Cultivating Talents [LitRPG Mana-cultivation]

To the side of Hector's group, another group stepped out of a doorway two doors down from the one Hector had exited. The lead woman pointed at the three behind her. "You all need to complete missions and get as many points as you can. If we can get enough, perhaps we can look at the potion-forming room." She shrugged. "Though even if we get it, it'll be useless without ingredients."

Hector turned back to Harry, smiling at the group's interaction. "See them? They, from the looks of it, are nothing but commoners—I know, better off than slum rats like us—but with the points they get and the secrets this place holds, they could probably push past that status. I mean, the old man said it himself. He wants us small tribes to ascend, and I think we can."

Harry nodded, a look of determination taking hold in his eyes.

"Seems the Frostkeeps aren't the only ones vying for position," Lincoln said, gesturing with his head towards the southern and western parts of the hall. The Glademoor family occupied the south, and the Flamelights the west. All three families had taken up sections of the hall, getting ready to push out into the trial realm. They all had the biggest advantage in this place and probably didn't consider anyone else a threat.

"I know the old man said that we can't exchange points," Marcus said. He frowned, tapping the side of his mask. "But he didn't say that about items."

A scent of flowers drifted past Hector's nose, and he brought a finger to his lips. Marcus was right, and the implication was clear. The noble families would probably marshal all their strength, that being their servants and any unfortunate individuals they could find. The nobles could then just have them purchase things for them.

"I guess Emela got lucky, then," Jodie said. "We'll have to get her to buy us some stuff when we next see her." The ginger laughed, combing back a strand of loose hair and looking over to the Frostkeeps on the northern edge of the hall.

"I doubt she'll have as many points as you think," Mirae said. Hector turned to his sister. She held a dark look in her eyes for a moment before shaking her head. "I don't think Emela gets along with her family much."

"What makes you say that?" Hector asked, crossing his arms. His gaze travelled to the Frostkeeps. Some of them began stepping out of the temple and moving towards the walls surrounding the enormous structure.

He turned back to Mirae, and she held his gaze. Something in her eyes spoke to him, and a memory clicked into place. She'd told him about the vision and what was going to happen to Emela, though he couldn't be sure exactly when. The only thing that was guaranteed was that Mirae would be near when it happened.

I have to make sure that I'm also nearby then to prevent things from getting out of hand. While Mirae hadn't seen Emela's death, it was better to prevent the issue entirely than wait and see what happened.

Jodie looked between Hector and Mirae before scratching at her mask. She let out a low hum and raised her wrist. "All right then, shall we get going?" Jodie asked, jabbing at the air above her bracelet.

A chill of certainty settled into Hector's chest, and he nodded, his eyes turning to Marcus, Delworth, Mrs. Strongmail, and the rest. "So, only the ones with cultivation will go on this mission. What will you guys focus on?"

"I think we should stay and focus on what Jodie wanted to accomplish earlier," Mrs. Strongmail said, nodding at Jodie, who returned the nod and smiled.

"So you'll be looking into the bracelets and buying rooms?" Hector asked.

"Yes," she said, resting a hand on Pippa's shoulder and giving it a light squeeze.

"I think we'll have a nice catalogue of things we can do when you return," Marcus said, turning to Delworth. "With the two of us on it, we'll have a list of things you can buy and the highest priorities of things you should buy by the time you get back."

"I appreciate it," Hector said. "Oh, and another thing." He adjusted his mask and corrected his cloak a little. "I would probably say that, at least while in the temple, you guys should move without the cloaks and masks. That Frostkeep noble from earlier has no doubt marked us. With our hoods up, you can't really tell us apart aside from height and maybe eye colour, with our get-up. So, he'll be gunning for all of us."

They all nodded. Hector crossed his arms and held his breath for a moment before exhaling. That noble had placed a target on their backs. Nobles wouldn't forget any slights against them—especially from what they perceived as someone lower than them—but it would also be useful.

Within the great hall, they could be sure that they would draw no attention. The mysterious group would take the brunt of any hate the nobles had. And a group like that couldn't be a bunch of slum rats.

"Right then, I guess you guys know what we're doing," Pippa said. "I'll stay with my mum and these guys, and we'll figure out what's going on, and when you return, you'll take us out on missions and help us get stronger."

Hector chuckled and nodded. "I hope you are ready to train harder than you have in the last few days."

—- —- —- —-

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A few hours later, Hector and his group marched across a field. The low grass swayed softly in the cool wind, and the sun above beat down on Hector's arms, tickling his skin. It wasn't as hot as he thought it would be when he first left the temple. Even after having walked for about two hours now, the temperature hadn't changed. He turned his head to Jodie. The girl, her ponytail tied firmly, shook her head and fanned herself.

"I don't know how you're doing it, Hector, but this is unbearable."

He glanced up, noting the clouds that drifted overhead. "You should have rolled up your sleeves like me," he said as he raised his arm, cloak falling to the side, and pointed at the rolled-up fabric gathered at his shoulders. "The heat is a little annoying, but it's not crazy."

"Speak for yourself," Mirae said, combing a strand of white hair behind her ear and fixing her bun. A single drop of glistening sweat dripped off the bottom of her mask and splashed down onto the grass below.

A few paces behind her, flanking her on both sides, were two white humanoids, radiating a faint glow. They marched in sync, never straying a foot off course.

His sister had summoned two of her three puppets, and somehow they stayed out in the sun, which shored up Hector's theory even more.

Moonlight charged the puppets, and they held the ability to store said moonlight for operating during the day. This meant that as long as the puppets had a moon to draw light from, they could function while the moon was present.

And Mirae had a moon from which they could draw light, floating right above a tree within her soulscape. Funny, that. In a way, there's no better pick for these puppets than someone with his and Mirae's bloodline.

Hector shifted his gaze forward. Ahead of them, trees loomed. Faint mist shrouded their trunks and played through the gaps, swirling in cracks and fanning out from others. This was the Shade Forest. He raised his bracelet. The map that floated above it pinged at the location just at the edge of the forest.

"I think we're here," Hector said. "The direction outlined on the map ends here."

Lincoln stepped up to his side, placing a hand above his brow and squinting. "I think I get where the shade part comes from, but I feel like calling it Haunted Forest would make more sense."

"I agree," Mirae said, stepping next to Hector. The trees were a dark brown, their canopies almost black, though amongst the darkness, deep green leaves popped through.

"There's no way," Jodie said, stepping forward and turning her head from left to right, "that those trees don't have affinitied mana leaking from them. Probably a great place for those with shadow mana to meditate."

"More than a great place, I'd say," Lincoln said.

Taking a deep breath, mana flooded into Hector's lungs. If he were to enter meditation now, his cultivation would progress faster than it had within the last few weeks. Though if he were to do it in that forest, quite the opposite would happen. He'd have to strip the mana of its affinity and then change it to his own. The trade would hardly be one-to-one.

"You know, it's funny," Jodie said. She spun around on her sandal heels, digging into the grass. "We've only seen a few people come in this direction. You'd think there'd be more, given how full the hall was."

Hector dropped to a knee, prodding at the grass. He then plucked one free. "I'd assume they'd pick higher-ranking quests." He shot a glance at Mirae. "The higher amount of points would probably sway most people, and considering they have no point of reference, taking on a mission they can't handle or probably shouldn't attempt would be more likely," he said, smiling at his sister. He got back to his feet and twirled the blade of grass between his fingers.

"But I don't understand." Lincoln turned to him, tilting his head to one side. "Just because they picked higher quests doesn't mean we shouldn't see more of them."

"No, you're right." Hector tilted his head to the side. "But I assume higher quests are more likely to be further away. Greater challenge, more resource drain, probably something you'd have to prepare for."

Jodie let out a sharp chuckle and shook her head. "And you wanted to take on a B-rank quest from the start." She rested a hand on her hip and kicked at the grass.

Hector shrugged, releasing the blade into the wind. "What can I say? I got a little excited, and the idea of people getting more points than us that quickly kind of scared me."

"Scared?" Lincoln questioned.

"Not scared, more worried. I don't want to miss out on anything the old man may know about us," Hector said, raising his chest a little and pulling down his collar, showing the tree tattoo that rested on his chest.

"I see," Jodie said. "All right, let's stop yapping and go do this. One Shadow Wyrm and we'll get two hundred points. Probably easy, right?"

"I don't know," Lincoln said, narrowing his eyes at the forest. Mist continued to swell, billowing out before being sucked back in by some unseen force. "If shadow mana fills that place, it's probably safe to say whatever's in there will also make use of that. So, probably a lot of watching our backs."

"Probably," Hector said. He marched forward, his heart hammering in his chest, his group a few steps behind. They plunged into the mist.

A cool dampness brushed across Hector's skin, causing him to shiver slightly. It was a stark contrast to the sun they'd been in seconds before. His visibility dropped considerably; he could barely make out objects more than a few metres away within the dense bush and mist.

"Do you smell that?" Mirae asked at his side as one of her puppets pushed a rather thick branch aside so she could walk past. "Is that jasmine?"

Hector sniffed, the cool, moist air rushing up his nostrils. The sweet scent of jasmine and an undertone of rose mingled in the air. Mirae had often kept those plants in her garden back home. Their father had even complained a few times, saying that she should focus on growing vegetables. They'd make a lot more coin.

"I smell it," Hector said. "But what of it?"

"It's just strange," Mirae continued. "You wouldn't think jasmine would grow in an environment like this, especially with so little light." She craned her head back and looked up at the canopy.

Rays of light dappled through, colouring the forest floor with shades of blue and green. The soft crunch of leaves played in Hector's ears as he slowed his pace, narrowing his eyes.

"You're right, that is strange, but I don't see any jasmines."

"Well, I still smell it." One of Mirae's puppets stopped, eyeing something in the distance. It raised its white arm and pointed. "I think Tan sees something."

"It does," Jodie said. "How can it do that? It doesn't have any eyes."

"They don't need eyes to see," Mirae corrected. "Either way, there's something over there."

Hector stepped past his sister and moved to the side of her puppet. There, a few paces away, sat a ragged-looking boy—a slum rat—clutching at his leg while his friend, dressed in the same manner, knelt at his side, speaking to him in a panicked voice.

"There are two injured people over there," Hector said. He glanced back at his friends and thumbed in the two boys' direction.

"Injured?" Jodie shuffled forward past the thick bushes. A gasp escaped her as she eyed the two. "We have to go help them."