Liam stood frozen. Confused, relieved, and slightly tired. He could feel his chest rise and fall with each breath he took in. He wasn’t out of breath, but his breathing was a bit labored.
Not paying attention to anything around him, his thoughts swirled on everything that had just happened. The sensation that had stirred within him was no longer there. He knew that it was still there, yet he couldn’t feel it anymore. It was like it had fallen back into a slumber and masked its presence once more. The tendrils that had wrapped around his body were no longer in sight either. His vision had also returned to normal.
He slowly tried to move his right hand over his right eye to test if he had control over his body again and was relieved that it moved just like he wanted it to. The feeling of not having any control over his body movements jarred him. It made him feel weak. He hated it.
Wha…What the fuck happened? Liam asked, still feeling confused and slightly scared.
“You used your ability. That’s what happened. – Eri.”
No shit, but…Is that going to happen each time I use it? Liam asked as he moved his right hand away and looked at it.
“I’m not sure. That ability is unknown to me. I have never seen this ability before, nor do I know how it works. – Eri.”
Liam frowned at what Eri was saying. He was about to complain until another text notification popped up.
“However, I can tell you my thoughts on what I saw. – Eri.”
Curious, Liam nodded. Even if she didn’t know about the ability in full detail, Liam knew Eri’s hunches on things were spot on. If she was able to spot something that would make her confident to offer suggestions about it then he would pay attention to it.
“From what I know about Instant abilities, they are generally not that slow to activate. However, I must also add they are not extremely fast either. When you used this ability it looked like it was slow to form and took its time to do what it was supposed to do. I noticed the look of panic that had formed on your face. Your thoughts were a jumbled mess as well. When the ability was manifesting, you had no control over your body right? – Eri.”
Liam nodded as he thought about it. I had no control over myself. My body moved on its own. Not only that, but…whispers entered my mind and a voice repeated over and over when I stopped saying the name of the ability.
“Whispers and a voice? *Brings a hand to chin and contemplates* That is very concerning indeed. No wonder you were panicking. However, it helps add to my theory. – Eri.”
Liam’s brows scrunched. What theory?
“My theory is the ability wanted to show you how it worked. It probably took its time so you can get a feeling for it. The voice you heard was probably keeping the ability activated. How or why it did that I’m not entirely sure. – Eri.”
Is that normal? Liam questioned.
“Not usually, but there have been cases for class abilities doing it. As for the whispers…I really don’t have anything for that…however…it might… - Eri.”
What? What are you thinking? Liam inquired. He really hated when she did this.
“I was just thinking. If you heard whispers while the ability was slowly activating then it might be tied to a certain type of magic that you have. One that invokes whispers if you use it too much. – Eri.”
Liam’s eyes widened as he understood what she was saying. You mean my Shadow magic.
“*Nods* Yes. Tell me did you get any notifications about getting that Debuff? – Eri.”
Liam took a look. He didn’t receive any notifications after or while the ability was in use. In fact, he didn’t receive any notifications at all.
Liam scrunched his brows as he frown. No. I haven’t received any notifications at all.
“Hm…maybe my theory on that was wrong then. You would only hear the whispers once you hit the minimum threshold of receiving that debuff. So, if you didn’t then I wonder what it is tied to then…wait…you said you didn’t receive any notifications? Not even after the ability was used? – Eri.”
Liam was about to respond, but then stopped as two notifications suddenly appeared out of nowhere.
“Devour has been used on Flawed Spirit Orb of the Small River Slime. Time to process Flawed Soul Orb: 2 minutes 30 seconds.”
“Devour has been used on Minor Spirit Orb of Diseased Feeble Forest Goblin. Time to Process Minor Soul Orb: 4 hours 57 minutes 30 seconds.”
“Huh. A delayed notification? That’s unusual. However, now we have a general estimation on how long a Flawed and Minor Soul Orb takes. Since we were talking for about two and a half minutes, we can say that the Flawed one will take five minutes to be fully processed while the Minor will take around five hours. The difference between the two won’t help with figuring out higher leveled Soul Orbs, but at least we know about these two. We’ll have to wait for them to process fully to get a better idea on what happens afterwards. After that you’ll need to use the ability again so you can get better acquainted with it. For now, let’s focus on other things before it gets too late. Finish your breakfast. By the time you’re done with that the Flawed Soul Orb should be done. – Eri.”
Liam looked down at the container sitting next to him. He really didn’t have an appetite after what he had just went through. The thought of that cold sensation coursing through his body and the image of the shadowy tendrils with their mouth splitting open, revealing those fangs…a shiver ran down his spine just thinking about it.
Liam shook his head, pushing away the shiver. No. I need to not get weirded out by my ability. Instead, I need to steel myself and get used to it.
He then reached for the container and continued eating his food. He wasn’t looking forward to testing it again if he had to go through all of that. He didn’t have much left to eat, but he decided to take his time chewing and swallowing. After he was finally finished with the food, the notification he was waiting for appeared.
“Secondary Class – Shadow of the Devourer ability Devour has finished processing Flawed Soul Orb of the Small River Slime.”
“No Health has been replenished.”
“No Mana has been replenished.”
“No stamina has been replenished.”
“10 Spirit Points has been replenished.”
Liam was both relieved and excited to see the final notification. He wasn’t sure if he would ever be able to get his Spirit Pool replenished, but after seeing this, he was happy to finally have a way to do it for the time being. That feeling subsided as he realized what he was going to have to do next.
“Now that we have a sure way of replenishing your Spirit Pool. Pull out another Flawed Soul Orb and Devour it. – Eri.”
Liam grimaced at the text. He then did as she said before he could talk himself out of it. He pulled out his Spectral Lantern, willed a Flawed Soul Orb of the Small River Slime out of it, released his lantern, and stared at it.
He could feel his heart beat speed up slightly as he thought about what was going to happen next. As he thought about it, he told himself about how this was necessary. He needed to do this to not only replenish his resource, but to also get used to the ability.
He took in a couple of breaths before slowly releasing them, trying to slow his pacing heart. After it had started to calm down, he stared at the Soul Orb and whispered a single word, “Devour.”
He embraced himself for that stirring deep inside him, the rush of whatever it was that coursed through his veins, the whispers, and that voice that sounded like yet didn’t like his own. However, none of that came. Instead, his vision inverted from the corners of his eyes as that familiar cold sensation slithered up his legs.
The feeling didn’t take as long like it did last time, but it wasn’t swift either. To Liam it felt like the ability was still letting him feel how it work, but at a much different pace and not as an intense level as last time.
He moved his head to look down to see the shadow under him covering his legs and slowly making its way up to his stomach. After it had reached his chest, he moved his right hand out, palm up. The shadows that was covering him started to condense into a tendril like form as it began to circulate down around his right arm.
After reaching his wrist, like last time, the tendril formed a fanged mouth and stared at the Soul Orb before widening its mouth and striking the object. In the blink of an eye, it swallowed the Soul Orb and disappeared.
Liam stared blankly at the spot where the Soul Orb once floated. His vision, back to normal.
“Devour has been used on Flawed Spirit Orb of the Small River Slime. Time to process Flawed Soul Orb: 5 minutes.”
“Interesting. How did that feel this time? – Eri.”
Not…Not as bad as last time. Liam stated. Although, I don’t know if I was imagining it or not, but I think it was still holding itself back from how fast as it could normally go.
“Oh? What makes you say that? – Eri.”
Liam stared at his right hand that was still stretched out, palm up. He tilted it and looked like he was studying it.
I’m not entirely sure. Liam began as he narrowed his eyes. I just…feel like it is. Strange.
“Very much so. However, now that we know its not going to be like the other time each time you use it. We can use this method to replenish your Spirit Pool. You will need to stock up on low tiered level Soul Orbs for now, but I must also advise you about something very important. – Eri.”
What’s that? Liam questioned as he scrunched his brows.
“Like almost all of your abilities you must be careful when and where you use it. Especially this one. It’s an overpowered ability and can cause a lot of alarms if the wrong people see it. I am also convinced that you shouldn’t use it when even those you trust are around. – Eri.”
Confused about that last part, Liam questioned. What do you mean? I mean, I can understand not using it around my family and people like Naro and Nabal since they don’t know everything, but to also not use it around Avery, Blair, Mercer, and the others? They know almost everything about me.
“This ability…if they see it and grow afraid of it. That fear can make people do things not even you could predict. I’m just saying, be careful when using it around them if you choose to. I will be able to tell if they are up to something that can be harmful to you, but it’s ultimately up to you in the end. – Eri.”
Liam understood what she was saying. You can trust people, however…in front of something terrifying, you never know what a person can or will do. Especially if the source of what’s terrifying you is someone you claim to trust.
I’ll use this ability to my discretion. Liam said with a sigh.
“*Smiles* Good. Now you better get to the matter at hand now. You have a buff that’s slowly going away. I suggest you devour a Flawed Soul Orb as you work on raising your Knowledge Theories. After your done with all that I have an idea on what you should do today. But let’s take things one step at a time. – Eri.”
Sounds like a plan. Liam responded as he nodded. He then pulled out a few books from his inventory and started reading.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Eri stared at Liam through her bowl of water. She was happy they were able to solve the issue he was having with his Spirit Pool. That resource was something very important that he needed to have in order to grow. Even if the current method used to replenish it was one that she didn’t know was possible.
Out of all the Deities out there, she was really the only one who knew how and why it was so important that he had a way to replenish it. While she did say that Liches and Necromancers used Spirits and could possibly have a way to make the potions, they didn’t have a Spirit Pool. Their potions and the way they utilized spirits were completely fundamentally different from how he used them.
Eri brought a hand to her lips as she bit down on one of her nails. Her facial expression turmoiled between confusion, worry, and hope. She didn’t know how to feel about the possibility of what was going on with her Champion.
The ability to use spirits and have a Spirit Pool belonged to a race that disappeared many, many, many years ago. They disappeared around the same time the Arisen, Angelics, and other races did. Ones that were lost to the archives of time. Ones that researchers of present day are calling the Lost Races.
However, she had inspected her Champion’s personal character sheet and in his race category there was no sign of that race there. Then why? Why was he able to gain a class related to that race? Was it because of that terrifying ability?
Eri shook her head. No. That ability was terrifying, yes. To be able to gain new abilities, skills, stats, Fields, and/or Seeds was not only unheard of, but the very reason why Geminis were being hunted down.
After watching it in action, hearing her Champion go through it, and reading the description herself. She knew why none of the Deities could figure out who would have it manifest in. That ability, she theorized belonged to a certain race. A certain terrifying race.
However, being able to gain that hidden Class Evolution wasn’t solely because of that ability. No, she had a theory that the ability helped with unlocking that hidden secret inside of him. However, now she had to solve the mystery of where that secret came from.
If he did have anything tied to that race, then him being the perfect pick to be her Champion was something not even her sister could have known about. And if that was the case then what about the other Champions recently picked for the others? Were they the same?
Eri felt a shiver run down her spine. How crazy would that be if each of them held a secret like that. If that was the case then was it pure coincidence or was it…
Eri took her nail away from her lips as she stared at Liam. Excitement bubbled up within her as she grinned. “They might be the key to finding them,” Eri whispered softly.
Before she could continue that line of thought, she felt little hints of her nature stir inside her.
That grin she had on her face widened a bit more. “Looks like the tasks I assigned to my newly appointed Apostles are being handled like I requested of them. Looks like I was right to believe in my Champion. Oh, how I look forward to what else I can have them do.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Almost two hours had passed by while Liam worked diligently on his Knowledge Theories. He was able to get his Knowledge Theories in Magical Enchants, Runic Knowledge, and Chemicalized Creations to level five. He was also able to get Medicinal Creations for Beginners to level six. With the remaining time he had he got Lurking in the Shadows to level fifteen and had just enough time to get Basking in the Lunar to the same level with just ten minutes left on the buff.
He wanted to push his Knowledge Theories in the four crafting books a bit farther since he was losing himself in them, but Eri had to intervene and remind him about the time limit. Especially when it came to the Chemicalized Creations. He found the topic very fascinating. The different things he could make with this section amazed him.
While learning about it he found how versatile this section of Alchemy was. He could see connections to the other sections like Poison Crafts that could be very helpful. Even Potion Making could be used to mix with it. Although it wouldn’t do damage, he thought of ways he could turn potions into an exploding mist to make it easier to heal a group of people instead of having to take time to use magic. Although he needed to get a better understanding on how it worked, he was still excited to learn it.
Periodically during his study session, Liam stopped to use his Devour Ability on almost all of the Flawed Soul Orbs he had. He didn’t have many to begin with. The ones he was able to harvest were the ones at the beginning of the Blue Dungeon and when Cindy wasn’t close by on the final floor when he had to go back and harvest the materials of the Small River Slimes.
As he did this he realized he still had that bag Cindy lent him while he was helping her collect materials. He knew he needed to return it, but he didn’t want to go there so soon. He decided he’d wait another day or two before returning the bag when things cool down there.
However, now he was about to do something he had been waiting for a while to do. He was going to attempt to unlock his Affliction Focus Point on his Field of the Lunar.
Liam brought up his Mystical Landscape menu and took a look at it. The screen was zoomed in to get a clearer picture of the dark violet seed. The seed was cracked opened with several different colored roots growing from within the darkened center of the seed.
Each root was thicker than the last time he saw it. Even the grey one that represented his Construction Craft Focus Point. Since he had started working on that one, the root had grown in length and size. It wasn’t as much as the other two grey roots that represented his other Focus Points from the Field of the Craft, but it did grow some.
Glad to see some progress there. Liam smiled. That smile quickly disappeared as his facial expression turned into one of confusion and curiosity as he noticed something.
Within the darkened center of the Seed of the Arcana, a small violet color dimly flashed. The color of the flash was almost similar to the shell of the seed and Liam could have passed it off as something tied to it, but his gut was telling him this was different. The flash was lighter in color, and it didn’t give off the same feeling as the seed when he stared at it.
He tried to see if he could bring up any information as he stared into the darkened center, but all that appeared was a notification that said...
“Seed of the Arcana. Fields of Study rooted from the seed: Arcane, Craft, Elements, Lunar, Shadow. Focus Points unlocked: 12.”
Liam was confused as it didn’t reveal anything that he didn’t already know. He continued to stare at it, waiting to see if something different would appear. After a few seconds had passed and the flash never came back, Liam decided to forget about it. However, as he was about to look elsewhere, the color dimly lit back up for a couple of seconds.
Before it could disappear again, Liam assessed it and got a different notification.
“Potential Field hidden within the Seed of the Arcana: Field of Sins. Potential Focus Point of Field of Sins: Pride.”
“Warning! Field of Sins and Focus Point Pride is unavailable to be unlocked. Not enough Knowledge Theory to allow access to Field and Focus Point.”
Liam tilted his head as he stared at the two notifications. The whole Mystical Landscape and everything tied to it like the Seeds, Fields of Studies, and Focus Points were still a complete mystery to him. Instead of trying to make sense of it he decided to ask someone who had better knowledge of it all. Hey Eri? What’s up with this?
“*Sighs* You really need to hit up the Library as soon so you can to study up on things like the Mystical Landscapes and Seeds. Then maybe you would understand that what you’re looking at is something that would never happen. – Eri.”
That’s kind of rude. You of all people should know how busy I’ve been. Liam thought as he shook his head. If this is something that would never happen then why is it happening?
“If I were to make an educated guess then it’s happening because you obtained an ability that is tied to a Field of Study, but don’t actually have that Field of Study. Since you don’t have the Field but have the ability then it remains hidden within your Seed of the Arcana. Although, for it to pulse like that within the vast expanse of your Void of the Arcana is…interesting. Also, the wording in the notification, Potential Field hidden? That is also a peculiarity. – Eri.”
Liam grew confused as he read Eri’s text. He looked back at the notification and then back at the notification text from Eri. Something she said didn’t match up with what the notification said. Vast expanse of my Void of the Arcana? You mean my Seed of the Arcana right?
“*Sighs heavily* This is why you need to spend some time in the library or maybe visit a Mage College so you can study up on the topic of Seeds. I’ll give you a brief explanation, but that’s all I’m going to tell you. No. I meant what I said. The Void of the Arcana is that darkened center you see. It is apart of your Seed of the Arcana, but at the same time it isn’t. It’s, like the name implies, a vast empty space you can’t even begin to understand. It is also where your Fields and more comes from, but never has there been a situation where you can see something from within it like now. That’s what makes your situation an oddity. – Eri.”
Are you serious? Huh. Liam said, unsure what else to say. He was about to ask something else, but was cut off as another line of text appeared from Eri’s text notification.
“That is all I am going to say on the topic for now. For more information, please expand your knowledge on it. Once you have more knowledge on Seeds and such we can talk more about it. However, you have something more important to do right? Your Buff timer is almost gone. – Eri.”
Liam looked at the timer on his buff and let out a curse. It had just hit three minutes and was counting down. Shit! Thank you Eri.
Liam switched his focus as he closed out the notifications he didn’t need. He looked for the roots that had a pale white color and focused on them while waiting for the notification he wanted to appear.
“Field of the Lunar. 1 Focus Point available. Would you like to root Field of the Lunar Focus Point: Affliction? Yes No?”
Liam mentally accepted and waited for the response he was hoping for.
“Affliction (Lunar). Ability available to learn: Epidermis Luminescence. Accept ability? Yes No?”
“Yes!” Liam suddenly shouted. “Fuck yeah!”
Liam quickly accepted the ability and watched as a very small and slim root grow from the main root that represented his Field of the Lunar.
“Congratulations! You have received Affliction (Lunar) Focus Point ability - Epidermis Luminescence! Epidermis Luminescence. Description - this ability causes a pale white light to flash every 5 seconds in a single spot. Spot is randomized between legs, arms, chest/back. Each time the light flashes it causes a sharp pain and damage. Duration of spell: 1 minute. Costs 15 MP. target – Single. Spell type: Chant.”
Liam stared at the description. The description was interesting. If he read the description right, the ability would appear randomly on the body of the target. He had no control over where it would appear though. Maybe at a higher level he would be able to pinpoint where it would strike?
That would be something he would need to check once he got it there. However, he could already see the benefits of the spell. If it appeared on the target’s leg or arm then there was a chance that the target could hesitate to strike or chase depending on the level of the pain. If a stronger target was after him and it struck at a leg then he would be able to get away as long as the pain it caused was enough to stop them in their tracks.
Liam was happy with this ability, however he needed to try it out to see how it worked exactly. He would need to test it regularly then see how it worked when he manipulated his Lunar Mana and placed it into the spell.
“That’s not a bad Lunar ability to get. If you can get it high enough, you’ll be able to get it appear on the target’s eyes, causing them to go blind while in battle, giving you an advantage. – Eri.”
That was all it took for Liam. That message was he needed to know to want to prioritize the ability’s level growth.
“*Laughs* I can see it on your face. You want to grind that ability. I don’t want to burst your bubble, but you’re going to need to be careful while doing it. Your resistance for the Debuff Lunar magic creates is still too low. If you’re fine working on that while using this ability that’s fine, but you have more important things to do today before you start that kind of training. – Eri.”
Oh? Like what? Liam questioned, frowning at his Matron turning him down the chance to train.
“Well, first off. You need to shower…No Champion of mine is going to go around smelling like a pile of impurities that were smelted off ores in some backwater smithy. You need to get a room somewhere to do that. Then after that its time you made a visit to a place we’ve been putting off. – Eri.”
Liam frowned at her words and sniffed himself after reading the comment about a shower. She wasn’t wrong that he needed one, but she wasn’t right about the comparison she made. He then grew curious about the last part of what she had said and asked, What place is that?
“*Smiles evilly* The Fiddler’s Spider Web. – Eri.”
