Gabe

The following days blur together slightly. Wake up, log into Dungeon Quest and cast Spark twice, work out, log into Dungeon Quest to check on plants (probably isn't fully necessary since Grace and Lucia seem totally capable of watering the plants on the few days I'm busy) and cast Spark if enough of my mana has regenerated, go to work, come home, empty my mana again, work out again, then log in to Dungeon Quest to spend the rest of the evening practicing Spark.

The spell costs 9MP out of my 20MP total to cast each time. Each cast gives me 0.03 towards the 100 points needed to level up the skill, so I'll need to cast it a total of 3000 times to get to Level 1.

This is where the math gets frustrating. At 9MP and 3000 casts due to Pacify, I need a total of 27000MP for my level up. For a normal person, however, Spark costs only 3MP. It also gives 0.1 value towards a level up, requiring a cool 3000MP to hit Level 1. It doesn't take me 3 times the amount of mana to level up Spark. It takes 3 times the casts at 3 times the mana... a total of 9 times the amount.

Well, 3000 normal casts. Critical success casts give me ten times the value, while critical failures give me absolutely nothing. But even assuming I had all critical successes, it would still require much more mana than Pacify's text seems to suggest.

I pull up my skill status and look at my progress.

[Active Spell: Spark (9MP) Level 0 (10.7333/100)]

[Casts a spark of mana.*]

...yeah. A week's worth of effort, and I only barely passed 10%. Most of the progress I make comes while just playing Dungeon Quest in the evenings after work, using Spark at every opportunity I have. I get around 8 casts in during the day, and a bunch more in the evening since I have time to wait for my mana to slowly regen.

At least it's going up.

Today my goal is to find someplace that has a higher natural mana regen. I know there are potions, buffs, and stuff like that available, but all of those require some pretty hefty contribution exchanges to work, and they work a lot better on someone with a high mana or regen in the first place. Like Koji. Some mana potions regenerate a given amount of mana - those are the cheapest, but they still cost a lot more than I am wanting to spend. Higher quality mana potions regenerate a percentage of the user's total mana pool - wasted on someone like me with only 20 mana. Buffs are the opposite. The cheapest, simplest ones increase mana regeneration by a percentage, and the more expensive ones add mana regen in discrete amounts. Likely because mana regen is much less common than mana. And the potions must act on the body / soul / mana construct to make it more efficient or something, rather than giving it a given amount of excess power.

I know the church, for example, has a buff they can cast on those who have faith skills that gives around 5% extra mana regen. I asked. Koji mentioned that there are charms available that do the same thing, but I'm staying away from charms.

So I'm doing the next best thing! Trying to find environmental buffs. Random places that slightly increase mana regen, learning speed, total mana, WIS, or anything like that. And that don't cost a huge amount of money or contribution points in exchange. I'm sure, for example, that a magic college would have someplace available for students to meditate, in exchange for whatever points they get for doing assignments or going above and beyond. I just want someplace available to the public, even if it's hard to get to. While I cast Spark at every possible opportunity.

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Asking around town seems like the best starting point. But no one has any idea of anything like that. I remember the rainbow pools near the pacifist class crystal giving some sort of buff, or at least forcing silence, so I'm pretty sure that environmental buffs / debuffs must be a thing in Dungeon Quest. That said, they could also be incredibly rare, time-based, or slowly consumable.

My guess would be that unique, picturesque, or "special" locations would have the best bet of having an associated buff. Someplace always extremely dark, for example, might have some type of permanent stealth buff. Or someplace always cold a permanent fire spell debuff. I wander around town, pausing near schools and fountains and gardens, checking my status screen each time I do.

I realize after walking for an hour that it's totally possible that there could be invisible buffs - buffs that have an effect but don't show up on the status screen. And, knowing Dungeon Quest, that wouldn't be all that unexpected. With today's interconnected world, it would only take one person finding an environmental buff for it to suddenly be known by everyone. But a buff that subtly affects people in an area without actually telling them that?

I sit on a bench and think.

Where would Dungeon Quest want people to spend their time currently? A place that would likely drain their mana, but that the AI wants to extend ever so slightly so adds in a hidden mana regeneration buff?

Not the starting fountains. Those are as packed as anyplace else. Not the Guild Halls either. People have no problem making it to the Guilds and the associated trainers for each class. Schools would probably be a good bet, since more people learning more about the system is good for the system, but I'm guessing that the best mana regen areas inside schools would be literally locked behind contribution points, and the stuff available to the public would be minimal if anything at all.

Shops? Some shops might have an innate mana regen, like a magic shop, or crystal shop, or... I shiver slightly... an enchantment or charm shop. Those might be options. For someone else.

Outside the city... there are the quiet areas, like the rainbow pools. I'm guessing if there is a buff anywhere, it would be there. But my mind pulls me in one last direction. Someplace that the game definitely wants people, and someplace that also usually uses up large amounts of mana.

Dungeons.

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I do a quick search and find that Dungeons in Dungeon Quest run in a couple different flavors. Some are instanced - where there are different copies of the Dungeon that appear when a new group tries to enter. So multiple groups can be inside the Dungeon, fighting the same monsters, and never meet. There are also surface Dungeons - with no delineating marks that show you've crossed into a Dungeon at all - and cave Dungeons - which are like surface Dungeons but inside a cave. There are also teleport Dungeons, which is what the Adventure Crystal essentially, a Dungeon that is only accessible through teleport from the outside, either by touching something or completing a specific set of actions or quests.

The ideal for right now? Instanced, easy, and close to town. Also, with a safe room at the very beginning of the dungeon. I don't yet have any skills at Level 1 that will work with Pacify, which means I can't engage in "combat" yet. Lol. Time will tell what Pacify actually does, once I get Spark to Level 1.

I message Koji and Fred, who are much more connected in the game world than I am, asking to see if either of them are aware of an instanced Dungeon close to town. While I'm waiting, I start doing some tests to determine mana regeneration speed. First off, just a basic timer to determine how long it takes to regenerate one or two mana. Then, a timer while moving or doing other actions, and a timer while resting or meditating, to see if there are hidden buffs or debuffs to mana regen associated with everyday actions.

Come to think of it, meditation is supposed to be something that can improve mana regeneration in games. Like, big time, right? I'm guessing that since Dungeon Quest pulled heavily from other game designs, it will have at least something similar to meditation.

So... where can I learn Meditation?

Koji would probably be my best bet there, right? I send off yet another message in his direction. Or I could find a mage's college and see if it's a thing. If they're willing to even answer the question. Sometimes schools and colleges in games, or even in modern times, can be weird about sharing information. Let's be real. Just super super super anti-sharing in the first place. As if sharing their knowledge would suddenly make them lose all purpose of existence other than being a Fort Knox for a very specific and useful set of information.

I do know at least a couple people who are better connected than I am. Sister Maribel / Eliza, Jade, and Miyoko are all natives to the town. Jade could potentially know some mages, but I'm guessing that her attachment to Koji because of his overflowing mana means that she doesn't usually have easy access to mana itself. Miyoko would probably be a good source of information in general, as she interacts with high society on a daily basis and has a large family with what sounds like a lot of connections. Along with a magical seed fairy stored in their front room. But I'm not really sure how to go about finding her during a time when she's available. I can't drop by her shop without both having nice clothes to wear and a budget to buy more nice clothes - neither of which are anywhere on my radar - and just dropping by her house seems sort of awkward. I could go by once some of the stuff in the PAX Dimension has grown. Actually, come to think of it, that would probably be a really nice thing to do. I'm just now realizing that I didn't pay a cent for the seeds they gave me. That's twice that Miyoko or her family has just given me something valuable without anyone mentioning payment. Am I going to end up permanently indebted to this family?

Maribel is probably the simplest option. We have good karma, she seems very well connected, and her role in the church and orphanage means that she might have sway in case I need to ask for a favor. And who knows? Maybe the church grounds have a hidden mana regen buff.

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The church grounds don't have any type of buff. The warding spell that prevents demons doesn't have any positive aspects to it (Father Kyrael confirmed that as soon as I asked), just a basic causes-damage-over-time to demons and sounds an alarm if one crosses the barrier. Maribel is out with Zaza on an errand, so I walk the grounds, noticing that they're significantly quieter without the kids from the orphanage. Aside from Grace and Carmen, none of the other children have classed yet. I guess I could confirm that myself just by checking my status screen and my total number of max HP. My mind flickers to using that as a method of communication somehow across dimensions or extreme distance. Bring someone back from the dead, then when a given condition is fulfilled, class them up and that's the cue for whatever grand event to begin.

Yeah, that would be a horrible method. First of all, it's clunky. Second, it literally ties up max HP for an unknown period of time. Third, and most important, there have to be a million other options that are better, lower cost, and more effective. This is a game full of magic. A basic magic item resembling a cell phone, or a magic spell, would be a much better method than levering a near-death experience and leaving one side classless and fragile, and the other with reduced max HP.

"Gabe! Gabe! Where's Grace? Where's Lucia? How are you? I'm learning to be a healer but I can't cast any spells yet. So Sister Maribel is teaching me to make tea, and to clean wounds, and to talk to people to help them feel better."

Zaza is cute as ever. I'm guessing that being a healer has both magical and physical aspects, and bedside manner is a real thing that affects the healing of patients, so kudos to Maribel for focusing on more than just learning the spell.

"I think Grace and Lucia are at Jade's booth in the marketplace, helping the crafters. There's a lot of people there, and Jade has started taking orders again so she can use all the help she can get."

Not that a little girl and a prismatic slime are really the best helpers, but Lucia attracts attention, which attracts customers, so that's good enough I guess. And Grace has a calming influence on the other kids so they're less likely to bounce off the walls.

"What about you Gabe, what brings you here today? Did anything happen to your status?"

Maribel looks lightly concerned for a moment.

"No. It's nothing like that. I was just wondering. Two questions actually."

"Let's sit down first. Zaza is still very fragile, and we've been out working with patients all day. I don't let her anywhere near anyone who is sick, but there's always a chance that the exhaustion could get to her."

Zaza looks at me and rolls her eyes slightly, but obediently sits on one of the benches at the church. This has gotta be killing these kids. Well. Bad pun. I just hope they're able to class soon and get back to normal.

"Alright. What questions did you have? I hope you remember that some of my Skills are locked and have aspects that can't be shared."

Come to think of it, that's sort of weird, right? Maribel is the only person I've met who has locked skills, or locked anything for that matter. That seems to be pretty uncommon. Does it have to do with why those guys called her Eliza?

Not here, not now. I push those thoughts away inside my head.

"Yeah. They're related. I'm trying to level up the magic spell Spark, and I need to practice it as much as possible. I'm wondering if you know of a place where people naturally regenerate mana faster than normal, or if you know someone who could teach me a meditation skill that would improve my mana regeneration."

Sister Maribel sits with a thoughtful look on her face for a moment.

"First of all, learning Spark shouldn't be possible with your skillset. You're a Pacifist, which is a unique class, but Spark is a magic spell used for battle. I don't understand how that works."

"I got a passive skill that makes it work. It's sort of complicated, and it makes a mess of everything else, but I'm going with it."

I flip the skill explanation for Pacify to Maribel.

[Passive skill: Pacify (Level 0, 30.26/100]

[Use awesome, flashy powers to change hearts and bring peace to the world! The user may equip any weapon or learn any skill without fear of causing harm]

[Skills, abilities, and attacks no longer cause physical or mental damage to others]

[Each skill, ability, action, and weapon type will be assigned other values that will allow the user to pacify enemies]

[Due to the extreme difficulty of turning all actions into pacifist skills, all skills, abilities, physical actions, and mental actions taken by the user now require 3x the usual amount of resources to accomplish at all times. In addition, due to the practice required, skills, abilities, and weapon proficiencies must be at least level 1 to be effectively used in "battle"]

I notice that the progress bar for Pacify has gone up. A lot more than I expected. I have a couple hints to that, though. Every time I cast Spark, it goes up by a visible amount. Usually around .02 - which is exactly 1/3 of the amount of excess mana that Spark costs per cast. Sometimes it goes up more though, and sometimes less, and it seems to just go up over time just by doing stuff. So I'm guessing that every 100 mana, or other equivalent to mana - whether stamina, or health, or other "resources" mentioned in the text - increases the proficiency by 1 towards the 100 needed to hit the next level. Multiplied by the 3x cost for everything that the skill itself imposes. Even its own leveling up. Lol. It's fine. Someday I'm gonna be totally OP. An absolutely unkillable world-changing pacifist with the ability to do anything and everything I want, able to protect everyone close to me and have a blast without having to kill anyone. And somehow being able to Pacify them using any skill. My mind wanders, envisioning myself harnessing a meteorite, or conjuring a massive lightning storm, or building a mountainous earth golem, or summoning a dragon made of ice, bringing an end to a massive invasion or kingdom war by sheer shock and awe - similar to how the ancients supposedly once ended a decades-old war upon the advent of a total solar eclipse on the battlefield.

Maribel looks at the text for the skill, and she starts playing with her hands in her lap before softly speaking.

"Gabe, I'm... not sure you understand how dangerous this skill is."

Her eyes look up to mine, full of concern.

"Dangerous? But it clearly states that people won't get harmed..."

She looks at me sort of like a mother would, when she's about to explain something to a child completely out of his league. She grabs my hand and pulls me into a side room - the one where we once did the appraisal of my ring - and closes the door before visibly relaxing.

"This room is barred from scrying and listening spells from the outside. We should be safe here."

Safe... from what?

She sighs, spreads her hands on the table, and speaks slowly.

"Gabe, your skill allows you to learn any skill. You know that usually that skills are locked to specific classes, right?"

"Yeah... except for the skills that are available to everyone, or the skills that are shared among different classes of similar type, or the skills locked behind certain actions... right?"

"Yes. General skills are available to everyone. And achievement-based skills are also available to everyone who can accomplish their associated achievement. But the skills like heal that are associated with multiple classes are actually multiple different skills. Heal for beginner healers is actually a different spell when compared with Heal from advanced healers, for example."

"That makes sense. It explains why Koji wasn't able to teach me Spark, but Carmen and Gladys were, since they could cast pure forms of Spark."

"Pure forms of Spark? That isn't possible, Gabe. Carmen is able to cast the beginner form of Spark which, if you learned it from her, should be what you learned. I don't know Gladys, but I know she can't cast a pure form of Spark. A pure form isn't possible since the spell is always influenced by the class that casts it."

"But this is beside the point. Your skill clearly states that it allows you to learn any skill. While it does have a caveat that the spell will not be able to cause direct damage, it doesn't bar the learned skill or spell from causing indirect damage. For example, learning an oracle skill like FarSight and being able to tell the location of enemy troops during a war. Or leveling up Extreme Poison Resistance before casting Confer Poison Resistance spell along with the Area of Effect and Target Allies Only metamagic skills right before someone else poisons a battlefield with Dragon's Dung. Or a mind-control spell like Influence on the populace before a major election or during the implementation of an unpopular change in policy. And it doesn't keep the spell from damaging you. Like the rare healing spell Beauty Sleep only known by short-lived and moody fountain sprites that causes them to sleep for a year after casting it, but has the ability to permanently extend and rejuvenate the life of anyone nearby."

My mind starts wandering as Sister Maribel talks about different applications of Pacify. I'm sure that it wasn't designed for these... but I could easily see them being used if the skill were available to someone else. But... why does her mind go to these so quickly?

"Gabe, anyone who knows about your skill is a huge liability. Your skill would make you immediately into a state asset in any nation, regardless of their view on slavery. Oh yes, they would try to convince you first - give you options of whatever you wanted in exchange for learning skills and spells that would benefit the ruling powers most - but if you rejected their proposition they'd either force you into it, kill you, or find a way to keep you from getting into the hands of someone else. Since you're a teleporter, they'd find a way to lock down your position just enough that you could never leave again, until you eventually caved into their demands."

"Does anyone else know about this skill? Who have you told about it?"

Maribel's face is lined, concerned, and flush with tiny beads of sweat. I can tell that she is honestly concerned.

"Uh... I don't know? I got it from the Adventure Crystal... so I had to tell the guild staff about it. I... I don't remember how much they asked about it, but I'm guessing that they wanted me to flip the explanation to them and that they took it down word for word? The two staff members I talked to said that skills are pretty common rewards for Adventure Crystals. So at least the staff member who took my data. Then my little brother, and..."

Did I say anything about it before I got to Jade's stand? I can't really remember.

"I think the next time I mentioned it was at Jade's stand. I read the explanation out loud, which means that Gladys, Kai, Jade, all the kids, and anyone close enough to hear me could have overheard."

Maribel's face gets progressively darker as I speak, her forehead becoming more and more creased with lines.

"So, the Adventurer's Guild, out loud in the middle of the crafting area of the outdoor marketplace, and to two people that you know almost nothing about, of which one sounds like a mage with knowledge about skills and spells."

"...yeah? I think that's it."

"Well, let's get moving. We'll go to the Guild Hall first."

Sister Maribel gets up and opens the door.

"Wait. What? I thought you could help me with..."

"Gabe, I don't think you understand. No. I know you don't understand. If someone with an ounce of intelligence reads your skill description, you will be marked for assassination or chained or sold off to the highest bidder. You saved my life, and the life of all the children. Now I'm saving yours. I know that I may be... either way, sometimes we have to do things that have to be done. And right now this needs to be done. We're going to the Guild Hall first, and then the market. This is happening."

I've never seen Sister Maribel look like this before. Where did the quiet, deferring church sister go, and who replaced her? First she talks about state affairs like she has experience working in them, and now she insists on going to the Adventurer's Guild... where she seems to be assured that she will be able to... save my life somehow? Either way, I've learned a little bit of my lesson. Don't share Pacify with other people.

"Oh. And Gabe."

"Yeah?"

"The first skill we are teaching you after we make sure no one talks is not going to be Meditation. It's Camouflage (status). Well, it'll be a charm, but same difference."

"A charm?!? But charms..."

"Charms have a chance of breaking. Yes. But this one is stable. I know someone who can do the enchantment, no questions asked. Worst case scenario, we find some mithril and enchant it directly onto your body like the new gauntlet you're wearing."

She's already jogging through the church without looking behind her, exchanging a gesture with Father Kyrael who walks over to Zaza and puts his arm around her on the bench.

I follow her at a jog, already beginning to sweat slightly from the exertion. I check Pacify and yep, it's going up at a slow tick. I joke with myself - maybe all I need to level up the skill is to go running! Jokes aside, when Oath of the Pacifist leveled up, the skill expansions seemed tied to my actions before the level up. I don't want to level up Pacify and just have it gain more experience from running. Or exempt running from the 3x cost. Actually, what do I want my level up options to be? Should I be trying to use the skill in a specific way so that I have better options on level up?

I guess I don't really have time to think about this right now. I speed up, sweat beading on my forehead, as I follow Sister Maribel towards the center of the city and the Adventurer's Guild.