[Voidknight Ascenion] Chapter 99: The Gifts of Copper

With Sam’s Max HP now at 1,515 and MP at 503, Sam felt comfortable enough to drop the remaining points into his Strength. His highest stat scraped an even loftier ceiling.

The familiar heady swell of his muscles expanding to accommodate his added Strength suddenly felt quite restrictive in his armor. For a moment, he worried whether or not he was trapped in his armor like a hermit crab in a too-small shell.

It passed a second later when Sam could feel the armor readjusting itself in tiny ways that were difficult to tell without feeling it firsthand.

Somehow, Sam felt sure that Raiko was looking in his direction, even though there was no way they could see each other across the cliffs.

You could be 30 feet from somebody and still not be able to see them due to the way the cliffs rose and fell with such regularity.

Still, the feeling of eyes on him wasn’t just in his mind, he was sure of it. But since he couldn’t tell where it was coming from for sure, Sam looked over his Status one last time to make sure everything was set.

[Status]

Name: Samuel Hunter

Race: Human

Legend: [Voidknight (Lv.12 - Unranked)]

Job: [Swordsman (Lv.20 - Copper)]

Path: [Void (Lv.16 - Unranked)]

Profession: [N/A (Lv.0 - Unranked)]

Health(HP): [1461/1,515]

Mana(MP): [392/503]

Attunements

[Void Mana] (F-Class Apocalypse Gate) (★★★★Legendary IV)

Affinities

[Fire Mana] (F-Class) (★ Common I)

[Metal Mana] (F-Class) (★ Common)

[Void Mana] (F-Class) (★Common)

Physical Stats

Strength(STR): 142 (+22)

Dexterity(DEX): 57 (+8)

Agility(AGI): 56 (+3)

Vigor(VIG): 117 (+18)

Awareness(AWR): 30 (+18)

Magical Stats

Arcane(ARC): 31

Control(CTL): 20

Resonance(RSN): 25

Mind(MND): 50

Insight(INS): 43 (+17)

Naturally, his HP and MP hadn’t risen to their new maximums, but they would eventually.

What was insane was how many “extra” stats he received from his Talents. Of the stats he placed bonus points into, Mind, Vigor, and Strength received more than the allotment he gave them, except for Mind.

Which made sense, as his Mind Talents were only at 6, while both Strength and Vigor Talents were at 20. For every 5 points he spent on Vigor or Strength, he’d gain an extra one from the Talents.

Not to mention his bloodline also gave him 5% additional Strength and Vigor which… now that he had Talents, seemed much less impressive.

I wonder how many other people get Talents instead of stats?

If his Void Path gave him a stat point per level, he’d actually be somewhat on par, or a little behind compared to Talents. Some of those 20 Strength Talents came from his new Voidknight Legend.

Over time, however, the Talents should win out, even if he stopped getting them so frequently.

“I’m so ready for a Profession,” Komachi proclaimed enthusiastically, tail flicking around. “How about you, Sam? What’cha gonna pick?”

Even the mimic appeared to watch him with a vague impression of curiosity.

“Has that little guy leveled up anymore?” Sam asked, putting off answering her question, even if he was genuinely interested.

“A little. There was some Primitive rarity gear lying around. Machi didn’t think anybody would want it.”

“No, probably not,” he agreed. “Not when it can make Chompers stronger.”

She nodded. “He’s a level 7 doggo mimic now.”

“Does it really say that?”

Komachi shrugged. Chester Chompers the Third panted, his tongue lolling out.

The mimic didn’t seem hungry. But it was hard to tell. Hopefully, Komachi had a handle on his needs.

Could something with a bottomless stomach ever be sated? It almost seemed like a philosophical question rather than one of biology.

Sam reached to the side and patted Komachi’s rump. Her tail went up like a flagpole. “Once we get to the Academy, it seems we’ll have our pick of Professions. That is, provided the professors are as… thankful as Lenal suggests they will be. What’re you going to pick? You seemed pretty smitten with Goldsmith, as I recall.”

She put a paw to her muzzle thoughtfully. “Yis, I like the sound of gold. Really, really like it.”

“There has got to be other Professions that deal with gold, surely?”

“Not one Lenal mentioned,” Komachi pointed out. “Probably though. Dunno what.”

Sam was about to mention Merchant, but he didn’t want to think of Komachi as a Merchant. She was enough of a menace about money and loot as it was. Besides, she could hardly count.

His cat was smart, but not that kind of smart.

“I don’t think they have all the Professions available. Besides, she was missing for a couple of days. The poor thing probably got separated around the time we were going to Raiko’s Skyshard.” He shivered. “Can’t imagine what it must have been like.”

“Well, if there’s a bunch o’ Professions to pick from, but none of them are exactly what I’m looking for, should I really hold off? Stats seem important. Being useful… is important.”

Sam patted her again affectionately. “This is a new life, Komachi. Usefulness is good, but so is living the life you want. Back home I would still be stocking cartons of coconut water and putting up with barely making more than minimum wage. Here I can fight, I can live the life I want. It just so happens that killing monsters is useful here.” He nudged her. “Want to know a secret? I’d still enjoy doing it even if it wasn’t.”

She tucked her paws beneath herself, forming a fluffy golden toasted loaf. “It’s hard to know what I want when I still don’t know much. Definitely dunno much about Professions. Still, Goldsmith sounds okay.”

“Just so long as you enjoy it,” he told her.

“How do I know without trying?” she cried, tail frizzing up. That was definitely a pre-freak out sign. Even Chompers began to pick up on the energy, his dozens of corgi paws stamping in place.

Sam stroked her body up to and along her tail, trying to calm her down. “It’s all right, Komachi. I would say that, more than not, you’re probably right. There isn’t any way of knowing for sure, but that was the same with Jobs, wasn’t it? You chose Cleric, yet you’re now a Bard. I think we have more control over our roles than we think.”

That settled her. She nodded slowly.

“It’s not like Kai was able to pick up Bard.” He poked her side gently. “That’s all you.”

“Can ya imagine him singing?”

“I’ve been told he has a wonderful baritone.”

“Bleh, can’t compare to the glorious sassy Machi.”

“Nothing can,” Sam agreed. “Now, let’s finish cleaning up. I don’t know how long the [Source Chain] will keep this island tethered, and I’d rather not be on it when I find out.”

Sam spent the rest of the day thinking about Komachi’s question. What was it that he wanted to do? In a way, his Profession would be the last major choice that would shape who or what he would become.

His Path had figured heavily into his new Legend, didn’t it stand to reason that a person’s Profession would too?

Picking up Analyst might be useful, more information on the battlefield would only be a net gain. But fighting wasn’t everything.

Even all the combat he’d seen so far was vastly outweighed by downtime and periods of exploration. With so much of this new world to explore, Sam didn’t want to wholly dedicate himself to just battle.

So what was a useful skill?

Building homes and structures would be in high demand. Obscenely high. With everything destroyed, Construction was an obvious boon, or whatever Profession it was called.

How were they ever going to make shelter without a Profession like that? Maybe they didn’t need it—or it might not exist—but if they could get just one person who was able to make buildings, the possibilities were endless.

And then there was the question of how to get the natural resources needed for such things. How much lumber did a house really use?

Sam knew for damn sure that any number he thought up was likely to be wrong.

There were stones needed for sturdy walls, lumber for wood—or was it the other way around?—mills to make standardized planks that weren’t all a different shape and size… and the list went on and on.

He had never truly thought about what went on behind the scenes to make the modern world work.

Nobody did.

But as the sun began to sink, the cleanup finished, and everybody gathered around the Sacred Tree for dinner, Sam couldn’t stop thinking about the fractal list of needs that even such a small group as theirs had.

It felt vaguely maddening.

“Raiko,” Sam eventually said. “Your Sculpting… can you use it to make buildings from rock and stone?”

He had no idea how refined her technique was, but he had seen the way she could manipulate the land as if it was clay. If she could do that, maybe she could create crude facsimiles of buildings.

Or, at the very least, they could make hobbit holes or something similar. Hollowing out a hill with his Strength and Vigor shouldn’t be that hard.

“I could, though at my present skill, something more natural would be ideal. And more functional, too.” Raiko took her hand away from the dullahan she cast [Glyph: Refresh] on. It didn’t seem to be in good shape, but the symbol blazing upon its back restored some life to it slowly.

Sam wondered about them. They were made of armor, right? So… couldn’t he repair them by using his [Basic Maintenance]?

Sam turned his attention to the one she had cast the Glyph and, to his surprise, saw shining green lines where the fractures ran deep.

“I think I could fix them,” Sam said, tilting his head to the side and looking at another dullahan farther away toward the bamboo grove. He turned back to Raiko. “If that’s all right with you. I can’t guarantee my work.”

Her eyes lit up. That definitely piqued her interest. “Yes, certainly. I’ve no longer the tools to maintenance them. Not after the Ascension. Just be careful please, if you think… their core is destabilizing, don’t push on. They can’t exactly die, but the warrior would be out of commission for some time.”

“How many, exactly, are there remaining?” Sam had never done a full count, but it seemed they weren’t nearly as many as he remembered seeing at the start of the battle.

And it was hard to tell if he was seeing the same dullahan multiple times or if they were simply spread throughout the Skyshard doing… whatever it was Raiko asked of them.

It was a good thing she was familiar with the group of dullahans, and that they were loyal to her.

He didn’t feel right digging about them. They seemed special to her, and he wasn’t going to complain about some—for lack of a better word—autonomous defenses.

They were more than that, Sam was sure. Hell, his greatsword said as much. A robot couldn’t be brave, but a person could. And they had treated him with a strange sense of honor and respect.

Almost as if they knew me, he mused in the privacy of his own head.

“Four, but two are down. The sword you wield, is from one of their fallen comrades.”

“Can they be… rebuilt? Re-summoned, whatever the term is?”

“They can be. You might be able to manage it, but I don’t have the means to do so at present. Not the tools, the magic, or enough of that tower left.”

“Is the tower a Tile or something?” Kai asked.

“I have not seen any such mention of a building being a Tile,” Lenal said. “I would be immensely interested in researching it if it were.”

Raiko appeared disquieted at that.

“Or not!” Lenal waved her hands frantically, trying to banish the idea. “I don’t want to overstep my boundaries. But I figured… while we were making our way to the Aker Academy, I could come to learn more about your home.” She fiddled with her thumbs and looked down. “I would… like to be something of an emissary between you and the Academy. They must be shown that there is more benefit in coming with you than staying on their own. Besides, any research performed on your Sacred Tree could be the breakthrough they need to finish the Engine.”

Raiko took a steadying breath. “It’s fine. That ruined tower is not safe. If you wish to research it, take a guardian with you.”

Lenal perked up at that and looked thoughtfully at the nearby dullahan.