Chapter 257

Though Ben spent the night planning to get as much rest as he could while talking to Myriad in his realm, that idea was foiled by a persistent knocking on the door in the early hours of the morning.He couldn’t help but wonder as he pulled himself from bed and made his way to the door, finding the apologetic face of an incubus behind it as he opened up.

“I’m so sorry to disturb you at such an early hour of the morning sir, but the queen has called for you and said you were expecting her.”

“Seriously, now of all times? I thought she’d at least wait till the afternoon, but fine give me a minute.”

Even if he would have rather slept longer, he wanted the skill rings to improve Thera’s brace more than he cared about the contest, and with the sun not even beginning its rise in the sky yet he had plenty of time to make it there and back without losing time, so instead of dawdling he got dressed and rushed towards the gate, eager to get the new rings.

“You look tired Ben, is everything okay? Pelenia asked innocently, as if her early morning call wasn’t the only reason he was awake.

“I’m fine, just feeling a bit stressed about getting everything done today but this is more important. What levels did you find for me?”

“Oh you’re going to love this,” She told him as he was led into a room with the bear-person from last time, both an elf and a high elf, and finally a naga, all waiting for them to show up as Pelenia told him what they each had. “It took some work, but I was able to find you individuals with level eight of armor enhancement, shield enhancement, and defense enhancement. Getting them at level nine might be a bit tough from here, but I have people out looking so it’s only a matter of time. As rare as ninth-level skills can be, I’d be shocked if none pop up in the next year or two considering the rewards I’m offering. And of course, finally we have dark resistance enhancement, which Ursire has been working hard to raise this entire time despite his discomfort, getting the skill to level three.”

“I appreciate all of your effort,” He told the bear person, who gave a silent nod in return. Depending on what bonuses Ursire had that might affect it, it would probably be a while before he got it to the next level, even longer before getting it to the fifth. As annoying as it was, Ben could only be patient. No matter how long it took, there were other rare skills in the world, he would just need to find all of the ones that could complement his work so he could let Thera enjoy her life under the sun.

“We were wondering where you got off to this time,” Thera said as soon as he arrived at the contest grounds, not late by any means, but with about half of the attendants already set up. “What happened this time?”

“Your mom called for me, It looks like I’ll be remaking your brace tonight. I’m getting real close to getting rid of your effect at a distance too, when this is done I think I’ll spend a couple extra days in town to do some skill research. If I can just find two more with the effects I need then we’ll be golden before you know it,” He said positively, glad that things felt like they were working out. “Oh, and before I forget she asked me to ask you to swing by later.”

“Alright. And about the brace… I mean, you’ve had a real busy couple weeks, you don’t need to worry about it immediately,” She told him, looking away. “You can relax a bit.”

“I’m doing it because I want to. I won’t be happy till I sort this out so just you wait,” This had been his main goal for almost two years of his life now. If he couldn’t at least get her effect at a distance down to zero then all of that effort felt useless if it meant there’d still be a risk of some random person having a resistance too low and leaving them all but enslaved to her.

Admittedly he knew getting her effect on contact down to zero would be a lot harder, especially since any skills he could find that might be able to help would definitely be rare in their nature, and very possibly only available at low levels as a result, but so long as he and Pelenia could properly compensate the hypothetical skill holder for their training then it would all work out.

“And as sweet as how hard you’re trying for your wife is, focus on finishing up today first,” Falk told him, waiving off Thera before she could say anything. “It’s the last day, make it count.”

“You got it.”

He had a lot to do and only a few hours to do it. The contest would be ending a few hours earlier than the other days for items to be judged with results and prizes given, so he had to make every one count.

The first thing he did was cover his arms in tight metal bracelets he made the day prior before pulling out his boxes and boxes of skill rings. He was planning on flooding the item with enchantments to make it work, but he still had to construct it as well, which meant he couldn't have his fingers so full they couldn’t move. Both facts led him to this, and as things began he started to do what he hadn’t had time to yesterday, copying each skill he needed to use to a different section of each bracelet, letting him connect with each and every one when the time demanded it. It was only once that was complete that he took the first disk of white mana crystal he’d made and truly began.

He had sixteen to use and only needed nine, giving him seven times he could mess up without it ruining his design. Now that he was beginning though, he couldn’t help but think he should have given himself more wiggle room. It wasn’t unusual for him to break an item when he’d decided to really push his limits, and there was no denying that was what he was doing, but he did his best to push every bit of nervousness and fear from each of his minds, using the full effects of his focus and getting to work.

Of the nine different effects he needed he started with the simplest, stretching his minds to connect to a dozen enchantments at once, taking what he needed before blending and weaving them together, only to grab even more with his mana after, each piece working in harmony to elevate the final product to greater heights as it was shaped to perfection, the finished disk placed to the side once done as he took a few minutes to ensure he had the next part of his plan perfect, as well as let some of his mana regenerate. Considering how delicate and detailed the task was, he couldn’t let himself fall into mana exhaustion part way through, not when there was so much to do.

The next three disks were much the same, slowly growing in complexity with each one and requiring a slightly longer break in between to make up for it, but it was on the fifth that he had his first failure. For the first time in all of his experience as an enchanter, he’d created something that caused the mythril and white mana crystal he was enchanting on to crumble to dust in his hand, but without flinching he simply brushed that valuable powder away, grabbing one of the spares and trying again as he took a moment to breathe and tried to spot where in the process he’d gone wrong.

With his second attempt, he made a minor modification in the way the enchantment was placed and feeling it hold he was able to move on, leaving only four left to do with six times he could mess up. If he ended up short it wouldn’t be the end of the world, but he wouldn’t be satisfied knowing his design wouldn’t reach its full potential. He’d already compromised once during this, he didn’t intend to again.

As he waited for his mana to go back to its full potential he reexamined the design of the next one in his mind, turning it over and twisting it around his head, trying to see it in its complete form before placing it down. He pushed his understanding of each skill and magic as he brought them together to make a greater whole, and as he did, it was as if the only things in the whole of reality to exist were his minds and the disk while the enchantment went down, perfect without needing to be replaced.

Sweat was forming on his brow as he picked up the next one and took stock of just what enchantments he needed before he carefully placed it, finding it easier than the last and realizing that he’d misjudged how difficult that particular one would be to make. It was still far from easy, but the effect it would give off when everything was done would be smaller overall, and he was able to put it to the side, treating it as if creating it had been a minor break compared to the last two.

He was finally on to the second last and felt himself smile as he did. It would be the second hardest as well, but it took inspiration from one of his past works he was particularly proud of, only taken to a whole new extreme. Even before the enchantment completely went down it crumbled in his hand and he closed his eyes, letting himself do nothing but breathe for a few minutes. This was where the extras would really be important. He picked up the next one, only having five left after that as he tried again, trying to shave off every bit of frivolous mana that went into the enchantment, taking the partial effects of each skill he wanted and no more until it was as light as it could be, placing it down and feeling it hold.

As he put it to the side he was onto the last one. In a sense, all of the others had been nothing but practice leading up to this one. Each of the other enchantments had him push himself, refine what he was already capable of to an extreme until there was nothing else for him to give. For the final one, as much as he hated to admit it, luck would have to be a factor if he wanted it to live up to his standards.

Ben was well aware that there was a certain point of complexity where whether or not an enchantment would work was essentially a dice roll. He’d been able to find ways to lower it in the past, taking more care in his enchantments, making his items slightly better, just learning more in general, but each time that just gave him more room to push himself until he was back to the same odds, and now there was nothing he could do to lower them.

As he started the complex dance that was weaving and blending strands of mana together into a comprehensive whole, the first disk broke and he brushed the dust away, paying it no mind as he picked up the next and looked at it carefully before he began again. There was no variance in it, at least none that his eye could currently see and he knew there was no imperfection that he could avoid to improve his odds more as he started his enchantment again, only for the new crystal to break as well.

Again he brushed it to the side, ignoring it as he grabbed the next one. He didn’t let himself think about the fact he only had three chances left. He would grab them as they broke, and if he ran out of things to grab then he would cross that bridge when he got to it. The moment his total mana reached its peak he tried once more, only to fail again and picked up the next one.

His minds were filled with nothing but the thoughts of skills and properties, enchantments and how they were arranged. Every bit of knowledge he’d gained since coming to the world was going into this, a testament to all he’d learned as each delicate bit of mana went down on the second last crystal, the enchantment on it so dense that anyone with a good enough mana sense could tell that it was saturated, and as the last bit was placed he felt it hold.

All at once he felt every muscle in his body relax, releasing a tensing he hadn’t noticed had slowly been building up, even as his mind remained a flurry of activity. He grabbed the last disk of white mana crystal, slipping it into his pocket as he moved on to the next part, working the mythril and steel plates he’d prepared the day prior.

Heating them just enough to make them easier to work, he began with the mythril, pounding it even thinner than he already had it and cutting off the excess before carefully rolling it into a thin cylinder. From there he had to switch from a heavy hand to a gentle touch as he stacked the mana crystal disks within and ever so carefully continued to tighten the cylinder of mythril around it, not wanting to break the crystals it now held after all of his hard work but needing them secure, every one snugly held in place as he tapped at the metal, creating a comfortable rod that would fit inside of Amy’s palm when she held it before adding even more enchantments around it, linking the metal to the nine crystals it contained, adding activation conditions to be sure they wouldn’t interfere with each other before he could move on to the final step.

Ever so carefully he continued, gently manipulating the metal to create divots where her fingers and thumb would sit when holding it before he repeated the process with the steel, bending and shaping it so it was flush against the mythril, holding everything in place to protect it and finally giving it a polish, not so much that it would be slick, only doing it to ensure it wouldn’t be unpleasant to hold, and with that it was done, the sound of his thoughts being replaced with notifications filling his head.

Light briefly filled his eyes as each announcement went off and he didn’t know where to begin. He’d gained a new mind with the level to complex mind but that was all but ignored in light of everything else. He’d awakened one of his skills. After coming to the world as the only one standing below not only every other human, but every other summoned individual in general and now he was truly starting to catch up. What once felt so distant now felt within his reach, with his two other blessed skills not far off either.

Admittedly, he was a little surprised about just how it had awakened. He knew that skills would typically absorb others when they did, and he’d honestly expected it to take in his enchanting, maybe even connect too since he used all three skills together so closely. It would have been extremely convenient if it had, he wouldn’t need to awaken the other two in that case and could have used each to a new, higher potential, but the fact that they didn’t wouldn’t get to him given just how good he was already feeling.

Good was actually an extreme understatement. Every bit of exhaustion he'd accumulated throughout the day from pushing himself to his limits was completely gone, as with the awakening of his skill came the boost to all of his attributes. He felt stronger than he ever had before, his thoughts instantly became more clear and he even felt like going for a run, something he never did that resulted in it being his lowest stat that just never seemed to rise. With this, he should have the speed of an average person now, even if that wasn’t terribly impressive compared to the other changes to him, but it made him want to push his body, to see just what each change truly meant for him.

And those weren’t the only changes to come. Even if it wasn’t to the same extent as his crafting, with the level to his enchanting came a change to the skill. The same way he’d been able to see the rank of an item at his ninth level of crafting, with his enchanting the system now helped him identify what specific enchantments went into something when he looked at it, instead of simply looking at the structure and doing his best to infer, with the list for the one in his hand being particularly impressive.

Unnamed tool from the craftsman Ben Heph

Item GradeLower ultra-rareEnchantmentsBarrier magic, 7th levelBlood thinning, 5th levelSturdy, 5th levelStrengthen, 7th levelDefense enhancement, 7th level…

The list went on as he could see not only every enchantment he’d put into it but also where they specifically were and he knew this would be a massive boost to his enchanting as a whole. No longer would he need to ask or theorize if he saw something interesting, he could look at it and gain plenty of the information he’d been missing. He’d still need to determine how the enchantments worked together himself, but this was a massive boost to his ability to learn.

There was so much more he wanted to reflect on too. From the fact that the item had made it to lower ultra-rare, a first from him aside from his coat, to the new skill he’d gained as a bonus for awakening his crafting, one he’d never heard of before but was excited to discover its effects.

The only thing pulling him from his thoughts was the sounds around him, and as he ripped his eyes from the item he’d made he understood why. A crowd had surrounded his table, some talking with zeal as others stood in stunned silence and not understanding he looked to his teacher who was wearing a happy, yet slightly complicated expression on his face.

“I guess congratulations are in order boy. I’ll admit I always thought you’d awaken a skill, but I didn’t think it would be like this.”

“What?” Ben could only ask in confusion. “I mean, thanks, but how did you know?”

The obvious answer would be that his teacher had seen the rank of the item he’d made and put two and two together, but as possible as it was it didn’t seem to track. Falk wouldn’t have just outed him by saying that, and from the quiet voices of those standing around talking about it, he was pretty sure the rest of the crowd knew before it was said as well.

It was Thera who took over and explained it to him, seeming just as stunned as anyone else. “Anyone with any mana sense could tell. Your body was just flooded with it and you were basically glowing for a minute there as it rushed in.”

He took it all in, listening to the chatter of people around him. He’d told the gnome to come watch him yesterday and it looked like he had, along with representatives of all the other tables who seemed to be taking it in good cheer.

“It looks like we know who’s winning this,” One of the ant people said to a dwarf, with the sentiment going around to all of them. If an item was good enough to push him into awakening, they could have no complaints, many feeling excited just to witness such a rare event, as a different conversation was happening amongst his friends.

“I thought you said he came here with no more than first-level skills,” Uliel said, shocked at what she’d just witnessed.

“He hadn’t,” Amy told her, equally stunned while Jake was giving him a cheer. Of their group, only Yuzu had known what his levels were since she could see his soul, and since she’d been strictly told to keep it to herself that information hadn’t been passed along.

“Are you seriously saying he’s awakened a skill in less than three years?”

“Looks like it,” Jake told her happily before yelling to Ben. “Hey, we’ve got to celebrate tonight when this is all over! Dinner at your place!”

“Wait, does that mean I’m cooking?” Ben yelled back with a laugh. “How is that a celebration for me?”

“Cause you get to be surrounded by your wonderful friends! Also, I hear your food is good so I want to try it!”

“Ha, fine,” He agreed, giving in easily enough. “Anyway, Amy come over here, you have to let me know if this meets your expectations or not.”

With all eyes suddenly on her from the crowd, Amy made her way to the front of the table as everyone, especially the other contestants, was eager to see exactly what the item would do. As she took it she looked it over before squeezing it in her hand. No matter what it was, it fit in her grasp perfectly, to the point that she was surprised he’d been able to make something like that without having her by his side as he made it, but it did leave her with a question.

“What exactly am I supposed to do with this?”

He hadn’t outlined his idea with anyone other than his god. Not even Falk or Thera knew what he’d made, though his teacher had gained a pretty good idea as he watched the enchantments go down, meaning that Ben first had to explain how to use it.

“It’s simple. First, just run your mana through your index finger,” He explained, eager to see the results of his work as she did what he’d asked, only for a barrier unlike any other to spring out of the end. The idea was inspired by what he’d made for the cat-sith Nobu when they’d worked together, but at a whole other level. Instead of using a barrier enchantment to extend out of a weapon to let it have a greater reach and do more damage, he’d turned the barrier into a weapon, the mana in it so dense that it couldn’t be seen through like a normal barrier could, with so many skills tied to it to enhance its effects by a significant margin, which would only make it all the deadlier if Amy applied her augmentations to it.

She was surprised at first, everyone was. None had expected a club to appear of all things, but as she swung it around she had to admit it felt good in her hand, even if it was a little underwhelming.

“I mean, a club’s handy, but…”

She trailed off, not knowing how to tell him it didn’t make the cut for what she was looking for as he spoke again.

“What, you don’t think that’s all there is to it, do you?” He asked as he laughed. “Switch to running mana through your middle finger instead.”

She did as he asked, feeling her curiosity change to surprise and excitement as the barrier changed to that of a knife, the dimensions and weight perfectly matching the one he’d made her earlier and moving exactly as it needed to while he went on to explain a bit more about it.

“So the item will hold the enchantment you have selected for a while thanks to the materials used for it, so you can stop running your mana through it for a few minutes at a time depending on how you need to use it, but I’d recommend trying to keep a constant stream going into the proper one when you can. Now, the next finger please.”

At that one a solid mana spear was created, with the head projecting outwards and more of it coming out the back, with her right hand already positioned where she’d normally hold it, leaving her to just grab the front for stability. Finally seeing where this was going she ran mana through her pinky finger, this time leaving her confused by just how it had changed.

“What’s this last option?” She asked as she looked it over. At the front of it, a long thin tube had sprouted out and she had no idea what she was supposed to do with it. It was also the one that caused the smile to leave Ben's face as he looked at it as well.

“That is unfortunately my one point of compromise,” He admitted, still unhappy that he hadn’t been able to make his first idea work. “I wanted to give it a ranged option and make a bow, but no matter what I did I couldn’t alter the properties of a level seven barrier in a way that would give it the bend and spring needed to make one out of mana, so instead I went with something without any moving parts. What you have there is a blowgun. I’m not sure if you’d actually use it and you’d need to carry around your own darts if you did, but it should work well with the air aspects of your augmentation at least.”

She was feeling stunned. Everyone watching was. None of them had seen a weapon as versatile as that before and at this point, she already knew she was going to accept it. It changed fast and easily enough that she could see herself being able to alter fighting styles mid-combat in a way that a standard one wouldn’t let her, but before she could say as much, Ben corrected her on a mistake she’d made.

“More importantly though, that’s not the last option. Run your mana through your thumb and index finger now.”

The people around were shocked there was more, but none as much as the other craftsmen watching as they picked up on what was happening. Ben had enchanted nine different disks, they were going to be seeing that many items.

There was a general feeling of disbelief coming around them as they began to understand what he’d done. They could all tell just how incredibly complex his enchantments were on each piece of white mana crystal as they watched him make them, but they had never guessed by just how much. It had been surprising seeing him manage to break a material known for being so good at holding enchantments at the time, but now that they could see what he’d made it was more shocking he hadn’t destroyed more. Five small crystals was nothing to make an item like that, especially as they each considered what it could sell for.

Amy also got the idea, at least most of it as she activated the sword and then switched to brass knuckles shortly after, feeling the mana barrier wrap around her hand as she did. It was on the next one that Ben stopped her, the item changing to an ax that he wanted to share the details of, having taken inspiration from the one he’d made for the hobgoblin Uzi.

“So if you’ll notice this one I made it a bit different,” He explained, pointing out and running his finger down some of the grooves within its head. “Each option has some features in its design I can talk about in more detail with you later, but the point of this one specifically takes advantage of the air and fire aspects of your augmentation. If you run it along those grooves you’ll be able to get more power out of any swing.”

She wanted to test it out immediately, only holding herself back on account of the crowd and the risk of injuring anyone around, so instead she switched to the final one, feeling the mana wrap around not just her hand this time, but her entire arm as it arranged itself into plates that could move comfortably and be of use for both attack and defense if need be. Again, the fit was perfect and she couldn’t help but wonder how he’d managed it as he went on to explain.

“This one was the hardest to make by far. Honestly, it’s just luck I got it to work at all, but with the defensive properties on it, as well as the offensive ones, more enchantments went into this than anything else I made. It was a good experience though, it gave me a reference for a future project or two. Anyway, onto the last one.”

“There’s still more!”

“Just one. Run your mana through all of your fingers now. I figured this would be the easiest to do so I put what I thought was the most important one with that activation condition.”

Before he’d even stopped talking she was doing it, the barrier rearranging itself to take what almost everyone would consider a far more standard form for the magic, making up a shield.

“It was easier for me to make than the gauntlet since it only needed defensive properties, but the higher surface area makes it a lot more ideal,” He explained. “Of course, they both have the full effects of my resistances tied in along with a variety of skills, so with my lowest one still above sixty you’re looking at a pretty significant decrease to any affinitied magic attack that could come your way. Really, with this the only thing I think you’d need to worry about would be meeting a person with the magic nullification skill, since this is a magic item in the truest sense of the word, but with that you’ve seen all of it. You can cancel the enchantment by running mana through your pinky and ring finger and that just leaves us with a single question Amy. Are you taking it?”

She looked down at the simple rod in her hand once the enchantments had been cancelled and knew the answer was obvious. She was all but charmed by it, it could do anything she wanted in a fight, giving her a range of options she never thought she’d be able to take advantage of. It would take some practice to get used to, but once she did she was sure her training would enter a different realm altogether.

“Alright Ben, it looks like we have a deal.”

After an hour of talking with the other craftsmen and any onlookers in the crowd who’d been curious enough, things started to die down as they went back to look at their own tables, both to tell them what happened, as well as see how the finishing touches on their own items were going, even if they all felt it was obvious who was going to take the win at this point. None of them were particularly bothered by it. A little disappointed maybe, but they’d gotten to see something incredible in exchange, both the item and a person awakening a skill.

Once things calmed down, Ben finally let himself relax. Judging would come soon enough but he wasn’t worried. While the rule was that awakened skill holders couldn’t join the contest, awakening during the middle of it was a completely different matter. Even if it hadn't happened before, it was something to be celebrated, and without that as a concern it was time for Thera to start pelting him with questions, seeming exceedingly excited on his behalf.

“So what did you awaken your crafting into? It was crafting, right? It was your only ninth-level skill unless you managed to gain more than one on your enchanting. Not that it would be surprising given what you made.”

“You got it the first time. Crafting’s awoken to unending crafting,” It was an awakened variant that he hadn’t heard of before but that wasn’t too surprising. While many people would just gain the prefix ‘high’ to whatever skill they’d awoken, it could be affected by a number of things, from how it was used to what skills it absorbed in the process, if any. It would have its quirks of course, but he could figure them out as he went. He told her and the others just what skills had merged with it too, as well as his other level-ups, with his teacher reacting in surprise.

“Shocked that enchanting didn’t get tied into it to give you something along the lines of ‘magic crafting’ boy. With the way you use it, it seemed like the most likely option.”

“I was too,” He admitted. “Though I’m guessing maybe that one will merge with connect when one or the other awakens seeing as how much I use the two together. Anyway, I don’t suppose you’ve heard of the skill material user, have you Falk? It’s my bonus one from the looks of it.”

“Can’t say I have boy,” He said with a shake of his head, something no one else seemed to know either.

Ben could only sigh. It shouldn’t have been too surprising, the bonus skill depended heavily on the person receiving it, and considering his title ‘skill learner’ made it easier for him to learn uncommon and rare ones, the fact that he had one he hadn’t heard of before wasn’t something he could be shocked about. It just meant that as soon as he had the time he’d need to go and research just what it could do.

“Well, if you can’t find anything while you’re here then I’ll ask around for you,” The yeti offered before breaking into a wider smile. “But anyway, you had just taken the high craftsman job before the contest started, right? How well did this awakening work out for you?”

“Right! I finished it!”

He’d let himself become distracted by everything else as soon as he’d awoken his skill but had to have a new job ready and waiting for him and he couldn't wait to see what to take. Master craftsman had to be available for him now that he’d awakened his crafting skill which felt like the obvious choice, but it would presumably be much longer than some others he’d been interested in, and he’d thought he would have had much more time to decide.

“If you need to get to a job crystal we can show you one,” Jake offered, pulling him from his thoughts. “There should be one around five minutes away.”

“Ah, thanks but I’m good,” He told them, giving his jacket pocket a pat. “Got a personal one. Perks of being a craftsman.”

That seemed to raise questions with Amy, Jake, and Uliel but he ignored the looks they gave while he slipped his hand into his pocket, letting all of the options fill his mind and looking to the bottom of the list for any new ones right off the bat, feeling stunned as he did.

His eyes went wide as his mouth hung open, words caught in his throat as he struggled to process just what he was seeing in his job options as the people around him wondered just what was wrong.

He checked and triple-checked, wanting to be sure he wasn’t hallucinating before he said anything, afraid that with all the other good news he’d had that day he’d managed to go mad, or was maybe still asleep and none of it had actually happened as he finally spoke hesitantly, disbelief thick in his voice and still not able to truly accept what he was seeing.

“I can become a mage?”