Books and Learning

Max was absolutely stuffed by time he had finished his meal that was specially made for him. His stomach felt like it was going to pop as he looked at his father who couldn't help but chuckle at the bloated boy as he gently patted his back which elected a burp from the boy as he groaned. Ken was glad to see the town of Alpine was still familiar with him, not much changing after his distancing from the trade to give Max some time with just the two. As the two giggled like little girls playing Ken caught glimpses of the rings and decided it was about time to thank Olivia for helping his son as he motioned to Max to follow as he smiled, heading to the door and letting Max lead the way.

Max found it a little difficult to discern the layout of the town now that he was on the ground and not on the rooftops above as he looked around, a little taken back by the bustle of the town. From children playing, people tending to street vendors, the banging of distant hammers against hot steel. Max's heart began to swell a bit as he had always imagined a fantasy world being just like this as he gulps, watching the kids play and drawing his attention. Ken noticed and smiled, feeling some guilt in his stomach since he knew the boy lacked any friends his own age due to his heritage.

Looking for the small shop took the boys a moment, finally finding the little shop tucked in the alley as Max gently pushed open the door, the sunlight peeking through the windows as he looked around for his feathered friend.

"Olivia? Are you there?"

A ruffle of feathers from back in the shop was heard before some frantic movements came along with it, the sound of the talons against the wooden floor drew their attention as Olivia peeked out and her head tilted, brow furrowing some before calming as a smile seemed to cross her beak.

"My my if it isn't my little pupil Max! Such a surprise and I assume you are the father of such a special boy Mr?"

"Ken, Kenneth Ashcrop. I wanted to personally thank you for helping my boy, I was a little scared when we used a Skill Orb and saw the errors but thanks to you, the rings and the books it seems my little Max is a mage in the making. How can I repay you?"

Ken was quick to answer her as a polite smile filled with kindness crossed his face, glowing with warmth and sincerity as she nodded and then shook her head.

"The deed was my pleasure Mr. Ashcrop, your son's genetics are rare and special. Though most people fear it I appreciate the beauty of it, or should I say the product of it. Your son is full of manners and very honest. As far as repayment, I can smell the scene of a sea breeze on you. If I am not mistaken were you near the harbor city of Polett?"

Max was blushing a bit as she gave him such praise, his father giving him an encouraging squeeze to his shoulder as he nodded. Gently Max weaseled his way out of his father's grip and headed into the rows of shelves that held books, his father and Olivia continued to talk about something his father making a special run to Polett to deliver something very important to Olivia. Max read over the spines of the books, wiping away the dust of them.

Magic theory, Creationism, Origins of Magic, Primal Magic 101, How to Survive in the Wilds of Allaria, Beastiary, Basics of Herbalism, Practices of Hunting Bows, The Fables of Genish, Gods of Allaria. These were just the first shelf he could reach as he began to gather up the books from the shelves he could reach, taking the mass of books to a table as he sat down to only jump up and hiss, flinching at the painfully stark reminder of his wound.

He huffed as he moved about, getting comfy whilst nursing his wound, opening up the book about surviving the wilds of Allaria. The words seemed to suck him in, his eyes following each line as he indulged in the wealth of knowledge before him as he was engrossed.

'The world of Allaria is a fascinating one, full of vastly different landscapes and environments. From its rolling hills to the treacherous mountains and its seemingly bottomless sea but surviving these environments without any tools at your disposal is something that can be difficult if you lack the right skills and stats. This book is an effort to minimize the number of deaths when abandonment, shipwrecks, and strandings occur.'

Max was excited, finishing the book in an hour as Ken gently walked over and cleared his throat, his eyes sterner than what they usually had been when they traveled. He was being serious, this face only appearing when he had to haggle hard with customer as he sighed and rubbed his temples a bit.

"Max. At dusk, I am going to be making a trip to Polett to deliver something special for Miss. Olivia, with that being said she and I have made an arrangement. While I deliver this Olivia is going to watch over you and help you with your magic more not to mention let you learn everything she can teach you. That being said I am leaving the carriage and will arrange some shipments to be made to you for me, you'll be taking over the business for me while I am gone. I know this is a lot but this is a great experience for you to learn and grow some on your own. I'll be gone for about half a year, I have taught you the basics for it all already and Olivia will be here to help you. Please behave?"

Max was bewildered, never having so much freedom as he gulped, head racing as he struggled to wrap his head around the situation as he gulped, shaking some as his eyes began to well up, unable to hold the flood of emotions that had hit him hard as he hugged his father tight, the two embracing each other tightly as this would be one of the few the before Ken went off to make his delivery for Olivia.

Things fell into a constant flow over the next half a year. Wake up, bathe himself clean and eat breakfast that Gladis made him, each morning it was something different, delicious, and sometimes questionable. After eating he was quick to set up shop, every Friday of this world he would get his new shipment of goods to sell. These goods could range from odd to needed, but every time he was able to make a profit just like his father had taught him. At first, he struggled, people scoffing at the small child making sales pitches to them and selling an arrangement of different items from mundane to magical but after a month he had picked up the practices.

After the morning rush was over he would go to Olivia's for a lesson or just read, delving into the books as a sort of comfort but found himself out of things to read in his spare time when Oliva wasn't teaching him how to read, write and speak Teietian or learning a new spell. When he would run out of things to do he would practice running through the forest, not looking to make the same mistake as his encounter with the wolves. He would spend time picking berries, herbs, mushrooms, and tracking animals, gathering more things to make stuff to add to his shipments and goods.

By month three he had begun to take his own money and invest it, getting his hands on an assortment of different things or making requests at the blacksmiths for vials, odds, and ends. Max's name gained traction within Alpine from 'Ashcrop's boy' to 'Jack of all trades and best merchant in town'. He was proud of this achievement as he would spend every day honing an assortment of different skills, each one a craftsman or artisan skill whilst honing his magic but he had yet to pick up any sort of weapon, not seeing the point in doing so since his time was spent out of the fray and keeping out of danger.

There were a few calls when Max's health would be on the decline or he would get some bumps and bruises. Olivia was quick to note the boy's unique skill after forcing him to take a health pot and making him sicker or more injured, causing the wounds to grow worse or even an incident where he got poison ivy and a remedy had caused the rash to get worse. But these hiccups only pushed Max further into learning, wanting to know if there was some sort of way to alleviate himself of his cursed skill.

By month six Max was rivaling the town treasurer, the town had become more renowned due to Max's efforts, causing the town to slowly evolve into a city, people and races from afar had come in to witness the boy and quite a few were taking root in the town and bringing in new trades but none of this had Max's attention as every day he would wait for Ken, excited and thrilled to show his father his new arsenal of skills. From his potion-making to his magic Max had put a lot of things under his belt as he would ask people in town to share their skills like tailoring, cooking, blacksmithing, and fishing. This week had been basic farming which he had a slight idea on how to do considering he had started growing some herbs for his crafts.

A week had passed and Ken wasn't back. One became two, two became three, and three had turned into Ken being a month late. Each night Max would stay up worried sick, crying himself to sleep fearing the worst as it was the end of the first week and Ken had yet to be back. The night of the first day of the new week a stranger rode into town with a large backpack on, his horse weary and tired, his arms clutching a fragile bundle as Ken stowed Wave away for a much-needed rest. He wobbly walked towards the book store that Olivia called home as he walked in, a smile on his face and a full beard as Olivia was Surprised, eyes filling with tears as Ken unwrapped her egg and gently handed it back to its mother.

She sobbed with joy, hugging the man tightly as she couldn't thank him enough. She spent the night clutching the egg and telling Ken how his boy had grown. As the sun slowly broke the horizon Ken made his way to the inn, having Gladis make him a meal as he waited for Max as he watched the boy sheepishly wobble in, now standing at four foot five inches, amazed at how the boy had grown and his hair touching his shoulders. Max didn't even recognize his father as he sat next to the assumed stranger and began to eat his fill.

"So then, you're the wonder kid huh? The one taking Alpine from town to city? I imagined you shorter, but then again Max, we Ashcrops usually grow to about five-eleven, that's not taking into account your mother."

Max was confused at the man for a moment as he curiously looked at the stranger, face lighting up as his father looked towards him and embraced Max. This caused a slew of tears as the two embraced after what felt like years, holding each other as a sleepy Ken listened to the stories his son had, turning in shortly after. Ken was proud of his son and all he had achieved.

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{{Maxamillian Ashcrop; Pupil of Olivia Maim}}

Race: Half-Elf

Age: Five

Health: 255

Human Mana: 1225/1225

Elven Mana: 4950/4950

Level: 1

Stats: Str(10), Dex(40) Con(20), Int(50), Wis(45) Cha(35)

Skills: Dwarvish (Fluent), Gnomish (Fluent), Common (Fluent), Elvish (Fluent), Teietian (Fluent), Economics (Adept: Lvl:8), Basic Math (MAX), Drawing(Adept Lvl: 6), Sales (Master Lvl: 3) Mana Separation (Adept Lvl: 3), Basic Fishing (MAX), Basic Human Tailoring (MAX), Human Blacksmithing (Adept Lvl: 3), Magic Theory (MAX) Primal Magic (Basic Lvl: 2), Adept Magic (Master Lvl: 4), Tracking (Adept Lvl: 3), Gnomish Cooking (Adept Lvl: 2), Basic Farming (Basic Lvl: 8) Basic Potion Making (MAX), Chemistry (Adept Lvl: 5), Herbology (MAX), Stealth (Basic Lvl: 3)

Racial Skills: Human Adaptability (MAX), Elven Magic (Basic: Lvl: 5), Magic Circuits(Fixed, Adept Lvl: 5), Elven Dexterity (MAX), Increased Charisma (MAX), Elven Mind(MAX), Elven Hunter's Step (Adept Lvl: 2)

Unique Skills: VICE (MAX) Speed Reading (MAX)

Unique Titles Earned: Pupil of Olivia Maim, Jack of All Trades

Pupil of Olivia Maim: A title earned by learning under a person. The amount of renown that this person has is high and holds weight to it. Once a person within specific communities recognizes the name of your teacher they will hold you in high regard or even welcome you with kinship depending on the person.

Jack of All Trades: Awarded when user has successfully learned multiple skills that vary from one another. Having this title allows for a fifteen percent increase in learning a new skill. Added with Human adaptability the user learns at an increased speed of twenty-five percent faster with skills.

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