Chapter 51: The Second Fragment I

Leo rubbed his shoulder and winced. Allan sent him a disapproving frown.

“Don’t touch it,” he said. The [Healer] rolled up their remaining bandages and stored them in his bag. He’d used them to form a crude sling for Leo’s arm after he’d finished setting his shoulder.

Leo sighed, but nodded. The actual process of popping the shoulder had been painful, to say the least, but it did feel significantly better now that the bone was back in its socket.

Allan had used [Mend] to fix some of the tearing too, which had further soothed the pain, but the area was still a bit tender. According to Allan, even after [Mend] he should still take it easy for a few days, but having one working arm made Leo antsy.

It was ironic, he thought. It seemed like every time they went after a fragment, he came out of it with an injured arm. The scars from his broken fingers during the store theft and prison break still lingered on his hand.

Leo glanced around. The group had taken shelter in a small thicket of trees growing off the side of the road. They were close enough to still be able to see the dirt path, but the branches provided a little more cover. Though, with the wall of light ever present in the sky, night would probably never get as dark as it used to.

“Are you going to use the fragment?”

Leo glanced over at Spade, who sat a little ways away. Her grey eyes coolly watched the road through the gaps in the trees.

He frowned, a hand flying to his bag. The fragment lay securely nestled beside the stolen crests. Leo carefully pulled it out.

Under the combined luminosity of the moonlight and the Sovereign’s glowing magic barrier, the specks of golden light drifting within its glass-like interior were more apparent than ever. They moved on their own even when he didn’t shake the fragment, Leo noted. It was as if the little lights were alive.

“It’s another minor one?” Allan asked, curious, and Leo nodded. It seemed like major fragments, assuming they indeed existed, would be harder to find.

“You’re going to absorb this one too?”

Leo nodded. “Yeah, I’m pretty sure I’ll be able to.” He would be lying if he said he didn’t have a few doubts; he hadn’t run into anyone with more than one fragment yet, after all, and there was always a chance that absorbing multiple fragments could have some sort of side effect.

In the end, though, the risk was worth it considering the potential benefits. Leo rolled the fragment around once more in his hand and glanced between Allan and Spade. Both were watching him, the former more visibly nervous than the latter, but no one made a move to stop him.

Taking a deep breath, Leo squeezed his fingers around the fragment and closed his eyes, imagining it disappearing like the first one and the Tier 1 class crest had.

He waited a few seconds, then looked again. When he uncurled his fingers, the fragment was gone.

[ALERT: New class crest detected]

[ERROR: Duplicate class crest found]

[Combining class crests]

[ERROR: Class crest incomplete]

[Customizing class features and skills]

[Adjusting class options]

Leo gritted his teeth, a sudden spike of pain flaring in his head much like it had the first time. This time he was more prepared for it, but that still didn’t erase the sensation of his head being split open.

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He squeezed his uninjured hand into a fist so tightly that his hand shook, but finally the pain subsided to a dull throb, leaving only a string of notifications behind.

[You have gained 300 bonus points! You can now select how to distribute your bonus points among your party]

[Select an additional spell from the options below]

[Teleport Object - Mana cost: High. Enables the user to teleport a single nonliving object smaller than a foot in width, height, and length up to a distance of 10 feet from the object’s starting position. The object’s initial position must be within 10 feet of the user and the user must have a line of sight to the ending position. The object cannot be teleported directly into a solid material and its final position must be a certain distance away from any solid material nearby. At higher levels, the teleport distance and size limit of the object increases and the user is able to teleport more objects at once.]

[Auditory Illusion - Mana cost: Low. Enables the user to project a small auditory illusion onto a singular target. The illusion is intangible, audible only to the target, and the target must be within the user’s line of sight. The illusion must be shorter than 5 seconds in duration and contain sounds that the user is naturally able to produce without assistance. The maximum and minimum volume of the sound is the same as that of the user’s unassisted voice. At higher levels, the illusion gains duration, can target more creatures at once, and can project different types of sounds.]

[Shockwave - Mana cost: Medium. An offensive close range spell that shoots out a minor electric shockwave originating from the user. This spell does minor damage to anyone within its range excluding the user and temporarily inflicts the [Stunned] condition. The amount of damage and effectiveness of the [Stunned] condition is dependent on the target’s resistance stat. At higher levels, the spell increases range, damage, and the [Stunned] condition lasts longer.]

Once again the System had given him a low, medium, and high mana cost option. And they were damn tempting options, too.

Leo noted that this time the offensive spell option was lightning rather than fire based like it had been last time. He wondered if the System was cycling through all elemental types or if his future spell choices would always be fire or lightning. He’d have to keep an eye on that.

Either way, [Shockwave] was an attractive choice. The damage didn’t seem to be much, but that stun condition could be hugely beneficial in melee fights. If he was in a difficult position or surrounded, it would provide an opening to escape or gain the upper hand again. He certainly would’ve appreciated a spell like that when he was trying to escape Sonia’s grip.

[Auditory Illusion], meanwhile, was clearly a companion to his [Visual Illusion] spell. Leo had no doubt that the two spells would prove especially effective when combined, but the limits around it made him more hesitant.

In particular, the short range and the fact that he could only project sounds he could naturally produce significantly lowered his options. Maybe if he was better at mimicking voices it would be better, but as it stood he would probably end up using it mostly for passing messages or as a distraction. Still good, but not quite as good as he’d hoped.

It would probably become much more powerful at higher levels, Leo guessed, but he’d prefer something with greater immediate benefits. He was making do with [Visual Illusion] already. The spell wasn’t his top choice even if he’d still be happy with it.

[Teleport Object] was another appealing option. It also had some strict limits, but Leo was particularly focused on its potential synergy with his dagger throwing.

If he threw a knife 10 feet away, then used this spell on it, he could effectively double its range without losing momentum. It would also make it significantly easier to aim and harder to dodge, even with its limits in place. There were also a multitude of potential utility options for it.

Its high mana cost in addition to its strict limits, however, made Leo hesitant. [Shockwave] comparatively cost less, but for that spell, there was the danger of hitting allies. Spade was definitely a close range fighter, and if Allan chose to continue using his axe, then he would be as well. [Teleport Object] provided a good deal more flexibility.

His current fighting style mostly relied on evasion, speed, and misdirection. [Teleport Object] would complement that more, but [Shockwave] could patch up a weakness if he ever found himself in a worst-case scenario.

Leo groaned and tugged at his hair. He could spend ages deliberating this if he wanted.

He decided to consider possible future spell options as well. [Auditory Illusion]’s presence showed that the System had remembered his first spell pick and was giving him more options within its vein. “Illusion spells” had been added to the System’s internal database on him.

If Leo went with [Shockwave], he guessed lightning based spells and more offensive spells in general would be given as future options. On the other hand, the System had already been listing offensive spells unprompted. Maybe it would lock in elemental damage type.

If he chose [Teleport Object] and his theory was right, on the other hand, then he might unlock more spatial magic spells in the future, and the thought was very tempting.

Leo swallowed. Screw it, he thought. He’d always preferred more versatile options anyway.

[You have learned the spell Teleport Object]