MagnusGrey
patreon
[Skill-Eater] Chapter 93: Absorb
🕑 Added 2024-09-02 17:01:00 +0000 UTCWhen they got back to town, Jumo led Edge over to a corner of the commercial district that he hadn’t entered before. A fenced off section of the quarter where the settlement’s alchemists brewed their concoctions and peddled their wares. After being waved through the inner gate by a cored guard, they parked the cart in front of a big stone building with two men standing out front.
They inspected the herbs when Jumo waved them over, and after using some manner of skill to appraise their quality, weighed the haul and paid the hunters up front. The plants were only worth two thousand credits for the lot, but it wasn’t a bad profit for a half day of labor.
On their way out, Edge took a closer look at his surroundings. Most of the structures in the alchemists’ ward were built from stone, clay, and brick, to prevent fire from spreading in case one of their experiments ended in spectacular failure. There was a faint, acrid odor riding the breeze, alongside the smoke from dozens of fires.
He only knew the basics of what went on here. Alchemy was even more skill intensive than other forms of crafting. Its practitioners used magic to draw out the innate powers of various substances, then shape them into a useful form. There was some chemistry involved in the process, along with several other magical sciences.
Edge was more familiar with their wares. Their most famous products were various medicines, and potions that granted a temporary boost to attributes. But that was only the beginning of what they could do. The town’s alchemists produced a vast range of substances. From mortar and cement that were far harder than the normal kind, to fuels that could create an intensely hot flame.
Most forms of industry were reliant on at least some alchemical products. Their recipes were carefully guarded secrets, managed by a complex guild whose workings were a mystery to most outsiders.
That must be the reason why their windows are heavily tinted, to keep anyone from looking inside. Edge realized that he could hear the hum of magtech privacy screens, preventing anyone from spying on the alchemists with skills either.
He decided to come back when he had more credits to his name, to see if some of their merchandise could round out his toolkit. But not just yet. He still needed to buy the rest of his core kit first, starting with that set of leather armor he’d been admiring.
The alchemists’ ward wasn’t a place that encouraged people to linger, and he didn’t have a reason to do so today. On that note, there were at least a half dozen cored guards roaming inside the walls, and he felt their eyes on him the entire time he was there.
After they pulled the wagon back to Trapper’s, Jumo bid him farewell, giving Edge the rest of the day to himself. Now that he was done working, he planned to condition his body like crazy for the rest of the evening. To push himself as hard as he could until he ran out of mana to power regeneration.
At the top of his list was another sparring session with Mel. But before he got to that, there was one thing that he wanted to do first. Try out Skill-Eater’s absorption ability for the first time and see if he could give up combination strike in exchange for taking leap to rank-two.
After [Extracting] a second copy of leap the day before, the skill was almost there. One small push should do it. Since they hadn’t found another jobo today, Edge was ready to give absorption a shot.
While a part of him wanted to hoard every skill that he came across, he knew that he was going to have to let go of less desirable powers if he wanted the others to grow. Other people could rank skills up through diligent training, but Edge’s core offered an alternative path of advancement. He was planning to fill all eleven skill slots sooner rather than later, so he would have given up the skill at that point regardless.
Over time, he would have to decide how many slots he wanted to fill with attack skills, and how many with defenses, passives, utility, knowledge, trade skills, and all the rest. Fortunately, he would pick up another seven slots when he evolved to stage-three, but that wasn’t going to happen for a while.
Since he only had so much mana to work with, three attack skills were plenty for now. Besides, combination strike only worked with his fists or dual wielding short weapons, neither of which were a good idea when hunting big beasts.
Slash, elemental blade, and double strike were better suited to life as a hunter, and Edge was certain that he would be picking up a wide variety of attack skills during the days ahead. Combination strike was only a common skill, and he knew where to find it. It would be easy to steal again if he changed his mind.
With that goal in mind, he returned to his room and opened his menus. Ok, let’s give this a try. He sent his intentions into his core. Go ahead and absorb combination strike. For a moment nothing happened. But then Skill-Eater began to stir. Edge was drawn into his central chamber as his reactor flickered to life of its own accord.
He watched as combination strike was removed from its socket— something that most cores couldn’t do without spending mortium or other equally expensive methods. There was a pull from his reactor, a sensation like wind blowing through his hair, then the pair of fists was drawn out of the skill garden and through the grate of his reactor. Into that infinite plain of fire beyond.
There was a pulse of heat as the skill was consumed. A sensation of energy being released. Skill-Eater kept most of it, living up to its name. But a portion came back out and went flowing into leap, filling its cup with experience.
It wasn’t a lot compared to merging with a duplicate, but it was enough to trigger the change. A few seconds later, leap began to glow, ready to become something more. Edge grinned as a message from the System appeared in front of his face.
The skill (leap) has advanced to rank 2.
Its mana efficiency has been enhanced.
Additionally, at rank 2 you may choose to upgrade the skill.
Please choose between one of the following options:
1. Gain increased perception while airborne.
2. Gain increased durability for ten seconds after using the skill.
3. Increase the velocity and height of each jump.
Warning: if no option is selected, your skill will remain as it is and gain a slight bonus to mana efficiency.
Considering how much it hurt when he landed, and that he would already be leaping higher as the skill ranked-up, Edge decided to go with the second option. It should help his body to withstand the force of the impact and would have some utility in battle too.
When he snapped back into his body, he took a quick trip outside the walls. He walked far enough away that he was sure no one else was nearby, then tried out his new and improved leap.
Edge pressed his feet into the ground as mana surged into his legs. He jumped high, appreciating how the skill let him see further out, before coming back down with a thud. This time, he felt some mana flow back the other way and linger in his body, forming a protective layer.
When he hit the ground, it didn’t hurt at all. The extra durability lasted for a while before the mana dispersed— long enough to get in one or two attacks. Not bad. That’s a big improvement, especially with the increased mana efficiency. I should be able to use the skill freely now, without having to worry about breaking my own legs.
Satisfied with his choice, he walked back into town and made his way to the guardhouse. Edge was ready to get the stuffing knocked out of him, condition his attributes, and learn a bit about boxing along the way.
