Guyz, I am alive. Just one note: I was thinking a little about the whole system of Divine Chimera all this time, and MAYBE I will change it a little in next future chapters. I am not a fan of distributing points into every single stat, even more as his primal class is magician I would like to focus only on magical and vitality-like attributes, also I would remove him getting any stats from devouring beasts. The idea would be to separate the magic and close combat: like when he is in humanoid from he would gain access to magic, but has weak body and when he would change into monster his magic would be greatly reduced, but he would gain lots of brute strength. It will force him to plan his combat more, when to fight with magic and when with beast form. What ya think? The idea mean to temporally lost his magician class, like -> turning into spider like [Rogue – Assassin], into wolf [Rogue – hunter], Boar [Warrior – Brawler] and so on, and then mixing those classes by adding different monster traits. Please lemme know in comments 

Edited by: KenChi死

It is done. The squad is down. Twenty out of fifty hunter are already dead. Nice and sad in the same time, depending how you would like on it… twenty bodies is a lot, but there are still thirty more to go. Once again I used Echo of Nature after focusing as much as I could. No one detected. Somehow I doubt that there are any hunter left in this part of forest.

Because of it I would have both some time to breath and focus on collecting other monsters cores, but in same time I would have to improve my detecting spells and skills. Maybe I should get back to Aira? No. Stupid idea. Not yet.

For now let’s set in order everything I was told by those hunters… inquisitors… whatever. I have information from three sources now. The Hunter that told me everything at the very beginning, and now those two inquisitors. Few information like the number and more or less locations were same in every version. But there is something wrong with the squad of two special inquisitors.  Hunter told those were brothers, another one that they were sisters, and commander was claiming that they are just a team not connected my blood. And everyone was convinced about their version.

Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

Fool your enemy by fooling your friends? I have a bad feelings about those two.

For now it is getting dark. I have to find shelter to wait for the night, maybe get some sleep and then think about what to do next? Let’s keep looking for now.

Pov change, next morning.

• “Faster! You have to accelerate your mana flow! WRONG! As an ice mage you have to use your ice in more ways than just impaling everything! Raise a shield of ice! Freeze the ground! Attack in same time is a key! You have to learn dual casting as fast as possible! NO! Wrong again! See, understand, think, do, repeat! Imagination is the most vital thing to an ice magic! You can create every shape! Never stop thinking! The moment you stop you are as good as dead!”

It was a living nightmare. Ruby was shown few spells, then a few ways of utilizing them, and in the next moment those were put in practice. By fighting. The difference in power was overwhelming and the young witch’s life was put on the line. Her ice shield spell took to much time to be casted and was too weak to be a source of reliable protection. So she was raising the shield and at same time dodging. She was covered in bruises, for ice spikes were replaced with ice balls as first ever spike almost killed her. Her training became less deadly but waaay more painful.

Shield, jump, ice spike, another dodge jump, shield… her mana was being drained fast. She never really needed to use it in such quantities, but abut two days ago she experienced her first mana exhaustion. Because of it, she had to sleep all of the next day, and now she had to work out a lost day.

Another series of ice balls were launched toward her. This time in a wider radius. She raised a shield, jumped away and with fear in heart she noticed, that one more ball was flying right at her head. The speed and size of it were strong enough to crack a skull, yet her previous spell, the shield was to completely raised and there was no possibility of starting another spell. With all her powers left she shot a pure power out of her hand that was supposed to be a spell.

The mana in mid-air was getting frozen and changed into some kind of iceball, yet completely deformed. But it was enough to change a trajectory of dangerous spell.

It was a dual casting… was it? Miserable one, but still a dual casting!

• “I DID IT, Did you s…” Another ball hit her right into her stomach depriving her a breath.

• “First – never stop thinking, Second – I have been teaching you for four days. It took you four days to learn a simple dual casting! With such a great teacher like me you should be able to do it in a day! OR A HALF!”

Impossible. She is just boosting about her greatness. Even a skilled magician would need over a year of theoretical study, year of meditation to balance mana flow, and then a few months to successfully execute dual casting. She did great, she just knew it…. But it was true that all of those were possible only thanks to help of her new teacher – Lizara of the frozen heart. A few fun facts, she was first called Lizara the Frozen, yet as she rejected  everyone who confessed to her the title was given an update… The one called the greatest human ice magician. In adventure guild her level was told to be 38, what placed her in top 100 strongest human currently living. Placing 13^th – Lizadra. A close friend oh Hanna and her mother.

There is no possibility for Ruby to be weak as she would finish training under her guide.

Another spell hit her lightly into the chin making her fall on the ground unconscious.

Pov change

• “With the mercy of the Forest,
  I bid my plea,
  The mother of Nature,
  Will show me thee,…”
  

What was that? Just another attempt to skill up detection spells. Do not mind me.

• “…I surround in your embrace,
  Mother of living,
  And sear to stand on guide,
  For the crimes of I will hunt will…”

~I am done, How long is he going to repeat this over and over again? It was funny to watch… the first twenty or so attempts, but now… Hey, Codex, may you help him out with that?

~Why should I? He barely remembers about me! Never says thanks! NEVER! Is that too much to say:  “Thank you for protecting village” or “thank you for giving me power beyond humanity that everyone wishes for?” or “Thank you for showing me a spell thanks to which I was able to kill an opponent that normally I would  never be able to defeat?

~Oh, don’t act like that. He is busy! You can see that he is fighting for his life! Maybe as things will calm down a little in the nearest future, he will show us some gratitude and…

The raven that was ordered to spy… I mean check if Ruby was in danger landed on his shoulder, showing him memories of his spy-ish… I mean scout-ish activities.

And those were flown into his head. All those dates of Ruby, her smiles, laugh… and kiss.

~Forget what I just told about things getting calmer…

Everyone was waiting for some burst of emotions. Anger, sadness, fury… there was none. Complete emotional nothingness.

~Zari… are you all…

Shut up. Just for few minutes. Shut up.

The spell was stopped in mid-chant.

And now tell me, what was I supposed to feel? Anger? Sadness? Why? Because I like her? I still do, but more and more time passed the more I am getting conclusion that she is out of my reach. Do I give up? I do. There is no sense in chasing after someone that doesn't wish to be with you. Will not mention even being terrified by your face. Eh, Screw this. I am done. I have to find something to use as a distraction… and for now… Remus, Gilbert… get back here. There is no point in… just get back here, she has someone to protect her… for now.

Ask for distraction and here is one… Those can evolve thanks to certain actions too?

~Actions, environment and so on. You can see, that as you arean alchemist you gain exp while making pots? Those were given class of scouts and you gave them a quest. Every time they were being undetected and were watching target they were generating exp. As you called them back you have ended their 3 weeks long quest. That was a massive amount of exp. Enough to hit max level of creature that was limited to level 5… Check them. It is good to know your familiars…

Just do a fast report. I am not in the mood right now (or as I told my table generator has died. And now making a completely new tables is a pain in the ass as I have to WRITE the whole script of tables by myself. In no-time I will make a glossary-like chapter containing the tables of all familiars. Be patient   X.X   – author).

~… let’s just say that they are good at stalking stuff.. and as they would be nearby you can use them as catalyst to empower your chaos and order magic. You don’t have order magic, but by those I mean that every spell generating heat like holy, light… and fire, will be improved… You will have to see how it works in practice… The catalyzing magic through living object is a bit more complicated stuff… You know… I think I will start teaching you some stuff about a magic itself, so..

You don’t have to pity me. Go back to your regular self. You are creeping me out.

~But there is something I want to teach you right away. Do you know how you can improve power of magic?

Meditation? Chanting? So on?

~Exactly… now I am going to show you one more way. Much more time and power consuming, but also way more powerful.

… You had my curiosity but now you have my attention…

~Rituals. Those are actually combination of both meditation, chant…. And many more. Being performed in places with high mana density, using some totem as catalyst… Uh, totems are more powerful hex bags… and then it is possible to perform it with more magicians, so called multi-chanting, and with blood magic – sacrifice of virgins… and stuff. Well, last two boosting are out of your reach, so now I advise you to improve your hex bags creation. Start now. In two days we will perform a rite that will show you every being in the forest. Or even more.