Chapter 61: Mana Storage Bracelet
Spellsword was valuable, but it overlapped with a path he was already walking. Runesmith opened the door to an entirely new field that he currently had no way of accessing. After weighing the two choices one last time, Alex reached his decision.
’I choose the Runesmith Class,’ he thought.
[Runesmith Class chosen.]
A new blue notification immediately appeared before another one followed it.
[Generating Class Evolution Requirements:]
[- Collect an Elemental Stone from a monster (1/1)]
[- Learn Mana Circuit Spell (Incomplete)]
One final notification appeared beneath it.
[Additional Requirements:]
[- Create an Elemental Rune (0/1)]
Alex raised an eyebrow as he read through the requirements. From what he had learned on Dwitter, Class evolution worked differently from his Spell Evolution Talent.
His Talent evolved Spells without the need of fulfilling any conditions, but Classes required specific conditions to be fulfilled before they could advance. Every ascendent had to complete their Class Evolution requirements to advance.
A faint smile appeared on his face when he noticed the first requirement had already been completed.
The Elemental Stone was the blue stone he had obtained from the Mid-Rank Species crab earlier. It was still sitting safely inside his Inventory.
That only left Mana Circuit Spell.
Fortunately, Alex already had an idea of how to obtain it. He opened Dwitter and created a new post without wasting any time.
[I am looking for Mana Circuit Spell. If anyone has it, I can teach them Body Reinforcement Spell in return for it. Body Reinforcement Spell can...]
Alex wasn’t a heartless bastard. That was why he wasn’t offering Fire Bullet Spell instead, since only Mages with Fire Element wands could use it anyway. Besides, he wasn’t worried about someone overtaking him with one of his Spells.
His greatest advantage wasn’t a single Spell anymore. It was his evolving Talent and his Physique, which greatly increased his learning speed.
Even if someone learned Body Reinforcement, Alex was confident he would continue pulling ahead.
Comments began appearing beneath the post almost immediately, while private messages quickly filled his inbox. Alex knew many of the offers would probably be fake or outright scams, so there was no reason to rush.
He decided to let the responses accumulate before sorting through them carefully.
His attention shifted back to the final requirement.
No one currently knew what additional requirements actually did. People had already confirmed that Classes could evolve without completing them, but Alex doubted the System would include optional objectives without a reason.
Completing them would most likely provide extra benefits during Class Evolution.
He looked over at Mia, who had almost finished eating the pile of cat food beside her. Since she was still busy, Alex checked the details of the Renaissance Oil Portrait.
The painting showed a humanoid alien with six eyes and shark-like teeth. It was sitting on a chair wearing clothes that looked quite close to medieval nobility European clothes. The contrast between familiar and unfamiliar components in the painting was bizarre.
The item effect said it was a normal portrait that collectors would like. Alex stored it in his Inventory. Since it was Trash Rank, it only brought a small mental strain, and it was too big for his backpack.
He would later sell it to someone from Easy Difficulty. Those people were near civilization in the Land of Origin, and should be able to sell this item for some profit for him.
Next, he decided to open the three Golden Chests before they continued their journey.
The lids slowly opened.
[Mana Storage Bracelet (B Rank) gained.]
[Binoculars (F Rank) gained.]
[Chainmail (F Rank) gained.]
No matter how many times Alex saw it happen, watching objects materialize out of thin air still felt unreal.
One moment there was empty space, and the next, solid items rested neatly in front of him. He picked them up one by one and checked their descriptions.
[Mana Storage Bracelet (B Rank)]
[Who is our dirty little manawhore? It’s you!]
[Effect: Can store Mana (5) and use it later.]
Alex blinked at the screen for a second before frowning.
’Manawhore? What is that even supposed to mean?’ he thought. He eventually shook his head and decided not to waste time trying to understand the System’s strange sense of humor.
He moved on to the next reward.
[Binoculars (F Rank)]
[Made by a guy who liked his neighbor a little too much.]
[Effect: Can let you see over long distances.]
Alex quietly ignored the description and checked the final item instead.
[Chainmail (F Rank)]
[See, this is a sign! Sign that you need to stop learning close-combat spells and fight from distance like spellslingers are supposed to!]
[Effect: Provides defense against slashing attacks.]
Two of the rewards were F Rank. The rank was not high, but it was not low either. At least, the items were not Trash rank.
Both of them looked genuinely useful. The binoculars would let him scout dangerous areas before entering them, while the chainmail would give him some protection if monsters got too close.
The B Rank bracelet was even better because extra mana meant he could fight longer, kill more monsters, and level up faster.
Alex removed his shirt and slipped the chainmail over his body. The armor felt lighter than it looked, and once he put his shirt back on, it was barely noticeable. He stored the binoculars in his backpack instead of his Inventory since they weren’t something he would need during an emergency.
Finally, he picked up the bracelet and examined it more carefully. It was pure white with blue engravings running across its surface in neat patterns.
He pushed his mana into the bracelet, expecting it to enter naturally, but nothing happened.
Mana always resisted entering foreign objects, whether it was stone, wood, or metal, but this bracelet was on an entirely different level. It almost felt like the material itself rejected mana, like an insulator.
Frowning, Alex spread a thin layer of mana over the bracelet instead of trying to force it inside. After searching carefully, he found a tiny opening no larger than the tip of a needle.
He guided his mana through it, and this time it entered the hollow space inside the bracelet.
The space wasn’t very large, so Alex had to compress his mana to fit more inside. He continued until the bracelet was completely full, and the moment he finished, he sensed something strange.
It was an instinct telling him he needed to will something to happen.
He followed that feeling, and the tiny opening sealed itself. The mana remained trapped inside because the bracelet’s material was highly resistant to mana.
When he willed again, the opening reappeared.
Since the stored mana still belonged to him, Alex could manipulate it without difficulty. He drew it out of the bracelet, floated it above his hand for a moment, then returned it inside before sealing the opening once more.
He repeated the process several times just to make sure it wasn’t a coincidence.
’This thing is interesting. Normally, if I release mana outside my body and stop controlling it, I lose ownership of it almost immediately, and it drifts into air. But if I store it inside this bracelet, I can let go completely and still control it later, as long as the bracelet stays sealed,’ Alex observed.
..
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