The water beasts begin to charge toward us, and I move my left arm across my body, holding my sword out to the right, blade forward. The moment I'm ready, I charge forward, ignoring the baffled Finn and Sara behind me. Lowering my sword, I wait until I'm only a few feet from the closest of the water beasts, then focus on a point just past it and begin to make a slashing motion with my sword.

"WARP!"

Space seems to warp, and I find myself moving through the next nine feet quickly enough that everything around me becomes a blur. The movement happens as if I'm simply moved across the space without having to run, my sword cutting clean through the water beast, cutting it right in two. When the warp finishes, I finish the slash, then turn as a notification appears in my vision.

+17% Experience

I take a step forward as the two remaining water beasts begin to turn to face the one attacking them, then I jump into the air as high as I can, focusing on a spot above me.

"WARP!"

The feeling of zooming through nothing but air is amazing. Sometimes, I'll zoom up two or three times, then let myself just drop into the sea or a lake or something. It's pretty fun. Right now, though, I'm fighting monsters, so I'm not doing that.

Twisting, I face the beast as I start to drop, bringing my sword up over my head before beginning a downward slash with it.

"WARP!"

I zoom to the ground, my blade cutting through the beast's neck and into the sand.

+17% Experience

The beast's head falls into the ground and rolls slightly as I pull my sword out of the sand. There's a moment of wait as the next beast is still out of my range. Judging by the sounds of it moving across the sand, I don't have much longer before it's close enough.

Turning, I bring my hand to my side, the point of my sword aimed at the remaining water beast's head, and take a step forward as the beast raises its head in preparation for an attack.

"WARP!"

I warp forward, my sword piercing through the beast's neck.

+16% Experience

Aw, the last one was weaker.

Oh, well!

I pull my sword out and dip it into the water, moving it about a bit so that the sand will clean it faster. After making sure my sword is clean of blood, I return it to my belt, then touch each of the water beasts, sending them into my Inventory. Moving things in and out of my Inventory is always weird to me because they just appear and disappear, no flash of light like when socketing a Crystal, no fade in or out, nothing like that.

So weird.

Since I've shown Finn and Sara that I have a Crystal, too, it's probably time to let Mom know as well. I don't really want to hide it anymore now that it's out in the open, and it'll make some things easier, too.

Fighting against beasts while using a Skill is massively different from fighting without. If it weren't for that, I wouldn't have been able to take on three water beasts at once. Doing it so fast? An impossibility.

Keeping the Crystal equipped will let me gain Levels, and therefore, more Stats, before I set off on my journey to find the Crystern. I can also now kill things that will help me earn more money, and therefore, to help Mom get a bigger buffer of savings before I leave in addition to helping me buy better equipment and supplies and still have enough money to supply the early stages of my journey.

Originally, the plan was to wait until I could buy a Lesser Stat Crystal, then socket it in front of Mom and socket the Lesser Warp Crystal once I was on my own, to hide that I had it. She wouldn't think too much of me beginning to hunt bigger things, especially if I slowly adjusted to fighting them and gaining Levels.

Though even though my plan was to buy a Lesser Constitution Crystal, to help me handle accidental crashes that occur, I was going to tell her it was a Lesser Agility Crystal I'd bought. Warping isn't teleporting – I don't instantly move from one spot to another. I move through the space, so my body is still crossing the distance. It's just that space warps for me when I use the Skill.

So I could pass things off as me having a higher Agility, especially since that's one of the five things I'll gain per Level with this equipped.

That plan's out the window now, though. Finn's arrival changed all of that. It's made me realize just how much more awesome fighting is when I warp around. Training like that is nothing compared to actually putting it to use!

"That was awesome!" I exclaim as I return to Finn and Sara. "I've never killed anything with Warp before!"

"You had a Skill Crystal," Sara says, then blinks a few times as she realizes what that means. "You had a Skill Crystal and didn't tell your mom. You've been able to leave… oh. That's why you stayed, isn't it?"

She figured it out fast. I did already say the reason in front of her, and she seems like a smart person, so her figuring it out probably wasn't too difficult. Mom will probably realize why I stayed once I reveal to her that I have a Crystal and am leaving.

"How long have you had it?" Sara recovers from her shock. "And how did you get it? I'm sure you wouldn't have kept from your mom if you managed to afford a Crystal with a minimum Rarity 5. Since you were only going up to ten feet, I'll assume it was a Lesser Warp Crystal, so Rarity 5?"

"Yeah, it's a Lesser Warp Crystal," I confirm. "I found it a few years ago, down near the tail. It was buried pretty deep. Just to be safe, I only ever used it to train, I never had it equipped while fighting."

"Using an Inventory makes gathering training targets take so much less time," I tell Finn. "I can usually go several rounds just with what I gathered on the way to that clearing!"

Finn chuckles at that comment, and Sara sighs.

"Would you mind showing us where you found it?" She asks. "Not today, today is to celebrate Finn's birthday. But maybe in a few days?"

"It takes about a day and a half to get down there," I tell her. "Rowing well. We can make it a longer trip once Mom is more comfortable with you. It feels good to finally get some Experience."

"Alright," she says. "You said it was buried deep? You were digging around for treasure?"

There are some things I'll continue to keep secret for now, like my ability to sense Crystals. Mom knows about it, but I doubt she's told Sara already, especially with how Sara's asking that.

"Something like that," I tell her. "There wasn't really anything else I found there."

I did try, though, since I'd figured that if there was a Rarity 5 Crystal, then there might be other good treasure. The only other thing of note I found was a bone comb with a trio of sapphires set into it, and I spent a full week on the island searching for more.

Mom uses the comb regularly.

"The Ancients were from thousands of years ago," she tells me. "It's possible that most of the treasures were hidden. A Rarity 5 Crystal suggests that something powerful died there, and if it's somewhere you were for a week, then while it's manageable for someone without any Crystals now, that island may have once been full of stronger beasts. That suggests a powerful relic was hidden there, which suggests a location for an airship."

Yeah, no. There's no airship there.

"Alright," I shrug. "We can give it a try. I don't think you'll find much, though. I was all over that island and didn't find any hidden entrances or anything."

"The Ancients hid their most important artifacts well," she tells me. "And you have a normal Perception-"

"It's actually a little higher than average!" I boast.

"Mine is in the hundreds."

"Yeah, you might spot something I missed."

Finn chuckles, then his tail starts moving again. He wants to get back to hunting.

"Sara," I say. "Speaking of Crystals, once I sell these beasts and give Mom her half for savings, I'll have enough money to buy a Lesser Stat Crystal, maybe two, depending on how much the corpses go for. So once I do that, can I buy from you? If we fight more water beasts here, I can afford it for sure, and I'll only really lose out on the bonus from a Level or two, but I'd rather get them sooner than later so I don't miss out too much."

"Why don't we make a deal?" She asks. "I'll sell you two Lesser Stat Crystals now, but you pay me back once you have the money after selling the corpses."

"You know I could agree to that, then abandon you here, right?" I ask.

"I can swim pretty well," she tells me. "Handle probably anything in the path back, and I have a Flight Crystal."

"YOU HAVE A FLIGHT CRYSTAL?"

"And you still have infinite energy," she chuckles. "And yes, I have a Flight Crystal. I'm also one more Lesser Flight Crystal and some Crystal Essence away from having a second.

"That is so cool," I tell her. "We have a deal!"

"That reminds me," Finn steps over so that we can hear him better. "I wanted to buy a couple of other Lesser Stat Crystals. I have enough for two. I should probably do that before I fight again, I'm about to reach Level 1."

"Okay," Sara says. "Let's start with Skyler first, since he asked first."

Finn nods.

"Finn can go first!" I say. "He's your student and charge, and it's his birthday! Plus, I have a policy that I let the cute ones go first."

Whoops, I said that last part out loud. It seems to have an effect on Finn, as his cheeks flush a little and he starts stammering. My own face heats up a bit in my embarrassment at having said that out loud, and I don't know how to rescue the situation.

Fortunately for both of us, Sara knows just what to say.

"Okay," Sara says. "Finn, what Crystals would you like to buy?"

"Um," he pauses, probably to remember what we were talking about. "Oh, right. Um. A Lesser Magic Crystal and a Lesser Constitution Crystal."

"Magic to raise the power of any Skills that use it," Sara says. "As well as enable you to increase heat, wind speed, and other things for more tangible spells. Constitution to raise your defense, so that if something gets close, you can take its hits better. Not bad ideas. Most would have gone for Mana and Mana Regen, to let them cast more from full and cast more often, but both of those are wise choices, especially with the mage route you want."

Finn nods, then accesses his menu and pulls out his money, ten thousand sorukar in total. As they do the exchange and Finn sockets his new Crystals, I think over what Sara said.

Her wording makes it seem like his Magic does nothing for Wind Blade.

"Sara?" I ask as Finn glows, the light then bursting.

"Yes?" She looks at me.

"Magic doesn't affect all spells?"

"Yes and no," she answers. "Spells that are more tangible – such as fire, wind, and water, can't grow 'stronger'. However, it does affect things such as how well a water spell will stick together, how fast the wind is shifting, how strong stone is, or how hot fire is.

"For the most part," she continues as Finn glows again, socketing the second Crystal he just bought. "It affects the less-tangible spells, such as curses and healing Skills. It also affects your resistance to negative effects, such as curses."

"Oh," I think for a few moments. "I guess that makes sense."

"Indeed," she says. "Do you know which two you would like to buy now?"

"Yes," I answer. "Strength and Constitution. Strength to help increase the force behind my attacks, and Constitution to help me take a hit in case something moves in the path of my warps."

"Alright," she says. "And remember, sell the beasts once you return to town, then pay me after."

"Will do, Sara!"

"And if you need to earn more to make up the cost of both," she tells me as Finn leaves the beach to earn some more Experience. "I'm sure you'll generate that in the next few days."

"Of course!" I roll my eyes. "There's no way I'm not going around hunting stronger stuff now that I have my Crystal socketed long-term and not just for training! Though not slimes, I can't exactly kill those. I'll take care of any water beasts that show up, as long as I have the Mana for it."

"How much does that cost?" Sara asks. "I've never actually used a Warp Crystal, and Crystals that give the Warp Skill are rare enough that I've never talked with someone about the Skill."

"You know the distance but not the cost?"

"I've only known one person who had the Skill," she tells me. "And I'd asked why he'd done two thirty-foot warps in a row. He'd explained that it allows you to travel one foot per 1 Magic, with a maximum distance of seventy-five feet. That was the extent of the discussion."

So he'd already gained a few Levels, then, and had something other than [Warp Crystal] socketed. They don't increase our Magic at all. Should I change my mind?

"Ah," I say. "It costs 10 Mana to use Warp, distance doesn't affect it, and it doesn't decrease per Level. I can use it five times from full right now. I plan on gaining enough Levels soon that I can use it a bunch of times, and not have to worry about waiting too long to use it again."

"That's a good strategy," she says. "You'd rather do Strength and Constitution instead of Mana and Mana Regeneration?"

"Yeah," I answer. "For the reasons I said."

"Alright," she says. "In case you weren't aware, a high Agility and Perception will allow you to move and adjust yourself better during the warps – after all, you are moving across the space, even if it's fast."

"I figured," I say. "But the Skill already gives me those. While I could use increasing them a little bit more… I think rounding myself off would be a good idea. The only Stat I won't have increased is Magic."

I could probably get one of those so that I can do bigger distances for [Warp], but I'm satisfied for now and will buy a Crystal for that later.

"Yes," she nods. "And I'm impressed by your Skill. Vitality is a rare Stat to find an increase for, both in Skills and in Stat Crystals – a Lesser Vitality Crystal, despite being Rarity 1, often sells for fifteen thousand sorukar or more."

"It's rarer than other Rarity 1 Crystals?" I ask.

"Yes," she nods. "And it makes sense, too, considering that Vitality doesn't just affect how quickly you heal from harm, but how slowly you age once you finish growing. Even among Rarity groups, there are Crystals that are rarer than others. "

I didn't know that Vitality affected aging, that's not in the Stat description and no one has mentioned it to me before. Does that mean that Mom and Dad and Sara all had really a really high Vitality Stat?

"That's interesting," I say. "I guess I still have a lot to learn about that stuff, then."

"I wouldn't expect," she tells me as she pulls the requested Crystals out of her Inventory. "That a place as isolated as this one would hear as much as others might. Here you go, Skyler. Remember our agreement."

"Don't worry, I hold to most of my promises."

"Most?"

"There are some that become impossible, or which I later deem immoral, or some other such thing."

"Ah."

I equip both of the Stat Crystals. Rather than boosting my Stats immediately, they provide an increase to them every time I gain a Level, sort of like Skills. If I unsocket them, I'll lose that bonus but not the increases they've already given me.

My plan now is to pay off both of those after selling the water beast corpses, then save up enough to afford another Technique Skill Crystal, so that Warp isn't my only attack.

While it's fun and all, I want something that can help me against monsters like slimes. Not only that, but not every monster is fragile enough to actually be cut through with a Warp-enhanced slash, stab, strike, or whatever. Some would need a little bit extra.

"Alright!" I exclaim once the second burst of light fades. "I'll handle any water beasts that show up, as long as there aren't too many of them and I have the Mana for it! Otherwise, it's Finn's show!"

Finn returns to us, a small jar in his right hand. An item drop? Monsters sometimes drop items, and more basic items have a higher drop rate than rarer items. The jar seems to be filled with slime the same color as the slimes here, and that's a more common item drop, I've heard.

The slime of slimes can be used to make basic salves and ointments. Kyle said that there's usually one jar of slime for every fifteen to twenty kills. They net about ten sorukar back in town.

One major thing people have to keep in mind about item drops is that some of them are made up of part of the beast, meaning that there's a part actually missing. The slime Finn has? Actually came from the slime, all on its own. It's free of impurities from the dirt or attacks. If a beast drops a pelt, then its hide was transformed into that.

Another thing about drops is that they don't disappear if they're not claimed, unlike the corpses of spawned beasts.

"I got my first drop," he shows it off.

"Congratulations," she tells him. "Are you taking a break now?"

Finn nods, then shows me the jar in happiness at having received an item drop, then sends the jar into his Inventory. Once he's done recovering his Mana, he takes the rest we'd forgotten he was going to take before the water beasts showed up, then throws himself back in to slaughtering the slimes.

We spend a few hours here, and I get to kill two more trios of water beasts before Sara says we should probably be heading back so that we're not kept up too late again tonight. Finn and I have both gained a Level, though he's closer to Level 2 than I am.

"That sounds like an excellent plan," I tell Sara. "Though I kind of want to stay out here for a bit longer. Like, another day or three, to get more Experience and have fun. Finn can stay, too, if he wants. I do need the boat to return, though, so you can just fly back."

"You didn't tell your mother you'd be gone for a few days," she says. "I get that you're excited, Skyler, but-"

"I've told her I'll be back in three hours, then returned eleven days later," I tell her. "Mom's used to me spontaneously deciding to stay out longer while I'm out. If you guys want to return, you can, but I want to spend a few days getting Experience now that I've done a long-term socketing and will be known to have a Crystal socketed. I have more time to do that if I camp out on an island that's safer than if I have to go back and forth between home and another island every day. I also have some basic supplies in my Inventory, since I didn't need to keep the Crystal socketed to use it."

Sara thinks over my reasoning for a few moments, then nods.

"Alright," she says. "I'll let your mother know why you're staying out here. Finn-"

"Can I stay?" He asks her as I pull a map of the skybeast's back out of my Inventory. "I want to train more, too."

"Are you sure?" Sara asks, concern in her voice.

Does Finn have separation issues? It seems like she's worried about him, but not because of possible attacks from monsters or something.

"Y-yeah," he nods. "Is that okay?"

"Okay," she says, then looks at me. "What's the map for?"

"Okay," I sit down and spread the map out, the point at the town. "So this is where we started. I had to take a weird route to get here because there's some really tough monsters right here. This is the route I took, here. This island is where we are now, and this is where we are on it.

"If you fly straight in that direction," I point in a different direction than the one we came from, since I had to loop around to get here. "You can get to the town much faster than following the route that I took.

"That said," I point at an island in the path, one that's about a mile at its narrowest and two at its widest, forming a sort of crescent shape. "This island here has a bunch of basilisks on it, so be careful. I'm sure you've encountered them before, but in case you haven't, they turn you to stone if your gaze meets."

It's actually one of my favorite islands, I just have to make sure not to look the snakes in the eye while passing by it or sneaking about on its shores to collect seashells. Using a reflective surface to look around is practically a must.

"I've dealt with basilisks before," Sara tells me. "The [Stone Gaze] Skill is a curse, so a high enough Magic will protect you."

"Oh, that's neat," I say. "Do be careful, though, because there's one really particularly powerful basilisk that lives on this part of it here. It usually keeps to this section, and likes to do whatever it can to draw your attention. It's one of the five things on this skybeast that I've estimated might be beyond your abilities. At least, that I know of."

"I'll keep that in mind," she tells me. "Though as long as it isn't longer than eighty feet in length, I should be fine."

It's about sixty, I think," I tell her. "But it has a third eye. I don't know if that makes it special or not, I just know that it gives me a bad feeling."

"A third eye changes thing," she says. "I'll be careful. I take it you two aren't camping on this island, since it spawns?"

"Yeah," I point at another island nearby on the map. "This one is good for camping out on. Depending on how things go, we'll probably be on this island so that he can do his slime battles, or on this island, this island, or this island. As for camping tomorrow night and the night after, we might camp out on another island, since this one here and this one here are both closer to it than the one we'll be on tonight."

"Okay," Sara examines the map for a few more moments. "I'll check in once a day, just to see how you're doing and if there's anything wrong. This is mostly for Finn's sake rather than yours, as your mother's mentioned how capable you are navigating and staying out here. She told me you spent a full month on your own, without checking in, this past summer. Came back with quite the tan."

"Yeah," I nod. "It's fun out here, as long as you know how to avoid or deal with any danger that shows up. The island I pointed out are all ones that I've been to a million times, so I know they're safe enough."

"I'll see you boys tomorrow," Sara tells us. "Have a good night."

She gives Finn a small hug, then floats up into the sky and flies away. Finn gives me a knowing look.

"You just want to avoid your mom's reaction to finding out you had a Skill Crystal since before you made the deal with her."

"A few days should be enough for her to stop being mad," I nod. "So! Want to fight some more slimes? Or want to head to make camp now? The island's only about half an hour away, so we've got plenty of time!"

"How about train some more?" He asks. "I want to hit Level 2."

"I agree with that reasoning!"

"Though maybe your energy will overwhelm me first," he mutters.