Eve stared at the list of things she wanted to test before glancing to the side at Album. The matronly older female had been interested when Eve had mentioned testing the limits of her power. A few examples of what light could do with mana involved had made her extremely impressed. Earth physics was good, in her opinion. She just wanted to gain some non-lethal options. With the knowledge that the System could enforce bargains, oaths, and contracts, Eve wanted to know if she could have a softer option than mass murder to keep herself secret.

Kudzu had grown the same massive defensive maze as before around Eve’s house. At least now, she didn’t have to keep watching the water for suspicious bubbles, eyes, or lightning-fast tongues. Practice today would be over many subjects, not all of them combat. She had seen it was possible to gain XP from doing things that were considered crafting. With her Domain of Paper I, the clear winner who played to her strengths was a Craft Profession known as Scribe. The wolves had been beside themselves, explaining the glory of the Profession to her. It hadn’t been because they had caught her moping around after killing all the prisoners. Knowing it was required to stay safe was one thing.

Living with it was quite another ball of wax.

She had hunted a few frogs to reach level twenty-four in Celestial Scholar earlier and discovered her stats ratio. One set of physical stats, meaning one strength, dexterity, and constitution, allowed three of her primary stats. It was a balanced ratio of sorts, and Eve had discovered it upon attempting to raise her Intelligence to two hundred and eleven without increasing her physical stats. The pain had been intense. It was a very unsubtle warning, which had made her unable to raise Intelligence and Wisdom's stats. She had wanted to test further, except the pain had convinced her to accept the ratio as factual truth.

The first thing to test and establish today, though, was power. Without combat power as a foundation, any tower of reason constructed would fall without fail. To that end, the knowledge of her exact capabilities was vital in forming a more coherent fighting style. Eve had already seen how effective Origami had been. Now was the chance to adapt her paper to create a combat style that utilized a little-known method of the original folding art.

Kirigami, or self-folding constructs.

While she didn’t expect everything to develop the same intelligence level as her Six Soul Weapons, even the most basic ability to respond without input was valuable. Clothing could defend or attack itself, defenses that reacted faster than she could alone, attacking forms that struck without a hand to guide their way. This was a magical world. It was time to deconstruct the magic and make it work for her instead of depending on her brother.

“Wilson, how long until all my brother’s notes fade.” Eve asked as she set up targets and measured distances in the paper range she was creating. It had become blatantly obvious with every level up after twenty. A small chunk of her brother’s notes was fading out of memory. With nothing else that she could think of able to affect her through Celestial Mind, the number one suspect was Wilson.

The System regrets to inform you that the User has less than six months. At that point, to ensure the System’s safety, all notes of the entity Matt Smith will be removed. Informing an individual below the highest tier of power in the world of the Primal Law of Risk versus Reward has a cost that not even such an entity can avoid.

Primal Laws are a big deal. Big enough that even Wilson will move to suppress knowledge of them. Eve thought. At least I know the path forward I wish to develop when in battle.

Range.

It all came down to striking from a distance, without being seen, heard, smelled, a perfect alpha strike. Eve was confident her Six Soul Weapons could handle cleave situations or situations involving more than one target. The six celestial iron weapons were like Elemental generals that gave paper under their control a minor bonus. With their ability to command large portions of paper in her domain, they were like a well-organized command and control team in battle. What she wanted was the quiet deathblow from afar, a sniper who could fold her weapon to the perfect lethal blow. To gain test materials, the wolves had been willing to provide Rank One to test her ideas on in return for a small favor.

Taking care of the puppies.

Eve strongly suspected the adult wolves were using the time to create more puppies. In the interest of all, she decided not to mention it. Besides, more time with her fluffy bundles of warmth was hardly a bad thing. More fluffy bundles would be fine too. Eve wasn’t one to hate more fluff in her life. Floating paper cushions held all the small puppies as they had wanted to see her try things out. Each had tails wagging as if waiting for a good showing.

“I have seen the way you look at the water.” Album said as she sat watching even prepare her testing area. “Are you planning to harvest all life in the lake?”

Eve paused as she finished setting up the last of the Rank One and a few Rank Two items of lower Materials. “Yes. I need Levels. I need Skill and Spell Slots. I need power.”

Album crossed her paws before laying down with her head on them and asking, “You do not age. Do not look so shocked, youngling. Your scent has given it away. Always smelling like a fresh newborn, it was obvious. The other wolves have not understood yet, except perhaps, All-Right. She was always the smartest pup in my litter, no match for me though since she hasn’t realized this yet.”

Eve sighed before saying, “My brother’s final gift in the hopes we would meet again, even now it causes his remaining power to fade from me. Soon I will be alone in this world, with nothing except Pack, Plant, and Puppies.” Looking up, Eve said, “And my precious sparkling shadows, of course!”

A song burst out from her Six Soul Weapons vibrating the air around like a soft breeze. Eve allowed the music to wash over her soul, invigorating her, washing the hesitation in gaining power away. Once the song finished, Eve dropped the subject about the lake and said, “Five Ranks, Ten Materials, what about compounds?”

Album said, “You speak of the combining of one Material with another to create a sum greater than the parts? Such things are rare. We are a large Pack, yet not that large. It would require extensive trading within a city of the Tribes. Only two-legs or the most powerful Beasts could form something like that.”

Eve stared at the wolf before blurting, “Are you saying alloys are rare here!?”

“Very. Now stop dodging the subject of the lake. Explain how you can kill everything in such a large body of water. Do not even babble of poison. Such a method as that will not affect those in the depths!” Album said, her ears flicking dismissively as she said, “Those of Water are often empowered by any except the strongest of poisons.”

Eve raised one eyebrow at the elder wolf before lowering it and saying, “Do you know why fish die in the winter? To be specific, have you ever seen winter-kill on a large scale?”

Album’s eyes were confused, but she said, “You speak of the strange curse that kills fish when the ice covers a lake such as this?”

“Exactly. To be more specific, I speak of when the air in the lake runs out.” Eve said softly before continuing, “There is air everywhere, even in water. Unless the creatures in the lake have adapted not to require it or subsist on mana alone in some form, they need air.”

Album raised her head, her eyes keen, “Air in water, ho, and yet your body language speaks no lies.”

Eve noted the confirmation that the wolves could read her body language like a book, something she had long suspected they could do as part of the Emperor’s personal Legion of the Wolf. Bodyguards, assassins, they were the quiet glue that helped the Empire stay together in a nutshell.

“Do you understand molecules?” Eve asked, curious how far science might have progressed in an Empire.

“No.” Album replied, shaking her head slightly and saying, “That word seems to be similar to something the Emperor’s mother tongue, moles, was it? I think it means small things? Smallest things? All-Right would remember such things.”

“Small units of mass.” Eve said, her eyes distant, “It represents the step just above atoms. Atoms are just above sub-atomic particles. I’m not sure where mana fits in, but it feels like it might be at the sub-atomic or even lower level. Brother raised me on a Barren World while we waited for what I suspect to be an appearance of the Deeps.” Eve wasn't certain, but that part of her mother had always called female intuition screamed this at her.

Album’s eyes turned sharp, and Eve watched it from the corner of her eyes. Eventually, the old wolf said, “So your brother is a Deep Delver, I admit, I still worried you might be associated with Dragons. All-Right’s uncanny ability to be right has struck again though it seems. Delving can grant all sorts of miracles that subvert understanding of the world. Treasures that crush common sense, Skills that twist reality, Spells that alter the fate of nations. To have a brother who hunts the openings to the Deeps, yes, it is clear now why you had such protections.”

Those were my own half-formed suspicions, but apparently, they make perfect sense. Eve thought. Looking back, though, it would explain where all the power my brother gained came from. Matt was many things, but something even a System like the one on this world feared, he was not.

“A true Deep Delver is a terrifying Beast. All-Right’s wisdom makes perfect sense now.” Album said, her eyes unfathomable as she looked at Eve. When the older wolf came to a decision, her eyes cleared into pools of still water like frozen sapphire crystals, and Album said, “Do not tell anyone you do not utterly trust of such things. The family of those who plumb the Deeps is a tether that keeps them sane. Losing such a tether can create true Monsters. If the Deeps were opening on the Barren World, you existed on, then this would likely mean that a Primal Energy Source would flood the world. More than likely, you would have been trained by him. Family is the best and most trusted ally for hunting in the Deeps. The Song of the Hunt speaks of such knowledge. We were not always of this world, once our kind hunted among the stars."

Eve was shocked as she realized it made perfect sense. The way Matt had always supported her career in the military, the quiet strange comments he made about hunting a bigger game. The way he always pushed her to approach a kill in the most efficient manner possible.

He was quietly pushing me to hunt the Things that can be found in the Deeps. Eve thought, her mind reeling in shock before Celestial Mind stabilized it. My perfect tutorial mode went out the window, and I got this shit show world. If it weren’t for the System here, I might have been turned into fertilizer within the day.

“Wilson, thanks.” Eve muttered under her breath. It constantly became more apparent how much the System had done. While it was slowly removing the helping hand, she felt there were likely factors at play that she was completely ignorant of.

“On with the testing, cub. I cannot sit here in the shade, with these strange floating sheets waving at me, food in the bowl in front of me, a tasty drink beside it, and not see things get tested.” Album said, moving to sit on her haunches with a lupine grin. The puppies that had been quiet until then started making noise as well, pushing Eve to smile.

“Fine! Fine! Let’s tear some stuff up!” Eve shouted. She also made sure to make a food bowl, drink bowl, snack bowl, and fill them for everyone. Sheets of paper flapped near each to help mitigate a little of the starting heat of summer creeping in from spring.

Eve began to test as soon as everyone was settled.

First up, strength. Eve thought of creating a paper dumbbell that weighed exactly one pound.