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Edge - Regeneration

Skinning Knife

Attribute scaling:

Empress Attributes: 82

Intelligence: 2.05 Charisma: 2.05 Strength: 2.05

Dexterity: 2.05 Agility: 2.05 Luck: 2.05

Master Skinner:

Whoever wields this knife is likely to cut leather in ways that go beyond their skills.

Ever sharpened blade:

This knife will never become blunt when used for its true purpose. If used to perform a different task, the knife's edge will be recovered within 10 hours.

Familiarity: 50%

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"Ok, so which of those skills works with the Army of One skill?" Hera asked Daskka, who was helping her clean some of the mess Edge had caused. When she went to give Nimbus his mission, the new court member saw Alex and Bonnie cutting the watermelon and decided to help. The problem was that instead of actually helping to take out a piece of the fruit, Edge just started wailing on the entire thing causing a huge mess. At least they still had a couple more watermelons in the cabin, but that one was currently all over the floor.

"I think both of them… Which is weird…." Daskka replied.

"Both of them? Including Master Skinner?" Hera reached for her tablet, but she couldn't find it. She tried looking everywhere, but it was nowhere to be seen. Even asking her friends to call her ended up without a result. Frustrated for having lost it, she focused again on the cleaning. Maybe she left it in the shed or fell when she fought against the slime. Worst case scenario, her tablet was at the bottom of the ocean.

"What's that skill?" Bonnie asked, trying to take Hera's mind off that.

"It just says that whoever wields the knife is likely to cut leather in ways that go beyond their skills. Apparently, the entire court would have that skill active all the times when Edge is out," Hera replied.

"So… does that mean all your weapons would have that effect even in combat? Like, are they more likely to pierce a monster's skin?" Alex asked while cutting another piece of one of the surviving watermelons for Bonnie.

"I don't know. I would have to test it out later. And I'm positive it won't work on any monster, only things that have leather," Hera used a waterspout spell to wash out the watermelon from the cabin. She didn't want the place to be filled with ants. Then again, she wasn't even sure there were ants in this room, "Do you think there is a dungeon here where we could test that out?"

Shane was outside, looking around to see if she could find some dungeons. So far, she had managed to mark the direction of four signals. Two were on the same level as the raft, one in the sky where Nimbus was going to check and another underwater. Hearing what Hera was saying, she stepped back inside the cabin, "I found a couple of dungeons that I think are in the raft. I mean, I'm assuming they are dungeons. There is also a signal underwater and the one that Nimbus is going to check. Do you have any idea how long it will take him to get back? I mean, I know you won't go anywhere before he returns since you barely have any mana left right now."

"I honestly don't know. I can tell he is still ok, but I have no idea how far he is. Can you see him?" Hera asked.

Shane looked towards the cloud, trying to see if there was something. It took her a little effort, but she eventually found a small speck of dark blue in the sky. Nimbus seemed to be very far already, "I think I can. Say, is he faster as a mount when he is flying?"

Hera nodded, "Yeah, but he loses some mobility. I guess he is not going to change forms unless he is coming back. But it wouldn't make that much difference. When flying, he is almost as fast in his bipedal form."

"I see…Mylo, want to come search for the dungeons with me?" Shane turned to her friend. The man looked back at her and, after a long pause, nodded.

Helena and Adriel decided to stay behind with Hera and the others. They had two people who were currently unable to fight as usual, and trying to protect them if something were to happen could prove to be difficult. Blue wanted to go, but she decided against it. The way Shane and Mylo were acting made it seem like they wanted to talk alone.

"Are they sure about this?" Helena asked.

"Yeah, I think so. They both know what's going on, and if something is wrong, they will let us know. Besides, if I understood this correctly, they have the best teamwork out of all of us," Adriel glanced at Hera, "Well, maybe with one exception, but she is just cheating."

"Do you want another spore cloud?" Hera squinted at him.

Adriel chuckled, "No, no. I'm ok."

They continued talking and discussing their plans in the cabin, and soon three hours passed. Shane and Mylo came back, letting everyone know they found a dungeon inside a cabin filled with fishing gear. But the dungeon's entrance was very different from anything else in the room. It was a very ornate crystal door with some details in wood. They didn't risk going there, but Shane was almost positive that the dungeon would be related to fishing. Her logic was that it should be a natural dungeon to the room, and the people of the raft set up the cabin around it with fishing gear, so people had easy access to the equipment. Suddenly, Hera felt her connection with Nimbus get stronger. Rushing outside, she saw the Sentinel approaching in his bipedal form.

"Nimbus!" Hera called as he got closer. The moment he landed, she greeted him with a big hug, "Are you ok?"

"I am, Empress. And I have completed this quest," Nimbus returned the hug, and even Daskka joined in.

After a few moments, Blue's voice came from the cabin door, "I know you two are having a moment, but… what was up there?"

"A city. Smaller than the raft, but still big. Everything was made out of white sandstone and made with sharp edges. I took pictures," Nimbus pulled Hera's tablet from his sash.

"You took my tablet?" Hera gasped. She never realized that the Sentinel had it.

"Yes. I asked you… didn't I?"

"I don't think so," Hera replied, trying to remember if she had heard him saying anything about it," Yeah. No, you didn't. If you had said something, I would've told you it was a bad idea since you had no way of knowing if something was going to happen. If you were too far out and lost your form, the tablet would fall back to the raft and break, or worse, it would fall into the ocean."

Nimbus' eyes went wide, "I'm sorry, Empress. I didn't consider that possibility. I was sure I would be able to reach my destination, but I see now that it was a mistake," he bowed apologetically.

The author's narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

"Oh, don't worry about it. Like don't do it again, but what is done is done. There is no point in being mad now," Hera smiled. She was too relieved that Nimbus was back and safe to be upset about something like that.

"Mum, you have to do the thing to complete the quest," Daskka reminded the Empress.

"Right," Hera nodded. She already knew what to say but took a moment to remember the lines and confirm with Daskka if she had to add anything about the pictures, "My brave Sentinel, you have completed your task going even beyond what I expected of you. For that, I am ever grateful. Please, join us one more time and rest your weary body. You deserve it."

Nimbus was kneeling in front of Hera, and the Empress cupped his head with both her hands before delivering a soft kiss on his forehead. Doing so returned her mana, and a notification appeared in front of her.

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Nimbus - The Sentinel has completed a Royal Quest

Due to his achievement going beyond what was expected, he received an increased amount of favor.

Gift available for Nimbus, Rarity: Common

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"Oh? I don't know if this should be considered a lot of favor or a little," Hera scratched her head.

"Empress. May I request my gift now? Since mine can be upgraded, I don't think it would be a waste, and in all honesty. I am curious about this skill," Nimbus turned to Hera.

"Are you sure about that?" Hera asked, "Even if your gift can be upgraded, it doesn't mean it will be as powerful as something with a better rarity."

Nimbus nodded, "I am. Even if I could get something better, I feel that the information we would get if I received a gift would be just as valuable as a rare gift."

Hera couldn't argue with his logic. Then again, if she waited for one of her other blades to receive a gift, she would be able to learn just as much. However, when she got this skill, there was one thing she promised herself. The gifts would be decided by her court, not by her. So, stopping Nimbus from getting his skill felt like it went against her own promise.

"I'm going to ask you again, but you have the last say. Are you sure you want your gift now?" Hera looked deep into Nimbus' eyes.

"I am, Empress."

Hera nodded, "Ok then. Daskka, do I have to do anything?"

"Just take his hand and trigger the skill," the snake replied, moving away from Hera to avoid interrupting anything by accident.

Hera held the Sentinel's hand and focused on the skill. Something similar to a notification appeared in front of her, but it wasn't just a blue window. Instead, she could see three blue markers around Nimbus. When focusing on each, a small purple pop-up with an ornate and delicate frame made out of snakeskin and some rock patterns appeared to the side with more information. By looking at his left calf, she could see one of the possible gifts.

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Common Gift:

Agility increase

Increase Nimbus' agility enough so his total attribute points will match that of the Empress'.

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Turning her focus to his wings, she saw the next mark.

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Common Gift:

Upgrade to Griffon Form. Allows Nimbus to move just as fast as you would on land.

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The next mark was on his shoulders. Both were connected by a thin purple line that pulled to the side where the pop-up appeared.

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Common Gift:

New Skill - Share the pain

Allows Nimbus to take some of the damage from attacks that hit the Empress or other blades and channel some of that damage into the Sentinel's next attack.

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Hera told Nimbus about each of the possible gifts, then she turned to Daskka, "Does everyone get 3 options?"

The herald stopped for a moment, "No, they can get up to…. Five, I think? The information I'm getting is that no one ever got more than five options. But it doesn't say if that is the maximum."

Hera nodded, "Ok, and if we don't like any of the options? Can I deactivate the skill?"

"No, if you start, you have to give a gift. If you don't like any of them, then you can use the mark on your wrist."

Hera looked down at her own arms and noticed another mark. The pop-up appeared just like the ones in Nimbus.

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Random Gift

You can give Nimbus a random gift. This gift has a chance of being a rarity tier higher than the ones currently being offered.

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"Oh, hell no!" Hera gasped, "I'm not doing loot boxes with my court. Listen up, everyone, you can only pick this gift if both of us agree with that. I don't want to have a bunch of gambling addict blades," Hera told her entire court, even the ones that were not out at the moment. Currently, only Edge was moving around.

"You do not have to worry about me, Empress. I have made my decision," Nimbus smiled.

"I'm glad. What did you pick?"

"Increasing my agility seems unnecessary. I can increase my attributes on my own, and I don't believe that having my mount form be able to fly as fast as I can run would be safe. If you were with me and you fell off, I might not be able to catch you. And to play my role as the Sentinel, I should be more ready to protect you. So I want to pick the skill."

Hera nodded, "Ok then," she touched the pop-up, and it changed, now asking if she wanted to bestow that gift on to Nimbus. She pressed yes, and from the Sentinel's shoulders, pointy feathers appeared for a moment before resting by his sides.

"Oh.. this is interesting, especially if the upgrades increase the percentages," Nimbus smiled.

"Really? Let me see," Hera opened her status window and went into the Titled Blade section. Opening Nimbus' status window, she checked the new skill.

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Share the Pain - (Rank Common)

When the Empress or any of the court members is hit, part of the damage that would be inflicted on them is transferred to you. Your next attack will deal extra damage based on the damage that was transferred to you.

Damaged Transferred: 40%

Extra damage to the next attack: 50% of the damage transferred.

Mana cost: 300 mana/s

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"That can be very strong. Especially since it doesn't talk about stacking," Hera smiled.

"I thought about that too. If it doesn't, then it means I could gather energy from several attacks. But what interests me the most is the rarity. If we consider other skills as a base, when it gets upgraded, I might be able to take away even more damage and deal even more damage with it. Maybe I'll even get to a point to deal more damage than I take."

"Well, that might be a stretch, but who knows," Hera smiled and closed the window. She was about to close her own status screen when she noticed something in there. It was marked that she had 8 court members, but that number seemed wrong. With a frown, she touched the option to open the list of blades she currently had.

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Lurize of poison (Zweihander) - 10 000 mana

Ooze (Chakram) - 10 000 mana

Armory (Tiara) - 12 000 mana

Scythe (Earring) - 12 000 mana

Core (Rapier) - 15 000 mana

Frost (Glaive) -23 000 mana

Dao (Dao) - 35 000 mana - Inactive

Edge (Skinning Knife) - 10 000 mana

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"Wait… Dao… I completely forgot about them. Why are they inactive?"