Janet crept cautiously through the brush, Zach following behind her. They were quite a ways out from home now, having spent a couple hours scouting through the forest while Zach laid down a series of the new tripwire spells Sarah had taught him.

"You level your skill up and get that milestone yet?" He asked her after he laid down another tripwire, and she paused.

"...No, but I have enough essence. Give me a moment..." She said, and then shared the options with him. "Hmm. What do you think? Speed sounds pretty good..."

[Scouting has reached Level 5! Choose a milestone.]
- +1% increased movement speed while scouting per level.
- +1 Temp FP per two hours while scouting per 3 levels.
- +1 CP & CP Regen per level.

Zach shrugged. "Yeah. You have any trouble with FP or CP? if you're running short on either of them, then they're worth considering. Also, not sure speed helps you when you're working with me?"

Janet shook her head. "I run a little low on CP sometimes, but I never actually run out. Maybe if I was going deep into enemy territory and needed to be on full alert the while time? But we're not there yet. And even then, there's an argument to be made for speed. And ultimately, I'm gonna learn your magic and you'll learn to scout better and we'll explore separately - so, I'm gonna take the speed. You said you wanted to do 6 tripwires? That was number five, right? Oh, and, you pick a milestone yet?"

Zach nods. "I leveled up Spirit, so I can do another tripwire. And yeah, I took the spell effect. more duration and better protection - and it gives me a bit of extra area, too. Without even spending any extra mana." He paused. "You want to pick up this new Cartography skill I got?"

Accomplished Cartography
- Uncommon Skill (2 Star)
- +5% cartographical ability per level.
- +2% fine motor control when making maps.
- +1 CP per level.
- +1 CP Regen per day per level.

Janet sighs. "I probably should. Though I suspect I won't be as good at it as you are, I can tell you put a lot of care in."

"I guess? I mean, I had some pre-existing experience with maps for my job, and I always enjoyed making, like, fake fantasy maps for worldbuilding and D&D and the like..." He says uncertainly, prompting a laugh from her.
"Yeah, that's what I mean. I'll see what I can manage though, yeah?"

"Oh shit, you made this today? It's pretty big already..." Miria says, walking up to the tree taking shape under Claire's hands, now a good fifteen feet tall.

"Mmm! Progress has been steadily slowing, but I think I can get it as big as you want it in a day or two." Claire replied. "Also, I got the ability to level 5, and got a milestone, and..."

[Plant Growth has reached Level 5! Choose a milestone.]
- +1% effect per level.
- Gain Sub Sub-Ability: Harmonious Ecology.
- Gain Sub-Ability: Botanical Intuition.

Botanical Intuition:
- Common Sub-Ability (1 Star)
- Gain information about affected plants.
- +2% insight per level.
- Can spend 1 MP/10 seconds to double this bonus.

Harmonious Ecology:
- Common Sub-Ability (1 Star)
- Make a collection of plants live together harmoniously.
- +2% effect per level.
- Can spend 1 MP/10 seconds to double this bonus.

Miria whistled. "Daaamn, girl! You got the good options. Any idea which you want? I have no idea what's better or worse, there. I guess the Sub-Abilities both look really good, if you can afford to level them?"

Claire shrugged. "Yeah I dunno. Have to ask Sarah about it. I'm leaning towards Intuition... I'd like to be able to learn more about what I'm working with? I definitely feel like I could be doing a lot better if I had more knowledge... But on the other hand, the 'Harmonious Ecology' one would like, actually let me do more stuff, even if I'm not sure exactly what... And of course, the first option isn't too impressive, but it lets me grow more stuff, faster, for the same amount of mana..."

"Hey! What are you up to?" Claire asked, walking into Sarah's little cubicle in the workshop.

"Well, I managed to put together a spell to detect Essence. Then I gathered some measurements, and now I'm running some calculations..." She said, gesturing to the sheets of paper strewn across her desk.

Claire blinked. "Wait, detect Essence? Like, the stuff we get from monsters and use to level up our abilities?"

Sarah nodded. "Yeah, exactly. Turns out it's in the air, and like, all around us. Pretty sure the area is much higher level than the monsters - would explain why they're leveling up. I think the area level is increasing too, though it's hard to tell, and I don't have enough data yet..."

Claire tilted her head. "Uh, yeah, wow. That uh, that does explain some things."

"Yeah. It's lucky in a way - I don't think it would be nearly this easy to level up elsewhere. I think the area level is something like level 8, so the monsters are lagging behind a fair bit. Seems to be, like, some kind of abstract structure that has to form to channel the essence into monsters? I can't get a good read on it yet, but I'm pretty sure there's *something* there. Anyway, that's why the monsters are lower level than the area. And we can still benefit from the higher essence level cause we have the structures to absorb it built into us. Here, my spell description."

Lesser Sense Essence
- Cost: 5 MP
- Casting Time: 5 Minutes
- Duration: 5 seconds
- Range: 3 feet radius
- Sense the presence of essence, along with details about it's form and structure.

Claire raised her eyebrows. "...Ah. I see. ...Can I see you casting it? It sounds fascinating..."

"How doez zat vit, then?" Maxim asked, watching as Jack carefully flexed his limbs in the armor they'd been working on putting together.

"Much better. Still a number of tight spots, and some place I can feel it chafing, plus a couple I think it might be too loose. Lemme just mark things down with the sharpie..." He says, starting to draw on the armor.

Maxim nodded. "Of courze. You hav any thoughts on your class milestone option?"

Jack sighed. "No, I still have no idea what to pick. The new class sounds like it would take a lot of investment, and essence is only growing scarcer for me, even with the higher level monsters - but the other two are physically oriented, and I'd rather focus on crafting..." He shrugs. "I'll have to ask around, see what we really need. It's not like they're *bad* options, just not easy ones."

[Human has reached Level 5! Choose a milestone.]
- Gain Stat: Health
- Gain Class: Thinker
- Gain Ability: Form Party

Health
- Common Stat (1 Star)
- +5 FP per level.
- +5 FP Regen per day per level.
- +2% resistance to poison/disease per level.
- +2% recovery from injury per level.

Thinker
* Common Class (1 Star)
* Resources: +2 HP/level, +2 FP/level, +5 CP/level, +2 MP/level
* Stats: Dexterity, Constitution, Perception, Smarts, Intelligence, Appeal.
* Abilities: Quick Memory

Form Party:
- Common Ability (1 Star)
- Can invite others to form a party, sensing their presence and whatever status they choose to share at a distance of up to 10 feet per level.
- Can include up to 1 other person, plus one per 2 levels.
- Can reallocate up to 1% of earned essence per level between participants.

Maxim nods. "Yez, I understand. Now, take that off and let uz get to adjusting it, yez? I think I know how to make it hold it's shape better without chafing..."