Book 3: Chapter 53: Digested and Awakened Organs

Book 3: Chapter 53: Digested and Awakened Organs

Lone, Soph, and Breena, were having a distinctly normal set of drinks in a café they had found in the residential district near Hazel and her friends' home.

Lone was drinking his grape-flavoured milkshake, finding the taste to be not as awful as he had expected, though ultimately bland when compared the meal they had shared less than an hour ago - which had temporarily increased all of his stats by 50 for the next 30 days.

That was such a small number for him but for Sofia and Breena it was monumental. Breena and Sofia both could take advantage of the increased stats to get much more out of their training than they normally would.

Lone's thoughts on the subject were interrupted when a set of notifications filled his vision.

Congratulations! The host has successfully digested a shot glass of Thrice Refined Demonic Lava.

The host has developed the passive skill: Fire Resistance.

Passive Skill: Fire Resistance

A skill that allows the host to resist harmful flames.

The host is 5% more resistant to fire of all types.

Cost:N/A Mastery:Beginner Level 1 The host has developed the passive skill: Lava Resistance.

Passive Skill: Lava Resistance

A skill that allows the host to resist the negative effects of lava.

Lava of any type will be 5% weaker when making contact with the host's body.

Cost:N/A Mastery:Beginner Level 1

The host has developed the passive skill: Heat Resistance.

Passive Skill: Heat Resistance

A skill that helps protect the host from heat.

Reduces the negative effects of hot temperatures that the host experiences by 5%.

Cost:N/A Mastery:Beginner Level 1

The host has developed the passive skill: Demonic Influence Resistance.

Passive Skill: Demonic Influence Resistance

A skill that allows the host to resist all forms of demonic influence.

Demonic influence used on the host will be weakened by 5%.

Demonic influence that is actively used on the host will have a 5% chance of backfiring.

Cost:N/A Mastery:Beginner Level 1

'Oh, wow. Four fuckin' skills? And they all sound amazing? I didn't get Fire or Heat Resistance from saving Grimsley and Shana when their smithy in Milindo burned down, or when I practised fire magic on myself, so they must be pretty hard to earn. It's fuckin' awesome I have 'em now though. Should be easy to level with the door metaphorically unlocked,' Lone thought.

He stroked his chin in contemplation. 'Demonic influence that is actively used can backfire. The distinction means passive usage can't? But the lack of distinction for the weakening means both passive and active are affected by that. Powerful skill to have a second effect like that from the get go. Really makes me wonder what I'll get from the five other shot glasses' worth. Maybe some special additional effects?'

Regardless, the implication of these skills told Lone that Peter - and by extension the Deposit Conglomerate - was more than aware of his coming troubles with Arch Devil Zel.

The question was, is that as far as their support would extend for this matter, or could he reach out and ask for more? Could he hire them to help him fight off whatever help the flaming devil would call upon to kill him? That was an interesting matter to ponder over. It was also interesting to consider how they knew.

He doubted Prince Keining had spilled the hypothetical beans Lone had given him, but still, it wasn't impossible. He hardly knew the guy, after all.

Lone was jolted out of his thoughts when Soph had jumped out of her seat and into his arms, her own arms wrapped around his neck. "No more hot mana coming out of you, thus, hug time!"

That got a few stares from the other customers in the café but neither of them cared. Soph because she was happy he was no longer suffering, and Lone because he was disguised. It not being his body people were seeing made it all that much harder to get embarrassed, not that he was particularly prone to that feeling normally anyway.

"Hug time indeed," he laughed, wrapping an arm around her waist. "We've got a few hours until we need to set out for our lovely daughter's quest, so my darling wife, what would you like to do?"

Soph stared into his eyes, seeing past his disguise to look at the real Lone. "Wife... marriage sounds fun. Can we...?"

Lone smiled warmly. He kissed her and said, "Eventually, but not now. Immediate issues first, right? How about we spend the rest of the afternoon with the kids?"

"We'll both hold you to that 'eventually', you know?" Soph beamed at him and kissed him back before adding, "Sure! They're all at their home right now so why not?"

'It costs so much money to hire a private mind magic tutor and the only one even close to the principality has a years-long waiting list. Ha-ah... Contract magic isn't much better. Why doesn't the guild have a tutor for that? Why is it all governed by seven private institutes? I can't really up and leave to go to a magic school since George has no affinities and Scott hasn't awakened his mana brain yet,' Hazel thought.

Suddenly, a knock came from the front door.

"Can you get that, Hazel? I'm busy cooking," George yelled down the hall, his head poking out of the kitchen to look down the hallway at her as she slouched on a sofa in the living room.

'Kyuubi... ride... soon.'

Her brother's intimidatingly well-defended mind made it quite difficult to hear the thoughts of the foxkin girl and crazy woman. If only she could control her unique skill to only target some minds... Sadly, it was all or none currently. It was lucky she'd even heard their initial thoughts outside of the door.

"Well, I only met him today, but he sponged off of some good will I've somehow earned. It is what it is. Where are the others, by the way?" Lone asked.

Hazel was about to answer when an excited Emma and a sweat-covered Scott entered the living room. "I knew I recognised that voice! See, Scott? I wasn't hearing things. Hi! It's been ages!"

Scott shrugged. "It's been just over a fortnight, stop exaggerating. Hey Mis- Right. It's Lone now. Hey Lone, Hey Sophie? Ah, no. Soph? You're so hard to tell apart. And hi Breena. What's with the furball?"

Hazel shivered as she felt a powerful desire to murder completely enshroud Soph's thoughts before it disappeared just as fast.

"She's our daughter, not a 'furball'," Soph said sweetly with a less than sweet smile on her face.

Hazel, Emma, and Scott, all shared a look.

"Daughter?"

"As in you two...?"

"But humans and demis aren't compatible..."

Lone burst out laughing. He stroked Kyuubi's big sleepy head and said, "She's adopted."

"Oh, that makes a lot more sense," Scott nodded. "Is she a person? Like, can she transform or something?"

"Dunno," Lone answered honestly. "She's way too intelligent and docile for a normal Golden Fox, needless to mention the circumstances in which we obtained her. She's growing too fast as well. It would take centuries upon centuries and exposure to spiritual elements for her to get this big normally. Though I think I have an answer to that already."

Soph looked up at him. "You think she's had the milk before?"

"She does sleep all the fuckin' time," Lone replied before he leaned down and rubbed his face into Kyuubi's fur, "Ain't that right, ya lazy blob?"

"Kyuuu..." Kyuubi purred peacefully before yawning and immediately falling asleep once more.

Alisa had just entered the room while rubbing her eyes before she said, "Oh my god. That was the cutest thing I've ever seen..."

"Did we wake you up?" Hazel asked. "Sorry, you exhausted yourself while training and here we are being inconsiderate."

Alisa ran a hand through her long and straight blonde hair before she shook her head and yawned. "It's fine. Have you learned any space magic since you were last here?"

Lone replied, "Nope. Have you?"

"Nope," she replied sadly.

"Figures. Well, I might have an X-ranked magic master lined up for Scott who shares the same magical affinities, and I think I might know a way to, if not get you a teacher, Alisa, at least encounter a space magic practitioner who can use a skill on me that I will then in turn teach you," he said.

'What?' Hazel thought before she voiced her confusion, "How are you so well connected to powerful people? You're, uh, how to put it..."

"An asshole?" Scott chimed in as he sat down. "Don't gemme wrong, I prefer the new you. Mister McCullen was a pushover on the best of days. Felt sorry whenever I looked at you back then. Now you scare the shit out of me and inspire me. Big change."

Before Lone could respond, Soph spoke up changing the subject, completely blindsiding Hazel. "I just noticed! You awakened both of your mana organs! Congratulations. Are you gonna try to find a teacher too?"

"Uh, I, yes? I've been trying. There's no mind magic teacher's to be found in the city that I could possibly afford, or who would even bother given my affinity is quite low. They all require at least 50% affinity, the few that live here, anyway. Dunno about outside the principality. As for contract mag-"

"I can try to teach you that," her brother interrupted. "I have True Contract Magic and I have some info on a couple of contract magic skills I got from a woman who tried to get me assassinated a while ago. Traded the info of every skill she knew existed in exchange for her life. Good deal if you ask me. But yeah, I can just divert attention to self-learn one or two of those and then teach 'em to ya. I am quite busy so give me half a year or so. I don't need contract magic skills right this moment."

"How do you always say the most insane things so casually?" Hazel sighed before she blushed. "I was supposed to think that, not say it."

"Hahaha!" Lone laughed. "Believe it or not, I'm toning myself down quite a bit for all of your sakes."

"How did you awaken your mana organs?" Soph asked Hazel, once again changing topics.

Emma smiled. "That's a fun story. Fresh too since it only happened five days ago. We can listen to that, eat George's cake, then you can train me in lightning magic! I want to learn Amplified Current."

George yelled from the kitchen, "Unless you want to eat it raw, you won't be eating my cake for a few more hours! I'm finishing up preparing it, not finishing up cooking it!"

Emma scrunched up her face in anger. "Damn it. I'm craving cake and only now I learn it's not close to done?"

"Ask Lone. He can magic one up for ya," Scott suggested.

"Nope. I would get much more enjoyment watching you suffer, and I don't want to take from George's efforts by indulging you now. Anyway, yeah, I'd love to hear how my lil sis awakened her mana organs. I also want Breena to spar with you all to warm her up before our quest later tonight. So, with that all planned, spill the tea, Hazel," Lone said.

Emma mumbled, "Sparring will only make me even more hungry..."

Hazel smiled. She much preferred this side of her brother when compared to the murderous and paranoid warlord of the Farwinds who had kidnapped them and almost snapped her neck on their first meeting.

"We chose to do our first combat mission last week and it was to clear a subsection of the sewers from the build up of the local slime variants..." she started.