Cultivating Talents [LitRPG Mana-cultivation]

Hector wet his lips, his gaze following Dale. The boy stepped towards Carter as the scruffy boy walked away from the rickety door of the building. Carter slipped his hands into his pockets, and his frown morphed into a thin smile.

"What are you doing here, Dale?" Carter asked.

"Mistress Silkmon visited the dojo today," Dale said, his voice steady, holding a hint of pride. "She asked for you. Wondered why you hadn't attended."

Carter gave Dale a cocky smile. He rolled his shoulders and casually glanced back at the decaying building. "So what? I have more important things now, and people who actually respect me."

Dale snorted. "That's just like you, Carter, craving attention, trying to fill that gaping hole. So much so, you'd even accept those mutts in there licking at your heels." Dale scoffed and spat on the ground. "The master is tired of your antics. He demands you return to the dojo."

Removing his hands from his pockets, Carter assumed a stance. Hector raised an eyebrow. The boy hadn't been taking the fight earlier too seriously. He hadn't used a stance before. As the wind ruffled his hair, Carter's gaze steeled. "So. I take it you are here to force me to return."

A look of disgust crossed Dale's features, and he let out a heavy sigh. "Why would I waste my time on someone like you? If it had been before, I might have humoured the chance, but now… You aren't even worth the time." Dale turned and started walking.

Carter's shoulders fell, his head slumping. The words seemed to have hit him hard. Dale paused just before stepping into the shadows. "Return to the dojo. If not, you know the consequences." Upon saying that, Dale stepped into the blackness and disappeared.

Who is this guy? That's Dale, alright, the arrogance alone matches him—that's without considering the dojo he mentioned. But Carter, I don't remember hearing about him. Did the Feather Dojo ever field someone called Carter during the tournament?

Hector watched as Carter turned, stepping up to the old door and grabbing the handle. With a final look back, the scruffy-haired boy pushed open the door and stepped in, closing it with a light thud.

Hector let out a breath, turning and resting his back against the decaying crate. It had been good for obscuring his form, not so much for comfort. He rested his hands on his lap. What did he have now? A safe house, and someone not only connected to the Collar Gang but the Feather Dojo and the Phoenix Company, who supported them.

If he attacked, not killing that boy might have to be a priority.

Either way, the boy seems valuable. The Feather Dojo wouldn't send Dale to just collect anyone. It had to be someone they wanted. But why?

Hector peeked over the box, his eyes then moved to the side alleys, and finally, he scanned the rooftops. The coast was clear. Well, aside from the homeless figures sitting huddled across the road from the safe house. Were they Collar Gang members? Maybe.

Hector pushed off the ground, keeping low as he moved back down the alleyway. It wouldn't do to throw caution to the wind in such a situation. If they thought someone was watching them, they would empty this safe house before tomorrow morning.

As Hector stepped around a corner, leaving the apparent Collar Gang safe house behind, two girls blocked his path. A black-haired older one, dressed in a dark cloak, and a girl Hector recognised. He couldn't see her forearm to confirm, but it was the girl with the Ravisher tattoo that he'd taken a Talent from.

"Can I help you?" Hector asked, taking a cautious step back. He was still too close to the safe house. Fighting here could cause problems.

"That depends," the older one said. Her black eyes tracked him before flittering to the side. "You aren't with the Collar Gang. If you were, you wouldn't be slinking around in the shadows." The girl's cloak shifted a little as she moved her hand, revealing the edges of thick leather armour.

This girl wore impressive equipment. The Ravisher girl next to her eyed him, her gaze like a knife trying to peel back his flesh. Did she recognise him? If she had, he doubted eyes would be all she'd be giving him.

The older girl gave Hector a toothy grin. "We saw you from the rooftops; with your speed, you could have caught up to that guy. But you held back. You were following. You wanted him to lead you back to his hole. And I can only think of one reason."

Hector's steps halted. If she'd seen him before and had bad intentions, there was no need to expose themselves.

They weren't with the Collar Gang.

But wasn't the tattooed girl with the Ravishers? Weren't they subordinated to the Collar Gang?

"You're after the loot in that house as well, aren't you?" The older girl continued. As well? She was going to attack the safe house.

"And what if I am?" Hector asked, turning back to the two girls. He crossed his arms, his gaze moving to the older girl.

She smiled, glancing past Hector before focusing back on him. "Then I'd say I have a deal to offer you. If you would be interested."

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"Clair, I think I know this guy," the Ravisher girl said. She rolled her shoulders as her lips morphed into a sneer. "He's the one who attacked me in the dumps a couple of weeks ago."

It had taken her long enough, but the girl had caught on. Hector didn't react. He looked between the two, seeing what the older one would do, whilst also making preparations to leave as soon as it turned bad.

System, scan them.

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///: Scan complete. One is in Gravity Forging Four, while the other is in Gravity Forging Three. Two Talent fragments at the Common Rank have been found on the Gravity Forging Three.
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Those two fragments had to be from her Common Rank Talent. The Ravisher girl stepped towards him, but a hand from the older girl blocked her. Eyes narrowing at the Ravisher girl, the older girl lowered her hand.

"Don't do anything that could blow this for us, Natalia," the older girl said. "We've put in too much time to start over again."

The Ravisher girl—Natalia—nodded, stepping back. "I'm sorry, Clair." She then scoffed and looked off to the side. Crisis averted, if just barely. Clair turned back to Hector. "I'm willing to let the past stay where it is. This is more important, so what do you say?"

Hector eyed Natalia. Would she really listen to the older one's orders? She seemed like such a vindictive person when he'd last seen her. She'd almost killed that boy.

Hector sighed.

That wasn't important right now. The girl's offer was one he couldn't refuse.

If he did, he'd potentially lose this safe house. He didn't know when they would attack, and the same was true for them. So whoever moved first would risk going in unprepared or losing the opportunity altogether.

"Alright, but before I accept, who are you?" Hector asked. "I know she's a Ravisher." Hector gestured towards Natalia. "But you—"

"I used to be a Ravisher," Natalia grumbled.

Clair chuckled. She shifted, a calm smile resting on her lips. Her cloak flapped in the brisk night wind. "I'm Clair, a sub-captain of the Scoda Gang. Not really anything else to say apart from that. And Natalia, here is my assistant."

"I see. Scoda, huh." Hector nodded. "I'll accept your offer; we should meet up to discuss the details. This place isn't exactly great for that."

Shaking her head, Clair smiled. "There's no need to discuss; we'll be meeting in four days near The Old Hammer tavern. I'll have someone keep a lookout for you. Bring anyone you think can handle a little raid."

Is she crazy? She just wants to walk right in with no prep. That or she just wants to use me and anyone I bring as bait.

"Alright," Hector agreed. If she was planning to use him as bait, the girl would be in for a rude awakening.

"Good," she said with a playful smile. "I'll be seeing you soon, then, Hector." With that, the two girls turned and walked away, their forms sinking into the shadows of an alleyway.

Hector stared at where they had once been until he was sure they'd left. Once he was sure, he let out a breath. That was close. If they'd been anyone else, everything would have gone up in smoke. Lincoln's info would have been a waste.

He stepped back. It was probably best not to follow the same route they took. His eyes moved to an alleyway a few paces away. Hector's sandals clacked across the damp stone as he turned into the alleyway. He had a lot to consider.

The girl was using him. If he were her, he might have done the same. But either way, this was a solid opportunity. If he could get information on a warehouse and any loot in the building, right from under her nose, that would be fantastic.

A shadow flickered up ahead, and Hector's feet came to a halt. The form shifted, and a cloaked figure stepped out. How many people had been watching him? At this rate, Hector wasn't sure that Carter hadn't seen him.

"I don't appreciate being spied on," the figure said, stepping out of the shadow. Dale's hair played in the wind, his eyes narrowing, and his cloak flapping. "Especially by some filthy slum rat like you."

Hector's thoughts stalled. When had he spotted him, and how? The boy didn't even look in his direction when he was talking to Carter. Did he? Hector took a step back, cold liquid splashing against his leg as he stepped into a puddle.

"Don't worry, I'm not here to waste my time dealing with the likes of you," Dale said. "I just wanted to make one thing clear. You will stay away from that building. Don't think about it and don't breathe a word of it. Trust me, you can't handle the people in there with your pathetic level of skill."

You don't know what I can handle, Dale.

To others, Hector might have looked weak; he was, after all, Gravity Forging Two. But he could punch well above his weight. Dale scoffed and turned. "You best heed my warning. I will not fail my task because of the buzzing of some insect." With that, he moved towards the shadows and disappeared.

"I really need to use Street Reader more, or work on my perception," Hector muttered. He stroked his chin. Why were so many people interested in one little safe house? It was probably more than it seemed on the surface.

Hector spent a few hours winding through the alleyways and sloshing through the sewers to get back to the cavern. All the while, he replayed the conversations he'd had tonight. When he was halfway back, he even used his [Street Reader], and thankfully, no one was following him.

In the end, he made it back to the hideout and relayed all that had happened to Mirae and Jodie.

— — —

Hector spent the next four days immersed in cultivating and growing his Talents. Jodie and the others drifted through from time to time, but Mirae was his only constant company. Hector gave Mirae the [Awakened Soul] Talent on the second day. He also gave Emela [Frost Dart] and Lincoln [Mud Barrier]. Lincoln's eyes practically sparkled as he used the Talent.

In those four days, Hector even gained two more [Ember Pool] Talents, allowing him to upgrade Jodie's skill to uncommon. The boost in strength was practically night and day. On the day of the meeting, Hector left the hideout to do some hunting; Emela came to visit, and he needed to warm up before the meeting with Clair.

"So, are you sure about this girl?" Emela asked.

"You can never be too sure," Hector replied, stepping to the side as the claw of a hairless rat tore past.

The torchlight held by Nyx flickered, casting the creature and his shadows onto the stone. The thing seemed a little more frantic today. Dropping one shoulder, purple static swirling to life in the shape of a knife, Hector lunged forward.

The rat tried to jerk back, but the blade pierced through its flesh, diving through its meat and slamming into its heart. A low groan escaped the rat's mouth as its body slackened and it slumped to the side, hitting the cold stone with a dull thud.

"Besides, we can more than handle ourselves. We just need to get in and get—"

A low, wheezing drone interrupted Hector. He turned, and a hairless rat was shambling towards him, guts hanging out. He raised a brow. "Did you do that?" he asked Emela.

She shook her head. "I've been standing here the whole time. When would I have done that?"

The rat collapsed to the floor, its entrails slapping the stone with a wet thud. Hector's gaze pierced into the darkness behind it. Was there something else out there?