Divine Celebrity 112 (Patreon)

“Was that a good thing, or a bad thing, little buddy,” I murmured as I fed a small carrot to my temporary pet, along with another dose of Recovery-Intent. 

I was torn between being happy or alert about Arthur and German Professor being connected to the same group. From one perspective, it was beneficial for both of them to be a part of the same group, as it would help me to deal with them as a unit rather than trying to play them off against each other. 

On the other hand, it meant that I wouldn’t be playing two groups off against each other in case of an emergency. It was always easier to bargain while playing two groups against each other. 

“But not all hope is lost,” I thought as I focused on the last part of the discussion, particularly the aspects about Doctor Williams and the potential information she had over me. Their discussion implied that, she was either a member that stood at a particular distance — enough not to reveal her information — or a distant ally. 

Either way, it gave me some hope to collaborate, especially now that I wasn’t afraid of revealing magic to her for the first time. She was clearly aware of it, and prodded by that, rather than her curiosity being triggered from scratch. 

“But not now, right, little buddy,” I murmured as I scratched the head of the turtle and fed him a bit more. “No, she’s a demanding bitch, and it’s best to deal with her from a position of strength.” 

I might have considered visiting her right now if I hadn’t discovered the alternative usage method of Intent. Even if I failed to apply anything but Recovery, I still had an incredible advantage in the match. Football was a violent sport, and especially the second half became a game of endurance, pain tolerance, and luck of injury. 

If my near-instant healing could save a tortoise from certain death, it should be enough to cure the football players of their small injuries and their exhaustion. 

Of course, should and would be two different things, and there were many reasons it might not work as perfectly on humans, but I still had two days of training to make sure things had been going perfectly. 

Though, that path had some problems as well. The organization was already aware that I had the ability to use Traits, but they were already expecting someone else to be supporting me — and quite inefficiently, if their discussion about the impossibility of handling the people in the stadium was any indicator. 

I needed a dummy to trick them, I decided. I turned on the Internet, and searched for something I could use for the subject. After some search, I picked the Staff of Hermes as a good object for that purpose. 

My first inclination was to purchase one online, but after some consideration, I decided against it. I just didn’t know about their surveillance capabilities, but checking someone’s order history, especially if they had a friend inside, was not particularly difficult. 

“Why don’t I make one for myself,” I said as I started reading about wood-crafting, to see the process, which looked simpler than I expected. Not exactly trivial, but most of the challenge was the ability to use a bladed tool, and the precision that was required to get the angles right. 

Not something that could be developed in a day or two, even for a savant, but I was betting that, at this point, I was more than a simple savant. 

“I’m going out to pick some wood, little buddy,” I said as I looked at the tortoise on the box and flooded him with another dose of Intent, to test if there was any great side effect, before I prepared to leave. “You must be bored,” I suddenly said and picked him up, though I was sure that I was reflecting my own state. 

Watching tutorials on woodworking was not the most entertaining activity. 

Thanks to the remote location of my dorm, it didn’t take long to arrive at the forest, and soon, I was walking around, looking for a thick branch, continuing to flood Recovery-Intent to my new pet.

Yet, as I walked, I started to feel some kind of … presence. 

“Weird,” I murmured, but since it was an adjective that defined the latest stretch of my life perfectly, I decided not to use that as a word of dismissal. Instead, I decided to use the same trick I had been using earlier to cure my little pet, but with a little change. 

I didn’t focus on any kind of trait, and spread raw energy… Yet, that didn’t work. Curious, I attempted a few more Traits, including Perception and Pattern recognition. None of them worked either. 

“Was that an illusion, little buddy,” I murmured as I put my hand on the shell of my new pet, and flooded with Recovery-Intent. 

And felt the same sense of resonance. The link was hard to deny, I decided as I started to walk in that direction. I had to walk five minutes before I found the source among the naked trees. 

A broken and charred root of a tree, one that had looked like it was struck by lightning at one point. “Curious,” I murmured as I continued to flood the tortoise, and receive the exact same feedback. “Do you also think that my little fake healing item might end up not so fake, little buddy?” I answered, but he didn’t react, lazing under my magical treatment. 

Curious, I spread some Intent through its structure, little enough that it wouldn’t have even shattered a small pebble, doing my best to pull a variant of the old German’s trick, and it worked. I could see only a part of the trunk actually resonating with the energy. 

“Now, another experiment,” I said as I raised my fist, gathered some Strength-Intent on my fingers — a natured variant of what I had pulled against those shadows — and smashed down, shattering the useless parts easily, like they were made of foam. 

The useful part would fit into a shoebox comfortably. “Still, a good amount,” I said, and started carrying it with me. And, the way he had been rubbing against the wood as we walked back, I wasn’t the only one that was feeling the effects. 

Curious, I started to play with it, and came up with several findings. First, it was reacting to Recovery-Intent, and only that. Another finding was … persistence. Other items got affected by Intent, but it was a fleeting thing. 

The wood functioned almost like a battery, and even as I ceased feeding it with Intent, it maintained its warmth. One that had been disappearing slowly… Very slowly, as when we arrived back to my room, it was still noticeably warm — both physically, and magically. 

“Okay, little buddy, you helped me a lot,” I said as I put the tortoise back on his box, only for him to slam against the box, his gaze following the wood. “So, you liked it,” I said with a chuckle even as I broke a small piece, and filled it with some Recovery-Intent before putting next to it. 

He immediately scampered on top of it, and rested his head against the warmth. I chucked, amused that a tortoise was acting more like a puppy. 

I chuckled even as I walked back. First, I pulled some old papers, spreading them on the ground to catch the wood shavings, before I raised an excess piece of wood — which I picked to practice — while turning on the tutorial once more, watching the video as my blade danced on its surface. 

My toolset was not perfect, but the precision helped me to avoid accidentally cutting myself. Fifteen minutes later, I was looking at the first attempt, which, looked like an extradimensional monster of horror, which could hardly be classified as a success. 

“I’m so glad that I don’t have the luxury to sleep,” I murmured with a chuckle. Well, technically, I did. All I needed was to allow my guide to appear, and trust her to handle any possible shadow assassin that might choose to attack me. 

But a sleepless night or two, especially under the combined assistance of Recovery and Endurance, was a good trade for avoiding a meddling angel… 

It was time to work…