As we walked I took a quick glance at what boons I had available. Yet again, I found that there wasn’t anything new.

Counting the different boons offered to me, I found that I was still one short of the promised ten. Either the minor boon counted as the tenth available boon, or I hadn’t yet achieved the appropriate conditions to unlock the last boon.

My class selection boon required every other boon be selected before it was unlocked, so it was possible there was still some impressive boon waiting for me. It was also possible that I needed a specific boon before the tenth would become available.

Before picking my next boon I needed to check what happened with my most recent choice.

Mana: 53/175

Evidently, the increase from the minor version of the expanded mana pool was only half the size of the regular version. It was harder to tell how exactly the minor mana regeneration worked, but I was willing to guess it would also be by about half.

If all minor boons worked the same way, then the improved mana perception and manipulation would both yield significant rewards. Considering how strong both boons had proved to be, an additional half of the benefits was very tempting.

After a moment’s indecision, I selected the minor boon for improved mana perception. While having increased control would have been helpful, I wasn’t running into any more problems that couldn’t be overcome by practice. For sensing mana, I was already running into the limits of my abilities whenever I tried to examine existing mana forms.

As it stood, I was only able to figure out what mana forms were when they were close enough to something I already knew. Trying to puzzle together the indistinct patterns of unfamiliar forms was frustratingly futile. Hopefully, the boost from the minor boon would be enough to bring things into focus.

Dismissing my interface, I took to examining my new traveling companions. The easiest to study was the giant walking directly ahead of me.

Like the other warriors, the man carried a very large bag upon his back. The pack looked to be pretty much filled and I could sense many different sources of mana within. Though the large man carried it with evident ease, I doubted that I would have been able to even lift the thing.

Most of the man’s body was covered by a strange piece of green apparel. The material was smooth like a frog’s skin and the light rain that fell on the man rolled off in rivulets rather than sinking into the cloth. Through several small rips and tears I was able to see another strange garment underneath. Oddly, this second layer seemed to be made more of the gray metal, woven into a strange parody of fabric.

I did find myself wondering about the metal weapons these warriors used. The only metal I had ever seen before was yellow and terrible for making tools out of. The stuff was heavier than stone, yet soft enough that it would warp and lose its edge after a single strike.

The gray metal seemed quite different. The way it cut through flesh was like nothing I had ever seen before. Despite hacking away at the beasts repeatedly, the weapons didn’t seem to grow any duller. Even the strongest weapons made from the remains of magical beasts fell short in comparison.

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As we traveled, I found my traveling companions' behavior to be a little odd. They would often stop and look around with worry at harmless animal sounds. Other times, they passed by potential hazards without even flinching. It was almost like they didn't know exactly what dangers the jungle held.

One of the ax wielding warriors, the one dressed in blue, almost picked up a frog with brilliant yellow skin. The other showed more sense as he smacked his companion’s hand away. It baffled me how the man could have lived this long in the jungle without knowing that brightly colored creatures can be deadly to touch. I was quite glad that the man in red was there to stop him.

The journey passed without any further near death encounters until the leader called for a halt in a small clearing. The warriors searched through the area before setting down their heavy packs. Despite being much stronger than me, it was clear that most of these men wouldn’t be able to effectively travel if they were to carry any more.

As the warriors set up tents from their bags, the rune carver set to work. I wrongly expected him to carve out a few runes of concealment. To my surprise, he started carving dozens, if not hundreds of little runes in a circle around the camp. Looking closer, I found most of the runes to be very similar to the barrier producing runes of invisible force I first encountered in the ruined village.

After inscribing the runes into the ground, the slender man placed one of the mana storing cylinders in something like a harvest rune. Mana flowed out from the device and into the circle. As I watched, a dome of force manifested around us.

After so many nights of hiding and hoping that nothing would find me, it felt strange to finally have some solid shelter for the night. The last time that had happened, I was left with a titan lurking at the doorstep.

With that less than cheerful thought, I painted a few sigils of concealment around the camp. The warriors watched me work with various levels of interest. The rune carver in particular looked fascinated by my sigils.

It was starting to get a little irritating only knowing the names of a third of the people I was traveling with. Asking while walking through the dangerous jungle would have proven potentially dangerous, but now we were as safe as we were going to get.

For some reason, I was still anxious to approach the man directly. When I was young, I had no problems with socializing. Evidently, I had long since lost the knack. Forcing myself to act, I stepped forwards and pointed at myself. “Kyo.”

The look of momentary panic on the man’s face told me that I wasn’t the only one faced with social difficulties. Putting what had to be the world’s most awkward and forced smile on his face, the man pointed at himself. “L-Liam…” He stuttered.

Nodding in the way that these people did, I backed away from the obviously flustered man. I could easily understand wanting a bit of space.

As I walked to the middle of the camp, I found everyone else already around a fire. The man in blue was adding things to a large, dark metal pot over the flames. The giant was glaring at the surrounding rainforest while holding his weapon, as though daring the horrors of the night to make the first move. Martin and Salvador were quietly discussing something while the man in red worked a metal knife over a purplish gray object.

Moving closer, I found that the man was carving designs into a claw taken from the pack leader. I had been so distracted during that first meeting, I hadn’t noticed the man taking anything from the body.

I watched as the amazingly sharp knife whittled away at the claw. The material itself wasn’t particularly noteworthy now that all of the mana had been drained from it, but it swiftly turned into a work of art in the man’s hands. Sliver by sliver, the vestige of the pack leader emerged from the salvaged nail.

The man only paused once the man by the pot called out to everyone. Noticing that I had been watching him, the man smiled and held out a hand. Not sure what he was doing I copied the gesture, holding out my hand with my palm to the side. To my surprise, the man grabbed my hand and shook it up and down.

After releasing my hand, he pointed at himself and said what I assumed was his name. “Matt.”

I nodded, but my mind was already wandering elsewhere. Whatever was in that pot smelled delicious.