After clearing his head and resetting his mood, Botan returned to town. Finding the way back was a little difficult, as the maelstorm just to find a few guards and dancers at the gate, eagerly greeting him.

"There you are!" One guard exclaimed in relief.

"I'm so sorry! I thought someone else had already warned you of the storm." Another apologized.

"Oh… Well it all worked out." Botan dismissed their worry in an attempt to calm them down.

"If you were a normal adventurer, you would be dead… We are at fault."

"...Then double your efforts. I have to get going, so that's all I can say." Botan said what he thought they needed to hear, then waved them off.

His first stop was Hector's shop, 'Lore & Ledgers'. He entered the shop to find Hector with a bandage on his head and the shop in a mess. He didn't have to ask what happened, his expression did that for him.

Hector saw this and answered. "That blasted storm was a hassle. One of the shop's windows broke and it caused all kinds of issues. Glad you made it through okay. You were actually in the thick of it." He spoke while trying to pick up papers scattered all over the floor.

Botan started sitting things on the counter while listening to Hector. Hector saw that Botan sat to dynamice bodies on the counter and reacted. "Ah, to think you could already deduce the items made from dynamice and know I'd want some." Hector praised.

"Eh, no. I actually wanted to do an experiment and thought your input would be helpful."

"Ah, even better." Hector sat the pile of papers down and came over. "And what experiment is it exactly? Please don't blow up my store." Hector's curiosity was tempered by a word of caution.

"Nothing that crazy. Unless cutting this up will make it explode?" Botan asked.

"Remove the teeth first. The two pronounced teeth on the top and bottom jaws are each made of special materials that cause more sparks than flint and steel. If they are removed, you can proceed." Hector advised, pulling out some wax paper so the butchered body would not stain his counter.

Botan proceeded to absorb one of the bodies.

.

[Dynamice Flower]

Abilities Locked Equip Effect: Skill: Boom Bloom

.

"Are you testing if repeat absorption benefits the holy flower?" Hector asked, after seeing Botan's blank expression.

Botan then switched his weapon to the katana form and began cutting it into distinctive sections. As he did this, he replied. "No. Early I beat something called a Shrubblet. It gave me several weapon forms. It could have been because it was a plant, so my weapon had more in common with it… But I don't think that's it. The form names lined up with the different pieces I had separated it into prior."

"Defeating a Shrubblet so soon is impressive. I see. You think that dissecting your kills will allow for more distinct weapon forms?" Hector guessed.

"Possibly. If so, I want to know. I could be leaving a lot of weapon forms behind by not doing this. This is still the best way I know to gain power." Botan answered, finishing another heavy cut.

"Wait, still? …I'd imagine there was some way of you learning about the holy flower."

"He's right. I still haven't gone through the entire help menu yet, but one step at a time." Botan thought, finishing the process of cutting up the dynamice.

Botan then absorbed the parts he had separated, one at a time.

.

[Fire Flower Unlocked]

[Chattertooth Flower Unlocked]

[Fuse Flower Vine Unlocked]

.

Botan's face brightened up, telling Hector that Botan's experiment was a success.

"Haha. I was right! The good news keeps on coming." Botan said with some enthusiasm.

Hector quietly noted Botan's expression and mannerisms. He could tell something happened to Botan in the short time since they last spoke. He subconsciously rubbed a still sore arm as he thought about that.

"Hmm, you said 'the good news keeps on coming'. What else have you accomplished in just one day?" Hector asked.

Botan showed Hector all the collected monster parts he had, as well as the egg. "I also made it to level 9! Will over at the forge said he had a job for me if I made it to level 10, but with my stats, I'll be good now. That means potentially new armor. And this egg might get me my first party member." Botan told him joyously.

"Hmm, what kind of egg is it?" Hector asked.

"...I was hoping you could tell me." Botan answered with slight disappointment.

"I have a lot of general knowledge, but I'm hardly so smart as to easily possess the skills and knowledge of a dedicated expert on any subject. The bane of being a generalist. You'd need to ask a beast master." Hector expressed.

A hand rested on Botan's chin. "Huh, so this world has something like that as well?" Botan pondered aloud.

"Those who raise and domesticate monsters? Yes. Especially here in Mosden. With so many exotic monsters, it's ideal. I believe the small village north of here has a noteworthy ranch. Might I suggest venturing there to find out about your mystery egg." Hector said, moved to cleaning up the shop.

Botan's smile left him when he saw Hector limping around. "Hey… sit down and I'll-"

"You are far busier than I. Even if you cleaned up for me, it's not like I'd sit still. I actually have things to do after this. So I'll be limping around here one way or another. Go." Hector said, sounding slightly annoyed.

Botan didn't want to impose more. He quieted himself a moment. "Alright. I'll see you later." Botan gathered his things and left.

"Don't forget to check out that help menu, thing." Hector reminded him.

Botan left as Hector waited until Botan turned the corner, out of sight. He sighed heavily, then returned to picking up his damaged shop. "That's right, leave. If you get out of town for a while, the better."

Botan left Hector's place concerned for Hector, but very happy about his own progress. He could unlock multiple weapon forms from the monsters he had already defeated and many from anything new moving forward.

Botan decided to visit Willow's Whetstone first. After all, it was essentially a block away, well, 2 blocks away, since Botan currently didn't have a boat. He went the long way around and saw the town more from an angle he hadn't before. He never realized how many murals relied on the reflection in the water to make it whole. He found another spot on a bridge he planned to draw from. He made a mental note of that as he went.

The town seemed weirdly lively right now. Despite the storm just hitting everyone was out and about. "..." Botan watched everyone for a moment. It wasn't that the town was active despite the storm, they were active because of the storm. They were patching up damaged areas and surveying all the bridges. They must do this after every maelstorm.

Botan found himself liking the locals even more than he already did. They lacked the wealth other countries had, they had tougher and more varied monsters to deal with, and they had to rebuild their homes sometimes. And yet, they weathered the storms, figuratively and literally. They were a modest and hardy people. Botan needed to travel to other places later, but he wanted to keep this place as his home. "Or home away from home. I'll get back there… someday." Botan corrected his thinking.

Botan reached Willow's Whetstone soon enough and entered. He saw Walnut and two other younger kids cleaning up the small amount of damage that the maelstorm caused the shop.

As soon as Walnut saw Botan, he greeted him. "Evergreen, welcome!" He said with enthusiasm. His words stirred the other kids to look up, stars in their eyes.

"Heya Walnut. Is your dad in? I was going to see about that request he had." Botan began.

From the back came Willow, wanting to see what got his kids all excited and loud. "Huh, you're saying you're already level 10?" Willow asked in disbelief, having heard what Botan said.

"Level 9 to be honest, but I beat a level 17 shrubblet earlier so I figure I can handle some level 10 business." Botan answered honestly.

Willow examined Botan a bit. "Your armor looks… terrible." He said after a moment. "You sure you want to do this now? You and your party should probably gear up first." Willow voiced his concerns.

"...Well, the only party member I've managed to get is this little guy." Botan said, pulling the egg from the bag. "And besides, I've not been gaining a lot of money. Until I venture further from town, I'll continue making chump change." Botan assumed.

"...So you took down something nearly twice your level on your own?"

"I was level 7 when I killed it. That's what brought me to level 9."

"...Heh. Seems I was worrying over nothing. Alright kid, here's the deal. We're running low on a certain kind of metal. One that can't be mined, it can only be harvested from the monsters that grow it."

"Wait, how the hell do monsters grow metal?"

"I'm not the scholarly type, but I know my own trade. Some monsters just have metal bit on them. Not sure how they get them. Either way, the metal is very, very lightweight. It'd be perfect for you."

Botan was sad that Willow didn't have all the nerdy details on how and why some monsters possessed metal features, but he'd just ask Hector the next time they spoke. Something about what Willow said did catch his attention.

"Why would I want lightweight armor?" Botan asked.

"I mean, you are the Evergreen. Don't you want as much mobility as possible to cast spells?" Willow asked in return.

Botan had failed to consider that. In this world, motion IS magic. So the more heavily armored you are, the fewer magical options you leave yourself. That was a big trade-off. One Botan had to think through.

"My weapon is magic based. I'm learning magic now… but I can't afford to not have as much protection as possible. Then again, had I been wearing heavy armor when I fought that shrubblet, would that have made the fight easier or harder?" Botan thought a bit before having an idea.

"Couldn't you make more jointed armor, like samurai?" Botan asked.

"What's a samurai? Are you talking about the Ventus armor?" Willow asked in return.

"...Will, you know I don't know what that is." Botan replied in a deadpan manner.

"Same to you." Willow pointed out.

"..." Botan realized he had to explain the concept to someone you have never seen a samurai.

"..." Willow waited awkwardly for Botan to speak.

"So like, heavily segmented armor set in a series of plates. So they move a bit with you as you move." Botan finally said.

"Yeah, that sounds like Ventus armor." Willow pulled out a sketched illustration of what he was assuming.

Botan glanced at it, then had to do a double take. There were two armors, one segmented as Botan wanted, it even sort of invoked some samurai motifs with the way the layers sat on one another. The other was so segmented and in just the right way that you could call it lamellar.

"Wow, this is awesome. Is this something you can do?" Botan was impressed.

Willow took exception to that remark. "Oi, I'm not the best blacksmith in the country or anything, but I'm not dull either. I have Ventusian clients from time to time." He defended his craft.

Botan realized how it sounded. "Sorry. If you are willing, something like this is closer to what I want." Botan said, pointing at the samurai. "But even that might be a bit much. I'll probably need to tone down the amount of armor more." Botan clarified.

The two went over what Botan would prefer for armor. He wanted the layered armor on his upper arms and upper legs like a samurai would. He also wanted a solid plate covering the front and back of his chest. The rest of his armor covered in the much smaller segments. Botan also wanted the new armored boots to be sabatons, with a much more upward pointing spiked tip meant to give the ends of the boots a long enough surface for standing on his toes. Any little thing to help him with maneuverability.

After a moment of fighting himself, Willow offered some advice he'd rather not give. "In that case… Listen kid, I'd normally never actually recommend this, but… There's this other shop in town ran by an old lady-"

Botan's panic activated. "Stop right there. She yelled at me and ran me out of her store." Botan complained. Willow and the kids laughed at that.

"Yeah, she does that. Listen, she makes the robes used by Mosden's professional dancers and the royal family. Her stuff is top notch. I think you ought to commission something from her and have me use it as a chassis for these armor attachments. It'd ensure quality." Willow advised. He hated having to rely on someone else, but Willow wanted Botan to have the best armor he could make him.

Botan remembered something. "...Would this armor be the kind of armor I'd want to keep upgrading…?" He asked.

Willow smirked. "Yup. If you can bring me some of her work I'll put in extra effort and make it something you'll keep around." Willow promised.

"...How much?" That was Botan saying yes.

"From me? Fulfill my request and it might not cost you anything. That old lady on the other hand, no idea." Willow told him straight.

"Well then, what's the request?" Botan asked.

Willow crossed his arms as he spoke. "I need some more of a certain kind of metal I use too often. It's an extremely light metal for the defense it offers, that's what I'll be making your's out of. Thing is, it ain't the kind of thing you can dig up. It can only be found in certain monsters, [Malmetal]." He began explaining.

"Wait, what? From monsters? …How does that work?" Botan wanted all the nerdy details.

"My old master used to explain it as the monsters eat the dirt, but the minerals aren't in the dirt, but now it's in the monster… Not really my forte. Sorry, kid." Willow brushed off the technical question.

Botan wanted to fall to his knees in emotional devastation, but he still had a way to learn his useless information. "I'd bother Hector to tell me later." "So anyways, what kind of monsters have this [Malmetal]?"

"Lots of 'em. Around here the Jackknife rabbits have a tiny bit, but it's honestly not worth it. Those that gain a title become Jackknight rabbits, now those have quite a bit, and it's better quality too. I'd say 10 of those would cover your materials, but… I need as much as you can get me. Like I said, it's used to make a lot of alloys, it blends really well, meaning it's ideal for long-term armor. Mean good paying customers and those looking for repairs need it. I still have a little in the back, but I'll run through my supply in less than two weeks." Willow finished explaining.

"Understood. I saw a jackknife rabbit north anyways, which is where I'm going tomorrow. That old lady will be harder to deal with than those monsters." Botan admitted.

"Haha, no kidding. I wish I had a [Demon Jar] to let you borrow. As is, you might want a bigger bag to carry all the [Malmetal] you collect." Willow said casually with the laugh.

Botan became slightly serious and offended. He adopted a deadpan look, his eyes looked done with Willo's shit. He'd teased him with metal monster lore and dropped the bomb, now this? Botan would not stand for it. "...Dude. You can't just keep saying cool sounding things like that, you know I'm going to ask what that is." He said in entirely too serious a manner.

"Ah, it's a container that has a phantom space. It lets you carry a bunch of stuff with you." Willow answered, not caring about Botan's extreme reaction.

Botan was placated, for now. "Ah cool, they have stuff like that in this world. How much are they?" Botan asked.

Willow wasn't playing along at all. "No idea, you can only get them in Ventus. They say that genius prince of theirs makes them."

"...I can't wait to visit Ventus." Botan thought again.

Soon after Botan and Willow wrapped up their discussions and Botan left the store to again visit that evil old lady. Her shop seemed like the only building untouched by the storm. He prepared himself before he entered.

He entered the shop to see the same little old lady manning the shop. She looked up at Botan, closing whatever book she was reading.

"Eh, come back, heh? That rubbish 'armor' ain't doing too well, eh? Finally decided to buy some of me proper clothes, eh?" The little old lady spoke that odd way again.

Botan almost went down a rabbithole of thinking as to why he can hear an accent from her and less than proper language given that the holy flower supposedly translates for him. He instead stayed on point for a change.

"That's right." Botan showed her the holy flower. "I'm the holy flower hero and Tia has been teaching me to dance. I need something that isn't going to weigh me down." He told her.

Her eyes darted between the holy flower and Botan's face."I should have known better. Your eyes were far too pretty. So you are the Evergreen…" For a moment, she was filled with humility and reverence…, but only a moment. "Ah, finally speaking some sense. Tell me child, what exactly do you want?"

"... I want a full body suit… and a baggy robe." Botan added to make it sound less suspicious.

"I see, I see. Both form fitting and loose. I need more details! Patterns? Color pairs? Speak!" She was far too excited.

Botan just wanted a featureless bodysuit from her for Willow to use as a basis for his new armor. That said, Botan liked designing things and if he could get a robe, he'd wear it over the armor.

"I'm good at drawing." Botan took out some paper and started making a few sketches. "I was thinking something like this and-" Botan found himself giving this far more thought than he originally intended. He made and dismissed several ideas, keeping some common elements he liked. The old woman did not simply listen. She was very opinionated as well, but when Botan said he didn't like something or did, she didn't challenge it much.

At the end of the process was a result Botan liked quite a bit. The coloring was something he would have chosen, but the old woman told him the Evergreen needed to draw attention, not shy away from it. It'll certainly grab attention. Botan liked that he'd be able to choose when to wear the robe atop his armor. He didn't give any details on the bodysuit, telling her he'd have the robe for detail. Obviously the truth was any work on the bodysuit could be a waste about Willow was done with it.

He felt bad lying to the old woman, but it was the only way he'd get her to do as he asked. Eventually, Botan and the old lady finished their business, with Botan parting with some coin yet again. He was hoping that his armor was the last major expense he'd need to suffer, because he was still spending money faster than he could make it.

After all his other business was dealt with Botan went to Tia's and explained to her how his day had gone, telling her about his breakthrough with magic, and everything else. Eventually, she wanted proof. Botan completed his five minute spin effortlessly soon after.

Tia stared a moment. "Your progress is so startling. I find myself not yet prepared for your rate of growth. I have to remind myself that you are from another world. Normally the rare talents like you learn magic from a young age. I guess natural genius and being an adult makes it understandable."

"Heh, natural genius? That's going a bit too far, don't you think?" Botan felt a bit embarrassed.

"Of course not. You've mastered step one in less than a week. You might master step two within the month." Tia said with confidence.

Botan thought she wasn't being entirely honest, but even she thought that the next step would be harder. It made Botan nervous. He was basically a wizard and he was told he couldn't cast spells until after the first wave. He was doing well. He beat an enemy more than twice his level with nothing but wit and his hero skills.

"But would that be enough?" Botan thought, stealing a glance at the egg. "If I had a full party then-"

Botan's thought was interrupted by another. "Hey, Tia. Is there a maximum party size?"

Tia was already cooking food, she turned slightly to answer. "Nope. Well~, I should say people typically avoid going over a party of six. See, up to that point, each member of a party will receive the same EXP as if they were on their own. After six, the EXP is divided into smaller and smaller portions." Tia said, adding some chopped meat to the dish.

"I hear that the Ivory company's expeditions usually consist of 12 members, but even they choose to divide up into two parties…" Tia thought for a brief moment. "You're thinking about forming a party? My dancers and I will find the time if you ask." Tia offered.

"Possibly. If my party can go to the wave then…" Botan trailed off.

"Say the word. If you want us to back you up we absolutely will." Tia said with conviction, dropping the spoon and placing a hand over her chest.

Botan was younger than those around him, but he was also supposed to be the hero. He felt he should be the one that held conviction. They had dinner a bit early because he wanted to discuss things with Tia. He figured he'd plan ahead with her. He would be gone from the capital for a few days at least and wanted to make sure he didn't forget anything, seeing as he was quite forgetful.

After dinner, Tia was the first to speak. Not about his plans, but about more magic training. "Botan, this may be a bit sudden, but I'd like you to try the second step of magic training."

Botan thought for a moment. "Yeah. Even though I'll fail, the sooner I try it, the sooner I can begin figuring out how to solve it." Botan eventually answered.

Tia smiled warmly. "That attitude of yours will take you far." Tia said, moving to the closet to pull out the same large piece of wood she'd shown him yesterday.

Botan looked at it nervously. "That is step two? I thought that'd be the final step."

Tia bore a mischievous smile. "Nope. Of the four steps to magical comprehension, this is only the second. You need to break the wood with a strike empowered by magic. Being a hero won't help you here. Even I can't break this wood without magic, and my level is quite high. I suggest not putting your full physical might into your attempts, as it doesn't help and can only hurt you. Now, try your best." Tia told him.

Botan stood and got ready. He'd use his hand to make sure that when it broke, it was because he understood and utilized magic, not because he had the Evergreen. He stood there a moment and realized he had no idea how to actually go about hitting it. Sure, he could throw a punch, but if the action didn't at least somewhat align with a spell, he'd not be able to sense it out and correct any misalignments to achieve the spell. So how would he do it?

Botan took a low stance and tried throwing a punch. He squared his body, stepped into the attack and rotated his waist. He was hoping the movement would invoke something that he could then follow, but it didn't work. He hit the wood and nothing happened. His face soured, but Tia was there to cheer him up.

"You already see the problem, and a lot more clearly than you saw last time too. I'm sure you'll figure it out in time."

"So step one was learning to follow the trails, but step two is finding them?" Botan asked.

Tia wore a poker face. "I'm not answering that."

When Botan heard her response, he grinned. He had something planned now.

Botan smiled. "One more time?"

Tia thought it was odd but agreed. "Sure, hit it as many times as you like. Did you figure something out?"

"I kind of cheated." Botan admitted. "Every time I come to the right conclusion you praise and compliment me. Positive reinforcement is good and all, but that means I just read you." Botan bagan explaining.

"Oh?" Tia kept her poker face.

"Yeah. When I said 'step two is finding them' you refused to answer. If that was correct, you'd have given positive reinforcement. So that assumption I had must be wrong… Which means-" Botan finished his explanation by spinning like he did for step one then launching out his right leg, striking and shattering the wood.

Tia stood, stunned.

"If this training isn't to find the trails… and you can not create a spell because the spells are predetermined… Then You have to start on a trail you know and walk it down a new path!" Botan reveled in being right on the money. "So, once I do eventually learn a few starting movements, I can branch off from them to become what I need. So, as long as I use step one to make sure I'm on a trail and use step two to branch off from those starting points… I can reach all kinds of spells, right?" Botan asked.

After a moment to recover from the shock, Tia practically threw herself at Botan. "That was incredible! You passed step two in two attempts! That has to be the fastest that anyone has ever passed step two in all of history!" She yelled, hugging Botan in delight.

"Ehh. If I didn't sus an answer out of you, it would have taken me a week at least." Botan tried calming her down.

"Don't you downplay this! You'd have discovered that by tomorrow. To perform a spell on the spot. That's something professional dancers are expected to do!" Tia wasn't calming down.

Eventually, Botan calmed her down enough. Botan cleaned up the mess he made by shattering the wood, while Tia made a dessert to reward Botan for his effort. "Tia really was a well of positive reinforcement like he said. She was a very warm and caring woman. Alder was lucky to have such a good mother." Botan thought.

The two spoke into the early night, before Botan thought to mention the time. "Isn't it getting late?"

"If you want to retire, you can. I have to stay up in case I'm called on." Tia offered.

"Hmm? You don't normally do that. What's so special about tonight?" Botan asked, now opening his pack and reviewing his supplies.

"The envoy with the prince we sent to the international conference for the waves was to return early today, but was delayed by the maelstorm. So they'll be coming any minute now. There's a chance I will be called on. It's my duty to wait to receive orders." Tia told him.

Botan didn't say anything immediately, but Tia's expression and tone dipped for just a moment when she mentioned the prince. He saw that she was tired, but would stay regardless. He decided to not pry into her business, instead realizing he needed a much bigger bag if he was to leave town and survive in the wilderness.

After a brief pause, Tia asked something to break the silence that formed. "When do you plan to party with the dancers?"

Botan smiled. "I might soon. Will, the blacksmith, had some kind of job he wanted me to do for him once I got this strong. After I complete that, I think I should focus on gaining levels." Botan openly shared his plans with her.

It was strange. He wasn't an open book all the time. He often kept some stuff to himself, but Tia was the person that brought him to this world and her home was the most comfortable place Botan had. He felt that he could trust her more implicitly than he could others, even Hector.

Tia had just managed to put away the dishes as she responded. "Hmm, have you already unlocked all the weapon forms from the immediate monsters around us? Levels are nice, but they are not the only thing to consider." She asked.

"I actually still have a few I need to unlock…". Botan drifted into his next thought. "But they are not the only things to consider." Botan ended up saying aloud.

Tia picked up on that "In that case, I guess I'll have to throw you into the deep end and tell you about the third test for magic." Tia said with her now signature mischievous smile.

"..." Botan winced. "I'm in a good mood, mercy." He quietly begged.

"It's fine. You can't even do it here, so it's not like I'm making you do anything else tonight. Just letting you know for the future." She clarified herself and comforted Botan.

Botan was curious. "Why can't I do it here?"

"It's because you'll need a surface of water." Tia answered.

"...No, you're joking." Botan immediately guessed correctly what kind of stupid test he'd be doing next.

"You'll have to learn to dance across water." Tia confirmed.

"And let me guess, there's a trick to it just like the others? Something new I haven't dealt with? Something I have to figure out without even knowing what I'm looking for?" Botan asked knowingly. He said, his head slowly coming to meet the table.

"Of course. It wouldn't be much of a lesson if you didn't learn something new." Tia said with zero sympathy.

Botan sat his head on the table "Step one was become a Beyblade, step two was become Steve from Minecraft, and now step three is become Jesus fucking Christ!? What the fuck is step four!? I'm too scared to guess!" Botan thought, loudly.

Tia saw the reaction and roughed Botan's hair a bit. "Calm down. Don't make it a race, you're already winning by any standard we could be measuring. Like you said, you have weapon forms to unlock and that quest from Will. You don't need to pursue this exclusively or overtly. The reason you're learning things this way is because you'll be a better dancer for coming to the conclusions for yourself." Tia said in an upbeat manner.

"How so?" Botan asked. He wasn't calling her a liar, he just wanted to get her to accidentally spill the bea-

"I'm not going to give too much away again. I know how sharp you are now." Tia read his intentions immediately.

"C'mon." Botan pouted like he would with his own mother.

"All I'll say is that I could teach anyone how to break that wood in an afternoon, but if I did that… You'd need a year to pass test 3 and you would never ever pass test 4." Tia said resolutely.

"What!? A year?"

"I'm not exaggerating. Taking 50 steps on a water's surface is not something the lazy and unattuned can achieve. You'd need to learn the other small lessons that step one and two taught you that you haven't realized yet. Lessons that I can't imagine you learning if you had too much information on the subject." Tia warned against him fishing for answers.

"Huh, 'unattuned'? That gives me a hint…, but not really. I should expect this test to take me a lot longer, best to do as she said and… That's right, I need to check my help menu. I keep getting distracted." Botan opened up his menu while speaking to Tia. "But I have to head north to that town with a beastmaster Hector was speaking of. Will's request might also send me somewhere. You're right that levels aren't everything. If I can manage to get new equipment and hatch this egg, I'd be feeling a lot better." Botan told her.

Botan saw something that caught his eye.

[Flower Hero Power Up Methods]

"Now this is what I was looking for!" Botan thought.

[Method 1: Bouquet Bonus (Core): The power of all weapon forms is boosted by the total number of weapon forms unlocked.]

As soon as he read this, he looked at his weapon forms. They were definitely stronger than he remembered. Not by a crazy amount, but as he collected more weapon forms that'd change. Even new forms would be unlocked already boosted by this method. So some cool weapon form he unlocks later that would be barely within his level to use would already be boosted for each and every weapon form he had. "And I just learned how to get a lot more weapon forms too!"

Botan went back to his help menu eagerly.

[Method 2: Cultivation: Each weapon form can blossom into a more fully powered form by sacrificing certain amounts of certain items to that form. No power is gained until all required items have been sacrificed.]

"What? I can upgrade weapon forms? How do I-?" Botan thought as he looked back at his weapon forms. He saw an oval shaped symbol on the screen of the [Grass Blade]. He tapped it, opening up a sub-menu.

[Cultivation Menu]

[Subject: Grass Blade]

[Necessary material for Cultivation are as followed]

[10 different types of grass] [2 completed]

[5 whetstones]

[3 different monster carapaces] [1 completed]

"Hmm, whetstone because it's a blade? The grass makes sense… The carapaces… because katana equals samurai and samurai armor is based on bugs? That's a bit of a stretch." Botan studied the information. "If I can find two more types of bug monsters, doing this won't be too hard. I could-more importantly, why am I just now seeing this? There was definitely no oval symbol there before. But now they all have it. No, I'm 100% sure they weren't there before. Is it some kind of tutorial thing? Where they don't let you access certain options until you've gone through the proper tutorial?" Botan had a number of guesses.

Botan would puzzle over these questions after making sure there were no more cool power up methods in the help menu. But just as he went to do so-

Slam

Alder came stumbling in loud and frantically. Botan and Tia both shot their heads up to see the commotion. Alder looked like he was crying and had a black eye, or maybe just slightly bruised.

"...Sweety, what's wrong? What happened?" Tia asked, none of the professionalism she used in public was present.

Alder went to speak, but saw Botan. He opened his mouth, but the words died in his throat. "I… … The envoy has returned. I'd like to rest." Was all he managed to say.

Botan was not clueless. He could tell he was keeping them from speaking. "I'll excuse myself. I see you after I return from my trip." Botan told them, putting his bag and shoes on.

Alder calmed down extremely quickly from what little Botan said and turned to him. "You're leaving the capital for more than a day's outing?" He asked, seriously.

"Uh, yeah. I have a request from a blacksmith that'll net me better armor and I have a monster egg and need to hit up a beast master at the ranch north of here to find out the species. Don't worry, I'll be back when I can. I'm not planning to visit the other countries until I at least get a taste of what the waves are like." Botan told him.

"...By yourself?" Alder asked, now paying a lot of attention.

"It's fine, I killed a level 17 today, I got this." Botan assured him, thinking he was concerned.

"...I'd like to accompany you." Alder responded. It didn't sound like an offer.

"Um, what?" Botan was lost in the sudden conversation.

"I said I'd like to join your party." Alder made it sound more like an offer now.

Botan wanted to say yes, but- "...I mean, that'd be great…, but as an advisor, are you allowed to just-?"

Alder cut him off. "I've been given leave. Do not worry. With bro-the prince back, I'm not as needed, but helping you is still something Mosden hasn't done as much as we should have. So I'll correct that personally."

Tia looked at her son for a moment, sad. She'd looked sad since she saw him. "...If you think that's best. Botan, Alder is a very gifted dancer, at least as gifted as myself, if not more so. He also has lived in Mosden and this world his whole life. He'd be a great help to someone still new to this world."

Botan looked at Alder confused. There was clearly more going on here, but he didn't feel like either was tricking him. Alder looked like he was about to fall to pieces when he walked in the door, yet now he had the same levelheaded look he'd seen him with the first time they met. He thought only for a moment.

"O-Of course. This'll be very reassuring." Botan eventually answered.

"Thank you…" Alder replied.

"..." Botan said nothing.

"..." Tia and Alder said nothing, they seemed to be expecting something..

"What?" Botan finally asked.

"Are you going to send the party invite or should I?" Alder asked nervously.

"Oh…" Botan had to be explained that parties were a tracked system within the status magic and not simply formed through verb agreements. After which they showed him how to send an invite. Soon enough they were partied and agreed to meet at the northern exit of the town the following morning by midday, as they were both up too late to head out early. Botan was sent on his way with a smile and a wave… Once the door was shut, the mood changed.

Tia softly clasped Alder's face and eyed the damage in concern and rage. "What happened!?" She demanded, a tear preemptively falling.

"Mom, leave it. What's done is done." Alder said, tired and defeated.

"That fucking bastard put his hands on MY son! It isn't done, he is!" Tia shouted with anger she'd not shown before.

"You can't. You know you can't…" Alder hugged his mother and tried to calm her down.

"I can turn that castle into a glass floor in one dance!" Tia screamed.

Alder stayed calm, for the both of them. "I know, but you still can't." He told her.

Tia was trembling in rage. "...This is the last straw. Whatever love I have for Mosden, it's less than my love for you. When… When Erich passes, we will not suffer this anymore. We'll move north, somewhere quiet. He can win, I don't care anymore." Tia managed to say after some time.

Alder frowned. "I don't want to leave… The Ivory Company will jump on the newly minted king like jackals. Baobab isn't going to be enough to discover and diffuse all the traps they'll place. I have to help." He said, resolute.

"...He removed you from your job as advisor, didn't he?" Tia asked.

"..." They both stood there, holding each other, staring off somewhere else.

"Then how are you going to help Mosden?" Tia asked.

"..." Seconds passed.

"..."Then nearly a minute.

"I guess I'll start by helping the Evergreen." Alder said, sounding like he was out of options.

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[Otherworld Index]

Today we'll be discussing [Malmetal]. Malmetal could be said to be a naturally occurring metal or not depending on how you view things. [Malmetal] is created when monster consume several different types of minerals, none of which are yet [Malmetal]. Stomach acid then break down these varying minerals. The newly separated minerals and the stomach acid allows for a chemical reaction that forms a new metallic alloy to form via atomic bonding, [Malmetal]. This is why some say it is naturally occurring and others don't. It's made, but can only be produced in nature, as far as people are aware.

[Malmetal] isn't very toxic like other metals due to having maintenance itself after bonding. Most monsters have at least a small amount of [Malmetal] in their blood and it causes them no harm.

Various monsters actively try to cultivate [Malmetal] in their body by eating dirt directly in small amounts over time. Some monsters have more specialized ways of acquiring [Malmetal], such as eating the fruit from hyperaccumulator plants that gather the minerals for them.

These monsters often have the metal replace crucial parts of their bodies that are solid with [Malmetal], such as horns, claws, teeth, tusks, bones and armored hide.

Because this process takes time and materials, one's own level has nothing to do with how much [Malmetal] a creature possesses. Time and opportunity are the factors that decide that. That said, a monster with more [Malmetal] has usually been around a long time and been successful in thriving.

As hunters say - "Levels don't mean [Malmetal], but [Malmetal] means levels." when accessing monsters to hunt or avoid.

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[Author's Notes]

Botan has figured out what Naofumi had in canon, that dissecting monsters would result in a higher number of total shield unlocks.

He also started his first quest. One that'll hopefully end with him having some better armor than already heavily beat up chainmail meant for a level 1.

The two big gains from this chapter was Botan passing test one AND test two to learn magic, and learning two of his four power up methods. If only he wasn't so easily distracted that it literally got him killed before, then he'd have remembered to read the other two. Damn it Botan, you dingus.

Lastly, something is or was going on with Alder and now he'll be Botan's first party member. That's right, the first party member is a dude. You are not getting waifu right away, that comes later.

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