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Book 2: Chapter 21: Casual Conversation and Exploring Lore

Congratulations! The host\'s nature magic skill [Root of Life] has levelled up! It is now Beginner Level 8.

Lone smiled softly as he rest a palm atop Sophie\'s cocoon. "Only a few more weeks... Goodnight, Soph, Sophie," he whispered before unsummoning her.

Lone looked around at their bedroom in the Rusty Sprocket and sighed. "It\'s lonely in here without Soph, Sophie or Kyuubi..."

He had given the sleepy little fox to Breena for the evening and planned to continue doing so since she seemed to like her.

Kyuubi didn\'t really care who handled her so long as she was fed and well-groomed while being given just enough attention to feel loved during the rare times she wasn\'t sleeping.

He grinned to himself as he thought of the chubby little golden fox. \'She acts so much like a person who\'s just a little bit too carefree... It\'s helpful but it\'s also kinda strange. Still, she\'s our daughter and I\'m just thankful she isn\'t a nightmare like a lot of pets would be.\'

He rested his weary head on his pillows and closed his eyes, hoping dearly not to have any nightmares or, worse, get abducted again.

With a heavy sigh as he held his neck in disappointment, Lone said, "Well, yay to no nightmares."

He looked around at the strange town which lay somewhere in the Farwinds and asked, "Where are you, Darkness? You summoned me again for a reason, didn\'t you?"

"Need everything have a reason, Lone?" a gruff voice asked with mirth aplenty.

Turning slowly, Lone saw Four-twelve rise from his own shadow.

"That\'s a distasteful set of flesh to wear.," Lone commented.

"Would you rather I assumed your lover\'s form again? You have reservations regarding intercourse with her younger selves, particularly her youngest and truest body, no? I am older than mortal kind itself, mature as well..." Darkness suggested with a coy eyebrow.

"If it means you stop trying to act flirty in a disfigured dwarf\'s body, then I\'m all for it. I won\'t sleep with you though. I\'d sooner kill you. Any tips on how to do that, by the way?" Lone asked casually as he took a closer look at some of the dwarven buildings scattered around.

"Aha! Humour on only the second night? My, how adaptive of you," Darkness teased as its body became shrouded in a cloak of purple smoke. A moment later, it looked just like Soph but with a far more devilish facial expression.

Lone shrugged. "I can\'t kill you with Mental Destruction. You seem fine even despite what happened last evening. Not a hint of an injury to be seen on you meaning you\'re likely highly resistant to soul or magical damage. Why should I bother getting upset? On the flip side, you probably aren\'t killing me or forcefully inhabiting me because you\'re shit-scared of Void and or Sky. Correct?"

Using Soph\'s shoulders, Darkness shrugged, mimicking Lone. "Every litter has a runt. The crafty and wily one who can\'t ever quite win the contests of brute strength, no?"

"Is that your angle? Trying to, what, figure out a way to make me your avatar without stepping on some very large toes?" Lone asked with a curious eyebrow.

"Oh, no, please. What fool swaps one prison for another? I am an honest being, Lone. I fully intend to become the new and improved you," Darkness said in a cheery sing-song voice. "Sadly, there\'s nothing you can do about it."

"Yeah, we\'ll see. You chose the worst appearance to try to intimidate me with," Lone said.

Darkness smirked. It arched its back slightly and held its hands out in a pawing motion. A moment later, it closed its eyes tightly and said, "Roar!" Of course, all the while looking like Soph\'s child form.

"Do I intimidate you now, Mister Fox?" it asked in an impish tone.

Lone held his chin in deep contemplation before answering, "That was pretty cute. I\'ll make sure to get Soph to do that once or twice to see how much better the authentic thing is."

"None may match my prowess, haha!" Darkness giggled. "By the way, why do you keep looking around so much?"

"You\'ve been frank with me, it seems only fair I return the favour. I\'m trying to figure out where we are and what buildings are here which don\'t belong. You wouldn\'t have any ideas regarding that, would you, oh powerful and ancient Primal Darkness?" Lone asked dramatically with a flat tone. "You also wouldn\'t happen to have a bunch of dwarves laying around somewhere, would you? Maybe tucked away in a cupboard?"

"Heh, no, I keep my dwarves under the sink next to the detergent," Darkness replied. "Even if I told you where we were, nothing would come of it. I really did mean it yesterday when I said telling people about me would be a little bit self-destructive. You could always return to the council and say you were mistaken. Things won\'t end well for you if you don\'t..."

"Yes, because I\'m going to trust the pseudo deity that wants to possess me," Lone said with a roll of the eyes. "Do you mind if I have a look around or are we done here? I\'m fine with exploring or being returned to my bed, really."

"Oh, Loney-poo, you never left it," Darkness said before covering Lone in a shroud of purple shadows.

Lone held his head as he slowly rose from beneath his bedsheets. "Well, that was informative."

He yawned a bit before pulling up the newly updated information of Darkness Corruption Resistance.

Passive Skill: Darkness Corruption Resistance

A skill that allows the host to resist Darkness Corruption when afflicted with it at varying levels based on mastery.

Darkness Corruption shall be weakened and fought off with 60% [+30%] efficiency.

Cost:N/A Mastery:Expert Level 1 [+1 level]

"Only one level despite such close proximity and a decently lengthy discussion... Expert rank is quite the wall, isn\'t it?" he said to himself.

Congratulations! The host\'s nature magic skill [Root of Life] has levelled up! It is now Beginner Level 9.

\'Great! At this rate, it might even reach advanced rank before Soph and Sophie are fully cleansed of the corruption. I wonder if the healing will go faster once it ranks up? I hope so. Well, I\'ll find out in two levels when it hits intermediate, I suppose. So, a day or two more,\' Lone thought as he got up and looked outside of the window.

"The artificial sun\'s out... I could have sworn I was only talking to Darkness for five or ten minutes... How did several hours pass? Can Darkness distort time or something? I know basically nothing about the thing... Well, I guess I know where I\'m spending my free time today," Lone said with a nod of the head.

"\'Ow can ah help ya?" a young dwarven man who was anywhere from 20 to 200-years old asked Lone from behind his counter as he looked up from his book.

"Hi. I was just wondering if there was an entry fee or membership scheme or something. Also, what are the rules here?" Lone asked the receptionist of the city\'s library.

"Ah, fook... Nae ah regular... Uh, Ah\'m new \'ere an\' ma neutr\'l speech isnae very devel-"

Lone interrupted him with a raised palm and said, "It\'s fine. Speak however is comfortable for you. I can understand you perfectly fine."

The dwarf looked appreciative. "Thanks, pal. Uh, well, there\'s nae membership or fees or anythin\'. We ain\'t \'umans or nutin\'. Learnin\' is fae those who seek tae join the learned, nae fae whoever\'s willing tae pay fer it."

He scratched his head a bit before adding, "As fae rules... Keep it doon an\' dinnae be ah cunt, ah suppose. If ya wannae take ah book \'ome wae ya, ya need tae get paperwork fae it. Ya cannae leave the krieg wae it or ya\'ll get fined. Ya can keep ah book if ya can offer two new ones in return. We\'re lookin\' tae expand oor library, nae shrink it."

Lone nodded his head. "That makes sense. Thank you."

"Nae worries, pal. Anythin\' ye\'r lookin\' fae in particular or ya just wanna take yer time browsin\' the shelves?" the receptionist asked. "We usually dinnae advise people beyond the genres but ah really am thankful ya dinnae mind ma lackin\' manners. Ah\'ll point ya right tae the books ye\'r lookin\' fae as thanks."

"That would be great. I\'m looking for anything related to the Primals, really. Darkness, in particular," Lone said.

"Ah pagan, are ya?" the dwarf asked. "Nae ah surprise given ye\'r nae ah dwarf, ah suppose."

"Pagan? Isn\'t the Church of the Primals the primary one of the entire world?" Lone questioned with a bit of confusion showing on his face.

The dwarf shrugged. "Maybe up top, aye. Doon in the world beneath yer feet? The Stone is the only thing worth worshippin\'. We ken the Primals are real, aye, but gods? Nae ah common belief doon \'ere."

"That\'s an interesting point of view. I\'ve never considered that. Could you also point me to some books regarding the Stone? I\'m interested in learning about the faith of you dwarves," Lone requested.

The dwarf smirked. "Ah usually dinnae like other demis. Ye\'r ah good sort ya \'re. Aye, come follow me. Ah\'ve ah few volumes in mind \'at may tickle ye\'r ol\' thinkin\' noodle."

A few hours had come and gone since Lone\'s arrival at the library. In that time, he had read the two books the receptionist had suggested to him about the Stone and why all dwarves - not just Stone Dwarves - worshipped it.

That only took him about an hour and a half and that was mostly due to his Reading skill. The skill had grown a lot since Lone earned it back in Ranton\'s library and it was now rather impressive with its passive effects.

Passive Skill: Reading Naturally makes reading 30% easier for the host and increases the host\'s reading speed by 30%. Cost:N/A Mastery:Advanced Level 4

Lone was already a quick reader before coming to Altros but with this skill, he could now easily tear through a 500-page volume in maybe 90-minutes while absorbing every single word. The two books on the Stone were 124-pages and 370-pages respectively.

One was very flat and informative while the other touched on spiritual matters and the intrinsic connection the soul had to the Stone and how it nurtured its children; the dwarves.

Lone was honestly a bit surprised at how open-minded most dwarves seemed to be when compared to the Church of the Primals who completely ostracised beastkin.

After all, as depicted, the Stone only granted its favour to its children, excluding all other species and races.

\'It\'s a testament to their culture and nature that they don\'t have a superiority complex,\' Lone thought.

He had just finished up reading a book that detailed the Primals. Most of the information inside of it was stuff he already knew from what limited research he had put into the subject in Ranton, still, it offered a few new insights.

The novel he had just started reading, however, was exclusively about Darkness. Facts, rumours and legends about the Primal made their home between the pages of the tome in his hands.

He purposefully read it more slowly and carefully and something caught his eye about halfway into the book.

"\'The great trickster. Master of Illusions. Friend to none, unwilling companion to all. Lord of the shadows. Darkness goes by many names in topsider culture and is revered openly by the Church of the Primals despite its clear nature of malevolence. This has been questioned by scholar and king alike. Why worship a being of apparent evil? Would doing so not only strive to hurt the foundation upon which this religion sat upon?\'" Lone read aloud in a soft tone.

He continued, "\'The Church of the Primals claim they worship all Primals equally, regardless of perceived intent as they are merely forces of nature and do only that which nature demands of them, regardless of motivations. Many question the validity of this since, in times past, avatars of Darkness have ruined entire empires with nary a reason to be seen. Did the nature of the world demand Darkness be its champion to expel such empires from the world? Such a scenario seems unlikely given so little is known of Altros\'s nature. Even its gifted skills - the world skills - are shrouded in the unknown. It seems foolish to claim insight into the world\'s intent without sufficient evidence to substantiate such claims. This, in turn, makes everything else the Church of the Primals claim and preach seem untrustworthy in some regard."

"This is interesting stuff..." Lone mumbled before reading on. "\'Returning to the pressing topic at hand, what can be made certain, however, is that those touched by Darkness, particularly beings created from the Primal Darkness or beastkin who have unfortunately awakened to it gain a more twisted and cruel element to their personality. This has been documented extensively and is nigh irrefutable.\'"

"Oh my..." a disembodied voice spoke right next to Lone\'s ear. "... How... delicious..."

"What the hell?!" he stood up quickly and spun around to find who had done that.

The voice felt similar to Darkness\'s but something about it was... wrong. It was like an insatiable hunger was its main propelling force as it whispered those words right into his head.

"M- Lone?" a soft and timid voice asked with some fear in it.

Lone looked in the direction it had come from and saw Breena standing at the end of the long table he had been sitting at for the past few hours. She was cuddling the sleeping Kyuubi and she looked afraid.

"What are you doing here?" Lone asked as he sighed and slumped back down into his chair.

"I, was... um... I wanted to have d-dinner with you. I-It\'s late, so I thought I\'d c-come find you... S-Sorry if you think I-I\'m being a bother," the two-tailed foxkin stuttered as she stared at her own feet.

Lone wore an awkward look on his face. "Sorry, I\'m just a bit jumpy. That sounds great. Let\'s go back to the inn and have something to eat then, okay?"

"Mm," Breena answered.