Upon returning home, I again thanked the System immensely for choosing to take modern facilities into its constructions. The shower was, as always, the perfect place to wash away grime and dark thoughts at once. By the time I got out, I felt like the weight had been lifted away. The Dungeon was a problem, but one I had just put a sizable dent in. I needed to slow down for Naea’s sake, so I would.

I found the little fairy snacking in the kitchen. She had been okay for two days after eating the Vessel of the Storm Dragon, but she was starting to get hungry again. Eating regular food scratched the itch, but didn’t alleviate all her hunger either. Sympathetic, I began making a large breakfast meal while I checked through the items and System prompts I had been ignoring.

Achievement Unlocked - Thick Skinned

You have regrown more than your own body weight in skin many times over. Something’s got to bend, either you or nature.

Effect: Grants improved durability when facing burning or corrosive effects.

So there were achievements like that, too? Maybe someone had a list of them all which I could look at to help me get more. Also, what was up with that description? It was way less reverent than some of the others. It wasn’t something I was looking to test much, but holding my hand over the flame I was using to cook, the difference was noticeable. Nice.

Not a huge upgrade, but any reward for my idiocy was appreciated. Unfortunately, and predictably, this was the only achievement I gained. You couldn’t complete a tower for the first time again, after all. I was disappointed to see it wouldn’t be additive, but there was no need to be picky. I had been spoiled already.

Item - Stunchucks

Once wielded by a master in the art of momentum, they were said to be like liquid themselves. Now their weapon carries the crashing force of their influence.

Effect: With each revolution of the chain, the power within the Stunchucks increases.

The most interesting thing about the Stunchucks, besides the immense destructive power which they could bring out, was the fact they didn’t require an infusion of mana to create the effect. It was obviously why the latest one had been able to use its weapon properly, if only for one useless and missed attack. The others couldn’t infuse their mana into their equipment. Interesting.

I chose not to use Weapon Mastery for two reasons. Firstly, while the nunchucks were definitely cool and styled after Bruce Lee, they were ultimately not much different to my staff. I admired the beautiful yellow wood with red leather grips. As I held them, I could feel some of the Staff Mastery bleeding over through techniques which translated to both. It just wasn’t needed.

Secondly, with the lower mana requirement, I foresaw this being a more useful weapon for Naea. The size was a little uncomfortable, the weapon not able to shrink like the Chibizashi, but so long as she could swing one nunchuck, the effect would work. “You’ll be able to hit like I do sometimes,” I said, much to her delight. The next item was very much to my delight.

Item - Adept’s Bottoms

Breathable, yet warm. Soft, yet durable. A young mage’s favourite fabric, regeneweave clothing repairs itself and everything else you wear.

Effect: Increase mana regeneration when fully repaired. Mana is used to repair any damage Adept’s Bottoms receives. Additional mana may be spent to repair other items of clothing.

The mana regeneration was a nice touch, but it was so negligible as to be nonexistent for myself. So, it was almost entirely a vanity item, but I really needed pants which were going to survive a fight. I had avoided the awkwardness for the most part by carrying dozens of spare trousers with me at all times. I still would, from habit, but I now wouldn’t need them. Fixing my other clothes was an amazing bonus, which I used to repair my original graduation suit out of principle.

They were also blue, which matched my new belt colour. “I think the one after this is purple, so it shouldn’t clash much until I get to red.” Naea couldn’t care less about whether my clothes matched, and neither did I really. I let it go.

Item - Blue Belt (Upgradable)

There is little glory in training but without training, there can never be glory.

Effect: Attributes +10%

You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

The bottoms had come from the latest tower we took down, which fit with the illusionary aspect of the place. Kind of. In a much more resounding reference to its own trial, the final item I received had come from the Trial of Flowing Waters.

Aspect - Water (Common)

Aspects are formed when ambient mana in an area becomes charged with a specific type of energy. If you have unbound attributes, you may permanently bind an Aspect to an unbound attribute.

Would you like to use the Aspect of Water to bind an unbound attribute?

It was… uninspiring. Even now, I was hesitant to use it and Naea herself couldn’t. Without a doubt, having another Aspect within to draw power, inspiration and new techniques from would be a good thing. Half of the mental image I held of my own power was bound to rivers and rain, so it wasn’t like it would be a terrible fit. And yet…

The word “common” blared like an alarm.

My Dao of the dragon resisted the idea each time binding with the Aspect became a ponderance. I had no doubt the Aspect of Water was powerful, but my Dao required more than common rarity. Binding with this Aspect would hinder my path. Even knowing that, the desire to let the water in was palpable. Just like the dragon refused the low-rarity Aspect, the Aspect yearned to be something greater. Maybe one day, I mused.

I soon placed it into my inventory and hoped I would figure out what to do with it later. Maybe I could give it to someone in trade, at least. It had to be valuable. Considering people likely didn’t know much about the System than myself yet, the Aspect was likely the most valuable it would ever be.

One more reason to smash my way out of this prison.

I focused on the bacon, sausage and eggs in the frying pan before me instead of letting my mind get fixated on the Dungeon again. Within the walls of Home Base, it was easy enough to picture the park outside as open space, rather than the solitary confinement it truly was. I placed a plate in front of Naea and smiled.

“I’d be crazy without you,” I told her, not for the first time. Through a mouth filled to the brim with eggs, she told me she was making no difference, I was still crazy. We were in my magical mansion where I had just cooked a meal for a fairy from food which appeared out of thin air. I had to admit, the world was doing its best to make me doubt myself.

I snapped into a sausage and chewed thoughtfully. Was it worth questioning the reality I was presented with? The question was worth asking, but my answer was “No”. If I had actually just lost my mind at some point, it was too late to go and pick it back up now. The pair of us ate our food in a comfortable silence only broken by the sounds of ravenous chewing. Rather than set my teeth on edge, the sound reminded me of home.

“Two bosses,” I finally said, unable to stop myself. All that remained between us and the rest of the world. That is, unless the outside world wanted to join me. Inadvisable, considering the last person who tried. I thought about the dead swordsman a lot, which inevitably made me think about everyone else. “Two bosses. Then we go home.”

“Home?” Naea asked while still chewing on a piece of toast as big as her head. It was a quarter of a slice. “Is it far?”

“Yeah, across the Irish Sea.”

Naea’s eyes widened. “Wow, a whole ocean named after your people? They must be strong.” I chuckled and explained the geography of Ireland and Great Britain to her. “So it’s more like ‘that’s the Irish Sea, where we go to get to Ireland’? I see.”

“We need to stop saying see and sea, they don’t feel like real words any more. See?”

“Yeah, let’s stop. So, your family is over there and… then what?” I didn’t have an answer, but Naea accepted it as fair. “Good! No point in planning out more than one step, everything will go wrong if you do.”

I happened to agree. The System had a sense of comedic timing, so whatever hopes I might have would need to wait until it left me alone. For now, I felt like it’s favourite plaything. Solo dungeons, trial towers, oh it was all fun and games for Grant, that’s for sure. I nodded. “One step at a time. I’m going to go and sleep, see you in a bit.”

With that, I gave Naea and myself some peace. Home Base was now easily large enough for us to stretch our legs a little and still keep out of each other's way. I had taken a reconciliatory step but only a small one. There was a lot of trust to rebuild after my actions in the last forty eight hours or so.

Not just with Naea, either.

I had always thought of myself as more mature than others, a charge levied at me since I was a child. “You’re so grown up for your age,” had become “Grant can be trusted, he’s basically an adult.” I wasn’t even the oldest of my brothers, but I was the one made to parent the others. Once I had gone into study of mental health, the damage this had caused to my psyche had become a bit of an inside joke.

I saw the events of the last day through a lens, floating above my memory of what occurred. The sight of the dead man had not just reminded me of the grisly café massacre, but had thrown a wrench in the gears of my brain. I felt I had personally failed in my duties as an eternal protector by allowing someone to come to harm when I might have been able to save them.

In the calm, it was easy to remind myself I wasn’t a god. It wasn’t my job to make sure everyone around me had a good life, or was even happy. I could only do those things for myself and hope the people around me were uplifted by it. The immediate example of this being Naea, who’s soul had stopped vibrating once I snapped out of my negative headspace.

Once the noise of my self-flagellating thoughts stopped, I was able to feel Naea’s soul. It shivered, alone, because I was too in my own head and all but snapped our connection. I had treated her like a tool to progress, rather than an ally. Biting my lip hard enough to draw blood, I promised to never return to that dark place. The world might try to force it, but I would laugh first from now on. I could cry or scream later.

I still hadn’t slept and I felt jetlagged. Dungeonlagged. Now I had stopped, the spatial dissonance of the towers caught up to me along with the exertion required to keep going. Mana could fuel me for days, clearly, but eating real food had reminded my body I was still mortal. I washed myself and sat on the end of my bed in still silence while I dried. At some point, I forgave myself.

Tomorrow is a day of rest, I promised myself as I got comfortable in the System-made bed. The powers within me rolled about around each other, the Dao of the dragon slowly picking apart the Hurricane Heart, allowing the chipped fragments to fertilise my body and soul. My mana was uncomfortable as it slowly churned through damaged pathways. I had pushed myself hard and while my body was mostly recovered, my spirit was still in bad shape.

Yeah, I confirmed, drifting away, tomorrow… I didn’t finish the thought, the embrace of sleep taking me too quick. I had faced all of the issues my choices had caused and done what I could to repair the damage. I had even cleared two towers. Despite the way I did it, the progress was still a good thing. I faded away thinking I had righted all my wrongs.

I should have known better.