Jacob practiced his forms once more to solidify his insights during the training, while Oren talked to him from the side.
"You're probably going to want to incorporate magic into your sword style, but I would recommend that you hold off on that for now. It seems to me like a good way to get yourself hurt before you get your sword mastery to at least level 10."
Once he finished going through the forms, he turned to Oren.
"Any idea on who we could add to the roster to make our sixth member, if Mira is for sure willing to delve with us?" He asked the young warrior as he rested his hands on his knees to catch his breath.
"Get your hands off your knees and stand up straight to pull in full breaths," Oren griped before replying to Jacobs question. "As for the candidates, I actually have someone in mind, and he's actually from the village."
Standing up straight, Jacob looked a bit shocked, like he didn't really expect Oren to have someone in mind.
The swordsman just chuckled a bit before responding to the question on Jacob's face, "Don't look so surprised. I knew we would be delving together as soon as I watched you support us fighting that horde of goblins from the dungeon break. I'm also quite knowledgeable on the basics, thanks to my master."
Oren started pacing as Jacob soaked in the information the young swordmaster was explaining.
"I knew we would likely need a party of six," Oren continued, "since that's the number to give us the optimal balance between frontliners with a fighter and me, healing from Sera, pure damage if Mira wants to come for sure, as well as support from you at ranged and crowd-control and Bran as a wildcard."
"I figured that's what my mom's been teaching Sera and my sister," Jacob said as they continued their way down the road, "Her singing also seems to help plants grow, so I figured it had something to do with healing."
Oren nodded, remembering that Jacob had just gotten home and hadn't been around for the new developments around the house for long. "You're right, she told us recently that she's a songstress, as I'm sure you're not surprised to hear, but she's been leaning towards the healing arts ever since she started managing the greenhouse on the farm. She said it caused the system to start attuning her skills towards healing, which your mother seemed to understand."
Jacob nodded his head, "Yes, it makes sense. I can feel the resonance between my own healing spells and the growth of plants, but I don't quite get the connection. I'll have to ask them about that later, I suppose. So, this other guy, what do you know about him?"
Stopping in front of Jacob, Oren continued on about the prospective team member after Jacob's question. "I've kept an eye out and have come up with one name from a village kid. His name is Thomas, and he's a brawler as far as I can tell. He's caught my interest as he's challenged the F-ranked gate a few times, and he's still alive."
"A brawler? And he's surviving in the gate alone?" Jacob asked, his eyebrows rising in surprise. "He must have some serious talent if he's managing that. Where do we find him?"
"He usually hits the gate early," Oren replied as he sheathed his training sword. "If we head toward the dungeon now, we'll probably catch him on his way back. It's not exactly a coincidence that I brought him up today. I've been keeping tabs on his schedule for a while now."
Jacob nodded, and after washing their faces and grabbing a quick drink from the pump, the two boys set off toward the outskirts of Ruvka.
The walk through the morning woods was quiet until they approached the dirt path leading away from the F-ranked gate. Sure enough, a boy about Oren's age was walking toward them.
He had a rough, bruised face and dirt smudged across his clothes. A heavy leather sack hung over his shoulder, clinking softly with the sound of monster cores and whatever else he had managed to scrounge up from his latest delve.
"Thomas," Oren called out as they closed the distance.
The boy stopped, his eyes narrowing defensively as he sized them up. He was notoriously known around the village as a troublemaker, constantly getting into scrapes and arguments. His fists were wrapped in worn but solid leather, and his posture was completely rigid, ready for a fight.
"Oren," Thomas replied, his voice a bit terse as he turned his attention to Jacob. "And the Hemlock kid. What do you want? Did you come for a rematch with backup this time?"
"We're putting a delving group together," Oren said, getting straight to the point without any pleasantries while simultaneously ignoring his provocation for a fight. "A proper party of six to clear the Big 3 system quests. We have an open spot for a frontliner, and I know you've been surviving the gate on your own. Also, I know your fighting skills are nothing to balk at."
Thomas blinked, clearly caught off guard by the offer. He looked between the young swordsman and the newly muscled Jacob, surprised to find the little twerp he had seen at the festival the year prior filling out so quickly.
The tension in his shoulders dropped a fraction, though he remained cautious.
"A proper party," Thomas repeated, turning the idea over in his head. "I admit, it's getting much harder to push deeper by myself. I can hardly make it to the end of the second floor right now. But I'm not jumping into anything blind. I need some time to think it over."
"Then take your time," Jacob said with a reassuring nod. "We're not leaving tomorrow."
"Good," Thomas nodded, feeling like the younger boy seemed more sensible than the young swordsman. "I need to get to Ruvka to sell this morning's haul anyway. Let me clear my bags and get some food. I'll head over to the farm later this afternoon, and we can talk details then."
They agreed to the terms and went their separate ways. Thomas continued down the path toward the village, while Jacob and Oren turned toward the deeper parts of the forest.
"A rematch with backup?" Jacob asked Oren once Thomas was out of earshot, "Did you fight him and lose previously?"
Oren shook his head as he watched Thomas round the corner on the way to the village. "He's always been better than me in hand-to-hand combat. Can wrestle me to the ground and pin me with relative ease. So, of course, I challenged him the last time he noticed I was watching him. It was no different; if anything, the gap between us has grown."
That caused Jacob to furrow his brows. "If you were to fight seriously, who would win?"
"I would never draw my sword against someone unless I were willing to kill them," Oren steeled his gaze as he focused on the young mage, who gulped, "But, I have a feeling that even if I used aura, he would still manage to come out on top somehow."
Jacob whistled a low, long tune in surprise at the answer. "You don't think you could get past the second floor of this F-rank dungeon on your own?"
Oren shook his head as he turned back towards the farm, "If I had any confidence in entering the dungeon by myself, I would have already done so. His class must have advanced recovery skills, because going in there without a group otherwise is basically suicide."
"It didn't seem that bad when I was in there without the system or good magic for myself," Jacob replied in retort.
That caused Oren to let out a sharp laugh, "Hah! Didn't you say Carlos ranked up to B-rank after that dungeon? Any C-rank adventurer who didn't get that rank through pure luck would be able to make it seem that easy. I suspect a Knight class was already quite good for bringing along a few noobs due to their skills and high strength at that rank, but someone nearing the B-rank is something else altogether."
Oren then turned to face Jacob, putting his hands on his shoulders while looking him in the eye, "There is a gulf of power between the C-rank and the B-rank, for whatever reason, and those at C-rank are evaluated by how close they are to reaching the B-rank. The fact that you didn't die in a gate without the system or being a tier-1 mage already is a miracle in itself. The recommended combat level for our dungeon is only three for entering and resource gathering, but it's six for clearing the place."
Sighing, he took his hands off Jacob's shoulders as he began walking towards the farm with the young mage beside him, "Raw power can't always overcome status effects or traps, and monsters in the dungeon are much more powerful physically than we are. They can bridge a 1v1 gap in there at a level and rank disadvantage. The rank of the gate basically just tells you how powerful your skills need to be in order to deal damage to the monsters. A full clear typically requires you to be a rank or two higher just to participate in the final boss fight."
"That explains how powerful the boss of that dungeon is," Jacob replied, almost contemplatively, "It nearly killed even Carlos with its raw strength and status effects through its miasma."
"Then you get why we need a full team to cover every aspect of the fights we could face there, and why I think it's insane that he delves alone," Oren replied. "I suspect he's probably already got a combat level of four even without the rank-up from the 'Big-3', unless he's managed to gain a feat, which also wouldn't surprise me."
"Is getting your combat level up that difficult?" Jacob asked.
"I'll put it into perspective for you," Oren replied, "The goblins I go out to kill all the time are the safest enemies I can solo, and they are only at combat level 3, which awards one experience point each. I'm level 2 now, which grants me a level disadvantage bonus, but even when I was level 1, they only granted 1 XP with the bonus. When they're below that level, you'll really only get one point for two or three enemies you kill until you start killing higher-level and ranked monsters. However, it's nearly double for the monsters while in the dungeon for some reason."
Jacob just nodded, and they walked in silence for a while until Oren had something else to talk about.
"I'm going to go hunt some more of the straggling goblins," Oren told Jacob, checking his sword to make sure it was clear in the scabbard at his hip. "I need to keep my combat instincts sharp, and I need the experience. Would you like to come with me this time?"
Jacob thought about it for a moment before replying, "Not this time, I have a quest I can finish, and I should wait at the farm for when Thomas comes by so he's not awkwardly waiting for us to get back from hunting."
Oren nodded, "Very well, I suppose you're right to do so. I'll be back before dinner."
Thus, Jacob flew back to the Hemlock property, parting ways with his friend as they had made it to a part of the path that bordered the forest. He still had system tasks to complete, and the greenhouse was the perfect place to wait for their potential new recruit.
Entering the warm and variably humid greenhouse, depending on which plants he was near, Jacob immediately got to work.
He spent the next hour meticulously tending to the rows of medicinal plants, adjusting the soil and checking the moisture levels to satisfy his general quests.
As he worked, he decided to test his newly refined mana control. He focused his attention on a standard, non-magical sprig of mint May had planted in the corner as he thought about how best to apply his new class.
Carefully, Jacob threaded his dense mana into the roots, using his intent to coax the plant's natural structure to accept the ambient magical energy in the room.
He spent twenty minutes sweating over the delicate balance, nearly frying the plant twice, until the mint leaves suddenly took on a faint, silvery sheen.
A subtle magical field bloomed around it, resonating perfectly with the environment.
A string of mechanical chimes rang out in his mind.
System Notice: General Quest Completed:
2. Tend to the Greenhouse (5/5).
Reward: 100 Quest xp.
System Notice: General Quest Completed:
3. Nurture a regular herb into a magical herb.
System Notice: New Skill Unlocked - Magic Herb Nurture [Uncommon] (Level 1/10).
New Quests Available:
2. Organize the Barn (Locked: 59min)
Rewards: 100 quest xp.
3. Nurture 5 New Herbs Into Magical Herbs (0/5) (Locked: 1hr 59min)
Rewards: 100 quest xp.
Jacob smiled as he read the skill description. It allowed him to reliably nurture regular herbs into magical variants and gave him an intrinsic understanding of how to care for magical flora. The skill noted that his knowledge would expand automatically with each new type of herb he discovered.
Looking at the silvery mint herb with his inspect skill, he was rewarded with another system message.
System Notice: New Herb Discovered
Herb - Spindella Mintulla (Common)
Description: The magical herb, Spindella Mintulla, is a common magical herb found in any planes environment of sufficient magical density. It can be used to quickly cure infections.
Inspect (2/10) -> (3/10)
Before he could fully explore his new ability, the greenhouse doors flew open. Caleb stood there, panting heavily and looking completely frantic.
"Jacob!" Caleb shouted. "Farmer Johnson's barn's on fire! He's gonna lose the whole structure along with his tools and all the animals if we don't hurry to help him!"
Jacob didn't waste a single second. He sprinted out of the greenhouse, pulling from his core to supplement his speed with wind magic. He then cast his flight spell on the run, wrapping the kinetic force around himself, and launched into the sky with another burst of his air magic and a touch of fire magic for a burst of speed from his feet while cutting the air in front of himself to reduce the drag he would experience otherwise.
Caleb just watched him fly off with a look of amazement at the power Jacob demonstrated. His liftoff was quite sudden, and while he knew his little brother had some powerful magic now, this was really the first time he had gotten a direct demonstration of it.
Caleb shrugged before taking off back towards the field that Arthur was working in at the other side of their property this morning. He knew the problem would be resolved by the time he reached his father, but it seemed important for him to inform Arthur anyway.
Arthur could decide if it would be worth rushing over to the property or letting Jacob handle it on his own. But, after seeing him shoot off into the distance like that, Caleb knew Farmer Johnson would be just fine.
Jacob shot over the fields, spotting the thick plume of black smoke billowing from the Johnson property a few farms over. He landed gracefully in the dirt yard, kicking up just a bit of dust, right as the flames were beginning to spread to the roof of the large wooden barn.
Using a massive surge of kinetic force, Jacob practically tore the barn doors off their hinges. Then, he rushed inside, shielding himself from the blistering heat with a wave of water mana, and wrapped his 'Gentle Hand' spell around the panicked cows and sheep trapped in the stalls.
He floated them out of the burning building in one swift motion, depositing them safely in the external holding pens. He hadn't thought he could use that much magic or that many magic spells at once before, but his adrenaline seemed to be helping him focus and channel the magic necessary to save the defenseless animals.
Immediately turning back to the blaze, Jacob drew the moisture from the surrounding morning air and the nearby water troughs and directly supplied the rest with his own magic.
He combined his water manipulation with a sweeping kinetic push, slamming a concentrated wave of water directly into the heart of the fire.
The flames hissed violently and died under the large volume of smothering water, leaving behind a soggy, smoking ruin of the interior, but saving the structural integrity of the barn itself.
He then manipulated the wind to blow out the steam and residual smoke that had begun to build up within the structure in order to clear the barn of the majority of the burning fumes.
Farmer Johnson came running up, coughing through the lingering wisps of smoke that stubbornly stuck around. The older man was entirely covered in soot but grabbed Jacob's hand, shaking it vigorously.
"Bless you, boy," Johnson gasped, his eyes wide with profound gratitude. "You saved my livelihood. I owe you and your family a debt I can't easily repay."
"I'm just glad the animals and the building are safe," Jacob replied, waving off the praise as he caught his breath. The forced takeoff and rushing in the excitement caused him to sweat quite a bit. He also felt like his mind was a bit stressed from how many spells he had just cast at once to get the animals out of the burning barn.
As the smoke cleared from the yard, Jacob noticed two members of the village guard standing near the main house. They had a young boy pinned aggressively to the ground, his hands bound securely behind his back, still wrapped in worn leathers.
Jacob squinted, his stomach dropping as he recognized the bruised face and the familiar leather-wrapped fists.
It was Thomas.
"What's going on over there?" Jacob asked, pointing toward the guards.
Farmer Johnson's grateful expression hardened into a furious scowl. He wiped the soot from his forehead and spat on the ground.
"I caught that little village troublemaker red-handed setting the fire," Johnson growled, his voice full of venom. "He's been a nuisance for years, but this time he went too far. The guards are hauling him off to Spring City. He's going to face a real judge for this. Not that soft village chief of ours."