WilburWoods
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Chapter 60 - Onwards and Upwards
🕑 Added 2023-10-14 16:47:52 +0000 UTCLogan ended up picking [Mass Production]. He was an optimist by nature. He had a talent for getting out of (and admittedly in) trouble. He trusted his luck wouldn’t run out, as long as he was careful to have a full internal Numa charge whenever possible.
Logan spent some time leveling up the new skill and letting Tumor work on crunching the numbers on how efficient the Numa usage was with mass production. It turned out very.
Logan had made a single boulder (weighing 55 pounds) into eleven identical, smooth surfaced rock spheres, weighing five pounds each. Afterwards he had made them into 55 spheres. Then 555 spheres. The mana expenditure seemed to be related to the amount of items created, but it was also clearly affected by mass and texture of the material, as Tumor found out after ordering Logan to perform his practice on wood.
[Skill Level Up!]
[Mass Production level 2]
After Tumor was reasonably satisfied, Logan went on to spam his new skill on boulders, over and over again. Why? It was fun.
[Skill Level Up!]
[Mass Production level 3]
[Skill Level Up!]
[Mass Production level 4]
[Skill Level Up!]
[Mass Production level 5]
At level 5, the skill would save 22.5% more Numa than if used individually on every single item. And it saved so much time and mental energy! Logan was very pleased with his new skill.
After that he spent his leftover Numa to make sure the Armor had all the latest and the best stuff on it in terms of enchantments. And because this black metal was special, and it could hold a Numa charge, Logan topped those off as well. Tumor said he could sense the enchantments individually tapping into the Numa charge automatically, when they depleted. The AI postulated that it could learn to regulate the use of the Armor’s special Numa holding capacity manually.
Logan was sure it could.
After all that the natural Numa crystal was starting to get seriously dim. It only held a 9% charge. Which was actually still kind of a lot. Logan made sure to stop at that. He inhaled deeply. The dim cave with its fluttering bats, stale water and smelly tentacles had been good to him. But it was time to go. He just had one last trick up his sleeve. Or rather, he had one last trick to try on his sleeve.
He put a hand on the crystal. Tumor shifted the Armor and the black liquid metal enveloping his fingers receeded.
“Make this Armor hold a dimensional space. Make the dimensional space as large as is possible with my potency level. Make the pocket dimension accessible and closed with my mind. Make it also offer whatever item I require at the time.”
[Attribute Level Up!]
[Potency: 32]
[Control: 29]
Logan looked at the natural Numa crystal with mouth agape. It was dim and pulsing glacially slow.
[S-Grade Natural Numa Crystal, 1%]
It had worked. He had a pocket dimension. Logan picked up one of his orbs of stone and willed the space open. From his left forearm a rip in space opened and within was a cubic room of dark gray walls, made seemingly of stone. It was the size of the back of a pick up truck in all dimensions. Logan dropped the orb of stone in there and closed the rift.
He reopened it, willing within his mind to grab the orb. It was like an invisible hand placed it within his palm. Logan closed his fingers around the cool, smooth rock and pulled it out of the extra-dimension.
“Ho-ly shit…”
[Ahem. As much as I appreciate you testing your facilities, I do advise you not to play with this. It consumes an extraordinary amount of Numa.]
“Oof,” Logan said and recharged the Armor with the last 2% of the S-grader. It went completely dim. Logan had the strangest urge to bow to the thing. He did. Maybe the Faelves were onto something. He felt reverent and grateful.
Thank you.
There was no answer, but Logan liked to think that the Spirit or whatever was listening.
“How extraordinary amounts are we talking about?”
[Considering your armor is a C-grade Numa container, which is equivalent to 94.19 F-grade Numa crystals, your opening the space, placing an item within, and closing it, just consumed Numa exactly worth 36 F-grade Numa crystals.]
“Damn…” Logan muttered. That was a hefty cost. But he’d be damned if the extra-dimensional space wouldn’t be immensely useful. The Armor would regenerate Numa naturally, so the cost wasn’t the end of the world, but it did mean he shouldn’t use it frivolously.
*
It was finally time to leave. Logan knew there was nothing in the room with the spent Numa crystal. He did a double check on the other room, wherein he had found a lot of stuff. But to his misfortune, there were no other valuables to find.
What Logan was keeping an eye on was more of the black metal. If he could find some of that black metal and maybe another natural Numa crystal, he could leave with a bunch of Numa batteries in his dimensional space.
Logan followed the tracks of the mining cart. Both of the trackroads in the intersection of the second room seemed to lead up, so Logan had shrugged and picked the one leading to the right.
It led Logan through a long tunnel, wherein he had to partially crouch. It was hard to move there. While Logan’s night vision was enhanced by spending two or three days in the dark, it was still almost blanket black in there. His leg didn’t make things easier, but Tumor had that mostly covered. The AI pinged him mirthfully every time it leveled up. Which was quite often. Logan wondered about that. Once he got bored with his thoughts, he brought it up.
“Why do you think you level up so fast? You’re level 9 already on [Manipulation] aren’t you?
[I have theories.]
“Don’t keep me in suspense,” Logan said idly as he groped around in the darkness to find the outline of the tracks. Unfortunately, just like the mining cart, the tracks were made of crude, low grade iron. That made Logan wonder why the brazier had been of the black metal. Tumor had suspected it was because it had previously held a light or fire enchantment. That made sense.
[My first assumption within the framework of the theory is that classes that do not require Numa are easier to level, as classes which directly require Numa such as yours are by default more powerful. Your class is ‘Magical’ in the traditional sense. Mine isn’t, even though it clearly works through magic.]
“Keep my left leg stepping next to the tracks, so I can feel it.” Logan said, holding his hand against the dry dirt wall of the tunnel.
[Affirmative. On top of that I am actively using my class. I have been ceaselessly shifting the Armor’s mass from one body part to another, not to mention I have to keep your left leg braced whenever you move on top of my practice. I am also hardening and softening the material on your back and legs to minimize calorie expenditure.]
“So in simple terms, you’re using your class non-stop.”
[Precisely. I noticed that Simmons had a similar situation. He was the highest leveled member of the camp, and that was because of his single-minded focus. I am able to keep leveling as long as you keep the Armor on. Which, until you regain the ability to use your leg, will be your every waking hour.]
“Quite the power-leveler, you.”
[Thank you. I am quite pleased with the rate at which I am progressing. With every increase in attribute and sub-class, the results are better.]
*
Logan ascended. Within the earth there had been a massive mining operation. Logan found more black metal, and natural Numa crystal deposits, which meant he could fill his dimensional space easily. Most of the crystals were of lower gradient and mostly dim. Still, it was enough to keep Logan topped off after opening and closing the pocket dimension.
There were no further monsters, although there were old black bones of scythe-fiends and snake skeletons, clearly Levespawns. They had starved long ago, and Logan found no crystals around them. Why only the tentacle monster had been alive here was a mystery.
[It was most likely a fortunate scavenger. Sometimes Dorves would fall into the chasm and it would eat them. Or there were other lifeforms in the water. We did not explore the water further than you needed to wash and drink.]
Eventually the dirt walls turned into stone and the LED-christmas lights of Numa lines started appearing. There were some scythe-fiends and beetles Logan encountered. With Tumor and the Armor, he cut through them. Digging into their skulls with the Armor was as easy as poking a finger into a pie. He plucked the E-grade crystals. Maybe the Faelves could refine them, or maybe they could be sold to the Dorves. He bundled five of them in the tattered piece of cloth that was once his pants. It wasn’t much, but Logan wasn’t wasteful.
Finally, after thirteen hours (according to Tumor), Logan saw an entrance to the ruins. He saw the sun. It was beautiful. Logan had survived. It was time to make sure everyone was safe.
