Free Web NovelChapter 43: The sub-branches of Arcana
The third branch, otherwise known as the branch of Arcana, held the most expensive purchase options within the Evolution Tree. Magic was expensive, no doubt about it.
The branch came with five sub-branches, each one more expensive than the last. Each one was overly complicated.
The average caster wouldn’t know how to manipulate them to fit an assassin’s role. Not unless they had plenty of brain power to back them up, that is.
The sub-branches were: Elemental Magic, Healing Magic, Alchemy, Experimental Magic, and Dark Magic.
Jimmy once more explored the Healing Magic sub-branch, because in this dangerous world, the ability to heal allured him far more than the ability to cast a simple fireball.
"I know I can afford it, but damn, three-thousand points?" He shook his head, irritated, "Why is it six times more expensive to heal myself than to heal others?"
The system didn’t answer. She didn’t plan on haggling with him over the price of the skill.
Despite his complaints, he bought the skill shortly after. He expected pain to follow, but he had forgotten that magic was far more intense compared to the other branches. His pain from the burn wounds quickly paled in comparison.
[Confirmed]
[Initiating...]
A deep pain mustered in his abdomen, and although he tried to fight it, it knocked him out shortly after.
When Jimmy woke up, the sun still shone above his head. He hadn’t been hunted, from what he could tell, and since he didn’t feel too hungry either, he figured that he hadn’t been asleep for too long.
He woke up to a large pile of bugs in front of him. Virena had seen him eat bugs earlier on, and so she prepared him a decent meal to wake up to.
"You’re awake!" She celebrated, "I thought you were going to die, and I was just about to go look for your sister."
"No, I’m sorry I forgot to tell you but... I was just evolving." He said, and then he winced as he moved. "How long was I out?"
"Not too long," She said, "We’re in the middle of the day. The sun is harsh right now, so we should hide in the shades."
"Oh?" He shook his head, "Yeah, just give me a minute."
Jimmy chowed down on the pile of bugs, and once he swallowed a mouthful, he discovered that his stomach was still hurting. The pain wasn’t as great as it was in the beginning, but it was still there. The healing skill he requested had not yet been implemented.
It took another hour for the process to reach its end. He guessed that it had taken four hours in total.
It was a lot, but it was a big improvement from last time when it took twelve hours. He tried to be enthusiastic, regardless of the fact that his legs continued to hurt from the initial burn from the Fire Mage.
[Help Yourself skill implemented.]
[-3,000 system points]
[Remaining points: 6,527]
[Mana Realm: No change]
[Mana Quality: Level 2 >>> Level 3]
[Mana Absorption: No change]
[Mana Quantity: 200 points >>> 250 points]
Jimmy ignored those statistics entirely, and sought relief from his ongoing pain.
"How do I use this shit?" He grunted.
The pain clouded his common sense. He could not understand how his legs burned more now than they had in the beginning. It was horrendous!
In the blink of an eye, he was coated with a dark mist. The mist completely swallowed his body, and it came with its gentle effect which tended to his wounds. He knew for a fact that he didn’t summon it, so he figured that it was one of those skills that triggered by themselves, much like a defense mechanism!
This didn’t bother him. Not at all.
The mist touched his legs like a cold breeze, as if he had crouched down to blow cold air on his feet himself.
It slowly dissolved his pain, nipping the problem on the bud, but the relief he felt from this, did not last long. It only lasted for a few seconds.
[-200 mana points]
"What?" He grunted.
The mist dissipated shortly after. Its clumps of cloud-like components faded away.
"No!" He exclaimed, "I paid three-thousand points for this shit, and I can’t even use it?"
[The use, and efficiency of your mana-based skills, are entirely based on your comprehension of Arcana.]
[You’re still stuck in the first realm of mana, and you bought a skill that would’ve best suited you once you got to the third realm of mana. With that said, mana-wise, it’s very expensive for you to use the Help Yourself skill right now, which is why your Mana Pool depleted quickly.]
"Of course," He sighed, "At least it got rid of some of the pain... how long do I have to wait for my pool to refill?"
[It won’t refill for a while. The Help Yourself skill will consistently drain your pool before it can replenish. It’ll do so until it makes sure that you no longer have any wounds.]
"That sounds good, actually," He said, "It sucks that I’ll be in pain for hours, though. I have to assume that it’ll take a while to absorb enough mana to heal myself?"
[Your Mana Pool currently takes a whole day to replenish. So that’s likely how much you have to wait to completely heal yourself.]
"Damn..." He sighed, "I guess I can’t afford to get into any more fights, then? Not today, at least. I killed the Fire Mage, a major threat, so the crows are gonna have to fight for themselves for a little while. They’re safe...ish in the city now, and I’m sure as fuck not gonna ask my sister for help. I can tell you that."
With that decided, Jimmy found a shade, and hid in it. The cool stone within the shade soothed his legs a little bit.
The Help Yourself skill got rid of half of his pain already, and he had to wait for the remaining half to slowly dissipate.
Tiny black mists popped up every twenty or so minutes, gesturing that his Mana Pool kept getting drained by his new skill. Every little burst gave him a bit more relief from his pain.
Virena made sure that he was well-fed throughout the day.
Jimmy’s body demanded plenty of proteins, even if he was barely moving. A hundred bugs worth of proteins, specifically, and since he couldn’t move much without hurting himself, his one and only friend in this world kept taking care of him.
"Man... I would’ve died so many times already if you weren’t around to bail me out of trouble." He said, "Thank you, Virena."
"You helped me when no one else would," She said, "So I’m returning the favor. There’s no need for you to thank me."
