I was laying in the bed of the guestroom, legs crossed and left hand behind my head. In my right hand was the Elemental Core I looted from the Harpy Wolf Matron not too long ago. If anyone was to spy on me at that moment, they might think that I was contemplating the marvels of the universe, deeply reflecting on the experiences that brought me here.

In truth, I was wondering how stupid I could have been to not ask about cores the first chance I got.

Elemental affinities still escape my understanding. Of course, I know how they work in worlds I have been to previously, but I know very little of how this particular system operates. I could eliminate a few possibilities: I’m not restricted to having one element, at least not early on, according to the book I read back at the bandit camp; using only one core does not give me full access to an element, otherwise there would be little sense in basing the entire world’s technology around it; and none of the common cores will grant anything like a mixed element. Actually, I doubt that any core would do that, but I’ll say ‘common cores’ because as little as I know about the elemental system here, I still know even less about Specialty Cores. For all I know, there could be a Mud or Mist Elemental Core, combining things like earth and water, or water and wind respectively. I get the sense that it’s not likely in this world, but again, my information is limited. Regardless, just going by the words of the aforementioned book, each Elemental Core is limited to a single, pure element: fire, water, earth, wind, lightning, light, or darkness.

In the past I managed to dabble in all of those elements, and obscure ones besides that, such as ‘poison’, ‘blood’, ‘plasma’, ‘gravity’, ‘time’, and ‘space’. Some of them were fundamental laws of the universe rather than an elemental force, but the systems of magic gave me access so I never complained. In any case, each and every one of them could be wielded to deadly effect, and I had enough creativity to draw out their maximum power.

In my hand was what I could only imagine to be a lightning core. Considering the Matron’s final attack, it would only make sense. I hadn’t bothered to Identify it yet, partly because of how chaotic the aftermath of that battle was, and partly because I completely forgot to do it. A quick use of the skill proved me right, though it didn’t give any information beyond the name [Lightning Elemental Core]. Well, at least it’s better than nothing…

The question, though, is what to do with it? Back in the bandit camp, when I first learned that this world doesn’t function with electricity, using mana instead, I figured that if I ever started wielding lightning here then I would have a massive advantage, based on my vast experience. But..is that the best choice? I have no intention of being another jack-of-all-trades when it comes to magic, it’s going to be all in or not at all. If I am going to go up against something that is powerful enough to drag me across multiple, separate universes and hope to win, I can’t monkey around with a bit of fire magic here and a little water magic there. I need absolute dominance.

I was already leaning towards lightning, as very few elements come close to its tremendous power, but I can’t discount the other elements just yet. I have to consider the other six elements that this world has to offer.

Fire is typically great at doing damage. Explosions, encirclements, wildfires, a lot of havoc and destruction to be wrought. However, fire is not just ruin, but also rebirth and purification. In some iterations, I was able to use my insights into fire to heal injuries, even treat diseases. Using fire on a macro or microscopic level can bring tremendous benefits. The only problem is control. Fire resists control in pretty much every world one could think of, even the best pyromancers I have encountered eventually succumb to their own flames, whether injuring themselves or destroying something they were trying to protect.

Water is one of the best elements for healing, in part because it is the cradle of life itself. Well, most of the time, there was that one iteration...um, yeah, anyways, healing. Healing is excellent, but I need to be able to do damage as well. In my experience, water can do impressive amounts of damage, either through pressurized bursts or enormous waves. One could even use ice, if they are proficient enough, and ice is amazing at crowd control. It tends to be very hard to suppress a target with numbers if those numbers are frozen solid. However, for as much power as water holds, it takes a lot of it to do anything significant. Bringing a tidal wave to crush enemies? Good luck dealing with the soggy aftermath, once the stress of summoning and controlling all of that water is over with.

Earth is a solid choice, every pun intended. When one is stuck between a rock and a hard place...it probably was the earth mage that threw the rock there. I should probably end these stone-cold jokes and just get my thoughts rolling- why can’t I stop?! Anyways! Earth magic! Very dependable, hard to avoid since the majority of us walk on the ground, and even airborne enemies should be wary of shards of stone blasting them out of the sky. As Cornelius demonstrated earlier, earth can also be used for crowd control, those earth shackles would be quite difficult for any normal person to break out of, though the ease of such constraints pales in comparison to that of water and ice. Earth can also, obviously, be used for construction purposes, mainly building fortifications and defenses quickly. It is quite the versatile element, with few downsides if the user knows what they are doing. The one, inescapable downside, though, is that earth magic tends to be slow. With enough experience and practice, an earth user could create rapid effects, but in the beginning it would be slow, and gaining that expertise equally so.

Wind can be truly devastating. While many people tend to see wind as gusts of sharply focused air, or large gales, or tornadoes, the true power of wind is that the element deals with the very air we breathe. I have seen wind magic used to suffocate an entire room full of people before they even noticed something was wrong. I’ve seen, in systems that allowed such effects, wind users create static electricity in the air and generate lightning strikes. They weren’t as powerful as the true lightning element, but they were still dangerous. Sadly, wind has a similar issue to water, in that in order to do significant damage a lot of it is needed. I can’t rely on an element that takes too much effort to prepare and control.

Light and shadow...two sides of the same coin. Usually, at least. Sometimes there are some funky rules when it comes to those two elements. Now, I typically see light used for healing, blessings, the more ‘pious and divine’ sort of deal, while shadow is pretty much the opposite with curses, concealment, all the ‘demonic and evil’ stuff. Of course, much of the time this is a direct result of how a world’s system is set up, but I have encountered a fair number of systems that were much more ambiguous in the matter, and the notions of good and evil that were attached to each element were socially constructed rather than naturally given. Very rarely have I seen a world where light and shadow complement each other instead of being antagonistic. Personally, I see each element as a tool. Tools are not inherently good or evil, they just are, and can be used for any purpose imaginable. That said, regardless of my personal opinion, I usually don’t have much choice but to abide by the rules of the world I currently live in. If light and shadow are mortal enemies then I need to either pick a side or stay out of the way. I’ll have to observe how the people of this world view those two elements, but either way, I have no interest in choosing one, or both. Ignoring the potential situation of getting dragged into a war that I simply do not care about, neither light or shadow tends to give me the power that I am searching for. Sure, they can be devastating elements to use, especially against other people of a similar caliber, but against deity level beings? I have yet to see that end well. Especially considering that, most of the time, the connection between either light or shadow comes directly from a being of that level. That...is just not my thing.

Yeah, it seems that lightning will be my path in this iteration. I’ve had a good amount of experience handling it in past lives, but I will need to devote myself entirely to mastering it if I am to have any chance to deal with the entity at the end of my journey. Looks like I have a lot of work ahead of me…

A deep sigh escaped my chest. All this contemplation about elemental affinities only served as a temporary distraction. I spent all this time avoiding the awkward situation I left back in the living room earlier. Honestly, I shouldn’t be feeling guilty at all since I did nothing wrong. However, I clearly brought up something uncomfortable for the two of them, or Cornelius at least, in my line of questioning. Interestingly enough, Kitara did not seem nearly as bothered as Cornelius when I asked about the locked race. Instead, she seemed more concerned about his reaction than the topic itself. Yet, the race matter clearly has to do with her specifically...in that case…

It seems, if I let my train of thought play out, that something drastic happened to Kitara that caused her to change her race. Perhaps it was an item, or a quest reward - do they have quests in this world? It seems unlikely - or a curse by some dark magic practitioner...whatever the cause, I get the impression that Cornelius wanted to stop it but was unable. Kitara brushes off the incident as if it was nothing, or maybe she has no memory of it, any number of possibilities, but Cornelius is unable to get past it. Of course, I could be completely wrong about my deductions, but I have seen these signs in others often enough that I feel certain of my accuracy.

Oh well, not my concern honestly. Just as long as we could all work together efficiently then it is none of my business what happened between those two. What race I am doesn’t even matter so much, provided I don’t have any fatal disadvantages. So far I haven’t been craving blood, or feeling a beastial desire to howl and run wild, or resisting a sudden urge to dive into the sea, which means I can assume that I am as close to human as possible. That is good enough for me at the moment.

Another sigh. Still procrastinating. I pushed myself off of the bed and went in search of my hosts. Leaving the bedroom, I saw the other three doors of the abode. Two of them should be their personal bedrooms, assuming they don’t share one, and the last should be the kitchen...wait, is there no door for a bathroom? There should be...so maybe they do share a room, huh. In any case, I stood still for a moment and used my senses. I closed my eyes and breathed in deeply, searching for the scent of food. After a moment my stomach started growling, at the same instant that I caught the scent of food. It seemed to be strongest in the direction of the furthest door away from me. I was about to pat myself on the back for a job well done...but then I realized that it was a pointless effort since I directly saw Kitara come from that door earlier with food. Stupid.

I walked over to the kitchen door, hoping that they were both there so that I wouldn’t have to add more awkwardness by checking on them in their rooms - room, singular? Might be best not to think of it. Opening the door, I let out a breathe of relief, as Kitara and Cornelius stood by the kitchen counter side by side, murmuring to each other softly as they ate what looked like cookies. Bastards are eating cookies without me, how dare they…

“Oh, hey! Want some cookies? They’re chocolate chip!” Kitara calls out to me once they notice I entered the room. Cornelius grabs the plate they were eating from and holds it out towards me. Alright, they offered me cookies, they are forgiven. Chocolate chip too...how long has it been since I’ve had chocolate chip cookies…

“Thank you,” I said as I grabbed one. “Did you buy these or make them yourselves?” I bit into the cookie and my brain lit up in pleasure. Oh did that hit the spot!

“Made them!” Kitara declared in what has to be the cutest voice I have ever heard. Her expression bright and cheerful once more, transforming her into the ideal girl that every warm-blooded man would fight to protect. I felt my heart stirring, not with love or anything so deep, but a firm desire to make sure she does not suffer sadness...Is there any magic involved? I don’t want to believe that’s the case, but I can’t ignore the possibility. Although this feeling is harmless so far, I loathe the idea of being manipulated in any way. I am the master of my mind, body and soul, no one else.

Cornelius interrupted my musings before they sank into a dark spiral. “Kitkat and I prefer to be as frugal as possible, we grow most of our own food and make our own provisions. I say ‘we’, but it’s really her that handles most of the food haha.”

“Damn right I do, that’s my job,” Kitara said in a rather self-satisfied voice. It seems that they do well to take care of one another, Kitara with the food and Cornelus with the shelter. I wonder how they divide the other aspects of their lives. If not for the fact that they both adamantly call each other ‘friends’ I would have long since thought of them as a couple that had been married for decades.

Before they could start praising each other endlessly, I brought up my reason for seeking them out in the first place. “Okay, so I would like some advice, if the two of you are up to it? It’s about an Elemental Core I picked up earlier, I need to know any necessary information before absorbing it.”

Cornelius and Kitara looked at each other, as if confirming that they are okay for conversation, before Kitara said, “Yeah, we can help you out. Is this the first time you’re taking on an element?”

“In this iteration, yeah.”

“Oh. I don’t know what you’ve been through before, but I can tell you what you should know for this world. Um, basically, once you start using the elements you have to decide pretty quickly whether you’re going to specialize or become a jack of all trades,” Kitara began.

“So the same usual dilemma that plagues every type of game out there, huh,” I commented. A flash of annoyance crossed her face, likely due to my interruption, before she continued. “It’s a little different from what you might be thinking, but yes. The higher you build your affinity with one element, the harder it is to build up affinities with every other element. And if you want to have access to all the elements, your affinity with each will be very low.”

Cornelius jumped in at this moment. “Think of it like this, the affinity itself has a percentage system, but it’s a group percentage. If you try to use all the elements equally, that’s 7 elements taking up the 100% that makes up your mana. That means the highest you could raise them all equally would be 14%. There are a few industrial workers who have 14% in all elements just for practical purposes, being able to operate pretty much every machine in this world except for specialized equipment, and all they need to do to fix that is to raise the particular affinity needed by the remaining 2% of their pure mana. So you can have someone with 14% affinity across the board with a 16% affinity in fire, for example. And since it is impossible to change your affinity once you started building it, those people will never gain access to the true power of any given element.”

Kitara interjected, “Somehow you could always explain that part better than I.”

Cornelius grinned at her, saying, “It took me a long time to get the right words for that explanation, hard work and effort!”

Kitara rolled her eyes and said, “Yeah, you were just overthinking things again one day, as usual.” He laughed, and Kitara took over from that point. “Anyways, that’s how multiple elemental affinities work, it usually isn’t good to raise all of them unless you are working for a big company or the government and getting paid a LOT. Most people here stick with 3, maybe 4 elements and raise those as far as they can. It does take a lot of resources to build your affinity up to something that will keep you alive outside of the cities, but not as much for if you want to live inside. Since we’re working under the assumption that you will be going with us to the Spire, though, that should mean you won’t be looking to have the affinities of a city dweller.”

After digesting their information for a bit, I decided to reveal a part of my plan to them. “I already know what I want to do with my affinity, I’ll stick to one element. Is there anything I should know about that particular path?”

This time Cornelius took the lead. “Oh really? Then you will be like me, I also focus on one element. Obviously, it’s earth. Not too many people do a single element affinity because it would normally take far too much time, money, and other resources to raise it to the maximum. In fact, the difficulty of achieving 100% affinity in any element is already on a legendary level. I haven’t heard of or met anyone who has done it...but whoever does would be unbelievably powerful.”

I somewhat anticipated his response, but Cornelius made it sound more serious than I imagined before. I wonder exactly how much power he was talking about...well, one way to find out. I’ll just have to walk the path of lightning to the end and see what lies there.

“Oh yeah, what element did you-”

I did not notice his question before I directed my focus to the core in my hand. Too late to catch the remainder of his words though, I already began the process of absorbing the core. An electric shock passed through my body, scouring every part of my being, subtly changing my mana and settling in. I nearly lost control of my limbs, it was only with a huge surge of willpower that I did not drop to my knees. It felt like it was going on for minutes, hours even...but in reality it took no more than a few seconds. Then it was done. I felt...different, yet familiar.

I felt...complete.

Congratulations! You have unlocked your first Elemental Affinity!

Calculating Experience...

Resolving Attributes...

Congratulations! You have achieved Level 7.

Name:

Zareb Sindile

Age:

25

Titles:

Master of One’s Soul Well Rounded

Fame:

---

Level:

7

Class:

---

Health:

150/150

Race:

LOCKED

Mana:

380/380

Soul Force:

MAX

Stamina:

180/180

Soul Resilience:

MAX

Strength:

18

Intelligence:

38

Vitality:

15

Wisdom:

38

Agility:

35

Charisma:

6

Dexterity:

17

Luck:

17

Elemental Affinity:

Lightning: 1%