Cultivating Talents [LitRPG Mana-cultivation]

"You have a quest? What is it?" Hector rested his hand flat against the wood and leaned in.

Mirae chuckled slightly. Turning away, she hesitated. "Oh, nothing. It's just a minor thing, really. It's an E-rank quest, possibly D."

"D?" Hector asked, frowning. The C-rank mission they'd done had required them all to work together. While a D-rank wasn't bad, it certainly wasn't a walk in the park. "Mirae, you can't be serious." Hector sputtered. He then pointed at Pippa and Harry. "They aren't even in Gravity Forging-One. How are you guys planning to do this?"

"Hector—" Jodie said, cutting him off before he could continue.

He turned to her and narrowed his gaze. His sister was about to engage in something that potentially put her life in danger. This wasn't a joke.

Jodie didn't back down, though. "Mirae has three puppets at her disposal, all at least Gravity Forging-One," she said. "Combined with her, that's what, four Gravity Forging cultivators within her team, plus Pippa and Harry? She'll be fine."

"I think so, too," Mrs Strongmail said, resting a hand on the table. "While I'm not much of a fighter myself, I believe I should still be able to help a bit."

"You're going with them?" Hector asked. A spark sputtered to life in his chest. It hovered there, waiting for Mrs Strongmail's answer.

If that's the case, I have a lot less to worry about.

"I don't fancy leaving my daughter to wander off alone," Mrs Strongmail said. "Especially with this place being as dangerous as it is."

The spark dropped and morphed. A sense of security settled into Hector's chest. If Mrs Strongmail were going, while she didn't have that much strength, there would at least be someone to act as a reasonable counter. Mirae wasn't impulsive by any margin, but she was young, she was naïve, and there were mistakes she'd make that Mrs Strongmail wouldn't.

He let out a sigh and shook his head. A crackle came from the fireplace in the lounge a few steps down.

"Alright," Hector said. "Be careful, though." He held Mirae's gaze and then turned to Marcus. "So it's just us doing your quest then?"

"Yeah, no. I don't think Delworth wants to come," Marcus said, turning to his cousin. "Do you, Delworth?"

"No. I have my own plans. There's a talisman quest I was actually thinking of completing in a few days."

"Thinking of?" Hector asked, frowning.

"Well, it requires a bit of getting your hands dirty, let's say," Delworth said, rubbing at his chin. His gaze then focused on the table's wood, and he muttered, "I want to take my time with it."

"Well, make sure you don't waste too much time," Hector said. What would make him act like that? Hector's gaze drifted off him and moved to the others. "I want everyone to have a cultivation technique by the end of the week. If things go well, Marcus could have an inheritance. If possible, I'd like us all to have an inheritance before we leave this trial realm."

We can't depend on the Orion Fist Dojo cultivation technique anymore. I can't speak for Mirae and me, as we seem to have our own inherent one. But everyone else needs something to give them an edge.

Hector's gaze drifted from the group. Above, a black chandelier hung from the ceiling. The candles in each pot dripped wax down their sides as the flames flickered. An inheritance was something that could very well change the destiny of an average cultivator. The mercenary Ozan, who'd gotten his own, had become quite a force in just the last few days.

"So, where are you guys going exactly?" Mrs Strongmail asked, turning to Hector.

"Shade Forest," Jodie replied for him. "It's called the Shade Crypt." Her fingers drummed across the table surface as she shook her head. "I didn't think we'd be going back there so soon."

"Are you sure you can handle it?" Hector asked, raising a brow.

"Definitely more than last time," she replied. Her head turned, and she looked towards one of the many doors that flanked each side of the Gathering Hall. The doors connected to the rooms that they'd purchased. Another perk of having the Gathering Hall. "And now that I have weapons, I don't think it should be as difficult."

"What weapon do you have?" Mrs Strongmail asked.

"I brought a sword," Jodie replied. "I believe Hector got some daggers, and I'm not really sure what that idiot brought," she jabbed a sharp finger towards Lincoln.

The boy frowned and let out a huff. "I just got a simple spear. Don't want to get too close. You know, gotta keep things at bay." He smiled at Mrs Strongmail.

She nodded and lowered her head. Biting her bottom lip, she frowned. Was she considering her own weapon?

"But either way," Hector said, "I think that should keep us safe from most of the creatures."

"And what is it you're looking for, Hector?" Mirae asked sweetly. She smiled, tilting her head to the side. Pippa also looked at him with some interest.

He jerked his head towards Marcus. "I think it's best you ask him that."

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Marcus ruffled a little as Mirae's gaze settled on him. "I'm not exactly sure," he said, shrinking a little. "The quest just tells me to head to the crypt in the Shade Forest. It says there I will have the chance to collect an Alchemy Inheritance."

"Why would an Alchemy Inheritance be in a crypt?" Pippa asked. "Isn't that where dead people sleep?"

Marcus nodded. "Yes, and no. There could be many uses for a crypt."

"I think it's just to store dead people, Marcus," Lincoln said flatly. He shrugged. "I mean, it's called a crypt for crying out loud."

"Alright, settle down, everyone," Hector said as he lowered his hand in the air. "So, we know what we're all doing. Mirae and the others are doing their quest. The rest of us will head to the crypt. While Delworth..." Hector held the boy's gaze for a moment, then shook his head. "Delworth will just be doing what Delworth does."

—- —- —- —-

Adjusting the large daggers that hung on either side of his hips, Hector frowned. They were bigger than the kitchen knives, that was for sure. But he didn't need them. He'd already copied them into his [Mana Forge] Talent, so he could now summon them at any time.

What a waste of points. I wish I could sell them back to the shop, even at a discount. Now they're just a fancy decoration.

Turning his head to the others, Hector nodded. Marcus, dressed in his grey tunic and pants and covered by the thick Hairless Rat cloak, wore a large backpack. He'd purchased the thing for 10 points, which seemed about right, considering Hector's own basic daggers cost 17 points each. Simple leather made up most of the bag, with a few metal buckles here and there. It could hold quite a bit.

"Are you sure you need that?" Jodie asked, checking the sword at her waist. She unbuckled the scabbard and then buckled it, making sure it was tight. Pulling on the sword hilt, she nodded. She'd secured it.

"I do," Marcus said, pulling on the straps of his backpack. Twisting the tip of his boot into the pristine tiles of the Sanctuary floor, Marcus looked up at Jodie. "I don't know what we're going to find out there, but I don't want to be carrying herbs around in my hands again."

"You looked slightly ridiculous doing that last time." Lincoln scratched his stomach and yawned, wiping away sleep from his eyes. A long spear rested against his shoulder. After correcting its position, he turned to Hector. "Do you think this will take too long? I didn't get enough sleep last night."

Hector frowned. "How did you not get enough sleep? What were you doing?"

Falling quiet, Lincoln took a step back and turned to Marcus. "So, do you think you'll take long in the crypt?"

Marcus narrowed his eyes and shook his head. Reaching for the small knife at his side, Marcus smiled a little. "We shouldn't be in there too long. I don't think this crypt will be that big. It's only a high D-rank quest, after all."

"A high D-rank?" Hector muttered. The Shadow Wyrm had been a mid-rank C quest. Or was it perhaps a little weaker? Either way, if the beast were any stronger, he'd have to assume the quest would push B-rank.

The Shadow Wyrm was strong. Even for him to take it on alone, it would have required quite a struggle. And there was no guarantee the battle would have ended with him winning.

We need to have a plan to deal with those things if we run into them again. We can't just rely on luck.

As Hector went to speak again, voices drifted over from a nearby group—something about the Shade Forest.

"—I can't believe the Flower Banks got into an argument with the Zulen House," a short, brown-haired woman said to the man next to her. She wore a scuffed-up leather vest and seemed to have cut her hair short with a knife. "What were they thinking?"

"Well, the Flower Banks aren't pushovers," the man replied. A broadsword rested on his shoulder as he clutched the hilt in one hand. Raising the other, he scratched his cheek, shaking his head. "Even in Middlec, I heard they got into conflict with a few minor nobles. But to think their little spat would awaken a nest of insects. How the hell are we going to complete our quest now?"

A passerby staggered to a stop. Turning on his heels, he stepped over and tapped the man on his shoulder. "Excuse me, did you just say a nest has awoken?"

The two paused, turning to the young man. Frowning, the man carrying a broadsword glanced at the brown-haired woman. He raised a hand and gripped the top of his iron breastplate. "You haven't heard? I thought the entire Sanctuary would have known by now."

"Hector, are you alright?" Jodie asked, breaking him from his concentration. She levelled a gaze at him, as if to ask what he was doing.

Raising a finger, he tapped it against his mask where his lips would be, shushing her. He then took a step back, listening further to the conversation.

"Apparently, there was a quest area a little west of the Shade Forest that the Rune-Wills had taken over," the brown-haired lady said, adjusting the bow on her back. "According to what we heard, the Flower Banks had a quest in that area as well."

"But being a noble family," the broadsword-carrying man continued, "the Rune-Wills didn't exactly want to give the Flower Banks any slice of the land." The brown-haired woman nodded. Moving a strand of hair behind her ear, she sighed.

"From what I hear, it got pretty tense," the woman said. "If it weren't for the eruption of insects and the subsequent death of a few of their members, we might have had a mini-conflict between the nobles and mercenary groups on our hands."

The broadsword man chuckled. He then shifted his sword to his other shoulder. "Well, we know who'd have won that." He tapped the hilt of his blade with some pride. Which, if anything, showed his ignorance.

It's amazing that after a few days and an actual path to power, these people think they can compete with the noble families. Though I guess some minor nobles wouldn't be too difficult to excel past. But the great families...

Hector frowned and shifted slightly, casting his gaze around the hall. They probably didn't realise he was eavesdropping; after all, they were still mortals. But he could never be too careful.

The passerby who'd stopped the two frowned. "The nobles would have won, right?" he questioned, with slight confusion, as if to say the broadsword-carrying man didn't look like one. "I mean, they have the numbers and are just far more equipped for this. Their cultivation techniques put them way ahead of us."

The broadsword-carrying man laughed self-deprecatingly and shrugged. "I put my faith in the mercenary companies. I mean, there are even some members from the Phoenix Company here."

"Really?" the passerby perked up.

The broadsword man nodded. Then, a proud smile slipped onto his lips as his eyes started sparkling. "I've seen them around," he said. "Just the other day. It was crazy. They are so skilled, I didn't even know what to make of it."

Hector turned back to his friends as the impromptu group continued talking. "Did any of you hear that?" he asked. Lincoln shifted uncomfortably, while Marcus shrugged.

Shaking her head, Jodie narrowed her eyes at him. "I probably didn't make out as much as you. I heard the Phoenix Company, though." She rested her hand on the hilt of her sword and leaned to the side, peering at the group in question.

"Apparently, an insect nest has erupted," Hector said, crossing his arms. His thoughts began bubbling. Mirae's quest was in the opposite direction from the Shade Forest, but would that make her safe? What if there were other nests?