Jake was sitting in meditation when a young lady entered his room, her eyes red and swollen as if she had been crying.

“Mr Everval, sorry for the interruption, but Lady Aiya requested I give you this message.”

The lady handed Jake an envelope, then bowed and left before Jake could even say anything.

Dear Mr Everval

I was hoping I would be able to see you one last time before my punishment, but it seems that was not to be. I have told my people all about you and that if they find themselves in danger, they should come seek you out. The pink blossom has 20 branches scattered throughout your galaxy and many more outside of it, but the only ones that know about you are the 20 branches in your galaxy. If possible, I would like it if you could help my people connect with their sisters in this universe.

Don't worry about your message. I have spoken to the branch elders and they have promised they would pass on your message to the higher-ups; this, sadly, is all I can do for you until my punishment finishes.

P.S

I do hope I see you again in the future.

Jake put the letter away before thinking about the one thing he didn't ask and now regretted—if only he had asked about this punishment and if there was anything he could do to help. He felt bad now that she's gone. It took Jake three days to clear his mind and begin his work anew. Starting with the messed up healing skill, Jake first tried comprehending its function, but this became an increasingly difficult task due to not being able to use it. He first tried copying what he had learned from any similar skills he had used, but each time it would fail to form, stopping at the same point. He just didn't understand that a donation must be paid to the divinity; he just didn't understand what this divinity was, as in Jake's mind there was no one capable of fulfilling this title. Maybe if he didn't realise how weak those once powerful figures were—like the demon of death, she might be strong and could wipe him out of existence in the flick of her finger, but in the grand scheme of things, she was no bigger than a gnat. And as for Aaliyah, the one who started him down this track, she is stuck in between grades—not an S grade and not a God grade, somewhere in between. Even Aiya was only an outer sect member of a branch sect, and that is a branch sect of a minor sect to begin with. So not even they are worthy to be called a divinity. The only thing that Jake could think of is to somehow use himself as the target of the donation. This was what Jake was working on now. He was going to give it one last try before moving on; he had placed the skill to gather like a jigsaw puzzle, filling in all the spots but one. Now it was time to complete it. Jake forced his will onto the half-baked skill, forcing the last portion into place. If it wasn't for Jake using brute force on the skill, it would have never worked.

Skill

Healing Hands of the Faithful Church

Lay your hands on the faithful, imbuing healing powers into them. Each time this skill is used, a donation must be paid to the divinity.

Requirements to use: Be a servant of the Faithful Church.

Upgrade to

Skill

Healing Hands of the Faithful (Common)

Lay your hands on your target and imbue them with life energy. Each time this skill is used, a donation from the target must be paid in the form of energy to the user at a 1 to 1 ratio.

Well, that took way too long; it was like the skill fought me at every turn. Oh, I can't wait to see how long it takes to combine the next set of skills, Jake thought.

He got up from the place he had been sitting and went out onto the engawa, sitting back down on a cushion where he watched the pink blossoms and ladies going through their daily routine. The morning air bit into his body as he watched the lady who delivered Jake the letter walk over and, with all certainty, bow.

“Mr Everval, is there anything I can get you?”

Jake smiled and said, “If it is possible, I would like two cups of tea.”

Moments later, she returned with two cups and a pot. She placed the tray on the table and began pouring a cup for Jake. Once finished, she immediately went to stand back up, only for Jake to gesture for her to stay.

“I'm sorry about what happened to Aiya.” The lady just bowed her head. Jake pointed at the other cup. “Please have a cup with me; it doesn't feel right to drink alone.”

She tried to politely refuse, but with a bit of perseverance, Jake managed to at least get her to stay.

“Are the people of the Pink Blossom managing with the change?”

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“We are doing as to be expected.”

“That's good, so there's nothing amiss—no issues with the locals?”

“We have had some trouble with people getting a bit too rowdy back in the city at night. But nothing you need to worry about.”

Jake was about to ask about this place, but then he realised he hadn't heard a single person other than the lady of the Pink Blossom.

“I haven't heard any customers come or go since I've been here. Is there a problem getting people to come out here?”

“No, we actually have a waiting list for people wishing to stay here for a day or two. We just didn't want anyone to disturb you, so we have been telling everyone that asked that we had an important guest that must not be disturbed.”

“That can't be good for your funds, right? Tell me, how much would I need to cover the time I have spent here so far?”

“5,000. You haven't used anything really, so it would just be the cost of the room and the private bath.”

Jake handed over all the money he had on him.

“This is too much. Plus, your stay with us is free of charge, no matter how long or when you stay. These were the last commands of Aiya, and we will follow them to the letter.”

“This is not me paying but a simple donation.”

“A donation.”

“What? Don't you have donations?”

“No, people tend not to donate to people like us.”

“What do you mean ‘people like you’?”

“We are seen in the same way as prostitution is.”

“Yeah, but it's not like you actually sell your bodies; you just provide a service that is missing in a lot of people's lives. Good company is hard to come by, and from what I've seen, you all are very good company. Plus, on a positive note, you can get a man to tell you things no prostitute would ever hear.” Jake said the last part with a smile as he again offered the money to her. “Do you think you would like to set up some more branches in another solar system? I have access to it; it's just that once I've done a few things on Earth, I should be making a quick trip over there to get a few things ready, and I was wondering if you would like to come with me?”

“I'm not very high up when it comes to making those kinds of decisions, but I will let you know as soon as I can.”

“Good, take your time. No need to rush; I've still got a skill or more to combine, and you can let people in. As long as they don't come into my room, they won't bother me much.”

“Thank you, I will go tell my supervisor right now.”

Jake thought to himself after the girl left.

You know I don't think I even asked her name.

In a small office at the end of the accommodation area, a middle-aged woman sat behind a desk with a stack of papers towering in front of her.

“How long is that man going to stay? This bloody stack of complaints is getting too high; I can't keep postponing so many people's bookings.”

As she was saying this, the same young girl Jake was talking to earlier ran in. “Lady Hannara, I have news from that man.”

“Well, what is it? Spit it out, come on, girl.”

“He gave us a donation, then he asked if we would like to set up the pink blossom outlets in a completely different solar system. Then finally, he said that we should start letting people in; his only request is that none of them enter his room or interrupt him. It seems all he wants is a bit of privacy.”

“That seems workable.”

“About the offer to go to a new solar system with him?”

“We don't know anything about the man. If you think he's telling the truth, you go with him. You can even take a few of the girls with you; just be careful. Take little Nicky with you.”

After his tea, Jake quickly went down to the washrooms, then he had himself a relaxing soak in one of the heated rock pools before heading back to his room for another round of skills management. This time, his goal was to combine Fireball with Transmute Powder and summon a projectile. Then, to add some more firepower to the end product, he was going to try and add the skill Atomic Degradation so that each shot would hold the ability to inflict atomic degradation damage to the target. This was Jake's first time trying something on this scale, and he didn't even know if it was even possible. After all, the last time he combined skills, he had a lot of help from the system; now he was by himself.

It took Jake ten days just to figure out the basic plan on how he was going to attempt it. To make sure nothing unexpected happened, Jake would do it in steps. First, he would need to add the skill Transmute Powder; then he would need to reduce the size of the Fireball down but keep its explosive abilities as high as he could. This hopefully would give him the ability to shoot the fireball. Once that part was done, Jake would need to add the Summon Projectile skill and insert the projectile into the flame itself. Then came the bit he was most worried about, simply because he didn't know what would happen once he added the skill Atomic Degradation. This was the only way he could think of to get anywhere close to what he wanted; after all, a skill that could grow along with him he had never had before. This would mean it would become the backbone of his entire combat ability set, using shadows in a similar way to what he did in the beginning of his journey, then by adding in his race-based skills to flesh out his lack of power.

“I might be jumping the gun a bit, but it would be nice to finally sort out these messed-up skills,” Jake said before he went back into meditation and began to work on the arduous processes of combining his new skill.

“One step at a time, Jake. Test its function, then try again.”

It took twenty days to reduce the size of the fireball while keeping it at its original firepower. The size of the fireball was now a little bigger than a Tom Thumb marble and just as colourful too. It was only then that Jake heard it—there was a banging at his door.

“Get out here! How dare you take this room for yourself? If anyone should get this room, it must be me. Now get out here and face your judgement.”

“Sir, if you don't leave this area, we will have to remove you forcefully.”

“What was that? You think you can get rid of me that easily? You're just a little—Arr.”

Jake walked over to the door, opening it to see the funniest thing he had seen in a good while.

“Mr Everval, I'm sorry for the inconvenience; it won't happen again,” the young lady said as she stood on the bold old wrinkly man Jake remembered from his first visit to the Pink Blossom back in the city.