The few days went by in a flash for Liam and the others. During that time they focused on leveling up what they wanted to focus on. For Artem, Avery, Blair, and Roman it was leveling up their new abilities they had received when they evolved their classes so they would be caught up with their other abilities.

  During his time in the dungeon after evolving his class he had realized that the Mist Magic he had didn’t stem from a field but rather through his class alone. He could feel the difference with his control and power over the abilities compared to his other magics and felt it was both weak and hard to control. After talking to Uncle Naro and Key about that he had discovered that he was both missing and had skipped an entirely big step when receiving these abilities and the class. He was missing a Field of Study called the Branch of Mist.

  This Branch of Mist was an advanced study of Magic that came from when a person advanced either the Focus Points of Water and Air and learned how to properly mix them together to create the Branch of Mist. They were still surprised and confused how he had even achieved this. After thinking it through they had theorized that maybe he had a hidden affinity with Mist that was overlooked.

  The only thing they could suggest was focus on working on reaching the Branch of Mist through training the two Focus Points. He did as they suggested and reached level twenty in both Focus Points almost around the same time. When that happened he received a notification telling him that the Field of the Elements had evolved into Advanced Field of the Elements. His Water Focus Point had changed to Focus Point Rain and his Air Focus Point had changed to Focus Point Breeze.

  Both of these changes confirmed what Key and Uncle Naro had theorized. They explained that both of these were the best combinations he could have asked for when it came to wanting to create the Branch of the Mist. It also confirmed that his magic was starting to take shape and starting to create a path. They also warned him that while this was good, there was still a chance his path could divert and the path his magic was starting to take could change if he wasn’t careful.

  They eased his worries by also adding that he was still young both in age and in his path that he didn’t need to stress about it. He just needed to know how he wanted to go beyond this and keep that in mind when going forward. Thanks to that he was able to focus more on his training. After a couple more days he was able to finally reach a point where he was able to create a Mist Sphere through carefully mixing both his Rain Sphere and Breeze Sphere. He didn’t get a new Field of Study nor any signs he had created a Branch, but that was to be expected since he was still ignorant and unfamiliar with both how to create a Branch and with Mist Magic. For now, he now had a way to practice his control and manipulation of Mist Magic, which he found to be a lot harder than he had anticipated.

  Avery focused on mastering her control of Mana Blend with Fire Magic. Like Artem, she was able to get both her Fire and Air Focus Points to change. Unlike Artem, her Air Focus Point had changed to Focus Point Gale. Her Fire Focus Point had changed to Focus Point Blaze. Her new magic in the Focus Point Gale was a lot stronger than Artem’s Breeze, but it was explained that it was to be expected since Avery’s direction was completely different from Artem’s.

  The new Spell she had received through the Focus Point Blaze was something called Flame Burst Kiss. It was a magical spell that allows the user to create a small orb of fire to formulate around the tip of the weapon they are using. With each successful pierce of the weapon the orb of fire is wedged within the wound. Upon the weapon leaving both the wound and the orb of fire behind the orb of fire bursts into a small explosion burning both the wound and leaving a Burn Debuff. Through practice and leveling the user could continuously create new orbs of fire after each successful stab. Avery was so eager to learn this spell she practiced it on wooden dummies until she was able to land two orbs of fire successfully.

  At night, Avery met up with Liam in his training room to practice her Blood Magic. Liam had warned her about Omira and the issues he went through and told her to not practice it as much so there wouldn’t be another problem. While she didn’t care what the Elf said, she understood that creating problems and misunderstandings wouldn’t help anyone. So she kept her practice on the magic limited. She was eager to get off the boat and work on it more though because it was slowly approaching the level twenty mark.

  Blair had focused solely on two things besides her new abilities. One was her Arcane Magic, and the other was her Gravity Magic. She was understanding just how much her Arcane Magic was able to boost her Gravity Magic as well as how much she could lessen the effects of it. She was fascinated by this and was trying to practice ways she could incorporate the effects in battle.

  Through their talks, Liam was impressed with Blair’s new understanding of Arcane. It was thanks to her; he was starting to have similar outlooks on the magic, and he tried experimenting with how he was seeing the magic. Blair had also appreciated the talks about the new outlook on Arcane Magic with Liam. His uses through crafting with the magic helped her gain a deeper understanding of it and how she could better apply the magic to boost her other magic. It was a tricky thing to do, but once she gets further in her understanding and application of it she believed she would have some pretty powerful magic.

  Roman was able to advanced his Field of the Elements as well, but instead of Fire, Water or Air, he had reached level twenty in Earth and Lightning. His Earth Focus Point had changed to Focus Point Sand while his Lightning Focus Point had turned into Static. At first, Roman was disappointed in the direction his Focus Points had turned towards, however, after Uncle Naro had explained that this was a good thing for him to have happen now Roman got a bit more curious.

  Uncle Naro explained that for the path he was wanting to go down, Sand and Static Focus Points were great. Since he wanted to be more of a magical melee fighter, these would be more beneficial for him. If he trained properly then he would be able to utilize his magic in a more physical or armor-like way depending on how he did things. Magical Abilities like his Rock Fist was a great example. If he trained and worked hard enough then he would be able to do the same with the other elements.

  His first new ability from Static showed proof of that after Roman looked at what he had received. The first and only new magical ability he received from Static was called Static Shell. For a certain amount of time, static lightning would spark off his body and attack anyone who attacked him. Depending on the enemy’s tolerance to Lightning, there was also a chance they could get stunned from being shocked.

  The new Magic he received from his new Focus Point Sand wasn’t bad to him at all. It was called Armor of Sand. At its low level he was only able to create armor made of sand that covered his feet and shins. While it seemed pretty useless at first, there were some things that benefited him. For example, the sand cushioned blows that hit the areas he was struck at or if his body suffered any reverberation from powerful strikes. Also if he kicked anyone in the face while the armor was activated then he could blind them with sand in their eyes. The amount of mana and stamina required to use it was a lot, but he believed that with practice and some leveling the cost to keep the ability going would decrease over time. With these new abilities he believed himself to be well on the path he wished to be on. His next goals were to get the other elements to level twenty.

  Ariyana and Mercer continued to work on various things to try and help them gain a chance to evolve their classes. Ariyana reached level twenty in her Plant Focus Point and was able to advance it to Focus Point Floral. Her Field of the Charmed had also advanced to the Advanced Field of the Charmed which had unlocked a new Focus Point for her called Focus Point Aroma.

  Both Key and Uncle Naro were surprised with this outcome mainly because the people they knew who had this Advanced Field of Study each had unlocked different new Focus Points that specialized in different aspects of charm. They were mainly more focused on the person’s body or voice though. For Ariyana to receive the Aroma Focus Point told them that her charmed magic was going to take a drastic change. While Charm Magic worked well for those with exceptional physiques, that wasn’t the only way to charm a target. Smells or rather aromas worked as well. Especially when pair with plant or more specific Floral Magic.

  They insisted that she started getting used to her new spells so that she could make better use of them. Her new Floral Magic that she had received was something called Rose Sap. It was a spell that created a patch of roses that sit in wait for any targets to get close by them. When a target gets within a certain reach then the roses would snake around them raking their thorns across the target’s body. After fulling wrapping around the target the thorns will dig deep and start to sap their energy, making the target feel weak and confused for a small amount of time.

  The new magic spell she received from her Focus Point Aroma was called Soothing Scent. The user blows out a cloud of soothing dust that washes over a target’s face. When inhaled orally or nasally, the target’s body relaxes and feels soothed, clouding their mind and making them believe they are not in danger. However, if the target receives a certain amount of damage or the timer runs out on the Soothed Debuff, then the target returns to their normal state. They also found out that afflictions don’t knock the target out of the Soothed Debuff thanks to some practice on random sea monsters they came across.

  Mercer was able to advance his Field of the Bard to Advanced Field of the Bard and was able to unlock a new Focus Point called Focus Point Elemental Chords. This new Focus Point wasn’t like his or any of theirs. Instead of Magical spells the Focus Point focused more on the elements he had unlocked and his instruments. Through playing songs he was able to launch magical attacks through a specific element. Much like how he needed to gain proficiency with an instrument he now needed to gain proficiency of his instruments with the elements. For example, he had Air, Water, and Ice Focus Points available from the Field of the Elements. Depending on which instrument he chose, he needed to attune that instrument to one of the elements he had available.

  For practice he went to the very first instrument he had worked on, the flute. He attuned his Water Element to his Flute instrument and through a strong concentration he was able to create a Water Orb and use them to either make water bullets shoot out from it or a water whip depending on the song he played. With his violin attuned to his Ice Element he was able to create small icicles that he could send flying. Through his practice he felt that there was more he could do, but until he could understand this new Focus Point more he wasn’t sure what it was.

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  Liam felt bad for the two. Even when getting this far they still didn’t receive a notification saying they could evolve their class. After talking to them they both stated they felt they were close to something, but also felt they were missing a key thing. Until they figured out what it was they knew they wouldn’t get what they were hoping for.

  Liam, on his end, also progressed through his training. He finally reached level twenty in his Focus Point Construction Craft finally getting all three Focus Points in his Field of the Crafter to the requirements needed to advance the Field of study into Advanced Field of the Crafter. His three Focus Points had changed into Advanced Gathering Craft, Advanced Production Craft, and Advanced Construction Craft. He also received a new Focus Point called Support Craft.

  At first he wasn’t sure what this new Focus Point had meant. After talking to Uncle Naro and seeing what abilities he received from receiving this new Focus Point he was beginning to see how useful it would be. This new Focus Point was meant to gain abilities that could be used as support when crafting. For example, his two new abilities were called Mana Concentration and Mana Thread. This ability allowed him to channel mana into a small bubble. By doing this he could make sure he had the right Mana Type he wanted to use ready while regaining the lost mana he used to get that ready. It helped with managing his Mana Pool when Crafting. Leveling this ability allowed him to make more what he was now called Mana Bubbles as well as increased the Mana Bubble capacity.

  The other ability he gained was called Mana Thread. This ability allowed him to create a thread of mana that helped connect Mana Types together or the Mana Bubbles to the item he was crafting. He grew excited after learning about these new abilities he had. These abilities were not just great support abilities, but a game changer that could help him craft longer and not have to worry about running out of mana while crafting due to having to channel Mana or Mana Types during the process. He was also already seeing ways he could possibly use them in fights.

  Uncle Naro saw the shine in his eyes and told him he was going to have to wait before experimenting those possibilities since he had other things that was going to need his focus. More importantly, the two Crafts that Uncle Naro was originally supposed to mentor him in. Rune Crafting and Enchanting. It had turned out that all that training was setting him up to both gain the new Focus Point and these two new abilities as well as materials ready to practice on when working on Rune Crafting and Enchanting.

  The chairs Uncle Naro had him make were the perfect materials to practice on. Even the ones he called successful failures were perfect. They were the first ones to receive his training after he got the green light to practice on them.

  For the first half of the day Uncle Naro had him brush up and gain more understanding on his Knowledge Theories: Magical Enchants and Runic Knowledge. After half of the day was done he had gained two levels in each getting them both to level seven. He was then instructed to practice drawing runes out and memorize what each rune he had him draw out was called and the effects they gave.

  While the process was tedious and long, Liam wasn’t fazed by it. Instead, he was more upset that the rocking of the boat messed him up from time to time when a troublesome wave decided to hit the side of the ship. At one point Liam believed whoever was steering it was doing it on purpose.

  Liam was excited to learn this new craft. When reading and learning about Runes, he came across what they looked like. They looked similar to what the Viking Runes looked like back on Earth. While Liam wasn’t deeply knowledgeable on Viking Runes, he did remember seeing them in a tv show based on Vikings. However, he knew he wasn’t sure if what they had used were really based on Norse runes or just interpretations they made themselves.

  He had learned that each rune had a meaning and a purpose. He had also learned that just drawing the runes out didn’t do much except help practice drawing them out. The process used to Rune craft entailed a crafter to use a special tool called a Rune Engraver. The crafter would make a Mana Bubble and connect the Mana Bubble to the Rune Engraver through a Mana Thread. This empowered the Rune Engraver to carve the Rune being drawn on the object with Mana to power it up once it was done. However, there was an issue when it came to drawing runes onto an object. While it was best to practice drawing the rune over and over to help build muscle memory, there were factors involved that could either ruin or make it the rune perfect.

  A Rune Crafter could draw a rune over and over until they could draw it with their eyes closed or even in their sleep. However, when using a Rune Engraver they needed to make sure the size of the rune was perfect. Too small of a rune on the object then the effects were lessened by a great amount. Too big and the object had a good chance of combusting due to too much mana overloading the rune.

  The same could be said for the Mana powering the Rune Engraver. If the crafter took too long then they could run out of mana to finish the rune. While those who were experts could continue after replenishing the Mana Bubble due to knowing how much mana they needed to use to finish the rune, a beginner wouldn’t know. If a beginner rushed the drawing of the rune then the mana powering the rune could become unstable due to the rush job.

  This craft required a lot of concentration and understanding to pull off. Liam now understood why it was recommended for many to wait till they had a better understanding of mana manipulation and control as well as Mana Types. A Rune Crafter needed to have understanding on those in order to know what was best to use as a power source.

  After a day of brushing up on his Runic Knowledge and practicing drawing one specific rune over and over, Liam was able to try it out the next day. The first attempt ended with the successful failure of a chair to explode. The second attempt ended with him taking too long and running out of mana in his Mana Bubble. It had taken him several more attempts before he finally carved one successful rune.

  He says successful, but he knew it had barely passed. The lines on the rune were shaky and barely passable in his eyes. The result ended up with the quality of the rune being Crude and the effects were three quarters less than a normal Crude Quality Rune. But for some reason he had succeeded.

  Uncle Naro inspected his first success and while he did laugh and make fun of how it looked as well as made comments about how he wasn’t sure how it qualified as a success, he still congratulated him and pointed out some things he could do to get better. The rune Uncle Naro had him work on was one that meant stability but was read as Endure. It was supposed to increase the endurance of an object. Uncle Naro wanted him to practice this rune because he felt it was the easiest to practice on.

  He had to admit though. Even though he was successful with the one so far, he felt a sense of fulfillment. He admitted that trying to engrave, as the craft called it, a rune onto these chairs was a lot tougher than he originally thought. He had to make sure his hand was still and not shaky. He had to make sure he had enough Mana in his Mana Bubble. He also needed to make sure the size of the rune was right or else he would get a sudden surprise of exploding wood splinters flying right at him. It was a craft that needed not just concentration but also a certain level of multitasking. It was a craft he was really enjoying and felt like he could lose himself entirely if he was left alone.

  He spent majority of the day working more on his Rune Crafting getting both the Craft and the section called Engrave to level two. As he took note on the things he needed to work on with each attempt he slowly saw improvements. After a couple of days he had reached level five and had reached a point where instead of three quarters of the Crude Quality effects were lessened it was now only half of the Crude Quality effects were lessened.

  When he wasn’t practicing this new craft, Uncle Naro had him learning how to make something new through his Medicinal Creations. It was something he didn’t believe he would ever try out, but according to Uncle Naro it was essential for him to learn how to make. For this was something he would need once he received the Field of the Beast. It was a Medicinal Pill.

  At first he was told to read the ingredients, how to prepare the ingredients, and how the process of making the pill would go. Pill Making was something that could be done with both Medicinal Creations and Poison Craft. However, he wasn’t told how it would work with Poison Craft since the pill he was going to make was a Medicinal Creation called Weak Body Rejuvenation Pill.

  It was a pill that restored stressed muscles while also creating a restore over time effect for stamina. Uncle Naro wanted him to be at the stage where he could make Minor Quality versions of the pill before getting the Field of the Beast. He claimed the side effects of the abilities he would get from the Field of the Beast would greatly stress the body to the point that if he made a wrong move then he could break bones or possibly be bedridden for months on end due to how stressed the body would be. That was the negative for not having the Racial Benefit that full blooded Beast-kins would receive that could counter the effects.

  The Minor Body Rejuvenation Pill would be Liam’s best way to counter the side effects. He would be on a timer the moment he activated the abilities and while the pill’s effects could stack, they would also weaken after taking a certain amount within a certain amount of time. That was one of the problems with Pills. After taking the same pill over and over again without any time for the body to rest, the effects would start to lessen.

  Not only that, but after continuously taking the pills over and over there would be a chance his body would develop a type of illusioned addiction over them. The body would trick itself into believing he would need to keep taking them to feel better.

  Uncle Naro didn’t want Liam to get that type of addiction, so he informed Liam that his limit when taking these pills was five per fight. Nor more than that. He had also warned Liam that if he took more than that and he found out, then he would use…extreme methods to not only flush his system, but to also punish him for disobeying.

  Liam shivered at the evil grin on Uncle Naro’s face when he said that and made a mental note to never go pass that limit. Concerned that maybe he should stay away from Pill making, Liam had inquired Uncle Naro why make them into a pill then if there were those kind of side effects. Why not just make a potion for that?

  Uncle Naro had explained that while there was a potion he could make for that, the ingredients for that potion were a bit pricy. The pill version was better on the wallet, and while there were those side effects, the pill version and versions of other potions had some merit. The potion versions of the pills could only be used once every hour due to how powerful the liquid version was compared to the pill. The pill could be broken down and spread out into small clumps and those small clumps would dissolve over time rather than the liquid that would spread out all at once.

  Another positive for the pill was storage and space. One could fill an entire vial with pills, take one and still have more within for later versus the liquid that needed space for each vial. You couldn’t take a sip of the liquid version and save the rest for later; it just didn’t work that way. The effects would suffer immensely when done that way. And lastly, you could either use pill versions of potions first and save the liquid ones for later in case of emergencies or visa versa.

  Liam hadn’t thought about that. He had only focused on making liquid potions that he hadn’t really given pill making a second thought. He took to learning how to make the pill he was given as a challenge to get to the point where he could make the Minor Quality version whenever he took breaks from his Rune Crafting training and other Crafting training. He had reached that goal getting his Medicinal Creation Section within his Alchemy Craft right before they reached an island called Meriam Island. An island within Merman and Sea Elf territory.

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