He put the cup back and opened the catalog that had seven thousand points in it.
"Now I got to choose this wisely because seven thousand is a lot..." Rex said while already thinking of a good plan. "I need at least a skill that could provide with becoming sothing reliable for Aethelgard and even the academy."
The free skill was already allocated. Now, the challenge was to determine how to spend the seven thousand points effectively, focusing on enhancing his existing abilities rather than simply adding new ones.
He scrolled down.
He eliminated the more obvious options: immortality, which he had aid for weeks ago but had beco less pressing due to the avatar creation; enhanced foresight, which would have increased his awareness but was already sufficient for most situations he had encountered; and teleportation’s full potential, which was intriguing but not the gap he needed to address.
"There are many skills that are too strong, but I don’t need them right now..." He thought quickly about the more subtle skills that could give him a strategic advantage. "Maybe a skill that made more adaptable in different situations or one that helped him blend in with shadows would be better for him in the long run."
"Sounds la though..."
"What I need is sothing that could make a professional at this fantasy world!" He knew that honing his skills in negotiation and resource managent would be vital when dealing with the complex social dynamics he faced.
The system provided a suggestion on his third try.
This was unusual. The system typically refrained from comnting on the selection process, simply providing him with the catalog and balance while allowing him to make his own choices.
[SUGGESTED ACQUISITION: ELENTAL MASTERY — FULL POTENTIAL]
[COST: 5,000 ENERGY POINTS]
[NOTE: SYNERGIZES WITH EXISTING ENERGY MANIPULATION AND EARTHEN DIVINE AUTHORITY]
Rex read the suggestion and then the whole thing.
[ELENTAL MASTERY — FULL POTENTIAL]
[GRANTS COMPLETE AND INSTINCTIVE COMMAND OVER ALL NATURAL ELENTS: FIRE, WATER, ICE, LIGHTNING, WIND, EARTH, AND THEIR COMPOUND FORMS (STEAM, PLASMA, MAGNETISM, CRYSTALLIZATION)]
[EACH ELENT OPERATES AT FULL POTENTIAL — NO CEILING, NO DEGRADATION OVER RANGE OR SUSTAINED USE]
[INTERACTION WITH ENERGY MANIPULATION: ELENTAL SIGNATURES CAN BE COPIED AND REPRODUCED WITHOUT REQUIRING TARGET CONTACT. THE EXISTING COPY CHANISM EXTENDS TO ALL ELENTAL TYPES.]
[INTERACTION WITH EARTHEN DIVINE AUTHORITY: THE DIVINE LAYER IS AUGNTED BY THE NATURAL LAYER — EARTH CONTROL BECOS DUAL-LAYER, OPERATING AT BOTH PHYSICS-LEVEL AND DIVINE-LEVEL SIMULTANEOUSLY. GEOLOGICAL FORESIGHT RANGE EXTENDS FROM LOCAL TO REGIONAL.]
[PRACTICAL ASSESSNT: THE BEARER BECOS A FULL-SPECTRUM ELENTAL COMBATANT WITHOUT REQUIRING TARGET INTERACTION TO ACQUIRE ELENTAL ACCESS.]
Rex only read it once. Thereafter, he read the notes about the interaction.
The note about manipulating energy was the most important one. He could only copy an elental signature by touching soone’s system or flow of magical energy, which was what he had done with the fire user in the market district and with Zeraphyra during the Undead Bringer fight.
It worked, but you had to be close and have a way to get in touch.
That chanism beca unnecessary once Elental Mastery achieved its full potential. He would gain unrestricted access to every elent without needing to rely on soone else to provide it.
The Earthen Divine Authority note added another layer. Dual operation ant that he would be using his earth control for two things at the sa ti: the detailed control of the elental layer and the larger power of the sovereign layer.
This would make the earthen ability much stronger than either one alone.
Rex considered the cost: five thousand of his seven thousand points.
That left him with two thousand points remaining.
"Elental mastery in this fantasy world full of magic could really help beco an expert..." Rex thought while pacing in circles. "That ans there will be plenty of good opportunities for to seize."
Rex then thought of one person from Starlight: Elizabeth. "If I master magic, I could probably get closer to that smoking hot woman."
"Before I deal with punishing Helena, I might as well try to pursue Elizabeth, since she could open up another path for ... especially since she’s my horoom instructor."
"And then I can fully access the academy with her assistance once she’s fully invested in ."
"Yeah... good shit right there."
After considering his plan, he starts calculating what two thousand points ant for the operational budget. Two thousand was significant.
It equated to ten base encounters, or twenty if he managed the sessions effectively, which was sufficient to address situations requiring energy without depleting resources.
"Fuck it! Let’s just go!"
"All or nothing!"
He chose it.
[ELENTAL MASTERY — FULL POTENTIAL — ACQUIRED]
[CURRENT BALANCE: 2,000 ENERGY POINTS]
"Those two thousand points... I plan to save them for later, just in case I need them to execute my new plan."
The acquisition happened differently than the others. It wasn’t the swift and straightforward attainnt of martial arts mastery or weapon skills.
Instead, this one unfolded in layers, resembling the process of adding components to an existing system rather than filling an empty space.
The fire ca first, followed by the water, then the ice, lightning, wind, and, finally, the earth’s physical layer rged with the earth’s divine layer. This combination evoked a sensation he hadn’t experienced since the gauntlet integration back on the island.
Rex stood in the bathroom with his hands open at his sides and felt the full catalog of elental access settle into his mind like a whole library coming to a room that had only a few shelves before.
"Oh yeah... I can see every structure of magical energy inside my mind and vision..." Rex stared at both of his arms. "I feel stronger..."
A small fla flickered in his left hand, unique to him—neither borrowed from another nor a remnant of a fading combat system. It was inherently his.
He stared at it.
"Now this..." Rex said, "...is not a scam."
He extinguished the fire and then gazed at the two won, who were still soundly asleep on the bed. "I might have to forgo the surprise she’s planning to share with the others about her pregnancy."
"Since I’ve already killed Bryan, I know that no one will care about him because he’s rarely ho. Marceline will probably feel relieved."
Rex began to get dressed. "For now... I want to refocus on my real mission: raising the two girls from Apollo’s harem, Nerith and Mireya."
And then he stepped outside.
...
The street outside the Silver Rest in the morning exuded the atmosphere of a city still determining its identity during the reconstruction period.
The pedestrians carried a distinct energy: they were purposeful, focused, and noticeably more alert than usual, as if they were processing an event that had yet to reach its conclusion.
When Rex stepped outside, he found Aisella and Talyra sitting on the front bench of the inn.
’Oh hey... I didn’t know I would et them here.’
’Well good... they could help get close to Nerith and Mireya.’
This was no coincidence. Aisella and Talyra were the kind of people who ticulously planned their arrivals—a behavior Rex had noticed when they reached an unspoken agreent without needing to express it in words.
Aisella regarded him with a diagnostic gaze, holding it for four seconds before appearing satisfied with her assessnt.
Talyra, with her archer’s precision, took two seconds to assess him from head to toe before reaching a conclusion.
"Oh my goodness, Rexy~!" Talyra said, "You’re looking in better shape today!"
"True." Rex agreed, "I’m in great shape."
"Hehehe," she said. "You probably have ti to walk with us right now."
Rex appreciated that Talyra didn’t fra her request as a question. She had a unique way of expressing what she believed were obvious requests; instead of asking, she made them into statents, assuming both parties already understood the answer.
"Let’s go." Rex wrapped his arms around their shoulders.
Aisella and Talyra leaned against him, their faces bright with happy smiles.
The three of them settled into the comfortable pace that had developed since their arrival on the island. It was a rhythm shared by those who had spent three days in the field together, naturally attuning to each other’s speed without needing to discuss it.
The city around them was undergoing reconstruction. The cordoning off of the western district extended further than it had the previous day.
This indicated that Elizabeth’s engineering assessnt had identified more structural issues than the initial evaluation, suggesting that the damage was more extensive than first thought and required imdiate attention from the crews.
The crews worked with the organized urgency of those racing against the weather, needing to complete the assessnts before anything changed.
Rex walked with Aisella on his left and Talyra on his right, observing the city as it underwent repairs.
"I bet today is going to be a great day with so twists~!"
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