Chapter 3: Summer Program | 3.3 Level Changes
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Iris nearly screamed in excitement and wore a big smile. ‘LEVEL 2! My first level up!’ She fidgeted, unable to contain her happiness. Plopping on the bed, she rolled around until tired out. Composing herself once more, she refocused on her status. ‘I have 200 mana, and my familiar skill is level 2. Lexi, how much mana would you take at level 1?’
‘When I form my mana core, I would take 100 mana at level 1. Our bond is level 2, so the mana demand would decrease to 50 mana. As I level further, we will have to revisit the topic. I don’t want to burden you, Master Iris.’
“Hmm. Alright, let’s do it.” Iris decided to move forward. ‘What will Lexi’s status page be like?’ Given permission, Lexi fell silent as she focused on forming her mana core. With the extra time, she revisited her status page and noticed the new line for senses. ‘This is the same as in my memories. Now that I can sense mana, I can also detect book-related items.’
After a minute, the little book glowed softly as the mana gathered. Iris watched, focusing her senses on the mana’s movement. It took a little time, but eventually, Lexi formed her mana core. Quietly, Iris wondered, ‘A mana core formed from books and slimes.’
She wondered if there would be any effects. School books about monsters explained that monsters could evolve uniquely depending on their diet and environment. ‘Lexi may be my familiar, but she is still a monster.’ Iris speculated that she may need to worry more about her partner’s diet.
* Familiar Page (Lexi, Book Mimic)
* Magic Level: 1 (100 Mana | 100 / 100)
* Magic: Neutral Affinity | Mimicry Trait
* Senses: [Mana Lv. 1], [Book Lv. 1]
* Skills: [Book Mimicry Lv. 3], [Book Assimilation Lv. 4], [Material Storage Lv. 2], [Paper Magic Lv. 1], [Ink Magic Lv. 1], [Absorption Lv. 1]
“Oh!” Iris was surprised that Lexi had so many skills. ‘She mentioned getting paper magic before, but there’s also ink magic and absorption… What does that do?’ Iris wasn’t as surprised about book mimicry, assimilation, and material storage because she had seen Lexi use these on the family’s keepsakes over the weekend.
Bringing up their status pages side by side, Iris looked over everything. “Wow…” But then, something new caught her eye. There was an empty skill slot on her list. “What is this?” She touched it, and a new page appeared.
* Familiar Skill Share
* 1, [Mind Library]
* 2, […]
Shocked by the new window, Iris took a deep breath. ‘Skill-share! So, this is where the mind library came from… And now that our bond is level 2, I can get another skill.’ However, she found it strange. [Mind Library] wasn’t one of Lexi’s skills.
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Doubting the skill-share's simplicity, Iris thought over the options. ‘What skill did it come from? Is it less of a skill share, and more… of a skill creation?’ If she had to guess, [Mind Library] was likely started from [Book Assimilation].
Examining Lexi’s skills once more, Iris thought it over. ‘Soon, I'll be able to use paper and ink magic, so I don’t need those. What would be good? No, I need something easy to test what happens… I think this will be permanent, so I won’t be able to change it later.’
A bit stressed, Iris became indecisive but found an argument. [Absorption] was too risky. She couldn’t guess what might happen if she picked it up, so Iris focused on [Material Storage]. The skill Lexi had used while assimilating keepsakes. ‘Will I get space magic?’
Having decided, she touched the skill share window, and it processed her choice. The new skill was pending, so it wasn’t immediately formed. ‘How long do I have to wait?’ Trying to be patient, Iris waited, and after a couple of minutes, it gave her a new choice to pick from.
* Familiar Skill Share
* 1, [Mind Library]
* 2, Material Storage:
* [Mouth-Stomach Storage]
* [Body Mark Storage]
“…” Iris cringed imagining the mouth-stomach storage. ‘Is there no storage magic?’ She was a bit disappointed. ‘Maybe because Lexi doesn’t specifically have space magic. Either way, it's still a spatial skill.' She picked [Body Mark Storage].
Her status was updated and showed [Body Mark Storage Lv. 1] on her skills list. ‘I can’t believe I can gain new skills thanks to Lexi. Are all familiars like this?’
Lexi commented on the changes, ‘Oh! I can go in master now!’ “W-what? Go in me?” Iris was slightly creeped out by her partner’s phrasing, so she asked what Lexi meant.
‘Like this.’ The little book jumped onto Iris’s hand and was sucked in. A small book tattoo appeared on Iris’s palm. She gasped in total shock. Speechless, she waved her hand around trying to make sure it was real.
‘Body Mark Storage. So, this was what it meant… No! Absolutely not, I’m 10! I can’t go around with tattoos!’ She panicked. “Lexi, come out!” Her book familiar popped out and the mark disappeared.
Iris breathed a sigh of relief. She felt exhausted. A lot had changed in such a short period of time, and she needed some time to wrap her head around it. Collapsing back onto her bed, she went to sleep while Lexi went towards the mementos.
After a nap, she stretched and glanced at the boxes. ‘I should look over our keepsakes… but that feels like work.’ Wanting to laze around more, Iris stayed in bed and daydreamed about tattoos. 'I could use it to store mana stone while I'm defeating slimes. I'd need to get some gloves first to hide the markings.'
Iris felt that it was a useful skill, but being only 10 years old, she didn't want to get into trouble. 'I need to hide them really well. I can't even imagine what my parents would say if they saw me with a tattoo...' After a while, a new question emerged. ‘Wait. Are there limits to what I can store? Lexi became a tattoo, but what about things other than books and paper?’ Finding a reason to get out of bed, she threw the covers away.
Glancing around her room, she grabbed her backpack. ‘How about this?’ Gathering her mana, she spread it around the backpack covering it completely, and then it started to sink into her hand. Unlike with Lexi, the mark was much larger, and it dyed her hand and wrist black. ‘It doesn’t show the object… It looks like I dipped my hand in paint.’