Lucius had decided long ago not to waste attribute points on Vitality, knowing full well that Whisper's ability would supply the duo with more than enough. However, now that he was only one point short, and with Whisper exhausted from his recent ordeal, he chose to make an exception this one time to quickly gain an additional Talent related to Vitality. He could spare one free attribute point in exchange for a talent that might save his life.
Focusing his mind, Lucius used one of his twenty free attributes, bringing his Vitality up to forty points and marking it as the third attribute to be raised to the D-Class threshold.
Congratulations!
You have reached 40 points in the Vitality attribute, passing the first magical threshold! There is enough magic in this attribute to generate a related Talent. Taking into consideration your current attribute distribution, talents, aspect, and personality, the system can generate a new Talent for you.
Would you like to generate a Talent now?
"Yes."
Generating...
...
...
Congratulations!
You have unlocked the Talent Blood Sacrifice!
Blood Sacrifice - Sacrifice a portion of your vitality to supercharge your Magical Power. The power gained is directly proportional to the amount of Vitality sacrificed. Raising the Vitality attribute will increase the potential power of Blood Sacrifice.
Lucius rubbed his chin as he considered his latest Talent.
"It's a bit off-putting that I need to hurt myself to use this skill, but that probably makes it all the more powerful. It's sort of like a trump card—if I'm in a particularly dire situation, Blood Sacrifice might be the difference between life and death. What do you think, Whisper?"
The mythical creature still looked a bit paler than usual, but he was rapidly regaining his former disposition, the high Vitality attribute they shared no doubt aiding his recovery as well.
"It may be of even greater use than you believe. We have the ability to regain lost Vitality through the use of Matriarch's Fury, and the higher our Vitality attribute grows, the faster our natural Vitality regeneration will become. Rather than a trump card, Blood Sacrifice may develop into a regular part of our fighting style as our Vitality attribute continues to grow."
"Maybe... I mean, if it comes down to losing a fight or sacrificing some health it's an easy choice, but if I can win without using it I can't see any reason why I would."
Now that he had gained his new Talent, Lucius still had nineteen attribute points remaining. He followed the plan they had devised previously, adding the full nineteen points into Magic Power. As he did so, the pale color of Whisper's face quickly cleared away, and the tiny bat grew half an inch taller right before Lucius' eyes.
He watched as Whisper lifted both his wings into the air, shifting his big, round eyes back and forth as he examined his own body.
"Huh... I guess raising my Magic Power really does benefit you."
Whisper looked back at him with a wide smile, revealing that his teeth had grown a bit longer and sharper as well. Judging by the nature of the changes, Whisper's cute and fluffy form might be entirely temporary. As the mythical creature's power grew, so too might his fearsomeness.
Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
While Whisper was getting acquainted with the changes in his body, Lucius walked up to the withered carcass of the C-Class caterpillar, rubbing his chin as he paused to consider something. After a few seconds, he placed one hand on the creature's tough and leathery skin.
A flood of glittering orbs lit up the interior of the cave, creating a disco ball-like effect as they spiraled around Lucius' hand, covering a small stretch of the corpse's skin and flowing toward it from all across the room.
As the familiar process completed and the lights slowly faded away, a pair of gray boots was revealed. The boots resembled common leather work boots but featured leather straps and buckles running up the center instead of laces. Lucius grinned as he picked up one of the boots, prompting the system to give a description.
Silken Striders - [Hide Boots] - Quality [Rare]
Made from the leathery skin of a C-Class abyssal caterpillar, these boots are incredibly durable and empower their user to move with insectile agility.
Insectile Adhesion - These boots can adhere to walls and even ceilings, allowing their user to make use of all aspects of the terrain like an insect.
"Tsk."
Lucius clicked his tongue as he read the description of his new boots.
"I was really hoping that because the creature was C-Class, the materials would count as [Rare] and allow for an [Extraordinary] item to be produced from each upgrade token. Oh well. Still a damn good bargain."
After tossing his old pair of sneakers into his storage ring, Lucius pulled the boots over his feet. They fit perfectly, and he took his time carefully adjusting the straps to ensure the best possible fit.
Rising to his feet, Lucius stepped from side to side, smiling in satisfaction at the unexpected comfort of the boots. Next, he walked up to the wall near the cave's entrance, slowly raising his foot and stepping against the wall. The boot held fast, and Lucius was able to lift his other foot and take a second step.
"What an odd sensation."
It felt like the boots could read his mind, only adhering to the wall until the moment Lucius intended to lift his foot. After taking a few steps back and forth around the silk-covered entrance, he got to work, beginning the tedious task of dismantling the remainder of the silk doorway.
Lucius climbed the wall step by step, stopping periodically to break the stones anchoring the silk to the doorway before moving on. The work was slow and dull, taking the better part of an hour, but eventually, he made one final strike, breaking off the last piece and allowing the massive tarp of silk to fall toward the ground.
He didn’t let it touch the floor, swiftly storing it in his storage ring to prevent it from crumpling and sticking to itself—like folded tape—or becoming matted with dirt and losing its valuable stickiness.
"What need do we have for this sticky silk, Father?"
Lucius maintained a casual expression as he wiped the sweat from his forehead, taking a sip of water before responding.
"We’re going to use it to catch a bug."
Whisper’s large eyelids rose the rest of the way open as he fluttered around Lucius.
"Why do you insist on doing this? The risks are so much greater than any possible rewards!"
Lucius shook his head, glancing up at the mythical creature with a slight frown.
"You’re thinking about it all wrong. First off, it’s just a bug. Secondly, even the D-Class summoner in that tower is a much more dangerous foe. Anything we can easily outsmart isn’t something we should be intimidated by. Third, Baba Yaga isn’t going to leave us alone. We need to get stronger as quickly as possible. That means taking risks. You need to consider the risk of not having enough strength in the future when we need it while calculating your risk-reward analysis."
Whisper landed on Lucius' shoulder, scratching his tiny chin as he absorbed the explanation.
"I see. I will remember your words, Father."
"Good. Let’s get back to work. It’s been about an hour, so we should get some additional data about the lighting situation soon."
Lucius and Whisper stepped out of the cave, walking back across the barren field toward the anthill. After a few minutes, the familiar glow of the mushrooms spread across the underground world.
Lucius grinned as one more aspect of his budding plan fell into place. A few seconds after the glow lit up the cavern, his eyes caught sight of a blur of red far across the cavern near the stone covered ceiling above the anthill. As he focused his vision, the red blur became clearer, revealing the unmistakable silhouette of the hornet. It circled the anthill’s territory a few times before diving down from the sky like winged death, targeting an unsuspecting ant below.