Chapter 76: A Classy Ascention (Patreon)

At long, long last! It is time!

Enjoy!

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Even with his Paths selected, he still needed to figure out what order he wanted to take them. Fortunately, this wasn’t nearly as tricky. All that mattered was he took them in approximate order of how cool he thought they were, with perhaps a slight eye towards estimating which Skill each Path might evolve.

His Attribute paths absolutely would have to be first, as Attributes wouldn’t increase until he’d unlocked them. He couldn’t imagine their order mattered all that much, so he’d just go with what he already had- Path Less Traveled, Scout, Athlete, and finally Unkillable. Then after that….

Completed Paths

CharLimitCanttalkmuchNocluewhathappenedDidmybesttohelpyouli, Mage, Skilled Arcanist, Physical Alchemist, Bomber, Linguist, Beginner, Warrior

Prospective Paths

Blackstone Conqueror, Superior Alchemist, Adventurer, Explorer, Outsider, Skill Researcher, Wanderer, (One or two of Alchemical Warrior, Assassin, Giant Slayer, Trapper, Warrior), (two or three of Mage, Novice Pyromancer, Novice Ritualist, Skilled Arcanist), (two or three of Alchemist, Physicist, Engineer, Scientific Revolutionary, Scientist), (one of Physical Alchemist, Physical Arcanist), (one of Alchemical Medic, Field Medic, Biologist), (one or two of Makeshift Alchemist, Practical Alchemist), (one or two of Fey Scion, Feytouched)

Edwin tapped his leg in thought. Did he really need even two Trophy Paths? Superior Alchemist was a must, as it fed too well into his overall hopes for this tier. Blackstone Conqueror, though… What might that give him? There wasn’t even the slimmest of chances that it would give him some way to summon Blackstone, not that he needed another reason for the dwarves to come after him. In a few Tiers it might, though. Should he save it for that possibility, then? A single Trophy Path was probably enough. He could reassess later on if he felt like he might benefit from a second, but for now his inclination was no.

He struck Blackstone Conqueror from the list. He felt like he could get a better Skill from it in a few years, and he was unlikely to re-earn it.

Hmmmmm…..

Okay, put off the decision for combat choices at the moment. He did want both Makeshift Alchemist and Practical Alchemist, and combine that with his science choices…. Alchemist, Physicist, and Engineer. Not that he didn’t want the others, but those threeformer seemed decidedly more practical for the time being. He’d take Physical Arcanist to avoid overspecializing, and then… Novice Pyromancer and Ritualist. Maybe he was breaking his rule to take generalities instead of specific paths, but it was in an effort to branch out his available skills, to break into new fields- Rituals- and leverage his existing strength- fire.

After all, the story of human advancement is just the story of mastering fire.

By that token, he’d go with the more unconventional option of Biologist over his actual medic Paths, as it was once again leveraging what made him different to great use. He’d also go with Alchemical Warrior as well. It didn’t make sense for him to not leverage that particular strength as much as possible, and it wouldn’t require as much setup at the time as traps nor the subtlety of assassinations. Warrior and Giant Slayer were in turn perhaps too broad for his purposes at the moment.

That meant he could go with both Fey Scion and Feytouched. Excellent. He didn’t want to have to choose between them, they both seemed good in their own way.

He took a deep breath and began.

You have completed the Path Less Traveled path!

Your exploits have garnered even the attention of the System. Going forward, keep in mind all that you have accomplished and all you shall accomplish, for your every action will have far-reaching effects. You have already impacted the world, and you are liable to shake its very foundations going forward.

Class Change!

Sapper → Unconventional Sapper

Calculating Rewards…

…

Done!

You have unlocked a new Attribute!

Impact

Impact level set to…. 5

“Impact? What does that do?” he asked, to which Inion just shrugged and smiled mysteriously. Edwin sighed. He didn’t feel any different. Going by the Path completion description… did it act like karma or something? Did it make his actions more likely to have a broader impact? Or did it enhance the power of his skills, making them more impactful? It was sure to be impressive if nothing else, whatever it may do.

Well, he was sure to find out eventually, he supposed, and he didn’t really know how to test it out, so that put it as a puzzle for future-Edwin.

You have completed the Scout path!

Your keen eyes have seen much, and your ability to perceive the world in your unique manner has not gone unnoticed. Keep a keen eye at all you create, all you encounter, for it shall return the favor.

Class Change!

Unconventional Sapper → Sapper-Forerunner

Calculating Rewards…

…

Done!

You have unlocked a new Attribute!

Perception

Perception level set to…. 8

Edwin half-expected that he would be overwhelmed with new sensations, but much the opposite, he found that the flood of sensory input he’d been slowly adjusting to over the last year, leaving his Mana Sense active at all times, became more comprehensible, the multiple senses helping instead to build a cohesive picture of his surroundings.

A bit of experimentation showed that he could move his Perception around, in a way. He couldn’t reduce his sight below its baseline Seeing-enhanced level, but he could direct his Perception away from feeding a consistent picture of his surroundings into instead focusing on a single sense, giving him far more clarity than he might normally have access to. Pushing it to touch meant he could feel the almost nonexistent breeze tickle his skin, to his smell allowed him to pick out individual scents with ease, his sight allowed him to see massive swathes of his field of view as though he was focusing on it all… it was really impressive.

He could put it towards his Skills, too! Mana Sense enabled him to more easily pick out individual sources of magic (though it all still felt the same), and Identify allowed him to target even a single grain of sand from a distance.

Overall, it was very cool, and he needed to figure out how to best use it.

You have completed the Athlete path!

You have traveled long, and you have traveled far. While you may not yet be road-weary, you still have far, far more travel ahead of you. Obstacles of all manner stand in your path, yet you will surmount, or blow up, any who dare to oppose you.

Class Change!

Sapper-Forerunner → Tireless Sapper

Calculating Rewards…

…

Done!

You have unlocked a new Attribute!

Stamina

Stamina level set to…. 8

Whoa… now that was a rush. More than any talsanenris snack he’d had, that was for sure. He felt like he could climb a mountain and run a marathon at the same time without ever getting tired. That glow faded after just a couple of minutes, but he still felt great. More... real. His heart beat in its chest, blood rushing through his veins, and he could feel the air entering his lungs. If not for Perception, he might have felt overwhelmed. But as it was? It just felt right.

It faded after a few minutes, but left Edwin still full of energy. It seemed like he could run a marathon without so much as getting winded. Well, okay, he could have probably already done as much, but with Stamina he actually felt like it. Even better, he didn’t feel restless or jittery, or like he needed to move to burn off extra energy. He could still sit contentedly, but ready to spring up at a moment’s notice.

It was quite nice that everything- nope. Not even thinking that. It was the most surefire way to ensure things would get messed up.

Health 7 → 14

You have completed the Unkillable path!

Though many have tried, and though many will try to end your journey before it can fully begin, you have emerged victorious against all odds. You are tenacious and persistent, and your way ahead is long and treacherous. Perhaps you’ll even survive it.

Class Change!

Tireless Sapper → Indefatigable Sapper

Calculating Rewards…

…

Done!

You may evolve your Survival skill into the Adaptive Defense skill!

Accept Evolution? Y/N

Adaptive Defense

Yes, well if you had prep time, then...

Resist harm after initial exposure

Maximum reduction increases per level

Right on queue. Why did he have to tempt fate? Ah well, he’d just… ah, screw it. What would he drop? Fey Scion? Explorer? Uhhhhh….

“I thought you said this would give me Constitution!” he side-eyed Inion.

“I thought it would! This isn’t an exact science, I’ll have you know.”

“Fine… fine. Whatever. Lemme give this a quick test?”

“Do you feel anything?”

“Uh… not really?”

“So then…”

“Give me a minute, okay?”

Okay, so adaptive defense. Finally, a self-explanatory Skill. Because it was only level 1, it wouldn’t have that great of an effect, but between his healing potions and Health, he felt a lot more confident sticking his hand in a fire than he did a year ago.

As he approached the roaring fire he always kept active in his kiln, Edwin felt his skin begin to heat up to the point of slight pain, but then began to fade. He frowned, and pushed it closer to the fire, letting it heat up again….

Level Up!

Adaptive Defense Level 1→ 2

Ah, the joys of low-level Skills.

After some more experimentation, he found that the longer and more intense his exposure to the fire was, the more he would resist heat, and the more the Skill leveled. He didn’t work on it for too long, just enough to get a good idea of its limitations. It wasn’t a permanent resistance, but faded over time. He couldn’t quite tell how the Skill determined what was or wasn’t ‘harm,’ but it seemed to try and keep him generally comfortable.

That probably meant he would just never be bothered by extreme temperatures ever again, didn’t it? Score!

Overall, the Skill promised to be incredibly useful and, depending on what its limitations were exactly, possibly his strongest Skill yet. Not a bad start, he had to admit. It certainly seemed to live up to its ‘Unkillable’ promise.

Further testing was, naturally, required.

Impact 5 → 6

Health 13 → 15

You have completed the Superior Alchemist path!

You have been challenged as an alchemist, pitting your skills and knowledge against one another. While you may have been outnumbered and faced with overwhelming numbers, through quick thinking, superior strategy, luck, and a deeper comprehension, you reigned supreme.

Class Change!

Indefatigable Sapper → Veteran Sapper

Calculating Rewards…

…

Done!

You may evolve your Construction skill into the Sapper’s Apparatus skill!

Accept Evolution? Y/N

Sapper’s Apparatus

Don’t get sappy with it. It’ll just blow up in your face if you do

Conjure basic objects within certain limits

Limits loosen per level.

Okay, all the surrounding stuff was getting old really fast. He decided to hide the reminder of what his class used to be and the ‘calculating rewards’ bit. They were just getting on his nerves.

That was only a minor quibble, and Edwin quickly found himself enamored with his newest Skill. Thanks to some minor feedback it gave him, it only took a few minutes to figure out how to use it. By focusing on a simple object and activating Sapper’s Apparatus, a blue light would coalesce at his fingertips, slowly forming into shape and condensing over the course of about a minute until it created a blue crystal-like substance in his desired shape.

It almost made him think his Makeshift Alchemist path was suddenly made obsolete, before he caught himself. Redundancy was always a good plan for something this important, after all. What would he do if he didn’t have alchemical ingredients?

Besides, the tools were… well, rather limited. He could make bottles, much to his delight, as well as stirring sticks, beakers, and other basic lab equipment that fit in his hand, even a sharp scalpel. Unfortunately, none of it was very strong, perhaps less so than even the glass it was modeled after. He tried making tweezers, but they shattered in his grasp, vanishing back into motes of blue light, instead of bending. Overall, they seemed comparable to glass in durability, but with none of the complications of actually breaking glass.

They didn’t seem to need any concentration on his part after he created them, but he’d need to see how long they lasted before he entrusted any of his creations to them. Perhaps he could use Packing to reinforce them? He tried setting one in his kiln, only to find it shattered into motes of light if it heated up too quickly. He could boil water in them, which was nice, and if he created a hollow object submerged in water, it would manifest filled with water, even if his creation didn’t have any openings.

There was lots of potential here, he was certain. He’d need to wait and see how long his conjurations lasted before he could tell how much, but it was still quite exciting.

Impact 6 → 7

You have completed the Outsider path!

You have come from places unknown, with knowledge strange and unique and wholly unfamiliar with what you found yourself confronted with. Yet you did not allow this to hinder you. Those who would oppose you will find that you approach from a wholly unique angle

Sapper-Marauder

You may evolve your Packing skill into the Improbable Arsenal skill!

Accept Evolution? Y/N

Improbable Arsenal

Youcantouchthis,thoughitmaylooklikeit’smissing

Infused containers are larger on the inside

Mana efficiency and maximum size increases with level

Man, these Skills were sounding fun. He could make literal pocket dimensions! It probably didn’t make his backpack redundant, but it did mean he could carry around an arsenal of… oh. Improbable size. That was probably the reason for the name, wasn’t it?

He pointedly avoided looking at Inion as she mockingly nodded.

There was… loads of stuff to unpack in it, but at the moment, it looked to be exactly what it said on the tin, so to speak. When he Infused Improbable Arsenal, he could push through the Skill and into bowls, jars, and boxes. They didn’t look any different on the outside, but even the small effect his basic Skill provided allowed him to pour more water into a bowl than should have otherwise been possible. Not much, but enough to make him excited.

The Skill didn’t work on his shirt or pants, though it did on his socks. Taking a random initial guess based on his observations and the ‘intuitive’ limitations of the Skill, it probably only worked on direct containers, possibly only those with a single opening. So no expanding the size of a building or hallway, but something that was just a glorified bag was fair game.

He could combine his Apparatus with the Skill, and when he used it on one of his sealed water orbs, a tiny gap opened at the top, prompting the inside water to boil for a minute before it settled back to normal.

Edwin’s eyes widened. He could use this to create a vacuum, couldn’t he? That itself was a phenomenal use of this Skill, even discounting its obvious utility as a bag of holding.

When he tried to use it on his backpack, it didn’t have quite so dramatic an effect as it did on his personally created containers. There were two possibilities: either his Skills worked better on his own creations, or the backpack already had some space-warping properties that were minor enough to go unnoticed, but his own Skill didn’t stack with. Probably the latter, but the former wasn’t impossible either. He’d need to take some careful measurements to determine it for sure.

He was at three for three of Skills he was exceptionally happy with. Would that continue?

You have completed the Skill Researcher path!

To you, the System is not some strange and arcane phenomena the likes of which Man Was Not Meant To Understand. It is a machine, like the rest of creation, and it has laws which can be understood and dissected. All that you see falls under your scrutiny, and nothing escapes your inquisitive gaze.

Alchemical Marauder

You may evolve your Seeing skill into the Skillful Assessment skill!

Accept Evolution? Y/N

Skillful Assessment

You’ve got an eye out for those with the right Skills

See Skills

Detail improves with level.

“Whoa….” Edwin felt as the Skill kicked in, and Inion became wreathed in a strange, nonchromatic light. He looked around Obairlann, but other than some colorless illumination around the garden, there wasn’t anything else that stood out. To test, Edwin tried using Firestarting at his fingertips, and just as the Skill activated, the same gray light flashed into existence. When he tried again, sustaining the Skill, the light accompanying it stayed active as well. Huh. That was cool. Even if he didn’t get much information at the moment, being able to see when a Skill was being used could be very useful, especially given his ability to- he checked, yes he could- to pair it with Almanac. He could build up quite a respectable knowledge of Skills being used!

“Hey Inion, what Skill are you using right now?”

“Wait!” she jerked upright from her floating position, “Does that mean you got a Skill-reading Skill?”

“Uhhh… yes? Skillful Assessment. Why?”

“I mean, I was hoping you would, but I thought you’d get it from Fey Scion or something! What Path?”

“Skill Researcher. Wait, why would Skills be associated with Fey Scion?”

“Well, that’s… a secret, actually. I could have told you if you’d gotten it, but because you didn’t, ah…” she thought for a moment, “Your exposure to fey probably helped.”

“I thought the System didn’t work like that.”

Inion shrugged hopelessly, “I don’t know! You’re the System expert here.”

That seemed decidedly untrue, but Edwin wasn’t really interested in getting into a fight over it at the moment.

“So… Skill?”

“Airborne Wellspring! It lets me treat the air like it’s water, but none of my other water-related Skills work alongside it, sadly,” she pouted.

Edwin just shook his head, made a note on the Skill that it could be used by fey- any more detail and the Skill would just fail as Inion’s bargain forced him to keep her secrets- and carried on.

You have completed the Physicist path!

While many say that numbers are an arcane art, you disagree. Numbers are perfectly comprehensible and endlessly useful. You boast a mastery of this otherworldly art and can use it with a great deal of proficiency, a skill which will aid you greatly in your future endeavors.

Studied Marauder

You may evolve your Mathematics skill into the Numeracy skill!

Accept Evolution? Y/N

“Wait, what’s the difference?” Edwin wondered aloud as he accepted the Skill, but as it appeared and shoved its way into his head his question was answered. Hundreds of numbers shoved their way into his brain, overloading even Perception with the sheer quantity of information he was dealing with. He screwed his eyes shut to help deal with it, but it still took a minute of adjustment before he even realized what he could do to really help, namely disable the Skill.

Now, what did it say?

Numeracy

Let’s assume the elephant is a sphere…

See the numbers of the universe

Precision increases with level

So it… let him measure stuff instinctively? He tentatively tried enabling the Skill just a touch, focusing on Inion as she drifted by. Fortunately, the headache didn’t return, and by combining the Skill with Visualization, he wrestled the input into something more comprehensible. According to the Skill, she was floating through the air at a rate of 1 mile per hour, which offended his Physicist sensibilities. A twist of Numeracy fixed that, though, and properly showed that she moved at 0.5 m/s.

He sat on the ground, playing around with his new ability. This was awesome. While he couldn’t do too much at once without overwhelming even his Perception, he found that he could assess the speed of various objects, determine distance with a great deal of precision, and even overlay free-body diagrams over objects, letting him actually see air resistance, friction, and gravity.

It was, in short, the greatest Skill ever for a Physicist. He could only imagine how much more accurate he might be able to get with his bombs with all this information; literally more than he could even handle. Hopefully he’d get better with it over time, but for now he set up the Skill to display the world overlayed by a 3-dimensional grid of cubes. By default, they showed distance in increments of 2 meters, but he could scale that up if he wished. He couldn’t make it any smaller yet, but he felt confident that he could make it smaller as the Skill level grew. The minimum size had already decreased as the Skill leveled in his experimentation.

Some more testing revealed its limitations. He could only sense everything within about 50 meters, but he could focus to push it beyond that in a specific direction, such as if he was trying to measure how far away something was. Even then, it became less accurate the further out he tried to reach. Without so much as even clouds to measure on, all he knew was that the sun was out of range. That was probably for the best, as there was no way he’d be able to take in all that information at once.

Mana 5 → 10

You have completed the Novice Pyromancer path!

Fire is the spark behind all technological innovation since the dawn of time. From the first embers roasting meat to baking clay, melting and forging metals, and pushing fire further and further into the future, powering all life on the planet. You have begun to harness this power, twisting it to your will. Your experiments have never been simpler.

Incendiary Scholar

You may evolve your Firestarting skill into the Basic Thermokinesis skill!

Accept Evolution? Y/N

Basic Thermokinesis

Turn up the heat!

Increase the temperature of an object

Maximum temperature increases with level

Huh. It wasn’t Basic Pyrokinesis like he had expected, but this seemed… better? It was no doubt influenced by his Alchemy background even if his Class didn’t explicitly show it at the moment. It was less magic-like and more practical, in some ways. Direct manipulation of temperature, even if it were only in one direction, was so utterly fantastic it surpassed a lot of Earth tech.

Playing around with the Skill for a little while revealed that it was indeed a magical Skill, not that he expected anything else. He could pour mana into it while touching an object, and it would slowly heat up. It didn’t have a terribly high maximum at the moment, but it was already slowly increasing. It was another Skill that was limited by his Mana Manipulation, but he could deal with that.

He couldn’t get it to work on Inion or anything alive, much to his relief. No, wait. He could use it to wither some small grasses and cook insects he touched, but that was about it. Still, it was somewhat relieving to know he wouldn’t cook someone alive by accident, or even on purpose. It was just an awful way to go, even if it was objectively bad for him from a survival perspective. Ah well, give and take. Maybe one day he’d be strong enough, but for now, he was content not being able to magically microwave someone.

Numeracy didn’t provide much feedback regarding temperature, but the small amount he was able to prod it into granting did indicate that it would probably expand into becoming a thermometer as well as everything else. That would be oh so very nice, and Edwin was seeing in his mind’s eye how his toolkit as a proper alchemist was already expanding. Pity about the Class name, but… there was an easy fix for that. He just needed to move his next Path up the schedule a bit.

You have completed the Alchemist path!

Magic and science. You come from a place where all of the former has been incorporated into the latter. It is the job of the Alchemist to transmute the impossible into the understood, and there is much that is impossible before you. Your task is a daunting one, some might even say impossible, but what is such a duty to one such as yourself?

Incendiary Alchemist

You may evolve your Identify skill into the Alchemist's Analysis skill!

Accept Evolution? Y/N

Alchemist’s Analysis

Knowing what you have to work with is the first step

Identify parts

Sensitivity improves with level.

It took a few minutes to figure out what it did, but Edwin eventually figured it out when he used his new Skill on one of his glowleaf potions.

Water

I swear, if I have to explain what this is, I quit.

While he’d need to run more tests to be sure, and level it more, but the Skill allowed him to see the primary component of something he was dealing with. Granted, that would usually be water, but he figured it might let him pick out more trace ingredients as it leveled.

It was really interesting, seeing his higher-tier Skills have such synergy. He was able to brute-force it with his Skills before, combining Visualization and Mathematics to let him visualize mathematical graphs, but Numeracy started serving as an… interpreter, of sorts.

While he couldn’t yet determine with any level of precision just how much water was in the potion beyond it being ‘mostly’ water, it seemed as though as Numeracy leveled, he would get actual numbers associated with the purity of what he looked at. Meanwhile, as his Analysis leveled, he got the sense he’d get more feedback for what was in mixtures. While right now Analyzing mud only showed that it was ‘mostly’ dirt and wet clay as being ‘mostly’ clay, as it leveled it should also pick out the water involved in each.

Man, Numeracy was awesome. It obviated the need for so many measurement tools that would normally be required for pretty much any proper science.

Well, Alchemist’s Analysis was cool too- he didn’t know why he felt like he needed to reassure his newest Skill that it was also useful, but he did- and as it leveled he already saw himself using it to pilfer ingredients from potions he encountered. Could it eventually get to the point where it could measure atomic composition? That would be very cool.

Stamina 8 → 13

You have completed the Wanderer path!

Your path has taken you far, far from your home, and while you have perhaps settled for the moment, that is but a temporary arrangement. Soon, you will leave even that, your heart and soul not content to settle down, every footfall blurring into the next.

Wandering Alchemist

Paths Unchosen: Master of Obairlann, Master of the Ruined Tower, Recluse

You may evolve your Walking skill into the Longstrider skill!

Accept Evolution? Y/N

Longstrider

One giant leap for man, a small step for mankind

Take longer strides

Distance increases with level.

So he wasn’t completely special, it would seem. Lefi had been right about this, if nothing else. Walking did indeed become Longstrider, and it was kind of disorienting to use at first. When it was in use, his every step took him ever so slightly further than he was used to, and for someone who already had issues with spatial awareness at times, he had needed to lean hard on Perception, even wholly disabling Numeracy, to help keep him from repeatedly walking into the cliff or into Obairlann’s outer wall.

Hmmm. Should he take a couple of Paths that were likely to increase Perception? It might almost be worthwhile just so he would be able to use all his new Skills more effectively. Adventurer and Explorer were likely to help on that front, he’d just have to make sure he took them, which meant he’d need to figure out a different Path to skip.

It was also interesting to see himself actually lose Paths. Sure, he’d intellectually known it was possible, and Recluse was no great loss. Neither was Master of the Ruined Tower, honestly, but Master of Obairlann might have been nice to take at some point.

Ah well. There was nothing to be done about that now, and only one way to go- forward!

Health 10 → 17

Stamina 13 → 16

You have completed the Alchemical Warrior path!

Your path has not been a peaceful one. You have had to fight for your freedom, multiple times. Your future is likely to be as conflict-heavy as your past, and you will need to fight for your freedom, safety, and future ingredients every step of the way.

Alchemical Squire

You may evolve your Harvesting skill into the Alchemical Dismantling skill!

Accept Evolution? Y/N

Alchemical Dismantling

Oh, sorry, were you using that?

Break down alchemical components

Power increases with level.

What the heck did ‘break down components’ mean? It would presumably aid him in recovering parts from magical creatures- he really wanted to try and get his hands on Pele Wolf blood, see if it really was actually magma or if that was just creative license- but would it help him if he were to, oh, get hydrogen and oxygen via hydrolysis? That could be quite useful, if it genuinely worked that way. Given it came from a combat Path, perhaps that meant it would also help him cut into particularly tough hides?

He didn’t have anything particularly worthy of trying to use it on hand, unfortunately. Even his trick of trying to ‘harvest’ dirt while digging didn’t seem to engage it when he tried that- it probably wasn’t alchemical enough. He tried boiling water to see if that would have any effect, but couldn’t claim to tell if it made an impact. Numeracy wasn’t that precise yet, it seemed.

He wanted to try breaking his blackstone pebble to see if that counted, but he couldn’t find it. Maybe it fell out of his backpack somewhere? Normally, he’d be able to find it with his Basic Mana Sense, but with the general background mana within Obairlann, it was like trying to find a specific blade of hay in a haystack. Ah, he’d keep an eye out for it. It might show up eventually.

He might have felt the Skill contribute when he was crushing talsanenris berries- his bushes had finally borne some fruit again, though not many- to see if that would do it, but between the preexisting ease of crushing berries and the skill’s low level, he wasn’t sure if…

Ah wait, it leveled. Okay, so it did help with that. Good to know. Further testing was required, but it seemed like he had a partial handle on its function at least.

Onward!

Mana 10 → 15

You have completed the Novice Ritualist path!

As a man of science, you have had very little experience with the supernatural, with the impossible. Yet you have brushed against it, felt the power of magic, of rituals, and that power calls to you and intrigues you. To you, it is another branch of science to dissect and understand. Such is a path some have attempted to tread before you, will you succeed in this regard where they once failed? Regardless, your experiences have prepared you for your magical explorations in the future.

Alchemical Initiate

You may evolve your Basic Mana Sense skill into the Ritual Intuition skill!

Accept Evolution? Y/N

Ritual Intuition

No, not that kind of ritual. Honestly, this should be intuitive for you

Sense magical ambiance

Detail increases with level.

Running contrary to his expectations, his newfound sense didn’t automatically plug into Numeracy to give him a numerical breakdown of… whatever it was telling him. Instead, he was able to feel some kind of presence around him, like he was previously able to sense what temperature things were.

Was it just that different, that his scientific analysis wasn’t able to properly quantify what was around him? Eh, probably not. He could figure out some kind of numerical system for it in time. Odds were better that whatever feedback he was getting was too intricate for Numeracy to deal with. Or maybe because it was ‘intuition,’ it bypassed the Skill altogether. Regardless of why, Edwin’s sudden inset of a new sense wasn’t quantized.

There was a deep, deep sense of nature and tranquility all around him, that much was certain.  There were also feelings of protectiveness and flourishing emanating from Obairlann, and a cool, watery impression being radiated by Inion, who looked on with curiosity.

“Hang on, just a minute. I think I got a Skill that lets me sense types of mana, and it’s a weird sensation.”

“Ooh! You’re just getting all the goodies, aren’t you?”

Edwin shrugged absently, “I guess so,” he played with his vial of concentrated firevine sap. Sure enough, he felt a hint of roaring fire trickling from it. He tucked the magical liquid away before anything might happen and nodded. “Yep, looks like it lets me sense mana. Strange that it’s not giving me numbers, but this is still really useful.”

“Keep an eye on it, ya? Probably has a bit more going on.”

Edwin nodded absently, assessing his next choice.

You have completed the Engineer path!

Coming from a world of machines into one of magic and hard work, you see nothing but inefficiency and impracticality. And like any engineer, you’re looking to see how to fix it. Perhaps you’ll manage to, perhaps you won’t. Regardless, it is a valuable skillset to add to your ever-growing arsenal.

Dabbling Alchemist

You may evolve your Visualization skill into the Prototyping skill!

Accept Evolution? Y/N

Prototyping

To predict catastrophic failures and ensure they happen

Simulate natural phenomena

Maximum complexity increases with level.

“Oi! Machines are hard work!” he half-offendedly exclaimed at the System, “It’s just all done up front!”

“What is it this time?” Inion inquired, and Edwin waved her off.

“Doesn’t matter.”

Edwin had no clue where to start figuring out what Prototyping did. The description was no help- seriously, that was so vague! Couldn’t the System have come up with anything better? The Skill likewise didn’t provide him with any immediate feedback, didn’t give any clues how it was supposed to be activated. Well, that wasn’t entirely true- he was able to activate it, but doing so had no apparent effect on anything around him. What was the secret?

It took him about an hour of messing around before he finally got his answer as he Visualized a cube floating a few feet off the ground in front of him before activating Prototyping. As soon as had done so, gravity took ahold of the box and it fell to the ground, thudding into the ground and bouncing slightly.

“Huh.” Inion perked up as he broke out of his concentration, but resumed her seemingly-bored float around the area when he waved her off. He’d fill her in later, once he had a good idea as to what this Skill did exactly.

Some more experimentation showed that it, for lack of a better term, did indeed ‘simulate natural phenomena,’ much to his annoyance. Now how was he supposed to complain about the System when it actually provided a decent skill description? Ugh.

Anyway, he could imagine a situation by utilizing Visualization, and then by activating the Skill, it would take his Numeracy measurements and apply them to whatever he had imagined. However, the complexity of his Visualizations was starkly limited- at the moment, he could only simulate basic geometric solids, with no variation for material.

As he toyed with it more, he managed to start simulating two basic objects, which could interact with each other as well as their surroundings. This would be eminently useful as it leveled, he could tell, especially if he could figure out how to apply material strength to the Skill. Already, his mind was racing with all manner of possibilities, but he was getting ahead of himself.

Mana 15 → 21

Stamina 16 → 20

Health 17 → 21

Perception 8 → 10

You have completed the Physical Arcanist path!

Though many seek to strengthen themselves through physical means, others attempt to surpass the limits of the world through use of magic, you tread the narrow path between them. It is a hazardous path for many, and one not taken often, but when threaded appropriately its results are undeniable. Weaving magic into your body directly, without aid of potions or artifacts brings you ever closer to disaster, but binds you to the world all the more.

Metabolic Alchemist

You may evolve your Athletics skill into the Overcharge skill!

Accept Evolution? Y/N

Overcharge

There is always another horizon to surmount

Infuse magic into yourself to push past your normal limits, at great potential cost

Maximum duration increases with level.

‘Great Cost’ sounded... ominous.

“Inion, Skills won’t kill you, will they?”

“Oh, they absolutely can. I remember one particularly bold fellow from back when who got a Water Breathing Skill. He dove down deep, only to have the Skill give out on him and he drowned.”

“Okay, but that just sounds like Skill misuse, like if I… blew myself up in an explosion, or poisoned myself with a failed potion. What about the act of using a Skill being deadly to the user?”

Inion frowned, “I don’t think that should be possible. Well,” she amended, “It’s possible, but I don’t think the System would give out something like that- no, wait. Blood Sacrifice could absolutely kill you if you aren’t careful.”

“What about if you are being careful?”

“Then you should be fine. Why, what’d you get?”

Edwin read out his new Skill, to her nodding, “Mixing raw mana with your own body outside of the framework of a Skill or magical organ, like you do with your eyes and Seeing, can be harmful without proper training or bodily adaptation. Even at the best of times, it creates this vile black goop that can build up in mundane tissues and in extreme cases has to be cleansed. If you’re careful, though, and don’t overuse it, you probably won’t have any problems.”

The alchemist frowned, “Cleansing in what way?”

She shrugged, “Eh, some just sort of push it out like sweat, others manage to excrete it into the stomach and vomit it, but there’s also some magical and herbal treatments for it.”

“And this happens a lot?”

“Oh, it’s really miniscule and only really happens with wholly unprocessed magic,” she saw the frown growing on Edwin’s face and clarified, “Your potions should be fine unless you seriously, seriously overdo it. Like, drink gallons of concentrated potions in one sitting. Using magical plants already dilutes it because the magic is associated with something physical already and your body is just generally better at dealing with that sort of thing, and what tiny amounts you get from that and normal mana exposure is flushed from your body naturally. It’s only when you start shoving raw, unstructured mana inside of yourself that issues arise. Even with this Skill, it’s probably not something you’d need to worry about so long as you restrain yourself.”

Edwin was still somewhat wary. It sounded like it was kind of dangerous to overdose on raw magic, but he would need to use the Skill sometime so he could level it, and better that he gave it a try now, right?

Overcharge.

He activated the Skill, Infusing mana into his entire body. Immediately, he felt everything about him become sharper, clearer, and he felt stronger and more grounded, as though he had just gotten a nex influx of Attributes on top of the ones he’d gotten for completing the Path. He abounded with energy, and his muscles flexed with newfound strength. This was amazing!

...Then the moment passed, and the feeling suddenly reversed. His muscles cramped, the world grew dim, and exhaustion clamped its jaws over his entire body while a dull ache permeated throughout him, and he slumped to the ground in pain.

Inion stood over him, looking down where he lay, “You okay there?”

“I think so. Ugh. Feels like I got hit by a truck.”

“A what?”

“Never mind,” he groaned, pulling himself to his feet. “I think that’s enough for today. I’m... going to sleep now, I think.”

Inion gave him a hand, leading him to his bed and gently laying him in it. He nodded in appreciation and let his very, very sore body give way to the peaceful oblivion of sleep.

It had been a very long day, and besides, the sun was beginning to set.

His Paths weren’t going anywhere, after all.