The area around the old fort was littered with corpses, covered in branches and vines, and scarred by the results of the destructive spells we had used. The cries of the Elder Stalker-Hound and the amount of firepower we had deployed had scared most of the denizens away.
Alan only spotted a few courageous scavengers at the edges of the clearing.
Vel and I cleared the corpses of the smaller hounds away. Except for the Alphas and the Elder, they had nothing worthwhile to harvest. Or more precisely, it wasn't worth the effort to. Hamak was busy carefully extracting valuable ingredients from the Elder's body while Katherine and Gwynn did the same with the rest.
Darrel kept watch while Elyssa prepared a meal.
Once we were done, I enjoyed some time with Vel. The last few days had been hectic and stressful, much more than usual. It felt good to hold her close and just … be for a while.
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The rest of the night went by.
Without the threat of a sudden attack, the watch was much more relaxing. I spent more than an hour simply running my hands through Vel's hair while meditating. Watching the world slowly moving forward through my sphere. The ebbs and flow of ambient mana creating mesmerizing patterns.
Then morning did as well. I snuggled with Vel inside of an improvised hammock strung between two sturdy walls.
By mid-day, everyone was well rested.
Vel cooked some of our Jagras meat for lunch. The scent would attract some visitors but we would be gone by then.
I took that time to sort through my system messages.
Your group has defeated [Elder Stalker-Hound (Level 236, Rank 6; Apprentice Shadow Mage)]
Experience gain reduced by 70% or fighting with a group
Experience gain increased by 100% for defeating a monster above your rank
Experience gain increased by 200% for fighting a deadly encounter
Experience gain increased by 200% for fighting an elite monster
Essence Absorption collected 18 ES (6x3)
Your group has defeated [Alpha Stalker-Hound (Level 180-210, Rank 6)] x 6
Experience gain reduced by 70% or fighting with a group
Experience gain increased by 100% for defeating a monster above your rank
Experience gain increased by 100% for fighting a dangerous encounter
Experience gain increased by 100% for fighting an alpha
Essence Absorption collected 108 ES (6x3x6)
Your group has defeated [Alpha Stalker-Hound (Level 170-179, Rank 5)] x 9
Experience gain reduced by 70% or fighting with a group
Experience gain increased by 100% for fighting a dangerous encounter
Experience gain increased by 100% for fighting an alpha
Essence Absorption collected 135 ES (5x3x9)
Your group has defeated [Mature Stalker-Hound (Level 165-175, Rank 5)] x 26
Experience gain reduced by 70% or fighting with a group
Experience gain increased by 50% for fighting a dangerous encounter
Experience gain increased by 50% for fighting a group
Essence Absorption collected 390 ES (5x3x26)
Your group has defeated [Stalker-Hound (Level 150-170, Rank 5)] x 53
Experience gain reduced by 70% or fighting with a group
Experience gain increased by 50% for fighting a group
Essence Absorption collected 795 ES (5x3x53)
Essence cap of 1000 reached, 450 ES overflow
Reached Level 171 (Rank 5, +18 levels)
Gained: 130 ES (3x18 + 12x4 + 14x2)
Essence cap of 1000 reached, 130 ES overflow
Even with my essence nearly depleted, I had overflowed again. At this rate, I was on track to run out of skills to improve and attributes to increase before I reached rank six. Though with the Skill Deck perk, I could swap out some out for fresh ones and raise those. Something to consider when I reached that point.
According to Darrel, we still had a few days of travel until we reached the guild. And the jungle wouldn't get less dangerous. Which meant more encounters and more essence. I also still needed to be careful and keep enough essence in reserve to get Arachne Body to its maximum level and raise key skills, or purchase new ones, once I evolved my classes at rank six.
I set the threshold, somewhat arbitrarily, at half of my maximum capacity or five hundred essence and got to work. The first objective was to raise every class skill to rank five.
Raised Skill Mystic Armor to rank 5, level 1 for 30 ES (+120 levels)
Raised Skill Mystic Weapon to rank 5, level 1 for 30 ES (+120 levels)
Raised Skill Phantasmal Swap to rank 5, level 1 for 20 ES (+80 levels)
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Raised Skill Phantasmal Mirror to rank 5, level 1 for 35 ES (+140 levels)
Raised Skill Phantasmal Veil to rank 5, level 1 for 35 ES (+140 levels)
Raised Skill Runic Casting to rank 5, level 1 for 20 ES (+80 levels)
Raised Skill Runic Inscription to rank 4, level 1 for 15 ES (+60 levels)
Raised Skill Crystal Growth to rank 4, level 1 for 15 ES (+140 levels)
Raised Skill Spirit Magic to rank 5, level 1 for 35 ES (+140 levels)
Raised Skill Spirit Familiar to rank 5, level 1 for 35 ES (+140 levels)
Raised Skill Spirit Summon to rank 5, level 1 for 35 ES (+140 levels)
Raised Skill Spirit Contract to rank 5, level 1 for 35 ES (+140 levels)
Raised Skill Language Mastery to rank 4, level 6 for 15 ES (+60 levels)
Raised Skill Eye of the Farseer to rank 4, level 1 for 15 ES (+60 levels)
Raised Skill Shroud of secrecy to rank 4, level 1 for 15 ES (+60 levels)
Raised Skill Major Arcana to rank 4, level 1 for 15 ES (+60 levels)
Raised Skill Minor Arcana to rank 4, level 1 for 15 ES (+60 levels)
Raised Skill Split Deck to rank 4, level 1 for 15 ES (+60 levels)
Raised Skill Spell Duplication to rank 4, level 1 for 15 ES (+60 levels)
Raised Skill Spell Synthesis to rank 4, level 1 for 15 ES (+60 levels)
Raised Skill Cutting Thread to rank 4, level 20 for 15 ES (+60 levels)
Raised Skill Spider Climb to rank 4, level 20 for 15 ES (+60 levels)
Raised Skill Poison Synthesis to rank 4, level 12 for 15 ES (+60 levels)
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We left the fort soon after lunch. All the ingredients were harvested, we didn't have anything left to do here. I even thoroughly checked for hidden chambers but, unlike the one near Niu, this fort didn't have one I could detect. The stairs to the underground levels were filled with earth and stone and, from looking through my sphere, the entire complex below ground seemed to have suffered multiple collapses. The passage of time had then slowly filled them.
The effects of our fight could still be felt. Most of the local fauna kept to themselves and we encountered only a few monsters. And nearly all of those retreated quickly. The few that didn't were cut down quickly. Even with the Stalker-Hounds dealt with, we all remained on our guard. The monstrous flora, being mostly stationary, was unaffected by all of this. It mattered very little to a Sundew Devourer what landed inside of its sticky tendrils, we were all food and experience after all.
With plenty of calm, I took the opportunity to give Alan some improvements of his own. His smaller crow form was compact and stealthy, good for reconnaissance, but lacked some punch. With the increased level of his supporting skill, I had more leeway to design his body. A larger size meant I could pack a bigger spirit core inside to give Alan more options.
For his flying form, I used traits from eagles and owls. His body doubled in length to eighty centimeters with an impressive wingspan. Dark silver patterns ran alongside his wings and tail. The marks of a spirit familiar. Rather than focus physical strength, I put emphasis on stealth with the ability to conceal his presence with the Shadow Cloak skill. I rounded out his skills with Spirit Casting to give him more versatility.
Shadow Cloak (Cost: 8 ES 6 ES, Familiar Skill)
Your familiar can cloak itself in shadows to evade detection.
The stealth bonus increases with each familiar rank (current: 100 levels)
Spirit Casting (Cost: 8 ES 6 ES, Familiar Skill)
Your familiar gains the ability to prepare and cast their own spirit spells.
Gains 1 major slot and 2 minor slots per spirit magic rank.
Familiar Template [Night Eagle-Owl] created
I have an improved form for you, I said to Alan. Want to test it out?
Yes. Alan answered. Alan wants to see the new form the great mistress created.
He landed on my outstretched arm. I scratched his head a few times before dismissing him. A few seconds later, I summoned him again in his new form. Even though I knew what he would look like, I was still surprised at the weight on my arm. Twice the size meant eight times the volume and, therefore, the weight.
"Wow," I said with a grin. "You're pretty big now."
Alan let out a cute little hoot. Alan likes it.
"Good, good," I caressed his soft feathers.