Cipiteca396

There's never enough time in the day.

When I finally managed to speak, it was more of a sob than actual words. "You... Your hand! You can't just... Do that." Once I'd regained enough of my senses, I rushed over to look at what she'd done. It had already started healing, but I could still clearly see the places where her flesh and bone had fractured. It wasn't like an injury to a human. Despite clear differences between tissues, it looked more like a damaged statue than a living being.

Rather than blood, a small amount of liquid clay leaked out, but it quickly solidified. The sharp edges slowly smoothed out as white clay built up over them. The hand she'd used as her 'tool' also had a number of cracks running through it, but they were already almost healed over. I couldn't help but gently run my hands over them, feeling the slight imperfections in her otherwise smooth skin. I backed off quickly though, afraid that I might cause more damage.

I took a shaky breath, trying to calm down enough to speak properly. To try to understand. She said she was collecting clay... But surely there was a better way? I shivered, speaking quietly. "Can't you collect clay without hurting yourself? I... Don't like it."

For the first time, the Kindlesprite showed an expression. A subtle furrowing of the brow, a slight pursing of the lips. Confusion, if my reading of her Aura was correct. "This action does not hurt me. It is no different from a human cutting their hair. The only thing that matters is my Core. As long as it remains, everything else will recover given time. Healing magic can accelerate this."

She paused, letting her eyes lose focus again. "It would be more convenient if I had a tool enchanted for this purpose, however. A large part of the Regeneration magic could be preserved if it were not divided between both hands." She focused on me once more, saying, "Additionally, having a place to store the Clay and allow it to cultivate would be ideal."

I was still upset, but having her so calmly explaining the next step helped me reorient my thoughts. It still took me a moment to catch up with what she was saying. She patiently waited for me to speak, simply watching without expression.

I mumbled, "A tool... I can probably manage that with the Interface, though a craftsmen would be better again. Umm, a room though. I already have a few rooms dug out that don't have a use. Does it need to be special?" I felt like running around, going straight to the other rooms, but I was worried that she might follow me and hurt herself. I sat back down in my chair and fidgeted.

She answered after thinking for a moment. "It would need to be large enough to hold a number of Kindlesprites at once. Ideally, we would spend as much time there as possible. That would allow the majority of the Clay we shed to gather without any extra effort, and provide mana for the formation of Cores. Though, the larger the room is, the longer it will take for the Clay to begin forming Cores naturally."

So nothing special then. "What exactly does it take to form a Core?"

She already seemed to have an answer prepared this time. "Once enough Clay is gathered in one place, it will draw mana into itself and start to replicate. Some of the mana will be used to condense Clay into Cores if enough is present, which will also draw mana into itself for the sake of forming a Kindlesprite. A Sculptor carefully manages both the mana and Clay to ensure that there aren't any shortages."

So not just clay but also mana was needed. Then, wouldn't it be better to put them in my Core room, since a ton of mana was moving through it? It might interfere with my CP collection rate, but I would be using those CP to make Kindlesprites anyways. In the long run, one method might be more efficient than the other... I would bet on cultivating the clay. It always seemed like spending CP was the wrong choice when Creatures were involved. Better to rely on their natural talents.

I nodded to myself, then asked, "Would it be better to use this room? Since the mana is so dense here?"

She hesitated. "That... My Lady's Crystal Core is in this room. It would be improper for us to intrude in such a manner." Her face was expressionless still, but her Aura fluttered in a slightly chaotic manner. 

Improper though. What is that even supposed to mean? This Sprite was supposed to have my common sense, but she was way more formal than I was comfortable with. Where does that come from if not me? She'd even called me 'My Lady' again. Maybe it was better to try to adapt to her style than to try to get her to conform to mine. Well, as much as possible.

"Just Selene. If that's what you think, then what about a room next to mine? The mana will be slightly weaker, but if it's between me and the Gate, there should be enough. And we can make it a guard room too. That would give you a reason to be there." I watched her Aura for a reaction, rather than her expression. It was slightly less reliable.

There was a surprisingly strong surge of relief. She really didn't like the idea, huh? But her answer was calmly stated, "My apologies... Selene. That will be ideal. Shall I begin setting the room up immediately?" That reminded me that I was still worried about her injuring herself by moving around, but I couldn't think of a reason to stop her. I finally nodded and guided her to the room to the west.

I had been through here already, but there wasn't much to say about it. It was made by the united efforts of the Oreworm, the Greater Rockworm, and the two Common Rockworms. It was a bit of a mess. There probably wasn't a single straight surface in the entire room, with plenty of dips and bumps that someone could trip on. Which was weird, since the places that an individual worm worked on tended to be mostly straight. They really didn't work well together.

"Is this room a good size? I can make another one, or straighten things out for you here if it's too umm... bumpy." I tried offering to help, but she'd already walked to the right and found something resembling a corner. I followed after her and watched her inspect various spots in the area.

Finally she found something that seemed to satisfy her. "This room is fine, as long as I keep all of the Clay in this corner to start with. Having a hole to collect the Clay in will only be a benefit in the beginning. However, doors to keep the Clay from escaping the room will be useful." As she spoke, she took the... cast off clay from before, and placed it into a hollow near the corner. She then stepped on it, trying to crush it without breaking her hand like last time. Maybe because it was no longer connected to herself, or maybe because she was doing something outside my perception, the clay easily crumbled apart.

She stepped back, then gave a satisfied nod. Then she looked at her still maimed arm in a way that made me nervous. I quickly tried to think of something to say, but the only things I could think of were the requests she'd made. "So, a tool, and doors. Uh, do you think a specific type of craftsmen would help with that?"

She blinked at me once in surprise, before letting her eyes go out of focus. "I apologize. I'm unfamiliar with the requisite knowledge. Both will need to be enchanted to properly handle the Clay however. It can be quite... Mischievous."

What does that mean!? It's just magic clay, isn't it? Why does it have a personality? I stared at her with wide eyes before finally asking, "Mischievous how?"

She closed her eyes as she thought about it, then spoke calmly, "Primordial Clay is a material that absorbs and channels mana. That makes it highly reactive to emotion. It often collects on objects and people that contain mana and emotion. For objects, it can meld into their enchantments and interfere with their function. People become prone to outbursts of random emotions."

I paced around as I thought about this. The clay sounded far more volatile than I'd expected. I'd definitely need to prioritize the doors. No, maybe an airlock system? I did not want this stuff getting tracked through the dungeon. A magic artificer, then. If there was a better option... No, I would look right now, just in case. I was still sitting on almost zero CP, so I had plenty of time to look for the perfect craftsmen. It meant I wouldn't be able to get back to my magic studies, but some work had to be done in between the play.

I glanced over at the Sprite again. She was patiently watching the clay sitting on the ground. I guess if I needed someone to watch paint dry for me, asking her would be my first option. If I wanted to look through my Creatures, I should have just left her here and gone back to the forums. But... the image of her smashing her hand right in front of me kept playing through my mind. I didn't want to leave her alone and come back to find she'd killed herself or something. It was stupid. I knew that wouldn't happen. In the end though...

"Come with me. I have some things to do in the other room. I might need your help."