Finn saw the number and did not even hesitate to activate the interface. He went straight to [Hearth Market], then the [Skills] tab!
[Would you like to activate the Skills Tab for 1000 Hearth Points? Yes | No?]
Yes, of course . While he was quite comfortable, who could say no to some power ups!
Anyway, he watched as a new list and blocks of text ( ugh ) appeared in front of him. They could all be purchased by hearth points alone, which was great, but the amount wasn’t low either, but that was understandable.
There were five skills displayed, unsurprisingly, and there was that familiar note below.
[Skill list refreshes daily. Innkeeper can only purchase one skill a day.]
Two of five were basic techniques like [Extreme Parry] or [Wild Swing], which needed about 200 and 300 Hearth points, respectively. However, he didn’t want to waste precious points on something that he could learn by himself.
Besides, he could only purchase one a day. How could he waste it on boring techniques?! And so, he passed over those two and checked the other three.
[Frozen Edge]
[Information: Channel the chill of the void into your weapon, with a slight chance of slowing enemies on contact. Effectivity and strength vary per user.
Usage: 10 mana
Recovery Time: 60 seconds
Requirement: Tier 1 Awakened, Water Affinity
Cost: 500 Hearth Points]
.
[Rock Bullet]
[Information: Launch a compact shard of stone at high velocity towards a distant target. Deals light physical damage and a small chance of penetration upon impact. Effectivity and strength vary per user.
Usage: 15 mana
Recovery Time: 60 seconds
Requirement: Tier 1 Charged, Earth Affinity
Cost: 600 Hearth Points]
.
[Heated Arc]
[Information: Relatively simple technique that makes use of the friction in the air to add a burn effect to the blade of choice. Has a small chance of temporarily increasing the penetration effect of the weapon of choice.
Usage: 5 mana
Recovery Time: 60 seconds
Requirement: Tier 1 Awakened, Fire affinity
Cost: 500 Hearth Points]
Those...were awesome skills. Sadly, the first two were not meant to be for him. The first one had a different elemental affinity to him, and it was greyed out, meaning it would be a waste of points to even try it.
The second one was also cool. Sadly, he was not a mage, and his awakening was physical, leaving the last one available for him. It was thankfully not bad either, and he was actually quite excited for it!
[Purchased! Heated Arc! -500 Hearth Points]
[Learned: Heated Arc!]
As soon as he made the purchase, he felt something in his mind click . Finn felt the knowledge being absorbed into him, though the sensation felt more like he was suddenly remembering something he had forgotten, except he hadn’t learned it before. It was quite fascinating.
When it was over, it felt like he just knew what to do, where to send energy, and how to send it. It was as if the new skill had been programmed into his brain and his body.
So this is a Skill Scroll...
He grinned, immediately trying it out. He grabbed the halberd and waved it around, activating the skill midswing.
[Activated Heated Arc! -5 Mana]
The air around the blade changed a little, the image around it slightly distorting, like how scenery distorted when it got too hot.
He lifted his free hand and hovered over the blade, feeling the temperature difference.
"Fascinating," he whispered under his breath, his amber eyes sparkling in interest.
Could one cook an egg like this?
Anyway, he took a look at his stats to see the updates.
[Status]
Name: Finnick Altheus Solthar
Race: Human
Class: Innkeeper, Chef
Level: Awakened Tier 1
Awakening Type: Physical
Affinity: Fire, Earth, Wind
...
VITALS
HP: 122/300
Mana: 260/300
Stamina: 91/300
Wallet: 143 Gold
Hearth Points: 1600 Points
...
Skills:
Active: [Ingredient Scan] [Dish Analysis]
Passive: [Blade Proficiency - Growth Type (Lv 2)] [Monster Instinct]
[Strong Stomach] [Improved Palate] [Fire Resistance] [Heated Arc]
Condition: Normal ]
He smiled, nodding. He was drenched in sweat and felt very sticky, but his entire body felt light.
Anyway, he practically skipped back home to take a shower and eat dinner (from the leftover meat and thornroot carbs from lunch). He’d need a few hours of sleep to recover, but it was still early so he decided to absorb cores for now.
Fortunately, the act of absorbing cores wouldn’t , in and of itself, consume his precious stat points (in contrast to when he was awakened). Rather, they could even increase their regeneration, so he didn’t have to worry about his low stats while doing this.
He got about a dozen cores from this day’s round. He didn’t know other people’s productivity, but he felt proud of himself regardless.
Still, he was taking a few hours for each one. Although Pang—who was lounging on the bed—didn’t mention anything about him being slow, Finn was growing...bored.
By the second core, a few hours later, Finn was splayed out, groaning in boredom.
"I wish I could spend this time exploring ingredients, instead," he muttered. There was still so much to learn!
He heard the rolling sound of the panda, who was on the bed and rolled to his stomach. "Well, when you rank up, it’s not like you wouldn’t get more time to cook and explore."
"What do you mean?"
"You’ll live longer, so of course you’d have more time! Unless you are as boring as those monks and as reckless as my innkeeper #2."
"...wait, you mean lifespan extends when we do this?"
"Didn’t I tell you?"
Finn blinked and then took out the ten remaining awakened cores he had left, eyes bright as the stars. Who didn’t want longer lifespans?
Pang didn’t know how many years it could extend in this world—each world absorbed, expressed, and spread the universal energy differently—but it was a given that absorbing life energy would, well, give life.
"Oi, one at a time!" Pang yelled at the side when he saw Finn looking greedily at the cores he filled his hands with.
"Yeah, yeah," he said, holding on just one indeed, though he did casually place the rest around him, so of which on his lap.
A little over an hour later, one was completely absorbed and turned to ash. He took another one, and then another.
Each time, the duration needed to absorb one lowered bit by bit until, two hours later, he finished another five.
Finn stretched his arms. As excited as he was, he was still human. He felt energized from the inside, but he was also sore from sitting so long, which was an odd combination.
He rubbed the ash byproduct of the used crystals before placing the rest back in his space. He then headed out to wash his hands and maybe get a midnight snack.
Pan stared at the place he was sitting in. Didn’t he absorb two that morning, as well? Should humans really be able to take in so many a day? He wondered.
Pang was fairly sure that people usually only absorbed a maximum energy equivalent 2-3 cores of their level, 5 at most for individuals like Innkeeper #1, who literally did nothing but hunt and absorb.
Finn had no idea the confusion happening inside the spirit’s head. He just flopped back on his bed (to chill, and to get the recovery buff), and not to sleep.
Pang bounced a bit at the movement and wanted to ask if he was feeling alright (there were cases of people exploding when they absorbed too much). He didn’t notice before because he was lazy and didn’t realize that Finn absorbed anoth er crystal when he thought he was still absorbing one.
However, seeing him snoring lightly with a smile on his face, Pang realized he had been worrying too much.