Chapter 102: Quite the Pair

Chapter 102: Quite the Pair

Reivyn settled down in the shade of one of the rocks. There were several hours left until sundown, and the other Party members had segregated themselves to get some rest. Reivyn surmised that he had the highest stats. He was always the last one to suffer fatigue, so he volunteered to keep a lookout while the others got some sleep. He wouldn't have been able to sleep at the time, anyway, so might as well do something useful.

There really wasn't much to keep watch for. It was more the principle of the thing and to not get into bad habits.

Don't have much else to do, might as well review my Experience and Skill gains recently. More and more often, Reivyn found himself letting his notifications wait until he could review a large amount at the same time. It wasn't a conscious decision he had made, it had just happened. I used to pull everything up as soon as it happened because I liked the way it felt to see tangible progress. Now I think I enjoy getting a large drop of information all at once more.

He pulled up the Notifications that had been accumulating.

Exiting Dungeon

Calculating...

First Boss: Complete

Combat Experience: Exp +300

Dungeon Completion Bonus: (1/5) Exp +1,000

Total Experience: 1,300

Combat Initiated.

Enemies Defeated

Exp +340

Exp +340

...

Exp +340 x 11

Combat Initiated.

Enemies Defeated

Exp + 200

Exp +200

Exp +200

...

Enemies Defeated x 41

Exp + 200 x 41

Combat Initiated.

Enemies Defeated

Exp +50

Exp +50

Exp +50

...

Enemies Defeated x 89

Exp +50 x 89

Total Experience: 17,820

Skills Leveled Up!

Tier 1:

Athleticism (45 ->48)

Balance (46 ->48)

Dancing (18 ->22)

Hiding (28 ->33)

Map Making (20 ->23)

Observation (44 ->46)

Rhythm (21 ->23)

Running (44 ->45)

Sneaking (27 ->31)

Heavy Armor (17 ->21)

Tier 2:

Acrobatics (26 ->28)

Eavesdropping (25 ->26)

Evasion (42 ->45)

Gab (1 ->6)

Linguistics (10 ->11)

Pain Resistance (42 ->49)

Silent Step (1 ->5)

Stealth (23 ->25)

Tier 3:

Battlefield Awareness (22 ->23)

Blind Fighting (10 ->14)

Danger Sense (18 ->21)

Detect Lies/Truth (1 ->2)

Mana Conjuration (35 ->38)

Mana Manipulation (38 ->41)

Mana Shield (25 ->28)

Mental Fortitude (41 ->44)

Night Vision (2 ->6)

Sense Threat (1 ->4)

Silver Tongue (1 ->4)

Tier 4:

Dual Casting (15 ->22)

Iron Will (15 ->21)

Mana Weapon (30 ->32)

Spatial Awareness (25 ->29)

Tier 5:

Heroic Bearing (4 ->7)

Tier 6:

Weapons Master (62 ->63)

Hmm, it seems like Partying up after reaching a certain threshold actually imparts a penalty on Experience gains, Reivyn noticed. Up until now, I've gotten 100% of the Experience from combat, but I've only been in Parties with Tier 2's up 'til this point. I guess as one advances, the rules change. It kind of makes sense if I think about it. The System has rewards for groups and Parties, but it's mostly about rewarding individual effort.

Reivyn wasn't surprised about his progress in his Skills either. The huge jumps in Pain Resistance and his Mental Fortitude and Iron Will Skills were to be expected after the harrowing experience on the Realm bridge.

He had another set of Notifications to sift through.

Achievement!

So I crossed the threshold of 100,000 Experience put into my Bloodline, but I didn't get any Stat improvements this time. If I need an increase of a thousand-fold per Stat increase to match the thousand-fold increase in Experience needed to upgrade the Bloodline, then I'll need one hundred million Experience for the next Stat gain.

"Full of nonsense."

Serilla snorted, trying to suppress a laugh. Kefira glared at the back of her head before turning back to Reivyn.

"I see that you're feeling better," Kefira commented. Reivyn's smile slipped from his face. Kefira grimaced. "I shouldn't have said anything."

"It's fine," Reivyn said, shaking his head. He stumbled on his next step and recovered with a sheepish grin.

"Walking on the loose sand is an art," Kefira said. She demonstrated by gliding forward at a normal pace, not slipping on the sand at all. "Balance, Athleticism, and a few other Physical Skills can help, but what you really want is Sure Step. It will also help with slipping on wet surfaces at higher Levels."

"I see. How do you unlock it?"

"Here, I can guide you. Watch my steps."

Kefira slowed her pace down and took careful steps. She deliberately stopped herself from unconsciously using the Sure Step Skill, and she carefully controlled her weight distribution and pacing. Reivyn watched intently as he tried to copy her. Kefira was pleased to see that she didn't have to explain all of the minutiae, and he was able to spot the differences in how she walked on his own.

"I see that I don't have to remind you to pay careful attention to my body and how it moves. You'll be able to unlock the Skill pretty quickly at this rate."

"It's easy," Reivyn replied. Kefira frowned for a second at the casual dismissal. "And the walking part isn't too hard, either."

It wasn't just her ears or cheeks that blushed this time. Kefira felt her entire head, starting from the neck, turn red as she realized what he was referring to. She coughed into her hand to regain her composure.

"Yes, well, it's a Tier 3 Skill, so it might take several hours of work for several days before you unlock it. Let me know if you need a reminder on how to move."

"I think you'll need to guide me for a week, at least," Reivyn said with a smile.

Kefira rolled her eyes once more. I've been doing that a lot more since running into this rapscallion. Kefira looked forward once more and saw Serilla glancing back with a stern gaze. Kefira stuck her tongue out at her and deliberately took another step closer.

Kefira didn't know why she was trying to press her companion's buttons, but she felt like rebelling a little. She had never met a young man that had elicited such a desire before. It was a novel feeling for her, and she was enjoying the attention for once. It didn't feel slimy or like it was masking an ulterior motive.

Kefira only reveled in her friend's frustration for a moment before addressing Reivyn once more.

"I'll leave you to it. If you have any questions, you can ask me any time."

Reivyn nodded his head as he continued mimicking the steps she had shown him. Kefira turned and walked over to join Serilla.

"Oh, is the young couple breaking up already?" Serilla snorted.

"Hardly," Kefira replied. "There's no reason for you to be so uptight. You know that I know how to behave."

"Do I know that?" Serilla raised an eyebrow. "From what I've seen, you know how to get yourself in trouble."

"I haven't gotten myself into any kind of trouble in a long time, and you know it."

"I shouldn't have to remind you that that man is very dangerous," Serilla said sternly. "We don't know anything about him, or whether or not he's telling the truth about his situation. Have you unlocked your Detection Skill yet?"

"You know that my Perception isn't high enough, yet," Kefira sulked. "But my experience in Observation is telling me he's not lying."

"You've been wrong before."

"I'm not wrong this time."

"I just want you to be safe," Serilla placed a hand on Kefira's forearm with a concerned look. "Don't get caught in a trap."

"I know you're just looking out for me," Kefira patted her hand with her own. "But it's your job to look out for me. Not to tell me what to do."

"Yes, I understand."

"Good."

Their conversation had been held outside of the range of hearing of anyone else in the Party, and Kefira was reasonably sure they had been quiet enough, and Reivyn was distracted enough in trying to unlock the Skill, that she didn't think even he heard them.

Sten and his crew had distanced themselves a little from Kefira and Serilla ever since Reivyn had appeared. She had been worried that Sten would do something foolish, like challenge Reivyn to a sparring session in order to bully him into his place, but that had been squashed with Reivyn's display of combat power. Sten was apparently intimidated enough to not make any trouble. He didn't know that she had given Reivyn a probationary position in her Party, though. She didn't know what kind of idiocy he might get up to if he did know.

She had seen it several times over the years. There were plenty of female Adventurers and Adventuring groups, but she found many of the dramatics associated with teaming up with such a group to be more of a headache than fending off the attentions of young men. There were also many more men in the Adventuring profession. There was just something about it that appealed to them more than it did most girls, though it wasn't a universal rule. She herself had quite a liking for the lifestyle.

She would inevitably enter into a partnership with a Party with cocky guys in it, and they would get distracted by trying to show off for her or Serilla. It had only been seriously dangerous a few times, and she had quickly abandoned any association with those groups. It was one thing to try and show off and quite a bit different to cause life-threatening danger.

It wasn't all that different from the other young men she met outside of Adventuring. They just found other ways to try and show off. She didn't have it as hard as some of her older siblings, but it was still an annoying thing to constantly have to go through.

At least it was, Kefira thought, glancing at Reivyn. I can finally see why some girls actually enjoy the games they play with the boys giving them attention. I've never been able to feel any sincerity before, though. That's not to say I think Reivyn is serious, but he's at least not a creep.

---

It only took Reivyn a couple of hours on that first day to unlock the Skill.

[New Skill Unlocked!]

[Tier 3:]

[Sure Step (0 ->1)]

He didn't want to expose how quickly he was able to gain Skills, though, so he continued to pretend like he was concentrating on the training Fira had assigned him.

He was grateful to her in more ways than one. She had distracted him from his brooding, and his mood had improved tremendously. He enjoyed teasing her for some reason that even he wasn't entirely aware of. It also amused him to watch Sera's reactions to their interactions.

They continued their journey across the sands of the desert during the night. Reivyn tried to interact with everyone equally, attempting to draw Sten, Dowell, and Cinna into the conversations. Dowell and Cinna were naturally the quiet type to begin with, though they were friendly enough. Sten, though, seemed to be afraid of him or something. He just shrugged it off.

He tried to interact with them equally, but he always ended up talking the most with Fira. It wasn't just that she was the one most readily accepting of joining him in conversation. He found himself drawn to her, and he often found himself looking into her ruby eyes without realizing it.

Their trip in the desert lasted six days, and they finally reached the end to enter a more lush environment.

"This is an oasis. A natural hot spring on the edge of desolation," Fira jumped up and down excitedly. "I'll finally be able to take a proper bath. I don't know how the rest of you can stand it. Especially you, Reivyn. You stink."

"Must be the blood and grime from all the fighting," Reivyn replied.

"No. It's you."

"I don't stink!" Reivyn tilted his head down and took a whiff. He recoiled with a disgusted look on his face. "Alright. I stink. Huh, I've never had that problem before."

"When was the last time you went multiple weeks without changing out your armor or taking a bath?"

"Umm, never?"

"See, there you go. You just didn't know that you stink, because you've been taking proper care of yourself."

"The way you say it makes it sound like smelling is my natural state."

"Of course it is! It takes external effort, like washing, to get rid of your stink."

"Could you please stop saying that I stink?"

"As soon as you don't stink."

"Fine! I get it, already," Reivyn exclaimed in exasperation. Kefira just giggled as she walked off to a rocky outcropping in the distance with Sera.

"We'll be going over here. Only death awaits any boys that follow, so keep your stink to the other spring."

Reivyn watched them go for a second before sharing a look with Sten and the other two young men. He shrugged his shoulders and walked to the opposite outcropping. There was enough privacy afforded by the natural rocks in the area that nobody had to worry about people spying on each other from the other springs.

Reivyn stripped down and tossed his armor and clothes into its own separate pool. He didn't have any soap in his pack - an oversight that will be addressed from this point forward - so he simply scrubbed the clothes against the armor. A brick of soap plopped into the water by his side, and he looked up to see Dowell giving him a thumbs up. Reivyn waved to the silent youth with a nod and a smile, and he got to work cleaning everything up.

After he had smelled himself several times to make sure there wasn't any lingering odor, he finally relaxed a bit in the waters of the spring. It was called a "hot spring," but the temperature was constant. It was cool in the summer and hot in the winter. Right now, in the early dawn, it was a bit warm compared to the chilly air.

He and the other boys of the Party didn't linger, not knowing how long the two girls would take, and so they got dressed once more and went to wait in a central area.

"This place is actually quite popular," Sten remarked as they settled to wait. "I'm surprised there aren't any other people here right now. It's usually busy all hours of the day."

"Might just be a coincidence of timing," Reivyn replied.

"Maybe."

They fell into a comfortable silence as they waited. Despite the stereotype of girls taking forever to get ready, they didn't have to wait long until Fira and Sera made their way over to join the waiting boys.

Reivyn looked up and his jaw nearly hit the floor. Fira was still toweling her hair dry, but she had donned a new set of combat robes. The biggest difference, though, was that she was no longer wearing the breastplate over her new robes.

Reivyn felt feelings in his chest that he had never experienced before as he watched her walk up.

That's quite the...

"What?" Fira paused in drying her hair as she spotted Reivyn looking at her. He promptly shut his mouth and cleared his throat.

"Nothing. You look nice." It was Reivyn's turn for his face to turn red. He panicked and just blurted out the first thing that entered his head.

"Thanks?" Fira finished drying her hair and stowed the towel away. Sera was giving Reivyn a stern look from behind her shoulder.

"The nearest city is only half a day's journey away," Fira announced to the group. It was more for Reivyn's benefit, as Sten and the others had come from their destination, to begin with. "Might as well not stop here for the day and just push on to the end."

Reivyn remained sitting for a second as he composed himself. Once he was ready, he joined the others on the final leg of their trip.

That was new...