Dyani was about as subtle as the couple meters of long-haired hamster she was currently skinning. She had made several comments on the monster’s health, along with a few about how much she was looking forward to a hot meal.
It was also notable that the first thing she’d done with the corpse was drop it in the concentrated cleaning runes that passed for a shower to clear off any lingering filth.
Once they’d checked in at the inspector office, Dyani left to sell the golden, monster hair with a cheery wave and Pikawon returned to his underground home. His base seemed larger without Dyani in it, like an enormous, dank cave.
It was not so large that he was able to ignore the carefully coiled Tanglepillar body. The half skinned corpse was the opposite of appetizing, but the scent of experience, like a sugar coated hot pepper, made his stomach rumble.
He sighed and turned on his camping stove.
***
The Prehensile Hair skill turned out to be surprisingly useful. While Dyani had no intention of creating anything like it for herself, the manipulation skill incorporated an entirely new type of skill component.
She was calling them touchpoints, areas where the user’s spirit could exert more direct and nuanced influence over the actions of the skill. Skills without these components could still be directed to a degree, like how she choose a direction for her Mana Jump skill to move her, but that was like aiming a crossbow, versus switching out the bolts and adjusting the draw.
Prehensile Hair had two touchpoints. The first allowed the user to alter the function of the skill from the default manipulation effect to hair reinforcement, growth, or some combination, activating or deactivating three separate runes with their own components and modifiers.
The second was even more complex and was nestled in the center of the hair manipulation rune. Dyani assumed this touch point was what allowed the user to tell the skill how to move the hair, but creating anything like this was beyond her at the moment, though she did think she could manage the first kind with a bit of practice.
It would be important if she was going to create the skill she’d been pondering, a skill that would allow her to expel her created skills as cores that others could use.
Seeing a skill core form for a second time had given her the idea. The way the experience had coiled in on itself reminded her of how skill structures unfolded in her mind, but in reverse.
Physical skills existed in a tightly compacted form, with their structure and components coiled so closely around each other, that normal spiritual perception couldn’t sense it. Only Dyani’s level 2 talent allowed her to mentally unfold and examine the details.
If she could discover how to condense her own skills into a similar state, push them out of her spirit, and force them to solidify, she could become her very own skill factory.
So far, she’d only succeeded in ejecting her own skills, but their loose structure broke down as soon as they left their slot, unable to support themselves without the support her spirit provided.
If she moved fast, she could push a skill from one slot to another while keeping the overall rune shape, but all the smaller components were warped beyond recognition. Dyani still considered it a win.
Since she didn’t have any leads on condensing her skills without breaking them, she decided to focus on the conjuration aspect for now.
Instead of going by Hoss’s Pawn to sell today’s loot, Dyani visited the Mite Market once again. This time she went without Pikawon, since he was wary of drawing attention like they had with the attempted theft last time.
No one was selling any cheap skill shards that suited her needs, but she did find one skill core that was perfect.
* Crystallize Mana (Common)
* Type: Conjuration
* Affinity: None
* Range: Short
* Cost: Moderate Mana
* Effect: Condenses the user’s mana into mana crystals.
The trouble was, the skill was incredibly useful, and thus, expensive. Mana crystals were similar to notes, but instead of being universally compatible, they held specific mana affinities. They were useful when crafters or enchanters needed a specific type of mana they didn’t produce.
According the the seller, Crystallize Mana was most often used to create enchantments with the same effect, since they could produce mana with a single affinity, unlike the more blended and varied mana of an individual’s core, which took on properties based on what skills they used most often and what concepts resonated with them.
Dyani could just barely afford it, and only because Hoss had been giving her the employee rate when they sold their loot. He was still a man of few words, but she was growing increasingly fond of him.
After leaving and returning the stall enough times that the seller started giving her concerned looks, her resolve broke. She comforted herself with the fact that, since she wouldn’t actually be absorbing the skill, she could resell it to recoup the cost.
“Here,” She dumped out the required notes and pointed to the skill, “Quickly…please.”
“Alright, Alright. It’s a nice skill, but nothing to go crazy over.”
After gaining the core, she clutched it to her chest like a miser with their last coin, watching out for potential thieves in every direction. It was after work, but she didn’t want to travel above ground with something so valuable, both in terms of money, and her future.
Dyani traveled through the sewer, navigating easily thanks to the map she’d been creating in her interface since she’d absorbed it. She was half tempted to visit Pikawon and show him her prize, but she didn’t want to catch him eating the monster meat. The unwarranted embarrassment might make him less willing to do it in the future.
It wasn’t until after arriving home and having dinner with her mother that it really hit her that she’d just spent more money in one go than in the rest of her life combined. When her mother had given her the jump skill shard, she’d been astounded at the cost, even if Nymin had stolen it from work instead of purchasing it, something that still brought a smile to her face.
Today she’d bought a popular, if common, skill. It had cost her around 2 months of monster fighting, but if she’d been working a regular job, like her mother thought she was, it would’ve been closer to a year’s salary. Dyani hadn’t even sold the hair or skill core from the Tanglepillar yet, but she’d still been able to afford it.
Dyani was just starting to peer into Crystallize Mana when her mother called from outside.
“Knock, Knock.” Since knocking would require mana to interact with the door, Nymin just said the words.
Dyani panicked before stuffing the skill core under her pillow. It was hardly the most creative hiding spot, but it was the first place she thought of.
“Come in,” Dyani said with an edge of false cheer.
Her mother floated through the door and smiled at Dyani. She reached out to stroke the side of Dyani’s face with a whisper of mana.
“Have I ever told you how beautiful you are?”
Dyani rolled her eyes, but still smiled.
“Yes mom. You’re beautiful too.”
“Thank you, acorn. Take a seat.” She gestured to the bed. Dyani sat nervously, making sure to sit right by the pillow that hid the skill core. Nymin sat on the other side.
“I want you to know that if there’s anything going on in your life, you can talk to me about it.”
“I know, mom.”
Nymin looked down at her daughter, and Dyani started to sweat. She knew something, but there was no way to know what and how much.
Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.
“Anything at all…”
Dyani nodded, swallowing. She schooled her face to not give anything away. Whatever her mother knew, it was probably something minor, since she was obviously fishing for information.
“Nothing out of the ordinary. Just work, working all the time. And I’m pretty tired…from all the working. I think I might go to bed early.”
Nymin gave her a sardonic look before grimacing.
“I was hoping it wouldn’t come to this.” Nymin reached right through Dyani’s chest and the concealing pillow and pulled out the skill core. Dyani instinctively snatched it out of her mother’s hand and held it to her chest, like a mother with a newborn.
“Care to tell me how you could afford a skill core, let alone an expensive one like Crystallize Mana?”
Dyani opened her mouth to spill her guts, but realized something.
“How did you know what skill it was?”
Nymin was taken aback, and blushed, which just made her cheeks slightly more opaque.
Dyani could think of two possibilities. Either her mother had an interface, something she’d never given any indication of, or she’d been following Dyani when she’d purchased the skill. The first seemed most likely, though she had no idea why her mother would keep something like that from her.
“Do you have an interface?”
“Why would you ask that?”
“That means yes.”
Nymin huffed and floated a few inches off the bed, while retaining her seating position. That was a tell. When Nymin was nervous or frazzled, she often shifted out of sync with her physical surroundings, since interacting with them was closer to play acting that necessity. Dyani hid a smile and pounded on the weakness.
“Why didn’t you ever tell me? You haven’t said anything about them, except when we found dad’s.”
Nymin gave a wistful smile at the mention of Rotto.
“I didn’t think you’d ever have one. They aren’t cheap, you know. I shouldn’t have even gotten one, since my family didn’t want anything to do with me after my talent awakened, but they’d already bought one for me and instructed the servants to give it to me when I advanced, and they forgot to correct themselves. I’m pretty sure someone got fired over that.”
“Your parents are awful. You’re much better.”
“Don’t think flattery will get you out of answering my questions, young lady,” Nymin said, but her voice was more playful than stern. She didn’t contradict what Dyani had said about her grandparents. Nymin was usually more passionate about manners, but the bad blood between her and her parents was stronger.
Dyani gave her mother a moment to recover before pressing forward.
“So you didn’t tell me because you didn’t think it would matter?”
Nymin nodded, then shook her head.
“Not really. I didn’t want it to be another thing you lost with your father. You already lost so much that day, and I didn’t want to put anything else on your shoulders.”
“Except I didn’t lose it. Dad left me his interface.”
“A broken one, and I found that out at the same time you did. But you’re right. Once we sell that one, we can buy you a nice, new one.”
Dyani shifted uncomfortably, putting her skill core on her pillow and staring at it so she didn’t have to look at her mother.
“Dyani Farlight, is there something you need to tell me?”
“I may have, actually…absorbed it already.” Dyani expected anger, but when Nymin brushed her fingertips over her cheek to guide Dyani’s face over to hers, there was only worry.
“Are you alright? How did it go? Is it working?”
“I’m fine,” Dyani waved off the concern, “The interface works fine. It didn’t have anything in the identification database, but I’ve been adding to it whenever I can.”
“And the other functions?”
“It only has three that work right now, Status, Identify, and Connections. The other two are grayed out.”
Nymin nodded, and after a second of looking into the middle distance, Dyani received a message.
Connection request from Nymin Farlight.
Accept?
Dyani agreed, and a new line appeared in her list of available connections.
“I’m glad your father’s interface is working, but you really shouldn’t have absorbed it without me to help if it went wrong. ”
“I did have someone. I have a new friend, and he watched while I did it.”
“Is this new friend a logomancer?”
“Are you?”
“Touché.”
Nymin considered something with a conflicted look, but eventually just sighed, visibly deflating.
“Acorn, I know what you’ve really been doing to get all that experience. I know you’ve been fighting monsters underground.”
“What experience?”
Nymin arched an eyebrow.
“Acorn, what level am I?”
Dyani reached out with her spiritual senses.
“Level 3?”
“What about now?”
Confused, Dyani reached out again and found her mother’s power diminishing until it was barely level 2, then surging up to level 4.
Nymin patted Dyani on the knee with the faintest whisper of force.
“Did nobody in that fancy school teach you about veils?”
“I think so. They’re some fancy way to hide power, but they didn’t teach us how to use them. We didn’t have anything to veil.”
“I guess that’s fair enough, but you do now. Did you think I wouldn’t notice you advancing to level 2?”
Now Dyani was the one blushing. She’d put so much thought and effort into reaching her current level, that she hadn't considered for a moment that other people could feel it, including her own mother.
“Wait, can veils make you feel stronger?”
Nymin shook her head.
“Veils are just a name for controlling the aura of mana that radiates out of your body, as well as your spiritual defenses that prevent foreign senses from peering inside.”
That made sense with what Dyani knew of the spirit. Her teachers had probably already told her this, but she’s either forgotten or hadn’t been paying attention in the first place.
She was betting on the latter.
“So when exactly did you reach level 4?”
Nymin smiled sadly.
“Don’t worry, I was going to tell you, but you’ve been gone half the time and exhausted the rest. I didn’t want to worry you.”
“Is there something to worry about?” The levels that someone received talents doubled each time, so level 4 was another talent threshold.
“Nothing at all. I was worried about it, but it turned out to be nothing. Please don’t tell anyone about it though. You know how people can be.”
Dyani did know. She’d seen how her mother was treated with suspicion and fear her whole life. Besides, the only people she might consider telling were Veraine, Nodin, Daggan, or Pikawon, and she wouldn’t even do that now, if her mother wanted to keep it secret.
Dyani wanted to ask about the new talent, but she knew that would open her up for the same question, and she realized that she wasn’t ready to share her level 2 talent yet.
While it had technically alleviated the restrictions on skill usage from her level 1 talent, she was still far from skilled enough to make full use of it. Even the fully functional Mana Jump wasn’t as polished as it could be. Since she hadn’t had another skill that used force mana to examine, she hadn’t known the exact affinity to give the conductive inside and insulated outsides of the conduits, and had been forced to improvise all the modifiers from the stamina-based Jump skill. She’d compensated by making everything thicker and more robust, but that made the skill less mana efficient.
She wanted to reveal herself to the world as a victor, and underdog prodigy, not just someone who’d had one unlucky talent then a lucky break.
So she didn’t ask about her mother’s new talent, and Nymin didn't offer. They both had their own issues, but Dyani knew they’d talk about each when they were ready.
Nymin had no issue about asking about her other activities and accomplishments.
“What made you think fighting monsters made of sewage was a good idea? You’re lucky you’ve only gotten sick from it once. And why didn’t you tell me when you did get sick from a monster?”
“I kind of told you about the Plover Moss. I just didn’t tell you where I found it.” It was a weak excuse, and she knew it. “Maybe I should’ve told you, but you would’ve just stopped me, and then I’d still be level 1.”
“Would that be so bad? Most people talk at least a year to reach level 2, even if they’re working hard.”
“Yes! I should be in the guild, with my friends, right now. But I got handed a joke of a talent, so I had to catch up. I started out behind.”
“Are you at least being safe? I knew you were going to fight monsters as soon as you could swing a stick around like a sword. I’ve accepted it. But I thought you’d been doing it with training and supervision, and in daylight, not in some sewer.”
“It’s not like I wanted to. But the guild wouldn’t take me.”
This conversation made her realize something. She could join the Slayers Guild right now, and her desire to master her talent wasn’t the only thing keeping her away.
Dyani was having fun. For all the danger and the smell, she was living out her childhood dream with her friend. A friend who couldn’t just join the guild, since there was no way that news would go unnoticed.
“I’m safe, mom. My friend Pikawon is a really good fighter, and I’m getting pretty good too. And we’ve got official badges and everything.” Dyani got up to retrieve her inspector token, which served both as a badge of office and an information recording device. “I might've started alone, but this is my job now, I’m a Sewer Inspector.”
Nymin peered at the badge in surprise.
“I didn’t realize the city was still bothering with that anymore. Most people just install wards on their plumbing to keep monsters from getting through. It was only a big problem before I was born.”
Dyani shrugged.
“They pay me to do what I was already doing. Someone must think it’s important.”
After some more reassurance, and a promise to introduce Nymin and Pikawon when it was convenient that Dyani was hoping to put off as long as possible, her mother left, if not satisfied, at least more informed.
Dyani looked at the Crystallize Mana core, but during the conversation, the day’s exhaustion had eclipsed her excitement. She could study it tomorrow.
Dyani settled into bed with the skill core under her pillow.