“Anyway,” I said. I wanted to continue this, not be quiet forever. “After that, we get the inherities which were somewhat known. We just didn’t know what form they had. My fourth inherity is called ‘Silk Weaver’. It allows me to infuse magical and physical properties in my silk. It seems that new options become available after evolutions. Then, there’s a list with currently learned properties, which brings me to a question. How do these lists work? It also says my age on the paper, but I assume that is outdated in less than a year. Do I need to do a new ritual in order to keep up to date?”

Draco shook his head. “You can update it forcefully. Just drop a drop of blood on the paper and everything that can be updated, will be, such as age. Lists are a thing for some people. New things can be added to lists and old things can be removed.”

“Oh, that’s pretty neat,” I replied.

“It is more or less what we hypothesized before,” Velariah said. “We even hypothesized that fire-resistant thread may work after an evolution.”

“Yup,” I nodded.

I checked the paper again. “Oh, it’s probably worth mentioning that apparently, I’m an Arachne. I’ve been wondering for a while what I was.”

“I don’t think anybody here really had issues with it, but I guess it’s useful to know in certain instances,” Draco commented.

“Well, it gives some sense of identity, you know. It’s not that I have anyone to compare myself to, though. I’m not even sure if I want there to be others like me.”

“Not gonna happen as long as you’re with Velariah,” Seralyn grinned.

“Hey!”

“Sorry, Elania. I had to.”

“Anyway, now we get to the interesting parts. My second inherity is quite… interesting. I’m going to literally state what it says once again.”

I took a deep breath.

“Adaptive Body: Evolutions allow for body enhancements and improvements of existing enhancements. In addition, allows minor adjustments to be made to the physique. It then goes on to list things such as Regenerative Blood, Exoskeleton Hardening, Arachnid Communication, Tremor Detection, and Healing Molt.”

“Wait, Arachnid Communication?” Seralyn asked. “You telling me you can talk to spiders?”

I shook my head. “I can’t. It seems to be a one-way thing… at least, for now. Knowing that it’s an ability has me frightened that it may no longer be one-way once I evolve my inherity.”

“Maybe you could try with Minia?” Velariah suggested. “At least try to get over your fears…”

I sighed deeply.

“I will have to… I think…”

I checked the paper again.

“You know, in between those abilities attributed to Adaptive Body, there’s a bunch of question marks. It seems some abilities are hidden or something?”

“Hum,” Draco hummed. “I haven’t personally encountered such a thing before. I didn’t know it was a thing, either. That sounds… interesting. It might be worth checking if that has happened before.”

“Because?” I asked.

“It seems to me that this is different from a list that gets abilities added to it,” He continued. “It’s as if these abilities are already set in stone, they are just not available yet. At least, that’s how I would look at this.”

“That… makes sense, I guess?”

“What’s your last one? I assume you saved the best for last?” Velariah looked at me with wide, glowing eyes.

I nodded. “I most certainly did. This is the one I like most, for certain.”

I took a deep breath again, in preparation for the long sentence that was to follow.

“Toxin Assimilation,” I started. “Grants the wielder complete immunity to all venoms and poisons that have the sole purpose of directly harming, or immobilizing the body. In addition, allows the wielder to synthesize any toxins that have previously been neutralized for their own use.”

“Complete immunity?” Velariah stared at me. “That’s far beyond what I thought possible. Also, assimilation? What the hell? You can create any poison that you got afflicted by at least once?”

I nodded. “It appears to be that way. I haven’t tried it out, yet. I kind of wanted to wait until you were all here. As you may remember, Vel and I messed around with paralytic mushrooms. If what this paper states is correct, that means I should be able to create venom that has the same properties. Who wants to be my test subject?”

Everyone was quiet for a few seconds before Velariah spoke up. “Guess I’ll just go through this again…”

“Why do I feel like you don’t actually mind it?” Seralyn said with a grin.

“Oh, shut it.”

Velariah entered the kitchen and returned moments later with a drinking glass and the large knife from before.

I pulled up my fangs and thought about the paralytic mushrooms and how I wanted to infuse those properties into my venom and have it be non-lethal. I filled the glass under the table. After I’d filled it halfway, I put the glass on the table to see a yellow liquid inside.

“I’m fairly positive it worked,” I said. It wasn’t hard to see that this wasn’t the usual color of my venom.

Velariah walked into the bathroom and returned with the orange anti-venom potion.

“Good call,” I commented.

“Safety first,” She said, before sitting down and taking the knife. She created a small X on her left arm.

“Can’t believe I’m watching someone who willingly lets themself be paralyzed,” Seralyn mentioned.

Nira stood up and walked behind the elf, her small scepter in hand. She seemed to be ready as well in case something went wrong.

“Thanks, Nira. I think I’ll be fine, but I appreciate your concern.”

Nira nodded. “It’s better to be ready.”

Velariah uncorked the potion and drank some of it. She then poured a few droplets of the venom into her wound. She put the knife and the glass back on the table before she positioned herself straight up in her chair.

I put an arm around her so that she wouldn’t fall out of it when the paralyzing effects set it.

“Talk to me, Vel. How’s it going?”

“I think it’s work-brblgbgr.”

“I think she means to say she thinks it’s working,” Seralyn grinned.

“Thanks, Sherlock,” I responded.

“What’s a Sherlock?”

“Never mind that.”

“Vel? You’re okay, right?”

“Bagrgrg.”

I was going to assume she’d be fine. She had drunk some of the anti-venom, likely as a precaution in case some traces of lethal venom remained. I wondered if we could truly test that without risking anything some day.

Well, of course there was testing it on monsters.

I was stupid.

They were the perfect test subject.

I wonder what Arch would think if we used his monsters as test subjects…

I could hear something falling down the stairs, but it wasn’t loud enough to be Elly.

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Draco stood up and walked to the door before the stairs. “Are you okay, Miss Elly?”

“I’m fine,” Elly’s voice came. It sounded as if she was still on top of the stairs. “That was Gray. He just woke up and was a little too eager to go down.”

Draco opened the door and a wild puppy came running to me. He seemed happy to see me; he ran quick circles around one of my legs.

“It appears he is fine, Miss Elly,” Draco said loudly so that Elly could hear him.

“Thanks, Draco,” Elly’s voice came again.

The lizardman then closed the door and took his seat once more.

I crouched to give Gray the affection that he demanded. I could only imagine how much he’d missed me. I’d been out for four days after all.

After giving him a good scratch behind the ears I placed him on Velariah’s lap. He proceeded to stand up against her chest and lick her face.

“Mrgrgrggl,” The elf let out, seemingly frustrated.

I giggled at the sight.

“Regret your decisions yet?” Seralyn taunted the other elf, a broad smile on her face.

Nira giggled as well before taking the puppy in her arms and sitting down on her chair. She was much better at petting him than Velariah at the moment.

“I’m wondering…” I said softly. “I know how all the other inherities work. The thing I’m not exactly clear on is how this Adaptive Body inherity works. Take the minor changes to the physique part, for example. What is considered minor? Seralyn joked about wings earlier, but… what if I could?”

“Damnit, El. Stop scaring your party members,” Seralyn said with a grin. “Nobody wants to see flying spiders. Besides, Nira is our dedicated flyer.”

“Huh?” Nira said, looking up from Gray. It appeared she was too busy with the puppy to follow the conversation properly.

“I guess that’s something that you’ll have to find out. Same thing goes for the unnamed abilities that you mentioned.”

“Ugh, El…” Velariah spoke with the utmost effort.

It would seem the poison was starting to wear off.

“Welcome back, Vel,” I said.

“Tha…nks.” She was still struggling.

“I have to admit, your inherities are beyond what I think anyone would consider possible,” Draco spoke. “It seems you are destined for greatness.”

“Oh, please. Don’t make me feel special. I’m odd enough as it is. I don’t want you guys to see me as something I am not. I fully intend to stick with you guys. I’m already resolved to that, and a few other things.”

Draco nodded. “I understand. It’s admirable.”

“Maybe, but all I care about is that we do this together, as a team.”

“You’re very kind,” Nira said.

“It’s okay. You guys accepted me without knowing what I could do. I much prefer that than teaming up with people who will use me for their own gains. I’m talking about this Corium inherity, obviously.”

“You have no idea how jealous my father will be when he hears about this.”

It would seem Velariah could speak properly again. She still didn’t move, however.

“Heh,” I chuckled. “Well, I don’t know how much of an increase it is. It doesn’t explicitly state it.”

“It’s still unheard of,” Seralyn added. “At least, as far as I know.”

“There are certainly still questions that remain unanswered, but this ritual already revealed so much…” I spoke. “Speaking of, Vel, I assume you arranged the payment while I was out?”

“Yes. I tied up the loose ends once more. I sold the silk we had ready. We are now at fifty gold.”

“Probably a good idea.”

“Fifty gold? What the crap?” Seralyn let out.

“Long story…” I said. “Anyway, we should figure out what the hell is going on here. All these things that happened and me getting… stabbed, can’t be a coincidence. I’d like this, and the goblin problem, resolved before we head for Zerdania.”

“Agreed,” Velariah said as she put a hand on the table and leaned slightly forward. She still didn’t move much, but she seemed to be getting there.

“We should find my father and talk to him.”

“Any idea where he is?” I asked.

“I bet he’s at the guild or the checkpoint.”

“I think it would be better if we spoke to him here, no?”

Velariah nodded. “That would be the best, yes.”

The elf shoved her chair back and prepared to stand up. I was quick to react and caught her before she collapsed. She wasn’t at full strength yet.

“What do you want to do?” I asked.

“Speak to Elly…”

I put my arms under her shoulders and assisted her with walking to the stairs. I opened the door for her and she spoke with all the strength she could currently muster.

“Elly?”

“Yes?” Came the voice from upstairs.

“Could you summon my father? We’d like to talk to him.”

“Certainly.”

Seconds after, the maid walked down the stairs with a feather duster in hand. She laid it on the table, next to the crate that housed Minia.

She then exited the room through the double doors leading to the hallway.

I sighed. “I wonder what Valtheril found out so far.”

I assisted Velariah once more to get her seated again.

“I guess there’s another thing we’re going to have to do,” She said. “Next to clearing dungeons and slaying monsters.”

“What would that be?” I asked curiously.

“Gather all the poisons and venoms we can find and use them on you.”

“That’s… a pretty good idea, actually. There ought to be some poisons with useful effects, besides paralyzing and straight-up killing.”

The white-haired elf nodded.

“I can’t believe we’re going to hunt poisons so we can use them on one of our party members,” Seralyn laughed. “This goes against any conventional logic.”

“I’m not conventional, though,” I chuckled.

“You could say that again,” Velariah added.

“I’d also like to talk to Endomir sometime soon. Who knows what other things I learn about myself. I would have loved to know I had a second heart earlier…”

“Another heart for Velariah to steal,” Seralyn grinned.

“She already has,” I said as I took the white-haired elf’s hand and held it on the table.

“Did Valtheril tell you guys anything?” I quickly threw out the next question.

Draco shook his head. “I feel like he has been waiting for you to feel better. The culprit was locked up and the General assigned a squad of elite soldiers to act as temporary guards in and around the town.”

Anger filled my body as I thought back to the human that stabbed me. He’d even done it in broad daylight! What the hell was he thinking? There was no way he was going to get away with it.

Just thinking about it made me realize just how stupid he had been.

I remained quiet for a few minutes as I thought and observed Nira playing with Gray. It seemed he’d taken another one of her feathers, which she grabbed back. She was now using the feather as a toy.

My heart (hearts?) melted at the sight of the cuteness.

I could hear the outside doors open, followed by heavy footsteps that signaled Valtheril had entered the mansion. Within seconds, the doors to the dining room opened and a stern-looking Valtheril entered. Elly followed behind him and entered the kitchen.

“I’m glad to see you’re doing fine, Elania. Needless to say, I’m pretty pissed at what happened.”

It wasn’t hard to read that from his face.

I simply nodded.

He sat down at the head of the table, still in full armor, and placed a hand on the wood.

Everyone seemed to be anxious about what he was about to say.

He gritted his teeth and slammed the table with his fist, leaving a clear dent because of his gauntlet.

I could almost see sparks fly out of his eyes. He was beyond pissed.

I didn’t dare to open my mouth. It seemed the others were experiencing the same sentiment.

Even Velariah looked shocked.

“Elania, I’m truly sorry. If it’s of any consolation, I’ve kept the guy that did this to you in chains. I want to interrogate him and was wondering if you’d like to join me. After I’m done, you can do anything you want to him.”

Revenge…

Did I want revenge?

They say revenge is sweet.

…

I didn’t know.

“I’ll join you,” I spoke softly.

“Would now be okay?” He asked.

He seemed to be in somewhat of a hurry. Part of me understood that perfectly.

I wasn’t sure if I could manage, though, but I felt like I should start stepping up to my fears. I had promised to try with spiders. I felt this was going to be part of my personal development as well.

I nodded again.

“Are you sure?” Velariah asked.

“No, but I feel like I have to.” I looked at the General, who still seemed to barely contain his anger. “Is it okay if Velariah joins us?”

Valtheril nodded. “If that puts you at ease.”

“It does,” I said.

He slowly stood up from his chair, which only added to the aura of suspense that surrounded him.

“You guys are welcome to stay here, if you’d like. If you need anything, just ask Elly,” He said before walking towards the exit.

I helped Velariah with her armor before putting on mine.

I didn’t think I was ever going to leave the house without mine now. Perhaps that was the reason he had attacked me back there? I didn’t have my armor on for the ritual…

I left my weapons in the hallway and followed the General, who stepped through the streets with determination, his armored boots could be heard from far away as he walked down the streets.

We passed the guild hall, and walked towards the warehouse next to the guild in the side street. The doors were already open and the torches in the building were lit.

After entering the building, Valtheril closed the doors himself.

I looked around to see the human that had attacked me bound. His hands were chained together behind one of the support beams. His feet were bound together as well and held down by chains connected to large metal balls. He was barely clothed. All he had was an almost completely torn shirt. His shorts seemed to be in a better state, something for which I was thankful.

Upon seeing us walk up to him, he started pulling his chains, struggling to break free.

Yeah, that wasn’t going to happen.

Upon seeing him, I felt anger flow through my veins. Everything I had thought before seemed to vanish. I felt like sinking my fangs in him and ending his life.

I quickly shook my head.

What the hell. That wasn’t me.

“You okay, El?” Velariah asked, putting a hand on my shoulder.

“I’m okay… just… you know…”

“I get it. Let’s just have my father do the talking.”

Valtheril threw a glance at me before he continued to walk up to the human in chains. He knelt down to one knee and slapped him across the face.

“Speak!” He commanded.