In every profession, there is a point at which an artisan will create the greatest work of their lifetime. It could happen at the start of your career, which would be rather depressing as you try your entire life to match it. Or it could be right before your death. Either way, it’s important to share that masterpiece. Great art is only great when it can be appreciated.

-Excerpt from ‘Artificers & Artisans: The Endless Mountain’ by Qax Goldheart

The piercing blow Rose expected never came. The arcane thrumming slowly died down until there was no electric itch and all she could hear was the crashing of the waves.

A second later, she heard something thud against the deck, then roll along it for a while before a gentle splash told her it had reached the edge and fallen into the sea. Confused, she opened her eyes.

Instead of the blue uniform clad legs she was expecting to see, there was a pair of rakish-thin legs sporting black suit pants. They looked familiar.

Rose’s gaze shot upwards and she saw Nasar standing tall. She leapt to her feet, then cried out as she remembered one of her legs was broken. The man turned and caught her, which was impressive given he was missing an arm.

“What happened to your arm!?” she cried. Then, she looked at the spear protruding from his stomach, the surrounding fabric of his pristine white shirt stained crimson.

Looking beyond him as something else hit the deck, she saw the headless corpse of her former opponent slumped against the splintered planks. Nasar had saved her life at a great personal cost.

“You didn’t need to do that,” she mumbled, rushing to rip pieces of her shirt off and stem the bleeding wound in his gut. The man’s face never shifted once, but she knew he must be in agony.

You have earned a new skill!

Field Medicine 0 > 1

Your occupation has advanced!

Apprentice Scholar 21 > 22

That’s… amazing! Finally I have more than three skills to push my occupation to completion. And this one is easy to level up.

“Don’t be ridiculous, dear Rose. Of course I did,” he replied with a melancholy smile. “Trent would’ve been the one to stick a spear in my stomach if I didn’t. Besides, I’m old. I can’t have your bright future snuffed out by some stuck up Lieutenant.”

A tear rolled down her cheek. “Let me help you with your shoulder,” she mumbled, tearing off another strip of her shirt.

“Oh this?” he chuckled. “Don’t worry about it. It’s already clotting. I think we need to give your friend a little hand over there, the boy’s struggling just a little.”

“What? Oh, Felix!” she yelped, dropping the fabric and rushing towards the edge of the broken ship. Once more, she stumbled on her wounded knee and had to grab hold of the railings to stay standing.

“Now, perhaps you should take a little more care of your own condition before rushing to help others. I’m sure he’ll survive a few minutes longer.”

Nasar wrapped his arm around her and helped her upright. Then, a steaming bowl of soup appeared in his hand. Rose didn’t flinch—she was used to him pulling things from nowhere.

“You want me to eat… right now?”

“There’s never been a better time for a meal. Besides, this is a special bowl of soup. I made it six years ago and to this day I don’t think I’ve managed to beat it,” he sighed, passing her the bowl.

She almost dropped it. The ceramic was scalding, as though he’d just poured the soup from the pot. This is six years old!? Do those storage artifacts freeze time or something…

Despite being handed a delicacy—no, this was a true treasure—Rose couldn’t tear her eyes away from the struggling Felix. He was clashing cutlasses with two navy soldiers at once and his already battered body was accumulating cuts at a steady rate.

Nasar cuffed her on the back of the head. She threw him her most betrayed puppy-dog eyes and saw him wince a little. Smirking internally, she took up the spoon and lifted the golden liquid to her mouth.

Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author's consent. Report any sightings.

There would be no chance of helping Felix until she at least tried the soup, that much she knew. Nasar wasn’t a man who took his cooking lightly. To offer her a dish that he claimed was the greatest he’d ever cooked…

Rose was truly honoured. Taking a sniff, she frowned. There was absolutely no scent, not a single hint of spice or whiff of flavour.

He wasn’t the kind of man to pull a prank on her in this situation, so after briefly glancing at him, she returned her eyes to the viscous golden fluid. There was only one way to find out what made it so incredible.

The soup was hot, but didn’t burn her lips or tongue. Which was strange, because her hands were red and if not for her hurried adjustment of how she held the bowl, they would have burnt.

For a moment she tasted nothing and could only feel the thick liquid slipping into her throat. How strange… Then it hit her.

Skill up!

Arcane Attunement 9 > 10

You have earned a new trait!

Energetic: Having been steeped in the power of the tide, you’ve come to understand its intricacies. Arcane energy will respond better to your will and your arcane core will absorb ambient tidal energy quicker.

Rose stopped herself from gasping—she didn’t want to waste a single drop of this miracle soup. Just a single mouthful had raised her Arcane Attunement over the cap and earned her yet another trait.

This one was even more potent than the last, which seemed to be a trend for her. She didn’t expect that to keep up forever, but it was great for now.

Finishing the first sip, there was a familiar tingle on her tongue. Like the soup itself had cast a skill inside her mouth.

She stared at Nasar for a few seconds, but the man barely flinched under her gaze. His single arm was held behind his back as he watched on with interest.

“How is it, my dear?”

“Well… I’m not sure what to say,” she replied hesitantly. “Honestly, I’m disappointed in the taste.”

“Oh? Do explain…” he said, taking a step towards her and narrowing his eyes.

“Hold up,” she stuttered, raising the spoon in surrender. “Don’t misunderstand me. The soup is… a miracle. I gained a level in Arcane Attunement from that single sip. It’s just that it doesn’t taste… of anything.”

“You’re telling me my magnum opus, the greatest dish I’ve ever cooked, is bland?”

“No!” she cried as the man took another step. “It’s not bland. It literally tastes like nothing at all!”

Seeing that Nasar’s eyes were so narrow they were practically slits, Rose gulped and gripped the spoon so tight her knuckles went white. This was the first time she’d felt threatened by him.

“Dear girl, I’m disappointed. Tell me the truth. I know my cooking would never be… tasteless,” he remarked with a shiver.

“I suppose not…” she muttered. “Actually, I think it does have a taste. It’s just that I’m not quite sure how to put it in words.”

“Spit it out.”

She clutched the bowl tighter and pulled it towards her. After that first mouthful she refused to give up the rest.

“Not the soup, you fool. You’re usually smarter than this. The taste…”

“Oh. Of course. Then, I would say the soup tasted… arcane.”

Nasar stopped and his eyes opened back up, his gleaming irises on full display. He smiled and patted her on the shoulder. “Much better. Now eat up, I don’t want to see a single speck left in that bowl.”

Rose let out a sigh of relief, then immediately dug into the soup. Just like the first taste, the second mouthful struck her like lightning.

Skill up!

Arcane Attunement 10 > 11

Water Attunement 4 > 5

What? This soup was utterly mind boggling. Rose wasn’t sure if it worked exclusively on her attunement skills or if it was just selecting them at random and she’d got lucky.

Regardless, she continued eating until the entire bowl was empty. And then she ran a finger round the edge to clean up any leftovers, before licking the bowl clean for good measure.

Nasar looked on approvingly and took the bowl and spoon back with a nod once she’d finished. A quick glance over the accumulated whorls was enough to make her gasp.

Skill up!

Arcane Attunement 11 > 14

Water Attunement 5 > 7

Light Attunement 7 > 8

Arcane Resistance 1 > 4

Most of the skills that had levelled up were among the ones most difficult to make progress in. Ones that seemed to only improve inside convergences or against ridiculous enemies.

And yet a single bowl of soup from Nasar had skyrocketed all four of them. Turning to the man, she wasn’t sure if there were words to describe how thankful she was.

In the end, all she could manage was, “Why me?”

He smiled. “There’s not much time to explain. I think Felix may have reached the limit of his capabilities,” he replied, pointing towards the boy currently fighting off three officers and losing.

“Suffice to say, you are one of the most talented children I’ve ever met. I don’t think I’ve ever seen someone take to manipulating arcane energy so fast and the rate at which you’re growing… You deserved it, Rose. Now, before we head ove—”

He was cut short by a sharp crack.