Seeds of Discordia

Liam let out a long breath of air as he mentally prepared himself to look over everything. While he was excited to see where things had grown, he was also getting really tired both physically and mentally. A combination of Ariyana's Bedlam Aroma and his new Bestial Takeover ability really wore him down.

[Congratulations! Sub-stat Resilience has reached level 27! Progression to level 28: 78%!]

[Congratulations! Sub-stat Agility has reached level 29! Progression to level 30: 100%!]

[Congratulations! Sub-stat Agility has reached level 30! Progression to level 31: 10%!]

[Congratulations! Sub-stat Fine Motor has reached level 29! Progression to level 30: 100%!]

[Congratulations! Sub-stat Fine Motor has reached level 30! Progression to level 31: 13%!]

[Congratulations! Sub-stat Reflex has reached level 30! Progression to level 31: 24%!]

[Congratulations! Sub-stat Speed has reached level 27! Progression to level 28: 100%!]

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

[Congratulations! Sub-stat Speed has reached level 30! Progression to level 31: 0%!]

[Congratulations! Sub-stat Stamina Endurance has reached level 28! Progression to level 29: 0%!]

[Congratulations! Sub-stat Power has reached level 24! Progression to level 25: 100%!]

[Congratulations! Sub-stat Power has reached level 25! Progression to level 26: 10%!]

[Congratulations! Sub-stat Physical Practicality has reached level 22! Progression to level 23: 100%!]

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

[Congratulations! Sub-stat Physical Practicality has reached level 25! Progression to level 26: 10%!]

[Congratulations! Sub-stat HP Recovery has reached level 27! Progression to level 28: 100%!]

[Congratulations! Sub-stat HP Recovery has reached level 28! Progression to level 29: 1%!]

[Congratulations! Sub-stat Stamina Recovery has reached level 28! Progression to level 29: 100%!]

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

[Congratulations! Sub-stat Stamina Recovery has reached level 30! Progression to level 31: 0%!]

[Congratulations! Sub-stat Will Power has reached level 28! Progression to level 29: 100%!]

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

[Congratulations! Sub-stat Will Power has reached level 30! Progression to level 31: 10%!]

Liam paused from reading more as he thought about his sub-stat changes. While he knew about the changes in all of his Dexterity sub-stats, he was surprised by the others. Especially in Physical Practicality, Stamina Recovery, and Will Power. He didn't realize that Stamina Recovery and Will Power had also reached the level thirty breakthrough.

It wasn't an unwelcomed surprise that was for sure, but it was still a surprise. As for Physical Practicality, that was a sub-stat he hadn't seen much progress in. It must have gained the levels after he had put what he had learned from the book Nabal into actual combat so much. If that was the case then he needed to do it more so he could level that sub-stat.

As Liam reread the notifications he came to a new realization. The sub-stats that had reached level thirty didn't him about the new changes the sub-stats had gotten like they did around level ten and twenty. Liam's brow rose at that. Without any prompting Eri sent a message explaining it.

[It's because you are no longer in the beginner portion of the sub-stats. The first twenty levels gives you an idea on what you gain from reaching the first twenty levels, but after that you will need to figure it out on your own. Like magic you'll need to test your limits and see where you need improvements. While it may seem like getting here is a breeze, that's not really the case. You did have plenty of tough battles that got you the experience needed to get here. My suggestion is to train and work on seeing what you can do and get a better understanding of it. If you don't get a better understanding on what your body can handle now then you're only going to hurt yourself in the future just like when you stole all those sub-stats and couldn't properly land a hit. Your sub-stats are decently high for someone of your personal level. This will cause some to be suspicious of you, but if you can get a handle on how your body moves at your current sub-stat level then it shouldn't be a problem because no one would pay you any mind. – Eri.]

The corner of Liam's mouth curled into a slight snarl at the mention of personal level. His personal level hadn't budged from level nine for quite a while. No matter what he fought and killed it just seemed like it wasn't giving way. His thoughts then went back to what Eri was talking about. He then looked at his sub-stat level notifications and had a question that was starting to burn in the back of his mind. Hey, Eri…are personal levels really all that important? I mean sure they give points for us to put into our sub-stats, but is that all there is to them? It feels like the levels in our sub-stats are more important than our personal levels.

Liam, for some reason felt like he could feel Eri smile and was happy after he finished asking the question. It was a strange thing since he had felt that before. Even though he knew you couldn't feel any emotions from a message, when he received her next message it felt like the smile and joy of him asking the question radiated from her answer.

[I'm so glad you asked. In the grand scheme of things, no. No they are not. Personal levels are two things. One, just an easy way to gain points to put into your sub-stats to level them easier. The other…it's just a way to show people the effort you put into fighting monsters…or people. It's a matter of the type of person you are. People use personal levels as a way to determine if you are appropriate to join them into a dungeon run or as a status to gain fame or popularity. Really, to me, Personal Levels are a waste of time to focus on. – Eri.]

Liam's brows scrunched as he read the message. I feel like going by personal levels to see if someone is qualified to join them is a misrepresentation of a person's strength. And if that's the case then why have them in the first place? Why not just show your sub-stat levels instead of going by personal levels?

[I agree with you, but you are missing something particularly important. People don't like to reveal information that could get them killed. – Eri.]

What do you mean? Liam asked.

[Let me ask you this. Why were you warned not to reveal your last name to just anyone? – Eri.]

Liam went back to his first day in this world and tried to remember what was said that day. His memory had improved ever since he came to this world and leveled the appropriate sub-stat related to memory so while it did take him a good moment he was able to remember the warning. It's because there's a chance you could share the same last name as a person or clan that has a lot of enemies, and you could die for something you have either no part of or no connections to.

[Correct. It's kind of like that. Not revealing your sub-stat levels to others can make them think twice before they try to attack you. Without knowing if one person has a higher level in specific sub-stats than you makes you wary and not want to do anything rash. At least that's how it was back in the day. I believe there are those who follow that logic like the Orcs, the Goliaths, and those who respect the strong, but there are those who only look at personal levels and nothing more. Those idiots are usually nobles who think they are everything but are really trash. They don't train properly and usually level up their sub-stats through the points they received when leveling their personal levels. While it is a way, it's not really feasible. There's a limit to how many levels you can gain from leveling your personal level and how many points you can receive. Plus adding the fact that it takes a lot of points to level sub-stats after reaching certain levels is also a thing. While I personally think using points to level sub-stats is useless, that only applies to certain sub-stats. Sub-stats that are harder to level like the recovery ones, majority of the sub-stats in the Spirit Attribute, Vitality, and a couple more select ones are better to use them on. – Eri.]

Liam nodded as he read the message. He had to agree with her argument. He knew he had points saved up and hadn't really spent any, but maybe he should think about spending them on the ones Eri had just listed. Eri could hear his thoughts on that and quickly sent another message.

[I would wait before spending the points you have. While your predicament is a peculiar one, it is one I feel I have a decent understanding about. – Eri.]

Oh? Then please enlighten me on this and explain why I shouldn't use the points I already have to raise those sub-stats you had just mentioned. It's not like I'm gaining a lot of points through personal level ups. Liam asked.

[The people who placed that thing on you had one goal, for you to not get wrapped up in the false power gain of leveling through personal levels. I believe they wanted you to focus on training yourself and gaining power through daily training and raising of your sub-stats instead of leveling through spending points gained through personal level ups. I believe that all the experience points that you have been accumulating through battles that haven't been going to your personal levels is being stored. I also believe that once you have that thing gone all those experience points will flood in and raise your personal level quite a bit depending on how many battles you fight. It is just a theory though, so we won't know until it is finally out of your system. – Eri.]

Liam frowned at that. The theory she provided was a farfetched one, but it was also better than what he had originally believed was going on with the wasted experience points he wasn't getting. If it was true then the more monsters he killed the more levels he would finally get once he was free of this. Seeing he had no way to prove her theory he decided to roll with it.

Alright. We'll go with what you suggest and hope for the best. Don't really have much else to go off of so might as well operate on the assumption that is correct until proven otherwise. Liam stated. He then let out a yawn and added, I'm going to go over the rest of my notifications so I can finally get some sleep.

[Sounds good. I think you're going to like what you see. – Eri.]

Liam shook his head at that before continued with more of his notifications.

[Congratulations! Main Class Spirit Weaver ability Spirit Weave has reached level 15! Progression to level 16: 100%!]

[Congratulations! Main Class Spirit Weaver ability Spirit Weave has reached level 16! Progression to level 17: 90%!]

[Congratulations! Discordant Bells of Cacophony has reached level 3! Progression to level 4: 100%!]

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

[Congratulations! Discordant Bells of Cacophony has reached level 5! Progression to level 6: 10%!]

[Congratulations! Field of Sins has reached level 3! Progression to level 4: 100%!]

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

[Congratulations! Field of Sins has reached level 8! Progression to level 9: 0%!]

[Congratulations! Focus Point Greed has reached level 3! Progression to level 4: 100%!]

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.

[Congratulations! Focus Point Greed has reached level 8! Progression to level 9: 0%!]

[Congratulations! Focus Point Pride has reached level 3! Progression to level 4: 100%!]

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

[Congratulations! Focus Point Pride has reached level 8! Progression to level 9: 0%!]

[Congratulations! Focus Point Lust has reached level 2! Progression to level 3: 100%!]

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

[Congratulations! Focus Point Lust has reached level 7! Progression to level 8: 0%!]

[Congratulations! Avaricious Potency Absorption has reached level 3! Progression to level 4: 100%!]

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

[Congratulations! Avaricious Potency Absorption has reached level 8! Progression to level 9: 0%!]

[Congratulations! Hubris Aura has reached level 3! Progression to level 4: 100%!]

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

[Congratulations! Hubris Aura has reached level 8! Progression to level 9: 0%!]

[Congratulations! Passionate Caress has reached level 2! Progression to level 3: 100%!]

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

[Congratulations! Passionate Caress has reached level 7! Progression to level 8: 0%!]

[Congratulations! Field of the Shadows has reached level 20!]

[Congratulations! Focus Point Utility (Shadow) has reached level 20!]

[Congratulations! Focus Point Shadow Control has reached level 17! Progression to level 18: 100%!]

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

[Congratulations! Focus Point Shadow Control has reached level 20! Progression to level 21: 0%!]

[Congratulations! Focus Point Shadow Affliction has reached level 17! Progression to level 18: 100%!]

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

[Congratulations! Focus Point Shadow Affliction has reached level 20! Progression to level 21: 0%!]

[Congratulations! Shadow Hand has reached level 20! Progression to level 21: 34%!]

[Congratulations! Shadow Step has reached level 15! Progression to level 16: 100%!]

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

[Congratulations! Shadow Step has reached level 18! Progression to level 19: 87%!]

[Congratulations! Grasp of the Shadows has reached level 18! Progression to level 19: 100%!]

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

[Congratulations! Grasp of the Shadows has reached level 20! Progression to level 21: 0%! Durability of tendrils has increased, area affected has increased, duration of spell has increased. Can be combined with Shadow Manipulation to create new effect.]

[Congratulations! Shadow Manipulation has reached level 18! Progression to level 19: 100%!]

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

[Congratulations! Shadow Manipulation has reached level 20! Progression to level 21: 0%! Increases amount of Shadows user can control, shapes user can mold shadows has increased, applications on other Shadow abilities has increased.]

[Congratulations! Blanket of Darkness has reached level 12! Progression to level 13: 100!%]

[Congratulations! Blanket of Darkness has reached level 13! Progression to level 14: 70!%]

[Congratulations! Shade's Corruption has reached level 19! Progression to level 20: 100%!]

[Congratulations! Shade's Corruption has reached level 20! Progression to level 21: 10%! Shade's corruption has turned from a single target spell into an Aoe spell. Damage increase and spell duration increases. Can be combined with Shadow Manipulation to create new effect.]

[Congratulations! Field of the Shadows has advanced into Advanced Field of the Shadows! Focus Point Utility (Shadow) has advanced into Advanced Utility (Shadow), Focus Point Shadow Control has advanced into Advance Shadow Control, and Shadow Affliction has advanced into Advanced Shadow Affliction.]

[Congratulations! You have received a new Focus Point Shadow Control ability called Umbral Swamp. Umbral Swamp has reached level 1! Progression to level 2: 0%!]

[Congratulations! You have received a new Focus Point Shadow Affliction ability called Shade's Gripping Fog. Shade's Gripping Fog has reached level 1! Progression to level 2: 0%!]

[Umbral Swamp. Description: Cast Grasp of the Shadows into a clump of shadows made through Shadow Manipulation. Once clump of shadows has been infused with Grasp of the shadows, user can leave clump of shadows anywhere. When an enemy reaches a certain distance to the clump of shadows filled with Grasp of the Shadows, Umbral Swamp will activate. The clump of shadows will spread out on the surface it was placed on creating a shadowy swamp like surface causing the target within it to sink anywhere from ankle to knee deep. As the target struggles to free themselves tendrils will root target in place for a certain amount of time. After tendrils are broken the free target will still have to escape from the swamp like area before Umbral Swamp disappears completely. Ability Type – Trap. Cost – Grasp of the Shadows spell and Shadow Manipulation clump. Target type – AOE. Spell Type – Non-Chant.]

[Shade's Gripping Fog. Description: Cast Shade's Corruption into a clump of shadows made through Shadow Manipulation. Once clump of shadows has been infused Shade's Corruption, user can leave clump of shadows anywhere. When an enemy reaches a certain distance to the clump of shadows filled with Shade's Corruption, Shade's Gripping Fog will activate. A blast of pitch black fog explodes from the clump of shadows and covers an area of fifteen feet. Any and all enemies within the fog will suffer several afflictions. Enemies will suffer the same afflictions as Shade's Corruption as well as a Blind debuff, Whispers from the Beyond, and a Creeping Dread Debuff. Shade's Gripping Fog will disappear either when all enemies within the fog have died or escaped. Ability Type – Trap. Cost – Shade's Corruption spell and Shadow Manipulation clump. Target type – AOE. Spell Type – Non-Chant.]

[Creeping Dread Debuff. Description – Plagues a target's mind making them feel like something is watching them. Slight Paranoia creeps along the edges of target's mind leaving a feeling that the target is going to die by some unseen monster.]

Jesus fucking Christ. Liam thought to himself as he let out a low whistle. You weren't kidding when you said I was going to like what I see. From what I understand I can essentially use these two new spells as traps. Not only that, but I now have an even better use of my Shadow Manipulation ability besides using it as a magic absorption tool. This is going to add more ways to handle things. Damn.

[I told you. Now that you have reached the Advanced Field and Focus Points in your Shadow Magic you be able to do a lot with the Shadow Manipulation ability. I am sure your teacher Lady Arachne will inform you of this soon, but I think you should know now so you can start working on this sooner rather than later. Once you reach level twenty in your abilities, minus some of you Utility ones, you will be able to create a new spell. Of course you will need to upgrade your Theory Knowledge some more to both unlock them and get better outputs from them, but I think you should aim to get a few more of your Shadow Magic abilities like Shadow Swarm. I know you haven't put much into that spell, but I have a feeling it will turn out to be a good one for you. – Eri.]

Liam nodded as he read the message. He had to agree with her on this. Unlike Shadow Hand, the other two abilities that reached level twenty each had a text stating they could be combined with Shadow Manipulation to create a new effect. He didn't think the new effect would be a new spell entirely though. Liam's brows creased as he thought about his time using Grasp of the Shadows with a shadow blob he made with Shadow Manipulation.

While it did do something different, it wasn't anything like Umbral Swamp. Was that because he needed to reach Advanced Field of the Shadows and the respective Focus Point in order to get this? If that was the case then he would need to test his other abilities to see if there were any that showed potential for the same upgrades these two got.

Liam wore a goofy grin on his face as he thought about the new potential abilities he could get in the future. His eyes widened as he realized he still wasn't done. He had gotten something else that was new.

[Congratulations! You have reached the hidden conditions to receive Beast-kin Racial Field of Study, Field of the Beast!]

[You have planted the Field of the Beast and unlocked Focus Point Beast Manifestation! Beast Manifestation has reached level 1! Progression to level 2: 0%!]

[Congratulations! You have received the Beast Manifestation ability Bestial Takeover! Bestial Takeover has reached level 1! Progression to level 2: 0%!]

[Congratulations! Field of the Beast has reached level 2! Progression to level 3: 100%!]

[Congratulations! Field of the Beast has reached level 3! Progression to level 4: 17%!]

[Congratulations! Focus Point Beast Manifestation has reached level 2! Progression to level 3: 100%!]

[Congratulations! Focus Point Beast Manifestation has reached level 3! Progression to level 4: 17%!]

[Congratulations! Bestial Takeover has reached level 2! Progression to level 3: 100%!]

[Congratulations! Bestial Takeover has reached level 3! Progression to level 4: 17%!]

[Bestial Takeover. Description: Ability enhances all physical traits of the user's bestial race. Increases certain sub-stats appropriated to the species of user. Species of User: Half Cat-folk. Sub-stats raised: +5 to All Dexterity sub-stats, Stamina and Body Endurance, Power, Perception, Resilience, Vitality, HP and Stamina Recovery. Warning! Due to User not being a Full blooded Beast-kin the following penalties have been enforced: Reduced bonus to Stamina and Body Endurance, and Power. No bonus to Resilience, Vitality, or HP and Stamina Recovery. New results on sub-stats raised: All Dexterity sub-stats get + 5, Stamina and Body Endurance gets +2, Power gets +3, and Perception gets + 5. Due to user being half-blood of a Cat-folk race only eyes and claws (Nails) are enhanced during the lower levels.]

Cost: N/A, Target: Self, Type: Instant, Non-chant.

[You have two Focus Points waiting to be unlocked in Field of the Beast. DO you wish to unlock Focus Point – Inner Beast, Focus Point – Outer Beast? Yes/No?]

Liam mentally accepted and waited for the next set of notifications to appear.

[You have unlocked Focus Point Inner Beast. Focus Point Inner Beast has reached level 1! Progression to level 2: 0%!]

[Congratulations! You have received Focus Point Inner Beast ability Inner Beast Aura! Inner Beast Aura has reached level 1! Progression to level 2: 0%!]

[You have unlocked Focus Point Outer Beast. Focus Point Outer Beast has reached level 1! Progression to level 2: 0%!]

[Congratulations! You have received Focus Point Outer Beast ability Cat Reflexes! Cat Reflexes has reached level 1! Progression to level 2: 0%!]

[Inner Beast Aura. Description: Creates an aura that reaches about 2 and a half feet. Within that area the user's senses are increased for 5 minutes. Anyone within the aura can feel a presences that the user gives off, however due to low level the presence given off inside aura is not that strong. Cost: N/A, Target: Self, Type: Instant, Non-chant.]

[Cat Reflexes. Description: Gives a + 5 level buff to Reflex sub-stat. Cost: N/A, Target: Self, Type: Instant, Non-chant. Warning! Due to Beast-kin species being a Half Cat-folk, you receive only half of the buff. Buff is reduced to +2.5 instead of +5.]

While he wasn't pleased with the restrictions given to him due to being a half bred Beast-kin, the results still work bad. He was curious about the last part of the wording on the Bestial Takeover ability where it stated 'Due to user being half-blood of a Cat-folk race only eyes and claws (Nails) are enhanced during the lower levels'. Did it mean other parts would be enhanced at higher levels? If so then how? He only had his eyes really that gave away his Cait Sith Cat-folk species and while he understood that his nails could turn into claws, he didn't really understand what else he could enhance. He would need to talk to Uncle Naro about this.

As Liam thought about the possibilities he almost missed a new text notification from Eri that appeared.

[Heads up Liam. You have a guest coming your way. Just one person no one following them. – Eri.]

Liam closed out all of his notifications as he stared at the door. He didn't know who was still up or who would be looking for him. If it was one of his teammates then Eri wouldn't have sent that message. That meant it was someone who didn't know him too well. Besides the crew members and Key, that left Omira, Sebastean, and the new girl Valetrix. Whoever it was, he needed to be careful just in case.

A light knock filled the room not too long after he started staring at the door. "Come in," Liam called out. As the door opened and the person stepped in, Liam was both confused and intrigued. It was Omira. He was confused because he didn't know why she would be coming here, especially without Sebastean. As for why he was intrigued, the expression on her face was one of determination and uncertainty.

After Omira closed the door and made her way close to the table he was sitting at, Liam asked, "Everything alright Omira?"

She looked a bit uncomfortable at the question but replied with a calm tone, "As alright for one who was almost assassinated."

Liam grimaced at the response. "Sorry about that. I bet that was a bit unnerving."

"You could say that," Omira commented as she looked around. She then looked back at him and asked, "Do you mind if I take a seat?"

"Please, by all means," Liam responded as he pointed at one of the chairs on the other side of the table. After she sat down and got as comfortable as she could, Liam inquired, "So what can I do for you?"

Omira looked perplexed. Almost like she was warring with herself over something in her mind. After a few seconds had passed, she let out a breath of air symbolizing she had made her decision. Her face relaxed as a weary smile formed and she stated, "I want to thank you for saving my life tonight."