Lone sat on his and Sofia's bed - the only remaining piece of furniture in their home of the past two months - with Soph on his lap and Kyuubi wrapped around the both of them. "Fingers crossed it doesn't overwhelm you like it being taken away did, huh?"
They were currently waiting for her magic to be returned to her which was scheduled to occur in about a minute or two. It had been a busy two months. It was a very peaceful period, no doubt large in part due to Sofia's incredible Luck stat.
Still, neither of them had wasted that time. It was the most focused period of training either of them had committed to and the gains for both of them were substantial. The closest thing that Lone had experienced was his first time in Krieg Moor's prison where he had kept a journal of his training efforts and thoughts.
"When are you gonna make your wish, by the way?" Lone asked as he pressed his chin into Soph's soft head of bright-blonde hair.
"You let me win. It isn't fair," she replied, pressing her back into his chest.
"That's not true. It's just more restrictive in this little underground house than it would be anywhere else. It not my fault I got my 20th beginner skill to intermediate rank the day after you earned your new subskill Limb Adjustment," Lone said. "Resistances are easy for me to power level, but more involved skills that require, well, skill, you know it take me time. I'm due you a wish, whether you like it or not. Unless you want to tell me what your magical affinites are...?"
"Nope! I need to work on making my barriers smaller now and learning Internal Strengthening Arts, you know that," Soph said with a short giggle, much of her prior tension having disappeared entirely. "No time for distractions right now."
"You're right," Lone laughed. "Oh, that's really something. I can feel it despite not being able to sense mana."
A flood of power was coursing through Soph at this very moment as her Minor Time Control released its hold on her mana organs.
She gasped faintly as her body went limp in Lone's arms and began spasming as waves of energy poured out of her mana brain and heart, filling every crevice of her body.
Lone felt sick. He'd never been exposed to so much raw mana before. It was like Soph was using her ability to inject mana into active spells but into the entire room instead, him included. Still, he didn't move and just held her as was his role. He did glance at Kyuubi to see if he needed to unsummon her, but oddly enough, she seemed entirely unperturbed.
A lot of Soph's power was radiating outwards, shaking the very walls of this underground and fully-enclosed home, so vast was her unrestricted pool of MP. Regardless of his brewing nausea, Lone remained still and simply continued hugging her gently.
Lone glanced down at Kyuubi again. It was so odd and quite frankly suspicious that she was entirely unaffected as she peacefully slept, still being curled around both him and Soph. 'Sneaky fox with your secrets. I'll figure them one day, you can be certain of it.'
Three full minutes passed as the ocean that was Soph's MP kept growing and growing. Just as a few new notifications appeared in Lone's vision did the suffocating mana in the air halt in place and then, as if in reverse, it all surged back into Soph's small frame.
The host has developed the passive skill: Mana Scorched.
Passive Skill: Mana Scorched
An incredibly rare skill that less than 10 individuals possess. It is often found in those who have bathed in a raw source of magic for an extended period of time and lived to tell the tale.
The host has been burned by a source of magic, marked by it. The host can use this mark to detect other sources of magic. Limits: 1-metre for regular sources of magic. 10 metres for irregular sources of magic. 100 metres for other things or beings that have been marked by magic.
The source of magic which marked the host will always be detectable by the host, regardless of what may stand between the host and the source, be it distance, time, space, or even planes of existence.
The source of the mark is Sofia Vladimirovich.
Cost:N/A Mastery:Beginner Level 1
"You marked me?" Lone asked aloud. "Kinda hot, but also, I need to return the favour somehow..."
Cost:N/A Mastery:Beginner Level 1 [Unregistered: 4 levels] Blood CloneMaster Level 7 [+1 Level] [Unregistered: 5 levels and 1 rank up] Oaken FleshMaster Level 4 [+1 Level] Weapon BlockAdvanced Level 9 [Unregistered: 2 levels] MeditationAdvanced Level 8 [+2 Levels] [Unregistered: 26 levels and 2 rank up] Item ExaminationAdvanced Level 7 [+6 Levels] [Unregistered: 2 levels] Survivor's SpeedIntermediate Level 9 Wide TauntIntermediate Level 9 Sundering MightIntermediate Level 6 [Never registered] Internal Strengthening ArtsIntermediate Level 4 [+13 Levels] [Rank up!] [Unregistered: 7 levels] Ramming StrikeBeginner Level 8 Stone SlapBeginner Level 6 Stumbling SweepBeginner Level 4 Drunken FistBeginner Level 1 Magic Skills [23 skills]
Expert Level 9 World Skills [1 skill]
[Unregistered: 2 levels] Full Body DiagnosticsIntermediate Level 5 Primal Skills [4 skills] [Never Registered] UngroundedAdvanced Level 10 [Never Registered] YouBeginner Level 5 [Never Registered] Lifespan RevelationBeginner Level 2 [+1 Level] [Never Registered] Nothing VortexBeginner Level 1 Unique Skills [8 skills]
[Never Registered] Basic RegenerationMaster Level 7 [Never Registered] Bone ArmourMaster Level 6 [Never Registered] Dimensional StorageN/A [Never Registered] Creation MagicN/A [Never Registered] Growth AcceleratorN/A [Never Registered] Mental DestructionN/A [Never Registered] The Summoning RoomN/A [Never Registered] True Contract MagicN/A Fuck That Cuntbag Sir Ardus Skills [5 skills] Poison ResistanceExpert Level 9 [Unregistered: 1 level] Torture ResistanceAdvanced Level 5 [+1 Level] Thirst ResistanceIntermediate Level 7 Hunger ResistanceIntermediate Level 1 [Unregistered: 2 levels and 1 rank up] Insanity ResistanceIntermediate Level 1 [+2 Levels] [Rank up!]
Lone ran the numbers in his head. 'So 314 skill levels ups, 35 skill ranks ups, and 377 skill level ups I need to report to the credit slate along with 32 rank ups and 17 unregistered skills that aren't unique or Primal.'
He wanted to go over every skill that had ranked up during their training hideaway holiday just to refamiliarise himself with their effects, both new and enhanced. His perfect memory courtesy of Puzzle Locked Mind helped his recall any piece of information with ease, but it wasn't the same as having that information readily available in a millisecond.
He'd been training so hard that while he had read every notification as they had appeared, the information hadn't sunk in yet. Thus, a dedicated hour or two to refresh himself on his new capabilities were certainly needed, but not right now.
He'd distracted himself for long enough as it seemed Soph was coherent and stable again.
"Feelin' up for a teleport or twenty, or do you need to recharge?" Lone asked.
Soph lazily rested her head on one of the arms he had wrapped around her as she replied, "I can teleport, sure. To Breena and the kids?"
"Yup. I'm pretty sure they're still alive. Well, maybe not Breena," Lone replied.
"Huh? Not Breena?" There was an unexpected pain in Soph's voice as if she hadn't expected Lone to say something like that so randomly. She jolted up and turned to face him, worry in her expression.
"Well, I don't have her in a contract. I'm pretty sure the details of a contract I have would disappear from True Contract Magic's description if a or all signing members died. The kids' one is fine, no changes, and I still have the boost from Scott's skill. I don't have Breena in a contract, thus, I'm unsure. Master Mezro'nan is fine, though his contract expires tomorrow," Lone explained.
Soph sighed in relief before putting on a scowl. "Don't scare me like that. Unsummon Kyuubi and then let's go. You have me worried about Breena now."
"Ah, I guess that's fair. My bad. Seeya soon, you big ball of fluff, 'kay?" Lone said as he reached over and stroked Kyuubi's head lovingly.
The fox woke up, uncurled herself from him and Soph revealing her almost 2-metre long body before she nodded faintly and nuzzled her head into his face before briefly licking Soph's.
"Hey! That tickles!" Soph squirmed with a big old goofy smile on her lips.
There was a certain life to her that had been absent these past two months which warmed Lone's heart more than words could describe. 'She really wasn't herself without her mana, and I get what everyone meant now when they called her a Mana Sun. She's always been bright, but this is blinding. I don't want to put energy into turning off Mana Scorched since it seems so useful. Whelp, time to learn how to partially suppress a passive skill, I suppose.'
He got up off the bed with Soph and Kyuubi quickly following him. The next moment, he stored the bed and then said, "Unsummon Kyuubi Immortus."
The massive fox disappeared and likely immediately went to have a snack and a snooze in his unique skill The Summoning Room. "Now, whenever you're ready, Love, to Golden Pass City."
"Oh, it's rare you call me by a pet name! That was cute! Do it again!" Soph demanded excitedly.
Lone smiled. "It really is nice to have you back in whole."