on Class Evolution, half at level 50) 1.36: Consolidation Henry read everything twice, then he focused on the two options he was most interested in. Arcane and Trickster. He was tempted by Mesmer, but it just wasn¡¯t as good as the other two. And he¡¯d just seen what an Arcane kraken could do. Invisibility, mana stealing, dispelling and who knows what else. It was a good option. But he didn¡¯t want to lose Magic Mimic. Was that a possibility? Could he lose the Trait? Henry read the description for Trickster kraken again, and a line in particular attracted his attention. ¡°Maybe the upgrade is the intelligence. But that¡¯s given to me. It doesn¡¯t necessarily mean I would lose Magic Mimic.¡± It was also another hint at what was sending clones at him. ¡°The intelligence boost explains the clones¡¯ behavior and speech. High D-rank. Maybe C-rank.¡± Henry looked up and around. Maurice was watching over them, and there was no golden shark swimming around. No voice in his head. ¡°System? Are you around?¡± He waited for a few seconds, but no one answered. ¡°Huh. I guess you¡¯re busy?¡± A bit saddened, Henry looked down at the descriptions. ¡°At least I got the Arcane Arm. For mana draining, maybe Bite will get a permanent option on upgrades like Mimicking Tentacle. I could have a draining bite then. But I wouldn¡¯t have the dispel.¡± That felt like a safer option than risking the loss of Magic Mimic. Then he remembered a detail. ¡°I got samples from them! And the samples unlocked the upgrade of Magic Mimic. That must mean they have it as well? No?¡± Henry considered the options some more. ¡°Arcane must have unlocked its abilities from copying something, like the Stoneskin did with the ants. Probably. Mana Drain can¡¯t be that rare. Same with dispelling. I could just copy the source.¡± It just felt too risky. And he was pretty sure that if Magic Mimic disappeared or got weakened somehow, there wouldn¡¯t be take-backs. Also, the Arcane kraken looked weird. A bit. ¡°Still about to become a kraken.¡± Henry breathed in deep, then confirmed his changes. Class Krakenbane Wanderer (D) was selected. Species Trickster Kraken was selected. Aspect consolidation unlocked. Aspect consolidation Your species abilities will be re-arranged under their appropriate Aspects. You will have a higher chance of converting class abilities into Aspect abilities. The upgrading process of all abilities will be altered. Evolutionary points will now be used to acquire Aspects. Warnings: With every delay, this process¡¯ odds of causing irreversible soul damage increases until death becomes a possibility. 3 Class Skill slots and 3 Trait slots will be consumed in this process. 6 Evolutionary points will be consumed to create 2 additional Aspects. Nascent and low-ranked abilities might be temporarily weakened. Agree | Delay Henry frowned at the prompt. ¡°This must be what Maurice had been worried about. And it doesn¡¯t sound like a real choice.¡± He read the prompt. ¡°Those are a lot of slots I¡¯m about to lose. And all that¡¯s most of my Evolutionary points¡­ But then again, it seems like the way things have to be. I just hope it¡¯s worth it.¡± Henry exhaled, then agreed to the prompt. It disappeared and was immediately replaced by a wall of notifications. Skill and Trait merging skipped. Bite and its subskills will be assimilated under Aspect: Hunger of the Trickster. Mimicking Tentacles and its subskills will be assimilated under Aspect: Shiftiness of the Trickster. Inkjet and its subskills will be assimilated under Aspect: Misdirection of the Trickster. Summon Illusions acquired. Summon Illusions will be assimilated under Aspect: Arcana of the Trickster. Assistance of the Octominds acquired. Assistance of the Octominds will be assimilated under Aspect: Arms of the Trickster. ¡­ Henry barely had the time to read a few lines when he started feeling sick. Not physically. It felt as if he was being taken apart and rearranged. Something deep within him was being stretched. Cut. Severed and put somewhere else. Peeled then layered. Twisted and melded. All in an instant that was incomprehensibly stretched, same as his senses and perception. Henry thought he heard himself screaming. His mind was melting. Through the unimaginable madness that tore his soul apart and put it back together, something golden flashed in the corner of his eye, right before the darkness took him. Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site.
Maurice nervously rubbed his claws together, hoping to stop the tremor that took them over when he¡¯d felt the wave of terror and pain from Henry as the white light wrapped itself around him like a shell. It had lasted barely for a second, but it shook Maurice. Was that how he¡¯d felt? He¡¯d almost forgotten about this. His limited cognition back then hadn¡¯t helped, but once he had been past the process, he hadn¡¯t dwelled on it. Like a bad dream, he was content with letting it fade away from his memory. And to be fair, they¡¯d been busy since. Still, it wasn¡¯t as if he could do anything about it. ¡°[Hang in there, Henry.]¡± He had to keep his friend safe. And keep watch. ¡°Complete focus. No distractions.¡± Maurice honed in on his telepathic senses as he watched his surroundings. ¡°He¡¯s going to be okay. Yes. He¡¯s strong. He¡¯ll be okay.¡± Maurice tried to push at the boundaries of his mental Trait. It was familiar. It behaved somewhat like Seeker¡¯s Bounty, where it was vague and limited at first, but, like a muscle, got better the more he used it. Unfortunately, he couldn¡¯t feel the krakens, though he expected them to appear at any time. The crab shuffled around the large globe of light, peering suspiciously at the calm waters surrounding their makeshift camp. ¡°The kraken must need mana as well, and a Skill like that has to be expensive. It probably needs to recover its reserves.¡± Maurice paused. ¡°If it¡¯s a higher rank, though, it would recover faster than us. It could be already here.¡± He looked down at his Skills and Traits, and his eyes lingered on Chimeric Assimilation. It was still working on his new shell, and it was barely a tenth of the way through. ¡°I wonder what I¡¯ll get.¡± It was interesting how the Skill had worked instantaneously on Henry''s shapeshifted shells, while it was taking this long for the turtle shell. ¡°Probably because it¡¯s an old shell?¡± Maurice vaguely remembered that the ones he¡¯d found would take some time for his Skill to process. Maurice eyed another of his Skills, then glanced around before approaching the ball of light. He gingerly tapped it. It was solid. ¡°Okay. I can at least get a good spot.¡± He looked up, and sighed. He readied his arms, dreading what was about to happen. Something he loathed above all else. ¡°Swimming. My one weakness.¡± Maurice beat his arms frantically, rising slowly and awkwardly above the giant ball of light. He almost missed the top when he let himself fall back down, but he was able to stabilize. Slowly, he took position at the apex of Henry¡¯s evolutionary bubble, and activated Bissal Anchoring. He felt his shell stick to the ball like an old barnacle to a rock. Nothing should be able to pull him off other than himself. ¡°Okay. Now we wait.¡± The crab slowly watched his surroundings. He couldn¡¯t see behind him very well, but he could activate his best Skill at any time. At a moment¡¯s notice. It was perfect for protecting a small area. Though to be fair, the bottom half of Henry wasn¡¯t protected¡­ But hopefully the clones wouldn¡¯t know that¡­ Right? Maurice looked down at the opaque ball of light he was sitting on. Most of his class slots were full, thanks to Henry. The crab didn¡¯t remember much from before, but he knew he hadn¡¯t been as active as he was now. He¡¯d been content to follow the whims of Seeker¡¯s Bounty, traveling around to find shells and hiding within them. One fateful day, he¡¯d sensed it. It was one of the few memories he still had from back then. ¡°A world-traveling turtle.¡± Of course, he didn¡¯t know that, back then. Only that his Trait had blared at him to go toward it. If he got anything like that ability, he¡¯d have to make sure Henry got it. That¡¯d be the least he could do, after all the abilities he¡¯d gotten for free. ¡°Next time I hope I''ll get the mana hoarding one.¡± A small shoal of fish swam by, and a Riptide shark came close to the ball, circling it once before swimming away. Maurice still felt a bit bad about that debt. Henry had cut off his limbs dozens of times, while the hermit crab had only given him one pincer. The crab scuffed at the smooth light below him. ¡°I don¡¯t like feeling this.¡± True, he didn¡¯t have that many Skills, but there were still a couple he could give Henry. Like¨C Hate. Maurice¡¯s eyes jerked to the left as he activated Hermit¡¯s Domain. The clone was swimming close. It¡¯s eye on him. ¡°[fOoD.]¡± Maurice twitched but didn¡¯t hide. He waited for it to approach. When it was within reach of his domain, Maurice pointed at the space between its eyes and snapped his pincer. Its eye and brain were crushed with the invisible implosion, and the clone turned to dark-blue ink. Maurice immediately deactivated his Skill, gasping at the mana it ate up, and listened to Telepathic Sense. Ten minutes later, two new clones appeared.
Henry¡¯s eyes fluttered open, and the first thing he felt was how¡­ sensitive his innards felt. Not his physical ones. His soul? ¡°Was that what just happened? Soul surgery?¡± Henry slowly pulled his arms under him. His muscles obeyed like usual. He felt off, but he seemed healthy. Mostly. Then something came through Telepathic Sense. A low thrum of fear mixed with resolve that made his stomach knot as he shot up. Henry looked up and then flipped upward. Hanging above him on a suspended white disk was Maurice, reaching out from within his shell to snip at a black-and-yellow striped kraken as it tried to dig through the back of his shell. Maurice was in a bad shape. One eye-stalk was missing. One pincer was crushed, along with a few of his legs. His second pincer seemed smaller and scarred, but was still desperately trying to reach the clone. Henry flew upward. He prepared to use his Skills and braced for the pain he suspected was about to assail him, but it didn¡¯t. Two bladed tentacles whipped upward and sheared through the clone like scissors through cloth. It had been easy. The Skills felt as responsive and part of him as his own limbs. Maurice¡¯s single eye looked down, and his claw lowered. ¡°[Are you¡­ okay?]¡± His voice was weak. Slow. Henry slowly extended an arm around Maurice to pick the crab up. Maurice put a claw on his tentacle. ¡°[I¡¯m okay, Maurice. You can rest. Do you have mana to regenerate?]¡± Maurice took a second to respond. His eye swiveled down, then the disk began to fade and the crab fell into Henry¡¯s arm. ¡°[I¡­think. I did¡­ good. I can also¡­ protect. See? I sleep.. now. A little¡­]¡± Henry cradled the shell. He tried to use Regenerate on it, but the Skill refused to leave his skin. ¡°Work, damn you.¡± Thankfully, after a few tries, he saw the familiar hue of Regenerate come from within Maurice¡¯s shell. It¡¯d stay on for a few seconds, then turn off. Again and again as the hermit crab slowly healed himself. Henry breathed slowly. He looked around, but there were no clones to be seen. He bundled the crab between his arms, safely hidden under his massive frame, and waited for Maurice to recover. He would recover. Henry was sure of it. Henry had recovered from worse and had been weaker. So Maurice would be okay. Once he was, they¡¯ll settle the score. The stalking kraken would be dead before the week was out. It was only a matter of time. 1.37: The Krakenbane Wanderer With Maurice safely tucked in his arms, Henry started going through his notifications. And there were quite a lot of them. Class rank-up completed. Species rank-up completed. Mature Trickster Octopus (E) evolved into Juvenile Trickster Kraken (D). All base stats increased by 5. Congratulations. The Aspect framework has been successfully integrated. Future Aspect additions or alterations will be significantly easier. Class Skill and Trait upgrading disabled. Aspect Workshop enabled. Warning: Some Aspects lack a cornerstone ability. You will need to set a cornerstone ability before having full access to the Workshop. Warning: Some Aspects are overloaded. Abilities will be weakened. Consider fusing abilities in the Aspect Workshop. Henry eyed the notifications for a moment. He wasn¡¯t really in a celebratory mood, but it was clear; this evolution was way more impactful than the last, and it all revolved around this new paradigm: Aspects. Aspects seemed to be groupings of thematic abilities¨Cboth Skills and Traits¨Cand the rank of everything under these groupings was set by the level of the Aspect itself. Henry loaded up the Workshop, and was immediately assaulted with a prompt. Vitality of the Trickster does not have a cornerstone ability. Please select a cornerstone ability before proceeding. Henry quickly looked through his newly formatted stat page and couldn¡¯t help his surprise. The most noticeable thing was the empty Class slots. Everything got moved into the new Aspects, which was good news considering the slots he¡¯d lost in this upgrade. ¡°Seems like the first Skill into an Aspect is the cornerstone¡­ which means I have two new ones: Assistance of the Octominds and Summon Illusions. I remember getting a notice about both of them when I selected the evolution.¡± Henry quickly read the description of the two new Skills, noting the new tags here and there, then leaned back. ¡°Holy crap. Is that why the clones have been able to use Telekinesis so well? I¡¯ll test that later. For now, it seems that the cornerstones are like my core abilities. Like Bite and Inkjet. So I need to select one for Vitality?¡± Henry studied the list of abilities under Vitality of the Trickster and froze. ¡°Does that mean the ability I¡¯ll select will become as good as those?¡± That would be incredible. And from the list he was seeing, it was clear what he wanted to pick. ¡°Regenerate. Though any one of these could become significantly better if it upgrades.¡± Arcane Fortification might see its defensive abilities soar. Accelerated Recovery¨Cif it¡¯s possible to select a Trait¨Cmight become extremely efficient and quick as well. Henry hummed and shook his head. ¡°Regeneration¡¯s hard to beat. And it might allow me to heal Maurice in the future.¡± Henry looked down at the crab. He¡¯d stopped using his healing ability and seemed to be finally sleeping. ¡°Yeah. I¡¯m selecting it.¡± As soon as he did, he felt something twist and swell within him. He braced, terrified, but it never really got bad. He only felt his soul swell with power and re-adjust, and then the feeling faded. Once it did it felt as if he¡¯d just cracked a sore neck he didn¡¯t know he had. ¡°That¡¯s new¡­¡± Henry was familiar with the effects of upgrades and changes, but this was the first time the process felt as vivid. Regenerate has been set as the cornerstone of Vitality of the Trickster. Henry loaded the new status and pumped an arm in excitement. ¡°Good. Excellent. Now, what¡¯s this about fusions?¡± He wanted to get the organizational stuff out of the way and start testing his new abilities. Especially the Octominds. He could feel them in the back of his mind. Like miniature extensions of his own brain. The Aspect Workshop loaded up and Henry started browsing it. After a few seconds, he came to a conclusion. ¡°This is amazing.¡± It seemed the Aspect Workshop had two main functions. It would allow him to fuse abilities¨Cwhich cost Evolutionary points¨Cand it brought back the ability to upgrade Skills and Traits individually¨Clike he¡¯d done with Telekinesis and Tentacle Whip. ¡°An Evo point per fusion is a lot though¡­ and there¡¯s three overloaded Aspects. And what¡¯s the maximum? There¡¯s no slots specified. Hmm.¡± Henry studied the Aspects that didn¡¯t have the overloaded tag. ¡°Four abilities at most.¡± Henry glanced down at Maurice. ¡°Alright. I have nothing better to do. Might as well.¡± He focused on Hunger of the Trickster first and promptly got a pop-up. Bite, Magic Mimic, Nothing is Lost, and Venom Production are compatible. Spend 1 Evolutionary point to merge? Yes | No ¡°Yup.¡± It felt very similar to the process of turning Regenerate into a cornerstone, although this time he felt some parts move and shift within him. Bite, Magic Mimic, Nothing is Lost, and Venom Production successfully merged into Bite of the Trickster. ¡°Oh¡­ that¡¯s good. It¡¯s not going to cost a fortune if it grabs everything in one go.¡± Next, Henry moved to Arcana of the Trickster. Universal Tongue, Telepathic Message and Telepathic Sense are compatible. Mana Sight, Mana Conduit, Condensed Mana are compatible. Spend 2 Evolutionary points to merge? Yes | No ¡°Dang it.¡± Two points was a lot¡­ but he¡¯d just earned some and could always re-gain them. And he did have a target that should earn him a lot pretty soon. ¡°Can¡¯t afford to be weakened, either.¡± This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. Universal Tongue, Telepathic Message and Telepathic Sense successfully merged into Mind Weaver''s Tongue. Mana Sight, Mana Conduit, Condensed Mana successfully merged into Mana Nexus. With that done, the overloaded tag was gone. ¡°Five abilities is the new maximum? Alright¡­. Now for the last Aspect. And then it¡¯s done.¡± Regenerate, Accelerated Recovery, and Hoard Vitals are compatible. Arcane Fortification, Slick Coat, and Toxin Resistance are compatible. Spend 2 Evolutionary points to merge? Yes | No Regenerate, Accelerated Recovery, and Hoard Vitals successfully merged into Arcane Regeneration. Arcane Fortification, Slick Coat, and Toxin Resistance successfully merged into Trickster¡¯s Resilience. Henry waited for the changes to take place as his eyes studied his surroundings. ¡°Done. Now, let¡¯s see the results.¡± Status: Name: Henry Dubois Consumption Tokens: 23E Evolutionary Points: 2 Health: 73% Mana: 28% Stats: (3 assignable) Strength: 34 [8 Base][14 Class][1 Consumption][11 Purchased] (12 Purchasable) Constitution: 50 [8 Base][29 Class][2 Consumption][11 Purchased] (19 Purchasable) Spirit: 31 [6 Base][12 Class][5 Consumption][8 Purchased] (12 Purchasable) Perception: 25 [9 Base][6 Class][10 Purchased] (6 Purchasable) Dexterity: 21 [9 Base][1 Class][1 Consumption][10 Purchased] (6 Purchasable) Juvenile Trickster Kraken - Reincarnated Intelligence (D): Hunger of the Trickster (E) - Level 6: Shiftiness of the Trickster (D) - Level 3: Arms of the Trickster (E) - Level 1: Misdirection of the Trickster (E) - Level 5: Arcana of the Trickster (E) - Level 1: Vitality of the Trickster (E) - Level 1: Class: Krakenbane Wanderer (D) - Level 1 Skills (0/8): Traits (0/8): Ephemerals: (0/2) ¡°I assume the weakened tag has to do with the Skill or Traits being lower ranked than the Aspect. Yeah¡­ all of these were lower ranked.¡± Henry read through the new and finalized page. True, he still had to decide on assigning the remaining stat points, but he wasn¡¯t going anywhere. He needed to still recover a bit. ¡°And now I don¡¯t have to actively build up Hoard Charges. I can just meditate and it''ll happen by itself.¡± He already liked how things were laid out. And this meant that next time he evolved, he¡¯d be able to transfer most¨Cif not all¨Cof his copied abilities into his own Aspects. ¡°Just need to have enough Evo points to create the new Aspects and fuse abilities.¡± He¡¯d been leery at spending so many Evo points at first, but now that the process was finished and everything was organized, he had no regrets. None. ¡°Every achievement I got. Every bit of blood and risk I took led to this.¡± His abilities felt stronger. More organized and somehow, closer to who he was. It was as if he¡¯d been wielding power through a wand but now, it all felt integral to him. ¡°And I need to keep challenging myself to improve my Aspects and create new ones.¡± Henry let himself sink into a meditative state. It happened much faster than usual and somehow, he didn¡¯t lose track of his surroundings. One of the new boosts from the Octominds, he assumed. ¡°Easily one of my strongest new abilities¡­ depending on how it will evolve.¡± Time went by as Henry let the passive Arcane Regeneration do its work. His health and mana ticked up, and tuning into the process, he felt how the mana filled his soul with every minute that went by. Below him, he noticed a few sharks going into a feeding frenzy around the Arcane and Goliath krakens. A few crabs were working on the Stoneskin¡¯s flesh, along with a few smaller fish. ¡°I should store some of those meats. And they did have some abilities I haven¡¯t gotten, like Inner Furnace and the projectile thing. Actually, I should look into collecting projectile Skills next time. I can probably spin up an Aspect for them¡­ the Serpent¡¯s ray, Maurice¡¯s bubbles, the molten projectiles of the Stoneskin¡­¡± When his mana was back to full, Henry created a few shells for Maurice. He needed the crab to get Mana Nexus. Or whatever the equivalent of it was. After three shells were created, as Henry mused about how to grow his powers, he felt Maurice poke his inner arm. Henry lifted the arm in question, and Maurice scuttled out. He looked up at Henry. ¡°[Oh, you got larger?]¡± Maurice¡¯s injured limbs had regrown, as did his missing leg. The shell looked spotless, as it¡¯d always been. Henry picked the crab up and grinned. ¡°[Yup. Even got some new neat abilities. Here. Maybe you¡¯ll get one or two,]¡± said Henry, pushing his freshly created shells in front of Maurice. The process had been a lot easier than before. The Octominds were really going to change everything. Maurice looked down at the shells and Henry felt the crab¡¯s excitement soar right before a blanket of shame smothered it. The crab rubbed his pincers together. ¡°[You don¡¯t have to give me all of this¡­ At least I should return the favor.]¡± Henry chuckled and gently shoved the crab with the tip of his arm. ¡°[You watched over me while I was evolving, which in and of itself is worth me thanking you with these. And there¡¯s a saying where I¡¯m from.]¡± Relief washed over the crab, and his eyes stalks peered up at Henry. ¡°[Oh? What¡¯s the saying? Actually, what¡¯s ¡®a saying¡¯? Is it¨Cnevermind. I¡¯ll ask that later. What¡¯s the saying and what¡¯s a saying?]¡± Henry was surprised at the self-control. He quickly explained what sayings were, and then, pushing the shells closer to the crab, he added, ¡°[The saying is: friends don¡¯t count favors. So, first, do your thing, and then we¡¯re going to take some time to prepare. We¡¯ve got a big kraken to kill.]¡± 1.38: Gift Exchange ¡°[Still nothing?]¡± Maurice picked up the newly consumed shell with a massive ghostly claw many times his size, then moved it away. Henry let him have the moment. A couple of amazed seconds later, Maurice responded. ¡°[I only got Toxin Resistance from the last one. I think your theory¡¯s right. We can¡¯t have two abilities that copy Skills and Traits. You haven¡¯t gotten it either, right? Here, it¡¯s healed. Try again.]¡± Maurice snipped off a claw and floated it forward to Henry with Telekinesis, who proceeded to crunch the tiny morsel. He got nothing from it this time. And he¡¯d got nothing extra from the krakens that had just attacked. It had been a Goliath and two clones. Henry and Maurice made quick work of them, and thankfully the assailers provided some sorely-needed tokens. Maurice¡¯d had enough to purchase his new abilities, but Henry had been out. Abilities cost D-Tokens now and as for upgrades, none were available yet. Henry assumed some would show up as he gained more experience and practiced his abilities¨Cold and new. Maybe if he encountered the same abilities at a higher level as well? As for Magic Mimic, it was now part of Bite of the Trickster, and Henry assumed it would upgrade along with the Aspect. ¡°[Hmm. Yeah, or there are abilities that just don¡¯t transfer. In the case of Chimeric Assimilation, I got nothing. Not even a notice. Even Hermit¡¯s Hoard said it was incompatible.]¡± Maurice continued practicing with his new talents, and Henry took a moment to check out the abilities he ended up buying. ¡°This is getting a bit overwhelming. Thank god they can be fused together.¡± He¡¯d gotten Imploding Bubbles, Domain¨Cwhich allowed him to trigger certain abilities within a radius around himself¨Cand Seeker¡¯s Bounty from Maurice. Bissal Anchoring felt like wasted space, considering his own multi-armed grip and suckers, and that was basically it. Maurice didn¡¯t have that many abilities. Then Henry went back and grabbed some meat from the Arcane and Stoneskin krakens¨Cor whatever remained of them¨Cand was able to pick up Molten Projectile, Inner Furnace¨Cwhich was a Trait that gave resistance to heat and made heat-based abilities stronger¨Cand got Dispelling Bubble and Draining Touch from the Arcane kraken. The last one had been the best find. He¡¯d gotten it from biting into a tentacle, which made him think that maybe the area the meat was coming from mattered in ability transfers. Unfortunately, the local wildlife had torn through most of the carcasses. Henry didn¡¯t mind. He already had too many abilities he needed to practice and get comfortable with¨Cwhich he already did for a couple of hours or so. And considering how common krakens seemed to be in this area, he was sure he¡¯d meet more of them and he¡¯d have the chance to find and discover many more abilities. At this point, he needed to start aiming for quality instead of quantity. ¡°Though now I don¡¯t need to be so worried about Mana Draining Bite.¡± He had intended on keeping that one until the upgrade of Bite, assuming he¡¯d get a way to keep the property permanently, like what¡¯d he¡¯d gotten from Mimicking Arms¡¯ D-rank upgrade. But then again, two draining abilities were better than one. If he could stick on to a big target, he could continuously steal its mana and regenerate his health. Combine that with his defensive abilities and high Constitution, and he¡¯d be unkillable. Henry glanced to his left, which happened to be the direction of the island. The same direction from which the krakens had come both times. It must be there. And once they¡¯ve dealt with the clone-creator, they¡¯d move on from this area and travel toward the Current. After a quick peek at the island. ¡°Maybe I can snag a bird¡­ though I doubt birds need Skills or Traits to fly. I don¡¯t need any of those to swim.¡± Maurice shook him out of his thoughts. ¡°[So. What are we doing now?]¡± Henry turned to Maurice to find the crab trying to munch on a piece of meat held by the Arcane Claw. ¡°[I was thinking of scouting out the island. Trying to find our friend. Maybe see if there are birds around.]¡± Maurice paused mid-bite, then continued chewing. Thankfully, that didn¡¯t affect Telepathy. ¡°[Birds?]¡± ¡°[Animals with feathers that can fly.]¡± Maurice chewed for a second. ¡°[Feathers?]¡± ¡°[You know what? That was on me. A bird is¡­ hmm. A bird¨Cwait a second¡­]¡± The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. That¡¯s right! He did get a new ability that would be perfect for this. He hadn¡¯t spent as much time on it as he did testing out the Octominds or Draining Touch, but it would be a pivotal Skill in his arsenal. ¡°[Wait, gimme a second.]¡± Henry triggered Summon Illusion. With Mana Sight, he watched tendrils of mana drift off of his body toward the area he targeted, and as they faded into the world, Henry felt the Skill pull the image out of his mind. In front of him, a few feet away, a seagull took shape. It was a classic gull. White feathers, gray wings. It stepped through the water as if it wasn¡¯t there, then opened its feathered wings. The details were a bit fuzzy. The illusion almost looked like a bad quality projection, to Henry¡¯s taste, but that didn¡¯t matter. Maurice was utterly gobsmacked. He looked at Henry for the mere moment he was able to tear his eyes away from the illusion. ¡°[This is a bird?]¡± Henry enlarged the bird, and found it to be a struggle until he engaged the Octominds. Then, suddenly, he found himself having an easier time recalling details and smoothing out the image. He was even able to recreate some of the bird¡¯s calls. ¡°[This is a gull. It lives near the coast, back in my world. This right here¨C]¡± Henry waved an arm for dramatic effect, ¡°[¨Cis a sea eagle. Pelican. Penguin. Masked Booby.]¡± Henry switched from one bird to the next and found himself also getting into it. Maurice was captivated, just taking the images in, but after a couple more illusions Henry decided to stop. He was eating into his mana at an alarming rate. As soon as the illusion began to fade into motes, Maurice jumped up. ¡°[Wait why did you stop?]¡± Henry jumped at the intensity of the crab. ¡°[It¡¯s expensive! We need mana!]¡± ¡°[But¨Cwait¨Cwhat if¡­ Wait.¡±] Maurice scrambled for an argument, but Henry had a proposal ready. It was one he was familiar with, back when he did presentations for preschoolers. ¡°[Let¡¯s do some scouting first, and whenever we¡¯re about to get some rest, I¡¯ll show you some more. Alright?]¡± The crab didn¡¯t seem to be too happy about this compromise, but it was better than nothing. Though the crustacean was quick to change gears. ¡°[Will these birds be on the island?]¡± ¡°[I doubt it¡­ But there¡¯ll probably be some. Usually birds prefer land. They don¡¯t live underwater.]¡± ¡°[Like humans?]¡± Henry eyed the crab. ¡°[Yup. Like humans.]¡± Maurice seemed to be mulling something over for a moment. ¡°[Is that why you want to find land? To find other humans? Wait¨Cwhat does a human look like? What did you look like? It¡¯s the last one, I promise.]¡± That¡­ Henry hadn¡¯t expected that. He hadn¡¯t thought of doing that. Quietly, Henry cast Summon Illusion. With the help of the Octominds, he summoned an image that still felt fresh in his mind, even though it was at least a year old. Months before the day he passed. Seeing it made the nerves in his stomach knot and made his skin feel clammy. An image of Human Henry, with hands on his hips, grinning down at Maurice. He was wearing a white t-shirt with a discolored university¡¯s logo. The arms of his diving suit were tied around his waist. His feet were bare, and his skin was tanned from too much sun and not enough sunscreen. He did have a white cap on his head though, with a cute fish design for a logo. It had been the first time Henry had felt confident and happy in the life he¡¯d chosen for himself, and looking at it from this angle, the current body he was inhabiting made him feel like a stranger to himself. Henry looked down at himself. At the thick, flexible, and nearly 20-foot-long arms he was resting on. He felt every individual sucker. He could taste the water through them, and it never got overwhelming, mostly likely thanks to the little brains of every arm. Then he looked back up at the image he¡¯d conjured. ¡°Which one am I?¡± He didn¡¯t feel the repulsion he¡¯d expected. He didn¡¯t know what to feel, honestly. He realized he hadn¡¯t really sat down and processed a few things since he¡¯d woken up in that turtle shell. ¡°How long has it been?¡± ¡°[Are you okay?]¡± ¡°[Hmm?]¡± Maurice wasn¡¯t looking at the image anymore, instead he was studying Henry. The once-human sighed internally. He didn¡¯t feel the need to lie. Henry remembered himself keeping his thoughts and emotions close to the chest, but why bother? He¡¯d died with a lot of things he should have said, but hadn¡¯t. ¡°[...It feels odd. Seeing myself like this. Did I tell you I died chasing that turtle? The one you¡¯re wearing?]¡± Maurice¡¯s eyes swiveled backward, and Henry felt guilt come off of the crab. Henry gently tapped the top of Maurice¡¯s shell with the tip of a tentacle. ¡°[Stop it. I didn¡¯t say that to make you feel guilty,]¡± Henry said, snapping Maurice out of whatever he was thinking. The image of the old Henry leaned over and patted Maurice¡¯s shell, and the hand went through the shell. ¡°[You taking that shell was probably the best thing that has happened since I woke up in this body. So never feel guilty about taking it again. Alright? Definitely tell me if you get an interesting Skill though. I wouldn¡¯t say no to that.]¡± Illusion-Henry grinned again, winked to Maurice, then dissolved away. Both Henry and Maurice were quiet for a moment. Then the crab looked up to the giant octopus¨Cno, kraken¨Cand spoke. ¡°[Are emotions always this complicated?]¡± Henry would have laughed. He could hear it in his own mind. He even considered resummoning his image to emote for him, but dismissed the idea for now.¡°[Yup. Well, not always. But it gets easier. You¡¯re doing great, don¡¯t worry.]¡± And with that, Henry picked up Maurice and swam up to the surface. He looked at the island in the distance, then at Maurice. ¡°[Let¡¯s go say hi to our friend.]¡± 1.39: The Den ¡°[What will happen when we find humans?]¡± The island was close enough for Henry to make out trees and seals on the beach. It was gravelly, with boulders here and there on which the largest seals lounged, taking in the sunlight. Henry dove deep and swam through the kelp. He began circling the island from a distance, eyes peeled for any caverns or odd, out-of-place formations. Already they could see glass spires, and the kelp was growing sparser by the second. ¡°[Nothing good, if we¡¯re not careful. If the intelligent people of this world are anything like mine¨Cwhether they¡¯re humans or other¨Cthen we won¡¯t be safe if we just show up like we are. We tend to be scared of anything not like us.]¡± Then, after a beat, Henry added. ¡°[I guess I can¡¯t say ¡®we¡¯ anymore. But yeah. Intelligence doesn¡¯t mean they¡¯ll be nice.]¡± ¡°[Then what¡¯s the plan? I mean, I¡¯m curious to see how they live, but I¡¯m guessing we need to prepare?¡¯]¡± Henry scanned the seabed. The eastern side of the island dipped further down than the kelp forest. Deep enough that Henry struggled to see much. ¡°[Find civilization first. Then we scout, from far away. Then, if we want to step on land, we¡¯ll need to be able to disguise ourselves and blend in. That should allow us to learn even more. Visit a library, if there¡¯s any. Ask around. We¡¯ll also need to be able to defend ourselves, just in case. But we can take that one step at a time.]¡± Henry came to a rest against the sloping seabed and glanced at Maurice. ¡°[It¡¯s getting a bit difficult to grip you. It always feels like I¡¯m holding you with the tips of my fingers, and that¡¯s making me nervous. How about you use Bissal Anchoring and stick to my head?]¡± ¡°[Oh, okay. Let¡¯s try it!]¡± Henry brought the arm holding Maurice to the top of his head. He felt the Skill activate and stick Maurice to his Skin. It felt like someone stuck a nerf suction dart to his forehead. Now stabilized, Maurice continued chatting. ¡°[Why would we be in danger? If they¡¯re smart, wouldn¡¯t they want to talk to us? Also, what¡¯s a library? What do we learn from them?]¡± ¡°[Even if we¡¯re smart, if they¡¯re anything like the humans from my world, what they¡¯ll want to do is put us in a lab, cut us open and study us. And when they¡¯re done, kill us or sell us to the highest bidder. Because we¡¯re not people. We¡¯re just smart animals. Or monsters to be controlled or put down. As for libraries, they¡¯re places where people collect books. And before you ask, a book is a bound stack of paper with writing on them. Usually about something specific. There¡¯s all kinds of books, but I have no idea what we might find. It¡¯ll really depend on how this world¡¯s civilizations have developed and where they¡¯ve gotten to.]¡± Henry tried to look at the crab above him but the angle was all wrong. Still, he should have answered everything. ¡°[Writing is the stuff in the Skill description, right?]¡± ¡°[Yes,]¡± said Henry as he camouflaged himself and began swimming down into the depths. Maurice was quiet, deep in thought. Henry would have absolutely let the crab ponder, but they were on a scouting mission. And visibility wasn¡¯t great, though Henry was beginning to see some red hues below. ¡°[Keep an eye out Maurice. We might be¨C]¡± Maurice was the first to notice the presence coming down on them from above. ¡°[Clones!]¡± Two clones were rushing at them, one of which shrieked an unintelligible series of noises into his mind as it bared its beak, intent on getting its many arms around him. Henry showed his beak in response, and a glowing piece of rock shot toward the clone. Two more followed in quick succession, with only one of them hitting. It was enough to dispatch one of the clones. ¡°[Does Dexterity help you with aiming, Maurice?]¡± Maurice had tagged the second clone as well, though his shots had been more precise. ¡°[I think so? I¡¯ve got 23 points in it.]¡± ¡°[That¡¯s not so far from mine¡­ I guess I need practice. Also, I think we¡¯re near its burrow. It would explain the rage.]¡± This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. Henry swam deeper, and the red colors intensified and multiplied, like lamps through a fog. A few seconds later, the kraken and the crab reached the seabed. ¡°Holy crap.¡± From the base of the underwater mountain that made up the island and its volcano came a river of lava. A wide thing, at least forty or fifty feet wide, that snaked north-east and away from the island. The river was running under a thick pane of familiar glass, with countless cooling towers all around the river, but never on top of it. Ants came in and out of entrances along the towers, moving up and down the river as they went along with their business. Henry peered around, but saw nothing heading their way. He kept his camouflage up, especially from the ants. For a second he worried about Maurice, who he couldn¡¯t cover up. But then again, the crab was tiny compared to himself; he shouldn¡¯t be visible from this far. ¡°[Back where I¡¯m from, ants can¡¯t live underwater. I don¡¯t know how these are living underwater and not burning or drowning to death.]¡± While Maurice watched the ants, Henry swam along the rocky seabed, searching for hints or dens. He knew it should be nearby. He only had the reaction of the clones to go on, but this area was deep enough to allow for something large to live. After a few minutes, once Maurice focused up and began searching with him, Henry tried activating Mana Sight. It was as if a filter was applied to his vision. The water around him gained a blue tint. The rocks below him, a mix of gold-brown. In the distance, even from this far, he could see reddish smoke-like mana wafting off the glass-covered river. There was a lot of mana freely floating around, but unless it was extremely concentrated or extremely close, everything was overpowering by the ubiquitous green-blue mana of the water itself. ¡°[Wait.]¡± Henry stopped. Maurice was quiet for a second, then he pointed with a claw. ¡°[There¡¯s something there. Seeker¡¯s Bounty is telling me there¡¯s something in that direction.]¡± Henry¡¯s eyes followed where Maurice was pointing. It was at the rocky facade of the island. Without looking away or moving, Henry spoke up. ¡°[How far? Can you tell?]¡± He had a couple of theories, depending on how much else Maurice had for him. ¡°[Hmm.. not sure. I¡¯m sure about the direction, but the only way to know if I¡¯m close is to go toward it.]¡± Both of them looked at the stone wall in the distance. Henry could picture a giant octopus surging out of the rocks to ambush them, just like he¡¯d done quite a few times. ¡°[We might need to run. But if it¡¯s holed up in a den, we can always come back. You sure you want to do this?]¡± Henry was absolutely willing to poke the hornet''s nest. Not just poke, he was ready to throw the proverbial firecracker into the hornet''s nest and then douse the whole thing with Pyroclastic Ink. Maurice was probably willing as well, but Henry could sense a bit of apprehension from the crab. Henry grinned at that. ¡°He¡¯s brave. But he definitely has some of the instincts of a hermit crab.¡± As if he sensed Henry¡¯s amusement, Maurice steeled himself. ¡°[I¡¯m in. Let¡¯s do it.]¡± ¡°[Are you stable with your Skill? Is there a chance of you dropping?]¡± ¡°[I think I¡¯m okay¡­ unless they manage to cut me away along with the flesh of your head.]¡± Henry exhaled. ¡°[Alright. Keep me updated. And hold on to your mana.]¡± With that, Henry began gliding along the dark rock of the seabed. His skin was inky black, making him meld along with the dark-gray stone. The wall of rock was approaching quickly, and Henry turned on Mana Sight again. He expected to see the familiar teal-colored mana all over. He hoped to see something different to give him a hint and point him toward their destination. What he saw was even better. Most of the rock wall was golden-brown, with veins of red. Looming ahead of them, where more rock was visible, the earthen mana was missing. Only teal, in a mostly circular shape. Where there was supposed to be stone and earth. The wall ahead was an illusion, and Henry dropped Mana Sight just in time to see a giant, red-skinned octopus come out of the mountain wall like a monstrous ghost. It dwarfed Henry. He couldn¡¯t make out its dimensions from this angle, but the first question his mind came up with was, how did this thing fit anywhere? It was at least triple his size, and considering the thing¡¯s healing factor, they were in for a slog of a fight. [Adult Goliath Kraken (C) - Lvl ?] ¡°[Henry¡­ are we doing this?]¡± Henry¡¯s limbs twitched with nerves, and venom began building in his beak. It was bitter. Potent. And he was about to pump the Goliath Kraken¡¯s brains full of it. And seeing this specimen come at them, Henry felt a few pieces begin to click in his mind. [¡°Be ready for us to run. This isn¡¯t the main threat. She¡¯s still hiding.¡±] The adult Goliath cut through the water toward them, and Henry looked beyond it. He was almost sure now. The clones were from a C-rank, if not higher. A brooding, territorial Trickster kraken with a grudge who refused to leave her den. And if it happened to be above C-rank, then they¡¯ll have to come back some other time. That would be too large of a gap, even if the Trickster kraken was being defensive and preferred hiding. The red kraken opened its beak and roared, taking them both by surprise, and Henry flew away. Just to lead it further from the Den. In case something else came out. If the Trickster came out, Henry and Maurice were running. Otherwise, it was time to earn some Evolutionary points for his next power-up. 1.40: The Goliath (Pt.1) ¡°[It¡¯s catching up!]¡± Henry didn¡¯t look back, eyes set on the ledge he wanted to swim over. ¡°[We¡¯re almost there.]¡± He wanted to be as far away from the den as possible, and where he was leading the kraken, the water wasn¡¯t as deep. That might net them an advantage, especially considering the size of this thing. ¡°[Watch out!]¡± Henry barely had the time to register Maurice¡¯s warning when an arm swatted his whole body like a cat smacking a mouse. Unlike that scenario, though, he wasn¡¯t too hurt. Just wildly disoriented. And shocked at the strength of the kraken. Then the kraken pulled. Henry realized what was wrong in an instant, and whipped down with a bladed arm at the tentacle sticking to him. It was only the extremity, barely a few inches thick, but it felt as if he was trying to cut through corded leather. ¡°Getting through its head¡¯s going to be tough.¡± Henry straightened up and faced the kraken as it finished pulling itself over the ledge. The limb that caught him retreated, curving into some sort of foot under the kraken, along with five others. It began walking toward them and away from the cliff. The last two large¨Cand to Henry¡¯s alarm¨Cbone plated limbs hung to its sides like arms. In this sparsely populated area of the kelp reef, the water was barely forty feet deep, and the kraken, with its limbs curled under it, reached almost halfway to the surface. ¡°[Maurice¡­ I think I¡¯m moving you to my arm again. You¡¯re too exposed for those things. Use your Skill on my arm as well, to be safe.]¡± A wave of relief came off the crab, but it only lasted for a moment before the apprehensive eagerness was back to the forefront. The crab rubbed his pincers with nerves. ¡°[Yeah, okay.]¡± Henry quickly secured Maurice and, as if it knew they were in the middle of something, the Goliath screeched and surged toward them. Henry spread his arms and let himself float higher. ¡°[Keep an eye out for clones, Maurice.]¡± A sheen of magic materialized over Henry¡¯s skin as Trickster¡¯s Resilience came to life. Mana sunk into his flesh and strengthened it. The Goliath reached out with two arms in a wide sweep. As the noose tightened, the arms parted only ink. Henry swam above the extended arms toward the kraken, limbs ready to grab on. ¡°I get on its head, I win¨C¡± A purple sheen of magic suddenly filled his vision, and he found himself locked in place. Right over the edge of the cliff came out three clones, all glaring at him. Maurice reacted quickly, activating his Domain, and imploded the head of the first one. Henry materialized a limb of mana that didn¡¯t care for Telekinesis¡¯ restriction, and the Arcane Arm cracked the second clone across the eyes, also bursting it into ink. With two clones down, Henry was able to brute-force through the restriction, making the last clone recoil from the backlash. Henry shook his limbs free, right on time for the Goliath kraken to crack him across the stomach with one of its massive armored limbs. The red-hued limb cut through the water as if it wasn¡¯t even there. It sunk into him, never breaking through his skin, but it didn¡¯t need to. A burning, sickening pain ran through Henry as his whole world turned upside down. Blood and bile were forced up his throat, and through the pain, Henry felt something burst inside him. Through the pain and bewilderment, he saw another glowing, armored limb winding back. Henry filled the space with ink and launched himself backward as he pumped mana into Arcane Regeneration. The magic burned within him, re-knitting his innards. His sight cleared up. He hadn¡¯t even noticed it had gotten dim. Henry kept swimming backward as he let himself heal and re-assess the situation. The kraken turned aside for a few seconds and stilled. Then it turned and focused back on Henry, and its plated arms lifted off the seabed. ¡°[I think there¡¯s another clone around.]¡± This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it ¡°[Not one. Two,]¡± corrected Maurice. Henry eyed the kraken and for the first time in a while, he felt like maybe he bit off more than he could chew. That exchange had cost him nearly 10% of his mana reserves, and didn¡¯t have much to show for it aside from two dead clones. The Goliath kraken was unhurt aside from a severed extremity that was instantly healed, and there were two more clones around, ready to intervene at any time. ¡°[Maurice. Focus on the clones. I¡¯m going to try and grab on to it. If it doesn¡¯t work or we get too injured, we run. Make sure to keep your defenses high, okay?]¡± ¡°[What if you¡¯re too hurt?]¡± Henry exhaled, then rolled another loop around Maurice¡¯s shell. The apprehension was still strong from the crab, and Henry wondered if it was affecting him or if it was the other way around. ¡°[Then you run and hide. I¡¯ll figure something out. Don¡¯t put yourself in danger. Actually, do you want to go into my Maw for this?]¡± Maurice¡¯s answer was immediate, and his resolve smothered the fear for a moment. ¡°[No. We win together or we lose together.]¡± Then after a short pause, the crab looked down at Henry. ¡°[Who¡¯s getting the Core, by the way?]¡± Henry chuckled. ¡°[Whoever gets the kill, I guess? I think it¡¯ll still count for the achievements, though I wouldn¡¯t say no to some levels and stats.¡±] Maurice threw both pincers up. ¡°[That just means you¡¯re getting¨C]¡± The kraken roared and threw itself forward. Henry disappeared into a cloud of ink, then brought Maurice closer. ¡°[Alright, let¡¯s focus. I¡¯m going to do everything I can to latch on to its head. Things¡­ might get rough.]¡± Henry extended his awareness to the little minds in his limbs and readied himself. The kraken rushed him again, and Henry pulled the focus of all but one of his limbs toward a single task: freeze the kraken for a second. Just enough for him to get into position. As for the remaining mini-brain, it should focus on keeping Maurice safe. Henry had tested the Skill a bit while he¡¯d been resting. With this command, he expected the limb to dodge or move around by itself, and constantly reposition to maximize the distance between itself and danger without Henry having to control it. The kraken closed in. The red sheen surged out of the hardened tentacles and water seemed to phase through it for a moment. Before it could attack, Henry activated Telekinesis. It was as if his consciousness was a hand, and he¡¯d just grabbed a sea urchin with full strength. The kraken came to a full stop, but everything in Henry¡¯s head and limbs screamed with pain. His muscles and limbs¨Call but one¨Cspasmed, their nerve centers overloaded by the sheer amount of pushback they were getting from the kraken. Still, there was enough focus and clarity to power through. Henry wrapped his arms around the Goliath kraken¡¯s head, then activated his suckers while shoving mana into Regeneration. That helped alleviate the blinding migraine he was experiencing. By this point he¡¯d already dropped Telekinesis and the kraken swung and missed, but Henry was slowly recovering. His senses and focus sharpened as the backlash from Telekinesis faded. Being this close to the monster, the size difference was stark. Henry opened his beak and used Bite. Right above the kraken¡¯s eye. He struggled to get to the brain, but that wasn¡¯t a deal breaker. Henry pumped in as much Sea Serpent venom as he could and prepared for phase two. Mana was trickling into his arms through Draining Touch¨Cbut not from Maurice. Thankfully, the Trait wasn¡¯t difficult to direct in its effect; even though it wasn¡¯t the most efficient, it was better than nothing. The kraken¡¯s limb swung up and whacked Henry on the right side of his arms. ¡°Ouch. You dick.¡± A quick check on Maurice told him the baby-sitting limb was doing fine keeping its passenger away from their enemy, and Henry noticed the crab was shooting bubbles at an empty spot above them. The clones. Probably. Henry didn¡¯t let that distract him. Instead, he set the priorities for half of his Octominds: keep Arcane Regeneration going, no matter what happened. This one he wasn¡¯t really sure of. He¡¯d tried testing it by having one of the Octominds assist him with maintaining his healing Skill, but it had felt like he was doing the task, though with minimal process. As if it was a long practiced habit. He didn¡¯t know if the limbs would continue the task if Henry himself were unconscious. Like when sleeping. Or if he was knocked out. But he remembered how the previous D-Rank Goliath had healed through brain injuries, and Henry assumed that was either the benefit of a special Trait, or a function of the Octominds. Henry leaned toward the latter. Octopuses had mini-brains in their arms, and if his own case was of any indication, krakens gained an improved form of these processing centers. In this scenario, Goliath krakens could continue healing even when their main brain was spiked. Which brought him back to his current predicament. He could get knocked out, and he needed to constantly keep healing, no matter what happened. Henry pumped more venom in and tried to dig deeper with his beak. The monster¡¯s extraordinary healing kept up with his assault, re-knitting the kraken¡¯s flesh as soon as Henry cut into it. With the arms he had around his target, he activated Razor and sliced through the Goliath¡¯s flesh. ¡°[This might take a while, Maurice.]¡± The crab had just swatted a clone from closing in on Henry. The copy exploded into a cloud of ink, and Maurice raised a pincer. ¡°[We got this!]¡± Henry focused on his task and continued digging with his beak. He was hopeful, but through his limbs he could vaguely sense the mana still left in the beast. It didn¡¯t feel like they¡¯d even made a dent in the kraken¡¯s monstrous reserves yet. 1.41: The Goliath (Pt.2) The taste of blood and bitter venom mixed in Henry¡¯s mouth as he chewed his way to the Goliath kraken¡¯s brain. Half of his Octominds were supporting him, keeping him focused on dealing damage, while the other half¨Caside from the limb carrying Maurice¨Callowed him to constantly channel his mana into Arcane Regeneration, especially when he got whacked enough to see stars. He¡¯d already blacked out. Once or twice. It wasn¡¯t a good sign, but unlike the battle with the serpent, he wasn¡¯t close to dying. His health never dropped below 50%, and he was still somewhat aware of his surroundings. The Octominds were amazing. He could feel the arm carrying Maurice constantly re-adjusting. He could feel his attention on Arcane Regeneration, activating it whenever he got injured, and all of that freed him to focus on the task at hand. Pump the kraken full of venom and eventually exhaust its mana reserves. ¡°Still, next time I¡¯m working on a helmet-limb.¡± Henry braced, seeing another attack coming at him and pushed more mana into Trickster¡¯s Resilience. The slick coating shone for a moment, but the heavy and magically empowered limb of the Goliath was too much for it. The magic fizzled after only absorbing a fraction of the force impacting Henry. The good thing was, all these hits were helping him dig deeper and faster into the kraken¡¯s head. No matter how tough the damn thing¡¯s flesh was. Henry kept the venom pumping and his intense focus. He almost triggered Pyroclastic Ink but stopped himself. Maurice was too close. And Henry didn¡¯t know how far the attack would extend. It might hurt him as well. ¡°Draining Bite¡­ Not yet. But everything else¡­ yeah.¡± Bite of the Echo Seal. Bite of the Riptide Shark. More venom. Ghostly jaws gnashed on the kraken¡¯s tough hide and it screeched. When another glowing attack came for him, Henry triggered the Scale of the Sea Serpent. A glowing, emerald-scaled pattern appeared on his skin and coupled with a new instance of Slick Coat. He looked like a snake, and for the first time since this bout had started¨Chowever long that was¨CHenry took a hit and barely felt it. ¡°[Henry?]¡± His own mana was getting low, and Draining Touch wasn¡¯t efficient enough. Not yet. But he could feel the kraken¡¯s healing slow. It took it more time to close up the ruined flesh Henry¡¯s beak had left. A second or two more to neutralize the neurotoxic venom. They were getting there. Henry bit hard, enough to feel his beak growing sore. ¡°I just need something more¡­ More than a beak. Something stronger than a tentacle. Something with joints¡­¡± If he¡¯d had his own body, this would be much easier. He¡¯d have to be larger, of course. And armed. With a knife. Or a trident. Henry would have grinned at that image. ¡°That¡¯d be a sight.¡± Henry broke out of his reverie when the kraken tried to grab him again, then braced for the reaching limb. It wasn¡¯t too worrying. He just needed to make sure he had Slick Coat on. Even though the monster¡¯s strength was tremendous, it just couldn¡¯t constrict that well. It could pull, though. Henry latched with all his might as the Goliath tried to pull him off. In response, Henry released one arm and used it to cut into the monster¡¯s eyes. That was enough of a distraction. The Goliath stopped trying to pull him off and cracked him again with an armored arm¨Cand Henry opened his eyes again. ¡°[Henry! Can you hear me?]¡± Henry continued his assault, and his eyes turned to Maurice. ¡°[Sorry. I¡¯m alright. Are you okay?]¡± Maurice stared back. The arm holding him pulled back as another attack came from the kraken. ¡°[I don¡¯t think you¡¯re alright. You weren¡¯t hearing me. But yes, I¡¯m okay. Are you sure you don¡¯t need me to help?]¡± Henry looked down at the monster he was slowly chipping away at. The defensive magic borrowed from the serpent was still going, and it was surprisingly effective. He should really consider keeping it permanently. Well. Next time he encountered a serpent, he¡¯d think about it. ¡°[Sorry. Got too absorbed for a moment. Yes, please. Help me. Aim at its eyes. It might try to run¨Cand I think that might be soon. But don¡¯t ignore the clones.]¡± If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation. ¡°[There¡¯s only one left. I got the second.]¡± Henry¡¯s eyes widened. ¡°[Good job. Alright, hold on for a second.]¡± Henry tore deeper into the tough flesh and pumped some more venom, then leaned back and triggered Pyroclastic Ink. A cloud of gray and black surged out of his siphon, and Henry grit his teeth from the heat. Three defensive layers and Living Furnace were barely enough to stop the inferno that surged at the monster from burning his own flesh. The Goliath roared in pain as its envenomed flesh seared and scarred. It lashed out, trying to hit anything, which was when Henry turned to Maurice before unleashing everything he had again. ¡°[Pop its eyes!]¡± Maurice and Henry burned through their mana. Razor Limbs. Implosions. Venom. Henry even shapeshifted a limb into a lance-like bone and tried to impale the kraken. When his mana got low, he used Draining Bite. His reserves surged with mana, while the kraken¡¯s was getting lower by the second. Through Mana-Sight, Henry saw greenish light begin to flow toward the kraken¡¯s many injuries. Considering his decently renewed mana reserves, he decided to splurge. Henry moved Maurice away and used the Dispelling Bubble. The green lights of the kraken¡¯s healing were snuffed out, and it roared in anger. The water churned around them. The limbs of the monster were breaking over the surface, sending water up in sprouts and waves. At some point, Henry was pretty sure he himself was above water, but he could only focus on dealing damage. Eventually, the kraken¡¯s resolve broke. It began slinking toward the ledge that led down to the Trickster¡¯s den. ¡°[Keep hitting its eyes!]¡± Both Henry and Maurice tried, but the damn thing kept healing them as fast as they ruined them; and even when blinded, it kept going in the right direction. Henry cursed. Was it the clone? Could it guide it? Is that why it was still invisible? The duo scrambled. They tried to pull the kraken away, hit the eyes, shove another spike into its brain¨Cwhich only made it stutter for a couple of seconds before it healed around the foreign object. But as the ledge approached, Henry had an idea. There was no time to think it through, so he went for it.
Maurice¡¯s Telepathic Sense pushed around as he imploded the kraken¡¯s eyes again. It was fun. Well it would be, if they weren¡¯t hanging on for dear life. And if it wasn¡¯t for the other clone around. Maurice could feel its frustration. Its mood shifted from anger, to outrage, to calculating. He knew it had something in store, but he couldn¡¯t get a bead on it. It knew he was looking for it, so it kept moving. Maurice popped the eyes again as they regrew. He kinda wanted to taste them, but the arm carrying him kept moving, and now wasn¡¯t the time to waste mana on Telekinesis. Their prey was trying to run. To be honest, Maurice had been worried at first. He was still worried, in fact, but things seemed to be going well. Especially now that Henry wasn¡¯t getting knocked out every few minutes. Maurice didn¡¯t know much, but that didn¡¯t seem like a healthy way of doing things. He would have run already if he¡¯d been hit that hard. He popped the kraken¡¯s eyes again and tried to push it down with an Arcane Pincer, but Maurice¡¯s ability gave as much resistance as the kelp stalks around. ¡°We have to stop it¡­¡± He still had enough mana, thanks to the Traits he¡¯d gotten from Henry, but still. He had to be smart. And efficient. And¨Coh? Mana flared out of Henry, quickly followed by a cloud of Ink. When the smoke-screen dissipated, Maurice saw the cliff he¡¯d been looking at. But he was pretty sure it wasn¡¯t where it had been moments ago. ¡°[Ooooh! Good idea!]¡± ¡°[Thanks¡­.I think the clone might be helping this one. Keep it busy.]¡± Henry¡¯s voice seemed faint. Maurice remembered the illusions taking a lot of mana out of the kraken¨Cor was it human? Maybe Maurice should ask about that. In any case. Illusions were expensive. And what Henry just did must have taken a tremendous amount of mana. And effort. Actually, that seemed too much for a new ability. How did he go from summoning birds to changing the scenery? Above him, Maurice could feel the clone¡¯s confusion and felt it pause in the same spot. The crab immediately titled his head up and sent a spray of bubbles, but they didn¡¯t hit. The clone had noticed his attack and moved. He clacked a pincer in annoyance. The kraken slinked toward the cliff, and a sense of alarm came from the clone. The kraken froze, looking around in confusion, and then¨C The clone appeared. It hovered to their right, and below him, Henry cursed. ¡°[It¡¯s showing him the right direction.]¡± Maurice hummed. ¡°[Can you make it invisible?]¡± Henry paused under him. ¡°[I don¡¯t think it works like that¡­ The clone could just move out of the way and it¡¯ll be visible. And I don¡¯t think I have another big illusion in me.]¡± Maurice eyed the clone, recalling how it had tried to eat him barely a day or two ago. ¡°[Can you get me near it?]¡± Henry shoved a spike of bone into the kraken¡¯s brain and continued tearing into it, but his eyes turned to Maurice. ¡°[If I let go of the kraken, we might not be able to catch it again.]¡± Maurice pointed at the clone with a pincer. ¡°[If we don¡¯t get rid of it, we¡¯ll lose. It can just show the Goliath the way home, and we¡¯ll be forced to let go then. Right?]¡± Henry took in the words and closed his eyes. When he opened them, they were on the clone. ¡°[You¡¯re right.¡±] Maurice liked hearing that. [¡°We¡¯ll do this quickly. We kill the clone and finish up the Goliath. On 3¡­ 2¡­ 1¡­ Go!]¡± Henry¡¯s limbs let go of the kraken and surged toward the clone, and Maurice raised both pincers in anticipation. He couldn¡¯t say if he was laughing or screaming, but he knew he¡¯d never felt this way before, and that he might never be able to live without it. The sense of adventure. 1.42: The Goliath (Pt.3) The clone dissolved into a cloud of ink, unable to defend itself against the sudden onslaught of both Henry and Maurice. With the Goliath¡¯s support disposed of, the duo whirled back toward the main course. ¡°[It¡¯s trying to run, get it!]¡± shouted Maurice. The kraken had been slinking away, tired and weary. As the orange, blue-spotted kraken rushed back, holding a multi-colored crab in one of its forefront arms, it summoned a huge cloud of ink and swam away. Even though he was exhausted from the mana expenditure and felt sore all over, Henry was reinvigorated by the sight. It¡¯d taken forever to even begin tiring the Goliath, but their strategy¨Cas boring as it had been¨Cbore fruit. Plus, Maurice¡¯s excitement was contagious. Henry spoke up without looking away from his target as he pumped his arms. ¡°[You looked a bit more worried at the start of this.]¡± Henry chased the Goliath through his previously summoned illusion, then Maurice materialized a giant translucent claw and slammed it down on the confused Goliath. ¡°[This was the first time we fought together! I was worried I wouldn¡¯t be able to help. It¡¯s a C-Rank! It¡¯s massive! I wasn¡¯t sure we could win. And you kept getting knocked out!]¡± Henry grabbed on to the flailing monster and resumed his assault, but this time, Maurice was fully engaged as well. ¡°[I didn¡¯t get knocked out that often!]¡± ¡°[Four times, actually. I counted,]¡± retorted the cheerful voice. ¡°[Fine. Just¡­ Let¡¯s do as much damage as possible, and I¡¯ll stop its healing again.]¡± Henry stopped trying to bite into the Goliath¡¯s head, as there was no more venom he could squeeze out, and instead he worked on lodging a bone-spike into its brain. In the meantime, Maurice focused on trying to implode the base of one of the monster¡¯s tentacles. ¡°[It¡¯s so tough. Are you sure it¡¯ll help?]¡± ¡°[That¡¯s where its secondary brains should be. That¡¯s what¡¯s making it keep healing even though I¡¯m stabbing it in the head.]¡± ¡°[Is that why you kept healing even when you were hit?]¡± ¡°[Yes.]¡± ¡°[So if I want to win against you, I¡¯d have to do the same?]¡± Henry froze up for a second, then resumed his assault on the brain of the Goliath. He knew this wasn¡¯t some sort of sinister plot from the hermit crab, only unbridled curiosity, but he couldn¡¯t help the little shiver that went through him. His eyes swiveled to Maurice as the latter focused on disabling the Goliath¡¯s Octominds. ¡°[People usually don¡¯t talk about how they could kill each other, Maurice. It gives the wrong idea.]¡± ¡°[Oh? Sorry. Yeah, that makes sense. I should remember that when we meet people. What else should I know? Is there a list somewhere? What if¨C¡± Henry had to cut the crab off before he got too far from the situation at hand. ¡°[Maurice, focus. We can talk about this later.¡±] ¡°[Right!¡±] The Goliath kept trying to shake him off, but Henry wouldn¡¯t let go. After a few minutes of struggle, Henry noticed the water getting low. Once or twice, he felt himself breach the surface and his heart soared. It shouldn¡¯t be able to get away from them now.
It took something like ten or fifteen minutes of continuously applying damage¨Ceven after Henry and Maurice were out of mana¨Cfor the Goliath to finally go down. At some point, it stopped trying to run and fought back, but by then its reserves were low. It could empower its attacks only so often. At some point, it just ran out of juice, and Henry got the message he¡¯d been eagerly waiting for. They were partially beached, with Maurice slowly walking around in the few inches of water while staring at the sky. The rocky beach was not too far away, and Henry kept his eyes on it as well as on the sky. It was mostly deserted, but a few gull-like birds were already circling high above. Further away, almost at the other side of the beach, Henry could see the seals. Some seemed to be moving, probably curious at what was happening, but Henry wasn¡¯t worried. They could deal with some seals. Henry breathed the clean air, feeling it go through his gills. He was getting something out of it, somehow, so he assumed evolution had helped. ¡°Octopuses can¡¯t breathe air, but krakens are something else, I guess.¡± This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. Significant contribution detected. Distributing Core fragments accordingly. 1x Greater Goliath Kraken Fragment (C) was collected. ¡°That¡¯s new. [Maurice, did you get a message?]¡± ¡°[I got one Lesser Fragment! I got my share!]¡± ¡°[I guess we haven¡¯t fought something together. Not to this degree. Aside from the clones, of course, but those don¡¯t drop Cores.]¡± Maurice seemed to agree for a second before raising a pincer. ¡°[No, wait. We fought the juvenile Goliath together? I didn¡¯t get anything then¡­]¡± Henry hummed for a moment, recalling the fight. ¡°[I guess I did a lot more damage to it back then. The message does say significant contribution. I guess your contribution hadn¡¯t been that significant.]¡± Maurice¡¯s claw stopped mid-way to his mouth. He put down the bit of meat and slowly turned to Henry. ¡°[What do you mean I didn¡¯t contribute? I was bait! I hit it too!]¡± The crab fumed for a few more seconds, but then went back to his meal, mumbling about unfairness and scams¨Cwhich was Maurice¡¯s favorite new word. He used it to describe everything that inconvenienced him, big or small. In the meantime, Henry consumed the Core fragment and quickly glanced through his notifications. A couple of upgrades were available¨Cnamely, the Octominds and Regeneration¨Cand he¡¯d been tempted to convert the Core to tokens and get them right away, but with something as powerful as the Goliath kraken, he couldn¡¯t pass up the free stat points and they could always do some hunting to afford the upgrades. Plus, if they were to take on the Trickster, they needed levels. If the Goliath had been any other variant, they might have been in real danger. But they¡¯d get ready. And with this contribution system, he could focus on finding challenges and the system would reward them both, without them having to decide on who got what. ¡°[Maurice, keep an eye out. I¡¯ll check my notifications quickly, and then we should go underwater.]¡± ¡°[Why? It¡¯s so nice up here!]¡± ¡°[You know how there are krakens and serpents underwater? Well, something as dangerous could be up here, and I have no idea what that would be. And I don¡¯t think we¡¯re equipped to fight whatever shows up.]¡± ¡°[Oh, like what?]¡± Henry eyed the list of Aspect level-ups and his own levels. It was a good haul. ¡°[Who knows. Giant eagles could be a thing. Or owls. Or dragons, as far as I know. Anything could be out there.]¡± Krakenbane Wanderer - Level 2 achieved! ... Krakenbane Wanderer - Level 19 achieved! 3x Stat points awarded. 1x Strength Stat points awarded. 1x Spirit Stat points awarded. 1x Constitution Stat points awarded. Goliath Kraken Core (C) contained significant Spirit Stats. 1x Spirit Stat points awarded. Goliath Kraken Core (C) contained significant Strength Stats. 1x Strength Stat points awarded. ¡°Barely twenty levels¡­ Leveling-up will only get tougher from here on out. But that¡¯s still a good haul. Also, I realize I didn¡¯t assign the three points from my last levels. They wouldn¡¯t have pushed me over any threshold but still¡­¡± Mimicking Arms: Recovery of the Goliath Kraken acquired. Unimpeded Arms was copied by Magic Mimic. Added to Ephemerals Amplified Impact was copied by Magic Mimic. Added to Ephemerals ¡°Oh¡­ so that¡¯s how it was hitting so hard? These would be a good addition. Anyway, I¡¯ll check the details later. Let¡¯s see the abilities¡¯ levels¡± Hunger of the Trickster (E): Level 6 -> Level 8 Arms of the Trickster (E): Level 1 -> Level 2 Misdirection of the Trickster (E): Level 5 -> Level 6 Arcana of the Trickster (E): Level 1 -> Level 4 Vitality of the Trickster (E): Level 1 -> Level 3 Dispelling Bubble (F): Level 1 -> Level 4 ¡°That¡¯s a lot of levels as well. And Arcana did the best of them all. What did that include already? Ah yes. Illusions, Mana Nexus, Telekinesis, and Telepathy. Yeah, those got a good workout. Hmm. Shiftiness didn¡¯t get anything, but everything else leveled.¡± With that done, Henry turned his attention outward. The seals were bobbing out of the water, quietly watching both Henry and the dead kraken. They clearly wanted to eat, but they finally recognized Henry as a threat and stayed back. ¡°[Ready to go, Maurice?]¡± ¡°[Yes! I took some meat, but you should take more. You¡¯ve got more space than I do. It¡¯s tasty.]¡± Henry cut himself a few large slices, then began dragging himself toward the deeper waters. He placed Maurice on top of his head, and soon enough he was fully submerged again. After a few moments, Henry broke the silence. ¡°[I don¡¯t think we¡¯re ready for the other one, Maurice.]¡± ¡°[Yes. I think so too. But I¡¯ll let you tell me why first.]¡± Henry eyed the crab for a moment, wondering if he was bluffing or if he really had a theory. He didn¡¯t doubt the latter much; Maurice could be incredibly insightful at times. ¡°[This one was just strong and regenerated fast. The Trickster would have more for us. More tricks. And it¡¯s a lot smarter than the ones we¡¯ve faced so far.]¡± Maurice pulled a piece of kraken meat out of his multicolored shell and bit into it. ¡°[The other krakens might have a copying ability, but the Trickster¨Clike you¨Cknows how to use it better. Or the others might have the ability weakened when they evolved. But the Trickster¡¯s would be as good as yours.]¡± Henry agreed. ¡°[Exactly. So we should explore the area a bit more. Get some more levels. Prepare better. I¡¯ve got a couple of ideas that could make a difference, especially if I¡¯m able to push Ink Jet¨CI mean Misdirection to the next rank. We need some time. Then we can go fight it.]¡± ¡°[Exploring. Adventure¡­ Yes!]¡± The crab pumped a pincer up, then looked back down. ¡°[Also, when will you tell me more about people? I asked you earlier about what¡¯s acceptable conversation and what isn¡¯t and you said it wasn¡¯t the time. Is now a good time? I need to be ready otherwise we¡¯ll be discovered! And how will we¨C]¡± Henry dove deeper, all the while resisting the temptation to pull the crab off of his head and chuck him back to the island. 1.43: Interlude: The exit Ash held on to her satchel so hard she worried she might crush its contents as her mismatched boots slapped against the uneven stone pavement leading down to the docks, but she couldn¡¯t risk dropping it. Or having it snatched off her hands. She bobbed and weaved among the small crowd heading into and out of the market. Further behind her, she could hear the shoes of her pursuers closing in. But nothing alarming. Not yet. She knew one of the enforcers would show up at any time, and she needed to disappear before then. ¡°Stop him! Thief!¡± Ash dodged an outstretched hand and dipped into an alley. Puddles burst around her feet and wetness crept into her shoes, but she didn¡¯t stop. Her heart hammered in her ears as she sprinted down the familiar alleyways. Up ahead, more goons from the gang she''d just stolen from appeared, and she took a sharp right into one of the many abandoned warehouses. The air was stale. Rats scrambled away from the sudden daylight that exploded into their home. Ash continued running, and heard the decrepit door burst open behind her. ¡°You¡¯ll pay for this, Ash!¡± screamed the voices behind her. Ash ran on. A strange smell hit her nose first before she burst into a room full of glowing liquids and strange, dirty vials. Large glass cylinders held different monsters, preserved by magic and the clearly glowing etchings around the cylinders. It took Ash a second to realize what she¡¯d stumbled into. She sprinted down the wide room, but before leaving, she stopped at the exit. Out of a hidden compartment in her pants, she pulled her Wand of Firebolts. The Guild of Alchemists was a rotten place that should be purged and disbanded, but they had rules. They had a code of conduct that they rarely stepped over. They could live in a civilized society without committing atrocities in the name of knowledge and profit. They could be tolerated. Especially considering how useful they were. But not rogue alchemists. Those should not be allowed to exist. Those should be exterminated on sight. Ash¡¯s nostrils burned from the fumes of the chemicals present as she stared at one of the bodies in the preserving cylinders. Her skin chilled when she recognized what it was. ¡°Pillars take you,¡± Ash cursed under her breath. She raised her wand, and a small ball of fire shot at the barrel of fuel. The barrel burst into flames before the spell even touched it, and Ash turned away and ran. The magical tinctures would start reacting at any moment. Seconds later, she was at the last wall separating her from another alley. Ash put her hand on the wall, then began climbing the wooden surface with Spider Climb. Behind her she could hear shouts that turned to screams of surprise and alarm, then she heard the first explosion. Ash grinned, teeth bared as she slipped out of the partially caved-in roof. That would make her another enemy. Maybe more if the rogue alchemist had backers¨Cwhich they most certainly did¨Cbut Ash didn¡¯t intend on staying in Coralspire. She was taking her stolen prize, her notebook, and she was heading to the Pillars. To the Reach or to Dominion¡¯s capital: the Emerald Isle of Stormhaven. Minutes later, Ash arrived at the dock. She was drenched in sweat and grime, but she couldn¡¯t stop. Not yet. She glanced behind her, and saw some familiar colors and faces surged out of the alleys in her pursuit, so she briskly walked down the pier and activated Faint Presence. The few dock workers and passengers coming up or down the piers seemed to take less notice of her, as a Skill pushed their attention away from her whenever their eyes landed on her small frame. Ash, mouth dry, hoped there wouldn¡¯t be anyone who could see her through her meager ability. She had just made it to E-Rank, and she knew she was still a nobody compared to the real powers of this world. Up ahead, the Jewel of the Seas was docked, ready to carry travelers, and most importantly alchemical and enchanted merchandise back toward the home Ash had been smuggled out of a year ago. The Jewel was a massive brigantine with white and golden sails. Pristine, even though it was said to be dozens of years old, and it would have hundreds¨Cif not a thousand or two¨Cof travelers and deckhands aboard. It would be easy enough to blend in, if she climbed on. But Ash didn¡¯t care about that ship. No, she eyed the smaller, less imposing red and black xebec. The ship that¡¯d been hired to escort the Jewel through the monster and merfolk infested waters of Serpent¡¯s Bay, captained by one of the few humans who could stand up to those monsters. From below the sea or above it. One of the Great Privateers. Captain Velistraine. Krakenbane. Ash got as close as she could. Then, when she was sure no one nearby was paying too much attention to her, she disappeared between the boxes of provisions and slowly climbed down to the water. Quietly, she breaststroked her way around the xebec until she got to a spot that wouldn¡¯t be visible from land. There, she used Spider Climb to slowly make her way up the dark hull. Water rained down below her, and her hood fell backward to reveal a buzzed head, which she quickly covered up again. High above, Seavaria hung in the day sky, resting atop the five Pillars. Once Ash reached the top¨Cand made sure no one was around¨Cshe nimbly jumped on to the deck and crouched. Ash stood still for a second, awestruck at where she was, then remembered her situation. A quick check on her back told her both her notebook and stolen Skill-potion were safe in a tightly wrapped waxed paper, and both were wrapped again with treated leather. Plus, the potion was still in its own enchanted bottle, so it should be safe. ¡°I need to find a spot below deck. Then I can beg for a spot once we¡¯re far out from land.¡± Ash glanced around, and her eyes landed on the stairs leading below deck. She¡¯d taken a total of five careful steps when something slammed behind her, ruffling her hood against her face. Ash¡¯s heart sank. Her throat went dry and she suddenly wished she¡¯d had her wand out. Instead, it was back in its sewn-in holster. Too far from her hand. She knew who she was about to see when she looked back. As she slowly turned, she wondered if screaming would alert any of the crew¨Cif they were around¨Cto come help her. That is, before they threw her back out on her ass on the docks, where the gang she¡¯d infiltrated and stolen from would come pick her up. A young, short man was behind her, hands behind his back. He wore a cowl that he pushed down to reveal a lean face squared by greasy hair. The man was frowning at the deck, and Ash took a step back. She¡¯d bet that he didn¡¯t like how the wood didn¡¯t seem to register his impact, and Geric would take that frustration out on her. He loved to make an impact whenever he landed from his powered jumps, especially when that jump broke a few things to herald his presence. Flooring. Roofs. Spines. Ash had seen and heard too many unpleasant things about this man. He was relatively new in the gang, so it seemed like he went out of his way to establish a reputation. And him being here? He was going to make an example out of her. After all, she¡¯d stolen the most valuable item the gang had seen in months. The young man looked up, and gave her a cold, cruel smile as he put his hand on his dagger. ¡°You didn¡¯t think you were going to get away with this, right?¡± [Rogue (E) - Lvl ??] Ash swallowed and backed away. Her mind scrambled for a plan¨Cor anything¨Cthat would allow her to lose this jackass and hide in the ship. But whichever way she looked at the situation, she saw no exit. She only saw herself being dragged back to stand before the gang leaders, where most probably she¡¯d be executed. If not worse. ¡°I have to admit. You did your homework. You got the timing right. Waiting for us to be out on a job to do yours? Not bad. Not bad at all. But there¡¯s something you''re forgetting, rat, is that we own you. You¡¯re one of us, and you don¡¯t get to leave without paying your dues.¡± He took a step forward and pulled a dagger out. It shone green in the clear daylight; poisoned, most probably, but that wasn¡¯t worrisome. Ash had Toxin Resistance. But what she didn¡¯t have was Stabbing Resistance. If that was a thing. If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. ¡°Nothing? You¡¯re not gonna beg? Oh wait¨Cyou¡¯re mute, aren¡¯t you? You¡¯re the one who writes stuff up, right? Riiight. I guess I can¡¯t gut your right here, huh. The boss will probably have questions for you.¡± Geric put the dagger back in its sheath, and before Ash could react he flashed forward and sunk a fist in her diaphragm. Ash sank to her knees. She tried to breathe, but air refused to enter her lungs. Her eyes watered as she retched and struggled to inhale, but when she felt the satchel being pulled from her hand, she gripped at it fiercely, with all her strength. The pull loosened for a moment before something hit her in the face. Next thing she knew, she was on the ground. Ash struggled to make sense of the world around her for a moment. The satchel was ripped out of her hands, but she couldn¡¯t do anything about it. She tasted blood. Her hands reached for her wand, but they found nothing. ¡°Nice wand. You won¡¯t be needing it anymore.¡± She heard him rifle through her possessions, but she could only try and get her breath back. By the time she managed that, it was too late. ¡°There it is. The big prize.¡± The orange vial was in his hand. It had the familiar glow that high-magic potions usually displayed, along with the two Cores that Ash had saved up. She had intended to use them as currency and exchange them for coins wherever she ended up going, but now they were secure in the man¡¯s grip. The rogue threw the bag¨Calong with the notebook¨Cwhich went flying up the cabin deck, and focused on the potion. Greed shone in Geric¡¯s eyes, and Ash knew he must be thinking about drinking it himself. The man¡¯s eyes swiveled down to her. ¡°I could just gut you and say you drank it, I guess. The alchemist could try getting the Trait back out, but they often fail anyway. Which one is this again¡­¡± Geric peered at the vial, then squinted. ¡°Cha¨CChameleon. Drake. Chameleon Drake.¡± Geric put the vial in his pocket, then grinned down at Ash. ¡°Thanks to you, I¡¯ll be getting myself a Treasure Skill. So I¡¯ll make this quick.¡± The man pulled his dagger again, and Ash grinned with bloodied teeth. She glared up at the enforcer and even though she considered calling for help, she wouldn¡¯t give the man the satisfaction. Ash had been ready for death since the day her family was taken from her. Since the day she found herself in the streets and had to join a gang or starve, alone in an alleyway. She wouldn¡¯t scream in her last second, but she could plant doubt in the man¡¯s mind. Give him a taste of paranoia. She spat at the rogue¡¯s feet then bared her teeth. ¡°I already drank it. That¡¯s just poison.¡± ¡°Oh? You speak?¡± He grinned wider, and wound up to kick her in her guts. ¡°And that¡¯s no boy¡¯s voice. Now isn¡¯t this¨C¡± His leg came down and suddenly, it slowed. As if it had hit a cube of jelly and couldn¡¯t sink deeper. Above them, a voice filled the air, loud and clear. ¡°That¡¯s enough of that.¡± It sounded like a decree from the heavens themselves. Ash looked up. From the quarterdeck, a red-haired woman was coming down. She wore dark leather and a wide tricorn hat. A bone-white cutlass was at her hip, along with at least three wands. Ash recalled her tutor¡¯s lesson about enchanted materials. Bone was a better conductor for mana, her teacher had said. A more efficient weapon for spellblades. The challenge was finding bones that could rival steel. Such bones could only be harvested from exceedingly dangerous monsters. D-Rank and above. The red-haired woman had Ash¡¯s notebook in her hand. She smiled at the illustrations and notes as she paged through it, to Ash¡¯s embarrassment. It had taken Ash years to collect its contents. The known monsters that roamed the world. Their abilities. Where they could be found. Ash didn¡¯t need to use Identify to know who this was. She felt the air grow heavy as the captain approached, and from this angle she could see how Geric¡¯s features had gone taut. He was sweating. Trembling. Even the whites of his eyes were showing. She couldn¡¯t help but grin. She wished she could take a mage-picture and spread it on the street. The terror of the Claw Syndicate. Their newest enforcer. About to piss himself. To his credit though, he still had the guts to speak. ¡°Captain. Apologies. This one¡¯s part of my crew, and she stole from us. She got on this ship, and I pursued. I¡¯ll take her off your hands in a moment.¡± Geric tried to lean forward to pick Ash up, but he struggled to move. ¡°Stay right there, friend,¡± said the woman. Her voice was calm. Almost friendly. Her clear brown eyes¨CAsh almost thought she saw red for a moment¨Clooked down at her and narrowed. She strolled up, plunged a hand into Geric¡¯s pocket, while her other hand pointed at the discarded satchel. The bag flew toward her hand, and Captain Velistraine placed the vial back within, along with the notebook. Then she helped Ash up, gave her the satchel back, and told her to wait. Ash hugged her satchel and stayed quiet, eyes wide. Geric spoke between gritted teeth, eyes on the satchel. ¡°That is our property, Captain. You¡¯ll make enemies of the Syndicate.¡± Velistraine took a step back, as if struck, and howls resounded from above. Ash looked up to see at least a dozen sailors watching. One of them¨Ca giant of a man carrying a bone-tipped spear¨Cshouted down, ¡°He got you there, capt¡¯n.¡± Velistraine dropped into a squat in front of Geric. He was still frozen in an awkward stance, leaning over the spot where Ash had been. This time, her eyes shone red. ¡°Do I look like I care about what some pissants think? Syndicate? I could go down there and wipe all of you out before my dinner gets cold. I don¡¯t, because little gangs like you are pests. Like cockroaches. I could stomp all of you, and two weeks later, you¡¯d be right back. Well. Not you, specifically. You¡¯d be dead. But another cockroach would take your place, and it¡¯d be as much of a pain in my ass as you are.¡± She picked the enforcer up by the collar, and the man¡¯s feet left the deck. ¡°Next time one of you gets on my ship, I¡¯m feeding both halves of you to the shark and I¡¯m using your leaders as chum. Let them know I said that. Got it?¡± Geric seemed ready to protest, but Velistraine cut him off. ¡°Alright. Get off my ship.¡± She wound back, then threw. Ash¨Cjaw hanging¨Csaw the man be chucked like a common fruit for at least a hundred feet before he hit the surf. The crew roared with laughter, then most went back to their business aside from one middle-aged man wearing glasses. He stayed up there, and watched as Velistraine turned her attention back to Ash. The Great Privateer smiled at Ash, who¡¯s insides began to knot. ¡°So. What brings you onboard my ship?¡± [Human (?) - Lvl ??] It took Ash a couple of tries to get the words out. ¡°I want to see the Pillars. I want to get stronger.¡± And I want to avenge my family, she thought, but she kept that part to herself. Velistraine hummed, then shrugged. ¡°Alright. We¡¯ll see how you do until the next island. You¡¯ll have to work hard.¡± ¡°Captain, we already have one stow-away. The extra cost is coming out of your shares.¡± Velistraine cursed under her breath, and Ash didn¡¯t dare move. That¡¯s it? They accepted her? ¡°What¡¯s your name by the way? Ash? Listen, Ash, if you ever get your own ship, don¡¯t let your crew get chummy with you. Or they¡¯ll become insubordinate little shits who talk back when they¡¯re supposed to¨Che¡¯s gone. He ignored me. That mother¨C¡± The captain took a deep breath, then her eyes went down to the satchel. Ash instinctively gripped on to it tighter. At that, Velistraine chuckled. ¡°No one¡¯s gonna take that from you. Not on my ship. We¡¯ve all been to the Pillars,¡± she said, grinning. ¡°All of us have Treasure skills.¡± Ash took in the meaning, and she couldn¡¯t help the grin that drew itself on her lips. Velistraine laughed and clapped her on the shoulder, then led her up the stairs. ¡°I¡¯ll show you to your room. In the meantime, which one did you get? If you¡¯re trying to get a few interesting abilities, you should be careful with the copying skill you commit to. You won¡¯t be able to switch to another, you know? We could find you a better one. If you stay with us, that is.¡± To be fair, Ash didn¡¯t have much of a choice. Treasure skills didn¡¯t come by often, so she picked up the first that came by. ¡°Chameleon drake. That¡¯s what I got.¡± Velistraine grimaced. ¡°Nasty buggers, those. But the ability isn''t bad. They copy body enhancements, I believe? Makes for great close-range fighters. Though I guess it depends on what you want to be. A fighter. Mage. Enchanter, alchemist, sailor, scout, the list goes on. But you know what, hold off on drinking that. You should talk to the crew a bit and figure out the direction you want to go in, because the number of Skills and Traits doesn¡¯t matter. What matters is who you want to be. You¡¯re still young and you¡¯ve got time, but don¡¯t let the legends fool you. Treasure skills aren¡¯t all that. That¡¯s not where power is. Anyway, let¡¯s get some food.¡± Ash followed in the captain¡¯s footsteps. She¡¯d heard many things about Captain Velistraine. Serpent¡¯s End. Conqueror of Herava¡¯s dungeon. Defender of the Reach¨Ca title she¡¯d earned along with a few others while holding off hoards of jungle and sea monsters as the city walls were being built and enchanted. What stumped Ash was how normal of a person the captain seemed. And she wouldn¡¯t stop ranting about her crew. ¡°Ah, this is our first stow-away.¡± ¡°Captain,¡± said the young man as he bowed. He was wearing clean sailor clothing. His hair was cut short, but that wasn¡¯t enough to make him unrecognizable. Ash looked up at Captain Velistraine. ¡°That¡¯s the governor¡¯s son.¡± The young man paled, but the captain only shrugged. ¡°Eh. He wanted to see the world. Just like you do. Who am I to say no?¡± Ash tilted her head. ¡°You¡¯re the captain. You¡¯re the one person who can say no.¡± A loud ¡°hah¡± made all three of them look up, but no one was there. The captain tsked and shook her head. ¡°I had high hopes for you, Ash, but I guess my crew already rubbed off on you.¡± Ash paled and spluttered, but before she could apologize, Velistraine burst out laughing. ¡°Ah, you should see your face¡­ But anyway, the boy wants to see the world. He¡¯s a free man. We¡¯re all free,¡± she said, hands on her hips as she watched the open sea that stretched ahead. But Ash knew the politics of the Dominion too well. ¡°Wouldn¡¯t that cause a problem with the governor? Wouldn''t they think you kidnapped his son and come after you?¡± Ash knew she should keep her worries to herself, but she couldn¡¯t help but ask. It was as if the year of imposed silence¨Clest her identity be known¨Cmade it so she couldn¡¯t stop talking when she knew she should. ¡°Old Frederic?¡± Velistraine grinned. ¡°Let him.¡± She turned to the boy, and nodded to Ash. ¡°You two will have to work together. Show her her room, then come and eat. Savros made lunch and he¡¯ll get mad at you if you skip meals.¡± And with that, she hopped down¨Cnot taking the stairs this time¨Cand another hop landed her on the docks. Ash watched, mouth still open. ¡°I¡¯m Fabian, by the way.¡± Ash turned slowly toward the governor¡¯s son, and nodded dumbly. Then she realized she might have outed his identity and her cheeks colored. She didn¡¯t like the nobility in general, but this man was going to be a comrade of sorts. And he hadn¡¯t done anything to deserve her hostility. They were all hoping for a new chance. So Ash forced the word out. ¡°Sorry.¡± Fabian smiled. ¡°No problem! And don¡¯t worry about it. It took me hours to recover from meeting the captain. She wasn¡¯t at all what I''d been expecting.¡± Ash could only nod at that. Then she followed the young man to see her cabin. She was going to have her own room. For the first time in almost a year. And she might not even need to block or trap the door. Ash exhaled. She wrapped her hands around her satchel, and hoped this wasn¡¯t a dream. 1.44: Practice ¡°[You have six? I only got three!]¡± A boy¨Caround thirteen or so¨Ccrossed his arms in irritation. Multicolored cord-like hair hung around a neutral expression as he stood on top of the rocky seabed. ¡°[Your skin¡¯s too red. For a human, I mean. It looks like you¡¯ve stayed in the sun way too long and got a severe sunburn. Also, your facial expression doesn¡¯t match the emotion. Here¡¯s what that would look like.]¡± The crab looked at the human-Henry¡¯s demonstration, then focused back on his own projected illusion. Human-Maurice¡¯s red color lightened and his frown deepened, while the edge of his mouth curled down a bit further than what was naturally possible. The crab turned to him. ¡°[Better?]¡± It wasn¡¯t perfect, but it was moving in the right direction. Human-Henry gave back a thumbs up and a smile in response. Maurice¡¯s illusion smiled back, then pointed at Henry. ¡°[Good. So how did you end up having so many Aspects?]¡± Henry¡¯s image shrugged. ¡°[I¡¯ve got no idea how these things work out. I just knew I was about to get four Aspects, and then I was offered to use my Evolutionary points to get two more. It also took back a bunch of Trait and Skill slots from my class. Maybe that¡¯s another reason why I ended up with more Aspects.]¡± Human-Maurice stared back blankly at Henry¡¯s illusion. ¡°[Oh¡­ Those are the points you get for doing dangerous things, right? Maybe I didn¡¯t have a lot of those. Yeah. That would explain it.]¡± Henry eyed Maurice¡¯s illusion and noticed how the crab struggled to keep track of both his own body and his illusion¡¯s expressions. Something he hadn¡¯t been struggling with at all, thanks to the Octominds. He¡¯d been trying to push their limits since the day began, and so far, he¡¯d easily rank them in the top five of his best abilities. Maybe top two, even. Magic Mimic was hard to beat, but everything else? The Octominds were better, just from the sheer utility and improved cognition they provided. Currently, Henry was considering the stat points he could purchase. He had quite a few points costing D-Tokens, which was a denomination he could easily acquire thanks to his new powerup. At the same time, he kept his human illusion synced to his mood¨Cwhen he got uneasy at seeing his image and felt his sense of self clash with who he was now, he shoved the unease deep down and focused on something else. All the while, he was still paying attention to Maurice and his surroundings. With all that, he didn¡¯t feel overwhelmed. Stimulated, sure. But not overloaded. It was an interesting ability, and he was still exploring its limitations. The Octominds allowed him to keep any task he¡¯d started going¨Clike he¡¯d done with healing and keeping Maurice safe in the fight against the Goliath. He could also empower his own focus and concentration on specific tasks, but he couldn¡¯t order the Octominds to start something by themselves. They weren¡¯t fully independent. The limb that¡¯d carried Maurice had kept functioning because a tiny part of Henry¡¯s mind had been connected to that process. Same for keeping Arcane Regeneration active as he fought the Goliath. Although for that specific case, he might not always be able to rely on it. The night prior, right before going to sleep, Henry had gripped a small rock and lifted it, then ordered the Octominds to not let it fall. When he¡¯d woken up, his arm had been empty, and the rock was a few feet away. Which meant that if he was knocked out for longer than a few seconds, Arcane Regeneration would stop working. ¡°I do hope they get better as the Skill upgrades. And just by paying attention to it and testing it out, it¡¯s gained another level since yesterday. Which means I should be able to come up with some exercises to push it further. Speaking of¡­¡± Yesterday¡¯s fight had unlocked a few upgrades in the Aspect Workshop. Both Assistance of the Octomind and Arcane Regeneration were possible upgrades, but they were a bit expensive. The upgrade cost 100 D-Tokens each and would unlock the E-Rank ability and unfortunately, their morning hunt hadn¡¯t been enough to cover even one upgrade just yet. ¡°We need to find something stronger than random sharks.¡± The ants they¡¯d seen from afar weren¡¯t strong enough. The few specimens they¡¯d seen were only high E-Rank, which wasn¡¯t much better than the seals. But maybe they¡¯d have stronger specimens deep within their hives? Henry and Maurice hadn¡¯t tried poking their nest, but it might be worth the try. As for krakens, they hadn¡¯t shown up since the Goliath''s death. Maurice had sensed the clone once or twice, but it kept away. A high-level D-Rank kraken or two would have been welcome. Their cores would let him pay for one of the upgrades. ¡°Well. We just started looking for something to fight,¡± thought Henry. Turning his attention inward, he felt the odd soreness that still permeated his whole being and sighed. ¡°I probably need to take it easy for a day or two.¡± The author''s tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. He was still sore. Not physically. No, it was something deeper. He wasn¡¯t used to feeling his ¡°soul¡±¨Cif that was the right term¨Cbut ever since the evolution and that incredible pain he¡¯d been put through, it felt as if some new sense had awoken. And what he was getting from it was plain old soreness. Like a gnawing ache. He assumed it was from the large amounts of mana he¡¯d been forced to channel from both his own reserves and the Goliath¡¯s, which was something he hadn¡¯t really done before. ¡°Which happened right after I had soul surgery. Or something like it.¡± Henry inhaled. At least his heavy investment in Constitution was paying off. With two arms, he picked up a couple of small boulders and began lifting them rhythmically. Then he ordered the two arms to coordinate and continue the exercise. The physical soreness was completely gone, as if it¡¯d never been around, and considering how powerful the C-Rank had been¡­ Well. Good thing Constitution was his highest stat, and good thing he¡¯d gotten a few Aspect levels from the last fight. He would be needing a lot more before taking on the Trickster. ¡°Bite¨Cno, Hunger of the Trickster is getting close to level 10. Misdirection¡¯s at 6. Those two should be my focus. Not sure how Bite would evolve, or if it would get something new, but if I get Misdirection and Inkjet to the next rank, I might get clones capable of using Skills. Just like the ones who¡¯ve been stalking us. And if I get that¡­ I could weaponize them. Have them all use venom. Or mana draining. Or track a lionfish and learn its self-destruct skill. I dismissed that ability a while back, but in this scenario¡­ it¡¯d be perfect.¡± They just needed time. A few days to consolidate their Skills and get better at using them. The power gap between D-Rank and C-Rank was a lot wider than he expected. As an E-Rank, he¡¯d struggled to beat the D-Rank serpent, but even though it had been close and risky, it hadn¡¯t felt as difficult. But if the encounters had been swapped? He¡¯d be dead. He wouldn¡¯t have had a shot if it¡¯d been a C-Rank serpent. The venom would have punched right through his resistances and, for that reason, Henry didn¡¯t feel ready to take on the C-Rank Trickster¨Cif that was its rank. But he could prepare. Stack the deck in their favor. ¡°We should have time. Before it finishes taking care of its eggs.¡± Though eventually, it would finish guarding them, and it would venture out. Regular octopuses from his old world died after taking care of the progeny, but Henry doubted a kraken would have the same weakness. And Maurice did sense the clones. It was still watching them. ¡°One thing at a time.¡± Henry was considering summoning another illusion to push both Summon Illusions and Octominds further when Maurice¡¯s illusion dissolved into motes. Maurice retreated a bit into his shell and a piece of kraken meat appeared in front of him. With his pincer, he brought it to his mouth and started munching. His eyes seemed to droop lower. ¡°[It¡¯s tough to keep it going.]¡± Henry eyed his own illusion, then his stats. He was still comfortably above 70% mana-wise. With all of his upgrades and his newly assigned points¨Call six of which went into Spirit¨Chis mana well has never been deeper. At 39 points, it was on the cusp of a breakthrough. Henry just needed a level and it would hit 40. Though Dexterity was still lagging, but he planned on remedying that soon. ¡°[Take a break. I¡¯ll keep watch.]¡± Maurice looked up at Henry¡¯s illusion for a moment. ¡°[I wish I could have gotten the Octominds ability. It sounds amazing.]¡± Human-Henry leaned down and patted the crab. ¡°[It is. But maybe you¡¯ll have your own version of that soon. Or maybe we¡¯ll meet something that can do something similar. My Octominds seem to be tied to physiological elements in my body¨Cwhich is probably why it wouldn¡¯t transfer. But maybe we can look into a way for you to create nerve centers in your arms with your own shapeshifting Skill? Maybe then the Octomind would transfer. Or at least, it would have a way to adapt.]¡± Maurice seemed to think for a moment, then he stored his meal and rubbed his pincers together, as if to clean them. ¡°[What¡¯s a nerve center? Wait¡­ are you busy? I can wait if you¡¯re busy.]¡± Henry¡¯s thoughts ground to a halt, and everything was still for a moment, aside from the two arms rhythmically lifting their rocks. His illusion raised an eyebrow at the crab. ¡°[Are you okay?]¡± ¡°[Yes. Well, I used up most of my mana, so I¡¯m a bit tired. Why do you ask?]¡± He eyed Maurice for a second before responding. ¡°[Ah¡­ just checking. Tell you what, take a break. Recover your mana and then I¡¯ll explain nerve centers and brains as much as I can, then we can do some trials. How¡¯s that sound?]¡± A wave of gratefulness mixed with fatigue and muted curiosity reached Henry, and Maurice thanked him right before he slunk back in his shell. ¡°I guess he must¡¯ve been really tired.¡± Looking down at his own illusion, he dismissed it and found himself sitting quietly on the rocky seabed. A few small fish swam by and nibbled on the flecks of meat left from Maurice¡¯s snacking. How long will it take for them to be ready to take on the Trickster? What comes after? What would the next threat be? ¡°Will I ever be able to find people? Would I even be able to approach them?¡± He knew the answer to that. And seeing who he used to be through Summon Illusion wasn¡¯t helping. ¡°Is this what I am now? A monster?¡± Henry stopped himself. Those were questions he didn¡¯t need to dwell on just yet. So, with the help of the Octomind, he pushed them away and turned his full attention back to his training plan. ¡°Get better at using my abilities. Level them. Max my stat points.¡± That was a realistic goal. An actionable goal. ¡°After that, deal with the Trickster. Then move on from this area.¡± Henry nodded to himself. He just needed to focus on the present. Work on the things he could control. ¡°Speaking of. I should prepare something for Maurice. A presentation. And this might be the best one I¡¯ll ever give, considering what I should be able to do with illusions. Too bad I don¡¯t have any internet¡­¡± Now, what did he know about the nervous system of crabs? 1.45: Progress Maurice stared down at his limp pincer. ¡°[It¡¯s not working. It feels¡­ I don¡¯t know. But at least it¡¯s not shaking? It looks normal. No deformities or weird growths.]¡± The crab sighed, then severed his modified pincer with his intact one. Henry picked up the severed limb and eyed it for a second before slowly cutting through the exoskeleton. ¡°[I can¡¯t really tell, and this isn¡¯t worth much, but the innards don¡¯t look malformed. I¡¯m sure you¡¯ll figure something out soon.]¡± Creating functional organs was a significantly tougher challenge than either of them had expected. Henry himself was still struggling with his articulated arm project, so seeing a stumped Maurice wasn¡¯t at all surprising. Brains were extremely complex, no matter how simple or small. ¡°[I¡¯m sure it¡¯s possible. I remember you creating a small tentacle on your arm when you got the Skill.]¡± The human-illusion of Maurice shrugged. ¡°[I can still do that. But it¡¯s not functional. I mean it moves, but I can¡¯t control it. It was just the Skill taking over.]¡± Henry knew exactly what the crab meant. The Skill acted like some sort of artificial intelligence that took their instructions and created whatever they pictured. But integrating a new creation with their own nervous system and have it be stable? Functional? Permanent? Much more difficult. Henry had barely managed to create a simple working hinge-joint in one of his arms in the past five days. Sure, they weren¡¯t doing this non-stop, but progress had been slow. Henry¡¯s illusion¨Ca woman wearing a lab coat and tortoise-patterned round glasses¨Cfrowned as she leaned over the limb he¡¯d just modified. ¡°[It¡¯ll be a while for me to get wings.]¡± Henry was using the image of one of his old professors. He told himself it was better for Maurice to learn from different faces, but to be honest it was better than looking at the person he wasn¡¯t anymore. He knew that was an issue he¡¯d have to face and deal with eventually, but it could probably wait. ¡°[Wings will be hard to recreate,]¡± groaned Maurice, but Henry still felt the resolve and excitement under the thick layer of annoyance. The crab had been fascinated by the idea of shapeshifting functional organs and limbs at first. Henry had shown him all sorts of configurations; feathered wings, membrane wings, even insectile wings. But once they started working on these long-term physiological changes they¡¯d hit a wall pretty darn fast, and the frustration was getting to the crab. ¡°[I think I¡¯m close. I can feel it,]¡± said Maurice, eying his discarded limb before looking down at his re-growing stump. They both silently ate from the Stoneskin kraken they¡¯d freshly killed and considered their recent progress. Five days of hunting had netted Henry quite a few improvements. He¡¯d pushed himself to level 20, which in turn raised his Spirit stats to a new threshold. Both Octominds and Arcana leveled up due to his heavy use of illusions¨Cwhich unlocked the E-Rank upgrade of the latter. He¡¯d also acquired the abilities he had in his Ephemerals from the C-Rank Goliath and as of an hour ago, he had enough to unlock his final Skill upgrade, which he quickly did before settling down for their daily shapeshift training session. Henry eyed the joint on his frontal arm. Such a simple joint wasn¡¯t very useful, but it was a step in the right direction. Joints meant a way to exercise his strength. Leverage. Tentacles could grip and latch on, but they couldn¡¯t constrict that well. For the longest time he¡¯d relied on Tentacle Whip¨Cwhich was stronger now thanks to the Goliath¡¯s abilities¨Cbut he knew he wasn¡¯t tapping into all of his strength. His weakness at this moment was a lack of joints, and that weakness extended to Arcane Arm. Henry had tried to change the shape of the magic limb, but he could only make it copy his current arms. Although, he could make it take the shape of a shapeshifted one. So basically, the Skill imitated what was present. ¡°Another limitation that¡¯ll hopefully go away once the ability evolves.¡± Speaking of capabilities, Henry loaded up his recent level notifications along with his newly leveled and unlocked abilities. Hunger of the Trickster (E): Level 8 -> Level 9 Arms of the Trickster (E): Level 3 -> Level 5 Misdirection of the Trickster (E): Level 6 -> Level 7 Arcana of the Trickster (E): Level 4 -> Level 5 The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation. Vitality of the Trickster (E): Level 3 -> Level 4 Domain (F): Level 4 -> Level 5 Dispelling Bubble (F): Level 4 -> Level 6 Unimpeded Arms (F): Level 1 -> Level 4 Amplified Impact (F): Level 1 -> Level 3 Arms of the Trickster (E) - Level 5: ¡­ Arcana of the Trickster (E) - Level 5: ¡­ Vitality of the Trickster (E) - Level 4: ¡­ Class: Krakenbane Wanderer (D) - Level 21 Skills (6/8): Imploding Bubbles (F) - Level 1: Shoot a beam of bubbles that implode on impact. Domain (F) - Level 5: Trigger an ability that requires touch within a nearby area. Area grows with levels. Molten Projectile (F) - Level 1: Shoot a lump of molten-hot material. Dispelling Bubble (F) - Level 6: Summon a bubble that disrupts Skills in your vicinity. Unimpeded Arms (F) - Level 4: Channel mana into your arms to suppress environmental friction. Amplified Impact (F) - Level 3: Channel mana into a limb to release on impact, significantly increasing the offensive capability of an attack. Even his class Skills had leveled. He hadn¡¯t put a lot of focus on them, but he¡¯d still ended up using Dispelling Bubble and Domain a few times. Considering their low rank, it wasn¡¯t difficult to level them. Henry found that Domain worked extremely well with Bite¡¯s temporary charges, for example. For other options¡­ He was still exploring them. He knew there would be great applications, such as Maurice¡¯s imploding attacks, which were an upgrade of Imploding Bubbles. The Skill was a cornerstone for one of Maurice¡¯s Aspects, which meant it was stronger and more versatile in the crab¡¯s claws. He only wished he could level his Aspects as easily as his class Skills. The two he needed to get higher barely moved, but at least Arms of the Trickster kept progressing well, thanks to his heavy use of the Octominds. ¡°We just need something powerful to fight. An encounter where I can let loose with the Ink Clones and actually make use of them.¡± Henry turned to Maurice, who seemed to be preparing for another try at shapeshifting a mini-brain into his pincers. ¡°[Maurice. Want to explore one of the caves we found?]¡± The crab looked up, and it took him barely half a second to detach from the deep focus he¡¯d been in. ¡°[Sure! The one near the jellyfish or the other one?]¡± They had found a couple of dark, deep caves where life seemed a bit sparse, which pointed toward the possibility of a large and dangerous predator living within. Henry had made note of them, saving them up for later, but now was a good time. ¡°[Let¡¯s start with the jellyfish. It might be a powerful Arcane kraken hiding in there.]¡± Mana-draining jellyfish. Their territory had been an hour or two to the west of the island, and it had been a surprisingly good hunting ground. The jellyfish themselves weren¡¯t a big deal¨Coutside of their painful, mana-stealing stings¨Cbut there were some large triggerfish over there. Even a couple low D-rank krakens. ¡°[Alright, let¡¯s go. We should spend some time there and try to train a resistance to mana-drain.]¡± Maurice groaned. ¡°[Yeah¡­ I guess you¡¯re right. It feels bad though. It makes me sleepy.]¡± ¡°[More reason why you should build a resistance to it.]¡± Henry picked up the crab and placed him on the usual spot, then launched himself up from the seabed. A quick activation of Unimpeded Arms and Slick Coat made him fly through the water. ¡°[Those two Skills seem close,]¡± said Maurice after a few moments. ¡°[Yeah. I bet I¡¯ll be able to merge them pretty easily on the next evolution. How¡¯s the progress with the levels?]¡± ¡°[Good. I¡¯m doing what you said. Buying Stat points. You¡¯re right, it feels like the better choice and I still have a bunch to buy.]¡± Henry nodded at that. ¡°[Same. I spent everything on unlocking the higher ranked Skills. Now I can invest in points. Hopefully whatever¡¯s in that cave is high D-rank. Or maybe low C-rank.]¡± That would certainly cover most¨Cif not all¨Cof the points he had available for purchase. ¡°[You think we¡¯re ready for C-rank?]¡± Henry produced an ¡°eh¡± sound with Summon Illusion¡¯s new upgrade, which made Maurice jump. ¡°[Sorry. That was me. Also yes, I think we can take one if it¡¯s in the same vein as the Goliath. If it¡¯s that simple. Otherwise¡­ it might not be worth the risk. Not yet.]¡± Maurice was quiet. Henry expected a comment about the sound-illusion, but the seconds stretched. From his Mind Weaver¡¯s Tongue, he felt shock. A constant hum of excitement and astonishment. Henry was about to speak when Maurice broke through. ¡°[Chimeric Assimilation just finished working on the turtle shell. I got two Skills.]¡± ¡°[Oh!]¡± Henry immediately landed on a large rock and looked up. ¡°[What are they?]¡± In response, Maurice detached from his head. The crab beat his pincers to gain some distance then turned to face Henry, and then¨C Maurice disappeared in a puff of purple light and immediately reappeared a few yards to the right. ¡°[It¡¯s called ¡®Blink¡¯! The second one is ¡®Find the Path¡¯.]¡± And with that, a world of possibilities opened up ahead of them. 1.46: The cave鈥檚 resident The multicolored shell popped out of a swirl of purple light, and a fraction of a second later Henry felt crab legs land on his arms. But only for a moment, before they disappeared again, just to pop on top of his head next. Then on a rock. Then back on Henry¡¯s head. ¡°[Please stop. You¡¯re going to be out of mana and we might be getting into a fight.]¡± Maurice had been using the ability non-stop for the last few minutes. And unlike Henry, he didn¡¯t use up a lot of mana for it. Which wasn¡¯t making him envious at all. The duo were resting a few minutes away from their targeted cave. This area was similar to the one Henry had woken up in a few weeks ago, with richly populated reefs and clear waters. The difference was, this area was pretty deep and most of the light wasn¡¯t coming from the sun, but from the countless glowing pink jellyfish floating above them. When Maurice had gotten the new abilities, they¡¯d come to a stop. The crab was about to start the transferring process when Henry¨Cfeeling a bit of guilt¨Csuggested they give shapeshifting training another try. That way, he could munch on the discarded limbs instead of a perfectly healthy pincer. He hoped it wouldn''t matter for the Skill transfer, and thankfully it didn¡¯t. The process still took four tries. Blink had immediately transferred. To Henry¡¯s chagrin, when he tried the Skill he burned through roughly 20% of his mana pool. A monstrous amount of mana. While it barely consumed 1% for Maurice. The lucky little gremlin. Henry assumed weight had something to do with it. As for the second ability, he¡¯d begun worrying it wouldn¡¯t work, but it transferred on the fourth try. Henry now had both. Two Skills that had once been in the arsenal of a world-hopping turtle. Blink (F) - Level 1: Teleport to a nearby location you can see. Find the Path (F) - Level 1: While focusing on a destination, activating this Skill has a chance to point you toward your desired destination. Chances of success increase with level, proficiency, and clarity of the destination. ¡°[I could never move this fast before! I¡¯m going to be unstopp¨Coh? It leveled again!]¡± Henry glowered at the crab, and as both a test and a mild expression of his annoyance, he clasped on the crab when he reappeared with Telekinesis. Maurice was caught in purple pink-hue. His limbs strained, trying to break through the restraints. ¡°[That¡­ won¡¯t¡­ work¨Cit worked. Let me go!]¡± Henry hummed. ¡°[Maybe it¡¯s because I¡¯m seeing you. Try using some ink?]¡± Maurice stopped trying to force himself out of the Skill and a wave of embarrassment began wafting off the crab. His eyes shifted down as he sheepishly examined one of his claws. ¡°[I¡­ kinda had to remove it. I didn¡¯t have slots anymore! For these? Plus, it¡¯s not great on me. So what if I can hide myself in ink? I couldn¡¯t swim away fast enough.]¡± Henry wasn¡¯t sure why the crab felt embarrassed. Slots were limited, and Henry never expected him to keep a copy of everything. Henry himself had discarded a Skill or two already. Still, he couldn¡¯t help but point out the hole in Maurice¡¯s argument as he let go of the crab, letting him fall to the seabed. ¡°[Maybe not in the past. But now you could move fast enough to make use of it. You could pop in and out of ink clouds. You could be a nightmare for whatever we¡¯re fighting.]¡± Henry and the crab stared at each other for a moment before the crab covered his face with a pincer.
Henry and Maurice came to a stop above the cave entrance and looked down. It was a wide entrance with a smoothed lip. Big enough for Henry¨Cwho was at least 30 feet long from head to tip¨Cto comfortably swim in without triggering his claustrophobia too badly. It was both alarming and exciting. Something seemed to live here. Henry tried to feel for it with his telepathy but he only felt static. There could be something, but it was either hiding deep enough to be out of range, or it wasn¡¯t feeling anything particularly powerful for him to pick up on. ¡°[Sense anything?]¡± he asked Maurice. ¡°[Yes. There¡¯s something in there. It¡¯s sleeping. I think.]¡± ¡°[Is it far?]¡± ¡°[Nope.]¡± Henry looked down at the crab, raised an arm, then nodded toward the cave. ¡°[Want to go down there and take a peek?]¡± Maurice slowly looked up. ¡°[Why don¡¯t you be bait this time?]¡± Henry chuckled and began activating his defensive Skills in preparation. ¡°[I¡¯m joking. Come on, let¡¯s get to work.]¡± Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road. The crab grumbled as he anchored himself to Henry¡¯s extended arm. ¡°[What is it called when someone makes fun of you but only they are finding it funny?]¡± ¡°[Teasing. Taunting. Ribbing,]¡± Henry listed as he touched the seabed. In front of them, their shadows stretched toward the darkness and melded with it. Maurice looked up at him, and Henry was sure, if the crab¡¯s human-form was here, it would be narrowing its eyes at him. ¡°[Sounds like a scam.]¡± Henry leaned backward, preparing to send a Molten Projectile to wake whatever was in there when Maurice spoke. ¡°[It¡¯s waking up. It sees us. It¡¯s comi¨C]¡± Out of the pitch darkness came the sharp teeth. Then purple skin and elongated body. It took Henry only a moment to recognize the shape, though its size was extremely unexpected. [Mesmer Eel (C) - Lvl ?] A familiar hue surrounded Henry, matching the glow of the eel¡¯s four eyes. Henry¡¯s limbs immediately locked up, and no matter how much he tried to force his way out, he couldn¡¯t. The eel¡¯s Telekinesis was like nothing he¡¯d experienced so far, and it made his heart flutter with excitement. The ability felt like a vice around him. His muscles wouldn¡¯t even twitch, as if the eel¡¯s ability completely and utterly blocked his brain¡¯s signals to his limbs. The eel loomed above him. Its head was almost as large as his own, and it might even match him in length. Four glowing eyes took him in, its jaw opening and closing as it approached. A most familiar scene, and this time, no ink was squirted¨Cintentionally or not. ¡°[Henry. What are we doing? I can¡¯t move. I can¡¯t do anything!]¡± Maurice¡¯s emotions were like an ever-roiling blob of excitement and worry, with neither ever gaining over the other. But Henry wasn¡¯t too worried. This was a being with somewhat known abilities and weaknesses. He felt good about this. But before giving the signal, he wanted to do a quick check. ¡°[Just a second, Maurice.]¡± Henry looked up at the eel and spoke in its mind. ¡°[Can you understand me? If yes, let us go.]¡± In response, the eel opened its jaw wide, and its second jaw poked out of its throat, ready to bite down and start dragging whatever it could down its gullets. That was an answer Henry could work with. ¡°[I¡¯ll dispel the Telekinesis then hide us in ink, then we rush it. I¡¯ve met these kinds of eels. A weaker version. But it shouldn¡¯t be too different.]¡± The eel approached, and Maurice tensed. Then Henry spoke to the crab. ¡°[Now!]¡± Henry activated Dispelling Bubble and centered it away from Maurice. The Skill pushed through the telekinetic grasp, but didn¡¯t break through. Another activation weakened it enough for Henry to regain control of his limbs, at which point he filled the space with ink. That immediately taught Henry about a difference this eel had from the one from his first days: this eel¡¯s abilities didn¡¯t need eye contact. A third Dispelling Bubble broke through the Skill, and Henry rushed forward. ¡°[Aim for the head and spine, Maurice. Its Telekinesis is really powerful, so I¡¯ll grab on. Hold on tight. It won¡¯t be happy.]¡± ¡°[Can it heal?]¡± Henry¡¯s first arm barely landed on the smooth, dark-purple skin when he felt his limbs lock again. He used another Dispelling Bubble, lowering his reserves even further, and began activating his suckers. ¡°[It shouldn¡¯t. But it might.]¡± Which was when he learned his second lesson: this eel could drain mana. Henry felt the precious resource begin seeping out of his suckers and arms, but it was too late to back away. They should be able to take this one down, even without mana. ¡°[It has mana draining! Dang it. We should have worked on those resistances more!]¡± Henry bit down and pumped the eel''s flank full of venom. It was tough, but not as tough as the kraken. Maurice brought down a large ghostly pincer and tried to snip through it, but the ghostly arm only shoved the eel for a moment before it began losing consistency. Instead, the crab activated his Domain and began summoning Imploding Bubbles on top of the eel¡¯s head, taking great care to aim as Henry¡¯s arm moved him away from the snapping jaws. ¡°[Maybe this will help us get it!]¡± A bubble formed against the eel¡¯s forehead for a moment, but right before the implosion, a purple barrier-like panel shone across the eel¡¯s skin. Once the churning water left by the implosion cleared¨Cthere was no damage. ¡°[Lots of tricks,]¡± said Henry as he dug deeper with his beak, delivering more venom all the while. ¡°[Seems like it can defend against Skills well, but not so well against physical attacks. Aside from the mana draining.]¡± The eel twisted and rolled with rage, trying to get a grip on Henry but thanks to his positioning and his defensive Skills, it couldn¡¯t latch on. Then, as it made another attempt to snap its jaw on one of Henry¡¯s limb and missed¨C Its pharyngeal jaw came out. Maurice was first to react. ¡°[Ugh. What¡¯s that¨C]¡± The fleshy, purple alien-looking thing shot toward Henry¡¯s limb, twisted and pulled, biting down. A jolt ran through Henry¡¯s body, and his eyes widened. His suckers relaxed. The strength he had been using to grab on and secure himself instantly dissolved, as if his muscles were made of hot air for a moment. He felt himself begin to slide off the back of the eel. Then Toxin Resistance kicked in. Strength flowed back into him, and he activated his suckers, with great pain. All of his body was tingling, like a limb that had had its blood flow restricted. The little gross jaw was pulling at his limb, dragging it down to the eel¡¯s gullet. When it stopped, Henry could swear he felt shock from the Eel. ¡°[You okay? You seem to have gotten¡­ Relaxed for a second. Too relaxed even. It looked nice. Beside the gross little mouth trying to eat you.]¡± Panic seemed to be settling over the eel, and it began trying to retreat deeper into its cave. Henry latched on with three tentacles to the walls of the cave. He could activate his suckers, and enough of them should anchor him well. He couldn¡¯t pull the eel, but he was sure it couldn¡¯t pull him off the wall or off its back, and there¡¯s no way it could cause his limbs to tear. In fact, he barely felt them stretch as the monster tried to get away from them. ¡°[Paralytic agent. Wait, no. More like a muscle relaxant. But Toxin Resistance blocked it from taking over. I¡¯m still tingling all over.]¡± It would be a nice venom to add to his arsenal. Along with anything else this predator might have. ¡°[Alright Maurice, let¡¯s get to work!]¡± Two large pincers appeared and slammed down on the eel¡¯s neck, and Henry activated Razor Tentacle. A moment later, blood surged out of the cave like smoke from a chimney. 1.47: Introspective meal Henry and Maurice swam out of the half-darkness and landed near the entrance of the cave. Henry let go of the carcass, and the Mesmer eel fell softly on the seabed, sending up a cloud of sand and blood as it came to a rest. ¡°[Its Telekinesis was so strong! Also, why did you tell me to wait? When the eel had us in its Telekinesis?]¡± Henry looked at the eel as he tried to recall the earlier parts of the encounter. His blood was still roaring in his veins and he was still coming off the rush of battle. After a quick second, he recalled his short sapience test. ¡°[I tried to see if it was intelligent. If it could speak and understand. But it doesn¡¯t look like it did. At least, I didn¡¯t feel any understanding from it, only that it was pissed and hungry.]¡± ¡°[Oh. Oooh. Got it. To see if it was a possible friend, right? Like me?]¡± Henry summoned a quick illusion¨Cbecause if they were resting, he might as well continue acclimatizing Maurice to facial expressions. This time, he used the image of Elijah, an old friend and colleague. The illusion nodded at Maurice¡¯s assessment. ¡°[If it had been friendly and intelligent, we would have left it alone.]¡± Maurice had already summoned his own persona. The crab cut a piece of the eel¡¯s flank and started munching. Then, his illusion¡¯s frown slowly deepened until it looked up inquisitively at Henry¡¯s illusion. ¡°[The Trickster can speak. Though I guess it¡¯s not friendly. What if something is friendly but it¡¯s not smart enough to understand us?]¡± Henry shifted uncomfortably and stopped reaching for a piece of eel as he considered his response. ¡°[The Trickster seems intelligent. In an odd sort of way¡­ but it¡¯s hostile. It tried to kill us multiple times. It feels more¡­ like a monster. A malicious one.]¡± It was the one that had opened the hostilities early on. At least one of its ambushes could have seriously endangered them. ¡°It tried to take Maurice. It wants to kill me. It started things, not me,¡± Henry told himself. Though the fact that it was an intelligent being bothered him. A monster. An intelligent one, but still a monster. Maurice hummed as he ate, and Henry¡¯s own words echoed in his mind. They felt empty. He looked down at the dead eel, and as he did, caught a peek of his own arms. A log-thick orange and blue-spotted limb unrolled itself as he took it in. ¡°[I¡¯m calling it a monster, but I guess we¡¯re technically all monsters. In a way.]¡± ¡°[Monsters,]¡± said Maurice, as if tasting the words. ¡°[It sounds cool. This is a monster too right? And those whales? Do you think we¡¯ll meet them again soon?]¡± That¡­ helped with the unease Henry was feeling. The whales had been stunning, in their intelligence and friendliness. Henry coiled his arms under himself. ¡°[I hope so. They were friendly. And they knew a lot.]¡± The Bahamut whales were no simple beasts. They were technically monsters as well. But Henry would never attack them. Unless he was forced to defend himself, of course, but even then he felt the whales would be reasonable enough to relent once his identity and intentions were clear. Still, something kept nagging in the back of his mind. What was so different between a hostile Trickster and everything else? Why was it bothering him? Why did Maurice¡¯s question unsettle him? As Henry turned over the question in his mind, he caught the tail end of what was bugging him. As he pulled on it and examined it, he exhaled. With one of his arms, Henry cut a bit off the eel and looked up. Maurice was slowly munching on the eel¡¯s meat, and both the crab and illusion were watching him. Waiting. Right. Telepathic crab. ¡°[It¡¯s not the best comparison, but what¡¯s bothering me is that the Trickster is sapient and hostile. That by itself is a problem, but the thing is, I¡¯m a Trickster kraken as well. Which makes me think, what if it had been a person? A human, from before? Back in my world, we grow up being taught how abhorrent and unacceptable it is to kill someone else, but I¡¯ve been focusing on the Trickster and its ambushes for so long I haven¡¯t thought of it as ¡®person¡¯.]¡± Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation. Henry was still getting his thoughts in order, and Maurice seemed to know that. So the crab kept munching quietly as Henry turned the piece of meat in his arms before putting it down. ¡°[When I woke up in this world, I was forced to defend myself and hunt to gain power. I didn¡¯t have a choice. Either I get stronger, or I¡¯ll end up as something else¡¯s meal. When I killed all those sharks, it was both for power, and for the fact that if I didn¡¯t kill them, they would kill me. I had to put myself out there and hunt. The alternative was hide and crawl, until something found me and gobbled me up.] ¡°[At some point though, I started looking for the fights. And that¡¯s fine. I still need strength to survive the ocean, and I¡¯d be lying if I said I didn¡¯t enjoy the challenge. When I come face to face with a being and its first reaction is to try to kill me, then I don¡¯t feel bad about killing it first. But in the case of the Trickster, it¡¯s not as simple anymore. It feels¡­ premeditated. It isn''t a savage beast that¡¯s attacking me just because I happened to be in front of it. It¡¯s holding a grudge. It¡¯s plotting. It spoke, and it hates me because I¡¯m different. It knows I¡¯m not one of its own. That I¡¯m not really an octopus, and so it wants to get rid of me. Which¨Cfunnily enough¨Cis a pretty human behavior.]¡± Henry looked up toward the surface. It wasn¡¯t visible from down here. When Maurice spoke up, Henry brought his attention back. ¡°[You said before that the people of this world could attack us, and that we¡¯ll need to be strong enough to defend ourselves. I think if we defend ourselves like we always do, some of them will die. What happens then?]¡± ¡°[I don¡¯t know,]¡± Henry lied, then shook his head. ¡°[I have¡­ some ideas. There¡¯s a lot I don¡¯t know, but what I do know is that I don¡¯t intend to lie down and die. That¡¯s for sure. I don¡¯t want to kill people. I don¡¯t think I¡¯m ready for such. But this might not be a world where I¡¯ll have a choice. Even back where I¡¯m from, such standards are not always upheld. There¡¯s always wars and genocides going on, and those ideals are barely a century or two old. I used to listen to podcasts¨Cthey¡¯re sort of recordings of people speaking about all kinds of subjects¨Cabout history and no century goes by without a handful of wars or a war crime or two. So¡­ I don¡¯t know. I feel like we¡¯ll need to be strong enough to defend ourselves. To survive. I don¡¯t think that¡¯s possible without bloodshed, but, I think, in the same vein as the Trickster, if something¡¯s coming at us, relentlessly, to kill us, then we have to fight back. Maybe give it a chance to stop. But if it doesn¡¯t¨Cif they don¡¯t¨Cthen we fight back.]¡± Henry stared grimly at the dead eel and pictured people with pitchforks. A sea of torches and a shouting throng of people with weapons. Guns? Magic? Who knew what this world had in store. But even though he felt he was being pessimistic, he recalled the whales warning him away from people. If this world¡¯s civilizations were accepting of intelligent monsters, the whales would have known about it. Or at least, they would have had more to say. ¡°Unless their warning was more informed than it seems.¡± Maurice stared at Henry for a few more seconds, then a large blue pincer appeared¨Cwhich Henry saw and didn¡¯t react to, thanks to the Octominds¨Cand bopped the kraken on the head. When Henry looked up, Maurice pointed simultaneously with a hand and a pincer at the eel. ¡°[This is really good. You should have some. It will help, I¡¯m sure.]¡± Henry sighed, then picked up a slice. The meat was soft and just melted once he started chewing. It reminded him of an order he¡¯d usually get the first weekend after his pay. ¡°[If we find civilization, and if they¡¯re not absolutely awful, you¡¯ll have to try grilled eels. With rice and sauce,]¡± said Henry. He let himself try the delicate flavors, the smokiness of charcoal and the sour and sweet taste of the eels. ¡°[Actually, I should cut a few morsels and save them. Especially now that Hunger¡¯s about to evolve and I¡¯m about to have a lot more storage space in Maw.]¡± ¡°[Oh, that sounds good. What¡¯s rice and sauce, by the way? And what¡¯s grilling?]¡± Henry decided to go with a demonstration instead of explaining every small detail. Plus, it would help him take his mind off things. ¡°[So, on land, we cook our food over fire. Fire¡¯s a source of heat¨Clike those Stoneskin krakens¨Cand when you put food on the fire, or on charcoals¨C]¡± Henry displayed a charcoal grill, with skewered eel filets glazed in sauce, smoking as they were turned over the glowing embers, ¡°[¨Cthe heat changes their texture and taste, and very often makes the food a lot tastier. Especially because you can add sauces and play with the textures of a lot of ingredients. Whereas this,]¡± added Henry as he picked up a piece of eel meat, ¡°[is good on its own, but it would be so much better with some extra preparation.]¡± ¡°[That looks nice. Also, the clone¡¯s nearby.]¡± Henry immediately tensed. He looked down at Maurice, but before he could speak the crab took the initiative. ¡°[Should we ask it to leave us alone? That way, if it doesn¡¯t stop, we can beat it up guilt-free!]¡± Henry sighed, and felt some tension leave his shoulders. He didn¡¯t forgive the Trickster. He was still pissed at the crap it tried to pull. But what if it didn¡¯t know any better? This way, at least, they could give it a chance at peace. And as Maurice said, if it spurned them or insisted, then they would have at least tried. 1.48: Peace talks Henry was quiet as he tried to detect the clone through his telepathic senses, but he couldn¡¯t pick up on it. Either it was too far, or he was still bad at sensing through the ability. ¡°[Where is it?]¡± This was a field in which Maurice shone. Maybe the crab had a trick of some sorts? In any case, it was a weakness Henry intended to work on, among a couple of other things. It was getting embarrassing how often he needed the crab to tell him if something was near or not. Henry didn¡¯t mind asking for help, but it was worrying how ¡®blind¡¯ he was with a skill that was supposed to help him detect nearby threats. From his perch on Henry¡¯s arm, Maurice pointed a claw backward. ¡°[Behind you and up. I don¡¯t see it, but it¡¯s not too far.]¡± Henry exhaled and shook the tension out of his arms. Recalling the pattern the Trickster kraken had used a while back¨Cbefore it had grown belligerent¨CHenry swam up and began changing his appearance with Mimicking Arms, turning to face the direction Maurice had pointed. His skin turned to a clear gray, and soft-blue lines began dancing through his length in a hypnotic fashion as he scanned the waters ahead. After a few moments, he thought he saw the clone¡¯s camouflage and the telltale fashion it seemed to distort the water around it. Henry next used his mana sight, but it didn¡¯t show him much aside from the luminescent blobs of jellyfish, and the lightened green-hued mana around. Unsure about his telepathy reaching his target, Henry decided to go with an auditory illusion. Mind Weaver¡¯s Tongue should make it understandable to the clone. ¡°[I know you¡¯re there. Let us discuss an end to the hostilities and part ways without further bloodshed,]¡± Henry said to the jelly-fish patterned vista ahead. ¡°That sounded so formal,¡± Henry told himself as he waited. ¡°[You talk weird,]¡± sent Maurice. Henry¡¯s eyes slowly slid to the right. Maurice had a handful of eels he was messily eating from. Then the crab froze mid-bite, and Henry looked up. The clone had shed its camouflage. It had its usual battle patterns. Yellow stripes on black. Its yellow eyes seemed to shine, brighter and more prominent than the surrounding jellyfish. Henry and the clone eyed each for a moment, and when the kraken kept its war-paint, he knew. If he hadn¡¯t guessed by that fact, the hostility he felt wafting off the clone would have given him his answer, along with the strident voice that reached him. ¡°[yOu. kiLLed¡­ maTe. yOungs. nO. peaCe. yOu, wiLL diE.]¡± With that, the kraken pumped its arms and shot away into the sea of jellyfish. A second later, it was gone from sight. Henry didn¡¯t feel that happy about that. He wouldn¡¯t have minded if each group went their way. But now that the kraken confirmed this was a feud to the death, Henry felt some guilt drop off of his shoulder. He didn¡¯t intend on dying, and he wasn¡¯t leaving his back wide open for the kraken to ambush or attack him at a critical time, but at least he gave it an honest chance. Plus, what was he supposed to do? Let the kraken¡¯s kid kill him? Let the Goliath¨Cif that was the mate¨Cbeat him and Maurice to death? It just seemed like whatever happened, the Trickster kraken was going to find an excuse for why he should die. Henry glanced sideways to Maurice. ¡°[Maybe it¡¯ll put on its invisibility and come back. Did you hear what it said?]¡± ¡°[Yes. That means we¡¯re getting its Core, right?]¡± Maurice bit into the meat, then wiped a bit of coagulated blood on Henry¡¯s arm. Henry gave the crab a disbelieving look before dropping him and wiping the blood away with another arm. ¡°[Peace talks have failed, I guess, so we should continue our preparations. And don¡¯t wipe your arms on other people. It¡¯s rude.]¡± Maurice scuttled his way back to the eel, and cut another piece before re-summoning his persona. ¡°[How will we hide what we look like when we meet people?]¡± Henry joined the crab and picked up a nice cut before biting into it. ¡°[Not sure. There are a few options, but nothing perfect. Option one: we get good enough with shapeshifting to unlock a full-body shift, then we take the forms of the locals. Option 2: we make ourselves small and invisible, and we learn to fly, then use an illusion to interact with people. This one¡¯s not great, because no one can touch an illusion. Option 3: We hide in the water, we find some fishers who want to make some money, and we get them to do things for us by using illusions. We could start collecting some cores to trade as well. I¡¯m almost sure they¡¯d be worth something, especially if not everyone¡¯s out there fighting and hunting monsters. Option 4: Something involving clones. This one is still a work in progress. You¡¯d have to work on the Skill until you get your own clones though.]¡± Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit. Maurice nodded enthusiastically. Then the illusion tilted its head at one of the latter parts. ¡°[What¡¯s money?] So Henry went on, explaining the concept of money and an overview of economics to a frighteningly captivated Maurice. Henry could almost see the dollar signs appear in the crab¡¯s eyes, and one singular thought was on the foreground when he finally was able to extricate himself from Maurice¡¯s barrage of questions. ¡°I hope I didn¡¯t just create a different kind of monster.¡±
Henry loaded his menu and visualized his changes from the last fight. He started with the upgrade for Hunger of the Trickster, and a prompt popped up and kneed him in the guts. ¡°[Holy crap that¡¯s expensive. A whole C-Token?!]¡± For a second Henry had thought he was going to afford all of his stat point purchases and even have enough for some upgrades. Instead he was about to be down half already, just with one upgrade. Henry sighed, then pulled the trigger and converted his Core fragment to tokens before accepting the prompt for the Aspect¡¯s upgrade. It wasn¡¯t as if he had much of a choice anyway. Greater Fragment of Mesmer eel (C) exchanged to 2.28 C-Tokens Instantly, sand and gravel roiled away from him, as if pushed by a shockwave. Light collected and began sinking into him, and Henry felt his innards vibrate for a few moments as the magic intensified for nearly half a minute before it finally stopped. Henry took a moment to enjoy the oddly pleasant feeling. He couldn¡¯t tell what it was exactly, but the only thing he could think of was putting on a piece of clothing that fit. Something that wasn¡¯t either too big or too small. Something that fits just right. Then he loaded his status and tsked. ¡°I still need to pay for the other abilities? At least Bite and Mimic were part of the upgrade¡­¡± Henry proceeded to pay for Bite and Maw of the Trickster, which cost a total of 200 D-Tokens, and the D-rank ability appeared after yet another transformative lightshow. Hunger of the Trickster (D) - Level 1: Bite of the Trickster: Maw of the Trickster (D): Store anything you can wrap your arms around in a private storage dimension. Total volume: 10 m3. Voracious Grip (D): Apply Bite of the Trickster through your suckers. Henry studied the changes and noted the new Skill. Even though he knew how useful it was, it made him uneasy. ¡°Biting through my suckers?¡± If there was a scale where the left side was being human, and the other an unfathomable monster of the deep, he felt like this just pushed him one step closer to the right. ¡°It¡¯s strong though. Very strong. Especially if I can apply the abilities I copy with Bite. I¡¯ll have to test how it works with temporary charges¡­ and I¡¯ll have to decide which copied property I make permanent in this one and in Mimicking Arms...¡± Next, Henry read the rest and noticed that Maw had gotten a bit less demanding in its requirements. ¡°Just wrapping my arms around something should be easy enough. And holy crap that¡¯s a lot of storage volume.¡± Ten cubic meters. That was something around twenty-five hundred gallons. ¡°The passives upgraded as well, I bet. Along with Magic Mimic. Did my venom get stronger? I assume it has, since it¡¯s part of Bite. I should test it, somehow. What else is there?¡± Henry quickly browsed through the Aspect workshop. ¡°Oh? Trickster¡¯s Resilience got an upgrade to add Mana Drain Resistance. Hmm. I guess I should spend some time with the Lava ants. I should be pretty close to getting a Heat resistance, but I¡¯ll check that later. For now, let¡¯s get the stat buying over with.¡± Henry eyed his options, and as he eyed the total, he noticed something he hadn¡¯t picked up on yet. Or maybe he had, but with the chaos around his evolution, he completely forgot about it. ¡°I can¡¯t buy more than 30 total? Pretty sure I should have had a few more points available in Constitution, but now the total of purchased and purchasable points is a clean thirty. Seems like a limit.¡± Before he really dove into the process of buying stat points, Henry looked up. Across from him, Maurice seemed to be going through some upgrades as well. They were getting there. There was still room for improvements, but as he eyed the upgraded Aspect, he couldn¡¯t help but feel excited. Confident even. ¡°Now let¡¯s see stats. Then if I have anything left, what other upgrades I can afford. After that I¡¯ll check what the eel¡¯s notifications are about.¡± 1.49: Are you sure? ¡°And that¡¯s¡­ 346 D-Tokens left over. Not a lot. But not too bad either, considering I¡¯m getting 30 stat points.¡± Henry looked up and took in the scenery for a few seconds. The jellyfish were slowly drifting around, bathing the reefs and sea around them in a pinkish hue. It was¡­ breathtaking. Henry had seen his fair share of incredible sights in his other life, but it had always been limited in some way. Either by safety measures, technological challenges, or even the laws of physics. Back on Earth there were luminescent jellyfish, but of course, they weren¡¯t as bright nor were they as large as these. And being this deep? Henry would have had to use an underwater drone. These were not safe depths for diving. Especially not with the low visibility. Henry shook his head and focused back on his upgrades. He ended up buying all points costing D-Tokens and finished going through the upgrade process. On the downside, it had cost him a full C-Token for all attributes. C-Tokens were 200 D-Tokens each. On the upside, he just broke through a new threshold in Strength and Perception, and he was two points away from Constitution¡¯s next upgrade, as well as Dexterity¡¯s. He felt great. He often didn¡¯t notice small increases in stats unless they broke through a threshold. But six points at once? In each attribute? Henry felt as good as he had after the first evolution. He sincerely believed he could take on the Trickster kraken right that second. Which, funnily enough, he could now spot thanks to the boost to Perception. He could see the distorted outline, and he could make out the slight shift in opacity caused by the¨Cmostly¨Cinvisible clone. It was almost a stadium-length away. And he could pick it up. Henry looked away from the stalker. There was no need to rush, not when he and Maurice still had so much they could improve and work on. To Henry, a good milestone would be having Misdirection in D-Rank, which should unlock the upgrades for his clones. At that point, they could deal with the Trickster and they¡¯d have a chance of winning decisively. He felt proud looking at his stats and all the abilities he now had access to. Though Dexterity was lagging, as always. ¡°I guess I¡¯m not seeing its benefits as much down here. Maybe it¡¯d be more critical on the surface? I can see how navigating the world above¨Cwhether on the ground or in the air¨Ccould benefit from Dexterity. But down here¡­ with how large I am? It doesn¡¯t seem that efficient.¡± Henry mulled it over a bit, replaying some of his recent fights. ¡°Well. I do take a lot of hits. I can rely on Constitution to manage the damage, but it would be probably better if I didn¡¯t get hit from the get-go. Maybe I could have dodged some of those Goliath hits. Or like, deflect them? I often fight close-range and grab on, so evading¡¯s rarely an option. Still, Constitution is worth prioritizing. That¡¯s not a mistake.¡± It¡¯s true that he¡¯d blacked out once or twice against the C-Rank kraken, but that thing was at least a 100 levels above him. It had Skills that would have cracked the Mesmer¡¯s eel¡¯s head like a watermelon and Henry took them on the proverbial chin, over and over, and lived to tell the tale. He¡¯d outlasted the damn thing. And that was before he invested even more points into the attribute. ¡°Alright. I¡¯ll just push it to 60 and give it a rest. Actually, I don¡¯t even need to. It should get there by leveling up. Right. I¡¯ll give Dexterity some love, then. Perception as well. At least get them to like¡­ 35 or something.¡± Stats: (0 assignable) Strength: 43 [8 Base][16 Class][2 Consumption][17 Purchased] (12 Purchasable) Constitution: 58 [8 Base][31 Class][2 Consumption][17 Purchased] (13 Purchasable) Spirit: 46 [6 Base][20 Class][6 Consumption][14 Purchased] (12 Purchasable) Perception: 31 [9 Base][6 Class][16 Purchased] (6 Purchasable) Dexterity: 28 [9 Base][2 Class][1 Consumption][16 Purchased] (0 Purchasable) With that done, Henry turned his attention to the remaining notification then paused. He hadn¡¯t eaten the eel¡¯s meat since upgrading Hunger. ¡°The Trait could pick up one or two more things. Worth a shot.¡± Henry inched closer to the eel, cut a piece of the tail, then bit into it. A few moments later, his notifications were updated. This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. Bite of the Trickster: Tranquilizing Bite acquired. Mimicking Arms: Draining Touch of the Mesmer Eel acquired. Superior Trait analyzed by Magic Mimic. Telekinesis upgrade unlocked. Superior Trait analyzed by Magic Mimic. Draining Touch upgrade unlocked. A quick check at the unlocked upgrades told him they were pretty straightforward. Draining Touch was a potency and rank upgrade, while Telekinesis¡¯ would give him more power and the ability to target things he could perceive, which meant the ability wasn¡¯t limited by sight anymore. Good haul. Great haul, actually. But Henry wasn¡¯t seeing one particular notification and that bugged him. ¡°No notification about venom. Hmm.¡± Henry''s eyes drifted up the body of the eel and stopped at its slightly open mouth. His stomach immediately roiled in protest. ¡°If it¡¯s a venom, and if it¡¯s only in the inner jaw, then¡­ I gotta eat the inner jaw.¡± Henry slowly approached the carcass, and Maurice stopped playing with his illusions¡¯ facial expression to look up. ¡°[What¡¯s going on?]¡± Henry quickly explained his thought process, to which Maurice had a succinct response. ¡°[Eww. That¡¯s gross. Henry, look at the disgust on my illusion¡¯s face. Does it say ¡®I think it¡¯s gross you¡¯re about to eat that¡¯ clearly enough?]¡± The crab was an annoyingly quick study when it came to learning and adapting. Maurice even picked up on things Henry hadn¡¯t been intending to communicate. It took the crab seeing Henry expressing his disgust at getting a mouthful of intestines only once for him to thoroughly understand the concept of disgust. Though Henry had to admit the crab had a point here. He wasn¡¯t super excited at the prospect of eating from the pharyngeal jaw of the eel. In the end, it wasn¡¯t too bad, and Henry did end up getting the venom notification. Meaning he now had two venoms available; two neurotoxins. The serpent¡¯s, which caused spasming and loss of sensation, and the eel¡¯s tranquilizer. ¡°I¡¯ll probably get the lionfish¡¯s as well once I pick one up for their detonation Skill. Theirs is probably a hemotoxin of some kind. It did cause some bleeding along with the pain, if I recall.¡± Henry quickly went through the upgrades available, but held off on them. ¡°I¡¯ll do them in a bit. I¡¯d rather have some tokens on hand. Though the Aspects are getting crowded again¡­ Can I still fuse things? Okay. That¡¯s still available, but nothing to fuse. Can I get a new Aspect then? Hmmm.¡± After trying to find some new hidden option in his menus with no results, Henry shook his head. ¡°Doesn¡¯t seem like it. Probably needs to be done with the evolution process. Though that means I should prepare for it next time.¡± There were a few options he could explore. Henry had initially considered a projectile-themed Aspect, but recently he¡¯d gotten another idea. If Aspects were somehow limited, he¡¯d rather get a mobility-themed Aspect. ¡°I could track down that Dart fish. Get Riptide Rush again. And then I could make Blink its cornerstone. That Skill obviously can grow into something quite powerful¡­¡± That would be interesting to see. There were also Seeker¡¯s Bounty and Find the Path. Those two seemed similar and would probably merge with something in Arcana of the Trickster. Henry narrowed his eyes as he read the Skills. ¡°Wait a second. These do seem like they have something in common with Mind Weaver¡¯s passive. The part where they sense things nearby.¡± Henry looked up at the crab, then down at his stats. What if Perception had something to do with these? Did Maurice put everything into Perception? Was that why he was so good at sensing nearby things? ¡°[Maurice! How much is your perception?]¡± Maurice¡¯s illusion raised a thumb and pinky in one hand, and the pinky, ring, and middle finger in the other. ¡°[Twenty-three!]¡± Henry stared at the fingers Maurice was using and didn¡¯t comment. He¡¯d already explained to the crab that his way of showing numbers made no sense, so Henry didn¡¯t repeat himself. He was almost sure the crab was doing it on purpose. Instead, he focused back on his gutted theory. ¡°Okay. I¡¯m just bad, then.¡±
¡°[Are we sure about this? I can tell you¡¯re worried, you know? And that worries me. It¡¯s like, your emotions are contagious.]¡± Henry brought the crab to eye level as he swam through the murky green area. ¡°[You picked this option. And the second cave was empty. I told you we can check this spot, or we can explore, or we can spend time around the ants, and you picked this one.]¡± ¡°[Yes, but I don¡¯t know any better and now you¡¯re worried. I still want to see what it is, but maybe we should be safe? Or maybe return some other time?]¡± Henry came to a stop on top of a large boulder. All around them were thick and familiar stalks of kelp. ¡°[We¡¯re almost there. Do you want to turn back?]¡± Henry¡¯s heart was beating faster, he had to admit. He was worried. But he was also curious and excited. It¡¯s been a while since he¡¯d been to the reef he woke up in. Maurice looked up at him, looked back in the direction they came from, then looked forward. ¡°[Yeah, okay. But we run if it¡¯s bad.]¡± ¡°[Absolutely. I¡¯m mostly curious. I don¡¯t feel like picking a fight with this thing anyway.]¡± Then Henry launched off the boulder and kept swimming toward what he hoped was the first reef. As long as he wasn¡¯t utterly lost and off his mark, they were going to pay a visit to an old neighbor. 1.50: Familiar grounds 1.50: Familiar grounds Henry and Maurice finally came out of the kelp forest into a gently swaying field of golden algae that Henry immediately recognized. On top of his head, Maurice gasped. ¡°[So pretty!]¡± The kraken swam high and looked around, trying to reorient himself. Still, he paused for a moment to take in the familiar scenery. Unfortunately, one thing was immediately noticeable. It was empty. Not of all life, of course. He could see furtive shapes hiding in the tall algae. He could see some roaming Whipcrack sharks here and there. But the large shapes he used to watch and listen to weren¡¯t around anymore. ¡°[This is where the whales had been.]¡± A while later, Henry came to a rest atop the reef he¡¯d used as perch in the past when he¡¯d first watched the whales. ¡°[I¡¯d like to see them some day,]¡± said Maurice after a bit. He¡¯d already detached and began exploring the reef, moving himself up and down with Arcane Claw. Henry kept an eye out for predators, but it seemed like everything around knew better. Riptides, Whipcracks, eels¡­ everything kept a wide berth from the giant kraken and the oddly-colored crab. That had made it a small challenge to catch the Riptide Henry was currently munching on. ¡°Sorry, buddy. I need your Skill. And I got snacky.¡± Henry stored half of the shark in his Maw which, he realized, had become some sort of meat fridge. Having done a quick inventory following his skill upgrade, he now had some C-Rank Goliath, some Arcane and Stoneskin kraken cuts, and even some older¡ªbut still fresh¡ªserpent meat. Along the way here, Henry had thrown in a couple of lionfish for later. ¡°I should keep some samples. Would be nice if I could put them in little boxes and label them.¡± With his enlarged storage capacity, he assumed his little hoard would only grow. At least everything was easy enough to retrieve, so long as he remembered what he had. Otherwise, he needed to take a moment and focus to detect what he had hidden and forgotten about. As if he¡¯d walked into a pitch black pantry and had to blindly feel around for the contents of the storage space. Once he had a target, a quick flex of his will would bring the desired item out of his mouth or straight into his grip. Though unfortunately the cuts were often¡­ messy. To say the least. Henry¡¯s musings were cut off a few moments later by Maurice, who peeked up from behind a rock. ¡°[It¡¯s here, Henry. It¡¯s above us.]¡± Henry nodded, confirming the crab¡¯s alert. ¡°[I sense it.]¡± The clone was stalking them, as always. It was getting on Henry¡¯s nerves for sure, and the reason he was putting Riptide Rush in Class Skills was in case they needed to run from whatever was living in the dark trench Henry had once seen. Henry could picture the clone antagonizing the being living there to get them killed, so¡­ extra reason to have an escape plan. Plus, he really wanted the mobility-themed Aspect. He might as well start leveling the ability. Unfortunately, that meant Henry had to let go of Imploding Bubbles once again, as he¡¯d run out of Skill slots. ¡°[Are you sure that¡¯s the best way to evolve your ink Skill?]¡± Henry shrugged. ¡°[Seems like it. It didn¡¯t level, no matter how many clones I summoned. It¡¯s a Skill that¡¯s made to escape and confuse. To misdirect. If there¡¯s nothing to misdirect, it doesn¡¯t seem to level. I¡¯m not saying we¡¯ll pick a fight, but if whatever¡¯s in there gets aggressive, I can get some training done. Otherwise, I just want to know what¡¯s in there. Admit it. You¡¯re curious as much as I am.]¡± Maurice picked up a cracked conch shell, turned it in his claw, then threw it out. ¡°[Yeah, that¡¯s fair.]¡± Henry didn¡¯t really have to do any of this, but he was curious to know what lived there. He wasn¡¯t that worried about his own survival, and he needed a challenge. That one time he¡¯d gone all out with the sharks had been the most progress he¡¯d made with Inkjet. He needed to get into a scuffle where he could use the Skill as it was meant to be used. Unfortunately, it was growing difficult to find threats in the surrounding area. ¡°Once the kraken¡¯s dealt with, we¡¯ll move on.¡± Henry looked up at the mostly invisible shape and frowned. He could move on right now, actually. The stalker¡¯s clone must have a range limit. They could lose it. A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. Henry could be the bigger person and walk away. There was no illusion up he could use to reflect his emotions, as they needed to save their mana, but if he had it¡¯d be glaring daggers at the barely visible shape floating above. ¡°Nah. Screw you.¡± The image of Maurice, claw severed, bleeding, and barely conscious flashed in front of Henry¡¯s eyes. The ambushes. The different krakens and the clones supporting them. This kraken had started the hostilities, and it was going to pay for it. Plus, Henry enjoyed the challenge. And if the journey was going to be as dangerous as the whales had implied, he could use the training. Henry shot a glare upward. ¡°And I bet you¡¯ve got a few useful abilities hoarded. You just wait¨C¡± A barely visible movement caught his attention. A few paces to the right, Henry noticed another slightly opaque patch. Glancing around, he didn¡¯t pick up on any other, but the extra clone was alarming enough. Henry narrowed his eyes. ¡°[Maurice. There¡¯s more than one clone. I think it¡¯ll probably try something, so keep an eye out. I don¡¯t feel like chasing every single copy, so if something happens, we just run.]¡±
A quick swim took Henry and Maurice from the edge of the reef to his old little neighborhood. With his larger size, and without the need to hide and scurry between rocks, the trips had barely lasted a minute. After Henry took a second to look down at the little area he¡¯d come to consciousness in, he crested the hill-like formation that would lead to the large being that lived nearby. ¡°[Do you ever think of going back to your old world?]¡± Henry was peering over the edge. He realized that back when he¡¯d first been in this area, his Perception had been in the single digits. No wonder he¡¯d been terrified. He must have not seen anything. Not to say Henry was seeing much right now, of course. He expected a large shape to move or surge up, but all he could see was dark blue waters, and a barely visible darkness deep below that made his limbs shiver. ¡°[This is a bad time, Maurice.]¡± ¡°[Why? Nobody can hear us. We¡¯re speaking in our miiiinds.]¡± Henry scanned the stretch ahead. He saw some movements from small schools of fish here and there, but nothing else. His eyes turned to the crab. ¡°[It¡¯s distracting.]¡± ¡°[Don¡¯t you have many little brains to help you stay focused? I¡¯m focused and I don¡¯t have a second brain.]¡± Henry would have pinched the base of his nose if he had one. He gave the crab an annoyed look, then breathed deep. The worst part was that the crab wasn¡¯t wrong. Henry could¨Cno, should¨Cbe using his Octominds in such a manner. But all of his mental faculties were laser-focused on picking up sounds, movements, or smells through his arms when he should have kept some of his Octominds free or assigned them to watch for threats. Or even have them watch out for the local inhabitants. He should be better at using the Skill. But getting called out on it didn¡¯t help. ¡°[Fine. You¡¯re right. But first, do you sense anything?]¡± ¡°[Nope. Only the two clones behind.]¡± Henry grit his beak. He was really tempted to just go and get it over with the Trickster. ¡°[Fine. What was the question?]¡± ¡°[Your old world. Do you wanna go back?]¡± Henry eyed the depth ahead. They¡¯d have to swim down, but getting out should be easy. He¡¯d just Riptide Rush in a straight line out. If needed. Whatever was down there couldn¡¯t be that dangerous. Right? He might not even have survived when he¡¯d been dragged here weeks ago. Henry brought Maurice closer as if he was going to whisper, then caught himself. Right. Telepathy. ¡°[I¡¯m not sure, to be honest. Not that worried about it much. It can¡¯t be that easy to get from one world to another. But would I want to go back?]¡± Henry took a second to put his thoughts in order. He¡¯d had time to consider a few things during the many days and nights he¡¯d been alone. Or when he meditated. Or when his thoughts wandered before he fell asleep. He just hadn''t had to put them into words yet. ¡°[I wouldn¡¯t want to go back there permanently. I don¡¯t know much about worlds or if there are more out there, but if I find a way to travel between worlds, I¡¯ll want to visit. I would like to see some people. Say goodbye to my friends. Maybe see if some of them want to travel to another world. Plus, I can¡¯t go back like this. I¡¯d have to, like¡­ figure out a way to not scare people away.]¡± Now that Henry started putting his thoughts into words, he found it difficult to stop. ¡°[Even though being here was terrifying at first, I like the new options I have. I like feeling¡­ this. This sense of power. Control over my life. Fighting the battles I choose. Well. I didn¡¯t choose the earlier part. The dying and being reincarnated into an octopus part. But everything since? Surviving. Growing stronger. Making new friends. I¡¯m proud of that.]¡± Maurice was quiet, and Henry suddenly felt a wave of embarrassment. He¡¯d said too much. Before he could attempt a joke to make things less awkward, movement caught his eye. Henry stiffened. ¡°[Movement. Down below.]¡± Using Identify didn¡¯t give him anything useful, but to be fair, he was only seeing a dark, large shape far below. He couldn¡¯t make the details out. But it looked¡­round. ¡°[Ready to get close?]¡± ¡°[I can¡¯t even see it. I don¡¯t sense it either, it¡¯s too far.]¡± Then, a beat later, Maurice¡¯s voice reached him again. ¡°[Let¡¯s get closer.]¡± Somehow, the emotions coming off the crab reminded Henry of standing in line for a rollercoaster for the first time. A mix of excitement, fear, and hesitation. A mishmash that reflected his own state of mind. They could always turn around and shoot out of this area. Riptide Rush was a very fast Skill. ¡°[Alright, let¡¯s see it.]¡± 1.51: The Colossus With his color matching the sandy slope, Henry let himself slide down until what he felt was halfway down the bottom of the crater-like formation. Henry paused and his mental image of the crater zoomed out and realized what this formation was. It was a nest. For the largest creature Henry had yet to meet since the whales. [Colossus Stonefish (C) - Lvl ??] Definitely larger than the whales, but not necessarily as dangerous. Though its level was pretty high. The fish looked like a miniature brown and green splotched mountain that occupied half the sandy depression. It was partially buried, with dunes of sands covering parts of its face and body, but its mouth was open. Smaller¨Cthough seemingly as large as Henry himself¨Cstonefish were swimming in and out, sifting through the surrounding sand before rushing back to their progenitor¡¯s safety every few moments. Maurice was dumbstruck, and so was Henry for a moment. Now that he knew what he was looking at, though, a question kept replaying in his mind on a loop. ¡°[How is this thing even sustaining itself? There¡¯s not nearly enough food down here?]¡± Maybe there were things living in the sand? Or was it the fingerlings that were bringing it food? Did it have something to do with mana? Henry stared down to the sandbed hoping for hints. Mana seemed a bit more turbulent and intense here, with gold and brownish colors mixing with the ocean green. Did that have to do with how the stonefish was sustaining itself? Keeping some of his Octominds on monitoring duty, he relaxed his posture which caused him to slide down the slope a bit¨Csomething he immediately regretted. A boulder-like eye jerked toward him, and the dark iris fell on him as he froze. A deep, bone-shaking rumble echoed, making the sand around Henry shudder and slide. The fingerlings rushed into the stonefish¡¯s mouth, which didn¡¯t close after them. A few adventurous ones kept swimming and out and then¨C Nothing. The eye of the giant stayed on them, but it didn¡¯t move. After a tense handful of seconds, Henry began to relax. Maurice was first to speak. ¡°[How is it only C-Rank? The Goliath didn¡¯t feel as scary as this thing.]¡± That was a good point. Henry¡¯s whole body wanted to turn and get out of here, but that question was puzzling him. How did this thing feel so much more threatening than the Goliath? They were of the same rank¡­ though maybe this one was closer to the next. Henry told Maurice that. The crab looked down at the monster, then back up toward escape. ¡°[... do you think the Trickster¡¯s going to be closer to this one¡¯s level or to the Goliath¡¯s?]¡± ¡°[Hopefully the latter. Alright, let¡¯s¨C]¡± Atop the head of the stonefish, a spear-like spine rose up in a fraction of a second. Henry noticed with great alarm how sickly green light instantly filled the sharp organ and, through his mana sight, he saw a laser-like line of green shoot up along the sand. Henry surged upward. Below him, a lance of pale green stabbed up, barely missing his body. The sharp magical spine punched into an arm with tremendous force, sinking in a couple of inches before it broke¨Cenough to deliver a nice dose of venom. It was like he¡¯d been stabbed by a hot poker that released acid in his veins. Henry struggled to ignore the incredible pain, his Octominds helping. For a moment he considered severing the injured limb, before changing his mind and activating Regeneration. The damage was limited, and it wasn¡¯t about to kill him. After the initial shock, he could feel his Constitution and Toxin Resistance already beginning to neutralize the venom, so no need to waste too much mana. ¡°[We¡¯re out!]¡± screamed Henry in Maurice¡¯s mind. Henry was about to trigger Riptide Rush and shoot out of this place when he caught a movement from the corner of his eyes. In that short instant, while his Octominds were preparing for another venomous spike to try to impale him and he focused on leaving, an observing arm saw a clone shed its camouflage, right over the stonefish¡¯s mouth. This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source. An arm whipped down, then another, then a third, and before Henry¡¯s escape Skill triggered, three of the stonefish¡¯s progeny were dead. The clone¡¯s limb cut through their soft heads like butter. Henry processed what was happening in an instant. He felt Telekinesis begin to settle on him and tore through out with Riptide Rush like a fist through wet paper. Water rushed around Henry, pushing on Maurice. Henry felt the crab activate his anchoring Skill to stabilize himself as both shot out of the stonefish¡¯s territory like a comet. Behind, the ocean shook from the stonefish¡¯s roar.
Henry released Riptide Rush and kept swimming. Above, a gleeful clone was following them, its camouflage gone to display a striking red and yellow palette. Something easy to see. And follow. Behind, the world shuddered as the dune of sand exploded like an erupting volcano. Out of the cloud of sand and debris, the giant form of the stonefish appeared. It wasn¡¯t fast. But it didn¡¯t need to be. It had a very visible target, and nothing could stop it. Reefs broke and toppled in the giant fish¡¯s path, as if they¡¯d been made out of clay. Henry pumped his arms and considered his options. ¡°[Are we running, Henry?]¡± Henry didn¡¯t immediately respond. Instead, he looked up at the Trickster¡¯s clone. ¡°[I think it¡¯s gonna try something else. So we¡¯re keeping our distance from that thing back there until we know what the Trickster has in store.]¡± ¡°[Need me to do anything?]¡± ¡°[Keep an eye on the clone¨C]¡± Henry saw a line of green fly past him then explode toward his face. The envenomed spine had punched out of a reef he was just about to crest over, but he was able to dodge at the last second before swimming up toward the surface. He was about to summon some clones to help him shake off the stonefish, but then remembered the enemy clone. ¡°[Try to hit the clone. I need a minute.]¡± With his focus still mostly on swimming away and watching for attacks, Henry used one of his Octominds to retrieve a couple of items from his Maw. Henry started with the last piece of serpent meat and shoved it in his beak, then followed it up with a larger slice of Arcane kraken. He¡¯d thought about it the last few days, and it was time to make full use of his abilities. He couldn¡¯t continue waiting for the perfect property to copy and make permanent for Bite and Mimicking Arms. He had great ones already. And hopefully, he¡¯d get more slots in the future. A burning sensation filled his beak and skin for a few beats. He thought he saw some lights, but was mostly focused on their pursuers and on the plotting clone above. After a few seconds, a couple of notifications came through. Bite of the Trickster: Draining Bite of the Arcane Trickster has been made permanent. Mimicking Arms: Scales of the Serpent has been made permanent. The seabed shook as the Colossus Stonefish bulldozed through another reef formation. Henry kept swimming. Tense, but not too worried. Far ahead, he could see the golden fields. ¡°[We¡¯ll stop in the whale¡¯s territory. Any success with the clone?]¡± Henry could see the damn thing. It was close enough to broadcast their location, but far enough to be safe from attacks. When Henry tried to rush it, the clone managed to keep pace; when he tried Telekinesis, it dispelled it. Henry could force the issue, but there was a giant on his heels. In any case, they were about to get to a terrain Henry could work with. ¡°[It keeps dodging. But something¡¯s weird about it. It feels¡­ angry. And happy?]¡± Henry gave the clone a dark look. ¡°[It¡¯s preparing something. But we¡¯ll be ready.]¡± A permanent Draining Bite was good. Especially with Voracious Grip. As for the Scales, that was a gut decision. Henry was plenty resilient, but that ability felt like a badge of victory. It was his first real triumph. The first big fight he picked as a challenge. Not out of desperation or because he was forced. His first real win. A major step. ¡°One more thing¡­¡± He didn¡¯t need to save Tokens, so he triggered both upgrades for Draining Touch and Telekinesis. Henry crested over the last reef and into the fields of golden algae. After a few more beats, he turned toward the Trickster. This time, he held nothing back. Locking it with Telekinesis, Henry rushed the clone. The fact that it didn¡¯t dispel the Skill this time was something he picked up on. A first warning. The second warning was the emotion he felt from the clone as he approached it. Anticipation. Glee. It reminded him of himself when he¡¯d lure small fish early on. That moment right before they bit the tip of his arm. Right before he caught them. The third warning was the unnerving feeling of not being alone. An unfamiliar, oppressive feeling that permeated the area. As if there was a presence looming right over his shoulder, looking down on him. Henry heard Maurice shout in his ear right as he looked down in time to see the golden algae disappear underneath a black-and-yellow-striped form. He didn¡¯t have the right sense of scale from this height and this angle, but he was almost sure that this was the largest kraken he¡¯d seen so far. Its arms spread, and its black beak shone green for a moment before a thin ray of green light shot up and punched right through Henry¡¯s stomach. The C-Rank Trickster Kraken had finally left its nest. As Henry used a chunk of his mana to heal the fast-spreading toxin of the ray, ignoring the nervousness that seemed to laden his limbs, he had one thought as a green pattern of luminescent scales spread across his skin. At least he won¡¯t have to go look for the kraken. [Trickster Kraken (C) - Lvl ??] 1.52: The Trickster (Pt.1) Henry¡¯s magical scales shone as he activated his defensive Skills. His limbs trembled with nerves while his heart roared in his ears but thankfully, the Octominds made it easy to keep a level head. Still, he couldn¡¯t shake off that oppressive feeling whenever he faced the Trickster¡¯s gaze. The situation was¡­ tense. Scratch that. The situation was a methane-filled chamber and Henry was waiting for the spark that was going to light everything on fire. He¡¯d been mentally preparing for one dangerous opponent, if any. Not two of them, and certainly not one as smart and cunning as the one below him. ¡°Is it an ability? Am I just nervous?¡± He couldn¡¯t tell. Eyes still on the kraken, Henry saw the green light begin to collect again. The yellow stripes rippled ominously as the kraken aimed its second shot, full of hatred and vindication, while behind him the stonefish continued its relentless approach. Henry brought his crab-carrying arm close. He considered running. His body was urging him to run. But not yet. Henry pushed down on the primal impulse and spoke to his companion. ¡°[Ready, Maurice?]¡± The crab had an eye on the Trickster, the second on the Colossus, then both swiveled to look at Henry. ¡°[I¡¯m maybe ready for one of them. Not both.]¡± Henry swam further into the whale¡¯s territory, creating some distance from the two C-Ranks and making sure the kraken stayed between himself and the stonefish. When the Trickster¡¯s second shot flew at him, Henry ducked, then ignored the run-off as it filtered into his gills and was instantly neutralized. ¡°[We¡¯ll play it by ear,]¡± said Henry as he eyed his two opponents, though most of his attention was on the Trickster. Maurice stared at him for a beat, then threw both claws up. ¡°[What does that even mean?! What¡¯s an ear? Why are we playing? We said if you¡¯re using those expressions, you have to explain them first!]¡± Henry would have found that funny at any other time, but he couldn¡¯t look away from the Trickster. It launched itself up toward him, eyes glowing yellow, and Henry tensed for an instant before triggering Shapeshifting Arm and creating a bone-spiked flail. ¡°[Sorry. I¡¯m stressed,]¡± said Maurice after a moment. A stream of bubbles flew from the crab¡¯s mouth and Henry exhaled, eyes still on the oncoming enemy. Even his eyes wanted to look away. As if he were a child glaring at an adult, or a student caught by a teacher¨C It clicked. ¡°An ability¡­¡± The bubbles shoot through the Trickster without harming it. It took half-a second for him to understand. Henry activated mana sight and pushed his telepathic sense outward. ¡°[It¡¯s an illusion, Maurice. Stop shooting.]¡± Henry waited, expecting to sense the kraken at any moment. ¡°Some sort of skill that¡¯s making me fear it? An authority thing? Yeah¡­ Maybe. Probably what made it capable of commanding the other krakens¡­¡± The stalks of algae rippled as he scanned them, but there was no trace of the Trickster. When he was about to look closer, he saw the green light shine to his right. Henry dove as the ray shot above him, barely missing, and came face to face with a swinging bone-bladed limb. The kraken was thrice as large as him. Easily. Its limbs were thin and long, though a couple were short and thick, like Henry¡¯s, and one of them was coming at him with incredible speed. Henry raised an arm in defense, and the bladed arm impacted with tremendous strength. His scales shone brighter, rippling along with Trickster¡¯s Resilience¡¯s defensive film¨Cand the bladed arm slid right off, leaving Henry¡¯s arm unscathed. For the first time since this short bout had started, he picked up something new from the Trickster. Surprise. Further away, the stonefish had stopped, though it kept both of its boulder-like eyes on them. Henry liked to think that it felt threatened by another C-Rank creature, which would work great for him. The fact that its progeny were peeking out and scrounging the new spot would give that theory some credit. The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. Henry let the Trickster retreat and watched it fade into the clear waters. His heart was still roaring in his ears, but the nervousness had lessened now that he had an explanation for it. ¡°[It¡¯s going to be annoying to keep track of. Can you sense it?¡±] ¡°[Only a bit. Not always. Wait¡­no. I can¡¯t tell where it is.]¡± Henry scanned the waters around him and waited. If it was nearby he couldn¡¯t see it, but he could still feel its presence pushing down on him. Through mana sight, he could only see the ambient mana that obstructed everything further than a dozen yards away. ¡°[We¡¯ll deal with the Trickster first. I¡¯m going to try and latch on to it.]¡± The ol¡¯ faithful. He wasn¡¯t super excited about it. Henry didn¡¯t know what else this thing was capable of, but he didn¡¯t want to keep doing this song and dance over and over again. Hit and run was the Trickster¡¯s style, and Henry wanted none of it. And, most importantly, he knew it would try to run if they ever got it injured enough. Well, he didn¡¯t know for sure, but it was a safe assumption. Henry assigned one of his Octominds to keep an eye on the stonefish just in time for the Trickster to appear again. This time, Henry tried to freeze it with Telekinesis¨Cwhich made his stomach twist with jitters¨Cand watched it fly through the purple hue. ¡°[Illusion again,]¡± he called out, frustrated at the weird emotional responses his body was forcing on him. Henry felt his surroundings and cursed. He couldn¡¯t feel it. This time, he wasn¡¯t the only one. ¡°[Henry. I can¡¯t tell where it is. I could with its clones, but it¡¯s not working¡­]¡± Henry could feel the crab¡¯s dismay. Maurice was still, eyes closed, desperately trying to detect their target with no success. Henry looked away and spoke to the crab. ¡°[Don¡¯t worry. I just need to grab it. Once I do, we¡¯ll start paying it back.]¡± Maybe. The Trickster could use Telekinesis and it hadn¡¯t even done that yet. It could have immobilized him before shooting its toxic rays. And even though Henry and Maurice were used to fighting it through its puppets, the real thing was a whole rank higher, which might explain why they weren¡¯t able to pick up on its mental signature. ¡°[Could be its stealth ability. Maybe that¡¯s what is allowing it to hide its mental sign¨C]¡± ¡°[Behind!]¡± shouted Maurice. Henry swung around and raised his arms defensively, expecting another ray or another slash. Instead, a lance of barbed bone ran him through, fully piercing one of his arms and sinking a couple of inches into his stomach. The Trickster had twirled three limbs together and made them into a bone-tipped lance that it lined up over its head. It had rushed forward in a head-butting motion which gave it first blood. The kraken began wrapping its arms around Henry¡¯s head, and its beak shone green.¡°[You. diE.]¡± It¡¯s words were like a command that wrapped themselves around his throat. Henry glared back and grit his teeth. Using his Octominds, he pushed back against the weird authority that was pressing down on him. ¡°[Amplified Impact and Unimpeded Arms,]¡± sent Henry in response. The kraken imperceptibly paused, and Henry whipped his bone flail. The flail cut through the water effortlessly. His whole arm sank into the Trickster¡¯s flesh as if it was made of foam, shoving it away and literally making the monster fold around his arm. One second, the kraken had been preparing to shoot Henry point-blank, the next its arms were flailing as one of its eyes was freely bleeding. It had popped like a rotted grape. Henry grouped two Octominds and gave them a single command: keep the weird mental pressure from the Trickster away and bring it to his attention if he needed to add more Octominds to the process. He wound up for another hit as the kraken quickly regenerated, glaring. Henry rushed it, aiming to hit again before grabbing it, but his attack flew through an illusion. ¡°[Wh¨CWhen did it move?!]¡± He hadn¡¯t looked away from it for even a second¡­ Maurice spoke in his mind. ¡°[It¡¯s really good with its illusions. That looked like a good hit, though.]¡± Henry had a moment of doubt for a second about whether his hit had landed, but he knew he¡¯d tagged it. He¡¯d felt the impact. ¡°[It¡¯s not that resistant. But it probably has more tricks up its sleeve.]¡± Maurice¡¯s eyes slowly turned to Henry. He raised a claw, then dropped it. Then he scanned their surroundings. ¡°[The stonefish is still watching. Also, it looks like it¡¯s settling in. It¡¯s literally turning everything around it to¨Cleft!]¡± This time, Henry put most of his arms up. It was another lance attack, and it did a lot of damage, but before Henry could retaliate blue-ish light shot across the bone limb and a surge of electricity rushed through Henry, arcing through his own limbs. Henry¡¯s muscles tensed and even locked for a second, then the electric effect was over. ¡°[You okay, Maurice?]¡± asked Henry as he whacked the kraken across the head again. This time, familiar scales shone along its skin and his attack had a significantly reduced impact, but it still sent the kraken reeling. ¡°[Ouch¨CI¡¯m okay. I¡¯m okay! What was that?]¡± Maurice had used his regenerative ability, Henry noticed. He hadn¡¯t needed to, as the electricity barely did any damage, but it had affected Maurice enough for the crab to use healing. ¡°[Maurice, if you get low on health or mana, let me know.]¡± ¡°[I will. I promise.]¡± Henry focused back on the Trickster, and with a flick of Telekinesis, confirmed that he was looking at an illusion. He scanned the surroundings, readying himself. ¡°This is going to be a long fight.¡± 1.53: The Trickster (Pt.2) Henry added another Octomind to combat the effect the kraken was having on him as he partially parried another lancing attack. This time, he only had one of his arms injured, while his counterattack was fully stopped before even landing. The kraken flitted back, and its eyes were the last thing he saw as it disappeared again into the bloodied waters. Henry¡¯s stomach tightened. He could feel the kraken¡¯s smugness. Its confidence. There was not an ounce of worry or fear from it. It was still playing with them, while Henry¡¯s mana was slowly but surely dwindling. Maurice had already needed to heal twice from the electric discharges, which added to his worries. Henry could go on for a while still, but his confidence felt frail. ¡°Focus.¡± Henry added another Octomind to watch his mood and stop himself from spiraling further when it dawned on him; he was using half of his Octominds just to keep his head in the game. To not let the kraken¡¯s intimidation bring him to his knees. That irked him. A ball of frustration and anger was building up in his chest, but he didn¡¯t let it take over. He wasn¡¯t fighting alone. ¡°[Maurice, I can put you in my Maw at any moment. Make sure not to push yourself, alright?]¡± ¡°[I¡¯m okay. I almost have it. I think¡­]¡± Maurice was quiet for a few seconds, laser-focused on trying to find the Trickster before it got the drop on them. Henry didn¡¯t like seeing how easy it was for the Trickster to hurt the crab. Maurice opened his eyes. [¡°It¡¯s coming from the bottom. 3¡­ 2¡­]¡± Henry tensed up. He didn¡¯t look down, but he readied his attack. Right on cue, the kraken came out of the clear waters like an arrow, only to be met with a full swing of bone-spike flail to the face. The bone-lance cracked, and kraken blood surged around them. ¡°[Yes!] shouted Maurice in his ear, and Henry forced his arms forward to grab the kraken. When they were about to touch it, the Trickster spoke. ¡°[STOP.]¡± The strident voice echoed through his mind, and to his horror, he felt his arms stutter, disobeying him just enough for the kraken to slip away and disappear. Henry looked down at his arms, then at the empty waters around him as his heart roared in his ears. He knew it would have plenty of tricks, but that wasn¡¯t one he¡¯d expected. ¡°[I got it this time. I feel it. It¡¯s moving. But it¡¯s not attacking yet,]¡± said Maurice, breaking him out of his thoughts. ¡°[Okay. Good job,]¡± said Henry, looking down at his arm. He triggered Shapeshifting Arm and created a second, larger flail, then added barbed hooks to both of them. He wished he could imbue them with venom. ¡°It ordered me around. That¡­ thing.¡± It was toying with them. Henry needed to immobilize for a second, then he would give it every bit of venom he had in store. He would tear to pieces. A sharp pain lanced through his beak, and Henry tasted blood. He hadn¡¯t realized how hard he¡¯d been gritting his beak. He quickly healed it and readied himself for the next attack. ¡°Calm down.¡± As he waited, Henry couldn¡¯t stop the turmoil in his own mind. With every clash, the storm was only growing worse. Why did it have power over him? Why was it making him feel like this? Would Maurice be okay? Should he force him to hide? There was one more dark thought, creeping at the edges of his thoughts. He didn¡¯t want to give a voice to it, though it kept gnawing at him. Instead, Henry focused on the anger. On the next attack. On the image of the kraken caught into the bone hooks so he could tear it apart with his beak. Maurice called out the next attack, and Henry waited until the last moment to swing both flails. The kraken flew between them, and the flails cracked against a telekinetic wall surrounding the monster. The bone lance, with nothing to stop its trajectory, stabbed through one arm and into Henry¡¯s stomach. It didn¡¯t get too deep thanks to his Scales and Trickster¡¯s Resilience. Unfortunately, neither the scales nor the bubble nor Arcane Fortification could do much against the electric charge that exploded through him, burning his flesh and traveling the length of his body. ¡°[suBmiT. oR DIE]¡± The kraken¡¯s will pressed in on him from every angle. Insidiously whispering to him to lower his arms and beg. The thought floated in his mind for a moment, before the outrage within him caught fire and burned through the doubt. Henry leaned back and shot two Molten Projectiles at the Trickster. It blocked the first, but the second caught it in the face and made its skin sizzle. ¡°[Fuck you.]¡± The kraken screeched in his mind as it disappeared again, and Henry turned his attention to Maurice. Henry didn¡¯t worry about his own damage too much. He was already healing and his Constitution allowed him to take devastating hits¨Cthough he won¡¯t be able to do so forever¨Cbut he couldn¡¯t say the same about Maurice. A soft green hue was coming out of the shell¡¯s entrance, and Henry could see some discolored burn marks on Maurice¡¯s carapace. This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon. ¡°[I¡¯m okay. Don¡¯t worry. I can heal this. I can help.]¡± His voice was strained, and there was no hiding the genuine fear coming off the crab. There was a lot of determination and resolve¨Cmore than what Henry was feeling¨Cbut Maurice was taking a significant amount more damage than Henry. ¡°[How much mana do you still have?]¡± Maurice looked up at him and rubbed his claws together. Reluctance, and to Henry¡¯s surprise¨Cas he wasn¡¯t used to feeling such nuances from the ability¨Ca sense of frustrated helplessness. Henry spoke to reassure the crab. ¡°[I just want to know that you can still heal yourself. Save your mana and tell me where you sense it¡¯s coming. Keep healing yourself, and if your mana gets under 20%, promise you¡¯ll let me know.]¡± ¡°[I¡¯m at 45%,]¡± said the crab after a few quiet seconds. ¡°[Maurice.]¡± Maurice drooped. ¡°[I promise.]¡± ¡°[Thank you.]¡± The two waited for the next charge. This time, Henry was going to try something else. He often refrained from using Domain as the ability cost a lot, but he needed to immobilize the kraken enough to land a few solid hits. Maybe shove a spike into its brains. ¡°I can¡¯t grab onto it with Maurice on my arm. But he won¡¯t be out here for long¡­¡± This fight was a bit too dangerous for the crab, and Henry would much prefer to have the crab safely tucked in his Maw. On the flipside, Henry wouldn¡¯t have a way to tell where the kraken was coming from. At least not until it was about to land its hits. ¡°[Behind in 3¡­ 2¡­ 1¡­]¡± Henry sent a flail arm dead center, expecting another lance-attack. Instead, a bladed tentacle whipped horizontally and hit Henry directly above his right eye. Pain shot through the side of his face and he flinched, but his defenses were a lot better at dealing with slashes than the lance-attack, so he was fine. Only the impact was painful, making his flesh pulse with pain. ¡°[Submit.]¡± Henry glared back at the kraken. It wound its arm back, yellow and red rippling against pitch-black skin. Its glare and presence weighed on him, and the blood raged in his veins. Louder. Hotter. Drowning the doubts and nerves. Almost everything he¡¯d encountered and killed so far had been mostly beasts. Dangerous and powerful beasts that¨Cnow that they couldn¡¯t pose a threat to him¨Che was happy to coexist with. Henry would even look away from non-aggressive krakens, if those existed. But not this one. Not this kraken. Henry glared back and felt the bitter venom filling his beak. He wasn¡¯t letting this one live. Not with everything it has done. This kraken would die today. He felt something swell in his stomach and burn outward, shoving the nerves and oppressive aura of the kraken, and something changed. Something within his soul. Henry didn¡¯t deign to respond, and glanced at the notification he¡¯d received. He triggered Domain and channeled Tranquilizing Bite through it. A glowing, purple beak materialized above the Trickster, dripping with a ghostly pink liquid, and clamped down on the kraken. The Trickster¡¯s temporary scales had faded, leaving a tough but perfectly pierceable skin. Henry¡¯s projected beak had no issue tearing through it and delivering their payload. The kraken¡¯s shriek died in its throat and its limbs grew lethargic before they stopped swaying. Henry shot forward as a corona of red light spread across his flesh and skin, filling his muscle with a cold strength that made them feel like corded metal. A red tint took over his vision. He worried for an instant that this thing might affect his mind, but all it did was make the limp kraken in front of him glow in his sight. It made it look more real, and everything else seemed to fall away. Henry didn¡¯t mind that. The Trickster began pulling itself together, the venom barely affecting it for a second or two, when Henry¡¯s barbed flail landed. It was like hitting a watermelon with a club. Just as messy, and just as satisfying. It had moved a bit, or he¡¯d have hit square between the eyes. Instead he got it just below, near the base of its arms. The blow tore into its flesh, and one of its arms fully severed from the empowered impact. The magic surrounding him and his limbs had made the impact explosive, somehow. He wasn¡¯t sure yet what had happened. But he liked what he was seeing. The kraken shot away with some Skill, and tried to pull itself together. Blue blood rushed out of its severed limb and torn flesh, while the red hue from Henry¡¯s Skill seemed to stick to the injuries. Henry watched as the kraken tried to heal itself as always, but this time the healing didn¡¯t seem as effective. It struggled to close the wounds, only managing to mend them once it overpowered Henry¡¯s Skill. Henry would have grinned wide if he could. The Skill ate close to 30% of his reserves, but that was a small price to pay. And once he gripped the kraken, he was going to use its mana to beat it up. ¡°[What is this? Ohhh it looks hurt! What Skill is this? Why didn¡¯t you tell me?]¡± Henry stole a quick glance at the notifications. ¡°[It¡¯s a Class Skill. I guess it makes sense considering the Class name, but it would have been nice to get this sooner.]¡± Class Trait Unlocked: Sense Foe (Kraken)(D): Sense the presence of your foes. Class Skill Unlocked: Krakenbane¡¯s Wrath(D): Become the harbinger of doom for all krakens. When channeled, your attacks are empowered against krakens while their offensive abilities are weakened against you. The kraken¡¯s hostility pressed out at him, but it was as if he had a nice fire that wouldn¡¯t let it near him or his thoughts. It couldn¡¯t affect him anymore. ¡°[You¡­ die.]¡± Henry readied himself. ¡°[Be ready, Maurice. I might¡­.have to¡­]¡± The words stalled in Henry¡¯s mind as realized what was happening. The kraken was growing larger; with every second that passed, its limbs seemed to grow longer. Thicker. The eyes shone and purple lightning arched down its limbs. ¡°[I hate to say this. I really, really do. But I think I better hide. I¡¯m¡­ low on mana. And I don¡¯t want to distract you.]¡± Henry spared a glance, surprised at the crab¡¯s decision and¨Csurprisingly¨Cproud. ¡°[We¡¯ll do some serious training after this so next time you won¡¯t have to retire early.]¡± ¡°[Promise?]¡± ¡°[I promise.]¡± Henry activated Maw through his arm, and the crab disappeared. He felt his weight land somewhere within his being. The crab felt much lighter this time. ¡°I wonder why that is,¡± Henry thought as he turned to face the kraken. It loomed above, imposing. At least four or five times his size. Henry smiled, reminded of his encounter with the serpent. He rose in the water, unwilling to let the kraken look down on him. His limbs stretched below and around him. His Octominds were ready, freed from having to push away the Trickster¡¯s influence. ¡°[I¡¯m going to enjoy this,]¡± sent Henry. The kraken screeched back and surged forward, and Henry spread his arms to meet it. 1.54: The Trickster (Pt.3) A bone-spiked arm cracked into Henry¡¯s right side as he swung back with a flail that carried all of his empowerment but Krakenbane¡¯s Wrath. He wanted to get a feel for the kraken¡¯s new form first and, if possible, latch on to activate his mana stealing abilities. The Trickster¡¯s strike rocked him, but he weathered it. The spike sunk into his arms, though the power behind it lacked compared to the previous lance-attacks. Henry exchanged a couple of hits back and forth with the giant monster, using an Ink Clone from time to time to gain some cover. After a handful of extra exchanges, he reached a conclusion: the kraken¡¯s enlarged form was not stronger, nor was it more resilient. It had more reach, and it looked more monstrous¨Cwhich was something that made Henry¡¯s intestines twist into knots¨Cbut it wasn¡¯t more powerful. It was as if its smaller size hadn¡¯t come with much penalty. Henry pelted it with some Molten Projectiles from a distance and rushed after them, hoping to distract enough to grab on to it. ¡°I wonder if that¡¯s an Alter Physique upgrade.¡± The kraken covered its face with its arms to defend from the hot projectiles. When it realized Henry was upon it, it tried to create some distance, but Henry was ready. He grit his beak and used all of his Octominds to lock it in place with Telekinesis. The backlash slammed into his brains like a sledgehammer, but it was worth the pain. Henry had a first arm on the trickster¡¯s oversized flank and was reaching with a second when his arms spasmed and seized. Purple electricity arched upward and through his flesh; for a moment, Henry could swear he tasted ozone through his beak and arms. It lasted for a few seconds, and when it stopped Henry used ten healing charges. He watched his health climb back up as he worked to secure his grip on the Trickster. ¡°[sTop. STOP!]¡± ¡°[Nu-uh.]¡± Henry seized again as another jolt of electricity coursed through him. Mana began to trickle into his arms through Draining Touch, and when he regained control of his muscles, he had three arms grabbing onto the squirming kraken. It was hitting him with every weaponized arm it had, but his magical scales and other defensive abilities were enough to absorb most of the blows. The rest was easy enough to heal through, either with his subsumed Hoard Vitals or through Arcane Regeneration. Mana had been getting low for a bit, but now that he had his grippers on the kraken, Henry was practically inhaling its mana through Draining Bite. The kraken screeched and zapped him again, but Henry was secure, tightly gripping it now with four arms. Two arms were barbed clubs, and a couple of Octominds along himself were working on making a harpoon-like barbed spike with a few simple joints along the arm to allow him to push and pull. ¡°You can zap me all you want, you little shit. That¡¯ll only give me the resistance faster.¡± Scales of the Serpent and Draining Bite of the Arcane Kraken had been good calls. His mana was back to almost half, while his health was stable above 70%. He could do this. He could outlast the kraken. ¡°[reLeAse mE!]¡± Henry brought his articulated spike up and gazed at it, then gave the kraken a dark look. All the attacks and ambushes flashed in front of his eyes. Its glee when it toyed with them, when it electrocuted Maurice and forced him out of the fight. His anger resonated with the Skill. ¡°[Release you? Sure. I¡¯m working on it.]¡± Without waiting for a response, Henry triggered Krakenbane¡¯s Wrath. A rush of strength surged through him, and for the first time, he felt genuine fear from the kraken. With every arm he was using to hold on, Henry activated Razor Limb, and blood surged around him. The kraken screeched with rage, and it even made him flinch. He felt the call nudge something in his mind, and finally understood what was happening. It was calling for help. This area might soon swarm with krakens. Henry sunk his beak into its side and began pumping it full of tranquilizing and neurotoxic venoms. He tried to get a bead with his harpoon on the spot right above the kraken¡¯s eyes, but he couldn¡¯t line up because of the giant¡¯s thrashing. He switched for the flails instead, and Tentacle Whipped it square in its head. It roared again and zapped him hard enough that he lost his sight, forgetting where he was for a handful of seconds before he triggered a dozen more charges of hoarded health, then cracked it on the head one more time. Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author''s preferred platform and support their work! ¡°Good thing Maurice¡¯s safe.¡± The last electric shock had been more powerful than anything it had used so far, but his Constitution came through, as always. Three or four more hits later¨Cenough time for the venoms to take hold¨Cthe kraken was dazed enough for him to get a good angle with his bone-harpoon. Henry activated Krakenbane¡¯s Wrath again and felt the kraken¡¯s dark rage and fear, then watched as the red-coated harpoon sunk between the kraken¡¯s eyes like butter. The kraken screeched again, but Henry didn¡¯t let up. He pushed the harpoon deeper and bit down harder, injecting everything he had in his beak and in his suckers through Voracious Grip. And when his venom ran out, he reactivated Draining Bite. Once it ran out of mana, it wouldn¡¯t be able to heal back up. A minute later, the first D-Rank kraken showed up. Then three more. Then six. Henry kept his grip on the kraken, and with one of his arms, created a noose around the Trickster¡¯s arms and pulled them both to the seafloor. He wasn¡¯t worried about D-Rank krakens, but just in case, some cover¨Cand the seabed below him¨Cwould give him something to put his back to. The first Stoneskin kraken spread its arms and showered him¨Cand the Trickster¨Cwith burning hot ink. Henry laughed while the Trickster raged and screeched. He had Inner Furnace. He had defensive abilities, he could heal, and he had a battery of mana he was plugged into. They would not win a battle of attrition. He only had to keep an eye out on the stonefish, who seemed content to watch this little war go on, but other than that? Henry¡¯s weeks of suffering, of fighting for his life, and his relentless training were going to bear fruit.
Henry lay on his back, hearts still thrumming in his ears. Pain pulsed through his limbs, but he refused to let go. He didn¡¯t know if he¡¯d be able to track it if it disappeared again, even though it had run out of mana. He was getting low himself. With only a fifth of his reserves, he didn¡¯t want to risk losing his prey¨Cor find something that could pose a threat to him. Thankfully, whatever the Trickster had been using to control the other krakens seemed to consume at least some amount of mana. Now that it was out, the remaining krakens looked at their siblings¡¯ burnt, electrified, and sliced corpses, and decided they¡¯d rather be somewhere else. So now it was only a sore, burnt and exhausted Henry, and a dying Trickster kraken who occasionally kicked up some sand from their tired struggle. The stonefish fingerlings¨Cif they could even be called that¨Cwere taking turns stealthily creeping close to pick up some of the dead krakens in their mouth before darting away. Henry would have liked to keep some of the meat, but at least he¡¯d gotten most of the cores. He didn¡¯t get all of them, as some had died to the Trickster¡¯s crossfire. Unfortunately for them. He breathed deep¨Cand even that hurt¨Cthen glanced at his interface. There was a wall of notifications waiting for him, which he only saw a part of when he quickly bought Lightning Discharge to help him deal with the onslaught of the little army of krakens. Henry was tightening his grip and stabbing another spike¨Cthe first had broken¨Cinto the kraken¡¯s head when its voice reached him. ¡°[... thing¡­ not¡­ of us. Curse¡­ you. ¡­monster]¡± Henry stilled for a second. Then continued. It wouldn¡¯t be able to heal itself soon. ¡°[Maybe. Maybe I am,]¡± said Henry. ¡°[The Bahamut whales are monsters as well. To some, I¡¯m sure. Maurice¡¯s a monster. I¡¯m sure there¡¯s a lot of friendly monsters out there. Whether they look like me or look like who I used to be. So I don¡¯t mind being one. But if you come after me, or after my friends, or be hostile¨Cas you have been¨Cthen I will be the monster you¡¯re seeing.]¡± Henry felt a weight lift off of his chest. The knot in his stomach untied itself. ¡°[I still need time to accept this¡­ but I¡¯m alive. I have a friend. And I¡¯m not going to die to the first jaw that comes my way. I look like a monster and it might get worse, but I¡¯ll be okay.]¡± He released his grip on the now lifeless kraken and pulled himself from under it before sitting on his arm and gazing down at his dead opponent. A sense of deep sadness built up in his chest. ¡°[I wish things had gone differently.]¡± He didn¡¯t think peace would have been an option. The kraken had immediately hated him as soon as it figured out he wasn¡¯t a normal kraken. But he didn¡¯t like¡­ this. Having to kill something that could speak. The fight and challenge itself might have been fun, but the conclusion¡­ less so. ¡°[A new kind of monster. Or maybe not so new. No, not new. I should have asked the whales if they¡¯ve interacted with other intelligent life.]¡± Something still resisted the name, but he couldn¡¯t keep himself busy and keep running from it. He wasn¡¯t Henry the Human anymore. He could use the appearance, appear human, maybe even shapeshift into one some day. But deep within, at least his body wasn¡¯t that of a human anymore. He had to accept it. Truly. And then he could move on. Far behind, the stonefish rumbled, and began swimming toward him and the dead C-Rank kraken. Henry looked back at the greedy stonefish, then down at the Trickster. He wrapped a couple of arms around the Trickster and the giant octopus disappeared into his maw. The stonefish roared, but Henry just swam up and away into the kelp forest. He was done for the day. 1.55: A short rest The rocks of the seabed made Henry reminisce about warm, fluffy beds. His eyes felt heavy and his insides felt sore from all the mana expenditure, which was made worse as it had taken nearly an hour to get rid of the damn stonefish. The Colossus either really wanted to capitalize on the weakened winner of the bout it¡¯d been watching, or it was offended Henry had dared to take the corpse away from it. Either way, it wouldn¡¯t stop following him, and it had been surprisingly fast for such a large specimen. Henry had ended up using enough Ink Clones to both exhaust his reserves and to finally push Misdirection to its tenth level. Hunger of the Trickster (D): Level 1 -> Level 4 Shiftiness of the Trickster (D): Level 3 -> Level 5 Arms of the Trickster (E): Level 6 -> Level 8 Misdirection of the Trickster (E): Level 7 -> Level 10 Arcana of the Trickster (E): Level 6 -> Level 7 Vitality of the Trickster (E): Level 5 -> Level 9 Domain: Level 7 -> Level 9 Lightning Discharge (E): Level 1 -> Level 6 Unimpeded Arms (F): Level 4 -> Level 7 Amplified Impact (F): Level 3 -> Level 7 Riptide Rush (F): Level 1 -> Level 3 Krakenbane''s Wrath (D): Level 1 -> Level 3 His dream of a projectile-themed Aspect would have to wait, as he¡¯d decided to replace Molten Projectile with Lightning Discharge mid-fight. It was a lot easier to use¨Cand much more powerful, considering the Skill was copied as an E-rank ability. He considered replacing Domain, but even though he didn¡¯t use it often, the Skill had potential, no matter how awkward it felt at times. As for Krakenbane¡¯s Wrath, it seemed to have created a slot for itself. ¡°Same for the Sense Foe, I guess.¡± Worth it. The whole fight had been worth it. Henry would have loved to bask in his victory if it wasn¡¯t for the incredible soreness and the pouting crab a couple of feet away. ¡°[Stop pouting, Maurice. Just eat, I¡¯ll join you in a few minutes.]¡± The crab¡¯s illusory image crossed his arms and stubbornly refused to look at the large arm Henry had cut from the kraken before putting the carcass back in storage. Henry was hungry as well, but he just wanted to lie for a few seconds. Maybe recovering some mana would help him feel better. ¡°[I can¡¯t eat first when I didn''t even help take it down. Plus, we always eat at the same time. It feels bad to eat alone. And you¡¯re tired anyway, so you should be eating. Come on.]¡± Henry groaned, sighed, then propped himself up. ¡°[Alright. Let¡¯s eat.]¡± His head was still buzzing. Was it because of the mana? ¡°[How was it? Did you get something good? Was it difficult? How long did it take? And do you think I can get that ability too? The one that makes your shine all red? It would match my colors.]¡± Henry wanted to roll back to his corner and sleep. After telling Maurice to slow down, he began recounting the events as they worked their way through the kraken¡¯s arm. When he was done, Maurice rubbed his claws together. ¡°[You gave it the Hug of Death. I used to call it Death¡¯s Embrace, but I like the first one better.]¡± Henry paused mid-chew. ¡°[What?]¡± Human-Maurice grinned. ¡°[Get it? Hugs are supposed to be nice, right? Calling it Hug of Death makes it funny. I came up with it by myself! Much better than Death¡¯s Embrace. That one felt too serious. Do you like it?]¡± If Henry had cheeks, they¡¯d be red right now. That first was actually good, but the second sounded so¡­ lame. Henry didn¡¯t want to hurt Maurice¡¯s feelings, though. He could still feel his guilt at not having participated. ¡°[That''s a really good name,]¡± said Henry, specifically meaning the Hug of Death and nothing else and then, to change the subject and not make his own thoughts too obvious, Henry brought up an issue he¡¯d noticed. ¡°[It doesn¡¯t seem like I got the invisibility Skill, though maybe I got the one for the clones, but¡­ it doesn¡¯t sound like it. I¡¯m not sure. I did get some upgrades for Shiftiness, though. Two of them. I also didn¡¯t get whatever it used to control the other krakens.]¡± Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon. Superior Skill analyzed by Magic Mimic. Shapeshifting Arm -> Partial Shapeshift upgrade unlocked. Superior Skill analyzed by Magic Mimic. Alter Physique -> Flowing Form upgrade unlocked. Superior Skill analyzed by Magic Mimic. Ink Clone -> Scouting Clone upgrade unlocked. Shapeshift Arm: Form: Spiked-Flail memorized. Shapeshift Arm: Form: Hinge Joint memorized. Mana Nexus (E) upgrade unlocked. Mind Weaver (E) upgrade unlocked. Trickster¡¯s Resilience (E) upgrade unlocked ¡°[I think the Trickster had the same three Aspects as I do, but at least one was a C-Rank. Which is why both Flowing Form and Partial Shapeshift are so damn expensive to upgrade. Them being C-Rank abilities is the only way the 100 C-Token price tag makes sense. But for the rest, either there¡¯s no Skill to upgrade, or there¡¯s something blocking me from getting a new Skill or an upgrade for something I already have. Hmmm¡­.]¡± Sense Foe softly rang in his ear, and Henry¡¯s eyes flicked toward the kelp forest behind them. A shadow slowly swam through the stalks, but it wasn¡¯t coming toward them. It was just minding its own business. A kraken. Henry turned his attention back to his notifications, while Maurice picked up another piece¨Cone with a sucker¨Cand started munching. ¡°[Odd. Maybe you have something like it already?]¡± ¡°[Maybe. Maybe it¡¯s like Voracious Grip. I need to have the ability first in order to upgrade it. Maybe Invisibility and the other abilities are something new that will unlock on the next Aspect upgrade¡­]¡± That could be it. Invisibility would make sense as a subskill for Mimicking Arms¨Chis main ability for camouflage. ¡°[Well, I can upgrade Misdirection and see what happens. That should clarify things, and we¡¯ll be able to confirm how some of this stuff works.]¡± ¡°[Okay! Let me know! I¡¯m curious.]¡± Henry exchanged half of the Cores he had from the D-Rank krakens and watched his balance increase until it got to 1 C-Token, at which point he triggered the upgrade for Ink Clone, quickly followed by Misdirection of the Trickster. The waters roiled around and grew cloudy, as if some of his ink had seeped out of nothing. Sand pushed away from him, and after a few moments it was done. Misdirection of the Trickster (D) - Level 1: Inkjet: Scouting Clone (D): Create an Ink Clone that obeys a simple command. You can maintain a mental connection to dispel the clone, or to take control of it and perceive the environment through its senses. Blood Clone (D)(Limited): By expending 30% of your health and mana, you can create a Scouting Clone with access to your abilities. Limitation: Only one Blood Clone can be maintained. Henry leaned back and popped a bite of kraken into his beak. ¡°[There it is. Blood Clone. An ability that didn¡¯t shown up in my notifications. This confirms that I can¡¯t get a Skill I¡¯m already ¡®scheduled¡¯ to get¡­ Which means maybe I already have it but it¡¯s dormant.]¡± ¡°[So that¡¯s what it¡¯s been using to stalk and attack us?]¡± Henry stretched his arms. Maurice was right; he was feeling a bit better thanks to the meal. Or maybe it had been the Aspect upgrade. ¡°[Yes. The Trickster used a combination of Scouting and Blood Clones, which allowed it to use them as a projection and use its Skills through them. Though it seems like the skill will only allow me to control one at a time¡­ I¡¯m pretty sure the Trickster controlled multiple at once. That might be why it says it¡¯s limited.]¡± Henry thought about it. Was it an upgrading issue? A level thing? Considering the nature of the Skill and what would be required to control two clones at once¡­ ¡°[Maybe it¡¯s limited by the Octominds. That one¡¯s still in E-Rank and it would fit. Plus, it¡¯s not as if I can control and see through the eyes of two clones at once.]¡± Maurice eyed the remains of the kraken¡¯s arm. ¡°[I should really work on the Ink Jet skill¡­ you¡¯re getting a lot of cool abilities out of it. Imagine how easy and less dangerous exploring is about to become? You can send a clone into a cave and not worry about finding something terrifying in there. I won¡¯t need to be bait anymore.]¡± Henry chuckled and took another bite. He chewed as he considered a pattern he¡¯d been noticing. ¡°[You know Maurice, I¡¯m not sure it would work that way. I mean, if you start training and upgrading Ink Jet, it might become like mine. But it might also evolve in a whole different direction.¡± Maurice paused and scuttled closer. He expected disappointment, but only felt curiosity. ¡°[Why do you think that?]¡± ¡°[I¡¯m starting to get the feeling that some of my Aspects¨Cand probably yours¨Care¡­ pre-programmed. Somehow. At least the core ones. Yeah. For example, my three first and main Skills¨CBite, Mimicking Arms, and Ink Jet¨Cnow have their own Aspects, right? Well, I noticed that only those Aspects got a new Skill when I evolved them. Not the others. And those same Aspects, both me and the Trickster had them. So I feel like the clone stuff might be a species thing, more than a Skill thing. Same way how your Imploding Bubbles are stronger, and how you can create them on top of a target instead of launching them. It¡¯s like¡­ my thing revolves around being a trickster, while yours is about controlling your ¡®space¡¯. I don¡¯t know¡­ It feels like there¡¯s something there.]¡± Maurice rubbed his pincers together as he thought. Henry, feeling like he might have discouraged the crab, quickly added, ¡°[I mean, you can always train it and see what happens. But it seems like there¡¯s some kind of logic behind our abilities and all.]¡± ¡°[Another mystery to crack],¡± said Maurice¡¯s illusion with a grin, and Henry summoned his own form and laughed. ¡°[Absolutely. Now, let me see what I¡¯m getting out of the kraken¡¯s Core. Next, I¡¯m gonna get some rest, and then we can go check the kraken¡¯s den.]¡± A/N: I¡¯m copy/pasting an explanation I put in the comments of RR. I think this part might not have been clear, and I¡¯m gonna find a spot to clarify it better in the past (or in the future): Aspect has two different connections to the abilities within it; 1.56: Treasure ¡°[You think it¡¯ll have treasure?]¡± Henry eyed his remaining notification and shrugged with his human image. ¡°[Doubt it. It might have some random stuff in there, but I doubt krakens care about gold or jewelry. But who knows, we might find anything in there. Probably a bunch of hatchlings.]¡± A quick look through everything he had available for upgrade¨Cand all the other Skills slowly creeping up to level 10¨Cmade Henry¡¯s non-existent wallet shudder. It was absolutely a good problem to have, and he still had enough kraken Cores to help him, but he¡¯d have to find some large¨Chostile¨Ctargets to ever afford the big items. Alter Form and Partial Shapeshift. One would at the least allow him a quicker change of size¨Clike how the kraken had enlarged itself in seconds¨Cwhile the second must be how the kraken had used three arms to create the bone-lance. Meaning he¡¯d get access to a more powerful shapeshifting ability, and he could guess how it would evolve beyond. In one or two upgrades, it might become a complete shapeshift. Which meant¡­ how was he supposed to use such a Skill without doing some irreversible damage to himself? If his experience with Shapeshifting Arm was of any indication, the Skill wasn¡¯t the easiest thing to use. ¡°Unless the higher versions have a better guiding system¡­ I guess I¡¯ll know when I upgrade this one.¡± Before Henry could turn his attention back to his interface, Maurice spoke up.¡°[What are we going to do about the hatchlings?]¡± ¡°[Hmm? Ah. Nothing. We¡¯ll leave them be. Let nature do its thing. Some will grow up. Some will die out. Life will go on.]¡± Maurice hesitated for a moment, which made Henry look up. The crab then ¡°[If krakens are so dangerous¡­ is leaving them alone such a good idea?]¡± Slowly, Henry exhaled. ¡°Oh boy,¡± he thought to himself, then looked up to Maurice. ¡°[Alright, there¡¯s a pretty easy explanation for why that¡¯s probably not a good idea. Back in my home country, there was a city that had a pretty big kelp economy. There was a kelp forest, sort of like this one, and fishers and locals would often go out in boats and collect kelp and algae to sell. People would cook with it, make teas, eat it after it was dried, use it in Spas, and all sorts of other things. The problem was, sea otters also lived in that kelp forest, and the people of the city started hunting them for their fur. They were out there on the boats anyway, so might as well, right?]¡± Henry summoned the image of an otter swimming down and picking up sea urchins, cracking them with a rock, then eating them. Then the otter faded away, and the sea urchins started multiplying, while the kelp stalks began thinning, until the forest was no more. ¡°[It didn¡¯t happen fast. But once the otters were gone, the sea urchin population exploded. Which in turn, overtaxed the kelp forest and ended up in the whole ecosystem collapsing on itself.]¡± Henry dismissed the illusion, then looked leaned back and glanced at Maurice. ¡°[So. What do you think?]¡± Human-Maurice nodded and crossed his arms.. ¡°[The otters should have been stronger and beat those hunters up.]¡± Henry gave him a blank look, and Maurice grinned. ¡°[I¡¯m joking. I like how you presented this! This was a lesson, right? Okay. So. We don¡¯t know what the krakens do. Maybe they¡¯re the reason why the ocean¡¯s not overrun with something terrible. Like¡­ super-urchins.]¡± Maurice gave him his most winning smile, and Henry nodded. ¡°[Good enough. I¡¯m going to look at my interface now.]¡± Human-Maurice laughed while his true form scuttled to the kraken arm to get himself another slice. 1x [Trickster Kraken (C) - Level 47] Core was collected. Caution. Spatial storage attached to the Core detected. Content will be released when Core is claimed, consumed, or exchanged. Human-Henry raised an eyebrow, then turned to Maurice and whistled. Henry had the pleasure of seeing the still smug crab jump. ¡°[I¡¯m going to release the content of its storage. It had Maw, just like me. Just in case it has something dangerous and alive in there, be ready.]¡± ¡°[If it has shells I want them first! Or treasures!]¡± Henry shook his head, then selected the obvious option for the core. ¡°I should look into keeping some spare Cores though. I have the storage, and soon enough E or D Cores won¡¯t matter to me. They might have some use elsewhere.¡± Light surged outward out of his chest and surrounded him like a whirlwind of gold dust. The feeling on his skin was¡­ electrifying. And when it sank into him his whole being began to burn. Not just his muscles: his soul felt like it was on fire. Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author. Henry grit his beak and waited through the changes, unable to gather his thoughts or process what was happening until it was over. When it was all done, he felt like he¡¯d just had the most painful¨Cand reinvigorating¨Cmassage and bath of all times. Krakenbane Wanderer (D) - Level 24 achieved! ... Krakenbane Wanderer (D) - Level 51 achieved! 2x Class Skill Slots added. 2x Class Trait Slots awarded. 6x Stat points awarded. 3x Strength Stat points awarded. 3x Spirit Stat points awarded. 3x Constitution Stat points awarded. Trickster Kraken Core (C) contained significant Spirit Stats. 3x Spirit Stat points awarded. Trickster Kraken Core (C) contained significant Dexterity Stats. 2x Dexterity Stat points awarded. ¡°Oh¡­ I broke through Constitution and Spirit¡¯s thresholds. Dexterity too! And I get some extra slots. Wait. Does Krakenbane¡¯s slot count? No, it doesn¡¯t. Phew!¡± Henry felt amazing. He felt¡­ reforged. His mana reserves¨Cthough still low¨Cfelt deeper than they¡¯d ever been. His movements seemed more fluid. More controlled. ¡°I¡¯ll do some testing with that later. As for levels¡­ I got 27. For something more than a 100 levels above me¡­ I can¡¯t imagine the requirements for leveling in C-Rank. Pretty sure I jumped like 50 levels last time I beat something with this wide of a level difference. Though I¡¯m getting some nice bonus stats. Hah. Even got some Dexterity.¡± Content of spatial storage will be released in 3¡­2¡­1¡­ A ripple appeared a few feet in front of Henry and began growing as the countdown ticked down. Like a bubble that slowly deformed the water as it grew larger and when it got to the last tick, the layer peeled off like a cloth. ¡°[Ewwww. What is that?]¡± Out of the fold of space a mound of off-white stuff appeared. Immediately, some of it began wafting away from the heap, clouding the water around it. A few round shapes rolled down¡­ and Henry realized what he was looking at. ¡°[Roe. Kraken roe.]¡± Maurice scuttled closer, then leaned forward, as if sniffing the literal mountain of kraken eggs. ¡°[Actually¡­ it doesn¡¯t smell bad. It¡¯s¨C]¡± Maurice spooned a tiny amount and brought it to his mouth. The crab shuddered and began literally shoveling the eggs into his mouth. ¡°[It¡¯s so good. This is the tastiest thing I¡¯ve ever eaten.]¡± Henry dubiously eyed the heap for a few seconds while Maurice practically inhaled the poor unborn eggs then shrugged. ¡°[Eh. Why not.]¡± It wasn¡¯t as if it could make him sick. Regular fish roe was a delicacy. Why not try something new?
¡°[We need to go back, Henry. Please, you¡¯ve got space. Mine¡¯s full. Pleasepleaseplease!]¡± Maurice was right. Henry did have a lot more storage space, especially now that Hunger had upgraded to level 4. 55 cubic meters of storage space, to be exact. Which, if Henry was visualizing this right, should be around the storage space of a small shipping container. Huge. Massive. Just like his new mass limit of 2,600 pounds¨Cwhich he was now slowly working on with Alter Physique. With all that in mind, Henry refused to store what had remained of the roe heap in his Maw. He felt like it¡¯d be the equivalent of storing soggy cereal in his pocket. If it was in a container, sure. Fine. But as it was right now? He didn¡¯t like thinking of random kraken eggs swimming around in his storage space like some sort of organic glitter that¡¯d he¡¯d keep seeing wherever he pulled anything out of his storage. Henry didn¡¯t actually know if it worked like that. It was a detail he hadn¡¯t thought of testing; whether items in his storage got in contact or not. He knew time was suspended somehow, from the few occasions Maurice had been in there. The eggs probably wouldn¡¯t contaminate anything¡­ or else Maurice would have come out bloodied from the meat Henry had stored. Still. He didn¡¯t want to. ¡°[Maurice, for the last time: I¡¯m not putting loose kraken eggs in my storage. We¡¯ve had our fun, we ate plenty. You even barfed twice! I¡¯m sure we¡¯ll find more krakens in the future.]¡± The crab continued to complain and grumble about scams as Henry leisurely swam toward the island. Occasionally he¡¯d feel the soft chime of Sense Foe ringing in his ear and he¡¯d glance at it, but he didn¡¯t stop. He wasn''t in the mood for a fight¨Cunless it was a new variant¨Cbut they were all specimens he¡¯d seen before. Henry just took in the scenery of the thinning kelp, the reefs, and even stopped to store the occasional interesting-looking plant. He knew it would be a pain to remember everything he had in storage, but he had a solution for that. One he couldn¡¯t implement just yet. If he had a notebook, he could write everything he stored, and then he just needed to retrieve his notebook from storage to keep track of what he had. He just needed to figure out how to get a notebook. A waterproof one. And a pen. Then how to write with this body. ¡°Maybe I should go with Partial Shift first¡­¡± He needed to make a choice soon. Whether to prioritize Partial Shapeshift or Flowing Form. He was curious to see how the shifting ability would evolve, and if it would allow him to create more complex organs. On the other hand, Henry had a suspicion about Flowing Form. He still recalled how the kraken¡¯s strength hadn¡¯t changed when it increased its size. So if Flowing From allowed him to keep his stats¡­ Henry might benefit from being smaller. Especially once he reached the Current. The whales had said it was dangerous, and considering Henry was finding C-Ranks here, it meant they might be a dime a dozen over there. And they might be fodder for stronger things. If Henry could keep his strength and have a stealthier frame, he could make use of that. ¡°Well¡­ I¡¯m going to need to get my hands on 100 C-Tokens first. That should take a minute. In the meantime, I¡¯ll work on upgrading everything else.¡± Henry crested the ridge that led down to the ant¡¯s glass river and dove in the direction of the island¡¯s stone wall. The waters weren¡¯t as dark as they¡¯d been the last time, and far down, Henry saw the lava river. Soon enough, the once-hidden entrance of the kraken den appeared in his sight. Maurice perked right out of his petulant mood. He breathed a single word, and even though Henry knew the chances of finding anything valuable were low, the prospect filled his mind with excitement. ¡°[Treasure.]¡± 1.57: The den
Henry landed on the entrance to the Trickster kraken¡¯s den and watched as a few dozen hatchlings scurried out, away into the open sea behind him. A few others stayed still and watched. [Trickster Hatchling] They looked a lot like how he looked back when he¡¯d woken up. Though these were significantly smaller, and their skin was still somewhat translucent. ¡°Interesting. No levels or ranks¡­¡± ¡°[They¡¯re so tiny,]¡± said Maurice. Henry had him in one of his arms as they watched the remaining hatchlings slowly adventure out, while a few seemed too scared to leave. Or maybe they just wanted to stick around. ¡°[Most have already left, probably.]¡± Henry left the tiny octopuses to their business and swam into the dark cave. As his eyes quickly adapted to the darkness, he noticed how smooth the tunnel seemed to be. Well, if you could call it that. It was angled down. A bit narrow for four or five yards, barely wide enough to let him swim through, then it began progressively widening until it opened up into an oblong chamber. The edges of the chamber had some blue-white luminescent moss growing, but it wasn¡¯t enough to really illuminate the cavern. Still, it was better than nothing. Boulders with more glowing moss on them showed heaps of random items. At the end of the chamber, a narrow tunnel led to another area. ¡°[Treasure?]¡± A few more hatchlings scattered when Maurice came close to one of the heaps at the entrance of the chamber. It seemed to be a repository of a bunch of random items the kraken collected. Rocks. Some shells. Oddly shaped boulders¨C Henry leaned forward, eyes wide. ¡°[Is that¡­ damn. That¡¯s a big pearl. Maurice, look at this. This comes from¨C]¡± Maurice was already setting aside every shell he could find, frantically looking for more. The crab looked up, froze when his eyes landed on a pearl that was almost the same size as him, then scuttled closer. ¡°[Wooah. What is this?]¡± Henry put the pearl down on the floor so Maurice could examine it. ¡°[It¡¯s called a pearl. I¡¯ll explain later. But it¡¯s definitely considered a treasure, especially for how large it is. Well¡­ back in my world, that is.]¡± Henry roamed in the chamber for a few seconds, and as he went toward the next chamber, he noticed the remains of hatched eggs¨Calong with a few unhatched¨Clining the wall. ¡°[This must be where it took care of its eggs.] This area seemed to have been some sort of living space. Where the kraken had kept its trinkets and took care of its eggs. Henry glanced down the chamber at the other tunnel. ¡°So what¡¯s in there?¡± Henry began angling himself to swim toward the second chamber, then paused and turned back. ¡°[Maurice, let¡¯s check the second area first, then we¡¯ll come back and pick stuff up.]¡± Maurice had been haphazardly stacking the shells¨Cand the single pearl¨Cin a stack. He looked up, despair radiating out of him. ¡°[I don¡¯t have space for these! I don¡¯t want to throw out the kraken roes.]¡± ¡°[I¡¯ll carry them. Don¡¯t worry about it. Come on.]¡± The crab scuttled closer, then hesitated. Henry sighed and swooped close to the pile. He eyed the items for a moment¨Cfor easier retrieval later¨Cand popped them in his Maw by wrapping his arm around them. ¡°[Stored. We¡¯ll come back, don¡¯t worry.]¡± Henry picked Maurice up and swam toward the second chamber. There wasn¡¯t much moss in this tunnel, but amazingly, Henry could see perfectly fine. To be fair, everything was in different shades of gray. But that was better than nothing. Stolen story; please report. This second tunnel was barely a few yards deep, after which the cave opened up in a chamber barely wider than the tunnel itself. It had a somewhat triangular shape, and one or two hatchlings had found their way here. In the middle, a few more boulders and shells were on the uneven floor. The same moss gave enough light to allow them to pick up some of the details of the chambers, and Henry decided to throw a couple of samples of the moss in his storage. Maybe with a boulder as well. For now, he just picked one of the smaller boulders and used it as a light to examine the edges of the chamber. He slowly made his way to the wall and noticed sharp, lighter-colored stones lining the bottom of the wall. He glanced up, and found the same rock formation above. Henry¡¯s eyes went wide. He took a step back, his torch-boulder held high¨Cand a shiver went down his arms. He looked around the ¡®chamber¡¯, then to confirm what he was already sure of, he visualized the path they¡¯d taken to arrive here. It fit. ¡°[Holy¡­ shit.]¡± ¡°[What? Also, there¡¯s something here. Something valuable. I¡¯m feeling something. Put me down I¡¯ll find it.]¡± Henry absentmindedly put Maurice down and triple-checked his facts. A long, narrow entrance into the mountain. A smooth tunnel that opened in a wide and long oval chamber, which in turn was connected to a small triangular chamber through a small and short tunnel. The triangular chamber had perfectly symmetrical white conical ¡®rocks¡¯ lining its walls. Tail. Torso. Neck and head. And those sharp rocks were the teeth. ¡°No way.¡± Henry approached the sharp rocks. It was obvious now. They were in the mouth of a dead sea monster. But something didn¡¯t click. ¡°This makes no sense. I¡¯d understand if it was just a skeleton¡­ but how did this happen?¡± It was as if this monster had been encased in the mountain. Flesh and all. Then the flesh melted away, and that in turn left the ¡®cave¡¯. But how would that even happen? A mountain grew around it? Instantly? Did it somehow teleport half-way into a mountain and instantly die? Did it dig into the island¡¯s foundation, then it all caved in around it? Currently, Henry was the largest he¡¯d ever been. And right now, he was swimming in the jaw of a sea monster. A C-rank kraken had been using this space as a nesting ground. Henry approached the teeth and began examining them, trying to outline the shape of the jaw to at least have an idea of what this had been, when Maurice spoke in his mind and made him almost jump out of his skin. ¡°[Henry? I think I found it¡­]¡± The kraken looked up and crossed the short distance separating him from Maurice. The crab backed away and pointed. Henry¡¯s eyes followed the claw, and his sight landed on one of the conical teeth. When he traced the tooth up, he saw what Maurice meant. A shiny, multi-colored turtle shell. The tooth had punched straight through its plastron and out of where the turtle head would have been. The top of the shell was mostly fine, aside from a large gash on the side. Henry swam up, then gently¨Cbut firmly¨Cdislodged the shell from the tooth it had been stuck on. He turned it in his arm, examining it. Was that how this creature had been killed? It tried to get the turtle and ended up teleported into the mountain¨Calong with the turtle? ¡°[That¡¯s the same as mine, right?]¡± Henry looked back down at Maurice, then swam down closer, eyes still on shell. Then he looked back to the tooth. ¡°[Yes.]¡± Was this turtle connected to Henry¡¯s? Was that why it had come to this area? They were supposed to be rare, if Henry recalled his conversation with the whales and the System correctly. [?] Henry grumbled. ¡°[Is Identify telling you anything?]¡± Maurice looked at the shell for a beat, then back up to Henry. ¡°[No.]¡± A few seconds later, the crab spoke again. ¡°[It feels weird. Like¡­]¡± Maurice struggled, eyes on the shell. ¡°[...I don¡¯t know. Like¡­ my shell is vibrating. Inside.]¡± A reaction between shells? Henry moved the shell away from the crab, just to be safe. He eyed what remained of the turtle, and when he turned his mana sight, he didn¡¯t notice anything special. But he knew better. ¡°[I think we should look into it later. These things are¡­ unpredictable. We¡¯ll look into it once we¡¯ve got a way to make sure it won¡¯t go bad. Alright?]¡± Maurice was still for a moment, eyes focused on the shell. It wasn¡¯t greed, Henry knew. It was a mix of curiosity and worry. Then, finally, Maurice tore his eyes away from the shell and stepped away. [You¡¯re right. Let¡¯s store it and we¡¯ll think about it. Plus, I already have one shell. That one should be yours. Considering. You know¡­]¡± ¡°[Stop that. We should just be safe. We don¡¯t need to figure everything out right this second,]¡± Henry said, then sent the shell into his Maw. It landed in his spiritual stomach like an anvil. ¡°[Ugh. It feels heavy.]¡± Maurice rubbed his claws together and looked around. ¡°[Were you saying something? Earlier?]¡± It took Henry a second to recall his discovery, then the knowledge jolted through him like lightning. ¡°[This is something¡¯s head. Those are teeth. The whole cave used to be something¡¯s body.]¡± Maurice stared up at him, rubbed his eyes, then looked back at where the turtle shell had been. He turned back to Henry, paused, then looked back at the teeth. Henry could literally sense the crab struggling to put the pieces together. ¡°[Wha¨Chow? WHAT?]¡±
[Not a Chapter] (Good) News, scheduling, and time off Tl;dr at the bottom. Hey everyone! I''ve reached a milestone this week which is--to cut to the point--I signed a deal with a publisher for Undersea Reincarnation. This is only happening because you all read and enjoyed the story. I''m incredibly thankful for all of you. Huge. Exciting. I''m also saying this in advance so you don''t worry about the next part. I''m also working on a new story! You might be thinking: How would I manage to work on two stories at once? Will I end up abandoning Undersea? Will I burn myself out? Maintaining two stories isn''t difficult if I have the time. And the goal for this new story is to allow me to go full-time. I''m pretty excited about it, actually, and if it goes as planned, then everything will stay the same for Undersea, and I''ll be outputting chapters for a new story as well. If it doesn''t workout... well. I''ll adapt. But Undersea won''t pay for it because, again, that story has a contract. But, to get there, I''m going need a couple of updates off and that''s not just just for the new story! As you may remember, I mentioned wanting to clean up the first book of Undersea and now that the volume is done (on Patreon), it''s time to get to work. A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. Over the next few weeks:
  • I will be managing the editing of book 1 ( alone to prep it for the publisher + working with a dev editor to get better as a writer),
  • I will be writing the backlog for the new story (I call it Project Wands... it sounds less cool than it is, trust me. Did you know Undersea''s folder is called Project Tentacles?),
  • I will be launching Project Wands And while I''m off from work this week and the next, I won''t be when most of the above is being done. So bear with me for the next couple of week. I''m trying to manage all of this without negatively exhausting myself.
So. Here''s how''s it going to go for the updates/off and break:
  • Week of 9th of September (next week): There will be two chapters. Not three.
  • Week of 16th of September (week after): There will be two chapters. Not three.
  • Might need some more after those, but I''ll let you know.
This hectic schedule won''t last forever. I expect two months tops. In a month(or so) I''ll be launching the new story and it should be pretty obvious within a week or two if it''s going to work out. Once the launch dust settles, the path forward will be clear. So tl;dr:
  • Starting a new story in a few weeks
  • Undersea got a publishing deal, so I''m contractually (and happily) obligated to write the story.
  • I have a lot to do: Editing for book 1 of Undersea, backlog for launch of new project, launch of new project which is why I need time off. The next two weeks (Sep 9th and Sep 16th) will have two chapters updates instead of three
That''s basically it. Gotta go back to writing now. Thank you all! 1.58: Tooth ¡°[Okay. It should work this time. Fifth time¡¯s the charm.]¡± Henry slowly worked his improvised bone-crowbar behind one of the bottom teeth, then wrapped three arms around the other end. This time he made sure to make the bone as thick and dense as possible. ¡°[What if we can¡¯t break it, though?]¡± Maurice asked from the other end of the crowbar. He was right next to the tooth, ready to send an empowered imploding bubble at the base of the tooth to help tear it off the ground. One large white-blue claw was resting against Henry''s crowbar, ready to push. ¡°[If this doesn¡¯t work¡­ then I don¡¯t know. We could try to dig into the rock of the other chambers. Actually, we should have done just that¡­. Probably would have been easier. But a tooth¡¯s cooler. Anyway, we¡¯ll see. Ready? 3¡­ 2¡­1¡­ GO.]¡± With his remaining arms against the roof, Henry pushed the lever down while Maurice did the same from above. The pressure quickly began to build in the bones that made the crowbar, and the stone beneath it cracked¨Cbut the tooth didn¡¯t nudge. ¡°[Bubbles!]¡± Henry pulled as hard as he could while the mini-implosions kicked up enough dust to where he couldn¡¯t see anything. But the lever was still in place, and hopefully the vibrations would make the tooth crack. A few seconds later, he activated Krakenbane¡¯s Wrath. The red corona spread against his limbs and down the arm-crowbar, but it didn¡¯t feel as intense as it had when the Trickster had been around. Still, it gave him a boost. Slowly, the bone began to bend. ¡°Ah f¨C¡± A loud crack echoed into the chamber and Henry braced for pain¨Cbut it didn¡¯t come. He approached, and both himself and Maurice waited for the dust to settle an. When it did, the tooth was out of the jaw. ¡°[Yes!]¡± Henry held it up, closer to some of the moss, and began turning in his arm to examine it. It was conical, with a bit of a curve to it. Thicker base. Not serrated, but from the shape of it, it looked good for both piercing and crushing. A bit of broken jaw was still stuck to it. ¡°[What even is this?]¡± ¡°[A tooth.]¡± Henry stared down at Maurice and resisted the urge to bop him with it. ¡°[I meant what monster did this belong to. I wish I had X-ray vision, I could maybe see the skeleton. But considering the vague body shape and specifically the tail, I can¡¯t think of much. Not normal fish, at least. Well¡­ No, that can¡¯t be it. Can it?]¡± An image began to form in Henry¡¯s mind. From visiting some museums. Prehistoric ones, specifically. He hated that possibility. He tried identifying the tooth next. [Tooth] ¡°Jee. Thanks. This Skill needs to be upgraded as soon as possible¡­ I guess Maurice wasn¡¯t being sassy.¡± Henry gave the crab a begrudging look. Maurice was waiting for him to finish his studying the tooth as he rubbed his pincer and scuttled around him in a semi-circle. ¡°[What is it?]¡± Henry looked closely at the tooth, then tried to see the arrangement of the others better. To visualize the shape of the jaw. ¡°[Aw man¡­ this sucks. It¡¯s amazing. But it sucks so bad¡­]¡± Maurice stared at him, waiting with bated breath, then threw his claws up when Henry kept studiously staring at the tooth. ¡°[You¡¯re not saying what it is?]¡± Henry enjoyed the crab¡¯s annoyance for an extra couple of seconds before summoning an image of what he thought could be the owner of this jaw. You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story. A reptile-like being appeared. A rendition. A re-imagining of what certain giant reptiles had looked like, millions of years ago on Earth. ¡°[Something like this, maybe. Or a giant crocodile, but I¡¯m not sure about that one. Could also be something else altogether. The tail¡¯s what is throwing me off, along with the teeth. So I guess¡­ we¡¯ll figure it out when we encounter this type of monster, if ever. I hope we do. But also not really. I don¡¯t know.]¡± Maurice stared at the different images Henry was summoning. A few mosasaurs, ancient crocodilians. A giant monitor lizard. Could be anything, really. ¡°[You think we could beat something like this?]¡± Henry dismissed the illusion and picked the crab up. ¡°[Not yet. It took us five tries to crack one of its teeth, Maurice. If this thing was alive and it wanted us dead, we¡¯d be dead.]¡± It was really worrying that they might be sharing an ocean with things of this caliber¡­ but it¡¯d been weeks and Henry hadn¡¯t seen anything like it. For all he knew, they might be extinct. Or this might not be their territory. With that, Henry began heading back to the other chamber. He didn¡¯t feel like fighting the jaw for another tooth, but he could examine the walls and the roof. Maybe he could dislodge a rib out of the wall, if he found them. Or a phalange. Those would be a lot easier to swallow.
Henry was pulling the third vertebra out of the hole he¡¯d blasted into the ceiling when Maurice called for him. ¡°[Henry, I found something weird!]¡± He finished pulling the vertebra and sent it into his Maw. These were for collecting. They were, unfortunately, a bit too large to swallow. And in any case, it wouldn¡¯t matter; he tried ingesting some tail-end pieces that¡¯d been near the entrance, but Magic Mimic got nothing. It might be worth a try if he somehow managed to break off a piece of the vertebra, but in the meantime, he¡¯d collect a few. Maybe carve a shell out of one of them for Maurice once he was capable of cutting into the incredibly tough bones. The crab¡¯s Skill might have a better chance at recovering abilities from long-dead beings. The kraken lowered his chisel-shaped arms and swam closer. In front of Maurice was a claw-sized object. Henry lowered his rock-lantern, and light reflected off the surface of a brown, polished ball. Henry leaned closer, eyes full of disbelief. ¡°[Wait¡­ is this metal? Let me see¡­ Damn it.]¡± [?] Henry frowned. ¡°Again? Is the Skill broken?¡± Henry looked to Maurice, and triggered the Skill. [Shelled Nomad (D) - Lvl 32] ¡°Nope. It works. I guess it can¡¯t handle magic turtles or shiny metal balls.¡± Again, Identify didn¡¯t fail to disappoint. Henry picked up the ball with the extremities of an arm. He wasn¡¯t sure whether it was the general capability of krakens or if it was his +30 in Perception, but he was almost sure it was metal. He tried pressing it, rolling it against his skin, and even tasted it through his suckers. The tang was familiar. ¡°[This is metal. I¡¯m 99% sure of it. Is this the egg of something? Is there something out there that lays metallic eggs?]¡± Henry looked up and around. What¡¯s with this cave? Maurice looked up. ¡°[Eggs are tasty. This doesn¡¯t look like one. And what¡¯s metal?]¡± Henry rolled the metallic ball in his arm as he considered Maurice¡¯s question. ¡°[If this isn¡¯t an egg, and if this is really metal, it means this had to be worked with tools. Metal doesn¡¯t appear like this naturally. Someone¨Cor something¨Cmade this. And it¡¯s not easy. Which means this thing has absolutely no business being here, in this cave, in the middle of the ocean.]¡± ¡°[Ooh. Do you think it¡¯s connected to the turtles?]¡± Henry shared a look with the crab. ¡°[Maybe. Maybe not. Right now, it looks like there¡¯s too many weird coincidences happening in a relatively small area. There¡¯s a decent chance a lot of this is connected, but it might also still be random¡­ We¡¯ve got no ways to tell. At least, not until Identify starts giving answers we can use.]¡± Though there was a Skill that might help them here. If it actually worked, for once. ¡°[Maurice, let¡¯s try Find the Path on this. Try to find where it came from. Where it was made.]¡± Henry¡¯s hopes were below the ground they were resting on. Over the last few days, ever since they¡¯d gotten the Skill out of the turtle shell, they hadn¡¯t managed to get it to work for anything actually useful. A few small and obvious tests had worked, such as ¡®which direction is the sky¡¯ or ¡®where is Maurice¡¯. That last one had been when Maurice hid behind a boulder literally twenty feet away. But everything else they¡¯d tried, especially if it had even a hint of complexity, would make the golden light fizzle. The Skill would fail, and the golden trail that should take them toward the goal would never form. So, when the light appeared in his sight and traced a path toward the exit, Henry was gobsmacked. ¡°[Aw¡­ It didn¡¯t work. Maybe when the Skill¡­ Henry? Wait. Did it work? Henry? Tell me!]¡± Henry blinked. Nope. The trail was still there. None of this was making any sense. 1.59: Mysteries ¡°[We don¡¯t need to go back. I don¡¯t feel anything more of value there. But maybe you want to dig out more bones? Also, can I look at the pearl again?]¡± Henry swam after the trail of gold dust, out of the cave. The path created by Find the Path extended forward and upward, heading to the surface. ¡°[I¡¯ll get the pearl once we¡¯re back down on the seabed. I don¡¯t want us to lose it.]¡± With Maurice secure on top of Henry¡¯s head and the metallic sphere in his arm, the duo swam up to the surface. It was night out when Henry breached the water into the cool air. The planet above was mostly dark, aside from the five pillars of light connecting it to this one. Well. Five pillars and a thin, barely visible trail of gold that only Henry could see. ¡°[What do you think¡¯s up there? Do you think there are other crabs like me? Pretty shells? Treasures?]¡± Henry brought his arm up and looked at the metallic sphere. The path had disappeared when he¡¯d stopped touching the mysterious ball, so now that he knew where the Skill pointed, it was time to do a quick test. Henry gave the metal bead to Maurice. ¡°[Can you try it and tell me what you see? Careful not to drop it.]¡± A few moments later, Maurice confirmed that the Skill worked for him as well. ¡°[So. Using the Skill we got from a rare, world-hopping turtle, on a metallic ball that we found in the stomach of a monster that killed a similar turtle, we see a path toward another planet. Also, both turtles died within a couple of hour¡¯s swim from each other.]¡± ¡°[Mysteries. Adventures.]¡± Henry smiled inwardly, but decided not to rain on Maurice¡¯s excitement. He realized, for once, that he didn¡¯t want to dwell on this matter. Obviously, something had happened. Whatever took place here didn¡¯t feel like an innocuous series of natural events, and frankly, he wasn¡¯t equipped enough or knowledgeable enough to even begin to tackle this. Would it improve their odds of survival? Or worsen them? He had no way of knowing, so why worry about it? Henry took in the quiet night for a moment before dipping back in. ¡°[Let¡¯s hide that one as well, alright?]¡± Maurice was quiet for a few seconds, but Henry felt the question coming. His own mood must have been pretty obvious to the crab. ¡°[Are you not curious?]¡± Henry grinned as the glass-covered lava river came into view. ¡°[Oh, absolutely. It¡¯ll keep me up at night. But I¡¯m okay with not dropping everything to figure this out. There¡¯s a lot we don¡¯t know, and it¡¯s a lot harder to finish a puzzle when more than half of the pieces are missing. So I¡¯m okay to wait until we know more. About this world, about its magic, and about those turtles. You know, Maurice, there¡¯ll always be mysteries to figure out. Discoveries to make. Something new to learn. You just can¡¯t do it all at once. So for now, I¡¯d like us to grow stronger and survive our travels.]¡± Maurice seemed to sense what Henry was planning. ¡°[Oh? What are we doing? And what¡¯s a puzzle?]¡± ¡°[Puzzles are something either you¡¯ll absolutely love or absolutely despise. I¡¯m not sure. But it would be a good illusion exercise for me. I¡¯m nowhere near as good as the Trickster kraken had been. So. While you work on your resistances to mana-drain and lava, I¡¯ll work on making illusory puzzles for you to solve. Among a couple of other things. How¡¯s that sound?]¡± *** Henry watched a singular Imploding Bubble meet the oversized projectile with pinpoint accuracy and confirmed a suspicion he¡¯d had for the last few hours. The crab was a natural-born sharpshooter. He still missed quite a few shots, but he was landing too many for it to be coincidental. The projectile destabilized and blew up long before it could reach the crab¡¯s range. The hail of glass shrapnel rained down on a swarm of weaker ants, killing and injuring a few, but that wasn¡¯t enough to stop the enraged insects. Henry eyed the ant soldier. This one was a bit stronger than what they¡¯d met the first time they encountered the ants, and soon enough more of them would show up. Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings. [Lava Ant Soldier (D) - Lvl 8] He wasn¡¯t worried, though. Henry wasn¡¯t sure if Maurice had gotten a heat resistance Skill yet, but his own variant of Arcane Fortification was nothing to scoff at. Plus, it must be leveling. Henry looked further back. More ants lay dead or dying, while some smaller members of the colony carried their bodies back toward one of the many entrances. Sometimes, those poor ants would get ambushed by tiny, barely week-old Tricksters. [Trickster Octopus (F) - Lvl 34] ¡°Damn. They¡¯re leveling fast.¡± Henry didn¡¯t mind them. He let nature do its thing. Though considering their number, maybe it would be worth it to save a specimen or two? That made him feel uneasy. Was he going to keep them stored indefinitely in his Maw? Was he going to keep them as pets? What if they naturally grew up to become aggressive and hostile? Henry dismissed the idea. That sounded like a can of worms he didn¡¯t really want to deal with. He was more interested in them within their ecosystem. What would be the point of keeping them captive? A notebook to jot down his observations would have been nice, though. Along with a notebook for everything else he¡¯d been putting in his Maw. ¡°I already have so much junk though¡­ Why isn¡¯t there a note-taking app on this interface?¡± He¡¯d already been collecting samples, but getting stuff out of his Maw once he forgot about it was a pain. The octopuses finally brought down one of the half-dead ants. It was sort of interesting, though. The octopuses that hunted in this area would most probably become Stoneskin krakens¨Cif they survived. Those who traveled to the area of the jellyfish¨Canother specimen he should keep some samples of¨Cwould become Arcane krakens. ¡°What other adaptations could they evolve into?¡± He remembered a few choices he¡¯d gotten in his own evolution. Like Blightbringer and Mesmer. But he¡¯d bet there were more out there. ¡°I hope they won¡¯t all be hostile.¡± Henry didn¡¯t have high hopes for that. But he¡¯d give it a shot. Otherwise, he wouldn¡¯t mind some interesting Skills or Traits. Which reminded him. He should look into filling those Traits slots soon. ¡°Anyway. Break¡¯s over.¡± Henry slowly exhaled. He was tense. His Octominds were ready. Then he opened his eyes and mana rushed out. His own image materialized around him as he pulled his arms closer. As much as he awkwardly tried to push his mana out faster, it still took a few seconds for the Skill to finish. That was one of the things he¡¯d have to work on. Though it would have been nice to have a guide or a book to figure how this mana stuff worked. ¡°Alright, let¡¯s see how this looks.¡± Thanks to the three-part Octomind cluster he¡¯d assigned to the Blood Clone, he could close his eyes and see through the clone¡¯s senses. He could always feel the connection, but the Octominds kept him somewhat informed of what was being perceived by the clones. At any time, he could close his eyes and share their senses. If he added another Octomind to the cluster controlling the Blood Clone, he could get even more details, and any less than three made everything slower. It reminded Henry of the picture-in-picture features of his old phone. He could have a video playing while browsing, and at any time he could look into the corner and see what was being displayed. This time, though, Henry needed more control. So he tugged on his connection to his Blood Clone and felt his senses warp as his awareness snapped into the clone above him. Henry opened his clone eyes and took in the illusion he¡¯d crafted around himself as he swam around it. It was eerie, seeing himself like this. Still, it didn¡¯t take long for him to know he had failed. The illusion itself looked alright, but it and his real body were overlapping, which confirmed his theory that the kraken had been crafting the illusion just as it turned itself invisible. ¡°Its illusion would have to appear instantly though¡­ mine still takes a few seconds to fully form. Maybe it¡¯ll get faster when it upgrades. It¡¯s getting pretty close.¡± Henry snapped back to his own body, then willed the Clone to move back toward its maximum range. Keeping track of it while it was far was taxing, which meant it would allow both his Octominds and the Skill to continue to level. ¡°Maybe I should push it further. It¡¯s not as if I¡¯m going to need the Octominds right now¡­¡± Yeah. Why not? Henry added two more Octominds to the cluster controlling the Blood Clone. His awareness of the clone¡¯s surroundings spiked, then, as the clone went further, it weakened again. At its edge, a hundred yards or so away, Henry would need to seriously focus to get detailed information out of the clones. If he sent it further, the Skill would fail and the clone would dissolve into mist. ¡°It¡¯ll come with time. The Trickster could do it. The skill should level soon¡­ and then I¡¯ll know if levels extend the range. I mean¡­ they must. Right?¡± With him hitting a roadblock when it came to reproducing the Trickster¡¯s illusory technique, and with Maurice busy fighting and surviving an army of ants, Henry decided to turn his attention to one of the most important facets of his abilities that he¡¯d been neglecting so far. Well, until yesterday, that is. Mana. And his practically nonexistent ability to directly control it. 1.60: Mana Mana was an odd thing. Henry wasn¡¯t sure if he could call it matter or not. When he used a Skill, he could feel the cool and slightly tingly energy run down his limb, or collect around his beak before the Skill would trigger. He could feel it spread and diffuse around his flesh when he activated Trickster¡¯s Resilience¡¯s effect. He could feel it sink into his flesh to make it tougher. It didn¡¯t behave like a physical thing. When he studied the cross-section of one of his extremities, he saw nothing that looked like a mana vessel. He saw veins. He saw nerves and muscle tissue, but no glowy-vessel to transport mana. And when he looked at the stump and activated Arcane Regeneration, he didn¡¯t see mana percolate out of his flesh. He felt it move down his arm, sure, but by the time it arrived at the stump, it appeared as a green hue that regrew the extremity of his arm. But he didn¡¯t think that was mana. Not pure mana, at least. It was the magical effect of the Skill. But what did a Skill do, exactly? That had been the impetus for all of this. When Henry used Krakenbane¡¯s Wrath back in the cave, to dislodge the tooth, it had felt weaker. As if the Skill needed to have a kraken nearby to work at 100%. It still had given him a boost, but nothing as potent as the first time he¡¯d used it. It still ate up his mana, though. So what if Skills were just¡­ mana that had been told what to do? Somehow? Arcane Regeneration told it to heal. Krakenbane¡¯s Wrath told it to make him stronger if there was a kraken to defeat. So if he was able to tell his mana to do something for him, would that work? Henry felt that theoretically, it should. Practically though, getting it to move out of his stomach was easier said than done. But he did at least figure out where it was stored. Through a couple of hours of meditation¨Cafter expending a sizable amount of mana¨Che could feel it build back up somewhere a few inches above his beak and behind his brain, though closer to his stomach and arms. Getting it to move out of that reserve without using Skill was tough. Why did mana respond so well to his Skills but not to his own will? What were the Skills doing that was special? Still, he managed to make it move down his arm for a foot or so before he¡¯d lost control over it. The arm had tingled for nearly half an hour after that. ¡°[Henry. It¡¯s your turn. Taking this long doesn¡¯t mean you¡¯re going to win, you know?]¡± Henry glared at the crab in front of him, then moved his knight to defend a rook from Maurice¡¯s bishop. They were playing Chess. Henry had the board projected in front of both of them, flat¨Clike the website and app he used to play on¨Cand Maurice would use his own illusions to draw arrows for his desired movements. After which Henry would modify the board. Chess was a good exercise for illusion work and for the Octominds that weren¡¯t on Blood Clone duty. Unfortunately for him, Henry was a middling amateur at best, and the Octominds couldn¡¯t create chess expertise out of thin air. He could visualize the possible outcomes of certain moves better, sure, but Maurice seemed to have a knack for puzzles. Maybe if Henry used all eight of his Octominds he could force a win. In the meantime, a dreadfully red and giant arrow drew itself on the board. It brought the queen right in front of Henry¡¯s king, and it was backed by the damn bishop from earlier. ¡°[Checkmate. I win! One more?]¡± Henry sighed and reset the board to its starting position. This time he played white¨Cnot expecting that to matter much, but maybe he could draw. Maurice pulled a handful of kraken roe out of his Maw and began munching. He was annoyingly smug about his win. Both the crab and the human form. Henry moved his pawn and Maurice drew his response on the chessboard. ¡°[Are we leaving soon? It¡¯s getting boring. I¡¯m not leveling from the ants any more.]¡± ¡°[It¡¯s barely been a day and a half. We were in the cave yesterday night. The Trickster¡¯s fight was two days ago.]¡± Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation. ¡°[Exactly. I want to see the world. Get stronger. Find more fish roe because you didn¡¯t want to store the Trickster¡¯s. I¡¯m almost out¡­]¡± Henry¡¯s human face shook his head. ¡°[We¡¯ll leave in a few hours. I want to figure out something. With mana. You should work on it as well¡­ I don¡¯t know how useful it will be, but I¡¯m sure it won¡¯t hurt.]¡± ¡°[Oh. You mean moving your mana? I can do it already. I can show you.]¡± Henry looked down and would have lost his control over the illusion if it wasn¡¯t for his Octominds. Maurice grinned and his human persona stepped around the crab and presented the raised claw. It took a few seconds, but before Henry could say anything, the claw began to glow with a soft white-blue light. When he moved, it seemed as if it left an afterimage that quickly faded. ¡°[See? I even got a Skill for it. It¡¯s called Mana Manipulation.]¡± *** Maurice went to fight some more ants while Henry focused back on mana manipulation. He tried on and off for nearly an hour, and, deciding to take a break, he went through all the upgrades he had available in the Aspect Workshop. Upgrading the ones he could afford left him with around 150 D-Tokens. ¡°I should assign my stats as well¡­ and start looking into the next stat points I can buy. Actually, nevermind that. If every point¡¯s going to cost in the C-Tokens then I should focus on the expensive upgrades first. I probably have to upgrade Alter Physique and Shapeshift Arm before I can get the next six points in any attribute.¡± Henry looked through the abilities he¡¯d upgraded. Mind Weaver¡¯s Tongue¡¯s upgrade to E-Rank made his Telepathy into a broadcast instead of single-target. Trickster¡¯s Resilience was a D-rank upgrade, and it made his mana consumption spike. But in exchange, toughness rose significantly as well. Henry had to really, really push to cut deeply into his own flesh. The last upgrade was Mana Nexus, which also became E-Rank, and it was the most noticeable change. His Mana Vision was sharper and seemed to pierce further into the screen of ambient mana, while his reserves felt thicker. If his mana had felt like thick smoke before, now it felt more like a fresh and electric mist. ¡°And it does respond to my will better. Maybe I¡¯ll get Mana Manipulation soon.¡± It would be nice if the Skill was offered as an upgrade to Mana Nexus instead of a new standalone Skill. Still, he couldn¡¯t help the thought that came to him when he thought of acquiring that specific Skill. If he actually could move his mana, why would he need the Skill? ¡°Would be real nice to know what Skills are. Are they like¡­ shortcuts? A way to automate magic?¡± Henry planned to get some answers from the System the next time he heard from it. It hadn¡¯t been around the last time, though to be fair, Henry had been a bit busy, to say the least. ¡°Maybe the next one. I should prepare my questions. Have a list. That¡¯ll have to be memorized because I can¡¯t take notes. That actually should be my first question. How to keep notes.¡± Henry glanced up and saw Maurice already coming back toward him. He guessed they were moving on soon. ¡°Time to work on my traveling skills. But before Maurice gets here, let¡¯s see the gains.¡± Even his Blood Clones had evolved. Well, the Misdirection had, but that confirmed that with levels he¡¯d be able to send them further. For now, Henry recalled his Blood Clone and took a quick glance at his recent levels. Shiftiness of the Trickster (D): Level 5 -> Level 6 Misdirection of the Trickster (D) - Level 1 -> Level 2 Arms of the Trickster (E): Level 8 -> Level 9 Arcana of the Trickster (E): Level 7 -> Level 9 ¡°Not a huge list, but that¡¯s two Aspects on the cusp of an upgrade and I don¡¯t have enough to pay for that¡­¡± Arcana got a good workout though, clearly. Between his heavy use of illusions, Telepathy, and Mana Nexus, the Aspect jumped two levels in two days. ¡°So many abilities are close to upgrading, and I don¡¯t have anywhere near enough Tokens for all of them.¡± Yeah, it was probably a good call to move on from this place. Henry needed a large prey to afford all of this. He looked back toward the island and shuddered. Nothing as large as whatever had been in that cave, though. Whatever that was, they weren¡¯t ready for it. Maurice finally reached the top of the slope Henry had settled on and dropped down on his shell. Slowly, reverently, he pulled a claw from within his shell. In it was a blob of kraken roe. ¡°[It¡¯s the last bite. I¡¯m out,]¡± said the crab. A human-face appeared above the shell and gave Henry a betrayed look. Henry stretched his arms and ignored the guilting attempts of the crab. He¡¯d heard too many already. ¡°[Then you should enjoy it. We¡¯ll try to find some aggressive krakens on our way.]¡± Maurice looked up, the sour mood suddenly gone. ¡°[We¡¯re leaving?]¡± The Blood Clone arrived and stopped above both of them. ¡°[Yes. Time to move on from this place.]¡± Maurice looked down at the handful of eggs, and stored them back in his shell. He nibbled on whatever stuck to his claw, then threw both pincers up. ¡°[Adventure!]¡± 1.61: Let me fight ¡°[Can we go on an adventure now?]¡± Henry stored the sixth giant tooth in his Maw. He rolled his sore arms and looked down appreciatively at the four joints he¡¯d used in their efforts to crack the teeth out of the monster¡¯s jaw. With the simple joint memorized, it allowed him to focus more on the joint¡¯s strength and stability instead of worrying about its functionality. Henry lowered his arms then slowly turned to face the crab. Maurice, all four feet of him, had his arms crossed and was leaning backward to give Henry the stink-eye. He was growing larger, though he was still comparatively tiny. Henry reached over to pick him up, but not the usual way. Henry picked Maurice by the top of his shell and held him upside down. Maurice flailed his pointy feet and claws. ¡°[Wh¨Cput me down!] Henry brought the crab closer until he was at eye level. Maurice clacked a claw at him, but Henry mostly sensed amusement from the crab. ¡°[Beating me in chess does not mean you get to talk like that, you little gremlin. I will get a rope and tie you behind me while we travel. We¡¯ll see how you like that.]¡± Maurice froze up. They stared at each other for a second before both spoke up at once. ¡°[Yes! Fun!]¡± The crab threw both arms up, but in this scenario, they both pointed down to the cave floor.. ¡°[Yeah, that¡¯s too fun to be a punishment.]¡± Henry let Maurice float back down. ¡°[I know you¡¯re mostly joking, but remember what we said about being polite. Especially when we meet others.]¡± Maurice fluttered his claws and swam up to his usual perch. Henry sensed the sharp legs landing on his head.¡°[I know. I was exaggerating. Wait, no. I was acting. And I want to see new places, but I know the teeth are good. They¡¯re so tough! Do you have enough for your plan?]¡± Henry nodded. ¡°[Yes. We¡¯re good to go. For real this time.]¡± While they¡¯d been resting the previous night and enjoying a peaceful¨CTrickster-free¨Cevening Henry had been thinking about the buried monster and how tough its teeth were. He started imagining potential designs and weaponized limbs he could create with his current Skill, and they would only get better when he¡¯d upgrade to Partial Shapeshift. It was too good of a resource to pass up. Especially considering he had no access to metals or any other durable material, aside from what he could create himself. Henry didn¡¯t think he could integrate the teeth into his body, and he didn¡¯t intend to, but he could most certainly create claw-like appendages. And the better he got with the Skill, the more complex limbs he¡¯d be able to recreate. Well, he¡¯d try to work on it as they traveled. Along with everything else. *** ¡°[Henry?]¡± ¡°[Hmm?]¡± It hadn¡¯t been long since they''d left the cave and island behind. Barely a couple of hours, in fact. The clear, shallow waters stretched endlessly below. Henry had enjoyed the sights for a while, but within a handful of minutes, he¡¯d left the swimming to a pool of six Octominds that continued to beat his arms rhythmically while he focused on his training. The daylight fell around him, helping his camouflage as he cut through the calm morning sea. He couldn¡¯t be invisible, but a whitish-gray was really difficult to see from below. Henry had opted to swim high, while Maurice kept an eye on what happened below them. Now, Henry was working on his mana control, which he stopped to look at Maurice. The crab who was stuck to the side of his face and was now tapping Henry with his claw. ¡°[Henry. When are we taking a break? I want to work on my Clawminds as well. I can¡¯t keep watch and use my shapeshifting at the same time.]¡± Henry continued swimming quietly for a few seconds. Eyeing the topography down below, he noticed the seabed was a bit more raised than it had been ten minutes or so ago. He decided to break the surface and take a look around. Henry¡¯s eyes landed on what looked like a mountainous archipelago a bit to the west. ¡°[I see islands, around 20 minutes away. We¡¯ll stop then, and in the future we¡¯ll do shifts. Alright?]¡± The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation. ¡°[Okay!]¡± Henry adjusted the direction in which the Octominds were taking them, then focused back on his mana. He imagined it as a ball of light somewhere around the center of his stomach. Picturing the glowing blue mist, he willed it to drift down his frontal arm as he held it in front of him. A shiver trickled out of his stomach and began snaking down the arm. It felt like he had to push and wheedle the mana down his limb, but it was obeying his will. A soft, barely visible blue shimmer enveloped his arm¨Cbut the further down it traveled, the harder it became to keep it stable. To his mana vision the shimmer was much more visible, and it wafted off his arm like steam. A handful of seconds later, his hold destabilized, and the mana evaporated like a puff of smoke. Henry hummed. ¡°It¡¯s getting easier¡­ but it doesn¡¯t feel very useful yet. I guess I just need to keep practicing. And explore the other Skills in depth.¡± He exhaled, then narrowed his focus on his mana reserve before casting Arcane Arm. It felt like that would be one of the easiest Skills to observe, and to be fair, it didn¡¯t cost that much compared to most of his other Skills. Henry poured all of his attention onto it and pulled in all inactive Octominds to observe the process. Immediately, he noticed the draw of mana. It was fast and decisive. As if it was coming out of a fire hydrant compared to his own attempt, which felt as if he was pulling the mana with a kinked swirly straw. By the time he finished registering that difference, the magic had formed a ghostly and familiar blue shape. So Henry dismissed it, and cast it again. And again. He sensed the mana leave the ¡®reservoir¡¯ and move within him in that fraction of a second before the magical arm appeared. It happened extremely fast, but the sensation was unmistakable. It was very reminiscent of the sensations he experienced after the last evolution. After what he labeled soul surgery. The large chunk of mana disappeared in there, as if sucked out of his body and into that layer, and then the arm would appear. That¡¯s where the Skill was taking place. That¡¯s where mana was becoming magic. With every try, he got a better feel for the process. So he kept dismissing the Arm and re-casting it over and over, until Maurice tapped him on the head again. ¡°[You¡¯re swimming past the island, Henry! Also, something¡¯s coming. What is that? Oh, it looks mad.]¡± Henry deactivated the swimming Octominds and looked down just in time to see a lizard-like thing rush up toward him, its large tail swaying as it left a cloud of sand and stone from the sudden launch. It opened its jaw, sharp and needle-thin teeth shining unnaturally red. Henry cracked it across the face with an arm hard enough to break some of the lizard¡¯s teeth and send the reptile careening to the side. Then he took a moment to Identify it. [Young Sea Drake (D) - Level 54] ¡°[Drake?]¡± Henry thought of an oversized monitor lizard at first, but the more he looked at it, the less that name fit. The deep-blue scales were larger and shinier. Its maw was wider and longer, with a forked tongue that seemed to be tasting the water as it recovered from the impact. A pair of reptilian eyes warily watched Henry from a distance while he studied it. Its forelegs were thick and muscular, with flexible joints, while the hindlegs seemed simpler but larger, ideal for pouncing. It reminded him of lions and panthers, especially the long claws at the end of its webbed feet as it paddled. Yeah, this wasn¡¯t a normal lizard. ¡°[Are we fighting it?]¡± Henry noticed how the drake kept pulling away. ¡°[I don¡¯t think there¡¯s a fight here.]¡± The drake eyed Henry, then swam up. Henry continued observing the new specimen while his mind buzzed with questions. What kind of being was this? Would it be friendly? And if not, what kind of ability did it have and what did it look like when it was fully grown? Henry¡­ kept thinking of dragons. It kinda looked like one. Were drakes a lower form of dragons? Was he going to meet something like that? Also, now that he watched it, he remembered the whales mentioning claws, and he was traveling in the direction they¡¯d advised him to go. The drake¡¯s head broke out of the water¨Cand it screeched loud enough for Henry and Maurice to hear. ¡°Ah¡­ dammit.¡± ¡°[It called for help,]¡± confidently said Maurice. Henry sighed. He¡¯d just been in the middle of something. He tried to send a telepathic message to the drake, but that only seemed to agitate it, making its screeches more frantic and sharp. ¡°[Let me fight.]¡± Henry paused, then reached over and plucked Maurice off the side of his face to look at him for a moment. Sensing the resolve of the crab, Henry looked up. ¡°[Alright. But there might be a lot of them. ]¡± Maurice eyed the drake. In the distance, shapes began diving in from the island, but that didn¡¯t seem to deter the crab. ¡°[I¡¯ll keep an eye out. Let me know if you need help.]¡± Maurice turned his eye stalks to look at Henry. ¡°[Even if a weak C-rank shows up, let me try first.]¡± ¡°[Sure. Let¡¯s go lower. I¡¯ll camouflage near you.]¡± With that, Henry dove and quickly mimicked a large boulder, while Maurice readied himself by making two large Arcane Claws appear above him. Within seconds, nine D-Rank drakes were circling Maurice, all between level 40 and 70. Then the first one took a sharp turn toward Maurice and opened his mouth. Henry watched the fight, using half his Octominds to keep an eye out for danger, and worked on his mana manipulation while the sea around him was filled with churned sand and blood. 1.62: A matter of perspective ¡°The Skill is what draws the mana. What if¡­¡± Henry hummed. Instead of pushing the mana out or trying to order it like a limb, what if he made his arm pull the mana, as if it was needing it. As if it was inhaling it. ¡°Could it be that simple?¡± A quick glance ahead showed him an angry crab swatting drakes away left and right. A storm of ghostly pincers and implosions kept the drakes away. Maurice¡¯s attacks weren¡¯t fatal, but the drakes¡¯ tough scales were struggling with the violent implosions, both from Maurice¡¯s projectiles and from his Domain¨Cwhich Henry could clearly see through mana sight. Interestingly enough, there was no mana in the dome surrounding the crab, outside of the glowing shape of the dismembered Arcane Claw. None of the usual teal-colored ambient mana. And whenever a drake got into that mana-less sphere, smoke-white mana would snap into existence and implode, scaring and forcing the drake to retreat. Henry had no clue how that Skill worked. If Arcane Arm was one of the simplest Skills in his repertoire, then Domain might be one of the most complex, along with Shapeshifting Arm. And Blink. And Find the Path. Actually, most Skills seemed really complex, and Henry didn¡¯t even want to get started on his charges of copied properties. Did those behave the same way as independent Skills? Or were they some sort of modifier? Maybe the temporary charges were like photographic filters, using the main Skill as a base to apply their effect. Henry sighed. He couldn¡¯t tell. He assumed Arcane Arm was simple because it looked like shaped mana that he could control outside his regular limbs, but that one could be complicated to recreate as well. Maurice ducked into his shell as a drake snuck up on him and tried to snatch him by his face. Then he came out and slammed both claws down, making a stream of bubbles escape from the drake''s open jaw. It quickly swam away and up to get air. There wasn¡¯t a lot of blood from the fight. Henry wasn¡¯t sure if Maurice was actually trying to kill the drakes, but it most definitely looked like an intense exercise. Leaving the crab to it, Henry focused back on his own task. ¡°Alright, let''s test this theory. The arm needs mana. It inhales the mana.¡± Henry moved his awareness to his frontal arm, then, as he inhaled, he imagined the arm doing the same, pulling deep from his mana reserve. Mana surged out of his stomach area and down his arm. Henry¡¯s eyes widened at the sensation, and at the glow could see from his extended arm. Even a drake seemed to have noticed the glow and jumped away in alarm. ¡°So that¡¯s the trick? A switch of perspective?... Why?¡± Henry wasn¡¯t annoyed. He was genuinely intrigued. He wished he had a way to examine these Skills and what made them what they were¡­ but this was a step in the right direction. It was still less mana than what Arcane Arm pulled out, but it was much better than anything he¡¯d been able to do so far. It also felt more¡­ stable. Though he still lost control of it after a few moments, as if, once the mana knew he had no use for it, it didn¡¯t want to stay. ¡°More to work on and explore, I guess. Would I be able to create my own Skills if I managed to make my mana do stuff? Oh. And would you look at that.¡± A Mana Nexus upgrade had been unlocked, and a quick check into the upgrade menu showed him it was effectively an upgrade related to mana control. ¡°I guess I just needed to crack the problem to have it unlocked. Though this doesn¡¯t answer my question. I can bring mana into my arm, but how do I do anything with it?¡± Well. Maurice was still fighting, so Henry decided he might as well try some other Skill and try to see through their mechanism. *** In the end, Henry and Maurice spent nearly three days around the drakes¡¯ archipelago. Henry worked on his mana control and explored the mechanism of Skills, while Maurice spent his days fighting drakes until they¡¯d run away. And hours later, he¡¯d do it all over again. A couple of times Henry had been forced to intervene when C-Ranks showed up and Maurice had stubbornly refused to call for help, even when things began to look dire¨Cwhich was going to be an issue they¡¯d have to address. The two larger drakes had been vicious¨Cand very hostile¨Cand they might have had the toughest scales Henry had encountered as of yet. Unfortunately for them, the scales¡¯ durability didn¡¯t matter when it came to electricity. Especially when he¡¯d let them get a good bite in before he discharged the Skill straight into their mouths. The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement. Henry hadn¡¯t gotten any interesting Skill from the Drake, but he got a new anticoagulant venom, as well as some Constitution and Strength points from one of their Cores. He also stored their meat for easy access to their toughness through Mimicking. He needed to collect C-Rank Cores for his Skill upgrades, but he couldn¡¯t pass on potential free stat points. And in any case, he soon realized that those drake Cores would be easy to replace. As Henry and Maurice traveled toward the thinnest point in the pillar of light, they began to encounter C-Ranks more and more often. Sharks, large drakes, and even a handful of C-Rank kraken who immediately went on the offensive as soon as Henry noticed them. The only being who actually backed away when Henry had tried to communicate was a Bladefin Ray who had stopped its slicing attack, circled Henry and Maurice once or twice, then turned away and left and in that same day, Henry and Maurice arrived at the wall of light. This area wasn¡¯t in the shallows anymore. Maurice and Henry were deep enough for the surface to be barely visible, no matter if it was day or night. But as they¡¯d come to discover, that didn¡¯t seem to matter in the Great Current. ¡°[...How?]¡± His blood clone saw it first, moments before Henry and Maurice got there. Henry couldn¡¯t look away. He barely heard Maurice¨Cwho was also struggling to make sense of the surreal vision ahead of them. It was¡­ as if barely ten yards away, a new world began. A bright, clear world where the sea stopped obscuring their sight. A world full of light and life and growth. A deep valley stretched ahead, and even though he couldn¡¯t see its depth from this angle, Henry could only describe this place as the equivalent of a tropical forest. Algae and almost tree-like vegetation of all colors covered every inch of surface, creating green pillars of flowy leaves out of which swam deceptively small fish. They looked a bit like leafy seadragons, but somehow showed up as C-Rank when Henry identified them. Above, where the greenery wasn¡¯t as thick, the largest Riptides Henry had ever seen roamed around, waiting for an opportunity to get an easy lunch. Everything was C-Rank. Which meant, Henry and Maurice had better be careful and be ready. ¡°[It¡¯s so pretty,]¡± said Maurice, after nearly a minute of them taking in the breathtaking vista. Henry could only nod. Or try to. This might be one of the most impressive sights he¡¯d ever seen, but as he was quick to realize, it wasn¡¯t the safest. Out of the depths, a flash of blue light suddenly zipped upward like a flicker, and then the world lit up with dozens of deep blue spears that seemed to emerge out of nothing, matching the speed of the lead predator. Instantly, nearly half the school of Riptides was stabbed, impaled, and bisected. A breath later, more shapes rocketed out of the depth and tore into the remaining Riptides. Henry quickly camouflaged himself and watched, his heart hammering with thrill and alarm. Scanning the largest specimen, a shiver ran down his arms. [Slipstream Swordfish (?) - Lvl ?] Henry and Maurice watched in silence as the school of C-Rank Riptides was torn to shreds over the course of a few minutes before the school of C-Rank Swordfish swam deeper into the bright valley ahead. Their B-Rank leader¨CHenry was guessing¨Cswam ahead, trailing a light of blue that seemed to make the rest of the school faster. Henry was first to break the silence. ¡°[We should hunt more C-Ranks, then come back.]¡± Maurice rubbed his claws together and immediately agreed. ¡°[Yes. I think this might be a bit too dangerous. Plus we¡¯ve met a lot of C-Ranks. We could just move back for an hour or two and get some levels.]¡± ¡°[Deal.]¡± Henry had done a lot of training over the last few days¨Cand so had Maurice, who¡¯d gained many more Skill levels than Class levels¨Cbut B-Rank? The kraken¡¯s arms kept still as Henry propulsed himself with his siphon. ¡°Too big of a difference. Too dangerous. We need more¨C¡± Just as he began planning his priorities, a sound filled their ears. Clicks. No, not just clicks. A series of clicks and squeaks that were approaching rapidly. Henry came to a stop as he recognized the sounds, and immediately morphed himself into a mossy boulder and stored his Blood Clone into his Maw. ¡°[Shit. Maurice, keep quiet and don¡¯t move.]¡± Maurice seemed surprised, then concerned. ¡°[Even¨C]¡± ¡°[No Telepathy. Quiet.]¡± Henry waited as the sounds approached and, to his alarm, they were approaching from every direction. They had been detected. Soon enough, the clicks became close enough that Mind Weaver¡¯s Tongue kicked in. ¡°It¡¯s trying to hide. Hah. Skimmy, go above. Sunleap and Whisper. We circle. Moonwake, wait for the signal. We¡¯re eating kraken tonight, gang!¡± Out of the darkness came white and black-patterned dolphins. Easily 20-feet-long each, they looked like lean killer whales more than anything. Their rostrum was narrow, and they zipped around incredibly fast. Henry eyed the largest specimen and decided to drop his disguise. He wasn¡¯t fooling anyone. [Spotted Dolphin (C) - Lvl ???] ¡°[I¡¯m not a kraken,]¡± Henry shouted telepathically in a radius. ¡°[Well, I am, but that¡¯s not how I was born. I was born human. I mean you no harm.]¡± All dolphins immediately came to a grinding halt. Henry and Maurice stared back at the dolphins, then the crab lifted a claw. ¡°[Hello! I¡¯m Maurice. Are you new friends?]¡± 1.63: Interlude: Life on the Red Reaver (Pt. 1) Day 3. Ash opened her eyes and wished she could close them again. ¡°Wake up, swabbies! You got one minute or you¡¯re on kitchen duty.¡± Ash groaned and shoved herself out of her bunk. She blearily and frantically put on her boots, pants, shirt and oiled jacket, then winced as she stumbled her way out of her little room. Her shoulders were so sore. Scratch that. All of her body was sore, and she most certainly didn¡¯t want to do another round of kitchens. Savros¨Cfor all he could whip insanely tasty meals¨Cwas a tyrant, and she didn¡¯t think she could ever look him in the eyes again. Fabian came whistling out of his cabin just as she was closing her door. ¡°Hey there, Ash. We¡¯re on Sentinel duty today. Bonnie said we should meet her downstairs.¡± ¡°Food,¡± mumbled Ash. Grabbing some freshly toasted bread and coffee from the kitchen¨Cand taking a few seconds to spread on a generous heap of apricot jam¨CAsh headed down to the forward observatory where she found Bonnie and Fabian already setting up for the shift. Ash¡¯s first day on the ship had been spent on watch duty. Second was the kitchen. Third was on watch again¨Cto really drive home how important the role was. Tomorrow was supposed to be with the enchanters. Apparently, everyone needed to know at least the basics of every role on the ship, in case of emergencies and whatnot. And watch duty might be the most stressful and boring, if such a combination was possible. Bonnie stored a notebook in her side pouch and eyed the two new recruits for a few moments before she quietly and deliberately asked. ¡°So. What do you two remember?¡± ¡°Keep an eye on the noise readings. Both magic and sound,¡± recited Fabian. ¡°Keep the second eye on life readings and make sure the cloaking enchantments are working,¡± continued Ash. ¡°And if anything¡¯s abnormal?¡± asked Bonnie. ¡°Call the alarm first. Then double check.¡± Bonnie nodded and adjusted her glasses. ¡°Good. Let¡¯s get to work, then.¡± *** Day 4 ¡°Oh, wait a second,¡± said Axel. ¡°We can¡¯t have you two out like this.¡± Ash tore her eyes away from the walled harbor in which they had docked. Behind them, the massive metal gate had already been lowered, and the many masons and laborers had resumed their work on the inner walls. Instead, she looked down at her clothes. She was dressed just fine? In fact, she hadn¡¯t been out in public this well dressed in years. It wasn¡¯t much, but it was clean, didn¡¯t smell of sweat or mold, and there were no tears or grease marks anywhere. ¡°Oh¡­ I think I know what Axel is talking about,¡± said Fabian, a wide, dumb smile on his face. A minute later, the quartermaster came back with two vests he held by their collars. ¡°They¡¯d better be spotless when you bring them back, Axel,¡± called out Alina. ¡°I was just done re-applying the enchantments.¡± ¡°Alright,¡± said Axel as he handed Ash and Fabian a jacket each. ¡°These should fit. Probably. Put them on and meet me down the plank. We¡¯ve got three hours before we¡¯re heading back out.¡± This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. Ash took a second to look down at the jacket, and her breath caught when she recognized what they were. ¡°I never thought I¡¯d wear one of these,¡± said Fabian as he gingerly patted down the dyed leather. He raised his arms to admire the sleeve¡¯s red bands, then back down at the simple dark and red design, then at the blood-red interior. Ash quickly did the same, struggling to keep the smile off her face as she patted down the jacket and looked at her sleeves. She was wearing the colors of a Privateer¡¯s ship. The Sea Signet of Velistraine. A way to broadcast to everyone¨Cespecially those who wanted to start trouble¨Cwhich crew she was part of. Part of the crew. Ash stopped herself from daydreaming for too long and made her way down the plank. Axel was looking over a shopping list as he waited for them. He wasn¡¯t wearing a jacket himself, but he probably had other ways to prove who he was. Ash asked. ¡°What kind of enchantment does it have?¡± ¡°Oh, basic stuff. Some defensive, some to locate it, anti-appraisal.¡± Ash, Fabian, and Axel slowly made their way down the dock and through the harbor¡¯s customs. Within a few minutes, they were standing in the center of Stormfront. The newest experiment of the Dominion. They were in a wide and busy plaza. Kids ran around, laughing and chasing each other while tourists from The Jewel and the new locals mingled in an open marketplace where people bought and sold all sorts of trinkets. Ash kept her eyes on the alleys and dark corners of the city, but she couldn¡¯t see any starving children or gang signs. Didn¡¯t mean there weren¡¯t any. But maybe this island would be different. After a couple of stops, Axel took them to a street that seemed to be only occupied by bars and restaurants. ¡°Took you all long enough. Come on, let¡¯s have a drink!¡± Ash slowly turned and found the Captain already sitting at a table with a few of the crew, having a lavish breakfast while the crowd kept a very safe radius away from her. Axel looked down at the arrayed meals, then back at the Captain. ¡°Does Savros know about this?¡± Velistraine pointed a fork at him and spoke with her mouth half-full. ¡°He¡¯d better not.¡± The quartermaster crossed his arms and grinned. Ash could almost feel the air growing thick between the two. ¡°I need a new storage ring.¡± Velistraine was about to respond when the quartermaster raised an arm. ¡°At least mid-grade. Everything we¡¯ve got on the ship is low-grade garbage.¡± ¡°Ugh. Fine. Sit down already.¡± The trio sat down, and Ash did everything she could to ignore the attention of the nearby patrons or random pedestrians who¡¯d just stop and point at the captain. Velistraine didn¡¯t seem to care¨Cor mind¨Cthe attention, and instead stabbed a bit of sausage, looking up at Ash while she chewed. Ash tensed. ¡°Did you use your potion?¡± Ash blinked. That wasn¡¯t what she expected the captain to say. A comment about the vest, maybe. Or about her performance over the last few days. But not about the potion. ¡°No. I want to see if I can exchange with¡­ fewer limits.¡± Velistraine hummed. She drank deep from a frosty green cocktail with mint leaves and a lemon wedge. ¡°We could keep an eye out. What do you think, Axel? Any of your contacts got anything good?¡± Axel was fashioning himself a piece of toasted bread with butter and jam. Ash couldn¡¯t help but stare for a moment. Jam was a luxury, and she got to enjoy it on the ship these last few days¡­ but butter? She couldn¡¯t pass this up. Her hands shook slightly as she reached forward to get a piece to butter her toast, expecting someone to stop her at any moment, but no such thing happened. ¡°Well, some are easy enough to procure. Like the Chameleon drakes. Or Spellsinger ravens. But if we want the best¡­ it¡¯ll have to be something from deep in the Reach. Or from the ocean, and you know as well as I do those don¡¯t come easily. I heard of a Kaleidoscope cuttlefish specimen going for auction a few weeks back. We might track the buyer and make an offer. Or we could hope to encounter a Trickster kraken. But¡­ ya know.¡± Velistraine groaned. ¡°Buggers always run when they¡¯re beat.¡± Ash bit into the piece of buttered toast and closed her eyes with bliss, but she couldn¡¯t help but listen intently. A moment later, she asked, ¡°Can¡¯t alchemists make a potion out of the flesh of one? If Trickster krakens tend to run, maybe one of their arms would be enough?¡± Fabian, who¡¯d been silent so far, shook his head and confidently spoke up. ¡°No.¡± When all three stared at him, he explained. ¡°Ah. Um¡­ From what I¡¯ve heard from alchemists, abilities are in the soul. As long as something¡¯s still alive, they can¡¯t extract its abilities from discarded limbs. It has to be a still living specimen, or freshly dead and preserved. The only way around that limitation is, ironically, copying abilities.¡± Ash eyed the man for a moment. Had he been in training to become an alchemist? A quick glance at his hand showed normal, unblemished skin. So maybe not. Captain Velistraine spoke next, and Ash looked up. ¡°Well, Axel. I guess look into that cuttlefish if it¡¯s still available. Otherwise, it might be time to go on a hunting trip soon.¡± 1.64: Interlude: Life on the Red Reaver (Pt. 2) Day 5 Ash jumped when there was a knock at her door. Her heart hammered in her chest for a few seconds, until she recalled where she was and who might be knocking. Before she could speak, Fabian¡¯s voice drifted through. ¡°Ash, come take a look!¡± What now? ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°You¡¯re gonna want to see this. Come on. Meet me up on the deck.¡± Ash groaned and rolled out of her bed, slowly making her way up the stairs. She scratched her arm and winced from her sore shoulders, which was only made worse by the cold breeze that met her when she stepped out on the deck. Thankfully, it wasn¡¯t enough to make her shiver. It would have, ages ago, but levels and stats made a lot of things easier to deal with. Ash glanced around¨C ¨Cand saw the large pillar of light connecting the sea to the sky over the horizon. Ash stilled. She had never seen the Pillars. ¡°They say crossing by ship would take a week at most.¡± Ash turned and found Fabian grinning at her before he turned back toward the golden light. If she lifted her hand and tried to measure the width of the pillar, it¡¯d be around three inches. It was a lot further than it might seem, but Ash had done her homework. ¡°That implies a ship can make it to them.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± Both Ash and Fabian made a little jump when Captain Velistraine popped out of thin air behind them. She sat down on the ramp and looked toward the ray in the distance. ¡°The fact that we¡¯re seeing it means we¡¯re already too close. That¡¯s why we were hired for this job, actually. They¡¯re testing a new route. If the Mariners¡¯ Guild can use this route instead of being forced around the Merfolk¡¯s territory and have Stormfront continue to grow as it is, it might change a lot for these little islands.¡± ¡°It would help significantly in our efforts to repopulate the Reach, as well,¡± said Fabian. The captain stayed quiet. There was something she wasn¡¯t saying. Velistraine wasn¡¯t being jovial or energetic about it. She was being factual, even. Which wasn¡¯t something Ash was familiar with. Then Ash realized; she could just ask. She didn¡¯t need to stress and ruminate over every little detail by herself. ¡°You don¡¯t think it¡¯ll work?¡± Velistraine didn¡¯t answer for a moment. She slowly let down her hair¨CAsh noted that other than her missing hat, she was wearing her usual outfit, with her bone-sword on her hip. After a few seconds, only filled by the sound of waves and wind, the captain spoke. ¡°Nah. I don¡¯t think it¡¯ll work. Stormfront might be fine for a while, but it takes one monster to take an interest in those shiny walls before it¡¯ll all end in tragedy. These ships? They might be fine. They¡¯ve had good enchanting work done. But what happens when something comes out of the deep and sees them?¡± The captain sighed and rolled her shoulder. ¡°The folk in power don¡¯t like having to deal with people like me¨Cthe Privateers, the Explorers, the Wardens. They¡¯re ready to throw their gold at anything that might allow them not to rely on us, but this isn¡¯t that kind of world. Hell, we might have never gotten to this point if there were more people like us.¡± Ash stared at the captain, but Fabian spoke first. ¡°You¡¯re a Strivist.¡± ¡°Yup. And so are you. Otherwise, why would you join a Privateer¡¯s ship? We need more people like me. We need to stop half-assing the Reach¡¯s expedition and go straight for the Pillar. Take it for ourselves. But of course, no one really wants that. Because, who¡¯s going to control it? Who¡¯s going to benefit from it?¡± This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience. Captain Velistraine shook her head, then grinned before jumping down. ¡°Anyway. You kids should get some sleep,¡± she said as she stepped behind them. Then, putting a hand on each of their shoulders, she stared toward the Pillar in the distance. ¡°Wouldn¡¯t you like to see what it¡¯s like from up-close? You might need to decide soon if you¡¯re made for this kind of life or not. And oh¨Cwe¡¯re hitting a magic storm soon. One of you should go tell Bonnie or Deacon.¡± And with that, she left them in the quiet night. Ash turned instinctively, but the captain was gone. *** Day 9. 2 days after the escort mission was successfully completed. 1 day after receiving the distress signal from Stormfront. The crew were all up on the deck, weapons drawn. Tense. The island came into sight all at once, and Ash¡¯s stomach sank as she took in the swarm and the devastation it had brought to Stormfront. The walls of the harbor were breached. A gash ran through them¨Cand through the rest of the island¨Cwhile countless crabs were crawling in and out of the harbor through the breach, carrying their loot to the one responsible. Within the lagoon, facing the island and almost dwarfing its wall, sat a giant crab. It slowly lifted an enormous claw, picking up the bodies brought to it by its progeny. The giant¡¯s motion suddenly froze. It raised its second claw and slowly turned, and two black-eye stalks fell on the ship. The air immediately grew heavy. It smelled of seaweed and salt. The hair on the back of Ash¡¯s neck stood up. One of the giant claws began moving, and Ash felt her limbs freeze before her old reflexes tried to take over, but there was nowhere to run. She was on a ship. Where would she go? Before Ash could spiral any further, the voice of Captain Velistraine filled the air like the crack of thunder. ¡°Deck!¡± Alina stomped and the deck immediately glowed gold. The enchanter shouted back, ¡°Go!¡± Ash turned to see Velistraine crouch, sword unsheathed. The world stilled for a moment, as if it was holding its breath, and then the captain jumped. The deck dropped from under Ash¡¯s feet. Ash began to fall, watching with horror as the ship practically capsized. But before water could rush in¨Cand before she fell overboard¨CRay caught her by her arm. The first mate waited for the ship to stabilize before he let go. At which point he looked down at her nauseous face and smiled. ¡°You¡¯ll get used to it.¡± Ash looked back toward the giant crab in time to see it point its claw at the falling red comet and slowly¨Cinexorably¨Csnip its claw. The gesture made something in Ash¡¯s soul tremble. Out of the claw came a barely visible but unmistakable gray line that flew up to the captain in an instant. Velistraine kicked the air, launching herself to the side and effortlessly dodging the attack. Behind her, high in the sky, a giant cloud was parted. Captain Velistraine kicked the air a few more times, each step launching her further. The red glow surrounding her became difficult to look at. Something in it made Ash want to look away, but she couldn¡¯t. She wouldn¡¯t. This is what she wanted to become. The crab lifted both arms, and this time, the same attack came at the captain in a flurry. Green line after green line shot at the captain¨Cwho finally got to the crab. Captain Velistraine punched straight through the crab¡¯s eye and out of its stomach. The giant crab shuddered. One arm gingerly went down to its bleeding guts, while the second aimed at Velistraine, who stood on the water right below the giant. She shot up and punched through the carapace once more, this time exiting from right above the crab¡¯s eyes. The exchange lasted barely ten seconds. The crab was dead, while the Red Reaver continued to approach the island at full speed. In the distance, the captain had already left the giant crab and began decimating the smaller specimen. Ash hoped there were shelters in Stormfront. ¡°Kids, you stay on the ship,¡± said Brumo, bone spear in hand. ¡°Everyone else, we¡¯ve got some cleanup to do. Let¡¯s go.¡± Most of the combat-capable crew jumped down as soon as they were within reach of the swarm, while Ash, Fabian, and a few others watched on. After a few seconds, Fabian whispered, ¡°It was so busy.¡± Ash¡¯s skin felt clammy, despite the morning sun. [No Chapter] - Book 1 Edit announcement - What to expect for book 2 Hey folks! A few weeks back I finished up the dev edits for book 1, and as of this post going up, I uploaded them. So. If you''ve already read the story, or you''ve just started and got here, here''s what changed, and here''s what you should expected from the chapters of book 2: - Henry is a bit less wishy-washy in the handful of early chapter. Still scared-shitless and panicked, but there were a couple of instance where he was just being extremely stupid to the point where it broke the immersion for some people. Those are fixed. - The magic system is a bit less obfuscated. The System (the dude) is also more communicative about the current setup, and Henry is warned in advance that the Aspects are coming in the next few evolution, and that the first interface/setup Henry gets is like the training-wheels version. This way, the change is not as sudden as some have experienced.This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings. - The point-buying system is simplified: It''s all accessible now from the get go. You get five points priced by rank (aka 5 each that cost F-tokens, then 5 that cost E-tokens, etc). - Formatting/consistency fix in the system prompts/notifications. Which leads me to this: Book 2 has not been dev-edited yet. You might notice some skill and point discrepancies (small ones that won''t affect the story), and those will be fixed. The formatting might be off as well in some parts, but bear with me. In a couple of months, I''ll start editing and everything will become consistent. As always, thanks for reading my story, and huge cheers to everyone who helped me out on Patreon. See you Wednesday! PS: Moving this one so it''s visible right before book 2 starts 2.01: The Current The seas were quiet for a moment while the pod of dolphins stared down at the talking kraken. Maurice broke the silence by lifting a claw. ¡°[Hello! I¡¯m Maurice. Are you new friends?]¡± Henry watched all of the dolphins suddenly focus on Maurice. A couple of clicks emanated from the group, but Henry couldn¡¯t pick up anything from these¨Cwhich meant they were either reflexive or they were signals. Either way, Henry was tense. These dolphins were not weak. Their leader was high C-Rank, maybe almost at B-Rank, while each of the other four individuals were in the mid C-Rank. Henry wasn¡¯t sure he was ready for this fight. He couldn¡¯t sense anything from them telepathically. He felt their presence, but not their mood. When he tried to discreetly ask Maurice about it, the crab confirmed his suspicion. ¡°[Nothing. They feel blank. Either they have no feelings or they can hide them.]¡± One of the dolphins¨Cnot the leader¨Cswam closer, head tilting left and right as it examined Maurice¡¯s shell. Henry tightened his grip and readied himself to send the crab into his Maw. Then the dolphin swam up and began circling. ¡°I like the shell colors. It would make a great gift. Once I get the crab out,¡± it said, filling the space with squeaks and clicks. ¡°It¡¯s unusual for D-Rank kraken to speak. But I guess it¡¯s not impossible,¡± said another. ¡°What¡¯s a human?¡± ¡°What if it¡¯s lying?¡± ¡°Quiet,¡± clicked the leader, and all four dolphins went still. The largest dolphin moved closer¨CHenry readied himself to trigger every defensive ability he had¨Cthen the leader spoke. ¡°Odd. Very odd. Explain?¡± Henry went on an abbreviated summary of the last¡­ couple of months? Maybe three? It was hard to keep track of time underwater. Still, he mentioned waking up as small octopus, omitted the role of the turtle in this¨Che didn¡¯t want the dolphins to want Maurice¡¯s shell even more¨Cmade sure to mention the Bahamut whales, mentioned his scuffles with krakens, and even switched his identification so they could see his class. The dolphins must have all identified him then, as a lot of them started clicking excitedly. ¡°How?!¡± ¡°A kraken that preys on other krakens?¡± ¡°Ugh¡­ those whales? They¡¯re so pompous¡­ but I guess they¡¯re not bad.¡± Another click sounded from the leader and the chatter immediately died down. ¡°There seems to be truth to your words. But why should we care? You and that crab aren¡¯t so unique we¡¯d need to skip an easy meal.¡± ¡°Easy!¡± ¡°Only D-Ranks.¡± ¡°Pretty gift!¡± Henry exhaled, and a glowing, green scale pattern appeared along his skin as he stretched his limbs, one of which quickly morphed into the memorized shape of a spiked bone-flail. ¡°[I¡¯m going to need to use electricity, Maurice.]¡± The crab¨Cas often¨Cemanated anxiety and excitement in equal measures as he clicked his pincers. ¡°[That¡¯s okay. I¡¯ve got the Resistance for it.]¡± Henry and Maurice readied themselves as they stared down at the five dolphins. Waiting for them to make the first move. Waiting. Then a click sounded out of the leader¨Cmaking Henry coil his arms in anticipation¨Cand all five dolphins began merrily clicking as they swam around. ¡°It fell for it!¡± The dolphins continued to laugh at the duo¨CHenry assumed¨Cfor a few more seconds before the leader came closer. ¡°It was a joke. Come with us. Come see our city. But you should be careful with your pretty friend. Some might try to steal him away.¡± ¡°Pretty shell!¡± ¡°Do you have more stories? We like stories.¡± Henry wasn¡¯t sure how he could say this nicely, but he didn¡¯t feel very confident following a pod of dolphins to a second location. He may have had a chance against these five here, but if there were more? He¡¯d be completely at their mercy.Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings. Henry located the leader¨Cthe only one who wasn¡¯t bounding around the waters. ¡°[Will we be safe?]¡± The leader came closer and did something Henry wasn¡¯t really shocked by, but he was still surprised. The dolphin spoke directly to his mind. ¡°[Yes, you will be guests. Just be aware that some might be alarmed at first. Some might try to provoke you, or take your friend away, but we¡¯ll stay with you. Just let us know. In any case, you don¡¯t have to. We can part ways here and now.]¡± The dolphins turned and began swimming away, with one of them stopping to wait for the duo. Henry and Maurice shared a look. ¡°[What do you think?]¡± ¡°[I¡¯m curious. I want to see their city.]¡± Well, these dolphins didn¡¯t seem to be murderous psychopaths. Just pranksters. If they really wanted to hurt Henry and Maurice, they had enough individuals here to let them think they would have had the upper hand. Them giving Henry and Maurice the choice might be another sign that they meant no harm. ¡°[Alright. Let¡¯s check it out, then.]¡± Henry was slightly optimistic¨Cthough he was still worried he was swimming into a trap. But one thing was on his mind, and he didn¡¯t want to pass this opportunity up. These were the first intelligent beings he¡¯d met since the whales. Beings who knew anything about this world, of course, which excluded Maurice. He could ask some questions and get some answers. *** Henry followed the dolphins quietly¨Cas instructed¨Cwith Maurice tightly held in one of his arms. They swam low around the current, never really crossing through, and soon enough they reached a rocky area. The dolphins swam further from the golden light then, until they reached a flat area where the leader dove into the rock. Henry¡¯s eyes widened for a moment, until he realized what had happened. ¡°A cave?¡± Henry slowly followed the closest dolphin. The cave was more of a tunnel that slowly turned into a literal maze of connected rocky corridors. Countless twists and turns later, the pod and the duo exited into a wide open chamber brimming with dolphins and golden light. They were in the Great Current. Henry couldn¡¯t help but tune out the view ahead for a second. Being in the Current felt¡­ like leveling. Like buying stat points and receiving them. There was something almost electric about the water. As if it was full of potential, waiting to be tapped. And within seconds, something happened that confirmed his impressions and made Henry¡¯s eyes widen. Krakenbane Wanderer (D) - Level 60 achieved! 1x Stat points awarded. 1x Strength Stat points awarded. 1x Spirit Stat points awarded. 1x Constitution Stat points awarded. ¡°[Henry. Henry I just leveled. What¡¯s happening?]¡± Both Henry and Maurice had stopped following the dolphins as they swam away from the entrance. Henry distractedly lifted Maurice to eye level, and one of the dolphins turned to them curiously. ¡°You haven¡¯t been in the Current before? It¡¯s something, isn''t it? You two will be C-Rank in no time! Anyway, come on. Let¡¯s go meet the others.¡± Henry slowly followed. ¡°[I guess this is why the whales said they didn¡¯t need to hunt. That the Current fed them.]¡± ¡°[It explains how everything is so strong here¡­]¡± said Maurice in response as he marveled at his surroundings. The cave was brightly lit, with many room-like caves dug into the walls. Quite a few were decorated with seashells. Some only had plants around, while a handful had miscellaneous bones and teeths. Whether those had been salvaged or won in battle, Henry didn¡¯t know. But whenever they passed one of the homes, dolphins would poke out and stare at the strange visitor. Some younger dolphins began chasing, clicking and squeaking when they noticed Maurice¡¯s brillant shell. Henry noticed that he could sense the young one¡¯s emotions¨Ceven though some of them were slightly higher level than he was. Which made him think that the powerful individuals had an innate sort of telepathic barrier¡­ or something like it. Maybe it was more of a stealth thing? He could ask. When there was less of a crowd around. By now, it seems like most dolphins¨Cnearly a hundred or so¨Chad stopped doing whatever it was they¡¯d been busy with to come stare. Finally, from one of the larger homes came a specimen that immediately made Henry tense. [Spotted Dolphin (?) - Lvl ?] ¡°[That means B-Rank, right?]¡± whispered Maurice. ¡°[Yup. Be polite.]¡± The dolphin was the largest Henry had seen so far. At least twice as large as the average cave resident. Its spots seemed to shift and dance as it ponderously swam out. Its mere presence reminded Henry of that odd feeling he¡¯d gotten from the Trickster when it tried to intimidate him. It felt heavy. It drew attention and made everything else in the environment fall away. As if the world stopped what it was doing and waited on this individual to take action. Henry hadn¡¯t even realized he¡¯d been holding his breath when the B-Rank dolphin finally spoke in that clicking tongue of theirs. ¡°Ah¡­ a meal.¡± There was a silent beat as the words echoed in the giant cave, before all the dolphins burst out laughing. 2.02: The dolphins ¡°Run along, children,¡± clicked Sundots, the B-Rank dolphin as he led Henry around the city. Simultaneously, he asked Henry about his origin through some sort of telepathic channel he¡¯d created between himself, Maurice, and another powerful looking dolphin by the name of Dancer. Henry took a moment to respond. ¡°[I arrived in this body because of a turtle I¡¯d been chasing. The Bahamut whales called it a sacred traveler. Since then, I¡¯ve been surviving. Growing stronger. Then I met Maurice here, dealt with a hostile Trickster, then¡­ well. Here we are.]¡± They arrived in a space that reminded Henry of public parks. It was a mostly flattened area at the edge of the cave, where plant life was allowed to grow and take over. A handful of dolphins seemed to be taking care of it by gently examining the leaves and taking cuttings to replant elsewhere. ¡°[I have heard of the sacred travelers. But I¡¯ve never seen them. I believe that¡¯s the shell?]¡± Henry tensed¨Cand Sundots clicked with amusement. ¡°[Worry not, Henry. I have no intention of taking your little friend¡¯s shell. It is just¡­ a marvelous thing to look at. Brimming with ideas and foreign concepts. Can you not see them? Either of you?]¡± When Henry and Maurice shared a dismayed look, Sundots blew bubbles out of his blowhole and blinked. ¡°[Ah. You have not begun working with Concepts just yet. I forget. You will, very soon. And you will see it then.]¡± Concepts? What was he talking about? Was that something related to the next evolution? ¡°[How were the whales? I missed their passage last season. Who was their leader? I wonder if it¡¯s a group I know¡­]¡± That snapped Henry out of his thoughts. ¡°[Deepcaller, I think? I don¡¯t remember if he was their leader, but he was the one I spoke with the most.]¡± Sundots clicked and bobbed his head. ¡°[Yes! I know Deepcaller. Ah¡­ I should definitely meet them next time.]¡± Sundots stared down at the coral and let some algae tickle his nose, but Henry was curious ever since he¡¯d seen the bubbles. ¡°[Do you not need air?]¡± ¡°[Hm? Ah. We can make our own. Though it is nice to occasionally see the sun, but as you can see, it¡¯s always bright down here. And safe for our children.]¡± The dolphin seemed a bit distracted at times, though Henry bet he was a treasure trove of knowledge. As if he sensed Henry¡¯s train of thoughts, Sundots gave the kraken a cheeky glance. ¡°[I don¡¯t mind answering questions¡­ but it¡¯s usually nice to offer something for the help of our elders.]¡± It was like dealing with the whales all over again. ¡°[We have meats! We would have had tasty kraken roe also, but someone didn¡¯t want to take them.]¡± Henry brought Maurice to eye level. ¡°[Would you just drop that?]¡± The crab clacked his claws. ¡°[Find more kraken roe and I will.]¡± Sundots clicked in amusement while the second dolphin stayed quiet. ¡°[Sounds like you two had quite the adventure!]¡± Henry sighed, then began taking stock. ¡°[Are you interested in shark meat?]¡± ¡°[We have shark all the time.]¡± ¡°[Kraken?]¡± ¡°[Seems insensitive.]¡± ¡°[Drake?]¡± ¡°[Oh? What kind?]¡± ¡°[Sea Drake? C-Rank.]¡± ¡°[We would graciously accept,]¡± said Sundots as he swam away from the park. ¡°[We have a special space for eating. The gardeners won¡¯t stop complaining otherwise.]¡± They arrived in a deeper area in the cave that looked like a small, reefy ecosystem. There were small crabs already taking apart some large fish remains, while trigger-fish specimens got busy chewing on the bones. Henry pulled out a mostly intact Sea Drake carcass and laid it down on the seabed. He still had two¨Cone of which was partially eaten¨Cand plenty of other specimens, so he didn¡¯t mind the small gift.Find this and other great novels on the author''s preferred platform. Support original creators! He wasn¡¯t going hungry any time soon. Sundots made a couple of calls, and little dolphins rushed into the space and began eating. They ate their fill, and then the adults¨Cthose who were interested at least¨Cpartook in the Sea Drake¡¯s meat. Sundots seemed to watch over, and after a few moments, Henry felt the gaze of the being land on him. It literally felt like a physical thing. The attention of a B-Rank. ¡°[So. Young Henry. What is it you want to know?]¡± There were a lot of questions Henry could ask. But he might as well start with what Sundots had mentioned only moments ago. ¡°[What are Concepts? Is it something that¡¯ll get unlocked in C-Rank?]¡± Sundots took a bite out of Sea Drake¡¯s neck. It looked like he just took a bite out of a soft fruit, while the other individuals had to fight the meat to free it from the carcass. ¡°[Yes. It has been a while since I stepped into the C-Rank, but yes. You will gain the ability to see Concepts. To manipulate them and reforge your abilities with them. It¡¯s a whole new world of possibilities, where the Supreme takes a step back and where you take a larger role in defining who you are. It will all become easier to understand once you get there. This is very good, by the way. Very fresh. I wish we had a storage Skill like yours.]¡± Henry listened attentively to the explanation. Even Maurice was quiet. A few pieces began to click in the mental puzzle Henry had been filling up through his mana exercises and through his observation of how his Skills worked. For something like Electric Discharge, clearly, the Skill would take his mana and store it, but converting the neutral mana to electricity was one of the many mechanics that eluded him. This right here might be the answer. Concepts might be one of the gears that made Skills tick. ¡°[Do you know how Skills work? Can you imitate Skills with mana alone?]¡± ¡°[Yes.]¡± Henry stared at the dolphin as he got a bite out of the Drake¡¯s thigh this time. ¡°[Yes to what?]¡± ¡°[Hm? Ah. I don¡¯t want to spoil the mystery. Just know that you¡¯ll get your answers very soon. The whole point of the next evolution is so that individuals begin pursuing their own power. What would be the point if I handed you all of the answers now? You¡¯d get there even faster if you helped our hunting parties. Especially if you can store a lot of things in that Skill of yours. Hm? What do you think?]¡± The dolphin dipped and cut himself another slice of thigh meat. Henry was almost sure he could feel smugness out of the dolphin as he guzzled down the meat. It wasn¡¯t a bad offer. He did need to work on his Skills. A few Aspects were about to level¨Cone of which was already at 10¨Cand he needed to collect Cores. Plus, this was a perfect area to hunt. ¡°[It sounds like fun,]¡± whispered Maurice. ¡°[Yeah. I¡¯m thinking the same. We need to get stronger anyway,]¡± answered Henry. He hoped the dolphin wasn¡¯t hearing them, but if he was, he wasn¡¯t showing it. Plus, they weren¡¯t saying anything bad. Henry sent his agreement to the dolphin, on the condition that they¡¯d keep the Cores he¡¯d earn, in case that wasn¡¯t the expectation. ¡°[Great! Let us find you two a room. Get some rest. I¡¯m sure you need it.]¡± With that, Henry and Maurice were led to a spacious, dug cavern. It was cozy. Large enough for Henry to fit comfortably, and it opened into a busy-ish space. ¡°[This place is amazing,]¡± said Maurice, watching dolphins swim up and down from the room¡¯s entrance. Henry agreed as he looked out of the room. This wasn¡¯t something he¡¯d ever expected to see. ¡°[It really feels like a small village. Alright. I¡¯m going to do some system stuff. Don¡¯t forget we might not be 100% safe, alright? Make sure you anchor yourself to me when you sleep. Or to the rock, I guess.]¡± ¡°[Yeh. I remember,]¡± said Maurice, then he scuttled in, sat down¨CHenry saw the anchoring Skill activate¨Cthen turned to Henry. ¡°[I¡¯m going to work on my Clawminds. I think I¡¯m close. Then we eat?]¡± ¡°[Sounds good. I¡¯ve got points I need to assign, and I¡¯m upgrading an Aspect. We¡¯ll eat after.]¡± With that, Henry pulled up his menus and decided to start with the stats, then he¡¯d upgrade his Aspect. Leave the best for last. It had gotten to level 10 only hours ago, but Henry couldn¡¯t wait to see how it¡¯d evolve. It just so happened that the last few hours had been too tense and hectic to stop and play around with his menus. Now though? Now he was going to see how his Octominds were going to evolve. ¡°But first, stats. I¡¯ve got eight points I can freely assign. I could push Strength past 50 with two points. I could do the same with Constitution or Spirit¡­ but all of those will be rising anyway with my levels. So what do I want to prioritize? Perception and Dexterity are still hanging around 30 points each. Hmm.¡± Henry considered his options for a moment. He¡¯d promised himself to bring Dexterity and Perception up, but he¡¯d feel bad if he didn¡¯t give the main three that allowed him to fight and survive something. After a few minutes, he came to a decision. ¡°Leave Strength for now, but everything else gets two points. That¡¯s fair. Yeah.¡± With everything assigned, he pulled his stats. ¡°Looking good. A much higher number than with what I¡¯ve started.¡± Strength: 48 [8 Base][20 Class][3 Consumption][17 Purchased] (12 Purchasable) Constitution: 65 [8 Base][37 Class][3 Consumption][17 Purchased] (13 Purchasable) Spirit: 55 [6 Base][26 Class][9 Consumption][14 Purchased] (16 Purchasable) Perception: 33 [9 Base][8 Class][16 Purchased] (6 Purchasable) Dexterity: 32 [9 Base][4 Class][3 Consumption][16 Purchased] (6 Purchasable) ¡°Now, let¡¯s see about the Octominds.¡± 2.03: Excursion Henry brought the Skill level he¡¯d been accumulating up and grinned. ¡°Boy oh boy.¡± He had to admit. Levels might have not been fast, but his constant training, along with his heavy use of Octominds and the frequent clashes with wildlife, did his abilities a lot of good. Hunger of the Trickster (D): Level 4 -> Level 5 Arms of the Trickster (E): Level 9 -> Level 10 Lightning Discharge (E): Level 7 -> Level 9 Unimpeded Arms (F): Level 7 -> Level 10 Amplified Impact (F): Level 7 -> Level 10 Riptide Rush (F): Level 3 -> Level 8 ¡°Storage capacity is now¡­ 85 cubic meters. Almost an extra 30 cubic meters for the level. That¡¯s an above average room. Soon enough, I¡¯ll have an Olympic pool¡¯s worth of storage.¡± exploded ¡°Alright, let¡¯s evolve the Octominds and see what I¡¯m getting there.¡± Henry paid the 1 C-Token, leaving him with 14.8 C-Tokens. His haul from taking down the C-rank beasties they¡¯d met on their way here. After this series of upgrades, he was going to focus on getting those Tokens to 200. He wanted the Partial Shapeshift and Alter Form upgrades as soon as possible. already Arms of the Trickster (D) - Level 1: Assistance of the Octominds: Passive: Your mental faculties are improved by the individual brains in your arms. F-Rank: Amplify the effects of a Skill that can benefit from increased cognition. E-Rank: Multiple Octominds can be temporarily pooled to provide a more efficient and substantial assistance. D-Rank: The Octominds are capable of activating Skills. Razor Tentacle (D) Tentacle Whip (D) Arcane Arm (F) ¡°Yes!¡± He¡¯d noted how the Octominds could help him trigger and maintain Skill, but they could never do it by themselves. Now though¡­ Now he could have an Octomind on permanent healing duty to top him off whenever his health got low. Whether Henry was asleep, passed out, or busy fighting. ¡°This opens up so many options.¡± A healing arm. An emergency escape arm that would cast Blink whenever he got too low. Automatic illusions. Telekinetic projectile defense. Maybe even some sort of training? Could he have some Octominds doing mana-exercice non-stop? present. Clearly, the whole Skill evolved. The upgrade wasn¡¯t just about the new unlocked ability.The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement. ¡°Good thing I¡¯ll be heading out to test this all outside.¡± Over the next hour or so, Henry upgraded Unimpeded Arms, Amplified Impact, Lightning Discharge and Arcane Arm. His heavy use of the Skill seemed to have unlocked the upgrade¨Cor it might have been the Aspect leveling. Either way, it was time to bring it up to speed. Summoning the magical arm, Henry focused on trying to modify it. To his astonishment, he could. He could add joints or spikes. He could create a razor-edge along the limb, but he couldn¡¯t make a crab pincer or a human arm just yet, although the Skill seemed to be still connected to his shapeshifting abilities. If he managed to create a human arm with Shapeshifting Limb, would he be able to summon a magical human arm to punch his opponents with? It would certainly be interesting to see. ¡°And that¡¯s all for now¡­ Though the next batch of upgrades should be here soon. I should also focus on getting Mana Nexus to upgrade. That Skill practically doubles mana reserves whenever it goes up a level, and mana is everything. More of it won¡¯t hurt, and that should allow me to use Blink without going broke.¡± *** Henry swam out of the tunnel system and scanned his surroundings. Immediately, his eyes found the wall of golden light, a couple minutes¡¯ swim away. All around were rocks and reefs with large multi-colored growths. As he looked down at the exit he¡¯d come out of, he noticed the clearly carved pattern in the reef, drawing a wide circle around the entrance, cutting through reef, plants and sheer rock. Clearly, the entrance markings were maintained; it made sense, considering how easily the entrance could be lost. Above, Moon¨Cthe leader of the hunting party¨Cwas already emitting clicks, scouting the area for anything too dangerous for them to deal with. Which left the fourth member of this small hunting party to come out of the cave entrance in a huff, bumping Henry¡¯s arm on the way out before giving him a challenging glare. Maurice shook his pincer at the new, smaller dolphin. ¡°[He¡¯s rude! I said hi and he glared at me,]¡± Henry didn¡¯t know what their problem was. Moon had shown up, asked if Henry was up for a hunt, and then they were out. ¡°Alright,¡± Moon clicked. ¡°The goal is to bring you three up to speed. It will be good to see what you two are capable of, and it will be good experience for Seasong here. Once¨C¡± Stormsong, Stormsonglisten Henry pumped his arms, following the two. He couldn¡¯t help but feel amused when the second dolphin began shooting smug glances at him, twirling and taking the time to swim side to side once it was clear Henry had to work a bit harder to keep up with the sleek dolphins. He could activate Skills and whatnot, but clearly these beings were more built for speed than he was. They swam vaguely away from the wall of light, with Moon occasionally clicking and changing directions. Henry patiently followed until all of a sudden, the dolphin dove and signaled for both Henry and Stormsong to follow. ¡°[Target near,]¡±¡°[Eel. Pretty large, but thankfully isolated. Who wants to take care of it?]¡± ¡°[We can do¨C]¡± Stormsong ignored them all, swimming up and over the rock outcropping, forcing a resigned click out of Moon. The dolphin swam after her, and Henry quickly followed, where they all got to watch a pretty even fight. The green eel seemed to be specialized in venoms, reminding Henry of the serpent he¡¯d fought a while back. It kept trying to bite Stormsong, making its skin glow and waft greenish-looking clouds, but the dolphin was incredibly fast. She didn¡¯t seem to mind the venom, zipping back and forth non-stop, continuously landing painful looking headbutts that made the eel squirm and screech with pain before it could retaliate. The whole thing took around three or four minutes. Finally the dolphin landed the final blow, at which point Henry swam closer and stored the dead eel. ¡°[Let¡¯s see you do better, kraken,]¡± again ¡°[Why is she so mad at us?]¡± ¡°[I think she¡¯s mad at everyone, Maurice. Don¡¯t worry about it.]¡± Minutes later, Moon flagged another target. [Hammerrock Crab (C) - Lvl ??] The large crab was slowly picking at some carcass, uncaring of its surroundings. It had spikes all over its body, and one pincer was significantly larger than the second. Expecting the dolphin to try showing off again, Henry saw her looking sideways at the crab, then back at Henry before she turned away. ¡°[Can you handle this?]¡± ¡°[Yeah. We¡¯ve just got something to check real quick, but we¡¯ve got this.]¡± ¡°[We¡¯ll see who¡¯s the best crab,]¡± ¡°[I¡¯ve never tasted crab.]¡±¡°[As long as it¡¯s not a friend, of course.]¡± ¡°[We¡¯ll test it, but I¡¯m pretty sure it won¡¯t be friendly.]¡± ¡°[Craaaab!]¡± 2.04: Didn鈥檛 expect it to hit that hard The kraken and the annoying crab crested over the rocks, forcing the small fish to scatter, and placidly swam down toward the Hammerock Crab. It started clicking its pincer threateningly, but that didn¡¯t seem to deter the kraken. Are they stupid? Stormsong narrowed her eyes and clicked in annoyance. They were just D-Rank. That thing was a level 46 C-Rank. It was most certainly capable of infusing its abilities at this point in its life. ¡°I¡¯m not risking my life to save strangers,¡± she warningly clicked toward Moon as she watched the oversized pincer begin to glow. The kraken dithered for a second before it started circling the crab. Moon grunted. ¡°Wasn¡¯t expecting you to. And do you mind reeling back the attitude? You¡¯re not a calf anymore. About time you stop acting like one, Seasong.¡± ¡°It¡¯s Stormsong. And I¡¯ll act however I damn want,¡± she spat before swimming away from the older dolphin. She was sick of him. Sick of all of them. She couldn¡¯t wait to hit B-Rank and just leave. Turning her attention toward the fight ahead, she found the kraken to the right as the crab swung its oversized pincer down. The kraken raised a couple of arms to stop the blow as it kept moving forward to attack, and Stormsong winced in anticipation. Clearly, the kraken didn¡¯t know much about conceptual attacks because, to Stormsong¡¯s new senses, that infused arm might as well have been a collapsing reef. And clearly enough, the momentum of the kraken was completely ground to a halt as the unstoppable swing continued unimpeded until the kraken was pushed through the bedrock, cracking the stone the crab had been standing on. Stormsong grit her teeth and softly clicked in her throat. Maybe she should give them a fin. It didn¡¯t look like Moon had any intent to intervene. That little crab might be annoying, but it wasn¡¯t worth letting them die. The dolphin tensed and readied herself to shoot forward, but to her shock, the kraken was still moving. It pulled itself out of the ground, broken rocks falling off of it as it unearthed itself. Stormsong expected to see blood and mushed tentacles, but the kraken was¡ªfine. A few of its arms had gripped the crab, while another was rippling and growing lighter, until it became some weird articulated joint with a sharp spike at its end. Then the spike shot down and pierced through the crab¡¯s carapace, quickly followed by a sudden and violent blue flash of light, which turned on and off for a few seconds until the crab stopped moving. The dolphin¡¯s eyes widened. She didn¡¯t even dare breathe. What is happening? Is it dead? How?! The kraken seemed to relax, then the dead crab disappeared within the kraken¡¯s storage Skill. The guest turned then swam toward them, no injury to be seen. ¡°[Sorry about that. I didn¡¯t expect it to hit that hard. Do you think we should leave? Would that have alerted other things nearby?]¡± Stormsong blinked at the kraken and identified it again. [Krakenbane Wanderer (D) - Lvl 63] While Moon clicked back in response, Stormsong looked back at the site of the fight. At the empty kraken-sized hole in the rock. The Hammerrock crab had been almost 100 levels above the kraken. How did it die so fast? And why is the little crab looking at me like that? Why does it look¡­ smug? *** ¡°[We impressed them. We showed them that we aren¡¯t to be messed with. We showed them that I¡¯m the strongest crab. Can I get a bite of the crab, actually? But yes, we showed them. We¡¯re the strongest, baddest¨C]¡± ¡°[Calm down, Maurice,]¡± said Henry as he followed the two dolphins. A moment later, he brought the crab closer. ¡°[Wait, you can feel their emotions?]¡±Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road. Miffed at having his proclamations interrupted, the crab crossed his arms. ¡°[No. But it¡¯s an educated guess. I¡¯m sure of it. Can I get some crab now?]¡± ¡°[Wait until we stop. I can¡¯t cut it up while it¡¯s in my Maw.]¡± ¡°[Have you tried?]¡± Henry was about to respond when he realized that no, he hadn¡¯t tried to do that, in fact. Was that even possible? They were slowly swimming back toward the dolphin¡¯s home, taking the long way around while keeping their eyes peeled for any other beasties to hunt. Henry focused on the crab he knew was in his maw and tried to grab one of its legs. No matter how he tried, whenever his attention wrapped around the dead crab¡¯s limb, he felt the weight of the whole body fall into his mental grip. Which, he was pretty sure, meant that if he pulled that leg, the whole crab would come out. ¡°[No, it doesn''t work. I can¡¯t just grab the leg.]¡± ¡°[Dang it. Skills are a scam¡­]¡± Henry watched Stormsong dispatch some sort of flatfish and decided it was time for another test. He pulled one of the giant teeth out of his Maw and started working it in a limb, surrounding the base of the tooth with the extremity of his arm. He planned on turning that flesh into bone, encasing a good portion of the tooth in it. Then, higher up the arm, he formed two simple joints and began the process of stabilizing everything, using half of his Octominds to enhance his focus and make sure everything was as it should be. The whole thing took barely a minute. The Octominds were much more efficient at narrowing his focus, allowing him to somehow keep up with multiple thought processes at once. Henry marveled at the assistance he had at his disposal. He hadn¡¯t even begun pushing the capabilities of his Octominds. Once he was done, he had a second arm, similar to the one he¡¯d used to kill the crab, but this one was tipped with a giant tooth. Henry turned the extremity around, flexing the joints and testing the alignment. The movement was satisfyingly smooth. He could put a good deal of strength behind the claw as well, which he looked forward to testing. Good thing Stormsong was done with her flatfish. Henry looked up to find both dolphins staring at the new limb and at the dangerous-looking tooth. ¡°[Ah, are you done with the flatfish? I¡¯ll get it.]¡± Henry wasn¡¯t sure he wanted to hear any comments on his abilities from these strangers. Maybe next time he should experiment alone, but then again, the whole point of this excursion was to test and work on his abilities. Henry shoved the poorly battered flatfish into storage, wincing as he felt the weighty fish drop in his proverbial stomach. Maw was getting full. He might have enough space for one or two other monsters, at most, at which point he needed to start taking things out. ¡°We can head back in and drop everything before heading back out. If you¡¯re both still capable of going?¡± asked Moon once Henry let him know. ¡°[Of course!]¡± said Maurice. Stormsong clicked her agreement as well¨Cand this time, she didn¡¯t knock one of Henry¡¯s arms as she swam past him. Moon began gaining on him, but stopped at head level. The dolphin¡¯s eye swiveled down to the tooth, and this time, he spoke directly to Henry¡¯s mind. ¡°[Interesting find you¡¯ve got there. Have you tried channeling your mana into it?]¡± Henry looked at his arm, then back up to the dolphin. ¡°[The tooth?]¡± Moon swam past. ¡°[You should try it. But definitely be careful with it.]¡± Henry watched the dolphin swim away. ¡°[What do you mean?]¡± The dolphin didn''t respond. Instead, he began swimming faster. ¡°Let¡¯s hurry up. We don¡¯t have all day.¡± Henry grumbled under his breath and pumped his arms. He really needed to work on his speed. Somehow. As Henry followed the dolphins, he kept an eye on his surroundings, while Maurice peered at everything that moved. Slowly, Henry began pushing mana down his newly-made arm before he caught himself and stopped. Instead, he ordered the Octomind of the tooth-weaponized arm to pull mana to the tooth. It was an interesting sensation. Both familiar and alien, having a detached mini-mind independently giving orders in his body. A mind that knew all his tricks and methods. The Octomind created a feeling of suction in the arm, inhaling the mana out of Henry¡¯s arm. Mana rushed out, obeying the vacuum created by the Octomind, and his arm began to glow progressively brighter. When the mana reached the tooth, Henry felt a small resistance. A tiny barrier that soon cracked. Mana rushed into the tooth. It was as if a leak was sprung. Mana rushed down faster, the tooth drinking every drop of it. Henry, alarmed, considered stopping the flow, but before he reached a decision the process was over. His mana settled, and the draw eased up on his reserves. Henry lifted his arm and looked at the tooth as a shiver ran through him. The improvised weapon had lost that bone-white color he was familiar with. Instead, the tooth had become black. A deep, mind-numbing black that seemed to drink in the light around it, and then¨Cit began clearing up. Slowly, the ominous darkness seemed to fade away, leaving bone-white tooth. A moment later, the crab¡¯s voice reached his mind. ¡°[Can I have one of those?]¡± 2.05: I want one 2.05: I want one cut Maintaining a flow of mana to the greedy tooth was taking a lot out of him, especially when the tooth applied its magic. Whenever it made contact with a target, the mana would go off, rending and cutting through anything that made contact with the black coating. Immediately after it would start refilling, pulling prodigious amounts of mana out of Henry. Then again, this might have just become one of the best offensive abilities Henry had in his repertoire. ¡°[I want one.]¡± Henry pulled the dark tooth out of the dead drake¡¯s neck and, with a pained groan, threw the carcass into his storage. ¡°[You complained non-stop when I was pulling them out of the creature¡¯s jaw. Now you want one?]¡± Henry began swimming toward the staring dolphins, and he almost thought he could feel shock out of the younger one. But maybe he was imagining things. Yeah. he probably was. ¡°[I was impatient. I was too distracted to realize the importance of your actions back then. I want to be better. Please. Give me a tooth. I want it. Please. I rarely ask for much. I would be infinitely grateful¨C]¡± ¡°[No.]¡± ¡°[Henry, please! I helped you get them! I was just joking back then, please! I¡¯ll pay you back. Please! I¨C]¡± ¡°[I¡¯m joking! Just calm down, I¡¯ll give you one. Or two, even. You can probably make some sort of toothed claw out of them. And don¡¯t forget I still have the vertebrae! Why do you think I got those? With this,]¡± ¡°[We might be able to carve a shell out of them and you¡¯ll be able to recover some of the monster¡¯s abilities. So just, you know, relax.]¡± ¡°[Ah¡­ haha. Right. Yes. They¡¯re just so good. Do you think the other bones will do the same?]¡± ¡°[Nah¡­ I don¡¯t know why the tooth¡¯s behaving like it did, and clearly the dolphins are seeing something we can¡¯t¡­ but this seems like a power a tooth would have. It wouldn¡¯t make any sense for a vertebra to be able to cut through flesh like this. Mana or not.]¡± Henry and Maurice eyed the duo ahead of them as they swam down to the entrance of the cave tunnels. Stormsong turned slightly to look back at them before dipping into the tunnel first. ¡°[I think it has to do with the concept business Sundots mentioned, which would explain why those two seemed to be able to see whatever it is that made this tooth special. Means we need to hurry up and get to C-Rank.]¡± ¡°[We¡¯ll need to go outside more, then.]¡± Henry could only agree, and preferably, they¡¯d be on their own. Having to wait for other dolphins to dispatch their prey would only slow them down. *** ¡°[I apologize, young Henry. Moon¡¯s one of our best warriors and something¡­ came up. He will not be able to act as a guide until tomorrow at the earliest. In the meantime, you can relax. Have a meal with us. Your ability is mighty useful, able to carry so much in a single hunting trip,]¡± This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. ¡°[We could head out by ourselves, I guess.]¡± ¡°[You are free to do what you wish, of course. You have no obligation toward the pod. But you might struggle to find us again¡­ and you might encroach on dangerous territories. Trust me, I¡¯m not the only B-Rank in these parts. Moon said that you are strong and that you are well equipped¡­]¡± ¡°[But that might not be enough when dealing with certain beings out there. I hope you¡¯re aware of such.]¡± He knew that. Henry eyed the relaxed dolphin and could still feel its heavy presence. He knew he wasn¡¯t ready to tangle with B-Ranks just yet. Not when he was this clueless about concepts and while he had no way of countering them. He was slowly getting a clearer picture of what they were, though. Maybe. The odd pressure he was feeling from Sundots. The authority he¡¯d felt from the Trickster kraken. The crab who somehow pushed him through bedrock as if he were some cartoon character. Henry had never had a mountain fall on his head, but that was pretty close to what he imagined it¡¯d feel like. Somehow his body still felt a bit sore, even though he knew it had been perfectly healed. ¡°[Yeah¡­ I guess that¡¯s a fair point. Could we get another guide instead, though? Also, do you recognize this tooth? Do you know what it¡¯s from.]¡± ¡°[I could ask around¡­ As for the tooth. I believe I know. Could you channel mana into it for me?]¡± Henry did as asked. He channeled mana down to the tooth, which greedily accepted it, quickly gaining its ominous dark sheen. ¡°[You can stop now.]¡± Henry felt a shiver course through him. All pleasantness seemed to have evaporated out of the older dolphin. When the mana dissolved out of the tooth, the tension began to drain out of the area as the looming presence of the B-Rank dolphin pulled back. It reminded Henry of the first time he¡¯d met the whales. When they¡¯d been hostile and called him a deceiver. Henry shakily exhaled. He hadn¡¯t realized he¡¯d been holding his breath. ¡°[Ah¡­ apologies. That was not a pleasant magic to sense. I might be wrong¡­ but I believe that is a leviathan¡¯s tooth. A dangerous one. Dangerous enough that its fangs still retain their destructive strength long after the beast lost them.]¡± ¡°[Where did you get it? Was it still alive?]¡± ¡°[It was dead. We found a skeleton and pulled its teeth.]¡± ¡°[Ah. Good. Good. If such a thing was near, we would have had to move.]¡± After that, Henry left the B-rank and swam back to his temporary room. Once he was in, he put Maurice down. The crab looked up at him. Henry looked back, considering their situation and if they¡¯d be better off heading out. Though the free levels were certainly nice. ¡°[What?]¡± ¡°[I¡¯m just thinking. Maybe we should leave soon.]¡± ¡°[I¡¯m still thinking of Moon¡¯s warning about thieves and whatnot¡­ I don¡¯t know. These dolphins seem nice, but I also don¡¯t feel like working as a glorified backpack to be drip-fed tidbits of information whenever they feel like it.]¡± ¡°[If that big dolphin gets mad at us¡­]¡± The crab didn¡¯t need to finish his sentence. The B-rank had been an unexpected surprise. If the dolphins had mentioned a B-rank when they extended the invite, Henry would have thought it over more. Thankfully Sundots seemed nice enough, but there was no denying the danger of being in proximity to such a powerful being. And compared to the selfless and generally placid whales, Sundots seemed a bit more¡­ demanding. This could all be paranoia on Henry¡¯s part, of course. He might have been blowing things out of proportion, but better safe than sorry. This was only a quick stop. ¡°[Yeah¡­ This might be a good time to leave. Better¨C Is that Stormsong?]¡± ¡°[Yes. This is the fifth time she¡¯s passed in front of our door. Is she here to glare at us again? Do we need to beat her up?]¡± Henry swam closer to the exit of their little room just as the dolphin finally stopped pacing and faced them. Had Sundots already sent them a guide? 2.06: I鈥檓 not distracted ¡°[Do you want to keep hunting or not?]¡± ¡°[We could just leave after. Go hunt somewhere else. What do you think?]¡± ¡°[Yes! Adventure! Also like you said, maybe it¡¯s dangerous to stay around. We can keep doing what we¡¯ve been doing.]¡± ¡°[Took you long enough. Follow me. Quickly.]¡± Why is she in such a rush? Oh well. Shouldn¡¯t matter much. Henry picked up Maurice and swam after the dolphin. She exchanged a couple of clicks with the dolphin posted near the entrance, and then they were through. As he swam after her through the twisting tunnels, Henry listed everything he needed to look into. He had notifications waiting for his attention, and he should actually eat soon. He had a few cuts of everything they¡¯d hunted, and he was looking forward to whatever he could pick up from them. His Skill slots might be limited, but he had plenty of slots open in his Traits. ¡°[Keep an eye out. Just in case.]¡± He didn¡¯t expect the dolphin ahead to be leading them to an ambush¨Cwhich might explain her brusqueness¨Cbut it wouldn¡¯t hurt to be safe. As Henry followed, he pulled out one of the large fangs and began encasing it in bone. Minutes later, the trio surged out of the cave, but the dolphin didn¡¯t stop just yet. Henry eyed the dolphin as he worked on his weaponized limb, watching her as she bobbed and weaved through the reef formations while occasionally swimming to the side to glance behind. ¡°[Soo. Is there a spot in particular you¡¯re taking us to?]¡± The golden barrier of the current stretched infinitely to his right, and for a moment Henry thought he could see some of its curvature, though he was probably imagining it. Still, he kept an eye on his surroundings. His blood clone was already out, trailing and watching for pursuers¨Cdolphins or other¨Cwhile Maurice and several Octominds were on high alert for movement. ¡°[We¡¯re¡­ uh¡­ close,]¡± [Keep up!]¡± And with that, she beat her fluke and surged forward, and Henry followed. Wait a second. She kept looking back. She wasn¡¯t using the sonar ability Moon had been using non-stop. She was in a rush. Also¡­ was she actually that old? Clearly, she was low C-rank, considering the single question mark he saw when Identifying her. Henry felt his observations slowly, painfully slot themselves together in a somehow familiar but still surprising possibility. ¡°Oh for the love of¡­ [Are you running away from home?]¡± ¡°[N-no. We¡¯re just hunting. That¡¯s it.]¡± Henry stared at the dolphin. That might be the absolute worst and most unconvincing lie Henry had ever heard. Even Maurice could do better. Glancing down at the crab, Henry saw his eyes slowly scanning the surroundings, mostly unaware of what was transpiring. The dolphin furtively looked at him, then, slowly, swam closer. ¡°[I¡¯ll protect you. If you two come with me. I¡¯ll help you level,]¡±¡°[You¡¯re better off leaving anyway. You weren¡¯t that safe with the pod.]¡±Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there. ¡°[What do you mean? And won¡¯t your pod come after us¨Cand you¨Cif you leave with us?]¡± ¡°[You¡¯re safe as long as you help and you agree with everything Sundots says. Otherwise you¡¯re kicked out of the pod. In your case, I don¡¯t know if they¡¯ll bother,]¡± ¡°[Do you get it? So let¡¯s go! They¡¯ll catch up. They probably already know I left. They could be here any minute.]¡± Henry agreed and Stormsong shot forward, though still stayed close enough in case of danger. Henry quickly explained everything to Maurice who, Henry was sure, was mentally frowning when he responded. Telepathic Sense had come a long way since its early days. Still not as sensitive and discerning as Maurice¡¯s ability, but Henry was sure he was detecting more than just words out of the telepathic messages he was getting. ¡°[She¡¯s going to travel with us? But she¡¯s not nice! She¡¯s rude! But good thing we left, right? Unless she¡¯s lying to us. Do you think she¡¯s lying? Is this a scam? Do you think the others will chase after us? I think we can win. But not against Sundots. His name sounds pretty, though.]¡± Henry sighed. From time to time, Maurice would slip back into that rapid-fire mode where he¡¯d just bombard Henry with questions without giving him a chance to answer any. Fortunately for both of them, Henry had now more than one mind to keep track of his scatter-brained friend. ¡°[She¡¯s an intelligent being, and it¡¯s not my right or responsibility to tell her what to do. Once we¡¯re a bit further from the pod we¡¯ll talk to her about politeness. We¡¯ll set some ground rules. Maybe she is lying, but I think she just wants to run away. Doesn¡¯t seem like she¡¯s getting along with the pod, but then again, she¡¯s a free person. If she¡¯s not lying, we dodged a bullet and we can be on our way. If she is lying¡­ Well, we were going to leave anyway, so no harm there. If we get chased, we can probably win. I think. But I¡¯d rather not kill them, unless they try to kill . And yes, Sundots¡¯ name is pretty.]¡± Henry felt like a young student who just got called on and gave every correct answer. ¡°[You can keep up with me! I don¡¯t have to slow myself down anymore!]¡± This little gremlin¡°[What do you mean slow? Me having to use Octominds to keep up with your little distracted ass doesn¡¯t mean I¡¯m slow.]¡± ¡°[I¡¯m not distracted! I can just think about a lot of things at once!]¡± Before Henry could respond, two of his Octominds blared a warning in his mind, which felt¡­ very odd. It wasn¡¯t pain or a sound, but like some sort of mental poke that broke through whatever had been occupying his thoughts. Those two Octominds were responsible for piloting the blood clone. Back when he¡¯d gotten the Skill, he needed a few more Octominds to keep a strong connection to the clone. After the mind¡¯s upgrade, two were largely enough, and the picture they were sharing with him was crystal clear. Around a hundred yards behind Henry, a shark was smoothly and seamlessly swimming along the seabed. It was somewhat flat, with a pattern that made it hard to see if it wasn¡¯t for its constant movement and shifting. Its flesh kept changing color, camouflaging the predator as it tracked its prey. Henry used Identify through his blood clone. [Carpet Shark (C) - Lvl ??] ¡°[Carpet shark is following us,]¡± ¡°[It¡¯s not worth it, ignore it.]¡± Henry looked at the shark through his clone and hesitated. This shark could have something compatible with his abilities. He should be able to take it down fast enough¡­ but then again, they were supposed to be putting some distance between them and the dolphins. ¡°[Are they common around here?]¡± ¡°[Why?]¡± ¡°[It might have cool abilities I can copy.]¡± ¡°[Yeah, they¡¯re common. Now hurry. We¡¯re still too close.]¡± Henry exhaled and picked up the pace but, as the clone began overtaking the shark, an idea popped in his head. His clones could use Skills. ¡°A whole new world of possibilities.¡± A quick telepathic check told him the shark was as dumb as a rock. So, taking control of the clone by shifting more Octominds toward the process, Henry¡¯s clone dove toward the shark, limbs crackling with electricity. before 2.07: The signal Henry fell upon the poor shark like a storm of electrified blades. He cut into its back, biting, injecting venom and discharging his electricity, only for the shark to shake itself, trying to dislodge the clone. When it wasn¡¯t able to, its skin rippled for a second before spikes burst upward, cutting into the clone¡¯s skin with ease. Henry felt the muted pain and then¨C He lost contact. Henry blinked, trying to understand what happened, and then he groaned. Why did he think he could kill a C-Rank with a weak clone? The blood clones showed as D-Rank, sure, but they were a lot weaker than he was. Which he shouldn¡¯t have forgotten about, considering how easy it had been to dispatch the Trickster¡¯s clones while that thing had been a whole rank above his own. Oh well. Maybe he should try with multiple clones once he was able to create more than one, and hopefully they¡¯d grow stronger as he leveled. ¡°Though it did level at least, all that work finally¡­ pushed it. Hmm.¡± As Henry eyed the description of the Skill, he noticed that the ¡®limited¡¯ tag was gone, while his blood clone limit was lifted from a single clone to three. ¡°When did this happen? Is it the levels? Oh¡­ actually, that might be due to the Octominds¡¯ upgrade. It did become a lot easier to control a blood clone once the Octominds got better.¡± Henry chuckled inwardly. The creation of his little army of clones was drawing near. He just had to make them stronger. An hour or so later, Henry, Maurice, and Stormsong found themselves in a small cave nestled under a large reef. Henry chewed slowly as he looked down at the thigh he was holding. The drake meat was tough. Gamey. Not as fragrant as the crab, but all in all, pretty darn good. Especially considering the abilities he was getting from it. Magic Mimic: Drakonic Strength added to Ephemerals. Bite: Rupturing Bite of the Sea Drake acquired. Mimicking Arms: Swift scales of the Sea Drake acquired. Mimicking Arms: Resilience of the Hammerock crab. Not a lot of abilities, in the end. Even the powerful hit from the crab hadn¡¯t been technically a Skill, apparently, but something related to Concepts? It would be something to ask Stormsong, maybe. In a minute. For now, he pulled the Trait he gained after purchasing it. Drakonic Strength (E): Continuously consume a small amount of mana to increase your strength. A good ability that should mesh well with everything else. It should be possible to find a spot for it in Vitality of the Trickster, as it did somehow behave like Arcane Fortification. Looking at the rest, he found it interesting how he¡¯d gotten a resilience boost from the crab. It had been tough to crack through that shell, taking every ounce of strength Henry could manage along with the boost from Unimpeded Arm and Amplified Impact. But once that spike had been through, the crab had fallen quickly. Its shell might have been tough, but its insides weren¡¯t. Electricity¡¯s terrifying. Maurice waved one of the fallen crab¡¯s legs.¡°[Do you think I¡¯m this tasty? Wait, you ate my arms. Am I as good as this crab?]¡± Henry looked up from his notifications and gave Maurice an even stare. ¡°[You want to be tastier than this crab? You know that¡¯s not a good thing, right?]¡± ¡°[I have to know if I¡¯m better. It¡¯s a matter of pride,]¡± said Maurice as he clacked his pincer. With a mana-claw, he cut another leg off the crab¡¯s carcass, then gestured for Henry to hide it again before he started munching. Henry had figured it was better to pull the carcasses out of storage, cut a morsel, then store them back in his Maw. Less risk of attracting predators or scavengers. He bit into some crab meat and chewed for a moment. ¡°[The Hammerock is tastier.]¡± ¡°[What? Why?]¡± Henry shrugged with two arms. ¡°[There¡¯s more meat in it. Your pincers were too tiny back then. I could barely taste them.]¡±If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. ¡°[Hmm. Fine. I bet I¡¯ll be tastier when I¡¯m larger though.]¡± ¡°[You ate his arms?]¡± The dolphin had stopped munching on her piece of drake and was giving them an incredulous look. Henry and Maurice glanced at each other, then the kraken raised an arm. ¡°[It¡¯s complicated.]¡± Stormsong swallowed her bite of drake. Henry expected her to huff or say something scathing, but she didn¡¯t. ¡°[How? Does it have to do with your copying ability? Is that why you wanted to stop for the carpet shark?]¡± She only seemed curious. And nervous, frequently looking around, but this was a lot better than the first couple of interactions they¡¯d had. ¡°[Yes,]¡± broadcasted Maurice to both of them. ¡°[I can copy abilities from shells. He can copy them from meat! I give an arm, and he makes me a shell out of bone.]¡± The dolphin looked at them, mouth open. ¡°[That¡­ sounds like cheating,]¡± she sent them after a few seconds. She shook her head and bit into her meal. Henry eyed her for a moment before his curiosity got the better of him. ¡°[You can¡¯t copy abilities?]¡± This conversation might tell Henry more about the dolphin¡¯s abilities. It was still a bit of a mystery, to be honest. They seemed like strong physical fighters, but clearly they had some telepathic abilities as well, on top of whatever green magic Sunspot had summoned back in the cave. Stormsong snorted and bubbles escaped out of her head. ¡°[Of course not,]¡± she said before picking up another bite and pointedly looking away. Henry and Maurice shared another look, then the crab pointed at her, then nodded toward her with his eye-stalks. ¡°[Stormsong?]¡± She turned toward him, and silently continued to chew. Henry groaned. This should be fun, he thought to himself before broadcasting again. ¡°[If we¡¯re traveling together for a bit, we would appreciate knowing a bit more about your abilities. We would also appreciate some general¡­ friendliness, or at the very least, some cordiality. We should be able to talk and chat in a relaxed manner.]¡± The dolphin chewed for a moment, and Henry noticed how she seemed to chew harder for a moment before her body relaxed. ¡°[That¡­ sounds fair. To me. Just listen to my orders, and we¡¯ll do well.]¡± Henry blinked. ¡°[Excuse me?]¡± ¡°[I¡¯m the strongest here, so it would make sense for you two to listen to me.]¡± Henry¡¯s eyes widened while Maurice literally started cackling in telepathic messages. Stormsong progressively grew more frustrated, glaring at the crab, but before she could say anything, Henry forestalled her. ¡°[I apologize for this, and I don¡¯t mean any disrespect, but you¡¯re not the strongest here. We have a destination in mind, and you¡¯re welcome to travel along with us. And before you say anything, this is not up to debate. If this isn¡¯t something you can work with, we can go our separate ways.]¡± Stormsong swam higher, slowly approaching them, and Henry poked Maurice so the little gremlin would stop laughing while also readying himself for any aggressivity. He couldn¡¯t tell what the dolphin was thinking, but she seemed tense. ¡°[I¡¯ll fight you for it then. If I beat you, you listen to me. If you¡¯re actually stronger, then I¡¯ll follow you. How¡¯s that sound? Huh?]¡± Henry pushed himself off the ground as he eyed the dolphin. Two blood clones were stealthily circling their area, watching for threats. He could do this. Would be a good way to know what the dolphins were capable of. Maybe even get a bite in. Though this posed a small problem. He considered creating a spike or pulling the leviathan¡¯s fang, but those would be overkill. ¡°[Can you heal yourself?]¡± Henry asked as he stretched his arms. Stormsong beat her tail and blew a ring of bubbles toward him as a smug voice came through. ¡°[I don¡¯t need to.]¡± Henry stared at her evenly for a few seconds, then he asked again. ¡°[Can you. Heal. Yourself. Answer, please.]¡± Henry began morphing one of his arms. He changed his mind, actually. If she could heal herself, he would be making a spike at the end of that arm. If she couldn¡¯t, then maybe a spike-less bat. Because he knew she wasn¡¯t going to throw in the towel fast. He¡¯d have to really get the point across. ¡°[Fine. Yes. I can heal. Are we doing this or not?]¡± Henry sharpened the freshly shapeshifted arm. ¡°[Maurice, keep an eye out. Stormsong, if this,]¡± he raised the sharpened spike, ¡°[touches your head, or your side, you forfeit.]¡± ¡°[What? Why?]¡± ¡°[Because if I push this spike into your brain or your heart, you will die. Deal?]¡± The dolphin slowed for a moment, and Henry almost thought he felt confusion for a second before she shook herself out of it. ¡°[Fine. Come on. Let¡¯s see who¡¯s strongest.]¡± ¡°[Maurice, give us a signal.]¡± The crab looked up at him and paused. ¡°[A signal for what?]¡± Henry exhaled, then quickly explained the concept to the crab, who clacked his pincer excitedly while Henry made the discovery that yes, krakens can get headaches. 2.08: Stormsong Concepts were a mystery. How often were they used? What were they, exactly, and what was it they made possible? Apparently, that heavy impact from the Hammerrock crab had been empowered by a concept, which made the crab¡¯s pincer fall on Henry with the weight of a mountain. It didn¡¯t squish him because of his high toughness, but he couldn¡¯t resist at all. In fact, in that scenario, it was the bedrock under Henry which cracked under the impact, and the kraken¡¯s toughness and malleability allowed him to take minimal damage. But if he¡¯d been sandwiched between two of those pincers? The damage might have been a lot more significant. Concepts were also what allowed the weird effect of the leviathan¡¯s fang. The dark coating made it so that the tooth could pierce through anything Henry had encountered so far. Even the magic turtle shells. So the question Henry asked himself was, was Stromsong using concepts to keep his arms off her? Was that what was making her so damn slippery? Her smaller, compact frame size wasn¡¯t making it any easier, either. Henry¡¯s arm shot out at the incoming dolphin, but before it could hit, it was rebuffed by the incredibly powerful current that surrounded the dolphin. Like a miniature whirlpool twisting and churning the waters around the length of her body. Not even Unimpeded Arms or Amplified could push through. Which made no damn sense. The rostrum punched into Henry''s side like a bullet. He groaned and whipped an arm up, but the dolphin was already past him, leaving a trail of disturbed bubbles and wisps of blood from an already sealed cut. Henry turned to face her. Mostly annoyed, but impressed nonetheless. She was strong. Definitely stronger than most C-ranks he¡¯d faced so far. Was it her use of concepts? The sharp intelligence must have helped as well. She was very careful not to allow him a grip on her. As Henry pooled all unoccupied Octominds to lock her down with Telekinesis, the maelstrom around the dolphin suddenly calmed down. It wasn¡¯t affecting the sands under her. It was still there, but it grew significantly weaker. And then, it died down. A burst of bubbles escaped out of the dolphin¡¯s blowhole as she looked to the side, unwilling to meet Henry¡¯s eyes. ¡°[Curses. You win.]¡± Henry stilled. ¡°[What?]¡± Stormsong glared at him for a moment. Her flippers kept twitching in annoyance. ¡°[I can¡¯t empower my Skill anymore. I¡¯m out of sto¨CI¡¯m out of my conceptual energy. And without that, you¡¯ll be able to catch me and that¡¯ll be my loss, so let¡¯s save us all the trouble, okay?]¡± Oh. Is that how concepts worked? ¡°[You. Let¡¯s see who¡¯s strongest between us. You should be easy enough to beat.]¡± Henry looked up to find Stormsong hovering above Maurice, who clacked a pincer at her. ¡°[You¡¯re overestimating yourself, fish!]¡± The kraken swam down toward the two. ¡°[What are you doing?]¡± he asked as he stopped next to Stormsong. The dark eye of the dolphin flicked to him. ¡°[I lost to you, so it makes sense to answer to you. But he didn¡¯t beat me, so now¡¯s a good time to establish who¡¯s superior between us.]¡± A large claw materialized above Maurice. ¡°[Bring it on!]¡± Henry put an arm between the two and they looked up at him. ¡°[Let¡¯s not. If you two want to spar later, fine. But let¡¯s all calm down for now and¨C]¡± He froze, then looked at his two companions. ¡°[Big shark¡¯s coming. I¡¯m hiding you. Don¡¯t move.]¡± The kraken spread his arms above the two. Maurice, familiar with the maneuver, quickly dismissed his arm while Henry mimicked the shape of an anemone covered boulder. ¡°[This is uncomfortable,]¡± said Stormsong. ¡°[Poor you,]¡± retorted Maurice. Henry felt the water grow agitated under his arms, so he snapped at the two. ¡°[Cut it out, you two!]¡± Moments later, the shark in question came into view. [Otodus Giant Shark (?) - Lvl ?] Henry¡¯s eyes tracked the monstrous shark as his heart picked up speed. It was swimming along the wall of light. A giant, easily 100 feet long. Its jaw was open, almost as if the thing was smiling, showing two rows of comically sharp and triangular teeth. A somewhat thin and aerodynamic body, ghostly white. Black empty eyes.Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation. As it swam above and past them, Henry¡¯s limbs twitched as a shiver spread down him; it wasn¡¯t excitement or his rearing for a fight. There was something primal about the shark. Henry couldn¡¯t tell if the kraken¡¯s genes were picking up on it, or if it was his own fear. Slowly, the shark faded into the distance. From his second clone, Henry watched as it continued its swim around the wall, until again, it faded from the blood clone¡¯s sight. Slowly, he released his camouflage and let the two out. They were quiet. They nervously looked around; clearly, they¡¯d sensed the shark¡¯s presence as well. Maurice was the first to ask. ¡°[What was it? I don¡¯t know if I¡¯m more excited or scared, but I¡¯ve never felt like this. I think. Maybe.]¡± Stormsong turned to look at Henry. ¡°[Otodus shark?]¡± ¡°[Yes.]¡± Stormsong glanced toward the glowing waters of the current. ¡°[Nasty things.]¡± Henry could only agree. Glancing at the few C-tokens he¡¯d scrounged so far, he began thinking that maybe those skills would have to wait. Being in this area as a D-rank was becoming too dangerous, and if there were beings around that could just neutralize his abilities like Stormsong did, then he just couldn¡¯t go on like this. He had to get to C-rank. He needed to gain access to concepts. To see them and manipulate them like C-ranks were doing. ¡°[What¡¯s their trick? What can they do?]¡± Henry had no intent on going after that shark, but if he could learn more about it, why wouldn¡¯t he? The dolphin gave him a long look. Then a few bubbles softly escaped as she answered. ¡°[Did you see how I fight?]¡± Henry confirmed. ¡°[Well. That¡¯s it. I¡­ copied them. But while I¡¯m hitting you with my mouth, the sharks would come at you with their jaws opened wide and take a chunk out. Or just bite most of you and leave only whatever didn¡¯t fit in their bite.]¡± Henry glanced at the dolphin and refrained from asking who she saw die like that. There was a resigned bitterness in how she said it. Or at least, he thought there was. It was difficult to read dolphins, especially when he couldn¡¯t pick up on any of their internal emotions or intentions. He looked toward the direction the shark had disappeared in. Henry was still sore¨Canother thing concepts seemed capable of¨Cbut replacing those hits from Stormsong with jaws full of sharp teeth gave him flashbacks to his early days as an octopus. When he got munched on by a Riptide shark. Definitely not ready for that, he thought. Thinking of a slightly safer question, he turned to her. ¡°[Why¡¯d you copy them?]¡± The dolphin stilled, then abruptly turned and swam away. ¡°[None of your business.]¡± *** The next few days were a mesh of fighting, hiding, and quick meals before hunting again as they slowly traveled further away from the pod¡¯s territory. Stormsong often kept to herself, but she did begrudgingly listen to Henry¡¯s instructions. Because he didn¡¯t let her and Maurice fight, the two kept bickering and taunting each other. Maybe he should let them. He just didn¡¯t want Maurice to lose and he wasn¡¯t sure the crab could take her on, especially with his lack of mobility. Since their encounter with the Otodus shark, Henry upped the number of blood clones to four¨Chis limit¨Cand had them watch their surroundings non-stop. All of his Octominds were on guard duty, two on each clone. He could have used the regular ink clones, but he wanted to work on his blood clones more. Maybe he could use them for fights soon. For now, they were still too weak. By the fifth day, Henry was finally at level 94. His traits and skill slots were mostly full, thanks to the many creatures they¡¯d encountered. From a carpet shark, he¡¯d gotten Reinforced Skin and Faint Presence. From D-Rank pufferfish-like specimen, he¡¯d gotten Accelerated Venom Production, which would continuously consume mana to refill his venom sacs faster. He¡¯d also gotten its venom. A neurotoxin which caused dizziness and numbness in small quantities, and currently was the most lethal venom at Henry¡¯s disposal. They¡¯d also stumbled upon a C-Rank mantis shrimp. Henry had poked his head around the corner of its small cave and ended up with two burst eyes before he even knew what happened. From the crustacean he¡¯d gotten Farsight, Accelerated Strike, and Cavitational Impact¨Can implosion provoking Skill that was much more compatible with his fighting style than Imploding Bubbles. He couldn¡¯t keep both Skills, so he saved a good portion of the carcass for after his evolution. For the last new Trait, it was Blood Trail from a C-Rank Whipcrack which would hopefully push him to level 100. In between the fighting, Henry had asked to copy Stormsong¡¯s abilities, but she refused and that¡­ was fair. Plus, his Skills were full. The best he could have gotten from her was a Trait. The trio found a well-hidden deserted cave, and Henry settled in. ¡°[Don¡¯t worry, we¡¯ll keep watch.]¡± Henry looked at the crab. ¡°[No bickering. And no fighting. Both of you. Understood?]¡± ¡°[Fine,]¡± sent the dolphin as she roamed around the illusion, while Human-Maurice gave him a grin and a thumbs up. Finally, Henry consumed the core and loaded up all the notifications he¡¯d been ignoring. 2.09: Your friend is monstrous ¡°This¡¯ll take a minute,¡± Henry thought to himself as literal walls of text appeared in front of him. Still. It wasn¡¯t unpleasant. After all, he was looking at his achievements and triumphs. Krakenbane Wanderer (D) - Level 62 achieved! ... Krakenbane Wanderer (D) - Level 100 achieved! 8x Stat points awarded. 4x Strength Stat points awarded. 4x Spirit Stat points awarded. 4x Constitution Stat points awarded. Carpet Shark Core (C) contained significant Constitution Stats. 1x Constitution Stat points awarded. Giant Mantis Shrimp Core (C) contained significant Perception Stats. 1x Perception Stat points awarded. Whipcrack Shark Core (C) contained significant Dexterity Stats. 3x Dexterity Stat points awarded. Congratulations. You will be shortly evolving from Juvenile Trickster Kraken to Trickster Kraken! Congratulations. Two new classes have been unlocked. You qualify for a class change! ¡°Huh. No choice in the species evolution this time? Just growing up, I guess.¡± Calculating Evolutionary Points¡­ Triumphed over multiple predators more than 50 levels above your own. Triumphed over multiple predators more than 100 levels above your own. Triumphed over multiple C-Rank beings as a D-Rank being. Integrated and used the natural weapon of a significantly higher rank being. Gained more than five abilities through either practice, experimentation, or adaptation. Calculating results¡­ 23x Evolutionary Points granted! ¡°I bet that¡¯s for the leviathan¡¯s tooth. Hmm¡­ I should be working more on getting new Skills. Nice haul, overall.¡± Select one of the following Class Evolutions: (New) Wandering Marauder: A class for the marauding hunter of the deep. A predator that takes his enemy''s strength before turning it against them. Everything you see is yours for the taking, if you¡¯re strong enough. - This Class allows for easier and longer storing of foreign concepts - Focuses on Strength, Spirit, and Dexterity (New) Watchful Guardian: A class for the vigilant protector. With unwavering eyes and an indomitable spirit, you stand between the threats of the deep and those under your care. Every aggressor will be swept aside, every danger anticipated, for nothing escapes your watch. - This Class generates and empowers concepts related to scouting and defense - Focuses on Strength, Spirit, and Constitution Krakenbane Wanderer: A Class for the traveling hunter of the deep. A terrible enemy to the feared and sometimes worshiped krakens of the abyss. You walk with purpose and confidence where none dare to tread, wielding strength and resilience forged in the darkest depths.This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. - This Class generates and empowers concepts related to traveling and offensive curses - Focuses on Strength, Spirit, and Constitution Stalking Threat: A Class for the hunters of the ocean. You have proven yourself a ruthless predator; hunting, trading blows, and triumphing over beings stronger than you. - This Class generates and empowers concepts of stealth and offense. - Focuses on Strength and Constitution Surviving Opportunist: A Class for the opportunist who waits to strike and thrives in the shadows. - This Class generates and empowers concepts of stealth and healing. - Focuses on Spirit and Constitution Telepathic Scholar: A Class for those who wish to observe and learn. The Telepathic Scholar has an easier time befriending sapient beings and fading into the background when required. - This Class generates and empowers concepts of knowledge, psionics, and stealth. - Focuses Perception and Spirit Henry read everything twice, heart frantic in his chest. This was it. The answers were finally coming through. Still, he didn¡¯t let his excitement distract him. He also couldn¡¯t help but notice that the new definitions of classes weren¡¯t mentioning Skill or Trait slots. It was unfortunate that the first classes he¡¯d ever been offered were lagging behind when it came to stat bonuses, while everything new was boosting three stats instead of two. Still, it was interesting to see how every class integrated concepts in its definition. ¡°Now¡­ about these new classes. All in all, I¡¯ve got three choices. Marauder, Guardian, or Krakenbane.¡± Marauder sounded kinda cool, and it was fitting considering Henry¡¯s modus operandi so far, but he wasn¡¯t super comfortable about how the class description was worded. Plus, now that he was reading all of these descriptions, he began to suspect a possible evolution for Magic Mimic. If that Trait somehow managed to start stealing concepts, then why would he need Marauder¡¯s empowerment? He probably had that classes¡¯ bonuses as part of his species. Second was Guardian. He didn¡¯t hate it. It matched with his focus on survivability and defense, and whenever he ended up meeting other civilizations, Henry was willing to bet a guardian would be a lot more welcome than a marauder. Plus, better scouting and keeping his gremlins safe was an attractive prospect. Third option was keeping Krakenbane Wanderer. It was interesting to see how the concepts would work within the confines of that class. Offensive curses? That¡¯s how Krakenbane¡¯s Wrath worked? A curse targeted at krakens? Interesting stuff. Very interesting. The problem was, Henry didn¡¯t really hate krakens to the point where he needed to make that his whole identity. It was a powerful class in his last evolution. He¡¯d taken it then, and it served him well. But now? He didn¡¯t need to kill every kraken he¡¯d meet, and if he met a problematic one, he had the Skills. He doubted he¡¯d lose them if he changed classes here. Plus, this class and the Guardian¡¯s had the same stat boosts. ¡°Yeah. Considering the monsters roaming this area, extra survivability would be very welcome. Alright. Let¡¯s get this done.¡± Class Watchful Guardian (C) was selected. The air around Henry started glowing. Motes appeared and began orbiting, progressively gaining speed while the sand below him was kicked up. The light grew stronger, and stronger, until he couldn¡¯t even see his two flinching companions, and then¨Cdarkness. *** ¡°[Your friend is monstrous.]¡± Maurice stopped staring at the ball of light behind him, and his human face turned to the dolphin. He gave her a narrow-eyed look. ¡°[We¡¯re all monsters.]¡± Stormsong huffed, and a stream of bubbles flew out and got stuck on the ceiling of the small cave. Maurice didn¡¯t let that distract him. ¡°[I meant a D-rank has no business being that¡­ strong. Are you not afraid of him? And why are you using this illusion? What is this?]¡± she asked as she circled the human projection. Human-Maurice shooed the dolphin away, who quickly dodged. ¡°[I¡¯m practicing. This is a human. They might be around, apparently. They have food and books, and I need to be able to earn their trust and make them think I¡¯m one of them to¡­ er¡­ borrow their books. And food. And treasures.]¡± Maurice got lost for a second, imagining all the things Henry had mentioned they might find. He wondered if they had fish roes over there. How could they prepare them? Would they be better with spices? The crab shook himself and looked up at the dolphin, and his human illusion pointed at her the same as he did. ¡°[Henry''s a good monster. I mean person. He helped me, taught me, and protected me. I owe him. I wouldn¡¯t be talking like this if it wasn¡¯t for him. I¡¯d be a little stupid crab already dead somewhere if it wasn¡¯t for him.]¡± Stormsong gave the crab¨Cthe real one¨Can even look then she bobbed her head and slowly swam closer to the exit. ¡°[Alright. Let¡¯s keep an eye out, I guess. This evolution will take a few hours to finish. Hopefully, nothing shows up until he¡¯s done.]¡± Maurice glanced back at the round, glowing shell in which his friend was changing, then pulled a bit of crab meat out of his hoard. He was tempted for a second, then shook his illusion¡¯s head. ¡°No kraken roe. Not yet. Those are for special occasions.¡± *** Class rank-up completed. Species rank-up completed. Juvenile Trickster Kraken(D) evolved into Trickster Kraken (C). All base stats increased by 10. Concept Workshop unlocked. Aspect Workshop upgraded. Henry opened his eyes expecting to find a sassy crab and a belligerent dolphin telepathically shouting at each other. Instead, he found himself in a familiar place. One he hadn¡¯t been in for months. He was hiding in the turtle shell. Hanging around its bottom corner. Far above, Riptide sharks were lazily swimming around, unaware of the colorful turtle shell and of the small octopus within. ¡°Still alive and kicking, eh?¡± Henry looked down to find a small half-person, half-golden-octopus sitting across from him. The little man smiled at him. ¡°How¡¯s it been, Henry?¡± 2.10: Private lesson Henry suspiciously peered at his surroundings. ¡°Doing alright,¡± he answered using his illusory voice. This must be an illusion, right? He couldn¡¯t sense Maurice through his telepathic sense. Actually¡­ He didn¡¯t sense anything from his telepathic sense. He then tried to activate Arcane Arm, but it didn¡¯t. Instead, he felt something move in the world around him for an instant, before it was smothered. Where was he? The system picked up a little stone with one of its many tentacles and transferred it to its human hand. ¡°Are you done inspecting everything; can I start my lesson?¡± Henry would have raised an eyebrow at the creature if he had any. ¡°Lesson? What lesson? And where are we?¡± The system sighed, shoulders slumped.¡°Oh well. I guess we¡¯re not socializing, so we can just move on to the next part.¡± It¡ªor he¡ªchucked the stone into the turtle shell, and the image shattered like broken glass. The shell was gone, along with the water, leaving an infinite stretch of flat sand below an incredible starry sky. Barely a few feet away, there was a pedestal. Henry felt a sense of mild whiplash from the sudden change of mood. While the turtle shell home had been comfortable and familiar, this new area was solemn. Quiet. But still incredibly alien and wondrous. ¡°I used to do this to promising individuals a long time ago. But after a few hundred years passed with¡­ uninspiring results, I made the lesson into regular ol¡¯ system messages. Which is, to be frank, the only thing I¡¯m obligated to do.¡± The system wasn¡¯t small anymore. He was as large as Henry, but the kraken couldn¡¯t focus on the creature. He couldn¡¯t take his eyes off whatever was on the pedestal. They were¡­ fragments. Large shards, each with a different color and tone. Some were smaller, some large, and all were arranged in a vaguely octahedron¡ªlike shape. Around the octahedron, there was some sort of frame. A cubic thing that glowed with an unearthly clear light, shining its light out into the heart of the strange shape. The more Henry stared at the shape, the worse the itch in the back of his brain got. He felt he was close to getting it. There was something familiar about the pedestal, and it was gnawing at him. One of the shards was a slab of deep red. A hungry thing that¡ªif the other shards hadn¡¯t been part of it¡ªwould have consumed them all. Another was a dark and smoky thing, shifting and roiling, constantly disappearing only to show up behind another fragment a second later. A third was an almost translucent shard that kept shifting color and texture. Even shape. There were more smaller ones. A relaxing and pleasant green one. A blue one crackling with energy. A purple one that was almost as large as the first three, but it somehow stretched itself to touch all the others. And then, it dawned on him. These were his Aspects. His abilities. And that frame around it¡­ his class? ¡°I see you realized what this is?¡± Henry tore his eyes away from the pedestal. ¡°Where are we? Is this¡­¡± ¡°Your soul. Yes. In a way. Don¡¯t worry, we¡¯re just here for a quick lesson. You can¡¯t break anything. Not yet.¡± Henry was quiet for a moment as his gaze shifted back to the pedestal. Within him, something twitched. Like a small stone hitting a calm pond and disturbing its surface. Something bothered him, but he couldn¡¯t put his arm on what it was exactly. ¡°What¡¯s the lesson?¡± asked Henry. Then he frowned, and turned to look at the system. ¡°Also, why did the new classes not say anything about skill slots?¡±The author''s narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. The system floated up from his seated position and came to stop next to Henry, who tensed up. ¡°Stop worrying. I told you I¡¯m only here for a lesson. And part of that lesson¡ªand an answer to your second question¡ªis that, to keep things short and simple, the training wheels are coming off. As you know, or might have guessed, the early evolutions and classes were there to help you and guide you, but there were a lot of protections baked into them. Now that you¡¯re about to start playing with concepts and potentially reforge yourself, we can¡¯t have those restrictions around. Even your class, that pretty frame you see around the Aspects, will soon disappear. Unless you figure out a way to integrate it with everything else.¡± The system floated closer to the pedestal and swam around it for a few moments before he stopped and faced Henry, the pedestal between them. ¡°From now on, things will be both simpler and more complicated. You¡¯re going to need to experiment a lot. You¡¯ll need to be smart. And if you play your cards right, you¡¯ll go far. Now, here¡¯s the question for you. Did you have a new Aspect in mind?¡± Forgot how annoying this guy can be. The system put a hand on his chest and mimicked shock. ¡°Mean. But yes, say it.¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t it already a bit¡­ crowded? For another Aspect.¡± The system grinned. ¡°Yes. And no.¡± Henry gave the system an even stare and forced his thoughts to stay polite. ¡°Those are both options.¡± ¡°Well, it¡¯ll depend on what you do with this. This isn¡¯t¡ª¡± the system gestured at the octahedron of shards, ¡°¡ªexactly as it appears. There are lots of variables. You¡¯ll have to test and play with things, but yes, you can¡¯t just keep piling up Aspects and hope to make something useful out of them.¡± That was a more useful answer. ¡°What¡¯s a good number?¡± The system moved away from the pedestal and stood to the side, shrugging. ¡°For some people it¡¯s one. For others it¡¯s five. You¡¯ll have to see for yourself. It comes back to efficiency and synergy, more than numbers. Your basic Aspects clearly work well together, so, if I¡¯m giving you a hint, your other Aspects should either work well together, or work well with your basic abilities. If everything clicks well together, then you¡¯re set.¡± So everything needed to match thematically? Okay. Henry could wrap his head around that. ¡°Alright. I think I¡¯m following. What else are you going to teach me?¡± you. you Henry considered the question for a few seconds, then nodded. ¡°Can I cast skills without having them? Actually, what are skills and traits?¡± The system nodded along, hand on his chin as he listened. ¡°Hmm. What do you think they are? What have you tried? Actually. I know what you¡¯ve tried. But what do you think of it?¡± Henry recalled his mana experiments and his mostly unsuccessful study of Arcane Arm. ¡°Well¡­ it sounds like there¡¯s some black box somewhere in my soul where my mana disappears, and the skill triggers. I don¡¯t know much more than that.¡± ¡°It¡¯s close. I can answer you this, because this will be something you¡¯ll learn as soon as you start using that Concept workshop that was just unlocked. Basically, a skill¡ªor trait¡ªis a collection of concepts and intent stabilized into a construct attached to your soul. To an Aspect, or to the class. The more you use it, the deeper it merges to its foundation.¡± ¡°Can Aspects be fused?¡± The system gave him a slow nod, while the look he gave Henry was pointed. ¡°Yes, but you should be careful with that. You¡¯ll have access to it in the Aspect Workshop, now that it was upgraded. That sub-system might let you do dumb things, so think it through before you commit. What will happen is, the smaller Aspect¡ªif compatible¡ªwill change a bit to match the larger one, and the larger one might gain a new¡­ angle to what it represents, and that will have ramifications for your abilities. Maybe even your sense of self. This is dangerous territory, and you¡¯ll be on your own. So be careful.¡± Before Henry could finish assimilating all of this information, the system clapped his hands and grinned. The world¡ªor the illusion¡ªbegan breaking down, rippling and tearing away, leaving only Henry and the system unaffected. ¡°Well, it was nice seeing you again! Work hard, and maybe you¡¯ll get yourself another lesson from yours truly next time.¡± Henry watched the world slowly dissolve. The pedestal was the last to go, but somehow he felt like that part was still present. ¡°Why did you do this? The special treatment?¡± The system began to dissolve as well, with the octopus arms fading into dust. It smiled at him and raised a hand, preparing to snap its fingers. ¡°I¡¯ll tell you next time. Maybe. Make sure to survive.¡± And with that, the system snapped its fingers¡ª ¡ªand the cave wall in which Henry had started the process came into view. 2.11: Watchful Guardian Stormsong and Maurice watched the shell of light slowly dissolve into motes. The kraken was still asleep, but Stormsong noted the larger frame as the monster¡¯s colors rippled and altered as it dreamt. At least, that was her theory for the dancing colors she¡¯d occasionally see when Henry slept. The color shift slowed over the course of a handful of seconds, then the usual orange-brown colorations came through, and the kraken moved. A trill of fear ran through her body as the kraken¡¯s presence unfurled outward. A subtle thing that most would miss. But Stormsong had been around high-level dolphins enough to recognize the feeling, and it made her heartbeat pick up. ¡°He just broke into C-Rank, and he¡¯s got the presence of some of the highest level hunters I know.¡± The only one whose presence she was confident was still superior was Sundots, but then again, that dolphin was B-Rank. Henry slowly unraveled his arms and began swimming toward them, which made her breath catch before she forced herself to relax.. Somehow, she felt that pretty soon , this kraken would be able to match old monsters. [Watchful Guardian (C) - Lvl 1] Another thing she didn¡¯t understand about these two. But this time, she decided she¡¯d ask. Which made her pause. ¡°They¡¯re a tool. They¡¯re only a way for you to leave the pod. Why would you care?¡± Stormsong shoved the voice to the back of her mind again and spoke to the crab and kraken. ¡°[Why do you display your classes for all to see?]¡± Henry had come to a stop, and had just picked up the excited crab when both of them turned to her and their voices echoed in her mind.¡°[What?]¡± *** Henry watched the dolphin, and couldn¡¯t help noticing the wisps of color dancing around her. But only when he wanted to see them. And it wasn¡¯t his mana sight either, though when he used that ability, he saw the wisps even clearer. It was the same feeling he¡¯d gotten when seeing the manifestation of his Aspects. Hers reminded him of their fight. A mixture of the speed and turbulence of stormy winds, and the unstoppable force of the sea. There were some other things there, but the dolphin¡¯s next words shook him out of his contemplations. ¡°[Knowledge of your class is only for those closest to you.]¡± Henry and Maurice shared a look, then the kraken lifted two arms in a shrug. ¡°[I guess we¡¯re all very close, then.]¡± Maurice rubbed his claws together from his perch on top of Henry¡¯s head.¡°[Yes. When do we see your class?]¡± The dolphin snorted, sending out a large stream of bubbles. ¡°[Never.]¡± ¡°[Jokes aside, I don¡¯t feel the need to hide my class. Plus, it might help strangers know that I¡¯m not just a mindless monster.]¡± Stormsong beat her fluke a couple of times as she swam in a small circle.¡°[Fair enough. So. Can you see them?]¡± ¡°[See what?]¡± asked Maurice. ¡°[Yes. I think I do,]¡± said Henry as he glanced down at the crab, who just looked between the kraken and the dolphin. ¡°[See what?!]¡± ¡°[Don¡¯t worry about it. Just get to C-Rank and you¡¯ll know what we¡¯re talking about. Now, give me a few minutes to finish cleaning up some stuff, then we can head out.]¡± ¡°[Henry! See what?]¡± The kraken tuned the crab out¡ªor more accurately, he had an Octomind stop the voice from distracting him¡ªand loaded the Aspect Workshop. His available options appeared. Upgrade Skills and Traits Incorporate Class Skills and Traits in Aspect Merge Skills and Traits Create new Aspects Fuse AspectsThis tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report. ¡°Are these new options always going to be available?¡± The system¡¯s warning about playing with Aspects was still fresh on Henry¡¯s mind. Considering everything that was now possible, it made sense. He could really do some damage to himself with these possibilities. ¡°I¡¯m going to need a lot of preparation before I make any big change. Would be nice if there were a way to simulate some of this stuff. Hmm.¡± Henry looked down at his many arms. He doubted the Octominds could help with Skill merging. But maybe he could predict some outcomes from fusing Aspects? Well. He could try right now. He was still hoping to create a movement-based Aspect, but he could try and think it through with the help of his Octominds. Before that though, Henry wanted to check the new menu. The Concept Workshop. Extract Concepts Excise Class construct Excise Ephemeral construct Bind construct to class Henry carefully read the available options at least three times, noticing with every iteration what wasn¡¯t being said or made available. There was no mention of what he was supposed to do with the extracted concepts. Or what he was supposed to do with the results of the excision options. As for binding¡­ As he tapped the option, he had no help. Nothing. And from feeling out the option and what it was expecting, it felt like the final step of the skill creation process. The final firing in the kiln to stabilize and solidify everything. To bind it. Meaning, he somehow had to create the ability himself, then he could bind it to the class. After which he could transfer it to an Aspect in the Aspect Workshop. This was a lot to take in. ¡°Alright. Smaller picture stuff for now.¡± So. If he were to create a movement Aspect which included Blink and Riptide Rush, what could he fuse it with after? Could he combine it with other Aspects? ¡°Octominds, get it done.¡± Henry left the four blood clones with an Octomind each, then took the remaining four for his new task. He closed his eyes and waited. He wasn¡¯t actually sure it¡¯d work, but in the meantime, he visualized his Aspects on a pedestal, like he¡¯d seen them with the System, and waited. He felt ideas come out of certain Octominds and head to others before they were modified. The image in his mind changed, as a vague shape was introduced from above, but it all felt¡­ inefficient. There was hesitation in the Octominds. They weren¡¯t being efficient, often focusing on the same point. Within a minute or two, he felt them hit a wall. So, Henry pooled them. All four Octominds became one, and the image he was visualizing immediately grew sharper. Text began overlaying over the new Aspect as it grew more distinct, gaining a deep blue¡ªalmost indigo¡ªcolor. Lines came out of the new simulated Aspect and connected to each single Aspect, then a percentage popped over the line. Movement + Hunger estimated compatibility = 10% Movement + Shiftiness estimated compatibility = 25% Movement + Arms estimated compatibility = 20% Movement + Misdirection estimated compatibility = 80% Movement + Arcana estimated compatibility = 60% Movement + Vitality estimated compatibility = 50% Henry went through every line, his inner smile growing wider by the second. He could only agree with the estimations, even though he knew the Octominds were based on his own thoughts and biases, but it made sense to him. Hunger and its abilities didn¡¯t have a lot to do with movement, while Misdirection with its clones, scouting, and ink screens could work pretty well with movement abilities. Henry pictured some possible combinations of Misdirection and Blink; when he did, he had to stop himself from immediately pressing the create Aspect button. What if he could somehow Blink to his ink clones? What if he could do it all over the world? ¡°Calm down. I have no damn clue if it works like that.¡± He took a few minutes to consider a movement Aspect combined with Arcana and Vitality, but he couldn¡¯t picture a combination as impressive as clones and teleportation. Vitality had healing and resistances; he had no idea how that could work well with teleporting, so he moved on to Arcana. Arcana summoned illusions, had Mana Skills and Telekinesis, which might explain why its compatibility with a movement Aspect was up to 60%. Even if it was somehow possible to teleport to an illusion, it just wasn¡¯t as good as teleporting to clones. He couldn¡¯t take his mind off that combination. He wasn¡¯t even sure what he¡¯d do with it, but if there was a synergistic possibility he could aim for with a movement Aspect, he couldn¡¯t think of anything better. ¡°Alright. We¡¯ll see how it goes. But I still want the movement Aspect, so let¡¯s get this done.¡± Blink and Riptide Rush can be merged within Swiftness of the Trickster Amplified Impact, Krakenbane¡¯s Wrath, Lightning Discharge, Accelerated Strike, and Cavitational Impact can be merged within Fury of the Trickster Henry examined the two options. He was happy to see his movement Aspect, but he wasn¡¯t sure about the Fury. Though to be honest, he could see that one fit well with his other Aspects. A quick check with his 4-mind Octomind showed him a 70% compatibility with Hunger and a 60% with Arms. Everything else was lower. ¡°Maybe I can divide the abilities among the other Aspects? Well. I¡¯ll look into it later.¡± For now, Henry agreed to the creation of Swiftness of the Trickster, grumbled while paying the increased cost of 5 Evolutionary points, and as the magic began collecting around him, he could only think of everything else he needed to do. ¡°Still need to move my skills around and get through notifications.¡± The magic collecting around him pulled his attention away from his to-do list, and as he paid attention to the wisps of foreign concepts, he could only chuckle. In a way, he might have just been given the keys to the magic of this world. He just had to not screw it up. 2.12: Came a long way Henry set Blink as the cornerstone skill for Swiftness of the Trickster and turned his attention to Fury of the Trickster. Should he take that one? Now that he was considering it¡­ it wasn¡¯t that bad. It was themed around fury, sure, but that wasn¡¯t such a bad thing in a fight. As long as it wasn¡¯t rage, which might overwhelm him. It wasn¡¯t madness, either. Fury could still be calm and rational, and it would fit with offensive and defensive skills. ¡°I¡¯ll put a pin in that for a second. Let¡¯s see what kind of skills I¡¯m working with first.¡± Henry began going through his class skills and assigning them to their respective Aspects. ¡°Domain and Dispelling Bubble to Arcana. Those two could probably be fused as well. Unimpeded Arms and Amplified Impact to Arms? No¡­ they would really fit with Fury. Lightning, too. Hmm.¡± There were quite a few skills which could fit in there. Most offensive skills could. ¡°Next, Drakonic Strength. Perfect fit for Fury as well. Inner Furnace too, though that one could also fit in Vitality. Draining Touch to¡­ Arms. It would also fit with Arcana, but that Aspect¡¯s got enough on its plate. Sense Foe, Seeker¡¯s Bounty and Find the Path¡­ you guessed it. Arcana.¡± There were still a few left, but half were perfect for Fury. ¡°Ah, screw it. Take my money. Or evolutionary points in this case.¡± It took nearly a minute. He felt the deft touch of the system¡¯s magic on his soul, gently nudging things this way and that. It was nothing as painful as the first time the Aspects had been created, but it still felt weird. Aspect: Fury of the Trickster has been successfully created and attached. Warning: Fury of the Trickster does not have a cornerstone skill. ¡°Can I still move things around¡­ Yeah. Great. I¡¯ll do that first, then I¡¯ll decide which skill I¡¯ll make into a cornerstone.¡± Next, Henry moved everything strongly related to fighting within the Aspect. Even a couple of skills like Razor Tentacle and Trickster¡¯s Resilience. When it was done, it looked like this. Fury of the Trickster (E) - Level 1 Drakonic Strength (E) Accelerated Strike (E) Cavitational Impact (D) Lightning Discharge (D) Trickster¡¯s Resilience (D) Inner Furnace (F) Unimpeded Arms (E) Amplified Impact (E) Razor Tentacle (D) Tentacle Whip (D) Krakenbane¡¯s Wrath (D) Reinforced Skin (E) ¡°Damn.¡± He¡¯d been tempted to move Venom Production and Arcane Arm as well, but the former was still a good fit for Hunger, while the latter was¡­ more utility-based at the moment. Next, he looked for possible combinations; thankfully, the Aspect Workshop made that trivial. Accelerated Strike, Amplified Impact, Unimpeded Arms, Cavitational Impact, Razor Tentacle, Tentacle Whip are compatible. Spend 1 Evolutionary point to merge? Trickster¡¯s Resilience, Inner Furnace, Reinforced Skin, Drakonic Strength are compatible. Spend 1 Evolutionary point to merge? Henry agreed to both. When the uncomfortable process was over, he found it to be worth every little discomfort. He quickly pulled up the skill descriptions, and after reading through them, he knew what had to be the cornerstone. ¡°Evershifting. It just speaks to me.¡± Evershifting Strike (D): Active: Whenever you strike, you can apply one or many of the following effects independently. Strike: [Whipping][Accelerated][Unimpeded] Impact:[Cutting][Heavy][Cavitational] Trickster¡¯s Fortitude (D): Passive: Enhance resistances to: Toxin, Heat, Mana Drain Active: Consume a small amount of mana to reinforce your flesh and increase your strength. Create a thin magic film to reduce water friction and to disperse incoming physical attacks. ¡°Good. Very good. I wish I could examine it in detail. I think it might be one of my most complex skills yet.¡± The merge still left a couple of skills outside, but that was alright. Lightning Dischage might be compatible with Draining Touch for some sort of touch-based offensive skill. When Henry tried to move Draining Touch once more, he got a warning message about the risk of destabilizing the skill, so he refrained for now. Lastly, he took in the description of Krakenbane¡¯s Wrath. Henry eyed the text for a few seconds, then turned his attention to one of the new menus he had access to. ¡°Might be a candidate for experimentation¡­ but not right now. It¡¯s too good of a skill to risk damaging. I¡¯ll have to find some Skills I don¡¯t care about to experiment on. Learn how to disassemble and reassemble skills first. Then I can modify Krakenbane¡¯s Wrath for something more generalized. Something that doesn¡¯t only work on krakens.¡± Henry nodded to himself. That would be a good future challenge, but for now it was time to get through his notifications. At least those for Aspects levels, considering most of his class skills just got moved. Hunger of the Trickster (D): Level 5 -> Level 6 Shiftiness of the Trickster (D): Level 7 -> Level 9 Misdirection of the Trickster (D): Level 3 -> Level 5 Arms of the Trickster (D): Level 1 -> Level 4 Arcana of the Trickster (E): Level 9 -> Level 10 Vitality of the Trickster (E): Level 9 -> Level 10 ¡°Two are ready to evolve. Shiftiness, Misdirection, and Arms leveled pretty well, too. They all had a good workout recently, with all the camouflaging and blood clones and whatnot. Krakenbane¡¯s Wrath got nothing because I¡¯ve fought no krakens these last couple of days. Good haul overall. Now, do I upgrade those two first, or do I fuse stuff first?¡± Henry hummed as he considered the advantages, then decided to fuse things first. If he fused an ability with a cornerstone skill, the skill might get even better when it evolved. Plus, he wanted to get done with the cleanup process faster.Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit. ¡°Alright. Now, more fusions.¡± Accelerated Venom Production, Bite of the Trickster are compatible. Spend 1 Evolutionary point to merge? Faint Presence, Mimicking Arms are compatible. Spend 1 Evolutionary point to merge? Seeker¡¯s Bounty, Find the Path, Sense Foe, Blood Trail are compatible. Spend 1 Evolutionary point to merge? Domain, Dispelling Bubble are compatible. Spend 1 Evolutionary point to merge? Henry paid for all, and once more waited for the transformative effect to finish before he pulled up the new skill descriptions. For Venom, he just loaded the description of the passive of Bite. Bite of the Trickster - Venom Production: Your salivary glands can now produce venoms after sufficient exposure. Production can be accelerated through channeling mana to the glands. Available venoms: Numbing of the Pufferfish, Spasmodic of the Sea Serpent, Tranquilizing of the Mesmer Eel, Anticoagulant of the Sea Drake, Agonizing of the Lionfish. Mimicking Arms - Passives: Faint Presence: When camouflaging, your mana and mental presence will be muffled. Trickster¡¯s Pathfinding (E): Passives: Blood Trail: When a being is injured within range, a glowing trail can be displayed toward them. Sense Foe: Sense the presence of your foes. Foe signatures: krakens. Seeker¡¯s Bounty: You have a chance of sensing targets you deem valuable within a certain range. Actives: Find the path: While focusing on a destination, activating this skill has a chance to point you toward your desired destination. Trickster¡¯s Domain (E): Actives Wide Reach: Trigger an ability that requires touch within your domain. Dispelling Pulse: Create a pulse of magic that disrupts skills within your domain. Henry sighed. This stuff was tiring to get through, but it was always best to have your work station clean, and his skills and Aspects were the workstation in this scenario. ¡°That should be it. Only thing left is a bunch of upgrading¡­ which should also be pretty quick. Too bad I¡¯m going to eat into the tokens I¡¯ve been saving up for Partial Shapeshift and Flowing Form.¡± Henry paid for the Aspects upgrade and actually took a moment to both enjoy the sensation and observe it. When it was done, he loaded the new and improved cornerstones. Arcane Regeneration Passive [43 Charges]: Recover from injuries and ailments faster. While meditating, health and mana recovery are sped up further. Continuously form charges of health and mana to be used at a later time. F-Rank: Spend mana to restore your health and recover from ailments. E-Rank: Spend a larger amount of mana for a significant burst of regeneration. D-Rank: You can apply your regeneration on other beings through touch. Summon Illusions F-Rank: Summon an illusion within 50 feet of yourself. E-Rank: Illusionary sounds and smells can be produced. D-Rank: Illusions can be cast in an area with a trigger, only taking effect when the chosen trigger occurs. ¡°Alright. I¡¯m done. Jeez, that took a minute. But everything¡¯s pretty amazing so far. I can now heal others. I can create programmable illusions and So. Much. More. Alright. Final recap, look at my stats and¡­ Holy crap. When did I get to 70 in Constitution?!¡± Henry chuckled inwardly as he took in his stats. He still had eight points to assign, too! And Strength had passed the fifty threshold as well. As he looked over his new stat page, he felt good. ¡°I came a long way from the little octopus I used to be.¡± Name: Henry Dubois Species: Trickster Kraken - Reincarnated Intelligence (C) Class: Watchful Guardian (C) - Level 1 Consumption Tokens: 14.8 C Evolutionary Points: 11 Strength: 52 Constitution: 70 Spirit: 59 Perception: 34 Dexterity: 35 Unassigned: 8 Hunger of the Trickster (D) - Level 6 Bite of the Trickster Maw of the Trickster (D)(125m3) Voracious Grip (D) Shiftiness of the Trickster (D) - Level 9 Mimicking Arms Alter Physique (D) (6300Kg) Shapeshift Arm (D) Misdirection of the Trickster (D) - Level 5 Inkjet Scouting Clone (D) Blood Clone (D) Arms of the Trickster (D) - Level 4 Assistance of the Octominds Arcane Arm (E) Draining Touch (E) Arcana of the Trickster (D) - Level 1 Summon Illusions Mind Weaver''s Tongue (E) Mana Nexus (E) Telekinesis (D) Identify (E) Trickster¡¯s Domain (E): Trickster¡¯s Pathfinding (E): Vitality of the Trickster (D) - Level 1 Arcane Regeneration Swiftness of the Trickster (E) - Level 1 Blink Riptide Rush Fury of the Trickster (E) - Level 1 Evershifting Strike Trickster¡¯s Fortitude Lightning Discharge Krakenbane¡¯s Wrath Class skills None 2.13: Concepts Henry swam to the cave¡¯s exit as he called back his camouflaged blood clones, while his Octominds established their connection once more. Stormsong was right next to him, peering at the world outside, while Maurice continued pouting on the seat Henry had made for him. ¡°[You just need to get to C-Rank. It¡¯s not that complicated, and we¡¯ll have time to explain everything to you while we¡¯re out here. You do have to focus on leveling, though.]¡± That seemed to mollify the crab a bit, but Henry couldn¡¯t focus on it too much. He had bigger fish to fry, which was needing to make sure they weren¡¯t about to be ambushed by something he¡¯d missed. He¡¯d lost contact with his blood clones for a good while, so he couldn¡¯t tell if anything dangerous slipped through the perimeter he¡¯d established. If he hadn¡¯t, it wouldn¡¯t mean his perimeter was safe, of course. It just meant that when something dangerous like the B-rank sharks or any other threat roamed toward them, they had time to react and hide. Right now he had no clue what was around. ¡°[We have to stay discreet until the blood clones make the rounds,]¡± he sent to the other two, surveying the reef in the depression they were in. ¡°[Was I out for long?]¡± ¡°[I had time to work on my Clawminds like¡­ 6 times.]¡± Henry winced. That was close to six hours. ¡°[Are you two hungry?]¡± Stormsong looked away from the cave¡¯s exit.¡°[I can eat.]¡± ¡°[I¡¯d love some kraken roe,]¡± said the crab. When Henry stared at him, he dropped his claws and rolled his eye-stalks. ¡°[Crab meat is fine¡­ I guess.]¡± Henry sighed as he put the crab down and pulled some spare cuts from his storage.¡°[You keep learning the worst things.]¡± ¡°[Well you won¡¯t tell me about concepts. And I¡¯m learning these things from you.]¡± Henry didn¡¯t rise to the bait. ¡°[At least you¡¯ll fit right in with when we meet humans.]¡± Next, he pulled some more drake meat out and put it in front of Stormsong before taking a cut himself. While he ate, he began exploring one of the options in his new menu. Henry loaded the concept menu and selected Disassemble Ephemeral construct, which gave him the option to break down one of the temporary abilities copied by his earliest skills. Henry studied the prompt for a second, then he confirmed. Excising ephemeral construct: Venomous Spikes of the Lionfish Henry closed his eyes as he felt the nudge deep in stomach. A twist, a pull, and then a ball of energy came free. He opened his eyes, and there it was in front of him. A bundle of glass-like shards that reminded him of the System¡¯s lesson, arranged and loosely connected by a glowing blue string. Maurice stopped eating while Stormsong looked up and stared. Henry didn¡¯t dwell on their reactions, and instead focused on the bundle in front of him. It felt flimsy. He could see motes flying off the string tying it all together. He tried to press his will against it to make it last longer, but he couldn¡¯t. Well, he could, but his attempt was too awkward. Too¡­ vague. Like when he tried using chopsticks the first time, and kept dropping his food. The string came loose and its dissolution sped up. In a second, only the three shard-like items were left. One was steely-gray with sharp edges that gave Henry the impression of a razor. One was noxious green mottled with a dark red, and the third was a blood red that kept rippling, as if it wanted to change and make something of itself. Henry tried to reach for the shards. Would they break down as well? He didn¡¯t see any clear indicator of them dissolving. How could he store them? These were the Concepts, he believed. ¡°Well¡­ Time to test some stuff out,¡± Henry said to himself right before he touched the shifting concept. The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation. He instantly regretted it. His first attempt resulted in the red one immediately sinking into his skin. His flesh distorted and began growing out of control. Changing shape and size in a second. Hair and sharp spines broke out of the site, and Henry immediately used Evershifting Strike to cut his limb off. In the quiet that followed, Stormsong leaned down and bit into a piece of drake. ¡°[You can¡¯t touch them with your bare arm like that.]¡± Henry glanced at the dolphin, then looked back to the two shards. ¡°[How do I use them? Also, can I store them?]¡± ¡°[What are you two talking about? The blue stuff is gone.]¡± Right. Maurice couldn¡¯t see Concepts yet. Henry wondered how that worked¡­ and why it was limited to only C-ranks. Henry began explaining.¡°[I¡¯m looking at¡ªactually, I¡¯ll show you.]¡± An illusory imitation of the shards appeared right above the ones Henry had in front of him, though it was immediately clear that it was only an image. He couldn¡¯t copy the otherworldly feeling he was getting from the shards themselves. ¡°[You need to break them down with your own mana.]¡± Stormsong explained. [¡°Your mana can then tell them what to do. As for storing¡­ I don¡¯t know. I use my own stuff, I don¡¯t work with foreign concepts.]¡± Henry stared at the dolphin for a second. ¡°[Your own? ¡­Oh. Ooooh.]¡± Turning his attention inward, Henry went looking for his personal Aspects. He found them quickly enough, their large forms hovering around each other. He focused on Hunger¡­ and tugged. He was mostly visualizing things, not really seeing them at first. But when he pulled on Hunger, he felt something move. The sense of Hunger filled his stomach, a gnawing and greedy swirl of mana that tried to consume the rest of his reserves. When he pushed the whole thing down one of his arms, his limb started twitching and gained a healthy reddish hue. Stormsong clicked at him as she chewed.¡°[Yes, that¡¯s it. Hunger, right? It makes sense, I guess.]¡± Henry didn¡¯t respond, still maintaining focus to keep the mana in control. He wished he had his Octominds, but they were all busy controlling the blood clones. ¡°What do I do with this now?¡± Henry tried concentrating the mana, but he was hitting some sort of limit after which it refused to condense further. Which was when he remembered one of his new menus. Extracting concepts¡­. A suction feeling pulled on his reddish arm, drawing the red smoke in front of him and turning it around on itself. A red bead appeared at the center of the whirlwind, slowly growing larger. Within seconds, a new glass-like shard was created. ¡°Nice¡­ Now. What if I tried this¡­¡± Knowing he couldn¡¯t touch the shards, Henry channeled mana into one arm until it glowed in his mana sense. Then he touched the Hunger shard once more, only for the concept to dissolve into his arm. ¡°Damnit.¡± He extracted it once more, this time recalling the thread he saw surrounding the Concept shards, he whispered to the mana. ¡°Don¡¯t absorb it. Don¡¯t absorb it. Don¡¯t absorb it.¡± He willed his mana to be Concept-proof. Like duck feathers to water. Concepts should touch his mana and just¡­ roll-off. Henry poked Hunger with his glowing arm¡ªand only a tiny bit of Hunger seeped through, while the rest went into his Maw. He beamed up at the dolphin, who stared back at him for a second before she went back to her food. ¡°[Got it. I¡¯ll be able to¡­ collect¡­]¡± Henry trailed off as his Octominds brought his attention to one of his blood clones. The kraken quickly moved his consciousness to it, and the cave faded in the background. He found himself camouflaged as stone, only a few yards away from the wall of golden lights. Click¡­. Click¡­.. Click Soft, familiar clicks were getting close. Interspersed and discreet, not willing to draw too much attention to themselves. Henry kept his camouflage going and hoped Faint Presence was active. He wasn¡¯t sure if his new upgrades were already transferred to his clones or if he needed to re-summon them, but he wasn¡¯t willing to test anything right this second. No need to draw more attention to himself. He hoped they weren¡¯t dolphins. He didn¡¯t need things to get¡­ complicated. But, unfortunately for him, the universe didn¡¯t care for his preference so he wasn¡¯t at all surprised when the first spotted gray form swam over a reef formation, followed by a handful of others. Trailing behind the six dolphins was one larger than all, with spots that swirled and twisted over its silver skin. Click. The dolphins slowed and began turning. Sundots took the lead, guiding the remaining troupe toward Henry. ¡°Damnit.¡± 2.14: Earlier than expected Henry¡¯s thoughts whirled as the B-Rank dolphin approached. Its presence was heavy, and the kraken found it hard to look away. Even though Henry could detect no Concepts or mana around Sundots, that only made him feel nervous. Like the calm before the storm. ¡°[Where is Seasong, kraken?]¡± The pleasant tone he associated with the dolphin was gone. If Henry had alarms bells, they¡¯d be ringing about now, which was why he dismissed one of his blood clones and pulled in the two Octominds piloting it. He needed brain power. Henry moved his consciousness back to the cave and reinforced the connection to his relay. Through the clone, he answered.¡°[Hello to you as well¡ª]¡± The water around the clone immediately churned.¡°[Do not waste my time, kraken. Where. Is. Seasong.]¡± While that cheerful conversation was taking place, Henry urgently spoke to the duo near him. ¡°[Sundots and six dolphins are looking for you. He¡¯s pissed. We have seconds. Plan?]¡± Maurice froze, and the dolphin was no better. She stared at him, eyes wide like a deer in headlights. Henry gave her a moment as he considered his options as well.¡°[Called me kraken twice now. Not liking how he¡¯s saying it either, so we¡¯d better skedaddle. Will he follow us into the Current?]¡± That shook Stormsong out of it. ¡°[¡­Maybe? Not for long. And not too deep either¡­ But we wouldn¡¯t be safe. There¡¯s¡ª]¡± Henry cut her off as he picked Maurice up and swam in front of her. ¡°[We¡¯re not safe now, Stormsong. Your people can track me even through my disguise. Any clues about that? Anyway, we¡¯re moving. Feel free to follow.]¡± Henry honestly didn¡¯t mind if she followed or if she stayed. She might be safe with her pod, but he didn¡¯t think he nor Maurice would be. The kraken triggered Riptide Rush and shot out of the cave, toward the wall of golden light. A mile or so away, his clone deflated and spoke to Sundots. ¡°[Alright. Follow me.]¡± Clone-Henry put the Current behind him and began swimming away, but quickly noticed that the dolphins weren¡¯t following. He stopped and turned. ¡°[Do¡ª]¡± He barely had the time to see a wall of green and gray move, then the connection to his blood clone cut off. ¡°[Welp. That didn¡¯t work,]¡± he said to the dolphin who¡¯d just caught up with him. ¡°[Hope you¡¯re all ready for the Current.]¡± ¡°[Adventure!]¡± shouted Maurice as he threw both claws up. Stormsong ignored him. They were seconds away from the Current. His two remaining clones were trailing, and gaining as well. Each of them could use Riptide Rush, it turned out, so they were booking it toward him as he tried to get eyes on the dolphins through them. The bright sea was getting close. An expanse of giant algae with stems as thick as trees stretched ahead, and Henry¡¯s many hearts fluttered. It was earlier than expected, and they¡¯d have to be extremely careful and keep a low profile, but it would be a new world of opportunities. He would have loved to get better with his new skills before taking on this challenge¡­ but that wasn¡¯t how life worked. You couldn¡¯t pick and choose your obstacles or when they showed up. And in any case, he was getting into the Current sooner or later. Stormsong cursed. ¡°[They¡¯re close. And about your question, our clicks can detect mental signatures. If you¡¯re around and thinking, you light up like a jellyfish to our sense. ]¡± ¡°[Good to know.]¡± Seconds later, Henry heard the clicks. They were coming in faster than they¡¯d been earlier, which meant his group might already be on the dolphins¡¯ radar. Henry pushed more mana into Riptide Rush, and a few seconds later they entered the current. He dove down in a straight line, expecting to see a seabed he could glide along. Instead, he saw a wall of stone and coral that kept stretching downward until he couldn¡¯t even see it. The sea was clear and bright, but visibility still took a hit after what looked like a half a mile. Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon. At least he could still keep going at full speed. If something came at him, he¡¯d have time to react. Whether he could do anything about it was another matter. Still, he did his best to match the patterns of the growth he was swimming next to, calling out to the dolphin. ¡°[Stormsong, can you camouflage?]¡± ¡°[I can¡¯t.]¡± Damn.¡°[You¡¯re too conspicuous. Do you mind if I put you in storage? You too, Maurice.]¡± Stormsong was quiet for a second while Maurice firmly objected as he anxiously stared at the new surroundings, one eye sat firmly watching behind them.Then she asked, ¡°[Is it safe?]¡± Henry¡¯s heart hammered in his chest. There was always something unnerving about deep dives, especially when you couldn¡¯t see what was waiting at the bottom.¡°[It is. Maurice has been in there multiple times. And Maurice, you should be setting a better example, you gremlin. If we¡¯re attacked, I don¡¯t know if you¡¯ll be safe. You¡¯ve seen what¡¯s in this place.]¡± That made the crab pause and drop his claws. ¡°[¡­ I¡¯m sorry I can¡¯t help more.]¡± The dolphin¡¯s eye flicked to him then back toward the depth and said nothing. Henry tapped the crab on his head and chuckled. ¡°[Don¡¯t worry. You¡¯ll be there fast enough. Alright, both of you. In you go.]¡± The frustrated crab was first to go. Next, Henry slowed enough to wrap an arm around the dolphin. He felt a light resistance when he tried to store her, but it quickly faded and the dolphin disappeared as well. ¡°Not as heavy as I expected, and I couldn¡¯t even feel Maurice¡¯s weight. Levels do matter, I guess,¡± Henry mused as he continued his dive. The clicks were still approaching, while the surrounding seas were as bright as they¡¯d been since he¡¯d gotten in. ¡°Stubborn shits. Just leave already.¡± Henry changed trajectory and approached one of the mind bogglingly tall stalks of algae while quickly shaping his arms into matching leaves. It was easy enough to hide his bulk along the stalk. The thing was literally the width of a giant tree trunk. ¡°Mental signature, huh¡­¡± Henry continued swimming down¡ªand didn¡¯t let the death of one of his blood clones distract him. It died to the dolphins, but no matter. He could remake them, and he had work for his Octominds, anyway. The kraken turned his attention to his Aspects, specifically the one responsible for his elusiveness. ¡°Concept empower, right? What if I empowered my mimicry with Shiftiness? How about Misdirection as well?¡± Pooling four Octominds to help him, Henry pulled on the Aspects, praying it would work, while having the two remaining Octominds watch his surroundings and keep swimming down. The clicks were getting closer. Henry visualized the two mana types and pictured them merging together. This was all unfamiliar territory. He was running on instinct, and expected the two different mana types to fight him, but they didn¡¯t. They seamlessly merged into a new type of mana that captured the essence he was going for; Stealth. Henry triggered Mimicking Arms once more and willed it to use this new pool of mana he¡¯d created, and the skill did as he wished. The mana was siphoned away, and in return his skin rippled. For a second, Henry was confused as he came to a stop near one of the clumps of algae leaves. For a split second, his mind was tricked into confusing his own arm with algae. Henry refreshed his disguise and stuck himself to the algae tree while the enhanced skill hid him. With what remained of the new mana mixture he willed Faint Presence to be used as well, and then he waited. He hoped his Octominds won¡¯t reveal him. But then again, he didn¡¯t think he was completely defenseless, either. The only threat was Sundots. The C-ranks had no chance of putting him down. Henry waited while the clicks grew louder. His Octominds were busy moving his arms to match the surrounding flora while he had an eye half open. He breathed slowly, kept calm, and waited. Sundots appeared five seconds later. He was alone this time. It seemed like he didn¡¯t want to risk the others in the Current, which made sense, considering the B-Ranks around. The dolphin came to a stop a bit below Henry. He clicked a few times, angling himself left and right. As he kept at it Henry¡¯s excitement grew, but he put a lid on it. ¡°Mental signatures. Keep calm.¡± Still¡­ Henry couldn¡¯t help having a thought; What would happen if the dolphin found him? Would this become a fight to the death? Or just a beat-down? And if it was the latter, which side would be inflicting it on the other? Henry was nervous, sure. But he was confident in his offensive capabilities. He would absolutely take a thrashing from a B-Rank, but he doubted Sundots was capable of one-shotting him like he did to the clones. And he doubted the dolphin could tank everything Henry was capable of. Far above, Henry¡¯s remaining clone approached and moved deeper into the current. Sundots¡¯ head turned toward it, but it seemed like he knew it was fake. ¡°Smart little shit.¡± The dolphin tilted its head a few more times, clicking all the while. After a few seconds, one of the clicks registered as words to Henry¡¯s hearing. ¡°I know you¡¯re here, kraken. Show yourself.¡± Henry kept still. It was a decent bluff, but he knew the dolphin couldn¡¯t see him. ¡°Still¡­ How long will he stay? And how long will my empowered camouflage last?¡± The dolphin began roaming the area, clicking, and Henry wondered who was going to flinch first. 2.15: One chance Author note so you don''t miss this: Stormsong is a young adult. Not a child. Will include that somewhere earlier. ------------------------------ Far above Henry, his last clone was on its way. It wasn¡¯t far anymore. Barely a minute or two away, he thought, which was well and good, but he had no clue what he could do with it. It was a D-rank clone that would be vaporized as soon as Sundots looked in its general direction. What was he supposed to do now? The B-Rank dolphin continued clicking, roaming in a larger and larger area below him. Sundots was completely off-base, still, but Henry doubted his mimicking skill would last that long. He could feel the soft buzz that filled his body beginning to fade, something he was sure was linking him to the aspected mana. The skill itself would probably last indefinitely, as he was used to it, but the part that was allowing him to slip the dolphin¡¯s detection was about to fade. Calmly and slowly, Henry pulled more enhanced mana out of Shiftiness and Misdirection and blended them. Next, recalling the sensation he associated with Mimicking Arms, he willed the construct to suck in the prepared mixture. Henry felt the mana trickle into the skill and prayed the process wasn¡¯t noticeable. At the same time, he forced his panic down. There was something he knew deep down when he pulled the aspected mana. He wouldn¡¯t have another recharge. He¡¯d felt it, instinctively. A certain brightness¡ªor clarity¡ªbecame muted in Shiftiness and Misdirection. Like a fading candle. He was sure it would refresh with time, but it wouldn¡¯t be fast enough for another boost to his stealth. Henry needed something to distract and get rid of the dolphin. But what? ¡°What are the options here? Fight or flight. A fight¡¯s too risky. But I won¡¯t be able to flee from him. No way. So I need a distraction.¡± From the corner of his mind, through two of his Octominds, he could look down at the area his main body was in. Through the clones, he looked around as a new idea began taking form. ¡°It¡¯ll have to survive¡­ And I¡¯ll have to be quick.¡± Henry watched the dolphin below as he assigned two more Octominds to the clone. Hopefully, he¡¯d find what he needed. *** The buzzing Henry could feel through his body guttered out after approximately five minutes. A second later, Sundots¡¯ head snapped up toward him. Henry quietly detached from the giant algae stalk and readied himself. He loomed over the dolphin. Henry was easily three times its size, but while his own weight was spread out around his body and arms, the dolphin was compact. Concentrated in a much smaller and stronger form and, if that wasn¡¯t enough, it had more than a hundred levels on him. [Spotted Dolphin (B) - Lvl ??] Henry set two Octominds on healing duty. Both were to watch his brain functions, and if they were at any time compromised, the Octominds would trigger the fast¡ªand more expensive¡ªsurge of Arcane Regeneration, as well as ten healing charges. ¡°[You seemed a lot friendlier last time.]¡± The dolphin slowly swam up and came to a stop around twenty feet away. His cold gaze was difficult to hold, and Henry struggled not to look away. The dolphin¡¯s presence pushed at him, not as intensely as it had back in the dolphins¡¯ home, but it was almost a physical thing. Henry couldn¡¯t tell if this was a magical effect or not, as he could see no concepts in effect, but now wasn¡¯t the time for such investigations. A moment later, Sundots¡¯ voice reached his mind. ¡°[Save us time and get Seasong out. I will not repeat myself, kraken.]¡±You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story. While the dolphin spoke, Henry felt a spike of excitement followed by immediate dread. An uncomfortably close distance above, still near the borders of the Current, the clone found a B-rank creature. Unfortunately, the being was a familiar deathly-white shark. An Otodus Giant Shark. Now, how was he supposed to bring it down without his clone dying instantly? In any case, he needed to buy some time. ¡°[Hello to you, too. How¡¯s it going?]¡± The dolphin did not respond. Instead, a green hue began surrounding Sundots like an aura. Henry relented. Sort of. He still needed time.¡°[If anything happens to me, you¡¯ll never see her again.]¡± The green light intensified, and there was a dark amusement in the dolphin¡¯s tone.¡°[I¡¯ve killed my fair share of your kind. If she¡¯s not in your storage skill, then it¡¯s only a matter of time before I locate her. If she is, she¡¯ll come right out once I turn your carcass to mush.]¡± Henry began shapeshifting his arm to allow for the leviathan tooth¡ªand barely had time to see the cylinder of green light that caught him in the stomach. The projectile dug into his flesh as if it was made of rubber. He felt his organs being jostled while he was shoved through the water until the momentum of the projectile spent all of its energy. When it stopped, Henry looked for what had hit him and saw nothing. Had that been water? Henry channeled some healing into the site. It hadn¡¯t torn into his skin, but he could feel bruising both inside and out. Then he activated all of his defensive abilities while his clones tried unsuccessfully to lure the giant shark down. The predator wasn¡¯t very interested. Another cylinder began shaping itself up on top of the dolphin, followed by two more.¡°[Huh. Tougher than expected. Interesting. Let¡¯s see how these do.]¡± The cylinders narrowed over the course of less than a second, then flashed forward once more. Henry immediately activated a pulse of Trickster¡¯s Domain to dispel the skill as it closed in on him, then quickly pushed mana into Trickster¡¯s Fortitude, reinforcing his flesh and defense as he raised his arms to tank the hit. Meanwhile another of his arms continued shape-shifting. The green light surrounding the water lances weakened, but it wasn¡¯t fully dispelled. Unfortunately, that didn¡¯t weaken the water carried within them. The three water projectiles punched through his reinforced flesh like bullets. Henry groaned as blue blood colored the surrounding water, but it wasn¡¯t too bad. Far above, the white shark stopped roaming and turned around. It seemed like it had detected the blood, but it wasn¡¯t enough for it to plunge and track the source. Still, that gave Henry an idea. Henry pushed more mana into Arcane Regeneration, and his wounds knit themselves up. They hadn¡¯t dug too deep into his flesh, thankfully, but he could see those water lances easily punching through his whole body if he¡¯d had any less Toughness. His defensive abilities most certainly helped as well. Two short clicks came out of the dolphin¡¯s throat, then more green light surrounded him.¡°[Incredible. How are your defenses this high? Is it a skill?]¡± ¡°[Will you leave us alone if I tell you?]¡± Henry didn¡¯t mind the chatter. He had to think of a way to get on the dolphin and tear into him. Sundots¡¯ blood might be the key to draw the white shark down here. ¡°If I run at him, he might make it a point to keep his distance.¡± He¡¯d have to get on the dolphin instantly. In the blink of an eye. More columns of green spread around the dolphin, all facing the kraken. These were even narrower than the last round, and Henry felt as if he was looking down the barrel of a mini-gun. ¡°Shit. I can¡¯t tank this. Dispelling does nothing to the pressurized water, and if I¡¯m blinking on him, I can¡¯t miss. I¡¯ll have one shot at this.¡± Bubbles blew out of the dolphin¡¯s blowhole, and it almost looked like Sundots snorted at him.¡°[Of course not. You¡¯ll pay for wasting my time. And for taking Seasong. Plus, I¡¯ve never had a kraken as tough as you. Can¡¯t say I¡¯m not curious.]¡± Henry summoned two ink clones and readied a shot of Inkjet. In his arm, a leviathan tooth was set and ready for stabbing. ¡°[It¡¯s not like I kidnapped her. She wanted to leave. Who am I to say no?]¡± ¡°[Your opinions and excuses don¡¯t matter.]¡± The columns glowed brighter and shot out, but Henry had already disappeared in a cloud of ink. As the bullets of pressurized water cut through the distance toward where he¡¯d been, Henry was already moving, diving, while two of his clones shot upward. Henry¡¯s eye peeked out of the ink, and as soon as he saw his target he triggered Blink. Mana surged out of his stomach in a maelstrom of familiar and strange concepts, and Henry felt as if he¡¯d just been sucked through an impossibly narrow and dark tunnel before the lights of the Current once more filled his sight. Henry had the chance to see a cloud of ink being riddled by deadly jets of pressurized water, and right below him, barely a couple of feet away, a large dolphin who was tilting its head to see what had appeared above him, eyes disbelieving. Henry¡¯s arms shot down, while all of his free Octominds clamped down on the dolphin with Telekinesis. Two green walls materialized around him as he put an arm on the dolphin. Henry¡¯s vision twisted, then his whole body exploded with pain. 2.16: Unyielding destruction Henry couldn¡¯t see from one eye, while the second was seeing things he couldn¡¯t¡­ interpret. Something was very wrong. The worst of the pain had passed, but it only left a dreadful confusion in its place, and Henry couldn¡¯t make sense of what he was seeing. Or what was happening. What had he been doing? What¡ª A prodigious amount of mana flashed toward his stomach and brains. His flesh knitted and repaired instantly, a burning and reinvigorating feeling. As it healed he got an idea of what had happened, and somehow, that made everything even more confusing. It was as if a giant had caught him, then tried to tear him in half along his middle. Henry¡¯s sight returned. Below him, the dolphin was preparing another attack, just like the one which had reduced his brains to mush. The two green walls would each pull half of his body in different directions and frankly, Henry didn¡¯t have the kind of mana to afford for that to happen once more. Plus, he didn¡¯t want to sense that dreadful state of mind again. If he could even call it that. With the arm that was still holding the dolphin he sent a Lightning Discharge, hoping it would delay the attack, while he channeled mana into the leviathan tooth. He plunged down, accelerating his attack with Evershifting Strike as he did. The dolphin seized for a second, but it wasn¡¯t enough to allow for Henry¡¯s followup attack to land. At the last second, a green hue appeared near the dolphin¡¯s skin that reminded Henry of Stormsong¡¯s defensive ability, and his attack was thrown to the side, unable to maintain its trajectory. Even the grip he had on the dolphin was being challenged. And then a new green current was trying to throw Henry away, but he couldn¡¯t allow that. If he lost his grip, his plan would fail. He didn¡¯t have the mana for another Blink, and the dolphin wouldn¡¯t allow the kraken to land another arm on him ever again. Henry¡¯s mind screamed with pain as the wall of green tried to rip him away from the dolphin¡¯s back. The two arms he was using to grab on were threatening to tear as he channeled more electricity down them. The dolphin twitched and seized, but it was more of an annoyance to Sundots than an actual threat. The green magic continued pulling at him, so Henry changed tactics. With the suckers still making contact along Sundot¡¯s skin, he began unloading every venom he had at his disposal. Paralytics, relaxants and especially his anti-coagulants. He couldn¡¯t dump them all at once because his suckers¡¯ bite was barely cutting into the dolphin¡¯s skin, but at this point, every little thing helped. He even got a couple of notifications from Magic Mimic, but he couldn¡¯t pay them attention at the moment. ¡°[Filth. Let go of me.]¡± Henry didn¡¯t respond¡ªinstead, he redoubled his efforts. Channeling more mana into the dark leviathan tooth, Henry stabbed down once more. This time, he activated all of the effects of Evershifting Strike. All but [Whipping]. [Accelerated]. [Unimpeded]. [Cavitational]. [Heavy]. And finally, [Cutting]. The strike flashed down in the blink of an eye, and his Octominds were the only reason Henry was able to make sense of everything that happened next. The dolphin dropped his magic, trying to pull Henry off of his back while the flowing barrier surrounding his body flared to life. A moment later the magic corona grew more vibrant, and Henry perceived conceptual impressions coming off of it. The unstoppable power of waves. The inescapable pull of the currents. The unyielding push of the ocean. Henry¡¯s heart dropped for a moment. He wasn¡¯t going to be able to break through. He hadn¡¯t empowered his own attack with a concept. But then, he saw the leviathan tooth reach the green hue. He expected it to be flung aside, and in a way, it did. He felt the tooth be pushed away slightly. But it still hungrily tore through the concept-empowered barrier with its own thirst for destruction.Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon. The eerie, black leviathan fang bit deep into the dolphin¡¯s lower flank. The strike had been at an angle, so it created a deep groove in the dolphin¡¯s flesh. The impact detonated, but that part of the strike didn¡¯t do much damage to the empowered dolphin. Still, red blood surged in a cloud out of the nasty injury. Instantly, far above, a shimmer of stormy green and blue surrounded the Otodus Giant Shark before it dove. Henry let go of the dolphin and began rushing toward the algae stalks while a hail of pressurized bullets followed in his wake. He winced with pain as the bullets tore into his flesh and into the two arms he was using to cover the back of his stomach and brains. The shark was about to show up at any moment¡ª The sense of dread heralding the arrival of the monster cut through his chest. The hail of projectiles stopped, and Henry stole a glance backward as his arms pumped to get him far away from the dolphin. The shark came down from above like a falling rocket. Its jaw was wide open, pointed teeth gleaming while its dead-black eyes showed some white around the edges. The dolphin barely managed to deflect the charge, summoning a wall of current that slightly nudged the shark away before glancing toward Henry. But glancing was all Sundots could do. Barely a second later, the shark was back on the charge. Henry was curious to see how this fight would go, but he couldn¡¯t stay. And so he dove, deeper and deeper into this new area while his clones trailed behind. Maybe he could watch the fight through them. Henry left the air of dread behind and faced a new one as he camouflaged himself to match the stalk of algae and swam down alongside it. He didn¡¯t know what he would find in the depths he was heading toward, but he couldn¡¯t stay up there. He had to move for a while still before he could bring Maurice and Stormsong out. He had to find a safe spot. *** It took nearly twenty minutes for Henry to find the bottom. When he took in the stretch of sea floor that stretched in front of him, coupled with the overgrown and lush cliff that stretched behind him, Henry felt a shiver down his back. The seabed was oddly flat.Not that it was empty, or anything of the sort. No. The seabed was crawling with life in all of its forms. Coral reefs, schools of fish, giant algae stalks and much more. What drew Henry''s attention and made him uncomfortable was how geologically flat everything looked. He¡¯d expected trenches. Some sort of unevenness, especially considering the sheer rock behind him, but all he could see was flat and rolling plains in every direction, while the cliff kept going ahead and behind him. Some rocks had detached. Some holes were dug into it, but from afar, when he looked into the distance, he could see the slight angle. It all said one thing to Henry: this area didn¡¯t look like it had occurred naturally. He didn¡¯t know how long it stretched. He didn¡¯t know if the odd energy that permeated the Current had anything to do with it, but this all looked artificial. On a scale he couldn¡¯t even fathom. ¡°One more mystery added to the list.¡± Henry broke himself out of the line of thoughts and glanced above him. He saw nothing following him, and he couldn¡¯t hear any clicks, either. It seemed like he had successfully evaded the dolphin. Which was fine and all. But as he eyed one of the many roaming shapes, he could only gulp. A carpet shark was somewhere below him. It was significantly larger than the specimen Henry had tried to attack a few days ago, and just like him, it was hiding from the dominant species in the area. As Henry looked at the conical shapes swimming and dancing around in this small stretch of the ocean, he could help but feel awed. [Orthoceras Squid (C) - Lvl ???] ¡°Nautiloids¡­¡± The squid was massive, easily as large as he was if not more. Its soft body was hidden in a tall, conical shell that somehow looked like black and white witch¡¯s hat. Most were high C-rank, with a handful of early B-Ranks. The school of squid was swimming around, playfully exploring and interacting with each other. Were they intelligent? Peaceful? He had no clue, and he wasn¡¯t willing to test it out with so many of them being in the area. Still, this would be a huge opportunity. Strong monsters would keep the dolphins away, while this would become a whole new hunting field. But once again, just as when his adventure had started, Henry would have to be careful. Once more, he was now one small fish in a big, dangerous sea. 2.17: Nothing better than almost dying While the shelled squids savaged a large being that meandered into their territory, Henry slunk along the seabed and made himself into a large rock. He would have liked to boost his camouflage, but Shiftiness and Misdirection still somehow felt light and shallow. Clearly, conceptual energy needed a bit more time to recover. It wasn¡¯t anything like mana, and Henry had no idea how long it would take for them to be refilled, but one thing was clear; he couldn¡¯t go around using his Aspect¡¯s energy willy-nilly. He had to be frugal with it. He also needed to understand it better. I might also be able to use the stuff I recover from breaking down abilities. As long as it¡¯s somehow compatible. Henry slowly made his way toward a reefy formation, looking for a hidden spot to settle in. He didn¡¯t feel that great, now that the adrenaline was wearing off. Some of the energies from Sundots¡¯ attacks had leached into him and made him feel heavy. Sick. It reminded him of having a fever, but he could feel the offending agents in both his body and his soul. He had an idea of how he could get rid of it, but he needed to be somewhere safe first. Any time now, the squids were going to get back to roaming, and he was in the middle of their territory. Maurice¡¯s going to want one of those shells. A few minutes later, Henry found a good spot. A bunch of large rocks seemed to have detached from the cliff a long time ago, and they formed a high, almost mountain-sized network of reefs and caves. Most were on the smaller size, but he found a good one that was curiously empty. Henry didn¡¯t mind that. He slipped in and, using a couple of arms, mimicked a large boulder to dissuade anything from trying to get in. He then let out a sigh of relief, but couldn¡¯t really rest just yet. Pulling some essence from the vitality Aspect, Henry channeled it into a pulse of Arcane Regeneration and shivered as the skill coursed through his body. It was like a wave of cold water coursed into his body and soul, scrubbing everything clean and filling it with energy. As soon as the skill finished coursing through him, Henry made himself a promise. He had to find a way to use this combination more often. He¡¯d never felt as good. It felt like he just had the best night''s sleep of his life. He felt energized and full of life, as if he just down a shot of espresso but without the nervous energy that would follow To his greatest chagrin, now Vitality also felt empty. I need to figure out a way to stockpile these conceptual energies. Or make more of them. That was something he could ask Stormsong about. Glancing behind, he made sure once more that he hadn¡¯t locked himself in a dangerous cave and readied himself to pull out Maurice and the dolphin¡ªwith whom he needed to have a conversation¡ªbut paused. Might as well get through the notifications first. And see what I got from the dolphin. Hunger of the Trickster: Control Water (F) added to Ephemerals Hunger of the Trickster: Sonic Pulse (E) added to Ephemerals Hunger of the Trickster: Mind Shield (E) added to Ephemerals Misdirection of the Trickster: Torrential Ink copied. Huh. I got the clicky-skills. Wonder how that¡¯s going to work. Still, good haul in general. Henry was disappointed for a moment because Control Water was copied at the F-Rank. But then again, as he recalled the fight with Sundots, the skill seemed to have a lot of powerful application that most certainly required practice and mastery. It might be a core ability of the species as well, as it was also what Stormsong used in their little bout, though her technique was different from Sundots¡¯. Now, how about Aspect levels? Hunger of the Trickster (D): Level 6 -> Level 7 Shiftiness of the Trickster (D): Level 9 -> Level 10 Misdirection of the Trickster (D): Level 5 ->- Level 8 Arms of the Trickster (D): Level 4 ->- Level 7 Arcana of the Trickster (D): Level 1 ->- Level 2 Vitality of the Trickster (D): Level 1 ->- Level 4This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version. Swiftness of the Trickster (E): Level 1 ->- Level 2 Fury of the Trickster (E): Level 1 ->- Level 3 As always, nothing better than almost dying for leveling up. Shiftiness was ready to be upgraded to C-Rank. It would be his first Aspect to hit C-Rank but unfortunately, it would cost a whole B-Rank token to upgrade. He¡¯d be able to afford the expensive skill-upgrade way before he managed to scrounge up a B-token. Henry unfurled an arm and a multicolored¡ªbut mostly red¡ªcrab popped out. Maurice looked around for a moment, examined Henry for a second, then a piece of crab meat popped into his claw and he began chewing. ¡°[How did it go? Tell me everything. Can you recreate it with your illusions? That could be better. What if¡ª]¡± Henry let Maurice ramble on and pulled Stormsong next. The dolphin immediately glanced around, water churning around her, and when she saw the crab munching as he stared back, she calmed down. ¡°[What happened? Where are we?]¡± The kraken quickly filled them in, and even recreated some elements of the encounter when Maurice insistedOnce he was done, Stormsong stared at him, while Maurice was climbing over his camouflaging arm to take a peek outside at the shelled squids. ¡°[You fought him? Sundots?]¡± Henry shrugged with two arms.¡°[I don¡¯t know if I can call it fighting. More like I survived a few hits until the shark showed up.]¡± ¡°[And you brought an Otodus¡­ That¡¯s so¡­ ]¡± Stormsong was speechless, and Henry was very much aware how precarious his situation had been, but then again, he was somehow growing used to the danger. Which was concerning. Not wanting to dwell on those thoughts, Henry eyed the dolphin for a second and let the question drop. ¡°[What is going on with you and your pod, and why did they come after us?]¡± Maurice stopped watching the outside world and scuttled up on one of Henry¡¯s arms, while Stormsong quietly stared back. A few small bubbles escaped from her head, then she bobbed her body a couple of times. ¡°[Your lives were at risk because of me. So I¡¯ll tell you. But I don¡¯t want to discuss it. Can you respect that?]¡± Henry agreed. Maurice continued munching on crab meat. ¡°[There are two reasons I wanted to leave. Or at least, I was waiting for a chance to leave. The first is that I have no one in the pod. My parents were exiled when I was just a calf. The second is that there are¡­ expectations of me that I have no interest in. I want to travel and see the world. I¡¯m not naive enough to believe my parents are still out there, but if they are, I want a chance of seeing them again. No matter how small it is. Not be trapped rearing calves back there.]¡± Henry listened quietly, skin crawling when he realized what the second might have been. Knowing the habits and behavior of dolphins back in his world, he guessed these dolphins, even though they were sapient and all, might still have some unorthodox and potentially traumatic behaviours. From the tone and muted body language of the dolphin, he assumed it wasn¡¯t pretty. Henry felt Maurice about to say something, and decided to cut him off. Just in case the crab wasn¡¯t picking up on the heaviness of the situation. ¡°[Thank you for telling us, and you¡¯re welcome to continue traveling with us.]¡± Maurice looked up to him inquisitively, so Henry shot him a quick private message. ¡°[Questions later. This is a sensitive topic. Let¡¯s change the subject.]¡± The crab¡¯s excited voice came through their minds almost immediately. As if he¡¯d been waiting. ¡°[Can we get one of those squids? Stormsong, do you know them?]¡± The dolphin looked up, and slowly rose from the floor she¡¯d been resting on. She approached the exit and peeked outside over Henry¡¯s arm, seemingly welcoming the distraction. ¡°[No. I don¡¯t recognize them. I don¡¯t think I¡¯ve heard anyone speak of them either¡­ Maybe they don¡¯t leave the Current? Or maybe they prefer staying at the bottom?]¡± The cave was quiet for a few seconds as Henry looked at the squids through his remaining clones. Then Stormsong spoke once more. ¡°[Is that it? You¡¯re not going to make demands out of me? You¡¯re just inviting me to travel along with you two after I got you both in trouble?]¡± Henry looked back at the dolphin and even though he was a bit taken aback by the pained and raw voice in his mind, he still shook his head. For the first time, Stormsong had lowered her mind shield. There was surprise there. Suspicion. Expectations of rejection and so much fear, buried under hopes and anger. Loneliness, too. Her parents might have left a hole in her chest that might have never been filled and that¡­ stung. The kraken picked up the crab and helped him see through the camouflaged exit. Even Maurice kept quiet. Henry knew he was listening, and calmly answered the dolphin. ¡°[When I opened my eyes in this new world, I was alone. Weak. I almost died to an F-rank eel within the first few hours.]¡± Stormsong listened, but she stayed quiet. Slowly, Henry noticed the feelings and emotions coming off of her slow to a trickle then disappear, but that didn¡¯t bother him. Baby steps, he thought, then continued. ¡°[I was terrified. But I also couldn¡¯t help but be amazed by everything I was seeing. Everything I was experiencing. The ocean is such a marvellous world. Incomprehensibly large and so full of life¡­ but it can be such a terrible place to be alone. Maurice happened entirely by luck and that probably helped keep me sane. Who knows what could have happened if I¡¯d been by myself all that time?]¡± ¡°[You¡¯re welcome]¡± piped up the crab. Henry chucked him deeper in the cave and looked back the dolphin. ¡°[All that to say, no. No, there are no expectations. You¡¯re still a new recruit, I guess, so give us a hand. We¡¯re not strangers. You¡¯re welcome to travel with us and if one day you want to head out on your own, you¡¯re free to do so. For now, no bad feelings. You¡¯re not responsible for your pod¡¯s insane behavior.]¡± Stormsong stared back at him, and then bobbed her head and seemed to relax, so Henry turned his attention back out. His clones watched the squids, camouflaged along some algae leaves at the edge of the squids¡¯ territory. ¡°[They seem placid on their own, but as soon as something approaches, they swarm it. They fight together, and they¡¯re fast. They¡¯re using their shells for both offense and defense, hiding within when they¡¯re attacked, or they stab with the pointy end. If we want to catch one of them, we¡¯ll have to lure it away. Otherwise we¡¯re fighting them all.]¡± Henry looked down to the crab as the latter scuttled back toward them, then to his multicolored shell. Maurice noticed his gaze, then a worried voice came through. ¡°[Why are you looking at me like that?]¡± 2.18: Essence ¡°[I¡¯m not bait!]¡± Henry cackled at the incensed crab.¡°[It was a joke! Relax. Of course I won¡¯t risk your life just for bait.]¡± That barely mellowed the crab down for a moment. Before Henry added, ¡°[Unless you want to?]¡± The multicolored crab exploded at him, tiny pincers shaking, slamming down on Henry¡¯s arm while the kraken chuckled. Turning his attention to the dolphin, Henry asked, ¡°[I¡¯m still new at using concepts and stuff. How long does it take to recharge? Is there a way to make that faster, or to have more of it?]¡± Stormsong glanced at him, a bit surprised, then she bobbed her head before continuing to stared outside. ¡°[I forget that you didn¡¯t have a mentor to teach you the basics.]¡± Henry decided to not mention the System¡¯s mini-lesson, and anyway, it hadn¡¯t covered everything. ¡°[It¡¯s pretty simple. Higher ranks and levels in the Aspect will result in more essence available. To refill it, you just have to wait. It really depends on how close and in tune you are to the Aspect. It can be anything from a few hours to a couple of days. You can also recover essence faster while meditating on the specific Aspects. You need to try a few things to find what works for you, and you should always be frugal about it. It¡¯s often a last resort.]¡± ¡°[Essence is the conceptual energy, right?]¡± ¡°[Yes. Some call it essence, or aspected mana, or conceptual mana. It¡¯s the same thing. When it¡¯s not mixed with mana, it¡¯s called raw concepts. Or concept shards. Or concept gems. Usually they don¡¯t last long outside, but I guess you can store them. That should give you an advantage¡­ Maybe you could even save conceptual shards to use in an emergency. And learn how to be efficient with your essence, too.]¡± Henry paused. He agreed with a lot of what the dolphin was saying, and he was already considering stockpiling conceptual shards for later, but he didn¡¯t know what she meant by the last part.¡°[Efficient?]¡± ¡°[You should control how much essence you infuse into your skills. Sometimes just a little bit is enough to give you an edge. Using every ounce of essence will give you a powerful effect, but you¡¯re often better off using just a bit. You never want to be out of essence. Especially now that predators are better at using their.]¡± At that, Maurice chimed in. ¡°[Is that why we haven¡¯t seen that many users of Aspects in C-ranks?]¡± ¡°[Depends. Either they already used their reserves, or they haven¡¯t figured out how to use them well just yet. C-ranks have access to essence, but most only start using it later in the rank. Though all B-ranks will be using essence, and they will be good at it. Plus, at that rank, their Aspect reserves will be a lot larger than yours or mine.]¡± Henry listened closely, taking in the new information and adding new tasks to his ever-growing to-do list. Once Stormsong was done, she said she needed to rest, so Henry was left with Maurice. After a short moment, the crab whispered. ¡°[I need to get to C-rank.]¡± Henry glanced down at the crab and used Identify. ¡°[You¡¯re pretty close. Only one or two more C-rank cores and you¡¯re there. We¡¯ll try to do something in a few hours.]¡± Maurice looked up at him, then nodded. It was awkward. Unlike the human illusion the crab usually used, his real form didn¡¯t have a neck, so he just bobbed with his whole body. ¡°[Okay. Do you need help?]¡± Henry grinned inwardly and patted the crab on his head. ¡°[Get some rest. I¡¯m going to make some clones so we can lure something nearby. We should be able to get you to C-rank by the end of the day.]¡± Maurice went down and settled on a rock, then disappeared within his shell. Henry began listing everything he had to do. Upgrade the expensive Skills. Make blood clones and work on a plan to lure C-ranks nearby¡­ without alerting the squids. Henry would have loved to upgrade Shiftiness of the Trickster, but he didn¡¯t have a B-rank token. Just need to down a bunch of C-ranks. Or a B-rank. How hard could that be?A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. Henry enjoyed the quiet for a second. He could feel Maurice, still awake and anxiously ruminating. Stormsong¡¯s thoughts and emotions were blocked behind a shield Henry couldn¡¯t see through, and all around, he could feel a few minds swim past them. Some were alarmed. Some were hungry or tired. Life went on, in the ocean. Uncaring of their worries or goals. Henry shook himself out of his contemplations and focused up. Time to get some work done. He began with the blood clones and created two more. A deep pain stole over his body as a haze of red and black smoke surged out of him, and over a couple of seconds the smoke coalesced into the first blood clone. He created a second one, and when that was over he let both of them out of the cave while he channeled Arcane Regeneration. He assigned six Octominds to his three clones, having them camouflage and scout. For his remaining Octominds, he kept one on emergency heal-duty, while the last was idle. Next, he turned his attention to the upgrades for Alter Physique and Shapeshifting Arm. It wasn¡¯t that long since he¡¯d defeated the Trickster kraken and copied these two abilities, and back then he couldn¡¯t afford them. Now he had enough for both, after the rush to C-rank. Partial Shapeshift (C) Alter and shape the physical form of a larger portion of your body and limbs into more complex forms. When a form is familiar and practiced enough, it can be quickly accessed. [Form: Spiked-Flail][Form: Hinge Joint] More complex forms? Henry immediately triggered the skill. This he had to see. The skill activated, and Henry¡¯s mind sunk into the skill¡¯s special mindset. He¡¯d been curious to see if the skill¡¯s innate assistance had gotten better, and it turns out that it had. Holy crap. Henry didn¡¯t have an easy way to describe how the skill worked, but a good example that came to mind was comparing your local neighborhood library to the city¡¯s largest. While he¡¯d struggled with a simple hinge-joint in the past, he could now see and instinctively understand the intricacy of a ball-and-socket joint, and easily recreate them. He could see organs. Nerve clusters. Wings and eyes. The amount of options, configurations and different kinds of organs he could now recreate was staggering, and so was the cost of maintaining the skill. Henry stopped the skill and breathed slowly. He felt drained, especially as he was still recovering from the creation of the clones. This is so much more powerful. And it''s starting to make sense why Maurice was struggling so much to create his own version of the Octominds¡­ He needs this upgrade to be able to create nerve centers. He glanced at the crab, then went back to the upgrade menu. The crab was asleep, and he¡¯d tell him later. For now, he triggered the second upgrade. Flowing Form (C) Gradually increase or decrease your overall size, mass and proportions over the course of a few hours. The state penalty of lower sizes is greatly reduced. The process can be greatly accelerated in exchange of mana. Maximum mass: 14300 Kg. 14 tons. Am I ship-size yet? I know blue whales are about 120 tons. Not there yet, but I¡¯m on my way. He didn¡¯t hate his ever-increasing size. There was safety in size, though right now, stealth might be preferable. Also, that explains how the Trickster¡¯s strength didn¡¯t change when it grew in size. With this, I can make myself smaller without losing my stats. Well, I¡¯d only lose a bit. Henry liked the flexibility this upgrade would give him. He wasn¡¯t sure growing larger was good at this point. He was surrounded by powerful predators, and he didn¡¯t have the strength to contend with them just yet. Being larger would only make him more attractive for them, and more obvious as well. He needed to be stealthier. He could use a smaller form and keep a couple of arms large for reach. A bit like those squids. Then he¡¯d work his way up the food chain. Once he was safe from this area¡¯s strongest beings, he could push his size upward again. These are great upgrades. And with them paid for and done, it only leaves the Aspect itself to upgrade. Henry turned his attention to his unassigned stat points. He pushed Spirit to its threshold, then divided the rest between Perception and Dexterity. I wonder how Mimicking Arms¡¯s going to change next, he thought to himself as he checked his new stats. Name: Henry Dubois Species: Trickster Kraken - Reincarnated Intelligence (C) Class: Watchful Guardian (C) - Level 1 Strength: 52 Constitution: 70 Spirit: 60 Perception: 38 Dexterity: 38 2.19: Mystic ¡°[You¡¯re smaller!]¡± Maurice was, as usual, loud and obvious in his statements. Henry waved his now short arms. ¡°[I reduced my size so we can be stealthier. I know I could camouflage you too, but we might find things that can see through my disguise. Just like the dolphins. I can¡¯t be relying on concepts every time for us to be safe.]¡± Henry was now around the same size as Stormsong when excluding his arms. Two of them were nearly twice his size, and he was using one of his larger arms to keep them hidden in the cave by using it as a rock-shaped stopper. ¡°[It¡¯ll be easier to travel like this. I was getting too big.]¡± After a few seconds, a surprised Stormsong asked, ¡°[How many more skills do you have?]¡± Maurice chuckled at that, and so did Henry. They both had their human illusions present to get back to practice, while Henry worked on luring something near them with his clones. A mid C-rank was on the way, following one of his clones, unaware that it was literally on its way to an ambush. ¡°[I have a lot of skills. Do dolphins have ways to copy and learn skills? We might be able to help.]¡± The dolphin shook her head¡ªa gesture she already picked up from observing Henry and Maurice¡¯s illusions. ¡°[We can learn but we can¡¯t copy, no. Wait¡­ I know Trickster krakens can, but the cra¡ªMaurice can as well?]¡± Both illusions nodded. ¡°[Yes,]¡± said Henry. He was quiet for a couple of seconds, then he looked down at the crab. ¡°[Carpet shark¡¯s almost here. You¡¯re ready, Maurice?]¡± Stormsong grumbled about unfairness while they all prepared themselves to take down the carpet shark. High above their current hiding spot, hanging from one of the algae stalks, two clones were watching the surroundings, eyes peeled for anything that might approach or sneak up on them while they killed their target. Maurice had to deal the most damage to get the greatest core fragments, and considering he was still technically in D-rank, it might take a moment. Henry unfurled his arms and swam out of their new cave; Maurice tucked in one of his arms while Stormsong trailed behind. ¡°[Okay Maurice. We¡¯ll lock it down. You keep hitting it until it dies. Let¡¯s go.]¡± *** A stream of bubbles flew at the fleeing Hammerock crab as it struggled to drag itself away from Maurice¡¯s onslaught. Maurice Blinked after it, reappearing over of his target. A second later, a large, glowing blue claw dropped on the low C-rank monster like boulder, and its remaining feet buckled as it slammed against the sand and rocks of the seabed. Maurice focused his stream of bubbles and gave it another mouthful. The bubbles hit the tough carapace and imploded, each one weakening or straight up tearing a small bit of the large crab¡¯s shell. It would take quite a few of them to really dig into the monster¡¯s insides and mush its vitals, but thankfully, Maurice could keep sending dozens of them every seconds. At this point, his Imploding Bubbles didn¡¯t even tax him that much when it came to mana. The mana passive skills I got from Henry were absolutely worth it. Good thing I kept upgrading them. The hermit crab kept the stream of attack going until he felt the much larger crab weaken and slow. It was odd, feeling things through the magical arm, but Maurice was good at that sort of thing. Soon enough, the crab finally stopped struggling, and a few moments later, Maurice received the kill notification as he let himself drop atop of his fallen foe. He was panting, pushing air through his gills fast. His body felt sore from all the mana he¡¯d been channeling all day. But it was worth it.If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it. This was the fourth C-rank they¡¯d downed today, and this one he beat all by himself. To be fair, Henry said that it was only around level 12 in C-rank, so it didn¡¯t give that much of a fight. But a win¡¯s a win. Henry swooped in a moment later, picked up Maurice, and stored the large, dead crab in his Maw. The kraken glided along the seabed, even using Riptide Rush to make it to their hiding spot faster. ¡°[The squids are approaching. They might have sensed something,]¡± Henry explained. Maurice was a bit jealous of his friend¡¯s ability to change his body shape this much. He himself was pretty locked into his shell, and there was no way to make it larger, as far as he knew. A few moments later, they dove into their cave and Henry used one of his arms to camouflage the exit before turning to Maurice. ¡°[Do you have everything you need? Got enough tokens left over? I have a couple of fragments, if you need them.]¡± Maurice clacked his claws in excitement. His legs scuttled along the rocky walls of the cave. ¡°[I have enough. I think. But I need to do the shapeshift skill first right? Are you sure my Clawminds can be done with the upgrade?]¡± Before the kraken even began answering, Maurice sensed the amusement and rolled his eyes. He wasn¡¯t getting a straight answer. A second later, as predicted, Henry dodged the question. ¡°[I don¡¯t want to ruin the surprise. You¡¯ll see when you get it.]¡± ¡°[Fine. I¡¯ll get to it, then.]¡± ¡°[What upgrade are you two talking about?]¡± The dolphin approached from behind. She was a lot nicer recently. Though Maurice didn¡¯t understand a lot of the nuances of what was going on with her, he knew enough not to poke the proverbial shark. Henry waved an arm. ¡°[I¡¯ll explain in a moment. Maurice, good luck. We¡¯ll wait for you to finish, and we¡¯ll pick things up later.]¡± With that, Maurice went deeper into the cave and sat down. Today was a big day. It would have been so much better if he had some kraken roe to celebrate with, but unfortunately, he was out. He had asked Henry if the new shapeshifting skill would allow the kraken to make eggs, but it seemed to have made him uncomfortable and he only said he¡¯d look into it. Maurice wasn¡¯t convinced he had. Maurice didn¡¯t understand why. But he¡¯d get there. Eventually. In the meantime, he had some fresh crab he could snack on once the process was done. Alright. Time to upgrade my Skill. Then evolve. *** Maurice was annoyed at himself as he came out of the evolution process. He kept still, digesting everything he¡¯d just learned from the strange yellow crab. One almost as quick-minded as he was himself. It was odd seeing his own Aspects, but it made sense when the strange crab had explained it. He was building himself a new shell, in a way, made out of Aspects. And the less parts he used, the better it would be. Less chances of fracture and whatnot. Maurice understood that instinctively. But even while he¡¯d been in there learning amazing things, he couldn¡¯t shake off his wonder at all the new possibilities Partial Shapeshift had opened to him. His mind buzzed with everything he¡¯d learned from activating that skill just once. So. Many. New options. To think the upgrade had been sitting there, within reach, for weeks. Argh. So stupid. He had been prioritizing levels recently, wanting to catch up to his two companions, so he¡¯d balked at the cost of upgrading his shapeshifting skill¡­ But now that he knew how powerful it had gotten, he wanted to hit himself. All the solutions are there. The key to having my own secondary minds. Maurice had spent so much time trying to recreate complex nerves centers, and he had definitely made some progress. He would have eventually cracked it, he was sure. But that would have taken a few more weeks. Maybe months. While now¡­ Well. He was almost sure he could have the Clawmind skill running within the week. He just needed to experiment a bit with Partial Shapeshift, then he and Henry could try again with some bone-shells. It should transfer this time. And then he would be able to add it to one of his Aspects. Speaking of¡­ Let me see how things are looking. His status page was getting long. Maurice had made a lot of progress since the day he became him. And there was so much more to do! 2.20: All-knowing and smug Henry had been dismantling [Rupturing Bite of the Sea Drake] when the crab finally came out of his shell. The kraken looked up from studying the weird mana which wrapped and stuck to the blood red concept shard, and was about to wave to the crab when he sensed his crustacean friend¡¯s deep and single-minded focus. So he just waited. Nearly a minute later, the crab seemed to finally emerge from what was preoccupying him and glanced around the dimly lit cave. He came to a stop when he saw the blood-red shard. Maurice scuttled closer and peeked at the ethereal construct in Henry¡¯s arm. ¡°[Is that a concept?¡±] Then the crab glanced back toward the resting¡ªor meditating¡ªdolphin, then to Henry.¡°[Also, did you guys see a golden crab in your evolution? It seemed really smart. But it wouldn¡¯t answer a lot of my questions¡­]¡± Henry paused, and his human illusion frowned. Did the System visit Maurice as well? It sure sounded like it. ¡°[Was it all-knowing and smug about it?]¡± A red-haired kid with multi-colored eyes popped up next to Henry¡¯s own illusion and nodded. ¡°[Yes. Then it swam away and I woke up.]¡± That definitely sounded like the System. ¡°[Yes, I¡¯ve seen it. It looked like a person to me. Talked to me about my Aspects and how I shouldn¡¯t have too many of them.]¡± ¡°[You talked¡­ to it? You¡¯ve seen the Warden?]¡± Henry and Maurice turned to the approaching dolphin, and Henry confirmed it as he tried to summon an illusory image of the System in his memory. He quickly found that he couldn¡¯t. When he tried to summon its face, a random visage Henry had never seen before appeared; when he tried to show the odd hybrid forms the System had taken when it talked to him, he ended up summoning a pale imitation. A yellow copy of whatever animal it was, with none of the golden glow or intelligence in its eyes. Odd. Henry waved the illusion away, frowning. ¡°[Yes. I believe it¡¯s this world¡¯s god¡­ or something. I know what it looked like when I¡¯ve seen it but¡­ I can¡¯t get my illusions to look like it...]¡± Seeing him struggle, Maurice tried to summon his own recollection of the being, but the only thing he could manage was all sorts of different, pale yellow crabs. ¡°[I remember it, but I can¡¯t get it to show. What is happening?!]¡± The dolphin peered down at the two illusions, and a small burst of bubbles escaped in a chuckle. ¡°[Both of you have seen the Warden¡­Why does this not surprise me?]¡± ¡°[What¡¯s a warden?]¡± Henry¡¯s large yellow eyes flicked down to the crab, then back to the dolphin. ¡°[A warden is a guard. Or a watchman. Or the administrator of a prison. Why do you keep calling it Warden?]¡± This was a new and interesting name for the System. The whales had called it Absolute, but this new name sounded like it would have some interesting context behind it. Stormsong wiggled both of her fins in a shrug. ¡°[I don¡¯t know.]¡± Henry deflated while the dolphin kept going. ¡°[That¡¯s what we always called it. Some C-ranks see it when they evolve to B-rank. But I¡¯ve never heard of anyone seeing it before that. I most certainly didn¡¯t. And even the B-rank vision is not guaranteed. My mom saw it but not my dad.]¡± The dolphin eyed Henry and Maurice¡¯s illusions, then looked at their real bodies. ¡°[How come both of you met it? When did this start?]¡± Then, catching herself, she added, ¡°[If you don¡¯t mind sharing¡­ of course.]¡±Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. Henry grinned and shrugged. ¡°[This was the first time for you, Maurice?]¡± The crab nodded, so Henry continued, ¡°[I¡¯ve met it since the first day or so when I woke up in this body. I think it might have intervened because what happened to me¡­ wasn¡¯t supposed to happen. F-Rank octopuses aren¡¯t supposed to be sapient, so it came to me, said hi, then did something so I could have a class. I saw it again on the E-rank evolution, not the D-rank, and now again at C-rank.]¡± The dolphin stared at Henry¡ªhis kraken form¡ªintently for a few quiet seconds, then she asked, voice almost vibrating,¡°[You weren¡¯t lying about not being born a kraken. This is¡ªI¡­ I need a second.]¡± The dolphin swam away, and Henry and Maurice shared a look, then the latter shrugged and pointed at the ability construct still in Henry¡¯s arm. ¡°[So¡­ what concept is that? It feels like blood.]¡± Henry raised the ethereal construct in his hand and it turned over a bit. He¡¯d discovered that imbuing his mana with the idea of preservation helped slow the degradation of the odd magic. Two of his Octominds maintaining the mana flow was enough for him to hold a conversation and think of something else. And Maurice is about to get access to that. It really was one of Henry¡¯s best abilities, and he had a lot of ideas on how he could potentially get more out of it. Henry glanced down at the crab, then back at the construct.¡°[Yes. It¡¯s a temporary ability copied by my Bite skill. It would cause heavy bleeding to its target. The shard itself seems related to blood, but the stuff around it is what¡¯s¡­ telling the concept what to do? I think that¡¯s the key of spells. Or at least, the key to temporary spells and effects. This seems¡­ too flimsy to handle more than one use. That¡¯s probably why it works the way it does. Regular¡ªI mean, permanent skills are probably better made. Ah, Stormsong might know more about this¡­]¡± The dolphin swam back. ¡°[Know about what?]¡± ¡°[What normal skills look like? And um¡­ you alright?]¡± The dolphin blinked at him. ¡°[Oh. Yeah. Well. It sounds like the Warden has plans for you both and it looks like I¡¯m getting involved with something bigger than I expected, but that should be fine. I don¡¯t mind the challenge. As for skills, just use one of your class skills. Pick one and excise it. You must have the option in your workshop, right? The stuff you¡¯re holding looks like a mess, but it makes sense that it would work just once. You¡¯ll see when you study a real skill. They¡¯re a lot more¡­ intricate. And don¡¯t excise an important skill. For us dolphins, we can learn new skills by training and learning, and if we excise one of the skills, it takes a lot more training to regain it. I don¡¯t know if your copying ability can bypass that, but you should be careful.]¡± Henry glanced down at his current class skills¡ªthe ones he¡¯d copied from Sundots¡ªand grimaced. ¡°[I got a few skills I could extract, but I don¡¯t want to risk them¡­]¡± Maurice clacked his claws.¡°[Then we should get some more!]¡± Henry didn¡¯t need to go outside to get skills. He had enough meat samples in storage. There were at least a handful of skills he had ignored¡ªwhich reminded him of the lionfish¡¯s self-detonating skill. I completely forgot about that one. I should buy it and start leveling it. it would do well with my blood clones. Stormsong bobbed her head.¡°[I agree with Maurice. We should be getting stronger. We¡¯re not safe down here as we are.]¡± Henry was aware that they were in dangerous territory, but the dolphin¡¯s tone worried him. ¡°[What do you mean? Do you think Sundots will keep coming after us, or do you mean there¡¯s something else we don¡¯t know about?]¡± ¡°[No, I think Sundots might not want to come this deep. It¡¯s¡­ dangerous. Even for him. There are predators down here that we won¡¯t even see coming. Some we¡¯ll see coming, but there will be nothing we can do about it. We might find a swarm. We might find something that¡¯s been dormant for decades. Centuries.]¡± Maurice looked up. ¡°[Swarms?]¡± Henry grimaced. That list of threats was concerning, and while he didn¡¯t know much about this ¡°swarm¡±, he had some ideas and didn¡¯t like any of them. Stormsong floated closer, studying the red blood shard as she spoke.¡°[Some fish that live in large group can sometimes go through a special change. A special evolution, of some sort. They get¡­ hungry. And they devour everything in their path. The more they eat, the more they multiply. Imagine thousands of C-rank, small, sharp-toothed little monsters surrounding you. So if we were to a see a sign of a swarm, we have to swim in the other direction. Fast.]¡± ¡°[And how common are these swarms?]¡± The dolphin glanced out of the cave for a second, then turned back to her two travel partners. ¡°[I expect us to find one within thirty days.]¡± 2.21: An idea It was with Stormsong¡¯s dire warning in mind that the trio began working on luring in their first squid. While they waited under an isolated outcropping of rocks and coral, Henry used one of his blood clones as bait. Using Mimicking Arms, he gave its skin an almost glossy look and began flashing vibrant colors in a pattern.It barely took a handful of minutes for a couple of squids to detach from their group and hover closer, but that wasn¡¯t the plan. Henry made his clone duck under cover and blend with the white and gold sand until the squids lost interest. ¡°[There were only two,]¡± grumbled Maurice after a few seconds. The crab fidgeted for a second, peering at the shoal of squid in the distance, and clacked his pincers.¡°[Are you sure I can¡¯t work on my Clawminds while we wait?]¡± Henry moved his clones to another angle and turned back the lure-pattern once the squids were far enough away.¡°[Do I really need to answer that? And two¡¯s too many. We want only one of them. So we can kill it fast before it alerts the others. Or before the rest of them notice. With two of them, it¡¯ll take us a lot longer to put both of them down, and then we might have the whole shoal after us.]¡± The dolphin blew a thin stream of bubbles, but otherwise stood still under Henry¡¯s camouflage. The bubbles tickled, but Henry didn¡¯t twitch while Stormsong spoke in their minds.¡°[We still don¡¯t know what they can do. Aside from the shell stabbing. We have to be careful. At least until we know more about their capabilities and their limitations.]¡± The crab deflated. ¡°[Yeah¡­ You¡¯re right.]¡± Henry could empathize. He wanted to be back in the cave as well, working on his many little research projects. Before they¡¯d gone out on this little hunt, he¡¯d managed to slightly modify [Rupturing Bite of the Sea Drake] so it could be applied by a bone spike instead of a bite. A tiny, small change that literally took him thirty minutes and his whole mana reserve to imbue his desire and will into the structure. The key was in the magical substance surrounding the concept shard. Henry had thrown his mana and focus all over it until enough of his intent seeped through. The odd connective tissue was what dictated what an abilities¡¯ concept should do, but even though he succeeded in his attempt, he realized how primitive it had been. He had basically brute-forced the ability, which wouldn¡¯t fly if he wanted to modify an actual class skill, much less try to create something with any complexity. And he didn¡¯t even have a chance to study an actual skill construct yet. Lots to do. So much to do. Henry grinned. Being in such a dangerous area was stressful, but these different new leads he could explore and study were keeping him busy enough for the stress to not get to him. The lure-clone continued its hypnotizing flashing. A trio of squids began making their way to his lure, making the kraken curse and promptly hide the clone once more. ¡°[These things are really cautious¡­ It¡¯s annoying.]¡± The more he observed the squids, the clearer it was becoming. The shelled cephalopods really didn¡¯t venture away from the shoal by themselves, which, even though it was a detriment to Henry¡¯s plans, made total sense considering the environment they were in. A buddy-system deep undersea. Henry¡¯s musings were cut off as he noticed the dolphin¡¯s head snapping to the side all of a sudden. She held herself still, then her voice reached his mind. ¡°[Something¡¯s coming. Clicks. Beyond the squids.]¡± Dolphins? Henry peered beyond the shoal of squids and waited. A second later, he heard them. Soft clicks in an accelerating pattern. And clearly, he wasn¡¯t the only one who could hear them. The squids closed ranks and began swimming toward them, to Henry¡¯s alarm. ¡°[Back to the cave. Quick.]¡± Whatever was coming toward them, he didn¡¯t want to be caught in the middle of it. Stormsong seemed to hesitate for a second, then her eye swiveled to Henry.¡°[I¡¯m too large to hide. Store me.]¡± Henry reached over and wrapped his large arm around her, and the dolphin popped into his Maw. He began reaching over to the brightly colored crab, but Maurice clacked a pincer at him.Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation. ¡°[I want to see!]¡± ¡°[Of course you do,]¡± sighed Henry. He wrapped his second arm around the crab and shot out across the seabed toward their home-cave. It was a bit further to the side, and closer to the cliff wall, so hopefully whatever was coming after the squid would keep away from them. Using the sight of one of his sentry-clones, Henry finally saw the source of the clickscome out of the gold-hued fog. A primal shiver ran through him. Even he was probably not safe from these newcomers. [Crimson Cachalot (B) - Lvl ?] A massive, blood-red sperm whale-looking being slowly cut through the water toward the shoal of squids. Its head had a more aerodynamic shape, coming to a sharper, narrower point compared to the rectangular shape of its Earthly counterpart. The head was proportionally smaller as well, but considering this world had magic and skills, he doubted that its echolocation would be any weaker. Two more appeared shortly after, coming through from the sides to encircle their prey. Henry triggered Riptide Rush to get to the cave faster, and he was halfway there when the first whale clicked. It was like thunderclap went off above his head. It felt like the sound reached through his skin, flesh, and directly punched his brains. Henry¡¯s movement flagged for a second before he recovered and continued toward the cave. Blood seeped out of his eyes and beak, while his closest blood clone was instantly obliterated. From a further clone, he could see the squids flag as well from the sonic attack. If that was even an attack. One of the reasons swimming with sperm whales was not recommended¡ªaside from the fact that wildlife shouldn¡¯t be bothered¡ªwas that their echolocation could literally kill a diver if they got too close. By vibrating their innards to death. Henry dove and slipped into their home-cave and used one of his larger arms to plug the exit, putting Maurice downbefore he pulled out Stormsong. ¡°[That hurts,]¡± said the crab as he rubbed his head. Stormsong tensed as she came back out, until she realized they were in the cave. She stilled, head tilted to the side.¡°[What¡­ I hear them. What were they?]¡± ¡°[Crimson Cachalots. They might be sapient, but I¡¯ll be honest with you. I don¡¯t want to get close and check. Not even with a blood clone.]¡± They looked scary. What if he tipped them off to his presence with a blood clone? What if kraken was their favorite meal? Henry shuddered. Nope. Not worth checking. Stormsong peered out of the cave, joining both Maurice and Henry as they watched the giants hunt.¡°[I haven¡¯t heard of them¡­ But they¡¯re intelligent. I can hear them. They¡¯re giving each other directions. They¡­ Shit. They noticed you¡ª]¡± Henry¡¯s blood ran cold as he watched the cloud of blue blood and broken shells grow with every seconds. ¡°[¨CBut they¡¯re more interested in the squids.]¡± A wave of relief washed over the kraken, but he still glanced at the dolphin. ¡°[How are you hearing them? I could understand your people¡¯s clicks¡ªwhen you used it to talk, I mean. Why am I not getting anything here?]¡± The dolphin wiggled her fins in a shrug. ¡°[It¡¯s a very low sound. Not all dolphins can produce it, but most of us can hear it. You might not be able to hear it.]¡± Well. Fair enough. The B-rank squids were able to finally chase the cachalots away, scoring a few mighty¡ªand incredibly fast¡ªstabs using their shells, but not before the whales had eaten their fill. At least half of the shoal had been consumed by the three giants and, as Henry watched them swim back away into the distance, he wondered. Would they come back? In any case, with fewer individuals in the shoal, hunting the squids might get easier. Though maybe they should wait for a few hours before heading back out again. Just in case. ¡°[Let¡¯s take a break. Make sure they¡¯re far and gone before we head back out.]¡± Maurice continued to stare out into the world outside, then the eye stalk turned to Henry. ¡°[Do you think we can pick up some of the shells later?]¡± ¡°[Yup. We might even find some meat. If scavengers don¡¯t clean it up, that is.]¡± Stormsong stared at them for a moment before she swam deeper into the cave and came to a rest on a sandy stretch. ¡°[Your ability to copy skills is cheating. Lucky bastards.]¡± Maurice smugly wiggled his arms, while Henry stared back for a moment as an idea began to take form. Out of his storage, he pulled the blood concept shard and stared at it for a second. What if I could crystallize something out of Hunger or Shiftiness? He looked up at Stormsong. ¡°[Do you know how to make the congealed mana stuff around skills? If you can help me crack that, I might have a solution for you.]¡± 2.22: Trust ¡°[That¡¯s not enough. It¡¯s still too unfocused.]¡± Henry¡¯s head was pounding as he tightened his will around the uneven ball of glowing mana between his arms. He tried to concentrate it. To increase its density and potency to match the mana material used in ability constructs, but at a certain point, he just¡­ couldn¡¯t. It was as if he tried to compress smoke with his bare hands. It just didn¡¯t work. His yellow eyes swiveled up at the dolphin. ¡°[I know. I¡¯m trying. And as you can see, it¡¯s not working.]¡± Henry released the mana from his control, and it puffed out in a little cloud of blue-tinted smoke that slowly faded into the ether. He closed his eyes for a few seconds, and heard Maurice snip off yet another one of his arms as a sense of deep annoyance reached him through his telepathic sense. At least he wasn¡¯t the only one stuck. The crab had been relentlessly working on creating the nerve-centers that would allow him to copy Henry¡¯s Octominds, but ever since their encounter with the cachalots earlier today, he¡¯s yet to make any progress. Henry opened his eyes and looked at the dolphin. ¡°[Do you have any tips other than ¡®concentrate it¡¯? Can you show it to me?]¡± ¡°[Sure. Observe.]¡± The dolphin floated back a couple of feet, then blue light began coalescing at the tip of her rostrum. It began glowing brighter, and Henry leaned forward as he studied the process. Her control is a lot better than mine. While his own ball of mana had been wispy and seemed to stutter and flare up a bunch, hers was even and smooth. Henry expected the mana to congeal and become matter at any moment, and then¡ª The mana destabilized, and it faded to motes just as his own had. ¡°[You do that, and then you concentrate it further, and that should be it.]¡± Henry twitched and looked down at the dolphin. ¡°[What happened? Why didn¡¯t you finish it?]¡± ¡°[I can¡¯t,]¡± Stormsong said, shrugging her pectoral fins. ¡°[Not sure exactly what¡¯s missing, as I¡¯m just guessing, but it should be easy when you get to that point.]¡± Henry gave the dolphin a long stare, then closed his eyes. ¡°[Are you actually sure what we¡¯re trying to do is possible? Have you seen it done?]¡± ¡°[Nope.]¡± Henry¡¯s limbs twitched. He wanted to strangle her. Ever since he laid out his plan of creating a temporary, one-time-use ability construct for her to copy a skill¡ªwhich he wasn¡¯t sure was even possible¡ªthe dolphin had been hovering around him, criticizing his attempts and giving him barely useful advice. And now, it turns out she barely knew more than he did. Breath, Henry. Breathe. The dolphin kept going. ¡°[It¡¯s clearly a form of mana. It¡¯s also the same thing that makes up skill constructs, and it dissolves into mana. Which means it must be possible to recreate it.]¡± Henry looked away from the dolphin and excised another ability construct. This one was an accelerated healing property copied by Mimicking Arms. Henry held it up and peered at the physical form of the ability for a moment. In a way, the construct looked very organic. A congealed mass of mana surrounded a piece of the concept shard, just like connective tissue might. This shard was vibrant green, and it made him want to close his eyes and breathe it in. ¡°[Let¡¯s pause the attempts for now,]¡± Henry said. ¡°[That¡¯s only one facet of this project, and there¡¯s a lot more we still don¡¯t know. First, let¡¯s examine the congealed mana for a bit. Then, before it deteriorates too much, try to take it in. See if you can actually take a temporary skill of mine.]¡± Stormsong went still. The silence stretched for a few seconds, then the dolphin bobbed her head.¡°[Okay. What is this one for?]¡± Henry didn¡¯t feel slighted by the initial reticence, but he appreciated the trust she displayed. Henry quickly explained the ability as he infused mana to delay the construct¡¯s degradation. ¡°[Mimicry is at the core of my abilities. The cornerstone skill I use to camouflage can create these one-time abilities from the being I ingest. This one comes from a Goliath Kraken, and it should temporarily give your skin a healing factor.]¡±If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. The dolphin peered closer. ¡°[That¡¯s¡­ useful. You think this would work to give me a skill-copying ability?]¡± Henry shrugged with an arm. ¡°[I think it should be possible. In theory. For example, this ability right here is pretty specific in how it works, but from what I¡¯m sensing, the concept itself is almost the same as what I can produce with Vitality of the Trickster. So the whole ability is somewhere in this mana stuff.]¡± Maurice added, ¡°[My copying comes from Curiosity.]¡± Henry glanced down and found the crab clambering over one of his arms to get a closer look at the construct. When Maurice noticed both the kraken and the dolphin staring down at him, he threw a pincer up and waved the stumpy second. ¡°[I¡¯m bored and I need a break. This looked interesting.]¡± Henry picked up Maurice and lifted him closer to the construct.¡°[What I was saying is, I think with a shard of Hunger, we could make a one-time copying ability. The three key problems are making a shard out of the aspected mana, making this congealed mana stuff, and telling it what to do.]¡± Stormsong studied the mana blob surrounding the concept shard.¡°[It must be possible¡­ I mean, your own skill created this.]¡± My own skill¡­ Henry studied the construct from up close. It really did just look like mana. His own mana-control skills were garbage compared to Stormsong¡¯s, but he felt like there was something else missing. He glanced down at the crab. ¡°[Do you feel something other than the mana and Vitality shard?]¡± Maybe Maurice would pick up on something. The crab was uncannily sharp when it came to feeling out things with his skills and senses. It¡¯s true that it had been barely a couple of days since he started perceiving concepts, but Henry wouldn¡¯t be surprised if the crab managed to¡ª ¡°[Yes. I think I feel something in the weird mana.]¡± Henry stilled, and his eyes slid down to the crab. ¡°[Seriously?]¡± He hadn¡¯t expected Maurice to find something this fast. Even the dolphin seemed shocked. Maurice waved Henry to bring the construct closer, and the kraken complied. The crab rubbed his right stump against his left claw. ¡°[Yes¡­ It¡¯s tiny, but I feel some other aspect in the mana. It reminds me of your camouflage, Henry.]¡± Henry tried to channel a minute amount of Shiftiness down his arm, then approached said arm to Maurice. ¡°[Like this?]¡± Maurice clacked his claw. ¡°[Yes! That¡¯s it!]¡± Stormsong beat her fluke and moved in a circle around them. ¡°[Is that the trick? You need to use concepted mana to compress it? Let me see¡­]¡± Henry continued infusing mana into the construct, and both of him and Maurice watched the dolphin make another attempt. The blue ball of mana coalesced on top of her rostrum over the next minute or so while he watched quietly. ¡°[She¡¯s a lot better at controlling her mana than me. Much less you.]¡± Henry would have chucked the crab, but he didn¡¯t want to distract Stormsong now that aspected mana was coming into play. A wave of teal-hued mana slowly surrounded the blue ball. Her control was a bit rougher on this new type of mana, but Henry could see the blue mana begin to shine brighter. A thrum of excitement ran down his arms. It¡¯s working. Suddenly, the dolphin¡¯s control faltered, and a stream of red-tinted bubbles escaped her blowhole. The mana ball detonated in a small explosion, and the ethereal substance dispersed around them, slowly dissolving away into nothingness. ¡°[Ugh,]¡± Stormsong groaned. ¡°[That was more difficult than I expected. Give me a moment.]¡± Maurice tapped Henry¡¯s arm to be let go. The crab beat his arm downted toward the seabed as soon as Henry let him go, then quickly scuttledd his way to the right. Henry was curious, but the dolphin didn¡¯t seem to be doing so well. Blood was still floating up her head, and her eyes were closed as she drifted lower. ¡°[Stormsong, are you okay?]¡± It took her a second to respond, but she slowly opened her eyes. ¡°[Yeah¡­ I¡¯ll be fine in a bit. But I think we have got our solution. It¡¯ll just take a bit of work.]¡± ¡°[Look! You did it!]¡± Henry and Stormsong looked down to find the crab holding up something with his left claw. A blue, tiny blob of mana. The dolphin glanced up at Henry and gave him a short click. ¡°[See? It wasn¡¯t that hard in the end.]¡± Henry could only agree. Now he just needed to work on his mana control and reproduce her success. The kraken put two arms next to each other and began channeling his mana into the space between them. It was true that the first beneficiary of this project was Stormsong, but this was going to be a much needed mana-training exercise for him. Plus, an incredible ability to have. Creating one-use skill-copying skills. He just needed to get better at using his mana, and hopefully, his Octominds would help alleviate the mental strain that seemed to have affected the dolphins. The next few days were going to be interesting, that was for sure. 2.23: I bet it鈥檚 tasty Henry woke up from his nap with a mild headache and took in the cave ahead of him. Maurice was staring at a pile of discarded claws and bone-shells. Unmoving. It had been two days since Stormsong¡¯s breakthrough with mana condensing, and Maurice was still working on his nerves centers. Whenever he believed he had it, Henry would make a bone-shell for him, but so far the auxiliary minds'' skill refused to transfer. It was getting to the crab. Stormsong was lying on her stomach, right on the cave floor. She was practicing one of her many mana manipulation routines¡ªwhich she¡¯d taught Henry and Maurice. A somewhat even circle of mana was rotating around her left fin. It slowed down over a few seconds, then began rotating in the other direction. As for Henry, he finally managed to get the technique to create the mana-blob stuff working, and even unlocked an upgrade to Mana Nexus for it. But it was messy, it cost him a lot of mana, and it was a challenge to work with. The mana itself was raw. Pouring his will and intent into it was¡­ a whole other matter that he wasn¡¯t sure how he should tackle. Though thankfully, he could always recreate more mana-matter to practice on. It was a great success for only a couple of days of work, but one problem was clear to him as he took in the miserable state of the cave; they were all bored out of their minds. ¡°[We have to take a break.]¡± *** Henry couldn¡¯t believe his eyes as a large squid began tracking his lure-clone. ¡°[We got one. Holy crap. We finally got one to leave the shoal by itself.]¡± They were finally about to grab one of these things. Henry had confirmed they weren¡¯t sapient a couple of days ago by using one of his blood clones, so he was looking forward to this. Maurice clacked both claws in anticipation, but Stormsong wasn¡¯t as excited. ¡°[It¡¯s a bit strong. No?]¡± Henry eyed the identification message. It showed two question marks, and considering its size compared to some other specimens, it should be pretty close to level 50. Powerful, sure. But all three of them were C-rank now. ¡°[It might be a bit intense. We should dump everything at it quickly. I¡¯ll immobilize it by its shell so you guys can hit it. Maurice will aim his implosion between its eyes, and you¡­ Can you do stuff aside from hitting fast?]¡± ¡°[I can harry and distract it. It shouldn¡¯t be able to catch me. I know that¡¯s not exactly what you¡¯re looking for¡­ But I¡¯m usually better at longer fights. Not ambushes. Are you sure you¡¯ll be able to stop it?]¡± No. Henry was not sure, considering what they¡¯ve observed from the nautiloids. Through their fight with the cachalots, he knew the squids could propel themselves fast to stab with their top shell. A lot faster than they should be able to move, which meant that it must be skill-based and so could be further boosted with a concept. That was the only explanation for why they could shoot like rockets onto their targets. It also reminded Henry of the Trickster Kraken¡¯s attack. When it had created a bone-lance with its arms to stab into him. ¡°[It might be able to empower a movement ability with concepts, which would make it hard to immobilize. But I should still be able to lock it down with my Octominds, and if that¡¯s not enough, I¡¯m full on Arcana and Fury as well. I¡¯ll have some Fury-aspected mana ready just in case it overpowers my Telekinesis; if that¡¯s not needed, then I might use it to kill it faster.]¡± The squid was now barely a dozen yards away. Henry made his clones swim past their hidden spot in disarray, which only made the squid rush after it faster. ¡°[Now!]¡± A purple haze instantly materialized around the black and white ringed shell, and the squid came to a full stop. Panicking, it beat its tentacles and pushed water with its siphon, but it didn¡¯t move an inch.This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. The powerful resistance slammed against Henry¡¯s telekinetic grip, and he was ready to empower his ability at any moment, but for now he just reached out and gripped one of the squid¡¯s tentacles. Mini-implosions began sending tremors up the shell, caving in the squid¡¯s tough flesh. Henry used Voracious Grip to inject a cocktail of venoms into the squid at the same time as he sent a pulse of electricity into it. The larger monster seized up and stopped pushing against his grip while its smooth skin began mottling and showing burn marks. Blue blood clouded the waters around them as Maurice¡¯s implosions slowly dug into the squid¡¯s head, while Stormsong had her skills active and waited to intercept the squid if it broke out of Henry¡¯s grip. As Lightning Discharge coursed through the cephalopod, Henry quickly checked through his weakened connection to his clones and refreshed their orders to warn him in case anything began moving toward them. Especially the shoal of squids. There were only four blood clones, all barely managed by two pooled Octominds. For his remaining Octominds, two were on emergency heal and escape, and four were helping him lock down the squid. Unfortunately, the fear and alarm of the monster was turning to rage, and Henry began seeing the wisps of mana and concepts flake off its flesh and shell. The shell lit up, and the squid surged backward, tearing through Henry¡¯s telekinesis as if it were made of cobwebs. The kraken groaned inwardly at the pain that pierced into his head, and instantly channeled some healing to reduce the backlash¡¯s effect while he prepared himself for yet another Telekinesis grip. This time, it was going to be empowered. The squid barely had a half a second of freedom before the dolphin drove its rostrum into the tough shell and brought the monster back down to the seabed. The monster squirted ink to hide itself, but it was too large and the seas were too bright, bathed in the golden light of the Current as they were. Henry clamped his concept-empowered Telekinesis around the shell once more and the squid flailed its tentacles, but it couldn¡¯t move an inch. Unfortunately, the damage was done. The shoal had noticed them, and the trio were now on a timer as they continued their onslaught on the large squid. Henry quickly fashioned a bone-spike on a hinge joint. Thanks to the upgraded Partial Shapeshift, coupled with the forms being memorized, it barely took a second. He lined the spike right under where the shell started, and shoved it through the squid¡¯s tough flesh. Iron-tasting blood surged around his arm while Henry spoke to the others. ¡°[Squids are coming. They¡¯ll be here within the minute.]¡± Five seconds later, the squid stilled. Even though Henry had been using his conceptual mana to empower his Telekinesis, his head was pounding with pain. A couple more seconds and he believed he¡¯d start seeing double, or he would have had to release his grip. Henry ignored the pain and quickly stored the carcass. He picked up the crab and began swimming toward their home. Two blood clones moved to distract and intercept the shoal. The crab chattered as they quickly crossed the distance separating them from safety, though his eyes stalks were still watching behind them while Stormsong used clicks to scout their surroundings. Maurice was in a good mood, though. ¡°[We got it! I¡¯m curious what I¡¯m going to get from the shell. I bet it¡¯s tasty, too.]¡± Henry was nearing the cave. He crested over a reef and went down. He began twisting himself to dive into their home when he saw a splash of color for an instant, right before a claw slammed into his face, tearing part of his eye out and sending him reeling back out of the cave. ¡°[Henry!]¡± A pulse of regeneration knitted the deep wound in the side of his face, and he saw the culprit staring back at him, claws raised for another hit. [Deepflare Mantis Shrimp (C) - Lvl ???] [Phantomclaw Mantis Shrimp (C) - Lvl ??] The one who hit him was the higher-level specimen. Its exoskeleton was a bright blue that occasionally flared with painfully bright lights, while the second had its claws braced for attack as well, with two more manifested claws that reminded Henry of Arcane Arm. They had squatters. And the squids were on their heels. ¡°[Let¡¯s go. Stormsong, we need to move. Do you mind?]¡± The dolphin bobbed her head and approached him. Henry stored her in his Maw and swam away from their temporary home. Two of his blood clones were watching the squids on his heels, and the damn things were closing in on him. ¡°[They¡¯re getting close. I need to store you too, Maurice. I might have to use my concepts to hide, and I don¡¯t think it would work on you.]¡± ¡°[¡­Yeah. That¡¯s fair. Be careful, okay?]¡± Henry tapped the crab on his head. ¡°[I¡¯ll be fine. See you in a minute, buddy.]¡± 2.24: Let there be light The crab disappeared into his Maw while Henry dove into a wide crevice, hoping nothing was hiding within. If there was anything hidden down here, his telepathic sense didn¡¯t pick it up. Should have done that before I rushed into the cave. Then again, we were all busy booking it. Henry slunk along the rocky wall, eyes scanning the darkness under him. He couldn¡¯t see or feel anything, which was comforting, and if there was something in this crevice, it would need to be on the smaller side anyway. That didn¡¯t mean it wouldn¡¯t be dangerous, of course. Just less intimidating. Henry would have never fit in here if he hadn¡¯t recently downsized himself. Arms gripping the rocky wall, Henry matched its texture right as the squids passed above him, and he melded into the deep gray stone. He held off on using his concepts to hide, as the squids didn¡¯t seem too perceptive. Even his blood clones could escape their notice, so it didn¡¯t feel too much like a gamble. Watching them from his two remaining blood clones above, he saw the squids swim in a progressively wider circle, searching for him. After a tense couple of minutes, they began drifting away. Henry let out a sigh of relief, but he couldn¡¯t really relax. A brightly colored fish swam past the opening, drawing his attention up to the bright sea above, but all he could think about were the dangers and hidden monsters waiting for them in the golden fog of the Current. How long are we going to scurry about, hiding every time anything shows up? It rankled. Having to be this careful. He¡¯d been excited at the challenge at first, at being in this new and dangerous environment full of levels and opportunities. Now, after spending nearly a week in the Current, he realized that he¡¯d barely leveled. He¡¯d gotten around four levels, but all had been from the Current itself and not from anything he¡¯d personally earned. He was just as weak as he¡¯d been coming into it. Sure, it hadn¡¯t been completely unproductive. They pushed Maurice to C-rank. Henry had worked a lot on mana manipulation and gotten a few skill levels here and there, but one thing was clear; it just wasn¡¯t enough. again He was handling the monster¡¯s attacks well enough for his level, but how long was this going to last? How close did he need to get to a disaster to speed things up? It¡¯s time to go for levels. I can always do mana and skill research when I¡¯m resting. And I could do it even better if I don¡¯t have to worry about my life and Maurice¡¯s. He paused. Well, Stormsong was also slowly becoming part of the team. The changes were small, but the dolphin was less brash and combative. She was more willing to help and trust, and it¡¯d been almost a full day since she last bickered with Maurice. Yeah. I don¡¯t want her to get hurt, either. She¡¯s just a kid, too. In a way. Henry detached from the wall and floated up, out of the crevice. The squids were back to their usual territory, so the kraken slowly made his way toward their stolen home. The swim was short and grim. The shrimps had looked for safety and found a nice spot. They hadn¡¯t come after him personally, and this wasn¡¯t really about the cave itself, but it happened to be yet another threat that would muscle him away just because it could. Slow. Calm. Henry breathed slowly as he closed in on the cave. Now that there was no Maurice or Stormsong to keep him busy, he was feeling annoyed. At everything. He hadn¡¯t thought of the world outside of the ocean for a while, but right now, he felt tired from the depths and everything that was hidden within.Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author. Henry landed on an outcropping facing the burrowed cave. Instantly, both mantis shrimps turned to face him and raised their claws. The kraken just stared at them while his clones watched over him from above. ¡°[My home. Get out.]¡± The Deepflare Mantis¡¯ shell lit up as it primed its claws, ready to punch his eye out again if he got near. Henry had no intention of backing away. A three question mark monster is above level fifty. It will be good with its concepts. If it has some in reserve. hurt. Camouflage, then blink? I¡¯m lighter now. I can use it more frequently. Venom would work as well, but their shell might be too tough for him to break through. Electricity counters the shell. Henry collected his arms under him as he eyed the couple. He could drop on their backs with Blink, then electrocute them until they stopped moving. He¡¯d most likely take a few hits, but he survived a B-rank¡¯s attacks. He could live through this. not Henry backed away and watched as they scuttled back into the cave. He didn¡¯t want them to spread out. He wanted them trapped. Henry stopped a distance away and continued watching them. They are gorgeous, though. Part of Henry just wanted to observe and study them. But that was an old Henry, who didn¡¯t have to worry about being something else¡¯s lunch. The squids were too numerous to attack head on, especially because of the handful of B-ranks they had, while these two¡­ He could manage it. I have to level. But when will this stop? B-Rank? A-Rank? What¡¯s even after? This is where outside knowledge would have been useful. Stormsong¡¯s knowledge was limited, considering she¡¯d always lived with her pod; apparently they only dealt with B-ranks on occasion. A-ranks weren¡¯t spoken about much, and they weren¡¯t that common, but the one time one had been sighted, the pod had immediately moved. The journey had taken days, and she¡¯d been only a child. Henry stilled as his clones caught a B-rank squid swimming in a wide circle that was about to bring it close to kraken, but thankfully, it didn¡¯t come down on him. It just kept going, and soon went back and joined its shoal. Alright. Enough stalling. Let¡¯s get some levels. Henry readied some Fury-aspected mana. He¡¯d barely used any while fighting the squid earlier, and he still had a full reserve of Arcana essence to rely on. The mantis shrimps were powerful enough for him to go all out from the get-go. He couldn¡¯t have the fight last too long. He felt at his reserves for a few more moments. Hunger and Shiftiness were a bit low, due to his experiments, but now that he was examining what he had available, he remembered his class was supposed to hold some concepts as well. Henry recalled the image the System had used to display his Aspects and the surrounding Class. Focusing on that memory, he prodded at the frame surrounding his Aspect and felt the conceptual energy flare up in response to his attention. It wasn¡¯t a lot. It felt as potent as his D-rank Aspects, even though the class was supposed to be C-rank. But it would do. Concepts of protection and scouting. Honestly, he¡¯d been so focused on his own Aspects that he almost forgot about the class altogether. Henry pulled at the protection concept and used one of his Octominds to drip-feed the protective mana into Trickster¡¯s Fortitude as he began approaching the shrimps from the side. Even though he was camouflaged, they could still see him. But that wouldn¡¯t matter. Henry exhaled, then triggered Blink. The world wooshed around him, and nearly 30% of his mana reserve was gone, but it was worth it. The small kraken hovered above the two strikingly colorful crustaceans. His two larger arms shot down and began wrapping themselves around the surprised shrimps¡¯ midsections. And then there was light. 2.25: Shrimps A concept-empowered discharge of electric current lit up the cavern with a flashing and unsettling red. It arced out of Henry¡¯s arms onto the crustaceans like a bolt of thunder, making their legs and arms twitch violently while Henry pulled deeper from Fury of the Trickster. The aspected mana was like liquid rage in his veins. It urged him to use it. To crush these invaders like the insects that they were. Henry felt the call to grow his body until he dwarfed his opponents, then to grab and constrict them until they were mush. Calm. Stay in control. Henry didn¡¯t know if it was possible for the aspected mana to dull his senses, but he was keeping a tight lid on it. His Octominds helped, sending him information from outside and keeping him anchored in the moment. The opening salvo had been a success, and Henry might have had severely hurt the squatters, but it had cost him half of his Fury mana. He needed to finish this quickly. Fury and Arcana were his main offensive Aspects, and thanks to some of his tests over the last week, he knew his remaining Aspects wouldn¡¯t be as effective when it came to dealing damage. Henry readied another pulse of Fury-empowered electricity, but before he could discharge it, a ghostly claw smashed into his side. For an instant, Henry¡¯s mind was smothered by a wave of pain. Even though he was channeling a protective concept into Trickster¡¯s Fortitude, the attack still set his nerves on fire. The pain was mind-addling, and for a second, Henry thought it might have not only hit his flesh. Were soul attacks a thing? Before the Phantomclaw could smash into his side again with another ghostly claw, a second blood-red arc of electricity flashed into being and scoured the shrimps. At the same time, a quick shapeshift allowed him to slot two leviathan fangs at the ends of two of his arms. When the pulse of electricity stopped a second later, two sharp fangs stabbed down at the still twitching shrimps. A flare of light from the Phantomclaw suddenly pushed out of the monster and stopped the fangs, but it was only effective for a fraction of a second before the destructive aspect of the fangs tore through the barrier. The Deepflare beat its tail and pulled Henry forcefully along with it, while the Phantomclaw was still reeling from the electric shock. Being the lower level, it struggled to keep up compared to its partner. Henry resisted the Deepflare¡¯s pull and drove the leviathan fang down at the Phantomclaw with a heavy and unimpeded Evershifting Strike. The ghostly green shell cracked like a glass panel as the fang drove into its spine, eating through its carapace and flesh. When Henry got the message, he turned his attention back to the more powerful specimen, yanking it back into the cave. 1x [Phantomclaw Mantis Shrimp (C) - Level 31] Core was collected. The Deepflare burst out into a flurry of movements. Its antenna quivered, and then there was a flash of painful light. Both of Henry¡¯s eyes went blind a second before one of them popped. With his arm still around the mantis shrimp, he pushed another pulse of electricity, this time empowered by Arcana, but Henry couldn¡¯t tell what color these arcs had. He was still blinded from the flare of light the mantis shrimp had produced. The shrimp¡¯s limbs locked up as Lightning Discharge raked into its flesh. Henry pulled more mana out of his dwindling reserves and pushed into Arcane Regeneration. To his chagrin, the shrimps¡¯ shells were resistant to his mana-draining. He thought he¡¯d have a second to recover, but the shrimp¡ªeven though it was still twitching¡ªshot something at him that burned straight through his flesh. Henry lashed out with both leviathan fangs, but he still couldn¡¯t see. Barriers kept popping up, eating into the momentum of his arms, and Henry began to worry about his mana. Powering up the fangs with mana was expensive, and so was the constant flow of healing and protection. And to make things worse, Henry¡¯s clones far above noted the approach of some squids. Well. One really. But it was a damn B-rank. Shit. Henry sacrificed another pulse of mana to help restore sight to his light-blinded eye, but not the one that had been burst by the mantis shrimp¡¯s claw. Restoring the flesh would be much more expensive, unfortunately.Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation. Using everything he had left in Arcana, Henry scoured the shrimp with electricity. Arcana-empowered lightning was a painfully vibrant blue, and it arced through him and into the shrimp, making the water around them acquire an ionized aftertaste. The crustacean was slowing, its light dimming, but it still managed to send another pulse of searing light through his stomach. Now that he could see the attack coming, he realized it was being produced by the claw-punch of the mantis. It would angle its claw up and punch, sending out a pulse of searing light, and Henry was grateful he hadn¡¯t eaten one of those attacks point blank. Thankfully, he wouldn¡¯t have to be wary for long. Everything was about to be over. As the electricity began to fade, Henry stabbed down into the back of the shrimp¡¯s head with the leviathan fang. The light under the shrimp¡¯s claw stuttered for a few seconds, then it faded away to reveal a thick, translucent shell just as another message arrived in his interface. 1x [Deepflare Mantis Shrimp (C) - Level 67] Core was collected. With no time to rest, Henry immediately threw both carcasses into his Maw and pulled on Shiftiness and Misdirection as he made himself into a small boulder, right as a B-rank squid¡¯s giant yellow eye peered into the little cave. Henry called one of his two remaining blood clones and made it swim toward them like a rocket. The large eye kept staring in the cave, blinking. It floated higher, and for a moment Henry began to relax. A shorter tentacle that was still nearly twice his size reached into the cave and begin prodding the walls and ground, making Henry¡¯s hearts jump into his throat. Stab it in the eye and run? Try to kill it? That would have been more viable if he¡¯d gotten a chance at integrating the new cores he just gained. Plus, he was out of offensive aspected mana. This would be a bad fight. I can¡¯t beat it fast enough. The arm got within inches of boulder-Henry. His hearts hammered through his body as he hoped Misdirection would be effective enough to allow him to slip detection. Finally, after a couple of seconds that felt like hours, the squid retracted its tentacle. From his oncoming clone, Henry saw the monster lift up and swim away. long The B-rank squid slowly swam back to its shoal, and Henry was finally free to turn his attention back to himself. Jeez. That was too damn close. Henry¡¯s arms trembled as he slowly unfurled them. It would have been a disaster if the squid had found him. His mana was low, and even though he still had reserves in his other Aspects, he didn¡¯t like his odds. Not with one eye gone, a second barely healed, and multiple holes in his body. Even his clones were down to two. He took a few seconds to collect his thoughts and calm down. He considered bringing out Maurice and Stormsong, but he was worried the squid¡ªor something else¡ªmight show up. Weakened as he was, he felt he needed to recover a bit first. While he waited to calm down and heal, Henry pulled up his leveling notifications and found the notification from the squid. I almost forgot about that. 1x [Orthoceras Squid (C) - Level 46] Core fragment was collected. Hunger of the Trickster (D): Level 8 -> Level 9 Misdirection of the Trickster (D): Level 8 -> - Level 10 Arms of the Trickster (D): Level 7 -> - Level 10 Arcana of the Trickster (D): Level 2 -> - Level 5 Vitality of the Trickster (D): Level 4 -> - Level 8 Swiftness of the Trickster (E): Level 2 -> - Level 9 Fury of the Trickster (E): Level 3 -> - Level 10 This means I need 3 B-rank tokens to upgrade Shiftiness, Misdirection, and Arms to C-rank. The rest is a bit more affordable¡­ But what do I use for levels and what do I use for upgrading? Henry had some tough decisions to make. He could convert everything he had to tokens and it might afford him one of the C-rank Aspect upgrades. Which wasn¡¯t an option he liked much. Just one C-rank Aspect would not increase his combat potential that much. On the other hand, levels would. Plus, he could use the squid fragment and whatever tokens he had left to upgrade a couple more things. Levels would close the gap, and the sooner I can down a B-rank, the faster I¡¯ll be able to upgrade everything else. 2.26: Four thresholds Henry decided to consume both shrimp cores, and use the squid and everything he had remaining for upgrades. With the decision made, he confirmed his choice and basked in the intense magic released by the shrimp cores as they sunk into his powerful body. This will get me closer to bringing a B-rank down. I just need one of them, and I¡¯ll be able to afford all of my upgrades. As the magic sunk through him, Henry couldn¡¯t help but feel how insignificant one rank¡¯s tokens were compared to the next one. Here he was, trying to budget and get the most out of his C-rank tokens, while a single B-rank one would cover most if not all of his needs. And once he was in B-rank, the same would happen again. Though it does seem like getting to A-rank is no easy matter. Henry didn¡¯t really expect to see any. So far, it looked like there was a B-rank for every 100 C-ranks in the area, so how rare were the A-ranks? Were the Bahamut whales A-rank? He doubted that. Henry was thinking they might have been B-rank which¡­ felt surreal. Considering that was the level of targets he was now aiming at. I hope I see them again. It would be fun to see how tough Deepcaller¡¯s hide is now that I¡¯ve leveled. Watchful Guardian (C) - Level 6 achieved! ... Watchful Guardian (C) - Level 26 achieved! 4x Stat points awarded. 2x Strength Stat points awarded. 2x Spirit Stat points awarded. 2x Constitution Stat points awarded. Phantomclaw Mantis Shrimp Core (C) contained significant Spirit and Perception stats. 1x Spirit and 1x Perception Stat points awarded. Deepflare Mantis Shrimp Core (C) contained significant Spirit, Strength, and Perception stats. 1x Spirit, 1x Strength and 1x Perception Stat points awarded. Henry¡¯s eyes and skin burned and itched as his Perception broke through the forty-points mark. He grit his beak and waited for the sensation to abate, wondering what exactly was happening to his nervous system to cause such a reaction. Soon enough it was over, and he converted the squid¡¯s core fragment into tokens. I¡¯ll save a hundred to upgrade Fury of the Trickster to D-rank, then everything else goes into whatever I can afford in stat points. Consumption Tokens: 189.8 C-Tokens two Worth it, I know I just cracked through C-rank and gained the ability to collect C-tokens faster, but damn that¡¯s a lot of points I¡¯ve been missing out on. To finish up the stat upgrade process, there were five unassigned points left from his levels. It just so happened that Constitution was now sitting at a nice 75 points. This might allow me to start tanking whatever B-ranks can dish better. Henry confirmed the assignation, and endured as lava was poured into and through his flesh and blood. Four thresholds breaking in a single day. Feels good. Next, he turned his attention to the upgrade of Fury. Before that, he took a few moments to examine the area through his clones. The squids were floating closer to the cave, which was a bit worrisome, but there was nothing problematic that he could see. But just to be safe, he plugged the exit with an arm before triggering the upgrade. In the end, the process didn¡¯t take long. Fury of the Trickster moving on to D-rank wasn¡¯t very special, but now that he had a better feel for his soul and Aspect, he could tell the Aspect had become¡­ heavier. Deeper, somehow. As if it might have been a child partially hidden around its siblings before, but now it stood shoulder to shoulder with his other Aspects.Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings. Evershifting Strike¡ªthe Aspect¡¯s Core skill¡ªdidn¡¯t seem to have changed much. That might have been due to it already being incredibly powerful for an E-rank skill, but Henry would only be sure once he tested it out. With all that done, Henry brought up his stats and grinned at the progress. It made him feel a lot better, compared to his sour mood from earlier. Name: Henry Dubois Species: Trickster Kraken - Reincarnated Intelligence (C) Class: Watchful Guardian (C) - Level 26 Evolutionary Points: 11 Consumption Tokens: 4.1 C Strength: 58 Constitution: 80 Spirit: 70 Perception: 44 Dexterity: 42 Unassigned: 0 Henry breathed out a sight of relief and leaned against the wall. He was about to summon Maurice and Stormsong when he noticed the squids were still drifting toward his cave, and an alarm began ringing in the back of his mind. What the heck is happening? Confirming nothing was around the exit, Henry unplugged it and was about to peer outside when he felt something through telepathic sense. Something extremely mild, but it ratcheted up his sense of unease in a second. Before he could make a decision, there was a ripple in the water and the light of the current was obstructed by a large, alien, yellow eye. [Orthoceras Conductor Squid (B) - Lvl ?] From his Octominds, Henry saw the shoal suddenly turn and shoot toward him like a volley of arrows as the giant B-rank squid appeared out of nowhere, looming right next to his cave. Henry lunged forward as his sense of danger exploded. He whipped one of his longer arms forward, activating Evershifting Strike while a single thought echoed in his mind: he had to get the hell out of the cave. His arm smacked the giant eye with a heavy impact that shook the gravel away from the seabed. The surrounding debris and rocks stuttered upward toward the impact site as magic was released from Henry¡¯s arm, causing a white glowing ball to appear. It dragged everything toward it for a microsecond before everything was thrown back in an implosion that made everything around them shudder. Not only mantis shrimps could hit hard. And yes, Evershifting Strike had gotten stronger. A bit more expensive, as well, but that was worth it for the damage. The cavitational impact popped the squid¡¯s giant eye like an overripe grape. Blood and gray ocular fluid were sent tumbling as the creature flailed backward, most certainly surprised to be injured by something so much weaker than it was, but Henry didn¡¯t relent. He surged forward just as a high C-rank drove through the cave¡¯s stone like a spear which almost skewered the kraken to the seabed. Henry flooded the cave and his surroundings with ink as he rushed forward. A plan was forming in his mind, but it was risky. Maybe even stupid. But he was already surrounded, and even though he might slip away through the chaos, a nugget of greed and hunger was whispering in his ear. He might just be able to kill this thing. If he played his cards right. And then he¡¯d get his many arms on some B-rank tokens. Shiftiness of the Trickster flowed through his body, making his skin black and white as he latched himself to the conical shell of the B-rank squid while it thrashed from having its eye popped. Henry clouded the waters with ink, flattening himself against the higher parts of the conical shell¨Ckeeping away from the squid¡¯s reach¨Cwhile the remaining shoal fell down on around the conductor like a rain of thrown javelins. Henry doubted they¡¯d attack their leader. He just had to remain undetected, as long as possible. Another pulse of Shiftiness coupled with Misdirection ran through his body as Henry was reduced to a barely visible bump along the surface of the giant shell. With two of his Octominds, he imitated the turbulent pattern of the squid while he began digging through the shell itself with his radula. He needed to dig a little hole toward the softer flesh of the squid; through it, he would slowly envenom the larger predator. If it worked, it would be his most devious take-down to date. Pufferfish venom will do great here. Should numb him up pretty fast. Add some tranquilizing cocktail from the Mesmer eel and we should be good. Henry¡¯s many hearts fluttered as the large squid flew out of the fog of ink. The monster swam slowly in a circle while the C-ranks dove and impaled anything that moved. The two remaining B-ranks seemed to float a bit higher, not really participating but not allowing themselves to be too isolated from the shoal, either. Henry wasn¡¯t sure how the squid had sensed or found him. He thought it over as he methodically carved a hole into the tough shell. It was completely invisible, and I barely sensed it with my telepathic senses. now As the squid continued their assault on the innocent, weaker residents of the reef, Henry broke through the shell. With great care, he administered a small venom-filled bite and stopped. He felt the squid twitch, but it must have barely felt like a small pinch to the giant. After all, Henry was barely a tenth of the monster¡¯s size right now. Henry was hopeful. He¡¯d still have to figure out what he was going to do once the squid was dead, but his musings suddenly came to a crashing halt. There was¡­ a click. 2.27: The great escape Henry cursed profusely as he threw caution to the wind and started dumping all his arsenal of venoms into the open wound he¡¯d dug up, which broke the squid out of its panicked state. The timing was infuriating. But at least his mana was back to full thanks to the squid¡¯s prodigious reserves. The whole shoal shuddered as their conductor finally moved, roused from their click-induced trance. But even though the giant under Henry half-heartedly swatted at him a couple of times, its concern was more aimed at their known predator which had decimated two-thirds of their population barely days ago. The clicks were getting louder and more frequent, and Henry would be sweating buckets right now if he hadn¡¯t been underwater. Would he manage to kill this thing before the cachalots appeared? He¡¯d hate to leave empty-handed. A B-rank core would speed up his progress tremendously and, with enough power, he could take all the time needed to study and experiment with concepts and constructs. He was so damn close. With his beak, he bit deeper into the soft innards of the squid and applied his Bite skill with an infusion of Hunger. The squid¡¯s flesh parted like butter under a hot knife as his beak tore through its tissues and injected concept-empowered venoms into its bloodstream. The squid flailed violently and shot through the water. It activated its speeding abilities, but Henry was grabbing on tight and there was no scenario where the squid would be able shake him off. Especially now that it was becoming clear the squid¡¯s strength was in their numbers, not necessarily in their individuals. True, it was still a B-rank, but it wasn¡¯t as powerful on its own as Henry or Sunspots were. With a quick strike, Henry hammered at the edge of the hole he dug. With the first cavitational impact, the hole¡¯s edge showed thin hairline cracks, but with the second and third, shell debris broke out and flew off, revealing an off-white, almost translucent flesh beneath. Henry slipped one of his two larger arms within, shaping a few joints as he did. With great effort, he started tearing into the squid¡¯s innards with the leviathan¡¯s fang. One of the other conductors took over control of the squids as the one under Henry jerked and twitched as it began taking the threat on top of its back seriously. But it was already too late. a lot The squid drove itself into the dark reddish stone of the giant embankment that made up the Current¡¯s border, but Henry was small and tough enough to endure the attempt. Come on. Die, you giant slug. The water tasted of dust and iron as the squid dragged itself out of the stone wall while Henry continued carving into its insides. It was slowing, thankfully, and Henry kept his eyes on his surroundings. He noticed a couple of interesting notifications, but he couldn¡¯t react to them as, out of the murk and bright lights of the Current, the first of the giant shapes came through and began swimming toward the shoal. Fuuuck me. Henry went all out and began striking with his arm inside the squid¡¯s body. With every implosion the squid shuddered, but Henry couldn¡¯t keep his attention on his victim. He couldn¡¯t look away from the giant shapes that had begun surrounding the shoal of squids. They were still a bit of a distance away, but Henry couldn¡¯t tell if his situation was much better. Clearly, he preferred staying as far away as possible from the large predators, but he also didn¡¯t like how conspicuous he was. A large, B-rank squid twitching and flailing to the side was a recipe for disaster. As soon as one of the cachalots even began thinking of coming near him, he¡¯d have to skedaddle. Henry didn¡¯t care if they were intelligent. Those things were too damn powerful and smart for him. If they decided he was lunch, there was little he could do about it. But thankfully, things might not need to get that far. Below him, the squid was spasming and twitching less. A few more seconds¡ªor a minute at worst¡ªand he¡¯d be able to get the hell out.The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. One of the whales clicked, and Henry shuddered at the uncomfortable pain that flashed through his body. The shoal¡ªmuch closer to the sonic attack¡ªlost their cohesiveness for a second, flailing in place and losing their momentum. They recovered fast, but that wasn¡¯t enough. tore 1x [Orthoceras Conductor Squid (B) - Level 3] Core was collected. Henry wrenched his arm out of the squid¡¯s innards. A spray of viscera, blood, and partially digested matter geysered out along with his arm as the kraken detached himself from the shell and then¡ª Henry disappeared. The cloud of organic matter parted as he shot out and away after activating Invisibility. The ability was still in his ephemerals and he was happy to get it, but he couldn¡¯t celebrate anything. Henry wanted to scream, because as he swam away from the carcass of the squid that he left for the whale, the giant twisted and followed him. Then it clicked. The sound was like a shockwave that delivered a small electric shock to everything it touched. incredibly It was curious, and it was hungry. The clicks were almost unbearable, but it didn¡¯t stop his movement so Henry continued pumping his arms and shoving water out of his siphon as swam upward as fast as possible. The cachalot followed and, worst of all, it was gaining on him. How is it tracking me? Was it echolocation? Was it some other weird sense? Henry wished he could swap places with his clones. At least only one was following him. A B-rank, still, but he had a good chance of getting out of this. Henry pulled whatever remained in Shiftiness and Misdirection and shoved them into Invisibility. To his alarm, he wasn¡¯t able to push everything into the skill. He couldn¡¯t focus on the sensation much, but it felt like he just tried to pour a full coffee pot into a teacup. As an ephemeral skill, the construct was probably not capable of handling aspected mana very well. It still used some, which allowed Henry to gain some distance, only for a reddish-purple pulse to wash over him and completely shred his invisibility. Even Trickster¡¯s Fortitude got disrupted. Motherfucker! From his clones, Henry saw the cachalot beat its tail a couple of times and briskly speed up. Before he could react, another click slammed into him, much more forceful this time. Henry tasted blood gushing into his mouth while one of his eyes went blind, just as the cachalot opened its large and narrow jaw to bite down on him. Henry used Blink and popped right behind the cachalot as it slammed its jaw on empty waters. The kraken activated Riptide Rush, pushing Swiftness-aspected mana into it. Henry zipped through the water like a bullet. The world blurred around him, and as he neared the seabed, he adjusted his angle and flew across the sea floor. He activated Invisibility once more and ordered his blood clones to follow, as he was quickly nearing the limit of their range. Behind him, there was no cachalot, but Henry didn¡¯t dare stop. He didn¡¯t know for how long he swam, but he didn¡¯t dare stop for nearly two or three minutes of high-speed swimming. When the first safe-looking cave appeared, he dove into it. Henry found himself in yet another cave. This one¡¯s entrance was a bit on the smaller side, though it was spacious enough within. His hearts were beating loudly. His arms shook as he peered out of the cave, but nothing followed him. Henry stayed still for nearly ten minutes. The blood clones had caught up and found new perches to watch his surroundings from, but that strategy might not be effective. The algae was a lot thicker in this area, and Henry could barely see a hundred yards away through the screen of greenery. Twenty minutes later, when no clicks could be heard, when no giant reddish shapes appeared out of the golden murky waters, Henry felt safe enough to bring out Maurice and Stormsong. The two popped out of his Maw, and Maurice immediately began talking as the two took in the cave for a second before their eyes landed on him. ¡°[We won! We showed that stupid squid. Where are we, by the way? What¨Cwhat¡­]¡± Maurice¡¯s shock grew with every word, and by the time he quieted down, it was a palpable thing. Even Stormsong was dumbstruck. He couldn¡¯t sense her inner life, but her body language was clear enough. Both of his companions finally broke the silence at the same time. ¡°[What happened?]¡± 2.28: I just caught up! ¡°[Dammit Henry! I just caught up, and you decide to go ahead and get 25 levels? By yourself?]¡± ¡°[Did you not hear what I just said? I didn¡¯t get the chance to stop. Everything happened too fast, and anyway, the levels were from the mantis shrimps.]¡± Maurice paused, and even Stormsong floated closer. As she spoke, Henry realized he could see her levels now. [Spotted Dolphin (C) - Level 28] ¡°[Are you going to use it for levels? Can we see it before you use it?]¡± ¡°[Yes! Can we see it? I¡¯ve never seen a B-rank core before.]¡± Henry stared down at the crab. It was impressive how fast Maurice¡¯s moods could switch. The kraken sighed, then summoned the B-rank core. It popped into his arm; a large, glowing crystal ball of rippling blacks and whites. The two leaned over to examine the shining object. Large shadows appeared behind them, cast from the bright, undulating light of the core. ¡°[This is awesome. Was it strong?]¡± ¡°[The B-ranks can control the rest of the shoal and shoot them at you like arrows¡­ So by itself, it¡¯s not as strong as some other monsters, but it might be more dangerous when it''s with its shoal. I got lucky, I guess, by grabbing on to it and by having the cachalots show up to distract the shoal, but I wouldn¡¯t try it again. As for what I¡¯m going to do with it¡­ Tokens. This will allow me to push a lot of Aspects to the next rank.]¡± ¡°[Good. Good plan. The jump from D to C-rank in an Aspect is very much worth it. How many Aspects will you be able to push? Even two would make this an incredibly lucrative day.]¡± Maurice slowly rotated, and Henry thought he felt both amusement and envy from the little crab. Maurice peered at the dolphin, waiting to see her reaction in real time. ¡°[One is moving up to D-rank. Four to C-rank.]¡± A few bubbles escaped from Stormsong¡¯s head. They stared at each other quietly for a few seconds, then Stormsong bobbed her head before she swam closer to the exit. ¡°[Alright then.]¡± The dolphin peered out into the new environment while Maurice and Henry shared a look. Maurice raised both claws in a shrug, and was about to say something when the dolphin¡¯s voice reached them. Immediately, Maurice¡¯s legs began dancing with mirth. ¡°[How?! How do you have so many?]¡± ¡°[Plenty of sleep and exercise?]¡± ¡°[And dead krakens!]¡± ¡°[Yeah, I guess those helped.]¡± Over the next few minutes, Henry answered a few more questions and agreed on a new schedule with his companions. They were to continue training and hunting while slowly working their way through the Current. Being trapped in its center was getting mentally exhausting, and it would be a lot easier if they weren¡¯t at the mercy of everything hidden within these dangerous seas. Henry¡¯s freshly created clone would begin scouting toward the exit soon, and every day they¡¯d switch caves. But there was a problem with that plan, and he was quick to bring it up to the crab and dolphin, hoping they might have an easy solution which wouldn¡¯t depend on luck. Luck in this scenario was Find the Path, which after three tries still gave Henry nothing he could use. ¡°[I have no clue which direction we came from,]¡± ¡°[Find the Path might give us something, eventually, but for now, we might need to stay still until we know where we are.]¡± ¡°[I have nothing to help with that¡­ I can scan the surroundings, but I can¡¯t see farther than what I can hear.]¡± ¡°[Find the Path isn¡¯t working? Maybe it needs something like that ball? Something to help it find a target?]¡± Something as a target? ¡°[What if we asked where the dolphin home is? The one we visited? Wouldn¡¯t that work? We could just keep moving away from it until we¡¯re out of the Current.]¡± ¡°[Not bad,]¡± ¡°[Maybe Stormsong¡¯s presence could help?]¡± ¡°[Help with what? What are you two talking about?]¡± ¡°[I¡¯ll explain to her and I¡¯ll take care of finding our direction. You do your thing and let¡¯s go hunt. I¡¯m not gonna let you two get that far ahead of me.]¡±A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation. Henry was taken aback by the assist, but he didn¡¯t say anything to jeopardize it, instead watching as the duo moved deeper into the cave and continued their chat. And since when are these two so friendly? Well, to be fair, they were less and less on each other¡¯s throats, and they were all spending a lot of time together, so Henry guessed they just got used to each other. Then again, as long as they weren¡¯t fighting, Henry didn¡¯t pay them much attention. Especially when they were working on their own thing. With that all dealt with, Henry pulled up his notifications and started by converting the large core in his arms to tokens. 1x [Orthoceras Conductor Squid (B) - Level 3] Core converted to 7 B-tokens. That should be plenty for all the upgrades. Henry made sure the exit of the cave was blocked and camouflaged, then got to work. There were a lot of upgrades to get through, and he was looking forward to all of them. Though with how many abilities he had at this point, the loss of efficiency was bugging him. I¡¯ll think about it after the upgrades. For now, let¡¯s start with Hunger and Swiftness. Get the latter out of the way first. Swiftness of the Trickster (D) - Level 1 Blink Actives: F-Rank: Teleport to a nearby location you can see. E-Rank: Range is increased while cost is decreased. D-Rank: Create a temporary anchor. When an anchor is within range, Blinking to it is significantly cheaper. Hunger of the Trickster (C) - Level 1 Bite of the Trickster Passives: Magic Mimic: By sampling the tissues of a magic-empowered being, a Skill or Trait can be temporarily copied. Magic Mimic has a chance of copying abilities at a higher rank, and has an increased chance of adapting non-compatible abilities. Nothing is Lost: You can absorb, claim, or exchange for Consumption Tokens the targets you vanquish. Venom Production: Your salivary glands can now produce venoms after sufficient exposure. Production can be accelerated through channeling mana to the glands. Available venoms: Numbing of the Pufferfish, Spasmodic of the Sea Serpent, Tranquilizing of the Mesmer Eel, Anticoagulant of the Sea Drake, Agonizing of the Lionfish. Actives: F-Rank: Your bite inflicts more damage. You can produce venom you¡¯ve been sufficiently exposed to. E-Rank: Temporarily gain a property of your target''s bite. The charge is available until used. D-Rank: Two mimicked properties can be remembered permanently. [Draining Bite of the Arcane Kraken] C-Rank: Your Bite has a chance of stealing some of your target¡¯s conceptual energies. Maw of the Trickster (C) Store anything you can wrap your arms around in a private storage dimension. Total volume: 950m3. Voracious Grip (C) Apply Bite of the Trickster through your suckers. Blink has anchors now? I¡¯ll have to test that. As for Hunger, mostly small updates. No more limit on what Magic Mimic can copy aside from time. No change in the other passives, and mostly the same with Maw of the Trickster and Voracious Grip. Good thing I got their upgrades done as well. As for Bite¡­ the biggest difference is the C-rank, which should help my collection of concepts grow nicely. I can permanently remember another property as well. Good. Pretty good. All around a decent upgrade. Henry didn¡¯t waste any time, moving on to the next Aspect. Once the transformative magic faded, he pulled the new description. Shiftiness of the Trickster (C) - Level 1 Mimicry Passives: Faint Presence: When camouflaging, your mana and mental presence will be muffled. Actives: F-Rank: Your tentacles can mimic shapes and lifeforms accurately. E-Rank: Temporarily mimic some of the physical properties of recently ingested prey. D-Rank: Two mimicked properties can be remembered permanently. [Scales of the Serpent] C-Rank: You can create familiar forms around your true form in exchange of mana. The mana signature of the forms can be mimicked as well. Oh, that¡¯s interesting! Henry interrupted himself to take a quick look at their surroundings with his blood clones before turning his attention back to the upgrade. The cornerstone¡¯s skill name changed. I¡¯m surprised it hasn¡¯t happened sooner, to be honest. More small upgrades like hunger, and a new neat ability on C-rank. Very fitting as well. I wonder if I can make myself tiny and then hide my body in a massive, dangerous-looking form. Like a cachalot or an Otodus shark. Henry paused. This might also be the ability that¡¯d allow him to step on land, though there were a couple of questions that needed answers first. If I put myself in a human form, could I walk with it? Could I fly if I made myself into a bird? He was going to have to test this one in depth, but the potential was definitely intriguing. Alright. Let¡¯s see what¡¯s next. Thankfully, he didn¡¯t have to upgrade much else in Shiftiness of the Trickster. After all, both Partial Shapeshift and Flowing Form were already at C-Rank. 2.29: Fusions With Shiftiness upgraded and done, Henry moved on to Misdirection next. This Aspect did have secondary skills to upgrade. Misdirection of the Trickster (C) - Level 1 Inkjet Actives: F-Rank: Shoot a jet of ink to confuse your pursuers and hide yourself. E-Rank: Quantity of ink shot is increased. Ink can temporarily have properties of ingested foods. D-Rank: Quantity of ink produced is further increased. Two copied properties can be remembered permanently. C-Rank: You can produce magical inky cloud in exchange for mana. Your naturally-produced ink gains a disorienting effect. Scouting Clone (C): Create an Ink Clone that obeys your commands. You can maintain a mental connection to dispel the clone, or take control of it and perceive the environment through its senses. Range can be increased by using clones as relays. Blood Clone (C): By expending 20% of your health and mana, you can create a Scouting Clone with access to your abilities. Henry¡¯s eyes widened as he reviewed the changes. Then he read it one more time to be sure before he leaned back. There¡¯s no more limitations on blood clones. And my range¡­ Henry might now be able to stretch his senses through a lot of territories. In a straight line, sure, unless he was willing to spend an incredible amount of time creating clones, but it was impressive nonetheless. Inkjet got better too, and the upgrade is thematic as well. Henry was happy with all of these new upgrades, but as he read through everything and glanced at this ever-lengthening status page, Henry couldn¡¯t help but feel overwhelmed. He had a lot of abilities, and he wasn¡¯t getting the most out of them. Henry shook his large head. He¡¯d think about all of that once he was done. For now, it was the Octomind¡¯s turn. Arms of the Trickster (C) - Level 1 Assistance of the Octominds Passive: Your mental faculties are improved by the individual brains in your arms. F-Rank: Amplify the effects of a Skill that can benefit from increased cognition. E-Rank: Multiple Octominds can be temporarily pooled to provide more efficient and substantial assistance. D-Rank: The Octominds are capable of activating Skills. C-Rank: The Octominds¡¯ cognitive abilities are further empowered, and are now capable of following complex instructions. With all of his Aspect upgrades done, Henry collected his arms under him. Deeper in the cave, the duo had stopped chatting and were instead working on their own little projects. Maurice was working on his Clawminds with renewed vigor, while Stormsong worked on her mana control. Right¡­ We still didn¡¯t test if she can take in one of my ability constructs. I¡¯ll do that in a bit. For now, it was time to deal with something that had been bugging him for a few weeks, and the worry had finally boiled over as he got a whole new batch of abilities to work with. I have too many abilities. Henry hadn¡¯t expected that to ever be a complaint, but he was becoming inefficient with everything available to him. He was forgetting abilities that could make his fights easier. After every encounter, he¡¯d review his strategies and end up kicking himself for having missed obvious and more efficient solutions. It was like coming up with a witty response or the perfect retort to an argument hours later, only in this scenario, his life and his companions¡¯ lives were on the line. I have too many skills, and I¡¯m not being efficient with them. What could I do about it? Using his newly-empowered Octominds, he visualized a whiteboard. For a moment he thought he¡¯d summoned one with his illusion skill. But he didn¡¯t. It was just his Octominds¡¯ visualization ability.The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement. Damn. I might have finally gotten my notebook, I guess. So. What could he do? A first option was that Henry could look into fusing more abilities together. Or maybe even fuse some Aspects. He¡¯d tried to model a few combinations with his Octominds a while back, and he was confident they¡¯d gotten a lot better. As he considered that option, he realized one of the combinations was staring right back at him. Trickster¡¯s Pathfinding could work incredibly well with the Octominds. I know they can use my skills and all that, but what if they had access to the predictive or divination-based magic of those skills? In fact, both Arcana and Arms of the Trickster feel like they could synergize pretty well, aside from a couple of abilities like Mana Nexus or Telekinesis. Well. That was one possible option. Henry visualized a pen writing it up on his mental whiteboard, and it did. I hope it doesn¡¯t get fuzzy when I look away. Henry turned his attention to some other possibilities. It didn¡¯t take him long to find another incredibly attractive combination. Blink and Ink clones. Or Blink and Blood clones. I do have the anchor creation part right now, but what if I could Blink to an anchor created by a blood clone? What if my clones became anchors? Teleporting to my copies would be overpowered¡­ Especially as they level and their range grows. That sounded too good to be accessible. Was it even possible to fuse Aspects and Skills like that? Henry pulled up his workshops and parsed through the options. First, the Concept Workshop, which gave him the options to: extract concepts, excise class constructs, excise ephemeral constructs, and bind construct to class. The second was the Aspect workshop. Upgrade Skills and Traits Incorporate Class Skills and Traits in Aspect Merge Skills and Traits Create new Aspects Fuse Aspects I can already buy Invisibility and put it with Shiftiness. Creating new Aspects isn¡¯t interesting right now; fusing is what I¡¯m looking for. Henry tapped the option, and was given another choice to make, though it wasn¡¯t the one he expected. Assisted Controlled Fusion Unassisted Spontaneous Fusion Unassisted Controlled Fusion (Unavailable) Focusing on them, Henry was glad to see new text pop up to explain things a bit. Assisted Controlled Fusion: An accelerated, two-phase system-assisted fusion of Aspects and the skills within. Not all skills are guaranteed fusion, but possible combinations can be outlined and tweaked in the preparation phase. The assistance costs Evolutionary points. The assistance cannot be used past B-rank Aspects. Warning: In the fusion phase, Aspects and the abilities within will be unavailable until the process is finished. Warning: The process cannot be reversed or canceled once it begins. Unassisted Spontaneous Fusion: Fuse two or more Aspects together. Skills may or may not be fused or damaged. Warning: Fused Aspects will be unavailable until the process is done. Warning: The process cannot be reversed or canceled once it begins. Unassisted Controlled Fusion: Unavailable until the user acquires experience with the fusion process, skill-engineering, and a higher proficiency with mana-manipulation. Henry read the definitions over and over again, and a few more pieces began clicking into place as he thought of his previous uses of Evolutionary points. They¡¯re just tokens to get the System to help. Everything I¡¯ve done with them I could theoretically do by myself, if I knew how. But achievements and Evolutionary points are a way for the system to bridge that gap until someone¡¯s ready to make the modifications. Skill fusion, Aspect fusion, Aspect creation¡ªthat one he wasn¡¯t that sure of how it was done or how he could re-create, but he could think of a couple of theories. This was all good to know, and it would be something Henry could work toward, but he wasn¡¯t na?ve enough to think he could replace the System¡¯s assistance anytime soon. After all, he was still struggling with modifying a single, one-time use skill. Much less larger and more complex skills or Aspects. Though I can always pay for the assistance, then continue training and working until I can do the fusions by myself. Glancing back at his balance of Evolutionary points, Henry found them incredibly low, now that he knew what they were really for. Would he even have enough? Well, just in case he got trapped in the process, he should decide which Aspects he wanted to fuse. He hoped there¡¯d be enough Evolutionary points left to move Invisibility to Shiftiness of the Trickster, but then again, maybe he should try to do that by himself? I¡¯ll see about that in a moment. Let¡¯s recap; what are my Aspect fusion options? Octominds and Arcana. To make his illusion creation, pathfinding, and divination part of the Octominds. That could push them closer toward becoming his own intelligent assistant. Like a mini-system that could help with navigation, modelization, or create illusions whenever it was needed. The second option was Misdirection and Swiftness. To potentially tie his teleporting ability to his clones. A third would be Vitality and Fury. Or Vitality and Hunger. Vitality could reinforce anything it went in, though Henry wasn¡¯t sure which would be the better fit. And anyway, it wasn¡¯t his first pick. I can¡¯t see anything that fits with Shiftiness. It¡¯s¡­ too much of its own thing right now, but I¡¯m sure I¡¯ll think of something if I spend enough time on it. Henry crossed the options away from his mental whiteboard and left only two possible combinations. Arms of the Tricksters¡ªand his Octominds by extension¡ªcombined with Arcana. Or Misdirection combined with Swiftness. Now¡­ which one do I try to get help for? 2.30: The minds Which combination would help Henry out the most? Improving the Octominds even further sounded powerful, especially with how much mental effort he was about to start spending as he tried to get his mana manipulation skills up to speed. Plus, he didn¡¯t know what kind of effect adding something like Find the Path into the Octominds would have on them. Would they get better at predicting things? How about Identify or Telepathic Sense? Henry wasn¡¯t always good with them, but what if they became part of the Octominds? In an ideal scenario, the Octominds would become an intelligent mini-system that took over a lot of small tasks and worries from Henry. Then again, he wasn¡¯t guaranteed any of his ideal abilities would show up, so he should bake that uncertainty into his decision. The second option was Misdirection and Swiftness, with the ideal ability of teleporting to his clones, whether they were made of ink or blood. Which one do I want? Henry stared at his mental whiteboard and felt at his Octominds. Their presence was heavier in the back of his mind. Much more powerful as well. They had their tasks, such as controlling and maintaining contact with his blood clones and watching for his own wellbeing with some emergency protocols, but while he¡¯d been using around 80-90% of their abilities before C-Rank, now it felt like he was using less than 20%. And I could push that higher. Give them more capabilities. Or I could be teleporting to clones. Henry was leaning more and more toward the Octominds¡¯ upgrade. He¡¯d been complaining about efficiency and his own suboptimal use of his Skills. Upgrading the minds assisting him would be a step toward fixing that. It might also help prevent giant squids from sneaking up on him. Alright. I¡¯m convinced. Now, let¡¯s see if I can even afford it. Henry selected Assisted Controlled Fusion and was invited to select which Aspects he wanted to fuse. Two Aspects at C-rank or below. Cost of fusion: 10 Evolutionary points Holy shit. That¡¯s almost all of my points. Henry winced at the cost, but he tried to select his other option and found it cost the same. Damn. Alright, fine. Am I doing this? Henry exhaled and eyed the upgrade for a few moments. The more he considered the possible changes, the more excited he grew. Though I¡¯m about to lose access to them for however long this takes. Same for Telepathy. And Identify, and a bunch more stuff. Henry decided he should have a quick talk with his companions. He waited for them to finish their current tasks before he mentally poked them. Once they were both looking at him, he quickly explained what was happening. Stormsong was quick to understand, since she was familiar with the process. ¡°[Usually only B-ranks can afford the assisted fusion. I heard it¡¯s a lot faster, too. You should be in for a day or two, while the spontaneous fusion can take up to two weeks. Also, your passives will probably still work, but just in case, we¡¯ll be alright.]¡± ¡°[Yes! This is exciting!]¡± said Maurice. ¡°[Don¡¯t worry, we can still talk, and you can¡­ Well. Gesture with your arms or something. Go for it! We¡¯ll wait.]¡± Henry eyed the two for a second, then nodded. ¡°[Alright. Let me know when you need to eat. We¡¯ll go hunting after because¡­ I don¡¯t think it¡¯ll be safe to go outside without us being able to communicate.]¡± With that dealt with, Henry took one last look at the menu in front of him, then confirmed his choice. He expected great magic to instantly materialize around him. Motes of light and potent mana to quickly coalesce, but none of that happened. Instead, he felt something else. He felt seen, all of a sudden. Like a presence had fallen on top of him and began examining him. Clearly, it wasn¡¯t being sensed by the other two, so it wasn¡¯t something external. The process has begun, and this was probably the first phase. The preparation before the fusion was really initiated. Fusion of Arms of the Tricksters and Arcana of the Trickster¡­ Beginning preparation phase¡­ Small sparks began dancing around Henry, moving in a slow and deliberate manner. Occasionally, one of them would pause, and he¡¯d feel a pulse of something deep within his soul. Like a magical, immaterial finger gently brushing against his Aspects and soul. The process lasted for a few minutes, and Henry did his utmost to try and see what was happening at all times. From the corner of his eyes, he could see Maurice and Stormsong doing the same. They could see the soft blue and purple lights. Number of possible configurations: 1Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. Thaumaturgy of the Trickster New cornerstone ability: The Great Octominds Greatly empowered and evolved Octominds, capable of reasoning, cooperation, prediction, and spell and skill casting. Each Octomind can be given simple or complex tasks and be linked to a set of skills and passives to further augment itself and accomplish its tasks autonomously. Skills and passives to be transferred: Summon Illusions Arcane Arm Draining Touch Mind Weaver''s Tongue Mana Nexus Telekinesis Identify Trickster¡¯s Domain Trickster¡¯s Pathfinding Henry reviewed everything and couldn¡¯t help but feel surprised. He liked the new Octominds. They sounded more powerful, and a bit more flexible and streamlined, but he had no idea how effective or better linking them to skills would be. What did it mean they¡¯d be augmented? He might only know when he agreed to the process. He was also surprised the rest of the fusion wasn¡¯t drastic. Most if not all of his abilities were there, and Henry worried that might be too much for a single Aspect, but then again¡­ maybe not? Is this actually worth 10 evolutionary points? The kraken eyed the description again. It would be, if the Octominds were as powerful and capable as the description implied. He could still do what he intended initially; have each Octomind specialize in something. One would be on healing duty, and not just for emergencies. One would be scouting and pathfinding. When I put it like that¡­ this might be worth it. He could offload a lot of tasks to the Octominds, and he would still be getting the cognitive boost as well, as he would always have some available to assist him when he needed them. What if I could create combat Octominds to cast spells and distract? They¡¯d eat into his mana like crazy, but as he pictured the possible scenarios he could create, he was more and more convinced. It would still come down to how effective this upgrade was to each Octomind, as their current version should be able to handle all of these tasks, but if they could really become autonomous, then that was definitely a powerful upgrade. Alright. Henry confirmed the change. The waters shuddered around him, and then something he hadn¡¯t expected happened. Something unpleasant that he had mostly forgotten about. Henry felt something worm itself into his soul and begin moving things around. But while he¡¯d only been E-rank back when it had first happened and could barely suffer through the spiritual pain and discomfort, now it only felt like a particularly intrusive and uncomfortable massage. Still, Henry grit his beak and focused. He could sense what was happening, even though some parts felt vague. But this might be his one chance of observing the process, so he shut down his discomfort and turned all of his mind toward sensing what was happening within his soul. *** Maurice examined a pincer while the little disturbances coming off the kraken continued. He opened his right claw and closed it, channeled mana into it, then rubbed it with his left pincer and found that all sensations and movements seemed normal. He pulled one of the spare bone-shells Henry had made for him and glanced up to find Stormsong watching him. Maurice raised one eye-stalk above the other. ¡°[What?]¡± Stormsong wiggled both her pectoral fins in a shrug. ¡°[Nothing. I¡¯m bored. How¡¯s your project going?]¡± Maurice eyed the dolphin suspiciously for a second. She was becoming nicer, and it was still weirding him out, considering how arrogant and abrasive she¡¯d been before. But he didn¡¯t mind chatting. ¡°[I can use it and I can feel from it. The nerve centers are there, I think. I packed in as many nerves and nerve connections as I could, so maybe this time it¡¯ll work. Then again, I managed to do the same the last few times, and it wasn¡¯t enough.]¡± Stormsong blew some bubbles. ¡°[You really want those Clawminds, don¡¯t you?]¡± Maurice blinked at her. ¡°[You don¡¯t?]¡± The dolphin swam around him and glanced at Henry for a second before she bobbed her head. ¡°[Yeah. I admit, it¡¯d be pretty cool to have something like that.]¡± Maurice put the bone shell in front of him and hoped it¡¯d work this time. He¡¯d been working on this damn project for so long already. ¡°[I know. Did the test work? Can you use the one-time skill?]¡± Stormsong beat her flukes and twirled in the water as she swam in a small circle around him. Maurice would lie if he didn¡¯t say he was a tiny bit jealous of how easily she could move in the water. Maybe someday I¡¯ll have something that¡¯ll let me move like that. Maurice put a claw on the bone-shell and activated his skill-copying ability while Stormsong spoke in his mind. ¡°[I feel it in my soul. I think it will work. I even see it in my class skills¡­ but I guess I¡¯ll wait for Henry. What do¡­ What¡¯s wrong?]¡± Maurice stared blankly at the text in front of him, disbelieving for nearly five seconds. An eternity for someone like him. He looked up at the dolphin and threw both claws up. ¡°[It worked!]¡± Chimeric Assimilation: Assistance of the Octominds adapted into Assistance of the Clawminds. Chimeric Assimilation: Assistance of the Clawminds copied. 2.31: Roles and jobs Henry didn¡¯t know how long the process had taken. It could have been hours. It could have been a couple of days. It might have been the former, but it most certainly felt like the latter, and it was with great relief that the pulling and moving in his soul, the stretching and cutting and all other kinds of manipulation was over. He could feel it winding down, and as the fatigue slammed into his mind like a sledgehammer, a notification popped in front of him. Henry was not ashamed to admit that it took him nearly five seconds of staring at the text to understand what it was saying. Fusion Phase winding down. For best results, meditate and refrain from activating abilities from the fused Aspect for at least two hours. Henry wondered if falling asleep would count, but just in case it didn¡¯t, he closed his eyes and tried to not fall asleep. He lasted barely ten minutes. *** Henry¡¯s eyes fluttered open, and he found a message telling him the process had finished successfully. He barely had time to read it before a red and a gray shape floated in front of him. ¡°[Henry? Can you hear us? Stop that!]¡± Maurice was standing atop Stormsong¡¯s head while she shot bursts of bubbles under the crab. It didn¡¯t look like she was actually trying to dislodge the crab. Only to annoy him. Which Henry approved of. ¡°[Yes. I can hear you well and good. How long was I out?]¡± Maurice hopped away from the dolphin¡¯s forehead and climbed up Henry¡¯s longer arm. ¡°[How was it? Did it work? It¡¯s been fifteen hours, give or take one or two.]¡± ¡°[It didn¡¯t take too long,]¡± said Stormsong. ¡°[I believe you were asleep for the last three or four hours, though.]¡± Henry picked the crab up and moved his arms around for a moment. They weren¡¯t sore, not really. Not with the incredible amount of stats he had. But the stretches still felt good. ¡°[The fusion worked. It was also pretty uncomfortable, but I got a good feel for how it worked and how it was done,]¡± said Henry as he watched his surroundings and began looking through his blood clones. The effort was trivial, barely affecting his train of thought as he spoke to his companion. It was getting easier and easier to maintain multiple trains of thoughts. Easier than it ever had been. I can probably create some more blood clones¡­ And start using the ink clones more as well. ¡°[It¡¯ll take work though. The System could create that thick mana, manipulate it, and infuse it in seconds. It did that¡­ a dizzying amount of times. Cutting the skills, moving them, re-anchoring them. I¡¯m sure it used its own¡­ abilities to accelerate some of the processes, but yeah. I¡¯m trying to remember everything. Make sure to save every Evolutionary Point, Maurice. You¡¯re gonna need them.]¡± ¡°[Fascinating¡­]¡± Stromsong mumbled. ¡°[I will! Also, I found where we came from. The direction of the pod, I mean. I couldn¡¯t find the fastest direction away, but if we head in that direction, we should be good. Right? The pod¡¯s that way.]¡± Henry picked up Maurice, surprised at the confidence of the little crab. ¡°[That way? You¡¯re sure? Was it difficult to get something out of the skill?]¡± Maurice clacked a pincer in annoyance. ¡°[It took a while, and I ended up having to use my Aspects. But even then it took like all of my Aspects to get something solid. I¡¯m sure, though.]¡± ¡°[Which Aspect?]¡± Henry asked, curious. ¡°[Aspects! Plural. It worked when I used Curiosity, Craftiness, and Arcana! Also, guess what!]¡± The crab raised a claw and wiggled it around. Henry stared at him, stared at the claw, glanced at Stormsong and finally, from the corner of his eyes, he saw the discarded shells. ¡°[Wait¡­ You got it? It worked?]¡± ¡°[Yes! Finally, I¡¯m going to have tiny-minds as good as yours.]¡±Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon. Henry stilled for a fraction of a second, but then he twirled the crab around. ¡°[Congrats! You worked so hard on it!]¡± The kraken was sincerely happy for the crab, but unfortunately, the little crustacean was sharp, and he picked up on the crumb of doubt Henry had felt at the claim of Maurice¡¯s Clawminds being as good as his own. ¡°[What? You thought of something weird. What is it?]¡± *** While Stormsong ate from the C-rank squid they¡¯d hunted together, and while Maurice pouted at being left behind once more, Henry turned his attention to his new Octominds and was startled when felt them focus back on him. They are definitely stronger. Damn. It was hard to describe, but while they had felt like tools before, like an extension of his will, these new Octominds were even more intimately connected to him, and they felt¡­ aware. Almost like small, independent minds nested within his own. It was as if he¡¯d just stepped into a meeting room, and eight sharp subordinates focused on him, waiting for his instructions. To make his life easier, he began picturing them as small octopuses, just like he¡¯d been, and began altering their appearances to remember them better. To the first, he gave glasses, a pen behind an unexisting ear, and a pile of papers in the Octomind¡¯s many arms. ¡°Mind #1, you¡¯re on note-taking duty. Your job is to maintain everything I tell you to recall. The content of Maw, and everything we might talk about. While we¡¯re talking about Maw; start feeling out what¡¯s in there, and make an inventory.¡± Henry didn¡¯t know how realistic his instructions were, but it should be all easy enough to test. Unexpectedly, he felt a question come up from the Octomind. After a couple of seconds, he understood what the mind was asking. It was asking if Henry wanted to give it control over Maw of the Trickster to integrate deeper with the skill. Right¡­ I remember this feature. Though I don¡¯t know if it would be useful here. I definitely need to test it and see how effective it is. ¡°No, just use the skill, but don¡¯t take it over.¡± The note-taking mind sent back its confirmation and began stretching its feelers into the Maw. Somewhere in his own mind, a whiteboard began listing the various samples and meats Henry had stored and forgotten about. Lionfish, Riptides, Sea Serpent, the little metallic ball, the leviathan vertebra and tooth¡­ This might actually work. Next, Henry turned his attention to mind #2. He gave this one scrubs. ¡°You¡¯re on healing duty. If I get injured and if it¡¯s non-lethal, your job is to heal me slowly. Efficiently. If the injury¡¯s life threatening or mind altering, you can use the E-rank ability of my healing. You¡¯re allowed to use the accelerated healing. Actually, every one of you has that instruction, just in case Octomind #2 gets disabled as well. Understood?¡± Henry felt all of his Octominds confirm. Even the one that was doing inventory. Which reminded Henry of something else. ¡°Number one, as soon as you¡¯re done with the inventory, take notes from the fusion process. Everything I can recall, and everything you all may have noticed.¡± For the third Octomind, Henry filled its arms with navigational maps and some naval tools. ¡°Your job is to keep track of our location and make sure we¡¯re not going in circles. Take control of Trickster¡¯s Pathfinding to find where we are and how we could get out of the Current. Maurice gave us the direction already. Try to confirm it. I want you to be like a minimap that uses the ability¡¯s sub-skills to show me dangers, valuables, and everything you can pick up from it.You can use illusions to show me arrows and whatnot.¡± The Octomind confirmed, and Henry felt the sub-mind¡¯s controls stretch, slowly isolating a part of his soul. It was a bit uncomfortable, but not at all as bad as it had been when the system was doing it. Maybe because the Octominds were still part of Henry¡¯s mind, and so part of his will. Still, when Henry tried to find the trigger for Trickster¡¯s Pathfinding, he couldn¡¯t. At the same time, he sensed the Octomind begin casting spells and sending its attention outward. So that¡¯s how it works¡­ Huh. I hope it¡¯ll be worth the loss of control. Henry turned his attention to the fourth and made it sit in front of multiple monitors. ¡°Four, you¡¯re scouting and clones. Blood and ink. Don¡¯t take over the skills, but watch through them and alert me when you need another mind¡¯s help, or when something¡¯s worth my attention.¡± Which left four Octominds. ¡°All of you are on standby for now. We¡¯ll see how it goes with the first batch.¡± Henry wasn¡¯t even sure if things would work out as he expected them to. He was still a bit doubtful about the advertised autonomy of the Octominds, but maybe he¡¯d be surprised. It would surely take a lot off his plate if they worked as well as he hoped, after which he might find a couple more tasks to assign to his Octominds. Though he¡¯d certainly need to keep a couple¡ªor at least one¡ªidle to help him whenever he needed a hand. Like a personal assistant. Next, Henry turned his attention to the fourth Octominds and to the many screens ahead of him. ¡°Make some clones and start scouting in the direction Maurice pointed. We¡¯ll start moving in a bit. Find us a spot to rest and make sure the space is secured. The Octomind confirmed its orders, and Henry turned his attention to his class skills. With all that taken care of, I have one last thing to check in my skills and then we can start moving. 2.32 Deployments Henry spent some tokens and finally brought his ephemeral skills into his class. Occasionally he had to pause and let out the clones that his scouting Octomind was creating, then caught himself. Why am I doing this myself? Henry ordered one of his idle Octominds to take care of letting the clones out instead, then focused on his interface. Alright, the abilities are in my class. Probably sticking to the class-frame. I¡¯ll need to move them to an Aspect without screwing up, he thought as he eyed the list. He wasn¡¯t using an Evolutionary point on any of them.. Right now, the points were too valuable to be wasted just transplanting skills. Fusions¨Cof skills or Aspects¨Cwere the priority for those points, and not anything else. Moving a skill out of the class and into the Aspect was probably challenging, but he needed to move a few anyway. If he hit a dead-end, he could try with the System¡¯s assistance and observe the process. For now, there was no rush, and he had some ideas after having observed the fusion process he¡¯d just gone through. He just needed to do some solo-practice for a bit. I¡¯m glad there isn¡¯t a limit on class skills any more. Then again, I could only focus on so many things at once. But the new Octominds should help in bringing the new skills up to speed. Class Skills Control Water (F) Sonic Pulse (E) Mind Shield (E) Invisibility (D) Telepathic Orchestration (E) Henry took note¡ªor his Octomind did¡ªto test out Sonic Pulse and Telepathic Orchestration to see what he could get out of them, and to see if they were worth transferring to his Aspect. He wasn¡¯t sure about Sonic Pulse, as he didn¡¯t have the hearing or the brain circuitry to interpret the sonic feedback, but Orchestration was most likely making the cut. It was a skill to coordinate telepathically, without words. At least, that¡¯s what the description was saying. Henry would test it shortly. As for the remaining skills, they were going to be added to their respective Aspects. Invisibility and Mind Shield were amazing and would be extremely useful. Both would increase his stealth capabilities by leaps and bounds, and when he eventually met more telepathic beings, having his mind shielded would be a necessity. The Bahamut whales might have been friendly and might have not abused their insight into his mind, but there were bound to be intelligent beings out there who¡¯d exploit everything they could glean. Humans, among others. Especially if telepathy was a common ability. Which left Control Water. Even though it was incredibly weak right now, it was a prime skill to assign to one of his Octominds for training. Having seen what could be done with it, Henry believed it could grow to become one of his main abilities one day. With that done, Henry turned his attention to his scouting Octomind and was¡­ shocked. A trill of excitement ran through the kraken as he watched the sub-mind work. They really are better. In the few minutes he¡¯d been busy starting at his interface, nearly fifty ink clones had been created and dispatched. No blood clones, as those were expensive in health and mana, but fifty ink clones was a lot more than he¡¯d expected. His Octomind was seeing through them, coordinating them with ease. A line of inky-black clones were swimming forward, covering for a handful who searched for safe caves to hide in, while the remaining clones were spread out to watch for danger in a wider circle. Whenever one of them was killed or whenever a particularly dangerous monster was found, the scouting Octomind would make small adjustments, and the scouting party would drift away from the dangerous seas to explore another direction. The sheer amount of information Henry perceived would have overwhelmed him before this last upgrade, but not anymore. And this is just one of them. It¡¯s not being helped by the others¡­ The Octomind was performing much better than he expected. It was almost worrisome, but it only made Henry more excited. He turned his attention to the navigator-Octomind. ¡°Coordinate with¡­ the fourth Octomind. Draw us a path toward the next cave, and once it¡¯s confirmed, secure the space and watch out for ambushes, both of you.¡± Henry felt both Octominds confirm, and considered he needed to give them names. At least the ones that would be a fixture. *** Stormsong watched from the corner of her eyes as ink clones continued to form like clockwork. One after the other, every few seconds. They¡¯d wait until there were five of them, then Henry¡¯s arm would move to unblock the exit and the clones would surge out. What is happening to him?Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings. Henry didn¡¯t even look like he was paying attention. He seemed completely absorbed, staring up at the air in front of him while his arms and body moved independently. Next to her, Maurice was staring as well, claws rubbing against each other. It makes sense why Maurice wants the ability so badly. Even she wanted it, now. The Octominds¡ªif that¡¯s what they were called¡ªwere powerful enough before, supporting Henry and boosting his focus and cognitive abilities to frightening degrees, but now? He doesn¡¯t even have to pay attention to them anymore. They¡¯re just doing the work by themselves. Stormsong looked at the couple of temporary skills she could see in her class, and decided to activate one of them. She had to know if such abilities were even possible for her. Even if Henry manages to give me one-time copying constructs, it¡¯ll probably take me a lot more work to get something like an Octomind. She still remembered the literal mountain of limbs and shells Maurice had gone through to get his own. How long would it take her? We¡¯ll see. For now, focus. Her mana rushed into the one-time skill construct, and Stormsong tensed. Was it going to react badly? Would it blow up in her soul, somehow? The temporary skill detached from where it had been and dissolved into her mana. It rushed forward through her body and stopped at her teeth, clouding them in a red glow that radiated out of her jaw. It worked. She could feel the skill¡¯s effect. Empowering her teeth so her bite would inflict deep tears into whatever had the misfortune of receiving them. She could feel the small malicious will within them. A curse-effect that would delay her victim¡¯s healing and make their bleeding much worse. It really worked. From the cave¡¯s entrance Henry looked up and stared at her for a second. ¡°[Is that my temporary skill, or did you get a new ability?]¡± Stormsong beat her flukes and twirled around the distracted crab. She was excited, but she didn¡¯t let it show too much. She didn¡¯t want to get her hopes too high. ¡°[It worked, and it doesn¡¯t look like it¡¯s any worse than you described.]¡± Henry unfurled his arms. ¡°[That¡¯s good. Very good. We¡¯ll be able to get to the next steps soon, and I¡¯d love to pick your brains about a few things, but we should move. Are you two ready to go?]¡± Stormsong blinked at the brain-picking part. What did that mean? She didn¡¯t feel threatened, so she acted the part and bobbed her head up and down, a gesture she¡¯d learned from these two. Then she glanced down at the crab, who finally focused back on his surroundings. ¡°[I¡¯m ready.]¡± Henry picked up the crab, then looked at the dolphin. ¡°[Good. Let¡¯s go, then.]¡± With that, the kraken turned and flew out of the cave. Stormsong followed, easily catching up, but she grew confused at the sudden changes of direction that Henry kept taking. It didn¡¯t take long for her to understand what was happening. He kept zigging and zagging every few seconds, sometimes even going for a wide half-circle before he corrected back, but Stormsong didn¡¯t complain or say anything. She trusted him. Though she was still shocked at how effective the Octominds had become. She knew he was using them to scout. She didn¡¯t know how he could take such sharp turns and change of direction through the thick algae without getting lost, and she didn¡¯t know how he was mentally nudging her seconds before he took the turns. How is he doing that? It was frustrating. But also exciting. She was falling behind, sure, but this also meant there was so much more she could learn from these two. The possibilities were endless. All of a sudden, Henry¡¯s guiding skills nudged her firmly down before he dove deep and fast. They landed on the sandy seabed and hid under a whale-sized reef. Before she could ask what they were hiding from, a stifling aura fell on her while the world grew darker. Stormsong¡¯s limbs refused to move. She was too terrified to even twitch a muscle for a few seconds. What was up there? She wanted to see. Slowly, terrifyingly, she tilted to the right and began maneuvering to push her head just past the rock, to look and see what was above them when she felt the mental nudge from Henry. He slowly shook his head, saying nothing telepathically. So she remained still and waited. The dolphin was terrified, but she also had never been as excited, and she wondered what it was that was passing by. *** Henry was glad the dolphin could listen to instructions and had the presence of mind to follow his lead. His other companion, on the other hand, was not as quick on the uptake. ¡°[Stop talking,]¡± said Henry. If he heard another peep from the crab, he was sending him to his Maw. Henry could understand the crab being incredibly curious, and to be fair, neither of the two could see what he was seeing, but Henry wasn¡¯t telling him to stay quiet a second time. He wasn¡¯t sure if telepathy could be detected, and he wasn¡¯t risking it when the strongest creature he¡¯d ever seen was right above their heads. Well, strongest aside from the System. That thing was the closest thing to a god Henry could imagine. Thankfully, Maurice had gotten the message, so Henry waited with bated breath as the thing passed over them. He had no clue how his scouting Octomind had missed it, though now that he reviewed ¡°the footage¡±, it was clear that it had come from above. It was like a mountain had decided to come by and float above them. A deep black plastron with green, glowing edges. Gigantic flippers that ended in green, gem-like claws. A large and sharp beak that matched the claws. Multiple ridges and sharp features that matched the creature¡¯s name. A mountain-like black and green shell. An emerald slitted eye roved around, and Henry could swear it landed on a couple of his clones before they were dismissed. Henry had seen islands smaller than the creature swimming past them. Which made sense, considering this was the first A-rank creature he¡¯d ever seen. [Dragonic Turtle (?) - Lvl ?] 2.33: Roars The dragonic turtle rumbled as it passed above them. The light of the Current wasn¡¯t really coming from above, but somehow the giant being still cast its shadow over everything below it. Its presence was all-encompassing, heavy. It felt like a constant telepathic link, and at any moment Henry thought he might hear the monster¡¯s voice bellow in his mind, like a crack of thunder. But it never spoke, and the huge presence only lessened and faded minutes after the giant shape disappeared into the clear light of the Current. Henry only dared move a couple of minutes after it had gone. ¡°[What was that?]¡± asked Maurice. Stormsong peered at him, clearly wondering the same, so Henry raised an arm and realized it was trembling. He curled it and cast a small illusion of the being. The two stared at the miniature creature, eyes wide. ¡°[This, but incredibly larger. A-rank. Dragonic turtle.]¡± ¡°[I¡¯ve never seen an A-rank. I could barely get myself to move¡­]¡± Stormsong said, voice still awed. ¡°[It has a shell¡­]¡± Maurice said, eyes shining. Henry couldn¡¯t blame him. He could feel the greed gnaw at him as well, but even though he considered sending a blood clone after it to try and sneak a bite, he quickly dismissed the idea. If he somehow pissed that thing off, he didn¡¯t believe there was anywhere in the world he could hide from it. There was no Aspect that could camouflage him from an A-rank with such a presence. Henry was literally sure it had sensed or seen them, but it didn¡¯t care about them. For something with such might, all three travelers might as well have been F-ranks. The two were still staring at the recreation, but Henry already re-checked the perimeter and the route with his Octominds, and it was time to move. He dismissed the illusion and slunk out from under the reef outcropping. ¡°[Let¡¯s go.]¡± Briskly, Henry followed the new path outlined by his navigation Octomind. He was taking them in the other direction from the draconic turtle, and with Telepathic Orchestration, he nudged Stormsong along the path they must take. His standby-Octominds were all helping the scouting-Octomind to watch out for danger, and they were almost at a new safe cave when the world broke in half. Or at least, it felt like it had. A world-shattering roar made Henry sink to the seafloor in panic. His clones¡ªall of them¡ªinstantly dissolved, while his vision narrowed and his consciousness threatened to dim. To his side, Stormsong was blinking, flukes twitching as she shook her head, while Maurice¡¯s claws hung limply around Henry¡¯s arms. A trail of blood escaped from the crab¡¯s mouth. Henry quickly pushed healing into the crab and into his own mind. He reached over to Stormsong with an arm as well, as she didn¡¯t seem able to feel the effect of Orchestration, and his arm was knocked away instinctively by a burst of concentrated water. ¡°[I¡¯m healing you, come closer.]¡± The dolphin mumbled an apology, and Henry quickly summoned another batch of clones as the feeling that his head was full of cotton continued to fade. The clones swam forth, away from wherever the giant turtle had gone. All around them, creatures and fish of all sorts scrambled. Those who were still awake. ¡°[Wha¡ªwhat¡­ happened?]¡± Henry beat his arm and followed the new path being created for him by his Octominds. This time, he activated Riptide Rush. ¡°[Something¡¯s fighting the turtle¡­ I think. We can¡¯t be this close.]¡± The kraken and the dolphin cut through the water fast. They saw a few predators that would have jumped on them any other day, but everyone was too busy getting the hell out of this part of the ocean. That was just a roar. A roar almost knocked all of us out. And it hadn¡¯t even been that close to them. If that had happened when the monster had been atop them, they might have all passed out. *** The roars happened four more times in the next five minutes. But Henry, Stormsong, and Maurice were far enough that they weren¡¯t affected much, aside from the primal fear that gnawed in their stomachs. Henry landed in a safe spot that his clones had scouted, but he had no intent on staying. He just needed to replenish some of his mana a bit and allow the ink clones to scout ahead.Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. He wasn¡¯t creating blood clones right now. He needed to be careful about his mana, and he¡¯d already expended quite a few of his mana and health charges. He hadn¡¯t had to use those in a while. ¡°[Do you think we¡¯re far enough?]¡± Maurice asked after a few minutes. The crab was quieter than usual, staring at the world around them as if expecting something to come out of the murk at any moment. ¡°[I don¡¯t think we can be far enough from something like that¡­ But we¡¯re probably on the right path.]¡± Henry didn¡¯t begrudge their anxiety. He was still shocked, and he would be as fidgety as them if he hadn¡¯t been so busy. He was too focused on getting the hell out of this area, and he was both helping and assigning Octominds to help with the evacuation efforts. ¡°[We¡¯ll move shortly. A few more minutes.]¡± It was just dumb luck that the battle hadn¡¯t happened atop them; now that he knew this was a possibility, Henry had to put some serious effort into finding such monsters before they happened to pass them by . Because if they stumbled into their territory and something happened, he wasn¡¯t confident they could get away from danger fast enough. ¡°Third and Fourth, try and use Pathfinding to find A-ranks. See if it¡¯s possible to detect their presences. If we can, we should start taking a wide berth around them.¡± The Octominds confirmed and began casting spells. The scouting Octomind waited for the results, and a few minutes later, Henry saw two large red dots appear far behind them on the improvised minimap. I hope that¡¯s accurate, and it¡¯s not just making assumptions. Henry was about to speak when a third dot appeared. To the north-east. And they¡¯d been heading north. Shit. Is this thing accurate? Henry wanted to double-check. He wanted to doubt his Octomind and the notoriously unreliable pathfinding skill, but he couldn¡¯t. He remembered how accurate it could be. Maybe something about the Octomind and how it¡¯s plugged into it is making it more responsive? Whether that was the case or not, now was not the time to test it out. Not when another dangerous monster could cross their path. ¡°[We¡¯re moving.]¡± Henry picked up Maurice and surged into the bright seas of the current, heading north-west, while a batch of clones watched their eastern flank. He wondered if they¡¯d just happened to swim into dangerous territories, if it was the roars that were bringing the monsters near, or if the current had much more of those things than they¡¯d expected. *** Nearly four hours of non-stop travel later, the trio dove into a crevice at the foot of an underwater mountain. While Henry sent his ink clones to scout and keep an eye around, Stormsong let herself drift to the stone below on her stomach, while Maurice pulled a piece of mystery meat out of his own stash and began silently eating. Minutes later, once Henry felt barely confident they weren¡¯t resting right next to yet another monster, he broke the silence. ¡°[That was a lot scarier than I expected.]¡± Stormsong blew bubbles in a snort, while Maurice stared at the piece of meat he¡¯d been nibbling on, then threw it aside before requesting some squid from Henry. ¡°[Now I understand why the pod moved whenever one of those things showed up. The difference of power is just¡­]¡± Stormsong let the word hang, and Henry could understand. It was hard to picture. He¡¯d fought B-ranks at this point a couple of times and true, he had gotten his ass handed to him two out of three times, but nearly passing out from collateral damage? Because of a faraway roar? That put things in perspective. ¡°[I never checked if there was a third A-rank back there, but they don¡¯t seem that rare,]¡± Henry said after a while as he munched on some squid as well. The B-rank one. The meat was tough at first, but then it just melted in his mouth, and it was comforting after the harrowing day. Over the four hours, the pathfinding Octominds had drawn three more red dots. Henry had no clue how accurate that was. He didn¡¯t know if there had been more that the pathfinding skill had missed, or if there were false positives. He would send a blood clone to check. He had to know. After a couple more bites, Maurice looked up. ¡°[You think we¡¯ll be able to get to that level someday?]¡± A few bubbles escaped Stormsong, but she caught herself and said nothing. Instead, she glanced at Henry. The kraken stared at the squid tentacle in his arm before he brought to his beak and tore a good chunk of it, and a human-illusion appeared on top of his head. Henry gave his image yellow eyes, to match his real-body¡¯s eyes, and the illusion grinned. ¡°[Why wouldn¡¯t we?]¡± Maurice rubbed his claws and summoned his own smiling human-form, while Stormsong eyed both illusions. Maurice looked up at her, then at Henry. ¡°[She needs an illusion too, Henry.]¡± Human-Henry nodded. ¡°[Now that we confirmed the one-time skill can be transferred, we can really start.]¡± Henry looked at the world around through his clones, eying the local wildlife while his main-body began breaking down some more of his mana reserves. There was a lot to do over the next few days. 2.34: An interesting puzzle Henry pulled himself into the mountainous cave and gave Stormsong a couple of seconds to slip past him before he plugged and camouflaged the exit. From one of his many ink clones, he watched the green-scaled creature leisurely swim by, undulating away. It hissed, and the sound made his flesh shudder. The sound reminded him of rattlesnakes. The creature never even glanced at his cave, and soon it went past his furthest blood clone, disappearing in the distance. Just before it left the clone¡¯s range, Henry used Identify. [Adult Sea Serpent (B) - Lvl ???] Henry had already recognized the creature, but he still wanted to confirm before it slipped away. It was much larger than the specimen he¡¯d encountered and fought a long time ago. Its scales were shinier and its horns longer, and it most certainly was beyond what he could deal with right now. ¡°[It¡¯s gone.]¡± Stormsong let out a few bubbles of relief, and even Maurice relaxed. The crab tapped Henry¡¯s arm, and the kraken let him go. ¡°[You said you fought one of them before?]¡± ¡°[Yup. It was right before I met you, actually. When you found the turtle shell, I¡¯d been fighting a smaller specimen. Nasty things. Intense venoms, and pretty damn tough. At the level it is, I don¡¯t think we could have handled it.]¡± Henry pulled out the C-rank triggerfish they¡¯d just killed and let Maurice and Stormsong start eating while he reviewed his notifications. Shiftiness of the Trickster (C): Level 1 -> Level 2 Misdirection of the Trickster (C): Level 1 -> - Level 3 Thaumaturgy of the Trickster (C): Level 1 -> - Level 2 Vitality of the Trickster (D): Level 8 -> - Level 10 Swiftness of the Trickster (D): Level 1 -> - Level 3 Fury of the Trickster (D): Level 3 -> - Level 4 Progress was going well. Yesterday¡¯s trip had netted him a few Aspect levels. That and the nearly hundred ink clones and ten blood clones spread out in a half-mile radius all around him, watching for threats. Henry had to assign two more Octominds to assist with the efforts, leaving him with two idle, but it was definitely worth the expense. The new formation had just allowed them to skip out on a risky encounter. Maurice tore out the eye of the triggerfish and munched at it as he looked up at Henry. ¡°[Are we leaving today?]¡± Henry reached over and, shifting his arm into a bone-blade, sliced off a portion of the tail and brought it over. ¡°[We could. Do you two feel ready? I wanted to confirm if it was possible to detect A-ranks first, but if we move, it¡¯ll be easier to do so. The patfinding Octomind can¡¯t work very well through my blood clones, so I have to be the one to move¡­]¡± Stormsong tore a piece of the flank and chewed. ¡°[I can move. I think the sooner we¡¯re back to the edge of the current, the better.]¡± Henry eyed the notification he got and checked in on the scouting Octomind as he responded. ¡°[I agree. It¡¯d be a lot better to dip in and out of the Current instead of being stuck right in the middle of it. Don¡¯t know if that would matter to an A-rank¡­ but they¡¯re too damn dangerous to ignore.]¡± Hunger of the Trickster: Crushing Bite (D) added to Ephemerals That reminds me¡­ Henry checked on his note-taking Octomind and looked through the inventory of his Maw. It was written on a whiteboard in his own handwriting, and as he read the list, he grimaced. I haven¡¯t eaten from the mantis shrimps yet. I should also take the lionfish¡¯s explosive skill. I keep thinking about that one and forgetting. Let me get that one over with. Henry popped the lionfish out of his Maw and immediately chomped on it. It was prickly, and pretty darn bitter. But it got the job done. Hunger of the Trickster: Spiteful Detonation (F) added to EphemeralsThe narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation. With that partially dealt with, Henry turned his attention back to his companions and realized it had been barely a couple of seconds since he¡¯d responded to them. For a moment, he felt a pang of worry. The Octominds are messing with my perception. What usually would have taken him ten seconds to think through and decide on was now taking him a second or two. It would be advantageous in certain scenarios, absolutely, but it still felt a bit uncomfortable. I¡¯ll have to get used to it. ¡°[So we¡¯re moving? Great! How long do you think it¡¯ll take us to cross it?]¡± Henry glanced at Stormsong as he had no idea himself, and Trickster¡¯s Pathfinding hadn¡¯t helped him there. At least, the Octomind in control of the skill hadn¡¯t been able to tell him. Stormsong shook her head. ¡°[I don¡¯t know. I¡¯ve heard both days and weeks from dolphins I don¡¯t think have actually attempted the crossing.]¡± Henry chuckled at that. ¡°[Alright. I¡¯ll start scouting. We¡¯ll do an hour or two every day, and we¡¯ll see how that goes.]¡± The trio ate and talked, planning out their goals for the downtime they might have, and Henry realized Stormsong was as much of a messy eater as Maurice was. By the time they left the cave, Henry felt that chunks of triggerfish were sticking to him. He could still taste and smell the fish nearly hours later with his arms. This time, they managed nearly five hours of travel through the Current. The next few days blurred between scouting, working on Stormsong¡¯s one-time skill copying construct, and on testing the limits of this Octominds. For the mantis shrimps¡­ Henry decided to keep them fresh and wait. He had more than enough on his plate with skills already, with all the new ones he had to practice with and train. Not to mention, he had to crack moving a class-skill to an Aspect without the System¡¯s help. *** The trip was both terrifying and exhilarating, but after the fifth day, Maurice had to admit the journey was a bit more scary than it was fun. After two more close calls with A-ranks¡ªthat they didn¡¯t even get to see¡ªMaurice began shuddering whenever a loud sound or something large moved in the cloudy golden sea. The seas at the edge of the Current hadn¡¯t been safe, but it was nowhere near as bad as this. The B-ranks were numerous. The A-ranks were more than any of them expected, but thankfully, Henry managed to confirm that he could detect the A-ranks with his pathfinding skill, which Maurice decided to focus on as well. If Henry could detect A-ranks with a skill, then there was no reason Maurice couldn¡¯t. Plus, now he had Clawminds. They could help him. A bit. Maurice sighed. He stared at the tiny shellfish he was nibbling on, then at where he knew his own sub-minds resided. They just weren¡¯t as good as Henry¡¯s. Which was understandable. But it still sucked. Even when Maurice tried to overwhelm the kraken with questions and statements, Henry waded through them seamlessly. Responding to every little inane thing. He still chided the crab, but it was as if he¡¯d suddenly become¡­ So. Much. Smarter. Maurice wasn¡¯t jealous of his friend. He just wanted to be as good! Glancing around, he saw Stormsong and Henry discussing and waving bits of congealed mana around. Both were working on their project now that they¡¯d finished their daily trip. They were getting better at shaping it, so Maurice let them to it. He found himself a nice spot to sit and glanced around. They were in a giant tree. Maurice wasn¡¯t sure what that was, but Henry seemed pretty sure. The whole area was full of these ¡°trees¡±. They were tall, brown, algae-covered columns with weird hard protrusions. Henry said that there were probably leaves far above, but he didn¡¯t want to head up. It was crawling with C-ranks up there. Maurice closed his eyes and triggered Find the Path, thinking hard of A-ranks. Where are they? Nothing. How can I find them? Nothing. Maurice hummed. This was an interesting puzzle. Even Henry didn¡¯t know exactly how his Octomind was finding them. Then again, maybe it made sense for Maurice to get no results for his attempts. After all, there shouldn¡¯t be any right here. Or Henry would have detected them. Right? Maurice considered how the skill might be able to find things by rank. Henry called it divination. Learning about things you weren¡¯t supposed to know by magic¡­ but even if the skill works like that sometimes, that doesn¡¯t explain why the little ball we found in the Trickster¡¯s kraken could get the skill to work every time. So divination might be one method, but another is, what¡­ something like a scent? A way to help the skill look in the right direction? What could something like that be for an A-rank? Their power? Their mana-reserve? Their soul? Maurice suddenly froze. He had an idea¡­ but he needed help. He glanced at Henry, but he wasn¡¯t sure if he should interrupt. Thankfully, the two had gone quiet, so he poked the kraken mentally. ¡°[Henry, can you help me with something?]¡± 2.35: Is it that way ¡°[Okay Maurice. There¡¯s a B-rank within two hundred feet of us. It¡¯s not moving, like you requested, and before you say anything, I won¡¯t tell where it is. Does that work for you?]¡± Maurice rubbed both claws together. It had taken them a couple of tries to get things right, but he could move on to the next step. ¡°[It¡¯s perfect. Don¡¯t tell me where it is. But keep an eye on it okay? Don¡¯t tell me anything else.]¡± ¡°[You got it, buddy. You need anything else?]¡± The crab opened and closed his claws a couple of times. ¡°[That¡¯s it. Thank you!]¡± Maurice settled in and activated Find the Path once more. This time, he tried to find a nearby B-rank by level. By soul. By mana-reserve, but nothing. He hadn¡¯t expected them to work. But there was something he hadn¡¯t tested; it wasn¡¯t something he could name, as he had no clue what it would be called. But he knew how it felt. For this next attempt, Maurice recalled the impression he had felt from Sundots. The dolphin¡¯s¡­ presence. The knowledge that even if he was blind and all of his senses were cut off, he would still know it was there. Find the Path. Find that feeling. It¡¯s close. Find it. Maurice activated the skill and tuned every speck of his being toward feeling out what he got back from the ability. The presence of his companions faded into the background. His mana flowed into the skill, and something began building up in his soul. The spell, he assumed, but he couldn¡¯t sense what it was doing very well. It fizzled out after a few seconds. Damn. One more time. He should be able to cast it at least four more times before he would need to rest and get his mana back. Find the presence. A B-rank. A heavy presence. The second attempt, he felt the spell begin to point in a direction, but it fizzled once more. The third time, Maurice thought only of the impression he¡¯d gotten from the dolphin. He didn¡¯t allow any thought to disrupt or distract him. The spell took in his mana, coalesced and whirled, and something snapped into place. Maurice opened his eyes and saw a hazy rope of golden light point below him and to the north-west. Did it work? Maurice¡¯s eyes turned to Henry. ¡°[Henry! Henry, is it that way?]¡± Henry looked up from the swirling mana between two arms and glanced in the direction Maurice was pointing. Then, after a long three seconds of wait time, Henry¡¯s voice reached his mind. ¡°[Huh¡­ Yup, it¡¯s right there. How did you do that?]¡± The mana continued coalescing between Henry¡¯s arms as he listened to Maurice¡¯s small breakthrough. As he asked Maurice questions, a few more clones were created and sent out. ¡°[Oh¡­ So that¡¯s what it meant? I tried asking the Octomind how it was finding the A-ranks, but it couldn¡¯t tell because the skill was part of it. Maybe by taking control of Find the Path, it somehow figured out the best way to describe a target and used my impression of them?]¡± Henry mused. ¡°[If that is how it¡¯s detecting them, it would make sense why it worked I guess, considering we felt what an A-rank is like.]¡± Maurice couldn¡¯t wait to get his own sub-minds to that level. With that confirmed, Maurice focused back, and this time, he set his aim on A-Ranks. Which was a feeling that was a lot easier to recall. Maurice had had a couple of dreams where they were running from that giant turtle. Its stifling presence was still fresh in his memory, so with that in mind, he triggered Find the Path once more, looking for A-ranks. His heart rate picked up. He didn¡¯t want to find anything. He shouldn¡¯t even find anything, because Henry would have definitely checked. And thankfully, after three more tries, nothing came up. That in itself was comforting, if only a little. What if his skill wasn¡¯t working? What if there was one, but it was just out of range? Maurice rubbed his pincers together nervously. Henry might have not been using Aspects to detect the A-rank monsters, but the crab had an Aspect that would be perfect for such endeavors. And he had enough juice in it for an attempt or two.Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings. Curiosity of the Hermit. He wanted to know. He also didn¡¯t want to know. But he had to know. If an Aspect-empowered Find the Path detected an active A-rank, they had to skedaddle. But if it was asleep or peaceful¡­ maybe they could steal a peak. That was an exciting thought. Maurice took a few deep breaths through his gills and let his mana refill a bit as he tried to calm his thoughts. At least his Clawminds helped a bit with that, and after a short while, Maurice activated the skill again. *** Henry could feel his companions¡¯ nervousness. Both Maurice and Stormsong hid their worry well, and Henry wasn¡¯t sensing their mood through his telepathy as both of them had their mind shields active, but he could read their body language well enough. Maurice was quieter than usual, often rubbing his claws together and staring at the exit, while Stormsong was restless, moving from one spot to the next continuously as she worked on her mana exercises. Not that I¡¯m doing much better. Henry checked on his scouting Octomind once more. He¡¯d been checking often, even though he knew the sub-mind would alert him if something popped up, but he couldn¡¯t help it. It¡¯d been nearly a week now since they started their trip, and the random A-Rank they were barely dodging was ratcheting up the stress they were all under. Henry hadn¡¯t dared even get close. As soon as the pathfinding Octomind detected them, Henry would immediately change directions. On one occasion, they had to stop and turn away when they realized they¡¯d been on a collision course with the creature. How did they get that powerful? To be fair, Henry didn¡¯t even tangle with mid B-ranks at this point, but the gap between the strongest B-rank and the A-ranks was incomprehensibly wide. It was almost like the difference between the juvenile sea serpent and the adult they¡¯d seen a few days ago. It will take us a while to get to that point. At least they weren¡¯t idle. Henry and the others were leveling, both from the Current itself and from the high C-ranks they were hunting. They hadn¡¯t found an isolated low B-rank just yet to bring down, but it was only a matter of time. It would be best to do that when they felt safe that an A-rank wasn¡¯t about to drop on¡ª The flash of panic broke through Maurice¡¯s mind shield and into Henry¡¯s own mind like a bullet. Henry threw the congealed mana into his Maw and surged up, one arm reaching for Stormsong while the other was ready to pick the crab and store him in his Maw. ¡°[What¡¯s going on, Maurice?]¡± The crab was staring up directly above, claws twitching. Tuning into the clones he had above, Henry saw nothing. ¡°[There¡¯s one above us. Far above,]¡± said the crab. Henry stared for a second, then ordered his scouts to begin moving. ¡°[Okay. Let¡¯s go. We leave in¡ª]¡± Maurice''s claws shook harder, but he scuttled in place. ¡°[It¡¯s not moving.]¡± Henry slowed down, and so did Stormsong. The situation was still precarious, but not as bad as it would have been if the creature was coming down on them. In fact, because it wasn¡¯t moving, the predicament might have just become an opportunity. Not that Henry intended on doing anything aggressive, but just knowing a bit more about the scale and possible abilities of these creatures was important. It was still a bit risky to send a clone to take a peek at them, but it was an acceptable risk. Maurice continued rubbing his claws nervously, looked at Henry, then looked above while Stormsong fidgeted about. ¡°[Are we leaving or not?!]¡± ¡°[We are,]¡± said Henry as he eyed the crab while a thrum of excitement¡ªor fear¡ªshook his arms.¡°[But¡­ maybe once we¡¯re at the edge of the range, I can send a clone to take a look?]¡± ¡°[Maybe I¡¯m wrong and there¡¯s nothing¡­]¡± said the crab, but neither he nor Henry believed in that. The crab had always been the one with the sharper senses. ¡°[Alright. Let¡¯s go.]¡± As the trio followed Henry¡¯s navigational Octomind, they swam up to allow the two blood clones to get in range of wherever the A-rank was. Maybe if they got close enough Henry¡¯s Octomind would be able to find the creature, but Henry soon found that he couldn¡¯t send them any further unless they started climbing the column of algae-covered bark and wood, which made Henry pause. If these trees break the surface¡­ maybe it¡¯s a bird of some sort? Henry was fully invested in figuring out what they were dealing with at this point. Such knowledge was bound to be valuable. If not to him, then to someone else. But he still didn¡¯t want to take unnecessary risks, so after a quick consultation with the other two, they decided to pivot. Henry spread his clones and sent them upward along the tree trunks, leaving as many as he could behind to secure their retreat. They were going to see what this creature was¡ªfrom as safe a distance as he could manage through the clones¡ªand then they were getting the heck away. 2.36: Not interested The trunks of the giant trees were still just as thick and imposing as Henry¡¯s two invisible blood clones swam up, with Henry, Stormsong, and Maurice trailing half a mile behind, but now there were countless algae-covered branches to hide their progress and create cover for them. It was also a prime ambush spot, and Henry¡¯s clones missed a couple of pesky opponents. Henry whirled with a long arm and smacked the C-rank crab out of its skill-empowered leap while Stormsong knocked the second away with her body. From an ink-clone below them, he saw the creature beat its many legs, pumping its purple, scissor-like claws until it touched the trunk again and began scuttling upward to rejoin the fray. Its claws were like tailor¡¯s scissors. Long, thin, and with a sharp point. Also venomous. Henry could tell, considering the burning sensation that was trying to crawl up his arm. A third ten-foot-tall crab jumped and stabbed, aiming at Henry¡¯s eye while a fourth was swatted away by a giant glowing claw. ¡°[Can we pick one of these up? I wanna try it,]¡± said Maurice while Henry locked up the crab jumping at him with Telekinesis before he brought it within reach. [Spiderbark Crab (C) - Lvl 31] Henry wrapped his arm around the creature and channeled his electricity into it until he got the death notification. Around five minutes later¡ªafter having to stop the blood clones or they¡¯d get out of range¡ªthe trio had to make some adjustments to their route as more and more of the crabs were coming out of hiding, alerted to their presence. Ten more minutes later, they managed to lose the creatures and continued their progress upward until the surface was in the blood clone¡¯s sight once more. It has been a while. Henry yearned to reach the surface and take a look around. How long had it been since he felt air on his skin? It wasn¡¯t uncomfortable being underwater, and thankfully the Current was well-lit, but the caves they had to hide in weren¡¯t. Always being forced to rest in the darkness was getting old. Even if he could see just fine. As the clones drew close to the surface, Henry began picking up some interesting details. The trunks of the giant tree didn¡¯t start branching out just yet, but they were a bit less covered by algae, and Henry noticed¡­ ropes. Braided ropes full of clams. Empty wooden cages covered with algae. And as Henry realized what he was staring at, the surface broke as something fell through. Followed by two more forms a second later. [Human (C) - Lvl 33] [Human (C) - Lvl 24] [Human (C) - Lvl 7] Half a mile below, Henry came to a stop as he stared through his clone¡¯s eyes, disbelieving. The three men came to a stop near the surface and gestured to each other for a few moments. They wore dark loincloths, and each carried a wooden spear in hand while a little fiber-made satchel hung around their shoulders. Moments later, two of them kept watch while the third moved between the ropes of clams and cages, inspecting their contents. ¡°[Henry, what¡¯s going on? Do you see the A-rank?]¡± Maurice asked, breaking Henry out of his shock and reminding him of their current situation. If there are humans up here, and there¡¯s an A-rank around¡­ Henry was curious about what kind of settlement was up there and how they managed to survive in the middle of the ocean, but it was just too dangerous to approach. It was just a gut feeling, but he imagined a C-rank human was a lot more dangerous than a stupid triggerfish or squid. After all, he owed his own survival to his adaptability and intellect as much as his skills. ¡°[Humans,]¡± Henry said. ¡°[I think there¡¯s some sort of village or town above us.]¡± Stormsong and Maurice both looked up, eyes shining, then both spoke out at once. ¡°[Are we going to talk to them? Do they look like you? Also, didn¡¯t you say they wouldn¡¯t survive in the Current?]¡± ¡°[What¡¯s a village?]¡± Maurice peppered him with questions while Stormsong went with the basics. After a quick explanation of what a village was, Henry turned his attention to Maurice.This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it. ¡°[I¡¯m curious, but no. There¡¯s an A-rank up there, Maurice. Remember what I said about humans? We¡¯re leaving.]¡± Henry expected the crab to complain or say something, but he didn¡¯t. Henry was frankly still shocked. He expected to find people, eventually. But not here. And he hadn¡¯t expected them to be so powerful. If it wasn¡¯t for the A-rank, I might have been able to create a human form with Mimicry¡¯s C-rank ability. But it¡¯s just so risky¡­ The kraken was already making sure their retreat was clear as he recalled his blood clones after one last glance at the three humans, when he felt a claw tap him on the arm. The crab spoke up again, and there was a note of panic in his voice. ¡°[Henry¡­]¡± Henry glanced down at the crab in his arm and saw him pointing behind him, and the kraken¡¯s stomach dropped. He slowly turned, alarmed but unsure what the crab had seen, only to find a human staring at him from twenty feet away. One that somehow bypassed all of his clones. And hadn¡¯t registered in his telepathic sense. [Human (B) - Lvl ??] The man had long dark hair tied up in a bun. His eyebrows were raised as his eyes moved from Henry to Maurice and Stormsong before they settled back on Henry. He carried a tooth-tipped spear that he used to point at Henry, then pointed up. The kraken eyed the newcomer carefully and began activating his defensive skills. The man wore a loincloth similar to the ones Henry saw above, and there was a clearly skill-based nimbus of magic around his feet. The stranger repeated the gesture, but this time, he gripped his spear with both hands after making the gesture. The signal was clear enough. But Henry wasn¡¯t interested in it. He wasn¡¯t putting himself and his companions in the arms of a human settlement. One that might have a freaking A-rank hanging around. ¡°[I¡¯d rather not,]¡± Henry decided to send the man. At the same time, he was urgently scouting below, confirming the retreat route was safe. Through his closest blood clone, he activated Blink¡¯s D-rank ability, creating an anchor for Blink. A quick, powerful jump away before they ran. Henry could break away in an instant. He was also ready to send both Maurice and Stormsong into his Maw, of which he informed both. The man was powerful. He would probably be a pain in the ass to get away from, but that wasn¡¯t the only worry. If this guy snuck up on me, there might be more. ¡°[Maurice¡­ try to feel out the area.]¡± The crab gave Henry one tap to confirm, while Henry watched as the man¡¯s eyes widen at his telepathic communication. The man¡¯s lips stretched in a smile, showing bright white teeth. Slowly, he raised a hand and carefully raised his spear before he put it behind his back, where it snapped in place as if caught by a magnet. Then the man raised both arms before he pointed up. Less threatening. Still not interested. And I still need to leave. But Henry didn¡¯t want to be rude. And he was so damn curious. ¡°[If you want to talk, you can talk to my clone near the surface. If you head up in the next ten seconds, we can talk.]¡± Henry was teleporting to his clone and swimming away in five seconds. The man blinked at him a couple of times, then nodded. The nimbus of swirling green brightened around his feet, then he surged up, faster than Henry had expected. Too easy. ¡°[Anything, Maurice?]¡± ¡°[Nothing on telepathy. I¡¯m about to use Find the Path. Give me a second¡­]¡± Henry sent back one of his blood clones and allowed it to get slightly out of range, just so it would be able to crack the surface. It might take him a bit more effort to hold the link, but it was safer. Seconds later, the man arrived. He stared at the invisible clone as if it hadn¡¯t even been there, and Henry considered dispelling the illusion, but it wasn''t worth it. No need to attract more attention than necessary. ¡°Greetings, kraken.¡± ¡°Hello. Human,¡± Henry answered, hearts pounding. He had decided to use a sonic illusion instead of telepathy, which made the man chuckle. He wanted to look up at the mind-bogglingly huge trees all around, but he thought he needed to focus on the man just in front of him. Still, he noticed the bridges between the gigantic branches. The homes. The people. ¡°You¡¯re full of surprises,¡± said the man in a language Henry couldn¡¯t identify but could still understand. ¡°I find myself incredibly curious about how you¡¯ve come to be. You¡¯re well spoken. You have companions. I was not expecting to meet an awakened kraken today. Especially not one that is so¡­ civilized. What brings you to our home?¡± If Henry had a human body, he would be sweating right about now. The man seemed pleasant and all, but this little conversation felt dangerous. What should he do? Be honest? Lie? If he could somehow tell I¡¯m lying, I¡¯d be playing into the Trickster¡¯s crappy reputation. Plus, I might get a hint. ¡°I sensed an A-rank in this area,¡± Henry said, deciding to keep Maurice and Stormsong¡¯s intelligence to himself. ¡°I wanted to take a look.¡± The man recoiled as if struck, a look of intense surprise on his face. ¡°You sensed our sleeping guardian? From that far below?¡± Maybe I shouldn¡¯t have said that. Half a mile below, Maurice tapped Henry and spoke up.¡°[Henry¡­ There''s another B-rank behind us. I think it¡¯s invisible.]¡± 2.37: Lords and kings Henry kept his mind shielded as he began planning around the second B-rank while his clone kept engaging with the human. Maybe whatever was watching them wasn¡¯t another human, but he really doubted that. More likely, the two B-ranks were a team, and while one of them agreed to be diplomatic and chat, the second was keeping an eye on them. Before turning his attention back up to the clone above, Henry gave Maurice another request. ¡°[Try to feel if more of them show up. Let me know as soon as anything changes.]¡± Back above, Henry finally responded to the man¡¯s surprise about him having detected the A-rank. ¡°They are such a powerful existence that they¡¯re hard to miss.¡± He hoped his words would be taken as praise, considering the note of devotion he thought he heard in the man¡¯s voice. To keep things going while he planned his exit, he asked, ¡°How did you find yourself under such protection?¡± Henry would be sweating buckets if he¡¯d been back in his human body. But his many minds allowed him to stay balanced atop the tightrope he was trying to walk. The man glanced up at the trees and Henry followed his gaze. The kraken quickly realized that he couldn¡¯t even see the blue sky from this angle. He believed he could make out the thick canopy far, far above, but it could be beyond more branches and leaves. The more he took in the details, the more dizzying the scale became, and at some point Henry realized that there was more than one settlement in this mysterious forest. They were all connected, of course, but that was the only way he could explain the small differences in styles and the distance between constructions. They¡¯ve had a long time to expand through the trees. They¡¯ve been here for a while. ¡°Our guardian created this home for us centuries ago. A place where we can be safe and grow strong, away from our enemies; and thanks to his presence, even the sea kings don¡¯t dare approach our home. He is beyond their challenges. Which leaves the sea lords and everything lesser, but we can deal with those by ourselves.¡± ¡°Sea kings? Lords?¡± The man chuckled. ¡°What you call A-ranks and B-ranks.¡± The man tilted his head. ¡°How did you come to be, stranger? This is most troubling. I feel as if I¡¯m talking to a fellow human. The awakened often have their own way of speaking and doing things, but you¡­ are different.¡± Henry eyed the man for a moment. He seemed friendly. But that meant nothing. Deep below, his retreat route was clear. The B-rank hidden behind them was still watching, and now that he knew where to look, he could sense it. B-ranks are sea-lords, huh? That makes this guy one. And that makes the Draconic Turtle a sea-king. Henry pictured that shelled titan and its earth-shattering roar. The emerald-green ridges and its claws. The title certainly did fit, in the turtle¡¯s case. Henry looked up at the man and answered his question. ¡°I don¡¯t know what to tell you. One moment I wasn¡¯t¡­ and then I was.¡± It wasn¡¯t really a lie. But Henry wasn¡¯t telling this man about hisreincarnation. That knowledge was probably not a big deal when talking with sea dwelling dolphins, but with humans who could write down things and never forget them, he didn¡¯t want to put a target on his back. ¡°An apt way of describing consciousness,¡± said the man with a nod. Then, almost imperceptibly, the man¡¯s features turned neutral. ¡°What was your intent for entering our territory?¡± ¡°Nothing but curiosity,¡± said Henry. ¡°I wanted to see the sea king, then leave. I recently encountered one, and just its roar was enough to injure us. I felt I had to know more about them.¡± The man stared at him for a few moments, then nodded. ¡°Alright. In this case, you are welcome to rest with us. Some of our priests and teachers would love to meet a being such as you.¡± Ah shit. It wasn¡¯t said in the earlier friendlier tone, but Henry kept a relaxed tone and raised an arm. ¡°Is this offer optional?¡±Support the creativity of authors by visiting the original site for this novel and more. The man gave him a tight smile, and adrenaline began coursing through the kraken¡¯s body. ¡°You found our home. We have to be sure of your integrity before we can risk you revealing it to outsiders.¡± Welp. That¡¯s my cue. ¡°Understandable,¡± said Henry through the clone. Far below, he sent a message to his companions. ¡°[We¡¯re running. Get in.]¡± ¡°[I haven¡¯t sensed anything else but that the one nearby. Don¡¯t take too long!]¡± said Maurice right before he disappeared. Stormsong shot him a word right before he stored her as well. ¡°[Bring me out if you need help. Good luck.]¡± From nearby, Henry saw the figure detach from a tree trunk she¡¯d been melded to; far above, the man frowned for the first time. But there was no more time to exchange pleasantries. Still, Henry didn¡¯t want to end things on too sour of a note. He really wanted to explore this settlement someday. Just not when he could be held against his will. ¡°I will be discrete with this knowledge. But it¡¯s time to say goodbye,¡± said Henry. Before he could hear what the man said in response, he dispelled the blood clone, and triggered Blink and Invisibility. Henry was swallowed in a tunnel of purple and blue for less than a second before he popped back out into the ocean atop one of his blood clones. Ugh. That was so expensive. And it¡¯s barely a hundred feet. Henry activated Riptide Rush and zipped down his prepared route, then cursed when he saw the spear-wielding woman still after him. Shit. Why can everyone see through invisibility?! Sharp green eyes were trained on him while her brown hair trailed behind her. It was braided, and she held a spear almost identical to the one the man had. She had a nimbus of white and green around her feet, propelling her with alarming speed through the waters. [Human (B) - Lvl ?] Two question marks is below level fifty. One is under 25. But that¡¯s still too much. Even if he could, Henry didn¡¯t want to kill the humans. Not unless they started using lethal methods. So far, it seemed they were more intent on capturing him than killing him. Henry brought up one of his nearby blood clones to intercept. He was better off doing something with it, otherwise he¡¯d end up losing them anyway in his mad rush toward the seabed. The clone appeared in his vision, and Henry swam past right as it created a cloud of disorienting ink. When the human got close to the clone, he detonated it. He had no hope it would be enough to stop the woman, but anything would help. The clone detonated in a flash of black and red, spreading the magical ink into a larger cloud while Henry risked a sharper angle away from the path he was following. He had an ink clone near it, but it wasn¡¯t as vetted. The kraken dodged a C-rank crab as his two largest arms morphed. Hinge-joints formed along its length, and two large still-white teeth emerged out of Henry¡¯s maw and took their places at the tips of arms. He held off on channeling mana into them and adapted his route, taking sharp turns around the thick tree trunks. Half a second later, the woman punched through the cloud of ink, an annoyed frown on her face. She held her spear ahead of her, and the bone-head shone green before the spear shot forward like a harpoon. In no time, the weapon closed in on him. Shit! Henry swerved around another trunk, but the harpoon swerved right after him. It cut through the water effortlessly as he watched it through a nearby clone, and it would pierce his skin within a couple of seconds if he did nothing about it. Henry pushed against it with Telekinesis, but it tore through the purple nimbus easily, as if the glowing head of the spear could tear through magic just as well as flesh. Right as it got within range, Henry whipped back with a mana-infused leviathan tooth and for good measure, he used Cavitational Impact to disturb the trajectory in case he missed. ¡°Help me hit it,¡± he told his free Octominds. His many joints twitched and adjusted mid-swing, and the black leviathan tooth cracked into the green spear-head with a burst of mana that made Henry¡¯s insides shudder. He lost the mana charge he had in the arm, but so did the woman¡¯s spear, and finally the root and algae carpeted seabed came into view. Henry wasn¡¯t running out of mana, as his smaller form reduced his use of the resource significantly, but he still dug into his Hoard Vitals¡¯ reserves to bring him back up above sixty-percent mark. The human was back after him, spear in hand. The weapon began glowing once more when his scouting Octomind raised the alarm. The man he¡¯d been speaking to had just destroyed an ink clone around fifty feet down with a casual spear thrust. Henry was being pincered. 2.38: Race to the bottom Henry cursed. With the woman coming down from above, and the man waiting for him below, he changed direction once more and hoped he wasn¡¯t about to find a third person waiting to get the drop on him. This time, he just swam in a direct line to his recently appointed true north: the straight path away from where they¡¯d entered the Current. The man realized he¡¯d been made, so he began swimming up at an angle while the woman swam down from above. They wanted to sandwich him in, Henry realized. Then both of them suddenly accelerated. Leave me alone, you dicks. Henry Blinked forward, barely escaping a spear thrust while both humans joined up before they separated and continued their pursuit, and followed it by summoning a massive cloud of ink. But this time, he didn¡¯t waste mana making it disorienting. Instead, he turned his own skin to the familiar inky black of his clones and, after pulling some Misdirection-aspected mana, he summoned ten ink clones. ¡°Make half of them move realistically. The rest in a straight line. Send one back up the trees and the rest in all directions,¡± Henry ordered his free Octominds With the different behaviors and with the one heading back up, he hoped to confuse his pursuers and throw them off his scent. The conceptual mana should help give the clones some heft, and it was the only way to make them display the same level as his own to another user¡¯s Identify. Well. That and Shiftiness. But he¡¯d rather save that one for later. For when he was far enough from their territory and he still needed to lay low. He doubted they¡¯d be willing to get too far from their home. Henry burst out of the inky cloud at the same time as ten other very realistic clones surged in all directions. Behind him, the two humans slowed for a fraction of a second before the woman¡¯s eye shone blue, and Henry¡¯s heart dropped. Wait a second¡­ She kept looking from one clone to the next. Her frown deepened, and Henry realized she couldn¡¯t tell them apart. Not fast enough, at least, which was why the man decided to get aggressive while his partner continued scanning the dispersing clones. While Henry swam away, an invisible clone he left behind continued watching. The glow in the woman¡¯s eyes grew sharper, while the man shot ocean-green rays at Henry¡¯s many clones. The projectiles homed in on the ink-clones, destroying them all in one shot. Even the invisible blood clone he¡¯d been watching from got shot. But that was alright. Henry was nearing the end of this underwater forest. The last of the giant tree-trunks was already in sight. Unfortunately, the woman managed to see through his trick, and the duo were back on his trail once more. And they were gaining. The kraken kept relentlessly pushing forward, zipping between trunks and ignoring the occasional fly-by attacks, though he still kept some clone-eyes on the homing shots. Arms and siphon pumping, Henry kept Riptide Rush going, even went so far as to feed it some Swiftness-mana for an extra kick. He would be a lot more visible once he was out of the territory, but at that point, they¡¯d hopefully be in less familiar territory. The concept-empowered clones barely gave me five seconds of a headstart. B-ranks are such bullshit. And how are they still down here? I get that Stormsong¡¯s species managed to evolve and stay permanently deep below, but what¡¯s their excuse? The two humans were gaining on him even more, their shots getting dangerously close to hitting him, so Henry channeled mana into his defensive skills. Between the toughened flesh and the deflective properties of his skin, he should be able to tank a few hits safely. A bone shell or cover would be nice, but I¡¯m yet to figure out a way to do it without killing my speed. Henry shot from behind the last tree trunk into a stone and sand covered flat stretch. The usual plant life and reefs were present as always, and as he took in the few swimming specimens in the area, the kraken had a few ideas of how he could make himself scarce. He summoned one more massive cloud of ink, and this time he sent twenty different clones in all directions while he activated the next part of his escape plan. Activating Mimicry¡¯s new ability, Henry shoved half of his remaining Shiftiness mana into it and, with the help of his free Octominds, quickly fashioned himself a new form. Out of the screen of ink came a panicked black and gray trigger-fish. The clones spread out in all directions while Henry, after the quick ¡°panicked¡± dart, slowed down to a leisurely but still intent speed and watched the scene through his many clones. Please work.You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story. Henry was running low on mana. He still had plenty of hoarded charges, but they¡¯d put him at most back to half. The two humans came out of the submerged woods and the woman scanned the scrambling, inky forms of his clones with glowing eyes. Bubbles escaped from her lips and she signed to the man, pointing a finger upward then closed it to a fist. Henry had no clue what that meant, but he hoped they were running out of air and had to leave. In the meantime, he continued swimming away, low to the ground, occasionally biting at small crabs or shellfish that he could find, blowing over the sand and picking up scrap. Classic trigger-fish behavior. And thankfully, this new form allowed him to do mundane actions without much effort. But nothing more. Not yet. Skills disturbed the camouflage. In fact, anything too forceful disturbed the shell he was now wearing. The skill created a body around his own, and then it would transfer control of this new body to his own through magic. He could see and sense through the shell, but any strong movement could disturb the fake layer. He still had control of his clones, his Octominds, and all of that, but nearly anything else could dispel it. For now, it was fine. He had to just be patient. Even if someone used Identify, they should see nothing but a C-rank trigger-fish. After all, the skill mimicked the mana signature of creatures as well as their appearance. Seconds ticked by as the two humans shot at his inky forms, and then, finally, they began swimming up. With another invisible blood clone, Henry watched them disappear above, and after taking another gander around, he dismissed his clones. All of them, just in case they could be traced back to him. Finally, he expended the last dredges of Shiftiness mana and pushed them into Invisibility. With the skill now part of his class, it could channel the special mana much better, and as he disappeared into the clear golden waters, he just kept swimming. Around ten minutes later, Henry came upon a nice stretch of sandy underwater dunes, and right before them, he found a nice large rock to hide under. After spending a few minutes making sure nothing was hiding within by peeking at it from afar, he slipped under it and shed the trigger-fish form. But that didn¡¯t mean he could relax. Henry matched the colors of his surroundings and stayed still. With how both of them had snuck up on me and how hard they were to detect, I can¡¯t be safe enough. Henry resolved to hold still for an hour or two. Without summoning clones and without expenditures of mana. Not as if he had that much left, anyway. Instead, he calmed his mind and breathed slowly, letting his recovery skill kick in as he reviewed the events and as he stared out into the lights of the Current. Giant trees in the middle of the ocean¡­ with human settlements on the branches. Who would have thought? It could have been paranoia, but Henry was happy he¡¯d managed to get away from them. He hoped to be able to visit someday, but for now, the thought of multiple B-ranks and C-rank humans all around him made him sweat. What if they try to make him into a pet or imprison him somehow? Henry couldn¡¯t wait to learn what was going on in this world and how it came to be, but it had to be on his terms. It had to be done in a way that won¡¯t risk his capture or death, and unfortunately, that meant he had to be strong or slippery. Preferably both. If this settlement had been only D-ranks and C-ranks, he could have sent a clone in. Talked and learned and explored. But this place? I¡¯d have to be mid B-rank. At the least. Or have a way to teleport a lot farther than what Blink allows. Still, it was incredibly impressive how these people managed to leave out here. And how do the trees survive? This area wasn¡¯t as deep as others, but it was still close to a mile in depth. Considering how high those trees were¡­ That puts them at least at a mile in height. Henry wished he had a camera. Seeing the tree tops, even though he¡¯d been tense and on edge, had been an amazing experience.. ¡°[I¡¯m glad my home impressed you.]¡± Henry¡¯s mind screamed at him and he instantly triggered Blink, only to realize a hand was on top of his head. When the mana rushed to his spirit, a pulse came through the hand and undid his action. Next, a smothering presence fell on him, locking his thoughts and limbs, like a spiritual fist had wrapped itself around his soul. ¡°[Breathe. Relax. I¡¯m not here to hurt you.]¡± Henry¡¯s eyes moved to the right as the grip on his insides slightly relaxed. He didn¡¯t dare move anything other than his eyes. Next to him, seated on the sand, was a monkey. No, a humanoid monkey. His face was clear of fur, but everything else was covered by a mesmerizing short golden coat that rippled and reflected the lights. His face was relaxed, and he was sitting a bit hunched. With fur-covered digits, he scooped up a bit of sand and let it gently flow out. [Earthtender Ape of Myth and Wonder (?) - Lvl ?] The much smaller humanoid gave the kraken a sidelong wink and a sharp-toothed smile before tapping his temple. ¡°[See. I don¡¯t mean you any harm. So, let¡¯s have a little chat. Human.]¡± 2.39: The guardian Henry brought his arms under his body to help with the twitching while his mind went into overdrive. It felt a bit safer to have them under him. Less risk of them getting chopped off. He wasn¡¯t sure why that would be a concern for him. Focus. This is an A-rank. What the hell do I do? And why does it think I¡¯m human? Henry struggled to process everything, but his Octominds didn¡¯t let him miss any details. He was aware the ape was picking up thoughts and impressions off of him, so he tried to keep a tight lid on them. Mind shield really needs to be leveled. But I have no clue how I¡¯m supposed to do that¡­ For now, it was better to take the conversation out of his head. ¡°[Why do you think I¡¯m human?]¡± The ape rubbed at his forearm and nodded, still looking out into the sea. ¡°[I¡¯m happy you¡¯re not denying it. I might have felt insulted if you did,]¡± the ape said, staring into the flat sandy stretch ahead with his hands on his knees. ¡°[Little Zamir brought it to my attention. Well, he voiced it when you two were talking. And after watching you for the last couple of hours, I have to agree.]¡± The being turned his head back and looked up, as if he could see all the way back to the village. As far as Henry knew, he might very well be doing so. If Henry could scout everywhere within half a mile with his own clones, he wouldn¡¯t be surprised if an A-rank could do much better. The sea king paddled with his leather-wrapped feet¡ªand they definitely weren¡¯t fully human¡ªand spoke.¡°[For someone still in their first century, he¡¯s a sharp kid],¡± he said, smiling wistfully as he looked down at his clasped hands. Then he looked up, and Henry met the emerald-green stare. Henry could only meet the creature¡¯s eyes for a few seconds before he had to look away. It felt like staring into the sun, somehow. Like every little fear and secrets held in his heart were being exposed, weighed, and judged. The ape took another handful of sand and let it flow out of his hand as he spoke once more. ¡°[You don¡¯t think at all like a kraken. Not that I¡¯ve met many. But the impressions I¡¯m getting from your mind, the way you speak and plan and behave¡­ If I took away your appearance, I¡¯d absolutely think you were human.]¡± Henry tried to keep his thoughts in order, and he mostly did a good job. But he couldn¡¯t not feel the snaking dread creeping up his stomach. When that one slipped his control, so did the thought of Blinking away and booking it, and Henry made himself a promise: if he survived this, he was finding a monk and training under them for at least a month. Teach his mind some discipline. The ape shook his head, grinning. ¡°[Oh come now. Relax. I told you, you¡¯re safe. We can¡¯t have a conversation if you keep thinking of ways of running. I mean, it¡¯s a healthy attitude to have when navigating the waters of a Pillar, but believe it or not, right now you¡¯re one of the safest human beings in this world.]¡± That wasn¡¯t wrong, Henry realized. There wasn¡¯t much he could do to the guardian if the latter got violent, but it didn¡¯t seem like the case, so he should treat this like another Bahamut whale encounter. Deep down, Henry believed he had a chance of getting out, no matter how thin it was. But he didn¡¯t think it would get there, so he breathed out and unrolled his arms from under him, letting his natural colors revert. ¡°[I thought you were asleep? That¡¯s what the man said. Zamir, right?]¡± Then, because he couldn¡¯t help himself, he asked one more question. ¡°[And what do you mean by his first century? He looked barely in his twenties?]¡± ¡°[Appearances don¡¯t count for much when it comes to humans. Ranks greatly affect the aging process in all creatures. You would have known that if you¡¯ve had any normal upbringing. But clearly, you didn¡¯t.]¡± Henry felt his insides twist, but he forced himself to exhale. Should he trust this being? Did he have a choice? Henry didn¡¯t try to hide those thoughts. Just in case they were seen as offensive, somehow, he readied himself to run. But his gut feeling told him there was no need and thankfully, the ape, after running a hand over his face, confirmed. ¡°[You know what, you¡¯re right. You only have my word, and to be fair you don¡¯t know me, so your lack of trust is understandable. So. Here.]¡± The sea king closed his eyes for a second, and when he opened them, they shone with a jade green light. ¡°[I, Zerathstra of the Earthtenders, promise to not harm you in any way whatsoever for a week. Not even if provoked. And I will not harm you after said week unless you prove to be a danger to me or to my people.]¡±Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. The words had been sent telepathically, but Henry realized he could hear them re-verb in the real world. In fact, the air seemed to shudder around him, and in his mana vision, for a moment, everything visibly rippled as the words were spoken. Deep down, Henry knew that breaking that promise would have a cost. It may just be a slap on the wrist, but breaking the promise would be wrong. Then again, Henry could ask about this. After all, he got a promise that no harm was going to come to him. ¡°[What does it mean? What you just did?]¡± Zerathstra tilted his head and grinned wider. ¡°[That was a soul oath. As you humans say, a verbal magical contract. You would know if you¡¯d grown up within any civilized society of this world. So how come you don¡¯t know any of this? How come you don¡¯t know about the effect of classes and Aspects on this world¡¯s humans? I am genuinely intrigued. I¡¯ve been around for a while, and I¡¯ve seen and learned quite a few things, but this right here¡­ This is new.]¡± Henry eyed the sea king for a few moments, thinking through his options, then he raised one arm. ¡°[I can tell you. On one condition.]¡± The ape raised an eyebrow. ¡°[Name it.]¡± ¡°[Make another oath. One where you will not tell anyone, in any way, about this secret, and will never come after me to capture me or use it against my will.]¡± ¡°[That is drastic,]¡± said Zerathstra. Then he shrugged.¡°[You got it.]¡± Zerathstra recited the oath, and the world shuddered at his words. For a moment, Henry thought he¡¯d fucked up and made his oath too loose, but even though he went through it with his Octominds, he couldn¡¯t find any loophole. Then again, he didn¡¯t know how severe breaking an oath would be, and if he pushed on that point, he felt like it would really start straining the potential of a relationship with this powerful being. And who knew, maybe the ape knew about other cases of this phenomenon. ¡°[I come from a world without magic. Without a System or classes or Aspects. As far as I know. I died, and I woke up in the body of an Octopus, deep in the Current. I¡¯ve been fighting and swimming my way out ever since.]¡± Henry went on and recounted some of his adventures to the captivated sea king. The ape asked a couple of questions here and there, mostly trying to confirm that Henry had really moved from one world to another, and soon most questions began revolving around the turtle-shell, which Henry still felt iffy about revealing. He had only described it as a marine turtle and stopped at that, but Zerathstra¡¯s next question pretty much confirmed he suspected the right creature. ¡°[Was the shell made of many colors? As if it was made of precious stones and metal?]¡± Henry couldn¡¯t lie. His thoughts were crystal clear to the sea king, just like they¡¯d been to the Bahamut Whales. ¡°[Yes. The Bahamut Whales called it a sacred traveller. I could never Identify it, as it was already dead. The shell just said ¡®turtle shell¡¯.]¡± Zerathstra¡¯s feature lit up at the mention of the whales. ¡°[I haven¡¯t seen them in decades. Who did you meet? Seacrest? Deepcaller? Wavetail?]¡± ¡°[Deepcaller.]¡± The ape¡¯s eyes lit up and he chuckled, sending bubbles out of the caves.¡°[Bahamut whales have always been great friends of the Earthtenders. As for the turtles, we¡­ had a book or two whch spoke of such creatures, but they are incredibly rare. And extremely difficult to approach or communicate with. It¡¯s tragic that the one you found died.]¡± Zerathstra seemed lost in his thoughts. His shoulders were a bit hunched, and for a short moment, it looked as if a weight was threatening to crush him. Then he sighed and straightened up. ¡°[Could I see it? I know this is a matter of trust, and I would owe you a boon if you¡¯d let me examine it. I promise I will return it to you immediately. No funny business.]¡± The ape seemed greatly saddened, and Henry didn¡¯t miss how he spoke of these Earthtenders. Something had happened, which might explain how he¡¯d come to live in the middle of the ocean, but he couldn¡¯t pry. It felt¡­ rude. He didn¡¯t mind showing the turtle shell, though. ¡°[Sure. I can¡¯t show you the original one, but I can show you a second I found within a few hours of distance to the first.]¡± Henry pulled out the second turtle shell. The one he¡¯d found impaled on the leviathan¡¯s jaw. Much smaller than I remember, Henry thought as he eyed the shell in one of his long arms before handing it to a frowning and disturbed Zerathstra. The sea king took the shell gently with both hands. His eyes glowed as he studied it, slowly turning it over. He grimaced, baring sharp canines when he saw the hole that pierced through the bottom plates, at which point Henry clarified by pulling one of the leviathan teeth. ¡°[It was in the jaw of this thing. A dolphin told me it was a leviathan,]¡± he said as he pumped some mana into the tooth, turning the white fang to the familiar void-like black. Zerathstra spared it a glance and nodded. ¡°[The stain matches. The poor thing. They travel worlds and realities, collecting knowledge and souls, only to fall to such feral creatures,]¡± he said. He put the shell on the sand, put a hand over it, quietly, then looked up at Henry. ¡°[This shell is a treasure. I would request it be buried or given a send-off, but it is not my place to demand such. You may take it back, and you can name your boon.]¡± 2.40: Boon and Aspects What boon did Henry want? He peered out into the sea ahead, rolling the turtle shell in his arms before he stored it once again. Could he visit the settlement in the trees and have his safety guaranteed? It would be an amazing opportunity to learn about this world and to take a break from the Current¡¯s relentless dangers. He was tempted to ask for his boon to basically be a guided visit, but while Henry had refrained from questioning Zerathstra on the actual restrictions of oaths earlier, he felt some details were needed if he were to commit to a visit. He knew the sea king was probably aware of his train of thoughts, but thankfully, the A-rank let him ask the question himself. ¡°[What¡¯s an oath? How could I do it myself, and what does it entail for someone to break it?]¡± The Earthtender ape listened and nodded, then reached over to his belt. There was a small leather pouch with green-tipped cord which seemed to be only there for decoration. The ape put his hand in the pouch, then frowned as he rummaged. Slowly, his arm sunk deeper and deeper until it was down all the way to his elbow. Then his face lit up, and he pulled a small, carved orb made out of wood. He peered at it for a second, and spoke to Henry¡¯s mind. ¡°[Divination is a peculiar magic. Most other other magics are simple and straightforward. The Aspect of fire burns. The Aspect of wind moves things around. But when we introduce our own emotional interpretation of them, we change the magic. Fundamentally. The fire Aspect can burn away impurities and heal. It could also hurt. Scar. Destroy until nothing is left when it¡¯s fed by wrath instead of mercy and compassion.]¡± Henry had no clue where the conversation was going, but he was along for the ride. He was already learning a couple of things he¡¯d so far only been able to theorize about. ¡°[Divination likes connections. History. Weight. Not physical weight, but the importance of events. I carved this little orb out of the very first tree that me and my late tribe nurtured in this wonderful and unforgiving ocean. The very first tree, in which my hut now lies. On which the people of these settlements lived and died. This little ball is intimately tied to the history of this settlement, to me, and to the Earthtenders. To the humans above, it¡¯s a badge of honor. Something they strive toward so they might earn one and proudly display it in their abode. To you, it would mean you¡¯d be a welcome guest and no one would dare hurt or attack you, lest they¡¯d be spitting in my face. But what most don¡¯t know about this little orb, is that even though there isn¡¯t an ounce of an enchantment on it, when used with a divination spell, you¡¯ll always be able to find my home. Thalis. The Verdant Canopy. Whatever you used to sense my presence, I¡¯m sure it is some form of divination, and you should be able to use it with this.¡±] Zerathstra handed over the orb, and Henry started it. He realized it was the same as the copper orb he¡¯d found in the Trickster¡¯s cave. Gingerly, he picked it up, and the ape continued speaking, though his tone changed a bit, and the air grew heavy. ¡°[Keep it safe. If someone comes to my home holding it, both you and whomever they are would die before they see my trees.]¡± Henry gulped and nodded, at which point the aura of the ape relaxed. ¡°[As for soul oaths, consider this: as you grow in strength and as you align yourself with the Aspects that make your spirit, you grow closer to the world around you. Your weight in this¡­ reality increases. Your words matter more, especially when spoken with intent, such as is the case with soul oaths. Speaking such an oath and then breaking it is extremely damaging. To the world that witnessed your oath, and to your own soul. Because your connection to Aspects is truthful and intimate, and even if you were literally following the Aspect of Deceit, breaking an oath will still fray your connection to all your Aspects, and might even bar you from progressing further toward them.¡± Henry considered the ape¡¯s words, and he felt like he sort of understood it. It was vague, but it made a bit of sense. Still, something tickled the back of his mind and he had to ask. ¡°[You speak as if these Aspects are not in my soul already. Are there Aspects outside?]¡± The ape grinned. ¡°[Naturally. The Aspects in your soul are but a fraction of the Aspects out there. What¡¯s your highest Aspect? C-rank, I¡¯m assuming? Comparing a C-rank Aspect to one of the fundamental building blocks of this reality is like comparing a candle to a bonfire.]¡± The scale was dizzying, but he couldn¡¯t even really picture it. What could one do with such levels of Aspects? Rewrite reality? ¡°[I¡¯m a candle, what does it make you as an A-rank?]¡± Henry wasn¡¯t being sassy. He was legitimately curious. Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author. The ape gave him a toothy smile. ¡°[I¡¯m a torch!]¡± Henry stared at Zerathstra, disbelieving. He tried wrapping his mind around such a difference, but he couldn¡¯t even picture the scale. ¡°[Oh, don¡¯t be surprised. This world is bigger than you or me. We were just talking about reality-hopping turtles. There¡¯s a lot out there to figure out and discover. But that¡¯s a problem for another time. Now, is there yet another oath you want me to make? Or are we saying our goodbyes? As much as this was fun, I sense a swarm of C- and B-ranks heading our way and I¡¯d rather not have to dig them out of my trees.]¡± Henry quickly brainstormed what he needed to be guaranteed for the visit. Which mainly revolved around the safety of his companions. At the end of the day, they were all at the mercy of the A-rank, and considering he¡¯d been nothing but friendly, Henry¡¯s guts told him he didn¡¯t need to worry too much. But as always, better safe than sorry. ¡°[Please extend the oaths for my safety to my companions. Two of them, and they¡¯re both awakened.]¡± The ape had been rolling his shoulder as he waited for Henry when he froze. His eyes widened. ¡°[I got the companions part from your thoughts, but I didn¡¯t realize they were awakened!]¡± The ape repeated his oath once more, and then he tapped the sandy soil with his hand. ¡°[Done. Come one. Bring them out! Let me see.]¡± The ape was surprisingly excited. ¡°[Wouldn¡¯t it be better to do this above water?]¡± Zerathstra waived that off. ¡°[Nah. They¡¯ll get too ceremonial up there. It¡¯ll freak them out to see me.]¡± Henry considered that, then had to nod. If a quasi-deity started walking around the city they¡¯d founded, it made sense that folk would freak out, especially if their appearances weren¡¯t common, which it didn¡¯t seem like they were. Henry considered giving the ape¡ªor his friends¡ªa heads-up about the meeting he was about to drop them into, but he decided not to. Their safety was already guaranteed, so it would just be funnier to see their reactions. He started with Stormsong. The dolphin popped out of his Maw and water instantly surged around her. Her eyes fell on the grinning ape, and her magic guttered out. Henry didn¡¯t think the dolphin could get pale, but just the sense of immense dread he felt coming off of her threatened to give him a heart attack through telepathic contract. ¡°[It¡¯s fine! He¡¯s friendly,]¡± Henry quickly sent. He was already feeling bad about his little prank. ¡°[Our safety is guaranteed by a soul oath.]¡± That seemed to calm her down a bit, but she still held still. Henry waved his arms between them. ¡°[Zerathstra, this is Stormsong. A dolphin travelling with us. She wants to see the world. Stormsong, this is Sea King Zerathstra, the A-Rank who created and watches over the trees and their inhabitants.¡± Stormsong clicked once in her throat and bowed her head. She seemed to have sent something to the ape, but Henry didn¡¯t hear it. The sea king nodded to her, then his mirthful eyes switched to Henry. He got a private message from the ape. ¡°[That was very funny. Do it again.]¡± ¡°[I doubt the next one will be as scared. Good luck.]¡± The ape frowned.¡°[What do you mean, good luck?]¡± The multi-colored crab popped out and quickly took in the scene. There was a silent beat, a twitch of a claw, then while an eye turned to Henry and gave him a silent ¡®is this okay¡¯ look, he waved at the ape. ¡°[Hi! I¡¯m Maurice. What¡¯s your name?]¡± The crab went on to bombard the A-rank with questions, while the latter stared at the familiar shell. At the same time, Maurice mentally poked Henry to confirm that everything was fine, even though the crab already picked up on the mood. After a few small exchanges about the crab¡¯s origins which, of course, Maurice didn¡¯t remember much of, the ape turned to Henry. ¡°[Crabs rarely awaken before A-rank. It¡¯s the shell, isn¡¯t it?]¡± Henry didn¡¯t see a reason to lie. ¡°[Yes. Through his skills, he found it while I¡¯d been fighting a serpent and fused with it when he evolved to D-rank. Once the process was over, he was awakened.]¡± ¡°[Fascinating. That the turtle shells could induce an awakening. To a chimeric hermit crab no less,]¡± Zerathstra breathed as he eyed the crab that came up to his waist. ¡°[I thought these little buggers had been hunted to extinction.]¡± Henry looked away from the crab and to the ape. They what now? 2.41: Tiny Zerathstra picked up Maurice, who didn¡¯t seem to mind at all, and turned him around, intently examining the crustacean. ¡°[They used to be common throughout the coasts of the Reach. If it¡¯s still being called that. They were fished and hunted to extinction, though. Their abilities are extremely valuable to treasure hunters, and they do possess the ability to copy skills. In a tragic but ironic twist, it was their own skills that led to their extinction. Well. Their extinction from that region.]¡± Henry stared at the crab, recalling his friend¡¯s abilities, and then it clicked. ¡°[Maurice has an ability to find what he considers valuable. Which is how he found the shell.]¡± ¡°[Exactly.]¡± Maurice drooped for a second. ¡°[O,h that¡¯s sad,]¡± he said, but then shrugged it off and clicked his pincer.¡°[But at least my species is still safe deep in the Current. So there¡¯s nothing to worry about!]¡± Henry, Stormsong, and Zerathstra stared at the crab, but they all collectively decided not to correct the crab¡¯s assumption. It didn¡¯t matter to Henry anyway. He always expected himself and his companions to be hunted sooner or later. So the fact that Maurice might be a valuable and a regionally extinct species didn¡¯t change much. Zerathstra shook his head and grinned, then he floated out of the cave. ¡°[I¡¯ve got to go now. It was nice meeting you all, and I¡¯ll see you soon!]¡± Then he turned and zipped through the water like a needle. Within seconds, he disappeared into the horizon. All three watched the disappearing figure, then Maurice spoke up. ¡°[He seems nice!]¡± *** ¡°[Are you sure this is a good idea?]¡± Stormsong sent as they neared the surface. After Zerathstra had gone to deal with the swarm he¡¯d mentioned, the trio made their way back to the submerged forest. They fought a couple of purple crabs on the way up, and Henry made sure to keep the cores, just in case he could use them as a currency of some sort. He had some already, but you can never be too prepared. And who knows, maybe he¡¯d find something super valuable that he wanted. In the meantime, he had the small wooden bead in his Maw, and he was ready to pop it out and show it to whomever showed up. His yellow eyes turned to Stormsong. ¡°[You said soul oaths are real, and he would never break them, right?]¡± The dolphin gave him a reluctant but affirmative click. ¡°[Yes. They¡¯re sacred. Taboo, even. We rarely used them. But are you sure it was a soul oath?]¡± Henry was pretty sure they had been. And what point did it serve the A-rank to lie? It was an A-rank. It clearly had a mischievous tendency, but it didn¡¯t seem nefarious. At this point, doubts felt more like paranoia than anything else, and soon, they¡¯d know for sure anyway. They just had to show the wooden orb. Atop his head, Maurice chimed in.¡°[I trust him! We¡¯ll be fine! But how are we going to move up there? We can¡¯t swim in the air, right? Can I breathe? Henry! What if I can¡¯t breathe?]¡± Henry bopped the crab on the head, and the crab swatted his arm off. ¡°[What are you talking about? You¡¯ve been to the surface! You can breathe just fine.]¡± Maurice paused. ¡°[I have?¡­ Oh. Right. The Goliath kraken.]¡± ¡°[Exactly.]¡± ¡°[Oh. Well, nevermind then. False alarm.]¡± Stormsong snorted, and Henry rolled his eyes at the crab¡¯s shenanigans then turned his attention back to the dolphin. Even with her caution, Henry could almost taste the excitement coming off of her. ¡°[Have you ever seen the surface, Stormsong?]¡± ¡°[¡­No. What is it like?]¡± Henry¡¯s eyes twinkled as the surface came into view. ¡°[You¡¯re about to see. Besides¡ªoh. Hold on. Someone¡¯s coming.]¡± Two forms plunged, followed by six more. The two B-ranks that had pursued them only hours ago surged toward him, flanked by four B-ranks and high C-ranks.Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author. Their eyes were intent, and their spears were ready. Before anything problematic could happen, Henry shouted in their minds and produced the orb. ¡°[We¡¯re guests of Zerathstra!]¡± The humans all stopped in their tracks. Some eyes went wide with shock, while a couple altered between panic and suspicion, but all their eyes were on the orb for a few seconds before they turned back to Henry. ¡°[See? It¡¯ll be fine. Probably,] Henry sent to his companions. *** After they all broke the surface, the humans took turn examining the orb, but after half of them found no fault in it, they were forced to accept that it was authentic. Coupled with the fact that Henry both knew the sea king¡¯s appearance and his name, they all bowed and apologized, leaving the two who had given Henry chase to guide them up the tree. Zamir and Semea waited while Henry reduced his size until he was nearly as large as he¡¯d been when he came to consciousness, the smallest he could push the skill. Which meant that he was tiny. Even Maurice was larger than he was, and Stormsong could swallow him in a single bite if she wasn¡¯t busy staring up at the canopy and breathing fresh air for the first time. Air she hadn¡¯t had to produce with her own skill. But even though it was her first time seeing the surface, she found the time to stare at him. Everyone was, even the two humans atop the little dock. Zamir was grinning, while Semea kept her face neutral. Behind them, wooden stairs led up and twisted around the tree trunk. Maurice, now standing atop of Stormsong¡¯s head, gently poked at Henry with a claw, as if he was worried the kraken could be hurt. Which of course was not the case. He might have lost some weight for his physical attacks, but everything else was as tough and powerful as it had always been. ¡°[I¡¯ve never seen you this small,]¡± Maurice said as he poked him once more, and Henry swatted the pincer away. ¡°[Almost looks cute,]¡± Stormsong added. Henry was pushing away Maurice¡¯s claw when he paused and looked up at the dolphin, offended. ¡°[What do you mean ¡®almost¡¯?]¡± Maurice cackled, but Henry decided to stop engaging and instead focused on his task. The reason why he¡¯d made himself smaller. The now tiny kraken channeled mana into Mimicry, and a haze of white and purple spots shrouded his small form. The smoke condensed and began changing. Its texture and coloration shifted, until it settled on his usual skin tone. Hair formed atop his skull, and as he stared at himself through a couple of clones, he shaped his body with his mind. Next, he began working on pants, but as his Octominds¡ªand himself¡ªstruggled to mimic the textures through skill, he quickly changed his mind and made them into shorts. Adding a clothing layer was surprisingly complicated. He¡¯d need to work on it. Maybe set a couple of Octominds to train the ability. He¡¯d also need to figure a way to cast his skills though the mimicked form. I won¡¯t have access to Maw. That¡¯d be a good starting point for the training. As he finished up, he set two Octominds to task. One to create a simple white shirt, and one to work on accessing Maw through the disguise without disturbing the skill. Gingerly, Henry breast-stroked to the deck while the two humans stared at him, mouth agape, and climbed up the little wooden ladder. He stumbled twice, falling back to the water, before he managed to get his feet on the dock. It was as if he was drunk and had to control his body remotely. Everything felt off. Swimming had been fine, but climbing and dealing with gravity¡­ a whole different matter. After a couple of minutes of struggle where he had to refuse help a few times, he got the gist of it and finally managed to take a few steps back and forth without tripping over his own legs. ¡°Was this what you looked like?¡± asked Zamir. The man was very excited, and he didn¡¯t seem to be holding any grudge from their previous interaction. Semea, on the other hand, had tied up her hair in a large bun and just watched, an uneasy look in her eyes. When Henry met her gaze, she twitched. ¡°Mostly,¡± Henry said. He gave himself yellow irises, as it didn¡¯t matter to his perception anyway. In the meantime, Maurice managed to grab onto the little steps and climbed his way up, awkwardly, which left Stormsong in the water. ¡°[Henry, what do I do?]¡± ¡°[Just a second,]¡± he said. After a last couple of steps and hops to make sure he had a decent control of this new form, he looked down to the dolphin. ¡°[Don¡¯t resist. I¡¯ll carry you.]¡± ¡°[Wait, what do¡ªaah!]¡± The dolphin lifted off the water, wrapped in a haze of purple. Using a couple of available Octominds, Henry shaped and controlled his telekinetic grip to allow her some moving space. Then he scooped down, and filled the ¡°cup¡± he¡¯d fashioned with water. ¡°[I don¡¯t like this,]¡± hesitantly said Stormsong after a moment, as she peered down at the three humans and the crab standing next to Henry before she glanced down to the water. Henry gave her a grin. ¡°[Why? You almost look cute like this.]¡± The dolphin gave him a blank stare, then with a flick of fin, a spray of water shot at his face. 2.42: Thalis The stairway leading up the giant tree was the first of many wondrous little discoveries Henry made. It was as if a low branch had sprouted near the water surface, flattened itself, then curled around the tree all the way up. Now that he was climbing the natural-looking steps in his human form, he realized how gigantic these trees really were. Even if he¡¯d reduced his size when he¡¯d gotten Flowing Form, Henry had still been massive. But now, as a human, the sheer scale of these trees boggled the mind. They were at least fifty feet in diameter. At least. He had nothing to measure with and he couldn¡¯t tell very well from this angle, but as he quietly walked behind the two guides, and as the wind ruffled his hair and made the treetops sway, he felt like an ant. A tiny little ant climbing a huge oak back in his old world. Next to him, Maurice and Stormsong were just as awed. Now that they neared the first inhabited section, their eyes were glued to branches above them. Maurice had asked to be put back on Stormsong¡¯s head¡ªhe was too heavy for Henry¡¯s current head¡ªand all three of them were holding their breaths. The two had no expectations, but Henry had lived most of his life in a human society, so he had a couple of questions. Mostly pertaining to logistics. ¡°Where are we going to sleep?¡± he asked, using an illusory voice. He couldn¡¯t use the mimicked form to speak. He wasn¡¯t even sure if it was possible, but he would keep trying. For now, he just tried to dub over the word. Just so he didn¡¯t weird out the people around. ¡°We¡¯ll show you to a spare lodging, although I¡¯m not sure if it would be fitting for your companions. If they need water, we have a few pools available. We could reserve a couple for your stay.¡± Henry glanced behind and hummed. Stormsong gave him a puzzled head tilt and clicked in her tongue, which the two guides could understand as well, considering they all had the trait that allowed communication through understanding. ¡°What¡¯s a pool?¡± she asked, and privately, she spoke to Henry and Maurice. ¡°[I have an idea for a way to move around, but it¡¯ll take me some practice. I¡¯ll work on it later.]¡± Zimir quickly explained the concept, and told them how they had a few pools for training as well as for leisure. It was a novel concept to both Stormsong and Maurice, but it made perfect sense to Henry. After all, some folk would want to enjoy a swim without risking their lives unnecessarily. Moments later, the stairway finally evened out into an open plaza made out of wooden platforms built atop a network of thick branches coming out of three different trees, which cradled the wide space. People milled about, wearing thin and airy colorful robes. From a quick glance, this space seemed to be a market of some sorts, limited by protective wooden-mesh walls against which merchants had their wares displayed. Wooden baskets and crates full of vibrant fruits and vegetables filled the stands. Vibrant red tomatoes, peppers of all colors and sizes, glossy fruits that made Henry¡¯s mouth water, and a bunch of produce he¡¯d never seen before. Another section was for fishmongers. Fish, large and small, were displayed, hung. Some were fresh, some were dried. Next to most products, little wooden signs specified the price and weight. And it¡¯s all in tokens. Henry mentally rubbed his hands together. He could do that physically, but this body still felt a bit awkward. A few purple crabs that Henry had fought on the way up were propped up on one particularly large stand, and there was a small crowd watching and listening to a tall, thick-built merchant as he vaunted their freshness and taste of the crabs to the interested and amused onlookers. As Henry stepped into the platform, with a dolphin the size of a small-truck and a multi-colored crab atop her, a hush spread out through the crowd, like a rippling wave he could almost see, until only the crab merchant could be heard for a couple of seconds before he realized what was happening. Surprisingly, it wasn¡¯t fear or concern that he felt from the crowd through his telepathic sense. Well, there was a little of that, but it was mostly curiosity. And a little bit of greed, but he didn¡¯t expect that to last for long. A potbellied merchant close by leaned over. He seemed to be specialized in spices. ¡°Zamir, what¡¯s going my boy?¡±Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings. The B-rank coughed, stepped forward, then addressed the crowd. He seemed a bit nervous. Then again, Henry had never been that good at public speaking either, so he could empathize. ¡°Hey everyone. This here is Henry, Maurice, and Stormsong. Awakened guests of his Lordship.¡± If the crowd had been quiet before, it went completely silent for a beat before they exploded into question. The spice merchant frowned as his eyes roamed between the three guests. Being close to them, his voice was easiest to pick out. ¡°What do you mean awakened? I only see two¡ª Oh. Oh?¡± They couldn¡¯t tell, as far as Henry knew. The mimicked shell should be displaying him as human, but maybe there were people who could see through it. Though if these humans were anything like those of Earth, the eyes should be a clear tell for them. Then again, maybe yellow eyes aren¡¯t special in this world. After some back and forth, Semea tapped the butt of her spear on the wooden flooring, and the knock resounded through the crowd. As if familiar with it, the people settled down. ¡°We are giving the guests a tour,¡± she said. ¡°You can ask and visit at a later time, if they¡¯re open to it.¡± There were a few huffs and mutterings here and there, but everyone went back to their business. Seemingly, at least. They were still staring and whispering between each other, but no one asked them any questions directly or stepped in their way. With that, they continued up the trees. The second platform was a school. Well, school and training ground, mixed into one. All of it was covered by a particularly large leafy branch, and within it, young people from all ages were spread out, watched by multiple guardians. They stood or sat in small groups, listening to their instructors, practicing, taking notes, and sparring. When Zamir made the announcement here, all students but a handful instantly abandoned their classes, which resulted in a red-faced and ashamed Zamir as he scurried Henry and the others away under the combined glares of nearly ten instructors as he tried to extricate himself from the excited and curious children. The third platform was the largest yet, and at the same time, the most impressive. Maurice had been pretty quiet so far, surprisingly, but Henry could almost hear the little gears whirring in his head as he absorbed everything around him like a sponge. There would be questions. That was guaranteed. At some point, the dam was going to break and Henry was going to need all of his Octominds to deal with the onslaught. But for now, he didn¡¯t mind the small questions. Then again, he could let Zamir deal with the questions. After all, they were honored guests. ¡°[This is so pretty. What is it?]¡± Henry took in the scene, and answered.¡°[This, Maurice, is called agriculture.]¡± The scenery was breathtaking. Multiple round knot-like pots carried gently swaying, fruit-laden trees. Thick ropes were holding them up, and a few of the trees had been brought lower through a pulley-system so the farmers could examine the tree and harvest their fruits. All around, racks upon racks were set up in large drawer-like fashion. The farmers would pull on a rack, harvest or plant all manner of produce, then they¡¯d push it back before they¡¯d pull the one above or below and do the same. There were so many small, ingenious and fascinating details, and there were easily forty to fifty people taking care of seemingly all the nutritional needs of the settlement. ¡°Your friend is right,¡± said Zamir. ¡°This is one of our five breadbaskets. This is what we live on.¡± Stormsong peered down at the two humans. ¡°Can¡¯t you just catch your meals? You two are powerful enough.¡± At this, Samea smiled for the first time. ¡°Meat gets old when you¡¯re eating it raw day in and day out. You¡¯ll have to try our food first, then you¡¯ll know why this is necessary.¡± Henry knew perfectly well how important this place was and clearly, so did the humans. Most if not all those working here were C-ranks and even a few B-ranks. A few younger folk who would have fit in the platform below were helping out, all in D-rank. Maurice looked around, eyes shining. An older woman came close and handed him a banana. The crab turned the fruit around a couple of times, then brought to his mandibles, and shuddered as he took the first bite. Maybe I should have told him it¡¯s better when it¡¯s peeled. Maurice chewed for a couple of seconds before he shoved the whole thing between his mandibles. He was literally vibrating at this point, and a few of the nearby children giggled as the crab¡¯s oddly shrill voice blasted everyone in range. ¡°[This is amazing!]¡± Henry had to agree. It really was. 2.43: End of the tour After the agricultural platform, the trio continued the visit along with Zamir and Semea, with the latter having finally warmed up to them and struck up a conversation with Stormsong. As for Maurice, he was very much keen on going back to the farmers and botanists. Not just to sample their fruits and vegetables¡ªthough that was most certainly part of it, especially the fruits¡ªbut he was just incredibly curious about the concept of ¡°growing¡± food right out of the soil. To Henry, it was clear: Maurice had just tried sugar, and he was already addicted to it and had to figure out a way of manufacturing it for himself. The group climbed another spiral staircase to a new marketplace, though this one was significantly quieter than the one below, and the reason why became evident pretty fast. The space was covered and arranged in a market hall. One that specialized in magical items. Both in their raw and crafted forms. There were weapons, ingredients, bottles of glowing liquids, and so much more. The first shop that caught Henry¡¯s eyes had a glass display showing different coloured stones and crystal, and Henry needed just one beat to recognize they were concept shards. The concentrated essences were nestled in glowing, inscribed circles, with the most expensive at the top, such as an orange-red one that looked like a glowing ember and a clear, almost cotton looking one that made him think of the sky. As his eyes traced down the display, he noted how the prices dropped and the care in which the shards were presented relaxed, to the point where the ones at the bottom were clumped up in small piles, such as water, or a green one reminiscent of growth and vegetation, or and a pale purple that felt corrosive. Behind the counter, more glowing shards lined up the walls, and below them, small luminescent creations that reminded Henry strongly of his one-time skill constructs. Though these were a bit more intricate. And they seemed¡­ stable. Henry blinked. Were those skill constructs? As he stared into her shop, the woman behind the counter peered at him. She was older. From her appearance, he¡¯d say she was around fifty years old, but considering she was a B-rank, she could be hundreds of years old as far as he knew. The woman had her hair tied up in a bun, and she wore black robes with their sleeves rolled up to show scarred and wiry arms. She straightened up, her brows slowly going higher and higher as she studied him before her green eyes moved on to Maurice, then Stormsong, then finally flicked to Zamir with a quirked brow. After the two guides introduced Henry and his companions to the shop-owners and shoppers, the woman stepped from behind her counter and sidled up to Henry. From the corner of his eyes, he saw Zamir¡¯s eyes widen. ¡°Hm. Welcome, strangers. My name¡¯s Arisia, and it seems some of my wares have piqued your interest. Is there something in particular you¡¯re seeking? This isn¡¯t all I¡¯ve got, you know,¡± she said, slowly shuffling around him. Then she stopped and looked him in the eyes. ¡°I¡¯m willing to discount my work if you¡¯re willing to make a donation. You have a couple of interesting Aspects. Your little friend does as well,¡± she added. Then, looking away from Henry, she stepped closer to the crab. Maurice rubbed his claws together, but before he could speak, the woman plopped down in a squat. ¡°You¡¯re a chimeric hermit crab, aren¡¯t you? Maurice, is it? An awakened one as well¡­ and where did you get this shell?¡± ¡°Henry found it! And I-ehm. Borrowed it,¡± said the crab, using his own audible illusion to respond. ¡°Audible illusions,¡± she said, head tilting back toward Henry. ¡°Your skill, I presume?¡± Henry didn¡¯t like how easily she could see through them. But he couldn¡¯t say he wasn¡¯t excited. ¡°It is.¡± Arisia nodded thoughtfully, before she shuffled back behind her shop and plopped a large leather-bound book on her lap. ¡°You three should come see me after you¡¯re done with your little tour. Even you, miss Stormsong. An apt name, if I may say. Water, and storm, huh. Interesting. Bring them back later, Zamir.¡± ¡°Yes ma''am,¡± said the young man, back straight as a rod. As they walked away and up through another set of stairs, Henry couldn¡¯t help but ask. ¡°She looked important?¡± Both guides nodded at that, and Semea spoke up. ¡°She¡¯s a special instructor. Even though she¡¯s supposed to be retired, we all had to go through her training regimen at one time or another. Every tree-guard had to, and every crafter of note.¡± Zamir shuddered. ¡°She¡¯s ruthless. I¡¯m not sure if you¡¯re lucky or unlucky for having caught her eye. Either way, you should learn whatever you can from her if you¡¯ve got the chance. She¡¯s the best in all Thalis. Aside from his lordship, of course. And speaking of the best of Thalis, this is our last spot for the tour.¡±This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. Maurice and Stormsong were both impressed by the site ahead, but Henry was completely flabbergasted. He¡¯d seen multiple instances of the impressive living construction this settlement was capable of as they made their way up the tree, but even though he knew it was possible, he didn¡¯t expect to see something this large. Up ahead, countless giant branches were pooled from multiple trees. At least five or six. The giant limbs twisted and turned to create a giant bowl with a flat center, and all around it, bleachers. Carved and formed into the wood itself. In front of him was the largest and most eco-friendly stadium Henry had ever seen. Semea rested her spear on her shoulder and smiled proudly at Henry¡¯s expression. ¡°We use this for tournaments, exhibitions, duels, and sometimes for training. The arena is equipped with pretty sophisticated protective wards that allows everyone up to B-rank to fight to their heart¡¯s content without affecting any of the bystanders.¡± Seeing their faces, Zamir added. ¡°You should enroll in the next tournament. It¡¯s only a few days away.¡± Henry turned to the man and raised a brow. ¡°How often are these tournaments?¡± ¡°Once a month for the four months of summer,¡± Zamir grinned. ¡°The format and the participants change. Next week¡¯s the high C-ranks, and next month is the last one, the B-ranks¡¯ tournament. Right before the rain and storm season. So your timing¡¯s pretty amazing, actually. You should be able to hold your own with high C-ranks, I believe.¡± Semea grunted at that. ¡°Still can¡¯t believe you outran us. We¡¯re gonna be hearing about it for months.¡± ¡°No one¡¯s going to say anything when they see them in the ring,¡± said Zamir, tapping his temple. ¡°That¡¯s why I¡¯m mentioning it.¡± The woman gave her colleague a begrudging nod. Henry was tempted. But he wouldn¡¯t mind some more incentives. ¡°What are the prizes? Are there prizes, even?¡± ¡°Of course,¡± said Zamir. ¡°It¡¯s usually announced at the start of the tournament, though. It could be a skill, magical item, a spirit fruit, or just tokens. Really depends on the tournament and on the budget. Sometimes, if you¡¯re lucky, the prize would be something just for you.¡± ¡°Like anything you want?¡± asked Maurice. ¡°No no. I mean it might be, but it¡¯d basically be something perfect for you. Like a synergetic skill, or an amazing item that complements your fighting style, or, if you¡¯re a crafter, it could be tools or lessons from one of our experts.¡± That did sound good. It sounded great, even. The fact that skills were given as prizes meant that someone around here knew how to create them and transfer them. Something he sorely wanted to know and learn about. As Henry considered everything he might learn around here¨Cand how he might have to pay for it¨Cthe two guards shared a look and Semea shrugged. ¡°Well, that kinda concludes the tour, I guess,¡± said Zamir, scratching his head. ¡°There¡¯s other stuff up the tree and on the sides, but it¡¯s better to head there when it¡¯s needed or invited.¡± Henry eyed the two for a second. ¡°Do you give these tours often?¡± ¡°Not really,¡± Zamir shrugged. ¡°It happens from time to time. Friends of his lordship occasionally come around. Or trusted merchants. Sometimes, someone new joins our home, but the last time that happened was like a decade ago.¡± ¡°We did give that tour,¡± said Semea, thoughtfully. ¡°Riiight. Time does fly,¡± agreed the man. Then he turned his attention back to Henry and his companions. ¡°Well! Let me show you to your home and to your own private pool.¡± *** Henry and Maurice sat at the edge of the pool, watching the dolphin work on her new technique. The water she had shaped into a ball broke out, and waves were sent to the edges, lapping and splashing against Henry¡¯s feet and Maurice¡¯s extended arms. She was getting better at shaping the water in the way she wanted. Henry believed she was only a few hours away from succeeding in what she wanted to create, or a day or two at most. I should definitely try doing that. I might have an edge when it comes to the Octominds, but my control is still garbage compared to hers. ¡°This place is nice,¡± said the crab as he stared at the bright night sky. Henry nodded at that, staring into the night sky as well. He took a moment to enjoy it all, while deep inside, a bunch of Octominds were scramblings and creating a to-do list for everything he wanted to get done over the next few days. 2.44: Focus Arisia closed her notebook and hummed, staring at the empty air in front of her. The hall was empty. Quiet, aside from softly whistling wind outside of the little alley. Which told her someone hadn¡¯t checked up on the sounds wards in the last few weeks. She clicked her tongue. Whose ears was she going to pull this time? She wasn¡¯t worried about the important wards, as those were checked daily by Deris and his assistants, but whomever was supposed to check on the noise dampening wards would eventually become part of Deris¡¯ team, and that meant Thalis¡¯ security relied on someone who couldn¡¯t even check soundproofing wards on time. Like they were supposed to. Well. I¡¯ll tell him and he¡¯ll find out who¡¯s supposed to take care of them. She could fix it herself, of course. She knew her way around wards, but that wasn¡¯t the point. Arisia sighed and rubbed the back of her shoulder for a few moments. Then she glanced at the seemingly empty patch of air to her right. ¡°How long are you going to keep skulking around, Zer?¡± She stared for a beat. Winds continued to rustle. Then, finally, the air rippled and parted to reveal a grinning gold-furred ape, sitting cross-legged on thin air. ¡°Skulking? Me? Can¡¯t I come say hi to one of my friends?¡± ¡°Of course you can. You don¡¯t need to hide, though. And you never show up unless there¡¯s something you need or want to gloat about. What is it this time?¡± The ape opened his mouth in shock, frowning, and put a hand on his chest. When she didn¡¯t react to his antics, he dropped the act and smiled. ¡°What did you think of them?¡± Arisia gave him a blank stare. ¡°Think of who?¡± Zerathstra flopped his head back. ¡°Come on, Risa. The kraken. And his little companions.¡± Arisia sighed, adjusted her chair so it¡¯d face the ape, then sat back down. ¡°They¡¯re¡­ interesting.¡± ¡°Possible sea-king interesting?¡± he asked, brows wiggling. She was about to refute that, but her voice caught. Zerathstra, annoying as he was, noticed. ¡°See? See?¡± ¡°They might. He might. For a C-rank who hasn¡¯t even cracked level 50, he¡¯s both impressive¡­ and concerning. With a fused Aspect, no less.¡± Zerathstra nodded enthusiastically at that. ¡°Yup. Couldn¡¯t believe it myself. Had to get close to make sure.¡± Arisia glanced at the ape, waiting for explanations or clarifications, only to be met with a smug smile and a twirling tail. Her brow twitched. ¡°How did that even happen?¡± she asked. ¡°Because that¡¯s no kraken. Not a normal one, at least.¡± Zerathstra cackled. ¡°I can tell you. You gotta swear on it, though. Like¡­ swear on it. Oath and all.¡± Arisia raised a brow at that. ¡°That¡¯s new? Since when do I need to swear soul oaths? You know as well as I do my only concern is the safety of Thalis.¡± The sea-king waved a hand away. ¡°Yeah, yeah. He just got me to swear to not use his secret to hurt him or come after him. So you gotta do the same before I tell you.¡± Arisia paused. That was fair. She nodded, then recited the oath as the sea king said it. Once it was done, she scribbled the words in her notebook, just so she didn¡¯t forget about them. ¡°Thorough and meticulous. Very much not like a kraken.¡± ¡°I wouldn¡¯t say that.¡± Zerathstra growled in his throat. ¡°Maybe C and B-ranks are impulsive shits. But have you met A-rank krakens? They¡¯re thorough, alright,¡± he said, darkly. Anybody else might have cowed at the sharp intent wafting of the ape, but Arisia knew him since before they¡¯d come to this stretch of the world, and most importantly, she was curious. Incredibly so, though she tried to not show it. She was considering many theories, each as unlikely as the next, but she didn¡¯t dwell on any. That wasn¡¯t a great use of her time. ¡°So,¡± she asked as she straightened her robe. ¡°What are you thinking? What¡¯s this about? And what¡¯s the story behind this particular kraken?¡± That snapped the ape out of his thoughts, and he grinned for a second then shrugged. ¡°I thought it wouldn¡¯t hurt to have more friends. Especially ones that might become a big deal eventually.¡±This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report. The ape gave her an innocent smile. He knew she wanted to know, and he was just drip feeding answers. But she wouldn¡¯t break and she would not play into his silly games. ¡°Why? What makes you think he might become important?¡± Zerathstra picked up one of the many concept shards lining her walls and examined it for a second. ¡°Because¡­ that¡¯s a human in a Trickster kraken¡¯s body, who got to C-rank in barely a couple of months,¡± he said, setting the shard back in its spot. Arisia stood up, eyes sharp. She eyed the dumb grin the ape was giving her, but she could find no trickery or deceit. Which was shocking. ¡°How sure are you? How did it happen?¡± A human with the starting advantages of monsters? That only affected the early ranks and levels, sure, but those were still the foundational steps. The kraken wouldn¡¯t have had to nurture a class and slowly, painstakingly create his own Aspects. He would have just gotten them. It didn¡¯t mean they¡¯d be better or worse than class-created Aspects, of course. It only meant he would have a lot more time to attune to them and grow them. That, coupled with the flexibility and adaptability of that species¡­ Arisia reeled at the implications. She resisted the urge to go and find the kraken right that second. Both to watch him and make sure he wouldn¡¯t become a threat to her home, and to make sure not an ounce of potential was wasted. But before she could do anything, the ape hit her with another revelation. ¡°Reincarnated from another world through a traveler turtle. Smack-dab in the middle of a sanctuary. Could have been worse, of course. But imagine a human getting dropped in the middle of a Pillar. By themselves.¡± That sounded like a nightmare. But Arisia was still stuck on the reincarnated part. And on the traveler turtle. Why did that sound familiar? ¡°World-hoppers. It managed to get through, I guess. Maybe I mentioned it once or twice, but it was never something we talked about in depth.¡± Arisia shot the ape a glare, and he raised both arms. ¡°I didn¡¯t look in your head! I just felt the confusion. And the turtles! It¡¯s just a clarification.¡± She pressed her lips tight, but moved on. ¡°The hermit crab¡¯s shell? I felt some dimensional aspects from it.¡± ¡°Yup. That¡¯s how the crab awakened.¡± Arisia hadn¡¯t been this intrigued in years. She wanted to put this all in writing, but she couldn¡¯t do so without risking a broken oath. ¡°Fascinating¡­ You think he¡¯ll have what it takes?¡±¡± Zerathstra shrugged. ¡°For A-rank, sure.¡± She gave him another blank stare. The ape sighed and rubbed the back of his head. ¡°I don¡¯t know, Risa. Maybe? He seems to have the drive for it. Even though it¡¯s a bit unfocused still. And he¡¯s got a dimensional Aspect as well. It¡¯s still weak and clearly new, but it could become more. Eventually.¡± Arisia stared down at the notebook in her hands for a few seconds, then she looked up. ¡°Then we should help him stay focused, shouldn¡¯t we?¡± Zerathstra met her gaze and nodded. ¡°I guess we should.¡± *** A couple of giant tree trunks away from the hall in which Henry had met Arisia, the kraken shuddered and glanced around. For a second, he felt watched. And not just by the curious kids and teenagers peering at him from the surrounding platforms, but no matter how hard he looked, he couldn¡¯t see anybody else other than the children. Maybe I¡¯m imagining things. He didn¡¯t mind the kids. In fact, he found it oddly comforting to be around people once more. Crowds had always been intimidating to him in his past life, but after having spent months underwater with nobody but his own thoughts and Maurice¡¯s countless opinions and questions, he didn¡¯t mind having people around. Stormsong, even though she seemed like an awkward, rebellious teenager, was surprisingly quiet most of the time and often kept to herself. Glancing at her, he found her still asleep. And so was Maurice. Henry turned his attention back inside. ¡°Alright number one, where were we?¡± A little glasses-wearing octopus pointed at the blackboard behind it, which, after an hour or so of brainstorming, was crawling with questions and problems he wanted answers to. Stuff like ¡°What are skills¡±, and ¡°how to make them¡± and ¡°Aspect fusions 101¡±. ¡°Add sourcing the skill that woman had. The one that lets her see my Aspects.¡± The Octominds added a second blackboard and wrote down the note as asked. Henry hummed. ¡°Also, see if there¡¯s a way to study my own skills without removing them? Or see how they work in detail?¡± The Octomind wrote the task down while Henry looked everything over once more. It was a good start. He didn¡¯t expect to get answers for everything, but maybe he could negotiate a thing or two. He believed he had a few valuable things in storage, and he could always produce a few concept shards of his own to sell. Well. That¡¯s good enough progress for today. For now¡­ let¡¯s see about clothes. Henry closed his eyes, and with the help of the couple of unnamed Octominds he¡¯d set on Mimicry-duty, he began altering the shell he was wearing. As he merged his thoughts to theirs, he saw how they¡¯d experimented with the artificial body. Mostly playing around with his hair and his pants. Altering small things here and there, slowly getting better, and now, as he made himself a t-shirt, he found it significantly easier than it¡¯d been earlier. It was still challenging, though, but a handful of minutes later, a blue t-shirt ruffled in the night breeze while water lapped at his feet. ¡°Good job, Octominds. Now, work on Control Water while I take a nap. Try to do it through the artificial body. It¡¯d be funny if we managed to beat Stormsong to her idea.¡± Henry laid down on his back at the edge of the pool and added a second small blood clone to watch over them. Tomorrow was going to be a big day. 2.45: Point of origin Henry¡¯s nap only lasted for a couple of minutes before he realized he hadn¡¯t checked his notifications just yet. While his companions slept, and while his Octominds struggled to control the unstable blob of water hovering over the pool through the disguise, Henry, still on his back, pulled the notifications up and read through them. He was glad to see everything was progressing well. Shiftiness of the Trickster (C): Level 2 -> Level 3 Misdirection of the Trickster (C): Level 3 -> Level 4 Thaumaturgy of the Trickster (C): Level 2 -> Level 3 Swiftness of the Trickster (D): Level 3 -> Level 5 Fury of the Trickster (D): Level 4 -> Level 5 The earlier escape, coupled with the heavy work he¡¯d done on his new Mimicry skill, had already netted him a level. As for the D-rank Aspects, they were catching up fast as well, and soon they would be C-rank as well. That reminds me, I haven¡¯t upgraded Vitality yet, haven¡¯t I? Henry had enough tokens on hand, so he triggered the upgrade and waited as the magic did its thing. At this point he was used to the process, but even though he¡¯d felt a bit tired barely minutes ago, the fatigue was slowly washed away as a wave of renewed vitality permeated his body. Maybe I wasn¡¯t even that tired to begin with. Henry didn¡¯t remember how long he¡¯d slept last time. Or when. It was difficult to keep track of time underwater, when everything was always bathed in the golden glow of the Current, and the issue wasn¡¯t unique to him. Now that he was on the surface, he could see the difference between day and night. But it never really got dark in Thalis, which was why all residences¡ªincluding the ones they¡¯d gotten¡ªhad blackout curtains and sealable doors. He was both impressed and proud at how well people had adapted to this environment. If he hadn¡¯t seen Thalis with his own eyes, after having spent the last few weeks in the lights of the Current, he would have doubted a settlement such as this one would even be possible. He¡¯d expect it to get destroyed by monsters within days. Or storms. Or god knows what else was possible in this world. But it seemed like the people here had been around for a while, and they were thriving. Vitality of the Trickster (C) - Level 1 Arcane Regeneration Passives: Accelerated Recovery: Recover from injuries and ailments faster. While meditating, health and mana recovery are sped up further. Hoard Vitals [58 Charges]: Continuously form charges of health and mana to be used at a later time. Actives: F-Rank: Spend mana to restore your health and recover from ailments. E-Rank: Spend a larger amount of mana for a significant burst of regeneration. D-Rank: You can apply your regeneration on other beings through touch. C-Rank: Create a consumable and storable orb containing up to 50% of your own health and mana. Henry read the description and raised a brow. At first, he thought it was just a Hoard Vitals upgrade, but he quickly realized that it wasn¡¯t, even though it shared a couple of similarities with the skill. This new skill could hold a lot more health and mana, and it didn¡¯t seem to be limited to his own consumption. He¡¯d have to test it to be sure, but aside from his own survivability, this looked like yet another way for him to make some money. I kinda want to test it right now, though.This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. Henry tuned into the work of his training Octominds and watched as they tried to cast the Control Water skill through the interference and limitation of Mimicry¡¯s shell. The magic surrounding his real body was, in a way, like a chain link fence. Layers and layers of fence that made up the form he was wearing. To cast something into the world, his spell had to get through the layers and into the real world, which required precise control and timing for even a simple spell such as Control Water. This didn¡¯t mean he couldn¡¯t cast big skills. They¡¯d just tear through the fence, which would make them a last resort. Trying to imitate the Octominds, Henry triggered the new orb-creating skill and closed his eyes. Before he could adjust or control what was happening, a bowling-ball sized hole was torn through his human chest. Henry looked down at it, and saw a couple of his real arms. Oh well. With the skill still ongoing, Henry let the magic drag his health and mana out and toward the small freed-up space in front of his kraken body. A bead of vibrant turquoise had already formed, and as the feeling of weakness and emptiness filled his chest, the bead grew larger. Henry cut off the skill, and the bead fell to the wooden ground. As he leaned over to pick it up, he assigned one of his free Octominds to work on fixing the gaping hole in his chest. In a moment. The little bead was around half an inch wide, and it did feel like some sort of miracle health pill. Henry grinned, then passed it up to the arm peeking out of his chest so he could store it in Maw before sitting down to let his Octomind fix his body. This was a nice little upgrade. Henry laid back down, and closed his eyes as his Octominds worked. Finally, time for a little nap. An hour or two later, it was day once more, and Henry woke back up just in time to see a large ball of condensed water crash back down into the pool. In a way, he¡¯d already been aware of everything going on in his surroundings. His clones and Octominds had been watching. But it still felt odd to be aware of these things while he¡¯d been asleep. Henry knew one day he¡¯d get used to it, but it wasn¡¯t going to be today. ¡°Henry! What are we doing today? I want to go back to see the farmers. Can you take me there? Actually, can¡¯t I just go there? Wait, no¡­ the steps are annoying. Henry, carry me there, please!¡± The kraken sighed, and began lifting the crab up, but not sooner had the little red legs lifted off the ground that Maurice got dropped again. The crab shook his claw at Henry. ¡°Ouch! What the heck, Henry?¡± Henry heard him, but he didn¡¯t respond. Instead, he was focusing on his Telekinesis and how the skill was being cast. You¡¯d think it¡¯s the same as Control Water, but it¡¯s not behaving the same way. It¡¯s being cast¡­ directly on the target, without a link to my real body. Not a link that I can see. It hadn¡¯t disturbed the Mimicry shell at all. Paying close attention to the spell, Henry lifted Maurice again, confirming that the shell was not being disturbed at all by the skill. Next, he activated his Domain and cast Control Water through it. Instantly, cracks and bits broke out all over the disguise. But he noticed something else. The shell¡¯s not disturbed when a skill is cast through Domain. But Domain itself affects the shell a tiny bit¡­ There was a trick there. A way to cast things through the shell. But to do so, he had to¡­ move the point of origin of the skill itself away from his real body? But how? Maurice tapped him on the thigh. ¡°What is it?¡± Henry glanced down at the crab and grinned. ¡°Just thought of a solution to a problem. So, you want to go with the farmers? How about you, Stormsong?¡± ¡°[I¡¯d like to keep working on my project for a few more hours. I think I¡¯m close.]¡± Henry nodded. ¡°Alright. I¡¯ll check back on you in a couple of hours. I¡¯m going to see if I can trade a couple of things at the market hall.¡± They had the most stuff he was interested in over there. He wanted some good food, sure, but he wasn¡¯t that hungry just yet/ And honestly, he just wanted to figure a few things out about skills and whatnot. Considering his little stockpile of cores and how interested that special instructor had been about his Aspects, Henry would bet he could secure a few tips and tricks out of her. Maybe he could even find a book or something about all of this. Or enroll in the classes¡­ but I can probably pay someone for a private course. In any case, Henry couldn¡¯t wait. But to be safe, he left a blood clone in the pool with Stormsong, and stuck a mini-kraken on top of Maurice¡¯s shell and turned it invisible. Even if they weren¡¯t together, he¡¯d still keep an eye on them. To prevent accidents and misunderstandings and whatnot. Over the next few minutes, Henry dropped off Maurice who¡¯d scurried off like an unsupervised child, then made his way up toward the market hall. Henry stepped into the covered alleyway, a glimmer in his eyes, and the sound of wind and waves cut off as soon as he moved through the threshold. Instead of the quiet he¡¯d expected, he heard soft chatter, some haggling here and there, and he saw a couple of heads turn. Some eyes lingered, but others quickly turned back to their own business. Glancing to the right, he saw the special instructor in the same seat he¡¯d seen her in yesterday, pen scribbling in her bound book. Without stopping her smooth penmanship, she spoke. ¡°I¡¯ll be with you in a moment, Henry.¡± The kraken blinked, but he didn¡¯t let that intimidate him. This was his chance to get some answers, and he wasn¡¯t walking away without them. 2.46: The instructor After months of dreading his first encounter with humans, Henry was glad to see it had gone well. Sure, it had looked a bit dicey early on, considering his first meeting with the warriors Zamir and Semea, and he would have probably moved on and never discovered this place¡¯s hospitality if it hadn¡¯t been for Zerasthra. But clearly, his first encounter of his own kind¡ªor at least, what he¡¯d used to be¡ªhad not ended up with him being hunted or shot at, and no one had tried capturing him just yet. Henry considered that a win, and now as he stood in front of Arisia¡¯s shop, he saw a few heads peeking at him from various shops. There were even two or three smiles and waves. The strangers¡¯ pleasant dispositions might be because this settlement¡¯s guardian was an awakened beast, a bit like Henry himself¡ªas far as they were aware¡ªbut he was happy with the reception. He knew he¡¯d be able to learn a lot over the next few weeks. Arisia finished jotting the last line while Henry stood still, waiting. His eyes roamed around, taking in the haggling customers and the odd-looking items being sold. There were fruits that shone to his senses, full of mana and concepts. There were labelled bottles, parchments, weapons, clothes, and more he couldn¡¯t perceive from where he was standing. As far as he could tell, most goods seemed magical in nature, but there were a few he couldn¡¯t sense much from. The weaponsmith in particular seemed to have only a handful of magical items while the rest felt inert. Empty. Probably on purpose, he thought. The items might have been left blank just so the customers could choose what their magic would do. Henry was aware he didn¡¯t know much of what was even possible, so he didn¡¯t dwell on the question for now. He just added it to the list, and by that he meant his note-taking Octomind was adding it to the whiteboard. The kraken continued waiting, but even though some might think he was idle, he was very much not. Four Octominds¡ªthose not assigned long-term tasks¡ªwere at work. One was maintaining Domain in a short radius around him, and it was trying to do that without destroying Henry¡¯s appearance, while two others were on reparation duty. As soon as his skin cracked or discolored in one area or another, the two Octominds would patch it up. As for the fourth, it was testing a theory by basically doing nothing, and so far, it was working. The remaining Octomind was meditating, to both heal him up from creating the restoration orb and to counteract the other Octomind¡¯s mana consumption. Henry was running a deficit, but it wasn¡¯t too severe, and in any case, he could always dig into the Hoard Vitals charges. But this meant that in a pinch, he could set his Octominds to rest-mode and recharge his health and mana faster. Henry smiled and nodded to a passing older man, while his Octominds worked hard. His mind was like a steaming workshop, and Henry, like the mild-mannered, client-facing clerk, was relaxed. And happy. After all, his Octominds¡ªand by extension, he¡ªwere getting a lot of work done, and frankly, he was pretty surprised at how much work he could delegate to them. Seconds ticked by with only the soft hubbub of the marketplace filling his ears as the kraken turned his attention back to the mysterious scribbling woman ahead of him. He tried to get a mental impression from her, but no matter how much he tried, she was like a pocket of nothingness to his telepathic sense. She wasn¡¯t invisible. He could clearly sense something ahead of him, but he could make nothing out of it. He wondered how easy that would be to recreate. It didn¡¯t feel like the effect of Mind Shield, which felt more like an impenetrable wall. Arisia was like there was a telepathic patch of nothingness. A couple of seconds later, she stopped scribbling. With a movement of her wrist, both notebook and pen disappeared¡ªthe latter of which Henry made note to research. Unless his senses were mistaken, that pen was taking in mana to produce ink. ¡°Where could I get a pen like that?¡± Arisia stepped up to the counter and rested her wrists on the spotless wooden surface. ¡°Apologies for the delay. For the pen, I do have spares. I could provide one for three concept shards of your Aspects,¡± she said with a smile. Henry liked that. Negotiating a little exchange of goods was a nice way to break the ice. He shook his head, saddened, then gave her a polite smile. ¡°Three is too much, I¡¯m afraid. I could do one, though. They take a while to recover, so I can¡¯t afford to expend everything I¡¯ve got, can I?¡± Arisia raised an eyebrow and tilted her head. ¡°I didn¡¯t say you had to empty out your reserves. Can you not create samples?¡± she asked, perplexed. When Henry blinked at her, both of her eyebrows went up, and her notebook and pen appeared again. ¡°Can you not control and portion your conceptual essences? How about recovery meditation and storage? Trickster krakens have a dimensional storage ability, do they not? Do you mean to say that as a level 31 C-rank, you still don¡¯t have a stockpile of your own concept shards for emergencies?¡±Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation. Henry¡¯s thoughts ground to a halt. This was not the relaxed exchange of goods he had been expecting. He¡¯d expected a few back and forths as they slowly got to the subject they were both interested in. Instead, the instructor instantly made things personal. If his fake body could react like a normal human body could, he¡¯d be beet red at this point. Arisia gave him a once over then smiled, and Henry could feel his hackles raise. She reminded him of an old professor. A dictator with impossible standards, and now she was looking right at him. She mumbled something, and Henry felt his ears pop. At the same time, the sounds of his surroundings completely cut off. Arisia walked from behind her counter, peering at him, and Henry took a step back. ¡°I¡¯ve been expecting you, Henry, and clearly you have heard of me as well, or you wouldn¡¯t be here asking for pens. You want something. I don¡¯t believe you¡¯re interested in my reserves of concept shards, considering the skillset of Trickster krakens, but I believe you¡¯re after what I know, which I¡¯m willing to provide. And now looking at you, I realize my advice is sorely needed. Zer said you were self-taught, but this is¡­ unacceptable.¡± Henry glanced back toward the exit, then back at the instructor haranguing him. He couldn¡¯t leave. He hated this, but he knew he needed the help. He realized how much he didn¡¯t know, so he stood his ground while the special instructor continued listing his failings. The worst part¡ªand maybe the best, under a certain perspective¡ªwas how matter-of-fact she was being about it. The woman flicked her wrist once more, and a nice pair of wood-framed glasses appeared over her nose. ¡°And what are you doing to your body, exactly? Its structure keeps cracking. Deteriorating. I don¡¯t believe this is due to your poor control, but it is abnormal. If I¡¯d been doing any mana-sensitive work, I would have already tossed you into the water. You¡¯re polluting the area. You need better control. So. What is it that you¡¯re doing? Actually. Wait. We¡¯re better off going somewhere more discrete. Somewhere more appropriate for some testing.¡± Arisia walked back behind the counter, pulled out a small carved sign saying she was unavailable, then stepped out of the store and mumbled something else he couldn¡¯t catch. Instantly, a barrier of greenish blue appeared just in front of the counter, like a glass pane to prevent any intrusions while she wasn¡¯t around. ¡°Follow me and explain,¡± she said, walking past him. ¡°And let me cut to the chase so we don¡¯t waste either of our time; I¡¯m aware of your origin. Of the fact that you were once human. I¡¯m under soul oath, same as Zerathstra, but I¡¯ll repeat it in just a bit to clear out any doubts or fears. I might have a few questions as the subject is extremely intriguing, and I believe my services would earn such answers.¡± ¡°Services?¡± Henry felt like a boat caught in a tsunami. He¡¯d come for some quick questions. Maybe learn a thing or two about skills and how to create them, but he hadn¡¯t expected the instructor to drop everything and put him through an admission test right out of the gate. Arisia came to a stop right past the hall¡¯s exit and turned to face him, hands behind her back. ¡°You are, as far as I know, a unique existence. Humans and monsters reaching the heights of power in this world is not unheard of, but a human being reborn in a monster¡¯s body is. Do you realize the advantage you¡¯ve been given compared to everybody else in this world?¡± Henry wasn¡¯t sure if that was rhetorical or if he had to answer. He opened his mouth¡ª ¡°You clearly do not. How could you know? You¡¯ve been thrown into the breeding ground of monsters, in the middle of nowhere, with barely any instructions, and thankfully you did alright, but the sheer waste of potential¡­ We''ll be addressing it shortly. I expect you to be at the training grounds daily. At dawn. Understood? We¡¯ll start first with your abysmal mana control, and we¡¯ll create a training plan to address every other problem as we go.¡± ¡°Okay,¡± Henry mumbled, following behind his new instructor. They climbed the wooden stairs silently, but he was curious. After a few moments, Henry asked, ¡°What advantages have I gotten? The skill-copying thing?¡± She was silent for a few seconds, then shook her head. ¡°Not exactly. It was an advantage, yes, but it wasn¡¯t the main one. Which is this: awakened creatures are rarely awakened in the lower ranks. Which means they don¡¯t have access to a class, and don¡¯t have the mental acuity to make good decisions and to play to their strengths until they''re at a higher level. The ones who have sapience, us humans, don¡¯t have the innate capabilities of magical beings, which results with us having to create and curate our own advancements. With all the challenges that entail. You didn¡¯t have to deal and scrap for hoarded knowledge. You didn¡¯t need potions and elixirs to attune yourself to Aspects. You didn¡¯t need to secure the right expeditions to earn your levels. Sure, you woke up in a death zone and any mistake could have cost you your life, but at the end of the day, you got the best of both worlds and here you are. A low C-rank who could challenge experienced C-ranks and new B-ranks and still should come up on top.¡± The words sounded like praise, but seeing the sharp eyes studying him, Henry could only swallow. He had a feeling the criticism was nowhere near over. 2.47: What do you know After a few minutes of climbing, during which Arisia swore every oath Henry had put Zerathstra through and then a couple to really emphasize that she couldn¡¯t use or spread what she learned against him in any way, the two arrived in the stadium-like space he¡¯d visited only a day prior. He¡¯d learned that this was where the tournaments would be held. Arisia took a sharp right, toward a little set of stands that looked oddly like consoles. Henry eyed her for a second, and decided to wait on a question that¡¯d been bugging him over the last few minutes, and instead he trailed after her. Arisia stood over a panel of layered and glowing inscriptions, dislodging a few crystals here and there and moving things around. Henry watched, fascinated, and after a couple of seconds, she glanced back at him and pointed to one of the smaller panels. ¡°Touch that one and push some mana into it. It will allow the barrier to recognize you and allow you through.¡± Part of the secrecy oaths was that she¡¯d help him keep his identity and abilities secret¡ªor at least, she wouldn¡¯t actively spread them¡ªso Henry was happy to comply. Still, a tiny part of him, deep inside, was a bit leery about soul oaths and their limits. Could they be weakened? Could they be circumvented? From what he¡¯d learned from Stormsong and Arisia, the wording didn¡¯t matter. The intent and the spirit of the oath did. I¡¯m just being paranoid, he told himself as he put his human hand on the large round crystal. At the end of the day, it always came back to ¡®why would any of these powerful beings bother lying to him?¡¯. He¡¯d been in this settlement for less than a day, and to be frank, he¡¯d been at the A-rank¡¯s mercy. If that being had wanted to come after him, there was nothing Henry could have done. The many B-ranks could have been an issue as well, but so far, they kept to their words and they¡¯d been nothing but hospitable and friendly. Still, there was one last question Henry needed to ask, but he told himself he¡¯d do it in a bit. For now, he pushed mana to his arm, only for the right side of his chest to crack and shatter like half-baked clay. Henry stared at his missing chest and shoulder, then up at the tightly-lipped instructor. With a sigh, he tore out a bit of his stomach, hunched over the crystal, then with his kraken arm, he touched the crystal and shoved his mana through. The crystal ball lit up with a green-yellow hue, vibrating with power as his trickle of mana joined the torrent held within the pedestal. Out of thin air, a wall¡ªno, a panel of matching color surged up and surrounded the training grounds in a completely opaque dome. Arisia stepped back from behind her console, face flushed as she shook her hand, then she nodded toward the newly raised barrier and moved toward it. Henry expected her to bump into it or have to push herself through, but she passed through as if it wasn¡¯t there. When Henry did the same, he only felt the soft energy pass over his skin. Henry came face-to-face with the instructor and found she had her wood-framed glasses on once more. She studied his ruined body for a second, then looked at the kraken body peeking through the chest. ¡°Why did you not create mana channels in the body you¡¯re wearing?¡± Create what? Henry blinked and decided that, just like being in the doctor¡¯s office, he should be honest and direct with his answers. ¡°I didn¡¯t know it was possible,¡± he said with his illusory voice. ¡°I don¡¯t even know how to do it or what mana channels are.¡± Arisia hummed, and her notebook and pen appeared once more in her hand. ¡°We¡¯ll add that to the list. For now, I think you should dispel the body. It¡¯s getting in the way of everything.¡± Henry eyed the packed earth below him, then looked back up at the scribbling woman. Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings. ¡°I¡¯m not very¡­ mobile. I think. I mean, I¡¯ve got a couple of theories I could test, but I haven¡¯t been up here for long, so I¡¯m not sure.¡± Arisia nodded along and without stopping, she asked. ¡°Fair enough. What are the theories?¡± ¡°Well, affecting myself with Telekinesis didn¡¯t work as well as I¡¯d hoped. But I figured I could lift something and hang on to it, though it¡¯s still a bit awkward. Otherwise, I could use Control Water to make a small water bubble and move with it, but it¡¯s a bit more complex than I expected. The last theory is to make myself some joints and stand on my arms.¡± The instructor listened, eyes sharp. ¡°Why do you think Telekinesis isn¡¯t working well? I¡¯ve seen how you carried the dolphin with it, so you¡¯ve got passable control over the skill. What do you think is the reason you can¡¯t carry yourself with it?¡± Henry considered the option for a moment, and was about to go check the skill description and began freeing up an Octomind or two when Arisia snapped her fingers. ¡°I¡¯m asking you, not the subminds in your head. You do have a submind skill, right?¡± Henry stilled in shock, then nodded. He hadn¡¯t expected her to literally be able to see or sense what he¡¯d been doing. Was it telepathy, or could she see through his Aspects, somehow? Arisia paced around him, eyes trained on him like a hawk. ¡°Then don¡¯t use them. You need to learn these things. The subminds can follow your lead and reproduce your successes, and it¡¯s fine to delegate some tasks to them, but they¡¯ll always be only as good as you are. If you¡¯re lazy and don¡¯t push yourself, then they¡¯ll stagnate. So. Unless we¡¯re actively working on the subminds, keep them idle.¡± This is going to be such a pain in the ass, but she¡¯s probably right, Henry thought as he summoned a small boulder out of storage and held it aloft with Telekinesis. He could feel the weight pushing down on his control, but it wasn¡¯t taxing. He moved it side to side, then brought it near to him right before dispelling his human shell. He plopped himself on top of the round, barnacle-covered rock. Instantly, he felt his control of Telekinesis falter. Not because it was being disturbed or overpowered, but because suddenly, the angle felt weird. It was as if he had a heavy dumbell in his grip. He could hold it just fine in a normal posture, but if he tried contorting his body aside and tried to hold the weight at an angle, it just wouldn¡¯t work. It¡¯d get too difficult to hold onto. ¡°I think it has to do with the distance? Wait¡­ No.¡± Arisia kept quiet and waited for him to work the problem through. Henry peered at the child-sized boulder under him and felt at the feedback he was getting from Telekinesis. He didn¡¯t have the right word for it, but it felt¡­ laggy. Stuck in a way, as if he was trying to turn a door handle by trying to turn the door itself around. Oh. ¡°It¡¯s a point of origin thing, too¡­ right? When I usually use the skill, I¡¯m moving objects in relation to myself. The two sets of coordinates stay distinct. But if the origin and the target overlap or get too close, then things get wonky.¡± Arisia gave him a nod and a smile. ¡°That would be an advanced subject to cover, but considering your skillset and what you¡¯re trying to do with the domain ability, you clearly need to understand the process a bit better.¡± The woman scribbled in her notebook, and Henry longed to take a peek behind her back and see everything she had written so far, but it was time to address the kraken in the room. Henry produced a coughing sound, which made the woman slow down, blink, then look up in surprise. For a moment, he enjoyed her slack-jawed expression. With great effort, Henry made the boulder he was sitting on approach the woman, and came to a stop when he was around ten feet away. ¡°Back in my world, there¡¯s a common saying that goes ¡®there is no such thing as a free lunch¡¯. I don¡¯t always agree with it, as people can and should be kind to one another, especially when it costs them nothing. But I¡¯m not naive enough to believe everyone thinks the same.¡± Arisia¡¯s expression sobered, and with a flick of her wrist, the notebook disappeared while Henry asked the question that had been on his mind. ¡°Why are you helping me? Why are you willing to invest time and effort in training a complete stranger?¡± How do you actually benefit from training me, he wanted to ask, but that one felt a bit too cynical to voice, and in any case, he¡¯d get his answer with the prior two questions. Arisia nodded along. When he finished, she held her arms behind her back quietly for a moment, then she asked, ¡°What do you know of the System governing this world?¡± 2.48: System Henry stared at the woman, and after considering it for a second, he summoned a visual illusion to emote for him. After all, expressions were an important part of communication, and a kraken¡¯s features didn¡¯t lend themselves well to such. ¡°The System? I don¡¯t know much about it aside from the fact that it popped up to talk about classes and Aspects a couple of times,¡± he said, recalling. ¡°I believe it mentioned something about¡­ storing power to transfer it somewhere, but that no one had been around to claim it in a while?¡± Henry was a bit shocked how well he remembered that first interaction with the System. He strongly suspected he could recall it so well thanks to his Octominds and their passive effects. Arisia stilled. ¡°It said so? To you? Are you sure?¡± Henry¡¯s illusion nodded. ¡°Yes. I¡¯m sure. But aside from that, I don¡¯t know much about its origin or its goals, aside from nurturing the residents of this world.¡± Arisia stared past him, deep in thought. ¡°Interesting,¡± she mumbled. A few seconds later, her eyes snapped back to him. ¡°To answer your question on why we¡¯re willing to lend a hand, we¡ªme and Zerathstra¡ªare willing to provide some support and training because we believe you might have what it takes to overcome the System.¡± Henry blinked at her. ¡°Overcome what?¡± Arisia took a deep breath. ¡°As far as we know, no one has ever managed to move beyond A-rank. No one has ever managed to ascend, even though the System claims it¡¯s here to empower us,¡± she said. Henry digested the words and reviewed his encounter with the odd being. He sifted through the memories, looking for a crumb of malice or ill intent that he could pick up from his interactions, but came up empty. He was about to say as much, when the instructor raised a hand. ¡°I know this might be difficult to believe, but even though most of us have had only a handful of interactions with the being, we believe it knows what¡¯s happening. Whenever the¡­ thing is asked about those who had attempted ascension, it refuses to say anything and quickly cuts the encounter short. We don¡¯t think the System is out to get us. It¡¯s not being malicious on purpose. But it might be some sort of forced mechanic. Something we don¡¯t understand very well. Maybe it has something to do with wherever the System hailed from. Because we know the System hasn¡¯t been around forever. We have old text telling about its cataclysmic arrival thousands of years ago, and about our escape from Seavaria.¡± When Henry blinked at the name, she pointed up at the second planet looming above. ¡°Write that down,¡± he told his glass-wearing Octomind while he tried to wrap his mind about everything being said. Henry looked up at the blue planet, and thought of the little metallic orb that had pointed up to the celestial object when coupled with Find the Path. The picture wasn¡¯t clear, but he was getting more and more puzzle pieces. Henry hovered over his rock and peered at the B-rank. The System could be responsible for whatever was happening, but what if it wasn¡¯t its fault? ¡°What if all of these A-ranks failed their ascension? What if the failure was fatal, somehow? And what if they succeeded and moved on to some other world after their ascension?¡± There were so many possibilities for why an A-rank might not come back, but of course none of those reasons ruled out some potential foul play. And the tight-lipped nature of the System was definitely not helping. If its instructions were so strict that it couldn¡¯t divulge the ascended¡¯s whereabouts or if they were even alive, then something shady might actually be happening. Arisia sighed, then shook her head. ¡°We don¡¯t know. Through the years, many promising individuals took the risk and were never seen again. No matter the enchantments they had on them, the skills they expressively developed to potentially escape or survive. We even had one of ours reach that step, and we¡¯ve never seen them since. Something is happening. While Zerathstra is not intent on pushing for ascension, you might one day arrive at that step. If you do, we want you to be prepared. We want to know what has happened to our elders and ancestors. And if the System has done something to them, we have to know.¡±If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. Henry sat quietly on his little boulder. The silence stretched as he considered everything he¡¯d heard, but after a while he nodded and set it aside. He now knew why she was helping him, and he knew he had to be ready for whatever the System was up to. For escaping or surviving, he already had a couple of leads he could look into, such as the turtles and how they managed to cross from his world to this one. Still, this conversation gave him a lot of context. With every interaction and every tidbit he was learning, the visit to Thalis was proving more valuable by the day. ¡°Alright. I appreciate your help and training, and I promise I will let you know if I ever manage to learn what happens beyond A-rank. But before we get started¡­ has anyone actually tried going up there? To Seavaria?¡± Arisia shook her head. ¡°I don¡¯t believe anyone below A-rank can make the journey. There are things between us. Things that live where there is nothing, and even though it seems close, it¡¯s an incredibly long journey where there is no heat or air, and all the while, you¡¯d be hounded by the things of stars and void,¡± she said, looking up. For a moment, Henry thought her eyes shone a bit, and a small smile played on her lips. ¡°Some believe there are still survivors up there. Hiding under the sea.¡± She looked back down at him with a smile and shrugged. ¡°Maybe you¡¯d eventually be able to make the journey. You¡¯d be well-equipped to survive its terrain.¡± Henry glanced up, and as much as he felt some excitement at exploring a new, giant ocean, he was still a bit tired of water. Then again, he¡¯d have to be at least A-rank to survive the journey, so why worry about that just yet. Over the next couple of hours, Arisia drilled Henry and took notes. She asked him to channel mana, project it, manipulate it, condense it, change it, alter it, then asked him to redo-everything with Aspected mana. She asked to see his skills and how he used them. She asked him to push said skills, alter how much he pushed mana into them, feed them the least he could manage to trigger the ability. On and on, she made requests and took notes. By the time she was done, and by the time Henry¡¯s ego was black and bruised, she told him to come back the next day. She¡¯d have a training plan ready. As he made his way down to pick up Maurice, Henry had no doubts. He most definitely failed at least 90% of the tests Arisia had put him through. Which means¡­ I can only get better from here on out, he told himself. It was true, but it still didn¡¯t make him feel that much better. With his newly-made body, Henry soon arrived at the farming area. He quickly found Maurice thanks to the little crowd of children that kept following the crustacean, only to turn around and run away, giggling and screaming, whenever he snapped a claw at them. With the kids chased away for a moment, Maurice turned back to the farmer he was chatting with, who, to Henry¡¯s surprise, still had most of his hair atop his head. But there was no mistaking the look of relief that came upon the stranger¡¯s face when he saw Henry approaching, at which point the two eyestalks swiveled around. Maurice came scuttling toward him, eliciting more squeals and laughs from the children that had been sneaking up on the crab. ¡°[Henry! You took longer than I expected. What happened? I¡¯m okay, by the way. Sera here told me a lot about farming. Can we farm? We¡¯d have to stay in a single spot though¡­ unless¡­ No, no. That¡¯s not possible. Anyway, what are we doing now? Did you ask your questions? Did you get answers?]¡± Henry stared at the crab, then up at Sera. The young man gave him a tired smile and began sidling away from them, which made Henry frown down at the crab. ¡°[Did you give him time to answer your questions, or did you throw everything at him all at once?]¡± The crab froze for a second, then the eye stalks began leaning to the side, more than they usually id as the little crustacean averted his eyes. ¡°[I-um. He¡¯s okay! I also paid him, like you said. I gave him tips.]¡± Henry shook his head at the blatant subject change, but let it slide. ¡°[It¡¯s ¡®tip¡¯. Singular. What did you give him?]¡± ¡°[I gave him some squid roe. The juicy ones!]¡± Henry stared down at the proud crab, then decided to go find the young man and give him an actual tip. ¡°[What? Should I have given him some more roe? The squids are the best ones I have! Henry?]¡± Henry kept walking. He was looking forward to his nap. 2.49: Unfazed Henry dropped face first into the pool of the guest home and let his fabricated body dissolve Maurice scuttled behind him at the edge of the water. ¡°[I thought tips were supposed to be something valuable! Was I a bad tipper? Henry! Does this mean I¡¯m a bad tipper?]¡± Henry sighed as water touched his limbs. He stretched his arms and swam in a quick circle, letting the light of the sun dance upon his unblemished and unmarked skin. The glowing charges from Hoard Vitals were still around, but he recently found he could hide them and not have everyone know about them. Better to keep them as a trump card. He had plenty of healing abilities at this point, but keeping one or two secrets should help when it¡¯d come to survivability. Though at this point, he doubted anyone of his rank or even a bit above could one-shot him. Aside from A-ranks, of course. But those were something else. Henry came to a stop and looked up at the crab. ¡°[What¡¯s valuable to you isn¡¯t to him, Maurice. I told you enough about money and economies, what made you think squid roe was valuable?]¡± The crab nodded, which in this case, was him bobbing up and down on his little legs. ¡°[You did! You said roes were a delicacy, and it¡¯s because it¡¯s a creature that lives deep within the Current it¡¯d be valuable. Because of ¡®scarcity¡¯. Your words!]¡± Henry slowed, then turned and looked up at the crab suspiciously. ¡°[Is that true or did you just think of that excuse?]¡± It was good, Henry had to admit. The logic checked out, but Maurice was a wily little gremlin and he could just as easily come up with a convenient excuse to explain his mistake. Unfortunately, both of them were sporting mind shields, so Henry couldn¡¯t tell if the crab was honest or full of it. Maurice froze for a second, then his eye-stalks tilted to the side and Henry knew he had him. Who needed Telepathic Sense when the one speaking to you was this bad at lying. Henry peered closer at the crab and narrowed his eyes. ¡°[What did we say about lying, Maurice?]¡± The objection died in Maurice¡¯s throat, and his many legs went still for a second before he started pacing with renewed vigor. ¡°[I wasn¡¯t lying! I really thought he¡¯d like the roe¡­ But now I know I gave Sera an awful gift while he¡¯d been so helpful. And he didn¡¯t even tell me my gift was bad. What should I do? How do I fix it? And why do I feel like this? It¡¯s like¡­ I wanna go back to the ocean and completely forget about this. It feels awful.]¡± Henry blinked, then shook his head and chuckled. ¡°[Ah. Well, in that case, I owe you an apology. I thought¡­ nevermind. For the feeling you¡¯re describing, it¡¯s called being embarrassed. It happens all the time, and it¡¯s easy to fix. Here¡¯s what you do; you take a nice gift, you go find Sera, you give him the gift and say you¡¯re sorry, and then you never talk about it again. Not sure about that last part, but that¡¯s what I do.]¡± Maurice rubbed his claws together and his eyes roamed around. ¡°[Okay,]¡± he said after a second. Then, as if he¡¯d remembered something, they focused back on Henry. ¡°[How long are we staying, by the way?]¡± Henry continued swimming in a circle, but his eyes were fixed on the crab. ¡°[That¡¯s sudden. But maybe we leave after the second tournament? There¡¯s a lot we can learn here and I think, unless things get weird, we should try getting the most out of it. Why?]¡± ¡°[There¡¯s a few people watching us. I think they don¡¯t like us. Or maybe they don¡¯t like me. They want my shell.]¡± Henry stopped swimming. Every one of his clones¡ªthe one which watched over Stormsong and the children surrounding her, the one that was still in the farming area, and the two watching around their guest home¡ªstilled. Henry found a wood-knot near the edge of the pool and wrapped an arm around it.Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author. ¡°[Are you sure?]¡± Maurice pulled one of the squid roe out and rolled it for a second in his claws before he began munching on it. ¡°[Yeah. They think I don¡¯t notice them, but I do.]¡± ¡°[Why didn¡¯t you say anything to my clone? I was close by. I¡¯m sure you sensed me.]¡± Maurice stared down at him from the edge of the pool, chewing, then he shrugged. ¡°[You were busy. And I didn¡¯t think we were in danger. Should I have?]¡± Henry slowly exhaled, then shook his head. Even though he¡¯d warned Maurice about some of the problems they might encounter when they¡¯d meet civilization, he couldn¡¯t blame the crab for not raising the alarm at something as subtle as a negative thought. Coveting Maurice¡¯s shell was alarming, but nothing had turned violent yet, so Henry wasn¡¯t surprised Maurice wasn¡¯t worried. But Henry was. It might be a false alarm and just a handful of people with ill intents, but this couldn¡¯t be dismissed out of hand. He couldn¡¯t rely on the A-rank¡¯s protection at all times, and in any case, the oaths of Zerathstra and Arisia only guaranteed neither of them would try to harm Henry and his companions, directly or indirectly, but that didn¡¯t extend to every other being in the settlement. ¡°[I¡¯ll stay closer. When you see them or sense them, point them out to me.]¡± Maurice rubbed his pincers together. ¡°[Okay. Okay. About Sera; what¡¯s a nice gift? Cores? Would the shells we found in the kraken¡¯s den work? How about the perl?]¡± ¡°[Absolutely not the pearl,]¡± Henry sent, alarmed. Thankfully, it was in his own storage. ¡°[The pearl¡¯s too valuable. Probably. But cores should be fine.]¡± Henry hadn¡¯t actually spoken to anyone about currency, but he¡¯d seen price tags in tokens. He only wasn¡¯t sure how he was supposed to make the transactions. Was there some sort of bank tracking who owned what? Not all transactions could be done with cores, he was sure of that. But he¡¯d have to ask. ¡°[Cores are probably fine, but don¡¯t over-pay. I think a D-rank core should cover it? I¡¯ll ask around in a bit let you know.]¡± ¡°[Okay!]¡± Henry watched the crab scuttle away, then switched his point of view to that of the clone stationed on top of Maurice¡¯s head. After a couple seconds of consideration, he decided to double the Octominds watching over Maurice and Stormsong. Just in case. And maybe I should bring this up to Arisia. Her oath should prevent her from doing anything to make things worse, and at least I¡¯d know how I should react to any of this. With his Octominds and clones watching, Henry decided it was time to allow himself a bit of rest. It didn¡¯t take long for him to fall asleep. *** ¡°We in Thalis aren¡¯t as united as we may appear. So long as the Verdant Canopy itself isn¡¯t threatened, and so long as its natives aren¡¯t being severely bullied or harassed, Zerathstra does not intervene.¡± Henry, perched atop a summoned boulder in the backroom of Arisia¡¯s shop, focused on the mana being channeled down to his arm while his trainer watched. After a couple of seconds, she flicked an arm and the mana destabilized, fizzing out of his limb and into thin air. Henry grit his beak and summoned more, while Arisia continued explaining as she reviewed her notes. ¡°Which means, this will have to be your own little conflict. You are allowed to defend yourself if you¡¯re attacked, though we have rules and eyes, so whomever this is that¡¯s trying to start trouble, they¡¯ll do it within the confines of our laws. You might be provoked, insulted, or egged on to accept a duel, which might be wagered upon and/or might be to the death. They might sponsor an opponent if you participate in the tournaments, and they might put a bounty on your head to see you defeated, which would make it so every champion taking part in the tournament will have you in their sights. There¡¯s a lot that could be done, so keep an eye out and don¡¯t fall for obvious traps, but otherwise I wouldn¡¯t worry much. It¡¯s just someone trying to claim your head or get some easy loot. You¡¯ve been living in the Current for months; this should be nothing to you. It¡¯s merely politics. Not to be underestimated, but not to lose sleep over, either.¡± Henry wrapped his will around the mana infused in his limbs and refused to let it out of his control as he listened. Arisia came to a stop, eyed his softly glowing limb, and flicked her arm once more. A wave of foreign mana nudged his own. The energy in his arm quivered and he felt it nearly slip out of his grasp, but it didn¡¯t. Henry looked up, eyes wide, and Arisia gave him a small smile, then flicked her arm once more. Her mana slapped his own, and he watched his energy spill out into the aether, as if she¡¯d just slapped a cup out of his hand. She gave him an unfazed look and pushed her glasses higher on her nose before looking down at her notes. ¡°Again.¡± 2.50: Provocation Henry¡¯s eyes shot open as he felt Maurice¡¯s nudge, and he tuned into his Octominds. Instantly, he became aware of what the subminds had seen and noted. On the schooling floor, two Octominds had been watching the small crowd of children still hanging around Stormsong as she displayed her control over the nimbus of water under her. Now that he had to suffer through Arisia¡¯s training, Henry gained a new appreciation for the dolphin¡¯s control over mana. As she floated around, followed by screaming and laughing children, he couldn¡¯t help but think she might just become some sort of hero for the young humans of this settlement. Two of them were swimming with her, laughing as they swam up and down at the edges of the floating bubble of water. One girl slipped out of the bubble and began tumbling, only for a sprout of water to pick her up and push her back in the swirling ball. Seconds later, she was on Stormsong¡¯s back, laughing at the other jealous and open-mouthed kids. Two other Octominds had been on Maurice-duty, and they were the two that had pulled on his attention. ¡°[Henry! That¡¯s him. The human in the yellow and red skin.]¡± Henry looked through the eyes of the clone and peered into the crowd of the market. Maurice was once more with Sera, and the youth had taken him to a place where Maurice could get a wallet. Well, they called it that, but it looked like nothing Henry had seen before when it came to wallets. It was a flat little circular piece of wood with runes around the edge and a crystal in the center. It could be charged with cores, and then it could be used to transfer tokens to another wallet by speaking or willing the number and rank of the tokens. Henry was tempted to pause and examine the information transferred to him by the Octominds, but that wasn¡¯t the purpose of his attention being here. Instead, he gazed around until he found the person Maurice had been talking about. ¡°[Skin? Those are clothes, Maurice. And I see him.]¡± It was a younger man dressed in flowing red and yellow robes, with two male attendants behind him, following as their leader tried to be subtle in his maneuver. The man was circling, slowly approaching Maurice from behind while Henry watched, and he wondered how he should deal with the brat when his main body was poked. Henry switched his point of view and found himself back in front of Arisia. The trainer held her notebook aside and gave him an arched brow. ¡°Your subminds are fully engaged when they¡¯re supposed to be idle. Is it more important than this training?¡± Now, how could he answer that without getting himself into trouble? Henry blinked and brought his train of thought to a grinding halt. In trouble? What was this, middle school? He was grateful for the help, but it didn¡¯t mean he had to justify his actions. ¡°Someone¡¯s circling Maurice, and it seems like they¡¯re up to something. Red and yellow robes with attendants. Does that mean anything to you?¡± Arisia closed her eyes and exhaled. Henry was pretty sure he saw a brow twitch. ¡°Yeah. It¡¯s the son of someone I trained, I believe. Deal with it, but don¡¯t take too long. We¡¯ve barely made any progress into your mana control, and we still have plenty to cover.¡± Henry nodded, then switched back to the blood clone above Maurice¡¯s shell¡ªafter assigning a couple to watch over his main body¡ªand watched as Sera and Maurice talked with a well dressed merchant while the young man and his attendants approached. [Human (C) - Lvl 43] Wait, how could Arisia tell I was using my Octominds? How is she seeing this stuff? I need to ask that as soon as I get back. Once this garbage is dealt with, he thought. As he watched, the two attendants separated from their master while the latter picked up speed. Henry didn¡¯t know what the man intended, but he wasn¡¯t about to let him do whatever it was he was planning. I wish I could create videos. I guess I could display what I¡¯m seeing with illusions, but anyone could claim it¡¯s fabricated. The attendants converged, and the young man was only a few feet away when Henry got a clearer grasp of his emotions. There was, effectively, some greed. A sense of superiority. A need to prove oneself. And a tiny bit of fear, though Henry couldn¡¯t tell of what, but he guessed he¡¯d have a better idea soon.This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. Dismissing Invisibility, Henry popped up atop Maurice¡¯s shell, which made the young man¡¯s eyes widen as he came to a stop. Behind him, the merchant haggling with Sera trailed off. Maurice turned around, which forced Henry to slowly turn as well so he could face the scheming youth. Henry¡¯s yellow eyes stared into the newcomer, and he spoke with a clear, slightly echo-y voice. ¡°Can we help you?¡± Henry had been tempted to use a terrifying and unnerving voice just like that of the Trickster, but he didn¡¯t want to alienate himself too much. A bit of modulation and echo would do so he seemed just a little alien enough to be interesting and respected, but not too alien so he¡¯s feared. ¡°Lord Sev?¡± asked Sera, blinking at the newcomer. Without looking down, and as the surprised schemer recovered, Henry sent a message to Maurice. ¡°[Tell Sera to get us two¡ªno, three of those wallets.]¡± ¡°[Okay!]¡± The so-called Sev tilted his chin up, gave Henry a dismissive look, then focused on Maurice. Oh right, this body¡¯s a clone. I probably still show as a D-rank. Henry chuckled inwardly as the young man stared down at the crab. ¡°Guest, why do you allow such weak beings to speak for you? I came to welcome you to our city, but if I¡¯m going to be insulted this way, then I challenge you to a duel.¡± Henry was considering how to answer this and how he should go about asking about the rules and the prizes when Maurice beat him to the punch. ¡°Oh. Okay!¡± ¡°[Goddamit, Maurice.]¡± ¡°[What?]¡± ¡°[Don¡¯t accept duels without knowing what the rules are, you goof.]¡± ¡°[Oh. Right!]¡± Maurice sheepishly rubbed his pincers together and stared up at the blinking lord. The latter must have not expected his challenge to be accepted this quickly, but he clearly hadn¡¯t been ready for what Maurice would say next. ¡°What are the rules? And what do I win when I beat you? Aside from your core, you don¡¯t seem to have anything of value.¡± Holy crap, Maurice. The plaza went dead silent, and if Henry had been in a human body, he would have been cackling at the young man¡¯s outraged face. ¡°The rules? The rules?¡± repeated the young man, face slowly contorting as his anger ignited. ¡°The winner gets to live, creature. I¡¯m making this duel to the death, and if you are no coward, you will accept it as such.¡± Maurice looked down at his claws, then around, then back up at the young man as his attendant tried to pull him away from the ever-worsening deal he was committing himself to. ¡°Yes but what do I win if I beat you, though? I, at least, have a nice shell as well as my core. What do you have? Do you have pretty shells? Treasure? Henry said we shouldn¡¯t eat human meat so I¡¯m not interested in your body. What else do you have?¡± Someone laughed in the crowd. The young man¡¯s head whipped toward the sound but he didn¡¯t seem to find anyone. The man glowered at the crab who barely reached his hips. ¡°Fine. I will bring one of my treasures. The duel¡¯s tomorrow, at dawn.¡± ¡°[Three treasures and in three days,]¡± whispered Henry into the crab¡¯s mind. ¡°Five treasures. In three days,¡± said Maurice. Sev bared his teeth in a snarl, then his lips pulled in a feral smile. ¡°Alright. Three treasures. In one day. It won¡¯t matter anyway, because I will carve you out of your shell before I display it to my guests.¡± ¡°Okay!¡± said Maurice, then the crab turned away from the lord and looked up at Sera. ¡°Can we get three wallets instead of one? I need them for¡­ things.¡± Sev spat something to his attendants then stalked away, quickly cutting through the crowd that seamlessly parted in front of him. Sera blinked down at Maurice, then looked up at the merchant who was just as slacked-jawed as the young farmer. Slowly, both began haggling once more, though this time the merchant was quick to agree to Sera¡¯s price, and both kept shooting Maurice and Henry looks. ¡°[Good job on getting a rise of that kid. But don¡¯t kill him.]¡± ¡°[Okay. But why?]¡± ¡°[It might create some unnecessary trouble. We¡¯ll just beat him up, take his treasure, then let him go. We don¡¯t need C-rank cores anyway,]¡± said Henry, then he paused. ¡°[Actually, this is all you. Can¡¯t help you fight, but I can give you a couple of orbs to heal up and restore some mana if you need them, just in case. And if it gets bad, we¡¯ll run.]¡± ¡°[Okay!]¡± Henry didn¡¯t see how Maurice could lose to a mid-level C-rank. It might be close, and humans might be more strategic with their skills than monsters, but Maurice was not weak, and he didn¡¯t have a mobility issue compared to Henry. A lack of water was no problem to the crustacean. Unless that interferes with his implosions? Henry would have to make sure that wasn¡¯t the case, but he wasn¡¯t worried much. After a quick glance around, he cast Invisibility on his clone before moving back to his main body. Back to training. 2.51: Duel Maurice scuttled into the arena to cheers and shouts from the crowd. The rows and rows of seats were full to bursting. The crowd was enthusiastic, and to his surprise and Henry¡¯s, Maurice had had to be escorted with B-ranks just so the crowd wouldn¡¯t slow him down. The announcements might have had something to do with it. Within an hour of the challenge being made official, news had spread out quickly, and the whole settlement had been whipped into a frenzy. Even though there was a bit of shock and mumbling at the ¡®to-the-death¡¯ part of the duel, the follow-up announcement by the funny A-rank really ignited the mood. Maurice peered down at the packed earth under his feet. He¡¯d been here hours ago with Henry to make sure his skills worked as they should, but then Henry had to get back to training so Maurice hadn¡¯t had a chance to examine the soil in detail. By now he should be here, though. He said he would be. Maurice scooped up a bit of the dry soil just as someone began speaking, and he had to stop examining the crumbly piece of earth, surprised at how loud the voice was. How are they doing this? I need to ask Henry¡­ This must be useful. For something. Oh, there¡¯s the human I¡¯m not supposed to kill. On the other side of the arena, the human who¡¯d challenged Maurice was glowering at him¡ªif he was interpreting the expression right. He had a spear in hand, and he wore different white robes that seemed a bit tighter on his body. ¡°Greetings, citizens of Thalis and guests! Today we are here to watch a duel! One that even our Lord will be seeing and as you all know, the rules have been modified! This used to be a challenge to the death, folks, but our Lord, in his infinite wisdom, decided to grace us with his presence! Which means, these two fighters can fight to their heart¡¯s content, and neither will die! So, without further ado, let¡¯s introduce our fighters. To the east, Maurice! An awakened being and our Lord¡¯s guest. A freshly evolved, level 8 C-rank Chimeric Hermit Crab with a striking shell and sharp claws. What could he do with those? What will see out of this unique being? Would it be enough to bridge the level gap to his opponent?¡± The crowd roared, some booing, some clapping and waving flags, and the announcer continued after a couple of seconds. ¡°To the west, is one of our own. Lord Sev, son of Lord Tevarius who you all know. While our guest is an unknown quantity, we all know of Lord Sev¡¯s abilities and of his domineering and explosive style. This promises to be an interesting fight, folks, and now, let us see what the prizes will be. Warriors! Present your wagers so our judge can take their measure.¡± Sev kept glaring at Maurice as he turned the sand over in his claws, listening. The young man gestured, and two of his attendants stepped past him and set down a very pretty wooden box. Riiight. The treasures. With the fight no longer being to the death, Henry and Maurice had to come up with an equivalent treasure, or at least, they had to match the value in tokens. Unfortunately, they had no unused B-rank core they were just sitting on, and from the few things they showed Arisia, only one thing would be accepted as a wager. Of course, they didn¡¯t show the spare turtle shell, nor did they show the mysterious metallic orb that would guide them to the planet above. As for the carcasses and weaker cores, they kept those to themselves. In any case, I¡¯m not supposed to lose here, or Henry would have my shell. Maurice reached into his hoard, and plucked out a three-foot-wide pearl. The precious stone took in the light of day and began to shine with an unearthly pink and white glow. The crowd went silent, then exploded into deafening cheers. ¡°Look at the size of that pearl!¡± The judge, a woman in flowing robes, stared at the treasure with wide eyes for a second before she coughed and made her way to Sev¡¯s presented chest. She took a knee in front of it, then gently opened the box. She examined the contents slowly and meticulously, asked the attendants a couple of questions, then got up and made her way to Maurice. The crab was holding on to the pearl with a ghostly limb, cradling it gently, and as the yellow-haired judge approached, her eyes seemed to reflect the glow of the orb.If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it. The judge picked up the pearl from Maurice¡¯s claw, gently turned it around a few times, unblinking, and then she exhaled and looked down at the crab. ¡°This surpasses the value of the prize presented by your opponent,¡± she said, voice echoing in the arena, at which point the crowd gasped. ¡°Do you accept the offered wager or do you wish to change it for something of a lower value?¡± She looked down at the pearl, then back at Maurice. ¡°Of much lower value.¡± Maurice looked at the pearl, looked past it at the simmering Sev, then shrugged. ¡°It¡¯s fine. I¡¯m not going to lose it anyway,¡± he said with an illusory voice, and was surprised as he heard it echo loudly in the arena. The crowd cheered and laughed, which made Sev¡¯s ears take a scarlet hue, almost matching Maurice¡¯s color. ¡°There you have it, folks! The wagers have been set. The bout will begin in one minute! The fight will go on until one competitor is unable to continue. Place your bets if you haven¡¯t already!¡± The judge gestured, and both the pearl and the intricately carved chest lifted off the ground and moved toward the podium, following in the judge¡¯s wake. ¡°You¡¯ll pay for your insults, crab,¡± said Sev, and the crowd hushed, waiting for Maurice¡¯s retort. ¡°Okay!¡± There was a silent beat, then more laughter. ¡°Our guest is fearless!¡± called out the announcer. ¡°The time is nigh, folks! The fight begins in 3¡­ 2¡­ 1¡­ Fight!¡± Sev whipped his arm back and threw. The bone spear came at Maurice impressively fast, seamlessly cutting through the air, and the crab had to remind himself that there was no water around to slow projectiles. Henry had told him, and Maurice had experienced it himself, but it still felt surreal. ¡°Die,¡± snarled Sev. The man broke into a run, even before his spear had landed, and Maurice decided it was time to get moving. The crab disappeared into a swirl of purple light, and reappeared a few yards to the right just as the simple bone-spear embedded itself in the ground where he used to be. Sev¡¯s head whipped around, shocked, but he quickly recovered as he extended an arm. The spear flew back toward him, and the shaft slapped against his palm as he ran at Maurice. The crab stole a quick glance at the crowd, and found them jumping and cheering, but he couldn¡¯t hear anything. How? So many things to learn about. So many things to discover and see! Maurice had barely slept since they''d gotten here, and he was already getting anxious at having to leave without learning everything. The spear flashed at his shell, tip glowing green, so Maurice popped out of existence again, dodging the thrust and reappearing behind the attacker. Alright. Henry said I should make this quick so¡­ Let¡¯s see. Mana surged out of his hidden body as the space around him became part of his Domain. Sev was turning, swinging his weapon once more, but Maurice just had to snip his claw. A foot-wide bubble appeared around Sev¡¯s thigh and instantly began to shrink, but the young man jumped to the side as the blue bubble popped with a sharp crack. Oh? He sensed it? Not fast enough, though. The young man was panting, a grimace of pain on his face as blood trailed down the missing chunk of his thigh, but that wasn¡¯t enough to slow him. The man lunged and stabbed forward, only for a giant blue claw to swipe down at him, forcing him to abort his attack or risk being crushed. Sev dodged backwards and surged above with a powerful leap, and his eyes widened when he came face-to-face with a spray of imploding bubbles. The young man cursed and held his spear horizontally, summoning a dome that took Maurice¡¯s bubbles surprisingly well, only to get past the bubbles and find two pairs of giant claws waiting for him as he approached the ground. Maurice brought both claws together, as if to crush the young man, but Sev¡¯s spear suddenly shone red, and it gained that heavy feeling Maurice associated with concepts and Aspects. Which meant his summoned claw was about to be dispelled, but that was alright. Maurice just needed to keep him still for a second, or at least know exactly how his opponent was about to move. Sev stabbed the right claw, popping it as if it had been made of those soap bubbles the children liked to play with, and used the second claw as a foot-hold to propel himself faster at Maurice. The red glow was still present on the spear, which meant the crab shouldn¡¯t be taking it head on, but there shouldn¡¯t be any need for such. After all, the man was coming at him in a straight line. Just how he wanted him. And Maurice still had plenty of mana. A row of bubbles appeared between him and the falling young man, and the latter¡¯s eyes went wide as he realized what was happening. Maurice snipped his claws, and all the bubbles imploded in a spray of red. 2.52: Three prizes Henry¡¯s human form winced as Maurice landed his final blow. The announcer''s young and lively voice reached his ears, but the woman was barely audible over the roar of the crowd. ¡°And that¡¯s the duel, folks! What a show. What incredible control. Our lord¡¯s guest, Maurice, was not affected in the least by the disparity in levels. You¡¯d think he¡¯d had the higher levels! And now, as I look at some of your annoyed expressions and at the odds of the fight, it seems a few of you might have lost a bet, but you can¡¯t be mad after such a fight! I¡¯m sure many more would want to test their mettle against our guests, but do remember our rules of hospitality!¡± Henry grinned at the laughing faces making their way to the betting stands and at the glowering losers staring at them. He hadn¡¯t thought of betting himself, but he really wasn¡¯t after tokens anyway. Unless they¡¯ve got a way of using the tokens in their wallets to pay for System-stuff? I¡¯ll have to ask. Next, the announcer spoke up again as a flurry of B-ranks worked on reattaching the arm and leg of a sobbing Sev while Maurice, after making sure his opponent was ¡®okay¡¯, scuttled and peered at his chest of goodies. ¡°Now we move on to the rewards our guest had just earned!¡± Maurice glanced back up at the crowd, then ahead at the judge who gave him the go-ahead. ¡°First! Is a dimensional leaf bag created by our very own enchanter Merove. It can carry anything you could fit in a standard room and some more, and Merove himself guarantees at least five years of use before the enchantment starts to deteriorate, at which time he would re-apply it for a small fee.¡± Henry was coming down to meet up with the crab, and watched as his friend picked up a green coloured bag. He couldn¡¯t see the details from this far, but it was either made of dyed cloth and shaped to look like a folded giant leaf, or it was an actual leaf. ¡°The second prize is a fruit, but don¡¯t let that fool you!¡± A hushed wave of mumbling and confusion spread for a second before Henry caught a few gasps. From nearby, one of the watchers mumbled something about Tevarius, which was soon drowned out by the announcer once more. ¡°I see that some of you have recognized this prize, folks. This was the prize won by Lord Tevarius a couple of years back; the very father of the valiant, humbled champion you¡¯ve all watched merely moments ago. A unique and rare fruit that seldom grows in our gardens. A flawless Exalted Honeydew. When eaten, it will increase every attribute by at least one point in C-ranks or below. You¡¯d still get a few points as a B-rank, but that should tell you how prized this reward is. Someone might not be very happy about its loss today. Oh. There he is! The previous owner of the fruit, Lord Tevarius himself.¡± Henry had passed the final set of bleachers and reached when he heard the thud nearby. There had been some chuckles and whispers as the announcer had been speaking, but they all died out when the announcer pointed out the lord, who landed a few yards away from the arena. Tevarius was a tall and wiry man and, much like his son, he wore red and yellow flowing robes. There was no weapon in his tightened fists, and as the man stared into the arena, Henry couldn¡¯t help but think of the striking resemblance the lord had to his son. [Human (B) - Lvl ??] Both shared the same bushy brows, the same severe noses, and brown eyes that were currently fixed on the small chest. He didn¡¯t even look at his healed-up son as the latter was pulled up to his feet. Lord Sev¡¯s injuries were gone. His limbs had been reattached, but there was nothing the healers could do about the paleness of the young man¡¯s skin and horror in his eyes as he fearfully looked at his father. ¡°What is this?¡± asked the announcer. ¡°Does lord Terove intend to challenge our winner? A B-rank would be a high step above the duel Maurice had won, but then again, he won it easily enough. Is a second upset in the cards, folks? Oh? It doesn¡¯t seem like tree-guards like where this is going.¡±The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement. A handful of warriors landed around the lord. Zamir wasn¡¯t part of them, but Semea was, as well as two B-ranks showing as double-question marks and an older one at three question marks. Above level fifty. How close is that one to A-rank? And how come there aren¡¯t that many A-ranks here to begin with? You¡¯d think with the safety and the resources, more would have broken through, but maybe the passive effect of the Current dropped in efficiency after a while? Or it just takes a lot more to level¡­ In any case. Better pay attention to what¡¯s happening. Veins bulged around the large man¡¯s neck, and he looked back up and glared somewhere Henry assumed the announcer was. As if the latter didn¡¯t even notice, she moved on. ¡°Now for the third and final prize! And let me tell you folks, I could not believe it when judge Vari told me about it. The last prize is a Scroll of Barkskin, but not a simple one. Not like you¡¯d be able to find if you had a few tokens burning a hole in your wallet. No, my dear viewers, this is a Scroll of Barkskin made by Lord Zerathstra himself.¡± There was a hush, then the crowd erupted. Henry blinked, and Maurice seemed as confused as he was. Both shared a look across the handful of yards separating them, and Henry shrugged. ¡°It seems that our guests don''t understand the value of such an item, so let me explain! This scroll could cast the defensive skill of ¡®Barkskin¡¯ as if it were Lord Zerathstra himself casting it. It means that unless you¡¯re fighting an A-rank, you¡¯re virtually invulnerable! At least until the spell expires, of course. This prize, citizens of Thalis and distinguished guests, qualifies as a life-saving artefact!¡± Henry¡¯s eyes went wide, and even Maurice froze up and wrenched his claw away from the intricately carved box. How is the pearl more prized than that? To Henry, the bag and the fruit were valuable for sure, but he could understand them being valued less than the giant pearl. This, though? He would have willingly bought the scroll for the pearl. He would have dumped nearly everything he had in his pocket for such an item. For someone who was travelling through monster-infested seas and trying to survive the creatures that dwelled in the deep, the Scroll of Barksin was priceless. Henry¡¯s thoughts were cut off as a pulse of something coursed through his body, and seemingly, through everyone else in the arena. ¡°Ahem. It¡¯s time to call it a day, everyone. Thank you for coming and I hope you enjoyed the show! We¡¯ll see you again very soon! In only three days, as a matter of fact, for the 50+ C-rank tournament. But then again, maybe someone would like to issue a challenge before then? Someone¡­ mad about having lost some treasures? No? Alright. Enjoy the rest of your day, everyone!¡± There were some chuckles behind him as Henry made his way to the crab, at which point the freshly-taunted lord turned his gaze on him. Which Henry ignored to focus on the crab and his telekinetically-carried box of treasures. ¡°[Henry! Look at this! Isn¡¯t this amazing? Should we fight more people? If we can get more things like this, we should! I like this¡­ what do you call this feeling? Also, can you store this? I don¡¯t have enough space.]¡± Henry grinned as he looked at the prizes from up close. ¡°[Not sure. Pride with a hint of greed? You¡¯ll figure it out, and no, we shouldn¡¯t pick fights.]¡± Maurice deflated, but Henry wasn¡¯t done. He tapped the crab on the head and continued. ¡°[Unless we know they¡¯re loaded and have a lot of prizes for us to pick up.]¡± Henry grinned while the crab laughed, rubbing his claws together, then both glanced back at the lord and his son, being escorted away by the tree-guard. The father took a look back, and met Henry¡¯s eyes. The kraken smiled, and one of his clones appeared and wrapped an arm around the chest, which plopped into his Maw. The man came to a full stop before the three-mark pushed him further. ¡°[I¡¯ll probably get my challenge soon,]¡± Henry said, looking down at the crab. ¡°[Think I can handle a two-mark B-rank?]¡± ¡°[Sure! We could now bet the pearl and these treasures for more prizes. But they don¡¯t know they¡¯ll lose. We¡¯d be scamming them. Hehehehe.]¡± A presence fell around them, and they whirled to find the ape standing behind them, grinning. ¡°[I can¡¯t tell exactly what you two are planning, but I think I¡¯ll enjoy it nonetheless.]¡± Henry and Maurice shared a look, and Zerathstra sat down and crossed his legs. ¡°So? How are you two doing?¡± 2.53: Up and down ¡°[Hi Zerathstra!]¡± The ape sat down on the ground, uncaring of the splatters of blood barely a few yards away, and with a swirl of his hand, two softly glowing yellow apples popped out of thin air, which he lobbed at Henry and Maurice. ¡°[How are you two doing? And what kind of trouble are you up to, you little scamp?]¡± Zerathstra asked, narrowing his eyes at the crab as he leaned forward. Maurice caught the apple with both of his pincers. ¡°[We¡¯re planning a scam! For more treasures. Do you know anyone we should fight?]¡± The crab bit into the apple, froze, then began vibrating as the sugar hit his taste buds. The ape gave Henry a head-tilt and a raised brow, and the kraken sighed and extended an arm through his fake stomach to reach for the floating apple. ¡°He makes it sound worse than it is. It just so happened that someone thought they could beat Maurice up and take his shell, and we egged them on to raise the wager. We¡¯re thinking of doing the same, but this time, it¡¯s me who¡¯d be fighting. Considering people know what the gremlin¡¯s capable of,¡± explained Henry and bit into the apple with his beak. A shock spread through his body, and Henry stopped breathing. It was the best-tasting apple he had ever tasted. It was as if someone selected the best, sweetest, tangiest varieties, and after centuries of crossbreeding and selection, they arrived at the pinnacle apple. Sweet and tangy, crunchy and crumbly, with an intense flavour that permeated all of his senses. Henry opened his eyes to find the ape grinning, while Maurice was running circles around the ape, begging for another. He didn¡¯t even remember closing his eyes. ¡°Like ¡®em? They¡¯re one of the prizes for the next tournament. A whole barrel of the things,¡± said the ape before summoning another. He hit it with his elbow. Both Henry and Maurice tracked the trajectory of the fruit, and something died inside of him when he saw the ape swallow it whole. ¡°[Plenty of opportunity to ¡®scam¡¯ in there. You two are participating, aren¡¯t you?]¡± Henry grinned and nodded, and Maurice slowed and began rubbing his pincers together. He had that calculating air about him. ¡°Good! I¡¯ll be watching, so there shouldn¡¯t be any deaths. Just like the duel, you boys can go all out. Teach the little humans some humility.¡± Henry raised an eyebrow as he patched up the hole in his human stomach. ¡°I thought you might be a little annoyed at us creating conflicts with your nobility. Also, what is that you do exactly? To prevent deaths, that is?¡± The ape waved that away and stood up. ¡°Nah. I just let them do their thing. They like hierarchy and showing off against each other. As long as it doesn¡¯t threaten the safety of Thalis, they can have their fun. They¡¯re smart enough to not overstep my rules, so I let them. Though it seems some of them are trying to push the limits a bit. Challenging Maurice after being told he¡¯s my guest is one of those, so knock some sense into them. You¡¯ll even get a second barrel, off the books, if one of you manages to snag the first spot. As for how I do it¡­ let¡¯s just say things have a hard time dying if I don¡¯t want them to. When in my presence, that is. And as long as true death is staved off, almost anything can be healed.¡± Henry thought of his new health orbs, and wondered if his Vitality aspect could allow such feats one day. He could heal a lot, but preventing something from dying? That sounded a bit beyond his skills at the moment. ¡°[What else can we win?]¡± asked Maurice as he nibbled on the apple juice still stuck to his claws. Both Henry and Zerathstra looked down at the crab, then the ape chuckled. ¡°Anything you can get the participants to wager! You¡¯ve got plenty to put on the line, but they know your tricks now, so better be careful. Alright, gotta go. You wouldn¡¯t believe the number of beasties that want a piece of this place. Sometimes I wonder if I should have planted the trees outside of the Pillar, but if I did, I¡¯d be dealing with politics and pirates, which, believe it or not, can be even worse than roaming A-ranks.¡± And with a puff of leaves, the ape disappeared. I guess he¡¯s got his own teleportation skill? ¡°[He¡¯s so cool.]¡±This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. Henry glanced down at the crab, then at the arena, and remembered someone was waiting for him. He facepalmed, and glanced down toward the little covered complex that contained his teacher¡¯s store. ¡°[I should go as well, I guess. I¡¯ve got some training to get back to¡­]¡± ¡°[Okay! I¡¯ll go ask Sera about those apples. Maybe I can buy some? What if I¡ª]¡± Henry blinked, then frowned at Maurice as the crab went on, talking about planting trees in pots and storing them in his storage. Why was it that Henry was training and suffering, while Maurice got to lounge around and bother random farmers again? Did the crab not need training as well? A small smile crept on on Henry¡¯s lips, and the crab stopped his ramblings and looked up. ¡°[¡­ Henry? What? Did I say something bad?]¡± *** Over the next two days, Henry suffered the teachings and cruel exercises of Arisia, and Maurice was right there with him. The crab was an annoyingly quick study as always, but he didn¡¯t get to gloat or rest on his laurels, as whenever he showed any mastery of the exercise the B-rank set for him, she¡¯d immediately raise the bar and force him to start over. But there was a light at the end of the tunnel. The kraken closed his eyes and narrowed his focus on the center of his power. The deep reserve of mana. A ball of intense, glowing blue liquid and right around it, he pictured a metal-like structure. A frame that held the skills he activates before they were sent out into the world. Slowly, Henry pushed the frame out. Out of his stomach, and out into the world. The sensation was very disturbing. As if he¡¯d been standing on a tripod and someone just cut one of the legs out, but this wasn¡¯t Henry¡¯s first attempt, so he endured. The frame he pictured slowly moved, and the kraken didn¡¯t use any of his Octominds in this endeavour. Inch by inch, he felt the construct move, and when he felt his control begin to waver, when it reached nearly two feet out of his body, Henry activated Telekinesis and targeted his body. Now¡¯s the hard part. Henry felt the skill grip him, and as he pulled it upward, he willed the skill frame to remain exactly where it was. It was like trying to rotate an arm clockwise and another arm counterclockwise. Without using an Octomind. But Henry had been on this for the last 48 hours, and he had to get it to work or he¡¯d have a hard time in the tournament. But it won¡¯t work if I stress about it. Relax. Breathe. Henry took a second to re-center himself. Then he tried again. He kept the frame in place, picturing the purple skill of Telekinesis within it, pulsing, its tendrils reaching out to Henry¡¯s body, then pushed. The telekinetic grip pulled Henry upwards. His arms left the dry, flat wooden tiles below him, and hung limply, but he didn¡¯t dare move them. All of his attention was on keeping the frame that held the skill in the same spot. Henry levitated one inch above the ground. Then two inches. And within seconds, he was a full four feet above the ground, a nimbus of purple around his limbs. Henry began moving himself around, left and right, up and down. He kept the movements simple, but he was slowly growing accustomed to the exercise. He moved diagonally. He accelerated and played with quick changes of directions, but they were awkward and threatened to break his focus, so he slowed down and just focused on getting familiar with the movements. Seconds turned to minutes, and eventually Henry felt he could really move his body as much as he wanted. Now, he had to invert the exercise; instead of moving his body, he had to drag the skill frame around. Otherwise, he¡¯d be locked into a limited area with this technique. That shouldn¡¯t be difficult. After all, most of the practice has been to prevent that exact same thing. Now I need to do it willingly, not instinctively. In the end, it wasn''t too difficult to manage. It took nearly an hour, and it was still awkward, but Henry could manage to move the skill frame without destabilizing the skill. Only issue was he either moved himself, or the skill frame. Not both at once. ¡°You have to do both at once. This might be enough for tomorrow, but it won¡¯t be enough for the long term. Also, you¡¯ve been using the same skill for an hour,¡± Arisia said, and she swatted in Henry¡¯s general direction. Both skill and skill-frame slipped his control, as if he¡¯d just tried to grasp air, and Henry splattered against the wooden floor. He glared up at the woman, and she gave him an impassive stare. ¡°Start over. You as well,¡± she said, turning her attention to the crab, who fell down with a plink, shell first. The two shared a look, then quietly got back to work. 2.54: First match ¡°We¡¯re back, folks! I, Verixia, will be once more your announcer. Have you enjoyed the small break since the last tournament? Have you enjoyed the little teaser from a couple of days ago? Then I hope you¡¯re ready, because this time the high C-rank tournament is going to be special! This time, we have more guests whose abilities we know nothing of! Suspense, folks, and surprise! Who knows what¡¯s gonna happen? Not even our betmasters have any clues, considering the odds they¡¯re setting! Especially not for this first fight, and what a fight I¡¯m sure it will be! Our second guest, the mysterious Trickster kraken going by the name of Henry, will be facing one of the newest and youngest members of the tree-guards! One of the top-3 of last month¡¯s tournament. Our very own warrior, Heyor!¡± Henry listened through the clones he had stationed atop Maurice and Stormsong¡¯s heads, and through his main body, out of which he watched the opponent standing in front of him. The young man seemed clearly confused by the slowly growing kraken before him. Henry didn¡¯t intend on going giant, but just big enough so his limbs had some good range. What might also be confusing the tree-guard was that he hadn¡¯t bothered lifting himself off the ground just yet. [Human (C) - Lvl ???] I wonder if I can win this fight without moving, Henry thought. He didn¡¯t intend on being insulting, but he just didn¡¯t think the young man could do much to threaten him. Then again, if he kept his abilities to a minimum, he could hold on to the element of surprise a bit longer. It sucks that this is a nice, polite dude¡­ It would have been better to get one of the nobles Zerathstra spoke of. At least they had treasures to put on the line. While the announcer went on, Henry took a look at the latest notifications and realized he was due to head back to the water soon. He had a few upgrades unlocked thanks to the intense training Arisia had put him through, and plenty of skill levels, but he couldn¡¯t afford much at the moment. And in any case, his training was nowhere near done, so he¡¯d still have plenty to upgrade. I¡¯ll get around to it¡­ once this tournament¡¯s done, and before the B-rank one. Henry had already enrolled himself in the next event. Apparently, if you didn¡¯t have the levels for the category, you had to have someone vouch for you. In his own case, Semea and Zamir were enough to allow him entry, and if he was fine entering the B-rank tournament, he was fine entering this one. As for Maurice, his performance a few days ago was plenty for him to enter. Plus there¡¯s bound to be better prizes for the next tournament. Surprisingly, Stormsong didn¡¯t want to enroll. She said she¡¯d watch, but she seemed a lot more interested in spending time with the kids and their teachers than participating in tournaments and duels. It was hard to reconcile the snappy dolphin to the patient and friendly creature she¡¯d become around kids. Somehow, there was always one or two of the tykes around her, which was forcing Henry to move his clone away from his chosen spot. Alright, time to focus, he told himself as the announcer began calling the countdown. Henry lifted off the ground, carried upward in a nimbus of pinkish-purple while he made sure his arms were free to move. The young man¡¯s eyes widened for a second, then he gave Henry a salute of some sort before he raised two fists in a pugilistic stance. The kraken tilted his body forward to return the salute, then waited for the countdown to finish. ¡°Fight!¡± The human instantly went on the offense. Heyor¡¯s fist shone with a deep green light, and he punched, sending a green echo of his arm rushing at the kraken. Henry kept floating, staring at the oncoming attack as it flashed through the air toward him. At the last second, he lifted an arm and intercepted the magic. The ghostly arm dug into his skin as if he¡¯d just been hit by a metallic fist. It stung, and Henry felt the magic seep into the flesh, numbing it for a second before blood flowed back into it. Looking at his arm, he saw a bit of discolouration, and a light swelling, but nothing else.The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. Outside, the crowd went quiet, while Verixia continued her comments. ¡°That¡¯s it? That¡¯s all it took to stop a Lifebane technique? An arm? Damn. I wouldn¡¯t want to be in Heyor¡¯s place right now.¡± Henry tuned out the announcer and peered at his arm. The swelling was receding, but it was still tingling. Still, inwardly, he grinned. I kinda want this. Not the Lifebane stuff, though I wouldn¡¯t say no to learning more about it. But sending attacks like this without having to whip out an Arcane Arm? This sounds amazing. I can already picture the barrage I could create with eight arms. It¡¯d be like a gatling gun. Henry lowered his arm, and the young man took a step back as the yellow eyes tracked him. The man began slowly moving in a circle, reassessing, while Henry considered which limb he should try and get a bite of. This was a battle after all. No one would be offended if he took a small nibble, right? He could even heal his opponent himself. Alright. Let¡¯s get this over with. Henry whipped an arm forward, but the young man had been expecting it. Heyor dodged the first arm easily enough. But two more were on the way. He punched one, ducked on the second, then five arms fell on him. Heyor needed to perfectly dodge eight arms to escape the Hug of Death, as Maurice would call it. Henry just had to land one. Not even using Telekinesis here. And I could have electrocuted him when he punched me, but that¡¯s overkill. Heyor went all out. Punching, kicking, summoning panels of green lights that made Henry¡¯s arm feel numb, but one of his many arms managed to wrap around a foot, and that¡¯s all it took. Henry applied Bite on Heyor¡¯s calf with a dose of tranquilizing venom, and made sure he got a good sample through Voracious Grip. Before the young warrior¡¯s back hit the ground, Henry laid an arm under him so he wouldn¡¯t hit his head. Wait¡­ He¡¯s C-rank. Falling on his head wouldn¡¯t do shit to him. ¡°That¡¯s it ladies, gents, and friends! The first match of the tournament comes to a quick and uneventful conclusion, with a show of absolute dominance from our guest. Just like our new favorite crab, Henry the kraken didn¡¯t even sweat to finish off his opponent, and it looks like he didn¡¯t even need to use more than a couple of abilities to secure his victory!¡± Sound came through the golden barrier once more, and Henry pushed a pulse of Arcane Regeneration into his opponent before releasing his grip. The young man jumped up, flustered, then slowly relaxed his fists and bowed. Henry returned the gesture, then floated out of the arena so the next fights could take the center stage. Now, what did I get here? Magic Mimic: Lifebane Touch (F) was copied temporarily. Magic Mimic: Echo Strike (E) was copied temporarily. There didn¡¯t seem to be any property his three cornerstone abilities could copy, which Henry found curious, but it wasn¡¯t a problem at all. With these two copied skills, he could explore the abilities soon, especially since Arisia was going to start him on some theory lessons that would touch on skills manipulation and creation. Lifebane could be a facet of Vitality, I bet. If I balance it right. Henry wasn¡¯t sure, but his instincts told him such a property could weaken his Aspect, but he was in no rush to commit to anything. He just wanted to learn and understand this world¡¯s magic better. Henry landed on a bench by himself, arms pooled around him. Feeling the stares of the crowd, he considered using Mimicry to make himself a body, but he forced himself not to. This is what you look like. This is who you are. Henry reminded himself that he could don his disguise whenever he wanted to or felt like it, but it should never be because he was uncomfortable in his real body. He took a deep breath and looked up. A new fight was beginning, and taking a look around, he quickly saw Maurice scuttling toward him, claws holding up a wallet. Henry frowned and looked past the crab to see a small stand with a crowd in front of it. ¡°[Henry! I just gambled and I won! Can you believe how easy it is to win tokens?]¡± The crab looked down at the fight, slowed his claw-rubbing, then peered back at the stand. ¡°[Maybe I should have bet on this fight¡­ It¡¯s clear that the woman¡¯s going to win¡­ Okay! I¡¯ll be right¡ª]¡± Henry pulled the crab off the ground before he could go develop a gambling problem. They were waiting for the next fight anyway, so he might as well put the crab through a quick improvised course about the dangers of gambling. 2.55: Qualifiers In the bright light of the midday sun, Henry sat on his many arms and watched the remaining qualifier fights. He was already done for the day, but he opted to remain and watch while he continued working on his new technique. The stone in front of him stopped orbiting for a moment, came to a stop, and began moving in the other direction. The exercise seemed simple, but it was taking Henry all of his focus to keep the movement smooth. Unlike his usual ways of controlling Telekinesis, Henry¡¯s body wasn¡¯t the nexus of the skill. No, the nexus¡ªthe small construct that was hosting the instance of the skill¨Cwas also orbiting around his body. While the stone was moving clockwise in front of him, the nexus was going around his waist. The challenge was taking all of his cognitive faculties, and true, it was getting easier, but for this task, he couldn¡¯t use his Octominds. He had to be the one in the driver seat. He had to be capable of casting his skills outside of the limitations of his body. But that didn¡¯t mean the Octominds were idle. From the corner of his mind¡¯s eye, he could sense them. He could see the glasses-wearing Octomind putting down to words the images transmitted to it by its sibling. Taking notes of the interesting skills two other Octominds were observing, while two others were doing mana-manipulation exercises; one worked on concentrating a bead until it gained physical form, while the second was moving mana up and down an arm and endeavoring not to lose any of it along the way. Henry suspected Arisia wouldn¡¯t approve of him using Octominds to train, but the sub-minds were an integral part of him, and in any case, he was spending his nights doing the mana exercises himself. Having the Octominds do them as well was helping him in consolidating some of his gains, and it allowed him to observe the techniques from a new perspective, inspiring him to come up with new tweaks and methods to reach his goals faster. Mana-channeling exercises were simple enough and only needed practice, and either way, he had his plate full with projected casting. That was the priority at the moment. Yup. That¡¯s what I¡¯ll tell her if she says anything about it, the kraken thought as he watched his instructor walk toward him. Arisia came to a stop next to him. She stared at him for a few moments, then turned her attention to the two humans being escorted out of the ring. One severely burnt, and one with too many broken bones. Might be interesting to pick up a fire skill, Henry thought, mentally peering over the note-taking Octomind to glean some details about the fire-user who¡¯d just qualified to semi-finals of tomorrow. ¡°Have you tried creating another skill nexus?¡± Henry gave her a sidelong glance, and noticed her eyes tracking the movement of the nexus. Something even he couldn¡¯t see. ¡°I tried¡­ but I found it too difficult to maintain both without one of them fizzling out. I thought it¡¯d be better to get better at controlling just one before taking on that challenge. Don¡¯t want to stretch myself too thin and all that.¡± Arisia gave him a nod, and Henry noticed the edges of her lip curl up. Still, he asked. ¡°Can you see it? The nexus?¡± Henry had tried to perceive the nexus, but he couldn¡¯t see it. Not really. He thought he saw something disturbing the mana around him, and he could see some of his own mana fluctuate toward the spiritual construct, but he couldn¡¯t really see the construct itself. Arisia nodded. ¡°I can.¡± ¡°Is it a special skill? Is that how you could guess the nature of my abilities?¡± The stone orbiting a few inches ahead changed direction once more, while the telekinetic nexus came to a stop in front of him. He peered at it, but he couldn¡¯t see much aside from the few wisps of mana here and there that disappeared into thin air. Arisia took a step and poked at the empty air with a blue glowing finger. Instantly, Henry felt the nexus sway in his mental grip, almost destabilizing, but he¡¯d gotten proficient enough that such a disturbance wasn¡¯t enough to force the skill out of his grasp.This novel''s true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there. Of course, it hadn¡¯t been Arisia¡¯s intent. If she¡¯d really tried, she could have snuffed it. Henry was very much aware of that, and finding the solution to that issue was one of the tasks he¡¯d set for himself. A way to protect himself and his abilities from being snuffed out. Already, he had a few theories and exercises he thought of, involving Trickster¡¯s Domain and Dispelling Pulse, but he opted to wait. There was enough to learn right here and now. Arisia held her arms behind her back and turned back toward the ring. Maurice was now stepping back in, and he was facing a young girl with cropped red hair. She had two bone-white swords in hand that she flourished outward as she saluted her opponent. ¡°I spent a lot of time working on my magical vision, while I doubt you had the chance or need to. Much less the time. And aside from that, I¡¯m also using these,¡± she said, tapping her glasses. ¡°Mana vision is useful and can be improved, but there¡¯s only so much you can see with it.¡± She pulled her notebook and pen out of thin air and started writing. ¡°I can impart you a few lessons, but this one takes practice and insight. You¡¯ll have to get more in tune with your senses. Your instincts. You need to recognize skill-patterns, and I¡¯m sure our next set of lessons should help there. You¡¯ll get better with time, so I wouldn¡¯t stress that much about it. Keep working on the current exercises, and it will come with time. Now,¡± she said, cracking the notebook closed. ¡°How¡¯s the mana-channel training? Did you manage to carve a few in the bodies you create?¡± Henry wiggled an arm. ¡°It¡¯s coming along. I can push some mana out of my arms without blowing out anything, as long as I take it slow.¡± Arisia nodded. ¡°Did you try to project a skill out of the shell?¡± ¡°Yeah¡­ but it still damages the body.¡± The announcer called the start of the fight, and instantly, Maurice pelted the girl with a stream of bubbles that shone with a myriad of colors as the light of the day hit them. The projectiles reached the girl deceptively fast, but the swordswoman already moved. One moment she¡¯d been there, and the next she was flying along the stream of bubbles, rushing toward the crab in a straight line. The warrior was upon him in less than a second, forcing Maurice to abort his attack and teleport away. Movement skill, I bet, Henry thought as he paused his exercise. Next to him, Arisia was watching as well, but just like him, she could multi-task easily enough. ¡°You know why your fake body was affected?¡± Maurice popped out of existence once more as the girl hounded him. She kept coming after him, and Henry quickly realized she could tell where he was about to re-appear. Either that or she was a really good guesser. It didn¡¯t mean that Maurice was slacking, though. He was bombarding her with attacks, and he even activated his Domain once or twice, but he kept missing. She¡¯s good, Henry thought, then answered Arisia. ¡°Waste. Mana waste. When I¡¯m feeding a skill outside of my body, mana isn¡¯t all coming from the same exit, and it¡¯s not all reaching the skill construct. That¡¯s my theory, at least.¡± He caught a nod, but was more focused on the fight ahead. Maurice seemed to be frustrated, but all of sudden, he started rushing the girl himself, which she relished. ¡°Good. It¡¯ll get better as you perfect your control over mana. Waste always happens, even at higher levels and even when you¡¯re not projecting skills. It doesn¡¯t matter much with weak and low-rank skills, but you¡¯ll want to reduce the waste as much as possible on higher levels. It can mean life and death when you¡¯re battling B and A-ranks and you need to outlast your opponent.¡± Maurice dodge a sword and landed atop the girl¡¯s back as she dove into a stabbing-lunge, and then¡ª Henry frowned. ¡°What¡¯s this! Maurice the crab has attached himself to the back of Irrelia! What an unorthodox strategy!¡± The sword-wielder cursed and tried to dislodge the crab while two giant claws materialized atop of her head, but there was nothing she could do. Bissal Anchoring was active, and now the crab¡¯s attacks would all land. Maurice just had to tank the hits and deal as much damage as he could before he was forced away. A strategy that was very familiar to Henry. That little shit, Henry thought, grinning inwardly. Over the next few seconds, the crab whaled on the girl until her bone-swords dropped out of her hands, and the win was called. When the smug crab scuttled out of the ring and came to meet them, he threw both arms up. ¡°[The Hug of Death wins again!]¡± With this win, both Henry and Maurice qualified for the semi-finals, and the kraken wondered; would they face off in the finals? 2.56: Semifinals Henry eyed his little friend as he went on and pestered Arisia. As the stone began orbiting around him once more, he considered the possibility of them facing each other in the finals. The thought was exciting. Henry and Maurice had faced each other in a few little spars in the past, but they¡¯d never really gone all out against each other. The risk of injuries was just too high, and to be honest, Henry was having trouble picturing himself using everything he¡¯s got against his first real friend in this world. But now¡­ they were stronger. Both him and Maurice could tank hits pretty damn well, and both had potent healing abilities. If those weren¡¯t enough, there was an all-powerful ape watching over them. Of course, as much as Henry liked the sea king, he wasn¡¯t putting all of his chips on the A-rank¡¯s intervention. If he had to face Maurice, he would do his utmost to keep an eye on the crab¡¯s wellbeing because, if he was true to himself, Henry didn¡¯t see himself losing that bout. Henry continued working on his exercises and watched the crowd slowly trail out of the entrance while Maurice listened closely to Arisia¡¯s feedback. There was a time where Maurice could have posed a threat to Henry, but ever since the kraken had stepped into D-rank, he felt the gap had only grown wider. But maybe he was wrong; maybe the crab could surprise him. After all, again, Henry had never really tried to get through that shell. *** ¡°We¡¯re back folks! I hope you¡¯re ready for two amazing fights today. Have you got some snacks? Have you got your bets in? I hope you have, because these two fights will take place back to back so our winners can rest up and prepare for the big finals tomorrow, after which, we¡¯ll get one more bout for third place. Are you ready? Let¡¯s start! First we¡¯ve got Henry whom you all know, the awakened being who¡¯s yet to break a sweat in this tournament, even though he holds one of the lowest levels we¡¯ve seen so far!. And against him, Lord Sev! One of our up-and-coming stars who recently had the misfortune of facing our favorite awakened crab, Maurice! But don¡¯t let that fool you! Lord Sev is a very capable warrior, and an extremely sharp shot with those spears of his.¡± Henry tuned out the announcer as he floated himself forward and glanced at the pale-looking young man stepping into the ring to face him. The last time he¡¯d seen him, the young man had been dismissive and mostly focused on Maurice, but now, Henry believed he could see a few beads of sweat trailing down his opponent¡¯s forehead. I need a vacation, Henry thought while the announcer continued to hype up the match. Henry had spent all night and morning training, and frankly, even though he was growing tired, he wanted to get back to it. Love it or hate it, he was making progress, and he had better uses of his time than take too long in a dragged-out fight. Especially one where he wouldn¡¯t be winning anything. Stupid savvy lords. No one wanted to put up anything as a wager anymore. Not since they¡¯d seen Maurice fight, and quite a few of them made the educated guess that Henry would be just as good if not stronger, so no one wanted to risk their hard-earned treasures. Henry and Maurice still scored a couple of valuable knick-knacks, but it was nothing like the lord facing him had gambled days ago. Though that was supposed to be different in the B-rank tournament. In that one, every ¡®win¡¯ was supposed to come with a prize. But then again, the strongest warrior in the whole damn settlement might take part. Henry felt good about taking first place in this tournament, but the next one would certainly be a challenge. After all, he was still in the early levels of C-Rank. Even though he had managed to down a few B-rank monsters, humans were a whole other matter. He might not be able to trick his way to a win as easily as before.A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. The lord saluted, surprising Henry, and the kraken gave him a small head-tilt as his limbs floated under him. The skill¡¯s nexus was right below him, and for a moment, he considered dispelling it so he could have easy access to Telekinesis, but this was a good opportunity to get some real-life practice. And in any case, the fight shouldn¡¯t take long. ¡°Fight!¡± Lord Sev surged, unwilling to let Henry get his bearings, but seeing the paleness of his features, it was clear the lord didn¡¯t expect much of his onslaught, so the kraken got to work. Henry activated Telekinesis once more and strained under the weight of holding two instances of the skill at once. It wasn¡¯t too difficult per se, but it was disorienting. He was tempted to pull his Octominds and have them help, but the teachings of Arisia echoed in his mind. ¡°They¡¯re only as good as you are,¡± she had said. Henry wanted his Octominds to be as good as they could be, so he held both spells by himself, and looked up to see a wide-eyed Sev floating a few inches off the ground. The young man¡¯s eyes were darting around as he started to break through the skill, but Henry just needed to hold the boy for a second. In a fluid movement, Henry pulled an arm and began stacking abilities on top of it. [Evershifting Strike] with the [Whipping] and [Accelerated] effects. Not [Cavitational], because that might vaporize the boy, and not [Cutting]. I¡¯m sure Zerathstra could save him but I¡¯d rather not cut the kid in two. Heavy should be enough. It took him half of a second to layer the effects, and his arm was already whipping horizontally toward the lord. Henry could sense the terror and dread spike as his limb blurred just as he released Telekinesis. The lord didn¡¯t even have time to raise a hand before the five-inch-thick limb caught him across the arm. Henry sensed the impact through his limb and through his heightened cognitive functions. He felt the surprisingly tough arm and bone resist for a second before the first bone broke. Then the shoulder dislocated, followed by the weight of his attack pushing into the ribs next and cracking a few of those as if they were mere twigs. After that, there was enough force to lift the lord off the ground and send him flying to slam against the magical panels bordering the ring. From his outside clones, Henry heard gasps and roars, then quiet as the lord fell off the panel in a heap, unmoving. There was a flash of green around his body, and Sev spasmed, face contorting with pain as he regained consciousness. ¡°Umm¡­ I guess that¡¯s the fight? ¡­Yup! Our judge tells me Lord Zerathstra intervened to save young Lord Sev¡¯s life, so that disqualifies him! Folks, that was the fastest fight we¡¯ve seen this year! Incredible, what a¡­¡± Henry tuned out the announcer once more, and floated closer to the crumpled Sev as the healers rushed in. The boy recoiled, but Henry wasn¡¯t there to hurt him. Instead, he was willing to use a higher-level variant of Arcane Regeneration to quickly heal him. Usually, the healers took their sweet time to heal injuries. Minutes even, Henry had noticed. But before he could explain himself, a spear embedded itself between him and the boy, and a shadow moved from above. Lord Tevarius fell out of the sky and slammed into the ring floor with a mighty thud. In an instant, his spear was back in his arm and pointed at Henry. The man said nothing, and if looks could kill, Henry might have been tickled. So the kraken shrugged, and sent to all who could hear, ¡°I was going to heal him faster than they could. But I guess my help is not needed.¡± Then he floated away toward the exit. ¡°My son does not need your pity, beast,¡± said the lord, then spat at his own feet, in Henry¡¯s direction right before he gave him a sneer. Henry paused and tilted his head. He hadn¡¯t seen the gesture with his main body, but he had enough clones around to see a lot more than he needed. ¡°Tevanious, right? Was that your name?¡± The lord began answering, but Henry raised his illusory voice higher. ¡°Doesn¡¯t matter. If you¡¯ve got a problem with me and with beasts, how about you take part in the next tournament? Let¡¯s see if your bones crack as easily as your son¡¯s. Anyways. See ya.¡± He turned away and left, but continued watching from his clones. He was glad to see veins pulse in the thick man¡¯s neck, and Henry felt a thrill of excitement. He might have not been sure of how well he could stack up against B-ranks, but now he had a strong incentive. Henry always did better under pressure anyway, and he had a month to get himself up to the level where he could wipe the floor with the lord and pick him clean. Nothing better than a little danger to push him forward. 2.57: Small break Henry slunk down into the pool of his guest home and, for the first time in what felt like months, he brought everything to a stop. All of his Octominds, the scouts, the clones, everything. For a few seconds, he basked into the silence that stole over his mind. It was one of the most beautiful experiences he¡¯d had so far. But he should have given his companions a heads-up. ¡°[Henry?]¡± The kraken opened his eyes and found the crab peering at him from the edge of the pool, and beyond, a large dolphin bobbed up and down in a nimbus of swirling water. The two of them being here with him, he didn¡¯t have to watch over them with his clones, so he¡¯d dispelled all of his regular clones and threw the blood ones in his storage where he couldn¡¯t perceive anything from them. Henry hadn¡¯t realized he needed a break this badly. And after the relief he was feeling right now, he resolved to take more breaks from now on. Or maybe the Octominds are a bit too much for me still. They never stop working. Not unless I tell them to, so maybe my main brain¡¯s getting a bit overloaded. It was a possibility, and he would have to plan around it in the future, just so he didn¡¯t put himself under an unhealthy amount of stress. But for now, there was no need to worry the others, so he waved an arm at the crab. ¡°[I¡¯m fine. Just needed a small break]¡± ¡°[Oh! Okay! Do you need more time?]¡± Henry dipped his head under water for a moment then came back up. ¡°[I¡¯m okay, thanks. So. What¡¯s up?]¡± ¡°[We were talking about tomorrow¡¯s fight. Are you two sure it¡¯s safe?]¡± asked Stormsong as she extended a water-arm out of the pool to pick up Maurice, who clacked a pincer at the magical limb. Maurice had¡ªof course¡ªwon his fight as well, and this time he hadn¡¯t needed to use the Hug of Death. Tomorrow, Henry and Maurice were battling it out for first place, and aside from the barrel of Ambercrisp apples, the first spot would be getting a skill potion. Henry had no clue what the skill would be, or why exactly it was in a potion, but he was intrigued. Looking up at Stormsong then down at Maurice, he shrugged. ¡°[We talked about it. We¡¯ll be careful.]¡± ¡°[We never fought for real! I wanna see how well I do. Stop that,]¡± he added, swatting at the water-limb poking him. Stormsong let out a series of clicks in amusement, and a wave of water fell down from her nimbus and swept Maurice into the pool. Henry chuckled at the annoyed crab as he beat his arms, trying to get back to the ledge, but then he detected something subtle coming off from Stormsong. A hint of apprehension? She clearly let it through on purpose. Her mind shield felt light. As if the blackout curtains had been replaced by lighter ones, and if he really focused, he¡¯d be able to pick up more impressions from her. But that felt intrusive. Maurice scuttled up from the water, grumbling, and Stormsong spoke up. ¡°[I¡¯ve been thinking lately. Over the last few days.]¡± The impressions of anxiety and worry spiked, and Henry worried, but he said nothing and waited as the dolphin continued. ¡°[I think I want to stay here. In Thalis. For now.]¡± The crab paused, and even Henry was a bit surprised. For a moment. Then he recalled everything he¡¯d seen the dolphin had been up to since they¡¯d arrived, and the statement made a lot more sense. The crab had a bit more trouble, though. Maurice fretfully clambered up the edge and approached the dolphin, arms waving.¡°[What? Why! You said you wanted to go on an adventure!]¡± Henry poked the crab. ¡°[Easy.]¡± Then, privately, he sent one more message. ¡°[She left her pod because they didn¡¯t let her do what she wanted. Are we going to do the same thing to her?]¡± Maurice froze up, then slowly lowered his arms and sheepishly rubbed them together. ¡°[Ah. Er. Sorry.]¡± You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story. Stormsong let herself slowly drop to the water, and gave out a soft click. A deep sense of relief radiated out of her, and Henry sensed a little bit of sadness as well. In his own chest, he felt a little twinge. Had she been worried they¡¯d try to force her to stay with them? Or give her a hard time? ¡°[I like it here. Not that I didn¡¯t enjoy traveling with you two, but being here, helping and teaching the little children and carrying them around is a lot more enjoyable than being constantly afraid of what could kill us. Plus¡­ I feel like I¡¯ve been a bit of a burden. Whenever things get dangerous, I can¡¯t do much to help. I¡¯m not stealthy, and I¡¯m not as resilient as you, Henry. I just think I¡¯m better here. I like it. I really do. So if they¡¯ll have me¡­ I¡¯d like to stay. At least for a while.]¡± Henry listened and watched as Maurice scuttled closer to the dolphin as she spoke. When she was done, she approached the edge of the pool so the crab could climb on her back. Maurice did so gently, and slowly put his claw on her back, and all three were quiet for a moment, listening to the wind whistling through the treetops and around the building. ¡°[I¡¯m not sure if they¡¯ll have me, though,]¡± she said after a while, and Maurice slowly turned to meet Henry¡¯s eyes. The crab was a bit sad. Also confused. And Henry realized this might be Maurice¡¯s first time saying goodbye to someone he cared about. ¡°[We¡¯ll ask Zerathstra. And if you ever change your mind, we¡¯ll still be here. At least for another month or so.]¡± Stormsong bobbed her gently making Maurice sway back and forth. ¡°[Thank you.]¡± *** ¡°Aaand we¡¯re back folks! For the big finale of the high C-rank tournament; and for the first time in a very long time, neither of the two finalists are natives! We¡¯ve had guests participate in the past. Friendly awakened beings from the Pillars. The occasional humans our mighty guardians allowed, but never have our fellow citizens been beaten so handedly and so spectacularly! Our B-ranks better be ready for these two!¡± The presenter continued hyping up the crowd as always, and Henry noted that the stands were completely full this time. It seemed like every single inhabitant had decided they could just take the day off and come watch the fight. Even young students and children were in the stands. ¡°[Henry! What are those?]¡± Henry peered at the direction the crab was pointing in, and his eyes went wide. ¡°[¡­ Banners?]¡± There weren¡¯t a lot of them, but there was no mistaking the decorative banners and other stuff the crowd had come up with to show who they were rooting for. There were large claw-like gloves being worn and waved. Long, stuffed cloth with colorful suckers sewed to the bottom of the fake limbs¡ªor maybe glued¡ªand much more. ¡°[What¡¯s a banner?]¡± Henry looked away and found the crab already in place, facing him across the stretch of packed earth and stretched his limbs under him as he floated above the ground, levitating through Telekinesis. ¡°[They¡¯ve picked someone to root for, and they want you to see it¡ªas well as the other spectators. It¡¯s kind of a competition thing. If you win, the people wearing the crab hands will feel very happy, but if you lose, then they¡¯ll be a little bit sad. It¡¯s for fun. Usually.]¡± ¡°[Oh. So I shouldn¡¯t make them sad, then,]¡± said the crab, rubbing his pincers together as his claws pawed at the soil. Henry wiggled his arms with amusement. ¡°[Looks who¡¯s confident. But you remember what we said, right?]¡± ¡°[No attacking with concepts, and first one to be knocked out three times surrenders?]¡± Henry stared at the crab, who slowly looked away, staring once more at the crowd. The kraken sighed. ¡°[Nope. Not three times. That wasn¡¯t what we agreed to.]¡± ¡°[Two?]¡± ¡°[Maurice.]¡± Maurice dropped his claws to the side, and his eye stalks drooped. ¡°[Fiiine. Just once.]¡± Henry eyed his opponent, then the chanting crowd around. Everyone seemed ready, and the big final fight was about to begin. At any moment, the announcer would call the start of the bout. So. How do I go about this? Henry really didn¡¯t want to hurt Maurice badly, but to be frank, the crab was a resilient opponent. Unlike the humans, the fight couldn¡¯t be ended quickly unless he used everything he had. ¡°The fighters are ready ladies, gents, and honorable guests! Are you ready? Are your bets ready? Well, it¡¯s too late if they¡¯re not! The fight begins in 3¡­ 2¡­ 1¡­ Fight!¡± 2.58: The final Henry and Maurice stared at each other from across the twenty yards separating them. Henry was still, considering, planning, while Maurice slowly rubbed his pincers, his feet occasionally lifting. The voice of the announcer fell away as the two eyed each other, then one word rang in his head. ¡°Fight!¡± Maurice Blinked forward, reappearing in the center of the arena, and spat out a single bubble. A small projectile that was darker than the bubbles Henry was used to. For a moment he considered tanking it to see what it was capable of, but when Henry saw the air ripple around it, he whipped his arm toward it. His limb glowed, then as the real arm pulled back under him, a blue-hued arm flashed forward. The projectile created by Echo Strike hit the bead. There was a sound of broken glass, then a bang that made Henry shudder. The implosion was so violent that a small crater had formed, sending chunks of soil flying. Henry even felt the pull for a fraction of a second. Holy shit. Henry was shocked, but he couldn¡¯t waste time considering the dangers of such an impact as yet another special bubble was rushing toward him. With a shove of Telekinesis, Henry flew off the ground and to the left, only to see the crab pop out of thin air high above him and shoot a beam of regular bubbles in front of him, forcing Henry to abort and change directions. You little shit. Alright then. Henry flung himself up with Telekinesis toward the crab, and as a new concentrated bubble came at him, he Blinked out and reappeared right above the crab. Maurice was falling back down to the ground, and his little eyes looked up at the kraken above him. There was a ripple of magic around Maurice, but before anything could happen, a pulse of dispelling magic spread out of Henry, snuffing out whatever the crab had been preparing. Then a hue of purple shone around the crab, immobilizing him mid-air as Henry¡¯s limbs hit the ground. ¡°[Gotcha,]¡± Henry sent, but he didn¡¯t let his guard down. He expected the crab to have something in store, just like those concentrated imploding bubbles. Still, he was surprised, Maurice was doing a lot better than he¡¯d expected. ¡°[No!]¡± came out the amused response, then something spread out of the crab. Something Henry had never experienced in this manner. Huh? Henry didn''t know how to describe it, but it was as if the air had grown thicker. He felt it, in his spirit, and he especially felt it in the skill-nexus that was holding Maurice. Henry was casting the skill from right outside his stomach, so he could feel the pressure directly. Putting the skill under stress. When he tried to move the construct holding the skill instance, he felt it drag, as if he was pulling it through jelly. The kraken pushed himself forward with his many limbs, and one arm shot out to get a physical grip on the crab as his many minds helped him take in everything he was sensing. Henry had never felt the crab¡¯s Domain from this close. Well, he had, but he didn¡¯t have the senses to really get a feel of what was happening. Just as he realized what was happening, he felt the crab begin to fight back, and a pressure began building in Henry¡¯s brain. Maurice¡¯s claws and shell shone as he pushed against Telekinesis, but that wasn¡¯t all. After all, Maurice could do quite a few things with his Domain. Henry aborted his charge and Blinked to the side. Where his head had been, there was a flash of light and a pop as the implosion went off, but it wasn¡¯t over. More and more implosions appeared point-blank while the pressure in his head turned to a headache until finally, with a surge of mana, Telekinesis broke, and Maurice fell back to the ground. Instantly, a spray of bubbles came at Henry and the crab Blinked away. Shit. He had to make a decision; either he starts using his Octominds, or he¡¯d better figure out a way of getting his hands on the crab. He wasn¡¯t good enough just yet to maneuver himself as well as he needed to with Telekinesis. Not against Maurice. So he had to decide between grabbing the crab or controlling his own movement, because he couldn¡¯t do both. Not with how often he needed to dodge. Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there. Or I can eat a few hits. After all, Maurice shouldn¡¯t be able to knock me out with those bubbles. With another Telekinetic shove, Henry threw himself at the crab and locked him up with Telekinesis once more, but not before the crab managed another shot. The dark imploding bubble came at Henry fast, and he only had enough time to put his arm forward and activate Trickster¡¯s Fortitude before it made contact with his skin. Everything that happened next took place in a fraction of a second. The bubble made contact and popped, and Henry tasted a mix of ozone, brine, and metal before a terrible pain ran up his arm as his flesh was distorted, twisted, then torn. Blue blood geysered as more and more flesh got violently pulled into the center of the implosion, and then there was nothing. Henry¡¯s arm¡ªor what remained of it¡ªfell to the ground with a squelch, and a rain of blood and torn flesh fell after it as his momentum carried him forward and, with another arm, he swung at the floating crab. His arm cracked into Maurice¡¯s shell like a bat against a baseball, and the crab hit the magical wall with a loud pop, but before he could even touch the ground, he Blinked and reappeared above Henry. He shot another dark bubble and disappeared once more, and when Henry went to shove himself away with Telekinesis, he felt the skill destabilize as a familiar pulse spread through the Domain. Henry Blinked toward Maurice, dodging the bubble falling from above only to find another coming at him from the front. An Arcane Arm surged into existence and intercepted the projectile, dissolving into motes, and Henry gripped the crab with Telekinesis once more. This time, he dragged him toward him. ¡°[Where¡¯s my hug, Maurice?]¡± ¡°[I¡¯m not stupid!]¡± The crab¡¯s shell shone once more, and a giant claw fell down on Henry, blocking his advance as the crab broke the skill by just struggling and shoving mana at it until it destabilized. Since when does he have this much mana? Those imploding balls must be insanely expensive considering the damage they can do. Henry was a bit busy with the fight, but he couldn¡¯t believe the attack completely severed one of his arms. Through his defensive skills, and through his stupidly high Constitution. How is he still going? Henry himself was already below half, mostly from having to Blink around to move and dodge. Maurice reappeared to the left, panting. He was still for a second, then spat yet another concentrated bubble. Henry shoved himself away once more and readied himself to lunge at the crab only for bubble to veer left. Oh fu¡ª The bubble hit the side of his face, and his left eye¡ªas well as a good portion of his entrails¡ªwent flying out in a geyser of blue. Henry expected his Octominds to take action as he most likely had lost some brain matter, considering the implosion caught him right next to his left eye, but all of his mental faculties were untouched. Mostly. He felt a bit woozy, but he could think clearly enough. Interesting, he thought as he instantly consumed twenty charges of Hoard Vitals while the crowd roared outside. He hadn¡¯t been focused on the commentary, but he could hear them through the clone watching over Stormsong. The pain receded as flesh regenerated, and Henry gave it a push with a quick pulse of Arcane Regeneration as he hovered once more above the ground. He didn¡¯t think he needed to grab Maurice anymore. The crab was bound to run out of mana soon, so he could just approach and pelt him with hits until he surrendered. Still, he was impressed. The crab could do some real damage, but as expected, there was still a gap Maurice couldn¡¯t yet leap over. The crab stood a bit hunched, eyes and limbs drooping, but from what Henry could sense, he had no intention to surrender just yet. ¡°[You¡¯re not fighting me seriously,]¡± Maurice said, and his tone made Henry freeze. It was accusatory. Mad. Had he been? No. Not really. He wasn¡¯t taking the fight as a real life-or-death scenario, but he wasn¡¯t really playing around. The only chosen handicap was not using his Octominds, not actively at least, and by extensions, he wasn¡¯t using the clones. The rest were real limitations. ¡°[It¡¯s not easy for me to move on land. I¡¯m using everything I¡¯ve got aside from the Octominds.]¡± Maurice said nothing, but something new was happening. The scutes of the shell began dimming. It was barely visible, but unmistakable now that he noticed it. The crab was pulling something out of his shell, and Henry suspected it was mana. The crab clacked his pincers. ¡°[Use everything. I want to see.]¡± Henry stared back at the crab, then gave a nod. As soon as he did, Maurice spat two bubbles at once then, with a movement of his claws, both zipped at Henry. ¡°Time to work,¡± Henry said, and he felt eight subminds stand to attention. 2.59: I win The two concentrated bubbles flew at Henry one after the other, and now he knew Maurice could alter their trajectory with a flick of a claw. This time, Henry was using the Octominds, which opened a couple of alternatives for dealing with the projectiles. ¡°Seven and eight. Intercept them with Telekinesis.¡± The two Octominds jumped to action, and a hue of purple flashed around the oncoming projectiles. The bubbles detonated, and Henry felt the Octominds recoil at the violent backlash of their skill being torn to shreds, but Henry himself was unaffected, which confirmed his theory. The Octominds were really a cheat. He had refrained from relying on them these last few days, focusing on training his own skills, but now that he was really engaging them, he could feel the difference. They felt potent. Powerful and much more capable. ¡°Number six, you¡¯re on levitation duty. Follow my thoughts and move me.¡± A nimbus of purple appeared around Henry, and his limbs lifted off the ground. With a thought, he flew forward and was shocked at how easily the Octomind was handling the projected casting. He wasn¡¯t as fast as he¡¯d hoped, but the flight was smooth. They really do get better if I¡¯m better. Maurice Blinked away when Henry made it halfway through, but that wasn¡¯t an issue either. ¡°Five and four. Lock him up when he reappears.¡± Henry considered turning invisible, but he refrained. There was a bigger tournament coming up, and he didn¡¯t need to reveal every single one of his skills. Maurice popped above him, and before Henry¡¯s eyes could focus on the crab, two minds gripped him with Telekinesis in a cocoon of pinkish-purple. With another thought, Henry rose in the air as Maurice thrashed. His shell glowed, and Henry felt the crab¡¯s Domain spread once more, but now with his hands being figuratively free, he could easily detect the oncoming attack. He only needed to will himself to move aside for the submind carrying him to move out of the way. The crab broke one of the telekinetic grips, but Henry just threw in two more subminds to secure his opponent, and the purple prison grew thicker. Maurice had his Mind Shield up, but even through it, Henry could feel the despair, and it left a sour taste in his mouth. This isn¡¯t fun, he thought as he extended two arms to surround Maurice. ¡°Number three. Dispel when we release Telekinesis.¡± Henry, with his arms ready, released Telekinesis right as Maurice spat out a stream of bubbles, but the dispelling pulse instantly destabilized them, and they imploded with a series of pops. When the pulse reached Maurice, the flow of bubbles stopped. Henry wrapped his arm around the crab tightly, activating his suckers, and lifted Maurice until he was at eye level. ¡°[Surrender?]¡± With the crab in his grips, there was a lot Henry could do, and he wished he wouldn¡¯t have to. He could use venoms. He could use the new skill he had in his class, Lifebane Touch. He could electrocute the crab. Drain whatever mana he had left. He could even forcefully shove him in his Maw until the judge called the win. ¡°[I¡¯m¡­ still awake.]¡± Henry stared down at the crab, then with one of the suckers in contact with a pincer, he activated Voracious Grip and started with Draining Bite to pull every drop of mana that remained in the crab, which wasn¡¯t much. Next, the small teeth within his suckers bit and pierced through the tough pincer shell. Once he tasted blood, Henry injected a good dose of tranquilizing venom. Maurice struggled for a moment, but within seconds his movement slowed until he finally drooped and went still. Henry put him down on the ground and counted to three, then pushed a good dose of Arcane Regeneration at him. The crab jumped to his feet, but quickly stumbled. Henry looked down at his companion, and extended the tip of an arm toward him. ¡°[I win.]¡± Maurice looked up at the kraken looming over him, looked down at the extended arm, then tapped it with a pincer. ¡°[Next time, I¡¯ll win.]¡± *** The commentator was still talking as Henry and Maurice waited for their winnings to be brought to them. Well, Henry¡¯s winnings. But he wasn¡¯t intending on keeping them to himself anyway, and while he waited, he poked the still surly crab. ¡°[Those dark bubbles are something. They tore through everything. When did you learn that?]¡± Stolen story; please report. The crab¡¯s eye stalks tilted up, the back at the ground.¡°[It¡¯s my C-rank upgrade for Bastion. The bubbles are my cornerstone there. They¡¯re strong, right?]¡± Henry nodded. ¡°[Terrifyingly so. That was without an Aspect boost, right? I can¡¯t imagine the kind of damage those things could do with something like your Bastion or my Fury. We¡¯re gonna tear through B-rank without breaking a sweat.]¡± ¡°[You think?]¡± ¡°[A hundred-percent sure. Unless you want to hunt on your own, of course¡­]¡± Henry let the thought dangle, and he was glad to see the crab perk up. ¡°[Okay! When are we going? Do you think Stormsong would come with us? Should we invite her?]¡± ¡°[After this whole thing is over, maybe. We need some levels and some practice for the B-rank tournament. As for Stormsong, we¡¯ll ask her. If she wants to come along, she¡¯s welcome to.]¡± Henry was happy to see Maurice engage. ¡°[What are we doing after the B-rank tournament? Are we leaving?]¡± Henry didn¡¯t know, and he was about to say so to the crab when there was a flash of golden light, and a barrel full of golden, fragrant apples popped in front of them. ¡°[The second barrel¡¯s a secret, I¡¯ll drop it off later,]¡± Henry heard, recognizing the voice of the ape. He looked around and stretched his senses, but the A-rank was nowhere to be found. From the air around them, the announcer¡¯s voice picked up once more. ¡°And that¡¯s one of the prizes, folks! A full barrel of Ambercrisp apples. I already see some of our merchants huddling to come up with a tempting trade to present our champions! I wouldn¡¯t mind making an offer either, but, and this might surprise you, there¡¯s not a lot of money in being a commentator! So if any of you¡ªah. Sorry, dear guests. I was just told I was being inappropriate. Moving on! The next and real prize, dear champion and guest, is not ready! Because it will be custom-made for you. Ladies and gents, the skill-reward will be picked by the champion themselves. A catalog will be presented to them in the next few days, then our experts will endeavor to prepare the skill potion. Free of charge. An incredible, expensive honor. It must be nice to win one of these tournaments, maybe I should enroll in the next one myself¡­¡± she grumbled. *** The celebration for the tournament didn¡¯t take long. There was food, music, a few handshakes and jokes, and an uncomfortable amount of offers for the barrel of apples. After an hour of mingling, Henry slipped away to the quiet pool of his guest home, and soon enough, Maurice appeared. For a simple and obvious reason. ¡°[Can I have three apples, please?]¡± Henry eyed the crab suspiciously. ¡°[You already had five. Why three?]¡± ¡°[These aren¡¯t for me. Merchant Bezier said he could get me kraken roe for three apples. A whole barrel, he said.]¡± Henry dipped back down into the water. ¡°[That sounds like a scam, Maurice. These things are supposed to be valuable. I don¡¯t think kraken roe is that difficult to find.]¡± The crab gave him a pointed look. ¡°[I haven¡¯t found any. I would have some, if you¡¯d stored some for me. But you wouldn¡¯t.]¡± ¡°[Are you ever going to let that go?]¡± Before the crab could retort, there was a pulse in the air, and a heavy presence fell upon them before retreating, right as a pair of bare, furry feet slapped against the wooden floor. ¡°Hey, you two. Congrats on the win,¡± said Zerathstra, and a second barrel of apples appeared and slammed on the floor. Maurice scuttled toward it, but Henry was faster and quickly wrapped an arm around the treasure, instantly sending it in his Maw. The crab glared at him, and Henry wiggled his arms. ¡°Did I interrupt something?¡± ¡°Nope. All is well,¡± said Henry, still meeting the crab¡¯s eyes. Maurice slowly approached the water, pincers clacking in annoyance, then came to a rest at the edge of the water. Still maintaining eye contact, Henry summoned three apples, which made Maurice perk up, only for the kraken to throw one to Zerathstra, one to Maurice, and one he pulled underwater toward his beak. ¡°[You¡¯re mean.]¡± Zerathstra caught the apple and bit into it, dipping his feet into the pool while Henry answered the crab. ¡°[I¡¯m just teasing you, you gremlin. I¡¯ll give you some in a bit. Just don¡¯t get ripped off. You could get a lot more than a single barrel with three apples. Right, Zerathstra?]¡± ¡°[What is he buying?]¡± telepathically asked the ape. ¡°[Kraken roe,]¡± said Maurice, crunching into the apple with his mandibles. ¡°[Hmm. Well¡­ krakens nests aren¡¯t that easy to find, so a barrel per apple is fair, I¡¯d say. You could also try to find some with that pathfinding skills of yours. You have a month until the next tournament, after all.¡± Zerathstra chewed thoughtfully for a moment as the crab began to vibrate at the prospect. Henry finished up his apple, taking the time to enjoy the incredibly sweet and fragrant taste, right as the ape finished his and clapped his hands. ¡°[So. What are you two planning after the tournament? If you¡¯re staying, we could use the help. But if you¡¯re leaving, you might need to head out right after the tourney. A day or two at most.]¡± Henry and Maurice shared a confused look then looked up at the ape, and Maurice asked,¡°[Why?]¡± ¡°[Well¡­ you¡¯ll be stuck here for a couple of months if you don¡¯t.]¡± Henry paused. Stuck? 2.60: Stuck? They were going to be stuck in Thalis? Seeing their confused looks, the ape waved a hand dismissively. ¡°[Well, I¡¯m exaggerating a bit there. You won¡¯t be physically stuck. But it will be seriously dangerous for you out there. Every eight to nine months, the energies carried in the pillars flare up. Significantly. And that makes the wildlife go wild. Monsters that have left the pillars return to them. Beings that have been asleep in the depth of the ocean for years and decades stir and go out to hunt. If you think the sea¡¯s dangerous now, you¡¯d be shocked at how bad it will get then. At the time of the flare-ups the danger triples. Quadruples, even. You won¡¯t be able to go five or six minutes in any direction without finding a B-rank looking for blood. Henry and his companions had been constantly camouflaged and wary while traveling before they¡¯d gotten to Thalis, and they¡¯d had too many close calls to count. And that was the safe season? The ape continued, looking up at the canopy above and at the many gem-lights hanging above the walkways. ¡°[So it¡¯ll be your call. You said you wanted to leave the Pillar and find humans before. I know you¡¯ve met them here, but if you¡¯re still intent on visiting the outside world, you might want to decide whether you¡¯ll head out right after the tournament or not.]¡± ¡°[I want to see the flares,]¡± said Maurice, rubbing his pincers together while Henry thought of what he wanted to do. He wasn¡¯t sure at this point; he was having fun here, and most importantly, he was learning. He was getting better. But he didn¡¯t want to overstay his welcome, either. Already, he noticed that some of the ¡®nobles¡¯ weren¡¯t taking very well to be ruled by a non-human, so Henry didn¡¯t want to stoke that fire, even if it was none of his problem. If it was even a problem, actually. He was sure Zerathstra could just round them up and drop them in the closest city if they got too annoying. ¡°[At least there¡¯s still time to think,]¡± he said after a moment. He began working a body for himself so he could go with Maruice later, but the ape wasn¡¯t done. ¡°[Oh, and you might have less time than expected after the tournament. Through the years and the decades, I noticed the time between flare-ups is growing shorter. So while I said you¡¯ve got a month to make it out, it might be a few days short or even as little as a week. If you¡¯d rather stay, you could wait with us and help defend Thalis. I¡¯ll be taking care of the big threats, and everyone else takes care of B-ranks and lowers. It¡¯s a good time to earn some levels and put training into practice. No pressure though, you¡¯re free to walk your own path.]¡± The ape ran his hand through the water once more, then hopped up to his feet. ¡°Check in with Arisia for your skill-potion whenever you feel like it. My advice; don¡¯t rush the selection. Work on your foundation first, then see if there¡¯s something you need. Laters!¡± With a hop, the ape flew up, landed vertically on a trunk, then hopped once more and disappeared through the canopy. Henry finished up creating his fake body, then took a moment to slowly and methodically push a thin, focused rod of mana through his chest and down his arm, burning a channel all the way down to his palm while repairing the small tears left within. He was getting better at that process, though it would still take time until he could flawlessly cast skills without destroying the body summoned by Mimicry. But he was learning. From his stomach, he created a dozen holes out of which mana would flow when he projected the skill-nexus out, which should allow some skill usage without wrecking his body. With that done, he climbed out of the pool, and cursed when he remembered what he¡¯d forgotten. ¡°[What?]¡± ¡°[Gimme a second.]¡± Henry closed his eyes and pictured the construct in his stomach that would house the skills he¡¯d activate. He pushed it out with a practiced manner, felt it slip through the magical shell he was wearing like a hand through mud, and when it was out, he activated Maw. Henry had theorized that Maw, much like all of his remaining skills, worked in mostly the same manner. In Maw of the Trickster¡¯s case, it was limited to his mouth, but then the skill became usable through his arms. It had limitations, compared to his other skills, but those limitations didn¡¯t take into account his new technique. With the skill-nexus outside of his fake body, the skill activated, but nothing popped out. Not yet. But it was a success. He felt the connection to the skill, and with a thought, three golden apples fell out of thin air, right into Henry¡¯s extended hands. Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. Nice. He eyed the apples for a second, then handed them to Maurice who happily put them in his own storage. With that done, the crab peered up at him. ¡°[What are we doing? Do you want to stay after the tournament?]¡± Henry looked down at the crab and shrugged. ¡°We¡¯ll see. I¡¯m not in a rush to make a decision, and in any case, we¡¯ve got a lot of work to do before we get to that point. So how about we go talk to some people and eat a bit before we get back to work?¡± ¡°[Okay!]¡± The crab scuttled ahead, sharp legs almost blurring as he sped toward the more populated layers. Henry shook his head and walked after his companion. At least he¡¯d make sure the crab wasn¡¯t completely ripped off. *** The little hour of socializing ended up being interesting. Maurice closed on a deal with a merchant for two barrels of kraken roe in exchange for the three Ambercrip apples, and Henry learned that there was in fact trade with the outside world. Specifically, with a few big human cities, and a couple of merfolk settlements. To the crab¡¯s luck, the merchant promised an update and potential delivery within the month as he was leaving first thing in the morning. It was impressive. The merchant was a B-rank, sure, but the sea seemed really dangerous, even for B-ranks. The man said he had an escort of warriors, and Zerathstra watched over them until they were out of the Current, but still. Impressive nonetheless. ¡°[That was fun],¡± said Maurice from his seat up on Ethan¡¯s head. ¡°[We should talk to people more.]¡± ¡°[Sure. You¡¯re free to do so, you know. I can only do it so much, to be honest. It gets exhausting after a while. Especially when it¡¯s a big crowd like that.]¡± The two walked in silence, slowly making their way down the path they had come through days ago. It was nighttime, but neither of them were affected much by the dark, and in case, it never really got that dark in the Current. Everything was always bathed in the familiar golden hue of the odd magic. Henry realized he missed sleeping in the dark. Like, shut down the light, close the door, and get a good night¡¯s sleep kind of dark. I could do that, actually. I have a guest home. Henry had been sleeping in the water out of habit and he wasn¡¯t planning on being around for at least a couple of days, but next time, he would sleep indoors. I remember missing sleeping in a bed when I was hiding in small caves. I can¡¯t believe I had a bed a couple of yards away and haven¡¯t laid down in it, he thought, then he poked the crab atop of his head. ¡°[Are you ready to be back underwater, Maurice?]¡± ¡°[Yes! I like the food up here, but I miss meat.]¡± Henry paused. ¡°[You could have just asked. I¡¯ve got plenty.]¡± The crab waved his arms and tapped Henry on the head.¡°[No, it¡¯s not the same. It¡¯s tastier underwater. I don¡¯t know why.]¡± ¡°[We¡¯ll get the chance to eat something, then. I¡¯ve got enough homework and training to work through, but we need some levels. We need some actions and some tokens.]¡± ¡°[Yeah! Excitement and adventure! Oh, I want to fight my own C-ranks, though. And maybe a B-rank when I¡¯m ready.]¡± The crab hadn¡¯t said anything about training since his loss earlier in the day, but Henry knew it was still bothering him, so he wasn¡¯t going to get in his companion¡¯s way. ¡°[You got it. We¡¯ll head to the seabed and I¡¯ll spread some clones, then we can set up in a spot and hunt to our heart¡¯s content.]¡± Finally, they arrived at the little ledge near the water, and for a second both watched the water as the small waves washed over the logs and traps set up by the fishers of Thalis. It has been close to two weeks since they¡¯d been down here, and Henry was surprised at the excitement he was feeling in his chest. As soon as Henry put him down, Maurice ran toward the edge and peered down at the water, scuttling left and right. He was clearly excited to jump down, so Henry saw no need to delay the plunge further. He took a few steps and leapt into the water, dissolving the fake body as he did. ¡°[Wait for me!]¡± There was a small splash behind him, and Henry pumped his arms and swam toward the crab as his body began to swell. It was time to really stretch his limbs. 2.61: The shopping list A small army of inky clones¡ªeight of which were blood clones¡ªspread out and down, guided mainly by two Octominds: number 3, which Henry visualized as a small octopus wearing glasses, sitting at a navigator¡¯s desk fully decked with maps and pathfinding tools, and number 4, the one sitting behind multi-feed surveillance walls. To those two, Henry gave four more Octominds to bolster their capabilities so they could map out the environment and keep an eye out for danger, leaving only two to himself to be used whenever he needed them. For the first time in a while, there was no one watching over Stormsong. Henry had told her he¡¯d be pulling the scout away before they¡¯d headed down, and even though it seemed to make her nervous, she was confident she¡¯d be fine. After all, she intended on staying in Thalis after Henry and Maurice would depart, so sooner or later she¡¯d be on her own. When will we be leaving, though? Do I want to stay after the tournament? Do I actually care that much about the tournament? Henry considered these questions as his body stretched and grew larger while his sub-minds worked on their tasks. For the tournament, sure. He was somewhat interested, but mainly because it¡¯d allow him to potentially steal a few abilities and put into practice everything he was learning. After having spent months in life-or-death scenarios, pumping the brakes and getting proficient with the tools at his disposal was a priority. He¡¯d also get some good prizes, and in contrast to the last tournament, both himself and Maurice would be the underdogs, so hopefully more participants would be willing to put some nice items on the line. All of this so I can deal with whatever the System is up to. Henry didn¡¯t know how to feel about that part. That¡­ being had been informative and pleasant so far, but it was clear there was a lot it wasn¡¯t saying, and if he ever wanted to get past A-rank, he¡¯d have to be ready. But for what? A trap? Some sort of impossible test? Whatever it was, it made sense for Arisia and Zerathstra to express such a strong desire to see him improve. Though if he was honest, Henry still struggled to picture himself as an A-rank, much less whatever came after. Where would he even find other A-ranks to fight? How long would it take to get to those levels? And what then? What happens if I get past the System¡¯s test? Henry stared at Maurice as he fought a couple of purple C-rank crabs, then turned his attention back to his interface. He didn¡¯t know what came after, but he was confident saying he was curious. He wanted to uncover this mystery. He wanted to explore the world and then follow the path the weird copper bead showed him. The one that drew a path all the way up to the second planet above. Another mystery. One linked to those world-hopping turtles. Was it maybe linked to the System¡¯s shenanigans? Henry had no clue, but the answers were all getting closer and closer to his reach. He just had to be stronger to survive the dangers that waited along the way. At least the training is bearing its fruits, he thought as he began pulling up his ever-accumulating list of notifications. Hunger of the Trickster (C): Level 1 -> Level 3 Shiftiness of the Trickster (C): Level 3 -> Level 7 Misdirection of the Trickster (C): Level 4 -> Level 7 Thaumaturgy of the Trickster (C: Level 3 -> Level 6 Vitality of the Trickster (C): Level 1 -> Level 2 Swiftness of the Trickster (D): Level 1 -> Level 4 Fury of the Trickster (D): Level 3 -> Level 5 Lots of levels, especially in the Aspects responsible for his clones, camouflage, and Octominds. Henry bet he would have gotten even more levels in Thaumaturgy if it hadn¡¯t become such a big Aspect in and of itself. He assumed it needed a bit more work than the others to progress, which was no problem at all. After all, there was no scenario in which he wouldn¡¯t be using his Octominds outside of training. It was like getting used to multiple monitors at work, then being forced to use a small screen. As he eyed the list of Aspect levels, he got curious about his new weight limit. Henry took a peek at Flowing Form¡¯s description and would have absolutely spat out a drink if he¡¯d just sipped from one. Dear god. That¡¯s¡­ 162 tons. I nearly ten-folded the weight limit in just four Aspect levels. Looking down at his limbs and at his surroundings, he began feeling like the giant tree trunks weren¡¯t as spread apart as they¡¯d been moments ago. He couldn¡¯t even tell the length of his arms at this point, and if his memory served him right, he¡¯d just eclipsed the average weight of an adult blue whale. He considered stopping his growth, but then decided to continue. A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation. He just had to see how big he could get. He was still nowhere near as large as that Draconic turtle they¡¯d met though, and if he was forced to put a number on it, he¡¯d say his arms were getting pretty close to the height of a condominium. He¡¯d bet that in a few levels, they¡¯d be apartment-building levels of length. Jeez¡­ It was pretty difficult to wrap his mind around such growth, which was funny considering there wasn¡¯t much he couldn¡¯t wrap his arms around by now. Aside from the giant turtle, of course. But even then, he¡¯d bet he could get a good grip on it before he got his world wrecked. Alright, I¡¯ll come back to this later. For now, let¡¯s see the shopping list. Draining Touch (E): Upgrade unlocked. Arcane Arm (E): Upgrade unlocked. Mind Weaver''s Tongue (E): Upgrade unlocked. Mana Nexus (E): Upgrade unlocked. Telekinesis (D): Upgrade unlocked. Trickster¡¯s Domain (E): Upgrade unlocked. Riptide Rush (E): Upgrade unlocked. Mind Shield (E): Upgrade unlocked. Telepathic Orchestration (E): Upgrade unlocked. Echo Strike (F): Upgrade unlocked. So many abilities to upgrade, and not nearly enough tokens to do so considering the cost scaled off the Aspects themselves. Henry eyed the list and paused at the last ability. That one had been really easy to unlock, though there was one thing still bugging him as he eyed all of these unlocked upgrades; why didn¡¯t he get something for the remote casting technique he¡¯d learned? It felt as if he should have gotten a passive for it, but so far, nothing. Maybe it had to do with it being an actual technique compared to skills? After all, skills and traits did their thing with magic, while remote casting was more of a willpower, self-control thing. In a way. Oh well. Keep practicing and maybe something will eventually show up. Still, quite a few abilities hadn¡¯t had their upgrade unlocked, such as Trickster¡¯s Pathfinding, Trickster¡¯s Resilience, or Lightning Discharge, which he would endeavor to push now that he was out and about. They were important skills, and they needed to be upgraded as fast as possible. Finally, Henry brought up the last prompt and eyed the couple of levels he¡¯d earned. Watchful Guardian (C) - Level 34 achieved! ... Watchful Guardian (C) - Level 36 achieved! 1x Stat point awarded. The list was not as impressive as his skill levels or unlocks, but these two levels had nothing to do with training or hunting. He¡¯d gotten them just by being in the Current. Or Pillar. The process of leveling up just by being exposed to the ambient magic seemed to have slowed compared to the first time Henry had encountered the phenomenon, which might explain why not everyone was a B-rank in these areas. He¡¯d forgotten to ask about that, but he¡¯d do so when he got back up to the surface. ¡°[Can we go already? What¡¯s¡­ Whoa¡­ Why are you so big?!]¡± Maurice just got done downing the two C-rank crabs, and had already begun munching on one when he¡¯d deigned to look back at Henry. He gawked at him for a few seconds, then leapt off the edge of a tree trunk. The crab didn¡¯t even need to beat his arms more than a couple of times to fall on Henry. He couldn¡¯t miss the kraken even if he tried and as he climbed up the side of his face, the crab came to a stop right next to Henry¡¯s eye and peered at him before slowly raising a pincer up. ¡°[Don¡¯t poke me in the eye Maurice, or I swear to god.]¡± ¡°[I wasn¡¯t going to!]¡± Henry narrowed his eyes, which made Maurice almost tumble away. After all, the crab was nearly half as large as one of Henry¡¯s eyes. ¡°[I wish I could get big like this¡­]¡± he said wistfully. Henry glanced down at his arms. He was finally done growing, and the sensation was most definitely odd. He had perfect control of his limbs and all, but it just felt like he could wreck the local wildlife without even trying. Like a giant bipedal lizard walking through a busy downtown. ¡°[You can try to pick the skill up. We¡¯ll make some attempts the next time we take a break. For now¡­ You ready to head down? I found an interesting area for us to fight in. With an interesting B-rank.]¡± ¡°[Oh? What is it? Is it a crab? Or a kraken with eggs? Henry sighed and told his navigator to try and find them a kraken nest, if that was even possible. ¡°[Neither. You¡¯ll see when we get there. But I can tell you that you¡¯ve seen one before.]¡± With that, Henry dove into the gold-lit depths, hearts beating merrily in his chest. It was good to be back. 2.62: The specter The stone and root covered floor of the underwater forest came into view as Henry slowed his descent before shifting to a zig-zagging glide around the thick trunks until finally, after close to couple of minutes, he came out into the clear and open sea, at which point his massive eye swiveled to the multicolored shape right next to it. ¡°[Maurice. Did you really need to sit there?]¡± ¡°[Hmm?]¡± The movement of the eye seemed to once more test the crab¡¯s curious tendencies, and his claw began inching closer to the yellow and black eye. ¡°[Maurice.]¡± The claw froze. ¡°[Yes?]¡± ¡°[Get your claw away from my eye.]¡± The crab paused for a moment, then reluctantly lowered his arm. ¡°[The voice in my head says to do it. It feels like I should at least try it. Just once?]¡± ¡°[Those are called intrusive thoughts. We don¡¯t listen to those.]¡± ¡°[Why?]¡± ¡°[Because they¡¯re often weird and either will harm you or me.]¡± ¡°[Are you sure?]¡± ¡°[Sure of what?]¡± ¡°[That these intrusive thoughts are bad?]¡± ¡°[Pretty sure, yeah. And in the case of your claw poking my eye, then absolutely, yes. That¡¯s bad.]¡± ¡°[Hmm,]¡± said the crab as he kept staring at the giant eye. Henry could see the gears begin to slow once more, as if he was being hypnotized, and Henry decided it was safe to give another warning. ¡°[You touch my eye and you¡¯re swimming home. Or I¡¯ll chuck you in the Maw.]¡± ¡°[Okay! Okay, I won¡¯t touch it. I promise.]¡± Henry glided along the seabed, and from above, he only saw the trail of sand part behind him as his camouflaged body flew along the rocks, corals and sands as he closed in on his destination. A few minutes later, he arrived at a cliff-like outcropping. Without hesitation, he dove past it into a deep, craggy valley that strongly reminded him of a submerged Grand Canyon and somehow, just like that national park, there was more stone than greenery. That, already, was somewhat alarming. After all, this stretch of the world was chock-full of nourishment and energies, and the fact that he could see no algae or rich coral life meant there was maybe something preventing it. Thalis is right over there, so it shouldn¡¯t be too bad, Henry thought as he laid eyes on his target, just as Maurice turned and saw the monster appear out of the murky golden waters above them, parting a school of small blue fish as it did. A wave of nearly physical dread fell upon the two of them, and Henry channeled some mana into Trickster¡¯s Fortitude just so he¡¯d feel a bit safer. ¡°[Henry, is that¡­ what we¡¯re killing?]¡± ¡°[Yup.]¡± A pale specter came into view, gliding out of the murk. It had been roaming the canyon when Henry had found it thanks to his clones, its void-like eye taking in its surroundings with a cold, placid demeanor. Its pale white gills fluttered as water rushed out, and if Henry was to compare, he believed he was slightly larger than the creature. Though those jagged teeth would most likely tear a good chunk of him off if they managed to grab hold. [Otodus Giant Shark (B) - Lvl ??] This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it. ¡°[Are you sure we¡¯re ready for this one?]¡± Maurice had begun channeling mana into his defensive skills as well, but there was no denying the spike of anxiety Henry could feel from him. Henry gazed up at the Otodus shark and considered his options on how he was going to lure it down. ¡°[I¡¯m pretty confident we can take it down. I¡¯ll surely bleed for it, but I¡¯ve got plenty of healing at my disposal. Now, it would be nice if I could find you a spot where there''s no risk of you getting bitten off. Wanna sit on my arm?]¡± ¡°[Okay¡­]¡± Henry plucked the crab with Telekinesis and deposited him near the tip of one his 60-foot-long arms, slowly wrapping his limb around the shell then around itself until there was a clump of flesh out of which two minuscule arms and a face were visible. Damn I¡¯m huge, he thought, then he turned his attention to one of his idle Octominds. ¡°Keep this arm safe from danger. Make sure Maurice is always facing the shark.¡± With that done, Henry turned his attention back to the crab. ¡°[The arm should keep you always facing the shark. Just shoot it and I¡¯ll handle the rest. Also, I think it has some sort of magical effect to scare other predators away. Or cause its prey to freeze up. The Maurice I know would be pretty excited by this. I think it¡¯s just affecting you a bit more than me.]¡± The crab stared at him for a moment, then his eyes tilted back to stare at the shark as indignation began wafting out of his mind like smoke. ¡°[¡­Let¡¯s kill it.]¡± Not needing any further encouragement, Henry kept still and summoned the illusion of a flailing giant seal half an arm¡¯s length away before he surrounded it with a cloud of blood. The shark suddenly veered closer, but it wasn¡¯t committing to the dive just yet, and Henry cursed. I wish I could create illusory scents¡­ But then again, I could do something else. Henry extended two arms close to the illusion, and with a flick of one arm, he cut deep into the second. Blue blood surged out of the wound, floating in and out of the fake red blood, and Henry glanced up. Gotcha. The shark¡¯s pace picked up instantly. A corona of disturbed water began swirling around it as it dove toward the seal, and Henry tensed. He had to grab on to it and then dump everything he had in his arsenal all at once. Even though he believed he could win this fight, the longer it would take, the higher the odds of him walking away either severely injured or empty-handed. And if¡ª Henry wrenched his arms away just as the shark crashed into the bedrock like a boulder thrown through a glass house, and out of the explosion of dust and rubble, a white, rocket-like shape zipped out and began maneuvering for another bull-rush. ¡°[It¡¯s so fast! Aaah it¡¯s coming again. At us!]¡± Henry realized too late that the still bleeding arm was giving him away, even through his camouflage. But to be fair, he¡¯d barely had time to react. He knew these things were quick, but not even in his wildest imagination had he expected them to move this fast. He was about to send a pulse of healing magic toward the wound, but stopped and instead, he pulled himself toward the bleeding limb while simultaneously triggering Partial Shapeshift on the bleeding arm. Using all of his Octominds, he fused the two arms together while shaping the bone construct he needed in the half-second he had available to him. The shark zipped forward again, blurring with terrifying speed, and Henry barely had time to finish up the shapeshift and to channel a pulse of Vitality into Trickster¡¯s Fortitude when his bleeding limb got chomped on. The shark bit down and swam away for a moment before it was violently wrenched back. It didn¡¯t manage to fully sever Henry¡¯s arm, though its teeth were excruciatingly deep into the kraken¡¯s flesh. If he hadn¡¯t reinforced his body with an Aspect, he would have lost the limbs. But he didn¡¯t, and instead, he was right in the middle of a tug-of-war match against the white shark. It thrashed, and Henry, with all five of his free arms gripping on to the rocks and boulders around him, felt like he might get torn in half. Blue blood bloomed out of the shark¡¯s mouth and thankfully, it wasn¡¯t actively trying to chomp off Henry¡¯s arm. He believed it would have been capable of doing such if it had been focused on that. No. Instead, the shark was trying to get rid of the giant bone-hook lodged into the side of its face, but even though the kraken had the shark on a literal hook, he had to get a better hold of it. A classic Hug of Death was required to finish off this fight because, as things were right now, he wouldn¡¯t be able to last long. The shark was close to severing the arms, and the amount of strength the creature was generating was mind-boggling, even though Henry was like 30% larger than it was. ¡°[Careful, Maurice, we¡¯re jumping on its back.]¡± With another group effort, Henry pulled on all seven of his Octominds and telekinetically froze the shark right as he propelled himself forward. At the same time, he flooded the shark¡¯s mouth and every bit of flesh his bitten arms could reach with venoms. All of his venoms. But it wasn¡¯t enough. The strain of holding the monster in place was hard enough as it was, even with seven of his Octominds, but then, the agitated waters around the shark surged, as if a literal storm had been summoned around it, and Telekinesis was instantly overloaded, sending both Henry and his subminds reeling as the backlash slammed into them. Next thing Henry knew, the hook-limb slacked, and right in front of his face was a jaw full of teeth. 2.63: Otodus The world slowed as jaws closed in on him, and Henry barely had the time for one thought as he triggered his abilities. This is gonna suck so bad. A torrent of mana rushed out of him, and Henry disappeared out of reality for a fraction of a second before he popped back in on top of one of his blood clones, barely a handful of yards away, right as the shark zipped through the screen of disorienting ink. Henry¡¯s hook arms went taught as the shark tried¡ªand failed¡ªto circle around a pillar of stone. All in all, the Blink had not been as terribly expensive as he¡¯d expected. Most likely because he¡¯d used his blood clone as an anchor, but considering how much this had cost, he might not be able to Blink again at this size. Not if he wanted to be able to use any other skill for a while. ¡°[You carried me with you! I didn¡¯t think we could do that,]¡± said Maurice, but Henry couldn¡¯t respond just yet. He had to capitalize on the shark¡¯s distraction. Between the magical effect of the ink and the myriad of venoms Henry had just dumped into its mouth, he needed to get a grip on it and start wailing. With an arm reaching forward, Henry propelled himself at the flailing shark. With one more migraine-inducing telekinetic grip, he immobilized for a quick instant, just enough to wrap his arm around its tail. The water grew agitated once more and suddenly, it was as if Henry was trying to hold on to a vibrating, slick eel with his bare human hands, even though he had rolled his arm quite a few times around the tail. While still keeping Maurice as far back as possible, he channeled a sizable portion of Fury into Lightning Discharge and pushed it through the arm holding on to the tail. Water boiled as a red-white arc of electricity crackled down Henry¡¯s arm before it poured over and into the shark, killing its movement skill before it could even try to run. The shark laid still for a moment, spasming, but not even a couple of seconds passed before it shook itself awake and began thrashing once more. But Henry had already wrapped his many arms around and all over the monster, and he was in position. ¡°[Start shooting, Maurice,]¡± he said as he lined up the crab just above where the shark¡¯s brain would be. Henry had been feeling like these were the olden days, when he¡¯d fought and struggled against Riptides and Whipcrack sharks. After all, the difference in size between him and the shark wasn¡¯t that stark. But when he held Maurice above the head of the creature, he realized how off the scale was. Maurice was barely visible in his arm, and compared to the shark, the crab was, well¡­ like a regular hermit crab you¡¯d find on the beach, hanging above a great white shark. The difference in size was that wide, but that didn¡¯t discourage the crustacean. ¡°[On it!]¡± Maurice shouted in his head, and the first dark bubble shot out and made landfall against the green and blue hued magic surrounding the shark. There was a violent pulse that made the shark buckle, but as the water cleared, Henry could only see a patch of bruised, red skin, with a little bit of blood seeping out that was soon swept away as the green-tinged magic accelerated. ¡°[Hold on before you shoot the next one. I¡¯ll try to dispel the skill first.]¡± The shark surged into the open waters, bucking and thrashing as Henry dug into its gill. Blood bloomed, leaving a long trail behind them, but the shark was not slowing, and the kraken had to call on his shadows to follow and keep an eye out on the surroundings. He didn¡¯t need another shark to pop up. Henry tested with a normal Dispelling Pulse, but his regular skill failed against the higher-rank creature, just as he expected. With that in mind, he pulled on Hunger and channeled it into his core, then triggered Dispelling Pulse once more. ¡°[Now, Maurice!]¡± The pulse of dispelling magic spread out like a wave of hunger, ravenously disintegrating the aura of storm and water. Then the purple and blue imploding bubble hit the white-scaled skin. Blood and flesh violently erupted upward as the shark kept swimming deeper into the fissures and under the crags, trailing even more blood as Henry managed to tear more of its gills with Fury-empowered slices. The defensive aura began forming once more, but Henry cut it off with another Aspect-empowered Dispelling Pulse, gritting his beak at the costly skill while his tranquilizing venoms continued pouring into the shark, barely doing anything to behemoth. Find this and other great novels on the author''s preferred platform. Support original creators! ¡°[Again! Use your Aspects!]¡± ¡°[I¡¯m already using them!]¡± Another ball hit the still-bleeding crater at the top of the shark¡¯s head, sending more flesh and viscera into the rocky environment. This time, the implosion made the shark spasm for a couple of seconds as it struggled to stay balanced. It drifted to the side, tail stuttering, mouth gaping for oxygen as its gills continued to be ravaged by Henry¡¯s bladed arms while he dragged on its mana using both Draining Bite and Draining Touch from every purchase he had. ¡°[Are we winning?]¡± asked Maurice from his perch. ¡°[I don¡¯t think we¡¯re done. It still has plenty of mana. Keep going. We only stop when¡ª]¡± Henry¡¯s surveillance Octomind triggered the alarm, and he looked through the blood clone¡¯s feed. Like a bloodhound who¡¯d sniffed a scent, another Otodus shark was circling fast, tilting and twitching its head left and right as it narrowed down the location of the tantalizing meal. His gut churned, and Henry began using his Aspects even more liberally. ¡°[Another one showed up. We got to hurry,]¡± he said while at the same time, two of his blood clones shed their invisibility and cut into their own arms to bait and distract the newcomer. [Otodus Giant Shark (B) - Lvl ??] Shit. It¡¯s just as strong as this one. Thankfully, the shark under him had not been able to resummon its aura again. It was powerful, lethal, even, but even though it was extremely resistant, it was nothing as bad as the Goliath kraken or even any other kraken, really. It didn¡¯t seem like Otodus sharks had a fallback when their brain matter was being blown out into the open waters. But it wasn¡¯t dead either, which was a biological impossibility Henry was moving right past. This was a world of magic. Different rules and whatnot. Die already, for fuck¡¯s sake. Henry was sweating bullets. The newcomer did not care at all about his clones, and it was locked into the scent of the dying shark wrapped in his arms. Or maybe it¡¯s locked onto me? Henry hesitated for a moment, then used Arcane Regeneration to heal all of his own wounds. He even took the hook-arm from the shark¡¯s mouth, just in case it woke up and chewed on him once more. He had enough blades and suckers sticking to the creature for it to not be able to get away. With another close clone, Henry attacked the shark, tracking it, whipping with a bladed arm and causing an implosion on the impact site. The shark twisted and blurred in response, and Henry lost contact with the clone. It was only seconds away, but the much awaited for notification just arrived, and Henry instantly shoved the shark into his storage. With a generous portion of Misdirection and Shiftiness, he turned himself invisible. The shark came around the corner of a particularly large crag. It swam up and down, always circling, and Henry could see the white of its eyes almost shine as it looked for its target, but it could not find anything. After nearly a full minute of heart-hammering anxiety, it turned and swam back the way it came, as if it was retracing its steps to find its much desired prey. Holy crap that was close. ¡°[We¡­ won?]¡± ¡°[Yup,]¡± said Henry, arms still shaking. He didn¡¯t dare dismiss the camouflage just yet, and with his lagging scouts, he began scouting the area. ¡°[It was close¡­ but we¡¯ve had harder fights, I think.]¡± ¡°[It didn¡¯t heal very well. But it was tough.]¡± Henry hummed in response, but he was growing more and more distracted by what he was seeing through his clones. ¡°[This was definitely a dangerous fight¡­ but we¡¯ve had longer fights, yeah¡­ Wait. I think we need to get out of here.]¡± Maurice stilled, and his pleasantly shocked emotions quickly turned to curious anxiety.¡°[Why?]¡± Henry watched from his clone, already redoubling the effort to scout out their retreat as he stared at the school of fish ahead. At the dozens, maybe hundreds of truck-sized specimens swimming in the open sea, not too far above him. And they were swimming closer and closer to them. ¡°[This place¡¯s a bit too dangerous.]¡± [Sparkfin Great Thunnus (B) - Lvl ??] 2.64: The school With Maurice still secure in his arm, Henry carefully swam away along a wall of bare, jagged rock. As he did, a strange thought came to him; how incredibly quiet the sea was. Especially when compared to the two weeks he¡¯d spent above, and considering the literal thousands of tons of powerful muscle closing in on his positions. He expected them to be louder. The school of tuna was slowly drifting toward him, attracted by the floating cloud of blood and viscera, and they would have already been upon it if it wasn¡¯t for the two twitchy Otodus sharks circling them, having also been lured by the possibility of an easy meal. It¡¯s like I¡¯m back in the first reef, Henry thought as he slunk away toward a less exposed vantage point, and then he paused. Just like the first reef? Still moving, Henry approached the school with one of his clones. The shark had not been receptive to his communication, but maybe the tunas would be. Through his clone, he singled one of the larger specimens and spoke to it as he showed himself. He decided to appear a few dozen yards away, just so he wouldn¡¯t spook them, only for three giant tunas to immediately swerve and tear his clone apart before they rejoined their group. Well. Alright then. ¡°[Maurice?]¡± ¡°[Yes?]¡± Henry eyed one of the sharks as it tried to take a bite out of the closest tuna, only for the latter to literally blur away. And then, just like a net, the whole school surged toward the assaulting shark, as if they¡¯d been waiting for it to come closer. Within a fraction of a second, the Otodus was in their midst. There was a crackle of electricity, and the school of fish lit up like a Christmas tree. When the light faded, the shark was spasming, twitching as if it was in its death throes. It was sporting multiple burns, and electricity arched all over its body, at which point the tunas fell on it like a school of starving piranhas, jolting it with more electricity whenever it tried to move. The second Otodus saw what happened to its brethren, and decided that actually, it wasn¡¯t that hungry. Even its dreadful aura seemed a lot weaker as it turned tail and disappeared into the golden horizon of the Current. ¡°[Pretty! The lights, I mean. Not how they destroyed that shark. What were you going to say, Henry?]¡± ¡°[Hm? Oh, yeah. I was thinking we should stay near and find a way to lure the tunas one by one. How are you with electricity, nowadays?]¡± Henry crested over a rocky outcropping and found what he¡¯d been looking for. A nice crack that led down into a wider network of cracks and crevices. With a wave of his arms, he summoned a dozen ink clones and sent them down to make sure nothing was hiding in there. Maurice tapped his claws on Henry¡¯s invisible arm.¡°[Electricity? You mean lightning? I have that resistance. But I don¡¯t think it would be very effective against them.]¡± Henry watched, invisible, as his clones flitted about, exploring all the nook and crannies of the opening below him . Through his other blood clones, he observed as the tunas continued tearing into the Otodus, biting and devouring the carcass as they moved in a flurry, electricity crackling over their sleek, powerful bright blue bodies in their excitement. ¡°[Lightning is technically made out of electricity, though maybe this is all magic that just looks like electricity. As for the tunas¡­ You¡¯re right. I don¡¯t think I¡¯d do well either if I got caught in their midst. They took out the Otodus in like two discharges. No, I mean we try and lure them away one by one, then kill them quick before the rest of the school can come and smacks us around.]¡± Henry dove into the crevice and camouflaged himself so he wouldn¡¯t be visible if something passed by the exit after he dismissed his invisibility. Next, he put Maurice on a perch near the exit, and the crab looked out then back at him. ¡°[Okay! How do we do it?]¡± The kraken looked outward and began re-deploying and adjusting the position of his scouts, then took a moment to re-summon the blood clones that had died as he thought of a plan. ¡°[A few of the smaller specimens get curious and leave the school now and then. We just need to lure one of them, and for that¡­]¡± Henry shrunk one of his clones, and using illusions, he created a soft glow around it before slowly approaching the school of tuna. He¡ª ¡°[What? How are you going to lure them? I can¡¯t see what your clones are doing, Henry.]¡± If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. The kraken sighed, then gave the crab a play-by-play of what he was doing. He made the lure-clone small so not all of the tuna would rush at him, and as expected, one of the smaller specimens veered toward him, having not been able to get a good bite of the dead Otodus. Henry made the clone zip toward him and to his surprise, the tuna followed. [Sparkfin Great Thunnus (B) - Lvl ?] At least they¡¯re not like those damn squids. And this one¡¯s on the weaker side. Perfect. Now, come here my pretty¡­ The tuna followed, completely uncaring of the school it was leaving behind, too engrossed in investigating the curiously pulsing and dancing octopus. It crested over the rocky outcropping, and Henry made the clone pass right over his hiding spot. [Be ready to heal yourself if you need it, Maurice. It¡¯s about to get here¡­ Now!] The tuna passed over the entrance, and its movement instantly stalled as a purple hue surrounded its body while two giant arms surged out and coiled around the powerful body of the fish. The tuna fought back against the telekinetic grip, and it felt as if the creature was physically slapping him around with how heavy its flailing was. And then, it switched tactics. Right as Henry began injecting tranquilizing venoms into its body and pulling to draw it in, a light blue crackle of electricity danced upon its dorsal fin. Henry braced an instant before the discharge of lightning coursed through his body. His muscles locked and his flesh burned¡­ but it was nowhere near as bad as he¡¯d expected. Huh. Henry continued dragging the tuna in as it fought him, gritting his teeth and cursing as the jolts of electricity sizzled his flesh and made his limbs spasm. ¡°[You okay, Maurice?]¡± ¡°[Yes! It¡¯s not reaching me. But that water tastes weird.]¡± Henry fought the tuna for nearly a full minute before he managed to drag it inside, at which point both him and Maurice quickly dispatched it. 1x [Sparkfin Great Thunnus (B) - Level 18] Greater core fragment was collected. Henry and Maurice shared a look. ¡°[That didn¡¯t look too difficult,]¡± the crab said after a second. Then he scuttled closer, tore out a piece of the flank, and began munching. ¡°[Hmmmm. Very tasty. Henry! Try it!]¡± Henry joined him and he had to admit that yes, the tuna was particularly tasty. The fatty meat just melted when he bit into it, and it almost felt as if sparkles of electricity were dancing on his tongue as he ate from it. Magic Mimic: Superior ability analyzed. Lightning Discharge upgrade unlocked. Nice. The two continued eating as they stared outward. This place was going to be a goldmine of cores and levels. And tasty, amazing meat, Henry thought, glancing down at the large tuna still gripped in his arms. Then he looked at the mess of blood and viscera the crab was creating. ¡°[We¡¯re gonna need to eat a bit more cleanly, Maurice. Or we¡¯re gonna attract every single predator in the area.]¡± ¡°[Okay,]¡± said the crab. He reached out to the flank, paused, then looked back at Henry. ¡°[How do I do that?]¡± The kraken looked at the fish, looked back at the crab, then down at his arm. ¡°[Huh. Not sure, actually. But maybe it would be better to start with the extremities next time. Easier to store it, too. Anyway, we¡¯ll figure it out. Ready for the next one?]¡± ¡°[Yes!]¡± Over the next hours, Henry and Maurice lured tuna after tuna. They had to stop every few successful hunts to allow for the blood to dissipate, or to wait for curious Otodus sharks to move on, but as time went by they racked up more and more cores. The skill levels soon followed, especially once they had to deal with stronger specimens. Aspect-empowered electricity was nasty, and it even knocked Maurice out a couple of times. But within twelve hours or so, they had to stop. The school of tuna had grown agitated, and after investigating the area and not seeing nor detecting the invisible crab and kraken, they moved east and disappeared. ¡°[I think they might be my¡­ third¡ªno. My fourth favorite food,]¡± said the crab as he eyed the neatly-cut tail of tuna he had in his pincer. Henry threw the carcass it came from in his storage and as he stretched his limbs, he pulled up his notifications to start going through his upgrades. ¡°[It¡¯s great. And we have plenty. For months. We could maybe even sell some of it, if it¡¯s rare,]¡± he added, chewing on his own portion. The notifications appeared in front of him, and Henry wished he could crack his fingers here. But alas, he had none, so he just ate his portion and got to work. He had system-stuff to get through. 2.65: New thresholds Still hiding within the network of caves while his clones patrolled the area for dangers and opportunities, Henry pulled up his rewards from all of his tuna fishing and met his first question: did he convert everything to tokens and upgrade everything he could upgrade, or did he reserve some for levels? Wait¡­ that¡¯s not all. I could afford some stat points as well. Henry hummed and peered around through his clones. Well, there¡¯s plenty of prey here. I can start by upgrading everything, then stat points, then once I run out of stuff to spend tokens on I can look into levels. Henry nodded to himself. That was a workable plan. He just wished the tunas hadn¡¯t been so quick to leave. He could have gotten a lot more levels and cores out of them. But at least there were still Otodus sharks in the area. I bet it will be easier to kill them once I get through all of this. All right. Let¡¯s start. Henry went through the available upgrades, upgrading them all one after the other. Considering most abilities were upgrading from E-rank to D-rank, the change wasn¡¯t too noticeable. Aside from a few outliers, the first of which was Draining Touch, which moved up to D-rank. Having spent so much time meditating and doing mana exercises under Arisia¡¯s supervision, as soon as the upgrade was done Henry could sense the trickle of mana being slowly absorbed through his bare skin. It wasn¡¯t much, but it was interesting, and it was only one of many changes. Telekinesis, for one, broke into C-rank, and when he¡¯d tried holding on to a flailing Maurice, it was a world of difference. Back before its upgrade, holding on to the resistant crab was like trying to grip him with thick oven-mitts. It did the job, somewhat, and it allowed him to apply some good pressure, but the crab could slip out if he fought hard enough. Henry¡¯s control was not as direct and sharp as it could be. But now? It was as if he were holding him directly. As if there was an invisible arm that allowed him to grip his companion with as much pressure and flexibility as he wanted, and as much as the crab tried to fight off the hold, he couldn¡¯t break it. Not even when he¡¯d used his own dispelling skill. And the upgrades weren¡¯t over. Mana Nexus upgraded and made his pool of energy feel deeper. Denser. Henry was confident that once it was back to full, he could actually use Blink more than once if he needed to. Maybe even three or four times, which he decided he¡¯d have to test to make sure. Still, the mana upgrade had come at a good time, as Trickster¡¯s Domain could now be stretched further around him, easily reaching a hundred feet in every direction, though the cost increased as well. Mind Shield¡ªeven though both him and Maurice kept it down when they were alone¡ªfelt sturdier, and there was less leakage, even when he tried to simulate stronger emotions. Echo Strike upgraded to D-rank and well¡­ It still had some road ahead of it before it became as powerful as he hoped it would be, but he resolved to give it some attention now that he was back in the ocean. Lastly, Lightning Discharge reached C-rank as well. It was the second of his copied abilities to do after Telekinesis, and just like the latter, the increase in potency was¡­ remarkable. Without even needing full contact, Henry reached out with an arm and triggered the ability, and a blue bolt of criss-crossed light instantly shot out, connecting the tip of his arm to the awaiting multicolored-shell while the dark space lit up with violent, blue-white light. Maurice¡¯s arms twitched as the bolt arced down his limb, making his pincers and legs twitch in pain. ¡°[Ouch! That hurts,]¡± shouted the crab, and swatted at Henry¡¯s arm. The kraken stared down at the crab, arm pulled back.¡°[You literally just told me to test it on you.]¡± ¡°[Yeah, but I didn¡¯t know it would hurt this much. But no, this is good. It¡¯ll help upgrade my resistance. Do it again. No! Wait,]¡± said the crab, raising a pincer. He was still for a second, then took a step closer to Henry. ¡°[Now, do it again. Wait!]¡± Henry sighed and turned his attention back to his interface. With his available upgrades done and paid for, he began considering the next steps. I still have plenty of B-rank tokens, so I can buy every point that costs B-tokens and get that out of the way. After that, Aspect levels, and I¡¯ll put all my attention on a handful of skills I want to upgrade before I have to head back up. As much as his instructor was demanding, Henry had to go back and see her. Barely a couple of weeks with her had seen his knowledge and control over his abilities jump forward, and even though he could continue what he learned and explore on his own, why pass on such an amazing resource when he had her at his disposal? This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it That would be like wanting to get good at math but refusing to read math books. It¡¯d work, eventually, but he¡¯d waste so much time. Plus, the next portion was going to touch on skill engineering and fusions, which he sorely needed help with. There was also his prize that they¡¯d have to eventually talk about, but that was a problem for another time. For now, what are my priorities for the next upgrades¡­ Henry went through his skills, and quickly narrowed his attention on three: Mana Nexus, Trickster¡¯s Fortitude, and Trickster¡¯s Domain. Then after a moment, he added a fourth: Trickster¡¯s Pathfinding. Everything else needs to get to C-rank, but that last one at least up to D-rank. That should be easy enough, and I have just the plan for it. Henry began planning his B-ranks points while at the same time, he spoke to one of his Octominds. Specifically, the one who had control over his pathfinding skill. His navigator. ¡°Start mapping the area for more B-ranks, and just in case, A-ranks. We don¡¯t want those to get the drop on use. Also, try to find krakens, and work with number 1 to create some sort of display for those. Actually, nevermind that, work with number 4 and have him post a clone to watch everything you find. Got it?¡± The navigator gave him a salute with one of its arms, and deep in his spirit, he felt the pathfinding skill activate. Leaving his sub-mind on the task, Henry began assigning the points he bought and winced as the total of required points grew. He could afford it, of course, but he wasn¡¯t used to having this many B-rank tokens, much less spending this many of them in one go. So that¡¯s going to be five points in every attribute, plus two unassigned ones I haven''t placed yet. I¡¯ll give each to Dexterity and Perception. With that, Strength and Perception stepped on to their next threshold. With a deep breath, Henry accepted the change and braced as his muscles spasmed and burned, while his awareness of his body and senses went haywire. The cold of the sea seeped into his soul, and he thought he could sense the ripples of the small fish that occasionally swam by. In fact, he was almost sure he was sensing them. Interesting, he thought. He was going to have to limit-test this new sensitivity. In the meantime, he pulled up his updated stats. It had been a while since he¡¯d taken a look, and he was happy to see he was closing in on a hundred in Constitution. It was still a bit far, but soon he¡¯d get there. He just needed to find some extra resilient monsters and snack on them. After all, he had a chance of gaining points in an attribute only when the creature had a significantly higher score in the stat. Just one of the things he confirmed with Arisia. If only someone could get me a bunch of A-rank cores. I bet I¡¯d get a crazy amount of stats from those. Even through the penalty. It was true that following that logic, Henry should have waited before buying the extra stat points, but he was trying to strike a balance. If he got too greedy, he might get himself¡ªand Maurice¡ªin serious danger. After all, anything that eclipsed him in stats could have a real chance of killing him, so even if he was missing on some bonus points this way, he was fine with it. Strength: 63 Constitution: 85 Spirit: 75 Perception: 50 Dexterity: 48 With that done, he could finally start working on levels. He still had more than a hundred B-rank tokens, which would be plenty for the next couple of upgrades, but he also had to start saving for the next round of Aspect upgrades. Considering the pattern, the next Aspect to upgrade to B-rank was going to cost a thousand B-tokens. Meaning a full A-token. Henry stretched his arms and pushed those considerations aside and instead, he turned himself to his navigator. Already, a few B-ranks were being highlighted, and to his surprise the Octomind found him a kraken. It had been barely ten minutes. Good job, buddy. Henry peered through the blood clone as it searched for the kraken. The pathfinding skill led them here, but the trail got foggy when they¡¯d reached the area. This place seemed at the edge of the rocky formation. There were boulders and rocks, like one might find at the edge of a mountain, but as Henry¡¯s eyes roamed the bare, sandy area, he couldn¡¯t narrow down the location of the kraken. But he didn¡¯t need to. Right below him, one particularly large boulder moved, and two large yellow eyes peered up at him. 2.66: The kraken Henry¡¯s clone froze as he recognized the being below him. It took him a second at first, but when he saw the stone-ridge yellow eyes, and when the rock-like arms slowly unfurled, there was no more doubt. End even Identify did not struggle to ascertain the nature of the creature looking up at him. [Stoneclad Kraken (B) - Lvl ?] The kraken lay quietly below, watching the supposedly invisible blood clone. It didn¡¯t rise in the water. It was content to wait, and from its oddly-calm mind, Henry felt curiosity. Amusement, even. Having been made, he dropped the invisibility. With a flex of his will, he made sure to alter his skin so it displayed a clear, neutral pattern that matched the colors of the sand below him. The B-rank kraken watched him nonchalantly. Its colors weren¡¯t veering dark, but Henry thought that the kraken¡¯s real skin might be difficult to observe, as while he approached, he realized the being in front of him really lived up to its name. The bits of stone and minerals on its flesh were not a camouflage or some type of mimicry Henry could have come up with. No. Those were real rocks. Literally stone-clad. Henry came to stop a few yards away, and now the difference in size between his clone and the kraken was much more apparent. But surprisingly, he was almost sure his newly-improved main body was larger. I wonder if it can control its size, Henry thought, then he met the kraken¡¯s gaze. ¡°[Hello.]¡± The kraken tensed. Its arms curled under it as it began to rise, and for a second, Henry felt a swell of magic come from the creature as curiosity was suddenly replaced by wariness. ¡°[I don¡¯t mean any harm. Do you understand me?]¡± The kraken stared at the clone for a moment, then the wariness abated. It didn¡¯t fade, but the creature did not turn hostile like the Trickster had in the past. Instead, it reached out with a rock- and quartz-studded arm. Henry eyed the limb, then returned the gesture. He expected it to be some sort of greeting, and if there was any danger¡­ Well, this was only a clone. He could make more. And honestly, he was confident in being able to beat this kraken if push came to shove, but if it was as peaceful as it seemed, then he¡¯d leave it alone. Still, he didn¡¯t want to rush things. After all, it was rare for him to meet a non-speaking intelligent species that didn¡¯t immediately resort to schemes or violence. Aside from the ray they¡¯d met on their way to the Current. That one creature was both intelligent and peaceful, but it did not want to engage. Their arms touched, with the kraken¡¯s gently tapping on Henry¡¯s for a couple of seconds before it retreated under the creature, only to come back out with something intertwined in its limb. The kraken¡¯s limb unrolled, then a closed, boulder-sized clam fell on the white sand with a puff of dust. Henry looked up, and found the kraken watching him. Its eyes swiveled to the shell, then back to Henry. Between them, a fleshy pseudopod came out of the shell and the mollusk began trying to drag itself away. [Lithovore Clam (D) - Lvl 62] Henry put an arm on the clam, and the creature hid back within its shell. The kraken watched him expectingly, and now, the wariness was mostly gone. In its stead, some sort of excitement at the novelty. Curiosity and, surprisingly, relief. That last one was odd. Henry knew this could all be some sort of odd mating ritual, but he was almost sure it wasn¡¯t. The creature in front of him wasn¡¯t running on instincts at all. It was understanding him, and he could sense its emotions. They weren¡¯t a mish-mash of chaotic impulses like he¡¯d expect from non-sapient beings. They were still chaotic, sure, but there was subtlety, and there was some sort of order and intelligence that kept everything in control. For example, earlier, he¡¯d sensed an impulse to attack or leave, but it was soon smothered by curiosity and carefulness. All that to say, the creature in front of him was not at the mercy of its whims. And so, he decided to return the favor. Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more. ¡°What have we got in storage, number 1?¡± Henry quickly parsed through the mental whiteboard of everything he had in storage, but there was one item he had plenty of. And so, with a flourish, he presented one of the Sparkfin tunas to the kraken. ¡°[Today¡¯s catch. I hope you like it.]¡± He had to pull out the smallest of the creatures, and even then, he had to use the out-of-body hack to activate his skill or he wouldn¡¯t have been able to extract the carcass, as it was many times his clone¡¯s size. But Henry had had a lot of practice. The kraken got up on its many arms and approached cautiously. Its emotions were in a flurry, but if he could reduce it to one word, he¡¯d say it was surprised. Shocked, even. It kept looking down at the tuna, then back to Henry. Even though it couldn¡¯t communicate telepathically, the surprise was turning into such an intense curiosity that Henry believed it was almost about to get a hold of him and shake him for answers. ¡°[This is my clone. If you¡¯re wondering how I beat that, my main body¡¯s a bit stronger than this.]¡± Surprise and curiosity, but this time, it was sprinkled with a pinch of satisfaction. It had more questions, but it had also gotten an answer, and so it reached out and wrapped an arm around the tuna before it brought it to its beak and began happily munching on it. Henry looked down at the clam in his arm, then up at the kraken. ¡°[My friend¡¯s with me. He is a crab, and he has a shell. Can you promise not to attack him? I can sense your emotions, by the way. You can think your answers and I¡¯ll probably understand you.]¡± The Stoneclad kraken paused, confused for a second, then it continued eating while one of its arms reached out and tapped Henry on his arms. Through its mind, acceptance and contentment shone above everything else. This is either the friendliest kraken I¡¯ve ever met, or it¡¯s playing me like a fiddle. No matter. It was only low B-rank. If it got aggressive, it wouldn¡¯t have a snowball¡¯s chance in hell to survive. So, while the kraken ate, Henry and Maurice swam with their main bodies to meet this new acquaintance. It didn¡¯t take Henry long to arrive, barely a few minutes, but as soon as he crested a formation of rock and the rocky kraken came into view, it froze, and the wariness spiked once more. How does it keep seeing me? Or is it sensing me some other way? Henry dismissed the invisibility once more and decided to add it to the list of upgrades, though in its case, he wasn¡¯t sure how he was supposed to push it to evolve. For Mana Nexus, he was doing condensing exercises, and for both Domain and Fortitude, he planned on getting in some fights and pushing the abilities then. What was he supposed to do for invisibility? ¡°[It¡¯s me, Henry,]¡± he sent as he landed a few yards away. Now that he was here with his main body, he confirmed that he was larger. Not by much, but he had at least 20 to 30% of height and volume. The kraken shied away for a moment, half-eaten tuna still in its arm, then it hesitantly extended an arm in greeting once more. ¡°[Hello again,]¡± Henry said as he tapped the kraken back. ¡°[This is Maurice. He¡¯s smart, almost like both of us. And he can talk as well.]¡± ¡°[Hi! And hey,]¡± broadcasted the crab, swiping at Henry with a claw before he scuttled closer to the kraken and waved an arm. The rock-covered being stared down at him, then at Henry, then two arms extended forward, and Henry tensed up. Please don¡¯t do it. The kraken, still holding onto his tuna, gingerly picked up Maurice and peered at him from up close, slightly turning him over. Henry felt wonder from the kraken, but he didn¡¯t lower his guard as the kraken turned over Maurice in his arm for a couple more seconds, then he put him down and gave him a gentle tap on the head before it looked questioningly back at Henry. ¡°[What is it?]¡± The kraken seemed to think for a moment, then it pointed at him, and a powerful emotion of knowing rippled out of its mind. It did the same with Maurice, but when it pointed to itself, there was a question. ¡°[Your name? Do you have a name?]¡± The answer to that was a negative, if Henry interpreted the kraken right. It seemed like it wanted one, but before Henry could brainstorm something for it, the kraken¡¯s head snapped to the side. Alertness. Fear. The kraken instantly flew off the sand toward the rocks, but it stopped for a moment to pull on one of Henry¡¯s arms. As they swam away, with Maurice in Henry¡¯s arms, the kraken sent more controlled emotions at him. Both of danger, and ¡®us¡¯. Henry wasn¡¯t sure if the kraken meant something was dangerous to them, or if the danger was from something like them. 2.67: The kraken(s) It didn¡¯t take long for the threat that had spooked the Stoneclad kraken to show up, and somehow, Henry was not surprised. Of course, if this area had one kraken, it had a higher chance of having a second kraken. In this scenario, it had second and a third. Another breeding ground isn¡¯t far, I bet. Though I¡¯m surprised they managed to grow and level in this area. The survival rate must be under the floor-boards. Two krakens were gliding along the seafloor, and unlike both Henry and the Stoneclad friend, these two were very conspicuous. Clearly, they had adapted to the local fauna, if their names were of any indication. [Thundermaw Kraken (B) - Lvl ?] [Thundermaw Kraken (B) - Lvl ??] These were smaller beings, compared to their rank and level. Their bodies were lithe and glowed with a deep turquoise color, and it seemed that, just like the Sparkfin tunas, arcs of blue-matching electricity danced between their arms whenever the limbs got closer, as if they were living, organic Tesla coils. Henry gave a sidelong glance to the kraken near him. ¡°[They¡¯re dangerous? For you?]¡± The Stoneclad seemed to hesitate, then with an arm, he pointed at Henry and Maurice, then when it pointed at itself, its arm wavered, and from the creature¡¯s mind he sensed annoyance more than fear. Henry turned back to the oncoming duo as they approached the rocky formation, and he guessed they were going into the canyon territory to hunt. ¡°[Watcha thinking, Maurice? Wanna see if they¡¯re friendly?]¡± ¡°[I¡¯d like it if they were unfriendly¡­]¡± said the crab as he rubbed his pincers together. Henry grinned inwardly. He would love some hostile krakens, right about now. They¡¯d be great to get some skill training done, and if there was one family of monsters he had an advantage against, it was his own. So if he wanted to get an achievement for beating a two-mark B-rank, he couldn¡¯t find a better monster to do so. But first, he had to try the diplomacy route. If these krakens were friendly, then he¡¯d move on and hope he¡¯d soon meet an evil kraken he could dispatch guilt-free. Henry began to move, only for the Stoneclad to put an arm on him. The kraken was growing agitated, sending thoughts of alarm and danger. The Trickster kraken tapped him on the arm and gently pushed the arm away. ¡°[If they get aggressive, we¡¯ll be fine¡­ You. Do you have a name? No? I¡¯m gonna call you Rocky. Don¡¯t worry, we can handle this if you want to stay hidden.]¡± With that done, both Henry and Maurice slipped out from behind cover and came down to intercept the duo. ¡°[Their electricity will probably pack a punch, Maurice. Are you ready?]¡± ¡°[Yes!]¡± ¡°[And?]¡± The Maurice deflated¡°[¡­If it¡¯s too much, I¡¯ll hide.]¡± ¡°[Good.]¡± The two krakens changed course as soon as they noticed the giant red and blue dotted kraken come down. They separated and surged forward, each coming at him from a different angle, and already, he didn¡¯t think these two intended on being friendly. They¡¯ll be in range of Mindweaver¡¯s Tongue in a couple of seconds¡­ Now. The two minds crashed into the range of his Telepathic Sense like two bolts of thunder, and just like the natural phenomenon, there was no subtlety in their minds. They were intelligent, sure, but there was also an intense hunger and sense of territoriality that felt too wild for Henry to expect anything but hostility from these two, especially when the sense of superiority slipped through as the duo began circling him. Still, he tried. ¡°[Hello. I¡¯m Henry and I mean you no harm. I come in peace.]¡± His response was a flare of annoyance and a bolt of lightning that tried to fry his eyes out, then the smaller of the two surged forward. The arm carrying Maurice moved to the back, while at the same time, he pushed a dollop of the Guardian Aspect into Trickster¡¯s Fortitude. That attack had hurt a bit, but once the electric krakens started using their own Aspects, it might do some real damage. Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road. ¡°[Works for me. Maurice, pepper the weaker one and keep it away from us. I¡¯m dealing with the big guy first.]¡± ¡°[Okay!]¡± With a flex, Henry pulled most of his Octominds with him into the fight. Not the clones, but the cognitive power. The weaker of the two continued its charge, thinking it could just shrug off the bubbles coming its way, only for the dark bubble to blow one of its arms off once Maurice detonated it remotely when the kraken flitted by. The smaller kraken flailed, then spat out a cloud of thunder-cloud-like ink before swimming back toward its companion. ¡°[Whoa¡­ It¡¯s weak,]¡± Maurice said. Henry watched the attack from his nearby clone, but his main eyes were fixed on the higher-rank kraken that had opted to keep its distance and watch. ¡°[They¡¯re not as tough as they should be for a B-rank, but those dark bubbles are nothing to scoff at, either.]¡± Then the larger of the two moved. Not too strong defensively. So attack power, most likely, mana, and maybe speed. Would fit with their shape. Henry was ready. Two of his arms were pulled back, and his figurative finger was ready to pull all the triggers while four of his Octominds supported him. So when the skin of the higher-level kraken shone and as its body blurred toward him, it all happened in slow motion. Well, relatively speaking. Even to his slowed perception, the kraken was coming awfully fast, and already it was twirling around to wrap its arm around him before it electrocuted him to death¨Che guessed. Henry was sure a magic-specialized kraken would hurt like hell. If it managed to get to him, of course. Krakenbane¡¯s Wrath lit up around his body like a ghostly, ominous fire, filling his body and spirit with raging strength. As soon as that skill activated, Henry¡¯s arm moved. Evershifting Strike. Whipping, accelerated, and unimpeded. As for the strike¡­ Cutting. Henry¡¯s red-covered arm made the water boil as it tore through the distance separating it from its target. Like a drawn, slicing sword, it blurred and even to his own eye, the movement was barely visible. A fraction of a second before the impact, he thought he felt shock. Maybe even fear. Henry¡¯s arm sliced through the first arm, then the second, and without losing any momentum, it kept accelerating, cutting into the creature''s gut, left eye, then all the way through its brain until it came out the other side. Thanks to his larger size, and much larger arm, the effect was devastating. A cloud of blue blood and guts spilled as the two parts of the bisected kraken fell to the side, rolling as their momentum went haywire. The three arms on the left side spasmed and curled, but the other side was already trying to swim away. But it couldn¡¯t. The kraken was trying to move parts of its body that just weren¡¯t there anymore, and before it could get away, another Krakenbane-empowered strike came at it. This time, it was charged with an imploding impact instead of cutting. Henry¡¯s arm hit the exposed brains of the Thundermaw kraken, and the notification came immediately as the brains of the creature geysered out into the sea. 1x [Thundermaw Kraken (B) - Level 57] core was collected. The second kraken stared at its dead companion for half a second before it let out another cloud of thunder-generating ink and tried to run, only to find itself pincered by a metal-covered kraken. Rocky? He can change the types of minerals covering him? The Stonclad kraken rushed the Thundermaw, all arms spread out, and got a grip on the scrambling kraken, but it was as if he¡¯d just laid a hand on a live electric wire. The flash of lightning was blinding, but while it might have expected its opponent to be left writhing on the sand, Rocky was completely unaffected. The electricity danced on top of his body before it dissipated in the salty water around him. Right. Metal. I guess he¡¯s immune? With the help of Maurice and a few more smacks from Rocky, the second kraken was brought down, and Henry found himself staring at the unmoving carcass of the first one. I know I have an advantage against kraken, but I didn¡¯t think the attack was going to be this effective. Dammit. I didn¡¯t even get to work on my skills¡­ Rocky approached him, dragging the weaker¡ªand now dead¡ªThurndermaw while Maurice was latched onto it, munching on its eye. The Stoneclad¡¯s rocks were reverting, slowly losing their metallic sheen and turning back to regular stone, which was¡­ incredibly impressive. Was it a temporary skill, or was it literally transmuting the matter on top of its body? The Stoneclad seemed to have questions, but it struggled to put the words together or communicate them. Once more, it seemed a bit wary of Henry, and there was a bit of shock there as well. Henry didn¡¯t know if his words would appease some of the kraken¡¯s questions, but he still spoke up. ¡°[I fought a lot of krakens in the past, and I got some abilities to deal with them fast. Though I didn¡¯t expect to be this easy. If you¡ª]¡± Henry froze for a fraction of a second. Then he moved. ¡°[Maurice, Rocky, let¡¯s go. Otodus sharks are on the way. Too many of them.]¡± With a practiced swipe, Henry threw both carcasses into his Maw and picked up Maurice before they doubled it toward the rocks once more, with Rocky following suit. Well, even though I didn¡¯t get my training sessions with the krakens, I¡¯ll get it with the sharks. In a bit though. I¡¯ve got a core to consume.