"Iser mind if we keep chatting? Well I have many of my own questions." I said.

"Yes I can answer many things. Can you see information about others or objects?" Iser asked.

"Yeah the skill is called Eyedentify… it's a play on words of Identify…" I said.

"Yes, that happens. Use it on me but be warned in some cultures it is rude to do it without permission… but they do anyway." Iser said.

"Interesting and good to know." I said then focused on Iser

Excited Kobolt (Mage Level ???)

"Ok that is interesting, also why do you have a question mark, well three question marks?" I asked

"My highest level is 21 but I guess you cannot see my second class or third class either." Iser said.

"Wait, second and third classes I can't see that yet?" I asked with a bit of confusion.

"Yes you can have more than one class and there is a stepping approach that you have to follow to get past specific milestones. These milestones are groups in multiples of 10." Iser said.

"O crap… that sounds like more info then I need right now… can we start at a simpler topic?" I asked.

"Yes, what would you like to start with?" Iser asked

"Ok I have like 3 or 4 million questions in reality… and not all are on magic." I said

"That is a lot of questions I don't think I would live long enough to go through each one." Iser said.

"Sorry are you aware of a concept called hyperbole?" I asked.

"Ahh umm I am aware but it is not in my native culture. So sometimes I miss it, Lluvia and Orlo use it a lot." Iser said.

"I can imagine…" I said.

"So maybe my first question really is how many races are there? Humans, Elves, Harpys, Buns, Kobolts…" I asked.

"Many… many many umm, Dwarves, Halflings, Gnomes, Crystals, Silph… and more" Iser said.

Basically anything I could possibly imagine and I suspected more.

"Some even started from dungeons. And some change when their class evolves, it is somewhat rare but still happens." Iser continued.

"Wait, there are Dungeons? And people can change races?" I asked in astonishment, those two statements alone completely changed how I needed to look at well everything.

"Yes, Dungeons and Changing races." They repeated.

"Right stepping back… Mana… So what's up with different mana types and how many are there?" I asked.

"Many types, they are all still… well mana but are better at doing different things. Your body naturally changes the absorbed mana to what you are most connected to, many times dictated by your class." Iser said.

"So mine is 'motive' what is that good for?" I asked.

"Ah that is a common type for people mechanically inclined. It is used in some enchantments, and some types of buffing. I even think it has started to be used in some aspects of airships and sea ships." Iser said.

"So what happens if you use the wrong type of mana in something?" I asked.

"It depends but generally a spell will fizzle out or unwind before you finish casting. Other times it might have a different behavior entirely. May I ask questions about your place?" They then asked.

"Sure, but depending on subject material I might not know." I said.

"This is understood. How many cultures exist where you come from?" Iser asked.

"Umm many, that depends on which continent we are even talking about. Hundreds, maybe thousands depending on how fine you split cultural differences." I said.

"That is a lot, very likely more than here on Dirt." They said.

The two of us spent the rest of the afternoon and into the evening talking back and forth learning from one another.

It was some time later when Lluvia interrupted us. "By Dirt can the two of you take a break, I would like to work on supper but I’m going crazy from all the incomprehensible chatter."

"Oh, do you like to cook?" I asked.

"Look it's just as a hobby… I don't have a skill for it or anything. Having a real kitchen is well much more convenient as well." She said.

"Well I can help, I have a Homemaking skill that indicates cooking as an element of it." I said.

That earned me a surprised look from Lluvia and a small chuckle from Iser.

"What?" I asked.

"Well unless you are a dedicated housewife no one would generally admit to having a skill like that." Lluvia said.

Stolen novel; please report.

"Oh… well I was really really bad about that stuff where I came from. I figured it would be helpful in my current situation... Also that actually seems a bit sexist." I said a little defensively then switched to heated.

I had also just realized too that Lluvia had changed out of her travel clothes and into a rather simple but flattering dress. It really showed off her figure very well and I could not help but briefly imagine what it might be like to hug her from around her back. I then blushed and shook my head to try and clear the thought… It had been a while since I had been with a partner. She unfortunately noticed and gave me a coy smile.

"O I agree, unfortunately there are enough people that agree with the statement to stigmatize it." Lluvia said.

"By the way if your willing, do you mind sharing your class and skills? I've never heard of MacTinker before." Lluvia asked.

"The name first off seems to be a bit of a pun… it's based off of a cultural reference. A fictional character named MacGyver would always find crazy ways out of any situation with nothing more than a stick and a bootlace. The character was supposed to be very smart and viewed situations completely differently." I said.

"As for how I ended up with a class like that… I think this world thrives off of corny puns." I finished.

"Yeah… that happens from time to time." Lluvia said.

"As for my skills, I have Eyedentify, Wandering pather, Mana Explosives, and Bait and Switch on my class skills." I said

"Identifying ability, something to do with paths, making bombs, and some sort of deception? I have not heard of any of these skills exactly but based on the names they follow a sort of pattern?" Iser asked.

"Yup." I said.

"And your general skills, besides Homemaking?" Lluvia asked.

"Mana Manipulation… and Cursing…" I said a bit reluctantly to the last one.

"Wow cursing… umm you may want to consider replacing that at some point… maybe" Lluvia said.

"O good so you can replace skills then I was worried when I took it but I figured I might die at the time and wanted to make my point…" I said sheepishly.

"Oh battle stories do tell." Lluvia said.

"I mean not much to tell… I herded a few Slimes then got them going in an endless loop. The umm part where I thought I was going to die was climbing up the rope." I said.

That got me curious looks.

"You guys walked past the spot when you came in, the row of houses with the moat?" I asked.

"Wait that was you? What did you do?" Iser asked.

"Well I lured a few Slimes into following their own trail… their acid ate through the ground." I continued.

" How many Slimes? Because to do that kind of damage would take a lot." Lluvia said.

"I don't know a few hundred, I got three levels out of it by the end." I said matter of fact.

They both looked at me dumbfounded.

"What?" I asked.

"Surprised is all and wait what did you do?" Lluvia asked.

"I lead them in a giant circle then climbed up on the roof. The ones in front got the scent of the last and followed for food. I called it a Death Spiral." I said.

"And you were level 1 at the time?" Iser asked then looked at Lluvia

"Yeah it sucked and took the better part of a day to starve them out but it worked." I said with a bit of concern in my voice.

"Our group, which is not weak, could not have handled that many directly. We would have been completely overwhelmed. And you did it in passing…" Lluvia said.

"Technically I was asleep by that point…" I said with a small grin.

Dinner was had and I even ranked up Homemaking, I guess cooking for a group added a good bit of experience. We were in the living room area a bit squeezed together, which I strangely didn't mind. I was sitting on the couch and a Lluvia was pressed right next to me, her body warm.

"So what brought your group to this town anyway?" I asked.

"Investigating, obviously the town fell apart a few years ago, many ended up dying unfortunately. The survivors kind of spread out and the story of this place has been filtered around for a bit." Turnip said.

"There is a bounty for finding out what exactly happened, all the reports said it was an army of Slime." Root added in.

"And no one has tried till now?" I asked.

"Only recently that the bounty was finally added. It's also not an easy process to get out here. It's 50 miles of unmaintained path and dangerous wilderness to the closest town." Root added.

"Well I guess I can add this much, the Slimes are focused around the sewers. I think my activity in the area woke a small horde up, they started to show up in the complex at first." I said.

We had been passing around a wine skin and I was starting to feel a nice buzz from the Alcohol. Lluvia was apparently feeling it as well because she was a little more Handy's and even started to play with my hair a bit. Her touch felt wonderful and I leaned into it a bit.

Clearly everyone noticed which was a bit embarrassing but they didn't say anything.

"Well our plan tomorrow will be to explore the sewers. Seeing as your sort of a local guide you're welcome to join us, but it will be incredibly dangerous." Root said.

"If you don't mind, I would like a few hours in the morning to look for some Armor and maybe a better weapon before I join. I would also like Iser help in adding some basic enchantments to the crossbow, I have some ideas." I said.

"Yeah sure in fact we can help search it will go a lot quicker." Root said and stretched.

"Well everyone off to bed I figure it will be an early start, Iser you mind helping me do a quick search of one of the houses. It would be nice to have our own rooms for a change." Root said.

Iser looked a little disappointed but followed. Turnip and Orlo followed as well after everyone said good night.

That left me with a very Handy's Lluvia.

"So that leaves just two." I said while pressing myself into her side a bit more.

"I… I'm not sure… fuck…. Part of me wants to say yes… but well we only just met… and I prefer to know the person I want to be intimate with…. That means I want to get to know you." I said with smile.

Congratulations! Through repeated actions your Cursing skill has improved and is now eligible for rank up!

Rank E is a free rank.

Cursing

Rank F - 100%

You can express entire sets of feelings in just a word.

This ability is ready to rank up. Rank E is a free rank would you like to rank up?

I groaned a little at the notification, which must have come off as anguish to Lluvia. She pulled me into a hug.

“So you are one of those people… sure we can get to know each other first.” Lluvia said.

“Honestly I am surprised you are interested in me at all. I normally don’t get that kind of attention.” I said.

“Well you better get used to it because everyone will be looking for an ‘in’ to connect with you. And too bad for them because I was here first.” She said.

“Ah so I’m just a tool…” I said sarcastically.

“Yes a tool that Orlo can't make heads or tails of, and Iser who for once has more questions than answers.” She said.