Chapter 84 – The Final Stretch (Patreon)

I continued working with Lis, teaching him all my Healer spells. After each spell, Lis usually needed a day to regenerate before we would move on to the next spell. During his breaks, I continued to practice with stones and had five stone balls in my fruit basket—or maybe now it was my “stones basket”?

He had already learned Healing Touch, Neutralize Poison, and Regrow Flesh. We were working on Fortify Life Force when Mahya came running and shouted, "I got it!" I got it!”

Lis had a massive smile on his face, but I was completely unaware of the reason for her excitement.

“What exactly did you get?”

“Look!”

_______________________________ 

Under the tutelage of a gifted Magitech Inventor and Engineer,
you have shown immense aptitude and a talent for magical engineering.

New class unlocked: [Magicaneer]

Would you like to take the Magicaneer Class as your sub-class?

Cost: 3 Ability Points

Y/N

________________________________

“Are you going to take it?” I asked.

“Of course not. I’m not taking a paid class; I’m not an idiot...”

I winced.

“... Now that I have unlocked the option, I will continue to upgrade my achievements until I get it for free.”

I hugged her and said, “Congratulations!”

I turned to Lis. “I don’t understand something,” I said. “Lis, you said that you can’t get double benefits from the system. But Mahya bought her engineering skills from the system, so how did she unlock the class?”

"We didn't work with her acquired engineering skills; we worked with something completely unrelated."

“So?”

“She acquired engineering skills in space exploration and artificial intelligence. We worked on converting tech to Magitech, which are two unrelated subjects. The Guidance doesn’t penalize you for buying skills, so even if you buy something, it will not stop you from exploring different branches or aspects of a field of knowledge. You simply can’t get a class with the aid of bought skills.”

“Cool! You found a back door!”

“No, we didn’t; we walked in the front door like kings,” said Mahya, sticking her tongue out at me.

“Hey, where did you learn that? Did Lis infect you with the Zara disease?”

Mahya started laughing, and now Lis stuck his tongue out. Like I said, the Zara disease. Mahya started laughing harder, and I joined her. Lis shook his head in annoyance and smiled.

I continued to work with Lis on spells, and he learned Fortify Life Force and Neutralize Curse. We switched to the spell Restore, but I couldn't teach it to him no matter what we tried. I had a tough time even aligning his mana into the correct pattern, and if I did, it was for a second and no more, and he couldn't duplicate it.

We decided that maybe the Restore spell was too complicated, so we switched to Adaptable Light Ball, and the same thing happened. I had a lot of trouble directing his mana into the correct pattern, and he couldn't learn it; it was as if something prevented it. We switched to Absorb Mana, and he learned it without the difficulties we experienced with the other two spells.

"Did you buy the Restore and Adaptable Light Ball?" Lis asked.

"Yes."

"So, it could be that our difficulty stems from the fact that these are bought spells and not your spells. Perhaps the guidance doesn't allow you to teach bought spells."

"It could very well be; otherwise, I can't find any explanation."

"Show me your personal information again."

I opened it, and Lys said, "I see you have Spellbinding. It seems a bit out of character."

I rubbed my neck uncomfortably, feeling embarrassed. "I used it to rob my in-laws."

Lis started laughing and said, "Oh, that explains it. But keep in mind that this spell is useful in many less criminal situations, so don't give it up."

“Okay.”

"Let's do another test to make sure our theory is correct. Teach me the spell Heat."

The same thing happened again; I couldn't teach him the spell no matter what we tried. As far as we were concerned, this was proof that the system doesn’t allow you to teach spells that you didn’t "earn" on your own.

“Okay, let's switch. Look at my information and see what spells you want.” Said Lis.

_________________

Name: Lissarom “Lis” Munyon

Age: 29 (451)

Display Class: Psionic Swordsman, Level 69

 Psionic Swordsman Spells & Skills

Swordsmanship – 25
Ethereal Blade - 22
Psionic Blast - 13
Mental Attack – 17
Bladed Weapons Mastery - 23
Mind Control – 12
Psychic Shield - 15
Confuse Senses – 11
Mind Cleave - 20
Dual Wielding – 23
Create Illusions – 9
Blade Telekinesis - 10
Spellbind – 5
Strike Dash – 18
Mental Fortitude - 15
Mesmerize – 3
Telepathy - 14
Hypnotize - 5

Hidden Class: Gate Traveler Level 23

Gates to the next level: 111/278

Gate Traveler Abilities

Conversion
Travelers’ Archive
Identify - 25
Storage – x5 (8,000m3)
Local Adaptation:
  Spoken Language
  Written Language
  Runes/Magic Script
Map
One of the Crowd
Mind Index

Sub-Class 2: Scholar Level 38

Scholar Skills

Independent Thinking – 25
Arcane Insight - 20
Intellectual Vigor – 19
Fast Search- 21
Foresight – 19
Mind Palace - 18
Cross Reference - 19
Commitment to Tasks – 11
Eidetic Memory - 15
Resilience in the Face of Adversity - 6
Intellectual Honesty - 12
Systematic Approach - 3

Sub-Class 3: Magitech Inventor & Engineer Level 2

Magitech Inventor & Engineer Skills

Designing - 3
Innovation - 2
Copy Blueprint - 9

Profession: Researcher Level 57

Researcher Skills

Attention to Detail – 20
Data Synthesis – 22
Innovative Thinking - 18
Critical Thinking – 12
Empirical Analysis - 20
Problem-Solving – 24
Resource Management – 19
Cognitive Mapping - 18
Communication - 17
Troubleshooting - 23
Collaboration – 17
Knowledge Extraction - 15
Erase Previous Knowledge - 6
Analytical Thinking - 16
Analysis - 14

Sub-Profession 1: Scrivener Level 14

Scrivener Spells & Skills

Copy Text - 21
Copy Magical Text - 24
Perfect Visual Memory - 19
Scroll Duplication - 16
Illustration - 6

Sub-Profession 2: Merchant Level 10

Merchant Skills

Bargain - 19
Sense Honesty - 23
Appraisal - 17
A Nose for Business – 22
Inventory - 1

Sub-Profession 3: Alchemist Level 7

Alchemist Skills

Potion Brewing - 11
Sense Plant - 13
Mana Flame- 4
Infuse- 6

General Spells

Fire Ball - 12
Mana Dart - 6
Mana Shield – 25
Wayfinder - 25
Ice Domain - 17
Clean - 25
Minor Heal - 25
Mend – 25
Trail Blazer - 21
Purify - 25
Light – 25
Terrain Adaptation - 22
Peaceful Night - 25
Invisibility – 25
Weather Ward - 23
Protection Dome - 11
Telekinesis – 25
Erasure – 19
Healing Touch
Neutralize Poison
Regrow Flesh
Fortify Life Force
Neutralize Curse
Absorb Mana

_____________________

I looked at his profile, and he was very impressive.

“You’re a Merchant like me!” I exclaimed.

“I told you I have the Luck trait, no?”

“Yes, but I thought it was from some other class.”

“No, from my Merchant class. Many Travelers have this class because we sell and buy so much to fund our travels.”

"You’re also an Alchemist?!" I asked.

"Yeah, I thought you knew."

"How would I know? You never said anything."

"Because I wanted to find the mother snake nest for the eggs."

"I thought to sell."

"I keep telling you that money has long ceased to interest me. No, I wanted the eggs to make anti-venom and anti-poison potions."

"Do you have any books on alchemy?"

"Yes."

"Did you let me copy them?"

"No, I gave you everything magic-related. Why? Are you interested in alchemy? Don't get too carried away; you have too many things to focus on."

"Right now, it doesn't interest me; maybe in the future. But Alfonsen is an alchemist; I thought of him."

"The boy’s an alchemist? I never would have guessed. He doesn't seem to have the right temperament."

"He took the class because he wanted the Vitality stats."

“Idiot.”

“Why?”

"You'll never progress very far with something if you're not passionate about it. My Merchant and Alchemist classes are relatively low; I took them primarily for their practicality rather than out of genuine interest. At least the Merchant gave me Luck.”

"I see that the Merchant class has inventory. Is it like our Storage?”

“No, you’ll see. I use it only for the money count option.”

“Okay. I want Create Illusions, Mind Index, Copy Blueprint, Copy Text, and Scroll Duplication.”

"I can't teach you Mind Index; it's a skill, not a spell, but the rest is fine."

“You said you had Clarity; I don’t see it.”

"It's a Trait or an attribute, as you call it. It’s on my Traits list.”

“Why can’t I see your attributes?”

“I didn’t want to dishearten you.”

“They really are that higher?”

“Yes.”

Now I stuck my tongue at him, and he laughed.

We started working on Create Illusions. Once more, I placed my hands on the backs of his hands, immersing myself in his mana. I split my mind, directing the other half to study the spell's pattern.

He cast the spell repeatedly, so I could see its pattern, but it was different. I couldn't see a pattern, unlike when I directed him to learn my spells. I could feel some of the spell's aspects, but I couldn't see or locate the pattern.

It was strange because I could see the parts I had already learned. I could see the shell that maintained the spell's integrity, the intricate lattice pattern at its edges that safeguarded against mana leakage and spell collapse, and certain aspects, especially those I had prior familiarity with. However, despite my best efforts, I was unable to discern the pattern. Our attempts continued fruitlessly until Lis depleted his mana reserves.

"Give me a day to regenerate, and we'll try a different spell."

“Okay,” I said dejectedly.

"Cheer up; I'm sure we'll find a solution." Lis tried to encourage me.

We tried all of the spells I had chosen for five days without success. It felt like my class prevented me from seeing the pattern and allowed me to see only the structure of the spell. And because I didn't have enough knowledge, I couldn't see all the parts that made up the spell. After five days, we gave up; we saw it wouldn't work.

After we gave up on the spells, I asked Lis, "Do you have books besides Alchemy that you didn't give me?"

"Yes, a lot."

"Can I copy them?"

"Yes, but you'll need to purchase the Copy Text spell. Otherwise, it'll take months to copy everything, and you'll have to ask Mahya and Alfonsen for help. Some books contain diagrams with runes or magic script, so you'll need parchment."

I checked, but there wasn't much parchment, so we decided that Lis would take the E-foil and go to Yangshuo to buy an ample supply of parchment. Lis had already finished building Rue’s E-foil, so the two of them went together. I recruited Mahya and Alfonsen to copy the books. They cooperated and agreed to spend the ability points to purchase the spells Copy Text and Copy Magical Text.

It seemed that my Luck attribute was working in the background, because when Mahya and I were shopping in Beijing, we bought one ton of A4 paper and split it between us.

We have now set up a production line: I would sense the book to see if it had magic, and if so, I would put it aside. If it lacked magic, I would hand it over to Mahya or Alfonsen, who would then copy the book onto paper, which I would then store.

When Mahya ran out of mana, Alfonsen and I continued, and then I continued alone. In three days, we copied more than two thousand books and finished all the books that didn’t contain magic.

When Lis returned with an extensive inventory of parchment, I sat down to infuse it with mana. After three days, with breaks to regenerate, the parchment was ready. Alfonsen wanted an E-foil two, so I sold him a "tech-operated" one, and he paid Lis to transform it into a mana-operated one.

Again, the three of us copied books until we finished his entire collection. Lis requested that I infuse all the remaining parchment and give it to him, a task that took me an additional week to complete; he had purchased a large quantity of parchment in various sizes.

Finally, we finished with the books. Lis finished building Alfonsen's E-foil, and Lis and Mahya also finished their project. It seemed that we had completed all our open tasks, and it was almost time to say goodbye.

We decide to go to Yangshuo and have fun. We wanted to spend our time together, enjoying each other's company for the final time, without any workshops or shopping. Alfonsen gave us our space; he sensed that we needed to spend the last stretch of this journey with just the three of us.