When I descend the stairs, Mom and Sara are already eating breakfast, Mom's basket of goods already full, her blanket covering it. I didn't wake up too much later than I normally do, despite how late Finn and I got back and our need to eat and bathe after.

Sara is wearing an all-green outfit, with her hair braided on the sides of her head, but ending in a braid with a tie that resembles silver leaves, hiding the actual tie itself. The hairstyle looks kind of strange, in my opinion, but also pretty neat.

Mom's hair, on the other hand, is just in a simple, neat braid with a simple black tie fixed into a small bow. Since I can't braid very well, and Mom's never been able to do a braid that goes straight down her back, I'm going to assume that Sara is the one who did it.

"I didn't expect you to wake until after I'd gone," Mom tells me as I take a seat. "With how late you and Finn went to bed."

Today's breakfast looks delicious. There are some slices of bread, some cheese, some cooked slices of ham, some eggs, and a couple of oranges. I'm going to guess that Sara gave us some of her oranges as thanks for letting us stay here.

Chances are, she's keeping them in her Inventory, and when she "pulled one out of Finn's pack" the other day, she was subtly pulling it out of her Inventory.

"Me? Sleep in?" I laugh. "As if! Yesterday wasn't nearly as much of an exercise to make me wake late!"

"Going to bed late should have," Mom says. "Don't forget to sleep, Sky. You're still a growing boy."

"I hope!"

"Your mother and I were talking," Sara tells me as I grab an orange and start peeling it. "Before you came down."

"Oh, dear," I say. "My mom and someone else gossiping. I bet you know all my embarrassing childhood stories and mishaps and sneaky adventures."

"According to her," Sara chuckles. "That would take more than a day to finish. Without rest."

"Probably three!"

"That's not a good thing!" Mom bops me in the side of the head.

"I plan on giving Finn his present after breakfast," Sara tells me. "Then taking him hunting so that he can start earning some Experience. The original plan had just been for us to head outside of town, since the monsters would be weaker there and it would be easy to get to.

"However," she says. "We hadn't planned on you, nor on Finn making friends."

Finn sees me as a friend! That makes me happy!

"And now he's beaming," Mom mutters.

"So I was wondering," Sara tells me. "If you'd be willing to take us to a good spot for him to train that's a little further away? I'm sure you already have an idea of where to take Finn for good Experience that won't be too above his capabilities. Your mother has already given her approval for me to go with you."

Really? Mom usually doesn't trust me with unknown adults. I guess she's spoken with Sara enough to feel comfortable, at least a little.

"Tentatively," Mom says. "And mostly because I'd feel safer knowing there's someone who can handle the unexpected there. Sara showed me her Status, and I know you don't go anywhere that would pose a threat to her."

Sara has two Rarity 7 Crystals socketed and has for over a century seeing as she admitted to having them socketed. There are only two places on this skybeast I can think of that might pose a problem for her. Maybe three.

Okay, possibly four. At the most.

I guess seeing Sara's Status explains why Mom has given tentative permission to go off with a woman we've only known a couple of days. If Sara actually wanted to do something, no one on this skybeast could stop her.

Mom's probably also assumed that if I think they're okay, then they are.

"We won't, I promise!" I tell her. "I was actually showing Finn a couple of the places yesterday! He's not so sure about one because the spawn rate is so high and he said he wants to be a mage, so he'd be limited by his Mana and Mana Regen. As for the other, he said he wants to give it a try, as long as I don't try fighting the slimes, too."

"Alright," she chuckles, and I pop a wedge of the orange into my mouth. "Thank you for sharing your food with us, Sara. I haven't had an orange since before Skyler was born."

"They only grow on a few skybeasts," Sara says. "It's easier to get candied wedges than it is to get the fruit itself because of that. On a skybeast this isolated, it doesn't surprise me you haven't crossed paths in recent years. As for sharing, it's no problem. I have enough, and you're letting us stay here for now."

"You said you were looking for a relic of the Ancients?" Mom asks. "That you heard was rumored to be here?"

Mom only knows about that, not what the relic is. Since I'm not supposed to know, I haven't told Mom.

"Yes," Sara answers. "I'm not too sure where it might be, so having someone knowledgeable like Skyler helping would be great. Once he finishes showing us around, Finn and I will explore a bit on our own, hunting for the relic."

"If I can get a Crystal before they leave," I tell Mom. "And we still trust them, I might go with them. If they're okay with it. Finn's a cool guy, even if he's quiet most of the time, and I think I'd enjoy traveling with them for a bit. I might find rumors about the location of the Crystern, or just find an adventure in general. Besides, Finn's made it clear he wants to be a mage, and every mage should have a warrior to act as their shield."

"He's right," Sara says. "It's always good to have both in a party, a warrior and a mage. While I'm the warrior right now, Finn would probably be happier having someone his own age, and my participation would reduce the Experience gains a bit due to how vastly superior I would be to almost anything he'd face. Should he travel with us, then I will protect him as I do Finn, ensuring that they never deal with anything beyond their means."

"Thank you," Mom smiles. "I promised not to try to stop him when he leaves unless there's something suspicious surrounding his departure. It may not seem it, but I can judge a person's character quite well just from seeing them, and I know you can be trusted. If he leaves with you, then I will make no effort to stop it, regardless of how much I'd like him to stay. He's old enough to make his own choices."

"Thanks, Mom," I say.

"Speaking of leaving," Mom rises from her seat. "I should be doing the same, to get my spot set up at the market. You're not selling today, Sara?"

"I've only sold the one so far," Sara tells her. "It's unlikely I'd make a sale today, and I know Finn is itching to do his first hunt. Like Skyler said, Finn wants to be a mage. I've taught him how to use knives, but he's not been a fan of fighting close. This will be his first real time to hunt, and he's looking forward to it."

"Okay," Mom grabs her basket. "You have a good day, then."

"Bye, Mom," I say.

"Bye, sweetie," she tells me, then leaves.

I wait until she's gone, then pop another slice of the orange into my mouth and chew it. Once I finish, I look at Sara.

"Finn's not good at 'subtle prodding'," I tell her.

"He told you?" She asks.

"The first day you were here," I confirm. "Do you really have a rumor that one is on this skybeast?"

"Yes," she answers, and I pop another slice of the orange into my mouth.

They really are good.

"How long ago did you catch the rumor?"

"About thirty years ago," she answers. "It didn't seem too logical, but I've run out of other leads at this point."

"So you decided to come investigate it," I tell her.

"I did," she nods. "Did Finn tell you the things I asked him to 'subtly prod' you about?"

"Yeah," I shrug. "There's not really anywhere like any of those here. I can show you a few areas no one's really gone to, though. If there's hidden relics, they'd probably be in those areas. No one's been able to handle the monsters in them for decades."

"Thanks," she says.

"For a fee, of course," I tell her. "I'm risking my neck to do that, you know. Five hundred per risky area. One thousand per really risky one."

"You're just trying to afford a Crystal before we leave, aren't you?" She asks.

"Half of it goes to my mom," I tell her. "I want to make sure she has extra money before I go, just in case. Plus, I'll need to buy supplies of my own before traveling. It's not like I could leave with just some clothes and a sword. That other stuff costs money, you know?"

"Alright," she chuckles. "I'll consider that offer of yours, Skyler."

"Thanks!"

"You're welcome," she says. "Can I make a request of you?"

"Does it involve mooning the mayor again?"

"What?"

"Nothing."

"I don't know want to know," she mutters, then shakes her head. "Skyler, once Finn comes down, do you think you can give the two of us some time? I'd like to let him examine the Crystals and make his decision in private."

"Sure," I say. "Once I finish breakfast, I'll head down to my boat. Finn knows where it's at."

"Thanks," she tells me.

I finish eating my breakfast, and just as I do, Finn descends the stairs, looking a little sleepy. He's still dressed in just his nightshirt from sleeping, and his hair is slightly-tousled. He's so cute.

"Happy birthday," I tell Finn.

"Thanks," he sits at the table.

"I'm heading to the boat," I tell them. "See you in a bit."

"See you," Sara says.

Finn just nods as he grabs a slice of bread from the plate.

I leave the house and make my way down to the dock, then sit in my boat as I wait for them. They're trusting me with their own secret, and when I told Sara I knew, I didn't sense anything dark from her. She really is okay with it.

Should I trust them with one of my secrets? The one I'm thinking of is pretty big, and Mom would probably be a little disappointed I didn't tell her before, but also understanding.

By the time Finn and Sara join me down here, Finn dressed in his usual outfit rather than bed clothes, I've come a decision. Before we return for the night, I'll tell them the secret I want to share with them. I won't tell them before Finn gets to hunt a bit, he's look really excited for it.

That just means he has his usual blank-ish expression, but his tail is wagging pretty hard.

"Come on," I say. "Let's set off!"

Once we're in the boat and I've begun rowing, Finn turns around and looks at me.

"Sara didn't gift me one Crystal," he tells me.

"You got more?" I ask. "Really?"

"Yes," Finn nods. "My present was getting to pick a Rarity 1, Rarity 2, and Rarity 3 Crystal from her collection."

"He's earned it," Sara tells me. "Had he behaved wrongly, I'd have only allowed him to select a Rarity 1 Crystal. This is my normal thing, when I help a young man or woman the way I've helped Finn. He's the only the third to earn the full present."

"Of course he did," I say. "Finn's an awesome guy! Is it rude to ask what you picked?"

"No," Finn shakes his head. "I wanted to tell you. I picked a Grade 1 Mana Regen Crystal for my Rarity 1, and a Grade 2 Wind Slash Crystal for my Rarity 2. For my Rarity 3, that's a surprise I'll tell you later."

"I love surprises! As long as they're good ones, anyway!"

"I know," he smiles. "That's why it's one."

Finn seems done talking for now, and Sara doesn't seem interested in striking up a conversation, though she does smile a little at me. Since we're done with that, I start telling Sara some of the notable islands and areas we're passing by, and she engages me in conversation about some of the adventures I had.

That helps to pass the time until we arrive at the island of basic slimes that I showed Finn to yesterday. When we arrive, I pull off my boots, then hop into the water and push the boat onto the shore. Finn and Sara then exit it, Sara's movement a lot more graceful than Finn's, and Finn and I then move it out of the water.

"This is an interesting place," Sara says once Finn and I finish moving the boat. "You said this is a good place for him to train? I assume it's spawned monsters instead of born ones?"

Should I remove them today? Yeah, I just spent five hours rowing nonstop, I'm hot and need to cool down.

"Most of them, yeah," I pull off my vest and tunic and set them into the boat. "There are some water beasts that sometimes emerge from the shore over there. Those were what I was trying to show Finn the other day, but ice beasts showed up there instead."

And the water beasts don't normally come out of the sea here, either. I usually have to do something big to catch their attention, which is why this place would be safe even if it was just Finn and me. In the years I've been coming here, the water beasts have only come out three times, and I know what drew them out each time.

"Water beasts aren't that much easier than ice beasts, Skyler."

"When you're showing off, you're showing off!"

Sara laughs, then asks Finn if he's ready.

"I'm going to take a minute so I can recover?" I ask, and Finn gives me a curious look. "If you want to get straight to hunting with your new Skills, that's awesome. I just…"

I plop onto the ground and lie back, feeling the coarse sand against my skin. There's going to be a lot of brushing off in a bit, but I need a break. Normally, this isn't fine, but Mom was kind of right – we got back late enough that I didn't sleep as much as normal. So I already went into the rowing tired.

The fact that Finn was actually up for awhile didn't help me sleep, but I didn't want to let him know that he was keeping me up.

"You can start if you want," I tell Finn. "I just need to rest."

Finn thinks about it for a few moments, then plops himself down beside me, though he remains sitting. He digs his fingers into the sand and starts playing around with it a little, while Sara remains standing, watching us.

"Can I see you socket a Crystal?" I ask him. "I've never seen someone else do it before."

There's a noticeable effect when someone sockets a Crystal, though not when they remove it. I really haven't seen someone else do it before, so I'm curious what it looks like from outside.

Finn gazes at something in his vision, probably his Socketing Menu, and a moment later, he looks at me as if to check that I'm watching. He probably switched it straight to his Inventory, rather than dropping it out completely.

Upon seeing that I watching, he focuses on something in his vision again.

A moment later, he glows for a moment, then the light bursts out of him, turning into motes of light that then turn into sparkles that fade away before they've flown more than a foot away from him.

"That looks awesome."

Finn nods, a small smile on his face, then he returns to drawing in the sand.

Since I don't want to delay Finn's first hunt with the ability to gain Levels too long, especially since the swishing of his tail says he's excited for it, I sit up after just a couple of minutes, just long enough to catch my breath.

The fact that the swishing of his tail was sending sand right to my face might have sped things up a little. It was a little uncomfortable, and while none got into my eyes, nose or mouth… it was only a matter of time.

"I'm recovered," I trying wiping sand out of my ear as I notice what he drew.

They're hearts, and he quickly erases them with his foot when he notices me looking.

Finnlooks at Sara for a few moments, nods, then steps off the sandy area. I walk with him, following a little behind just in case, and we advance until a slime pops up. Raising his right hand, Finn activates his new Skill.

"Wind Slash," he says, his voice soft, but firm.

Wind Slash takes the form of an arc of compressed wind with a white tone to it, allowing it to be seen by normal eyes. The blade shoots forward, slicing into the bottom of the slime as the creature hops up into the air.

Even though it's technically just another blade, the spell is vastly different when striking a slime than a sword is. It wouldn't be any different against most things, but to a slime, the magical aspect of the attack matters a lot because slimes are just magic slimes.

Rather than slooping back together, the bottom half of the slime remains severed, no longer a part of the slime itself. The magic in the spell severed not just the bottom of the slime, but the actual connection between them.

That's one of the reasons why having a mage in one's party can be pretty useful.

"Remember what I told you," Sara tells Finn.

Finn nods, then slashes with two fingers as he triggers the spell again.

"Wind Slash," he says, then performs another slash, crossing the first one. "Wind Slash."

The pair of Wind Slashes cut through the slime in an X, severing it enough to kill the slime.

"AWESOME JOB!" I rush up to him and hold out a hand. "HIGH FIVE!"

Finn jumps, startled, but shakes his head before giving me a high-five. Even though he's not smiling, I can see the happiness in his eyes.

"That was really awesome aim with the slashes," I tell him. "As long as they all hit, you'll only need what, two to kill each slime?"

He nods.

"I can kill three from full," he tells me. "With the bonuses from the Skills, as long as I only take two to kill. And it takes about two and a half minutes to recover enough cast it again."

"So about five minutes per kill, if you use the minimum," I nod. "That's really cool."

"Yeah," he nods.

We wait until the next slime spawns, then Finn does battle with it, his first Wind Slash missing, but his second, third, and fourth striking it, the last one killing it. Since he only has three casts left and that one took him four casts, we retreat to the shore and wait for him to recover his Mana.

With all three of us on the beach, the spawns stop, though there are a few slimes around that Finn hadn't killed yet. Sara steps off the beach to kill them, then returns to the beach to wait for Finn to recover. If she didn't do that, then there would eventually be more slimes than Finn can handle, since they'd continue to spawn once he returned to the grassy area.

The moment he's back to full Mana, Finn steps off the beach and attacks a slime. I stay on the beach this time, just enjoying the view. He switches between fighting and recovering for an hour, then we break for lunch, eating some berries, nuts, cheese, and bread that Sara brought before Finn goes back to grinding out the slimes.

His tail is swishing even more, making it clear he's really enjoying himself. I can still sense the goodness in them, how much I can trust them. Maybe I should share with them the secret I was thinking of? I'd have to do it eventually if they're to join me on my great adventure and I'm like Mom in that I can tell pretty easily how someone is.

So they can definitely be trusted.

Another hour and a half passes, and Finn starts to look worn-out, in need of a longer rest than just the wait to recover his Mana.

"Hey, Finn?" Sara says as he returns to the beach to recover his Mana again. "Why don't you rest for about an hour, to take a breather?"

Finn nods, then plops himself down beside me. He looks at me and starts to say something, then his gaze snaps to something behind me as the sound of water sloshing against more than just the sandy shore fills the air.

Turning my head, I find a trio of water beasts rising from the sea about forty feet away. Instead of the icy appearance the frost beasts had, these ones have blue-green scales that shimmer and shift and take on a liquid appearance when they move, such as around the joints.

"Strange," I say. "They normally don't show up unless I pee into the sea."

Finn gives me a bewildered look at Sara sighs.

"I'll handle those," she tells me.

"No," I stand. "Let me."

"You're not exactly able to take on three of those," she tells me. "Water beasts are-"

"I know," I say as I start going through my menus and draw my sword. "I've never tried fighting like this before, but I'm sure I can handle them."

"What do you-" Sara begins, then cuts off as light bursts out of me, turning to motes of light that fade to sparkles, then nothing.

Grade 1 Warp Crystal Socketed Skill Granted: Warp