21 Starlight Screen
Aser had received the [Starlight] passive or blessing when he unlocked the system. Ever since then, he had no idea how to upgrade it or how he even received it. Looking at the little black book titled the same as his skill, a thrill rushed through his body. This could be a considered a fortuitous encounter for him!
Flipping through the book, he noticed that each page only had a single symbol, out of which he only understood the first two pages after Ashes' enabled the translation, while the others still seemedl gibberish. Studying the first symbol, the translation of it seemed to be "Screen" or "Display". The symbol itself looked like a box with antennas and slashes below ( 幕 ). After staring at it for a while, something seem to strike in his head. For some reason, he felt like this wasn't just a symbol, but had a power embedded in to it.
He could see that the Essence flowed from one point to another, as if it was asking him to mimic it, showing him the direction to draw it. Grabbing some paper and pen, Aser started to draw it but even after copying it a few dozen times, it didn't seem as magical as the one in the book. Maybe its the ink, he thought. The ink for the drawing on the book seemed to be Essence itself. Wondering how he could use Essence to draw, Aser used his Mind's Eye to grab a mote of Essence and attached it to his finger.
As soon as he started drawing in the air with the mote of essence, he felt resistance, as if the other essence clouds were attracted to the image in his mind. Continuing to trace the essence mote according to the symbol, he found that the other essence clouds in his surroundings converging in to the drawing in the air, filling it up as if there were gaps. As he was nearing completion, he felt the essence inside his body rushing out like glue, attaching the scattered clouds to adhere to the symbol. Finishing the symbol, he saw that it started flashing for a second and enlarged in front of his eyes. The essence gathered and changed into starlight, surrounding him in a shell.
[System Report: New Active Skill, [Starlight Screen] learned. Progress to rank 1: 10%]
Inside the screen of starlight, Aser felt that he was protected from everything around him. There wasn't any dust or essence that could get in. He saw dim copies of the symbol he drew to the North, East and West of him. To his back, the symbol was brightly flashing. A glint flashed past his eyes, he knew what to do to upgrade the skill as well, to draw four symbols at once.
"What do you make of this book Ashes? It seems like an inheritance of sorts! I can't believe I learned a new skill by just drawing something!!"
[Its surprising indeed Aser, I didn't think we'd find a clue to cultivating your Starlight skill so soon. The book definitely seems to be left behind by an ancestor, but I would be careful as well. Its a few too many coincidences to have a book with the same name as your Blessing. There might be an organization out there that has Starlight as its inheritance skill, and if they know you have this book, you might be in danger.]
"Yeah, I think so as well. If there is a book, that means someone had written it. So, my blessing has an origin, and I'll eventually have to understand why I have this blessing. Maybe...do you think it might be because of my parents?"
[I...I don't know Aser. Maybe.]
This little black book filled Aser with a mixture of confusion and excitement. He was happy that he found a way to increase his skills and learn more, but how is it simple enough that the first store he goes to by himself, he finds this book? It seemed like there was something guiding him there. It didn't seem as simple as just stumbling on it, the odds are almost impossible for that to happen.
"Oh well, for now, I think I'll just have to work hard on increasing my skill, finish school and prove myself. I can't really figure it out when I'm so weak", he thought bitterly. After all, he was only 7 years old, and didn't know much about the world out there except for what he had read.
Looking at the sky outside, the sun was high up in the middle, its rays shining down on the grounds as if to baptize everyone under its warmth. "Lets go get lunch.."
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[Name: Aser Sholt]
[System Class: Mind's Eye - Ashes]
[Attributes:
Strength: 6
Constitution: 6
Dexterity: 6
Intelligence: 15
Charisma: 6
Attribute Points: 5]*
[Age: 7]
[Race: Human]
[Rank: Unknown Level 5]*
Essence to Unknown Level 6: 1810/3200*
Essence Cultivation Rate: 22 Essence per hour (Max 5 hours/day)
Current Mission: Complete seven 4-study plans for Library Trials before school begins.
Library:
1. World Geography (94 Books/~)
2. World History (39 Books/~)
3. Essence Cultivation (112 Books/~)
4. Professions (55 Books/~)
5. Misc. Subjects (75 Books)
Active Skill:
1. Essence Flash (C) (Rank 0): The combination of multiple Essence Clouds develops Chaos out of Order. The cycling of Chaos and Order between the Essence Clouds produces a bright flash and excessive heat. Can blind and produce heat. Proficiency To Rank 1: 66%
2. Starlight Screen (D) (Rank 0): A shield developed from the Starlight Symbol 幕 that produces an unidirectional shield to ward of attacks and external essence. Proficiency to Rank 1: 10%. Upgrade Conditions: Initiate the skill with four symbols at once.
Innate Skill:
1. Mind's Eye (S) (Rank 1): Your body has unlocked the mind's eye. Your inner eye allows you to sense the [Essence History] around your surroundings, changing it into knowledge. By actively using the skill, you are able to sense within a 5ft. area around you, as well as investigate other people and objects. [+5 Base Int]. Rank Up Conditions: Observe more people (1/50).
Passive Skill:
1. Starlight (S) (Rank 1): The starlight is your friend, you are blessed by the stars and have gained their trust. [+2 Int per rank]. Rank Up/Upgrade Conditions: Complete the Starlight text for clues.
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