Desolation…A concept Jake knew a lot about yet felt like he barely understood. Not because he was a moron—though that could be debated—or didn’t have the affinity for the concept, but because he was only a C-grade. The concept of desolation was simply not something Jake had ever expected to see in a context like this.Not to say the concept couldn’t be used by those at C-grade or even at lower grades, but this was desolation in its purest form. It wasn’t just a part of some skill with aspects of desolation added to it. No, this was far scarier. One thing was certain… Jake was a lot more apprehensive about this “I” character now than before. If it was a creature that could actually control the concept of desolation to this extent, this system event had just gotten a lot more dangerous.One of the distinct aspects of the concept of desolation was its ability to cause “permanent” damage. As was shown when Villy removed the arm of an Azureflight member back in the Order, the concept woul

Apulsing sensation echoed through Jake’s entire body and soul as waves of desolation were released from within himself, seeking to spread out from containment. This situation was very different from the scenario with the Dark Witch. Back then, he’d had a volatile and explosive core, but the Half-a-Planetary Core Jake had eaten this time around was the exact opposite of volatile.In many ways, it was far scarier than something that just went boom. Jake didn’t even feel any pressure on the inner walls of the Palate stomach, nor did he feel any pain. He just felt a sense of emptiness and numbness wherever the desolation passed. It was honestly soothing, making Jake think that it was okay to just relax. Perhaps he should even take a nap.However, he still knew his situation wasn’t good, and his survival instinct was fully engaged: Surrendering to the calmness and letting his consciousness fade away would mean never waking up again. He tried different methods to handle the desolation, but

Calling what Jake had done a gamble was definitely an accurate description. He was messing with a concept no one really understood, not even someone like the Malefic Viper, making everything unpredictable. The only real question was how good his odds were that he would end up with something beneficial. Using Origin Energy tended to result in a good outcome for him… but this time, he quickly concluded something was off.The string of Origin Energy entered the small snake and mushroom, representing the Palate of the Malefic Viper skill, and at first, Jake thought things were going well. The skill accepted the energy and responded to it.He felt the two merge, and then… then nothing went as Jake had hoped.A loud heartbeat made his entire Soulspace shake, and in return, a green pillar rose from the small snake and mushroom. It pierced the sky, scattering Jake’s arcane energy, and Jake stumbled back, feeling the pressure both inside his Soulspace and on his body outside.Focusing, Jake li

Jake stumbled back to his lodge in Haven alongside Eron, who decided to go with him as they kept talking. The healer was also doing what he could to speed up Jake’s recovery time, though he could only do so much.While Jake’s resource pools turning to shit was definitely his biggest immediate problem, that didn’t mean it was the only one he was actively dealing with. Jake felt like he had just overused his boosting skill way above any prior extremes, as he had severely strained himself. Eron informed Jake that having his body repeatedly emptied of energy and then healed again hadn’t exactly been healthy, either.On the way back, Jake had explained some basic things to Eron about what had happened. Mainly because the guy had already figured out most things himself, including even guessing Jake had failed to upgrade a skill using the same kind of unique energy he’d used to help create Vesperia. Sometimes, Jake forgot the healer could be wicked smart.There were still a lot of things he

Being alone and useless had been quite a miserable experience, but the return of Sylphie and Vesperia had at least added something interesting to Jake’s everyday life. They naturally didn’t have much to do around the lodge either, and they had to keep things quiet and not make a mess, forcing them to stay inside most of the time. Poor Sylphie had a hard time with this, as she couldn’t even fly around and have fun.Vesperia was a lot calmer and seemed like the sort who could easily sit in meditation for a few centuries without complaint. Sylphie was really the exact opposite of Vesperia despite them being kind of siblings, which was weird to think about when he remembered that Sylphie was the older of the two… a fact he made sure everyone knew about.Jake had to wrack his mind a lot—which wasn’t a pleasant experience—to find a way to keep Sylphie entertained, which did kind of help keep him occupied mentally. He had a few things in the lodge for entertainment, such as playing cards and