After browsing his options for a few more minutes, he turned his attention back to the silent Primordial. For a moment, he wondered if Eldros had once again gone blank due to his waning power. Silently vowing to leave for the tree as soon as possible, he reached out to the Primordial.
So, do you have any recommendations as to what I should aim for first? That’s a lot of skills. He sighed in relief when Eldros promptly responded.
Considering our goals and your focus on your ‘furballs’, I would advise taking a long look at the druid section. That could even help you around the monastery if you work with that earth shaman. Shel, I believe?
Yeah, that’s her. What about that mystery skill?
It’s probably important, but it’s probably a waste of time to aim for it now. I’d recommend focusing on other things until I let you know that I can unlock the skill for you.
Sounds like a plan. I’ve always wanted to be a druid! Lanek thought back cheerily, but received no response. Not wanting to bother Eldros any further and feeling the anticipation from his companions, he turned his attention to their pending evolutions.
“Alright, guys. As before, pick whatever you want. Don’t worry about anything else, we can build our tactics around whatever you guys choose. Understood?” Once he felt their affirmative responses, Lanek leaned back fully in his cot and closed his eyes. “Go for it.”
As with their previous evolutions, Lanek felt all of his mana drain at a rapid rate, feeling himself growing faint. He wasn’t sure if it was one of his skills or his new class, but he didn’t pass out as hard this time and was actually able to withstand the effects for a bit longer. However, since it was the middle of the night and he had nothing else to do, he let go and drifted off. Just as he passed out, all three of his companions dissipated and returned to his soul.
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It was well after dawn when Lanek awoke, but he supposed that this was only natural considering the events of the previous day. He eagerly looked around for his companions, curious to see what changes had occurred, but quickly felt their presence within their vessels. Huh, that’s new. They didn’t return during their last evolutions.
He reached out, attempting to summon them, but received only a single reply from Maximilian. The demigryph began forming in the room with him when Lanek received a notification from the System.
Cannot summon Sanguineus. Evolution in progress.
Cannot summon Kazuma. Evolution in progress.
I guess their more advanced evolutions take longer. Makes senses why Maximilian is done, this is his first evolution. I don’t think he evolved while he was with Idril, his species was the same last night as it was when I originally bonded with him.
As Maximilian reformed, Lanek was surprised to see that while the demigryph had grown, it wasn’t as staggering of a difference as it had been when they were first reunited. He had only grown maybe half a meter in length and height. The demigryph didn’t seem to have any magical abilities like his other companions, but at his size and strength, he really didn’t need them.
Maximilian
Demigryph Courser lvl 1
A demigryph courser lives to run, being capable of traveling for days with little to no difficulty. Demigryph coursers channel their gryphon ancestry by reveling in devastating strikes at high speed, making them ideal for charging tactics. A demigryph courser’s charge will leave their opponents broken and defeated in most cases, but the demigryph’s natural weapons and strength make them more than capable of fighting in a melee if needed.
Ah, that’ll make things much easier when we head out. Lanek checked out Maximilian’s Vessel to see if there were any boosts to that as well since Kazuma and Sanguineus had both added new abilities to their vessels when they had evolved. A bigger boost to thrusting and charging damage. Basic, but not at all lagging behind the others. Any damage boost is a good thing.
Lanek felt Maximilian nudge his shoulder, nearly knocking him off of his feet. Laughing, Lanek rubbed the demigryph’s head. It was clear that Maximilian would need time to adjust to his new strength. The demigryph radiated hunger and a feeling of being confined. Ah, perfect chance for him to adjust to his new abilities.
This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.
With a thought, Lanek recalled the beast and left the tower. Once outside, he released the demigryph, giving him the freedom to roam on the condition that he wouldn’t take any unnecessary risks and that he return well before nightfall. Lanek planned to call it an early night and leave at first light, even if Kazuma and Sanguineus still hadn’t completed their evolutions. He wanted to get to the tree and back to the monastery as soon as he could. While he doubted that Talwarg and Lira were struggling to hold everything together, he did feel a sense of urgency when it came to Eldros, so the tree was definitely a priority.
While he waited for Maximilian to return, he pulled up his status.
Name: Lanek Solvinsson
Species: Human (Hybrid)
Class: Binder of Souls [Unique]
Titles: Khan of The Hordefather (Caelis), Jarl of the Great Bear (Caelis), Herald of Eldros [Unique], Chosen [Legendary]
HP: 2,195/2,195
MP: 1,450/1,450
Attributes:
STR – 249 (321)
CON – 367 (439)
DEX – 422 (494)
PER – 259
RES – 352
SPI – 290
Well, at least I didn’t lose any of my stats. That hybrid bit about my species probably refers to the whole ‘dranrid essence’ mentioned when my class changed. Does this mean I’m still a dranrid on the inside and only my appearance reverted because of that’s how I saw myself? I’ll have to ask Eldros once he gets more of his memories back.
Lanek returned to the roof of the tower, figuring that he may as well take a look at the surroundings since it had been too dark to do so when they had arrived. Looking off into the distance, Lanek was astounded at how far he could see, both due to the tower’s position atop the tallest hill in the area and the landscape. To the north he could see the forest he had come from, gradually getting thicker until becoming the dense wood that housed Eldros’ grove. To the south and east were more hills that gradually became smaller and gave way to grasslands as far as he could see. The west held more forest, but nowhere near as dense as the one to the north. There were a few rivers and streams visible to the south, east, and west.
I’m definitely going to need to follow those rivers when things get settled in Caelis. That’s probably my best bet for finding any settlements that might want to join us.
After a few hours of simply enjoying the view, Lanek spotted Maximilian trotting back toward the tower. He descended the tower to meet the demigryph, finding him carrying a ram. Judging from the feelings and images projected toward him, Maximilian had brought the meat back for his evolving brothers. He could sense the demigryph’s disappointment at finding that they were still evolving, but perked up when Lanek began butchering the body.
“Sorry, buddy. Thanks for thinking of them, but I don’t know how long it’s going to be before they finish. How about I cook this up for us?” Although the demigryph was a bit wary of letting Lanek cook the meat instead of eating it raw, his curiosity got the better of him. While he cleaned the carcass and cooked the meat, Maximilian ran back into the hills, sending back calming feelings when Lanek shot to his feet and summoned his equipment.
Unsure what was going on, Lanek decided to trust his newest companion and returned to cooking, although he kept the armor and spear out just in case. About twenty minutes later, Maximilian trotted back to Lanek and opened his mouth, dropping multiple items onto the ground and nudging them forward.
Lanek eyed the slobber-covered items uncertainly, gesturing toward the pile of discarded offal that he couldn’t eat. Maximilian cooed happily and proceeded to eat it all with apparent relish. Trying to hide his disgust at the drool on the items so that he didn’t hurt Maximilian’s feelings, he gingerly picked one up, a feeling of both alarm and excitement rising up in him as he recognized it as a reward stone.
In total, there were ten stones resting on the ground in front of him. While he was happy to get reward stones, it did mean that Maximilian had either attacked a group of monsters or had been ambushed as normal animals did not drop loot. However, he chose not to dwell on it, the demigryph had clearly been victorious and was uninjured, so he had clearly been able to handle himself.
As he reached for the rest of the stones, the System brought up a new notification. Lanek expected to see a message about the shop, even though ten stones wouldn’t allow him to afford anything.
Reward Stones detected. Mark of the Herald requests your presence. Accept?
He dismissed the message for now, not sure what would happen to his body if he accepted. Would he be teleported or would his soul be summoned and his body left behind in the open? With those thoughts in mind, Lanek relaxed for the moment and shared a meal with the demigryph. He only opened the notification once the fire was put out, they were barricaded in the tower, and Lanek was once more in his cot. He accepted the Mark’s request and promptly found himself in a familiar room surrounded by weapons and armor. However, now there were numbers visible above the equipment.
Okay, this is interesting. I was wondering how I could get more gear from the Mark, but it looks like it takes reward stones. I guess its time to go shopping!