Chapter 1155: Chapter 1154: System Based Improvements (1)
Chapter 1155: Chapter 1154: System Based Improvements (1)
I left the two in there after Anput turned it from a 'I need to measure you all while having just a little bit of fun' into more of an actual steamy session that had them both feeling some type of way, and while I wouldn't have denied her if she had adamantly demanded me to turn up the heat, I also wasn't leaping at the opportunity right this very moment.
Not because I wasn't in the mood - I very much was after the teasing earlier and what had just happened - but instead because I knew I could make better use of my available time by doing something that was a very long time in the making, which was abusing the available power waiting to be tapped into inside of the System Shop.
I didn't even need to do the more generic route of buying immensely overpowered items or ingredients, though that was something I was going to look into going forwards as well; the real thing I wanted to tap into were the manuals and other technique books that were within the System Shop.
Things that would give me the information and directly load it into my mind for immediate use alongside providing me a physical copy should I desire one, which would be useful for something like spells or other kinds of techniques.
I hadn't taken a deep dive into them just yet, but that was what I wanted to do right now instead of giving Anput a more than friendly hand inside of her workshop for the next few minutes, and especially so since I was looking to find some techniques in there that would offer her, Leone and even Jahi things to improve upon.n/ô/vel/b//jn dot c//om
There was most certainly manuals on forging and alchemy, and I knew for sure that there were manuals on footwork and swordplay that Jahi might find fascinating to study, though for now I wanted to keep things more basic to just test the waters and understand how it worked, and to not spend all my 'money' all at once on the shiny thing that might not be right for me.
Like imagine I had bought myself a dagger technique way back in the day when I was adamant about remaining with only daggers as a weapon; now I knew that while they would always be an important part of my fighting style, they simply were outclassed by short swords and swords in general, especially if those swords were hand made and tailored for spilling blood in the most gruesome ways...
So after departing from the forge and saving them a little bit of face by sealing up the doorway with a wind barrier that would help keep the sound inside - while also pulling fresh air in to keep things a bit cooler - I made my way to the tent we had set up for ourselves and sat down atop our bedroll, closing my eyes and opening the menu to the System Shop after who knows how long.
Entirely underutilized and downright criminally neglected by me, but I wanted to change that now, and that desire of mine was only amplified both by the need I had for improvement as well as the sheer amount of Shop Points I had accumulated during this 'vacation' of ours into the Sultanate.
[Yes... It's been a long while, hasn't it Kat? But like I said last time... I suppose it can't really be helped that your stubbornness is ingrained into you so deeply, hm? That's not even a bad thing either since learning everything yourself is far superior to simply buying it, but...]
'I know... If I had years to prepare for a task or event that I knew was coming, or if I wasn't thrust onto a stage as large as this one so early, perhaps I could get away with this mindset I have, but I just... can't. Not anymore, and not after what happened with Leone against the Bloodletter.'
The System just hummed in agreement at that, and I stared at the rather mind bogglingly large number of Shop Points I had for a few moments before navigating through the menu to find the technique tab, during which my ever present yet ever quiet System decided to chime in again.
[You were a rather uniquely malleable soul to be granted the right to reincarnation, Kat... Many people like to envision that they could change themselves if they found themselves born into a new world, but few actually do change all that much.
Some acquire a facade of power that cracks immediately when shown any opposing pressure, but most simply fall back into line and live a life similar enough to that which they had been living before.
Few actually manage to change and adapt like you have, and even then I would argue you have exceeded rather nicely here, though some would argue against me and say it is only because of a System that you have managed to come so far.]
'I would agree with them, funnily enough. I am more than aware of the boons I have been granted, the safety blanket that I neglect constantly; the reason I can do the things I have done is entirely owed to the fact that I have a System aiding me in this way.
My magic, for instance; on my own I certainly am adept at controlling it and I can create new things without outside help, but I started with a skill that helped me along, didn't I? My ability to fight as well; I had skills to help there too. This entire journey has had... training wheels.'
Selecting the sort of techniques I wanted to view - general magic, swordplay, footwork and general combat - I sorted through them and went over the prices, comparing them to the title to figure out how valuable they actually were as I continued the chat with the voice in my head.
'Do I think I could have made it this far without you? Perhaps I am being arrogant when I say yes, but what I can definitely say for sure is that without you, this would have taken twice as long, and I would have faced far riskier situations with far worse outcomes.
The forest above Nevrokopi, where I faced the various wild tribes that wanted to turn me into a breeder, or the more recent encounter with the Bloodletter; those wouldn't have ended the way they had without you.
Leone would be... she wouldn't be here, though I suppose you can also argue that this wouldn't have happened since I would likely either be dead or many months pregnant with a child that didn't belong to the three futanari I wish to have children with.'
There was silence at that, and while the System mulled over my words and gave me a moment to deal with the sudden wave of emotions that hit me like a ton of bricks at that realization, I just selected the first book that seemed like it wouldn't be a waste of Shop Points, testing this
out.
[Basics of Invocation {10,500 SP}: Learn about the various applications of vocal based magic and how to make use of it yourself, alongside the many simple spells that any elemental magician could make use of]
Was it truly worth that many points?
Probably not, but brushing up on the basics wouldn't hurt me that badly, and it would also be nice to provide to Leone later on when she learned more about it herself, though the prompt
that popped up was slightly relieving to see.
[Would you like to acquire the physical copy of 'Basics of Invocation' now or later?] Selecting 'later', I took a deep breath as the notification of the book being stored away for the time being registered in the back of my mind, only for me to forget about everything as an onslaught of ideas and theories rushed into my head, engraving itself into my memories for
future use.
It took a few seconds for me to come back around and be able to actually think, but the moment I did I realized I knew things I hadn't really understood before about Invocations; for instance, when you were shaping the mana with your voice you were actually using a mixture of mental imagery alongside the innate characteristics of the mana itself. Trying to create a spell that was the opposite of what you wanted was borderline impossible to do, at least to the level you wanted to cast it at; a fireball with the spoke incantation 'freezing sphere' or something similar would just fizzle out from the conflicting ideas, and there was little you could do about it yourself.
Your mind just had an idea on what freezing meant, which subconsciously counteracted the heat that Fire Mana was imbued with naturally.
That was pretty fascinating to learn, and it was something I would have likely stumbled on eventually, but learning it now was rather interesting and showed me the worth of these manuals, especially since the later ones that cost far more were about specialized magic.