Cultivating Talents [LitRPG Mana-cultivation]

"I—"

"Calm down, both of you," Hector said, interrupting Lincoln. He stepped back, crunching dried grass beneath his sandals. His gaze drifted from Mirae to Jodie before finally resting on Lincoln. "What Lincoln did was foolish, yes. But he did it in a moment of panic. I can understand that."

Hector narrowed his eyes at Lincoln. The boy had been panicking a lot recently, and it was becoming an issue. If Lincoln couldn't keep it together, he might have to reduce his role within the group to something akin to the role Marcus played. Maybe a support role was Lincoln's best bet. Combat seemed to have drifted from his priorities since the festival.

Hector's gaze shifted back to Jodie. "He's right, though. We need to figure out a way to take that thing down," he said, raising his wrist. The point count in the centre of the bracelet bead still read ten. This quest was their ticket to gaining over 200 points. With that, they could buy rooms for the day, and equipment and any other supplies that they might need.

Hector dropped his arm. "So, do we have any ideas?"

Jodie shrugged, the bottom of her cloak fluttering gently in the breeze. "I don't really have any ideas, aside from hunting it down and trying to beat it to death." She crossed her arms and shook her head.

"Yeah," Lincoln scoffed, "like that's gonna work." He reached out to the side, grabbing a handful of grass. He then arranged it in his hands before picking the blades out one by one. "I don't really have any ideas myself, though, so I guess I can't judge too much."

Jodie turned to Lincoln. Her blue eyes practically burned into the side of his head.

Hector ignored the two of them and turned to Mirae. His sister just shrugged and moved a strand of white hair, sticking out from the side of her mask, behind her ear.

"Alright then," Hector said, his gaze moving to Nonami and Otter before he turned around and looked towards the Shade Forest. "If we can lure that thing out of there, it won't be able to make use of the shadows, or the tree canopy for that matter. Furthermore, with it out in the open, it'll be a much easier target." Hector met Jodie's eyes.

With the creature out in the open, they could both use the [Blazing Arsenal] Talent. Fire seemed to be incredibly effective against the creature, enough to cause it to flee upon being hit once. And that was despite it being noticeably stronger than Hector. If Hector had to guess, it was perhaps a Rank Two mana beast, around mid-level. And on top of that, it was fast, making use of its large heft and strange acrobatic skill.

The Shadow Wyrm's mana abilities had to be what allowed it to move like that. Something that size shouldn't be able to do that.

"And how do you suggest we lure it out?" Jodie asked. She took a step back, her eyes scanning the horizon opposite the forest. She raised a hand to her mask and adjusted it slightly before turning to Hector. "I don't think the thing's just gonna chase anything it sees. The blasted thing is smart. It's gonna wait until the right moment to strike."

"Pretty smart for an overgrown lizard," Lincoln laughed, patting the ground next to him. He picked up another clump of grass and began picking at it again.

Hector sighed, shaking his head. She was right. The Shadow Wyrm wouldn't just charge randomly at anything it saw. The creature wasn't an idiot. Unlike most beasts, the Shadow Wyrm had a modicum of intelligence.

But they couldn't just abandon the mission either. And bringing Otter and Nonami back wasn't an option right now. It would take too long, and they needed points now. Falling behind others within this Trial Realm was not something Hector wanted to risk.

"Well, you could always insult it," Nonami said, looking up from Otter.

Hector turned to the boy and tilted his head to the side. "What do you mean?" he asked, his eyes lingering on the slight smile tugging the corner of Nonami's lips. It was a defeated smile, like he regretted the action taken to arrive at the information he was now providing.

"Well," he said, "Otter here decided it would be a good idea to insult the big thing when we were fighting for our lives."

"It was a moment of passion," Otter grumbled, his teeth clenched, a hand gripping his wound. "I didn't think it would actually take offence. I mean, it's an animal, for crying out loud."

"The Shadow Wyrm could understand you?" Jodie asked.

"I wouldn't say understand," Nonami replied. "More like it had the feeling that Otter had insulted it and that enraged it."

"So this thing can sense feelings?" Lincoln asked, letting out a bark of laughter. "I won't lie; that sounds absolutely ridiculous."

"Well," Nonami said with a shrug, "ridiculous or not, it's what led to Otter being hurt the way he is."

Hector nodded. "Alright, this doesn't sound half bad. A monster that can understand that it's being insulted could be much smarter than we're giving it credit for. And if it's smart, that means we can manipulate it."

Hector brought a finger up to his mask, about where his lips would be, and lowered his head in thought. Otter had insulted it, but the creature didn't understand words. Just feelings. It was probably a proud creature, one that didn't take kindly to others looking down on it.

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Hector tapped his foot against the ground, packing the grass down with each tap. Scanning over everyone, there wasn't a doubt that he was the fastest one here. Anyone else would be too slow.

"What are you thinking?" Jodie asked, breaking Hector from his thoughts. He glanced up at her and shook his head.

"I'll be the one going into the forest to lure it out." His gaze moved to Nonami, who dropped to the grass with a huff. His brown hair waved gently in the light breeze. As Hector met the boy's gaze, he jerked his head to the Shade Forest behind them. "So, a few insults and the thing will chase me?"

Nonami nodded.

"Using that tactic," Hector said, "hopefully that will make it angry enough to get it out of the forest and into the open. Then we can launch a trap."

"A trap?" Lincoln asked. He sprinkled grass blades into the wind before raising a hand and scratching the back of his head. "What traps can we build out here?"

"I was thinking pits, maybe," Hector said, drawing out the words. "Perhaps one big one, you know, something for it to fall in."

As he said those words, he held Lincoln's gaze, hoping the boy picked up his meaning. They'd be using pits for sure, but that wouldn't be the only thing. Hector had some Talents that were perfect for making traps that could at least slow the beast down. With it slowed, a few fireballs to the back should be able to put it down.

"Hold on," Jodie said. "You want to go in there alone? You can't do that!"

Hector tilted his head to the side. "I can't?"

"Those things, they're everywhere. What if you get cornered, trapped?"

"Jodie," Hector said. He shifted on the grass, his gaze locking with hers. "I'll be fine. This is hardly the fastest thing I've had to outrun. Certain things were faster," he said, his eyes momentarily flickering to Nonami and Otter before landing back on Jodie.

The Void Singer they'd fought in the farmhand's underground hideout had been faster. Well, at least its tentacles had been. This Shadow Wyrm was nowhere near as quick. He should be able to outrun the thing with relative ease.

Jodie let out a low groan, her gaze flickering to Mirae. "You sure you don't want someone to come with you for backup?" Jodie asked.

"No, I can handle it," Hector replied, shaking his head. "All I need is for you guys to prepare the terrain and be ready for when I come out."

"Alright then, I guess it's set," Lincoln said.

Hector turned to Mirae. "You bring these two farther away. I wouldn't want them to get caught up in any of the fighting," Hector said to his sister.

She nodded, and two of her puppets stepped forward, moving to Otter's side and beginning to pick him up.

"You be careful now, alright, Hector?" Mirae said. She met his gaze before leaning to the side a little, her eyes moving to the Shade Forest tree line.

He nodded, raising a hand and resting it on his sister's shoulder. Rubbing his thumb on the side of her mask, he then nodded for her to move back. And she did, leaving one puppet, its luminescent form shimmering subtly, standing at Jodie's side.

"You sure about this?" Lincoln asked, getting to his feet and dusting grass blades off his pants, green staining their surface.

"As sure as I've ever been," Hector said, turning back to the forest. He lowered his voice to a whisper. "For now, Lincoln, I have a Talent I need to give you. Jodie as well." He thought for a moment and paused.

The [Runic Apprentice] Talent would probably serve Lincoln better than it would Jodie. He already had a [Mud Wall] Talent. The [Surface Scrapper] Talent would complement that nicely.

"Never mind, Jodie," Hector said. "I think I'll give them both to Lincoln."

"Why?" she asked.

"Let's just say right now," his gaze levelled at Lincoln, "I don't think fighting is his top priority."

"You got that right," Jodie said from the side, a sharp laugh coming from behind her mask.

"I'm a bit off at the moment, that's all," Lincoln said. He nudged Hector on the shoulder with a fist. "I'll pull myself together, don't worry. You remember at the dump when I told you—"

"I remember," Hector said, cutting him off. "Lincoln, that was, what, a month or two ago now?" Hector sighed, tilting his head back. The clouds above drifted across the sky, not a thought for those below. No worries. Lucky. "I don't know." Hector lowered his head and turned to Lincoln. "Let's just get this over with, and we can talk about it later, alright?"

Lincoln's head sagged, and he nodded, shambling forward. Hector led the way, just to a spot where he was fairly sure that Nonami and Otter couldn't see him, then had Lincoln sit down before resting his hand on Lincoln's head.

"You ready?" Hector asked.

—— —— —— ——

"It's quite remarkable, isn't it?" Brom said, raising a sleeve-covered finger to his lips and surveying the pristine buildings around them.

Emela nodded, turning to her older half-brother. The look in his eyes was one of fascination. Brom sat in the library of the Frostkeep Manor most of the time, his nose deep in books, filling his head with random nuggets of knowledge that most of the family felt were unneeded. But he saw it differently. He believed that knowledge would change one's fate.

Emela turned her head to Nyx, who walked alongside her. She smiled. The maid nodded back at her, and Emela let out a breath.

"How old do you think these structures are, Brom?" she asked, curling a strand of hair behind her ear as she walked, the snow packing beneath her boots with each step.

Ever since they'd entered this region of the Trial Realm, a light snow had drifted down every other hour or so. Yet somehow, it was only a foot or two deep in the highest of places. Snow covered the buildings here, though.

"If I had to guess, I'd say a few days old at most."

"That can't be right," Emela said. "This realm hasn't been open for what—three hundred years or more."

Brom nodded, his eyes drifting over the area. "You're right," he said. "But this place could have been created yesterday. Or it could have been created years ago. It's just so hard to tell. But one thing's for sure." Brom stepped away from her, moving over to the door of one of the many buildings.

He rapped his knuckles against the thick wood. A dull thud barely came from it. "This thing is fresh. A bit too fresh." Brom chuckled. "But then again, everything in this place is a bit too—" He turned back to her, then looked up at the sky. "Perfect."

The word came from his lips like a spoken truth tinged with a faint undertone of worry.

"I hear what you're saying." Emela bit her lip. How was any of this even possible? Sure, cultivators could do things like throw ice shards and freeze people solid. But creating worlds—it just seemed so illogical.

"But what does this have to do with us finding those moose?" a Frostkeep branch member said, resting a hand on the hilt of his sword.

Another one, a short distance away, chuckled as he ducked his head into the open window of one of the many buildings. "Perhaps the moose are also freshly made. Born yesterday. We'll probably be killing some moose pups."

"They're not called pups, you imbecile," Brom said, narrowing his eyes at the man. He crunched across the snow, shaking his head. "Damn idiots. They're called calves."

"Anyway, Emela, buildings this tall, this perfect, and this recently abandoned have to have been created. Not built. But someone powerful enough to create a sub-realm like this—their power goes well beyond our father's."

"What cultivation realm would they be in?" Emela asked.