Hera went to her rewards screen on her tablet right away to look for the compendium. To her surprise, a notification appeared as soon as she opened it.

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  Please, good doctor

  forget the water

  Please don't remind me

  Of my daughter

  I still see

  her face in horror

  I still see

  how it tore her

  The Shanty of the Last Sailor

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  She had no idea why the System was showing her something like that. Yet, it felt important. The information was also there on the compendium if she ever wanted to double check.

  Focusing on the next part of the reward, Hera looked through the list of skills she could receive. Since it was something given by the System, she didn't have to worry about a price tag. She knew that she could choose the skill, but the list surprised her. It had over a dozen options, and they all seemed interesting.

  From basic resistances to combat techniques and even something called 'camp finder.' However, since there was no time frame on picking this skill, she decided to put that on hold. Instead, Hera looked at the quest that she received.

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  Hidden treasures

  Explorer exclusive quests

  The MAZE is filled with hidden items, places, and secrets. Find one such treasure.

  Rewards: Map skill upgrade

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  The quest was way too broad and somewhat confusing. What would be considered a hidden treasure? Could this place be a secret? The quest also said nothing about Brinefront. Would it still work even if she was in a different room?

  Despite that, the reward sounded amazing. Since Hera already had upgraded her map skill to [Treasure Map] this should be amazing. A second evolution would be incredible. Then again, the reward specifically said upgrade. Maybe an skill evolution would be pushing a bit.

  She needed to talk to someone about this. Maybe Helena could clarify her doubts, even though this was more geared towards an Explorer. If not she could reach out to people online. Either way, she needed to get out of the cave. She stayed here for less than one hour, but being inside something that could flood at any minute wasn't very relaxing.

  Looking at her [Treasure Map] she noticed a mark on the location she was at. It was a drawing of a broken boat, resting against it was a bottle with a scroll inside.

  "You know, this is kind of annoying. It's not enough to make us stronger, control all the MAZE, and even make the guides. But the system has to be good at drawing too?" Hera sighed after a long stare at the picture. It wasn't simply pretty, but artistic in a way. Like she was looking at a painting.

  Putting her thoughts aside, she started moving to the exit. The platforms still had a thin layer of water and nothing that could allude to a high tide had appeared. Even so, she didn't want to test her luck. Climbing out of the cove was much easier than getting down from it. In just a couple of minutes, she was already back on the solid yet muddy ground.

  Hera looked at the clock on her tablet. It was still early afternoon. It felt like a waste to go back to the city right now. She could try to look for secrets here, or just hunt a bit to get used to the crocodiles. Picking her tablet, Hera checked what was the area that Mondy's drones could reach. She had yet to see if this city was in range.

  The drones of the merchant could reach Hazelpond's surroundings, but they had a much smaller coverage area than Brinefront. There was also a higher cut from the pay. Instead of 10% of participation in the profits, she would have only 7%. The parts she could sell were also different. He would buy legs, the heart and liver, the tail, and the skin. But the skin had to be at least one square meter, and it couldn't be damaged.

  They pay wasn't that different from the frogs, aside from profits. The main issue was butchering one of those creatures. It seemed like too much work for Hera to do alone.

  She decided to hunt the crocodiles. Even if she wasn't going to make any money, she could get the experience for fighting alone. Hera also wanted to test her [Explorer's Assassinate] together with her spells on a solo hunt.

  Walking around the swamp, it didn't take long for Hera to find her prey, a crocodile a bit smaller than the one that rushed her. She quickly activated her [Hide] and approached the creature. Using her poison mana stone, she sent a poison needle towards the monster. The bright orange spike hit the back of the beast, but the crocodile didn't seem to notice it.

  Hera waited for a moment and changed her location before attacking again. She knew that the spell had no initial damage. Only the actual poison would hurt the monster. Since last time it took less than a minute and a few strikes, Hera decided to wait two minutes before changing tactics.

  She kept following the crocodile, but the creature didn't show any signs of being hurt. Hera frowned. Could it be that the poison wouldn't take effect every time? Or maybe the place she hit wasn't a good target to poison the monster.

  Being stubborn for a moment, Hera prepared another poison needle. This time, she used the base version of the spell. She wanted to aim for its mouth or eyes, but going towards its face fell too risky. She turned her attention to the tail. The Explorer wasn't entirely sure how the circulatory system of a creature inside the MAZE would work, but the tail should have some veins connecting directly to the heart.

  She aimed at the middle of the crocodile's tail and sent the poison needle. This time the monster seemed to feel something. The creature turned around while Hera ducked to the side, trying to blend in with the area.

  The crocodile looked around for some time but returned to its walk. Trying to see what would happen, Hera continued to follow it for another couple of minutes. This time, she started to notice some changes in the creature. Its movement started to become frantic, and sometimes it would slam its body on the side of a rock or tree.

  Hera's stomach started to turn. She was glad that the poison seemed to be taking effect but seeing the creature agonize like that wasn't sitting well with her.

  She deactivated her [Hide] and rushed towards it. Her handaxe in hand. The crocodile noticed the movement but was too weak to turn quickly enough. Aiming at its head, she slashed the creature with all of her strength.

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  [All In] effects deactivated, the cooldown will now start

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  The attack split the monster's skull. The impact was much stronger than she imagined. After making sure the creature wasn’t moving anymore. She opened her status and looked at the [All In] skill

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  All In (Rank 1):

  The user can increase one of its attributes to perform a single action as if all the available bonus points were allocated in the relevant attribute.

  The attribute will have bonus increments and, at the same time, reduce all other attributes to 13 (10 + level - 1) for 5 hours.

  Value of attribute when the skill is used: 23

  Cooldown: 36 hours

  Remaining(35:58:24)

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  When the skill was triggered, the attribute she was using would jump four points. This was one of the few times she triggered the skill intentionally. And the first time she did so in a fight.

  However, she had forgotten about the debuff that would be with her for a few hours. Hunting in this state could be dangerous. Especially since she was alone. Sure, her attributes would be only six points lower, but it was still better to get used to falling back when she had a debuff on her. Later on, the gap between her attributes could be too big to ignore.

  She moved away from the crocodile's corpse and headed back to the city. While walking, Hera thought about her [All In] skill. The increase didn't seem that far off. If she had focused everything on endurance, for instance, it would make her reach only 23 points. That was a simple 4 point increase. It was hardly a significant difference. Especially since each point beyond 10 would increase the attribute's effectiveness only by 1%.

  In other words, whatever attribute she decided to focus on would be only 4% stronger. The rest would likely be at 0. Which wouldn't be the case. After doing some math, it was very likely that most of her attributes would be closer to 13. It was a very stark difference.

  Then again, Blue, Leo, and the other members of her party all had attributes already closing in on 20, if not beyond that. Her skill helped her bridge the gap between herself and the explorer that the guild accepted from the get go.

  Arriving in the city, Hera stopped by a restaurant to get some takeout, just a couple of burgers and fries. They sold crocodile burgers, but she still felt guilty for hurting the monster so much. Picking a regular chicken burger, she went back to the house.

  To avoid the big crowd, she took the long way around the lake. During that time, she noticed that quite a few people were walking around with pickaxes and other types of mining gear. They were all heading to a large building embedded in the wall of the cavern. It was a curious sight, and she made a mental note to ask Helena about it.

  Arriving at the house, Hera took off her boots in the foyer before walking in. They were covered in mud, and she didn't want to make the entire house dirty. She also could have someone from the cleaners in this city pick up her gear instead of having to drop

  "Lena, I'm back," Hera called.

  "Hey, sweetie. Welcome home!" Helena walked out of the kitchen, wearing a maid outfit.

  Hera blinked a few times, staring at the mage, "I think... I hope that something messed with my head," she rubbed her eyes, casting her mend spell. But Helena was still wearing the costume, "Why are you dressed like that?"

  "Like what?" Helena looked down, "Oh! Sorry!"

  The mage snapped her fingers, and the maid uniform disappeared. She was now back in her blue jeans and a baggy t-shirt.

  "I was talking to Quinn and totally I forgot about this. If you do an illusion spell on yourself, it's kind of hard to remember. Especially since my mage gear also has gloves," Helena said.

  "Oh. No, don't worry. It's your house, after all. But we might need a signal. Like a sock on the door or something," Hera suggested.

  Helena stared at Hera for a moment, "What are you talk... OH! NO! Heavens, no!" the mage shook her head vigorously, "Quinn is my cousin. This was just a bet that I lost. It's a stupid thing we do. We bet things, and the loser has to call the other in a compromising outfit."

  "Oh, that's weird. And you never told me she was your cousin," the Explorer moved to her room in order to change clothes.

  "Well, family is weird. And she doesn't have a good relationship with her parents, or with anyone in our family, to be honest. Aside from me, of course. Because of that, she always says that friends are more important than family, and she calls me her friend exactly because of that. She says that I mean more to her than her family."

  "I get it... I guess. Anyway, it is good to know that I have a contact that can give me some dirt on my boss now," Hera said, walking to the laundry room.

  "Careful with that, Miss Kingsley, your boss is very powerful. You wouldn't want to anger the person who can use all the hot water before you shower," Helena chuckled.

  "True. Good thing our shower is powered by mana, and we don't have to worry about that," Hera came out of her room carrying some clothes. She wanted to take a shower to wash out all the grime in her .

  "You're no fun," Helena scoffed while heading back to the kitchen.

  Hera went to take a shower. Once she was done, she put her gear in a plastic bag and made a pick up order for the cleaners. Sometime later, she was back in the living room, drinking coffee with Helena. They talked about Hera's quest and how it was to hunt around this area.

  Helena agreed that it was a good idea to keep the Dead Man's coins. There were several quests, secrets, and situations that required a rare item or something very specific. There was no guarantee that she would ever find something that asked for the coins, but it couldn't hurt to have them on her. Especially when she could make that amount of money somewhat easily. In the future, that would become even easier.

  According to the Mage, there were dungeons in the 3rd layer that could already give 10 thousand gold per run. And that was the regular reward, not the increased one that she could get once a week.

  "Oh, and what skill do you think I should get? I also have an elemental essence from the Arcanist Lookout. Any suggestions?"

  "The skill depends on what you want to do. Think about your shortcomings. What do you need to improve? About the essences, what are your options? You can't actually use them by themselves, but you could use it to strengthen your weapons. If you get something that can interact with your skills it can be a really big power spike."

  Hera stopped for a moment, thinking about her possibilities. She lacked some long range capabilities. The spells did help with that, but it was a more mid range thing than something that could rival a bow and arrow.

  However, among the skills, there was a combat form called Wire Trap style. It was a mid-range technique that focused on the use of a kusarigama, or something attached to a chain, to keep the enemy at bay. Not wanting to just consider the information given by the system, Hera was searching the net for every skill that she found interesting.

  Since Yarnball could make some thread, Hera could fashion something with her Chakram. It would be even better since the string was supposed to grow in strength together with her. The reason why she was leaning towards this skill was the method of aquisition.

  After reading the description a bit more, the Explorer realized that this wasn't a free skill. She would only get a compendium that could be used in one of the ATRs. Some of the other ones, like the resistance skills and such, wouldn't get the same treatment. Instead only showing how to acquire them.

  One of the posts she saw online even stated that unless she wanted a very niche and specific type of resistance, the resistance skills were a trap. After all, if she picked the fire resistance one, it would only state 'burn yourself.'

  Still, wanting to look over everything, Hera checked the camp finder skill, and it was a bit underwhelming. The skill simply marked spots on the map that were good places for camping in the wild. Sure, it helped when she was in a hurry, but it seemed like the type of skill that you would get naturally when staying away from cities.

  "Lena, what could combo well with spirit? That one seems to be less common," Hera asked after choosing the Wire Trap Style.

  "Oh, want to go for the road less traveled, are we? That can be good, but you will have to figure things out on your own. In the sense that there will be fewer people to help you if you hit a snag. Either way, spirit can combo well with fire, creating soul fire. It makes the body burn from the inside. Wind and water are not that compatible, but some people like the idea of going for a river of the dead theme. Earth can make some strong golems if you use spirit, but that is a bit more advanced. I have no idea how that mixes with poison. Either way, you need first to figure out where you want to use the essence. If you are slapping it in a weapon, spirit won't increase the damage, but it will make your enemy less... energetic," Helena explained.

  Hera nodded but didn't make her decision right away. Instead, she asked Blue and the rest of her party, and even looked online for some advice. In the end, she picked the spirit essence. Ghost monsters existed, and while everyone agreed that against physical creatures that essence wouldn't do much, it would be good to have a weapon that could target the immaterial. Using the spirit essence, she could make Mayura's Feather a stronger weapon since it had better magic compatibility.

  Hera spent the rest of the day helping Helena set up her lab. There were still several boxes to unpack, and the mage was very particular about the organization of her equipment. Her initial idea was to use an ATR and try to get her new combat style, but the training rooms in Hazelpond were all currently occupied. Her only option was to make an appointment to spend most of the next day using a private ATR. That should be enough time to learn the skill with the help of the trainer.

  At night, she went looking for a crafter who could combine the spirit essence with her chakram. She did ask Mark about it, but he wasn't sure he could do a good job, and it would take a day of travel by boat just to deliver the weapon.

  Sadly, Helena didn't know any blacksmiths in this city, but she had a different idea. Hera should go to the next room. It was called Carpon Caverns, a room much smaller than Brinefront. It had a mine and a sprawling tunnel network. The mine was almost like an open-air dungeon. People could harvest the minerals, and once a week, the mine would push everyone out and replenish its minerals.

  Hera found it odd that so many people were needed to work there. Since it was so close to the outside, it made sense that someone had set up heavy machinery to speed up the operation. However, according to Helena, the minerals in the area behaved a bit like monsters in a dungeon.

  Mining could lead to rare drops aside from the guaranteed mineral. If they used heavy machinery, those drops wouldn't appear. Not to mention that the effort it took to set up large machines wouldn't be worth it. After all, they would need to remove it all once a week for the area to reset.

  Aside from that, the city inside the Carpon Caverns had few houses and many forges and shops. Since it was a place rich in minerals, various crafters would stay there to perfect their abilities.

  Hera could go there at any moment and come back on the same day. The only restriction was that she couldn't go through more than three doorways a day. That was a safety measure. Some people got nauseous when doing so. However, there was also the danger of getting a debuff that would stop you from moving between layers for some time.

  The duration of that debuff would vary, going from just a few hours to even years. No one knew exactly why that happened. Even if the Guild and other organizations did make some experiments in order to uncover the reason why that happened, but to no avail.

  If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

  Late in the afternoon, Hera headed towards the doorway. The traffic was still heavy, but more people were coming back than going to the Carpon Caverns. She had to wait in line for about ten minutes before she could go to the next room.

  Arriving in front of the familiar white doorway, she noticed it was almost like a copy-paste version of the one near Brinefront and the one in the guild. The only difference was the symbol above it. Instead of the seedling sprout, there was an image of a rock surrounded by several jagged stones. Like the center of an ore vein inside a mine.

  She approached the doorway, and as her hand touched the white frame, a notification popped up.

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  Would you like to be transported to

  Carpon Caverns - 2nd Layer

  [Yes] [No]

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  Pressing yes, the familiar light followed by the feeling of being submerged in warm water washed over her. In a few moments, that comfort gave way to the smell of iron and stone and a stuffy heat that seemed to come from all directions.

  Much like the entrance she had just used, this doorway was embedded in the cavern's brown wall. People were moving around, holding their mining tools, and loud banging noises echoed through the area.

  "Don't stop the line. Keep going. Keep going," a tall man wearing a miner's hat was ushering the flow like a shepherd.

  The area around the doorway was much narrower than Hera came from. She was at the end of a tunnel which forced everyone to form two lines to walk around. It didn't feel like rush hour at the train station, but it wasn't that far off either.

  Hera hurried along, trying not to cause trouble in the line, and headed towards the city. There was a line of people moving along a small crevice in the walls. Following them, Hera found the entrance to the only town in this room.

  The gate was almost hidden between two large boulders, but the city itself was carved directly inside the stone. The entire place looked like a massive bunker. To the left, there was only the stone wall of the room with different paintings, pictures, and advertisements as well as some large screens displaying the news or some random playlist.

  To the right, eight floors filled with buildings carved from the rocks formed the city. Even though she was underground, it was surprisingly open. The area was made in a way that pushed any claustrophobic feeling away. At least here.

  Looking at the actual buildings made the feeling return. Each of the floors had city blocks and roads leading deeper into the stone. If it weren't for the five meter tall ceilings, the place would be much more cramped. To the Explorer's surprise, there were a few people walking along the walls of each floor.

  Some were gliding, others swinging with large ropes. Some were even standing sideways with their feet planted on the walls. She even glimpsed a couple of people with wings moving deeper into the city.

  It was an utterly baffling sight. A picture of a fantasy land where the laws of physics didn't seem to apply. Yet, it made perfect sense. There was absolutely no reason to not use their abilities while navigating a city. Maybe the deeper she got inside the MAZE, the harder would be to see people just walking.

  To find the crafter shops, Hera needed to go to one of the three top floors. The forges were located in those areas. Apparently, it was set up this way so the fumes coming from the furnaces wouldn't cause problems for everyone else. Even if the city was supposed to have a very robust air filtering system.

  She passed through the mine carts and the people hauling the ore and walked the seven flights of stairs. There was an elevator, but there was a long line to take it, and it seemed to be used mostly to carry large amounts of stuff instead of people.

  It was an intense workout, but now it wasn't much of a problem for Hera. Reaching the forges, she asked around for the best place to enchant a weapon with an elemental essence. She was directed to a couple of places. The best crafter had a long line at its shop and was only available to take a request in a couple of months. Most of the other ones also had long lines of waiting before being able to do commissioned work.

  Hera ended up in a less know forge. An older man with only one arm seemed to be managing the front of the store, "Hello, what can I help you with?"

  "Hi, I'm looking for a place that could enchant a weapon with an elemental essence. Some people recommended this place," Hera said, trying not to stare at the man's arm.

  "We can do that work here. Although I must say that the standards of our shop are not what they used to be. My grandson is still learning his craft," the man explained.

  "This is not a very good way to make a sale. You know that, right?" Hera asked, confused about the business practices of the man.

  He chuckled, "I know, but I don't want anyone to badmouth my grandson just because he is still learning. What do you want to be enchanted?"

  Hera placed her chakram on the counter together with the spirit elemental essence., "This weapon, with this essence. But I want to know prices and the time required before anything."

  The man inspected the materials, taking a long time looking at the chakram. After a while, he nodded, "One second. Let me fetch my grandson."

  Hera nodded and waited in the store. The weapons displayed seemed to be well made, although there were some noticeable flaws. Some had dents in odd places, others had a lousy finish, but the blades and edges all seemed perfect. Above the counter, two weapons caught her eye. A large spear with a red iron blade and a scimitar with a blue handle that gave off a weird feeling.

  She activated her Elemental Sight and observed the weapons. The spear was called 'Montain's Rage' and had a fire affinity, the scimitar was called 'Lost Tear' and had an ice affinity. Both weapons seemed to be very well crafted, almost as if another person made them.

  "Sorry for the delay. Here is my grandson," the man came out from the back of the shop, followed by a kid who looked 16. Scrawny arms, a thin beard that grew only in a few patches, "Introduce yourself," the man pushed his grandkid towards Hera.

  "Yeah, sorry, Pops. I'm Ronan, Ronan Weller. Nice to meet you," he put out his hand for Hera to shake it.

  "Hi, I'm Hera Kingsley," she shook the man's hand. Despite his boyish looks, his hand was full of calluses. It was like shaking the hand of someone who worked with heavy tools for years.

  "So, what can I help you with?" Ronan asked.

  Hera explained what she wanted, showing the materials to him. He started to make some notes on a small pad he grabbed from the counter. That made Hera much more comfortable asking him. She was a bit worried about asking someone who was still learning, but it showed he really cared about the craft. The state of his hand also reassured her.

  "To get a better result, we should use a second essence. This weapon has a lot of surface area, and using just one might not be enough to cover it all. That essence is not that hard to get, so we could get another for about 2,500 gold. Plus, the price for the actual enchantment we can set at 4,000 gold for everything. And I can get it ready in... two days. Just to be safe."

  "Two days?" Hera asked, impressed by the speed.

  "Yeah, I know that some people can do it in under a day, but I prefer to take my time and be sure not to make any mistakes," Ronan replied.

  "Don't worry. The time is not an issue," Hera said.

  She considered the price. It was expensive, but at the same time, she would be paying more for the elemental essence than for the actual enchantment. She didn't have to worry about rent at the moment. It was already paid off until the end of her lease in five months. Even with that, she still had over 10,000 gold at the moment. Since the other 5,000 was a deposit for Grandma's Triss healing. Spending this much on an upgrade seemed like a good idea.

  "Ok, I'll take it. Do you guys have any other chakrams for me to use while you work on this one? Something cheap, please. It's just for training."

  "We can rent you one while we work on yours. If something happens, you have to pay 75 gold, since it would be its price. If not, consider part of the price of the enchantment," the older man said.

  "Oh, that's great. Thanks, Mr. Weller," Hera smiled at him.

  "Please, call me Clayton. And this is all part of our customer service," the old man smiled back.

  Hera thanked the two and got her receipt. She would pay for the materials plus half the cost of the enchantment now, and the rest on pickup. Satisfied with her purchase, the Explorer left the shop and headed back to the doorway. As curious as Hera was about this room, she didn't want to explore a new layer without her friends. Being here alone felt almost like going to a party when you knew no one there.

  Going back to Hazelpond, Hera had to wait for about half an hour before crossing the doorway once more. Not for any restriction, just because there were many people in the line trying to get back. At least the internet connection in the area was strong, which allowed her to use her tablet while waiting.

  Back at the house, she spent the rest of the night helping Helena. The following day, she went to the ATR early in the morning and started to train the Wire Trap style.

  Using her borrowed chakram, Hera started to learn how to use it while tied to Yarnball. She already had some experience with it, but it wasn't an actual fighting style. The skill was very different from what she expected. By the name, she imagined it would be a defensive approach with a few mid-range attacks.

  In reality, most of the movements were offensive, made in a way that the attacks would either hit her target or trap them with the chain. Throwing the chakram in a pendulum motion increased the damage dealt by the blade. If she got closer, the same attack would make the weapon spin around the target, wrapping it in the string. If she stayed in the middle range, it would make her strike hit the opposite side of where she targeted.

  According to the information in the compendium, that was the optimal way to attack. As the name suggested, the combat style was all about laying traps for her opponents. Moves that became worse if the target tried to evade them.

  The main difference was that she was using Yarnball instead of an actual chain. Hera had yet to see the string snap, so using it for fighting didn't seem like a bad idea. Especially because of its return function. By mentally activating it, the string would be pulled back. Even if it was slower with a chakram tied to it, she could offset that issue by sending some mana towards the string, which empowered the thread.

  By the end of the day, it became clear that she would need more time before getting the skill. However, some of the movements were already engraved in her mind, even if they were far from perfect. As she left the ATR, Hera spent another 800 gold to use the training room the next day.

  When Hera came back, she still wanted to train, however, using the moves from the Wire Trap style inside the house was a recipe for disaster. Seeing that, Helena gave the explorer information about another spell. It was something called Mana Reinforcement. That was the basis for most elemental buffs that could be applied to weapons and armor.

  The mage did her best to explain how to use it, but since Hera used the conceptual approach to magic, she couldn't give the explorer a good example. Still, seeing the spell in action helped a great deal. Hera kept trying to make it work, but to no avail. This was the first time she was attempting to force mana to take a specific shape. All other spells simply created their own forms. Here, she had to envelop her weapons with it.

  She did little else until the next day when it was time to go back to the ATR. Hera kept working with her trainer, doing her best to memorize the forms used in the Wire Trap style. One specific attack was giving her a lot of trouble. She had to swing the chakram sideways and let it go mid swing, then pull the thread to make it bounce back like a yo-yo.

  The idea was to either hit the target with the throw, or pretend to miss it and hit their backs. The problem was the timing. She had to calculate when there would be enough string to pull the chakram back enough to hit her target.

  After a few hours, Hera felt like she was going nowhere. Her weapon would only strike the dummy once in five attempts, and she wasn't even moving. Her attacks would either hit it or just try to spin but flop around on the other side.

  To take a break, she asked the trainer to show her the fire arrow once more. That was the one spell she had yet to figure out. Taking some time to study magic seemed like a good way to rest her body.

  Hera tried using her Elemental Sight to understand the magic better. The mana was much less violent than she expected. Instead of several explosions like she imagined. She saw the magic pulling the surrounding air like someone were gathering leaves.

  Before the arrow formed, a small ball of fire mana appeared in front of the trainer's hand. Then, in a flash, the fire changed its shape and propelled itself forward, pushing the flaming leaves back. The movement made Hera remember fireworks launching or how bottle rockets took off.

  She tried to replicate it a few times, getting closer to the desired result with each attempt. However, the mana in front of her behaved differently. Instead of a peaceful gathering, it was a violent grouping. The magic seemed to pull everything around towards it, devouring all that got close. When she tried to release it, the mana would consume itself so quickly that it couldn't gather more fuel to keep going.

  Hera kept practicing both the spell and the combat style. At the end of the day, she managed to unlock the skill and add the spell to her spellbook.

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  Wire Trap Style - Beginner

  A fighting style that focuses on using a chain with a weight attached to the end of it to hit and trap your target.

  The skill allows you to use moves from that style using muscle memory. However, attacks performed with the aid of the skill won't increase the mastery of the style.

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  Fire Arrow

  Rank: Beginner

  Creates a flaming arrow made of mana and sends it to the target.

  Base mana cost: 25 mana

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  While she only needed a bit of time to get the Wire Trap Style, the fire spell needed something different. Instead of just pushing the mana into the spell, she had to slowly fuel it. The violent burst that was happening previously only occurred due to the rapid influx of mana. It was one thing that she never considered but it felt like a valuable lesson going forward.

  As she left the ATR, she got a text from Ronan letting her know that her weapon was ready and that the shop would stay open for a couple more hours. Hera looked at the time, it was late afternoon, but she still had time to pick up her improved weapon. She quickly headed towards the doorway. Getting a new weapon made her excited, especially now that she knew the Wire Trap style. In less than twenty minutes, she was back in the forge, talking to Clayton.

  "Welcome back. Glad you could make it today. Ronan was a bit anxious to see your reaction to the result."

  "I'm excited too. It's the first time I'm getting equipment enchanted," Hera smiled at the man.

  "Really? I couldn't tell. You seemed very sure of what you wanted," Clayton said.

  "I got some help from a friend. If I were going to decide here, I probably would have stayed the entire day thinking."

  Clayton chuckled, "Fair enough. Let me go get Ronan."

  Hera heard some noise coming from the back. Something heavy seemed to have hit the ground, followed by a few grunts and Ronan leaving the backroom while shaking his hand and carrying a box under his arm.

  "Sorry about that, an armor that I was working on toppled. Anyway, that doesn't matter. Here."

  The crafter placed the box on the counter and opened it towards Hera. Inside it, her chakram was placed on top of a red velvet pillow. The weapon still had the same shape, with the handle in the middle and the three sets of blades going out, making a wing-like pattern.

  But now, instead of the dark gray color, it had a lighter tone, still on the darker side, but not as intense. The handle was now mostly black. Going towards the wings, the blade changed to a light spectral green shade. It was a color similar to the ghosts that Hera had seen in the Arcanist Lookout. She activated her [Inspect] to see if there were any changes in the attributes.

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  Mayura's Spirit (Chakram)

  Rarity: Uncommon

  A chakram enchanted by a crafter's apprentice. Crafted from the feathers of a dusk peacock. Due to the technique used in its conception, the feather changed the color of the iron instead of strengthening it. However, when imbued with a spirit essence, the feathers converted to the related element.

  Attribute scaling:

  Agility x 1.06

  Intelligence x1.03

  Type of damage:

  35% Spirit

  65% Physical

  Additional effect:

  Any other elemental effect applied to the weapon will also increase the spirit damage.

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  Hera kept reading the description, thinking about the possibilities. If she managed to get that mana reinforcement, it could increase the elemental damage even more. Although she wasn't sure if raw mana would count as another element. She also knew about the ant burrow, a place where the monsters would have a high physical defense. There was no doubt in her mind that many other creatures like that existed inside the MAZE. Meaning that this would be a very good way to fight against creatures like that.

  Ronan kept looking at the explorer. He was trying to read her expression. As she frowned, he began to feel even more restless, "Look, I apologize if this wasn't what you were looking for. I did my best, I really did."

  "Ronan," Clayton said, trying to silence his grandson.

  "I'm not trying to make excuses here, Pops. This was the best I could do. Enchantments are hard, and I know I'm still missing some practice. But the attribute scaling has some good values, even if it's not the most conventional grouping. I'm sure that if you made it Pops, you could turn the chakram into a rare one. Still, a job is a job, and we can't afford not to be paid," Ronan kept going.

  Hera was a bit surprised by how defensive the crafter was. This was fantastic work. Why would anyone complain about these results?

  "No, don't worry. I love it! It's more than I hoped for. Honestly, I thought it would just end up being a catalyst that could increase the power of my spells. Or if I were lucky, it could give some elemental damage. This was much better than I could ever hope," Hera said.

  It wasn't a lie. She was genuinely impressed with the result. However, she noticed something familiar in Ronan. A desire to please and to show his worth. And if what he said was right, his grandfather was a very accomplished crafter. That meant that in the future, Ronan would be able to create amazing things. It would be nice to keep a good relationship with the two.

  "Oh, thanks," Ronan was taken aback by the compliment.

  "Thank you, Hera," Clayton said with a smile.

  Hera discussed a few things with Ronan in order to clarify some doubts she had about the weapon. The extra spirit damage would be based on the strength of the effect applied. He explained that spirit damage was something that wouldn't leave a visible mark, but people with high sensibility could see the impact in the target's mana.

  With all her doubts cleared, Hera paid the rest of the enchantment cost and headed back to Hazelpond. It was late, and Helena had already ordered some food. The Explorer had to wait another hour in line before crossing the doorway. By the end, she just wanted to take a shower. The Carpon Caverns were always so hot that she was sweating just by standing while waiting her turn.

  Reaching the house, Hera opened the door, "Lena, I'm back. Please don't show up in another weird costume."

  "Hey! My costumes are always great," the mage yelled from the kitchen, "You really should treat the one who kept the food warm for you better."

  Hera chuckled, "Sorry. I just don't want that to be a pattern. The clothes were great, but I don't need to know what you do when you are alone with your computer."

  Helena rolled her eyes, "Fine, can I grab the food now? I'm hungry too."

  "Wait. Were you waiting for me?" Hera stopped midway to her room.

  "Well, yeah. I wanted to wait for my lovely assistant," Helena walked out of the kitchen, "but I'm guessing that you want to take a shower first."

  Hera was drenched. Her clothes had dried and got wet again a few times during the day, but the worst part was waiting to leave the caverns.

  "Do you mind? I'll take a quick one just to clean up," Hera asked.

  "Sure, I'll wait," Helena walked to the dining room.

  Hera took a quick shower. She usually would spend half an hour relaxing under the hot water, but since Helena had waited for her to start eating, Hera wanted to be quick. In just over ten minutes, she was back and ready for dinner. The explorer showed off her new weapon after their meal. The result surprised Helena. She didn't expect the material to work so well with the spirit essence.

  "So, Lena. Your turn. Tell me about your research," Hera said after she put the chakram away.

  "Well, what do you want to know?" Helena asked.

  "I know what you are trying to do. Figure out a way to see your secondary affinities so everyone can have an easier time using magic. But why is that?"

  "Why?"

  "Yeah. Why did you decide to research this?" Hera asked.

  "Oh.. wow, I don't remember the last time someone asked me that. Honestly, it wasn't a grand reason like 'I wanted to help the world,' I got pissed because I spent a long time training some elements that ended up being terrible for me. When I started, I wanted to be a light and dark mage. My idea was to turn half my mana into dark and then the other half into light. The problem is, synch works differently than I thought. The skills say that when most of your mana turns to a specific element, all the mana becomes that element," she let out a sigh.

  "Dual affinity mages are rare, but not unheard of. People just don't talk much about them. I assumed that I could turn 50% of my mana pool into dark mana and then the other 50% into light mana. The issue was that since I already had some other elements in the mix, like water and fire. So when my mana became close to 50% dark, it all changed to dark, and then all the time I spent working in the light spells was wasted. Years later I discovered that the right way to go about it was to increase light and dark at the same time."

  "So, you don't have to change your mana completely to trigger the conversion?" Hera asked.

  "Exactly, it doesn't consider your entire mana pool, just the biggest shareholder, so to speak," Helena said.

  "Got it, and how do you figure out the secondary affinity?"

  "Well, first, we need to have some case studies. That's why I'm asking you to find the affinities of several monsters. We can cross-reference their elements and try to figure out some patterns. My hope is that the spell I taught you will start to show more information as its rank increases. Even my version is still at the beginner level. But since you seem to have a high mana affinity, maybe you can see more using the buff."

  "What do you mean, I have mana affinity?" Hera asked.

  "I'm just assuming here. But some of the things you told me about your spells and how you see magic make me think that you don't see one element but the actual raw mana working and changing. For instance, the fire arrow spell. You said it's like seeing something pull leaves towards a pile, right?" Helena explained.

  Hera nodded, "Yeah, like something being gathered into a ball."

  "That is not how I see fire mana when I use the skill. To me is much more like an actual flame burning its surrounding area. You already were sensitive to mana even before getting the actual mana stat. I'm guessing that why you can see magic differently."

  "Well, but everyone sees spells in their own way, right? It's not like fire mana is the same for everyone," Hera said.

  "True, but most people get something close to the actual element. Fire would be flames, explosions, or embers. I asked around, and I got in touch with a mage who managed to Sync with raw mana, and his description of spells is much closer to yours than anyone else."

  Hera considered that for a moment, Helena had told her that she was able to feel mana even during the training. Even though people could control their elemental affinities to a degree, it wasn't uncommon for someone who never used any form of magic to have one or two affinities already.

  "Ok, and how can I help right now?" Hera asked.

  "Well, you know I won't talk about the more technical aspects of my research until you can help me with it. But for now, we need a bigger sample range. I need you to go out and start taking notes on the monsters and their affinities. If you can, try to write down the types of skills and spells they use. The more information, the better," Helena said with a smile.

  "Ok, but I'll start tomorrow. I'm beat."

  Helena chuckled, and the two watched a movie before going to bed. Hera was both tired and excited. It was time to actually be a Mage's assistant.

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  Chapter 124 - Assistant's Job

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