Nathan walked on for several hours. The sun beat down against him, but he didn’t feel gross or overly hot. Once again, his Constitution was probably working wonders.

Nathan stopped at the top of a dune and looked out over the desert landscape. There was a stark barrenness to the whole place. The sun reflected off the sands like a mirror. It was empty, devoid of life, nothing but the blue sky and dunes stretching on for miles and miles.

It was beautiful.

I can see why they’re so attached to this place.

Nathan continued walking.

Eventually, sand was changed out for rough, stony dirt. In the distance, Nathan caught sight of a river winding by.

Nathan walked over to it. What would he find? Black water like in his tutorial? Spirit Water? Something else entirely?

…huh, it looked pretty normal.

He walked over to the surface of the river and leaned down. The water bubbled softly. He dipped his finger inside.

Nothing happened.

Nathan tilted his head.

I should figure out if I can divert the river towards the farms. That’ll be more sustainable than the pumps we’ve been setting up in the long term.

He spotted a flash of motion.

Something was in the water.

He reached into his inventory and pulled out his fishing rod. He was feeling a bit peckish, and some fish would probably help ease his hunger.

His fishing rod dropped into the water with a splash and he sat down.

An hour ticked away. He felt the warmth of the sun on his skin and smelled the dry desert breeze.

And then he felt a tug on his fishing rod.

Instantly, his eyes snapped over toward the water, and he pulled as hard as he could. There was a loud cracking noise from his fishing rod. Before Nathan could think on this further, the fish flew through the air and slammed into his face with a loud, wet slap. Nathan flopped backward. The fish landed on his side.

Nathan rubbed his face and blinked sharply.

“Ay, Nathan!” a voice said. “I finally found you! It’s been a while since you last saw me, eh?!”

Nathan’s jaw dropped.

“Finny!”

----------------------------------------

“So let me get this straight. After you hopped through the tutorial, you lost your arm, fought against a terrorist organization, ate a Pandora, and now you’re trying to save a kingdom?”

“Well, just trying to help their food supplies.”

“Oh. You also managed to get a bunch of werewolf mercenaries on your side, turning them into members of your town?”

“It was a surprisingly amiable agreement.”

“And the whole ‘getting a personal message’ from the Sea herself is just another day in the life for you, huh?”

“Pretty much.”

Finny glared at Nathan. His body was submerged in the water while his head poked out on the surface.

“Nathan, I’m half-convinced that you’re some kind of ocean beast in the form of a human. That’s the only thing that really explains you in the slightest.”

“Unless I was dropped off by my ocean beast parents at a human home, that’s pretty unlikely.”

“Aye, I hear you.” Finny squinted his eyes. “I suppose it’s possible, but I doubt it. Based off what you’ve told me of your homeland, it didn’t have enough magic for things like that. Besides, my Inspection of you didn’t mention anything of that sort.”

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“Of course it didn’t. Like I said, I’m a perfectly normal human.”

“Except for that freakish affinity for the Sea, sure.”

Nathan tilted his head. “Affinity?”

Finny’s eyes widened. “No one’s mentioned that to you?”

“No...?”

“Well, I suppose it’s an advanced idea,” Finny said. “Remember when I mentioned your connection to the Sea? That’s what an Affinity is. Suffice it to say that all beings possess an Affinity. An Affinity could be just about anything. A concept, an element—nothing’s off the table. In your case, you’ve got a strong Affinity for the Sea—higher than most fish.”

“Interesting—is that why my weird water cultivation stuff comes so easy?”

“You’re a cultivator?!” Finny paused and groaned. “I don’t even know why I’m surprised at this point.”

Nathan smiled. It was nice to be having this conversation. Finny was a reminder of a time when Nathan was still new to the Nine Circles. A time when the worst thing he’d ever dealt with was a bad grade and his parents’ expectations.

Granted, the whole apocalypse stuff was probably objectively worse, but at the time of meeting Finny, it still hadn’t quite sunk in.

Besides all that, it was good to see a familiar face… especially since he’d been seperated from Chad and the rest.

“Well,” Finny said. “Glad to hear that you’ve been having a good time.” Finny paused. “What of your skills?”

Oh.

There were a bunch of skills that Nathan was supposed to be upgrading.

Finny sighed. “Please tell me that’s been on your mind, at least.”

“Er… not really?”

“Read out your quest list.”

Nathan raised an eyebrow.

“Okay?”

Nathan opened this quest menu.

[Upgrade Riptide Grasp to Silver Rank]

[Upgrade Ocean’s Embrace to Silver Rank]

[Upgrade Tidal Shield to Silver Rank]

[Upgrade Throw Harpoon to Silver Rank]

[Obtain ability: Summon Fish]

[Upgrade Class to Silver Rank]

After Nathan was done reading, he looked over at Finny.

“There’s nothing there listing the requirements?” Finny said.

“Nothing. Just a bunch of cryptic blanks.”

Finny groaned. “The Sea’s connection must be weak out here. Makes sense—deserts aren’t exactly her domain. She’s struggling to deliver the quests to you, especially since going around the System costs energy.”

“Energy?” Nathan tilted his head.

“Aye. Direct interference from a greater power—like the Sea—takes resources. And with us being in the middle of, well, a giant sandpit, the Sea’s basically running on fumes out here. No wonder you’re stuck.”

Nathan frowned. “So what now? Do I just start randomly fishing until something clicks?”

“Don’t be ridiculous,” Finny said. “I’ll figure it out for you. Stand still and don’t move.”

Nathan blinked. “Why do I need to—“

“Inspect!” Finny’s voice boomed with dramatic flair. His eyes glowed faintly, and a ripple of energy shot out from him, washing over Nathan like a wave.

“Could you not do that in such a creepy way?”

Finny ignored him, muttering under his breath as glowing symbols appeared in the air between them. “Hmm… interesting. Very interesting.”

“What’s interesting?”

“Quiet! I’m reading your data.” Finny waved a fin dismissively, his expression growing more serious. “Alright, I’ve got it. Here’s what you need to do.”

Nathan crossed his arms. “Hit me.”

“First off, Riptide Grasp,” Finny said. “There’s a mountain spring to the west. The water there’s imbued with some kind of ancient power. Classic upgrade spot. Just head over, use your powers, and do your best not to get eaten by the wildlife.”

“Eaten?”

“Mountain springs attract all sorts of nasties. But you’ll be fine. Probably.”

“Comforting. And Ocean’s Embrace?”

Finny hummed. “It seems to be related to contemplation. Your best bet is checking out the kingdom’s archives. They’ve probably got some dusty old scrolls with healing techniques to think about.”

“Contemplation?”

“Yeah, think warm fuzzy thoughts or whatever it is healers do. Honestly, I’m not much of a ‘healing’ fish.”

He means meditating.

Nathan nodded. “Alright. What about Tidal Shield?”

“Spirit Scale,” Finny said immediately. “It’s a rare material you can get from a Spirit Fish. Most durable thing on this Circle. If anything’ll spark a breakthrough, it’ll be that. There’s a rumor about one hanging around the deeper parts of the river. They’re tricky to catch, though.”

“Throw Harpoon?”

Finny rubbed his (fish) chin with his fins. “Seems like you’ll have to use the harpoon for its intended purpose. Make of that what you will.”

Nathan frowned. “I see. And the last one—Summon Fish?”

Finny’s face lit up. “It’s a contract ability. You form a bond with a powerful fish—someone like me—and I become summonable whenever you need me.”

Nathan raised an eyebrow. “What’s the catch?”

“Well…” Finny coughed awkwardly. “It’s not just me. You’ll need to make contracts with ten fish in total.”

“Ten fish? That’s… a lot of fish.”

“Yeah, but think of it this way: you’ll have an elite aquatic squad! You’ll be unstoppable in water.”

Nathan crossed his arms. “And what exactly would your ‘service’ entail? It won’t be for free, surely.”

Finny grinned mischievously. “Nothing big. Just a little favor here and there. I’ll keep it simple for you, Nathan.”

Nathan narrowed his eyes. “Simple how?”

“You’ll find out after we seal the deal,” Finny said with a wink. “Trust me, it’ll be fun.”

“That’s the most suspicious thing you’ve ever said to me.”

Finny smirked. “Aye, but you need the skill, don’t you? Besides, we’re pals. Would I steer you wrong?”

Nathan sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. “Fine. I’ll do it.”

“No promises!” Finny said. “Now, let’s get started on that contract. And don’t worry—this won’t lead you into any trouble at all.”

Nathan muttered under his breath. “Why do I feel like I’m going to regret this?”