Sofia contemplated her options without asking anything for a bit. “Well, before I even know all the details, two of them seem strong enough that I would pick them anyway, now it’s all about choosing the third one. Unless my instincts are wrong.”
“What do you have in mind?” Sen asked.
“Aren’t you reading my thoughts?”
“Just like I wouldn’t read Dragon Mask’s thoughts, it feels like a lack of respect to casually read the mind of someone who ranked higher than I did, doesn’t it?”
“That’s… Yeah I could see that.” The trio sat in silence, the calm of the platform only disturbed by Sofia’s tapping fingernails on the table, “What I am thinking so far is that I should take the [Diamond Prism] and the [Citrinitas] gems. Doubling the filter stats is the craziest effect out of the bunch by a wide margin in my opinion, and three classless slots is an enormous reward considering how strong each classless skill has the potential to be, just look at [Sanctity].”
Sen nodded at Sofia’s explanation, “Hmm, let me give you the details on the [Diamond Prism], I personally agree that you should take it, especially considering you get the VIP saint privileges to allocate those stats yourself. How it works exactly is a bit different than you might think, though. It doesn’t actually double all the filter stats, your stats from the first trial will remain as they are now. But, you would get doubled points to allocate from now on, and those actually stay even if you took off the crown for whatever reason.”
“Does the doubled health one work the same way?”
“To an extent, yes. There’s a bit of cheating on the system’s part with this one, but the end result is almost the same. But say you get a new skill which gives 10% health, you would still lose the bonus 10% from the crown if you take it off, while doubled health from levels and filters will stay even without the crown. And the doubled regeneration part is linked to wearing the crown too.”
“I get it. So far my choice hasn’t changed, but I still need to know more about the other gems. Can you explain what [Spell Decay] does?”
“The special skill from [Nigredo] will be usable as long as you wear the crown, it’s an utility and defensive skill. That would be all I am allowed to say about this one, sorry.”
“Don’t worry about it… [Albedo] and [Chaos stone] are the same, I suppose?”
“Yes. [Albedo] gives a random immunity, think Alith’s complete heat immunity. [Chaos stone] is a bit special, even I do not know what you could get, it is completely random, but you can expect it to be at least as strong as the angelic lightning you’ve been throwing around.”
“I am not so sure I need another skill for mass destruction…”
I think these three skill-giving gems aren’t worth the risk. Though [Spell Decay] does really make me imagine a strong defensive skill like something to dispel any magic maybe, but in the end I can only know for sure by taking it. And is now really the time to take a gamble?
Sofia returned to looking at the [Adamian Core] and the [Diamond Prism], pointing at them she asked Sen, “Would my health quadruple if I took these two together?”
“It should…” Sen confirmed while he was busy adjusting his toga, looking a bit uncomfortable with the question.
“Four times is a lot… But there’s also the shield from the [Mithrium Glass]. These are about the same, are they not? For someone with a lot of mana like me, the shield might even be better.”
Sofia felt that the choice shouldn’t be too hard, but having the stoic God of Victory observing her every move was actually unnerving. Simple Incarnation or not, a God was a God. She could gloss over that fact while fighting Him, but the end result was the same. To think that two years ago she was an unremarkable orphan and now she was there, casually sitting at a God’s table, it didn’t feel real. Then she remembered why she needed to get so strong so fast in the first place, and that kind of made that whole line of thought irrelevant. I have to thank scripture for allowing me to get this far, I’ll pay him back in kind.
I have to remind myself that I am no longer the powerless orphan I once was.
Sofia turned her thoughts to the last two gems she hadn’t asked about. One was [Rubedo] and its ‘at-first-glance’ underwhelming 10% mana regeneration; the other was the [Emerald Cypher] with its ability to understand every system-registered language. That begged the question, “What is a system-registered language?”
That must have been among the questions Sen had anticipated, he answered like he was reading a script, “The system-registered languages are all languages that have been or are used by system users. This includes things like Elvish, Ancient Human and Avian, to cite a few, and of course, Draconic. With the power of the gem, you would be able to understand, read and speak them as you would the common language… As long as you wear the crown.”
“Would I be able to read unknown ritual runes?”
“No, most of the time ritual runes do not actually mean anything, they are, for the most part, exactly what they look like: mana pathways; so the gem would not let you ‘read’ their effects.”
So the only real reason to take this one is as a shortcut to understand Draconic which I will need to learn for the system change. As far as I know, every language can be learned with the right book and a bit of guidance.
I feel like the logical choices would be either the mana regeneration or the mana shield. Both would be very useful and synergize well with my stat distribution focused on maximizing mana.
“Say, Sen, mana regeneration doubles after every trial, correct?”
“It does, up to level 500.”
“Would you say an extra ten percent is worth it? I know it’s a lot but still, considering the other options…”
“How often have you used the Sun ritual during this trial, Sofia?
“Fair point.”
I feel like I should look at what it means in real numbers. It’s twice what I get from the storage ring, and half what I get from the ritual without sunlight. Currently, that would be about 4 mana points a second. After the filter, accounting for the bonus stats, it will probably be around 10 mana per second just from wearing the crown. It’s a bit of a guesswork calculation but that would be about an extra full mana recharge every four hours I think. So six times my entire mana pool per day.
It does feel a lot stronger when I look at it like that. I already knew but ten percent is actually a lot. And I need every bit of it if I want to be able to prime the scepter any time soon, or go back to Zangdar’s castle.
It’s just… not very exciting.
The more Sofia thought about it the more convinced she was that she would regret not taking the mana regeneration later if she skipped it now. But she couldn’t help but eye the more uncertain effects she had dismissed earlier like [Nigredo]’s [Spell Decay].
“Could I have Master Calm Breeze’s opinion?”
She would have asked for Victory’s opinion but the God had been silent this whole time so she felt like He would have already spoken if there was anything He was willing to share.
“He’s currently busy managing the trial while I deal with you, but I can quickly go ask him if you want. My personal opinion is the same as Victory. All choices are correct, it’s up to you.”
“I would appreciate it if you could ask him, yes.”
“I’ll be right back,” the Seraph said before disappearing. That was when Victory decided to speak.
“Too much thinking, Champion. You already know the answer.”
“I know, I… I cannot help but overthink when I remember where I am headed.”
Victory closed his eyes, He seemed to be the one lost in thought after that. Before Sen could come back, He calmly shared some of His wisdom.
“Scripture used you and Sorrow to enter this plane. For us to come here, the price is great, and he bypassed that. Me and my ilk cannot help you. But now, he will be stuck in this physical plane of yours for a long time. It is up to you now, Champion.”
Victory opened His eyes, His intense gaze locking with Sofia’s. ”Are you stuck with Scripture? Or is Scripture stuck with you?”
Sen reappeared on his chair, and Victory returned to his neutral self, as if nothing happened.
“So, old breeze congratulates you on your unbelievable win, says he invites you to come drink with him at his dojo when he retires from the trial and so on and so forth. His opinion on the gems was this: ‘You know better, student. You succeeded where I failed; trust in your own judgment’.”
Sofia nodded with a weak smile, this answer was pretty much what she expected from the old Elf, but it felt nice knowing that so many strong people all thought her own opinion mattered more than theirs.
“Thank you for telling me, and thank him for me when you can.”
“Sure. Made your choice?”
“Yes. Double filter stats, three classless slots, ten percent mana regeneration. I’ll take the [Diamond Prism], [Citrinitas] and [Rubedo].”
Victory spoke up again, “Champion Sofia, is your choice final?”
“Yes.”
“Then so be it. Take your prize, and be proud of your accomplishments. You may now, and forever, be known as the first mortal to have equaled Victory itself!”
The six gems Sofia hadn’t picked shot toward Victory and disappeared inside of his torso, leaving only the clear, the red and the yellow gem behind.
Sofia contemplated her options without asking anything for a bit. “Well, before I even know all the details, two of them seem strong enough that I would pick them anyway, now it’s all about choosing the third one. Unless my instincts are wrong.”
“What do you have in mind?” Sen asked.
“Aren’t you reading my thoughts?”
“Just like I wouldn’t read Dragon Mask’s thoughts, it feels like a lack of respect to casually read the mind of someone who ranked higher than I did, doesn’t it?”
“That’s… Yeah I could see that.” The trio sat in silence, the calm of the platform only disturbed by Sofia’s tapping fingernails on the table, “What I am thinking so far is that I should take the [Diamond Prism] and the [Citrinitas] gems. Doubling the filter stats is the craziest effect out of the bunch by a wide margin in my opinion, and three classless slots is an enormous reward considering how strong each classless skill has the potential to be, just look at [Sanctity].”
Sen nodded at Sofia’s explanation, “Hmm, let me give you the details on the [Diamond Prism], I personally agree that you should take it, especially considering you get the VIP saint privileges to allocate those stats yourself. How it works exactly is a bit different than you might think, though. It doesn’t actually double all the filter stats, your stats from the first trial will remain as they are now. But, you would get doubled points to allocate from now on, and those actually stay even if you took off the crown for whatever reason.”
“Does the doubled health one work the same way?”
“To an extent, yes. There’s a bit of cheating on the system’s part with this one, but the end result is almost the same. But say you get a new skill which gives 10% health, you would still lose the bonus 10% from the crown if you take it off, while doubled health from levels and filters will stay even without the crown. And the doubled regeneration part is linked to wearing the crown too.”
“I get it. So far my choice hasn’t changed, but I still need to know more about the other gems. Can you explain what [Spell Decay] does?”
“The special skill from [Nigredo] will be usable as long as you wear the crown, it’s an utility and defensive skill. That would be all I am allowed to say about this one, sorry.”
“Don’t worry about it… [Albedo] and [Chaos stone] are the same, I suppose?”
“Yes. [Albedo] gives a random immunity, think Alith’s complete heat immunity. [Chaos stone] is a bit special, even I do not know what you could get, it is completely random, but you can expect it to be at least as strong as the angelic lightning you’ve been throwing around.”
“I am not so sure I need another skill for mass destruction…”
I think these three skill-giving gems aren’t worth the risk. Though [Spell Decay] does really make me imagine a strong defensive skill like something to dispel any magic maybe, but in the end I can only know for sure by taking it. And is now really the time to take a gamble?
Sofia returned to looking at the [Adamian Core] and the [Diamond Prism], pointing at them she asked Sen, “Would my health quadruple if I took these two together?”
“It should…” Sen confirmed while he was busy adjusting his toga, looking a bit uncomfortable with the question.
“Four times is a lot… But there’s also the shield from the [Mithrium Glass]. These are about the same, are they not? For someone with a lot of mana like me, the shield might even be better.”
Sofia felt that the choice shouldn’t be too hard, but having the stoic God of Victory observing her every move was actually unnerving. Simple Incarnation or not, a God was a God. She could gloss over that fact while fighting Him, but the end result was the same. To think that two years ago she was an unremarkable orphan and now she was there, casually sitting at a God’s table, it didn’t feel real. Then she remembered why she needed to get so strong so fast in the first place, and that kind of made that whole line of thought irrelevant. I have to thank scripture for allowing me to get this far, I’ll pay him back in kind.
I have to remind myself that I am no longer the powerless orphan I once was.
Sofia turned her thoughts to the last two gems she hadn’t asked about. One was [Rubedo] and its ‘at-first-glance’ underwhelming 10% mana regeneration; the other was the [Emerald Cypher] with its ability to understand every system-registered language. That begged the question, “What is a system-registered language?”
That must have been among the questions Sen had anticipated, he answered like he was reading a script, “The system-registered languages are all languages that have been or are used by system users. This includes things like Elvish, Ancient Human and Avian, to cite a few, and of course, Draconic. With the power of the gem, you would be able to understand, read and speak them as you would the common language… As long as you wear the crown.”
“Would I be able to read unknown ritual runes?”
“No, most of the time ritual runes do not actually mean anything, they are, for the most part, exactly what they look like: mana pathways; so the gem would not let you ‘read’ their effects.”
So the only real reason to take this one is as a shortcut to understand Draconic which I will need to learn for the system change. As far as I know, every language can be learned with the right book and a bit of guidance.
I feel like the logical choices would be either the mana regeneration or the mana shield. Both would be very useful and synergize well with my stat distribution focused on maximizing mana.
“Say, Sen, mana regeneration doubles after every trial, correct?”
“It does, up to level 500.”
“Would you say an extra ten percent is worth it? I know it’s a lot but still, considering the other options…”
“How often have you used the Sun ritual during this trial, Sofia?
“Fair point.”
I feel like I should look at what it means in real numbers. It’s twice what I get from the storage ring, and half what I get from the ritual without sunlight. Currently, that would be about 4 mana points a second. After the filter, accounting for the bonus stats, it will probably be around 10 mana per second just from wearing the crown. It’s a bit of a guesswork calculation but that would be about an extra full mana recharge every four hours I think. So six times my entire mana pool per day.
It does feel a lot stronger when I look at it like that. I already knew but ten percent is actually a lot. And I need every bit of it if I want to be able to prime the scepter any time soon, or go back to Zangdar’s castle.
It’s just… not very exciting.
The more Sofia thought about it the more convinced she was that she would regret not taking the mana regeneration later if she skipped it now. But she couldn’t help but eye the more uncertain effects she had dismissed earlier like [Nigredo]’s [Spell Decay].
“Could I have Master Calm Breeze’s opinion?”
She would have asked for Victory’s opinion but the God had been silent this whole time so she felt like He would have already spoken if there was anything He was willing to share.
“He’s currently busy managing the trial while I deal with you, but I can quickly go ask him if you want. My personal opinion is the same as Victory. All choices are correct, it’s up to you.”
“I would appreciate it if you could ask him, yes.”
“I’ll be right back,” the Seraph said before disappearing. That was when Victory decided to speak.
“Too much thinking, Champion. You already know the answer.”
“I know, I… I cannot help but overthink when I remember where I am headed.”
Victory closed his eyes, He seemed to be the one lost in thought after that. Before Sen could come back, He calmly shared some of His wisdom.
“Scripture used you and Sorrow to enter this plane. For us to come here, the price is great, and he bypassed that. Me and my ilk cannot help you. But now, he will be stuck in this physical plane of yours for a long time. It is up to you now, Champion.”
Victory opened His eyes, His intense gaze locking with Sofia’s. ”Are you stuck with Scripture? Or is Scripture stuck with you?”
Sen reappeared on his chair, and Victory returned to his neutral self, as if nothing happened.
“So, old breeze congratulates you on your unbelievable win, says he invites you to come drink with him at his dojo when he retires from the trial and so on and so forth. His opinion on the gems was this: ‘You know better, student. You succeeded where I failed; trust in your own judgment’.”
Sofia nodded with a weak smile, this answer was pretty much what she expected from the old Elf, but it felt nice knowing that so many strong people all thought her own opinion mattered more than theirs.
“Thank you for telling me, and thank him for me when you can.”
“Sure. Made your choice?”
“Yes. Double filter stats, three classless slots, ten percent mana regeneration. I’ll take the [Diamond Prism], [Citrinitas] and [Rubedo].”
Victory spoke up again, “Champion Sofia, is your choice final?”
“Yes.”
“Then so be it. Take your prize, and be proud of your accomplishments. You may now, and forever, be known as the first mortal to have equaled Victory itself!”
The six gems Sofia hadn’t picked shot toward Victory and disappeared inside of his torso, leaving only the clear, the red and the yellow gem behind.
