Chapter 85: Because I’m an Adventurer (1/2)

“I couldn’t find anything even resembling an entrance,” Jason said as the trio regrouped. The others shook their heads, having fared no better.

“Probably some kind of extended lair,” Clive said. “A lot of creatures in this environment, monster and animal both, are just as happy in the water as out. Some like to dig burrows and stash prey for later consumption. The entrance could be in any direction, and is probably underwater.”

“Any suggestions?” Humphrey asked.

“We could try a simple ritual used for digging wells,” Clive said. “I’m sure I have one in a book somewhere in my storage space.”

“I don’t know that ritual,” Jason said. “Wasn’t in my ritual magic skill book.”

“People make skill books with knowledge practical for adventurers,” Clive said, “not for farmers. It’s one of many reasons that skill books aren’t proper magic instruction. They only give the flimsiest theoretical grounding.”

Jason groaned.

“You sound like Farrah,” he said.

“Really?” Clive asked, his head perking up. “Did she say something about me?”

Jason wearily shook his head.

“Why didn’t you suggest a magic tunnel in the first place?” he asked.

“My concern would be collapsing whatever underground space we break into,” Clive said. “This ground is incredibly wet. Whatever lair or burrow is down there may be full of water already, or our tunnel could collapse the whole thing.”

“I don’t see a better option,” Humphrey said.

“Time to pull out the old bag of salt, then,” Jason said. “ You know, I’m still on the bag I took from these cannibals I killed. I should practise rituals more.”

“Don’t bother with the salt, “ Clive said. “I’ll sort it out.”

Clive closed his eyes and took a slow, deep breath. Nothing in the surroundings changed, but both Jason and Humphrey felt a stillness come over them.

[Human] has used [Mana Equilibrium].Ambient magic has entered a harmonious state.The next spell cast in this area will cost reduced mana, and the harmonious state will be disrupted.

“That’s interesting,” Humphrey said, looking around. Jason knew that Humphrey’s perception power, dragon sight, allowed him to see magic.

“You’re smoothing-out the ambient magic to make rituals easier,” Humphrey said. “You seem very spell-oriented for a human.”

“I venerate the Celestial Book,” Clive said. “I received a blessing that triggered a racial gift evolution. It changed the human special attack affinity to a spell affinity, like the elves.”

“Nice,” Humphrey said.

“I didn’t understand any of that,” Jason said.

“Then you know what it’s like to talk to you,” Clive said and Humphrey nodded his agreement.

“What’s the Celestial Book?” Jason asked. “Is that the god of books, or something?”

“It’s one of the great astral beings,” Clive said. “They’re similar to gods, but instead of belonging to a specific world, they exist between worlds, in the deep astral. You could almost describe them as gods to the gods, although you wouldn’t catch any gods saying that.”

“So, you took a look at the gods,” Jason said, “and basically asked to see their manager.”

“That’s not even close to how it works,” Clive said.

“What about that racial gift evolution you mentioned?” Jason asked. “A lot of religious folk aren’t big on evolution, where I come from.”

Clive looked at Jason, then turned to Humphrey.

“You explain while I look up this ritual,” Clive said, pulling a book from his storage space. Unlike Humphrey or Jason, where objects were pulled from thin air, Clive’s storage space involved a floating ring of runes, in the middle of which a small portal formed.

“You must be constantly learning new things, coming from a whole different world,” Humphrey said to Jason.

“You have no idea,” Jason said. “I haven’t even learned all the fruit, yet, let alone the magic stuff.”

“Well,” Humphrey said, “every race has six racial gifts. For humans like Clive and myself, that is an affinity for special attacks and our essences advance more rapidly than others. Then there are the latent powers, that adapt to our essences.”

“Yeah, I heard about the XP boost,” Jason said. “Seems OP.”

“What?” Humphrey asked, confusion creasing his brow.

“Never mind,” Jason said. “Just keep going.”

“Racial power evolution is where a racial gift changes,” Humphrey said. “Any racial gift can change. The latent human abilities are essentially blank slates that are guaranteed to do so.”

“So any of my outworlder abilities could evolve?” Jason asked.

“They could,” Humphrey said. “Usually, there's some kind of trigger, often a traumatic event. Big monster fights where you barely make it out alive would be the one you see the most. Sometimes it just happens over time, though. You do something enough that it becomes a part of you and your powers actually change so it does.”

“Habits really have a way of taking hold, then,” Jason said.

“Exactly,” Humphrey said. “Have you met anyone from the smoulder race?”

“No, but I’ve seen them around,” Jason said.

“Well, they have natural affinities for earth and fire,” Humphrey said. “There's a guy on an adventuring team with my parents; he's a smoulder. He has the wind essence and, eventually, his earth affinity evolved to an air affinity.”

“So what about Clive and that blessing?” Jason asked.

“Gods can give their followers a blessing, which triggers a racial gift evolution,” Humphrey said. “I guess whatever that thing Clive worships can do it, too. That one was actually new to me.”

“Great astral beings,” Jason mused, remembering something he heard months earlier. “Hey, Clive.”

“What?” Clive asked, looking up from a book.

“That great astral thing you worship…”

“I didn’t say worship,” Clive said. “I said venerate. There’s a difference.”