Lone and Soph ending up spending a total of three extra days in the completed fort.

In that time, Lone had completely finished reading the massive book on Milindo’s history and current situation, earning him a couple of level-ups in Reading Mastery.

Congratulations! The host’s passive skill [Reading Mastery] has levelled up! It is now Beginner level 2. Congratulations! The host’s passive skill [Reading Mastery] has levelled up! It is now Beginner level 3. Congratulations! The host’s passive skill [Reading Mastery] has levelled up! It is now Beginner level 4.

He’d tried to reread the shorter books or even narrate them aloud for Sophie while she worked on her Body Manipulation.

Sadly, neither of these things levelled the skill further, leading him to believe he needed to read different works to gain any progress in it.

Something Lone had gained substantial progress in, however, was his lightning magic.

“Crude Lightning Bolt!” Lone cast as he had a palm pointed at a dummy in the courtyard he’d set up.

The magic script he had recited mentally flowed out of his mind and gathered his MP up into his hand.

With a discharge strong enough to push him back a few feet, a large and unstable bolt or black lightning blasted forth from his hand and slammed into the distant dummy, charring it badly and damaging it beyond conventional repair.

Congratulations! The host’s active lightning magic skill [Crude Lightning Bolt] has levelled up! It is now Master Level 10.

As it turned out, beyond expert came master. That made sense to Lone. What didn’t make sense was that it still had mastery upon reaching master rank.

Why? For what purpose? Individual levels in the system didn’t reward him with more power. Was there perhaps a grandmaster rank?

Lone didn’t know but he felt the next notification in his log would give him some answers.

Congratulations! Due to the host's active lightning magic skill [Crude Lightning Bolt] having reached Master Level 10, it has evolved into the active lightning magic skill [Lightning Bolt].

"Fuck yes! This explains so much and makes it totally worth putting effort into garbo goblin magic," Lone shouted in excitement.

Sophie, who was practising her sword swings, glanced at the overjoyed foxkin and she raised an eyebrow. "Did something good happen?"

Lone nodded fervently. "I reached the level cap with Crude Lightning Bolt, and you know what? It fuckin’ evolved. Assuming this isn't an isolated incident, then doesn't that mean that all of my skills that can level, can also evolve into better skills? Like Bone Armour or Basic Regeneration?"

Sophie smiled arrogantly, "Well, how did it change? Was it a substantial 'evolution', as you called it? Perhaps you can fire two bolts now instead of one?"

"Now that would be something. Lemme check first though. I was too happy to check myself and it didn’t pop up automatically like a rank up,” Lone said.

Sophie chuckled. "Such a foolish man."

He just grinned and scratched his cheek as he pulled up the skill's information.

Active Lightning Magic Skill: Lightning Bolt A standard application of the lightning magic school where the caster focuses the element of lightning into a condensed bolt of pure lightning. Cost: 2,500 MP Mastery: Beginner Level 1

Lone frowned. "Well, its description is a lot barer. It lost the additional effects that the crude version had from ranking up, oh, also, its cost has more than doubled."

"Does that not make it useless?" Sophie asked with some scrutiny in her voice.

Lone shook his head. "No. If we're purely comparing it to the master level ten version of the crude skill, then yeah, it's garbage. However, if we compare it to the beginner level one version of the crude skill, well, then it's a lot better. It starts without the chanting restriction and it also has half of the MP cost."

Sophie held her chin and slowly bobbed her head up and down. "We understand. That makes sense, although it is a little bit complicated. Why don't you use it? We should compare its power to the crude one."

"Sure," Lone agreed.

He pointed his palm towards a charred training dummy. Two seconds later, he said, "Lightning Bolt."

The bolt was no longer pitch-black, but instead, was distinctly blue and a lot thinner than the master-rank crude one.

With the sound of a thunderous crack, the bolt slammed into the dummy. Its chest was turned into a pile of smoking ash, the bolt having left a large hole in its wake.

Congratulations! The host’s active lightning magic skill [Lightning Bolt] has levelled up! It is now Beginner Level 2.

"Wow. That's, what, five or six times as strong? Will that kill me if I hit myself with it?" Lone asked.

Sophie laughed. Something in her voice gave Lone the chills.

"Perhaps it will... should we test it out?" she asked a bit sadistically.

"Nah, let’s not." Lone wiped the sweat from his brow as he waited for her reply. It was fairly humid, after all. “Wanna head to Ranton now though? With this done, I’m ready to go see what the guild’s all about.”

Sophie sheathed her swords and tilted her head to think. "Do we really have to leave? Would it not be wise to simply hide inside of this Illusionary Dome of yours until you have maximised the potential of all of your skills? That would give us the best chance of survival should people come to capture you, no? We know not of Ros’s lord’s intentions, but slavery is legal here and you are a rare breed supposedly."

Lone shook his head. "I need to rank up. The more I rank up, the more special powers of yours that will unseal... Assuming my theory's correct, anyway. That'll boost our chances significantly. I also need to learn new skills. The best way to do that is to, unfortunately, fight other people. Maybe I can enter a tournament or something in Ranton? It is the capital, after all.”

He smiled as he added, “And I do want that legal safety from the guild. Barely here for a week and we’re hiding in the woods? I kinda want to experience civilisation after Goblin Island. Plus, the guild could have us finding monsters to kill which’ll get me more stats.”

Sophie sighed. "You should just massacre the people with designs on you. Would that not be far easier than battling some beasts we know nothing of? People are far easier to kill, of that, we can guarantee."

Lone gave her a fierce glare. "I don't want to become a murderer."

Sophie just returned his glare with a look of contempt. "Lone, one way or another, it will happen. If Golden Foxkin are as rare as they seem to be, then you can be sure that people will come for you, and not all of them will turn tail and run after getting beaten black and blue. You do know this, yes? Human nature is a dark and ugly thing."

Lone nodded sadly. "I know. When the time comes, trust me, I won't hesitate. I've prepared myself mentally. I was ready with Rewal’eh. I would have also killed Lal’roh if he had acted out. I know damned well that you'll kill another person with ease too, so I need to be ready to do the same thing to not hold you back.”

Sophie's expression softened. "You always ramble incoherently at the worst of times... We shall return control to Soph now since our training is over."

With that said, the woman's cold expression turned joyful. “Gimme a minute to put my armour on, okay?”

Lone nodded. A few minutes later, she returned to his side so he asked, "All ready?"

"Mmm!" Soph replied.

Lone stored their home once again and disabled his Illusionary Dome. The two of them then resumed following the northern road towards the holy city.

"Papers, please," the lazy-looking guard asked Lone and Soph while he picked some earwax out of his ear and flung it onto the ground. "If ye've no papers, then there be a fee to register as a citizen of Milindo. Shoulda been done at the border wall, but we can do it ‘ere too if need be."

Lone nodded and passed Soph’s temporary citizenship card. “Here you go, sir.”

The guard scratched the back of his head as he checked it. "Ros, eh? Ye've come a long way."

Lone smiled. "We just had to see the capital. I've heard it's the shining jewel of Milindo and it would be the greatest shame of my master’s life if she never came to experience it, she informed me."

The guard looked a bit prideful at that. "True 'nuff. Every'ing looks in order. The entry fee's five coppers per 'ead. Double fer non ‘umans. Daft rule if ya ask me but rules be rules."

Lone handed the man 20 copper coins. "That they are. Here, a little bonus for yourself, my good man. It's a hard job guarding the gates, no?"

"'At it is. 'At it is, my friend. See? You demis do 'ave good 'earts. They should abolish slavery is the way I sees it. Happy folk is hard workin' folk,” the guard expressed as he slowly put the coppers into a pouch at his waist.

He then returned Soph’s temporary citizenship card and said, “There'd be more demis like ye if they weren't forced into shovelling shite or ploughin' the fields. Either get rid of slavery or make all masters like this pretty little lady of yers.”

Lone nodded. “Shame the world isn’t so simple.”

“Oh, aye. Right shame. Oh well, nutin' to be done about it. Enjoy yer stay in Ranton, ya hear? I ain't never seen a demi like ye what with all dem tails, but ye've got a good 'ead on yer shoulders," the guard said with a toothy grin strewn across his lips.

Congratulations! The host's passive skill [Acting] has levelled up! It is now Intermediate Level 1.

'Nice! I wonder what benefits it has now? Raw percentage or a new effect?' Lone wondered.

As he was saying his goodbyes to the guard and pulling Soph along by her hand into the city, Lone checked the notification that had immediately followed the level up.

Passive Skill: Acting Naturally makes everything that the host does which does not align with their personality or motives 15% [+10%] more believable. Cost: N/A Mastery: Intermediate Level 1

'Damn. No new effect... Still, a 10% increase to the perma-buff isn't horrible. I wonder if this skill can reach a point where I can convince anyone of anything with just my acting? Like, after it's evolved once or twice?’ That intrigued Lone.

‘Speaking of that, can a skill even evolve twice? It must be able to, right? There's no way Lightning Bolt is the peak of that skill... I really hope it isn't, at least.' As per usual, magic and his dreams of being a powerful sorcerer were clearly some of his biggest obsessions.

"Lone," Soph called.

He had told her on the journey here that it was fine for her to speak now if needed.

This might eventually lead to some trouble down the line since she was supposed to be mute back in Ros, but Lone figured it would be better for her to talk and socialise a bit more with other people to bolster her confidence.

He was going to get strong enough to protect her, so he was okay with the discrepancy of her ability to speak cropping up to bite him in the ass later on.

It just felt wrong to deprive her of one of her valuable sense when she was already lacking normal sight. It didn’t seem to bother her much but it gnawed away at Lone a bit.

“What's up?" he asked her as he continued strolling down the cobbled streets of Ranton.

There were quite a lot of robed or heavily armoured men and woman walking around, all of whom had a peculiarly designed triangle with either differently coloured orbs sown or carved into their gear.

From what Lone had read in the history book, this was the symbol of The Church of The Primals.

"Em, what are we gonna do now? Find an inn?" she asked.

Lone nodded. "Yeah. Preferably one that's on the safer side. I'm not too bothered if they discriminate against me a bit. Safety is far more valuable than comfort is."

"Um... Okay. I r-really hope they don't hate you because of your tails... They're so fluffy and soft and amazing..." Soph mumbled as a smile crept up onto her face.

Lone laughed. "You're such a fluffaholic."

"A what?" the girl asked as she cocked her head to one side adorably.

"A fluffaholic. It means that you love fluff. Well, that you’re addicted to it, really," Lone explained while he kept most of his attention on the streets and the buildings they were passing to find a decent place to stay.

"Oh! Then I'm definitely a floofaholic!" Soph exclaimed a bit excitedly as she squeezed a tail or two with her free hand.

Lone smiled. "Floof, not fluff, huh?"

"Hi, do you accept demis here?" Lone asked the nice-looking young lady behind the counter of the fifth inn he and Soph had visited thus far.

The first four were perfect as far as security went since each had their own private guards, but three declined demis entry and the fourth only let demis and slaves sleep outside.

Lone was fine with low quality, but he refused to sleep separately from Soph. He'd sooner send her to The Summoning Room than split up with her.

What healthy young man with a skill to train would ever accept being forced to sleep in a completely different room as their gorgeous girlfriend? Not Lone, that’s who.

"Yes! We do! Pa's a demi himself, so of course we do!" the girl answered with excitement.

"Oh really? Biological father... or?" Lone let his question trail on so the girl could fill in the blanks.

She laughed. "Come on! Don't be silly. You know as well as I do that demis can't have kids with humans. Ma remarried when I was only this high," the girl said as she put her hand to her waist. "He's looked after me and my brother ever since."

Lone smiled. "Of course. I was only teasing you."

Internally, he was somewhat relieved. 'So I don't need to put Soph on the pill or something? I'll research this a bit more to be safe, but that'd be ideal. It'd be stupid to have kids no matter how much I love her, and if I can avoid spending mana on prevention methods, then all the better.'

"If you don't mind me asking, what kind of demi is your father? I'm from a place where it's rare to run into demis. Humans too, if I'm being honest," Lone said with sincerity in his voice as he showed off his perfect teeth. “Sheltered lifestyle. Few encounters with people. I’m sure you understand.”

The girl behind the counter felt her heart flutter. "Um, he's a Lesher, not a beastkin like you are, sir. Em, even though he's a Lesher, don't think of him as a slave if you meet him, please. He was bought and raised by a good family who looked after him. He was given his freedom when his master died of old age."

"No worries. I'll respect him if I see him. Anyway, we've strayed off topic quite a bit, haven't we? What're the rates for your rooms?" Lone was very satisfied with what information he'd charmed out of the girl.

'I've no clue what a Lesher is, but I imagine I'll find out if I hang out around this place a bit. Maybe he's a long-lived species and can tell me about that too since he outlived his master? The bookkeeper mentioned the possibility of me being very old since I'm a demi, so I'd like to learn more about that...' Lone thought.

"Ah! Right! How could I have forgotten? How silly of me," the young lady said with an embarrassed smile on her face.

“Happens to the best of us,” Lone reassured.

"Haha, uh, well, since you're guaranteed protection by our inn's guards as well as two full meals a day, it's 30 coppers per night for a single room. A double room is 60 coppers. If you want a wooden bathtub and hot water every night, that'll cost you an extra 20 coppers. Hot water is expensive since Ma has to make it herself. She's a retired water mage, you see."

Lone nodded and took out six silver coins. "Ten days should do for now. A double room, of course. No bathtub."

"Of course, sir!" she happily replied.

The girl spun around and grabbed a key from the shelf behind her before she spun once more to face Lone and Soph.

She then handed the key to Lone and said, "It's the fourth room to the left of the stairs on the third floor. I hope you enjoy your stay! Both of you!"

"Me too," Lone replied.

He pulled Soph along and ignored the curious looks he was getting from every which angle. It was mildly irritating, but he couldn't help the fact that he was a Golden Foxkin.

He simply reasoned that this was one more reason for him to punch the gods in the face for bringing him and Soph into this world without their consent and for messing with them so drastically.

Once they'd reached their room, Soph jumped onto the bed and frowned. "It's a lot better than that shabby place in the other city, but this bed still doesn't feel right..."

"Ros, and yeah. Get off of it for a second, please?" Lone asked of her.

She did as requested and jumped back onto her feet. Lone stored the double bed and brought out their king-sized one.

It was a relief that he could do this since he'd stored it as a set with the fort. His Dimensional Storage was clearly quite a versatile skill.

Soph squealed with delight and buried herself under the cotton sheets. "Mmm, much better..."

Lone just laughed faintly at her antics. He occupied a leather-padded seat and began a certain experiment he'd been wanting to try for ages now via his Creation Magic.

"Any success, Trella? Has Tiera found the child?" a staticky voice asked through a glowing crimson orb.

A young boy of perhaps nine or ten years shook his head even though the person on the other end of the orb couldn't see him. "No, Matriarch. She's still searching. I'm afraid that powerful magic is hiding the child. But, um, there is something... strange."

"Oh? Explain," the voice ordered in a calm and soothing voice.

The matriarch was not upset at his or Tiera's failure to locate the 'child'. It was expected, considering the unique circumstances of their mission.

"Well... um, I haven't seen for myself, but Tiera said that she saw a Golden Foxkin in the streets earlier today when she went out to buy groceries," Trella admitted.

"..." There was a deafening pause before the matriarch sucked in a deep breath of air and her tone turned serious. "Tiera swears it wasn't the child?"

"Yes, Matriarch. She claimed that it was a man who looked to be in his early twenties. Um, I'm not sure how old he really is since he apparently hasn't awakened, but he had nine tails according to Tiera. He was also travelling with a blind human adult. A female. She may be his master, but I'm not sure. Tiera said that they seemed... closer than a master and a slave," Trella stated everything that he knew.

"I see... Contact this man. I find it hard to believe that a beastkin can have nine racial traits, even more so if they are a Golden Foxkin. Assuming he's real, I wish to talk with him. He may know of the child's location. I'm also curious if he needs help with anything. It would be wise of us to ingratiate ourselves with a nine-traited beastkin, all the more so since he is our kin." There was hope in the matriarch's voice.

"Of course, Matriarch. um... How are our parents? Are they any better?" Trella asked cautiously.

"Unfortunately, no. Their condition continues to worsen as the days go by. Do not worry. I won't forsake my son and daughter-in-law so easily. I have already contacted the soul hall of the White Dragonkin Clan. With some luck, Lord Elksworth himself will come to offer his services," the matriarch claimed.

The boy's eyes brightened. "Thank you... Grandmother."

"I've told you to only call me 'Matriarch' during official communications. I will call you again in three days. Make contact with this supposed nine-tailed Golden Foxkin before then, Trella," the matriarch ordered.

With that, the conversation was over. The red orb lost its lustre and became inactive, signalling that the connection had been cut.