Lone: The Wanderer

Book 2: Chapter 76: Testing the Slate and Skill Options

Lone approached the credit slate with his excitement on full display, though it wasn't like he was paying attention to anything in the room but the metal slate. Now he could finally look up so many of the skills he had theorised existed but that he had yet to earn himself.

Just as he got in front of the large artefact, the runes plastered all over it shifted and morphed into English letters he could understand, clearly showing the device likely held a massive lexicon of languages both native and foreign to Altros.

Enter your name.

With an interested quirk of the eyebrow, Lone reached down and copied what he had seen the dwarf from earlier doing; he used his finger as a pen to write his name in English. As he did so, a spike shot up from the device and drew a drop of his blood.

Adventurer identified as Lone Immortus, recently promoted silver plate adventurer. You currently have 0 credits. Would you like to record your skills?

'Ah, so the blood is to avoid people writing the names of others? Maybe it'll use my plate in future instead.' Lone wrote 'yes' in response.

You may do so by either writing as you are, or by connecting your mind to the slate. When giving information about your skills, the more you do so, the more credits you shall earn. Do not worry over if we shall use this information against you. Adventurers are the lifeblood of the guild and the guild values you all. No amount of external pressure will lead to any information about our adventurers being released. Time has proven this to be true. Any data submitted is done so anonymously and even if correlations can be made upon reviewing collected data, no employee of the guild will ever reveal it was you who submitted information about your skill, even under the effects of skills and magics that force compulsion.

'That's pretty much what Oror said but in more detail,' Lone thought. 'Still, it's best I write instead of linking my mind for now. I'm not gonna trust the guild that much. I have so many thoughts that I doubt I'd be able to avoid letting it know about my unique skills.'

He intended to record almost every skill he owned except for a handful of particular skills. Namely, his unique skills and his Primal skills - as doing that would out himself as an avatar and not merely an awakened. Steamforging was off the table for now as well.

Sure, the slate and Oror said this was all anonymous, but surely whoever checks the information from the slate would see he had just finished his orientation with the foreign guildmaster before such high-profile skills got recorded.

Lone shook his head and started writing. First, he was going to test how many credits he could get from a relatively simple skill. As such, he decided to detail Sword Mastery. It was only at beginner-level-one and he'd received it after a goblin who possessed it had attacked him.

It took him a couple of minutes, but as soon he was done, a spike shot up from the slate once again to jab his finger. It drew a drop of blood then the spike disappeared and the runes shifted to speak to him once more.

The skill [Sword Mastery] at [Beginner Level 1] has been recorded. As it is an already recorded skill, 5 credits shall be awarded. As the method to earn it has already been recorded, 5 credits shall be awarded. As it is moderately difficult to learn given it is a parent skill, 10 credits have been awarded. As it is a skill useful to keeping an adventurer alive, 5 credits have been awarded. No further criteria have been met. Total credits rewarded: 25.

'Well, that was informative. It drew blood to somehow confirm I had the skill? How the hell does that work? Guess my plate won't be all I need for the process in the future after all. Now, how do I spend my credits to see if 25 is a decent amount of if it's literal pennies?' Lone wondered, and as if to answer him, the runes shifted once more.

You now have 25 credits. Would you like to request skill information? If so, please describe what you wish to be able to do and the database shall be checked to see if there are any skills within your credit limit that you can purchase information on. If not, would you like to continue recording skills?

Lone immediately tried to test it out. He used his finger to write out a description of the theorised camouflaging skill he had thought his dwarven observers may have been using to follow him covertly.

I'm sorry, but you do not have enough credits for information on such a skill.

'Okay. So it's harder to buy info than it is to sell it. That makes some sense. They really want to motivate adventurers to record their skills, huh?' Lone would be happy to oblige. 'Let's go with a rare skill this time.'

He was still too hesitant to offer up information about his Primal or unique skills right now, but his sole world skill was fair game. That being the case he detailed Full Body Diagnostics in its entirety, even the fact he had gained it by having it used on him once.

Again, his blood was drawn the moment he was done writing and then the runes shifted.

The skill [Full Body Diagnostics] at [Beginner Level 10] has been recorded. As it is an already recorded skill, 5 credits shall be awarded. As the method to earn it has never been recorded, 50 credits shall be awarded. As it is incredibly difficult to learn given it is a world skill, 100 credits have been awarded. As it is a skill useful for completing many non-combat quests, 30 credits have been awarded. As it has now been confirmed a world skill has been learned outside of it being gifted from Altros itself, 1,000 credits have been awarded. Total credits rewarded: 1,185.

"Now that's a stark difference," Lone thought aloud. 'It's noting the skill's level. Do I get more points for recording it at a higher skill level? I'm pretty sure I can test that right now.'

Lone jogged away from the slate up to Guildmaster Oror, who lifted his eyes from the large tome he was reading and writing in to raise an interested eyebrow. Lone guessed it was a journal of some sort.

"Done so soon? That seems unlikely. You've hardly been using the slate for five minutes," the Shale commented.

Lone shook his head. "Mind if I use a skill on you? It's called Full Body Diagnostics if you know what that is."

The golem's eyes widened. "You've been gifted a skill from the world itself already? Incredible. Please, be my guest. I assume you're trying to level it?" Seeing Lone nodding, the man chuckled. "Well, I shan't spoil anything."

Lone smiled then placed a hand on the man's shoulder before employing his only world skill. Once the skill had done its job, some notifications flashed in front of his eyes.

Congratulations! The host's world skill [Full Body Diagnostics] has levelled up! It is now Intermediate Level 1.

World Skill: Full Body Diagnostics

A world skill of learning and identification.

Grants the host the ability to fully diagnose the body of a living being using WF.

Limits: 2 uses a day [up from 1 use a day].

Details granted: Small [Up from minimal] if physical, [New!] minimal if magical.

Cost:800 WF [-200 WF] Mastery:Intermediate Level 1

As you have successfully levelled a world skill to intermediate rank, Altros gifts you with 100 WF.

'Oh, the bonus 100 World Force is nice, but not really needed since I still don't have enough to use the skill twice a day without waiting several hours. Three more hundred though and I'll be at the needed 1,600,' Lone thought.

"Success?" Guildmaster Oror inquired.

Lone nodded. "Success, indeed. You're really made of nothing but stone and iron? How are you alive?"

"Hahah! What a direct question. Magic would be my answer as I'm not entirely sure myself," the Shale shrugged. "I do wish we knew more about what brought the current sentient species into existence... what we could do with such information..." the guildmaster sighed wistfully. "Some sentient spirits simply will themselves into existence, some are born through procreation, and some are the spawn of greater entities. Regardless, go, go, finish your experiment. I'm plenty busy with this," Oror shooed Lone away as he waved his large tome around.

Lone smiled and did just that, quickly returning to the slate.

He recorded the world skill's information once again and was pleasantly surprised by the words the runes shifted into.

Adventurer identified as silver plate Lone Immortus. Skill identified as the world skill [Full Body Diagnostics]. Level of skill identified as [Intermediate Level 1]. Congratulations on your progress! As a reward, you have been awarded 5 credits for a level up, and 50 for a rank up. 20 additional credits have been awarded for recording the improved performance of your skill. Continue growing stronger for your own success and for the success of other adventurers.

'So that tells me I need to come here and record all skill level-ups when possible, and it also tells me someone has already recorded Full Body Diagnostics at intermediate rank. Not surprising, but good to know,' Lone was encouraged to keep going, but now that he actually had four digits worth of points, he tried looking up the camouflaging skill again.

7 skills that you can afford match your requirements. Would you like for them to be listed? Please note each listed skill incurs a charge of 1 credit.

'Huh. Well, good to know I was right the observers may not have been using magic to follow us. Also, only 1 credit, but you need enough to buy the skill for it to offer this? I guess a skill name is a huge clue in and of itself,' Lone thought as he wrote out 'no' in response.

He cracked his neck and then his knuckles. It was time to start mass listing his skills.

It took him a little over two hours, but finally, Lone was finished.

He'd gone and reported every single skill he owned and everything about them bar his unique skills, his three Primal skills, and Steamforging.

You currently have 18,255 credits. Would you like to register another skill, or look up information on one in the guild's database?

Most of Lone's skills gave between 20 and 50 points, but the higher ranked a skill was when it was listed, the more credits he was awarded. Tail Spear, Aura Pressure Resistance, Reading Mastery, and Poison Resistance, had all given him over 1,000 credits alone for having undocumented additional effects, which was fantastic.

'Is there any skill I desperately need right now?' Lone wondered.

Offensively he was fine. He had Mental Destruction for anyone not resistant to attacks on the soul or of a magical nature, and for those who could survive that skill, he had Tail Spear. He was strong defensively too, of course, but he could use some life-saving skills now that he thought about it.

'I've got resistances aplenty, Bone Armour and Basic Regeneration, but I kinda want some automated defences. Well, let's see what you have in that field, credit slate,' Lone thought in excitement.

A few moments later, he had his search filter written out. Immediately following, the slate gave him a positive answer.

201 skills that you can afford match your requirements. Would you like for them to be listed? Please note each listed skill incurs a charge of 1 credit.

"Woah. That many? It's not an ancient guild for nothing..." Lone mumbled.

He replied 'no' and added some more filters to his search. He wanted the skill to be passive, usable by a Golden Foxkin since he hadn't removed racial skills in his initial search, it should consume SP, and he wanted it to be able to take attacks in his place specifically as opposed to any other life-saving method.

That last note was because he felt it'd be easier to level if he could just have whatever the skill used to keep him safe be attacked and damaged repeatedly as opposed to a skill like Evasion Mastery that needed him to dodge increasingly quicker and more unexpected attacks to level.

5 skills that you can afford match your requirements. Would you like for them to be listed? Please note each listed skill incurs a charge of 1 credit.

Lone nodded and wrote 'yes' in response.

You have been charged 5 credits. You now have 18,250 credits. Below are the listed skills and the price required to learn everything the guild knows about them.

Blood Clone

[2,000 credits for full information]

Body-bound Familiar

[1,000 credits for full information]

Monster Taming Mastery

[10,000 credits for full information]

Passive Aura Shield

[2,000 credits for full information]

Spirit Limbs

[15,000 credits for full information]

Lone cupped his chin in his hand while his other hand supported his elbow. "Hmm... I definitely want one of these," he whispered to himself. "Hell, I want 'em all. Question is though, which one gets me the most bang for my buck?"

The concern was paying for the information only to learn the skill was nigh-impossible for him to learn right now. For example, what if Spirit Limbs traditionally needed one to go to a certain location in the world and meditate for seven straight days?

Even if Lone would earn the skill after a second of meditation, if the certain location was on the other side of the continent, it would have been credits wasted.

This choice needed some thinking. Some thinking and perhaps some helpful advice.