[Voidknight Ascension] Chapter 273 – Imperial Profits

It was only later that night at the Scarlet Lotus that Sam bothered to look through his gains from the incursion.

He couldn’t deny that they were useful for progression. While they were ethically dubious, the people who stood in defense of the Empire prospered greatly.

The people were safe enough. Sam hadn’t heard of a single injury or fatality, though he knew from personal experience that there was no way to make that a guarantee.

Eventually, some child or carefree soul would be out when they shouldn’t be. Tragedy would surely follow.

Careful not to make too much sound, Sam took out the items from his inventory that he was most interested in. While the health potion and alkahest were valuable and useful, he already knew what they did.

He glanced over his shoulder at the foot of his bed where Komachi was curled up, fast asleep. She had gained even more levels than he did. Being able to range far and wide without fear of being hurt meant that Komachi could heal dozens more people than normal.

She had only started to leave Sam’s side halfway through the battle, always returning to check up on him.

She’ll single-handedly keep Sil’mara’s fighters alive, Sam thought with fondness as he watched his slumbering cat.

Sam reached for the glittering potion bottle first. He had an idea of what might be in the [Imperial Coffers] already. His curiosity was set on the [Imperial Grade Skill Potion].

Though he had been introduced to another type of skill potion, this one was different. He could feel a powerful magic slumbering within the bejeweled bottle. A silversmith had gone to great pains to decorate the elongated flask so that it looked as valuable outside as its contents were.

Popping the wax seal off with his thumb, Sam gave a gentle sniff of the alchemical brew.

Hardly a wise decision given what could be in a bottle, but Sam was pleasantly surprised by the pineapple aroma. He took another sniff, and it shifted to the clean salt spray of the ocean. A third brought a strange scent he liked a great deal, but could not place it.

The scent was vaguely reminiscent of pencil shavings. Woody, but with a hint of something deeper and more robust beneath. It smelled like work about to be done.

With a shrug, Sam gave it another sniff, but it just smelled like pineapples again. As interesting as doing a sniff test was, Sam pressed on with his examination.

[Imperial Grade Skill Potion]

 (Potion) (E-Class)

(★★★ Rare)

A wax sealed bottle containing a powerful concoction of rare ingredients that grants the imbiber a single opportunity to reclaim a skill, spell, or ability they have previously not chosen.

Sam stared in awe at the bottle.

On the one hand, if he kept the bottle and took it back, Raiko might be able to find a way to replicate it.

In all honesty, he didn’t have any idea how she might do it or even if that’d work.

It wasn’t like somebody could bring him a magical sword already made and he could break it down into its parts and recreate it. Sam would need to see it made from the beginning. Even then, he wouldn’t be too sure he could create a copy. Not unless he trained extensively under the creator’s tutelage.

“Plus,” he mumbled to himself, “I’ve already opened it.”

Sam took a long drink from the bottle. The liquid was thick and oily, but surprisingly delicious. As soon as he finished off the bottle, the glass vanished in a sparkle of motes. Sam’s vision filled with Shardscript.

He took a steadying breath. He hadn’t dared to believe this would be possible, and yet the proof was right before him.

You have [Swordsman] abilities to select from.

You have [Blacksmith] abilities to select from.

The potion didn’t just allow him to select Swordsman skills he had missed out on. It granted him the possibility to select his Blacksmith skills too.

Well, this just became a whole lot harder to choose.

Sam blew out his cheeks and mentally scrolled through the list of skills to choose from. He had thought it would allow him to pick up the skills he was missing from Swordsman.

There were 12 skills total, 6 from Blacksmith and 6 from Swordsman.

Rereading [Blade Pattern], Sam still saw no notable changes and immediately disregarded it.

[Iron Chivalry] was still a solid choice that would pair quite well with [Cover], granting him a monster’s attention while also covering his fluffy pocket healer.

[Evasion]

(Swordsman Skill) (E-Class)

(★ Common)

The best mitigation is when you don’t get hit. By paying close attention to your surroundings and your enemies, you’re able to utilize this new skill to grant you a slight edge when dodging incoming attacks. Grants a minuscule bonus to the effect of Agility when using [Evasion].

With his new martial arts style, Sam considered [Evasion] for the first time in a long while. It would clearly synergize well with his dreadfang style.

The downside was that he couldn’t use dreadfang and his weapons, for which his fighting style was largely centered around. It wasn’t something he wanted to bring up to Zahif, seeing how he looked upon Sam with such pride every time he learned a new movement.

It would be invaluable if he was disarmed or otherwise unable to wield his swords, such as in extremely close quarters where even [Bloodbane] would be cumbersome.

Outside of that, Sam didn’t know how often he would use dreadfang. He wanted to, desperately. It gave him a connection to the stowaway he had saved his first few minutes aboard the Wavedancer.

A stowaway that would have perished that very night, along with the crew. Considering the Empress told him nothing about pineapples or great heroes such as Zahif, Sam could only imagine the Wavedancer was supposed to sink that fateful night.

At the time, he had been too full of grief to want to know anything about their fates. Now he couldn’t help but wonder.

Sam put [Evasion] down in the “maybe” column.

[Block]

(Swordsman Skill) (E-Class)

(★ Common)

Brace against melee and magical attacks, using your weapon, armor, cloak or shield. Sheds a portion of physical and magical damage received. Grants a minuscule bonus to the effect of Vigor when using [Block].

Sam shook his head. While he had the Vigor to tank hits, and stout armor to absorb the damage, he didn’t want to get hit. [Evasion] seemed infinitely more useful, especially since he was raising his Agility on Zahif’s recommendation.

[Aura Blade]

(Swordsman Trait) (E-Class)

(★ Common II)

A Swordsman is at the forefront of every encounter. They fight on the frontlines, shoulder to shoulder with their allies to push back even the most tenacious of foes. While all Swordsmen know how to share a portion of their defense as an aura with their allies, few are skilled enough to do the same with their weapons. [Aura Blade] extends the power of your blade to your allies, imparting a portion of its damage and weight to each physical strike your companions make while within your aura. Grants a minuscule bonus to the effect of Strength and weapon weight when using [Aura Blade].

Naturally, he couldn’t forget about [Aura Blade]. During a monster incursion, it would be invaluable. Any adventurers fighting alongside him would have both their defense and offense increased.

That alone could save lives.

However, there was a more selfish reason as well. Something Sam realized only recently.

Whenever somebody that was buffed by his [Armored Aura] slayed a monster, Sam received a portion of the Experience from the kill as if he had directly aided them.

Even if he wasn’t near them.

Just being buffed by [Armored Aura] seemed to be enough.

It was little wonder that Komachi gained so many levels. Having one of her songs on a person must provide the same effect.

Once again, [Aura Blade] went to the top of his priority.

But how long will it stay there? Sam couldn’t help but wonder.

[Flash]

(Hybrid Ability) (E-Class)

(★Common)

Swordsmen see their weapons as extensions of themselves. Through their weapons, they can perform a myriad of feats that would look like pure magic to any onlooker. By channeling a small amount of mana to your blade, you can create a blinding light that afflicts any opponents facing you that can see your blade. Grants a minuscule bonus to the effect of Arcane, Control, and Agility when using [Flash].

No doubt a useful ability. Still, Sam didn’t see much need for it. He didn’t use trickery or sleight of hand to win most of his encounters.

The only thing that gave him any pause was his curiosity. How blinding would a flash from the side of his massive greatswords be? The ability seemed designed for longswords and single-handed weapons.

Surely a larger weapon would have a greater effect. In which case, how many people could he blind at once if he used it on both greatswords at the same time?

Shaking his head, Sam turned to his Blacksmith abilities.

This was where the hard choices would come from.

[Mining]

(Blacksmith Skill) (F-Class)

(★ Common)

A Carpenter would not pick wood at random, a butcher would not take just any animal. Why should a Blacksmith take what materials they are given? In order to find the highest purity nodes and ores therein, a Blacksmith must be willing to brave the wilds and delve the depths in search of the perfect ore. [Mining] provides the intrepid Blacksmith with the ability to sense ore veins, and the skill to extract ores equal to or below this skill’s rarity level. Grants a minuscule bonus to the effect of Strength, Dexterity, and Insight when using [Mining].

Useful, though considerably less after Sam had a taste of what it was like to be fed copious amounts of raw material. While finding the best veins was undoubtedly useful, he would rather pay for the goods and be done with it.

That way he could focus on his craft and less on procurement.

[Stonecraft]

(Blacksmith Skill) (F-Class)

(★ Common)

What is stone but brittle metal? Unlock the secrets of the abundant mineral that most Blacksmiths so callously cast aside as so much dross. Stonecraft grants the ability to identify, craft, and use stone in a wide variety of applications. Grants a minuscule bonus to the effect of Strength, Dexterity, and Vigor when using [Stonecraft].

As much as Sam thought becoming a mason might be cool, he didn’t really want to work with stone. Not in any capacity beyond ornamentation, at least.

[Weaponcraft Foundation]

(Blacksmith Skill) (F-Class)

(★☆ Uncommon)

While anybody can create a weapon, proper Blacksmiths spend extra time honing their craft and understanding just what makes a weapon useful. [Weaponry Foundation] allows Blacksmiths to not only create superior weapons easier than those Blacksmiths lacking the skill, but they also gain bonus damage and durability when wielding weapons they’ve created. Due to your unique understanding and experience with weapons, this skill’s rarity has been enhanced by one level. Grants a minuscule bonus to the effect of Strength, Vigor, Dexterity, and Awareness when using [Weaponcraft Foundation].

This and the following skill, [Jewelcraft Foundation] were where he knew he would get stuck. Both provided avenues of creation that far exceeded anything he would ordinarily be capable of.

[Jewelcraft Foundation]

(Blacksmith Skill) (F-Class)

(★ Common)

While not often thought of as Blacksmithing, [Jewelcraft Foundation] lays the groundwork for the creation of accessories of all kinds. Unlike Armorcraft or Weaponcraft Foundations, [Jewelcraft Foundation] is required to create accessories and magically endowed jewelry. Grants a minuscule bonus to the effect of Strength, Vigor, Dexterity, and Awareness when using [Jewelcraft Foundation].

After seeing the jewelry that this new life had to offer, Sam was convinced that [Jewelcraft Foundation] was a path he would regret not taking.

The question was, should he get it before or after [Weaponcraft Foundation]?

[Hilt Bind]

(Blacksmith Skill) (F-Class)

(★☆ Uncommon)

Practiced with not only the makings of weapons but the wielding of them as well, you have learned to tap into a rare Blacksmith power. Striking a connection between yourself and your weapons, you will be impervious to any disarming techniques, magical or physical, unless the [Hilt Bind] effect is dispelled first. Your grip will remain firm and true, no matter what may come. Grants a minuscule bonus to the effect of Strength, and Vigor, when using [Hilt Bind].

Nah.

With his dreadfang style, Sam no longer worried about being disarmed. It was significantly better to have a hand-to-hand fighting style than to resist being disarmed.

At least when an opponent disarmed him, they would think they had the upper hand. Only for Sam to unleash the wisdom of Zahif on them.

[Field Repair]

(Blacksmith Skill) (F-Class)

(★ Common)

Crafting is a difficult task at the best of times, but without a set of tools and proper environment, even the Masters are hard-pressed to produce quality goods. This applies to repairing as well. [Field Repair] allows you to preserve much of your skill out in the field away from forges and furnaces, granting you the capacity to repair eligible items in the foulest of conditions as if you were back at the smithy. Grants a minuscule bonus to the effect of Strength, Vigor, Dexterity, and Awareness when using [Field Repair].

Though useful, [Field Repair] was far down on his list. He never wanted to plan for the worst-case scenario, and that’s what this skill felt like to him. Like he was planning on things going badly.

Having an insurance policy was all well and good, but it didn’t sit right with him to expect to need it.

Zahif said he would have an introduction to an expert weaponsmith soon, Sam thought back to his earlier conversation with Zahif. If Sam had the proper foundation, he might be able to learn a great deal more. And if he managed to get a few more levels in Blacksmith, he might be able to pick up jewelcraft as well.

For now, Komachi was protected enough by [Cover] for Sam to feel comfortable picking up a Blacksmith skill. Considering his plans for crafting, Sam didn’t want to hamstring his efforts by foregoing a valuable foundational skill.

Before he slipped into bed, Sam selected [Weaponcraft Foundation]. The warm soothing sensation of a new skill unlocking lulled him to sleep.

He had all but forgotten about the two coffers he had left on the table.