Li Mei exhaled, tightening her grip on the makeshift bone staff pointed at a Verasus. The enormous lizard snarled while lunging at Bao, gaping maw wide open to display rows of teeth as long and sharp as swords.

Last time they fought a Verasus head-on, Li Mei was badly injured and poor Bao nearly died. His body was so shattered and broken, he had to be carried back up the mountain on Li Mei's back. The fear and pain was etched deep into both of their hearts at that time.

One year later, Bao was charging fearlessly at a Verasus without a single flinch or halt in his stride, slashing its flanks and underbelly with sharp claws.

Li Mei thrust her staff forward as Bao retreated, her weapon striking the Verasus in its enormous eye. It got wedged in the socket, wrenched from her grip as the monster recoiled in agony and screamed at the top of its lungs.

"Gotta adjust how I grip weapons," Li Mei hissed, shaking her aching hands. Several hastily formed barriers shattered from the Verasus flailing, trying to rip through the agile girl who kept slipping between its claws with little difficulty.

Hana watched from the trees with a little smile, chin propped in her hands. Beside her, Otto shivered and made sure he was well hidden behind the bush he chose for camouflage.

"How can you have so much fun watching them?!" Otto whispered while peeking through the leaves. "One wrong move and..."

"Dancing," Hana answered, scarlet eyes narrowed into slits. From her vantage point, Li Mei and Bao were like leaves on the wind around the clumsy Verasus. Whimsical, agile, unpredictable. Weaving and dodging, circling each other with the ease and practice of countless battles fought at each other's side.

It looked like fun.

She wasn't strong enough to fight bigger monsters even with Li Mei and Bao, but one day...

Hana smiled wider. One day, she'd dance too.

Otto sighed. "I don't get it."

Bao tore into the Verasus's throat, a shower of blood and gore splattering the forest floor. Hana and Otto emerged from their safe hiding spot to help deal with the lizard's corpse before they all headed home for the day.

Later that night as Li Mei laid in bed listening to the sounds of her friends snoring, she browsed through the EXP Shop and picked a few upgrades that caught her immediate interest.

Li Mei hunted specifically big monsters for weeks in order to afford them, and watching her EXP fly out the window in exchange for abilities was both satisfying and disheartening in a strange, conflicted way. Especially seeing the amount of EXP gained from combat decreasing at an alarming rate.

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[Dismantle Lv.1]

Perfect for compulsive looters! Dismantle objects or even monster corpses into their most useful parts, which are deposited directly into Storage. Unusable leftovers are converted into mana to refund the cost of the skill, or even mana crystals depending on the quality of the materials and skill level.

At Level 1, only targets of mass equal to or lesser than your own can be Dismantled, and chances of receiving mana crystals are low.

If the Storage is full when Dismantle is activated, all parts will be converted to mana.

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[Synthesize Lv.1]

The legendary crafting ability! Make weapons, armor, chemicals and more with a few ingredients and a handful of mana!

Lower levels are less efficient in conversion ratios, so more materials will be required.

Discovered recipes or blueprints will be saved to the Archive.

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[Barrier Manipulation]

Allows for further manipulation of created barriers. Change their shape freely using mana. The more extreme the change, the more mana it costs.

Cannot alter a barrier's mass or density with this technique.

-----

She also glanced at the Skill Merging option unlocked when she cleared off her debt, but it wasn't as helpful compared to the shop.

Skill Merging allowed her to combine or modify skills and spells she knew, provided they were at max level. 10000 per attempt was way more EXP than she was willing to part with at the moment, and her comprehension of magical laws was low so Li Mei wasn't able to see what effects would occur until she spent the EXP to make the new ability!

'I don't mind a fun gamble, but I can't afford to act like a high roller with my spending pool. Someday, maybe...' Li Mei thought as she shook her head. 'EXP gained from defeating enemies relies on the enemy's strength in relation to my own. Now that I'm Rank 2, I'll have to keep facing off with stronger monsters to get more EXP for upgrades, I bet. The regular forest creatures aren't gonna cut it anymore. Ah, this is going to be a vicious cycle...'

She held her hands up and grinned, wiggling her fingers. A small barrier appeared above her fingertips, shifting shape slowly into a star, a heart, a smiling face, a cat head... And finally a narrow hiltless blade with a sharp edge about the length of her hand.

Even if all her precious hard-earned EXP evaporated in a puff of smoke and left only 3 new abilities in its wake, they were good abilities.

Changing the overall shape of her barriers was potentially overpowered depending on application! Li Mei already had plans to attempt making throwing knives out of her barriers, eliminating the need to carry ammunition. If she could determine the density of a barrier by feeding mana into it, creating a makeshift staff in emergencies wouldn't be impossible either!

Though nothing would be better than having a proper weapon, since there was a limit on how many of her barriers could exist at once. And shaping barriers was slow as it was unfamiliar magic, it would definitely take more practice before becoming a useful battle technique.

With Dismantle and Synthesis, Li Mei wouldn't have to worry about obtaining the right chemicals through chance or delving into that dangerous research facility for supplies or equipment. She could produce her own!

Using both skills in conjunction would enable interesting yet difficult projects like turning coal into medicine, or making concentrated sulfuric acid! Synthesis would allow her to skip using specific heavy machinery and countless manufacturing processes so long as she knew the basic ingredients and conversion steps.

Truly, the Interface was the biggest and most convenient cheat!

"Frost Plum."

Li Mei sat up as Faust's whispered voice drifted past her ears. Likewise the sleeping Bao at the foot of the bed immediately jumped to his feet, glaring at the doorway where they both saw a familiar lean silhouette.

Otto slept in a makeshift bed on the floor, while Hana slept peacefully in the same bed as Li Mei and Bao. It was a little cramped, but warm.

Li Mei slid off the bed, careful not to disturb her friends as she silently passed Faust and walked into the living room. Bao followed on her heels, two of his three eyes focused warily on the man.

Something about the man set Bao's teeth on edge. Though he seemed kind to Li Mei, providing supplies and knowledge, the girl never relaxed around nor turned her back on the man. That alone was enough for the Fera to dislike him, but...

Bao's golden eyes narrowed as Faust lounged on a cushioned bench, pulling a cigarette from his pocket. Not a single shred of aura escaped from the man's slender body, and Bao couldn't smell him sitting in the same room. Only the smell of cigarettes gave Faust's presence away, and only once he lit it.

For Feras who specialized in sensing hostility and detecting opponents, being unable to sense someone even when they were less than two meters away was an incredibly uncomfortable situation.

Li Mei sat facing Faust, and Bao settled at her feet between the two of them with a slightly curled lip to reveal the sharp tips of his impressive fangs.

Silence reigned.

Li Mei refused to fidget, keeping her gaze on Faust's hands.

'I wonder if he knows what my name means or if it's just a coincidence,' she thought, ruminating on the code phrase chosen over a year previous when he left in the middle of the night.

She used a mana circulation technique with ice and wind attributes so that wasn't a big surprise or particularly clever, but both her surname and given name had to do with plums.

How would he know the meaning of her name? Did Mandarin exist as a language with a different origin somewhere in the world?

What a wild coincidence that would be, the same language in a whole different universe! Or maybe there were set patterns for how languages emerged in life forms, regardless of the universe? The sounds might be similar even if they're written differently, and just happen to mean the same thing.

Li Mei wanted to know for sure, but it would give herself away if she asked outright. So she endured her curiosity and waited for him to speak first.

"I thought I told you to treat everyone you meet as enemies." Faust finally exhaled a puff of smoke, his dark eyes cold and unfathomable. Li Mei shivered.

Lina said she was stronger than she knew. But Faust crushing a rock into dust with his bare hands left a deep impression on her psyche, whether she wanted to admit it aloud or not. "You never said I had to kill enemies."

"So I didn't. You have a penchant for picking up strays, huh..." Faust exhaled again, glancing toward the curtained doorway. "You trust them to sleep near you."

"Trust them more than I trust you. That's a low bar, though." Practically underground.

"Leftovers from the research facility?"

Li Mei nodded, gritting her teeth. Better not to give away Otto's origin as a former Oriole soldier. If Faust wanted to assume they were both experimental subjects, it worked in their favor.

Hearing them referred to as leftovers didn't sit well, but all she could do was clench her jaw and imagine kicking the man somewhere very unpleasant.

The smell of ash filled the air as Faust smashed his cigarette against the arm of the bench, chuckling under his breath. "Speak when spoken to, kid. Don't just bob your head like a chicken. I take it you had a good look around?"

"Yes."

"And?"

"Horrible."

"The facility, the research, or me?"

"Yes, all of it. In charge of a place like that, shouldn't expect any less from a man who owns slaves."

Faust coughed, hiding an amused smile behind his hand. "Yes, well... I had to approve and oversee reports of their projects. That makes me as guilty as the actual perpetrators to you?"

"Apathy is compliance. Letting evil happen, within your knowledge and not doing anything about it despite having the power to intervene, is just as bad as committing the deed yourself."

"How do you define evil?"

"People hurting children. Mentally, physically, emotionally. Or rape. Anything else is situational and subjected to perspective."

"That's a lot of big words and tough concepts for a kid."

"As a slave, I never had the luxury of being just a kid. And I studied a lot."

"Hm, so you made use of the books I left you. What's your impression of Brittalund? Summarize."

Li Mei rolled her eyes. "Autocratic monarchy with oligarchic elements. One Empress with absolute power ruling over the country, a handful of favored nobles forming their High Court.

"Most of the populace is fanatically devoted to the Empress since it's said as long as an Empress of the Royal Bloodline is on the throne, the magic barriers protecting the country remain indestructible.

"The country itself is an archipelago of small islands, temperate maritime climate with a lot of fog and rain throughout the seasons. Some of them are so close to each other there's bridges between them for easy travel, so boats and ships run on strictly regulated routes to prevent ruining the bridges.

"They eat a lot of fish and sea beast meat. There's underwater farms of special vegetables and fruits in the shallow waters between the islands since the islands themselves don't have fertile soil but the ocean floor does. Lots of coral reefs and diverse aquatic life ensured that.

"And they have an excellent academy of magic," Faust said with a smile. "Wind, water, and agricultural magic are their specialties in consideration of the environment and requirements of the country itself. You're going to attend."

"Beg pardon?" Li Mei leaned back, eyebrows raised.

"I need someone on the inside. We'll be there for a few years, long enough for you to graduate the academy. You'll be an adult then, and able to join Erebus like I promised."

"I don't want to."

It was Faust's turn to raise his eyebrows. "Don't want to?"

"Join Erebus. I'll go to the academy. But you ordered me to speak freely and share opinions and requests, so here's one: I don't want to join your organization. If I plan to get revenge on anybody, I'll do it my own way!"

Li Mei also didn't like the way Faust once dropped information on her about how someone else was responsible for 44's life of suffering, and then expected her to thank him for helping her get revenge on said person.

Faust didn't present facts or evidence to back up his claims. Just crossed his heart and gave his word, like that was sufficient to get her to kill someone and be happy about it afterward.

How big of a fool did he think she was? She wasn't type who'd count the money for the person who sold them!

He wasn't trustworthy enough for her to believe him like that. Maybe if he removed the enslavement bind instead of modifying it, but he lost that chance long ago. The instant he chose to keep her a slave was the instant he lost any chance of her ever trusting him.

Faust paused, staring at Li Mei for a long moment in silence. "Erebus could give you a lot of resources and connections."

"I can get those myself."

"They'd be able to train you."

"I can train myself."

Faust chuckled again. "So independent. Very well, Li Mei. I will not force you to join Erebus, but the offer will remain open should you change your mind. Wake your little strays now, we're leaving for Brittalund immediately."