Chapter 304 - Explorer gossip (Patreon)

Helena spent two days sleeping in Risli's hut. She wasn't comatose, but she needed constant doses of both a numbing spell to stop her body from burning, and a healing spell to stop these episodes. She didn't take any damage from the burn. It was something similar to the phantom pain of burn victims. However, thanks to Risli, Helena was already doing much better. The pain was still there, but only at random times, and the episodes were not that painful or long. Delaying their departure ended up being a great thing for a number of reasons, including that the guild had set up an advanced outpost in the Wailing Valley. It was very bare-bones, but they would have access to things like a safe place to sleep, bathrooms, and a connection with the internet. With the New Dawn internet towers, it was much easier to set up a network across different rooms. It was easy to move the structures around since they were made to be the size of a camping backpack before being deployed. However, it was a one-time thing. Once the tower was set up, it couldn't be removed from the area unless destroyed. This was the basic structure that the guild could set up before being comfortable for people to go there, and now, every room until the Wailing Valley had that.

Shane was extremely happy and went to Hera's house right after she got the text about the room.

"Hey, hey! We can go now. Are you guys ready? How long do you need to pack your things?" Shane was almost like a puppy, running around and excited by everything.

"I don't think we are. Did I tell you about Helena? She's still recovering from the… procedure," Hera explained in a low voice. They were just outside her house, and she didn't want the other dwarves to hear and start asking questions again.

"Oh, right. Sorry I spaced out about that. How is she holding up?" Shane pulled back most of her excitement.

"I don't know. She's been with Risli, one of the healers here, for a few days. Just to be safe, you know. I went visiting, but you know how she is. She won't say if things are bad. Still, she should be coming back today," Hera gestured for Shane to come inside, but the explorer didn't move.

"I'm ok, thanks. If we still have to wait for Lena, it's better if I let Mylo know. I got overly excited and told him to start packing," Shane scratched the back of her head.

"Can't you just send him a text?"

"I can, but he's so cute when he's angry," Shane giggled.

"Now you are just being mean," Hera shook her head with a smile.

"Fine, I'll let him know as long as you accompany me to the guild. We ended up not talking about the roles and those guys."

"That's true. Sure I'll go with you. But how can we talk about them, won't people know?"

"Instead of their name, say the room they are from. In the green one's case, let's just say test. Unless you can do that green barrier thing while we are moving," Shane suggested.

"I can't. That one is stationary. But I never tried it in a car. Maybe that would work," Hera mumbled.

"We can test it later. Just avoid very specific information, oh and don't talk about appearance. That might trigger the bad ending," Shane added.

"Did it happened to you?" Hera asked, understanding that she shouldn't discuss how the guides looked out in the open.

"Nope, a friend of mine. She was going to talk… appendages? Limbs? Are tentacles considered limbs? Anyway, she got frozen."

"Right… isn't it better to wait until we are alone for that subject? I don't want to risk it," Hera said.

"Sure. We can start talking roles. What did you get again?"

"Assassin first, then hunter," Hera said.

"Oh, going for a combat route?" Shane started walking with Hera.

"Not really. Assassin was a conscious decision. I wanted to get better at hiding, but hunter sort of happened. I got a rank in increased stamina and got the test. I had a choice to go for controller and fighter, but hunter seemed more useful. What I really wanted was to get mage," Hera sighed, it's been a long time since she was trying to get the mage role, but her magic-related skills were stuck at rank 4.

"Oh, please don't. Like, if it's your dream or whatever, that's fine. But mage is like the worst role skill we can get," Shane said.

"Why? I mean, using spells for less mana sounds amazing."

"Yeah, sure, and the buff in damage works fine, but the problem is the elemental mana," Shane got a candy bar from her pocket, broke it into two pieces, and offered one to Hera.

"Thanks," Hera took the candy.

"So, as I was saying. If you are a mage, that's fine. All your mana is from one element, and that's it. We have to learn how to use different types of mana at the right time. It's all fine if you have time to focus, but imagine being in the middle of a fight and having to stop to pick the right type of mana for a spell."

"That seems… hard."

"You can say that again," Shane sighed, "I've been doing this for 9 years, and I still can't make it work the way it should. Mage was my first role skill."

"So… what do you suggest?"

"Honestly? What you are already doing. Keep working on your skills and get them as you get the tests. If there are two options, just pick the one you like the best. I'm giving you a heads up just so you won't be let down as I was, but at the end of the day, you are the one who has to live with the decision. It's better if you pick what you want even if it ends up being bad."

Hera stopped to think for a moment. There was a lot she didn't know about the role skills. She did try to look for that information online, but it was hard to trust things when the results were so different. Each person would have a unique experience with the role skills, and it seemed hard to get some perspective from an unbiased source.

"Do you mind if I get your opinion when I get the next role quest?" Hera asked.

"Sure, you have my number already. I just can't promise that I'll be able to reply right away. Just so you know, I went for mage, crafter, researcher, hunter, and controller," Shane nodded, "Although… I do have a thing to ask of you if you don't mind."

"If I can do it, I'm happy to help."

"It's not about helping me, but about helping yourself. Lena mentioned you had some issues with someone back in the guild. A mage with pink hair? Soot, cinder, or something, right?"

"Do you mean Ashe? The guy who attacked me when I got my first level?" Hera turned to Shane.

"Yeah, that asshole. Do you still think he deserves to be punished?"

"Not really. I mean, I'm fine now, and in the end, everything worked out."

"Then go tell the guild you forgive him. There will be a very uncomfortable video call, and then just move on. Cut that tie loose," Shane added.

"Why? Do you know him?"

"I don't, but you are not the first, nor the last person that had issues with random people. When Mylo was a recruit, there was this other guy in his class that, for some reason, really hated him. A month after they graduated, the guy tried to attack Mylo when he was coming back from a hunt. There were guards around who stopped him, and he got a similar punishment. At first, Mylo was just pissed, but a few months went by, and he just forgot about the dude. Mylo spent a couple of years in the MAZE, never going back to where he trained, and when he did, he figured out that the guy ended up in a gang, then he was arrested, and someone killed him in jail. That broke Mylo for a long time. He almost gave up being an explorer, even if it wasn't his fault," Shane stopped walking and look Hera in the eye, "I agree with that punishment system the guild set up, but only up to the point where people don't let others suffer without reason. When it goes past that, it is bad for everyone."

Hera stared at Shane, "Yeah, I get it. I mean, it's hard to argue with a story like that. I saw him after I visited my family, but there was so much going on that I just lashed out."

"Hey, no one is perfect. And I get it. Family can make us crazy sometimes. Also, if you still don't feel comfortable forgiving him and going through all that, it's fine. I just wanted to talk to you about that because of Mylo."

"Does he know? About me having that thing with Ashe?"

"He doesn't, and it's not like I'm hiding it from him. It's just not the type of thing I'll make a point to tell him. And again, this is not about Ashe. I don't give a fuck about some asshole who attacked a recruit while they were leveling up. I just don't want another good explorer feeling guilty about someone else's life," Shane smiled, "Considering how much you helped Lena, the least I could do is look out for you."

"Thanks, and I'll talk to the guild. But since we are talking about help. Any advice about what skills I should try to get? Or even better, do you know if we can upgrade our relic without having to complete a hidden quest during the role test?" Hera asked.

"Oh, there are a few ways. Some are temporary, and others very complicated. Tell me more about your relic, and I'll see if I can give you some tips. Actually, let me start by explaining what I did to mine. Maybe it can give you some ideas," Shane started walking again.

They discussed both their relics and how to make them stronger. Shane had a gauntlet that could function as a sensor, a grappling hook, and even a pickaxe for mining. There were a myriad of other useful tools that she had put in the relic using the crafter role skill. There were some combat capabilities, like focusing the mana in her spells or creating and storing bombs that could be used as projectiles. There was a bit of automation, like in some crafting games. As long as the gauntlet received enough mana and materials, those projectiles could be built almost instantly.

After hearing about how Hera fought and her focus on ailments, Shane had quite a few ideas. Aside from the suggestion of getting the crafter role, she suggested using the mana reinforcement spell to coat the threads before cutting them out and using them to attack or make traps. One possibility was even to wrap her chakram with several threads, each coated with a different type of mana reinforcement, or even each with a different spell. This wasn't something that Hera had ever considered. For one, she didn't know how to make the mana reinforcement stay without a constant supply of mana. However, now that she had the [Shaper of Mana] skill, things might be different.

Other upgrades could also come with the role quests given by the MAZE, and apparently, even her other roles skills could end up triggering a quest, but those were hard to come by, and no one knew how to make them appear.

"Oh, also. If you finish a role test and get an upgrade you don't like, try complaining about it," Shane added as they were getting close to the guild.

"What? Really? Would that work?"

"Oddly, yeah. Our friend will be annoyed, but it can work if you give a good reason why something else can be better and fit with the role. When I got the crafter one, the upgrade was like a radar for materials, but I can already cover all that with one of the skills my gauntlet has and a spell to buff it. I showed some schematics I was working on, and the upgrade changed to match those," Shane pulled up her right arm and tapped the metal gauntlet.

Hera never realized that the explorer was wearing her relic. It looked more like a long glove than an actual gauntlet, but there was a small bracer in the middle with a couple of slots that should be where those projectiles would be stored. Shane put some mana into the relic and it changed, becoming a large steel gauntlet that covered most of her forearm.

Arriving at the guild, Shane had to pick up a package while Hera asked to set up a call with Ashe. It was late, and he would probably only receive that information tomorrow. Hera appreciated that since it wasn't something she was that excited to do. Before heading out, Shane pulled Hera towards the private rooms for shopping and showed a few skills that could help Hera as an explorer.

She ended up getting most of them since they were at most B ranks, and Hera had a lot of money to spare. Besides, even if she got those compendiums now, it would take some time to manage to actually get those skills. They split off after leaving the guild, and Hera went back home. Helena should be leaving Risli's today too, and if everything went well, they would be leaving Boothudurn in the next few days.